"Curses! I am going to murder someone!" Rheynoak Casvionel's voice rang throughout his office, his knuckles pounding on the polished wood of his desk.

Papers and books littered the surface of his office floors, the red carpet almost disappearing underneath the sea of important documents that suffocated it from beneath.

Days has gone by since the book Lucien had left for him when he was sick has disappeared and the constricting thought of what would happen if anyone found the book nearly choked him.

Lucien had originally left the book for him to stay alerted on any new information but what others didn't know was that that specific book kept him connected with many powerful tribes.

There were many tribes scattered across Asxairo, some more powerful than others. The leaders were Siphon, Summoners, even witches and they were in charge of keeping each other in check.

That book was given to every tribe to keep a special connection between them yet the tribe leader himself knew that the book hid more ancient secrets that anyone ever knew.

And if it ever landed in the wrong person's hand...

Rheynoak shivered at the not so pleasant thought. The other tribe leaders would kill him for sure.

Pushing his fingers through his hair, he pulled at the back strands of his hair, sweat beading down the bridge of his nose. His knuckles slammed down on the desk once more, the crack of his bones crunching underneath his skin.

Outside, he could hear the chatter of his followers with his ears, perking up on little hints of conversations in languages he couldn't understand, the rare sound of laughter breaking through the usual painful early noon atmosphere.

The desert has been quite for some time now, a scary thought that lingered in everyone's minds as members of Rheynoak's tribes scurried about their day.

The sun was beaming down today, the tribe leader's eyes looking over to the window that was exposed by the drawn back curtains. He didn't need to walk close to the window to see the bruises that embraced the skin of his followers after their vigorous training through his heightened eyesight.

Blood and sweat dripped from their skins like raindrops falling from crying skies above. The sweet smell of running blood and musky skin met his senses, the sound of bones cracking underneath skin ringing in the desert atmosphere.

They should have been training right now, working their bones off until the flesh on their bodies peeled off, a normal day for those that were dedicated members of Rheynoak's tribe.

But Rheynoak himself hasn't been thinking about his own tribe, wild hazel eyes scouring the top of his desks as he searched for the one thing he longed to have.

His mind was scattered, so consumed by the frightening thought of what might happen if it landed in the wrong hands that he didn't notice the sound of someone knocking on the doors of his office until the door creaked open.

Dressed in a fitted green t-shirt with sleeves that stopped just below his biceps and dark pants, Lucien Northorn, his right-hand man stepped inside the space of his office, his soft footsteps whispering on the carpet.

"Rheynoak, have you been stuck in this office all day?" Lucien asked as the door slammed shut. The tribe leader looked over to his friend, noticing that he was missing his usual black cloak.

A frustrated sigh escaped the tribe leader's lips, his foot swinging into the hard wooden legs of his enormous desk. "Do I look like I have been stuck in this office all day?" he asked, the frustration laced through his voice. "Don't ask me questions that are so stupidly obvious."

His fellow Hell Siphon nodded, crossing his hands over his chest. His usual tumbling, blonde locks were tied into a sloping bun on top of his head, strands of hair falling into his eyes.

"Well, it's not my fault your office looks like a hurricane ripped through it" he mumbled underneath his breath, his eyes straying down to the once again dirty floor. Paper was already stuck underneath the soles of his black shoes, the delicate surface of the paper ripping the more he tried to get rid of it.

"It wouldn't have to look like a hurricane if I could just find what I am looking for" the tribe leader grumbled in response, the red hot angry feeling consuming his body until his skin practically burned.

Lucien didn't shake his head nor tilt his lips into a smile, instead keeping his mouth shut and pressed as he looked around the office. The tribe leader watched his friend with careful eyes, taking in the rather prestigious way his friend stood before him, bolder, radiating with the confidence he usually lacked.

"Is there anything specific you have been looking for?" his friend asked, changing the topic as his gray eyes strayed across the stacks of papers that littered the floor in such a disarranged form.

Taking his eyes off his friend, another frustrated groan came out of Rheynoak's lips, his palms meeting the wooden surface of the table. A scarlet blush coated his red cheeks, locks of dark hair falling in his eyes.

"As a matter of fact I am" he grumbled back to his friend, settling down in the plush chair of his desk. Leaning his back against the plush pillows, his burnt amber cloak draping to the floor, he raised his legs in their and crossed them over on his desk.

Fingers intertwined together, rings circling around the base of his fingers in all different kinds of intricate patterns and designs that had Lucien tracing the designs with his eyes.

"Do you happen to remember the book you gave me the day that dreadful Bloodbone tried to kill me?" he asked, keeping his eyes locked on his fellow right-hand man. The Hell Siphon nodded, taking several steps towards Rheynoak.

His footsteps were rustled underneath all the paper he tried to walk through, his feet clearing a rather rugged and winding path for him to walk on. "Yes, the one I gave you to keep update on the alerts other tribes would report" he uttered back once he was cleared from the path.

