SIN shuffled out of bed to drink the glass of red wine he'd poured himself  last night. He gulped a mouthful and noted he has a funny taste, but put it down to leaving it out overnight.

Then he got back into bed with Halone, after drawing the blinds to recreate that soothing darkness like being back in the womb. Every touch and caress they felt of one another was like heaven, deepening a bond that was unique to them and pure-unlike the blood bond.

This was where they both felt safest, in his bed. It was as if the world could not hurt them while they were inside his four walls. In their embrace they found everything they needed. If the world was a fake sky their love was the northern star to guide them home.

However Halone woke up to no warm embrace and only a cold bed. As her eyes slowly peeled open amidst the dim light that filtered in she made out an outline. SIN's familiar outline, but there was something else that was alien. It glistened serrated.

A knife.

Immediately all of her romantic ideals flew out the window, panic gripped her and she struggled to breathe. It was as if she was suffocating above water.

"SIN, s-stop, don't do this please, think of my son," she explained in a terrified squeak as she gazed fearfully at his face, noticing an unflinching grin that seemed possessed by dark entities, the entities of their blood bond perhaps?

SIN moved closer whilst Halone flinched with everyone step he took to close the distance. As he dragged the knife all over her body as she cried and shuddered, all she could think about was who reminiscent of how the other prisoner was skinned alive, begging for mercy as he held the knife above his head, ready to plunge it in deep.

"What's going on here?" an unfamiliar voice called out as Halone saw a shadowy figure step into the room.

"SIN, put down that knife," they instructed in a calm, slow voice.

"No, I need blood," SIN snapped back.

"You dont, your so called friends spiked your wine with blood-you don't want to do this," they told, they took on a slightly bargaining tone.

"I...I was spiked?" SIN turned round to the shadowy intruder.

However he found his eyes drawn back to Halone. The pure terror in them was heartbreaking to see after he promised her he would keep her safe. He swore to it.

And he failed her.

He dropped the knife and sunk to his knees before Halone, all he could do was sob, "I'm sorry," over a over, each one growing increasingly more hysterical than the last.

It was in this moment that Halone realised he could never be her protector. Not now she knew all his warning about his fake, blood soaked, side didn't even come close to conveying how disturbed and deprived this side of him was.

Like always, she had to be her own protector.

She couldn't even look him in the eye. She was too disgusting. Meanwhile at her feet he felt disgusted in himself.

Neither of them could face the other and sooner rather than later pain had reintroduced itself into Halone's life once again.

A week later and two female demons, neither with a single flyaway to their prom and proper hair, were working tirelessly on Halone. They yanked at her hair with sadistic intention, waving demonic sigils and chanting ancient black magik to conjure their spiritual ancestors to oversee what the demons called the Blood Bond.

Halone had tears welling in her eyes from how tightly wounded her hair was, it felt like it might rip from her scalp at any second with any further touch.

But these demons had mastered their craft of pain. They knew exactly what they were doing.

Soon they had plaited Halone's hair into two plaited pigtails, the end tied off with golden beads.

Then they brought her to an alter where SIN was awaiting and a priest was stood before the both of them.

"We are united here today for the blood bond of SIN and his slave Halone. Her plaid are primed be connected to the spirits of SIN's ancestors, they will guide her spirit to surrender totally to his will. Her heart will be his, her body will be his, and when he dies so will she. She will be subservient to him and if she steps out of line he can execute her at will. She will carry his scars and wounds and, if necessary, she will die for him."

Halone struggled to KA rain a neutral composure. Hearing all of this was far too much far too quickly. What if SIN snapped and killed her?

"I will now unsheathe the ceremonial dagger and begin the ritual," the goriest explained before he began to utter guttural, throaty chanting. Halone noticed the two woman sunk to their knees, their eyes rolled back into their skulls and blood spilled from them as they began to convulse. Instinctively she wanted to help them but SIN grabbed her arm and silently shook his head. So Halone steadier herself and faced the priest.

