The Age of Eric Contest
Title: Eric Northman and The Deadly Promises
Pen name: RienMuse
Time Period: 1620
Characters: Eric Northman, Sookie, etc.
Disclaimer: Eric & Co belong to CH.
Author's Note: Thanks to Bloodsucker815, Northwomn and Boris.
Eric Northman and The Deadly Promises
Here I was, pinned to the ground with silver spears through each of my hands and feet. The pain that I had been feeling since the spears pierced my flesh was getting stronger, but I had something else to worry about now. I could feel on my skin that morning was nearing. The heat started creeping; pricking my skin like thousands of needles and as soon as the sun showed her face in the sky, it would be the end of me.
My name is Eric and I am a vampire. I had been a Viking in my human life and had been turned on a dark August night around seven hundred years ago. Since then, I haven't been able to walk in the sun. A small ray of sunlight would burn my skin or worse, kill me.
My sire, the King of Sweden, had sent my men and me to help Prince Christian of Anhalt fight against the army of Ferdinand II of the Holy Roman Empire. My King didn't wish my status as a close friend to be known, except by some noblemen at Christian's court. After a week at the Court, we were sent to a small village somewhere outside Prague to assist Prince Christian's troops under Graf Edelstein's banner.
What a useless soldier I had become!
Tonight was my first night in the village. I told Graf Berthold that I wanted to sweep the land, to see if I could find any sign, any news about the situation in the White Mountain, since Graf Berthold and his men had stayed in this village for a month; yet, he hadn't received any order from Prague.
I had never been at the White Mountain, but from what I heard, White Mountain was not exactly a mountain. It was a small hill, not far from Prague. Prince Christian had told me that he assembled his troops and deployed them there because it was a solid position, with his right flank covered by a hunting castle and his left covered by a brook with some moors in front of them. He would be able to block the road to Prague so that the Holy Roman Empire troops wouldn't be able to enter the city, therefore lessened the causality and at the same time protected the King and Queen.
But as I entered the forest near the camp, somebody threw something at me, something that went right through my back and made me fall to the ground.
Suddenly I heard sounds of footsteps. Faintly, but yes, there were steps coming nearer and it accompanied by voices. Who might they be? Farmers? Hunters? What an irony it would be that the end of Eric the Viking wasn't decided by a great battle somewhere on Swedish meadows, or on a battle ship on the rough sea, but by common people like farmers or hunters!
The steps were closing in. I could hear the sound of the heartbeat and the air that went out from the nose...a breather, a female breather, with sweet jasmine scent on her body. I could also smell a burning torch.
A warm touch was laid upon my back. My body shivered. Had I had a heart, it would have beaten faster. Her hand was soft, but somehow like a touch that came from Freyja herself, it gave me new power. Slowly, I raised my head.
"You're alive," she said in French.
"I am"
"You're bleeding."
"Please, help me," I said. "Pull out those spears." The torch that she held didn't give enough light for me to see who my saviour was. "My name is Eric. I will be forever in your debt."
"Sam!" she called. "Help me remove these silver spears!" English. She spoke in English to a man. She was a friend indeed. She must have been one of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth of Bohemia's people. I was safe. At least for now.
Softer steps moved towards me. A familiar smelt reached my nose…a smell of an animal...a dog, to be precise…a shifter. Loki – the god of fire, the trickster, must have come down tonight to mock me! Otherwise, he wouldn't have sent a woman and a shifter to save me!
I growled when they pulled out the silver spears without warning. The pain that came from my hands and feet was so strong that for the first time after many years, the pain brought tears to my eyes.
"Don't move," the shifter called 'Sam' said. "One wrong movement and the spears will hit your heart. Trust me; you don't want that."
When Sam pulled out the pole in my back, again I growled. My whole existence seemed to explode and for a very short moment, I saw bright light somewhere on the horizon. Everything was blurring.
"Quick, Sam!" the woman said. "The sun is coming out. We have to take him away from here."
She knew. She knew who I really was or what I really was. Who was she? Sam lifted my body and started running. "Go, Sookie!" he said. "I'll take him to the old cemetery. Go, now!"
I felt the wind touch my face, and the heat that came down from the sky started creeping over my skin. I could feel how my body became paralyzed. The sun was coming and I would be burnt to ashes. My destiny lay in the hand of a shifter. Loki must be having a field day today.
As I opened my eyes, I smelt something familiar; wet moss, old ground, burning linen from the torch...and jasmine. Sookie was or had been here. I had awoken at many strange places countless times, but I had never awoken with curiosity and eagerness to see a woman.
I raised my head and looked around me. I was inside a tomb with a round ceiling and some torches on its wall. Sam had laid me on a coffin and left me there. The blood from my body had dried. It was black and odourless. I stepped down from the coffin.
Sookie wasn't here. The jasmine smell that my nose had caught earlier came from a piece of cloth, which was on the floor. I picked it up. It was a lace and looked like it was a part of a collar, possibly from Sookie's dress. I sniffed it. Sweet and soft. I had to see her face to satisfy my curiosity. I had to meet her and feel her touch again, but first, I had to feed and gain my strength. I had an enemy to find. Those, who had betrayed me and left me to die, weren't going to see another day once I found them. It was a promise I had made myself and I intended to keep that promise.
The day had gone and the night had covered the land with its darkness. Darkness didn't bother me. My eyes could see as clearly as the moonlight in the darkness of the night. After feeding on a farmer, who lived not far from the old cemetery, I followed my nose to lead me to Sookie, my saviour. Strange indeed, that I was suddenly drawn to her. She was just a human. Was it because she had saved me, or was it because the soft scent of her body aroused me like no other woman had done before?
The blue banner with a symbol of a wolf trap on its middle welcomed me as I arrived at the Edelstein Army headquarters. Graf Berthold of Edelstein was a loyal follower of Prince Christian, a supporter of the King of Bohemia. As the Prince asked him to join the battle; he sent 200 men.
I was told that the reason the Prince had asked me to join the Graf's army was because most of his soldiers had blond hair and blue eyes. Another group of blue eyed and blond men wouldn't draw too much attention, he said. He didn't want King Ferdinand II of the Holy Roman Empire to be suspicious about my sire. Besides, my men and I understood their language - the Germanic, perfectly. However, among these blue eyed and blond men, I found my own enemy.
