The water singed and boiled around Nikolai’s body.

Steam rose from its surface, resting against the cold glass of the windows. The room she was in was fogged by the vapors of her bath, despite how large it was. Nikolai’s eyes were closed, and she was enjoying the feeling of the water seeping in her pores, cleansing her body. There was some pain, there was always pain because of her scars. Even before her undeath, she would hate letting anything touch her broken skin, with a few exceptions being her old glove, eyepatch and the touch of someone she once loved. This water however, was also bearable.

I guess being my own boiler isn’t that bad after all. She thought, shooting a sly glance towards her left hand. She flicked her fingers and a dash of fire jumped into the air before being drowned in the humidity of the room. A giggle escaped from her throat. She perked herself up over the water, revealing her sizable breasts and the flaming serpentine scar that ran over her left nipple and down the rest of her body. Nikolai looked around the room for the place where she left her mask. Her mind wandered as she looked for it.

I wonder when we should make way for the next city? Nikolai and the people that followed her, about three dozen, had made their way to a conglomerate of decent abandoned apartments on the side of the road. After numerous days of walking and camping through the forests and countryside, it was a welcome sight. The bath she was currently undertaking was something Nikolai desperately needed. A few days prior during their trek, the lot of them had an encounter in an earlier city. Luckily her powers saved everyone from the horde of laughing corpses. That demonstration further cemented the people’s faith in her, as well as growing her flock. Nikolai liked the feeling. She liked being in control, being commanding, and especially loved the power that surged through her. Her eye finally found the mask resting against the edge of the sink. This prompted her to get out of the bathtub and walk towards it. As she did, the water droplets that lingered on her skin shrunk and evaporated, and by the time she reached the sink, her entire body, head to toe, was clean and dry.

There you are.

The glass eye of the mask stared at her. It seemed to soothe her, to imbue her with joy. Then she saw her reflection in it. Nikolai let the mask down and saw herself in the mirror mounted on the wall above the sink. The first thing that jumped at her was the bright snow-like color of her hair, fading into a gradient of gray until the dark ebon tips. Underneath, she saw her left eye, a faultless ruby that shone always with tongues of fire. She had developed the ability to stop the flames on the rest of her body, but her left eye, never. She looked at the rest of the scars on her body, how they began from her toes moving up over her leg and torso like a snake of fire and ash. It continued coiling over her chest and under her arm, spiraling around it until it reached her hand. There, it passed over her ring and pinky fingers, before spiraling back up her arm. The serpent continued climbing over her shoulder and up her neck, ending on Nikolai’s cheek. Their eyes overlapped, making them whole. Scars that she had hated her whole life, now seemed something she could accept if nothing else. At that moment in her mind, she looked divine. Nikolai draped herself in her one-sleeved dress and slowly tied her suede lace up sandals. Next, she put on her black cloak and then opened the door of the bathroom.

“Yuuya, where are you?” She called while walking through the hallway. No response.

She must be outside I guess.

Nikolai made her way out of the building. There, past the street that ran in front of it, was a meager camp that the people had set up. A park with a small barrack surrounded by tents where the survivors shared scrounged soup and torn clothing. Matthias, the priest, who overlooked the entire process, helped the stranded and hurt while preaching the name of their savior, her holiness, Nikolai. She smiled underneath her mask when she saw the scene. Her instructions were proving fruitful, the tormented and wounded people were eager to accept a Goddess that walked among them and answered their prayers, and a prestigious man of faith such as Matthias would sway even the most skeptical. A sudden silence took over the loud and busy mini-market as the people, one by one, saw their masked Goddess leisurely walk towards them. One by one, as she walked past them, no matter if they were sick or hurt, young or old, they knelt and bowed before her. As they did, they motioned the symbol of their new religion on their body, a circle below the neck, then a line down their sternum, and a ‘V’ from breast to breast.

One however, was not showing his respects. He merely sat on a wet tree stump and hungrily gulped down his soup. The man wore a dirty black shirt with blue shapes decorating it and a pair of training pants, left leg torn and ripped. He was undisturbed by Nikolai’s presence, until she appeared in front of him, looking down upon him with her head slightly tilted to the left.

“Pardon my intrusion.” She said, laughing fakely. “I could not help but notice you were not bowing just now.”

The man looked up at her, joyfully slurping the soup on his spoon. His eyes were bewildered and confused and his head was like a fat bulb, lacking all except the lightest tufts of hair or features. He turned to the left and then to the right and then behind him at the people that were all still on their knees, and all gazing at him with terrified and worried eyes. With one last slurp, he turned back to Nikolai, opened his mouth, and said:

“I take it, you’re the supposed ‘messiah’ I heard these people talking about? … A load of crap I say.” He finished quietly under his breath, going back to his soup.

