Destiny of Darkness - Chapter 3

<><>CHAPTER THREE<><>


“Mother!” I screamed as I gathered my momentum and launched myself from the roof. The only thought I had was of her safety, and I threw myself at the monster with mindless abandon. It snarled and knocked me from the air with one swipe of its claw.

“Uhhh…..!” The whimper escaped my lips as I skidded along in the dirt, crashing into several of the close packed, milling, frenetic people. My fall was finally stopped as my body slammed into a wall hard enough to leave an imprint.

“…Oh my… is she okay?”

“…The air! The work of the Dark One…”

The panicked babble surrounded me from all sides as I tried desperately to move my injured limbs. Others were screaming and running from the square, frightened by the sudden appearance of the darks one’s creatures.

“…Mother…” I ground out through my teeth as I found the strength to extract myself from the broken brick. A few of the braver men still nearby assisted me before I crumpled to the ground in pain, clutching my right side as I took a step forward, ribbons of blood tracing patterns on my pallid skin.

A furious snarl sounded again from the creature as it turned it’s attention back to its original target.

“Do something!” I pleaded at the men around me, quailing with fear. I whispered brokenly as no one moved to help and only backed further away. “Please! That’s my mother…”

She shrieked as it tore through her arm with its teeth, the warm rush of blood that followed spattering wetly to the dust beneath her. My eyes widened as a sudden rush of clarity struck me. She was going to die. If no one helped her, she would die. I couldn’t let that happen!

With a snarl that sounded more animal than human, I made myself stand on my rapidly weakening legs and launched myself again at the beast. Without stopping in my mad rush I considered my plight. If I continued straight, the spikes on its back would skewer me, but it would see my approach if I attacked from any other direction… My eyes narrowed at the bushy tail growing out of the creature’s backside – that wasn’t covered in spikes. Maybe… my father’s training drills made my body react even as I thought about my course of action.

I threw myself feet first at the legs, wrapping my own around them so it couldn’t use its feet to claw me. I then wrapped my arms around the large mass of fur and pulled as hard as I could with my legs. It toppled to the ground, off balance, dropping my mother who was hanging limp like a rag doll as it did. I quickly pressed my advantage rolling backwards up to the neck, which I grasped between my thighs. Blood trickled down my back from the numerous punctures I had received from the creature’s spines and even more wounds were opened as I refused to let go of its neck.

“Mother! Run!” I snapped, close to tears as I struggled to keep it pinned to the ground. The people kept running around trying to escape their impending deaths, but totally ignoring the threat they should have been paying attention to. What were they doing? Were they insane? I bit back another sob as the monster started to come to its senses. Maybe they were just blinded by their fear.

The other creatures suddenly burst into motion and started attacking the fleeing bystanders. Gouts of blood sprayed across the remaining humans from the ones that fell beneath the creatures’ claws, and they all started running and screaming in terror, even the ones that had up till now held their ground. I also screamed, mentally, as I felt myself lifted into the air by the monster.

My body felt strange; I could feel a… a power? It was humming in my blood… calling to me. It felt so natural, like I had always had it, yet… I couldn’t use it. I had no knowledge of how to even go about using it. I gritted my teeth as tears of rage sprang to my eyes as my legs and hands were wounded further and my blood dripped slowly down the creature’s back, the viscous liquid staining the otherwise placid ground. Mother... Hold on!

As I was about to give up hope, I heard the creature howl in pain as it dissolved underneath me. I fell to the ground with a thud, the puddle of my blood staining my dress and legs. I looked up in trepidation at my rescuer as he dispatched the other beasts with ease.

He was tall, that I could say, and he had a sandy shock of hair that was brushing against his forehead. His features were comely, maybe even border lining on beautiful, the lines of his face clear and graceful. He wasn’t wearing any normal clothing. Instead, he had on leather leggings and a tunic that were designed for battle; a metal breastplate covered his torso and right shoulder.

“Ma’am? Are you alright?” His voice was kind, but for it’s kindness it cut through the thick fog that had clouded my mind since I had seen the first beast. Ignoring my screaming body, I pushed myself to my feet and staggered to my mother’s side.

“Mother… Are you okay?” I gently shook her shoulder. A feeling of apprehension crept over me, numbing my limbs, as she didn’t move. I shook her again, my heart ripping itself into shreds. “Mother… it’s over. It’s okay.”

Tears trickled down my cheeks as I turned her body over to reveal the jagged mass that was once her throat. Her eyes were wide, yet they were dull, the spark of life removed from their darkened depths. I gathered the limp form into my arms and sobbed brokenly. When the creature released her, its claws must have dragged across her neck. No… how could this have happened? Why couldn’t I save her? Why? A keening wail was rent from my throat.

“Koro… always be with you…”

I felt a familiar warmth brush against my cheek wiping away some of my tears as I felt the spirit of my mother engulfed me in a final farewell. I had no knowledge of how I was able to see my mother’s specter, but at the moment, it just didn’t matter, and thanked San for the opportunity to give my goodbyes to this woman who had taken care of me since my birth.

“Ma… don’t leave me… please…” I whispered into her matted hair, knowing even then that it was futile. She was gone.

