Chapter 10: Chapter 10

“URGGGGGG!!!!!!”

Zachary banged his fists on the wall angrily as he screamed in frustration. His knuckles were cut open and blood oozed from them as soon as his fists collided with the hard rock. But his face showed no sign of pain or sadness. His eyes had turned completely blood-red while his knife-sharp fangs made deep cuts on his lips. A thin stream of blood was flowing down from the side of his lip as he glared at the four walls of this huge dungeon in which he was forcefully locked up ferociously.

Zachary was going out of his mind. Diana’s heart-shattering words were etched clearly in his mind. The pain of rejection was slowly eating him alive. His mind had turned completely blank while anger took a toll on his senses. He was furious, mad, upset, and was feeling so helpless. Diana has simply given him his answer. The thing which he feared the most only happened at last.

Zachary tried a lot to convince his parents but they were stuck to their decision. Even Calix left no stone unturned to make up their mind and change their opinion about Diana but it was as if they weren’t ready to even hear anything. Calix was frustrated too but Zachary had completely lost it.

He was continuously destroying everything in the mansion burning the expensive, exquisite paintings and furniture. The whole palace was on his mercy tonight as it was shrouded with thick, dark black smokes. Even the servants of the palace were being hunted down by the deranged devil. He was killing and burning everyone. The beautiful palace had been turned into a cemetery with thin smokes escaping from cold ashes. Zachary was successful today in giving the perfect definition to his world i.e., the netherworld.

Calix was also not able to control Zachary today. He tried every way to make him calm down but Zachary’s anger had crossed all the limits. At last, Calix had to accumulate all his powers and somehow managed to lock him up in a dungeon. The dungeon was made up of huge sturdy stones and Zachary wasn’t able to demolish it. Calix had caged him inside it and sealed the door with magical powers so that he can’t come out of it.

The only sound which could be heard from that creepy dungeon was the devil’s ear-piercing screams and blood-curdling growls. All the guards were so frightened that they immediately evacuated that place as they couldn’t bear to hear his bone-chilling screams. Zachary was left all alone inside that dungeon, caged and abandoned. Calix was feeling too sad for him as the Demon Prince who is the future King of Hell was locked up inside a prison-like an animal and was screaming like a lunatic.

Delphyne wasn’t able to see her son in this situation so she somehow left her stubbornness and finally agreed to his decision. She was trying her best to convince his husband but Orkus wasn’t ready to give an ear to her pleas. Although he was also feeling too guilty and sad for his son, he was acting completely ignorant to his wife’s requests as he was hell bound to bring Zachary on the right track.

According to him Diana was toxic to Zachary and could invite a lot of trouble for his world. In his eyes, whatever he was doing was for the benefit of his son only but he was failing to see that his austerity was only deteriorating his lad’s condition gradually.

“Please do something, Cal. I can’t see him like this”, Delphyne sobbed as she looked at Calix with hopeful eyes. Calix looked down as he had run out of ideas. He closed his eyes and freed some tears from captivity as his heart cried for his younger brother who was shackled like a prisoner inside those four walls.

“I told you, no cut that beg you with joined hands to please agree to this marriage but you both are not at all concerned about your son’s happiness. You only care about your kingdom, your FUCKING REPUTATION, AND YOUR ORDERS THAT ARE SET IN STONE!!!”

Calix finally exploded as he was completely tired and was feeling too helpless and defeated. Zachary was like a brother to him and watching him behaving like a maniac was breaking his heart. He was completely torn between responsibility and love. He neither dares to disobey the King’s order nor does he want Zachary to lose his mind just because of a girl.

“Calix, stay within your limits. Perhaps you’re forgetting that Diana is an angel and marrying my son to an Angel is completely an absurd move. This can never happen, even in a million years.” Delphyne rebuked him. Calix huffed in annoyance.

“Your rules, your regulations will take the life of your son Queen. Why can’t you see that? Why are you failing to see the love for that Angel in your son’s eyes? I know the importance of Diana in Zachary’s life. I had seen the love in his eyes for her. There is no lust or obsession in it. It is simply pure love. But you both aren’t able to see that or perhaps you don’t even want to see.” He growled. Orkus shot him a death glare.

“I am doing what is right for my son, Demon of Pride and I don’t need a suggestion from anyone. So don’t teach me how to handle my flesh-”

No sooner he had finished his sentence a thundering roar echoed from behind startling them. Calix furrowed his brows. He looked behind Orkus only to step back in fear.

