Chapter 1
Frost peered into the distance. All he saw was an endless stretch of road winding on for many, many miles. That, and about a hundred different points where they could be ambushed or attacked. In his head he carefully calculated each and every risk. Would it be worth reaching a tavern before dusk? Surely the lady wouldn't enjoy sleeping under the stars. But it beat being eviscerated by mercenaries, or worse.
For all his life Frost had thought this way. In his mind's eye he looked at his choices, weighed the positives and the negatives very carefully and then went with the safest route. This was not to say however that Frost was a coward. Far from it in fact. Sora had not chosen him to escort Luna to the temple if he did not have the fullest of confidence in Frost's abilities.
He stopped walking abruptly. Without noticing she bumped into him.
"Watch where you are going." She snarled but immediately regretted it. She wasn't usually this ill tempered but the long trip and Frost's many detours had driven her to the brink of exhaustion. If they didn't find an inn soon she might go crazy. It had been weeks since she had lain in a warm bed or taken a hot bath and it was starting to show. Her wavy blonde hair had turned greasy and smelled bad, her milky white skin was covered in dirt and her green, feline eyes… Well they still twinkled as ever.
"Looks like Graymaine is close." Frost said. "Another 2 hours march and we will be there."
"Really" Luna wondered. "Where is it?" Luna quickly got on her feet and peered in the distance. She couldn't see the first sign of civilization.
"See the markings on that tree there." Frost said pointing and a big, ancient oak tree.
Luna looked at the markings. There was a little triangle carved into the bark, underneath the triangle there where do diagonal lines close to each other.
"The triangle means there is an inn nearby." Frost said.
"And the lines?" Luna asked.
"Each one represents one hours march." Frost replied.
Luna walked up to the tree and touched the bark. It was harsh and stubby. She moved her fingers down over the carvings. "Who made these?" she asked.
"Hunters probably." He replied.
And with that he started walking again. A lot faster than before, he might not show it but Frost was craving rest as well. The weeks they had been marching had not just been exhausting for Luna. During the few hours sleep that she got at night he would often watch over her, make sure she was safe. It was after all his duty to see her safe passage through the land. And Frost was a man sworn to duty.
After a little under 2 hours they reached the outskirts of Graymaine. Graymaine was a small town on the outskirts of the Solemn Woods. It was the last small vestige between the untamed lands and the kings land. Frost had only been here a few times and did not know many of the townsfolk so he kept a cautious eye and made sure they stuck to the looming shadow of dusk.
Quickly they made their way to the inn. It was a big building, the biggest in the town by far. Merchants, thieves, cutthroats and adventurers all where welcome here.
Frost approached the big oaken door, in the center there was a small peephole that could be opened or closed form the other side by moving a small piece of wood. Before knocking the door Frost pulled Luna closer. He pushed her into the shadows and said in a very soft but strict tone. "Do not make eye contact or speak with anyone here. If they knew who you where we would have trouble on our hands. And after this long journey that is something we both can't handle."
Luna just looked at him with a glazed look.
"Do you understand? " He asked.
No reply came.
"Do you understand? " He asked more firmly shaking her a bit. This seemed to do the trick. She nodded her head and Frost turned away from her. With one smooth motion he raised his hand, made it into a fist and slammed it on the oaken door.
Within seconds he could hear footsteps coming closer. After a little fumbling noise the little piece of wood slid away. In its place half of a face appeared. The eyes where dull, glazed over with thin strands of oily hair hanging in front of it.. The was nose big, bulgy and flat with a wart near the bottom.
"Who is it?" a gruff male voice asked.
"travelers seeking shelter for the night." Frost replied equally gruff.
"how many?" The man asked.
"1 room, 2 beds." Frost said calmly.
"4 gold coins." The man said.
"That won't be a problem. " Frost said.
"Show me." Was all that the man said.
Frost reached for his money purse, opened it and took out four coins. He showed it to the innkeeper.
The little hatch closed. A few moments of silence ticked by until the sound of a lock being opened filled his ears. Moments later the big wooden door was opened and the sounds and smell of food and people greeted them.
Frost gently grabbed Luna's arm and guided her into the inn. The place was even bigger on the inside. There were several huge tables with people feasting, talking and drinking. Scantily dressed women walked through the place with plates of food and pints of beer.
He scanned the room. Everybody seemed too preoccupied with their own business to notice their arrival. That was good. He quickly gave the pudgy innkeeper the gold coins who in turn gave them directions to their room. Without a moment's notice Frost guided Luna through the dining hall and up the stairs to their room.
Only once the door had closed to the moderate size room with two simple beds, a table and 2 chairs Frost was able to drop his guard and relax a bit. He swung the backpack from his shoulder and threw it on the bed. Luna had already plumped down on her bed and it wouldn't be long before she would be asleep. Frost however still had some work to do. He grabbed his backpack off the bed and sat down on one of the chairs. He opened the pack and took what appeared to be a very old map from it. He laid it down on the table, smoothed it out and started plotting.
It had been exactly seventeen days since they had left her father's palace. At first the travel went fast and easy. Horseback could carry them many miles and it made travel from town to town easy. But it had also drawn a lot of attention to them and many time Frost had to defend against cutthroats and enemies to the throne. After a fight particulate vile clan of mercenaries Frost had decided to carry on, on foot so they could stick to shadows and back roads. This however also meant that they had lost quite a bit of time, time they could not spare.
