The Deal

**Aileen POV**

I met Shiuku's hard gaze with one of my own. I let him see just how cruel I could be. Today, I would put my mask back on and pretend to be like my Father. Shiuku would see me as my Father's daughter.
"I was watching while Trevor struggled just to decide what to do about you. Do you really expect me to believe he is capable of killing my sweet Mother?"
Trevor steadied his grip on the knife. "I've been burned by you, humiliated, you manipulated and used my sister, I got lost in my own emotions because of some shrewd you've been bedding!" He made a thin slice on Shana's neck. "I will kill her."
I swallowed hard, "You know my squad leader has had ample time to break your mark on me, correct?"
Shiuku smirk was replaced with a scrunching forehead. He had no idea where I was steering this conversation. "Yes my mark is still on you. Did having Devon betray you hurt that much? Is this all a plan to help the DSS while still becoming my mistress?"
That arrogant asshole! Then again, I should be happy. Devon and I's acting skills had been exceptional.
A wave of fire shot straight for Trevor. Shit, did he really not care what happened to his Mother? He was okay with her being burned? Before the flames could hit Trevor, Lena charged out forward and flung the fire back towards Shiuku. The two destined enemies went at each other. Flashes from explosions, water whipping back and forth, rubble flung, and wind blowing; were all I could see. Both of them moved so quickly, my eyes couldn't track them. Still, I wanted to help Lena. She was wounded and on low energy. As hard as they fought; the tide of battle would turn shortly. We all knew it. I placed my hands in front of me and nullified any bit of Shiuku's power as I could.
All my concentration was on Shiuku's abilities. He switched up between the elements so quickly and perfectly; it was impossible for me to seal off anything. Frustrated I tried to watch their fight again; unsure of what else I could do. The two of them were so engaged in their fight, neither was paying attention to their surroundings. The castle was beginning to shake again. I could barely make out the screaming from the direction Shiuku had entered. People were getting caught in their altercation.
What was I supposed to do? Using his own family against him had only backfired on me and my baby's gift wasn't working. Lena was barely keeping up with Shiuku, she had no time to realize the death they were causing. If only I was better at this new ability; just a little bit faster...
Lena shrieked. Shiuku stood over top of her, suffocating her.
Maybe if Trevor just hurt Shana a little bit... "Trevor!"
Something hot burned at my throat. Just barely, I managed to tilt my head. Tom had a blazing short sword pressed firmly to my neck. The mild flames licked at my throat.
Tom hollered to Shiuku, "get off my wife, or I save the world the trouble of having a mini you roaming around!" In that moment, Trevor stabbed Rena in the side. She cried out miserably as Shiuku released his hold on Lena.
The rage intensified inside of me. My baby's power started seeping into my veins. At the same time I was preparing myself to lose control, Tom shouted, "you listen to what Aileen's end of the deal is in exchange for your Mother's life; then you will listen to mine. Unless of course you are ready to watch your child bleed out."
Trevor screamed, "you gave me the choice Tom! We agreed not to kill her."
"If it didn't hurt the DSS. You said us succeeding was more important and I agree. Getting out of here is a success, but so is taking Shiuku's heir. I am winning one of these...no offense Aileen. By all means you can give Shiuku your demands first."
Shiuku studied my face. "Go on, little one." He used the same seductive tone as when I first arrived here. Back when he made me feel all special...Back when he manipulated me with Devon's aura. "So what is this deal?"
Shiuku cocked his head to the side waiting.
"I will no longer be forced to accept any deal you make. Finally I will return to my dimension and start raising my son as I see fit. You will pose no harm to either of us." I told him. "And we will let your Mother live."
"You truly want to leave me and raise that child alone? Even if you do have some left over feelings for Devon after he tried to kill you; he will be dead soon. Darren should be about done by now. You are alone whether you forgive the boy or not."
I had to stop myself from mentioning Devon. He still believed that we had a falling out. "I'll have my family."
"Do you have anything else to wager with. It seems like a lot of give on my end with nothing much in return."
The small sword at my neck made it hard to speak. "Kaibec is already successfully working with Demon Lord Kuzon to open the gate between dimensions and permanently seal mine off. If he does that, the only way you could see your child is through a mark. Lena could break your mark to me at any time. You would never be able to see your son, or fill him with hatred and loneliness."
To prove my point, Lena hobbled over to me with the little bit of energy she had left. Shiuku made no move to stop her, his gaze locked on the weapon pressed against me. Lena put a hand to my mark. White sparks started dancing over the lines and caused them to fade. Shiuku roared and attempted to use his wind ability against us. This time he was clumsy about it. I was able to minimize his attack to nothing more than a gust of air lightly blowing our hair.
Shiuku's eyes were the deepest shade of red I had ever seen. All of the elements danced around his feet as if he were so angry; he could not control his own power. In his eyes, I saw Darren and Devon fighting. I saw Devon dying. *No, this is just a mind trick. Shiuku is fuming and trying to get a reaction from me.*
"You will wear my mark. You will go back to your dimension, but I will keep an eye on my son. I will watch you both with no interference from the Final Guardian. No harm will come to my child. He will have both your and your Father's royal protection."
I had already figured he would add something like that. It was the main reason I hadn't allowed Lena to remove my mark. My hands fell to my stomach while I waited for the part needed to complete the deal. Create a new mark... or would it go over my old one?
Tom added his part. "The DSS will be safe from you for a few years to train up. None of us will be touched in that time. Not only that, but all of us allied with the DSS still alive will be leaving here."
Shiuku studied my face. All of us were frozen as a demon lord bellowed out a loud laugh. Some evil glint shined in his red eyes. "Oh good! I was waiting for you to hurry up with that part."
