DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN VALIANT FORCE
Valiant Force: Snowed Maiden
Bladesman could not believe his eyes. The Fairyland Heroes; Red Riding Hood, Aladdin, and Alice, all gravely wounded and lying in pools of their own blood. The fair maiden, Snow White, stood over them with cruelty in her eyes and a twisted smile upon her lips. The grisly sight was something out of a nightmare, but the fear and terror the greenhorn summoner felt was all too real.
"Why would you do this to your allies, Snow!?" Bladesman struggled to keep his voice from cracking.
An eerie, soul-chilling laugh echoed in the chamber. It was sweet and alluring, but carried malice and venom.
A dark miasma rapidly enveloped the room, spreading from the corners towards the summoner and his fallen comrades. The evil mist formed tendrils and lunged towards Bladesman.
"Cragen Hud!" Bladesman instinctively raised both hands in front of him. A faint blue sphere enveloped the summoner.
The black tendrils slammed against his shield, cracking the sphere with each strike. Maintaining the defensive spell was draining his magic rapidly. He had never fully mastered control over his magic flow.
"Hmm. Not bad for a novice." A sultry voice echoed from behind Snow White.
The tendrils retreated from their assault, and the miasma began to form a pillar next to the fair maiden. A woman of breath-taking beauty emerged from the dark pillar and stood next to Snow White. Her unique robes of teal and gold scantily revealed the curves of her voluptuous body. Her gorgeous face carried a regal air, with piercing magenta eyes that looked down upon Bladesman. Gold and turquoise ornaments braided her smooth, shiny oak brown hair. A crown of unknown origin adorned the woman's head.
"You should be honoured to have me grace you with my presence." she smiled.
"Dark Lord Maya! What did you do to Snow White, you manipulative bitch!" Bladesman snarled at the smiling woman.
The Dark Lord walked behind Snow, running her slender fingers over her shoulders.
"I merely showed her what true power is. She succumbed to it, like any other fool." Maya took the fair maiden's hand and raised it up. She clutched an apple with a small bite in her hand.
A white flame erupted at Snow White's feet and slowly engulfed her. The fire faded away, revealing the fair maiden in new clothes. She wore a risqué tube dress as white as her fair skin, a grey cloak lined with fur, and adorned with thorny roses, and a crown of silver and rubies.
"The purest of hearts are the easiest to corrupt." Maya sneered, taking a step forward towards the summoner and his fallen allies.
Bladesman took a step back, not taking his eyes off the Dark Lord. He knew he was outmatched.
"We have to retreat to the garrison." the summoner thought, glancing at the wounded heroes.
Snow White waved her wand and launched a bolt of pitch-black energy towards him.
The bolt struck Bladesman in the chest and brought him to his knees. He could feel the intense heat radiate from his chest out to his whole body. The electrifying pain kept him down.
The corrupted maiden began hurling a salvo of energy bolts at him.
"Cragen Hud!" he cast another magic shell on him.
Bolt after bolt slammed against the barrier, each strike straining Bladesman's magic further.
"What's the matter, young summoner? Are you afraid to duel with your little friend?" Maya let out a haughty laugh.
He stared at Snow White. Long, silky straight, raven black hair, alluring amber eyes, and rosy red cheeks. Despite the maiden's grim expression, she was still the fairest of them all. He knew that somewhere in there, his ally still remains fighting for control. He could help her break free from the Dark Lord's grip. But not now.
"Forgive me, Snow… I promise I WILL come back for you." Bladesman closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He put his hands down, dispelling his barrier.
"What's this? Accepted our fate, have we? Finish him off." Maya said.
"Yes…Mistress…" Snow White droned, unleashing another volley of bolts.
"Amsugno!" The summoner put his arms together, forming a cross.
The magic bolts hit Bladesman, but instead of killing him it dissipated and a faint purple light outlined the summoner. Elders always said that absorbing magic is dangerous in itself. Absorbing dark magic, even more so. He knew that well, but at this point he was desperate to escape.
"Nhywell!" He thrusted his palm forward and a small orb of light launched out.
The orb flew towards Maya and Snow White, and exploded in a flash of blinding light that engulfed the whole room.
The two women recoiled and shielded their eyes.
"You think a cheap trick can defeat me!?" Maya hissed.
"Defeat? No. Distract? Yes." Bladesman got down on one knee and touched the ground.
A runic circle formed around him and the wounded Fairyland heroes.
"Porth: Garrison"
The circle shone brightly, humming with energy. The runes began to spin, faster and faster.
"YOU WILL NOT ESCAPE!" the Dark Lord roared, blindly unleashing a barrage of black energy bolts.
The runes stopped spinning and flashed.
Bladesman and the Fairyland Heroes were no longer there. In their wake, three pools of blood, and the smell of scorched fabric remained.
"Blade! Hey Blade!" a woman's voice called out to him.
He regained consciousness, and found himself amidst the scattered splinters of a broken table. A young woman was kneeling next to him, with a wooden platter tucked underneath her arm. She wore an olive green dirndl laced with white and red, and thigh-high white stockings. Her grey eyes, usually shining with hospitality and enthusiasm, carried worry and confusion. Her long, ocean blue hair was styled into twin tails with two black silk ribbons.
