Standard Disclaimer time. I do not own Valkyrie Profile, and the characters of VP. That honor belong to Tri Ace and Square Enix. I make no money off of this fic either. It's done purely for entertainment purposes.
The fate of the retired Valkyries are inspired by the game Odin Sphere. The pairing of Brahms and Silmeria is a gift fic thing for my friend Huntress. Hope you like dear!
This is not only an updated version of my OSVP story, it is one that is more fleshed out and overhauled. While the first three chapters stick close to the original in intent, chapters four and up have gotten a massive overhaul, with several thousand new words added to the overall experience. As such I felt it merited getting it's own story posting. Keeping the old version up as well...for comparisons, and for those who might have enjoyed the old version.
-Michelle
There was the sound of boots crunching down upon a gravel lined path, a multitude of rocky bits being crushed underfoot. The noise of that gravel being disturbed was one that should have barely registered amid the roar of over a thousand voices that were currently raised up in battle. Those screams of theirs conveyed so much, that of challenge, that of victory, and even that of fear. Those voices, their yells, all blended together to the point that one could not pick out any truly distinct words being spoken amid the shouts and the metallic clangs of weapons striking against one another in the midst of battle.
The savagery of that battle did not deter her, if anything it made Lenneth eager to add her own voice to that chaos. Her fingers would actually clench tight on the hilt of her sword, as Lenneth actively imagined wielding the blade, and losing herself to the near mindless violence of the night's fighting. Something like a grim smile briefly stretched her lips, Lenneth continuing her purposeful way down the cliff side. There at it's bottom base was where the figures fought, and it was there that an an all too eager and ever ready Lenneth would go to join them, literally leaping into the midst of that fray. To make such a jump would be careless from her current and lofty height, Lenneth needing to get much lower before she could truly make the dive down.
She wouldn't allow her eagerness to give way to any type of carelessness. That would only lead to mistakes, and on the battlefield, such an error could lead to injury or even death. Neither was what she actually wanted, though to Lenneth, the woman felt that death would be preferable to the suffering that would come from the sustaining of a debilitating injury in battle. A shudder worked it's way through her, one that had nothing to do with the fighting, and everything to do with the thoughts that came unbidden to her. Such thoughts were unwelcome, Lenneth thinking of the reason why she was currently wound so tight and made so eager to fight.
Those thoughts in her head were a persistent presence, her only retreat from them, that of the solace that there was to be found in the fighting. If Lenneth could build up the proper rhythm, she could then block out the thoughts, forget everything but the dealing of death to those who would harm her and those left under her protection. She was actively longing for it, for the distraction, and the solace that she would find going hand in hand with her sword. This desperate a need was what had driven her from the castle, fleeing a sight that was better off forgotten. But even the pathway from the castle to this battlefield was a lot longer than she would have liked, allowing for the flashes of memory that still came to her. Haunting her with the remembered images. That of blood, the crimson liquid splattered everywhere. Of pale blonde hair that was soaked and streaked red with it, a direct result of the victim laying down in an ever widening puddle of it. Of that woman's skin growing paler by the second, her indigo armor shattered open.
Lenneth would then hiss, finding that she had started gripping her sword ever too tightly. So harsh and unrelenting was her grip, that the woman was sure that the bejeweled decorations that decorated it's hilt would make a striking imprint on the palm of her hand. She almost didn't care, too busy fighting the memories, and knowing that it was just a few feet more until she could join in on the battle. She tried to keep a particularly upsetting and unwanted thought from her, tried not to focus on the fact that the fighting would be one important combatant short, or how these troops were now lacking one of their most capable of commanders.
Her focus thus far divided, Lenneth still managed to maintain her awareness to keep up with her intent study of the fighting closest to the cliff's bottom. The two groups seemed equally matched, the Valkyries and their einherjar fighting the undead forces of the Lord Brahms. These particular undead were composed predominately of vampires, but it wasn't always so. The vampires, like so many of the undead, were often forced to wait for more optimal conditions before they could come out of the holes that they regularly hid in. The ultimate in the vampire's ideal? That of a night fall such as the one that was currently blanketing the sky, but second best would be the times when the worst of the sun was lost to the overcast of clouds, turning a winter's day dark enough to serve a blood sucker well for their nefarious purpose.
