BloodStar

Chapter 33: A Gifted Fool

A woman in elegant long and flowing dress robes walked through the halls of an ornate palace, The Sage Family Palace. Erika had a smile on her face as she greeted her attendants on the way to her office. She hadn’t been this cheerful in a few weeks. Her breakup with Jacek had weighed on her wellness as of late; however, the political tides of the world were beginning to shift in her favor.

She walked the halls gleefully coming to her office. As she opened the door, her chief of staff handed her a green folder and said, “Master Sage, the ki readouts around the area of Khan Island continue to occur periodically this week. They are off the charts. This is highly suspect for activation of illegal techniques within the BloodStar Family.”

Erika’s smile grew in size even more. While she knew it was an ominous sign for the BloodStar Family to be training in illegal techniques, she also knew the brazen move would lead to their demise. She grabbed the folder saying, “Thank you. I have a very important phone call to make. Do not interrupt me under any circumstances for the next hour.”

The chief of staff acknowledged her and left the room closing the doors behind him.

Erika sat down at her beautiful desk made of soft, polished wood to find her coffee waiting for her. She took a sip and reveled in the taste and smell of her perfectly prepared coffee. She read over the contents of the folder for a moment before picking up her desk phone.

She dialed an as of late familiar phone number and waited for an answer. She heard several ringtones before a man’s voice picked up and said, “I have been looking forward to this phone call. Things are moving faster every day. Aren’t they?”

Erika smiled to herself and responded, “They certainly are King Ramses. The United States is soon to be history thanks to the Holy Light Empire. If we are lucky, they will also take down your precious General BloodStar with them. And the rebel forces in the Saber Province are pushing Jacek to the brink I hear. It won’t be long before he is running back to me for reinforcements.”

Ramses laughed, “Things are moving fast, but we are in no position to act on any of this. These events need to play out before we can even think of our next move.”

Erika agreed, “The largest contingency in the next order of events is whether or not Pope Gregory can achieve what the world is so anxious to see. Can he… will he… kill Xenia and risk war with the BloodStar Empress?”

Ramses chuckled, “Can he? Yes. Will he? I also believe yes. He and his empire show no mercy to those who offend their religion, and Xenia is the height of blasphemy to them.”

Erika replied, “Then once the great Xenia BloodStar is fallen, that will leave a power vacuum. Empress Victoria’s time has come and gone. The people of your empire will look to you and Queen Zara.”

Ramses quietly said, “This is all true. But be careful. Uttering these words to the wrong person could have dire consequences. Especially for me.”

Erika nonchalantly responded, “More people are on your side than you realize. The world is ready to be rid of Bloodline powers. Xenia’s death would mean the end of a long chain of tyranny and oppression that has long since plagued the world.”

Erika then switched topics saying, “Can you confirm these ki readouts? Do you know if Victoria is performing BloodStar and Bloodlust techniques on Khan Island?”

Ramses sighed, “I can confirm that she is not.”

Erika quickly said, “Then what explains these readings?”

Ramses sighed again, “Like I said, we shouldn’t get ahead of ourselves. These readings are from Xenia herself.”

“What?! But how?!” Erika was confused, “She has never shown this kind of power before. Has she been hiding it?”

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Ramses calmly said, “This is the problem with my family. We are all supremely gifted with ki energy. No one more so than Xenia. I would bet that she has just learned to use the Bloodlust technique.”

Ramses and Erika sat on the phone silently with one another until Ramses spoke again, “As you can see, killing Xenia may be more difficult than we imagined. Even if Pope Gregory can kill her… which believe me, he can… he will have to do so without her killing him first. I have never seen someone more talented than Xenia as much as I hate to say it. She is a monster amongst monsters. This may be our last good chance to finish her off before she outpaces us all with her power.”

Erika scoffed, “I refuse to believe that. If it comes down to it, Jarek could wipe the floor with her. The only problem with that is convincing him to do so. His tumultuous past with Victoria has always given him hesitation. And now, his son’s relationship with Xenia will give him even more hesitation.”

