TW!!!
Depictions of GRAPHIC VIOLENCE and SA
"Ow!"
"(Name), did you prick yourself again?" My mother winces as I stare at the dot of blood forming on my finger.
"Yes," I sigh in frustration. "This is a lot harder than it looks."
"You'll get the hang of it in due time," she shakes her head with a gentle smile, reaching for a handkerchief to wipe my finger. As I hold it out to her, her skin slightly pales before she covers it with the cloth.
"Can't handle a little blood, mama?" I chuckle.
She wrinkles her nose, teasingly, "I never liked the color red."
Today is my 16th birthday, and after much procrastination on my part, mother decided it was time I learned how to sew my own dresses and patch up our family's clothes, though I'd prefer to be in the Village Square with my brother, learning to swing a sword. Nikolaus is, truly, a gifted swordsman. He's never actually sparred against anyone other than boys his own age, but receives daily praise from the men in the village for his raw talent.
"Perfect form, Luca!" The Master Swordsman beams with pride as his students slash it out. Luca retreats slightly, creating space between the two. His green eyes flicker with confidence, my brother, in turn, rolls his blue hues before pointing his sword at him from afar. "You're awfully cocky for someone who hasn't laid a mere scratch on me." The opposing dueler clicks his tongue in annoyance and readjusts the grip on his sword, because Klaus was right; he rarely takes the offensive in a fight.
Mama nudges me slightly and points at the boys; she, too, had been watching them fight. "Luca is very skilled and precise in his movements, as he has trained with a sword far longer than your brother."
I cock my head to the side and question, "If he is superior in skill, why is he experiencing such difficulty?"
She continues with a mischievous grin, "The Master Swordsman often describes Klaus as careless, yet cunning in the art, he doesn't follow the traditional rules, and that's exactly what makes him so dangerous."
He is unpredictable.
Klaus runs and quickly thrusts his blade at the swordsman's shoulder. Not given much time to block, Luca sloppily ducks, the ends of his light brown hair narrowly avoiding the path of the attack. Seeing an opening, he sweeps his sword at my brother's belly. Instead of blocking and retaliating, my brother responds with a swift upswing, knocking the sword clean out of Luca's hand, throwing off his center of balance in the process. As his back hits the dirt, the tip of Klaus' sword presses sharply against his throat.
I may be quite a distance away, but I can still see my brother's face: his eyebrows furrowed into a hateful glare, and the messy brown locks he never cared to brush blew in the silence of the wind. The look on his face sent shivers down my spine.
He looks absolutely menacing.
The blonde pathetically paws at the dirt around him, seemingly looking for the sword he dropped, but he doesn't dare break his eyes away from the one who holds the sword to his neck. "Go ahead and finish the job, you bastard," he growls up at him in disgusted defeat.
Klaus doesn't respond, nor does he move or acknowledge Luca's words. Then, as if to cut the tension, Klaus stabs his sword into the ground and offers him his hand with a smile. "You fought well today."
Luca grasps his hand tightly and stands, throwing an arm over his shoulder, "Not as well as you, my friend! That last move really caught me off guard!"
"Well done, Nikolaus!" My mother stands as she calls out to him, "You looked like a seasoned knight in battle!"
The brunette runs up the path and onto the porch, taking mother into his arms. "Thank you, mama. I'll have to duel you next. That will be the true test of strength!"
"Don't say such foolish things, boy," slapping his chest teasingly, she retreats through the front door into the house.
"How did I do out there, (Name)?" Luca leans against the porch's support beam, staring at me softly.
My face begins to feel hot and I sharply turn away, "You did well."
"R-Really?" The confidence in his voice fades ever so slightly, almost sounding embarrassed. "I'm glad you think so, I-"
"Stop flirting with my sister."
"Shut up, Klaus!"
We came to this village years ago; mama, Klaus, and I. We were 8 and 7 years young, respectively, and don't remember much of our lives before this. Personally, I don't care to. Everything I've ever wanted and needed was right here, gazing at me with those gentle, green eyes.