That purpose was to remain a constant thorn in the Asgardians' side, the vampires and the rest of the undead out and about to impede and pester the warriors of the Divine. Signs of their handiwork was laid out every where, the most prominent being that of the flashes of light Lenneth spied winking in and out through out the battlefield. It was the vampires own brand of magic, the undead terrors teleporting to and fro. It was just one of the unfair advantages that these monsters had, these fiends using their powers to vanish before a blade could strike a killing blow upon their body. Such a feat meant that the Valkyries and their einherjar HAD to always be faster than the fanged foes that they faced. They didn't always succeed at that, but on this night, Lenneth was pleased to see that dozens upon dozen of rotting corpses were already laying down on the field. Her troops were performing more than adequately against the vampire threat on this night.
The Valkyrie's soldiers might not even have need of her sword, though all knew that they would be a fool to turn Lenneth away. It was with that thought, that the woman finally found herself at a good enough vantage, Lenneth letting out a wild cry as she pushed off the cliff's path. Somersaulting forward, her sword caught and reflected a flash of light. The trained warriors of both sides knew enough not to be distracted by that spark, concentrating instead on the opponents before them.
A few others cleared out of the way, a spot opening up for Lenneth to land in. With a solid thump, her body was grounded, the impact bringing her knees to nearly touch against the packed dirt. That jarring impact practically rattled Lenneth's teeth in her jaw, but she allowed no pain or discomfort to distract or to stop her. A split second instance had passed, and already she was lurching upright, sword moving effortlessly in an upwards swing. It caught the vampire that had teleported directly before her right in the chin, a sickening squelch being heard as the blade severed the man's face in half. Blood soaked her sword, but there was no time to clean it, Lenneth pivoting on her heel. Her sword slashed about with her spin, cutting open the stomach of a random ghoul.
Guts began spilling out of that creature, and yet the ghoul still fought. It would take a lot more than disemboweling to kill that particular breed of undead. It's head would have to be taken, cleaved clean off it's neck, before the creature would cease mimicking a life that it had no right to.
Poison coated claws slashed across her armor. The cobalt blue metal remained unmarked, the ghoul's claws sliding harmlessly off the breast plate. It didn't stop the near mindless monster from trying again, claws slashing, going for the bit of skin between elbow and shoulder that was not guarded by any of the metal. Lenneth was forced to quickly block the claws with her sword, wanting no poison tipped scratch to befall that all too vulnerable skin.
Other fiends rushed her, another ghoul and a vampire. Lenneth could not allow herself to be surrounded, the Valkyrie holding her arm out high as she swung a beheading slash towards the first ghoul's neck. The head went flying, and quickly disappeared among the combatants. She wouldn't bother to try and track it, not when it was just one more head of many that were being kicked about and trampled on in this field.
Instead she was already turning, her twirling sword attempting to stab itself into and straight through the vampire's chest. The ghoul was doing it's shambling walk towards her, a determined look in it's eyes. A spear suddenly embedded itself in the ghoul's back, one of the einherjar having thrown the weapon in an attempt to distract the creature from the Valkyrie warrior, Lenneth. There was however no chance to issue out a personal thanks, not when in the midst of so intense a battle.
The vampire that was approaching, that had used it's innate magic to teleport as close as possible to the warrior woman, was a creature of the elder variety. Such age made the vampire female quick with both her teleportation magics and her sharp blade. That sword was coated in the blood of what had to have once been Lenneth's allies, and it was all to clear that the fanged fiend was just as eager to drive the weapon into yet another Valkyrie's body. The spike of rage surged stronger, a memory riding on it's coattails. Lenneth would not allow the fury or the haunting remembrance to consume her, secure in the knowledge that where she herself was concerned, this fight was anything but a personal vendetta for the vampiress.
