This was created for r/RWBY's Monthly Fanfiction and Fanart contest, or Moncon for short. This month's theme was Nora and Family, and so this is what I came up with! Enjoy! Any and all feedback is greatly appreciated.
Fimbulwinter
The waning light of morning crept through the blackout curtains of the young girl's room, lining the window with vibrant amber. The scroll on her counter shook violently, waking her from her slumber. With lethargic motions, she halted the alarm, stood up from her bed, and gave off an enormous yawn before walking towards the window.
She pulled on the chain to reveal an endless expanse of white, stopped only by the mighty pines of the forest. The sun peeked over their canopies, its brilliant light glinting off the sea of snow. The young girl stood there, mesmerized by the majestic visage of the countless flakes, and how they, like millions of tiny mirrors, reflected the dusklight every which way.
A shout from deep within the house disturbed her from her trance. The throaty call boomed from the kitchen and echoed its way to the girl's room. "Nora! Breakfast is ready!"
"Coming, pa!" she called back, and rushed into the bathroom to get herself ready. On the way, the illuminated button on her scroll caught her eye, indicating a new notification. She opened the device, and was greeted by a simple sentence emblazoned in the center of the clear screen:
Meet up with Ren 3 3
Thus encouraged, Nora sprinted to her closet, grabbed her clothes, and headed for the bathroom, an enormous smile plastered on her face.
After finishing her daily morning rituals, she ran down the hallway and rushed into the kitchen, where a steaming plate of smoked salmon awaited her on the table. She happened to be interrupting smalltalk between her parents when she pulled her chair and hopped on top of it.
"...crop failure across town due to the long winter." Her father lifted his gaze from the newspaper and adjusted his glasses. "Let's hope old Vafthrudnir doesn't lose his radishes. He had a pretty rough harvest last year, and I'd hate to see him come empty-handed again. He's a good man."
Her mother nodded solemnly at her words. After all, Vafthrudnir, or as Nora liked to call him, 'Vaffy', was a close family friend, and had helped her parents settle here, in the little town of Hoddmimis, where she had been born.
"Speaking of which, we really need to visit the market tonight," her mom muttered, looking at the empty cans and cereal boxes that littered the kitchen counters. Not only did the unexpected return of winter wreck havoc on agriculture, it also disrupted transportation in and out of the village. It had been a month since the trickle of food that came from Vale's vast fields had run dry, leaving the villagers to fend for themselves.
After a long sigh, her mother turned to face Nora, noticing the huge grin spread across her cheeks.
"Well, you seem awfully chipper today," she remarked, slicing her meal into several tiny pieces, as was her age-old habit.
"When isn't she?" her father shot back, before he paused to reconsider, scratching his great red beard. "Well… you do seem to be in a better mood than usual."
"Hmm… Aren't you supposed to meet up with Ren today?" her mom wondered out loud, checking her scroll for confirmation
"Oh, yeah… You really do like that kid, huh?" her dad said with half a mouthful of fish. Nora nodded vehemently, her smile becoming even wider.
Nora's mother rolled her eyes and swallowed a chunk of salmon. "Isn't it obvious, Thorvald? They've been friends ever since he got here!"
A smirk grew across Thorvald's face. "No, no, I was referring to something… more than that," he teased, winking at Nora. Her cheeks turned crimson as she shrunk into herself.
"Aw, there's no need for that!" her mother complained, placing a reassuring hand on Nora's shoulder. "You know she's sensitive about this, honey."
"Oh come on, Freja, I'm just having a bit of fun!" he retorted indignantly, returning to his rapidly cooling salmon. Following his lead, Nora started on her meal as well, spearing large chunks of fish and shoving them into her mouth. Her mother would occasionally glare at her for eating a particularly large piece, to which Nora would respond with a giggle and roll of the eyes.
The three ate in peace before a sudden knock on the door disturbed their breakfast. Annoyed at the interruption, Thorvald turned in his chair and hailed the visitor from the table. "Who goes there?" he boomed, his voice reverberating within the household.
"It's L-leif!" the man responded, his teeth clattering. "Open up, Thor, it's cold as fuck out here!" Thorvald stood up, muttering something vile about Leif's lack of restraint. Nora and Freja turned to look at each other, chortling at the curses of both men.
The door swung open, letting in both Leif and a gust of cold air. Like a wraith, it blew its way across the house, chilling Nora's arms and legs to the bone. She huddled in her chair for warmth, before Thorvald shut the door once more, ending the incursion of the frigid wind. He clapped his friend on the back, and invited him to join his wife and daughter for salmon. However, Leif declined, and spoke to Thorvald in hushed, urgent tones. His eyes widened, upon which he turned to his family.
"I have to head out for a while, dear. It's… important," he said, heartbroken at having to leave so early, yet also dutiful and resolute.
Like a true Huntsman, Nora thought with admiration.
"Is it, though?" Freja pleaded, equally as troubled as her husband.
"Very, I'm afraid."
