Blood Moon's Paroxysm

Prologue

"Death confirmed?" king Harlaus of Araya asked the guard stationed beside the blood stained door as he arrived at the scene.

The guard bowed, then got down to one knee before the king could deny his formalities, "Yes, your majesty," the man tilted his head down respectfully and answered without further elaboration.

After a while, the famous priest of the town, Jordan, an old friend of King Harlaus, walked into the room in a rush.

Seeing his old friend arriving unharmed, he smiled a charming smile, "The curse is finally gone then?"

The priest was panting, his heart hammering against his chest as he struggled on speaking words, "I'm afraid not, your majesty," he managed to speak.

The king was shocked by that response, but waited for his old friend to finish.

"We are unsure if that witch had a baby or not," the priest stated, catching his breath so he doesn't pass out, "She'd been married for 5 years."

"Where's her husband?" The king questioned, sounding a bit concerned.

"He's dead," the priest responded, "but we found no records of a child being born, your majesty."

The king paused for a while, his pupils dilated as if fearing the return of that witch. After a moment, the king turned to the guard standing beside the door and commanded, "Send as many teams as there are left to search the village around," he said, "make sure none of them have the witch's hair and eyes."

"Shall we bring them to you if there is any, your majesty?" the guard asked.

The king shook his head, and responded in a nonchalant way, "Kill them instantly, I want only the body."

Then to the priest he said, "Secure the witch's body, I don't want the others to touch it before I do."

He spoke of the dead body as if it was a treasure.

And it is the most precious treasure and gift between the four countries.

The king looked around the master bedroom once more, his gaze skipping past the dead warriors of Eythora and chuckled to himself, "Pathetic."

A moment later, he received a call from a guard that the body was secured and ready for the ceremony to begin.

It has been a tough week but the ceremony has to commence the second after the witch died. It's a myth that says the body's blessings withers away the longer it's left untouched.

The king was escorted by the Arayan guard and arrived at the dining hall of the witch's manor. The room was large and spacious, the walls were dark in colors and the furniture were almost as opulent as the castle's.

A lady with dark red hair lay on the long dining table. The witch was resting with a peaceful face even after her death as an unwanted person in the entire world.

Her powers are what made her special, notorious and feared. And the fact that she is the blood witch who was born once every thousand years made her even more unique.

King Harlaus gazed upon her clothed body where blood was splattered all across her face and limbs. She was a beautiful woman after all, despite the curse she had within her grasp.

A guard handed him a short sword as he positioned himself before the body with a satisfied smile. He then rested both his hands on the sword as he thought out a speech with meaningful words that will be spread across the world by the remaining warriors in here.

After he took a deep breath, he began his speech, "For all the remaining warriors in this bloodied hall," he swept his gaze around the room and regarded each one of them who is wounded and resting at the side before he continued, "I am beyond pleased to hear you breathing well.

"To all the fallen warriors of Araya, Breezelyn, Eythora and Mariglen, I sincerely hope that your path towards heaven is well paved without a single drop of blood.

"It took four kingdoms and three days of continuous blood spill to defeat an evil curse planted upon my land. Though it had been painful, it had finally come to an end."

An applause aroused in the room before the king could finish speaking. The king gave his audiences a charming smile and continued, "Hereby, I declare the end of the blood curse for the next one thousand years!"

The king bashes the sword down onto the witch's neck relentlessly, separating the head away from its body. Blood was pouring out of the empty socket, and the king raised the dead woman's head up in the air and cheered, "Blessings and prosperity for Araya and for my son, prince of Araya, Casteel Odelgarde!"

There's a cheer around the room, everyone is glad that the witch has finally been killed and dissected.

King Harlaus took a step back with his trophy, the head of the witch, and allowed the kings of the remaining three kingdoms to retrieve their own trophy. The body was then separated into three parts, which are the fingers, the heart and bones, given to the three kingdoms as rewards of their participation in this bloody mission.

After a week of the ceremony, an Arayan guard arrived at the palace.

The king was told and confirmed that they found no babies in the nearby village to have the witch's eyes. Therefore, the blood curse has truly come to an end without anyone else carrying the dead woman's power as heritage.

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In a nearby forest beside the mansion. One of many forests where the people believe are the rebel's hideout, laid one dead warrior outside a cottage. When the warrior's companions arrived, they browsed through the cottage and found no one, or perhaps they'd already ran.

The warrior's companions looked up at the rising sun, and sighed, "Rebels are just rebels,"

Another suggested, "Perhaps it's time to go home."