I felt a hand fall on my shoulder in a gesture of wordless support. It didn’t matter. Nothing mattered. I shook the hand off and stood, cradling my mother’s bulky, lifeless corpse in my arms; determination written plainly on my tear stained face. I heard several gasps in what remained of the crowd as I did so, and I could feel the surprise rolling off my rescuer. I guess they didn’t expect a girl to be so strong. Spitting them all with a glare that neither dissembled the scene of horror nor made the breeze seem halcyon as I slowly and unsteadily made my way to my mother’s cart. I gently laid her heavy body down in the back, covering her form with a blanket where she had helped others for most of her life.

A sob bubbled to the surface as I saw what else remained of my few friends. The demons had torn through many of the townspeople; their scattered remains gruesome and bloody. Entrails and arms dotted the street, and the stench of death brought bile to the back of my throat.

I could do nothing for these people. I couldn’t help anybody. I wasn’t even going to make it home. I felt lightheaded as the darkness at last overtook me, unwilling as my body shut down from the loss of blood. The sounds were the last to fade as I finally slipped into nothingness, next to my mother’s corpse.



Dark. It was dark. I tried to open my eyes, but I remained in the void of my sub-consciousness. I was aware that my wounds had been bound; yet they stung like fire. I was unable to move as their flame overtook me and I lost awareness again.

When I finally was able to open my eyes, I could barely make out shapes through the brilliance. I squinted, letting my pupils adjust to the light. As I stirred, I felt a presence bustle to my side, concerned emotions rolling off the woman.

“...Are you awake?”

I was aware of a foul taste in my mouth and barely managed to ask for some water. After I quenched my thirst, my eyes grew heavy again. My consciousness drifted for some time, the light around me fading to black several times. As my thoughts were returned to me, they murmured in confusion as the landscape changed yet again.

“Kokoro…” I could hear a whisper calling me, echoing through the quiet recess of my mind.

“Who are you?” I asked, or tried to. For some strange reason, I was unalarmed. The words I managed didn’t flow from my mouth; they remained where I had thought them.

“Where are we?”

“This isn’t your place. You must return.”

The ground I found myself of was misty, my vision obscured to but several feet before me. The voice came from outside the fog, yet as I tried to draw closer to it, it drew further away.

“Return? Return to where?” I sounded panicked, even to myself.

“Use what you have been given. Your mother’s fate lies in your hands.”

“My mother? But… How? How could her fate remain in my hands? She is dead because of me!” Tears leaked from my eyes as I tried to stem the mounting tide. ”Yare… Stop it! I don’t wish to remember! Just let me be…”

”You have no time for self-pity. Arise.”

With a jolt, my eyes flew open as I sat up gasping for breath. My body felt cold, almost numb, and as I looked around the room, I saw the walls rimmed with frost. How…? The tears that had streamed from my eyes were frozen to my cheeks as I continued to struggle for the right to breath.

“Okassan…” I muttered through cracked, blue lips. “Gomen… Wagami wouramu … Gomen-nasai… It’s my fault that you died… forgive me.”

“This is not your fault. You did what you could, and that is all that could have been asked. Your mother would have been proud of you.” The soothing voice reassured me slightly, and I realized that I recognized it.

“Maria?”

“By the One, child… what happened in here?” She quickly moved to the large fireplace at the end of the room.

“I’m so cold…”

“Well who wouldn’t be, when their room has turned into a winter haven?” She adjusted the coverlets around my waist, pulling then up to my chin as she gently lowered me back to the mattress.

“A lot of weird things have happened since the market day, this being the least of them. The Elder has sent for some of the Order’s priests to dispel the evil presence left by those… creatures.” She said the last with a shudder.

I licked my dry lips as warmth started to return to my body. Other strange things have happened… even more so than this? I looked around the room in trepidation. “How did I get here?”

“There now, just rest,” She stated, ignoring my question. As she turned to go, I reached out and clutched her skirt.

“No, please don’t leave me!” It came out as a piteous whisper, my throat clenching as its moisture left.

“Koro, I’m just going to the kitchen to get you some hot tea. I will then tell you everything you wish to know… as long as you are resting.”

I relaxed slightly at this, releasing my hold on her dress, allowing her to move towards the door. At the threshold, she turned to stare at me. I wilted nervously under her examining gaze.

“I’m mighty proud of you, Koro. Not many have stood up to the dark ones and still live to tell about it.”

She smiled briefly as she exited the room, easing my emotional pain slightly, but only by a slim margin. The loss of my mother was still too great for me to think of, the mere thought of her death tearing at my heart.

The tears began to flow again, but I scrubbed them away with the back of my hand. I was too old for this and there was nothing I could do to change what had occurred. It was startling how well I was taking this, when all I wanted to do was curl up and die. My mother was dead, and my father… I had no idea of where he was. Maria returned after a few minutes, the cup of tea steaming in her hands. With a little trouble, she helped set the tea in my own hands and set me up to drink it. The cold had started to dissipate by now, the fire flickering merrily in its grate. I envied it its carefree nature, even if it would die out later.

Maria pulled up a chair and sat next to me with her needlework.

“Child, I know ye be hurting.” She said with a sigh. “Anyone well would be after what you went through. I’ll be here for ye, if you ever want to talk.”

I looked to my lap, cradling the cup between my palms. I was clothed in a cotton shift, plain but not worn, and the coverlets were not poor either.

“Maria… where are we?” I asked.

“At the Inn in town. We couldn’t let you die, or leave you alone now that your mother… I’m sorry.”

