Nefarious

C159 - Healed?

-Dane's point of view-

I'd talked with Eugene for ages, trying to come up with an efficient plan regarding the whole leader situation. Hayden had spent all his life preparing for the role and was already a great speaker and motivator for the people. The majority of our people seemed to like him, and he'd gained both respect and trust over the years. Reaching his level could be too difficult of a task, and I was finally starting to realise such, gradually losing hope as I further thought of my low chances of succeeding.

"You have to think realistically. Hayden was framed for murder, and many people in this castle know that. Most people here are aware that Hayden's not a monster and that he tries to stray away from morally wrong deeds. He's even wary of his own commissions. It was the Caizars and Dizarys that were the supposed targets for when Zane died, not your people. Your dad, our current leader, wanted Alaina to react, which she did eventually. I mean, Alaina still thinks it was Hayden alone who caused the invasion and had Zane killed. Based on this, she decided it was time for a new leader to take her position as she doesn't wish for huge age gaps between the leaders for the different castles. Remember that the current leaders were supposed to keep their position to the end of this year. Xylan and Hayden have both contributed to changing this, causing both Alaina and your dad to change their mind. Impulsive people have a tendency to do such," Eugene said. "If you're trying to make things better, you're failing miserably," I scoffed, shaking my head faintly. As though afraid that others would hear, he closed the door entirely, facing me right after. "I'm trying to paint a realistic picture for you. I don't think you'll succeed, Dane. I don't even think Alex will. The current leaders are cunning and smart, and they will favour the most successful leader regardless of their bad habits," he answered coldly. "Where's this coming from? I might fail, but there are still chances of Alex becoming their leader. When he was young, he was favoured by countless Caizars and Dizarys, including Kai. Alex has taken the best courses regarding leadership, he had Jace as a teacher, and he has been treated like the only future leader his whole life basically," I argued. "I guess we'll just have to see if he's still favoured after all of what's happened lately. It doesn't look too good for Alex in my opinion though," Eugene answered, still sounding pessimistic.

The situation at our castle was worsening drastically, causing people to lose hope for the future. People here were doubting Alex, fearing that Xylan would become the leader and that he would declare war towards our castle. I'd made it clear that if I ever were to become the leader, I wouldn't hesitate to make necessary and essential decisions just as Hayden had promised as well. Neither of us lacked empathy for our people. However, we had different motives. Hayden has always stood with our father and supported his opinions, and that's where we differ. The majority of the Evanstons regard the traditional vampire lifestyle to be outdated and a sin to the world. Throughout their lives, both my father and Hayden have worked towards their ideal goal of having traditional vampires such as the Dizarys go extinct. Feeding on humans is in my parent's eyes, purely evil and unnecessary when in reality, we all know it's more complicated than that. Hayden had fed on humans his whole life, as had I, yet no one questioned that simply because of our position in the castle. With weakening people, for instance, comes vast amounts of blood to consume and such consumptions create addiction and a vital need for blood eventually. Truthfully, the Evanstons who're working against traditional vampirism have double standards. They consider the vampires who feed on animals mainly to be the superior ones and believe that's the right way of living. I've always thought differently, making me an outsider which people have viewed as deviant. Convincing people that it's safe to change their minds regarding the older lifestyle is what has been the most challenging. I'd assumed for years that the situation would better with time, and I'd hoped that people would become more openminded. Unfortunately, I'd been proven wrong. Now, changing people's minds was difficult to the extent where it appeared to be unachievable.

-Valerie's point of view-

The night had gone by peacefully, thankfully. There were no noticeable disturbances on my behalf, though I'd picked up on Jace's nervousness and possible irritation. I'd assumed that it was due to Kai's upcoming arrival, which Jace proved right eventually. "Kai's here," Jace whispered. I frowned faintly, discreetly moving towards Jace. "Have you committed a crime or something, Jace? It looks like you're excessively nervous for this." Jace looked up, unhesitatingly meeting my gaze, though not for long. "This is where everything begins for real. We're only getting closer and closer to the final election which will determine whether our leader will be Xylan or Alex. Everyone has a secret by now, some worse than others. One wrong move and we could lose important votes, Valerie. I don't think you realise how important it is that everything goes as planned. Honestly, if Kai favours Xylan, then we're screwed."

Calming Jace's nerves was a lost cause, especially after hearing Alex calling for Jace to prepare himself. "Am I not coming with you?" I questioned. Jace looked over at me immediately as though I should've known the answer already. His eyebrows were narrowed, his face expressing nothing but confusion. The confused phase of his faded gradually and he swiftly let go of the tension that had crept upon him. "You should come with me. Blaze asked to have you wait, but that's nonsense in my opinion. You have natural charm, and Blaze knows that. Of course, he doesn't wish for you to meet Kai as he doesn't want him to become biased," Jace scoffed softly. "Wait, isn't Kai known for being objective though?" I asked. "He's fairly objective, yes, but he's not made of stone. It won't hurt to get on his good side from the beginning, right? Who knows, perhaps it can better Alex's chances," Jace shrugged his shoulders.

I'd been so caught up in Jace's evident nervousness that I hadn't taken the time to think about Kai much myself. At first, I thought of this positively, thinking I'd laid the basis for me to walk into the meeting room confidently. Unfortunately, I was nothing but wrong. The second I stepped into the room my eyes wandered from one random object to another. Heck, I even began paying attention to the hues of the different wooden furniture rather than focusing on the actual situation.

A light pitched voice caused an abrupt end to my messy, internal monologue. "This way, Dizary," she said formally. I found my seat beside Jace and sat down silently, casting a quick glance over at Xylan who sat oppose me. Alex came walking in first, which caught my attention in an instant. The sight of him baffled me as he appeared to look considerably healthier. His skin was both nourished and unblemished. No longer was he staggering, and to me, it seemed as if his posture had improved majorly as well. There wasn't a trace of sickness to find anymore, and that's what shocked me the most. When Alex met my eye, he smiled faintly, but I didn't return the smile. I was all too bewildered to react to anything.

Followed by an assistant came another male that looked nothing like the Dizarys or Caizars. His hair was medium length and tousled. The roots of his hair were of a dark brown hue, contrasting the somewhat lighter lengths of his hair; an exquisite balayage look. His eyes met mine for a split second, allowing me to see his piercing green eyes that admittedly reminded me of Jace's. All in all, he appeared to be classy with seemingly expensive clothes that looked to be of excellent quality. After the well-kept stranger entered, the door closed shut. It wasn't until I heard the sound of the closing door that I realised... I'd just analysed Kai Dizary.