There stood Zachary with a disheveled appearance. He was looking extremely scary. His hair was all messed up while his lips and chin were painted with thick metallic liquid. His eyes were red and his jaw clenched. His clothes were torn and his large fangs were jutted out giving him a ghastly appearance. He looked raged. Delphyne looked at him horrified as he shot a death glare at his father who was watching him with a blank face.

Zachary slowly started taking predatory steps towards them, his psychotic glare pinned the trio on their spot. Calix was paralyzed with fear as it was the first time, he had seen Zachary this angry. His blood ran cold while his face turned white as a sheet when Zachary shot him a diabolical smirk. He sauntered towards him with staggering steps. He wasn’t able to walk properly as his rage which was his ultimate power had completely taken all over his body, jamming his mind. His powers had reached to peak and that was making it difficult for even Zachary to control them. He still had not learned how to control them and this could endanger his life as well as could prove disastrous for their whole world too.

Calix noticed that and he became too worried for him. On the other hand, when the royal couple got a clear view of their son’s sweaty face and slovenly form, their eyes turned wide in fear. Zachary looked ready to kill them. He was not at all in his senses and they were in no state to control him as they had lost all their abilities to think and act.

Suddenly an idea popped into Orkus’ mind. He turned back and looked at the vulnerable Calix who was staring at Zachary with pity.

“Call Diana right now”

Zachary’s heart skipped a beat as soon as he heard him. He froze on his spot but kept staring at them with his deadly gaze. He wasn’t moving anymore as if he got struck by a lightning bolt after hearing that name. Calix noticed that too but slowly he dropped his gaze and shot a glare at the King.

“Are you kidding me? Do even know what are you saying?” He whispered yelling at him as what he was demanding was completely incongruous. No way he would bring Diana here. She would freak out if she finds Zachary in this state.

Zachary had put up a facade in front of her acting all sweet and loving ’cause the real Zachary was the one who was standing in front of him right now. Powerful, domineering, heartless, vicious, and a bloodsucking monster who is the Demon of Wrath. He has no control over his temper and has the power to set anyone or anything on fire just by his one killer look. Diana had, for now, given him a temporal rejection but if she finds out his real identity, she would become horrified and won’t even want to see his face ever again in the future. Moreover, when Zachary is going all berserk and is creating huge chaos just because his parents haven’t given their consent for his marriage, Lord knows what he would do if he comes to know that Diana had decided to cut all her ties with him. And Calix had a hunch about it. Zachary would force her. He told him that day.

Calix immediately dropped this idea. The situation is already too complicated, he didn’t want to exacerbate it more. Orkus’ glare turned fierce as he didn’t like his contemptuous tone.

“I know you’re Zachary’s friend but don’t forget Calix that you’re talking to the King of Hell. I still have the upper hand. I hope you are well aware of that.” His tone was authoritative that ultimately compelled Calix to cast his eyes down. He inhaled sharply and nodded.

“I apologize for my rudeness but King, what you’re demanding is too risky and I don’t want anything to happen to Diana. I have met her and she is just a child. A kid in the body of a grown-up woman. She is too innocent and pure. She will get scared if she finds Zachary in this state-”

“That’s what I want to see Calix ”

Orkus immediately cut him off midway. Calix lifted his head and looked at him with a frown.

“What do you mean by that?”

He asked him as he was completely perplexed by his question. Orkus took a deep breath and looked at him with a stern gaze.

“I know you both might be thinking of me as the villain but trust me whatever I am doing is for the sake of my son and that little girl. I know my son is a beast and that girl is too innocent for him. Also, I am well aware that Zachary loves her a lot but my point is I want to see whether that girl loves my son or not. This is the real Zachary, not the one you both are trying to portray in front of that naive girl. She has to spend her life with this Zachary only not with the fake version of him. This is what I want to see. I want to see her reaction when she comes to know about his real self. I want to see what she will do when she meets with the Demon of Wrath. I want to see whether she also loves Zachary the same way he loves her or if she is just trying to put up a show. I want to see Calix that whether the love which Zachary and Diana are trying to show is real or everything is just a fucking charade nothing else.”

He said in one breath. His words left Calix speechless.

Orkus was right. Because it is true that someday Diana will get confronted with the real version of Zachary, not the lover boy one. She will encounter the Demon Prince, not her Zac. Then what she will do? Will she help him, stay by his side or leave him? Orkus’ words left Calix in a dilemma. Now he also wants to know the truth about Diana’s love. He also wants Diana to give him evidence of her love.

Well, nothing was wrong with it because it will be better to know whether this love is based on a mutual understanding of it is just a one-sided obsession before tying them into a lifelong bond.

Calix raised his eyes and looked at Orkus who was waiting for his answer patiently.

“Alright then. I will bring her here.”

*****