Riva Fulmin
My voice sounded as sickly as ever. I’ve forgotten how long I have been sick, the time just elapsed into one another with no thought of being separate. My earliest memory regarding being ill was several thousand years before becoming the eldritch god I am now. Through various lives under different names there was always a constant, my illness will never leave me be. The origins of this illness can be dated back to my very first life when I lived by another name in another world.
I had two sisters. Cha and Yuson who like me were born from light but delved down different paths in directions untold. Yuson and Cha were very different to me, Yuson was brash and hot-headed whereas Cha was naïve yet strong enough to keep standing no matter the challenge. Though I was cool-headed and would question almost everything, physically I was so very fragile. Through my intelligence, I could progress through life for so long even becoming a guardian like my siblings. ‘I wish I could return to that slow peaceful life before everything fell apart’.
My mind drifted towards an old memory of when I got the diagnosis, I had been living with stage four lung cancer which coupled with my chronic depression wasn’t a great life. No matter how many times I met friends and family, no one knew of my stage four cancer up until my death, to be exact my death was caused by my hand. Eventually, my depression worsened thanks to my cancer coupled with the mother of nothingness- my aunt worming her way into my head driving me over the brink. Taking med after med to help my depression lessen only so much… after a while I gave up and when I was home alone, I killed myself. Well, I tried to.
It was Yuson who found me however it was too late, the shock raked my body and caused my heart to stop. The only thing I left was a suicide note with the words ‘I’m sorry’.
“Thinking about life… master why?” my bond with an expression that matched his current demeanour. ‘Why indeed?’ I thought to myself looking out at the numerous magical screens before me waiting for the coliseum event to begin. Maybe it was the fact even after centuries untold, countless reincarnations and several different lives, I still live with this cancerous poison running through my veins. It could just be the fact I sound like an old hag on her deathbed waiting for death’s frigid yet blazing warm embrace.
“I… Yes, I am. Thinking of when time used to be so simple before I met Malphent before I lived wandering the realms. Auraxion—Never mind it.” I allowed my formulated thoughts to wither away into the back of my mind. Auraxion my bond sat beside me on the marble ground of the seating booth looking out over the large coliseum. This particular building was built by the dwarves and northern craftsman of the Artemi along with having Caryll’s input for the complex involved mana-tech. Stroking my bond’s keen fur made the wolf-like beast rise onto her hind legs in response to more than just my stroking.
It may have seemed it but unlike Luna who was the descendant of Sif’s bond Fenrir, Auraxion wasn’t a wolf nor any sort of canine lupin or Felis catus. My bond’s race is classed as unseen very much like Ironwitch and Lyra's owl Griffin. This classification comes from the fact that the true form cannot be seen from any eyes other than the masters or bonds own, these bonds take on forms that seem the most comfortable for them. For example, Ironwitch is a black panther with spiked fur, and lyra owl griffin ‘noir’ is well… as the race placeholder implies an owl griffin.
Auraxion my bond may take on the form of a wolf, but her true form is an ancient beast called the formless drake. I have only seen her true form once which was when he defended me against Crowna all those years ago, she didn’t stand a chance against her, and neither did I. Crowna the pride of Olympus’s rebellion born from primeval and primordial, made our bonds look like wheat in a field being harvested by scythes. She made us ‘godlike’ beings understand what pain felt like all the same, made us understand what fear felt like. we named her the ‘Crimson Death’
“Never thought you’d watch these things alone.” Six erratically sat on the seat right of me. oryan beside her with his slave aide standing nervously still trying to free himself after so long of being chained. To my left sat two people Ludwig's lieutenant sophra the ice-heart and a figure I hadn’t seen in quite some time-- The maiden. She seemed interested more than any of us in the event unfolding before us, no doubt to see what Rias had become since childhood and their chance meeting in Nora’s citadel.
Six looked as evil yet elegant as ever, oryan still looking like a massive pompous prick he flaunted himself as. Sophra looked as I imagined her to be, with clear icy eyes of sapphire matching the light blue cream faded hair flowing down her shoulder. A dark mirror of Shu yet so unfamiliar it could scramble the mind. Glancing to the maiden who to my knowledge named herself Adrianna was the most different, wearing the simple clothing of coal miners. Rugged unlaced boots, tattered old trousers, ash-covered cream striped shirt rolled above the elbows. Her hair was short, like a comb-over, its black colour sucking in all light. Her skin wasn’t pale more of a cracked ashy grey, her eyes were hollow in feel with no hue to them aside from the shade of black.