Once it would have been much the same for Lenneth, the woman holding no deeper meaning beyond that of her holy and sacred, and divinely sanctioned duty, to color that of the mercilessly efficient way in which she dispatched the many kinds of undead fiends that the Valkyrie had often encountered over the course of her long lived eternity. Now however, there was something vicious inside her, a feeling that had been awakened by a memory that was an all too real and too deep a hurt. The blood pooling everywhere, a gruesome display of carnage that lent a malicious edge to her sword play. The sword of the Valkyrie Lenneth was as brutal as it was fast, not so much finding an opening in the vampire female's defenses as much as making one.
The vampire's blade broke in half from the force of Lenneth's first swing. The Valkyrie didn't slow down her arm at that happening, instead allowing that speed to drive her sword forward past the shattered apart pieces of the blade, into the very chest of the vampire. That female let out a scream of such immense pain, the blood she had fed on spilling out of her. It weakened the vampire, the woman trying to warp away even as Lenneth performed a downwards slash that caught the female mid teleportation. Such was the ferocity of her wounds, that the vampire was surely done for, no matter where on the battlefield her magic would dump her. If the fanged female somehow survived the trip, the vampire would still be so staggered and injured that she herself would now be an easy mark for any one of Lenneth's many allies.
There was no need or cause for Lenneth to have to spare any further thought to THAT particular vampire. Not when there were so many of the monsters out and about, a plethora of choices availed before her, the woman charging forward to strike down the strongest one closest to her. She'd pass by many of the einherjar in the process, a rank of warriors that had been culled from the souls of the worthy few, that of the men and women that spanned the many realms' races. These mortals all held the distinct honor of being chosen by the Valkyrie Goddesses in the name of fighting for Asgard. Though they were a dwindling resource of late, there was still enough that a distinction had had to be made, their armor different enough to give way to rank and accomplishments earned on and off the battlefield.
The undead legions wore any and everything, from leather form fitted for mobility, to the tattered rags of the lesser of Brahms' monsters. The one and only shared trait of their uniforms? The dark hues of bold crimson and black. It was a stark contrast to the sight of the Valkyries, each of the divine maiden's fitted in cold metals made of a refined steel. Colored in similar shades of blue and purple, and adorned with silvers and gold filigrees, each woman's look was just different enough to make her stand out as uniquely her own.
With armor molded to that which was the embodiment of physical perfection, these lethal beauties were each crowned with a specific kind of helm. Each one was made of the rarest and most valuable of metal, the feathers of the fallen souls of the einherjar adorning the very winged tips of them. Such a sight made for a pretty picture, but it was only a fool that would be lulled into distraction based on that beauty alone. Not when these women fought just as brave and just as valiantly as the einherjar they had chosen. Courageous and bold, the Valkyries never faltered, never allowed thoughts of death or that of the personal threat of the vampires themselves, to color them with fear. There was only one thing that might make these divine females hesitate in the slightest. The idea of surviving long enough to outlive their usefulness.
It was a universal fact that the Valkyries were immortal females, that these women were minor deities in their own rights. Just as it was fact that little could harm them, save for their unnatural enemies, that of the undead minions of Lord Brahms. The vampires in particular, those fiends who loved nothing more than to get their hands on divine blood in order to drain the Gods and their Valkyrie lessers to death. That divine blood always infused the vampires with a temporary rush of power, heightening already powerful senses, and giving them more strength and speed than they would have normally had.
A Valkyrie's blood in particular, was a well sought after prize. It was like a drug to the vampires, and those fiends were all too eager to feed their addictions. There was no end to those that would target her for that reason alone, Lenneth snarling a wordless challenge to the next nearest vampire, a man who eagerly rushed forward to cross his blade with hers. The clang of the blades was lost to the deafening roar of the battle, sparks flying as they clashed their swords together again and again.