I suppressed the tears that welled up again with difficulty. “No, it’s alright. You didn’t mean anything by it.”

She sewed a few more stitches before I was composed enough to ask another question. “You said before, that strange things have happened?”

“Aye. The Chosen One has arisen, the priests say, and the dark one’s power has been unleashed into the world.”

At my confused look, she gave me more detail. “As foretold in the Prophecy, the Chosen One shall bring about the destruction of the Order. As such, the Elder says that the dark ones waited, biding their time while they were powerless. Now that the Prophecy has been fulfilled, they have no more need to hide, and as such, all living things shall suffer.”

“But that doesn’t make any sense. And what would that have to do with the ice in this room?”

She sighed pushing away her work. “I suspect that no one actually knows why these things have been happening. The only thing that is known is that the Chosen One and the dark ones have something to do with it. You shouldn’t question magic or its makers, and should stay out of the way. Otherwise ye may be hurt.”

I held my tea between my cold palms, thinking about what I had been told. While I questioned Maria’s view on the situation, I had a feeling it would become a lot more complicated than just that.

The cup I was holding in my hands abruptly split in two, its contents frozen solid. I gazed dumbly down at the mess as a sharp shard slit the skin on my hand. It should have hurt… but as I stared at the cut I realized that I hadn’t felt anything… and that my blood was flowing sluggishly and tinted a deep blue.

“By the One…” Maria whispered. She put down her work and ran out of the room. I shivered as the fire sputtered and died. I reached instinctively for my pendant… my hand grasped this air. It was gone.

“Maria?” I called out, my voice weak. She would know… she had to!

Her large form rushed into the room with an armful of blankets and deposited on the bed. “Just you hush child! We’ll have you warm in a minute.”

“My… my pendant… please… where is it?”

“Dear! You shouldn’t be worrying about that right now! Dear San… please don’t let me lose you too!”

Tears welled up in my eyes, only to freeze as they touched my cheeks. I hardly felt the cold now; it was welcoming rather than terrifying as it had been before. I sighed as I started to slip into the familiar darkness.

A smooth object thrust into my hand brought me back to reality.

“Koro, don’t go!” Maria’s voice was tear-filled.

“Maria?” My throat was scratchy. “What happened?”

“The room chilled again! I though I was going to lose you too! You were so cold…”

“But… how?” My voice was soft. The pendant had something to do with this mess. Just the reassuring weight against my chest was enough to stave off the bitter cold. Or… was it causing the frost that rimmed the room… and my body? I didn’t feel well enough to question the unexpected gift of life that was seemingly thrust into my hands, and just accepted its kindness. A tingling sensation washed over my body, soothing away my pains while lulling me into an unwonted slumber.

I could barely make out the gasp of the portly woman, as a change swept through my body, so enraptured was I with the unusual strength of power that was causing the transformation. Was this death?

“Nothing so romantic, dear one.” The blackness that I had been encased in vanished under the warmth of this unknown presence, melting into soft cobalt… and a young fae woman with flowing blond tresses and chiseled features.

“Who are you?” I asked softly. “Are you here to lead me to the other life?”

“Nothing like that. You are far from dead. I am here to help you…”

Help me with what? I thought to myself, thoroughly confused.

“At your birth there were some people who tried to hide your identity from the dark forces. The death of your mother and your encounter with the Drachmae have lead to your power’s awakening… and now what has been freed is out of control.”

I gasped. Merciful San… was it even probable what she was suggesting? That I was what had been causing the incidents in the village? The ice… I had created it? Was this even possible?

“It’s possible, dearest, more possible than I would have hoped. But you are not evil… in fact you are the very opposite of it. You were meant to do great things, Koro.”

“Are you reading my thoughts?” I asked incredulously.

“I don’t have to. We are in your own mind right now. I can only hear what you want me to hear, but you are sill untrained and your thoughts leak though. Any trained telepath can hear them. We can only be grateful of the warding that Raphael gave you when it became obvious that something was going to happen to you before the end of this decade.”

“You know my father?”

Sadness fell across the lady’s features. “In the past…I can only regret my actions that I took towards him then.”

“What actions?” I was now curious, and more than a little afraid. “What are you taking about? Who are you?”

“You will come to know, but for now my time with you grows short. I will send you the people who will teach you the basic knowledge you will need to harness your powers, but the growth and development of them is up to you. Be well, my child.”

She drifted closer to me, shimmering lights hovering over her translucent skin. I could faintly make out the pointed ears that framed her delicate face, as her long, gold locks floated about her silk clad figure. Leaning over, she pressed her lips to my forehead.

The world abruptly spun around, the colors fading in and out to be replaced by the worried face of Marie… and several other men. I blinked in confusion. I was fully aware of my surroundings; this was not a regular occurrence in normal sleep.

“You are finally awake! Thank the gods! You gave us quite the scare, Koro.” Marie knelt and swept me up in her warm embrace.

I awkwardly returned it, my sharp, silver orbs taking stock of the other occupants of the room. I hadn’t seen any of them before; there were three grown men, two with beards that reached their chests. One man’s hair was a smoky gray and he was dressed in a long robe of white. The younger man also was attired in a white robe, but he looked less comfortable in it than his elder, as if the cloth irritated him. The last man, who also had a beard, was clothed in tight leather leggings. A sword hung from his hip in a well-used scabbard under a dark brown rain cloak that swept the ground as he walked towards the bed.

