012 (1/2)

Alright, some jabber before the chapter today.

Announcement: there were some issues of bad grammar and awkward sentencing in earlier chapters, but I couldn't address them as it is tough to edit your own stuff. So, Luciferia has very kindly agreed to help me out in that regard. So, the chapters Prologue to 10 will be slowly fixed. Right now, the Prologue, Chapters 11,12 and 01 are edited and prrofread. Btw, check out Luciferia's story Of Astral and Umbral, pretty neat and awesome in my opinion.

Next, I would like to thank every person who has commented, reviewed and rated my work, I am not taking individual names because it will take too much s.p.a.ce, but really...thanks for appreciating my work. As an authour, I am indebted to you guys.

Chapter 12 : Surviving Overprotective Dwarf Dads

“…Some say that there are other worlds…universes to be precise, stacked on top of each other, superimposed. Sometimes, the boundaries grow thin and we can see a glimpse of it. Tall spires of gla.s.s and metal, s.h.i.+ning in a world of single moon. Men and strange beasts carrying sticks of fire, iron birds flying in the sky. We have had such dreams, often. The theory of stacked worlds might not be so far-fetched after all.

But…gla.s.s is two-way. Doesn’t that mean that the people of that world too…can see us? They can see our magics, our people and our worlds. Is it too strange to think that in those worlds, there are stories of dragons flying in skies, Elves running through forests and of beast-men? I wonder…”

— Scholar Arridan Sovieri, ‘Why our Stories are Similar’, 1456 A.C

A completely black world.

No… A huge flower bloomed in the pitch darkness. Petals the colour of blood spread from it, illuminated from inside. Eerily, even though total darkness bloomed, there was strange illumination that lighted up the flower and its snaking vines. And the person sitting on it.

“h.e.l.lo, Astria”, I greeted her. For some reason, I couldn’t move. Couldn’t even tilt my head.

“I don’t have much time”, Astria said, stroking the flower. The flower purred, its body trembling.

What the...purring flowers?

“I see some strange things are happening in my dreamscape”, I asked, “also, what’s with the flower?”

“This isn’t your dreamscape. This is my domain”, Astria stared at me straight; her eyes sharpened. She s.h.i.+vered a little, “your dreamscape these days…is troublesome to get in”.

I know why.

“So then, what is it?” I asked.

“You know that the Curseblade works only on…a specific G.o.d”, Astria seemed to hesitate. Her red gown s.h.i.+fted—like some living being. “Did you know that even we G.o.ds don’t know how the Universe was created?”

“Did you have it custom made?”

She arched an eyebrow at me in her signature fas.h.i.+on, “The Creator made the universe. We didn’t”.

“So even you guys have a boss, huh?”

“We are but the Jaelvagers, the fourth generation. Even the Second generation G.o.ds have not come across the Original Creator. When we came to be, the Universe already was”.

“Where are the other generations then? Also, why do G.o.ds have generations?”

“The others are…scattered. Some left, some were killed, some forgotten. Others reincarnated into Jaelvagers themselves. Did you think all G.o.ds came at the same time?”

“Weren’t you people here from the beginning?”

“No. The G.o.ds came one by one. As for the Fourth…” she trailed off while she stood on the flower, eyes somewhere distant. “We were made”.

“Made? What do you mean?” my back hurt from not moving. I just realized, that the vines held me up in air.

“Created. Fabricated. Conjured. Forced. Wished”, she whirled around, her eyes gained a strange fire.

What in the…before I could ask her, she guessed my question, “By mortals. Who else?”

Her dress was now s.h.i.+fting violently, churning underneath, “The only ones who can birth and kill G.o.ds are mortals themselves”. Anger dripped from her voice.

She stared up at me, her eyes like obsidian, “The important thing is, each species was given a weapon by the Creator. To slay G.o.ds”.

“Why did he give weapons that kill one of his?”

“When the other G.o.ds came, the Creator had already left the universe he created. We do not know”.

“So, you are telling me…”

“Vaegar is one such weapon. Remember this dream well”.