Nora's mother sighed in defeat, laying down her fork and knife to the sides of her plate. "Very well, then. Take care, hon."
"You too, Frej," he replied, grabbing his cloak off the hanger, and slinging his silver hammer over his shoulder. "Have fun with Ren, missy!"
"Will do, pa!" she returned, before her father stepped out into the unforgiving cold.
"Anyways," Freja exhaled, breaking the few seconds of silence left in the wake of Thorvald's departure. "You should go get yourself ready. I'll put your father's salmon in the fridge."
Nora nodded, placing her plate next to the sink before bounding down the hallway and back into her room. Looking outside her window, a slight snowfall now decorated the skies, with thousands of flakes on their languid fall to the white-coated soil. She flung open her closet and extracted her pink parka and a pair of white mittens, along with a pair of boots. After slinging her jacket onto her shoulders, she picked up her scroll, and after opening it, noticed an unread message notification on the display.
Same place as always? -Lie Ren
Grinning, she typed out her reply on the holographic screen:
Of course, you big dummy! Why would it be anywhere else? :P
She waited impatiently for his reply, indicated as a series of blinking dots.
Just wanted to make sure.
Her smile grew even wider. She had always known him as a man of few words, which certainly seemed to translate to text. She stowed her device in her pocket, turned off her room's lights, and headed for the front door, where her mother was already waiting.
Freja opened the door, only to send a gust of snow and wind directly into their faces. The cold washed over Nora, biting at her cheeks and ears. The icy air pierced its way through her windpipe, numbing her throat and nose. Her mother locked the door behind them before they began to walk, every step crunching the snow underfoot. Her breath came in ragged puffs of steam, clouding the air in front of her before dissipating.
Slowly, they made their way to the center of town, slogging through the brown sludge left by people and carriages trampling over snow. Since Ren lived on the west side of Hoddmimis, their path took them straight through the heart of the village. Everywhere she looked, Nora saw farmer's markets with empty displays, countless stores bearing 'Sold Out' signs over their windows, and Dust shops with prices only an aristocrat would be comfortable paying. Hungry men and women strode down the sidewalks, where proud farmers and accomplished business owners once took their place. Many glared at Nora and Freja as they walked past. Families with Huntsmen always received more pay, and were liable to be well off while others around them starved.
Eventually, the shops gave way to homesteads, the paved roads of the center becoming nothing more than dirt paths. Before they reached their destination, Freja tapped Nora gently on the shoulder.
"Well, I'm off to work, then," she sighed. "Be safe, okay?"
"Oh please, mom," Nora scoffed jokingly. "I always am."
"If you say so," her mother chuckled, giving her daughter a peck on the cheek before she walked off to the farm she had been drafted into ever since winter returned when spring should have reigned. "See you this afternoon! Be back by 10, will you?"
"Will do, ma. See ya!" Nora said as they parted ways, picking up her pace into a light trot. At last, Ren's house came into view, a building much like her own. A stout structure with a single floor, surrounded by a metal fence, and with a thin smokestack rising from its chimney. However, this was not where she needed to be, for she continued outwards, beyond the village, and out into the forest that encircled it.
As she approached the edge of the woods, the frozen ground became interlaced with moss and saplings, the towering pines looming high above her. At the base of one of the gargantuan trees, a skinny green figure lifted its hood from its head, revealing a long, messy tuft of black hair, with a single pink streak running down its side. Indeed, there stood Lie Ren, smiling at Nora as she drew near.
"Hellooooooooooo!" she called out to him, waving her arms high above her head. He gave a simple wave of his hand in return, uttering a single syllable of greeting when she reached the pine tree. The mighty leaves of the canopy blocked the snowfall, allowing Nora to unshroud her face from her parka.
"Soooo… What's the plan, Renny?" she cooed. "You always got somethin'."
He looked deeper into the forest, down a gap in the trees that marked a path up into the mountains. After a few seconds, he turned around and answered: "Follow me."
"Geez, you're always so vague…" Nora muttered to herself, walking behind Ren as he went down the trail. They travelled deeper into the woods, the ground sloping and air thinning the farther they went. Eventually, gusts of wind blew through the forest, creating an eerie howl as they passed through and around the trees.
"Why… is… it… so… WINDY!?" Nora screamed as a particularly strong surge knocked her on her knees. As soon as she went down, Ren was at her side, helping her back up.
Before she could thank him, he promptly answered her question. "Surely, you remember the cold fronts coming from Atlas. They told us at school."
Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. "Well, ugh… Oh, I totally, DEFINITELY remember that. Yeah," she stuttered.
"Nora…"
"Yes, Ren?"
"You're a terrible liar," he said with a smirk. Her face still burning crimson, she returned a warm grin.
The pair continued upwards, through vast clearings and winding turns alike. Ren had brought plenty of food in his pack, and gratefully shared it with Nora, tossing bags of chips and granola bars as she wolfed them down with glee. Sooner than any of them expected, the sun dipped below the white horizon, painting the western sky violet and amber.