“So it is awake?” He questioned, his voice subsidiary with the image of gravel.

“Yes, sir. She is.” Marie responded quietly as she released me, pushing herself to her feet, and bowed her head towards the man that had spoken. I looked up at him curiously; any sense that I had fled with the thoughts that still plagued my soul. I found it hard to cope with what had transpired, and the mere thought of my mother… tears welled unbidden in my eyes as I choked down the sobs that threatened to betray my mental state.

“Girl.”

I lowered my head and nodded slightly, not trusting my voice to be steady enough to convey what I needed to say.

“There are questions that the priests need to ask you. You will respond as best you can, do you understand?”

I nodded again. The older man nodded to the burly one who was standing next to me and motioned him away. He complied with a nod of his own and let the white-robed man approach the bed. I drew the sheets up to my chin as I fought not to cringe. The presence of this man… it seemed to be making me nervous.

“Child, two weeks ago there came a report to me, of villagers being torn in two when no man nor beast was around them.”

I looked up at him with trepidation. What was he saying? I saw those horrible things… monsters… kill my mother…

“Your village Elder has told us that you… attacked… thin air… and a great, black beast with enormous fangs appeared, tearing out the throat of your mother. Is this true?”

“I saw… I saw the creatures before I attacked.” I admitted softly. “I wasn’t thinking clearly. My father left my mother just a short time ago, and with my mother gone now… all I wanted to do was to protect her.”

He looked down upon me with an unreadable look. “You saw the monsters?”

“Yes. Yes I did.” My fingers clenched in the bedding as I fought once more with my anger, the anger that I felt still as fresh as on the day my mother had been murdered.

“Can you describe them to me?” He looked fairly interested now, no trace of scorn on his face.

“They were black… all over; their eyes, their teeth, everything. It was like looking into the face of pure evil. And… and… and they stood on two feet as would you or I.” I choked on my words as I forced myself to speak. Perhaps these men would bring these creatures to justice.

“Are you sure?” The priest now looked worried, glancing at the other men that I knew now to be traveling with him. The burly one must be his bodyguard, and the other one an untrained priest, or maybe this priest’s apprentice?

“I am in no doubt of what I saw.” I hastened to assure them. These men were priests! They would help… they had too!

“By the One… Jasar… the prophecy....” The priest stuttered, loosing his calm exterior. “Quickly, child, was there anything else? How did you escape with your life?”

“A man saved me… he-”

“What did he look like?” A wild gleam took over the man’s eyes as the others looked upon with worried glances towards each other.

“I… I don’t remember!” I cried, my overworked nerves crumbling to dust for the first time in my life, and tears once again started streaming down my cheeks. “Mother had died, and I… all I wanted was for her life to be spared! And no one else would help save her! I couldn’t do anything… it’s my fault that she is dead! It’s my fault!”

I started sobbing, my breast heaving as I tried to keep my breath flowing. The priest had the decency to try and comfort me, drawing me awkwardly into his arms and making soothing murmurs. I heard the door open heavily and lifted my head in its direction. Through my tears I made out the form of Maria as she hovered nearby, ready to help if she was needed. Silently I blessed her for her kind heart.

“Child… there was nothing you could have done.” The priest spoke. “The One be praised that you are alive now, and did not meet the fate that many did that day.”

I only sobbed in reply, weeping brokenly into the man’s dampened shirt. I heard muttering between the two men, but I couldn’t make out the words. I couldn’t bring myself to care… but something was telling me that what they were saying held a certain importance to which I could not fathom.

“Child this man that you saw… he could have been controlling the demons that destroyed this village. It is imperative that we find him, can you not help us?” He reopened the former topic, as I regained my wits.

I wiped my eyes clean of the salty tears, my golden-blond hair handing limply in my face, and shook my head in answer.

I was too tired to think of what was happening, my eyes feeling heavy as the room spun once again out of focus. Marie gasped and laid me back down upon the bed; from somewhere she produced a wet washcloth that was then pressed against my forehead. The temperature was soothing to me, my face hot from my sudden exertion. All of this was happening to quickly for me to process… my mother… my dreams… these men… the sudden weakness of my own body.

A sudden rush of clarity sped through my tired limbs as every nerve ending came alive with tension. I could feel the tightness of the bandages encircling my legs and continuing up my torso, I could feel the air molecules touching my skin and entering my lungs as I drew in deep breaths. Speech suddenly beyond me, everything froze into a crystal like clarity before I passed out once again amid the panicked hollering of the priest and Marie as the blackness once again claimed me.



Light… again… was I dreaming? I could see small motes drifting in through the curtains traveling on streams of golden brilliance, the soft burgundy of the drapes accented by the delicate contours in the fabric. For the first time in what seemed to me ages, my body didn’t hurt; it didn’t hurt to breath, and when I tried moving there was but the slightest sting. I lifted myself to a better vantage on my elbows and surveyed my surroundings.

The room was larger than I would have thought at first, but not very extravagant. The furniture around the room was plain and simple, the muted yellow coloring of the walls giving it a more homey air. It was unfamiliar, but at the same time comfortable. Where was mother? My heart skipped slightly as I remembered the day in vivid detail…

Towering above the masses were hulking, black creatures. Hundreds of sharp spikes jutted from their backs as opaque as obsidian, their forms vaguely dog-like. The creatures stood perched on their hind legs, claws held against their chests, as their long snouts filled with inky, sharp teeth sniffed the crowd. The thin lips turned slightly upward as one stopped in front of my mother.