"Fowl beast," the priest spat their words at Halone like a snake spitting venom, "I curse you for all of eternity to be bound to your master as his ever faithful slave. I revoke you of your free will and denounce you as nothing more than a bondslave."

With that he drew the danger over her palm that he forced open. The blade was so sharp she barely felt the pain but when she saw the blood bubble up from the cut she felt like she was about to faint. Usually blood didn't bother her but knowing she was at the mercy of a stranger she began to fear the worst.

"SIN," the priest began, their voice filling with warmth and pride, "I bless you with your first slave, inside the golden beads at the tips of her plaids are the ashes of the sigils you used to symbolise everything blood bonds are about. Loyalty, devotion, servitude. You will dominant this inferior being till she takes her dying breath, you will beat her into submission if she tries to rebel. You will be her God, her everything, because without you she is nothing. Her heart and soul are yours to own with absolute completion. When you die she will serve you in the afterlife and beyond. Now, allow me to complete the blood bond," he continued before he cut SIN's open palm and made him and Halone shake bloodied hands, the blood slowly mixing as from the tips of Halone's plaits and from SIN's left eye cake red wisps they signified slavery and sadism.

"Now you two are bonded she is blessed witness demonic strength so she can protect you from harm my dear SIN, she will be a good warrior if she is obedient to her master."

SIN merely nodded, forcing a smile as he watched Halone trembling and visibly nauseous from the blood loss.

"You make take her to your chambers," the priest said, once again SIN nodded before he whisked Halone off back to his room where they could be alone, just for a little while, just until the news of their bondage broke.

"How are you holding up?" SIN questioned Halone once he's shut the door behind her, he turned around to see Halone sitting on the edge of his bed, that thousand mile state having had returned to her ghoulish, pale features.

"Not good," she muttered as she began to rock back and forth, as if she was a baby in a mother's arms.

"Would some wine help?" he asked as he poured himself a glass of sweet, fruity red.

It was only now that Halone broke down in tears and immediately SIN felt a fool as he realised it probably triggered her to remember his episode of bloodlust just over a week earlier. Now she was allowed to be vulnerable, because she felt like she couldn't be strong for even a second longer lest she collapse.

SIN uttered quiet, "hush hush," and 'there there,' as he attempted to console her. He perched himself besides her, being careful to slowly reach out to her to let her know he would never hurt her. 

"I know all that stuff back there was scary but I promise you you're safe," he said as he used a finger to push up Halone's chin so the two were staring deeply into one another's eyes. Her's were bloodshot, puffy and raw, and his broke at the sight of them.

"S-SIN?" she uttered in a fragile, helpless whisper.

"Yes?".

"Hold me."

Hesitantly SIN reached over to Halone, who snuggling herself into his arms, bested within them the two fell asleep together, his wine glass remaining untouched. He stroked her hair, whispered sweet nothings in her ears and cuddled her close so she could feel his warmth.

Little did either know that when their bodies united a spark had formed between them. In his touch Halone was assured he would never hurt her, and in her touch he was assured she had gifted him her loyalty after he had protected her.

Before either of them knew it was dawn break, their sleepy eyes connected in the dull light of the rising sun. She noticed his eyes, as in really noticed the. How they were truly deep pools of white and crimson, like red rose petals on fresh snow. Romantic yet mysterious. Meanwhile he noticed hers, deep and dark amber that held a million life experiences. Bright and defiant, enthralling and pristine.

Another week later and dull pains from torture were stabbing all over Halone's naked body, she hadn't seen SIN ever since be disappeared out of shame after failing to protect her from being blood bonded. She desperately needed to escape this Hell, she could feel her mind slipping away from her with each drop of blood drained from her body, each time she was defiled by the demons she lost a piece of her sanity.

She needed him now more then ever but he had let her down again.

She blinked stinging sweat from her eyes, the tight ropes of her bondage caused red welts to blossom across her skin, flaying her alive in slow agony. Her eyes darted erratically as they'd watched for SIN, catching blurred glimpses of blood spilling from the drunken lips of the demons.