My mother returns to the porch with a small pastry, and sets it down on the table in front of me, "Happy Birthday, (Name)," her voice is sweet as she pushes my (h/c) hair behind my ear. "Make a wish."
I wish things could stay like this forever.
That's what I wished for, and that night, all of it came crashing down.
"(Name)..."
"(Name), wake up, right now!"
I'm jolted awake by the sound of my mother's panicked voice. "We need to get out of here."
"What? Go where? What is going on?" She ignores my questions as she stares out my window, pulling me out of bed.
"We are in danger, we cannot stay here."
"Where's my brother?"
Hurriedly shutting the curtains, she places her hands on my shoulders, her once confident golden eyes were now clouded with fear. She rummages through my drawer and throws a dress at me, "Get dressed."
She disappears through my doorway, and I slowly make my way to the window. My blood runs cold as my senses heighten, just slightly. As I hurriedly throw the dress on, I hear something faint.
What is that sound...?
I peek the curtain open, and the whites of my eyes glow red. "The village is on fire," my lungs freeze, and I stumble away from the window and fall to the floor.
What is going on?!
"Get up, (Name)! We need to go!" Klaus appears in front of me, his face dark with ash.
"What is going on out there?!"
"Raiders, (Name), they're burning the village. They're slaughtering people. I-I tried to save Luca, I wasn't fast enough, I-"
I firmly place my hands on his cheeks, focusing his wandering eyes on mine, "Slow down. Tell me what happened." My heart pounds as he takes a breath.
He shakes his head, "H-He was caught, I couldn't save him." I stumble over my words, trying to make sense of what he was saying as he interrupts me. "We need to get out of here. Just keep your eyes forward, (Name)! Don't look!"
As we run out of the house, I can't stop my eyes from darting around the grounds of my once peaceful village, now covered in blood and fire. "My name is Abbadon, Leader of the Mare Serpens (1)." I hear a rough voice yell from across the square. My eyes fall upon a tall man dressed in all black, his dark hair tied in a ponytail and scars scaling his arms. Before him, a row of my fellow villagers kneel, all with their hands behind their backs. "I believe you all know what I am here searching for." The people look at each other, hoping someone among them has the information he's looking for. The man shakes his head and stabs his sword into the stomach of the man kneeling closest to him. "Where is it?!"
"We don't know!" The woman next to the him cries as he falls to the ground, "Just leave us alone!"
"You bitch," as the raider raises his sword to slice her head off, pleads of mercy and fearful screams were cut through by a lone voice.
"I know where it is!"
"Do you, boy?" Abbadon chuckles darkly, walking down the line to that familiar mop of blonde hair.
"Y-Yes," Luca's confidence falters yet again, but he does his best to not let it show.
The man grabs a fistful of his hair and shoves his face into the ground. "Are you going to tell me, then?"
"Never." Luca spits at his feet, causing dust to fly around his face.
The raider gives his men a nod, and two of them rush to his side, both grabbing one of Luca's arms, holding him down. "Take note, all of you," he announces. "This is what happens when you attempt to defy us."
All of a sudden, the world around me moves in slow motion. The raider's sword begins it's descent down upon Luca's neck. His eyes widen with panic as they scan the area, ultimately coming to a rest on me. That kind, gentle emerald gaze returns to his face as we lock eyes, and he smiles at me.
He mouths something.
I'm not sure what it is he's trying to tell me, but I don't have time to ask; Klaus screams my name as he reaches over my shoulders and covers my eyes. I feel his body tremble on my back, and my knees grow weak.
He can't be...
My brother picks me up and starts running. I slowly turn my head to look over his shoulder. "Don't." His voice is weak, but stern. "You don't need to see that."
I tighten my grip on his shirt and bury my tear stained face into him. All of a sudden, I feel myself become weightless.
We're falling!
"Going somewhere, boy?" One of the raider's henchman sneers. From his knees, Klaus begins to draw his sword, but the man kicks him in the face, sending him back to the ground. His gaze turns to me, "A pretty little thing like you would go for a hefty price at the auction," he whispers as he grabs a lock of my hair and brings it to his nose, "Poor thing wouldn't last two moons with the dark lords." The man begins to force my back onto the ground, and lift up the skirt of my dress.