I shuddered, wrapping my arms around myself and huddling forward in the bed. Try as I might to staunch the memories, they kept coming, tormenting me with their cruelness…

“Mother!” I screamed as I gathered my momentum and launched myself from the roof. The only thought I had was of her safety, and I threw myself at the monster with mindless abandon. It snarled and knocked me from the air with one swipe of its claw.

“Uhhh…..!” The whimper escaped my lips as I skidded along in the dirt, crashing into several of the close packed, milling, frenetic people. My fall was finally stopped as my body slammed into a wall hard enough to leave an imprint.

“…Oh my… is she okay?” The panicked babble surrounded me from all sides as I tried desperately to move my injured limbs. Others were screaming and running from the square, frightened by the sudden appearance of the darks one’s creatures.

“…Mother…” I ground out through my teeth as I found the strength to extract myself from the broken brick. A few of the braver men still nearby assisted me before I crumpled to the ground in pain, clutching my right side as I took a step forward, ribbons of blood tracing patterns on my pallid skin.

I found my hand rubbing my side that had been injured, and forced it to still. I mustn’t let myself fall prey to the viscous thoughts; my father would be appalled! He had trained me better than this…

A furious snarl sounded again from the creature as it turned it’s attention back to its original target.

“Do something!” I pleaded at the men around me, now quailing with fear. I whispered brokenly as no one moved to help and only backed further away. “Please! That’s my mother…”

I bit my lip to stop myself from any further reactions; crying wouldn’t solve anything but to make my body weaker…

I threw myself feet first at the legs, wrapping my own around them so it couldn’t use its feet to claw me. I then wrapped my arms around the large mass of fur and pulled as hard as I could with my legs. It toppled to the ground, off balance, dropping my mother as it did. I quickly pressed my advantage rolling backwards up to the neck, which I grasped between my thighs. Blood trickled down my back from the numerous punctures I had received from the creature’s spines and even more wounds were opened as I refused to let go of its neck.

“Mother! Run!” I snapped, close to tears as I struggled to keep it pinned to the ground.

“No more…” I whispered. I couldn’t take any more! I wouldn’t take anymore! Yet again, unbidden, I saw the last image I had of my mother lying, dyed in crimson on the wagon bed that she so loved to work from.

“No!” The hoarse cry fled from my lips before I could stop it. How could I have let something like this happen? I promised father I would look after her! I promised…

Dumbly I stared at the room around me, covered in sparkling crystals. My breath came out in a frosty cloud as I stared in mute horror. Dear San… San… please let this all be but a dream! I closed my eyes trying to will away everything, and find again the blackness where I needn’t have to think.

Footsteps sounded outside the door to the room, heavy ones like a man’s and a more fragile step like a woman’s. I opened my eyes to meet my fate; once they found the room as it was, they would accuse me of witchcraft and sentence me to death… or to a trial by fire. I shuddered; better to be dead than in the hands of an angry mob.

I saw… the room was at it had been… although as I felt the sheets I found them to be slightly damp. Gratitude resounded through my being to whatever deity heard my prayers and granted me this favor.

Sounds rose from the two outside my door, voices raised in a loud argument.

“I don’t care what you are! To decide the girl’s fate like that, it… it’s inhuman!”

“Be quiet, woman! She is of marrying age, and as the Elder of this village it is my sacred duty to see her settled with a stable young man to provide for her.”

“You cravenly pig! Her mother had died just days ago, and you would see her celebrate her wedding while she is still mourning? The child has been with fever since the incident, and only just now the fever as broken. At least let her grieve for her mother in peace!”

The sounds quieted down, but I was left feeling numb. My wedding? No… I had no wish to be married. My father had laughed when I had told him all I wanted was to be a knight and to rescue damsels in distress like the knights in the stories did, but he had encouraged me in what I now knew to be a dream doomed to failure. I knew that he would never have let me be married without my consent.

I dragged myself to the side of the bed, tugging at the covers to allow my feet to touch the floorboards. My muscles were weakened from my time abed, shivering as I tried to move them. I couldn’t stay here anymore. Nothing was as it had been before, not even the people. As I tried to put my weight on my feet, the door opened. I looked up in surprise before I fell back onto the bed, Marie’s mouth opening in her own shock.

“Koro! Don’t try and do that again! You have to regain your strength; you have been with fever for nearly a week now.”

“I heard.” I muttered tonelessly, turning my face away from her.

“Heard what?” Her smile faltered.

“Just now, outside my door.” I looked up dully into her brown eyes, so like and unlike my mother’s. “When am I to be married?”

“Koro, dear…” She sat on the bed next to me and allowed me to lean against her comforting bulk. “I know that the Elder just wishes for your happiness, and you are past your year of courtship. With no-one to support you, he only wants to make sure that you are provided for.”

The words were meant to comfort me, but all they did was stir resentment throughout my whole being. She continued without any prompting on my part.

“I did talk to the Elder about his foolish plans. I mean, with your mother… I knew you would want to put this horrible event in the past, and something like that isn’t easy.”

I looked at her. Was she going somewhere with this?