Blood. Her blood. Stolen.

Where was SIN? He promised to protect her and he had failed her.

Her muscles twitched and spasmed against the restraints that kept her locked in place,, her eyes came to rest on the ruby embedded in the middle of her chest.

This was the ruby, glowing and red and warm, that kept her alive-the ruby emitted chemicals into her bloodstream that made her able to breathe the air of this planet around her without dying.

Without it she would die. But removing her ruby would also kill her, without her ruby to purify the air it would turn her blood toxic.

An idea came to her mind. She had to rip it out, it was her only hope. Otherwise she would suffer a long, drawn out death at the cruel, merciless hands of the demons.

Struggling against the strength of her restraints she began to stretch her shaking fingers towards the ruby, till they ensnared themselves around the precious gem, it's radiant warm soothing her as it touched her fingertips.

She began to dig her nails in, pulling and tearing at the ruby, black dots started to dance across her vision as the gem loosened.

You have to do this, she told herself as she panted heavily in a mixture of pain and exhaustion, there's no other way, she snapped as sweat beaded her forehead and clammed her hands.

Breaths came to her in laboured, ragged gasps as the black dots enlarged into black patches that left her almost blinded, her eyes had screwed shut in a feeble attempt to block out the searing pain radiating from her chest, bitter tears streamed down her cheeks as she struggled for air, choking and convulsing as a wave of nausea crept up the back of her throat and into her mouth, scratching raw and rancid, she could feel the pain overwhelming her, her vision blurring into blackness and sweat soaking her skin as she shaking ripped and teared at her ruby.

The room spun, spun, spun, and she was helplessly caught in a riptide of blood, her sweating and shaking body shrunk inside itself as she continued to pull the ruby out-strands of her flesh were tearing out with it, thick streams of her blood pumped out with every racing heartbeat and causing the sweet crimson liquid to gush down her front.

She forced herself to pull the ruby one last time, on the verge of blacking out, using the last of the strength stored in her burnt out muscles, and finally the ruby was severed from her body.

She began to asphyxiate, the air around her became dry and unbreathable, her head began to throb with a pounding headache that felt like her head was being spilt open, every cell in her body screamed for oxygen as she began to slip away, falling under.

She fell further and further into the darkness, losing herself in a sweating and choking mess of sickness, till the darkness threatened to swallow her whole.

Lying dying in the middle of the banquet table around her the demons began to succumb to the poisoning, black gunky liquid dribbled out from their eye sockets, nostrils, ears and mouths as their skin drained to a bloodless white colour. Their blood red eyes turned a coal black, hollow and empty, little speckles of pale green fluid dripped out from their pores as they began to convulse, a mixture of Halone's blood and their own sickly yellow stomach bile spewing from their mouths.

Through tear filled eyes she saw the demons collapsing into crumpled heaps and knew now was the time.

Her fingers cracked as they reached out to grab her ruby, which slipped around in her blood soaked grasp as she fought to remain conscious, her lungs filling like they were going to explode as she struggled in a losing battle, almost at death's door.

As blackness encroached ever faster on her vision she managed to secure the ruby, grabbing it and hastily forcing it back into her chest, her flesh immediately binding with it. Just as immediately air flooded back into her lungs, she desperately gulped down massive lungfuls of air before ripping the syringes and needles from her skin, biting her way free from her bondage.

Around her the demons were all dead or dying, body fluids soaking the tiled marble floor. She got to her feet, her atrophied muscles straining to support her own weight as she staggered off of the banquet table, crashing downward and falling onto a choking demon before she struggled to her feet again, her head pounding and cold sweat chilling her to her very bones as she took in the sight.

She looked at each and every disgusting demon, her own eyes reflecting shock and dilated with adrenaline as her heart hammered in her chest. Her own blood pumped with an invigorated rage, a feral instinct screaming for revenge. For bloodlust.