"Yes, that one" the tribe leader replied back. "It seems to have gone missing along with the notes that I clearly revised and reviewed for the other tribes."

Lucien shrugged, his nails digging deep into the skin of his crossed arms. Gray eyes flickered down to the pile of paper on the floor, a frown tugging on his lips. "Are you sure it's not in this horrendous pile of papers?"

A laugh trickled out of Rheynoak's lips, his head shaking as he did so. Sometimes he wondered what really went in in his fellow Hell Siphon's head. "I'm not an idiot Lucien" he whispered back, cracking his knuckles as he said so.

"Then I don't know where it is but I will be on the lookout for it."

"Good. Because I need that book. It's important to me." That question seemed to trigger something within Lucien, his slumping figure becoming more alert the minute those words spilled out of his lips.

His arms fell to his sides, tucking themselves behind the pockets of his pants. The strange change of demeanor baffled Rheynoak who watched with amusement, practically smelling the lies that radiated off of Lucien's aura.

"What is so important about that book?" he asked with twinkling gray eyes. "It's just a book. A dusty, old ancient book." Another laugh trickled out of the tribe leader's lips at those words, his mind wondering how many things his friend thought something was just old and ancient.

Kicking himself off the chair, the tribe leader stood up, his cloak draping to the floor. "It's very important because it holds more secrets than you and I will ever know" he whispered nearing his friend.

He could see the thin outline of shadows dancing upon his fellow Hell Siphon's pale face, the way his long strands of hair hung limply over his face. He hasn't been sleeping, the purple outlines underneath his eyes breaking down his guard.

Yet as they met eye to eye, he could also see the slight trembling of his fingers, the way they sunk deeper into the skin of his arms. "Are you sure you don't know where the book is?" Rheynoak asked once again, crossing his arms over his chest. "Maybe you accidently misplaced it while rearranging-"

His friend cut him off before his sentence was complete. "I told you I have no idea where it is" Lucien grumbled back, raising an eyebrow. "But I will keep my eye out for it and alert you if I see."

Lies. Rheynoak could practically smell bouncing off of Lucien's skin. Even the way his gray eyes burned suggested there was something hidden deep underneath his skin that kept lurking and bothering his soul

If it wasn't the truth, it was definitely something else.

"Okay, just making sure" the tribe leader whispered, nodding his head before stepping back. He had to give it to Lucien. The way his friend kept his posture cool and elegant, not a slight twitch of relief as he backed away was quite impressive.

Yet quite questionable.

Silence reigned, crackled like static between the two immortal, magic beings, the tribe leader leaning against his mess of a desk while his right-hand man, looked down upon the floor. A smug smile pulled on the leader's lips, curling even more when his right-hand man casted his gaze over to the window.

"So, are we going to continue with training today?" his right-hand man asked as his gaze stayed mesmerized at the amber rays of the sun that twinkled on the glass of the window. "Because we are all waiting for you."

"Cancel training for today" Rheynoak instructed without a second thought. "My thoughts are wandering far from that today" he explained very vaguely, resting his palms on the edge of his table.

"Speaking of training, how is that dreaded BloodBone doing?" he asked, tilting his head slightly. "Is she dead yet?"

A vein, a slight blue vein popped at Lucien's temple. It was noticeable to most mortal eyes but to the tribe leader, his advanced eyesight granted him the gift of seeing the frustration inside Lucien reveal itself little by little.

His smile only grew wider.

"That dreaded BloodBone's name is Venix and you provoked her"Lucien shot back, shaking his head. His eyes had strayed from the window, now holding the hazel gaze of Rheynoak's. "You wanted her to kill you."

The tribe leader clicked his tongue. "One way or another, what I did proved what I knew all along. That she is weak, vulnerable and incapable of wielding great magic."

He simply shrugged, no mercy intertwined in his words. "Besides" he continued, ignoring the ice cold gaze of his friend. "What I said wasn't a lie. It was true."

"Using her past against her and torturing her like that was not entertaining Rheynoak. It was rather selfish and impulsive and cruel" Lucien spat back, the disgust of his feelings blending together with his words. "You out of all people should know what if feels like when no one grieves mercy for you."

His words caught Rheynoak's attention, sinking deep into his skin as her processed the meaning behind his words. Yes, he knew it very well. The feeling of abandonment, of betrayal and loneliness when one has lost everything and others did not care.

There was a time in his life when he sought the mercy of others, when he strived off the feeling of someone feeling his sorrow, his pain.

There was a time when he actually cared about what others thoughts about him.

But that was a long time ago. Things have changed since the Dark Ages.

His senses clicked into place, drawing him out of that part of his mind that was a dark and drowning abyss and bringing him into reality, the reality that reminded him of his position as a leader, as a Hell Siphon.

