Page 43 of Dark Desire (Dark Souls Spin-off Short Story)

I lifted her in my arms and carried her to the sofa, resting her head on a pillow and gently lowering her skirt.

I ran my fingers softly over the bite marks on her neck before leaning down and placing a gentle kiss on them.

Her heartbeat was slow and faint, yet still there as a reminder that she was alive.

’This had better work,’ Ambroz hissed in my mind, his doubts causing anxiety to grow quickly.

Had we thought this through? Not really.

I had acted impulsively, jumped onto a theory, the only one that seemed to have any legs.

But there was still doubt. The Fates held the cards of life and death. What if they refuse to let her turn?

‘It will work. It has to, ’ I answered, trying to convince both myself and him. There was no way I’d spent the last five centuries believing I’d never be lucky enough to find my soulmate to lose her now.

Every muscle in my body tensed as I felt the temperature drop sharply, and my breath became visible from between my lips.

Drawn by a magical presence beckoning me to the window, I slowly stood and moved towards it.

In the middle of the graveyard, like hooded grim reapers, three ghostly figures in white robes that concealed their entire bodies, including their faces, stood.

Nothing was visible to identify who they were, yet I instinctively knew.

The Fates.

My nostrils flared as I stared at them, fighting the suffocating ripple of oppressive magic they exuded with my rage. My vicious eyes narrowed when the figure in the middle pulled out a gold hourglass filled with blood.

My heart pounded. I knew little about The Fates, but Mama had been a firm believer in the gods and loved the legends and myths that followed them.

The Fates were made up of three divine entities, each responsible for one element of life.

The first granted the blessing of birth, the second measured an individual’s lifespan, and the third ended it.

My eyes flicked down to the ancient blood-filled sand timer held by the middle Fate.

Its ghostly hand passed it to the one on the right, who reached for it.

The lower chamber was nearly full, with only a trickle remaining at the top.

Darcelle’s hourglass was being passed to death.

I glanced over my shoulder at her. It was too soon.

I needed her to wake up to know if I’d used enough venom to infect her successfully before they killed her.

Using my vampire speed, I zoomed out of the church and halted abruptly on the porch, glaring at the three immortals.

“Why?” I snarled, just as the third fate reached for the hourglass. Its hand hovered in mid-air, seconds from grasping the golden handle. My question was enough to halt them, and when the death giver lowered its hand, I exhaled a subtle breath.

“She broke an oath of life. That must be repaid. There is no other way,” the middle one spoke, its voice sounding eerily distant yet echoing all around me. I lifted my chin, keeping my gaze steady and ignored the overwhelming urge to submit to their power that tried to infiltrate my soul.

“I know that,” I growled, my fury igniting with every word.

“I want to know why you sent her back to that night. You must have known this would happen. I’m her soulmate.

Even if she wasn’t aware because she’s a witch, you must have known she would feel the urge to save me.

You must have known she’d break her oath. ”

The one in the middle tilted its head slightly, as if considering the question carefully. “We only know what fate determines must be. A person's choices may alter the course of an unseen fate. We must protect the balance.”

“So you didn’t know she’d save me?” I growled as I stepped off the porch into the graveyard. I could feel their power radiating and repelling me from coming any closer, yet I fought for one more step just to prove my point. They didn’t intimidate me. “But you had to know we were soulmates?”

“Darcelle’s order was to remain out of sight until the smoke turned black and rose to the sky,” the first said, dodging my question completely. My jaw clenched and my hands curled into fists at my sides. “Your fate was to die that night. Hers was never to know you existed.”

“That’s sick,” I spat, feeling Ambroz’s pure aggression and fury forcing its way to the surface.

Unable to hold him back, I allowed him to share control with me.

“You sent her on a mission to retrieve my grandfather’s necklace the very night you knew her soulmate would die.

And she’d never have known if she’d followed your orders. ”

“That was her fate.”

“Why give her a soulmate she’d never meet?” I roared, losing my temper.

“We do not grant soulmates. Those are blessings from the gods. We control the fate of life. Not love,” the first fate answered.

“And you did meet. When you were children,” the middle one answered.