Transforming into her wolf form she locked eyes with the bulging, screaming eyes of a demon and felt her inner predator erupt, she instinctively lunged towards the warmth of their skin, her jaws closing around their jugular and feeling the warm throb of their pulse that seemed almost inviting in the most morbid sense of the word. Then, consumed by the adrenaline rush surging around her system, she listened with ravenous joy to the blood curdling sounds of their hysterical gurgles, followed by an awful wet choke as she tore out their jugular, ripped open and exposed she left them to bleed out, their own blood staining her lips and dripping from her mouth.

Then she jumped from demon to demon, scratching and biting and disembowelling and executing.

Standing in a thick, warm pool of blood that soaked her paw pads she felt something take over her, a raw and primal fear that created a crushing pressure inside her, that made her heart stop and air unable to enter her lungs. Breath came to her in short, shallow gasps that done nothing to alleviate the suffocating feeling permeating her body. She felt as if she was drowning, pulled into an undertow and sinking, sinking, sinking.

The smell of blood ripe in her nostrils drew tears from her eyes, the unholy massacre around her frightening her to her very core. All she could do was sink to her knees and sob wretchedly as she felt a part of her detach, watching the chaos from above as she dissociated from the trauma around her.

"I'm so scared!" Halone howled out in a child-like voice, raw sobs of misery tearing from deep within her chest, "so scared, so scared," she whimpered over and over, tugging at clumps of her hair and sharply twisting them round in her fingers, she pressed herself further into the human warmth of a demon's chest.

All of a sudden she had no idea where or who she was, everything lost it's meaning and she found herself surrounded by untold horrors and utterly helpless.

Then, the approaching sound of storming boots as guards swarmed the room, weapons pointed at Halone and ready to taste blood.

"Kill the whore!" one of the demon assemble commanded as they flooded into the banquet room, surrounding her hysterically howling self as they aimed and readied their guns.

Halone clung tighter to SIN's body, burying her head into his chest and sobbing heavily into it, "we haven't got a clear shot, get her off of him!" the same demon instructed, one of the demons reached out to Halone and grabbed her by her shoulder blade.

"No! No, no no!" Halone wailed, she only clung to Sin even more desperately, "please SIN save me!" she cried out as the demon continued to pry her away from Sin, she frantically looked into SIN's blood red eyes for any trace of compassion.

In his eyes she saw a whirlwind of indescribable emotions. He was just as frantic as her, hugging her body to his so he wouldn't lose her. Her eyes bled with raw emotion, remnants of shame still lingered but also pride that she had fought tooth and nail to fight back against a toxic society, but overruling by far was the fear he'd lose his girl as he watched her tremble and tear up.

The demon continued to wrestle with her when down the hallway the noise of paws thundering sounded, intensifying as they neared, before Nikolai and Xero lunged at the guards, cleaning ripping out their throats, their bodies crumpled and blood spilt across Halone as she sat, shaking and petrified.

From down the hallway a shadowy human figure closed in on them, each paw placed with slow deliberation, as they entered the banquet room lights flooded on the beast, revealing it to be Leiden.

"Congratulations on your slaughter," he commented with pride, Xero and Nikolai flanking him, extending a hand to Halone, who frantically scrambled away from it.

"I didn't hurt anyone, I-I would never hurt anyone," Halone stammered out, her voice growing sharp with terror, her eyes darted around to glance at the carnage that surrounded her, the bloodshed was so thick she could taste it.

"Sir, there's one demon still alive," Nikolai stated, nodding to Sin, "we'll have to kill him."

"Don't kill him! You can't kill him-if you kill him I'll die too!" Halone yelled out, her voice hoarse as she scrambled in front of SIN, protecting him.

"Shit, that sounds like she's been blood bonded to this demon scum," Xero said, slowly approaching Halone before inspecting her, finding what he feared: three plaits, one on either side of her head and the other on the back, each with red wisps emitting from it, "yep, that's a blood bond if I've ever seen one."

"We need to hurry it up, reinforcements won't be far behind," Xero said, looking to Leiden, his words and body tense as he scoured his surroundings.

