Alva couldn't quite understand where she was or how she got there, her mind a whirlwind of static that eradicated her memory with unwanted fervor. "wha- where am i?" her thoughts trailed as she absorbed her surroundings, the flickering lights of the fireplace danced across the cobblestone walls, the luxurious furniture and decor that littered the room filled with odd ends and trinkets that she had never seen before along with the stale damp smell of the red carpet beneath her toes.
"i need to get u-" she said before letting out a series of sickly coughs and snorts, she had a fever and it was pretty bad. Her bones shivering and shaking like brittle metal in cold winter morns, snot trailing down her nose causing her to sniff. she continued laying on the soft warm sofa, her green eyes never leaving the embers of the fireplace. In this moment she wasn't concerned at all for anything other than feeling better, her mood sluggish and her mind slow, she didn't have the strength required to protect herself at all.
"Ah... Excivius tumius luvi?"
However such a false sense of character was shortly lived as her head snapped towards the childish like voice approaching from behind, she didn't even hear the door open. There stood a little girl with Jet black hair, her eyes a mystical white of pure snow, her canines unnaturally long, she wore a puffy white dress that complimented her well. Alva thought she must have heard her wrong and asked her to repeat herself, the little girls eyes flickered with confusion, not understanding what Alva was saying at all. The little girl strutted over to Alva placing the back end of her hand against her forehead.
"indiminus illin..." the little girl murmured, she quickly left the room only to return 30 minutes later with a warm bowl of soup and toasted bread, her small hands covered in mittens as she placed it on the coffee table situated beside Alva before leaving. The smell radiating from the bowl smelled exactly like chicken and carrots, she slowly raised herself and lifted the silver spoon inside her bowl raising it just before her lips allowing a single breath to emit to cool down the hot liquid before ingesting it.
"mmm yummy" She murmured to herself as she savoured each taste. Alva began pondering the strange words that came from the little girls mouth earlier, she had learnt such pronunciations before in the palace library where she had her theory classes but such a tone could only come from one place.... Divina Terra which according to Alva was on the complete opposite side of the world to þrift, it was simply not possible for her to have ended up in a far away land.
"My my! what a wonderful specimen we have here don't you think little Cheri?" A strange elegant voice said.
"Livinium Illunius" the little girl responded
There stood at the doorway a tall and slender young male, his body covered in regal and elegant clothing colored in red and black, his black hair, shoulder length, practically shined like black oil as his eyes radiated a predatory aura that glowed a mystical white the same shade as the young girls.
"Welcome to my domain my beautiful Shield maiden, I am Lord Morte, master of this castle that you currently reside in, and you are?" his voice slick with enthusiastic charm, his unusually long canines reaching his bottom lip as he spoke.
"Alva... I'm Alva... w-where am i?" she said, her voice littered with illness, her delicate hand placed gently over her chest as she let out a cough.
"you... my dear are in Divina Terra, the Land of wonders!" Alva's heart skipped a beat or two as her earlier suspicions were confirmed, she was far away from home.
"I thought you people only spoke Laviuum, how can you speak my tongue?" Alva questioned, her eyebrow raised in suspicion as she took another sip of her soup.
"Good question yet simple nonetheless, you see, i am very well versed in all tongues, a skill learnt through centuries of roaming this earth"
Alva's eyes narrowed slightly, her mouth full of chicken soup, she didn't really know what to make of someone being able to live for centuries. "surely you joke no? there is no way a human could live for hundreds of years" Her tone sharp with layers of distrust.
"I am no human dear Nord, I am a vampire who has watched over this castle for 340 years" Lord Morte responded, Alva had no idea what a vampire was and scratched her scruffy orange hair, she wasn't really interested in hearing any more from the pompous man and changed the topic in an attempt to stop him from making any more outlandish statements.
"How did i end up here?" she questioned.
"Ah! my amazing son who just happened to find you passed out, all wet and cold on the brink of death amongst our shores" his tone now taking on a dramatic effect although his response itself served no real benefit to the how aspect.
Alva plopped her head back down on the soft cushion, her hand placed delicately over her heated forehead as she let out a series of coarse difficult breaths, she didn't care about anything in this moment, she just wanted to regain her strength. For the time being these strangers undoubtedly provided her with hospitality and quite possibly saved her life.