"Eric!" a tall figure ran toward me. It was Sven, one of my trustworthy men.
"Is there any news from the White Mountain?"
"Alas, my friend. The battle is over. The King and Queen have left the city, and we have surrendered."
The cold wind that blew and brought the rotten smell of burning flesh didn't surprise me as much as this news. Without being able to stop myself, I growled.
"Forgive me, Eric," said Sven. "I didn't want to put my sword back in its shield, but Graf Berthold insisted. He said that we had to avoid unnecessary blood spill as much as possible."
"Where is he now?"
"I will take you to him."
Sven took me to a tent with a banner with a picture of a wolf trap and a rose on it. It was the symbol of Graf Berthold and his wife, Gräfin Roswitha and it was raised only when the Gräfin was also present. Women were usually not allowed to enter the area of war. This village was far from the White Mountain, but yet, it was declared part of the battlefield. The troops of General von Tilly of the Holy Roman Empire could come here at any day. Why was she here?
"Enter," the deep voice of Graf Berthold called.
Sven opened the tent, saying, "Lord Eric is here, Milord."
"Thank God!"
I entered the tent and saw Graf Berthold standing in front of his throne. Beside him was Gräfin Roswitha. There was another woman standing some steps behind Gräfin Roswitha, looking petite and fragile. Her blond hair was rolled to the back of her head. Her eyes were blue and sparkling. She lowered her head a little, but I could see that she was smiling. Jasmine scent reached my nose. Sookie. That woman was Sookie.
Gräfin Roswitha followed my eyes and rested on Sookie's face. She smiled.
"I was worried about you, Eric." Graf Berthold approached me. "We all thought we might have lost you. I should have sent some soldiers looking for you, but the road to the battlefield is full of enemies. I even received some reports from our scouts earlier that they saw some wolves in the forest. You must understand that I can't send the soldiers inside the forest..."
I looked at Graf Berthold. His face was pale and his smile was frantic. I could sense that he was afraid.
"Nevertheless," Graf Berthold continued. "You are here now, we can continue our journey. We will return to Edelstein the day after tomorrow."
"What about the battle, Milord?" I asked.
"It is over for us, my friend. My wife comes here to bring the good news that Milord General von Tilly of the Holy Roman Empire granted us mercy, because we hadn't joined forces around the White Mountain." He sat back on his throne. "To tell the truth, I am relieved. I fear, Lord Eric, this war is just the beginning of the long and tragic suffering among my people."
"My dearest," Gräfin Roswitha touched his hand. "I believe Lord Eric would love to have some rest before he accompanies us to dinner."
I bowed a little. "Thank you for your kindness, Milady," I said. "A little time for myself would be just enough."
"Lady Susanne," Gräfin Roswitha turned her beautiful brown head to Sookie. "Please, show Lord Eric his tent."
Sookie curtsied and came to me. "Lord Eric."
I nodded at both the Graf and the Gräfin and followed Sookie. Sven followed us. "I don't like it, is something wrong here, I can feel it." Sven was a trained and experienced soldier. He understood the situation without being told. "Somebody must have tricked and attacked you," he said and with a lower voice he continued, "Somebody who knows of who you really are."
"Who else knows about me?"
"I don't know," said Sven. "Besides us, I think it's only the Graf."
I looked at Sookie, who walked in front of me. Sookie knew and so did the shifter. From where had they gained the knowledge?
Sookie stopped in front of a tent and opened it. "This is your place, Milord."
I entered. The tent had nothing but a small bed, a chair and a table. Beside the table was a wooden box, but it wasn't just a box; it was the size of a coffin. Sven and my other men must have already dug a hole, where I could sleep during the day and covered it with the box.
"I hope it's comfortable enough for you, Eric," Sven said. "I wasn't sure that you would return, therefore I didn't try to find..."
"Thank you, Sven." I cut his sentence.
Sven nodded and stepped backward. "I will ask somebody to prepare some hot water for you," he said and left the tent.
Sookie was about to leave, when I caught her hand. "Thank you," I said in English. "You have saved my life."
Her eyes grew bigger. "You speak my language!"
I nodded. "I have learned. Not yet perfect, but I can understand if you speak slowly." A lie. I could understand English perfectly. I had learned it at my sire's palace, but the slower she spoke; the longer she would be here with me.
She smiled. "And what, my gentle sir, would make me believe in such a statement? I am sure a noble man such as yourself has learned a lot of things."
I moved closer to her. "And what has allowed a gentle lady like yourself have such knowledge about me? How did you find me?"
"I don't have answers for those questions." She lied. I could see how her eyes moved faster and how nervous she became. At first, I thought she was nervous because she was standing closed to me, but then I realized, it was something else. A strange smell reached my nose. It was a smell of an animal...of a wolf mixed with sweat and perfume. A werewolf was around my tent, and she knew it.
I sniffed...her scent captured me; soft sweet scent of jasmine and her own sweat. A familiar hot feeling ran through my body that I felt somewhere between my legs, something was getting hard.
"I'd better be going," she said suddenly, blushing.
I smiled. She felt it, too. "No," I said, taking her body and pulling her closed to me. I let her feel what I had down there and the pleasure that she would receive if she was willing to stay with me and give herself to me tonight.
She put her hands on my chest. The warm soft hands that had touched my back yesterday were now cold and shaking. "You are cold," she said, "colder than the snow."
Yes, as an undead, I was cold. Nevertheless, I could keep her warm, if she let me. I pulled her body closer to mine. "I have something that belongs to you," I took out the lace. "I know that you left it on purpose, so that I could find you," I put the lace in her hand.
"Gentle Sir..."
"Don't call me such," I said. I didn't wish to be gentle with her. I wished to have a heated night with her and taste her blood. I couldn't promise her gentleness, but I could promise her pleasure she probably had never had before.
"But you are...I hope you are," she sounded out of breath. "I saved your life..."
"Yes, you saved my life. Let me show you my gratitude."
"I am not your servant, Gentle Sir. I wish to be treated differently."
"I would never consider you as one," I loosened my arms a little so that she could move and feel free to go. "...my future lover." I touched her face softly. "Yes, you will be mine," then I let her go. The scent that came from the werewolf was slowly moving away. He had to hear what I was going to say for Sookie's sake. The werewolf had to know, if he harmed Sookie in any way, he had to deal with me.
"You are mine, Lady Susanne."
