Dylan arrived at Rose’s town but was horrified by the devastation. There were endless piles of debris and bodies; a gruesome thought surged throughout his body. The flower he held so tightly fell from his hand onto the ash-covered ground. What if Rose…?

He ran around the village, looking for any sign of her. He asked the villagers, but they all quivered at the mention of her. That’s when Dylan knew something was wrong. He quickly ran to her house, which was now overcome with rubble. He noticed the flock of angry people. It only confirmed his worse fear.

            “How could you do that?” a voice shouted.

            “She was your daughter! Your sister!” another shouted.

            “What’s going on?” Dylan asked.

All the townspeople turned to him. One of the men recognized him and informed Dylan of the situation. However, he saved the worst for last.

Dylan couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Their village was attacked, and instead of defending the town and his family, Roger gave her up. He sacrificed her!  Dylan’s anger began to show. He advanced toward Roger and punched him. At first, Roger was ready to punch back but backed away in fear.

At that moment, he shredded his human disguise and revealed his identity as Aidan, prince of Osuku. The people bowed to him except for Roger, who fell to the ground with a whimper. Aidan announced that Roger would face severe punishment and summoned one of the imperial guards from Osuku to take him and his sons away. He also told them to relay an important message to his father.

           “I’m going to put an end to the Blood Lord,” Aidan declared.

**

Rose awoke to a throbbing headache. She found herself in a bed. The room was luxurious but felt cold at the same time. There was a rug beside the bed, along with a large wardrobe. Rose quickly got up from the bed and headed toward the door. She tried to open it, but it was locked. Noticing the window, she tried that way. However, her hope was short-lived. She was in a tower. If she jumped from here, the chances of her surviving were slim.

She grabbed her bracelet. In her mind, she could only hope that Dylan could help her, but at the same time, she didn’t want to put him in this kind of danger. She had to figure a way out and fast.

CREAK!

A yokai wielding a bull’s head and man’s body entered the room. Rose kept her guard up. She had to be prepared for anything. It advanced towards her and grabbed her arm.

            “It’s time for master’s meal,” it grinned.

Rose struggled to escape its grasp, but it was futile. It took her out of the tower and into a corridor. There stood a large door. The yokai looked back at Rose with a sinister grin before knocking.

KNOCK! KNOCK!          

            “Master, your meal is here,” he announced.

            “Enter,” a voice responded.

The yokai opened the door and threw Rose inside. She landed on the stone floor with a hard thud. She picked herself up to see an entire room of yokai. They all glared at her with hungry eyes, and they whispered about how delicious she would taste.

        "My, my," a voice cooed. "What do we have here?" 

Rose turned to see a man with white hair and gold eyes. His physique was slim but muscular. His smile was creepy; he had sharp teeth and a murderous aura. Rose took a step back, knowing to remain calm. 

          "It seems my dinner has arrived on time," he grinned, moving closer. 

With each step he took forward, Rose took one backward. This kept on until she hit a wall. She was trapped. 

           "Why are you doing this?" asked Rose.

            “Why, you ask?” he replied with a calm expression. “It’s simple. I find humans to be nothing more than                     livestock meant to soothe my hunger. Besides, human blood and flesh are far more satisfying than those               bland things in Osuku.”

               “Osuku?”

               “Yes, I used to live there, but I was kicked out,” he sighed. “I guess they don’t take attacking the royal                         family well.”

                “Besides,” the Blood Lord grabbed her throat. “I can smell him on you, which gives me more reason to                       eat you,” he cooed.

A sinister, chilling smile grew across his face. All his teeth showed and his eyes...they were evil. Rose was scared. She closed her eyes. Thinking it was her final moment, Rose thought of Dylan. How she enjoyed their time together. She wanted to see him one last time.... just one... 

         "Get your claws off of her!" A voice roared. 

The Blood Lord relaxed for a moment, then turned. His eyes gazed upon a man. One he was all too familiar with. 

           "Well, well, it sure is a party," he sneered. "Is father here as well?" 

           "Let go of Rose!" 

            "Dylan?" She asked. 

            The man chuckled. "Dylan? I see he’s still using that name. My dear, sweet girl, my older brother,                              Aidan, prince of Osuku and future king. Which should have been me." 

In a rage, he threw Rose to the ground. She landed with a loud thud and groaned from the pain. 

Aidan glared at his brother. He knew the reason he was exiled.

            "You betrayed me! You betrayed father! Mother! Everyone!" Aidan roared. "You killed humans, drank their               blood, and devoured yokai. All for what, brother? Power? Recognition?" Aidan began to cry. "You tried to               kill me. We're family, Kenta! I thought we would be together like brothers do! But I guess I was wrong." 

              Aidan took a deep breath. "And now, it's time to end this family feud!" 

Aidan charged at his brother. He gave a right hook, but it was dodged. The Blood Lord grew his nails into claws and swung at his brother. A small cut appeared on his cheek. 

Aidan hissed. The pain was minor, but it still hurt.

            “This pain…” Aidan grunted.

It was poison! Luckily, he was immune to poison, but this one limited his movements. It looked like distance had to be his friend. The prince chanted an incantation. A circle appeared around Rose; he wanted to shield her from any more damage.

            “Aw, how cute,” Kenta cooed. “My beloved older brother has fallen in love.”

In a mere second, Kenta appeared in front of Aidan. He placed his hand on Aidan’s face and slammed him into the stone floor. The aftershock shook the entire room and caused Aidan to fall unconscious.

            “That will be the death of you,” he glared, placing his claws around Aidan’s neck. “Goodbye, brother.”

Kenta raised his hand to gather energy; it swirled in his palm as it turned black. He released the power on his brother.   

            “NO!” Rose screamed.