“Anyway, the Elder did see that it wouldn’t be prudent to force something like this on you so soon. The normal time of mourning he’s given, before he picks a suitor for you.”

The normal time for mourning… that was only three months. I couldn’t bring myself to acknowledge that I could be married in only that short amount of time. Most girls were married my the time that they were fifteen I knew… I was an oddity among the shortsighted people I had grown up with, but I had resigned myself to that a long time ago. To have my free will ripped from me… no greater travesty could I have imagined.

I must not have looked well, because the next thing I knew, I was laid back against the headboard of the bed and Marie was fussing about with the coverlets.

“I know, this is a great surprise for you, but you will see that it isn’t as bad as it first sounds. A good man in your life is just the thing that you need, you’ll see. Now let me get you some warm broth for you, you are looking a tad pale.”

She turned, her skirts swishing as she did, and bustled out of the room to get the previously mentioned meal. I couldn’t care less for food. Not with this news to abruptly sprung upon me. Shock had long since set on my tired, weak body, and now with this? I just could not deal with it.

I slumped down on the pillows in utter defeat. My hands were alternately wringing each other in my lap as I stressed on the details. How could I avoid this? I couldn’t bear to stay… I’d leave. A random thought flittered through my mind; I could run away. My mother had hidden money that she had always said we might need in the future, if anything went wrong. I could use that… and, and I could dress like a boy… then no one would be able to find me. They would be looking for a girl… if anyone even cared to look. I nodded to myself. I would try to find my father as well; with him by my side no one could force me into such a terrible wedded union.

I probably looked the wild woman, with my hair in such disarray and my eyes darting nervously around the room. No matter. The fact of the matter was that I would leave, whenever I could, and I wouldn’t let anything that they village people try to do stop me.

I kept plotting the events of my escape until Marie came back with the food of which she had spoken; if ever a moment was to be irrational, this was the moment for me.

Thoughts of escape aside, my stomach leapt at the sight of the rich broth and warm bread. Marie was a good cook, I would give her that, but I couldn’t let her or anyone force me to marry someone when that was the last thing that I wanted, not even someone that I considered to be a friend.



I was again sitting of the bed where I had lain for several weeks, my back propped up against the headboard of the bed, reading a small book that Marie had given to me. My wounds were healing much faster than I would have expected, the raw flesh thankfully knit together to close the gaping wounds. I had not seen the fair lady again in my dreams, and wondered if what she had told me was true. Could I learn to control this power that I had been cursed with? This question I had pondered over since the announcement of my impending marriage.

I sighed heavily and put down the book that I was holding. The days were longer than they had ever seemed before. I missed my mother greatly, her death weighing heavily on my heart. Several times I had caught myself crying when I awoke from my slumber, my mind replaying the nightmares of her death every night as I slept.

I would grow angry over what had happened, and whenever I did, I would feel the power grow inside me, seeking an outlet that more often than not was released on my sheets. Every time the intensity seemed to grow, the amount of damage increasing every time. The Elder said that I was being afflicted by the demon’s that had attacked the village as an explanation of the strange occurrences around me; in this light, I was grateful for his myopic perception. He had spoken with the priests about my ‘condition’, and they had said prayers over me in an effort to drive the demon’s away. It didn’t stop my power from acting up again, but it reassured the villagers that I wasn’t the one to blame.

I could almost see myself setting down in a pattern; the routine was comfortable, and if it weren’t for the fact of my marriage looming over my head, I would even consider the situation pleasant. I looked out the window at the crisp colors of the autumn trees, the red and gold of their leaves bringing a small amount of warmth back into my life. I closed my eyes, trying to will myself back to sleep.

The door to my room opened, and the Elder entered. He wasn’t a young man, his shortly trimmed beard graying, and the hair at his temple receding, exposing more skin with every passing year. His wrinkled skin was weathered from working in the fields over the summer, the skin under his eyes and chin sagging with the onset of age. His clothing was not unique, just a comfortably simple tunic and breeches that all the males in the village wore, and heavy boots to protect his feet from the stones that littered the planting fields. This time his visit was a bit different, and I found that out as he walked into the room with a young man following him quietly.

“Kokoro, how are you doing this fine afternoon?” He asked me in what he probably supposed to be a cordial tone of voice. He remained standing, looming over me with his bulk, no doubt trying to intimidate me. With a mental cringe I realized, oddly, that it was working. The man with him wasn’t very handsome, his features plain and his eyes dull. He was covered in dust, smudges of dirt plastered across his brow and cheeks. I curbed my initial reaction to shudder at the sight before me, and tried to let a small smile come to my face for politeness’ sake.

“I am doing well. Thank you for asking.” I nodded to him briefly. If only he would allow me out of this cursed bed… I needed to walk, no run again! My feet ached to feel the ground pass, flying beneath them as my toes clenched at the dirt.

“You do look better than the last time I saw you.” He oozed, dripping pusillanimous distain.

I clenched my teeth, grinding them together before I said something that would get me in trouble. “Yes. Resting does help heal wounds.”

He motioned to the man with him. “This is Gebart. I have chosen him to be your husband.” He stated exigently.

I turned my attention to the massive brute in shock. This… thing could barely think! This was what I was to marry…to… to lie with? My voice failed me, and for good reason too. There was no way I could… marry this beast!

“I… I am not ready for this commitment.” I stuttered.