Lenneth would barely take notice of what her opponent actually looked like. Such details didn't matter in the heat of battle, only survival and victories did. Their swords struck against one another, the two figures rebounding back. The vampire instantly teleported, appearing behind Lenneth as he sought to slash and break open the back of her armor. She turned, finding that her long hair which was tied back so neatly in a braid, was nearly severed free in the process. Several silver blue strands actually fell to the ground, that shining brilliance immediately lost as feet trampled over them.
Another battle cry from Lenneth, the Valkyrie doing a downwards slash that the vampire defended against. His sword arm lowered from the force of her blow, Lenneth preparing to strike upwards when she saw the light reflected in the fiend's eyes. With a gasp, she turned too late, just in time for a dagger to catch her on the cheek.
Lenneth barely had time to react, seeing the other vampire bring the dagger to his lips, tongue snaking out to taste her blood that had stained upon it. Never taking her eyes off of the fiend who had dared sample her blood, the woman turned her blade, and drove it behind her, catching the other sneaking vampire right through the chest. Such was the force of her thrust, that the blade impaled all the way through to exit out the man's back, the vampire then gagging and dying a quick, torturous death.
The vampire in front of her seemed to moan, delighting in the blood he had just stolen a taste of. Lenneth didn't know if that thin trickle was enough to give him a boost in abilities, but she knew enough to dispatch this monster and fast. She quickly jerked her sword out of the dead body slumped over behind her, attempting to then stab it forward into the very hand that held the vampire's dagger.
A flash of light left nothing but space for her sword to slash through. Lenneth gritted her teeth together, and whirled around, scouting about for the vampire. He did not appear anywhere near her, the vampire more cowardly than she had first realized. With a disgusted snort, Lenneth brought up her hand to her cheek, using the back of it to wipe the blood off the slow to heal wound. To achieve that effect, the vampire's dagger had to have been one that was enchanted to delay a Valkyrie's natural borne healing powers.
A quick stock of the situation showed that there was no shortage of opponents, even with the one vampire fleeing her. Lenneth made fast work of over a dozen ghouls, to then team up with a fellow Valkyrie to slay a small handful of vampires. Time both slowed down and sped up, the battle ending too quickly for Lenneth's liking. The vampires on this patch of land were now in retreat, and several of the Valkyries took off after them with the einherjar in hot pursuit.
Truthfully, Lenneth wanted to join them in the chase, but a voice had suddenly called out to her. "Lenneth, wait!" The Valkyrie's back was to the voice, but she didn't need to see the Goddess Freya to recognize her. Or her tone of displeasure, Lenneth holding in a sigh.
"Lady Freya..." Lenneth said, making a show of cleaning off her bloodied and gore covered sword. The leather rag that she used was quickly soaking through with the grime, but the woman knew if she allowed the blood to dry, it would make her sword's blade rust. "What brings you to the battlefield?"
It was a seemingly innocent question, though both Freya and Lenneth knew the reason behind the Goddess' sudden appearance. Indeed Freya was frowning, Lenneth spying that annoyed expression out the corner of her eye. But she didn't acknowledge it, continuing to pretend to be focused on the cleaning of her weapon.
"You know very well why I am here." Freya stepped closer to Lenneth, effortlessly managing to somehow avoid the corpses and body parts that littered the abandoned battle ground. She looked disdainful of the filth, the golden haired Goddess not one for fighting, especially against such lesser beings as that of the undead. That didn't mean Freya was not capable of defending herself, the Goddess holding within her enough power to devastate an entire world. Freya simply preferred to let others get their hands dirty, while she toiled with the behind the scenes details.
It was rare for her to even come out to the battlefield. Lenneth knew she was at fault for this, something like guilt sparking through her. But it wasn't enough to get her to apologize, Lenneth staying focused on her sword. When it became apparent that was all she was going to do, Freya sighed.
"It is not your duty to be out here, not on this night especially."
"I go where my sword is needed." Lenneth finally answered her.
"You go where Lord Odin commands. Need I remind you of that?" demanded Freya.
"I know that." Lenneth replied, her tone quiet.