Any woman would run into my arms and scream with happiness for being claimed by me, but not Sookie. She lifted her dress, showing her petite ankles whilst doing it and stormed out of my tent. I smiled. It wouldn't be easy to have her in my bed, but I loved a challenge. It made her interesting.
Now, I had to find out about the werewolf first.
It was the second night that we camped near the Šumavan Forest. Lady Roswitha suddenly fell sick. She couldn't continue the journey.
My hunt for the werewolf brought empty results. The creature seemed to know how to get away from me. He must have avoided entering the camp in the night so that his scent wouldn't be caught by me.
Sven gave me more interesting news. Lady Susanne was never alone. A man and sometimes a dog always accompanied her. Strangely, the man and the dog were never seen at the same time. It was either the man or the dog. Sven Yoriksson had keen eyes. He paid attention to the details when nobody else did.
"He is a shape-shifter," I told him. "He can shift his shape into whatever animal he wants."
"A Loki worshiper!" Sven's voice sounded disgusted. "What should I do, Father?"
I raised Sven after a plague had killed his parents and the entire village. He had been the only one who survived. In fact, he had been dying and I would have let him die if only he had not mentioned the name of my maker: Appius Livius Ocella.
Appius had the joy of consuming children, especially boys. He would take them to his bed and ravish them. Sven as a skinny pale boy, who probably had seen five winters only, would have been a kind of boy Appius would like to keep. The only way to protect him from Appius was either to take him away from his village or to kill him. I couldn't let Sven go through the ill fate that many boys had, he had suffered enough already.
Now Sven was thirty years of age and looked older than me. He had a wife and a baby that he left in Stockholm. He had called me 'father' for twelve years and then changed to 'friend' as soon as he entered manhood, but there were times when he had called me 'father' again, time such this was; time of danger.
I touched his shoulder, "Nothing, my friend. This time, I deal with him."
"How will I know his animal shape? I don't want to kill an unarmed man."
"You won't. You have to have a nose like mine to tell the difference. If you kill him unknowingly, then don't carry the burden of the unknown."
"I won't, Father. About the forest, Eric," his gesture suddenly changed. Now he carried himself like a soldier. "We tried to locate the wolves, but we couldn't find any traces of wolves. There are, however, traces of shoes and weapons."
"They are not normal wolves. They are werewolves."
Sven raised his head. His eyes were getting bigger and his mouth was open. It was the same reaction that I had seen many years ago as I told him who I was. "Werewolves, Eric?" his voice was choking. "What are they?"
"They are wolves cloaked in human form. We are dealing with beasts, Sven. Take care that you are not bitten. Because if you are, then you will become their followers and you won't be able to stop yourself changing during the full moon."
"Then promise me something, Eric."
"Anything, Sven."
"If I am bitten, save me from disgrace and kill me," he gave me his hand.
I took his hand, saying, "I will kill you when the time comes, Sven Yoriksson."
"And I will be honoured to welcome your strike, Eric Northman," then he smiled. "Perhaps, when the time comes, you can also tell me your real name?"
I was called Eric the Northman by other vampires, and in the end, I used that name for myself too. I didn't remember what my real name was. It had been centuries ago and my memory didn't reach that far.
Suddenly the tent was opened. Sven let my hand go and with an amazing speed, he had his hand on his sword hilt. It was the shifter. He stood in front of us wearing black doublet and breeches. The only things that were white were the collar of his doublet and his face. "Forgive me, Milord," he said. "Sookie – Lady Susanne wishes to see you."
Sookie almost ran when she saw me. For just a moment, she looked more like the peasant girls that I had seen many times in the villages than a lady from a noble house. "You have to take me away from here," she said. Her voice was choking. "Please."
She was scared; I could smell the sweat that was running down on her body, mixed with her perfume. I had to control myself to keep my fangs inside. Had we been alone, I would have dragged her to the bushes and had my way with her! "Anything you wish, Milady."
"It is a pressing matter, Lord Eric," she raised her head. "I do expect you to conduct your manners."
Sven chuckled. Sookie shot him a dangerous look.
"Sven," I said, smiling. It was the wrong choice of words for him and for me. Sven knew what it meant by 'conducting my manners' in front of women. I believed it wasn't what Sookie had wished, at least not now.
"I apologize, Milady," Sven said, smiling. Sookie looked away. Her face was red.
"I believe Master …." I looked at the shifter.
"Samuel Merlotte."
"Master Merlotte here will find a way to locate me. However, in the meantime, I'd prefer that nobody suspects my absence." I looked at Sookie, "After you, Milady."
Passing by some guards, Sookie looked more and more nervous. She looked around too often and her breath was getting faster and faster. We entered my tent only to go out from the other side and in secrecy we left the camp. As soon as we were far from the camp and the light from the torches looked dimmed and small, I grabbed her waist and flew.
Sookie held me tight. I could feel her body close to mine, warm and tender. The smell of her body, the warmth of her breath, and the softness of her skin overwhelmed me, made me unable to control my feelings. 'Click'; the fangs were out. Her face was as pale as mine as I landed on the ground. I had brought her to the old cemetery. The darkness of night gave only a little light, but enough for me to see how terrified she was.
"You...we...flew..."
I took her hand. "Yes," Then, I pushed the door of the tomb. Inside, it was pitched dark. "Stay here." I lit the torches using my sword and the stone of the wall as the flint. Slowly, the lights brightened the tomb.
"Your teeth, Lord Eric..." Sookie's voice sounded shocked, but she walked towards me. "They are..." she touched them, "they are..."
I couldn't control myself any more. This was too much. Her touch, her warm breath...and before I knew it, I took her in my arms and kissed her. Her lips were soft and warm. Her tongue was wet and intoxicating. Strangely, the desires that I had had since yesterday to make her my woman suddenly changed. Yes, I wanted her to be my woman, but it had to be her wish too.
"Eric..." I heard her out of breath as I let her go.
I touched her neck. "Yes, lover..."
"You are..." she took a deep breath, "You are a vampire... a creature, which lives and feeds on blood..."
"Yes..."
"Will you feed on mine?"
My nose was touching her neck as I said, "If you let me," Or if I could persuade her.
"Will I be a vampire, too?"
I raised my head. It would be a pleasure, but as I looked at how trembling and pale she was, I smiled. "Would you?"
"No," she said firmly.