"Well, here it is," Ren said at last, pointing at a small break in the trees to the right of the path. He slung his backpack off his shoulders, laid it on the base of a pine, and stepped beyond the threshold.
Nora released an enormous sigh of relief, and stepped forth to take the proffered space beside him. "Oh, this better be good, Ren, or else I'll break your le-"
The moment she set eyes on the vista before her, her jaw dropped, her eyes widened, and her voice stuttered.
Below them, the entire village of Hoddmimis lay sprawled out upon the endless snow, the lights from its structures punctuating the dark twilight. Above, the majestic belt of the galaxy dominated the heavens, stretching from east to west like a gargantuan arc of pure starlight, and sheltering the shattered moon in its embrace. Countless stars blazed tiny pinpricks into the infinite backdrop of space, each individual light twinkling like the finest of jewelry.
"It's… it's…" Nora stammered, unable to describe the immense beauty of the scene. While the rural night sky was nothing new to her, she had never seen it alongside the full expanse of her home; she could barely fathom the magnificence of the visage.
"Beautiful, isn't it?"
Finally, her voice responded again, uttering a single pair of words: "Thank you."
Ren beamed, his smile brighter than all the stars in the sky combined. "I knew you'd like it."
Ever since they had become friends, Nora had always seen Ren as the brother she never had. Later on, she began to consider him something… more than that. She was still unsure exactly what that might be. However, at that moment, she knew with crystalline clarity. Staring into his vivid magenta eyes, she reached out her hand, and tapped the tip of his nose with her index finger.
"Boop."
Fenrir
Once again, the insistent ringing of her scroll brought her back from sleep into her dimly lit room. After shutting off her alarm, Nora lay in bed for a few minutes, fondly remembering the events of last evening. She had to sneak back into her bedroom when she returned from the mountain, lest she had awoken her sleeping parents. Thinking of her time with Ren and her subsequent infiltration brought a smile to her face.
The things I do for this guy…
She kicked off her covers, and like every morning, drew back the curtain. Today, however, she was greeted with a dreary, gray sky, completely overcast with thick layers of cloud. The sun was completely obscured, almost as if it had been devoured by the heavens themselves. With a small frown, she turned around and headed for the bathroom for her morning shower.
After changing out of her pajamas and leaving her room, she walked down the hallway to the kitchen. Rounding the bend out of the hall, she saw her mother bent over the seated figure of her father, who bore multiple bandages hastily applied over his torso and arms. Freja carefully removed the ripped cloth tied over his left arm, exposing three deep, parallel gashes stretching across his bicep. She discarded the bloodied fabric into a bin filled with water, turning crimson as his blood diluted into it.
"Wha… what happened?" Nora gasped, staring wide-eyed at her father's injuries.
Thorvald looked at his wound, and winced as Freja dabbed it with peroxide. She laid a hand on his shoulder and whispered softly: "Go on. Tell her."
Reluctantly, he locked eyes with his daughter, and sighed as he spoke. "We were investigating the northern mountain pass when we were caught off guard by Grimm. Some farmer reported a pack or two skulking about, but we stumbled into an entire horde." He shifted his gaze down once more, eyes reddened as he fought back tears. "Leif, he… He didn't make it."
"I-I'm sorry," Nora stammered. The two had known each other for decades, and had even studied in the same academy together. She could not fathom Thorvald's grief at the loss of one of his most trusted friends.
"Don't be," he retorted, the sadness in his voice replaced with cold determination. "He died honorably. He died like a Huntsman."
"But what about the horde?" Nora persisted.
"Well, we barely made a dent in it," Thorvald lamented. "All we know is, they're on the way."
Her hands trembled in horror. She'd always heard about how entire villages would disappear overnight, yet she'd never though her own home could fall to the same fate. "Vale will send help, right? We can't possible fight them on our own!"
"I'm afraid we'll have to," he continued, recoiling when his wife ripped off yet another bandage. "Think about it. If Vale mobilizes the entire militia to the north, people get suspicious. They might feel safe, but in the back of their minds, they wonder just who the hell they'll be fighting. Out here, the only real threats are bands of rogue nomads and bandits. The town guard deals with that on a daily basis. Once the Army arrives… They'll know something's up."
"Then how come we haven't evacuated yet?" she protested once more. "We need to get out of here!"
"It's… not that simple, Nora," Freja spoke up, so far quietly tending to Thorvald's injuries. "The military has decided to keep things quiet. If everyone knew we were about to be attacked, there'd be a panic. Borderline anarchy. That would just bring even more."
Nora clenched her hands into a fist, and dug her nails into her palms in fury. "So Vale's just gonna sit back and watch us die?"
"I know. I'm just as angry as you are," Thorvald admitted. "But the government has decided they want to minimize casualties. When you're at the head of a sprawling metropolis with a population nearing a billion, losing a few thousand farmers out in the north is no big deal."
After mulling over her father's words, Nora sighed in defeat. "What are we going to do, then?"
"As a Huntsman, I am duty-bound to protect my home and its people, with or without the military," he uttered with conviction. "Don't worry, Nora. Even if I don't survive, I shall do everything in my power to ensure that you two will."