Nikolai tilted her head to the right, her eye unblinkingly fixed upon the man sitting before her, unafraid and uninterested in her.

“I take it you did not join us until recently is that so?” She said softly.

“Yes ma’am.” He answered, annoyed.

“And you did not see what happened in the city, am I correct?”

“Load of crap like I said. Anyone with a couple gallons of gasoline could do the same thing.” He said, his mouth half full with food and spilling down his chin.

Nikolai bit her bottom lip, revulsed.“What.. is your name?” She said, her voice calm and cool.

“Thomas.”

“Thomas.” She echoed. “How fitting.” She turned to the right and motioned the people to stand before walking away, with a light glee in her step. “Victor, Charles, restrain him and bring him up towards the street, I’d hate to dirty the place where people eat.”

“Get your goddamned fingers off of me!” Thomas shouted, jumping up from his stump and knocking over his bowl. He pointed at the man that was walking towards him, despite the fact that the man in question had not even raised his hand yet. “You lay a finger on me and I’ll put you in a hospital you hear me? I’ll break your face you shi-” He continued swearing before Charles whacked him over the head with a short wooden plank. He and Victor then walked over and grabbed the man by his shoulders.

“Nice hit.” Victor complimented.

“Urhg, ah, g-gittoff…” His voice moaned as the two dragged him away through the grass under the worried gaze of everyone around. He tried to fight back but the blow had nearly knocked him unconscious. He turned up towards one of the men that held him by his shoulders. Thomas could read the discontempt and resignation on his face. “Let GO of me you cultist BASTARD!” He swore at him. However, he did not try to fight out of their grip.

After what seemed like miles being dragged through green-tinted glass, Thomas found himself standing on his knees on cement, held up by his shoulders. Three fingers cold like death grabbed his chin and pulled his head upwards. The sun shone down upon them from between painted gray clouds and in that shine he saw the reaper’s silhouette: pure black except for a singular eye tinted blue and white. She lowered herself down to his level, her eye following his increasingly terrified ones as he tried to thrash himself free. Nikolai lifted her left arm, and slowly pulled back her sleeve, revealing her gold-coated scars. Thomas’ eyes were white with shock.

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

Nikolai then snapped her fingers, lighting a small flame at the very tip of her index. She twirled the fire between her fingers as if it were a single brass coin. Then she took the ball of heat and light in the palm of her other hand and crushed it beneath her fingers. The warmth that Thomas felt close to his face died and only the cold remained.

“Nothing more than a party trick, right?” She teased.

Thomas bobbed his mouth open then closed it again, unable to speak a word. Charles and Victor let go of his shoulder and backed away closer to the crowd that had gathered on the grass near the street. The man was on his knees, frozen in fear before Nikolai. In the next instant, her left arm up to her elbow was alight in a blinding scorching fire. Thomas felt the hair on his eyebrows starting to char from the exorbitant heat and his skin began to turn a crimson red.

“W-WAIT PLEASE!” He screamed, nearly smashing his head onto the pavement as he bowed his entire body. Nikolai observed him, her hand burning less bright.

“P-please, I’m sorry, sweet merciful god I am sorry! Have mercy, please! I beg you!” He began to sob loudly. “Pleasee, don't kill meee-he-eee!” His voice cracked.

Nikolai looked up at all the people that gathered around to watch her, their faces full of anxiousness and worry, each wondering what the man’s fate would be. She sighed under her mask and put out her fire completely.

“Alright, I’ll spare your pitiful life.” She said calmly.

Thomas gasped, nearly choking on his tears. “Thank you, thank you merciful god that you are.” He managed to spit out. As he talked he reached up and placed his hands and head on Nikolai’s feet, trying to show his gratitude. She jumped back and violently kicked him away.

“Don’t. You ever. Touch me. Again!“ Her raucous voice and her eye seething with fury betrayed her usually calm demeanor.

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. Please I’m s-” He babbled before being interrupted.

“I said I would spare you.” She said, her mannerism once again collected. “But I did not say you will go unpunished. You still insulted me. I can not allow that. You two, hold him.”

Victor and Charles once again stepped forward and restrained him.

“Here, I’ll give you a choice, what will it be, your chest? Your face? Or your back?” She said, massaging her wrist.

“W-what?”

“Choose.” Her voice fell like a guillotine.

“My back. I choose my back.” Thomas whimpered.

“Very well. Take off his shirt, hold him down.”

Thomas stood helpless and watched as the men stripped him of his shirt and pinned him down on his knees. He lost whatever will he had to fight when the woman’s fire nearly burned his face off. Nikolai was disgusted by his unclean and fat appearance. She shrugged it off and lit a small tongue of light on her finger. Then she leaned down and placed it high on the man’s back directly on his spine. Thomas screamed and howled, his lungs emptying into a hoarse shriek of pain before his next breath turned into a loud wail. Nikolai ignored him. The people that saw him murmured and gasped, some averting their eyes.