"Then, you will not be, not by me; I give you my word," I said, and regretting it already. "How did you know about me?" My hands were now on her green petticoat buttons opening them one by one.
Her hands stopped them. "I beg you, Lord Eric," she said. "There is a pressing matter that I have to tell you. The pleasure that you are wishing right now is neither appropriate nor pleasing."
"Then speak, my gentle lady, I beg you," My nose touched her neck again.
"Milady Roswitha is not ill... She behaves as if she was ill because she does not want to leave this place..."
I kissed her neck and smiled as I heard her sighing. Her body was still trembling, but this time it was more because of excitement. She was going to be mine, willingly. "I believe, Lord Berthold's physician would say something..."
"You don't understand," she said, touching my hair. "Lord Eric...her people do not let him get near her...and...They are waiting for the people from the forest..."
I stopped touching her and looked at her. She looked back at me. To my surprise, suddenly she kissed me. I lifted her so that we were at the same height and kissed her back. "What people?" I asked her between our kisses.
"I don't know...but they want to...make..." she said, answering my kisses, "the warriors... from the north...go...they will...make ...them..."
I stopped my kisses and softly let her down. Her breath was short and she was moving backward, trembling. In haste, she closed the buttons of her petticoat.
"From where did you have such knowledge, Sookie?"
"I..." she moved away from me and said, "I can hear ….thoughts," the last word she said it in a very low voice as if by saying it, she could destroy something. However, as she saw me standing still and not reacting in the way that she had expected, she continued speaking, "Sometimes the thoughts are as clear as the sky on a sunny day, sometimes they are a blur and foggy."
In my long time of life, I had heard and met many witches. And yet, this would be the first time that I met one that I desired. "And you can hear mine?"
"No."
That was unfortunate. "How did you know who I am?"
"I heard Lady Roswitha thinking about setting a trap as she wrote a letter. She talked about the North warriors who were being sent as scouts to the White Mountain. She gave a specific order that you – Lord Eric, must be stabbed with silver spears that would be sent with the letter and left to die. 'The sun will take care of the rest', she said. The rest of the North warriors should be spared because she had other plans for them."
"How did you find me?"
"I didn't. Sam did. He is a good tracker. He can find anything, if he has something that belongs to that person."
I snorted. He was a good shifter indeed. "What is he to you?"
Under the yellow light of the torches, her face blushed. Her blond hair, which was down, was now touching her face. And the lips that were swollen were inviting me to kiss them again, but I didn't move. I didn't like what I was seeing. She was blushing for another man, and just some little time ago, she had been kissing me.
"He is a friend," she finally said. She took her hair and made it as a bundle. "And he is your friend, Lord Eric. He saved your life."
I sniffed. "Indeed," I walked a step forward as she walked a step backward. I continued doing it, until her back was against the wall and she couldn't move any more. "Is that all what you wish to tell me?"
"Aren't you concerned for your men, Lord Eric?" Her eyes were wide open. "Are all my worries about your men for nothing?"
"Why do you have such a strong feeling toward the fate of my men, Milady? Is it not strange that a stranger like you is so concerned about strangers like us?"
"Lady Roswitha wants to have the people of the forest help her with her plans to take over Edelstein. She wants to build her own kingdom and if the time is right, she wants to take over Anhalt." She fought back my stares. "I am a servant of My Queen, Elizabeth of Bohemia. I will do anything in my power to protect Her Majesty."
"People of the forest...who are they...?"
She shook her head. "I do not know. Lady Roswitha never speaks the name."
"Did she mention a time and place?"
"She mentioned the full moon..."
Werewolves! Lady Roswitha wanted to use the werewolves for her planning. Sven...I moved away. I had to warn Sven and the others.
"You know! Please tell me about it, Lord Eric, I beg you. I must inform Her Majesty about it."
"It would be too late, Sookie. In two days, we will have a full moon. You will not be able to ride to Prague or Heidelberg. Besides, as long as you stay here with me, you will be protected. They know by now that you are mine."
"But Milord, I am not. As the subject of King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden, you must aware that forcing your will against the subject of Queen Elizabeth of Bohemia will cause you problems at the court of the King."
"The question will be, Milady," I smiled at her, "Whether my will is forced against yours or not."
She blushed again. "And yet, Milady," I continued, "indeed you are right. It is neither the place nor the time to prove whether my will is what you wish or not. Let us return and pretend not to know about Lady Roswitha's plan."
"So we are going to do nothing?"
"No, Milady. We will prepare ourselves for the full moon. And trust me when I tell you this, it won't be easy."
Six men were all that followed me from Stockholm. 'The Viking and his Deadly Men' that was what our enemies called us, for each of them had the strength of ten regular soldiers. They had been in many battles with me. On their bodies were written death and the songs of war. People could see them in the shape of scars or their hard faces. They were now all standing quietly in front of me. It wasn't the first time that they had to face life and death with me, but it would be the first time that they had to face creatures such as werewolves.
"I never thought that there would be a day that I had to face the children of Fenrir," said Anund. At the time where the new religion seemed to spread like fire, Anund was one of those who still believed in Gods as it had been told at the time I had been a human. "What say you, Eric? Thor is always with you, I will follow you till The Old One himself comes to take me."
Anund was almost the same height as me. He had hair like fire and dark blue eyes that brought fear to the souls of his enemies. He didn't move fast, but he was as strong as a bear.
"We are not many," I said. "But each of you has value that is worth ten times that of the men of Edelstein, but make no mistake, we will not face men of Edelstein. Two of you will guard each wind direction. Leave the gate of the camp to me."
The rush of battle overwhelmed me. 'Click', I heard my fangs were out. My men, except Sven, moved a step backward and unsheathed their swords. Sven looked at me with sadness in his eyes. He knew the battle that we would face tomorrow could be the last one. I never let out my fangs except in the middle of battle, feeding time or as I was ravishing a body of a woman. However, tonight, I had done it. Sven knew it wasn't going to be the usual battle.
"Sven," I said. "Are you not willing to raise your sword for me?"
"I'll give you my life if you ask me, Father. I never thought it would be this soon," He unsheathed his sword. "Love my woman and my son as I love you, Father, and I promise you this sword will not be sheathed as long as I still stand on my feet."