"Don't even think about leaving us alone, Thorvald," Freja scolded, her eyes brimming with tears. "If we're going to get through this, we will do so together."
A single tear ran down Thorvald's cheek as he pulled his wife into a tight embrace, combing his hand through her flowing locks of ginger hair. "It's alright, dear. We'll make it through. I promise," he whispered. He motioned Nora forward, and set a comforting hand on her back. The three stood there for a silent minute, relishing their calm before the inevitable storm.
As Nora's rage subsided, a sudden realization came with her clearing mind.
Oh no… Ren!
"I need to tell Ren, pa!" she exclaimed, breaking away from her father.
Thorvald exhaled, accepting her daughter's request. "You'd tell him even if I said no," he conceded. "Go. Just be careful."
Nora nodded as she ran up to the threshold of the door and stepped out into the bitter wind. She sprinted down the path from her house, crunching the snow beneath her feet. Despite the cold piercing through her light clothing, her stride remained unbroken, taking her past old huts and barren farmland. As she neared the center of town, she spotted two men fighting over a sack of potatoes, both equally as emaciated. The one holding the bag doubled over when the other slammed his fist into his stomach, claiming the sack when his opponent fell unconscious. Whether he fell from the hunger or the pain, Nora was unsure.
By the time she reached the barren shops of downtown, her throat burned and her muscles ached. Her sprint slowed to a shamble, her knees shaking with every step she took. She collapsed onto the ground as her legs gave out beneath her, the damp snow soaking her shirt and pants. As she laid there, she heard approaching footsteps from further down the sidewalk, rapidly accelerating in succession. Soon enough, the unknown figure was upon her, casting its dark shadow over the white ground. Heart thumping with fear, she looked up to identify her pursuer, only to be greeted by the face she least expected, yet the same one she sought after.
"There you are!" Ren exclaimed, panting as he extended his hand to the prone Nora. "I was just on the way to find you."
"Yeah... so was I," she replied with ragged breaths, getting back on her feet with her friend's aid. He handed her a bottle of cool water, which she gladly took and poured down her parched throat. After a few greedy gulps, she returned the container. "There's… something I need to talk to you about," she said, her gaze focused on his.
"Funny. I was about to say the same thing," he said, his expression becoming serious. "You know, don't you?"
Her eyebrows rose in surprise. None of Ren's parents were Hunters, and if what her father said was the truth, the incoming attack on Hoddmimis was classified military intelligence.
"Wait… how did you find out? Who told you?"
"Old Vafthrudnir did. He has his ways," he replied. Nora nodded in absolute agreement. The elderly farmer, while reclusive and bordering on insanity, had always been the most wise and cunning person she had ever known, even surpassing her own father. It was not unlike him to be knowledgeable on even the most guarded of secrets, be they civilian or military. "In fact," Ren continued, "he told me to bring you to him once I found you."
"Really? Then we got no time to waste," she proclaimed, breaking out into a trot. "Come on!"
The two ran through the decrepit streets of downtown, turning southwards after passing an abandoned inn littered with posters announcing its closure. The farmhouses beyond the hub of the village looked equally as unkempt as the homes and businesses further back, with many having been deserted long ago as their crops failed. Eventually, they reached the single occupied structure in the area, boasting a field lined with stout rows of radishes and smoke ascending from the tip of its chimney.
A hunched figure appeared in one of the windows, waving in the two visitors that stood on the side of the path. Eager to escape the brutal cold, Ren and Nora dashed down the cobblestone trail leading up to the porch and flung the door open, stepping into the welcoming heat with sighs of relief.
"I see you have brought her here, as I told you. How very diligent," the old man rasped, scratching his great white beard. He then rested both his hands on his cane, inhaling deeply before continuing. "I presume you know why I have summoned you."
"Straight down to business, huh? Not even a 'hello', or a 'how are you doing'?" Nora wondered with surprise. Usually, Old Vaffy was very polite, and would greet her as if she were her own grandchild. However, with circumstances as they were, she was willing to forgive his sudden apathy.
"I'm afraid we no longer have the luxury of courteousness," he croaked. "Our time runs short, so listen closely." Both Ren and Nora focused their attention on Vafthrudnir as he began.
"Trying times lie ahead. For all of us. For most, it is the end, when everything they know and love is set ablaze. But, for both of you, it is a beginning. You two possess something most here lack, in a town where brothers have turned against brothers, and fathers and sons suffer from the collapse of kinship. You may not know it yourselves yet, but I can see it plain as day."
Ren and Nora exchanged a suspicious glance at the old man's enigmatic words. "What do you mean by that?" Nora inquired after a few seconds of quiet.
"Make no mistake. The bond you share is something truly special. You find strength in each other when your own reserves run dry, and support the other in their time of need. Never before in all my decades of life have I encountered such a wondrous thing." He trailed off, lost in thought for but a moment before he resumed. "The coming cataclysm will be merciless. Our town shall be consumed by the unstoppable wrath of the Grimm, and its people along with it. But you two shall live on, as a monument to the fallen. As a beacon of hope for all around you to follow. And, through it all, you will remain united."