“I’m here to keep up appearances that's all. Not to offer small talk to any of you. Yet I’ll have no choice but to talk… I'd rather be left alone.” Ignoring all of them I focused on what was happening before me, with the help of Caryll’s mana-tech were able to see various points of view of the current event. To my understanding, this was a recreation of an ancient event that occurred during Marin’s and Rayenfur’s respective eras. To collect laurels and the two with the most would duke it out and the winner is allowed to ask for something to be granted. As nothing interesting was happening at this current moment I skimmed through some of the participants.
A few I recognized instantly such as Prince Imra and his brother, the elven dark elf prince Karlm. There were others such as the king’s guard spearman Corvus fighting for his mother’s countship of course there was Wolfgar's son and daughter. However, all these people in this events there were a few I wanted to see fight amongst the several who were present. The grand commander Nox and Rias herself. Nox had me intrigued as her identity was obscured, no one could figure out who she was other than the fact she was an elf half-breed with an unknown mother.
From the bio I had on me, all the information such as her name which was listed as Nox to keep her real identity a secret, her birth was displayed just the date and general location. Her birth sign however was listed. The black owl of elvish mythology. Even her status as a half-breed was present. Nevertheless, I couldn’t narrow down who it was as this was given out with all the elves. One thing that did stick to me that others glossed over, she was the half-breed of… a dark elf and silver elf firewatcher.
This biology made her a being not to be dismissive of. Being a dark elf was one thing but being a silver elf that has mixed blood of firewatcher was something that I couldn’t gloss over knowing the biology of such. Dark elves known for their elegant brutality thanks to Queen Kyte are exceptional killers leaving not even a trace of their existence. Silver elves are elegant in the way they fight and even kill, when they are done you know they are responsible. Firewatchers are different from the elves in a way expected of similar to savages and druids.
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Firewatchers are brutal even to the point where the savage tribes call them too savage. Their savagery transcended what people considered to be savage. This savagery extended in many directions from the blood eagle to scalping to wearing their victim’s skin. These were just the run-of-the-mill savagery that every tribe dealt with however the firewatchers extended this savagery to hanging the skinned people upon pyres made of bones, even eating their hearts in front of others. Hard to believe that this race which was a sub gene all originated from a disease found in old vampyres.
In response to shouts of cheers, I looked up at the mana-tech picture before me swap to Nox fighting alone against an entire group of seven people in Harmon’s group. It was impressive to see hardened knights trained by the lord commander of Riel losing to a savage half-breed elf. I felt a smile creep across my face feeling emotions that I felt in my first life seeing young guardians ascend the ranks. One by one the knights fell giving up their laurels to Nox as she moved forward her eyes glowing a burnt green under that stag skull.
When the seventh fell silence filled the arena. Nox tore out the seventh’s heart and seemed to squeeze it until it exploded causing all the blood to cover Nox’s skull even dripping through the small cracks in it. The citizens of Eventide seemed the least unfazed cheering for their grand commander to continue her onslaught. From rumours coming out from the first three cities built in Numena, I knew enough that the grand commanders were treated like royals of onrath and Tramon. Nox, artoria and Ciaran are among the most cheered and respected being called the three hands of the goddess.
“These people, treat their empress like a god and their grand commanders like royals! Such blasphemy.” Oryan scoffed at the notion that these people generally respected, felt protected and worthy to live in the same place as their Goddess. Six like oryan might not want to admit it but in the eyes of these people, Rias was their god born with the body of a Valkyrie. Standing up for what she believes in even going out of her way to save the elven queen and mend past relationships. It's been the same since I first met her, she doesn’t want to be worshiped but she doesn’t unwelcome it. In her own words ‘The leader in any form serves the people, not the other way around.’
“Oh, the irony eldritch king. Does it make you jealous that these people don’t care for you? Does it make you full of hate that you aren’t worshipped? You self-entitled arse.” The maiden glanced momentarily towards oryan who clenched his jaw in response. He wanted to speak but kept his mouth shut, though I like to keep away from the inner workings of eldritch affairs I knew of some mishaps. The maiden somehow made Oryan always second guess his words or stop in his tracks, I'm not sure as to the reason why but if I had to hazard a guess.
It probably stemmed from the fact the maiden has killed beings even stronger than Oryan for fun. Whether this was true or not I could confirm as I was and still am a shut-in, most of the time. There is animosity between them which could stem from the fact that oryan wants Rias dead but every time he’s tried to kill her, it's gone awry for reasons unbeknownst.
“Don’t start talking mistress of Ludwig.”
“Don’t start something now six because last time I checked you have to enslave people to sleep with them because you killed your last lover… unlike you, I can just ask Ludwig. He will give it to me free of charge.” The maiden smiled glancing towards six like sticking her hand in an unfettered wound dipping in the course salt. This was known to me well since Sif’s death six felt a longing for a lover in any form. Unfortunately, due to her actions of killing the pride of the eldritch, no one would bed her not even oryan himself. As a result, she took lovers in the form of slaves but forced them into contracts if they failed to please her like Sif could, she’d kill them. This caused a jealous wound to spring up when she saw the maiden happily being lovers with Ludwig for a while anyway.