Ramses reassured her, “Don’t worry. I am quietly setting the stage to turn the world against Xenia. When the time comes, she will have very few allies to fight alongside her. Not even her beloved United States will back her.”

Erika gave out a sigh of relief, “It is always a pleasure working with you King Ramses. Give Queen Zara my regards. I will be in touch.”

Ramses replied, “Until next time. Stay safe.”

____________________________________

“Breathe in.” Victoria paced before Xenia watching her form. “Breathe out. Breathe in. Breathe out.”

Victoria then backed away activating her own ki to serve as a defensive barrier, “Now, activate!”

Xenia suddenly appeared to have flipped a switch. Her ki turned a dark red with hints of pure darkness within. Her eyes went crimson red, and her surface vasculature appeared to glow a faint red. Her overall appearance gave her a demonic air as her power surged to greater and greater heights.

Victoria then yelled, “Deactivate!”

Xenia breathed out and her aura began to shrink. Her red eyes faded, and her veins lost their glow. She looked to her mother and said, “Well? What do you think?”

“Your progress is beyond impressive. However, you are not ready to use this technique in battle.” Victoria spared no truth in telling Xenia she wasn’t ready.

Xenia raised her arms and hands helplessly and said, “Why not?! I could crush an entire army with this new technique. You have done so yourself.”

Victoria smiled cautiously. She knew convincing Xenia not to use this technique rashly would be an uphill battle. “It is not the army I am worried about.”

Xenia laughed, “Pope Gregory? His sons? I think I could defeat them too. The Holy Light Empire has picked the wrong fight.”

Victoria snapped at her, “Don’t be a fool! St. Peter and St. Michael may have less experience in battle than you, but they are just as strong. Pope Gregory has even more experience and is even stronger. You may yet be able to defeat him 1 on 1 owing to your advantage in unique abilities and talents on the battlefield, but what if they attack you together? I will not be fighting by your side to help you!”

Xenia crossed her arms and scoffed, “Then why teach me this technique at all?”

“You know very well why. It is to be used as a last resort until you master it. Once you master it, trust me, no one will stand in your way. Not even me.” Victoria knew the importance of keeping her daughter focused lest she die on the battlefield.

The two had their conversation interrupted by an attendant who had rushed up in a hurry. Victoria looked to the attendant and said, “You are quite brave rushing up in the middle of our training. You risked death to deliver us a message. What is so important?”

The attendant fell to a knee and said, “Empress Victoria, I have a message from Lord Heraklinos of the Saber Province directed to General BloodStar. May I relay it to her?”

Victoria waved her hand and said, “Of course, do tell.”

The attendant then turned to Xenia and said, “General BloodStar, here is Lord Heraklinos message”:

Dear Xenia,

The Saber Fortress is under siege by rebel forces. We are low on soldiers after heavy losses in the field, and we need reinforcements. If you would come to our aid, we shall have victory with ease. I have no doubt that you will answer our call. Please bring the appropriate necessities for our post-victory celebrations.

-Jacek

Xenia raised her eyebrows, “Post-victory celebrations? I very much like the sound of that.” She then looked to Victoria and said, “I will be taking my leave now then.”

Victoria sternly said, “You will not be taking your leave until your Empress dismisses you.”

The attendant bowed and quickly scurried to a safe distance as he retreated back to Khan Castle.

Xenia stopped and listened to Victoria who said, “If you leave now, this will likely abbreviate your training until the war begins. Are you really so confident? So arrogant?”

Xenia smiled, “I suppose I am. As you say, I have never met a genuine challenge in my life. I know no fear.”

Victoria frowned, “I am afraid for you to learn your lesson the hard way. I will offer you a deal. Do you see that container ship?”

Victoria pointed several miles off the coast, and Xenia squinted her eyes saying, “Yes.”