Nora's eyes began to redden with unshed tears, clouding her vision. Yet, Ren's hand found hers, and as he gave it a light squeeze, a smile grew on her face. Across from them, Vafthrudnir gave a nearly imperceptible nod.
"Remember this, Nora. The bonds of family are not created through blood or birth. They are forged by trust. By camaraderie. By companionship. Remember this, and you shall prevail."
As he finished, the ground beneath them shook. Dust fell from the overhead beams, and the wooden walls of the farmhouse rattled. An enraged howl echoed from the distant mountains, resonating throughout the entire valley as it washed over the village.
"And so it is. They're here."
Gjallarhorn
An eerie silence descended over the heart of Hoddmimis as alarms on the edge of town wailed incessantly. Nora and Ren sat together beneath an abandoned store's alcove, seeking shelter from the masses of people that wandered the streets. The town guard had ordered everyone to relocate to the center while they took defensive positions on the outskirts, with white-clad soldiers trotting down designated avenues to reach the front line. From her position, Nora could see only their helmets as they trudged past the crowd, the clatter of their boots fading into the distance.
Vafthrudnir had chosen not to accompany her when the guards had come to escort them. Instead, he chose to sit down in front of his fireplace, contemplating the dancing flames in complete serenity. When she asked him why he had decided to stay behind, he answered with cold stoicism:
"I am but an old man. I have already accepted my fate alongside that of the gods themselves."
The mighty thunder of artillery disrupted her musing, the shells landing with remote cracks. Each barrage got louder and louder, betraying the inexorable advance of the Grimm. Soon enough, gunfire erupted to the north, punctuated by the screams of panicked civilians. Machine guns opened up, their terrifying stutter adding to the hellish cacophony.
"We need to get out of here," Ren said, standing up and looking at the source of the clatter. "They'll overrun this place any minute now."
As if summoned by his words, a black figure scaled the slanted roof of the building across the street. Its hollow red eyes brimmed with indiscriminate rage as the creature scanned the congregation of villagers, darting its gaze up and down the street. The beast unleashed a furious roar before a gunshot rang out to Nora's left, blowing a hole clean through the Grimm's head. However, another three Beowolves vaulted the structure in place of the last, diving into the gathered humans below them.
"Get behind us, dammit!" the soldier who had killed the first Grimm shouted. "Go! We're retreating east!"
The entire crowd began to run, shouting in terror as they sprinted past the town guard. Ren grabbed Nora's arm and yanked her up, the pair joining the advancing stampede. Behind them, more and more Grimm swarmed onto the road in pursuit of the escaping humans, their feral growls multiplying tenfold by the second. Looking over her shoulder, Nora saw as dozens upon dozens of Beowolves were mowed down by full automatic fire, their screams of pain dampening the barks of the soldier's rifles. Despite their valiant effort, every downed Grimm was replaced by two more, and eventually, the line of guards was swallowed by the black tide.
Once again, her muscles ached as she attempted to keep up with the mob, causing her to stumble forward, nearly collapsing to damp and slippery ground. For a brief moment, she locked eyes with Ren, running at her side and equally as exhausted. The pure resolve in his eyes urged her forth, and as screams of pain behind them marked the encroachment of the beasts, her legs gave one final burst of strength.
At last, the crowd emerged from the cramped streets of downtown and into the open fields lined with farms and homesteads. As soon as they crossed the threshold, mortar bombs whistled in from the front, detonating behind the fleeing civilians. Peeking through the sea of people, Nora spotted the front line, constructed out of hastily erected sandbags and barbed wire. Gaps in the wire were marked with flickering red lights, causing the stampede to split into several tendrils to accommodate for the entryways. Behind the town guard stood the remains of the village's Hunters, hefting their weapons and readying for the charge. Among them stood Thorvald, donning his broad purple cloak and holding his great, silver hammer aloft.
As soon as she traversed the gap, Nora ran up to her father, swerving around the stalling masses as they reached safety behind the line. In the confusion, she had lost sight of Ren, and despite her best efforts to relocate him, the crowd had drifted apart.
Please, stay safe… she thought to herself, hoping that, some way, somehow, he could hear her.
"Stay back, Nora!" he commanded. "Head back to the house! Your mother is there, gathering what she can for the evacuation to Vale! I'll keep them at bay!"
"But, Dad, you–"
"Now's not the time!" he bellowed, shoving Nora backwards with his left hand. "Go!" Reluctantly, Nora heeded his orders as her father spun his hammer with practiced dexterity, transforming it into a grenade launcher in his hands. He then opened fire on the ever-advancing Grimm, lobbing explosives over the heads of the town guardsmen.
Behind her, the entire line of soldiers opened up at once, machine guns and rifles unloading into the horde. Beyond them, the center of Hoddmimis stood ablaze, thick stacks of smoke and ash rising from the heart of village, accompanied by the thin black tendrils left behind by the Grimm.