"T..Thanks i guess..." she said with a hint of genuine sincerity, her sickly mood stopping her from fully expressing her gratitude. The tall slender vampire hovered over Alva's body placing a single finger against her forehead, emitting a green light to form from the point of contact and within an instant all symptoms had cleared. The static that plagued her mind with drowsiness had withered away due to the vampires oddly soft and gentle touch.
"There you are darling! you should be all better now" He said in a chippy charming tone as he folded his skinny arms confidently, Alva could feel her strength instantly returning within moments, she had never experienced healing magic quite like this, in the Nordic kingdom of þrift healing magic was only able to repair what could be seen and understood like scars, wounds and known illnesses which would normally take hours to complete but this person or thing had healed her within a single second.
"how did you do that? that was amazing!" her tone now bubbling with it's usual enthusiasm as she jolted from the sofa, her arms outstretched in a satisfactory gesture as she let out a soft hum. Lord Morte merely chuckled in amusement at the young shieldmaidens change in demeanor, The little girl beside him skipping over to Alva.
"ohhh! ligium illnuis!" her voiced dripping in child-like innocence despite the language barrier. Lord Morte turned to Alva once more and placed his ring finger over her forehead this time emitting a blue light from the contact and Within seconds the strange language that the little girl was speaking become coherent and understandable to her ears, Alva's mind began flooding with a plethora of linguistical knowledge.
"I ended up copying a small portion of my memories and placed them within your memory sphere allowing you to understand little Cheri when she speaks" Lorde Morte explained as he retracted his finger before continuing "Now you're well versed in Laviuum, Ishtarian, Wuxong, etc"
"oh! oh! oh! can you understand me now!" Little Cheri said with a fiery eagerness, her feet bouncing up and down as she clasped her tiny hands together, Alva's mouth opened in awe and complete shock at the sudden collapse of the language barrier that had separated them only moments before.
"y..yes I can understand you" Alva responded but not in her own Nordic tongue but in Laviuum, the Dialect of Divina Terra. The little girl let out a small squeak as she quickly clawed at Alva's delicate yet calloused hands, her strength surprisingly overwhelming reminding Alva of shy Little Liva.
"I don't understand why are you helping me?" Alva questioned, her tone still carrying a hint of suspicion and wariness, Lord Morte simply chuckled once more before answering her, his expression that of genuine concern.
"Why it would be wrong to not help someone in need wouldn't it? I'm sure you would do the same" Alva couldn't retort those words, she knew damn well that such a simple convenient statement held true in her own heart.
"Why don't you get up and have a walk around? Little Cheri can give you a tour" he suggested before leaving the room, his regal cape fluttering as he made his exit. Little Cheri had Alva's hand still clasped within her own as she practically began dragging her out the room.
"Yes! come! you have to meet my older brother! he is the one who saved you after all!" Little Cheri proclaimed as she began leading Alva through a series of hallways and staircases towards the front courtyard of the castle that was littered in thick snow. "There he is!"
Alva turned towards the direction Little Cheri was pointing, there laid a boy peacefully resting against his horse, his black scruffy and wolfy hair shined like black oil as the snowflakes gracefully covered the black armor and cloak he wore, His sword placed over his lap with his head tilt backwards.
"Hey! wake up sleepy head!" Little cheri said before booting him in the leg causing the boy to slowly flutter his eyes open, Alva noticed that his eye color was different from Lord Morte's and Cheri's, instead of being white they were pure black filled with nothing but an empty void that beckoned an eerie sense of familiarity within Alva that she couldn't quite put her finger on.
"Oh... hello there zzzz" he said with a yawn, his tone drowsy and sleepy, the boys slothfulness made apparent as he clumsily began standing up, his height towering both girls as his wolfy scruffy hair flickered over his face, the black bags underneath his empty eyes adding to his exhausted expression. Alva couldn't quite understand the boy's character, he seemed weak yet his aura screamed certain death that made the air around them thick and heavy.
"um... i heard you were the one that retrieved me from the shores, i just wanted to um.. thank you" she said, her tone unsure and wary, normally Alva would have a knack for reading people and sensing the kind of character they were from body language alone yet the boy's demeanor was conflicting in everyway.
"Hmmm? did i?" he questioned as he raised a finger to his chin, his eyes upwards in a contemplative expression, Little Cheri let out a huff of pure annoyance as she kicked him again, no reaction from the boy at all.
