Of Ice, Death & Monsters

15 Days Ago.

I took a deep breath, finally… It was over. While yes, Derek and Topher’s units were injured, and Dela seemed to be taking a rest by a nearby tree. And me, on the other hand, well, I had better days.

But the fight was over, and those spirits won’t bother us for quite a while if ever they were deemed to return.

I took a look around, finding the grass to be growing, the lake to be filling with water. I saw life itself flourishing in this dreade,d deathly swamp, filling it with a glorious green that spread throughout the swamp, returning it more to a verdant forest.

Dela turned her head to me. “It’s time before the Vampir could take notice. Hurry.” Her voice was monotone, yet still full of urgency and life. I had to be quick, that was for sure, we were definitely in no condition for a fight.

I got up and grew wings again. It must be safe this time around. Well, there could possibly be other monsters, but thanks to the Chuma and Beda’s presence, I was sure that they couldn’t exactly exist in such a state unless they were something akin to the ghouls.

I then flew towards the head of the mountain, landing on its nose as did the Beda before. It was there that I felt the most life-giving energies of the Saunne, akin to a nuclear reactor churning out power. I could feel it surging outwards now, not anymore repressed by the Chuma and the Beda.

Their powers were so mighty that even from miles away, I could see the swamp begin to change into a forest. Days of travelling, feeling both miserable and sick, are now gone. Now, we only worry about the other spirits like them. I was guessing that, like in Phorash and other cultures, there would be lesser and greater variants of what I had faced.

But, enough of that thinking. I had a duty to perform, and so I closed my eyes and concentrated. I meditated on the powers that would be, on the Caretaker. Carefully, I extended out the claw from my forefinger and began to carve the same symbols I did before on the head of the Leshy, the symbol of the Aetree.

It was then that a bright white light washed over me and a soothing presence wrapped around my body. Everything felt… Peaceful, wholesome, as if I was returning to the womb of my mother.

I opened my eyes, staring at first into the bright light before it took shape and form.

“Well done, Marian Monroe. This power shall be of great benefit to us, together. Although it shall be temporary, as it is based on the Leshy itself and shall be used to heal it before it is done.”

“Of course, together. I shall be able to finally heal this land and bring forth the Destiny and Fate that needs to be sentenced upon all things.”

The bright light took on my shape once more, now wearing my wedding dress.

“You are the Chosen of Life itself. Soon enough, you shall not only be its Guardian, but also its Gardener. You shall be the Shepherd who shall help cultivate a new dawn upon this world. That shall be your Destiny. Through me, through you, life itself shall begin anew.”

The world hummed to me, and I hummed back. Then, I felt it, something shifted inside of me. It was as if this whole time in my life, I was underwater, and now I was coming out to breathe. I related it to when I first got a Name imprinted onto me, but infinitely more… Important.

I couldn’t describe such a feeling with any proper sensation, for it felt like my Destiny was being unlocked, akin to a font of power, a node being revealed to me that connected me to something far more than I could understand and comprehend. It was akin to when I fused with Peter, as if I could feel every soul and spirit stretched all across Galfania. A lifelink to all of creation, whether I was fueling it or they were fueling me, I did not know. What I did understand, however, was that they were connected to me, and I had to help them, I had to save them.

I grabbed hold of life, and it grabbed hold of me. Together we danced, laughing as if we were old friends until we became one like lovers. It was then I felt myself grow. My tail elongated, my ears heightened. My senses once more sharpened to the point that it felt as if I could smell Spirits and Magick itself.

My body became one with nature. It felt almost indestructible. I was no longer an ordinary mortal, if one could ever even attribute such a meaning to me before. I could feel the shaking of the earth and the flow of the wind. I was life itself, shining bright like a star.

I opened my eyes and I witnessed it all, the beauty of creation, of the forest. The endless green cacophony of leaves, trees, grass, and flowers. They spread like wildfire throughout the swamp, overlaying it… With me. I felt myself pass through, I felt my power surge forth, it was beautiful, wonderful, and-

“It is futile.”

A voice came from above me. A presence I couldn’t sense or pick up? I stared upwards and my heart grew still.

It was a man, a tall, dark-haired, and pale handsome man wearing the clothes of nobility. His face was flushed with a strange disposition of curiosity and a sense of distaste. There was a presence to him I couldn’t quite grasp.