Yet again, the ground trembled beneath her feet, halting her jog and dropping her to her knees. The tremors only worsened, the sounds of rock splitting and cracking below intensifying steadily. Then, just before the tumult threatened to burst her eardrums, three enormous, black spires erupted from the snow, swallowing the soldiers in their path. They twisted and turned as they fell, and laid waste to the entire front line. Each beast was shortly followed by an equally massive white counterpart, twisting and spiraling alongside its companion. The monsters then turned towards the assembled Hunters, each bearing its colossal pair of sharp, white fangs.
The serpents released a harrowing screech as they dashed forward, the Beowolves of the main horde loping amongst them. The Huntsmen and Huntresses unleashed a battlecry of their own and charged into the fray, weapons extending with whirrs of machinery.
Nora stood up and ran away from the battle raging behind her, slogging through the brown sludge lining the paths of the outskirts. By then, the stampede of civilians had petered out, with groups of people making their way to the vast forest to the east of the village. Occasional gunfire still yammered in the core of town, as small pockets of soldiers continued their futile resistance.
The howls of the Grimm faded as she got farther and farther away from the front. Eventually, she spotted her house at the end of the street, door flung wide open and boxes upon boxes stacked on the bed of a wheelbarrow. Suddenly, Nora wished her family owned a car, like those she heard crowded the towering highways of central Vale. However, this far north, they were impossible to come across, relegating transportation to conventional means.
As she drew nearer, her mother stepped out onto the snow, carrying a large wooden box overflowing with food. She could even see Thorvald's unfinished salmon sitting inside a clear plastic container, still largely fresh. Her mind rebelled at the notion that, just yesterday, she had led an entirely normal life, spending time with friends and family as she had since she was born. She longed to return to those days, so tantalizingly close, yet all the same, impossibly far. Tears began to escape from her eyes at the dawning realization of her lost, old life, replaced by an existence of perpetual fear and agony.
Freja spotted her, and as soon as she placed the box in a vacant spot on the wheelbarrow, she rushed up to meet her daughter, her green dress waving behind her as she ran. She pulled Nora into a tight embrace, tears flowing free from her own face as well. Unable to contain her previously restrained emotions, she wept into her mother's shoulder, soaking the fabric of her clothing.
"Don't worry, Nora," Freja whispered, interrupted by sobs. "You're alright. We'll just head south to Vale. Everything will be fine."
"B-but what about Dad?" Nora stammered, barely able to control her own voice. "We can't leave him behind!"
"We'll wait for him, sweetheart. He will come back. I promise," she reassured, stroking the back of her daughter's head. The two stood there in silence, doing their best to forget the tragedy around them. However, it refused to vanish, as enraged growls came from behind them. Nora and Freja broke away and turned toward their source, spotting the ragtag remains of the Huntsmen and Huntresses of the front. They retreated through the abandoned homes, many with blown-in walls or missing ceilings. Those who could stand limped forward at a languid pace, while those who couldn't were carried on the shoulders of the survivors. Many yet laid sprawled over the ground, the snow around their bodies stained a deep crimson. The Grimm trampled over the carcasses as they chased the remaining Hunters, shaking the earth itself with their advance.
Thorvald shambled alongside his comrades, dragging his hammer through the snow and clutching his belly with his free hand. Spotting his wife, a weak smile spread across his bloodied face. Freja covered her mouth with both hands, sobbing even more intensely than before. Yet, Thorvald's expression turned to anguish as he hastily shouted and pointed to something behind them.
"Freja! Behind you!"
She was barely able to turn before a meaty, piercing noise came from her abdomen. Her sobs gave way to a single, feeble whimper as three enormous claws emerged from her torso, turning her dress a dark red. She stared wide-eyed as the triple pincers suddenly retracted with the same, nauseating sound they made upon entry, leaving three, gaping holes in their wake.
She clasped her hands over the wound in a vain attempt to halt the bleeding. For a second, her knees trembled before she toppled onto the ground, a puddle of crimson spreading over her prone body. Nora was unable to move, her legs frozen firmly in place. She could only stare in shock at her mother's carcass as the Beowolf, releasing a mirthful growl, raised its paw, red eyes flashing with bloodlust.
"STAY THE FUCK AWAY FROM HER, YOU BASTARD!"
Before the beast could swing, Thorvald leaped forward, bringing the full weight of his hammer down on the Grimm's head. The Beowolf disintegrated under the might of his weapon, with the remnants of its corpse slowly evaporating into the darkening sky. Looking down at the unmoving figure of his wife, he dropped his hammer and knelt over her, turning her over and cradling her in his arms while tying a makeshift bandage around her stomach.
"Stay with me, Frej. Come on, dammit, s-stay with me!" he stuttered, attempting to wake the unresponsive Freja.
"I– I'm sorry…" she muttered, giving one final, pathetic croak before falling limp, her eyes rolling to the back of her head.
