The Daimon was one of the rare Spathi warriors Thanatos had come seeking.
"Are the tears for your children?"
The Daimon gave a curt nod. "Each was slain by a Dark-Hunter. And I in turn slew the Hunter."
Thanatos ached for the man. The Apollites had no real choice and yet they were punished because they dared to choose life over death. He wondered what the humans and Dark-Hunters would do if they were told they had one of two choices: die painfully in the midst of their youth, or take human souls and live.
As a mere Apollite, Thanatos had been prepared to die.
Just like his wife...
Zarek had taken even that option away from his family.
Insane, the Dark-Hunter had come through his village, laying waste to everyone in it. The men had barely been able to hide the women and children before Zarek had destroyed them all.
No one who had come into Zarek's path had remained alive.
No one.
Zarek had killed Apollite and Daimon indiscriminately. And for that crime his only punishment had been banishment.
Banished!
Rage suffused him. How dare Zarek remain living in comfort all these centuries while the memory of that night festered eternally in Thanatos's heart.
But he forced that hatred aside. This was no time to let his anger rule him. It was the time to be as cold and calculating as his enemy.
"How old are you, Daimon?" Thanatos asked the Spathi.
"Ninety-four."
Thanatos arched a brow. "You've done well."
"Yes, I have. I grew tired of hiding."
He knew the feeling. There was nothing worse than being forced to live in the dark. Living life confined.
"Have no fear. No Dark-Hunter will be after you. I'm here to make sure of it."
The man smiled. "We thought you were a myth."
"All good myths are rooted in reality and truth. Didn't your mother teach you that?"
The Spathi's eyes turned dark, haunted. "I was only three when she turned twenty-seven. She didn't have time to teach me anything at all."
Thanatos placed a comforting hand on the man's shoulder. "We will take this planet back, my brother. Rest assured, our day has come once more. I will summon the others of your kind and we will unite our armies. The humans have no one who can protect them now."
"What of the Dark-Hunters?" the woman asked.
Thanatos smiled. "They are bound to the night. I'm not. I can stalk them whenever I choose it." He laughed. "I am immune to their wounds. I am Death to them all and I am now home again with my people. Together, we will rule this earth and all who inhabit it."
Zarek woke up to the smell of heaven. He would have thought he was dreaming, but his dreams were never so pleasant
Lying in bed, he was afraid to move. Afraid the delicious aroma would prove to be a figment of his imagination.
His stomach rumbled.
He heard the wolf bark.