"Jenny? Where's… Alice? Where's Red? Aladdin? Where are they?" The summoner began scanning the garrison for his fallen comrades.
"Theia and Emilia had them brought to the infirmary for healing. You should get tended to as well."
"No. I'm fine." Bladesman shakily got back up "I need to get a message to Henry and Cinderella at once." He began limping towards the door.
A tall elven woman stood in the way with both her hands on her hips. She was clad in gleaming red steel armor outlined with gold. Her pauldrons and belt buckle bore the crest of a roaring lion. Her shiny blond hair was cut short above the shoulders.
"Rhea, get out of the way."
"You're not telling us something." The Gladiator marched towards him and grabbed his forearm. "Explain this."
She pulled his arm up: it was covered in black scars from his wrist to his elbow. He yanked his arm away.
"Dark Lord Maya has taken Snow White." He looked down at his scars.
The garrison fell silent. A cold chill rose that not even the roaring hearth could quell. Heroes and heroines whispered amongst themselves, occasionally glancing at the summoner.
"Her mind was corrupted and was forced to turn against her allies."
"And what's your plan?" Rhea crossed her arms, still standing in his way.
Bladesman stared at the Gladiator. He could see a fire burning in her ruby red eyes. She was furious, but her face was calm and unfazed. It was clear that she wanted the same thing he did. A chance to strike down the Dark Lord and rescue their ally.
"I need to warn Henry and Cinderella of the impending danger. I need the rest of you to form parties and do the same for our allies stationed throughout the kingdoms."
"I'm going with you then. Someone's going to have to keep you alive." Rhea teased.
"Wait! Wait! Why do you have to go with HIM!?" A voice erupted from the crowd, protesting fiercely.
Another tall elven woman pushed her way out of the crowd. She was clad in shining silver steel plate armor outlined with gold. Aquamarine jewels of varying shapes and sizes adorned her tiara, breastplate, and tasset. Her shiny blond hair flowed all the way down to her thighs.
The Grand Ranger marched out of the crowd and stood between them.
"You should go to Glenroth with me!" She grabbed Rhea by the shoulders "Leave him to fend for himself! If the Dark Lords kill him, all the better!"
"I will light your pointy ears on fire, you tree-hugging wench!" Bladesman snapped his fingers and a small flame sparked to life in his palm.
They glared at each other, teeth bared. Rhea stepped in and pushed them apart effortlessly. She turned to Tess with a stern look.
"Tess, you know that the Dark Lords will do more than just kill Blade right? They'll use his soul to open up stronger rift gates."
Tess took Rhea's hand off her shoulder.
"Fine, but I'm coming with the both of you." she squeezed the Gladiator's hand.
Rhea turned to Bladesman.
"I have no problem with that. I've travelled with far more undesirable people," he teased.
The Grand Ranger puffed her cheeks and glared at him.
The parties formed and the plan was set: deploy to every village and every city, in every kingdom to warn friendly forces of the Dark Lords' actions and to reinforce them against any potential attack.
Bladesman, Rhea, and Tess led the squads out to the fortress courtyard where the Gateway portal stood. The summoner raised both his hands towards the portal and concentrated. A runic circle formed around the rim of the portal and began to glow a bright white light.
"Porth: Rhyfel"
The runes flashed and the portal's light changed from blue to white.
"I have altered the Gateway so that all of the portals opened in the past have now re-opened. Casters of the squads, all you have to do is chant the name of the place you need to go and my alteration will take care of the rest," he explained.
The squads gathered around the Gateway and entered the portal one by one. They set out to brave the new threat against their world.
"So, what do we do if we encounter Snow White and the Dark Lord?" Rhea rested her massive halberd against her shoulder.
"Kill the Dark Lord, break the spell. Simple as that." Bladesman answered without batting an eye.
"You really think it's going to be that simple?" Tess interjected.
The summoner quickly wrapped his arm over her shoulders and under her chin. He pressed the index finger of his free hand against her slender neck.
"If you were shooting arrows at me and I killed you, would you still be able to shoot arrows?" he glared at her, putting slight pressure on her neck.
The Grand Ranger swallowed hard. She regretfully got her answer.
"We still have to kill the Dark Lord Maya, whether it breaks the spell or not. Just to shift the odds in our favour." Rhea gave her weapon a couple of swings. She was clearly getting impatient.
The trio stood in front of the Gateway. Bladesman raised his hand and chanted.
"Castell Henry."
The portal shimmered and rippled.
"Are we ready, ladies?"
"Yep, I can't wait to go toe to toe with the Dark Lord." Rhea smiled, cracking her knuckles. Her eyes are ablaze with ferocity.
"Just don't get in my way. I'm here to protect Rhea. Not you." Tess ran her fingers through her long silken hair and tossed it to a side.
Bladesman took the first step towards the portal. He cannot stop thinking about the inevitable duel between his party and the Dark Lord. Rhea and Tess are capable fighters but a Dark Lord is on an entirely different level. And he is only a novice summoner himself. Bringing Maya down and freeing Snow White will be his biggest challenge yet.
He fears for the worst and yet, he marches on. Too much is at stake for him to waver now. Beyond the portal awaits his friend. Beyond the portal awaits his eternal sleep.