Frost sat there looking at the map, thinking about what to do next. Although there was not much thought to be had. He knew the only road that was still available to them was Darkroad. A vile, treacherous path that he had not dared to take before. But there was no other option. He took a deep breath and sighed. If they where to take Darkroad they had to rest and resupply. This would mean that they had to stay in Graymaine much longer then he anticipated. The King had given him a royal supply of gold, that was not the problem. It was the company they found themselves in. He sighed again. He would have to worry about that tomorrow.
Chapter 2
The next day crept up on them fast. As much as Frost had tried to stay awake during the night exhaustion gotten a hold of him and he had fallen asleep. It was well into the morning before he woke up. Luna still lay sleeping. Frost knew he had pushed the poor girl the brink. Things were about to get much worse so he let her sleep.
He quickly changed clothes, grabbed the purse of coins and headed downstairs. The smell of baked eggs, ham and bread came wafting in as he entered the room. Apparently breakfast had turned into lunch. Hunger clenched his stomach and he almost fainted.
"You look like you could use some food." A gruff male voice said.
It was the innkeeper from before. The eerie sunset had given the man a dark, menacing look. Where distrust and menace lay before Frost could only see hospitality and good intent now.
"Yes please." Frost said. "I'm starving."
"Gretta ." the innkeeper yelled.
Seconds later a cheerful, chubby looking woman came walking from the kitchen. She had half long curly hair tied up with a piece of cloth. Her face was puffy and radiated a blissful happiness. Dressed in a long blue and white skirt she came walking up.
"Yes love." She said with an accent Frost had never heard before.
"Can you get this man some food?" The innkeeper asked.
"Sure love." Gretta replied.
With a face bright as sunshine she asked Frost what he wanted to eat.
"Simple bread and water will suffice." He said.
"Nonsense." Gretta said. "No man can live on bread and water. Let Gretta make you a proper lunch, you look like you could use it."
And with that she wandered back into the kitchen.
"Anything else I can help you with sir?" the innkeeper asked.
"as a matter of fact there is." Frost replied as he pulled up a chair and sat down. "I would like to extend our stay."
"By how long?" the innkeeper asked.
"A couple of days." Frost replied. "I will also need some supplies. Food, water and such."
"That will be expensive." The innkeeper replied.
Without saying a word Frost threw a small purse on the table. The innkeeper looked at it suspiciously. With his stubby fingers he reached for the purse. As soon as he lay his hand on it Frost smacked his down trapping the innkeepers hand in a death grip. He then quickly stood up, knocking back his chair, grabbed his dagger and put it at the innkeepers neck. The innkeeper looked at Frost, his eyes peered open in shock.
"This stays between us." Frost said menacing. "If someone asks you don't know who we are, why we need the supplies or where we are going."
"B..b..but I don't know those answers anyway." The innkeeper said, his voice obviously drenched in fear. Frost carefully looked at the man, at his posture. A thick scar ran from one side of his throat to the other. Frost had not noticed this before but he sure as hell did now. The innkeeper looked like a man carrying the immense burden of mortality with him. It was then that Frost realized that this poor man had been robbed, threatened and abused so many times that even the slightest inkling of violence sent him into shock.
Quickly he let go of the innkeepers hand. It took the man a few minutes to get back to reality. However once he saw the content of the purse he quickly reverted to his normal self.
"The remainder you can keep." Frost said trying to make up for what had happened moments ago.
This had lid up a spark and everything had appeared to be forgotten.
"I will ask Gretta to run a bath for the young lady." The innkeeper said as he stood up.
The innkeeper tried to walk away but Frost grabbed his hand once more, although this time he left his dagger shied and his voice less menacing.
"Innkeeper, what is your name?" He asked with just enough glare in his voice to raise the hair on the innkeepers neck."
"Thomas." The innkeeper replied. "Thomas Parker."
Without saying a further word Frost let go of the man's hand and walked out of the room, up the stairs and back to their room. He entered the room to find Luna still asleep. It appeared the innkeepers wife had gone upstairs and dressed Luna in a nightgown. Frost looked at the beautiful young face bathed in the splendid tranquility of sleep. She truly was a extraordinary young woman. Beautiful to the eye with a raging fire unlike he had ever seen inside. It was vital that they reached their destination before midwinter. Still Frost couldn't bring himself to waking her.
"One more day." He sat to himself as he plumped on the bed.
A soft tapping on the door filled the room which immediately caused Frost to jump off the bed and reach for his dagger.
"Who is there?" he whispered, his voice filled with sedated a rage that could explode at any given time.
The door slowly opened and Gretta's cubby but cheerful face appeared. Frost quickly put his dagger back and relaxed.
"I fixed a bath for the young lady but I was unable to wake her." Gretta said in her strange accent.
This made Frost snicker. He knew that if she really wanted to wake Luna she would have no problems with it.
"Why don't you take a bath mister." She said in a cheerful tone. "It's a shame to let all that hot water get cold."
Frost thought for a second. A moment to himself, to get clean of both mind and body would be welcome. But he couldn't leave Luna unattended.
Seeing the worry in Frost's eyes Gretta stepped in the room.
"Is she your daughter?" she asked in a caring tone.