"No… No! Godammit, no!" he whimpered, hanging his head over Freja's now lifeless corpse. Nora stood completely motionless, unable to comprehend what had just occurred. In the span of a few seconds, her mother went from rejoicing the reappearance of Thorvald to lying dead in his arms, all due to a single, stray Beowolf.
But you said… you said we were going to make it through this. Together…
Looking up, Nora saw the Grimm horde split up into multiple groups, rushing into the forest after the escaping survivors. The remnants of the Hunters had been picked off with ease, as their bodies lined the fields. Those that remained stared down at them, relishing their pain in preparation for the kill. Slowly, Thorvald got up, reclaimed his hammer, and stood defiantly between them and his daughter, all of his grief replaced by rage.
"COME ON, YOU FUCKERS!" he bellowed. "YOU'LL PAY FOR THIS!"
The assembled Grimm unleashed a combined roar as they charged at him, the Beowolves trotting alongside the winding halves of a King Taijitu. He shouted in return, raising his hammer and bringing it down as they drew near. The spearhead of the assault shattered as the force from the blast crushed the beasts, yet the rest of the pack closed in.
"Dad, no!" Nora screamed after him, only able to watch as her father single-handedly fought the pack. Grimm after Grimm lunged at him, only to be beaten into the snow and crushed under the head of his hammer. However, his motions were lethargic and predictable, as his wounds prevented him from fighting at full strength. With every Beowolf he felled, he gained another slash across his torso, the blood seeping into his cloak and caking onto his weapon. The Taijitu stood back, seemingly amused as the human before it fought in vain.
Nora felt powerless, seeing Thorvald hold off the monsters on his own. She attempted to step towards him, only to stumble onto the cold, frozen dirt. Eventually, only he and the serpent remained, the two locking eyes in fury. Both heads of the gargantuan monster screeched as they dove onto him, jaws open wide. Thorvald swung his hammer upwards to meet the beast halfway, hitting the underside of the white half's head. It recoiled backwards with a loud bang, yet the other head continued on its course. Nora could do nothing but witness as Thorvald, unable to dodge, was impaled by the Grimm's fang.
No… no! This can't be happening! I-I must be dreaming!
In desperation, Thorvald swung his hammer onto the monster's head, relaxing its iron grip on his torso, The fang exited his abdomen, leaving a gap similar to those on Freja's back. As the beast began to smoke at his feet, he turned around and slowly walked towards Nora, dragging his feet across the bloodied snow.
Dad… please. Don't leave me…
He stepped forward three paces. He stopped, almost stumbling, and gave another three. Finally, after another three steps, he collapsed, his hammer falling to his side. With a sudden burst of adrenaline, Nora rushed to his aid, kneeling next to his prone body.
"My… my hammer…" he whispered, as Nora lifted his face to meet his eyes. His teal orbs were unfocused, staring beyond her into the unknown.
"It'll be okay, pa. Hang in there, please!" she pleaded, her tears running free down her cheeks and falling into the ice below.
"Magnhild. Take it."
"Wha-what are you–"
With unexpected firmness, he grasped hold of her hand, coughing up globs of blood before speaking again, his voice but a croak. "Take Magnhild. It's yours now. Consider it a parting gift."
"Dad… please, no…" Nora whimpered, squeezing his hand, as if to prevent him from leaving.
"I'm... sorry, sweetie, but I've reached the end." His voice got softer and softer, overshadowed by Nora's rampant heartbeat. "We'll see each other again. One day. Until then, I want you to keep Magnhild. Got it?"
Nora looked down and nodded, shutting her eyes in a forlorn attempt to stem the flow of tears.
"I-I love you, Nora. I… I…." he muttered, until his eyelids drooped closed, never to open again. His grip relaxed, and his hand fell out of his daughter's, dropping to the snow and sinking into its cold embrace.
"No… no… NO!"
She leaned over her father's body and wept, crying out at the dark skies. Unlike yesterday, when the heavens were filled with stars, a pure blackness was all that remained above, as if the stars themselves had been consumed by the Grimm.
As she sat there, weeping onto her dad's back, more growls erupted behind her, the same, dreaded noise that came before her mother had been slain, produced by the same creatures that had taken her father. She balled her hands into fists in fury, and grasped the steel rod of what was now her hammer.
As she stood up, she spotted three Beowolves hunched over close by, preparing to lunge after her. She met their stare head-on, with fury rivaling the one emanating from their malevolent red eyes. She dragged Magnhild across the dirt, picking up speed as she charged at the Grimm, gritting her teeth as the misery that left her was replaced with courage. The beasts responded in kind, screeching before they dashed to meet her halfway.
She lifted the hammer, hitting the first Beowolf directly in the center. The monster flew backwards with a thunderous boom, slamming through the wall of a house. The second jumped over her, clawing at her back and slicing through her flesh and shirt. She cried out as pain shot up her spine, the cuts stinging as they came in contact with the air. She brought Magnhild around and impacted the beast's neck, leaving a stump where its head once was. It fell backwards with a thud, laying lifeless on the white ground.
