CHAPTER 63
IN HAKKERAN'S arms, Sollel felt safe and secure as she rested her head on his chest. And as they gradually put a distance between them and her moonrite prison, Sollel could feel her strength gradually coming back, but the bad news was, her blood had been drained and she was back to being weak.
Maybe not as weak as before, but her strength now was nothing compared to her strength when she razed hell in the Hallowed Valley.
"Hakken..." Sollel whispered softly, "I'm weak again. I can't raze hell if I'm this weak. I can only make few small balls of flames in my state right now.
Hakkeran pulled his Krahika close to his chest as he starts to ascend on the spiral staircase. "I readied a big feast for you, my lady. You'll be full in no time."
Sollel was silent, so Hakkeran asked. "Don't you trust me, my Krahika?"
"I let you drag me back here, remember? Of course, I trust you, but I'm still slightly mad at you, Hakkeran." Sollel glared at Hakkeran. "That bastard emperor kicked me so many times and you just stood there!"
"I will make it up to you. Please don't be mad, hmm?" Hakkeran sounded sweet, but fearless and strong that it left Sollel stunned for a moment. She was not used to that.
It was the first time for Sollel to hear that kind of voice and tone from Hakken or Hakkeran.
When she was with Hakken before, he was always so sweet, soft and caring, while Hakkeran on the other hand was distant and cold — always holding back, but still caring.
And now that he's back to being 'whole', the man in front of her now was kind of different, but familiar at the same time.
"Hakken?"
"Hmm?"
Even the tone of his voice was different. Sweet, but rugged. This is not good. I'm seriously in danger.
"You have a lot of explaining to do." Sollel had been curious ever since she realized that the two were the same person. Unfortunately, they were not in the right time and place to ask and interrogate him. "But for now, I won't ask since I trust you even though you felt different somehow."
That put a smile on Hakkeran's lips. "How am I different? Maybe you're just used to Hakken. Do you like him more, my lady?"
Sollel narrowed her eyes on Hakkeran. "You're not allowed to ask me that trick question. Stop being jealous of yourself."
Hakkeran shrugged. "I can't help it. Even if it's myself, when it comes to you, I am very selfish."
"I can see that..."
"You told me before that you wanted to see the whole me, and this is it." Hakkeran sounded as if his whole self were not a good person. "The whole me is not nice and sweet like Hakken. And I'm scared because you're used to him and you might like the half of me more than the whole me. But I'm still praying that you would accept me as I am, my lady. Though if you think you couldn't and you'll be more happy with only the half of me, I wouldn't mind splitting myself in half again to give you Hakken."
Sollel didn't move her eyes away from Hakkeran. She was watching him the whole time he was talking and she knew that he was not pulling her leg. One word from her and he will really split himself again to give Hakken to her — whatever she wanted, Hakkeran would give it to her without hesitation.
And Sollel didn't know why her heart ached while listening to him. It's as if Hakkeran was ready to sacrifice half of himself for her happiness. He was not even thinking of himself and it made her chest ached.
"What... will happen to your other half?"
"You will not see him again after tonight. Hakkeran will remain in the shadows, like he always has." Hakkeran answered without an ounce of hesitation. "I'm happy that I'm now talking to you as the whole me, but I don't think the whole me deserves you, my lady. Only Hakken deserves your attention and affection. Only Hakken could make you happy."
Sollel was thankful that her blood of flame was weak, because if it's not, she would have burned Hakkeran in annoyance. "You're such a dimwit, Hakkeran. Hakken is you, you idiot. He is half of the whole you and not a different person. How long has it been since you split your body and consciousness that you're thinking like he's a separate person at all?"
"Every rebirth for three lifetimes." Hakkeran answered.
"No wonder..." Sollel muttered under her breath and she flicked Hakkeran's nose. "Your name may be Hakkeran, but you're my Hakken. You keep saying that Hakken is nice and sweet and only he deserves me— don't give me that crap, Hakkeran. When I told you I want to meet the whole you, I already know that you and Hakken are the same person. Yes, I like Hakken, but I like the other side of you too— the Hakkeran who took care of me in the Shivering Valley and the Hakkeran who chose to stay in the shadow for my sake. I want Hakken together with Hakkeran and I don't want Hakken if Hakkeran is not together with him. Because honestly, if you two were a different person, I would not hesitate to have you both and make you two mine."
Hakkeran was just gaping at his Krahika while she was talking and scolding him that he even stopped ascending the stairs. And when he heard her last words, he was in disbelief that his lady actually considered having them both.
"H-how... how did you find out that we're the same person?"
