This is the last chapter. I hope you all enjoyed the journey! I'd be happy about a few votes or reviews if you did. your author <3
"NOOOO! Let me go! Don't touch me! DAMMIT! LET ME GO!", yelled a teenage girl, as three men in guard uniforms pulled her into a salon with gold-framed pictures all over the walls and two massive red couches in the middle. In one of them sat a tall man, sipping a glass of red wine and humming in a low tune, as if he was oblivious to the shouts behind his back. At the exact moment when the girl discovered the man, she stopped struggling and her mouth and violet eyes both went wide. If one of the guards had not held her upright, she might have fallen down. All her strength left her and her knees wobbled. "No.", she whispered. "Cousin? Why would you still want to see me?" Do you want to kill me as well, she thought fearfully. The man didn't react at all, just swirling the wine in his glass and humming the tune to its end. He had murky brown eyes and thick brown hair with slightly curly tips. If not for being in this big salon and wearing a suit, he may not have l
Inside the carriage Katherine was sewing. She knew it wasn't the ideal task for sitting in a carriage, but reading books while riding made her nauseous and she didn't have anyone to talk with. The only one who could talk in her entourage was riding at the very front and didn't really seem to be a nice character. But what could she expect with her cousin selecting them? At least he assigned her a maid - a mute one, of course - and let her choose her own clothing. Not that that was worth anything, as clothing wouldn't help her get out of his claws and the maid apparently had a crush on Ethan, so she would be more of a hindrance than anything else. Naturally, that was all within his calculations. Sighing, she wanted to set another stitch as the carriage rocked and she pricked her finger instead. The sixth time today. It was a wise decision to take the pricey red cloth, otherwise the blood would've already ruined it. Three whole weeks of travel and she didn't get
At the entrance to the dining hall the butler halted. He knocked two times, before pushing the seemingly heavy oak door open. "Milord, Lady Katherine Mary Balder has arrived." With that he stepped to the side, holding the door open for her. Waking inside, Katherine felt the temperature drop suddenly. Her eyes searched for the cause, a swelling fear in her stomach. Although the storm was ceasing outside, the clouds still lingered and created a gloomy atmosphere. Her side of the long dining table was well-lit by candles, but the other end was shrouded in darkness. A shudder went through her body as she met a pair of blood-red eyes, looming in the darkest black. They were the eyes of the god of slaughter himself: cold, murderous, detached and overflowing with a calculating evil intent. His presence filled the room up to the ceiling, freezing the air. It was hard to even breathe. Aside from his eyes and a bight glimmer of hair, his lineaments were cast into shado
The butler closed the door behind the last maid carrying the remains of the dinner out. With only him and the Earl left, the tension vanished as well. The Earl seemed to deflate like a balloon, sinking deeper into his chair. The red eyes looked tired, as if he was dragging on with pure willpower earlier. A hint of desperation showed, before he closed them, leaning his head of white hair back against the wooden chair. Nothing was left of the person the maids deemed a demon. Only a tired youth overpowered by his fate. Silence lingered in the corners of the big dining hall, so present, that it seemed to slow time itself. The room stilled, while the wind in front of the windows whispered of times long past. The Earl though didn't remember any better years. There was no memory of the time before struggling to live. No good times, no sweet words, no smiles. Nothing. Why did he hold on still? He didn't know. Hope is the worst demon. It makes us try and try again while all common se
The morning sun wasn't half up, yet the trampling of foots and clinking of arms awoke Katherine from her sleep. Startled, she called for Hazel, who rushed in from the room next door. "Milady, there seems to be a disorder in the mansion. They have sealed off the whole building. Should I inquire about the circumstances?" "Please do." Katherine, meanwhile, washed herself and dressed in a simple green gown. Hazel was there in time again to lace her corsage. She should request for an extra maid soon to help her out. "So?" "The whole mansion is in chaos. Someone seemed to have poisoned the food. Fortunately, the Earl wasn't affected, but two maids, the gardener, the cook, and three servants have lost consciousness. They are searching for the culprit now." "Lost consciousness?", Katherine repeated. "Are there other symptoms? What is the Earl doing to help?" "He ordered the captain of the guards to investigate and his personal doctor to tend to the affected.