"No." Frost said calmly. He really shouldn't be answering questions but this lovely woman seemed no menace. "She is my friends daughter and it is my duty to see her safe passage to The temple of Wonar.
Shock, sympathy and angst crept into the woman's posture. Her eyes started to tear.
"You mean she is the one?" Gretta asked, fighting back a tear."
"Yes." Frost said solemnly. "she is the one."
"I never understood this barbaric bloodletting ritual" Gretta said.
Frost didn't understand why this ritual had been preformed so many times aside from the fact that it was needed to keep the chains of magic bounded to this earth.
"Heavens protect her." Gretta said as she slumped out of the room, head bowed down. "I will keep an eye on her." Where the last words she spoke as she left the room.
Somehow Frost knew that for the time being Luna would be safe so he walked out of the room and entered another. This room was filled with steam, thick clouds of it came bellowing out the moment he opened the door. In the center of the room was a big wooden basin with a small cooking fire underneath it. Frost quickly undressed and stepped in the hot water. The sensation of warmth was overwhelming and Frost quickly entered a state of relaxation.
After about an hour of pure bliss he stepped out of the bath and dried himself off. Without Frost noticing it Gretta had brought him a clean fit of clothes. She had taken his old, dirty clothes Frost guessed to be cleaned. Of course she had left the several items Frost always carried with him wherever he went.
Frost quickly dried himself off and got dressed. He swung his dagger belt, made from the finest leather in the kingdom around his waist and sheathed the daggers. Then he quickly proceeded to walk out of the bathing room and head back to their room where he found Gretta sitting patiently in front of their door.
"had a nice bath?" She asked him cheerfully. At least she tried to. Frost could see that his revelation had upset her so, more for her sake then his own he put on a big smile and replied with "it was wonderful. He then thanked her for the clean fit of clothes and quickly entered the room.
Luna had just woken up and was desperately looking for her clothes.
"The innkeepers wife took them to get cleaned." Frost said as he walked into the room.
Luna looked up startled at the sudden interruption. "You're clean?" where the first words to leave her lips. "How did you get clean?" She followed up.
"The innkeepers wife ran a bath for you but you where sound asleep." Frost replied.
"So you stole my bath?" Luna asked a bit jealous but teasing but Frost ignored the comment.
Frost looked around the room. Nothing much had changed. Gretta had put clean sheets on his bed and. Did his eyes deceive him? No they didn't. It was real. At least it looked real. He took a step forward to the table and touched it. Yup, it was real. He quickly sat down and took a knife. With one swift motion he cut the piece of meat in two and put one half on his plate.
"Sit down at eat." He said to Luna. We will get you cleaned and find you some clothes after.
Luna eagerly did as she was told. It had been tempting for her to not touch the food when she had woken up. Before they had started their journey, when she still lived with her father she wouldn't have hesitated a moment and would have started eating. But this trip had changed her. She somehow seemed to care about her guardian, who before had been nothing more than a servant, a soldier at best.
The next half our they spent feasting on the food that Gretta had left them. Wild boar, cooked potatoes, bread. That woman had thought of everything and everything tasted like the food of the gods. It had been long since they had eaten like this.
After lunch Frost left the room to find Gretta. He didn't have to search long. She had been pacing down the hall, waiting for them to finish their lunch.
"Gretta, can you run a bath for the lady please?" Frost said, careful not to disclose Luna's identity. She already knew more than Frost wanted her to know and he did not want to endanger her. After all, this place was filled with men for which scum was a compliment.
"Already done." She replied. "I also bought her some new clothes with the money you provided my husband."
"You truly are an angel." Frost said trying to do his best to give her an compliment. "Thank you for everything."
Gretta's face turned red in embarrassment. She obviously wasn't used to getting comments of that nature. Especially not since Frost was quite a handsome man now that the filth had been washed away. He had long, straight black hair, his blue eyes radiated strength. His face was shaped roughly, with stubble covering most of the lower half. So this was Frost's queue and he quickly headed back into the room.
"you're bath is ready." He said to Luna who was still eating hungrily. With these words Luna sprung up and ran to the door. It looked like the young lady wanted to shed the layer of filth that had covered her face for weeks now.
"End of the hall on the left side." Frost said before Luna could ask where to go.
She followed his directions and before he knew it she had left his line of sight. What he did see was Gretta following her on a distance, protecting her. This calmed the ever menacing sense of danger Frost had grown up with.
After a short wait on the bed he decided to head down, see how the Thomas was doing on the list of supplies. He took a few steps down the stairs and a feeling of trepidation unsettled him. Something was wrong, really wrong. He reached for his daggers and took them out, with one motion he shifted their direction so they where tip down. That way he could hide the daggers behind his thick arm.
He eased his step down the stairs and calmly moved downwards. Slowly but surely the big main room of the inn came in sight. What he saw validated his urge of trouble. Two men dressed in black leather and cloth one holding a huge spiked mace the other holding the innkeeper in a death grip.
Chapter 3
"Where did you get this much money old man?" The one holding Thomas asked threateningly.
"I.. I.. Earned it." Thomas replied at the verge of panic.
"I don't believe you." The man said angrily. "I will ask you one more time, where did you get this much money?"
During this short conversation Frost had managed to get on to the main floor and was now moving quickly and silently behind one of the men. Once he had reached the exact position he wanted to be in he cleared his throat and said "He got it from me." His voice booming through the Inn.
