Demon Seed

*Elowen*

The next two days passed by in a blur. I drifted in and out of consciousness, aware only of the constant pain in my abdomen and the insatiable thirst for blood that no amount of raw meat Daisy provided seemed to satisfy.

Kaius barely left my side, his presence both comforting and torturous—comforting because despite everything, I still loved him; torturous because the scent of his blood called to me constantly, making it harder to resist the hunger.

I was examining my reflection in a small hand mirror—my silver eyes still a shock each time I saw them—when Kieran entered my room, the sorceress close behind him.

"I came as soon as I could," he said, approaching my bed cautiously. His gaze dropped to my abdomen, which had continued to grow at an alarming rate. "It's growing really fast."

"Kieran... I don't know what is happening to me. This thirst for blood never fades away," I confessed, setting the mirror aside.

"The thirst is controllable most times. I hardly ever need blood," he replied.

"Then why is it different in my case? I don't want to hurt anybody." The memory of my attack on Kaius—and my near attack on Daisy—still filled me with shame.

"It's because of what is in you." The sorceress spoke for the first time since entering, her voice dry as autumn leaves but surprisingly strong.

"It is a child," I said defensively, though even as I spoke the words, I knew they weren't true. No child moved the way this thing moved inside me, no child drained its mother of life with such ruthless efficiency.

"No," she replied, moving closer to examine me. "Not a child, something more dangerous. How would you have a child without any form of sexual intercourse?"

"I don't know." I looked away, unable to meet her milky gaze.

"But you do." She placed a gnarled hand on my abdomen, her touch surprisingly gentle. "It is rare, and it has only happened three times throughout history's record, but when a turned one with very powerful blood shares his blood with another, 'this' could be the result. A demon growth."

"What?" The word escaped me.

"What?" Kieran echoed, his face paling.

"You never told me about that," he accused the sorceress, his eyes narrowing.

"You never informed me that the ritual did work; I had already marked it as a failed attempt. Still, this is a rare happening, but of course, the rarity had to happen to you," she replied, her tone almost accusatory as she continued to examine my swollen belly.

Kaius, who had been silent since they entered, stepped forward. "You fed her your blood! And you turned her into this!"

"Guys stop!" I intervened, sensing the tension building between them.

"Sorry," Kaius muttered, though his glare remained fixed on Kieran.

"You had been wondering why your thirst for blood is so strong, and that is the reason. A turned one is only part demon, so you don't necessarily need blood to survive, though it would always look appealing. But a demon can only live on blood alone, and that is what is in there," the sorceress explained, pressing harder against my abdomen.

I gasped as something inside me shifted violently, pain shooting through my midsection.

"What are you doing?" Kaius demanded, moving to my side.

"Just making sure." The sorceress continued her painful examination, her expression unreadable.

"Step away; you are hurting her." Kaius's hand moved to the sorceress's arm.

The old woman straightened, unperturbed by his intimidation. "It would get bigger, and even more violent; she cannot endure it."

"What is the solution?" Kaius asked, his hand finding mine and squeezing gently.

"What else is there to do? Cut open her skin and rip the demon out; that's not a child." The sorceress's brutal honesty made me flinch.

"No," Kieran protested immediately. "There has to be another way."

"There is none," she replied firmly. "As a turned one, she would survive the procedure, but only if we act quickly. The demon is growing stronger by the hour, feeding on her life force. Soon it will be strong enough to burst free on its own, and that she would not survive."

I listened to them debate my fate as if I weren't present, as if I had no say in what happened to my own body. A resolve hardened inside me, cutting through the fear and confusion that had clouded my mind for days.

"No. Don't you dare," I said, my voice stronger than I'd expected.

The sorceress turned to me, her milky eyes unsettlingly direct. "That's not a child, and you know it."

"It is mine," I replied, my hands instinctively moving to cover my distended abdomen.

The room fell silent, tension thickening the air as everyone absorbed my decision.

"I think I'm done here. Summon me if she changes her mind; this was my mistake, and I have to fix it." She gathered her things, nodding to Kieran before making her way to the door.

"Elowen..." Frost began, stepping forward with concern written across his features.

"No," I cut him off, unwilling to hear arguments. "Don't tell me how this is the better option; I want to keep it and I will."

Kaius stood silent, his amber eyes unreadable as he watched me. I couldn't tell if he was angry, disappointed, or something else entirely.

"I need to talk to Kieran... alone," I said, meeting Kieran's gaze across the room.

Kaius tensed visibly. "If you do anything to hurt her, I will kill you," he warned, his voice low and dangerous as he moved toward the door.

Frost followed, casting one last worried glance in my direction before closing the door behind them.

Silence stretched between us as Kieran approached my bed, sitting in the chair Kaius had vacated. His face held a mixture of concern and something else—guilt, perhaps, or fear.

"You didn't tell me," I began, my voice quiet but accusing. "You didn't tell me anything about the bloodlust I would have to live with; why?"

"I'm sorry... I just..." He looked away, unable to meet my eyes.

"Say it, Kieran, you don't need to lie to me."

"There are a lot of things you don't know." His admission hung in the air between us.

"Go on," I prompted, steeling myself for whatever truths he'd been hiding.

Kieran sighed, running a hand through his sandy hair. "There's something about you, something unique and special. I told you the reason I wanted to marry you was because of your title, but that wasn't just it. The moment I saw you... I fell in love with you in a way I had never done before. I spent time with your mother, just to hear about you; she told me about The Alpha King and how he hurt you. She told me so many things about you, and I fell more in love with you, but you were never over him, and I knew that. I was ready to make you forget, I was ready to start up a new chapter with you, the marriage was only the beginning, I hoped that perhaps as the years go by, if I treated you right, you would learn to love me in return."

He paused, visibly struggling with what to say next. "There is more I didn't tell you. Turned ones have a longer life span compared to werewolves, we live for centuries. You were so desperate to obtain power, you didn't wait to think that such things come with disadvantages. I had a plan for the both of us: we would grow more powerful and stronger together. You will always be by my side, forever young."