Wait…what is she—

The dream dissolved. I could swear that I saw Astria tearing leaves off her beloved flower-plant before it vanished.

~~~~

My eyelids felt like lead and myy whole body felt like jelly, unresponsive to commands. Then there was the horrible sound of someone dying. Very painfully.

I managed to open my eyes. The elf prostrated before the broken bell, liquid flowing underneath her. She s.h.i.+vered a little…and threw up. So she isn’t dying. I had never seen anyone throw up that much.

She stared at me with blood shot eyes and a very ashen face. Then she retched again. The bell was stinking badly by now. She held her head in her hands while she heaved up, again and again.

“Tolf yuu nut thu drinhk tho muth”, my words came out horribly mangled—I had no control over my tongue.

A sharp metallic sound rang next to my ear. I turned painfully—her dagger had lodged itself in the wall behind me. The dagger had even cut some of my hair.

The woman is too quick!

She shot a wild look at me, her hair all over her face, “Who do you think blearrrgh— she couldn’t complete what she was saying before she curled up and vomited.

The woman crawled towards me on all fours, “You mangy cur—this time she managed to reach the window cut into the belfry and throw up down the side of the tower. How much does that woman have inside her?

She seemed to have calmed down as she sat in front of me, legs crossed. She fanned herself with her hands. The dead a.s.sa.s.sin still lay at the doorway, put askew by the pitchfork protruding through his chest.

“This all happened because I need you alive”, she said while wiping her mouth, “Somaru curse the day I met you”.

“Why are you doing a Jackson Pollock with your intestines?”, I asked. d.a.m.n, isn’t it chilly up here?

“The what?” she was gradually regaining colour on her face. “The bolt poisoned you. I had to suck it out to stop you dying”. My body—so frigid.

“Oh thanks…wait what? You did what?” I glanced down where the bolt had hit me.

A gaping wound stared back at me. The skin around the wound was blue black. I touched the skin—the texture was cracked like dry earth.

I touched my leg.

Oh s.h.i.+t! I was naked. I had not a st.i.tch of clothing on me from waist down. The wound was on my upper thigh so…yeah.

“You sucked off the poison?” I asked her again to be sure.

“Are you dimwitted? Yes, I sucked it off with my mouth”.

“Where are my pants? Quick!” I said urgently. Without pants! alone with an eerily beautiful girl who keeps talking about sucking me.

“Had to tear them off in haste”, She pointed towards a pile of torn clothes beside me.

She almost killed me for cutting off her hair and if I get a hard-on…I glanced at the daggers beside her—cold s.h.i.+vers ran down my spine.

I groaned. I couldn’t move yet, so I couldn’t peel off any gear to cover myself up. The woman…won’t give any of hers. It’d be instant death if she reached out and tried to cover me up with my s.h.i.+rt. I mean, she had to come close to me to cover me up right?

s.h.i.+t. When it sucks, it blows. I sighed; ugh…I really need to work on my phrasings.

~~~~

“I am a Sun Elf. My name is Faeve Siharis Oscentetalir Jorgaehen Olyenara Ur’van”, she rolled off her name when I asked her about the hair-cut incident. “I was born in—

“Is this going to be a life story?”, I cut her off. My a.s.s was freezing off due to the cold stone floor. Besides, my senses were still a bit dull from the s.h.i.+vang and Apopris, so her words were like a haze. Actually, I almost died due to my slower reaction speed.

She whirled her dagger in her hand, playing with it. “Women of the Sun Elves do not cut their hair. It is a sign of their pride, their spirit and their honour”.

I do not like where this is going. Better pay attention.

“They cut their hair only when they intend to take a mate. The mate cuts a part of the hair, a little part to show she is…what is it in humantongue?” she pondered, the knife freezing in her hands, “Engaged, yes. That is the word”.

“It was a mistake. I did that to save your life out there”, I argued. f.u.c.k this s.h.i.+t.

She didn’t seem to have heard me. “No one cuts the hair of a Sun Elf without her permission. Do that, and you are…taking away her very pride”. She s.h.i.+vered and touched her nape length hair, “Yet you cut it off like a savage. You know who gets their hair cut like this?”

The dagger had stopped spinning in her hands, her eyes hardened, “Wh.o.r.es. Powerful Elves would do that to women to show that they were their pleasure slaves. High cla.s.s Wh.o.r.ehouses in the Human Capital often let customers cut off fake hair from their Elf workers as a play”.

Sweat beaded on my temples. Suddenly, the dagger on her hands looked very sharp. I can’t even move properly yet.

“Sorry about that…I really didn’t know. I just tried to save you from dying”. I really should leave people to themselves.

“I know. I would have went on my way after cutting off your jurun, but…” she trailed off.

I didn’t want to know what a jurun was.

“I am also a Ur’van-ere, daughter of the tree”, she declared. Green dust motes swirled about her, covering her body. Her eyes became greener, and for some reason—alluring .

I could feel sensation slowly creep back into my body. No not now! I need my lower half numb! I don’t want a hard-on!