The man holding Thomas let go of him and quickly swung around. However it was already too late. Before his body had made the turn Frost had stuck his blade deeply into the man's back, severing his spine and crippling him. With a loud thud he fell to the ground, moments away from death.
This caused the other man in the room to enrage and launch himself at Frost who quickly stepped back, causing the man to crash into one of the big tables. Without a moments hesitance Frost stepped forward and kicked the man in the ribs causing him to crumble to the floor in pain.
"if you ever show your face again." Frost bellowed. "I will end you as I did your friend."
The second man got to his feet as fast as he could and ran out the door. Frost knew he should have killed the man but he had more pressing concerns.
"Are you alright?" he asked Thomas who only nodded his head.
"Please don't tell Gretta." He replied after getting his nerves under control. "She worries about me enough as it is."
Frost decided to keep his mouth shut and silently the men walked towards the bar.
"How are supplies coming along?" Frost asked after a few minutes of silence.
"I have most things you asked for." Thomas replied, happy to switch topics. "I have enough food to last you until the end of the month. The climbing equipment was hard to get a hold of, luckily we have a very skilled blacksmith, everything will be ready tomorrow. Gretta bought some clothes for you and the lady with the remainder of the money.
Frost gave the man his thanks and walked to the lifeless corpse of one of the bandits. With little effort he lifted the man's limb body from the ground and started to walk out of the inn. A few feet away from the wood he dropped the lifeless body. Whatever vile creature roamed this close to the edge of the wood would probably drag the body into the wood and feast upon the fresh kill.
He then dusted himself off, checked if he had any blood on him, which he did not. After all this was not the first time after all that Frost had carried the lifeless remains of what had only moments before been a living human being. For a few seconds he let the brisk midday air fill his longs before he headed back into the inn. Once he entered he saw that Thomas had cleaned the hall and all was as before. Gretta was still upstairs, keeping her watchful eyes on Luna.
The rest of the afternoon ticked by rapidly. It seemed that Luna had enjoyed her bath even more then he had enjoyed his. After about two hours since they had last seen she came walking down the stairs, Frost could not believe his eyes. Every step she took down the stairs her wavy blonde hair moved with her, her once dirty skin had its smooth white color back. She was dressed in a gorgeous long silken dress. It accentuated every bit of her perfect shape. Frost had to swallow before he was able to speak.
"I see your majesty has decided to grace us with her presence." Frost said mockingly.
Thomas the innkeeper started to laugh. Unbeknownst to him Frost's joke wasn't too far from reality.
Luna shrugged away the comment and sat down across Frost.
"I will make you something to eat." Gretta said with the familiar cheer back in her voice. "I will be back in a bit."
It didn't take Gretta too long to cook up a feast of a dinner. As before many meats, vegetables, breads and drink decorated the table in no time. All four of them partook heavily of the delicious food and each other's company. The innkeeper explained that during the day it was mostly the two of them alone here. Any guests that stayed at the inn usually left in the early morning and it wouldn't be until the evening that new ones arrived. Frost did his very best to show that they would be upstairs before the first guests arrived. He might be very comfortable with his hosts but not with some of the company they entertained. He didn't want a repeat of this afternoons events.
So after dinner and a few drinks the two departed for bed. He explained carefully to Luna what their path was to be and what dangers lay ahead.
"Because we couldn't travel safely on horseback we lost a lot of time." He explained. "So now we have to take the Darkroad through the Solemn woods. This is something I wished we could have avoided cause the Solemn woods is home to many of our lands dark creatures."
This seemed to leave Luna unmoved.
"Creatures immune to magic." Frost continued. This last comment did scare Luna. All her life, her form of magic, as uncontrollable as it was, was the only form of protection she could muster herself. At the height of the war this was her only defense against assassins. "To make it even worse we have to take the Darkroad, which is the counter opposite of Whitehaven."
"How do you mean?" Luna asked. "I never heard of a opposite to Whitehaven."
"That's because people don't speak about it." Frost explained. "Whitehaven is where children are bathed and granted their talent. Darkroad does the opposite, it can take away these talents."
"You mean it can take away my magic?" Luna asked frightened.
"We are not sure. I met with the Council elder and even he had no clear answer to this question." Frost said. "They however did advice me to not use the road unless we had no other option."
"Which we do not have." Luna said, desperation creeping into her voice.
Silence once again filled the room. Neither of them knew exactly what to say to comfort the other. In the end it was Frost who broke the silence.
"Luckily neither of us is a pushover, and we have survived worse things than this." Frost stood up and walked to the candle that served as the rooms only point of light. He extinguished the flame with his fingers and the room entered a strange almost eerily looking twilight. "let us get some sleep, we leave tomorrow."
The next morning arrived fast and Frost was woken by the sound of Gretta banging on the door.
He quickly got out of bed , sprinted to the door and opened it. Gretta entered, covered in blood, her face a wash of sweat, dirt and dried blood.
"What happened?" Frost asked in shock.
"They came back." Gretta said numbly.
"Who did?" Frost asked.
"those men you scared off yesterday." Gretta said.
Frost felt an unease creep up his spine.
"They wanted to know where you had gone." Gretta said. "when Thomas didn't tell them what they wanted to know they…" Gretta started to cry.