"And yet you still purposefully left the castle!" Freya let exasperation creep into her voice, Lenneth at last looking at her. "Lenneth, why? Your sister Hrist well has the situation in hand. Even now the vampires are being routed from the land that borders the castle's walls. She'll have them so disoriented and confused, that they won't even notice your absence from the battlefield."
And that was the real purpose of this latest skirmish. To distract the vampires long enough for Lenneth to escort a most precious cargo from within the castle. She almost flinched then, thinking of just what that precious something was. And with it came the memories, the bloodied hair, the broken armor, her younger sister Silmeria laying in an ever widening pool of her own blood.
"I am not abandoning my duty." Lenneth insisted out loud. "I know Hrist is to lead the distraction. But as we are not to leave until tomorrow morning, I don't see the harm in releasing some pent up energy this night."
"You are supposed to be resting." Freya pointed out. "Conserving your strength for the journey. You will not serve anyone well if you are too tired should a fight be brought before you…"
"I will never be too tired to fight." Snapped Lenneth. "Lady Freya, you needn't worry about me. I will do my duty, even if I don't like what I must do." That last bit softened Freya's expression, blue eyes warming as she gave Lenneth a sad attempt at a smile.
"I understand this is a difficult time for you and your sisters. But especially for you, Lenneth. For you were always the closest to young Silmeria. But really, it is for the best."
"The best?" Anger seeped into Lenneth's voice, the emotion so violent that she nearly trembled with it. "The best for who?!"
"Your sister for one." Freya retorted. "She can hardly be expected to return to her duties in that condition."
"I know that..." The memory of Silmeria's broken body made her shudder, Lenneth lowering her now clean sword. But she didn't sheathe it, ever conscious that at any moment a vampire could appear before them. She had to remain ever vigilant, even as she fought and railed against her sister's fate. Against the fate of all Valkyrie who fell in battle, but slipped death's embrace.
"Would you have her remain here in Asagrd?" Freya questioned her. "Would you have her bombarded by constant reminders of a life she can never return to?"
"No…"
"Then do not begrudge your sister her fate." Freya told her. "Silmeria is accepting of what must be done. Why can't you be?"
"I don't think it's right...to tie her to a man..." Lenneth spoke quietly, but firmly. "To one she does not know, let alone love.…"
"Lord Rufus of Alfheim is a fine man, a capable warrior, and a just ruler. He will not be unkind to her."
"He better not be! Or he will face the combined wrath of myself and our sister Hrist!" threatened Lenneth. "I will not tolerate my sister being mistreated, no matter by whose hand it is!"
"Calm yourself Lenneth." Advised Freya. "Lord Rufus would not dare harm Silmeria. She will live out the rest of her life as a cherished wife." And there it was, yet another reason for Lenneth's anger. When a Valkyrie was injured on the battle field, hurt to the point that they could no longer fight, they were retired. But it went beyond a simply setting down of one's arms. Odin had made a decree, to reward capable warriors of several of the nine realms with Valkyries as their brides. The battle maidens were rendered mortal, made Goddess no more. It was said that the Valkyries and the warriors that they wed, produced the strongest and best fighters to ever exist in all of the realms. Those warriors usually became einherjar for Asgard, the daughters of the Valkyries gaining their mother's immortality and the abilities that went with it. The cycle would continue, never ending for all time. Lenneth knew that one day she too might be so unfortunate as to be injured in battle. She prayed that when and if that were to happen, the vampires would drain her to death, rather than allow her to suffer life as some, as ANY, man's bride.
"I still think that it's wrong." Lenneth said at last. "After all her years of service, Silmeria should at least be allowed to pick her own husband!"
"You can rail against that fate all you want, but you cannot change what is to happen. No one can."