"Your woman and son are mine, Sven. And you all have to know, that if those beasts bites you, you will follow their calls. Tell the other what to do with your lives, but I can tell you one thing right now, if you follow their calls, then you will have to answer my wrath."
"Ay, Eric!"
"Pray to your gods, if you must. Anund, Sven and I will drink to Odin to celebrate our paths to Valhalla."
Anund came to me and patted my shoulder. "Ay, Eric. We will drink to Odin tonight! I know where to find good beer and women!"
It was late in the night as I came to Graf Berthold's tent. I asked Sookie to come with me for I wanted to hear what Graf Berthold had in his thoughts. He was surprised to see me and his wife's Lady in waiting coming together, but soon he figured out that there was something between us. I could see it in his eyes and Sookie's face, which was red like Anund's hair.
"Milord, I come with ill-news. I believe we are surrounded by enemies."
"Enemies, Lord Eric? Yet, I have not seen any banners or heard the sound of drums. Surely, General Von Tilly wouldn't commit any act of cowardice by attacking us in secrecy."
"They are not the army of General Von Tilly, Graf Berthold. They are what you might call Der Wärwolf."
Graf Berthold grabbed the chair. "I heard such a tale when I was a child, about a man from Bedburg, a little town not far from Cologne, who could turn himself into a wolf. Of course, I never considered it other than fairy tale that was told by drunken woodsmen who were afraid to enter forests."
"My only concern is to protect you. My orders from Prince Christian are clear. I have to bring you back to Edelstein alive," then I turned to Sookie. "As the subject of King Gustavus Aldhopus of Sweden, it is also my duty to protect the subject of His beloved Queen Elizabeth of Bohemia, and bring her back to Bernburg."
"What do you suggest that I do, Eric?" Graf Berthold sank in his chair.
"Prepare your men, Graf Berthold. Tell them to collect silverware and protect themselves with it."
During the day, I didn't sleep under my coffin or in the cemetery. I flew as far as possible from the forest, and made sure that it would take one-day journey to reach the place where I slept. It was a pity, because I wanted to be near Sookie. I wanted to be able to smell her as soon as I opened my eyes. Sven wasn't happy with my decision, but he didn't say a word.
The moon wasn't yet full, but his light was bright enough to lighten the camp. The trees in the forest moved slowly touched by the wind that brought the scents from the battle and as the moon was slowly climbing, the forest was full of sounds. Many kinds of animal sounds could be heard, but the howling of the wolves was the loudest.
I could sense restlessness among the soldiers; fear crept slowly under their armour, made them jumpy and careless. Once or twice, I saw the swords that they held in their hands fall or hit their shields without reason; or they would raise their swords to their friends. The muskets, for their own sake, were not yet given; otherwise, there would have been victims among them.
Sven told me that Graf Berthold had ordered him and the others to enter the forest during the day. They had found strange marks in the south part of the forest. "Marks, which could only be made by the beasts. We found traces of feet and shoes, but also wolves' paws."
"How many?"
"I saw at least twenty-five pairs of footprints and they were everywhere. It looks like they move in a circle. They are surrounding us."
They were coming in packs. The strength of the werewolves was in packs. I had to talk to Graf Berthold about it. He had to come up with a strategy on how to face them during the day. I wouldn't be here. They had to face the beasts on their own.
"We have made a decision, Eric," said Sven as he and my men came towards me. "If we are bitten by the beasts, then strike us. Make us die proud as soldiers, don't let us continue living in disgrace."
I looked at them one by one. "I give you my word. Thank you for the honour that you have given me to be a part of such brave men as yourselves."
They hit their chest with the hilt of the sword. "Long live Eric the Viking!"
"Long live the brave men of The North!"
Suddenly, the sweet smell of jasmine caught my nose. I turned around and found Sookie standing some paces behind me. As our eyes met, she turned around and walked away. Obviously, she wanted me to follow her.
"Go, Eric," said Sven, as if he could hear my thoughts. "It could be her last night."
I left my men and walked quickly to catch her. "Milady," I walked beside her.
"Lord Eric," she nodded. "The moon is getting higher."
"It will be full moon tomorrow."
"I see."
Sookie entered her tent. I stopped exactly at the door and was unable to move even a step further. As a vampire, I was cursed not to be able to enter houses where human lived without being invited. Sookie's voice broke the curse when she said, "Please, enter."
A sweet smell of jasmine welcomed me as I entered the tent. Her tent was smaller than mine, but the content was the same; a lower bed, a table and a chair. She was standing beside the table. I came to her and without waiting for another word; I took her in my arms, lifted her, put her on the table and kissed her.
"Eric..." she whispered between my kisses. I lifted her gown and let my hand go astray on her legs' soft skin. I heard her moaning as my hands were exploring her thighs. The intoxicating familiar scent spread from her warm wet mound. "Please, Eric...there's something..." I stopped her sentence by kissing her strong and deep. I ignored her as she begged me to stop to listen what she was going to say. She could tell me anything later, when she was lying in my arms, naked and satisfied. I lifted her off the table and she stopped begging.
The soft light of moon that flowed in from the hole on the top of her tent caressed her back, which was naked and wet. I followed the sweat that was slowly rolling from her neck down to her bottom with my index finger. She sighed, but she didn't change her position. Her round and firm bottom teased me and invited me to put my hands on it, and squeeze it. However, I didn't do it. I knew, had I done it, I would have started all over again. Touching her, arousing her until she was ready to let me enter her body, the way I had done before. In return, I would let her touch me, arouse me and blind me with her scent, her warm breaths, and her racing heartbeat. She bore her fingernails deep inside my back as I bared my fangs and bit her. Her blood tasted sweet as herbs, reminding me strongly of the smell of the wood in the rainy season. And between her moans and sighs, she would hold me tight with her legs, whispering my name, asking almost begging me to move faster. As her nails went deeper inside my flesh and her cries were louder, I would again feel my whole body shake as I let myself go and for a moment, there would be nothing, but peacefulness.
Suddenly, she turned to me. "Were you disappointed, Milord?"
I touched her shoulder with my finger and softly ran it on her breast. Her nipple answered it by standing proudly. "Should I be?"
"You are not my first," she touched my face. "I am not a virgin."
"Neither am I."
Her blue eyes were widened. "I never took you as one."
I took her into my arms, and with one roll, she was under me. The wound from my bite was open. Warm delicious blood slowly came out from it. I licked it. "I was more surprised that you were not bothered by my biting."