"Where are they now?" Frost asked in a panic but Gretta didn't answer. She was clearly upset as to what had taken place last night. Instead she took him to see Thomas. The man was badly beaten. His face was covered in bruises and blood, one of his fingers was cut off and various cuts where made with a crudely shaped blade.
Frost quickly ran back to his room and took his pack from the table. The noise had awoken Luna and she had heard every word of it.
"Let me help." She said knowing how Frost would reply. "You know I can."
"We can't, not this close to the woods." Frost replied. "Who knows what horrors magic that pure would attract."
Frost quickly rushed back to Thomas and threw his pack on the floor. From it he took a small kit containing some bandages, powders and ointments. He took one of the ointments and rubbed it on the bruised face.
"This should help him heal faster." He said. He then proceeded by lifting Thomas' arm and taking a look at his cut off finger. Blood came gushing from the wound. "Get me a red hot poker from the fireplace." He said to Gretta, who immediately did so.
Gretta had quickly ran to get the poker and handed it to Frost. He used the orange shining top to singe close the small stump on his hand forcing the wound closed. "That should stop the bleeding." Frost said. "He will just have to get used to living with nine fingers."
Now Frost started to take a look at the cuts on the man's chest. He ripped open the cloth shirt the man was wearing. The cloth gave way easily enough and bore witness to a chest riddled with scars. This had clearly not been the first time that the man had been stabbed and Frost got a sneaking suspicion that if Thomas did not find a different place to live it would not be the last either.
Other than the old, healed wounds there were several deep, fresh cuts. Most seemed to be superficial and a bit of ointment would help them heal faster. But there where was one cut that cause Frost to give up hope. One deep cut was made on the right side of his chest, right below his breast. The man was lucky to still be breathing. Frost prepared for the worst. He raised his head and looked at Gretta. The sorrow in his eyes showed what fate awaited Thomas and Gretta started to cry. She collapsed to the floor and threw herself on the man.
"Get aside Frost." Luna said determined. "I want to do this."
Frost knew he couldn't say no to her so he said the only other thing he could say to deter her form what she was about to do. "you will ruin their lives."
"At least they will be alive." She replied, the determination clearly audible in her voice. "Besides I have a plan."
Luna walked over to Gretta and lift her head. "Do you want him to live?" she asked. Gretta nodded, unable to speak through the sobs. "I can cure him but you will need to leave her, get far, far away."
It took her a few seconds but Gretta managed to get her voice under control enough to speak. Once she did though it was clear what she wanted. "Save him."
Luna pushed Frost aside, gently lifted Gretta off the dying Thomas and motioned for her to get back. "Spirits praise this man for aiding us in our time of need." She said.
She kneeled down next to them man, placed her hand only a few inches above his wound and closed her eyes. Nothing happened for a few seconds until a strange white glow engulfed Luna. It started from her heart and slowly moved up, surrounding her entire body, and then it moved down, reaching for Thomas. She opened her eyes. Where once where the most gorgeous of green eyes was now only whiteness. The extended white stream coming from Luna's hand touched Thomas and spread around the wound. Once the wound was completely surrounded the light became as bright as the sun, Gretta and Frost had to close their eyes. Once the light had faded and they opened their eyes again Luna was back to her normal self, albeit a bit strained from her effort. Their eyes quickly moved to Thomas, more specifically to his wound which had completely disappeared.
Gretta gasped. Not ever in her entire life had she seen something this magnificent, this special. She flew at Luna, giving her the warmest hug she had ever given someone meanwhile she kept saying. "thank you child."
After a few minutes Luna managed to pry herself out of Gretta's warm embrace, "he's not out of the woods yet." Luna said, "some of the wounds will take some time to heal."
"But that can't happen here." Frost interjected. "You will have to leave here immediately."
"Why?" Gretta asked. "What is wrong with this place? He can rest here and recover his strength."
"The magic that was just used is one of the oldest, most ancient forms of magic." Frost explained. "There are many creatures in the Solemn Woods that are attracted to this magic."
Gretta gasped. "What do we do?"
"you leave." Frost said. "Use the money I have given you to buy two fast horses and leave this place to never return."
"But we have nowhere to go." Gretta said. "This tavern is all we have."
"Go to the royal palace." Luna said. "Ask for a consultation with the king and give him this." Luna brought her right hand over her finger and removed one of the many rings she wore. "tell him you helped us in our time of need. He will make sure you are taken care of."
Gretta took the ring from Luna and stood up. She brought her head close to Luna's and kissed her on the top of her head. "Bless you child." She said. "You are pure of heart indeed."
Meanwhile Thomas had regained consciousness and was listening to the conversation. Unable to find the words to thank Luna for what she had done a tear ran down his face.
It only took them only a few hours to gather some supplies. Frost gave Gretta a small container with ointment and told her to make sure that he was never without until the wounds had completely healed. In return Gretta handed Frost a big pack with supplies. Everything that he had asked Thomas to get him was in there. After a emotional goodbye the four parted ways, Frost and Luna heading towards the Solemn Forest, the former innkeeper and his wife the opposite direction.
Chapter 4
After half an hour march into the forest Luna saw black smoke rise up into the air. She wondered where that came from. Frost informed her that he had told the couple to burn the inn, so no unsuspecting soul would wander in and have to face whatever foul beast.