"Yes Asher! you saved her! how can you be this forgetful??" she said her voice now taking on a bratty tone as she scolded her 'older brother' who responded "Mhmm i seem to be forgetting many things lately..." his tone weary and drowsy as if he was completely unbothered by his own statement.
"uh... what were you doing sleeping out here? in the snow..." Alva asked as her hand trailed outwards to catch each snowflake that fell. The boy turned to his horse who was still peacefully asleep on the floor before responding. "I was keeping Sherbe warm" he said with a soft smile that made Alva's heart slightly flutter.
"I see.. well um thanks for your help again! even if you don't remember i still appreciate it, I'm Alva and you are?" she said, her hand outstretched to take his.
"me? ah i believe it was Ash? Asher? something like this..." he replied shaking Alva's hand, Little Cheri beside him twisting her small head in a clear display of annoyance and care. "his name is Asher Morte, and he is my older brother!" The small girl declared. As the three stood in the snowy confines of the castle's courtyard Lord Morte appeared before them, his slender frame quite literally hovering in the air above.
"I'm going into the capital for a bit, please don't cause too much trouble while I'm away" he winked before shooting off into the distance, Alva's viridian pupils gleamed with childlike wonder as she watched the man soar into the distance, turning to Little Cheri
"HE CAN FLY!?!?" She screeched, her hands cupped to her own cheeks in an exaggerated gesture. Little Cheri giggled away at Alva's cartoony expression as she twirled around. "yeah! of course! he is a vampire after all!" Alva quickly recalled Lord Morte's statement earlier and thought he was full of it but after witnessing his advanced magic and flying capabilities there was no more room for anymore doubt.
The day drew onwards with Asher and Little Cheri showing Alva all the facilities of the castle, showcasing the spa room, her bedroom, the lounge, the dining hall etc, she had never seen such architecture before however it still paled in size compared to King Eric's Palace but nonetheless it was still impressive. As Alva made her way into the kitchens of the Castle she noticed that there were no servers, butlers or maids that tended the building, finding it quite odd she asked Little cheri why that was in which she simply responded.
"Oh we have spells that do all the cleaning, we cant exactly have humans here..." her voice lowered in a suspicious tone that Alva instantly picked up on.
"And why is that?"
Little Cheri averted her gaze momentarily before returning towards Alva "Well you see.. my father as you already know is a vampire and vampires require human blood to survive...." Alva's eyes widened in alarm as she took a few steps back.
"Human... blood?" she stammered
"yes but don't worry! my father has his own methods and i assure you they're all harmless!" Her tone confident and unwavering "my father isn't the monster that everyone makes him out to be! he's just misunderstood! and why are you getting all scared? he helped you didn't he!?"
Alva felt a tinge of sharp thorns impale her heart as Little Cheri spoke, it was true that he had shown her kindness and generosity and that such acts couldn't be completely dismissed. The shieldmaiden allowed her shoulders to relax slightly causing a reluctant sigh to escape her lips.
"i… i suppose you're right.." she responded with acceptance, the tension easing off ever so slightly as Little Cheri let out a small bratty smile "ha! i know i am!" Alva couldn't quite wrap her head around the whole vampire thing, using human blood? what could she had meant by that? such questions burned within her skull but for the time being she hesitantly decided to drop the subject.... for now....
"Anyway I'm hungry what do you got in the kitchen?" she said as she made her way towards the pantry, Asher following close behind her with a dopey smile on his face "oh me too! what do we got in here?" Alva gave Asher a sidelong glance thinking "how in the hell does he not know what's in his own kitchen if they don't have maids or butlers?" she shook her head removing the thought before turning her attention back towards the cupboards that were surprisingly coated in cobwebs, as if nothing had been stored in them for years.
"Oh yeah sorry about that, you sorta ate the last chicken soup packet and carrots we had...." Little Cheri piped with a sheepish grin, Alva raised an eyebrow at her words "even then a castle shouldn't be barren of food?"
"yes well a vampire doesn't eat normal food like humans..." Little Cheri retorted, Alva didn't even think of it earlier but had to ask "Are you all vampires in this castle?"
"no.. just my father and I, Asher here is a human..." She said as she pointed at her big brother who was busy rummaging through the pantry with an adorable wonderlike expression, Little Cheri continued explaining "even though i call him my big brother, he was adopted by Lord Morte as a baby" Alva's eyes flickered with understanding, perhaps her earlier judgments about Asher's eye color was simply a fluke.
