Chapter 217: The Wedding (6) – The Red Dress

Chapter 217: The Wedding (6) – The Red Dress

The beautiful woman stepped forward from the glowing tunnel of BloodStar roses. She wore a stunning white wedding dress, and the glow of the roses followed her as the rose petals braided into her hair glowed in the wake of the tunnel.

As she emerged, the sky above shining bright and blue began to slowly fade to a dull grey with a red luster.

As she stepped forward and her features became less diluted by the crimson glow, people began to question their very eyes.

Whispers and murmurs rushed through the wedding audience like a ripple from a powerful wave, “It can’t be!?” ... “She’s dead!” ... “Is this a cruel joke?!”...

While some guests stood in disbelief questioning what they saw, other guests took off running and scampering as fast as they could to escape. They were taking no chances.

Xenia smirked to herself reveling in the mayhem that her presence alone caused. She then put a stop to it all, “Have you all forgotten how to treat an empress?”

She then raised a hand in the air and loudly proclaimed, “You may all BOW!”

She bent the fingers of her raised hand bloodbending every guest and staff member present. She bent them all down to their knees before bloodbending them further bowing their heads to the ground with their outstretched arms in front of them.

“That’s better.” She smiled to herself as she even forced Jacek to bow to her. The only two people spared from bowing were Erika and Jarek.

“I have words to exchange with you two. Shall we?” Xenia took a step closer towards Erika; however, Jarek’s stare stopped her in her tracks.

“Oh, Jarek, I’ll get to you next if you don’t mind waiting. You don’t mind, do you?” Xenia smiled at him and turned her face back to Erika.

Jarek had his fists clenched in anger as he thought to himself, “So it is true. I have been played. She is alive. Damnit!! But How???”

His rate of breathing was elevated. His blood pressure was elevated. Despite his shortcomings. Despite his failures. He was ready to attack.

He quickly thought of a plan, “She hasn’t bloodbent me because to do so would require too much power. She wouldn’t be able to hold me while also holding everyone else including Jacek and Vega. And she doesn’t consider Erika a threat. She is hoping I don’t take this opportunity to attack her. A successful attack would mean freeing all of these hostages from her grip.”

He tried to think clearly amidst the chaos her sudden appearance had engendered in his mind, “It’s time to call your bluff, Empress Xenia.”

His right hand hanging at his side suddenly formed a glowing white ball of ki. Then his other hand formed a glowing ball of ki as well.

The formation of two ki spheres in his hands immediately garnered Xenia’s attention, “Now Jarek, we can hurt each other another time. Perhaps in the bedroom even, if you wish. I’m not married just yet, after all.”

She then winked at him; however, before her playful demeanor had even disappeared from her face, Jarek raised both hands combining the ki blasts into one larger one and launched it directly at Xenia.

The powerful ki blast had an upward angle just in case she dodged. The upward angle would guide the ki blast over the crowd and off into the sky missing the entire venue.

Xenia didn’t move an inch. Instead, just as the ki blast was about to make contact, her entire body rippled with an eerie and translucent aura. The ki blast went right through her translucent body continuing forward into the sky.

Her body had entered the void only for a moment to dodge the attack. She turned to look at the blast flying away into the sky, and with a big smile on her face, she raised her hand forming a portal in front of it.

As she formed one portal, another portal formed over the guests sitting in the raised seating behind the tunnel entrance.

Xenia smiled through their kisses as she raised a hand causing every kneeling person in attendance to suddenly lift their heads to watch the two girls making out in their white and red wedding dresses.

Xenia then lowered her hand next to Erika’s side and motioned to create a ring of blue fire around Erika’s feet.

“Now Erika, this... is going to hurt. I promise. Scream for me better. Die for me better. Do it for me. Do it for my fiancé.”

The blue fire of Xenia’s death domain began to slowly creep up Erika’s body burning away her wedding dress, burning away her flesh, burning away her bones, burning her away into nothingness.

The fire crept up Erika’s body as Xenia controlled an exceedingly difficult localized domain commanding it to burn where she wanted and only where she wanted.

The two brides stood in the aisle both actively kissing one another as they made out in front of their audience until the blue fire reached Erika’s pelvis. Xenia released her bloodbending grip of Erika’s throat allowing her to scream.

The pain was exquisite, sharp, and overwhelming. Erika screamed for the entire world to hear as the fire crept up her body slowly.

Xenia kissed on Erika’s screaming lips enjoying every second as Erika writhed in pain.

“That’s it. Scream. Show me fear. Show me terror. Show me despair. Show me hopelessness.”

As the fire disintegrated Erika’s body, Xenia held her upper half levitating in the air. The blue fire of her death domain finally began to creep up to Erika’s heart melting it slowly killing her.

However. Xenia wasn’t finished. She bloodbent the remaining blood in Erika’s face freezing her screaming face in place while she continued kissing her now dead, petrified face.

The blue fire continued creeping up to Erika’s neck sparing her spinal cord until only Erika’s head, face, and dangling spine remained. Xenia then grabbed the top of Erika’s head and palmed it, holding it up for everyone to see.

As Xenia held the head high, Constance stood and walked behind her empress. After Constance, Vega stood and walked over next.

Jacek was completely confused as he thought, “Vega? No. No!”

Xenia laughed and called out to Jacek, “Yes. Vega is mine now.”

Jacek stared her down, and Xenia simply winked back at him.

She then called out to the larger audience, “After my wedding, prepare for war! Or... if you love me... give me the gift of war on my wedding day. If you so dare.”

She then formed a large void portal at her back. She took one last look around with a smile on her face and dress dripping with fresh blood. She then turned and entered into the portal followed by Constance and Vega.

As she disappeared into the portal, her bloodbending disappeared as well, freeing everyone.

Jacek looked to his father who was standing up holding his stomach where had been attacked. Jarek looked to Jacek, “It’s time you learned why I seldom train you. It’s time I show you the true power of the Heraklinos name.”

Jacek frowned but nodded at his father.

Jarek then nodded back, “It’s time I show you why the Heraklinos Family has never lost a war.”