Sollel shrugged as if it was not a big deal. "My memories were hazy because of the after effect of the moonrite stone on me, but as I slowly recover my strength, my memories were getting clearer as well. After consuming that flame sorcerer's essence in the clearing back in Ager, my memories started to come back with clarity and I remember you."
"Me...?" Hakkeran asked as if he couldn't believe that his Krahika remembered him, a lowly soldier she fought.
Sollel nodded while finding the stunned Hakkeran adorable. "Of course. How could I forget the warrior who wanted to marry me if he won?"
Hearing that, Sollel had to stop herself from laughing when she saw Hakkeran's face turning red. But the most adorable part was that his face was red, but he remained expressionless as if nothing could faze him.
He's really whole now. Sollel observed. If it was just Hakken, he would blush and act embarrassed. If it was just Hakkeran, he'll be expressionless as usual. But now that they're whole, the reaction had become whole too. Ah, my adorable warlord.
"And I remembered your arcane's weapon ability," Sollel decided to put Hakkeran out of his expressionless embarrassment and added. "When I fought with you, you used your arcane weapon's ability to split your body and consciousness in half, doubling your strength and fighting prowess."
"You didn't even doubt that you might be wrong?" Hakkeran still couldn't understand his queen's confidence that they were the same person knowing that he had a different face than Hakken.
"I baited you back in Ager to make sure, of course." Sollel smiled innocently at Hakkeran and Hakkeran sighed at his Krahika's slyness.
"Is that why your attitude towards me changed when we entered the Valley of Bones?"
"Yes. I will never take interest in you if you were not the warrior I fought all those years ago." Sollel confessed. "And you're adorable when we met again. It's my weakness."
"I'm not adorable." Hakkeran denied it with a straight emotionless face, but he was blushing profusely.
"Whatever you say," Sollel even shrugged. "Though I'm kind of curious how it works. I mean, I remember fighting two of you before, but you two were in close proximity. But now, I'm pretty sure Hakken was very far away from you when we were traveling."
"As long as my arcane weapon is safe, Hakken can go to the end of the Azitera without me and he'll be fine."
Now Sollel understood. "So, you're the real Hakken? I mean, the body..."
"There's no real or fake between me and Hakken. We are the same person. Sharing the same body, soul and heart. Except for our attitude, nothing's really different between us. Well, I look different when we met because I'm using an enchanted item from the Druids to change my appearance. I can't have the same face as Hakken because the façade we made will be useless. After all, the reason I split myself into two was to cover more grounds and to move without anyone knowing while making sure that you'll be safe in your travel."
"And? How do you two communicate? I'm sure you two were banding together to deceive me."
Hakkeran immediately looked away as he continued climbing the staircase. "We use the old way to message each other— through birds— to avoid getting attention. What he knows, what he experienced while away from me—his memories— I will only see them once we become one again. But that only applies to memories and experiences. When it comes to physical changes, it's different. When Hakken was bitten by that poisonous flower, I felt the pain."
Hearing the last part of Hakkeran's explanation, something naughty entered Sollel's mind and she was not Sollel if she would pass that opportunity to tease Hakkeran.
"So, back when Hakken and I were on the stream... you felt that?"
Hakkeran cleared his throat, his face becoming red again, but still expressionless. "I didn't realize that that was happening. I only knew about it when we became one again and our memories fused together."
Sollel really wanted to laugh at Hakkeran's flushed face. "I thought you could feel a physical change. So, the you down there didn't change?"
Hakkeran took a deep breath as if calming himself and it was funny to Sollel because he looked already calm from the outside.
"It always hardened ever since Hakken accompanied your travel. I'm always aroused," Hakkeran said it with a straight, but red face, "I thought it was the usual again, so I didn't think any of it. Only when our memories became one that I realized why it was that hard that day."
Sollel couldn't stop herself anymore. She laughed. And Hakkeran just looked at her flatly, making Sollel laughed even harder.
Watching his lady laughed so hard, Hakkeran's flat expression changed and turned soft. And out of nowhere, Sollel felt Hakkeran kissed her forehead, making her stop laughing.
"Hakkeran?" Sollel called his full name after he pulled away from her forehead.
"Yes, my lady?"
"Are you happy?"
Hakkeran replied without any hesitation. "Very."
"I'm glad." Sollel's face softened.
Hakken looked down at Sollel. "What do you mean you're glad?"
Sollel shrugged. "You make me happy, so I want to make you feel the same way. Isn't that normal when you like someone?"
"I don't know," Hakkeran replied as he picked up his face to reach the top of the staircase. "You're the only woman I ever love, so I have no idea what people normally do when they adore someone. And I don't just like you, Sollel. I love you. And the only thing I know about love is— when you love someone, you protect her, keep her safe and make her happy."
"That's why you're protecting me." Sollel surmised. "Without asking anything in return."