Victoria asked, “What do you feel aboard that ship?”

Xenia concentrated her ki and began to meditate, “I feel… several thousands of humans. Close to five thousand.”

Victoria grinned, “Very good. Here is the deal. You may leave if you demonstrate to me the BloodStar technique on those individuals aboard the ship. They are expendable gifts from Constance. If you fail; however, you will stay here with me and train.”

Xenia smiled, “We both know it is not possible to perform that feat without the Bloodlust technique. So, you are saying if I can perform this feat using both techniques and maintain my composure while doing so, I can leave?”

Victoria nodded, “Precisely.”

Xenia laughed, “Deal. Witness the power of your heir. I will make you proud mother!”

Xenia then turned to a razor-sharp focus. To even detect the individuals aboard the ship miles from the coast took an immense amount of concentration.

Xenia calmy activated her Bloodlust technique. Her eyes turned red, and her body became aglow with a red aura emanating from underneath her skin. She could now easily detect the nearly five thousand individuals aboard the ship. She could sense they were all released to walk about the ship’s surface. Some remained in the containers, others enjoyed the open breeze of the ocean.

Next, she gave a loud cry as she powered-up in earnest gathering a frightening amount of ki. Her aura was vicious, and the violent nature spilled forth as she raised both hands and began.

Xenia began to bloodbend every individual aboard the ship. Cries of horror and shrieks of pain could be heard aboard the ship as the passengers’ bodies were overtaken with an unseen force.

Xenia simultaneously targeted their heads and necks until she was ready. Then… in an instant… the heads of nearly five thousand people were suddenly ripped from their shoulders falling to the ground. The blood spewing forth from their bodies streamed forth like a beautiful fountain from their severed necks and into a huge sphere of blood over the ship.

Tens of thousands of gallons of blood rotated in a well-formed sphere above the ship. Xenia then moved her hands rapidly controlling the blood as she sent it flying towards Khan Island. Only moments later, Xenia formed a vortex of blood rotating at huge speeds with Xenia and Victoria standing in the center.

Xenia with her red eyes still glaring called to Victoria, “Does this pass your test Empress BloodStar?”

Victoria stood in the middle of a blood vortex spinning around her. Her pride for her daughter swelled nearly bringing a tear to her eye. She truly was the prodigy of a millennium. She composed herself before saying, “You have earned my respect, and you have shown your skill with the BloodStar and Bloodlust techniques.”

She looked her daughter square in the eyes, “Vanquish this vortex to the ocean, return to your normal state, and you may take your leave to aid Lord Heraklinos.”

Xenia pushed both hands out to her sides sending the blood vortex into two halves collapsing into the ocean. She then controlled her breathing as her ki attenuated. Once her eyes returned to their normal color, Xenia ran with a huge smile on her face and hugged her mother, “Thank you mother! Thank you for training me and thank you for trusting me!”

Victoria couldn’t help but return the embrace, “I do think you are a fool, but you are a gifted fool, nonetheless. Promise me you will be careful. The world has always been a dangerous place for a BloodStar family member, even more so these days.”

Xenia smiled and said, “I promise. Thanks to you, the world just became a more dangerous place for all enemies of the BloodStar family as well.”

Xenia began to take her leave back to Khan Island. She had much to pack. Her thoughts were mostly occupied on the post-victory celebrations rather than the actual battle to come.

As she put distance between her and her mother, Victoria made a portal and spoke into it, “Nero!”

Moments later, Nero stepped through the portal and bowed, “Yes Empress. I am at your service.”

Victoria said, “I am ordering you to go to the United States and await General BloodStar’s arrival. You will engage with the enemy only to protect my daughter. Protect her from the death she so eagerly seeks.”

Nero nodded, “I will follow these orders to my own demise.”

Victoria knew she could trust Nero, and she nodded saying, “And Nero. Make sure to have your sword on you at all times.”

Nero nodded back, “It hasn’t left my side since the day you blessed it, Empress.”