Little Cheri began suggesting a trip into town to buy some groceries for Alva's stay to which she reluctantly stated "uh i have no money..." Little Cheri giggled in response telling her to not worry about funds and that her daddy has all the money in the world, Alva didn't know what to make of the little girls spoiled response before Little Cheri tossed a hefty pouch filled with shiny gold coins at her, the three of them then began making there way towards the front courtyard once more.
"Asher! you're taking Alva to town okay?" Asher peered down at little Cheri as she spoke, his drowsy and nonchalant expression still plastered across his face "Ah okay, Sherbe here should know the way" He said as reached out for his horse's reigns bringing the beautiful animal over to the girls.
Up close the dark grey beast seemed to radiate a subtle aura that Alva could just barely sense, she could see a light red tinge that surrounded its giant strong frame that went unnoticed by the siblings. Asher turned to Alva expecting Alva to be lifted onto the horse causing the shield maiden to scoff in mock offense before jumping onto the horse perfectly fine. Asher completely unbothered by her gesture simply mounted the horse placing himself directly behind Alva, both his Arms wrapping around her body as he reached for the reigns.
"hey! what do you think you're-" Alva was cut off as Asher whipped the horse into action, the bottom of his chin bouncing atop Alva's orange hair as the beast sprinted from the castle walls into the distance. The ride was thrilling to say the least, despite the speed the horse moved with a keen sense of intelligence knowing exactly where to carefully place each step as it galloped. Alva however couldn't help but notice the way Asher was boldly holding her in place, an obvious blush that colored her cheeks a shade of bright red.
As the snow covered tree's fell behind them allowing a clearing to appear, the pair could see a town in the distance that was surrounded by a stone wall, the smell of charcoal and smoke reaching their noses, a sign of human activity that was familiar to Alva. On arriving at the front entrance into the town one of the guards stationed atop the stone wall called out to them.
"OI! Asher! who's that with you?" he questioned, his voice stern, The boy gently tugged at the reigns slowing the horse down to a stop before speaking "oh this is.... uh... sorry what was your name again?" Alva's cold stone face turned to Ash with a scornful look, she cant believe he already forgot who she was. The guard didn't even bother to continue his conversation it would ultimately seem he already knew of the boys forgetful demeanor and simply waved his hand about allowing both Asher and Alva entrance into the town, the pair dismounted Sherbe with Asher leading his steed by the reigns.
Upon entering the burly wooden gates that laid open Alva could see many people mainly humans tending to various tasks, there were some chopping away at firewood and neatly placing it in woven baskets, others carrying and butchering meat from their early morning hunt and others bartering their goods upon sleds and table tops, for a small town it was quite lively indeed. Asher who was beside her was yawning away as if he was just about to fall asleep right then and there, Alva who was a woman that would not stand for such displays shoved his shoulder with quite a bit of strength but to her surprise he didn't even budge an inch, in fact he didn't even notice her touch, her arm simply bounced her own body backwards. she didn't say anything and decided to keep the gesture solely to herself before strutting over to a merchant selling fresh meat and vegetables.
Alva scanned the items available within the merchants inventory, there were stringy bits of dried smoked meat hanging from atop however when it came to the vegetables their were only potatoes and cabbages available, a tell tail sign of whats available in the snowy regions. Asher had his head hunched over the products with his arms folded in attempt to keep himself warm, Alva turned to him and began asking the boy out of sheer curiosity why Cheri didn't want to tag along with them to which he responded.
"ah she cant leave the castle grounds during daylight, there is a barrier protecting her from the rays of the sun"
"what do you mean protecting her from the sun?" she questioned
"Vampires cant be touched by sunlight otherwise they burn up in seconds" Alva raised an eyebrow in confusion retorting Asher's words with
"huh? but Morte left the castle just fine though?"
Asher faced her with a dumbfounded expression saying to her in a tone filled with complete bewilderment "did he??? when?? i didn't know he could do that!" Alva's patience was waring dangerously thin at the boys antics, she couldn't tell if he was acting or if he was dead serious, his conflicting demeanor bothered her in one way and in the other it intrigued her, the men that she encountered in the kingdom of þrift were filled with masculine pride and glory seeking the thrill of battle and combat but this boy seemed completely unbothered by anything and everything, as if pride itself was a foreign concept.