“You are under my authority, and you will do as I say.” He all but sneered.

“This is my life whose path you are choosing, I feel that I should have some say in what is going to happen!” I retorted in anger.

“Silence.” Gebart spoke for the first time. He moved closer to me and grasped my arm, twisting it until I gasped in pain. “You are to be my wife, and as such you should learn your proper place.”

The Elder just looked on, in silent support of what was being done to me. “I told your father that he should have curbed you long ago. Letting you run free as you have was a serious mistake that could have him before a trial if he were still here.”

Tears trickled down my cheeks as I tried to remove his hand from my arm. It was futile; my muscles had atrophied due to my long bed rest. I could barely scratch it. I could barely believe this was happening.

“Your wedding will be held in a month’s time. See that you are ready for your new duties… I’m sure your husband will try you hard on your wedding night.”

With a sneer of his own, the idiotic brute released my bruised arm and lumbered away after the retreating form of the Elder. In that moment, I realized that I could not stay here any longer. I knew his type; my mother had been the one to treat the women that were abused to the point of death. I had no wish for that to happen to me.

With difficulty I pushed myself from the bed, rising from my recumbent position to set my feet of the floor. A burst of pain flared through me as my muscles that had gone unused in weeks tried to bear my weight once again. I had lost a lot of muscle tone along with weight; I was but a pale shadow of my former self.
At this time I realized that the temperature in my room had dropped severely; I didn’t know why it had taken me this long to notice it this time, but then maybe I was getting used to my odd new way of life.

In the moment that the lummox had touched my arm, I could think of nothing but his death. In retrospect, I wasn’t thinking at all. It was too sudden for anything to happen, although I had come close to freezing him in a block of ice… I’m behaving childishly. I was too scared to do anything, anything at all. I was scared that he would hurt me… and scared that I might hurt him in return. San be praised that I did not. The lady in my dreams had given me a brief understanding of what I was capable of as she had promised, teaching me herself instead of instructors, but I didn’t have any control over where and when it appeared. Our training sessions were not long enough for me to understand what she was trying to tell me.

I took a breath and stepped forward, only to fall to the floor, crying out in pain. Muscles straining, I pushed myself to my knees, my body almost buckling with the tension. This was bad; I couldn’t even stand! My canines pierced my lower lip as I forced my wobbly legs to support my weight, shaking slightly now that I had managed to make myself stand. Tears in my eyes and on my cheeks I forced step after step out of my tired body, making a complete circle of the room before I almost collapsed from exhaustion. I thanked San every time I took a step, no matter how painful it was.

I knew that the tendons on my legs had been sliced when I had straddled the creature’s neck and it was a miracle that I could walk after such terrible wounds, but at this precarious time it wasn’t going to be good enough. Only one month… and I couldn’t stop it.



After several more weeks had passed I had regained most of the movement in my legs. I had forced myself to walk around my room from the moment I woke up until I was about to pass out from the strain of my exertions. My movements were more fluid than before, but nothing like the grace I had had before the incident in the village. I started the simple training exercises my father one drilled me through, pushing my body up and down with my arms as I kept my body straight and congruent to the floor. I was only able to do several at a time at first, but I was undaunted in my struggle. When I escaped from this nightmare, I would need my strength to survive, but with two weeks separating me from my gruesome fate, even death would be preferred to the farce of a marriage I was being forced into.

“Now dear, I know you are nervous, all girls are about their wedding nights. But let me tell you, you won’t mind it a bit later; you might even come to enjoy it! When you have children you will thank…”

I tuned out the sound of Marie’s voice as I pretended to lie helpless in my bed. It was pathetic; all of the women in the village thought that it was their responsibility to tell me about the virtues of marriage now that my mother had passed on, but Marie was turning out to be the worst. I hadn’t seen my erstwhile fiancée since that first horrible day when I met him, but that didn’t prevent the Elder from checking up on me to make sure I hadn’t run away under the guise of being concerned about my health. I resented every moment spent with him. He was condescending, constantly reminding me with a sadistic air of the time remaining until the ‘joyous’ day that I was paired off with a man in a travesty that would last my entire life. I couldn’t let it show, it would ruin everything I was planning if they knew the extent of my discontent; I was civil as it was required of me to be, but I didn’t bend over backwards to assure them of my mental health.

My control over the ice was irrational; one day I might be able to freeze a glass of water, but then the next I couldn’t even feel whatever it was that possessed me. It was beginning to try my nerves and patience, along with all the other walking problems in my life, and I was seriously beginning to doubt my mental sanity, cooped up in the small room were I now lived.

I counted one week until my fate was sealed for me, one week until my spirit died as it was chained to an animal-like man who would rejoice to ‘put me in my place’. I had to leave and soon. I had briefly heard some talk in the common room of the inn, about my mother and myself, and one day I slipped out of my room to confirm it for myself. Peering down the stairs into the kitchen, I saw several of the women employed to work as the staff of the inn. Instead of working, they were gossiping, the witless windbags. They didn’t even have the decency to talk about their own business; they had to meddle with someone else’s!

“…That woman… what kind of a woman would be able to drive her man away from her like that?” I couldn’t recognize the voice, but the strident tone was enough the shatter a snake charmer’s nerves.

“And leaving such a hooligan for a daughter… it’s a miracle that the Elder was able to find her a proper suitor.”