"Lord Brahms would if he could." Lenneth blurted out, thinking of the undead King. The vampire had an unnatural lust for her sister, Silmeria. It was the main reason why Hrist was engaging the brunt of his army at this very moment, all to keep the vampires distracted from when Silmeria would leave the castle. They all expected the vampires to make a move against Silmeria and her escort, to try and capture the former Valkyrie alive. Lenneth shuddered to think what Brahms would do once he got his hands on her sister. It was almost enough to make the Valkyrie think any man would be a better choice for Silmeria than for her to remain and fall prey to that of the undead king.
"That fiend will not get a chance to try anything!" Freya hissed. "Silmeria will be delivered safely to Lord Rufus' keep, and Brahms will be none the wiser until it is far too late." Lightning seemed to crackle across the sky, Lenneth shivering in response to it. She sincerely hoped that Freya would be proven right about that much at least.
"Now cease these delays, and return to your sister's side at once." continued Freya, her voice harsh with that command.
"Yes, Lady Freya." Lenneth sighed. The Valkyrie knew that she should be grateful for the chance to see Silmeria. After all, she didn't know when or if she would ever get the opportunity to visit with her once she was established in Alfheim.
Freya nodded her approval at Lenneth's acquiescence. And then she was turning, intent on leading Lenneth back up the cliff side's path. Lenneth was moving to follow her, when she felt it. Eyes on her, the Valkyrie stilling for one brief moment. Freya noticed her lack of movement, a quizzical look in her eyes as she spoke. "What is it Lenneth?"
"Don't you feel that?" Lenneth was already pointing her sword, fighting the tremble that wanted to go through her. "Those eyes...staring at us…"
"There's no one here..." Freya pointed out, and Lenneth shook her head.
"I can feel it!" She turned to scour the landscape, but as Freya said, there was no one near to them. And yet she couldn't shake the feeling of being watched, Lenneth shivering. The sensations associated with the look was that of someone staring into her very soul, as though their gaze was stripping away her armor to see the woman beneath it. It was an unsettling feeling, Lenneth not used to being looked at in that manner.
"Show yourself!" Lenneth demanded, pleased her sword arm did not shake. She wondered if it was the vampire who had tasted her blood, the fiend's hunger for more driving him to return for another attempt against the battle maiden.
Freya was besides her now, slipping into a defensive posture, gold ether sparking in her hands' palms. But there was no one to fight, and though the sense of being watched continued, even Lenneth was forced to concede that there was no one there.
"I'm sure it's nothing." Freya eventually decided. She would lay a hand on Lenneth's armor encased shoulder. "You are just too stressed over your sister's fate."
"I'm not imagining things." Lenneth insisted. Yet she had no other proof that anyone had been about to watch them. She still couldn't sheathe her sword, keeping a firm grip on it's hilt as she followed Freya up the cliff side. The path at it's top would lead them to the castle, Valhalla a welcome sight that almost had Lenneth scurrying forward to get inside. The oppressive feeling of being watched left her once she was indoors, and only then did Lenneth relax enough to put away her sword.
"Go...speak with Silmeria." Freya advised her, giving her a slight push in the direction of the Valkyrie's chambers. "Cherish this time, Lenneth." The woman added.
"I will." Promised Lenneth, giving a respectful bow to the goddess, before hurrying away. It wasn't a long walk to the chambers designated to the Valkyries, especially given the fact that no one dared to approach Lenneth. They simply saw the determined look in her eyes, and wisely kept any questions or demands for her attention to themselves.
Not even five minutes later, she was before her sister's chair, Silmeria smiling up at her. But it wasn't a Silmeria she was in any way used to seeing, the pale blonde hair tied back with ornate barrettes. The young Valkyrie was dressed in a simple night gown that was made of a lavish amount of silk. It draped down to her ankles, it's sleeves extending only to her elbows.
No blood was on Silmeria at this time. She had long since been cleaned up. But Lenneth knew under the night gown was numerous bandages, wrapped around her torso, to cover and guard the stitches on her back. It had been an enchanted blade that had slashed open the young Valkyries' back, spilling her precious blood all over the ground. The enchantment on the blade had prevented the Goddess' healing powers from working, leaving Silmeria in an immense amount of pain. Even now she could barely manage the slightest of movements without the pain flaring, and as such was unable to continue to do her duty and fight any longer.