The symptoms were exactly as Hazel had described them. All seven of them were unconsciousness, sweating and had black veins under their skin. What confused her though, was the location and spreading of the veins. Six people only had few black veins in the abdominal area, while the seventh… it was hard to find places were he hadn't any. Not that she'd seen their whole bodies herself, but the doctor, an old man with glasses, had described it to her and he had taken off the seventh man shirt to let her see. She blushed looking at the bare skin. It wasn't right for a proper Lady to see this. Well, she had always been a bit to wild to be a 'proper' Lady anyways. And, oh my, he was such a magnificent piece of art. Starting from his perfect face over all this smooth naked skin down to his slender hips she couldn't find any flaw. Well, maybe his upper body was a bit haggard, but that was all. Somehow the black veins, like a confusing pattern on his slightly pronounced abs, m
"Did she infect herself?", the earl asked the butler. They were inside of his study. Rows and rows of bookshelves stood to both sides of an imposing dark-brown table. The Earl was seated behind it, the back facing a big window. According to the sun's position it was shortly after Katherine had treated the patient."Luckily, no.", Sam responded, pensive. "I'm afraid you underestimated her capability, Milord.""As I underestimated her impulsiveness. She's too easily offended, although this head of hers is working quite well otherwise." The Earl sighed. "Was I still as childish as her with seventeen, Sam?""No. But, if I may say so, Milord, that is incomparable.""Oh?" The Earl lifted an eyebrow. "How so?"Seemingly feeling uncomfortable, the butler pressed his lips together but decided to speak in the end. He phrased his words carefully. "Different from Milord, she never knew hate or sorrow while growing up. She met them only recently. Pure trust in
Slowly, Katherine lowered her spoon. She didn't think her question would touch such a sore spot in Hazel. To be exact, she thought nothing about it while asking. It was just curiosity. Now, however... Had the mistreating Hazel experienced something to do with sexual harassing? Rightful outrage filled Katherine's soul. Whoever dared to bully her maid, she would squash them. But before that... "Relax, Hazel. I won't force you to talk about it. But if you need help with something or someone to talk to, tell me. I hope you can see me as a friend some day." Surprised but still wary, Hazel blinked up to her. "... Thank you, Milady." "You're welcome." Katherine started eating again. "Can you answer the other questions then? About friends and what you like to do in your free time. Are there any nice spots around here?" Relieved, Hazel nodded. "You could say I'm friends with the cook. However, all servants other than me are past their fifties, so real friendsh
Five years later"Your Holiness - Uh, ah, Majesty, I mean!"Leaning on the newly-built rails atop the dome of the palace, with the view of the Capital in the background, Katherine scolded lightly: "Shht, Hazel, she just fell asleep."In her arms rested a baby, maybe a few months old, with a tuft of black hair and fair white skin. If she opened her lids, angelic blue eyes would blink up innocently at the viewer.Hazel's head appeared at the end of the staircase leading to the roof. Apologetically, she bit her lip and whispered. "I'm sorry, your Majesty. A letter arrived from Dragsa, and Prince Patrick hurt his knee while playing. He's on his way here.""Dragsa...," Katherine muttered and stretched out a hand to take it. "I wonder what they want. They were very quiet in the latter years."Lowering her head, she took a glance at the paper. Instantly, her brows furrowed, later followed by a deep sigh. "I almost expected it. What a shame."Her gaze wandered to the west, in the direction of
For once, the third wall belonging to the palace let nobles and commoners alike pass. They flooded in in masses and coagulated on the streets and the grass field before the dome. Everywhere, where they could hope to catch a little glimpse of what was about to happen in the throne hall.In front of the dome, Nathaniel dismounted and reached his hand out to Katherine to help her off as well. For a second, Katherine remembered how Pete helped her when she mounted Bell for the first time, and her smile grew shaky. Pete and Jack. One retired after suffering grievous wounds, and the other fell in battle when the undead attacked the palace to free the Queen, Emilian, and Helmina.The burial was in the time of Katherine's long travel back but she and Nathaniel visited the grave two days ago. Still, she could not believe that her funny, one-eyed companion was truly gone. It was delusional but she could not shake the thought that if only she'd been at the Capital, her power might have saved him
Weeks later, the couple reached the Capital and was welcomed with much tom-tom. Aston, it seemed, was back on his feet. The new scar parting his right brow even suggested that his exaggerated description of a battle with the best undead swordsman in history might be more than just bragging. Infuriatingly, however, the scar made him even more handsome, and he confidently put it on display at any opportunity he got. Especially in front of the ladies.Shortly after their return, King William officially announced his retirement in favor of his nephew. Though the commoners were confused at Nathaniel's sudden emergence, the prepared aristocrats soon placated them, and the rumors of his activities as the illusive sixth General did the rest.Katherine was surprised to hear that word of her ability had elevated her picture in the icelandic society to somewhat of a saintess. King William obviously prepared on this end as well, and thus nobody dared suggest that a dragsean noble was unfit to be