"No, stop!"
"Stop your whining, bitch," he growls and slaps me across the face. As soon as he reaches for his trousers, he freezes and falls onto me.
"C-Captain! That was one of our's!" A man yells.
The leader reaches down and grabs my wrist, forcing me to my feet, "She wouldn't go for much if she weren't a virgin."
"Abbadon!" I turn, and there stands my mother.
The man looks her up and down before chuckling, "Who the fuck do you think you are?"
"Jana Komenska."
"Jane Komenska..." The man drops me to the ground and slowly adjusts his posture as he stares into her golden hues. His eyes widen in slight surprise, "The Pendel Hüter." She nods, slowly pulling a sword from her hip. "Drop the sword, whore," the man leans back down and grabs my hair, forcing my head back and putting his blade to my throat. My mother freezes, her eyes darting from me, to the man, to the ocean, seemingly just beyond our reach.
"Klaus!" She barks, and my brother slowly stands, battered and bruised, "Get your sister and run." As soon as the words slip off her tongue, she unsheathes her sword and jumps at the man, swinging it at his neck. Every move she makes, he counters and sends it back to her, ten-fold.
My brother grabs my hand and forces me to my feet. My body is numb; the shrieks of the people of my village were almost deafening. "Go!" He pushes me forward, turning back to block a downswing strike of a raider. I run, and push past a raider before one of them kicks my legs out from under me. "Mama!"
"(Name)!" She screeches, instantly deserting her fight with Abbadon and running towards my side. The men surround her, too many to fight her way through, and they rip the sword from her grip and tie her hands behind her back before throwing her to the ground. "Let my children go!"
"Your children?" Abbadon laughs, kicking her in the stomach.
My mother chokes up blood, and the men laugh at her. "They are my children, and you will let them go."
"Leave her alone!" My brother's blue eyes fill with tears of frustration as they bind his wrists as well.
"They're here for me, Klaus."
"But, mama-"
"Know your place, boy," her golden eyes plead silently, but sternly. He furrows his brow and turns away sharply. My heart pounds as they pass around my mother's sword, eventually handing it to Abbadon. He swings it in a circle in his hand and whistles; the men respond by raising my mother to her knees. "You received your mission at birth," the tip of his sword rests under my mother's chin, forcing it upwards. "Where is it?"
"My mission is to protect my children." If the hate in her eyes could kill, all of these men would be dead.
"Strike one, woman." He pulls her up by her hair, and takes his sword to it. As she falls to the ground, the men cheer as Abbadon holds her hair in his hand like some kind of sick trophy. "Now, where is it?"
"I will never tell you, you damn sea snake."
"Strike two." With a snap of his fingers, his men grab her hands and untie them, forcing one against a nearby fallen tree trunk. He swings down the sword, cutting my mother's hand off at the wrist.
"Mama!" Her eyes roll into the back of her head, then snap back into focus just as quickly as they had left it.
"A Pendel Hüter with a fear of blood? Pathetic!" The raiders around him laugh. "Now, I will ask you one final time, girl," he leans down slightly, "Where is it?"
My mother slowly raises her head, gritting her teeth and brings her golden eyes to meet those of Abbadon of the Mare Serpens. "Fuck you."
"Strike three."
They bring her in front of Klaus and I. We exchange worried looks as he drops her sword, and steps to her left side. He wraps his right arm around the back of her head, hand resting on her chin, the left one meeting at his right elbow, coming to rest on the back of her head. "Watch closely, children."
Not more than a second past before he jerks his arms and a loud, gut-wrenching crack echoes in my ears, and everyone falls silent.
He hadn't even given her the chance to scream.
He steps away, and although my mother was originally facing away from us, I find myself meeting her gaze. I watch, silently, as the gold from her eyes stream down her face, leaving nothing but a dull grey where the vibrant, metallic color once was. My vision blurs as I follow those golden tears to the earth, watching as they seep into the dirt with a faint glow before disappearing.
Then, as her body falls forward, mine falls back.
Translations:
1. Made Serpens- "Sea Serpent" in Latin