"We haven't got the time for this," Leiden scoffed, looking down at Halone with equal parts frustration and admiration, "take him as a prisoner of war," he stated, looking to Nikolai and signalling for him to come over.

"This way," Nikolai ushered gruffly, herding off Halone down the hallway as she walked with her head bowed and tail between her legs.

Halone's eyes darted between all the carnage, floods of tears cascaded down her face as she continued to sob, "I would never hurt anyone, I didn't do this!" she howled as she followed after Nikolai, Xero goading her foreword as him, Leiden and a captured SIN kept behind them.

Nikolai approached the vast wall that separated the demon city from the wildlife, burrowing under the secret tunnel made by the rebels, leading Halone under it and into freedom.

As they journeyed through the thicket the horrified expression of lost innocence burned out in Halone's eyes, quickly being replaced by one of darting confusion, Halone's voice returned to a full formed, mature and deeper tone, "where am I?" she asked, looking to Nikolai with a lost expression.

"We've just rescued you from the demons," Nikolai explained, "they had you held as a prisoner of war," he continued.

Halone nodded, before shock overcame her features, "my boy! What about my son Shadow?!" she exclaimed.

"He's fine, the encampment has been looking after him," Nikolai answered in authoritative monotone, "he's taken a shine to Alexis," he laughed, his voice softening as he spoke her name, and chuckle eased from Halone's lips.

"Good...good," she said, her muscles unwinding.

Arriving back at a rebel encampment that was buried deep within a wild forest, SIN was placed in a large rusted metal cage as a centrepiece of the encampment, chained to the floor by his throat, Nikolai admired the display with a proud look.

"Sir," he called out as Leiden passed by, their eyes met and Leiden nodded.

"Yes?" he asked.

"What do you think was up with that prisoner Halone? Stockholm syndrome perhaps?" Nikolai questioned.

"I'm not sure," Leiden answered honestly, "she's sleeping with her son right now, she has no memory of how she came to break free and kill those demons," he continued, Nikolai nodded.

"Thank you sir," he said.

In the mouth of a spacious cave Halone slept in her animal form, a large brown wolf with a white underbelly and a dark sepia mane, curled around her son as he slept in his human form, cuddling up to her soft fur. A peaceful expression rested on Halone's face, one of absolute tranquility that was rare in strained times like these.

As a shadow fell across her one of Halone's eyelid peeked open, revealing a glistening pool of amber, she looked up and saw Nikolai's white animal form staring down at her.

"Halone, Leiden wishes to speak to you," he stated, Halone nodded and rose to her feet, being careful not to disturb her peacefully sleeping child, allowing Nikolai to lead her to Leiden.

"Halone," Leiden greeted as her and Nikolai approached him where he stood in the mouth of his vast cave complex, in his grand and intimidating animal form, Nikolai nodded to his leader before leaving him with Halone.

"I wanted to speak to you about the rebellion," Leiden stated, sitting down and eyeing Halone with a deadly seriousness.

"The raw and primal edge I saw to you, your fighting spirit and indestructible will. You truly are formidable, someone never to be crossed because once awakened your unstoppable bloodlust demands to be quenched," he explained, his voice remaining as level and stony as his expression.

"But, Sir, I remember ripping my ruby from my chest, then the next thing I know it's as if I blacked out, I don't remember slaughtering demons or begging you not to kill that demon," Halone replied honestly, "It was...it was almost as if I detached from my body" she continued, "and once I got away from the demons I came back to Earth," she explained.

"Sir, I'm no hero, from what I can gather I was begging you not to kill that pathetic demon," she said, spitting the word pathetic with venom.

"You have an insurmountably vast well of strength within you," Leiden said with a matter of fact tone.

"You're better than those who join the rebellion because of its intoxicants and whores, I never wanted that for my rebellion, and it made me lose hope in what I stood for," he explained, maintaining an eye contact with Halone which seemed almost vulnerable, an openness that left him unguarded, "I never wanted that, I was losing hope in the rebellion."