"I once had a vampire in London," she said. Her blue eyes met mine and I could see that she was worried. Could it be that she was worried about my reaction?
"So, I am not your first vampire," A hot feeling grabbed my chest. It would have been nothing, if she had had a man before, but a vampire...
"Are you jealous?"
I snorted. "I think it's stimulating," I lied. I moved my lower body in a way that made her unable to do anything else, but to open her legs.
"Eric..." her hands ran down on my back, slowly, and carefully; as if she had wanted to make sure that she touched every part of it, and then they were resting on my bottom. She wanted to have me again, as I wanted her even more.
I started moving my body slowly and kissing her again, when I heard Sven's voice. "Eric..."
"Later," I said, but Sookie put her hand on my mouth to stop me from kissing her.
"Forgive me, Eric, there's something you have to see."
"It'd better be good, Sven," I lifted my body off Sookie, "Or else." In haste, I put on my tunic and breeches. I didn't even button my doublet as I went out. Sookie was tidying her hair as she ran after me.
The moon was high above us. The howling that we had heard since early evening was now getting louder. I realized, it was more than ten different howls and they were closer, so closed that I could smell them.
"Lord Berthold is expecting you," said Sven. Then he whispered, "Lady Roswitha is nowhere to be found."
A man was kneeling on the floor in front of Lord Berthold as I came in. He was screaming, growling and looking around like a mad man with a chain hanging around his body. He would have probably been able to break free, if there had not been four guards holding the chain.
"Lord Eric, Milord," a guard announced my presence.
Lord Berthold turned around. His face was pale and his hands were shaking. "Eric, Lady Roswitha...she's not in her bed..." Then he looked at the bitten werewolf. "This...cursed beast was found circling around her tent...Eric...could it be..."
That cursed beast was a bitten werewolf - a man that became a werewolf because a werewolf had bitten him. I went to him. As I drew close, the bitten werewolf sneered. "You... you will die sooner than you thought!"
I heard Sven curse him. "Don't you know that I am dead already?" I said. "I am your death."
"You will not win against us," he sneered again.
"Is that so?" I straightened my body. "Sookie...what did he say?"
There was no answer.
I turned to her and realized that every pair of eyes was on her. It was a stupid act of mine, but there was no time to pretend that she didn't know anything.
"Lady Susanne...please, if you know anything, anything at all about Lady Roswitha, I pray you, do tell!"
Sookie looked at the bitten werewolf and said frantically, "They will come tomorrow from the South."
The bitten werewolf yelled at Sookie, "I will kill you, you whore!"
Sookie moved backward. She looked shaken. "Tomorrow when everybody comes, he will personally..." she stopped. Her face was pale.
I sniffed. I could imagine what the bitten werewolf had said in his head. It must have been something inappropriate and evil. I would have snapped his neck in two, had he not held important information.
"Where is Lady Roswitha?" asked Lord Berthold.
The bitten werewolf sneered. "Why don't you go to the forest and find out?"
One of the guards came to him and hit him on the face. Black blood sprayed from his mouth. "You will pay your respect to Milord Berthold, you beast!"
The bitten werewolf looked at the guard dangerously. His pointed teeth were aimed at his neck.
"Milady is safe," said Sookie suddenly. Lord Berthold looked at her. There was horror in the look on his face, as Sookie continued, "Why shouldn't she be? She's among her soldiers."
The cold November wind that blew from the North East brought the news from the war in Prague. The air was heavy with the smell of burnt houses and rotten flesh. The Holy Roman Empire troops must have conquered the city and made sure that the people of Prague would not be able to stand on their feet again by destroying the houses and killing those who were responsible. However, it didn't bother me as much as the strong smell of werewolves' scents that the forest brought.
I woke up early today to see what was going on in the forest. I flew quietly above the trees and sometimes sat a while on the tree to see if there was any movement on the ground. I could smell their scents everywhere, hear some movement, but I couldn't see them anywhere.
The sleepy village, which became the fort now the troops were there, was alive with the soldiers taking orders and preparing themselves to face their enemies. I could see the fears in their eyes. They must have heard many stories about werewolves, how they were able to caste spells or take over the minds of men and do their bidding. I would be more worried about being bitten, if I were them. One bite from their teeth would change a man's body forever.
I gave Sven my blood so that I could sense him if he was in danger. That man – my human boy, looked at me with a glint in his eyes, a glint that had been for a time long gone; a look of a little boy who had looked at me with wonder as I bored my fangs into my skin to save his life.
"Thank you for everything, Eric. My father, my brother, my captain," then he hugged me. "I love you, Eric."
I hugged him back. "My boy."
Sven let his hug go and nodded. "Your boy," then he unsheathed his sword. "See you in Valhalla, Eric, where we'll drink Thor's mead and eat Sif's finest red meat!"
"See you in Valhalla, Sven!"
Sookie was in the middle of the women and children, when I found her. Different from them, she had dressed in armour. I took her away from them and asked her to drink my blood. "It will make you stronger, and make me able to tell if you're in danger," I said when she looked reluctant. "Only a drop, that's what it needs to help keep you safe."
As her soft warm lips touched my skin, I heard somebody scream. Then the village was filled with howling and loud noises. People ran in panic, trying to save themselves from the enemies that they didn't yet see, although they could already hear them coming. The howling of the beasts was melancholic and at the same time full of agony. That sound made whomsoever heard it shiver with fear.
When Sookie lifted her head, my blood covered her mouth. I kissed her passionately before I let her go by hitting her bottom. "Go." Sookie gave me a look, but before she could say anything, the sound of the battle swallowed us. I saw her running to the women and go with them to the safe house. Under the sound of metal, screaming and smoke, her shadow disappeared.
Like the strong rough weathers of North Sea in autumn, the werewolves charged us. Some of them came in their human forms, but most they came in their wolf cloak. They were bigger than normal wolves, almost as big as calves, with red eyes and open mouths; they looked like the hounds coming straight from Hel's cages. One by one the humans fell.
From where I stood, I could see Anund's giant figure swinging his axe like a mad man. His bright red hair shone brightly under the moonlight. The smell of the blood that poured out from any flesh that was hit by his axe was like the smell of dead meat. I heard screaming from both human and werewolves. I stood there, waiting for anybody to come near me, before I would catch them and rip them apart. My hands were red. My face was hot from blood, but my head was as clear and as cold as the winter night. All the sounds and scents didn't bother me. They were like spice for the blood. They excited me.