After two hours of wandering the town, interacting with its people and collecting the much needed groceries they began galloping upon Sherbe, Alva slowly becoming more comfortable with Asher's bold touch. As they stormed the front castle gates they were greeted by Little Cheri who was currently building herself a snowman in the front courtyard.
"Asher! Alva! Sherbe! your back!" she said as she skipped towards them quickly snatching a carrot from the bag of goods they brought home. "hehe dont mind if i do" she cooed before sticking inside the snowmans head giving the sculpture a nose. Asher lead his horse Sherbe towards the stables whilst Little Cheri helped Alva carry the groceries inside, the cupboards now radiating with life that they had lost many years ago.
As nightfall beckoned upon the castle grounds, the moon illuminating the snow with a tranquil glow, the residents eating away within the dining hall with Asher and Alva huffing and scoffing the meals they had prepared together along with Little Cheri, however the little girl simply played with her toy horses on the carpet, being a vampire meant she couldn't exactly partake in the pleasures of eating.
"Im back darlings!" Lord Morte yelled with enthusiasm as he flew straight through the dining hall window crashing straight into the table disrupting the peaceful atmosphere immediately, the three of them each shared the exact same expression filled with annoyance and scorn at the sudden intrusion letting a small chuckle of delight to emit from the Lord's mouth.
"I still can't believe you can fly, can you teach me sometime?" Alva said as she resumed eating the meat and veges from her shiny platter, Asher following suit.
"uh no that ability is reserved solely for us vampires unfortunately" Alva's eyes flickered with disappointment, but was shortly replaced with a stern seriousness as Lord Morte continued "now I believe its time to talk about what you plan to accomplish? and why you are here in the first place my dear..."
"I... I was on a journey to the Isle of storms to finally finish my training under the Valkyries, I lost course during a violent storm and somehow ended up here...." she said with a sense of confusion layered within her voice, Lord Morte gave her a nod of understanding
"that is very strange... for you to have washed up on the shores of Divina Terra despite being in the Nordic oceans of þrift? it would take you at least a whole year to return to those lands.... yet you came here in a single day hmmm...." Alva's eyes widened in shock as she heard how lengthy the travel time was for her to return home.
"A... A whole year!!" she exclaimed, her food nearly causing her to choke on her own words.
"indeed... a whole year, do you perhaps remember anything else? it just isn't possible for you to have come here from such a far away place in such a short amount of time"
As Alva began recalling her memories flickers of a shadowy otherworldly figure began Flashing about in subtle images within her mind along with the eerie sensation of the surrounding whispers that haunted her very soul.
"There was a person... or thing that showed up on my boat that spouted whispers of dread that surrounded the air, it wore a black cloak with its head covered by a hood... it had these three strange red lights circling beneath it..." However as Alva mentioned the ominous red lights, Asher who was sitting opposite her began throwing a hysterical fit seemingly out of nowhere, his body now jolting and convulsing upon the floor in complete anguish and despair as he clawed away at his own hair, his eyes filled with tears streaking across his face.
"ASH?? What's wrong??" the three said in unison as they swarmed the boy with alarmed and concerned expressions as he wailed about beneath them. Alva who was inspecting his sudden change in demeanor couldn't help but notice the air itself becoming thicker and thicker making it incredibly difficult to breathe.
"I.. i cant breathe" she said as she held her own throat, Lord Morte instantly placed a finger upon the boys forehead emitting a magical light of pure white causing Asher to instantly fall unconscious. The air now returning to its usual state.
"What was that!?" Alva exclaimed as she held Asher in her arms affectionately, Lord Morte with Little Cheri peeking out from behind both had looks of genuine worry.
"I.. i don't know" Lord Morte replied "I've never seen him act like that before..." The three of them didn't know what to make of the boy's sudden fit, in this moment the only thing running through their heads was ensuring Asher's wellbeing. Alva began carrying him to his room gently placing him on his bed, Little Cheri lighting the fireplace that was situated beside his bedframe. Alva held within her hands a soft cloth that she began using to wipe the tear stains that littered his messy face as he rested peacefully against his pillow.
Lord Morte, Cheri, and Alva all situated themselves beside his bed drinking in his every detail, despite Alva not really knowing anything about the boy she felt a strong sense of connection to him, one that she had soon yet to discover....