She came near me with her dagger firmly in her hands.

I immediately regretted the wish.

“Which means that when you cut my hair, you entered into a magical contract of the highest order. You have become one of the Aivern, the chosen of the tree”.

Contracts again? Why can’t I just have cute devils offering me contracts on street corners? (1)

“Err…Sin-Faeve”, I was extra polite because of the dagger, “what the actual f.u.c.k is that?” Well…I tried.

“Olyelnore Hàrjaegar, the Tree of Life is the most sacred thing for the Elves. There are many stories about the creation but that isn’t important. What is important is that, the tree is the centre of Elf life, and it’s sentient”, she said while staring up at the sky.

Sentient trees now? Sure…its fantasy after all.

Faeve continued with her explanation, “The tree extends its bloodline every few generations to some Elf women, the daughter of the tree. The chosen women have a duty”.

“Extends its bloodline? The tree f.u.c.ks women?”

She gave a small smile, “No, more like blesses pregnant women. Anyway, the chosen younglings…are raised to be warriors. Warriors who will find the Aiverns”.

By now, the sun had climbed into midday. Sweltering heat beat down on Salrest, below us. The two moons were out in the sky. The city clamoured in its unrest.

And…I was sitting b.u.t.t-naked on a broken tower. Such a wonderful day to be alive.

Thinking of being alive, “Hey. Thanks for saving me”, I earnestly thanked her. “You even mouthed poison for me”.

Faeve shook her hand, “I did half. Thank the Khaginar wine you drink everyday. Your body was so poisoned with the brew that it slowed down and counteracted the deadly poison the a.s.sa.s.sins use”. She looked a bit impressed, “Besides, I won’t die. We a.s.sa.s.sins ingest poison from childhood to bring up our tolerance. Weak poison like this can’t even make me wince”.

“But you were throwing up”, I blurted out. s.h.i.+t. Me and my big mouth.

Her face took on an ugly expression as her mouth curled up, “That’s the Khaginar wine, you sc.u.m. It might have saved your life. But, it has poisoned your body worse than a gulliner. You must have been drinking it for ages to have this much in your blood”. She then suddenly softened up a bit, seemingly having something cross her mind.

“Okay, okay. The story please”.

“The daughters of the tree find worthy individuals and fight them. Can you guess how the winner takes victory?” she asked, her voice taking on a harsh tone.

Don’t tell me…

“The Aivern is proven worthy when they cut off the hair of one of the daughters. And by doing that, you have bound yourself to the tree and…me”, acid dripped from her words.

I leaned back, my head looking up at the broken ceiling. “Say, Faeve, how about you grow your hair out again? I won’t tell this to anyone. No has to know what happened”, I said in my best don’t-tell-anyone-we-had-drunk-s.e.x impersonation.

She looked startled, her hands clenched, “Doesn’t work that way, Eridan. When you cut the hair of an Uru’van-ere, you severed the bond between the tree and me. The tree knows. It calls”. She hugged herself, s.h.i.+vering in spite of the sweltering heat.

“What happens if you don’t answer its call? And what does it want anyway?”

“We, the daughters, die. When you cut off a branch from a tree, it withers. So do we”, she touched her hair again, like petting an animal, “It wants the Aivern, the Champion of the Elves”.

“Is that so? What is that thing?” Just a little more—the numbness is almost gone. Can’t let her kill me before that.

“They are warriors who protect the Elves and are under the protection of the Tree of Life. Many great elf generals were Aiverns”.

“Wait…you said elves. I am a human”

“Yes. That is highly unusual. But not unheard of”, she stood up and stretched herself, like a cat. “So, I need to take you to the tree and become a proper Aivern”.

Yeah right. As if I was gonna get mixed up with more murderous people.

“Thanks for the offer, but you see I already like the job I do”, I offered.

“It’s a magical contract. Your magic power will dry out in a year if you don’t go to the tree. It’s a mechanism the tree uses to make sure that every Aivern is within their grasp”.

“f.u.c.k you”

“I never understood how intercourse can be a filthy word for humans. Its something that is essential for the species”

I have no answer for that, but I know something else.

“I had a nice time, killing people with you and stuff. But you see, we are like two s.h.i.+ps pa.s.sing at night. We met up, killed people but now its time to say farewell”. Best breakup speech. Ever.

“You can’t. The contract is unbreakable until it meets its terms. Till then you are bound to me”.

“I’ll be d.a.m.ned if I get involved. I am leaving”. I got up. It is weird without pants.