Then a rush came to me; a rush that only came when those who had my blood were in danger. I ran to the source of the feeling, killing any wolves, who tried to stop me. As I came nearer, I saw Sven lying on the ground. Somebody was standing beside him, putting their foot on Sven's chest. In their hand was a silver dagger. Its tip was shimmering, sending the moonlight in every direction.
"You came near, he dies, Undead," the figure said. It was a voice of a woman, not a man. I realized who the figure was. It was Lady Roswitha.
As if there had been an unseen hand that held him to the ground, Sven lay stiffly. He opened his mouth, but no sound was heard. He looked at me with open eyes. In his bright blue eyes, I saw something that I had never seen before. Fear. For the first time in his life, Sven Yoriksson – my human boy, my son, my brother, was afraid. His eyes blinked, tears ran down from his eyes.
A strange feeling crept on me, a feeling that was new and sad. I didn't like it. This feeling made me tremble. "Milady, you don't want to threaten me."
She turned around. The heat that came from her body forced me to step back. She wore silver armour. Not a single part of her body wasn't covered by silver – not even her beautiful face. "You can't touch me, Eric."
"Roswitha!" Lord Berthold's voice called from behind me. "My God, Roswitha…Why are you doing this?"
"I am taking what is mine."
"Edelstein belongs to you, as you are my wife. I would give it to you, if you asked me; we don't need to spill any blood."
"Edelstein?" Lady Roswitha sneered. "Is that all you can think of? Who wants to rule an unknown land like Edelstein? You see, Berthold; that is your weakness. You have no vision, no ambition and no understanding about politics at all. I told you repeatedly, that we should take the side of Ferdinand, and not Frederick. Ferdinand has more power and rules more lands than Frederick, but you never listened. To rule, my dear Berthold is to be at the centre of the power itself, at Prague or Pressburg, but not Edelstein! With the army that I have now, even General Tilly or Von Wallenstein won't be able to stop me."
"King Gustavus Aldhopus will," I said. "I will, and if I have to, I will make an army of my own to stop you."
"You!" she spat on the ground. "You would not have even been able to escape from your own death, had nobody helped you!" She lifted her foot from Sven's chest. I thought, Sven would have been able to stand up and attack her, but to my surprise, he didn't move.
"Sven..." I wanted to take him off the ground and bring him out of there, and to my horror I realized that I couldn't move either. Slowly I realized whom I was facing. Lady Roswitha was a witch!
"There are other supernatural beings in this world and none of them should be taken with one eye," Lady Roswitha said. "You have roamed my land, killed my people and you think that nobody will notice it. You think you are so strong that nobody will be able to touch you," she sneered. "I would have let you do what you have been doing, were you not so stubborn and loyal to a weak man you call the Graf. You and I, Lord Eric, we could rule the world or even the new world if we wanted to! I can give you power and pleasure that no other woman can!"
I sneered. "Thank you for your offer, Lady Roswitha, but you are not of my taste in women."
She walked toward me and stood in front of me. Our distance was so close that I felt as if I was on fire. I clenched my teeth. Every part of my skin was painful, if she stood there a moment longer, I swore, I would scream.
She smirked. "Once you taste my blood, you will not wish for anybody else," she said, slowly moving away. "And yet, that's your choice, Eric..." she raised her dagger.
"You are not my wife!" Lord Berthold said and charged her with all his power. However, as soon as his sword met her dagger, his sword and Lord Berthold himself were thrown away, flying high, before he landed on the ground some paces away from me and didn't move any more.
"Men, human or supernatural, they are as stupid as they come!" she cursed. Then she turned to me. "Lord Eric, I offer you one more time, join me, share the power with me!"
I sniffed. "If there was something that I've learned from my long years, Lady Roswitha, then it would be the knowledge that a woman like you, whose greed can only be fed by power, doesn't share anything with any man. Not even her body."
She laughed. "Very well, Lord Eric," she raised her dagger. "Say goodbye to your most beloved thing,"
Before I was able to say any word to distract her, she pulled Sven's long hair and cut his throat. Fresh blood sprayed from Sven's neck like hot water that sprayed from glaziers in Reykjavik.
For a short moment, I felt my chest move again, and its content burst out. There was pain, pain that was stronger than the pain that I had felt when Merlotte pulled out the silver spears out of my body; a pain, that for one short moment made me feel like I had been a human. And as I could no longer stand it any more, I let out a cry. My cheeks were cold from the blood that fell from my eyes. My hands were shaking.
On the ground, my human boy, my son, my brother didn't move any more. His golden hair was surrounded by the red colour of blood. His bright blue eyes were now close, and his armour covered body laid still. Sven Yoriksson, a faithful child of mine, had left me.
Lady Roswitha slowly raised her body. "I didn't know that you were still capable of feeling something, Lord Eric," she smiled, wiping off the bloodstain on her dagger with my tunic.
"I will kill you, Witch. I will tear apart your body with my bare hands and feed it to the dogs."
"How will you do it, Lord Eric, if you can't even move?" Then she laughed. Her laugh was high and shrill. "I'll tell you something. I'll cut your wrist and let you bleed. We will see what you can do when my soldiers smell your blood and have a feast on it."
She raised her dagger again. At that very moment, when I was sure that I would soon accompany Sven to Valhalla, a big black shadow jumped over her and rolled together with her to the ground. It was an animal I had never seen before. His fur was as black as the night, but every light that fell on it was thrown back and created a silvery lining. His eyes were big and yellow. It looked like a cat, but bigger, much bigger. I heard many stories about tigers, which came from a country on the East, where the sun lingered longer in the sky and snow never fell on its land, but I had never seen one. In the stories that I had heard, they said that the fur of a tiger was golden, brown, black and white. But the animal, which was standing on Lady Roswitha's body, was black. Were there also black tigers?
The dagger left Lady Roswitha's hand. Strangely, the power that she had shown was gone. She was lying on the ground unable to move. Then suddenly I heard a chanting. A sound of a language I had never heard. A language that must have been so old that I didn't understand a word of what she was saying. Then from a distance, I heard a sound. A howling sound that was slowly getting louder and as it was getting nearer; I realized it wasn't a howling of some kind, it was the sound of an angry wind, blowing anything in its way. And it was coming this way.