I closed my eyes, shaking my head slowly with an angry grimace on my face. Why would Veles gift me a soulmate I was never destined to have? How fucking unfair was that? I was supposed to be one of his chosen children. A direct descendant of his first creation, Demonksi Upirs. Why would he…

My eyes snapped open.

“This was always his plan,” I whispered, staring at the faceless entities. “Veles changed my fate by gifting me Darcie as a soulmate. She was the only one who could have saved me that night.”

’And in doing so, he knew The Fates would kill her but that we would find her first. He wanted us to turn her into one of his vampires. Veles is on our side. He was protecting us, ’ Ambroz whispered in my mind.

“As like humans, the Gods can change the course of fate with their actions. Veles has already been punished for his role in causing this imbalance in the universe but the imbalance still remains. Her life must be taken,” the third said, its arm lifting once more to reach for the hourglass.

“A life for a life,” I muttered, my heart pounding in my ears as the third fate wrapped its spidery fingers around the handle.

“Zoran,” her husky voice, so hoarse, croaked behind me, and I spun around to see her stumbling into the doorway of the church.

Her eyes were glassy, her skin pallid, and a thick layer of sweat glistened on her skin as she lifted her hand to rub her forehead.

I raced to her side just before her legs gave way and wrapped my arm around her waist, holding her up.

Brushing her damp hair away from her fevered skin, I cupped her jaw, steadying her head from flopping as I studied her. Her whole body was trembling.

“I don’t feel good,” she mumbled, and I exhaled a ragged, shuddering breath of relief. My venom had taken. She was infected. Most humans writhed in pain for days under its effect before it would slowly leave their system, but if they died during that time, they’d turn.

“It’s okay, beautiful. It’s my venom,” I explained as she rested her head against my chest briefly until her whole body tensed when she saw them.

My head whipped around as I watched the third fate holding the hourglass, lifting it above its hood as the tiniest drop of blood seeped through the narrow throat.

Its finger tapped the top. The last drop fell. And then it was empty.

“Zor—" she gasped, scarcely making a sound before she collapsed. Limp. Lifeless. Her head fell back over my arm as I cradled her closer.

“Darcie?” My voice cracked. My heart thundered in my ears, making it even harder to listen for hers, even though I already knew what I’d find.

Silence. A scream tore through my soul. An intensity so profound and crippling that it brought me to my knees, pressing her still body harder against my chest as if it might keep her here.

But she was gone. Her life had ended. And even though I still clung to hope that a new one would begin, the pain, fear, and horror of holding my dead soulmate in my arms was too much to bear.

Ambroz unleashed a haunted roar into the night.

I glared at The Fates, my chest rising and falling with every loathing breath.

They simply stood there. Watching. No emotion. No words. Nothing. I despised them for it. But I knew that hating them was pointless. They weren’t capable of feeling anything except maintaining the balance of the universe. That’s all they were. Prisoners of fate.

“Are you happy now?” I roared.

No answer.

I pressed my forehead against Darcie’s chest, tears pricking behind my eyes as I squeezed them shut and prayed.

I prayed to Veles. Pleaded. Bargained. Promised to be his loyal servant for all eternity, anything, if he would only give her back to me.

The seconds dragged on like centuries. Each one twisting my soul with unbearable grief.

“Come on, Darcie,” I whispered against her cold lips, kissing them softly, desperately. “Come back to me.”

A flicker of movement from The Fates made me lift my head.

I became transfixed as the third Fate glided as if floating above the ground.

It stopped in front of the first figure and held out the hourglass.

My eyes widened, and hope filled every crevice of my body when the first Fate took it.

The hourglass was lifted and slowly turned upside down, the top chamber now full of blood.

Darcie’s chest suddenly heaved. My world spun again as she took her first breath in my arms. Her eyes snapped open, a shade of violent crimson, and she gasped, drawing in a ragged breath as her hands clutched at my shirt.

“Darcie!" I pulled her into my arms, hugging her tightly, burying my face in her hair and thanking Veles for bringing her back to me. It worked. Thank Veles it worked.

The Fates glided towards us and I shielded her with my body, hissing as my fangs snapped down.