The forest was thick, with dense growth everywhere. There was no real path to speak off as no living soul dared to enter the forest. In it dangerous creatures dwelt. Dwarves had long ago populated the forest. The corrupt magic inside the place had stripped them of their dwarvenhood and turned them into fierce creatures called Gouren. To meet a pack of those would mean certain death. But even these creatures stayed away from the Darkroad. Nobody quite knew how the Darkroad was made. Nor did they know how its counterpart, the Whitehaven was made either. Speculations of magnificent creatures called Nightshades and Dayshades building these places to worship their gods and demons often roamed the lands. Frost never paid much attention to these rumors though.
Struggling through the forest was exhausting. The thick branches and high grass made marching through there extremely hard. Frost had asked Thomas to make him a long knife so he could cut away some of the branches. This might make walking easier but the constant clatter of steel and wood made him very tired. After a tough 4 hour march they had reached their location, Darkroad.
Darkroad was, as its name suggests a road made out of pitch black stones. Once you set foot on the road you cannot leave it until you have reached its end, about 100 miles further.
"Before we start, we rest." Frost said. "make sure you don't touch the bricks. Once on it we have to continue."
Luna looked at the long winding road. "It doesn't look that menacing." She said. "If it really drives away the creatures it might actually be the safest route through this forest."
Frost thought for a moment about what she said. "Well yes, it drives away certain creatures. But walking the Darkroad is not without its cost." He finally replied. "It can after all take away what Whitehaven gave."
"What a blessing that would be." Luna sighed. Her gift was a true burden for her. But she carried it like nobody else could. She truly was the strongest person he had ever met. Then again, he figured every keeper was like that. They were born with an innate strength of mind, body and heart.
Frost threw his backpack on the floor and started fishing through it. After a few seconds he found what he was looking for, A small stone and a crooked wooden branch with a string tied between the two ends. He looked around, grabbed a few pieces of dry wood and quickly started to make a fire. On the second time he managed to get it lit and make a small campfire, just enough to provide enough heat. "Come sit closer to it, warm yourself up a bit." He told Luna, who didn't have to be told twice. They both snuggled up to the fire and bathed in the heat. Frost once again started fishing in his pack. This time he took out a piece of bread. He ripped the bread in two even parts and gave one to Luna. In dead silence they both sat there, eating dry bread by a small fire.
After about half an hour Frost thought it prudent to start moving again. So they quickly doused the fire and packed up their belongings. "Well, let's head off." Frost said after a few minutes. "I will go first."
They walked up to the pitch black stones. Frost stood there for a few seconds, looking at the stones. The smell of sulfur filled his nose and the wind was eerily dead. He raised his left foot and put it on the stone. The second his foot touched the black stone he felt an shock shoot through his entire body. It felt as if the stone he had stepped on dragged his foot down, claiming it for itself. Carefully he put pressure on his leg and raised his other foot. He placed it on another stone. He stood there for a little while, waiting for the world to collapse. None so dark a fate happened so carefully he took a step. The strange density of the stones cause them to make no noise what so ever when walked up on. When Frost was sure everything was as fine he lead Luna on the path. Where Frost felt a dragging sensation upon first contact with the stones Luna felt something far different. To her it felt more as if the stones belonged to her. Well not her… her past lives. As if she had been here before. Once she had planted her second foot a vision came to her.
There was a young maiden with brown eyes and red hair that seemed as if it was fire itself. dressed in completely red. Beside her was an old woman, she must have been in her seventies. She used a cane to walk and was not much taller than a twelve year old child. On her other side there was a big, muscled man. He was built like an ox and it seemed that he could split the earth whenever he wanted to. The woman in red had a dagger in her hand, it was ornately decorated and Luna had a feeling she had seen the dagger before. The woman tested the sharpness of the dagger with her finger tip. It was as sharp as it could be. Without a moment hesitation she took the blade and cut into to palm of her hand, blood came gushing from the cut and Luna felt like she could faint at any moment. Seconds later the blade was in the older woman's hand, she did the same. Followed by the giant ox of a man. Once all three had cut themselves and sufficient blood had collected in their cupped hand they stretched it out and dropped the blood in a chalice.
All of a sudden the Ox man looked behind him in shock. "Fro, Laza koro na!" the man bellowed. Luna had no idea what the words meant. It was a language she had never heard before. Within her mind's eye however she understood perfectly what was said. The man said, "Mother, we have been betrayed." Without a moment's notice the Ox of a man rips a boulder from the ground and chucks it in the distance. The red haired woman looks around, stretches her arms and conjures up a big stream of fire. The old lady however is far more wise and she looks around carefully, studying the surroundings. Her eyes scan every bit until her eyes meet those of Luna. She raises her hands and with one swift motion the vision is ended and reality came crashing back.
"Luna?" Frost said, panicky shaking Luna as if she was asleep. She had clearly been standing there completely motionless for the entire ordeal. "Are you in there?"
She looked at the big man that was standing in front of her. Frost had always done his best to protect her and never asked for anything in return. He truly was a honorable man.
"yes, I am fine." She said. It was true, physically she was fine. But emotionally. She felt like she had just witnessed something private, something ancient and something very powerful. She decided she'd ask Frost about it during their walk on this weird looking path.