Lady Roswitha laughed.
"Eric!" I heard Anund's voice. "Njörd has come to help us!"
Njörd was the God of Wind, the God of Good Fortune for a hunter like Anund. But I was afraid, this wind wasn't sent by Njörd, this wind was called by Lady Roswitha.
I heard Anund laughing as the wind was getting closer, but that laugh soon stopped when two wolves jumped over him. I forced myself to move, but I couldn't. So there he was, in front of my very own eyes, Anund, the proud and brave son of Ebberhard, swinging his last swing before falling to the ground. It would take a long time for me to find such good company, who enjoyed every drop of mead and every scent of women.
Yet, as if the mighty Aesir had wanted me to see the people whom I cared and loved taken in front of me, I heard the sweet voice of my woman. "Sam, take her amulet! Take her amulet now!"
The black animal suddenly turned and within a blink of an eye, it changed into Merlotte. Naked, like the day he had been born, he ripped off the silver armour of Lady Roswitha. Then, as the wind started destroying anything around the camp, the people screamed and the bits of metal that were hit against each other made a sound that on other days would sound like the horn of Thor, but now it was more like Hel's laughter, Sam Merlotte snapped Lady Roswitha's necklace.
"NO!"
Her scream in agony was like a hammer that broke the unseen chain around my body. The wind stopped as suddenly as it had come. People, things, wolves fell to the ground like leaves in the windy October afternoon.
I grabbed Sam's body and threw him away.
"Eric!" I heard Sookie calling my name, but my mind was made up. The death of Sven and Anund shouldn't be forgotten, and I didn't intend to. Lady Roswitha crawled on the ground, trying to get away from me.
"Eric! No!"
"Lord Eric..." Lady Roswitha stopped crawling. "You are my husband's loyal soldier. You have promised..."
"Yes, I have promised," I said. "And I intend to keep it," I grabbed her legs and ignored the fire the silver armour that burnt my hands, her scream or Sookie's voice, I threw her to the air, and when I caught her back, with one pull, her body was torn in two. Her blood poured all over my body like the wave of North Sea smashed the rock and hit me with the sea water.
"Jesus, Eric!" I heard Sookie's voice trembling. "What have you done?"
"The first report about the movement of packs of beasts had reached His Majesty's ears early this year, on 5th January 1620, to be exact, beasts that took the shapes of half man and half wolf. What concerned His Majesty was that the beasts followed the trails of Lady Roswitha. Anywhere she had been; there was always news about the appearance of such a beast. Therefore, Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth of Bohemia decided to send Master Sam Merlotte and me to investigate the truth of the troublesome news," Sookie's voice was soft and low, as if she hadn't wanted to deliver the ill-news, which could make Lord Berthold's condition worse.
The Graf of Edelstein was lying on his bed, with broken bones and bruises. He had refused to take my blood, even though I had told him that it wouldn't turn him. "I am a Christian, Lord Eric. My fate lays on the hand of my God, not on yours. I appreciate your offer, but I believe it is not what God wants."
"Upsetting Milord is something that His Majesty tried to avoid," Sookie continued. "And he believed he would have done it, had he revealed my real identity. Edelstein is too important for Bohemia to lose its trust."
"Why?" I asked.
"Lord Berthold is the son outside of marriage of Lord Frederic IV, the father of His Majesty himself. Not many know, but those who do, have sworn under oath not to reveal it."
"Did Lady Roswitha know, Milord?"
Lord Berthold nodded.
It was clear for me now, why Prince Christian of Anhalt had commanded me to protect such a small and unknown area as Edelstein. "Yet, it is strange that Lady Roswitha tried to take over your position now." I said.
"She must have heard about the battle. The defeat of Bohemian Kingdom must have worried her and forced her to change her planning," said Lord Berthold. "If she had become the official Regent of Edelstein, she would have been able to declare the position of Edelstein. And with clever political movement..."
"...she could reach her goal."
Lord Berthold sighed. "What kind of a man am I to be blind enough not to see my woman's plans?"
I stepped forward and knelt down. "No man will be able to see through a woman's plan, if she doesn't let him," I gave Sookie a threatening look. After all her games, she had to know that I wouldn't let her go easily. Strangely, she returned my stare without blushing. "I have lived through hundreds of winters to be able to confirm it, Milord."
Lord Berthold turned to me and smiled weakly. "And yet again, you fell into their scheme, Lord Eric," He turned around. "I think that will be all." It was a sign for us to leave his tent.
We went out. The smoke was rising to the sky; the moon was very low in the west. Soon, the sun would replace him, and I would have to leave.
The soldiers gathered the bodies and searched for those who were wounded. The werewolves had surrendered. In fact, they surrendered as soon as they had realized that Lady Roswitha had been defeated. Some, who didn't want to surrender, fought until their last breath. Some, who didn't want to fight against my wrath, tried to run away and died during the attempt. I myself had lost three of my men: Sven, Anund and Björne, who had guarded the southern part of the camp. He had been bitten and with a heavy heart, I had killed him.
"How did you know about the amulet?" I asked.
"Her Majesty's spies had informed me about it, but until tonight, I had never seen it. Her powers lay in her amulet. Without it, her spells would be less powerful. I heard, the amulet was given by the fairies themselves."
"Fairies?"
She smiled. "You still have a lot to learn, Master Eric."
The sky was getting brighter; the air was getting warmer. Morning was coming.
"I have to leave. Please, take care that Sven, Anund and Björne are taken care of with respect."
She nodded. "I am sorry. I should have been more honest with you."
I looked at her mockingly. "Is this your attempt to escape from your punishment, Lady Susanne? Because I can tell you right now, you have a lot of things to explain and to redeem yourself to me."
"Redeem myself?" she took back her hand, but I stopped her. "I am Her Majesty's most loyal servant, I have nothing to redeem to you."
O yes, she does! I smiled and walked away. I'll make sure that she will do it!
"What should I tell Her Majesty about Lady Roswitha? I can't report to her what I saw."
"Tell her that Lady Roswitha has met her worthy enemy at the edge of the Šumavan Forest."
"You?"
I stopped walking and turned to her. "No, Sookie. You."
"What should I tell her about you?"
I smiled. "Yield to me and find out for yourself." then I shot myself to the air, leaving her blushing as red as Anund's hair.