Chapter sixty

Asher immediately stood up from the bed, his action causing Naomi to stir and he rushed to her, cradling her head and luring her back to sleep. The last thing he would want was for her to wake up and see him. When he was sure she was asleep again, he closed his eyes, instantly teleporting to where a strong force was pulling him. When he got there, he stood on the top of a hill and watched the catastrophe that has become of the highway. Apparently, a car on highspeed had crashed into someone and tumbled, hitting the next car in front of it and thereby causing the cars behind it and in front to collapse. One of the cars may have ignited, and fire transferred to every available car near, including a high school school-bus. There were deaths all around and just looking at the mess, he could feel something growing inside of him.

The rescue team had arrived with siren blowing everywhere and those who were able to be rescued were immediately transferred into the ambulance. He has never seen so many ambulances in one place before. He searched for the instigator of the accident but the person seemed to be no where to be found. He was surprised, he had seen him lying a little far from the scene but now, he couldn’t find him anywhere. He wanted to investigate but then it seemed like something had tapped into him and he froze. His eyes going back to the scene of the accidents and he saw them, ghouls climbing out of the car. They were invisible to the human eyes because the rescue team and cops weren’t reacting even though they passed them.

More started climbing out of the ambulances and before he could know it, he was facing a battalion of ghouls. His body was shaking, his heart beating loud in his chest and he could even hear his own fearful pants. He tried to back away but he couldn’t move, his hands started shaking and he glanced at them to see black veins appearing on them. It has been so long since he experienced this. Ever since he merged his powers, he had had that power under control but now it seemed like it was bursting out of him with renewed energy. Asher screamed and fell on his knees, his hands grabbing onto the dirty mud. Sweat beads covered his forehead and it felt like he could pass out any moment but yet he was wildly awake. The sirens were now a distant away as everywhere turned blurry and eerie silent.

Then he saw someone walking up to him, it was like he was in a trance, he couldn’t make out his surrounding but he could see the cloaked figure so clearly. The person stopped in front of him and he saw the lips stretched into a smile. “Hello my dark prince,” the voice sounded deep in his soul. “It’s time to awake.” The voice was familiar, so familiar. It was the very voice that has haunted him all his life. “I should thank you, if you hadn’t hurt her so badly, I wouldn’t have been able to get to you so soon. Or perhaps I should thank Selene for not making her yours,” she laughed eerily. “It’s time to fulfil your destiny.”

“No,” Asher shook his head, “no, no,” he panted heavily, glancing around, hoping for someone to save him, anybody. “No, no,” he continued panting as he forced himself to stood up. His eyes started clearing softly and his surrounding started appearing. However, when he turned to his side, he saw the ghouls, this time, they didn’t try to fight him, rather, they all kneeled and bowed to him.

“Accept them, if you do, you would fully awaken and you will be unstoppable. You are the strongest being alive and you will help me to dominate this world and that would finally force them to take me back,” Catherine said.

“No,” Asher shook his head, he could feel the force pulling him to do as she said but his mind was not willing. He shut his eyes and continued yelling, “No.”

“You have to, it’s your Destiny,” Catherine said.

“No, no, no,” Asher fell on the ground and kept screaming. The black vines were making their way up to his neck and he could feel his resistance wavering, and his fighting spirit fading away.

And then he heard it, “Asher, no!” and it felt like a bolt of energy swarmed inside him and he turned his head to the side to see Naomi standing at the foot of the hill and shouting at him. “Fight it, Asher, fight it.”

“No,” Catherine yelled, “no, how possible?” she asked, staring at the girl standing on the foot of the hill. Her very presence had given Asher the strength he needed and without wasting any time, he summoned his demon powers and teleported out of there.

Back in the room, Naomi woke up forcefully, panting on the bed. She couldn’t believe what had just happened. She had seen Asher in her dream and he had seen her, not just that, he had heard her. No one has ever seen or heard her in her dream. No matter how loudly she yelled or how frantic she acted, no one had ever seen her in her dream and she would watch as the terrible fate would consume them but not Asher, he had seen her, he had heard her and so had that woman, the one in a cloak. Who was she? She climbed out of the bed and paused, staring at the bed in shock. How? She asked in her mind, she could remember falling asleep in the living room, how was she in her room, on her bed?

She eventually waved off the thought and rushed down stairs to get her phone but paused in her tracks when she saw the people in her living room. “What are you doing here?”

Gideon sighed, “I’m sorry Naomi, but you have to come with us.”

“Come with you, come with you to where?” she asked, still standing on the stairs and refusing to take a step again.

“If you don’t come with me, my father would die,” Gideon said.

“I don’t understand Gideon, what has that got to do with me. You have to explain,” she said, now backing up the stairs.

“You shouldn’t have gone to the hill,” Gideon said and she frowned.

“What?”

“You ruined her plans. I have always known you were not ordinary. How could you have gone to the hill when you were here?”

Naomi stared at him in shock, she had just woken up, obviously, and she had stopped Asher from falling victim at whatever that strange woman was doing to him and now he is telling him that he ruined her plans? Wait, is that strange woman at work here? Did her dream already happen? Without further ado, she turned sharply and ran up the stairs but Gideon had jumped like a monkey, using the walls and landed in front of her. She shrieked and nearly fell down the stairs but he was able to grab a hold of her hand to catch her.

He pulled her into his arms, restraining her, “I’m sorry, Naomi. I promise you we won’t hurt you. We will just keep you locked up till she achieves her aim.”

“This is called kidnapping, Gideon, let me go, let me go,” she yelled.

“I’m sorry Naomi,” he repeated before calling out to his wolves and they left the house. Getting outside, they tied her up and she watched in horror as they all shapeshifted right in front of her.

“You are werewolves,” she cried and then it downed on her when she saw Steven’s black wolf. “It was you that night,” she recalled, “I can’t believe it.”

However, Gideon didn’t say anything and just picked her up, carrying her on his back this time and with a howl, they all ran straight to the woods where the trees would conceal them from human eyes.

***

Asher appeared in his father’s palace and crashed onto a chair, making the people in the room to jump in shock. “Prince Asher,” one of the servants that were cleaning the room shouted and the rest all rushed to help him.

Edward appeared in the room instantly and went to help him to lie on the couch. “You are burning,” he whispered to Asher who was still groaning in pain with his eyes closed. “What happened?”

Aliyah came running into the living room with fear on her face. “Stop running,” Edward said to her but she didn’t listen to him and went to Asher, cradling his head.

“He is hot,” she noticed.

“Get a cold towel and fetch me Irene,” Edward ordered and two servants scurried away.

“My King,” a voice called and they turned to see Hephzibah walking out of a portal before it frizzled away. There was worry on her face and she rushed and placed a hand on Asher’s forehead. They all watched as he stopped fidgeting and slowly went to sleep. No one talked or asked question, watching him as his chest slowly rise and fall with his deep sleep. Hephzibah sighed in relief and Aliyah placed a hand on her chest, breathing heavily in relief.

“What happened?” Irene asked and they turned to her. No one knew she was already in the room and she didn’t talk then to not distract them.

“She almost had him,” Hephzibah said, her eyes revealed her fear when she looked at Edward. “She almost had him, she was this close,” she panted, shaking her head and it seemed like her white hair had turned whiter within the past minutes.

“Calm down, Hephzibah,” Irene said, going to hold the hands of the older woman.

“She almost had him, so close, so close. I mean, I was having the vision as it was happening, I didn’t know what to do. But she saved him, a pure blood witch,” she frowned and glanced at Irene, “tell me, is there a pure blood witch I am not aware of?”