Hakkeran nodded. "Because that's the only thing I know how to express my love for you, because I don't think that the words 'I love you' is enough to convey the depths of my feelings for you."
Sollel didn't know that words could melt her, but melt she did. "Hakken?"
"Hmm?"
"Put me down."
Hakkeran instantly became worried. "You should conserve your strength—"
"I'm fine. We're far away enough."
Seeing how determined Sollel looked, Hakkeran put his Krahika on the floor, still holding her waist to help her balanced herself, but Hakkeran was surprised when his lady wrapped her arms around his neck and she pressed her lips on his.
Hakkeran knew they were not in the right place and time, that they have lots of thins to do, but when he felt his Krahika's lips on his, he just lost it and even pinned his queen on the wall and deepened the kiss.
From her lips, to her neck and ear and back to her lips again.
It was a very dangerous kiss because it made him ache for his Krahika. He wanted to take her there and then. He wanted more than a kiss, but... alas, his queen slightly pulled away from his lips.
Hakkeran thought it was over, then his lady whispered, the lava-like liquid in her eyes swirling intensely.
"After all this mess, you and me are going to continue this in bed, Hakken." Sollel could see how much Hakkeran wanted her. The emotion in his eyes when he looks at her never lies. It was clear and she could see clearly that he was aching for her— and so was she. "You can express your love for me in bed again and again, and I will accept it and reciprocate it again and again too."
Hakkeran gulped and nodded vigorously as if he was in a hurry. "Let's finish this then, my lady. My bed in my castle is waiting."
That made Sollel chuckle. "Excited, are we?"
"Yes. I am." He held her hand and he started climbing the stairs again. "Come on, my lady, let's go and finish this."
Sollel laughed at Hakkeran who was taking his time earlier ascending the staircase while talking to her, but now he was eager to finish this and be in bed with her.
Ah, my adorable hunter and warlord.
Sollel just let Hakkeran pulled her towards the top of the staircase, towards the stone door. But before they stepped out, Hakkeran took his flaming sword from his back and handed it to Sollel.
"I did all I could to get this back to you. I apologize for using your Solaris without your consent, my lady."
Solaris was the only physical weapon Sollel could wield. It was made specially for her. But Sollel didn't accept it.
"Keep it."
Hakkeran blinked at his lady in shocked. "What...?"
"Keep it."
Hakkeran was not the only one shocked, Solaris as well. The flame around it waned as well, as if it was said and Sollel laughed at it and flicked its hilt.
"Take good care of my Hakken, Solaris. As long as you keep him safe, I will be very happy with you and feed you with my blood of flame."
Almost instantly, Solaris flared as if to say 'yes' to Sollel.
"Good." Sollel, then looked at Hakkeran. "Keep it."
"But this is your weapon—"
"Keep it. It'll keep you safe even from my blood of flame." Said Sollel to a surprised Hakken. "And it already bonded with you. It might physically damage you if I cut the connection between you two and take it back." Then Sollel smiled teasingly at Hakkeran. "You can think of it as the Queen's gift to her future King."
Sollel was stunned when Hakkeran suddenly just buried his forehead on her shoulder. And after a while, Hakkeran's lips pressed against her shoulder so intimately before his lips moved to kiss her neck, her jaw, her face so intimately and lovingly, before it move to kiss her ear and he whispered.
"Will you... marry me?"
Sollel raised her hand and caressed the back of Hakkeran's head. "You want to be my king?"
"No. I want to be your husband. I want to be your Hakken. I want to be your Hakkeran. I want to be yours. Being your king is the last on my list."
That made Sollel smile lovingly as she continued to caress the back of Hakkeran's head. "Ask me again, Hakken."
Hakkeran obliged. "Will you marry me, my lady?"
"Yes. I will."
Hakkeran let out a loud breath as if his breathing just went back and then he took out a beautiful flame Sunstone ring and slid it on her finger.
"The Dwarven King made this as per my request. Then the Druid King enchanted it for me. With his enchantment, unless you purposely melted it, the ring won't be melted by your flame. Perfect for my Queen of Flame and destruction."
Sollel smiled and pressed her lips on Hakkeran. When she pulled away, she punched him playfully in the gut. "What's with you and proposing in the enemy's territory?"
Hakkeran smiled and kissed her. "You accepted."
Sollel shrugged. "I fell, what can I do?"
Hakkeran just suddenly grabbed Sollel and hugged her so tight, as if he couldn't get enough of her. And after a while, he finally let her go and he opened the stone door as if nothing happened.
"Let's go, my lady?"
Sollel shook her head and chuckled. "Let's go."
"My Krahika first."