"Halone, you have restored my hope, it's a new dawn," he explained, "I need rebels like you, I want retribution, I crave for their blood to spill, for them to pay for what they've done-I must have retribution, for them to pay for what they've done," he continued, an intensity building in his words as Halone silently listened with absolute focus.

"The rebels already have bounties in their heads put there by the demons, no doubt you have one after you slaughtered them like lambs at their divine banquet," he spoke, "our own brothers and sisters are betraying us, selling us out to the demons, on the day the peace treaty ends and war is declared I will truly bring them to justice and make them suffer."

"Now more than ever I need warriors like you," he explained, "you have two moons to recover and recuperate, then we'll go under the cover of darkness and strike the demons hard and fast," he continued, looking to Halone with a deadly seriousness.

She nodding, accepting his offer. 

"I'm with you till my last breath, my loyalty lies entirely with you," she answered, her voice brimming with courage.

"Your son, Shadow," Leiden said.

"Yes?" Halone inquired, inquisitiveness creeping into her tone of voice as she watched Leiden with a steady gaze.

"He seems to of taken a shine to my sister," Leiden said, a faint smirk teasing the corners of his lips apart, "she's glad to have him around and look after him," he continued, suddenly his expression deadened and a heavy sigh ushered from his lips.

"She's such a beautiful yet troubled lady..." Leiden trailed off, looking to the dirt and turning over a stone with his paw, "want to know about the day she was so horrifically scarred?" Leiden asked.

Halone nodded, silent.

Leiden set the scene, him and Alexis were barely older than mere pups as the family slept peacefully in their burrow, having just caught and eaten a deer. It was a lazy day, one to be savoured. The war with the demons raged on, yet here they were in a perfect moment of peace within war, calm within a storm.

Then the thick smell of smoke, followed with a faint wave of heat that seemed to radiate from  the entrance to the burrow. Leiden's father groggily opened an eye, greeted by the sight of hot flames licking at the tunnel walls of the burrow. 

As he staggered to his feet the smoke began to choke him, the flames singing his fur, he roused his family with a desperate cry, his long tail sweeping over Leiden and Alexis to fan the flames away from them, their expressions paralysed with stomach turning, heart racing terror.

"Leiden you're going to have to run through the flames," his father instructed, his voice grave.

Leiden looked at his father, "I can't!" he burst out.

"You can, I know you can!" his father shouted over the roaring flames.

Leiden turned, facing the flames that singed his skin with tiny flakes of ember, and ran towards them as fast as he could, as he was engulfed in flames he pushed through the torturous feeling and continued to run for the fresh air of the other side.

Turning round he saw his sister overcome by flames, he saw her flesh begun to melt, her face twisted in misery as blood cried from the open wounds gnarling her face.

Leiden tried to go back in, diving into the flames, only to instinctively jump back out due to the pain. It was torturing, watching his sister burn alive whilst he watched helpless, in the background he heard the taunting cackles of demons.

Then his mother barrelled out of the burrow, grabbing Alexis by her scruff and hurling her free of the flames. Leiden immediately tried to tend to his sister, who was shaking and screaming, when she lifted her head and he caught sight of the side of her face that had been burned down to her skull he could barely hold back an urge to vomit.

He put his paw over Alexis', even though she was half blinded by the flames she had to know he was there for her.

No matter what. Him and her, against the world.

"I love you Alexis," Leiden chirped up, his voice choking up as he wondered if these would be the last words she would hear. She had to know without a doubt that he loved her wholly and truly.

"I love you too Leiden," she whispered, her voice weak and trembling as she continued to shake.

Halone and Leiden held a long silence between one another, one that allowed the nightmare to settle in both their brains. He was put through so much, at such a young age, it was a miracle he was still alive-let alone being leader of a rebellion that was true and just.

"In a lot of ways I still run through the flames," Leiden said, "all I know is I'll never surrender, never stop fighting," he said.

"Never give up who you are," he said, "because without that, who are we?" he questioned, before turning his back to Halone.

"Dismissed," he grumbled, heading back into his den.

X