Numerous herbs were being given to Silmeria to deaden the painful sensations. And yet Silmeria's blue eyes remained bright and clear, the young woman's mind not addled by the drugs. She smiled at Lenneth, ever so happy to see her sister. Lenneth found it difficult to return the smile. She had to fight to keep the sadness from out of her eyes as the Valkyrie Goddess knelt down before her sister.
"Lenneth.." Silmeria said, reaching out with her right arm. She laid her hand on Lenneth's cheek, the very one that bore the cut from the vampire's dagger. "You're hurt."
"It's only a minor scratch." Lenneth told her. "It's pain doesn't even register."
"Have you been to a healer yet? Perhaps Lady Eir could help hasten your recovery." Silmeria was concerned, hovering a finger over the thin cut.
"I will see her soon enough." Lenneth promised. But she didn't care about being healed, more concerned with her sister and her well being. "How are you feeling?"
"As well as can be expected." Silmeria sighed. "I'm sick of the herbs and potions they ply me with. They taste awful, and work almost too well. To the point I can't feel anything at all."
"It's only for a short while." Lenneth said, speaking on what she knew of Silmeria's treatment plan.
"I fear I will never not know this pain." Silmeria confided, and Lenneth fought not to show how horrified the idea of that made her feel.
"Maybe we should wait on delivering you to your husband to be." Lenneth suggested. "If you are still in so much pain…"
"Lord Rufus will not wait forever..." Silmeria replied. "And I would rather get this over with, sooner rather than later."
"It's just not fair..." Lenneth whispered, Silmeria still touching her cheek. "Why you?"
"I was careless on the battlefield. I let the vampires surround me..." Lenneth shivered, knowing that the vampires could have done a lot worse than they had. Before they could even try, Hirst and several other Valkyries had then leapt to Silmeria's defense. Not many of the vampire had survived the massacre that ensued within that hour, but it had been too little, too late, the damage already done to Silmeria.
"You weren't careless, you were outnumbered!" Came Lenneth's protest. It earned a smile from Silmeria, the young woman dropping her hand to her lap.
"You were always quick to defend me…"
"My sword is yours." Lenneth said. "Now and forever…"
"Your sword is Odin's." corrected Silmeria gently. "Never forget that."
"I don't know if I want to fight for the man who could so easily give away my sister!" Lenneth snapped, but she wasn't angry at Silmeria but at Odin and the situation that they all found themselves in. Even worse, Silmeria looked shocked at what Lenneth had just had to say. "I...I, forgive me..." She lowered her eyes, feeling properly abashed.
"Do not blame Odin. He is merely doing what he has always done for the Valkyries who cannot fight any more…"
"How can you be so...so calm about this?!" demanded Lenneth. "Why do you not fight against your fate?!"
"How can I? What can I do in this condition?" Silmeria shook her head, pain briefly glinting in her eyes. "Besides...some good can come out of this sacrifice of mine. I can make a good alliance between Asgard and Alfheim through my marriage to Lord Rufus. So you see...I still have some purpose to my life after all…"
"You've always had purpose! Regardless of your condition!"
"But it has been renewed in a different manner now." Explained Silmeria, just as a knock sounded on the door. Lenneth rose up off her knees, calling out in a commanding voice.
"Who goes there?"
"It is I, Frei." It was the goddess Freya's younger sister, which wouldn't have truly surprised Lenneth given the night's circumstances. "May I come in?"
"Yes, of course." Answered Silmeria, and the door then opened. A petite sized Goddess was revealed, dressed in a forming fitting brown tunic. She carried something in her hands, some sort of vial with a bright pink potion sloshing about. "More pain medicine from Eir?" sighed Silmeria.
"No...this comes from Lord Odin himself." Frei walked towards them, her normally bright and cheery face looking sad.
"Lord Odin?" Lenneth gasped, realizing what the potion had to actually be. "So soon?"