After Frost was certain that Luna was alright he decided it was best for them to get a head start and walk as far for that day as their legs could carry them. As far has he was concerned the less time they spent on this path the better. So they started walking. At first things went pretty well but soon enough exhaustion started to kick in. All of a sudden Luna asked him the strangest question.
"Frost, why would anyone cut their hand open and put the blood in a cup?" She asked. Frost was stumped. For what reason was she asking this.
"I don't know." He replied. "I guess for some kind of blood magic. But there hasn't been a wizard, witch or warlock alive for a thousand years who understands blood magic."
"So nobody in a thousand years has tried to use it?" Luna asked, her interest peaked.
"plenty have tried and all of them have died." Frost replied. "Blood magic is extremely powerful and dangerous. If one does not understand it completely the spell will backfire and kill the person trying to wield it."
"What would happen if three powerful wizards would put their blood in one cup and use that?" She asked pryingly. She felt guilty not telling Frost the real reason for her questions but what she saw, the ritual, it felt so private. She could not dare to violate this trust that whomever gave her the vision put in her.
"The only story that comes remotely close to what you are asking is the ancients myth on how magic was created." Frost replied. "They believed that three of the gods, Hersus the god of strength and courage, Crea the goddess of Passion and love and their mother, Feldara the goddess of wisdom and age combined their blood to create the very magic we use now a days."
Luna stood dumbfounded, Frost just explained exactly what she saw and called it a myth. For the life of her she could not come up with a single reason as to why anyone would send her that vision. Finally she managed the courage to continue. "What happened then?"
"we don't exactly know." Frost said. "From what little artifacts we found on their believes it appears that the Dragonfather Keepa betrayed them and ruined the ceremony. During the ceremony the chalice containing the blood was knocked over and spilled. For nine days it rained blood upon the world, infusing it with the magic we use now. It was believed that right then and there the Keeper was born as well."
An awkward silence filled the quiet forest. They had not spoken much about what was to happen when they reached the end of their quest. They both knew that it was not going to be pleasant.
"I'm sorry." Frost finally said. "I didn't mean to bring it up."
"It's ok." Luna said somberly. "I have come to terms with what is to happen. I have known this was to be my fate for many years now and I have come to grips with it."
Frost stood thunderstruck. He had served alongside many men, led them into battle against a foe twice their size but never in his life had he met someone this brave. He put his arm around her. For the first time in his life had he not felt superior or beneath her. They were both equals.
The fact that Frost put his arm around her to comfort her felt strangely out of place and strangely good. She couldn't quite place what upset her more. The fact that what a month ago had been a servant put his arm around her or that she actually liked it. She decided to hold her thong and followed his example. There they walked, arms around each other, through the most feared forest and on the road no living soul dared to set foot on. Frost loved the irony.
The miles slowly ticked under their feet as the days passed. Many thousands of miles had they crossed together before they entered these cursed woods and never did either of them share the slightest inkling of affection for one another. But in these woods it was different. In his eyes she was the most gorgeous woman he had ever seen. Her eyes sparkled as the stars in the heavens, her hair flowed like waves in a river. It wasn't long until they slept close to each other for other reasons besides keeping warm.
On the last day before they would arrive at their location Frost felt a sense of unease. Something was watching them from high up in the sky but I couldn't put his finger on it. Many times did he look up at the sky to see if he could spot anything but it was to no avail. After they had eaten their breakfast, which by now was old bread and dried meat, they decided to start walking again. Frost quickly stood up, grabbed his pack, swung it on his shoulder and helped Luna on her feet. She in turn gave him a kiss on his ever growing beard. After about two miles the shades of a building appeared in the distance. They stopped. It looks like they had almost reached their destination. It was Luna who had to push on Frost this time. She had lived with this inevitable fate all her life and she was ready for it. He had at long last found love in his life and wasn't able to let go yet. But in the end his loyalty to her gave the upper hand and they started moving into the direction of the temple.
It didn't take them long to reach the temple. It was right at the end of the dark road. However there was a problem. To enter the temple they had to step off the Darkroad. Before Frost could raise a hand however Luna jumped off the stone road and onto the soft grass. Nothing seemed to happen. Frost followed her example. Nothing. "strange" he thought.
The temple was immense. "At one time this place must have held up to a thousand worshippers." Frost thought. A cast iron gate barred the entrance to the temple, Frost shook it. Nothing happened. It again was Luna to the rescue. She swung her pack from her shoulder and rummaged in it. From it she pulled a cast iron key which had the same decorations as the gate to the temple had. She put the key in the lock and twisted it. With a loud metallic clang the door opened. Frost pressed against the gate door and which a deafening squeak it opened. They slowly marched in. On the left side there were several colossal statues. One was of a lizard like man wielding a sword that appeared to be made of fire. The sword was in mid swing, clanging onto a shield held by another man. He was build like an ox with big muscles'. Next to the Ox man was a woman with long wavy hair. She had her arms extended and a huge stream of stone flames extended from it. The stone flames where directed at tiny little dragon whelps finally behind them was an smaller statue, about a head taller than Frost was. It was the statue of a little old lady holding a cane. She seemed to be preoccupied with something else as she wasn't crafted in a battle stance or anything like that. Frost was impressed with the craftsmanship of these statues but nothing else. Luna on the other hand was a different story. She stood gasping at the spectacle of these huge statues. And she knew all too well what the story behind this battle was.