And that was because he was completely invisible to my enhanced senses. I could see him, hear him, I felt as if I could even touch him. But other than that, he felt as if he were a ghoul. Perhaps, something even less. A ghoul held no life in it other than the Spirit of their body… But this man was the opposite.

He was sucking in life. It was akin to peering into the Abyss. He wasn’t simply empty, he was quite literally devouring Magick, life, energies, and simply… Anything and everything.

I couldn’t sense anything from him; there was only a void where he was, an emptiness that I couldn’t perceive.

Then, he turned invisible, literally disappearing from my view, from every single sense I had, vanishing into nothing before appearing behind me. “So much life… So much energy, flowing through you… Yes, you will be the perfect vessel for Tianna.”

I turned around, trying to move away, but… I was stuck. Paralyzed, I couldn’t move a muscle. He was absorbing my energy as well.

He placed his fingers on my lips, rubbing them as I felt him smear blood across my mouth. Suddenly, I could finally move my jaw.

“I’m Marian- and get your hands off me.” I gathered the life spirits around my body, attaching them to me to help give me the momentum to move away from the man.

“Perhaps… but you will be Tianna.” His voice spoke in such authority, but there was something else that came through with it. I felt that it was true… No, rather, I felt as if my will to refute it was sapped. As if it were drained away like all the other things around.

I was about to speak, even agree with him, but I caught my tongue, inhaling sharply as I stood my ground, gathering the spirits of will around to fuel me barely enough to resist. “No… But I know who you are, Vladimir, Vampir of Saunne. I am to be your-“

“Wife… Yes, you can be just like her. You are beautiful enough to be her… Yes, and so full of life, like a fountain that could never end.” He gave a soft laugh as he tried to reach out to me again.

“I’m not here to play any games. I come for the Fern Flower, and I shall ask you kindly that you do not refer to me as your wife. There is only one man I shall ever allow to call me that… And you are not him.”

I had to be careful, I had to be civil. This man, I could tell already, was much like Zmey; his power was overwhelming, terrifying even, perhaps not on Zmey’s level, but he was on that scale.

“Oh? But I am that man… I am to be your husband, and I shall offer the most beautiful flower to my wife… Only if she accepts it.”

Nope. Never. I don’t care what he could offer or what anyone could offer. I shall not forsake Adrian. I shall never let him go until I can finally hear him awake and happy.

“That is not possible. I am not your wife. You need to find someone else. I don’t wish to be your wife, nor shall I ever. My heart and soul belong to someone else-“

“Then, you won’t need them now, do you?”

Before I could react, he grabbed me by the neck, his nails grew into my flesh, piercing it deeply as I felt my entire body go limp. I was drained of all my energy, of all my life, everything. I felt my mind start to fade, fog up, memories began to vanish-

No. I had to move elsewhere! I dismantled my body, turning it into loose dirt as it fell through the Vampire’s grasp and back onto the earth, where I channeled the remaining fleeting life energy.

I barely turned back to my regular form before suddenly I was speared through the back like I was a fish. I looked down, finding several hooks made of literal blood through my stomach.

“Don’t be like that, Tianna. I spared you so many times so that I could finally have you like this… So that I could feel life everlasting through you. And so that we could be together again.”

Suddenly, up above, I noticed several missiles were flying straight towards Vladimir… Before, they simply slowed down through the air, their momentum absorbed before they could even reach him.

Luckily, they exploded right by his side, blazes of flame and frost mixed around with even an organized chaos missile being used to try and funnel more power… That did absolutely nothing.

The cold and fire were absorbed; literally, they swirled around Vladimir, funneling into his body. The explosion itself never reached him, not even the smoke itself touched his pale skin.

Bullets flew through the air, more autocannon rounds, minigun rounds, and so on and so forth rushed forth, trying to even touch the man, merely floating around him as if he was producing some kind of gravitational wave.

“Hmmm, the others are trying to intrude on our wedding. You were fond of them, so they shall be spared. But as part of the guest ceremony.”

I watched as Dela dashed upwards, trying to fly towards Vladimir alongside the other two, still in their broken golems.

But as with all things, it was futile. He didn’t even acknowledge them. All that happened was they simply went limp mid-air as if they were bound in invisible chains. Then, blood erupted from his fingertips, shooting towards all three of them.

He grabbed the two from their golems, and they were as pale as could be, their eyes devoid of life, yet I could sense they were still somewhat alive. Then, he placed them all beside me like pawns on a board.

“Now then, how do you wish to look for the ceremony?”