Slowly, she traced a stunningly symmetrical circle on the entirety of his upper back. The man under her gulped for air when she lifted her hand, before screaming again when she placed it back down.

Slowly, she traced a perfectly straight line from the circle, down on his spine. By now Thomas could not even shriek anymore, he merely sang a throated heaving gurgle.

Slowly, she traced an impeccable ‘V’ on his lower back finishing the brand. His skin was torn and cracked, a shade of red under gray lines of ash. When Victor and Charles let go of him his body fell like a rock flat on his chest, the man barely breathing.

“His back will now forever bear the mark of The Silver Rose. A great honor that I hope he will bear with pride.” Nikolai spoke to the people, standing tall and walking towards them. A few backed away while some knelt out of fear. “You all now clear witnesses to both my mercy and my fury. I will not tolerate disobedience. When I say move, you will move, when I say bow, you will, bow.” Her voice, unlike her flames, cut through the crowd like sheets of black ice. “Begin packing, we’re leaving first thing in the morning, tomorrow. Oh and someone-” She pointed at Thomas. “Take him somewhere, will you?” When she finished, Nikolai signaled Matthias the abbot with a nod and flick of her head. He brushed his way past the people and walked with her, away from the crowd.

“Yes, your holiness?” He asked, his voice deep yet soft still trembling from the display he witnessed. The priest’s eyes were gray with age and sorrow, as was the hair that still clung to his head. He was thin and almost a head and a half taller than Nikolai and his robe was as clean as the conditions they were in allowed it to be. His left hand was always clutching his chest, perhaps as a habitual instinct from when he would clutch his cross. A cross which Nikolai made him throw away.

“Yuuya, where is she?” She said.

“Yuuya? Was she not inside? She said she wanted to play with some of the toys the other kids found. Perhaps they went outside?”

Nikolai hung down her head and her bleached hair fell over her eye and mask.

“Erhm, she’s fine I’m certain, some of the other kids were gone with her too. You said the wights don’t like being out in the sun... “ He looked up and squinted at the bright light that shone over the clouds. “...Nothing to worry about.”

Nikolai was not convinced. Other creatures don’t mind the sun, foolish man.

“Look! There they come now.” He said with his eyes lighting up.

Indeed, Yuuya was accompanied by around four or five other children and two other older ladies. The group made their way down the street chatting and laughing and skipping and they appeared to be carrying bags with things inside them. Nikolai walked towards them, her feet seemingly floating across the ground.

“Where were you all?” She asked. “Did you go… shopping?”

“We went to scavenge some things in the other buildings. We found a lot of good food and clothes, and medicine too.” One of the women replied. Her hair was short and blonde with strips of red and her face appeared warm and joyous but hid an undertone of worry.

“Look, look I found another doll!” One of the little girls excitedly tried telling Nikolai, but her frigid aura frightened her off.

“You never know what could be hiding in these buildings.” Nikolai’s quiet tone previewed the anger that bubbled beneath the surface.

“I thought you cleared everything and made sure there was not anything.” The woman replied, her tone growing bolder with annoyance.

“I could have missed some darkened hole-”

“You’re a goddess, aren’t you?” She said.

Nikolai smiled under her mask, a vein in her head twitching with rage. She hung her head down and walked slowly towards the woman, placing her left hand on her shoulder. The woman felt her clothes warming under her fingers. Nikolai then lifted her head and looked over the defier’s shoulder.

“You see that man, the one that’s being dragged off right now?” She whispered in her ear. The woman nodded, gulping at the sight of his still smoking branded back. “He defied me earlier. Punishment was given. Do not anger me further, or worse will come. It would be a shame if your little girls would not be able to play with their dolls anymore, wouldn’t it?”

The woman whimpered, instinctively looking at her daughters, who were playing a game with Yuuya.

“You wouldn’t dare!” She almost screamed.

“Would you perchance want to test me?” Nikolai said as her hand got warmer.

The woman shoved her off. “Alright, Alright, I’m sorry… m-my Goddess. We won’t do it again. We’ll let you know and ask for permission next time.” She pleaded.

“Very well. Come Yuuya, let’s go inside.” She turned and reached out her hand. Yuuya hesitated.

“Can Roxanne and Abigail come with us? Please?” The young girl asked, her voice soft and longing.

“If their mother won’t mind…” She spoke, very voice smooth as woven silk and her crystal blue eye piercing into the woman’s heart. Subdued, she nodded back at her goddess. The three girls then followed Nikolai inside the building from where she came. The mother lingered, staring at the building, as it stretched on into the silver sky. She could not shake off the feeling that she just signed away her daughters’ lives.