After the initial shock of these impressive buildings another shock came to them when they turned to the right side of the courtyard. A huge plot was there surrounded by big walls. Inside these walls there was a graveyard with hundreds of filled graves. At the end of the line of graves there were several hundred empty graves with untainted gravestones in front of them. A tear ran over Luna's cheeks. She might be brave but facing her own mortality like this was quite harsh. They quickly moved through the graveyard and into the temple.
The outside of the temple was unbelievable. From what Frost could see it had several floors to it and many, many rooms. The door into the temple was open. It was a narrow corridor which took them to an immense room. "It was so big that it could fit a small castle on the inside. This must have been where they had their rituals." Frost said but Luna shook her head. "No." She said. I have seen this place many times in my dreams. This is where they had their praying sessions, nothing more. The ritual was held there, in a small garden."
Luna pointed to another, pitch black corridor. Several red flames decorated the entire entrance. It was almost as if they walked into the fires of the underworld. Neither of them spoke, afraid to upset the other. Doing his best to comfort Luna Frost reached for her hand and put it on his chest where his heart is. "You will always be here." He whispered to her. This opened the floodgates. The both of them hugged intensely not willing to let go. But they both know it had to be done. If the ritual was not completed before moonlights end the world would lose everything.
They started walking through the barely lit corridor. It let them to an open corridor. At the center of it there was a small, square garden. Flame red flowers bloomed everywhere. At the center of the garden there was a big grey stone with a chalice imbedded in it.
This was it, in a few hours Frost would lose the first and only love in his life. He could not face it and turned away from the sight. Luna was strong for the both of them and climbed upon the stone. The stone was big enough so she could lay down and spread her arms and legs to make what looked like an big X.
"Frost." She said calmly. "You have to…"
"I can't." He replied as he came close to her.
"You have to." She repeated herself. "Or you doom us all."
Frost reached into his belt and took the dagger the Elder had given him. It was a dagger made from the most precious materials in the world and it was decorated with all kinds of symbols.
He raised the dagger high above his head. "I am sorry." He said as she stared into her beautiful eyes. A tear rolled down her eyes. "I don't blame you." She whispered. "And I love you."
With these words Frost brought the dagger down as fast as he could, it sliced through the air but right before the blade touched her flesh he pulled back and threw the dagger away.
"I can't." he yelled. "Damned be magic, I won't kill the woman I love."
Luna started to cry. "You have to, you have to." She said between the sobs."
"What vicious, malevolent god would give us magic but at the cost of love." He yelled through the room. The daylight that moments ago had shone brightly in the garden suddenly disappeared. A big hulking shadow blocked out the sun and Luna let out a shriek.
From the sky came flying a dragon the size not seen for centuries. Frost fell to his knees in shock.
"No god would demand that from you mortal." The dragon said. "Love is one of the most precious things in this world. But this love is not yours."
Frost gathered all his courage and with a weak voice he said. "What do you mean not my love? I love this woman with all my heart."
"The spark might be there young one but the flame is that of your ancestors." The dragon said. "Kiera, Jazan. Show yourself."
What appeared to be white essences left the bodies of both Frost and Luna. They looked around bewildered of what happened. The essences glided through the air and landed on the ground, standing but yards apart from each other.
Now that they had fully congealed Frost could see that it was a man and a woman. They were dressed in ancient royal garments.
"We owe you an explanation" The woman said. "My name is Keira and this is my husband Jazan. We where the first to make this journey to the temple."
Jazan continued the story. "Back then this place was filled with many worshippers. When we stood for the same decision fate as you I made a similar choice you did. I could not bring myself to murder the woman I love so I sank the dagger into my own stomach hoping to appease the gods that way."
"The worshippers however did not approve of my husband's loyalty." Keira continued. "They were enraged at what they saw as blasphemy and they made sure that the ritual was preformed after all."
"This act cursed both the worshippers and this couple to forever wander the Darkroad." The dragon said. "The curse caused them to possess the body of every person who wandered onto the Darkroad. The love you felt for each other was not your own but that of these cursed souls."
The dragon flapped his big wings in the air and took off. But not before his dark voice filled the courtyard. "The ritual still has to take place."
"The dragon was partly right." Keira said. "We did possess your bodies from the moment you set foot on those stones."
"So it was you who sent me that vision?" Luna asked.
"Yes." Keira said. "I thought it was important for you to see why you where about to sacrifice you're life. However after being for this long we realized something."
The two souls started to fade away and their voices became weaker.
"what did you realize?"Frost asked desperately. "Tell us!"
"It takes but a drop of blood to…" Keira said but she had already faded and could not finish the sentence.
Frost understood though and he grabbed the dagger he had previously thrown away and walked over to Luna. With one smooth move he helped her off the stone altar. He then grabbed her hand and kept it in a strong grip, with little effort on his part he cut in the tip of index finger. Blood immediately gushed out of the small wound and formed a droplet. It grew and grew in size until it was so big that it could no longer stick to Luna's finger. Quickly Frost dragged Luna's hand over the cup and the drop of blood fell in the cup, thunder filled the air the moment the droplet had hit the cup.
"that's it?" Luna asked.
"that's it." Frost said.
They both embraced each other which was followed by a tender kiss.
FIN – For now.