"I do know what it feels like" he admitted, shrugging. "And now she knows what it feels like. I've told you so many times, that girl is a damned curse. She has no good in her."

A scoff escaped Lucien's lips, his hands coming out of his back pockets to cross over his chest. "Says the one who is in love with her best friend and fellow assassin."

The mentioning of Onyx Asherevion calmed him down, remembering she was part of reality too. A frown pulled on his lips though he did not know why, his gaze holding Lucien's.

His thoughts strayed to her, the bloody Assassinating Warrior and damned Mind Siphon he couldn't get out of his mind no matter how hard he tried.

After their talk a few days ago through the bond when she was in the forest, he's been on edge about her at night, wondering if she was still alive. And he hated himself for caring so much.

Pushing the bond the Ruges created aside, the tribe leader pondered on her, the existence of her, the idea of her.

She's been a thorn in his side for as along as he knew her and sometimes would love nothing more than to sink his nails into her skin and choke the life out of her.

He relished in the days she would leave him alone to some peace and quiet and the nights she would sneak out to complete gruesome missions. He scowled at her for the guts she had to tease him with her words and growled at the way her smile managed to tug on the sleeves of his heart.

Clearing his throat and pushing his heart aside, the tribe leader shook his head, growling at Lucien as he slowly pulled himself out of his desirable thoughts for Onyx and into the reality with his stubborn friend.

"Do not pull Onyx into this" he growled, taking a step towards his right-hand man. "Venix is a vulnerable girl, a disgrace to all BloodBones. I could care less about her past. She has to realize that no matter how sad her story is, no one will ever shed a tear for her."

"That's just a sick, twisted thought Rheynoak" Lucien spat back, taking a step closer to the tribe leader. He was close enough for Rheynoak to see the misty shade of gray his eyes were and the veins outlining his neck.

Another smiled curled at Rheynoak's lips. "Then I am just a sick, twisted person, Lucien." Without any thought, the tribe leader grasped hold of the Hell Siphon's shirt, his nails digging deep into the fabric.

No terror laced Lucien's expressions, his face stone cold and still even as Rheynoak hissed at him, "I warned you once and I will warn you again. Venix is trouble so whatever feelings you have for her, discard them now before they come stabbing you in the back at the end."

He tugged once more on the neck of the shirt, the fabric nearly choking his friend. "I don't want you to get hurt."

With that, he loosened his grip on the shirt and threw him against the wall. The crack of bones crushing against concrete and the slick sound os flesh ripping and blood spilling met Rheynoak's senses, his burning hazel eyes watching as Lucien picked himself up, a hand over his bruised lips.

Gray eyes met his gaze as Lucien spat at him with vicious words, blood dripping down his chin,"You could give a rat's ass about my feelings."

Anger burned within the tribe leader, a low growl emanating from his chest as he struggled to hold back the beast that was desperately trying to tear through his soul.

His hazel eyes strayed to the door. "Get out" he instructed, unfolding his arms and heading back to the desk. "Just get out Lucien."

His eyes fluttered close, his fingers massaging his temples. He listened carefully, hearing his right-hand man scoff before shuffling his way through the papers and making his way to the door.

The sound of the door groaning as it opened echoed in his office and Lucien's footsteps stopped. "Goodbye Rheynoak" he uttered before fleeting, letting the door slam shut behind him.

The tribe leader listened as footsteps retreated down the hall and down the stairs before opening his eyes. His hazel eyes locked on the door, a frown on his lips. Knowing his friend wouldn't be able to hear him, he simply uttered, "Not today. Today is not goodbye" before pushing himself away from his desk and busying himself with his seeking once again.

A/N: And that is the end of another chapter! *cue cool closing credits music*

Well, this chapter was a whirlwind of emotions. I liked this chapter a lot actually. You guys got to see a little side of Rheynoak that is rarely seen.

You know the side that is not all scary and moody and brooding. It actually seems like he had a heart in this chapters. *starts clapping wildly* BRAVO RHEYNOAK! BRAVO!

And we also got to see Lucien defending his girl...umm...I mean *clears throat* his friend. Quote around the words "friends" XD. But Lucien definitely did show his care and infatuation with Venix which is such a Lucien thing of him to do.

Always the protector....always the gentlemen. He also provided very important news.

YESS! HE CONFIRMED RHEYNOAK IS IN FACT IN LOVE WITH ONYX AND YES RHEYNOAK CONFIRMED IT BACK!

Well, technically he did. In his mind. But yayyy, Onyx and Rheynoak may happen...maybe XD. We'll see how she feels about him

Thank you guys for all your constant support. It means so much to me that you enjoy this book. I enjoy writing it and to hear your feedback always makes my day!

So tell me what your thoughts are on this chapter and don't forget to comment down below and vote if you liked it.

Until next time Lovelies!

With love, May