Horror of the North

Devil's Awakening

A full year passed, and during that time Largot first killed.

He had seen death as a young child, and the void that the horror had caused seemed temporarily alleviated when he drove the sword through the merchant. He began to volunteer to be in the boarding parties just to be able to kill people. He came to igniting battles where there would have been none just for the rush of fullness he felt when he cut men down.

Among the crew, he began to gain a reputation as a merciless devil. He began to earn the respect of the captain and of other powerful crewmen. What they didn't know was that he carefully chose his targets.

None of the other active crewmen knew his pain, but he knew what it was like to lose family. He couldn't bear to go without killing, as the void in his soul seemed to eat at the rest of him, so he passed his pain along to anyone who had a weapon drawn. Surgeons, children, anyone defenseless would be spared, at least by him. All others would be cut down without mercy or compassion.

The day before he turned seventeen, the mutiny began.

Helen had told him about it, and he agreed that if it came to it, he would fight alongside her. As it turned out, only three men were against her when she marched on her father's cabin. She slaughtered them with a ferocity that matched her lover's.

Her father, when he saw that he was betrayed, begged for terms of release. Remembering the prophecy, Helen managed to restrain herself. He asked that she, Largot and Floats come into the cabin and discuss his fate.

After a few minutes, Floats asked that he may take Helen out "to discuss the matter further."

Largot and the captain were left alone in the cabin. Largot was offered some rum. He didn't trust the captain, he knew that a cornered beast could do anything, but he did trust Floats. He took a sip.

"So, I saw it in your eyes, you and my daughter are involved, yes?"

"Yes we are, former captain." Largot said, suddenly becoming dizzy.

"Well then, if I can't kill her for this betrayal," he said, drawing he saber, "I'll kill what she holds dear."

The poison worked its way through Largot's veins, dulling nerves and slowing his mind. He managed to strafe to the left, barely avoiding a fatal blow as the sword embedded itself in his shoulder, nailing him to the wall. The former captain tried to pull out the weapon, but it was stuck. He drew his dagger and prepared to slit the young man's throat.

Largot's mind snapped into a supernatural focus. He jumped forward, ripping himself through the sword, leaving it in the wall. He punched the former captain's face, his mailed hands mutilating it virtually beyond recognition, slicing across his eyes and blinding him. Floats and Helen ran in just as Largot, eyes glowing and wreathed in black-and-red smoke, destroyed a section of the wall to recover the sword. She drew her own sword and their blades crossed through the former captain's heart.

Helen wrenched hers out and brought a chunk of the heart out with it. She sliced off her father's head and stuck it on a spear, leaving it on the bow for the seabirds to feed on.

"What was that?" Largot asked Floats the next day during his reading lessons.

"It was a power in your blood. All of your father's ancestors had it since one of his oldest ancestors was raped by Molag Bal, the Daedric Prince of Rape, Pillage and Torture. Also," he added tentatively, "of blood."

"Didn't he make vampires?" Largot asked. He had read one of Floats' books about it.

"Yes, he used his power over blood to transform a woman he ravished, Lamae. He did not do it to your ancestor, she remained mortal. Now keep reading, dammit. You'll need it very soon. In three days you will gain vital information regarding your ancestry and your future."