"Silmeria must make her choice now." Frei said. "If she's going to enter the enchanted sleep, she must do so soon..."
The enchanted sleep was a spell that the retired Valkyries sometimes made use of. It forced them into an unnatural slumber, the maidens sleeping until awakened by a kiss. That kiss damned them to love the person who had administered it. To some Valkyries it was a blessing, to instantly love the man they had been given to. But not all saw it that way, and not all took the potion. It was always left up to the individual Valkyrie to decide. Most chose not to take the potion, not wanting their love to be a manufactured illusion.
The love that the potion infused the recipient with, was all consuming. The Valkyries afflicted with it, tended to devote their entire being to their husbands. It seemed a terrible way to live, to be under a man's thumb so completely. Lenneth glared at the potion, focusing all her hate on it in the moment.
Silmeria was also looking, Frei trying not to fidget under the two sisters' combined stare. And then the blonde was gesturing for the Goddess to approach her, Lenneth's lips setting into a disapproving line as Silmeria reached for the vial. "Such a small but powerful thing..." Silmeria mused, holding the vial up so it caught the light of the room. "Able to change the course of one's heart…"
Lenneth wanted to beg Silmeria not to take the potion, but knew that it wasn't her decision. If the enchantment could make this aspect of Silmeria's future any easier, who was she to begrudge her sister love? Even if that love was fake?
"Lord Rufus is a good man, is he not?" Silmeria asked, and Frei nodded in answer.
"By all reports he is."
Silmeria uncorked the vial, holding it up to her nose to sniff at the contents. "A good man.." She began to tip the vial over, the potion spilling not into her mouth, but onto the floor. Frei gasped and took a step forward, Lenneth putting out an arm to stop her. "Deserves better than a manufactured love."
"Silmeria…"
"I will go to him without the enchantment." Silmeria announced. "If it is meant to be, he will earn my love over the course of our marriage."
"So be it." Frei sighed, and Lenneth nodded in approval. Silmeria then dropped the empty vial on the floor, her strength seeming to have left her. "It's been a long time since any Valkyrie has chosen to enter the enchanted sleep. I should not be surprised at your choice."
"No, you shouldn't." Silmeria had closed her eyes, leaning back in her seat.
"Sister...you should rest now. We have a long journey ahead of us, and will be leaving early in the morning."
"A good idea Lenneth." Silmeria said, still keeping her eyes closed. It seemed as if she was ready to sleep the night away in this seat of hers. Lenneth hated to rouse her, but the Valkyrie was insistent that Silmeria get some sleep in an actual bed. As such, Lenneth and Frei both offered support to an unstable Silmeria, helping her to walk to her bed. Silmeria was almost asleep the instant after she was laid down, Lenneth gazing down fondly at her as she smoothed back her younger sister's hair.
"You should get some sleep too." Frei said. "You'll be leaving at first light…"
Lenneth nodded. They intended to leave as early as possible, wanting to put as much distance as they could between here and the vampire's camp. They all suspected that the vampires would make another attempt on Silmeria, and were desperate to keep that from happening. If there was one good thing about Silmeria's marriage to Rufus, it was that it would keep her far away from Brahms. And that notion gave Lenneth some small comfort, the Valkyrie finally retiring to her own bed chamber. She wouldn't have been able to sleep as easy as she did if Lenneth had known of what disasters actually awaited them on the morrow.
To Be Continued!
Chapter updated Sept 12, 2017. Over several hundred words added, in my attempt to make corrections, fix the flow of the story, typos, that sort of thing.
Chapter updated again on January 9, 2018. Did some more….fixing. Not sure how many more words were actually added. Hopefully this is the final major revision.
July 12, 2018...Decided to bite the bullet and make a separate entry for the overhauled version. I feel like enough is changed and fleshed out, that it merits it's own posting. Will be leaving the original up as well, for those who want to compare the old version to the new one. Please bear in mind, the first three chapters haven't been changed much overall, but chapters four and up each have had several thousands words worth or work done to them.
Enjoy!
-Michelle