The last Grimm, determined to finish what its compatriots had started, swiped at her throat, yet missed as Nora, adrenaline pumping through her veins, darted backward. She spun herself around, holding her hammer outward, and smashing it into the side of the beast. The blast sent it skidding and rolling across the snow, coming to a rest a few meters from her. Three new columns of thin, black smoke now rose into the sky.
Holding Magnhild in one hand, she began to march towards the forest. Looking behind her, the center of Hoddmimis burned a bright orange, casting long shadows across the valley. She trampled away from it, and into the forests to the east. If she could hide anywhere, she reckoned, it would be in there.
Oh Ren… please tell me you're alive, she hoped, staring into the imposing pines of the woods beyond.
Eventually, she reached the edge of the forest, winding through the logs and dragging her new weapon behind her. She lost track of time as she wandered past endless trunks, unable to ascertain her direction or location. Eventually, tired and hungry, she sat down at the base of a tree and lulled off to sleep, wishing that she would wake up in her bed again, and have breakfast with her parents just one last time.
Líf and Lífthrasir
Hey, Nora.
The voice came at her from all directions, echoing into the deepest recesses of her mind. It was omnipresent, perpetual in time, and all-consuming. Her body stirred, her legs bumping into something to her right.
Hey. Wake up.
She recognized that voice. It soothed her turbulent thoughts, still disturbed by the tragedies of yesterday. Her eyelids attempted to rise, only to fall down again midway.
It's me, Ren. Come on, get up. We gotta get out of here.
At last able to pinpoint the unknown intruder, her eyes shot open, met immediately by the sight of Ren, tearing his own shirt to make a makeshift bandage. He lifted her from the trunk and wrapped it around her back, tying it once he exhausted its length.
"You got lucky. If those cuts were any deeper, you would have bled to death."
That word. Death. It pierced deep into her being, opening wounds far greater than those on her back. She whimpered for half a second before breaking down, sobbing into her lap and soaking her pants. Ren was quick to act, tapping her on the shoulder and lifting her head to meet her eyes.
"Are you alright? Tell me, what happened?"
Struggling to gather her composure, she swallowed back her emotions and faced him head on, her eyes still reddened with tears.
"My parents. They're… dead," she whispered, tightening her grip around Magnhild's rod. Every time she laid eyes on the hammer, her father's last words returned to her mind, as crisp as when he uttered them in his final moments.
Take Magnhild. It's yours now. Consider it a parting gift.
"Don't worry, Nora. To be honest, I don't know what happened to mine either. After we got separated, I just wandered the forest to find them. Eventually, I found this trail, which led me to you," he recounted, his usually monotone voice now laced with grief. He stood up and looked at the sky beyond the canopy. "Besides, I'm sure they're protecting you from above. One way or another, they're still with us.
One way or another, huh? she thought, once again looking at the silver hammer that once belonged to Thorvald.
"We should really find some food," she said as her stomach growled. "I'm starving…"
"Vale is a day's walk to the south. We can catch some squirrels along the way," he replied, holding out his arm to the sitting Nora. "In any case, we should be on our way."
Gladly, Nora clasped his hand and pulled it, raising herself from the cold undergrowth. Suddenly, as he stared deeply into Ren's caring eyes, she remembered Vathrudnir's words. While they might have seemed beyond her comprehension at first, she now understood them with perfect clarity.
"Thank you, Ren," she muttered, pulling him into a tight embrace. "For everything."
"My pleasure, Nora," he replied, setting both his hands on her shoulders in reassurance. "We've got to look out for each other, right? Just like the old man said."
Remember this, Nora...
The elderly farmer's words then came pouring back into her mind. She had a feeling that, no matter the circumstances, she would always remember them.
"Just like the old man said," she echoed, kneeling down to pick up Magnhild.
The bonds of family are not created through blood or birth.
"Well then," Ren announced. "Let's get going."
They are forged by trust.
The pair then set out, trampling through the snow and dirt. They locked eyes one more time, smiling at each other's company.
By camaraderie.
The sun shone down from the eastern horizon, casting its rays through the dense layers of leaves. Using it as reference, they adjusted their course, preparing for the long trek southward.
By companionship.
Even though the bulk of her hammer and the emptiness of her stomach slowed her down, Ren's very presence calmed her fears.
"Do you think we'll make it?" she asked after an idle minute of walking.
"We will," he responded confidently. "I promise."
Remember this, and you shall prevail.
A/N:
Anyway, that was what I spent the last few weeks cookin' up. Now, I'll resume work on my main fic, so I'll get a new chapter of THAT out relatively soon.
Nevertheless, I do hope this was to your liking! Remember, vote for whichever fanfic you believe has earned it. And, hey, if it happens to be this one, I will be GREATLY honored, and will personally find you and shake your hand. Well, maybe not the latter, but ya get the idea.
In addition, I would like to give huge thanks to FF user "Mach56" for his help in revising this piece. Thanks, man!
As always, any and all feedback is greatly appreciated!