The ship of the king of the Glaciar Coast was a gigantic vessel with a kind of lofty wretchedness to it. In fact, Katherine thought that the silver ornaments on the dark wood looked like bones, and if the sail had been a bit more tattered, the "Charon" would've been the perfect ghost ship. When she mentioned it to Lady Brandon in jest, the sister of said king laughed out loud."Oh, he'd love to hear that! If his crew wasn't ridiculously superstitious, I bet he'd search the whole ocean floor for a sunken vessel to serve him!""Is that so?" Katherine lifted her brows, perplexed. "Isn't it already enough that it can fly?"Granted, the hovering of the gigantic vessel wasn't completely 'flight' as the ship was only lifted by the water the Glaciar Coast's mages manipulated with much afford. It could also only be implemented for short periods close to a water source. For the unsuspecting viewer, however, it looked exactly as if the ship was flying.It was this practical fea
Katherine woke up feeling fresh and well-rested. The plush cushions under her head were like soft clouds, and the blanket bore just the right amount of heat. The air smelled of salt and herbs, an unusual but welcoming combination."Hmmm." With a blissful sigh, Katherine stretched. She didn't feel so good since they resided in the hut in the Icelands with King William, his mistress, and son. Did she only dream of that long, arduous journey to a mountain in Dragsa?"You're awake." Her eyes snapped open when she heard that voice. It was undoubtedly the deep timbre of her husband, Nathaniel. And there he was, sitting next to the bed in a cushioned chair, a gentle gaze in his eyes.Eyes that rested strangely deep in his pale face. A face that was bare of the slight smile that sometimes tugged on the corners of his mouth when he looked at her. Instead, he seemed solemn, exhausted, plagued by a deeply hidden sadness that he maybe wanted to hide. Yet to her eyes, his feelings were an open
Deep satisfaction brought some power to Katherine's exhausted body, yet she did not like the feeling at all. The guilt over hitting an innocent civilian clouded her mind, together with the question if it was the right thing to do. Trapping Ethan in the other dimension was too easy. It didn't feel right.Days and nights she'd dreamed of how to take her revenge, how she would torture him and finally look into his eyes when he died. Now, she'd acted impulsively, and the results were anything but what she imagined. Yet, should she have let the chance slip by?When she'd heard him giving orders, she'd finally stopped in her path because she felt like a coward who ran from the only real battle she'd sworn herself to fight. At first, she only wanted to observe and hid where the canyon's wall stood out a bit, just in earshot of Ethan. But the opportunity was too good. She didn't know how her smart and cunning cousin could act so dumb. It didn't match his usual approach, yet maybe
It was Ethan. He stood just outside the rift, his usual harmless smile on his face, and the hands hidden in the pockets of his dark trousers. "Kitty. Fancy meeting you here."If Katherine had been raised in any lower class than aristocracy, she would've spit in front of his feet. Even so, her face soured as if she'd bitten into a raw lemon. "I don't... fancy it at all."Stepping aside to give the rest of the dark stream free access to the rift, she noticed that Ethan'd brought two helpers who lingered in the back nervously. The white lab coats outed them as researchers. She glanced them up and down and decided not to ask where Ve was. After all that happened today and with her magic nearly depleted, she wanted nothing more than walk away from this whole mess.So, she did just that. Turned around and walked along the canyon that was now almost free of the dark substance.After a second of surprise, Ethan called after her: "Hey, don't you want to know what I'll do with this? Aren't
Meanwhile, the Duke of Sleipnir got comfortable on the edge of the cave. Shortly after he'd disposed of the corpses by sending them into the rolling dark river below, some of Loki's staff came over. They were shocked to see only one person left in the cave. "Um, your Excellency, where... where is the leader?""Hm?" Ethan turned and blinked. "Oh... he... how should I put this? He was too enthusiasistic when he saw his experiment finally succeed. Look, the brilliant result of all his hard work is below this cliff. He didn't want to wait anymore and took everyone to follow him down. Which might have been the wrong decision, so to say."The staff carefully crept closer to the cliff, and when he saw the darkness below, though it was more a creek than a mighty river now, his eyes widened. "Do you mean to say the leader is...?""Dead." Ethan nodded unemphathetically. "Most likely."Unexpectedly swiftly, the staff got over his shock. For a moment, he pondered, then asked: "But the experiment
"Ahhh! It hurts! It hurts! You're tearing me apart!" Nathaniel felt the unusual urge to roll his eyes. He never knew that his magic was such a sissy. First, it asked for his help, and now it screamed like a pig on the slaughter bench because of a little pain. And why could it even feel pain? Its body was nothing but insidious black smoke that appeared like a black liquid in its compressed form. There were no tendons, no bones, no flesh, and no nerves - in short, nothing that could hurt. "Shall I stop pulling then?", Nathaniel asked sarcastically in his mind. Well, if that magic of his wanted to go by itself, all the better for him. "No, no, no! Please don't let go! Don't let goo-oo-ouuuuuuch!" It felt like mentally pulling on an elastic band, Nathaniel decided. Somewhere where he couldn't see, something else was pulling the other end, turning the band longer and longer. It got harder for him to hold on with each passing second. Then, with a last loud howl fr