“Before he got infested by oryx that is. Funny can you get pipe now?” Six shot back eyeing the maiden who was unmoved whilst watching Rias fight.
“You sound like a child six, then again seems about right as you were never loved as one.” Those words sent our entire booth into silence, sophra stopped filing her nails even oryan stopped drinking the red leisure wine he had just been handed. A single sentence sparked a match. Six was about to explode into a flaming storm, as a result, the maiden picked at another open wound that had been plaguing six for quite some time. It wasn’t a major wound but one enough to leave a scar.
Six indeed wasn’t loved as a child due to the lifetimes' worth of experiments she was put through with fourteen others to create the perfect being who could kill an eldritch and even become one. The only love she ever felt was Sif’s who she threw away at the drop of a hat. ‘I’m starting to think I'm the most normal here.’ I thought to myself staring into my lap looking at Rias' bio profile. Sometimes I find it hard to believe that Sif could even love someone like Six knowing how vile she is even with her Valkyries. Looking at that large demonic spiked tooth grin, the elongated elven ears and the reptile eyes were enough for me to think why in gods’ names would she.
“Are you finished with your squabbling? Did I hide my aura that well?” Artoria stood leaning against the wall just mere centimetres away from the door that everyone used to enter. Turning to face her all I could see were the violet-blue eyes of the darkened abyss staring out from the shadows. Even in a room full of eldritch beings and beings close to it, Artoria’s presence her very aura was more overwhelming now she wasn’t hiding it. Not taking my eyes off was a bad idea as the longer I looked at her, the more I felt the burning hatred she had for us all less so for Caryll and myself.
I could understand a little of that hate, as Artoria was quite different from all the people around her, like Rias and Talia her hate for the eldritch doesn’t stop at the way she talks to us. She pushes us away until she can no longer hear us, she actively avoids any conversation that involves our ‘race’ unless she wants to say something on her mind. A warning for example. From the look in her eyes at this very moment, I could tell one such warning was coming, turning back towards the mana-tech feeling Artoria’s aura just crash against my own.
“I see you’ve had some fun with looking into my friends and family. Oryan. Six. I'll give you this warning and I hope you listen. Stop trying to find information about those I care about, or the void Leviathan’s screams won’t be the last screams I make rupture Yggdrasil. After all the abyss cannot be halted by the cries of pity.” Artoria faded from sight after delivering that one singular warning, Oryan’s left hand began to shake violently, causing a crack to form in his wine glass. ‘That brings back a memory, the void Leviathan’. I remember the day I told artoria how to kill it after she told me how she wanted to break Oryan’s pride.
Of course, she knew it wasn’t me as I was posing as an old crone with a bag full of medicines on my back. She probably expected something was amiss after I had just randomly disappeared from view completely, not that mattered now aside from oryan who was shaking with anger. The void Leviathan was his ‘pet’ his bond which he had lost to a no-name being who happened to create the abyss something that not even light nor darkness can escape. That wasn’t why he was shaking; it was the fact that Artoria’s warning wasn’t an empty threat it would happen if she had her way.
Many beings made of light and darkness even both together have been consumed by the abyss driven insane trying to comprehend the inner workings. They couldn’t even touch it or damage it even with the help of so many, whether it's true or not. I suspect even the primordials are scared of the abyss as they can’t even bring harm to it. I was driven away from Oryan’s shaking from shouts of displeasure at the unfolding events before. Rias was fighting two beings, Imra the prince of Riel and the corrupted angel of time. She was losing.
My heart had begun to tug in heartache similar to when it had done when seeing Yuson get hurt.
“Wow look at that… the angel of time willingly serves Imra.”
“What did you say?”
“As Valkyrie queen, I had access to ‘slaves’ I've just given Imra one such slave. A being as strong as a primordial is about to kill your precious--.” Six stopped speaking as the picture changed, a clearer view of the unfolding events with us able to hear Rias’s words that seemed to have hate seeping through the words, I was more focused on her body shifting in form.
We watched as Rias’s body shifted in appearance down to the bone, though I hadn’t paid much attention I had seen she made a deal with her once sister Kaliryn god knows what the deal entailed. However, that right now wasn’t the pressing issue, it was Rias herself. Her crown was now removed from her head and her glaive was nowhere in sight all that remained was a jet-black odachi made of shimmering light of divinity of her own craftsmanship.
“Unto death, bound in blackened chains of raven steel. My heart of grey bleeding the divine gold, lest we forget… holden to our sins. I bind my fears into nightmares… come forth black death.”