“Yes I agree. Gebart is a little rough around the edges, but he is just what that girl needs to make her see her place in the world.”

“Yes, a strong man like him will put her straight…”

I couldn’t bear to hear any more and I slunk back to my room. I never imagined the extent of the hostility flowing through the veins of the villagers, with their caustic tongues and lips wagging to gossip. What did they know? Biting back my tears, I started my exercises with a renewed fervor; I would leave here, and soon!

Unexpectedly, an excruciating wave of pain racked my body and I collapsed heavily onto the bare wooden floor. I balled up my fists as my body spasmed as I was left gasping for breath. By the One… what was that?

I went to stand, but as I did I felt a muscle in my leg cramp and I fell onto the floor again. My teeth automatically clenched on my lip, but unlike the previous times… they went right through. The sharp copper taste of blood welled in my mouth, and I gagged, spitting it out. Gingerly I reached inside to feel my teeth to make sure nothing was broken and nearly passed out when I felt the slightly enlarged canines that had pierced through my lip.

What in the blessed name of San was going on here? Why did my teeth change? Prolonged study of my teeth proved that only my canines were affected, their length now twice as long as it had been; they could now be classified as fangs. Maybe I was suffering from some sort of demonic possession, because I had never heard of something like this happening to another living human.

My breathing became labored, and the very act of sustaining my life became a trial. When the elder saw this, I would be killed for sure… however nice death might look at the moment, I had no wish to face several hours of torture. Bandits, on the other hand, if they thought me a man, would make my death swift and nearly painless. That nearly decided me to leave at that very moment, and I would have except for the weakness still playing upon my body.

Aches plagued my body as I finally got to my feet and managed to make it back to the bed. I would leave tomorrow; on this I was now sure. No one should bother me tonight, if they kept up in their avoidance of me, which gave me enough time to pack for my journey. Leaning heavily on the headboard, I decided to wait a bit before I set my plans into motion.




The day of my release dawned a dirty gray, the showering of storm clouds marking abysmal and dank weather ahead. I slunk from my bed without a sound and grabbed my rucksack from under the bed where I had packed and left it the night before. I had acquired several sets of breeches and several more tunics from male members of the household, of which I was bringing them all with me, and the rest of the things I would need would be at my mother’s house.

The village Elder had pronounced that the house was haunted after he had tried to enter it to steal my mother’s precious belongings. They had taken me out of my bed a few weeks backs when I couldn’t walk in order to make sure they got everything of value from the house; they weren’t sure if my mother had hidden and family heirlooms or such, which she had I’m happy to say. I had grown so angry at him that the entire doorway became a solid block of ice as he started to take a step forward, prohibiting the man entry. His heart almost stopped for fright, and quickly forbade anyone to go near there again. For this reason and this reason only would I be able to return.

I shed my bedclothes, reaching into my pack for a tunic to wear and silently pulled the clothing on. The pants were slightly loose on me, but it made no difference to the situation at hand. Prying the window of my bedroom open, I climbed out onto the trellis of ivy and jumped to the ground. I winced, falling over as my limbs gave out on me; I was still too weak to take the sudden strain. I heard the noise made as I landed in the gravel, my bare feet unprepared for the impact, and hoped that it hadn’t woken any of the house’s inhabitants.

Without pausing in my flight I ran, or rather limped, for the cover of the trees, once hidden looking back to see if I was being followed. The house was silent and dark, morning mist creeping about it’s shuddered. I breathed a sigh of relief as I finally felt the burden of forced duty lifted from my shoulders.

I made quite a bit of noise in the fallen leaves that had been dried over the hot days; it was fortunate that the town’s people didn’t awaken until long after sunrise in the winter and I knew by then that I would be long gone. I was hasty in my plans, and prayed that the next day would see me still alive. By my calculations, I had about one candle mark left before dawn; I doubled my speed, settling into an exigent pace that I maintained for a small distance. Walking soon turned to limping again before I almost fell over, exhausted.

I clutched at a tree’s trunk, my breathing harsh as I looked back. The sun had long since risen, although you couldn’t really see it through the heavy cloud covering; by now there should be some pursuers on my back. I couldn’t see the town anymore, thankfully I had managed to last longer than I had expected, but I would have to find someplace to hide and pray that they didn’t bring any dogs to track me by my scent.

A glance showed a small glade off to one side of the road, hidden in the shadows of the Spartan trees that surrounded it. A small pool of clear water trickled off to one side, awakening my growing thirst. With a grateful sight, I knelt by the cool liquid, and dipped my hands into the fall of the water. Hands cupped, I brought the liquid to my lips and gratefully downed it.

The residence where my mother and myself had once lived was still a long ways off; the wind had also picked up a great deal, buffeting my thin frame with gusts of its fury. It made it harder for me to make any progress, and I was thankful for the windbreak that these trees provided.

I heard sounds of barking in the distance, still a long ways off, but I quickly finished my business and hurried off through the woods. With my life at stake, my terror lent renewed fervor to my legs as I struggled with the increasingly heavy rucksack that I held under one of my arms. A heavy crackling interrupted my flight, and I dove into the thick underbrush like a frightened rabbit, huddling piteously for the danger to pass.

A man passed in front of my hiding place; I recognized him as someone from the village, Adam if I recalled his name correctly. They were searching for me. My heart froze as he stopped in front of me.