"Why?" I asked.
"Oh my little one, you didn't think I was just going to give up on my child do you? I need him to help me rule the new world." Shiuku took two steps towards Tom and I. Tom burned part of my throat in response. I bit down hard on my lip to stop from screaming. "I will grant you and your friends safety out of here. But hear me now. Once the day is over, any member of the DSS who dares to openly fight me, will die."
No one spoke. He had yet to say what he wanted in exchange. We waited to hear what our sacrifice would be for the win today.
"Two years. I will put a hold on our war for two years. But when the time is up I will crush the entirety of the DSS like the little bugs they are." Shiuku licked his lips looking at me. "And Aileen. At the end of this time frame you will return to this dimension with our son. Once the Final Guardian is dead, you will return to my side and I shall raise him how I see fit."
I didn't like the sound of that at all. He would coerce his son and I back to him? No way was I becoming his stupid mistress!
"I will not be your mistress. You said you would never force me to do that!"
"No you will not. I've quite enjoyed this little gamble of yours. Using my Mother and child's lives against me, maybe you aren't so soft hearted as I thought. I've grown very fond of you in the recent months and do miss our times together." Shiuku took several breaths. Anger was still in his eyes, but it now mixed with grief. He was actually upset. Although, whether it be from actually missing his child, or the idea of losing; I could not say. "You will be by my side this time. My future bride and be Shion's Mother...under supervision. You will not weaken him with all this love shit. Our son will not be chained down by family. He will be strong."
If Lena loses in a few years; I will have to be Shiuku's wife and he'll get to raise our son his way. My heart was threatening to rip to shreds. The selfish part of me wanted Shiuku to have nothing to do with this child. I didn't want to give the chance to corrupt my baby and turn him into a killing machine. But I always knew that wasn't possible. Shiuku wouldn't yield on that part. In life there is no success without sacrifice...And we had to win so little Shion would have a chance to grow nurtured and loved.
I frowned, thinking of the best shot at winning in the future. Lena still had a lot of training to do and I wanted to master my new gift. Next time I entered this dimension, I would be better prepared to protect more people.
Tom wasn't satisfied with that answer either. The blade lost its flames, but pressure was added to my throat.
Shallowly I bargained, "Five years. You will not make any moves against the DSS or humanity for five years, unless they attack you first. In five years I will return to this dimension with our son; but, I will only live under your roof if you win the war. And I will not become your wife or mistress. That will not be part of the deal."
More emotions flickered across his face; anger, rage, confusion, hatred, a hint of pride; until finally, regret. "Let's make the deal. We'll see how long you last once you're back here love."
"It's a toxic obsession; not love Shiuku." I stated plainly.
He ignored me at first and came closer. Tom tightened his grip on the sword's hilt. "Love is for fools. I do care for you, just like my Mother. An Achilles heel you and your brother exploited."
*A what?*
Like every other time, he gave himself a small cut. His blood dripped into the wound Tom created on my neck. Pain coursed through my veins this time. His mark was like acid. A wicked grin tugged at Shiuku's lips. *Bastard cares for me so much he purposely made this one hurt.* I could feel the lines of his mark change color and direction. It was now a baby blue color and I felt the line wrap around my stomach.
Trevor mumbled some kind of apology to Shana. She was speechless and tongue tied. The great doctor truly had no idea what her son had been doing over the last thousand years. She believed him to be a saint and he made sure she was sequestered. What would his plan be if he succeeded? Surely Shana would not approve of humans living in fear and agony.
As Shiuku moved, I added, "I will stay for the birth of Shion. You may be in the room if you want, but no killing."
"Why would I want that? A baby can't do much. I will be unable to train him until he is about five anyway. That is why I'm fine with the new timeline you gave." He gave me a quick grin. "I will see you in five years, my little obsession."
It really was all about using our son after all. He was just upset about being trapped by his own trick.
Shiuku helped his Mother to her feet. She wobbled slightly and pushed Shiuku's hands away from her. The doctor would want some answers from her son. I already knew Shiuku would lie to her, or bend the truth. He was so concerned about power, authority, and his presence; he would never let himself be vulnerable to even those who would love him unconditionally. He picked what he believed to be strength over his true love before and now his son's happiness.
Still red eyed, Shiuku took one final glance back at me. I stared directly at him. He'd never understand the importance of family. "I pity you."
Shiuku left, dragging his Mother behind him.
Father and Trevor came up to either side of me. They both caught me as my legs gave out. Acting tough and playing with the lives of innocent people took its toll on my mental state. My baby wasn't too pleased either. Ahead of me, Tom scooped up Lena. She was barely conscious. I couldn't look at the squad leader. We may have won the gamble because of him; but he had put my baby's life at risk.
Beside me, Father got down on his knees and placed his palms behind his back. "Hop on, we need to get out of here."
Trevor complained, "I'm way more qualified to carry her. I'm the only one who hasn't used most of their energy!"
Those two were going to give me a headache. "We need to stop by and check on Devon first."
"That's where Trevor will be going. If Devon needs aid, you are to give it. If he is dead, you are to report it." Tom ordered. "Hurry and we'll meet you on the outside."
For the second time in a row, my heart was breaking.
"No, I need to see he's okay!"
I expected to be scolded by a squad leader. Instead it was my Father. "You are in no state to handle anything else. You and that baby need rest. Close your eyes." As if under a spell, my eyelids became very heavy. I was exhausted. My last thoughts before passing out into a blissful no dream sleep were,
*Devon can't be dead. He isn't allowed to die; he promised...*