Sollel rolled her eyes at Hakkeran and stepped out first. And with Hakkeran as her guide and protector, Sollel found herself in a very familiar building. Familiar because she had seen the same building back in the Dwarven Kingdom — the smithy's building. The place where they make weapons and other things.
Sollel turned to Hakkeran when she realized something while walking towards the smithy building. "I saw no guards on the way here. What happened to them?"
Hakkeran just shrugged.
Sollel just shook her head because he knew Hakkeran did something to them.
"Let's go in, my lady." Said Hakkeran before he opened the large double door of the smithy's building for her.
Sollel was expecting the sound of forging and feel the heat of the flame, but what she saw from the outside was burnt corpses. And as she stepped in, she immediately found out the reason.
A phoenix in full form was at the center of the smithy. She knew it was the phoenix who caused all this. And upon observing the phoenix, Sollel lips slightly parted when she recognized the phoenix's by its feather's color.
"Barrin?"
The phoenix's glowed and it changed into its human form. Immediately, Barrin kneeled on one knee in front of his majesty and bowed his head in reverence.
"My queen, your servant apologizes for not coming to your aide sooner." Barrin's voice was filled with guilt. "My whole race accepts your punishment."
Sollel sighed, seeing her favorite mythical bird asking for forgiveness. "Barrin, stand up. Why would I punish you? You didn't do anything wrong. Now, why don't you tell me about what you did here?"
Barrin glanced at Hakkeran beside her before he looked at her. "I'm here as per Warlord Hakkeran Adral's order."
Sollel was not even shock anymore as she glanced at Hakkeran, asking for explanation.
Hakkeran just motioned his hand at the wall. As if listening to Hakkeran's silent order, Barrin got up and walked towards the wall. After pressing three parts of the wall at the same time, a secret door opened in the wall.
Sollel looked at Hakkeran again, who just smiled at her and motioned her to enter.
Sollel trusted Hakkeran so she didn't hesitate to enter the secret door and descended the staircase connecting it to the chamber below.
When Sollel reached the end of the staircase while Hakkeran and Barrin were behind her, she was welcomed to an enormous chamber, ten times bigger than the smithy building above.
And this chamber was filled and overflowing with firestones. Its sizes and quantity was more than enough to recover all her strength.
"A feast befitting for my Krahika." She heard Hakkeran's comment.
Sollel turned to Hakkeran. "Is this why you took me back here?"
He nodded. "It'll take a lot of time to recover your full strength by depending on those flame sorcerers' essence."
"When did you know about this stone being hoarded here?" Sollel asked.
"The first time I freed you, I know the empire hoarded all the firestones as per the previous emperor's decree, but we didn't know where it was and we needed someone to distract them so we could move under their noses. So, I let you go to cause destruction and to get their attention even when you were still weak. And while they were focused on you and I was hunting you, my trusted aide, Gabin and then Barrin and other people I planted inside the palace look for it and they didn't stop until they found it. And here we are. It's all yours, my lady."
Sollel was a little exasperated at Hakkeran's plan and at how he kept it a secret from her even though it was all about her! But that didn't matter at the moment.
What mattered at the moment were the firestones in front of her.
"Hakken, you can stay beside me, but Barrin, you have to step back and take cover. My flame might burn you later."
Barrin immediately stepped back while Hakkeran moved to kiss her temple and wished her the best.
That made Sollel smile and when Hakkeran let her go and he stepped away a little to give her space, Sollel closed her eyes and called her blood of flame to absorb the pure flame essence from the firestone.
It didn't take long before Sollel felt the effect of the firestone. Little by little. Pure essence filled her whole being, refilling the strength she lost until she was overflowing with power.
Together with fast her recovery, her hair turned bright red and all the remaining scars and wounds on her body disappeared without a trace. And when she opened her eyes, the lava-like liquid swirled brightly and fiercely.
Indeed, this was a feast. She was full. But she still absorbed the remaining essence of the Firestone and transferred it to Solaris on Hakkeran's back.
Sollel only stopped when all the firestone in that enormous chamber lost its glow.
And as Sollel stood there, she could feel her that her full strength was back. She was overflowing with power. And it felt good.
"I'm back," Sollel whispered and turned to face Hakkeran who already looked like a proud king looking at his queen. "I'm back, Hakken."
Sollel was literally on fire and Hakkeran was speechless as he looked at his queen.
Infernal Empire, Azitera, the Queen of Flame is back. Hakkeran thought as his eyes remained on his queen who was now walking towards him with a smile on her red lips. If you think you know destruction, oh, how wrong you all are. Because the real destruction has a name and its Queen Sollel Vatra Sarragny — the Mistress of Flame— my Krahika and my lady.
CECELIB | C.C.