《Eternal Chronicles: Vampire》


 Chapter 1

    Chapter 1


    In the darkness of a frozen tundra, there was a flickering light, coming from a large bonfire. Surrounding the bonfire, there were dozens of little huts, built from bones and hides. The bones were large, much larger than the group of humans surrounding the campfire, and the hides were of various shapes and colours, from white, to dark brown. It truly looked like they built it from whatever they could find. After all, in such frozen lands where the snow reached beyond your eye¡¯s horizon, you would rarely find any wood at all. Everything was covered in frozen ice. But somehow, even though everything was so cold and difficult, these people surrounding the bonfire, all remained cheerful and energetic. After all, they never knew anything different.


    This wasn¡¯t just some cold winter; it was the ice age. The world was in a perpetuum of winter. They called it the season of never ending snow. However, the concept of seasons was mysterious to them. All they knew of it were legends of a time long passed, where the heat from a bonfire would envelope the entire world. Where the light of day would be long lasting, and where the snow would melt. However, this was all passed down, through the word of mouth. They had never seen it. Nor had their parents, or grandparents, or even their grandparents¡¯ grandparents. No one believed that such a world was possible. All it was, was just a story, to tell children before they went to sleep.


    Life was hard, but they still fought for survival, and this very night they celebrated, for their men had successfully downed a mammoth! Whenever they managed to hunt a mammoth, it would be great news for the tribe. It would allow the tribe food for weeks, and the bones were great for constructing huts. The shamans also greatly valued their tusks. They were very useful in rituals, and the powder made from it could be used as medicine, or so they believed.


    Amongst all these people, there was one young boy, especially excited. He had dark brown hair, almost black, and was about ten years old. He looked on in amazement, at the carcass of the large woolly mammoth, as the men were cutting it up with their crude bone knives. On his side was a large man, also adorned with dark brown hair, but accompanied with a large beard, like most the men had. The man and boy both shared brown eyes, just like everyone else in the tribe. As a matter of fact, they had never seen anyone with differently coloured eyes, so they didn¡¯t think it was possible for humans to have other colours. And, at the time, it wasn¡¯t.


    The large man with brown hair, beard, and eye combo, too, looked proudly at the mammoth carcass. He was the chieftain of the clan, and the young boy next to him, was his son. His wife was with the other women, preparing dinner. Tonight they would have a feast.


    ¡°What a wonderful catch,¡± the large man said with a deep, loud voice, ¡°in a few dozen moons, then you, too, shall join in the hunt, Ulfvaldr. Until then, you just have to practice diligently in throwing your spears, and shooting your arrows and helping the gatherers. I am sure that you will grow up to be an amazing hunter, and one day, you shall be the next chief. You are not like the others; you must work hard, for the sake of our tribe!¡± The large chieftain continued. The young boy, named Ulfvaldr, looked at his father and said,


    ¡°Yes father! I am sure that I will become the greatest hunter of the tribe, and lead our tribe to greatness!¡± Ulfvaldr looked very determined, and he had always looked forward to the day when he could join the hunt. He looked greatly up to his father, who was named Skegg. Humorously enough, Skegg meant beard, which attributed to his great beard. Some even said that he was born with his great beard, which is why he was named as such. This, of course, wasn¡¯t true.


    As for Ulfvaldr, it meant wolf-wolf. It, too, was pretty humorous, but people rarely thought that much about the meaning of names. Usually, people just called him Ulf, or Valdr. If anything, the name made it even harder for him, as the wolf was great hunter, and his name had two wolves in it! He was determined to work hard; he had to be. From the day he was born, he had always been told that he would be the next chieftain; there was no small amount of pressure on him.


    Skegg, also greatly cared for his son. He was the only son he had, so he was his only heir. It wasn¡¯t that he never had any other children, they just never survived. Most children that were born, wouldn¡¯t survive the harsh climate. There were even some women who never had a single child survive more than a few years. However, by the time the child was as old as Ulfvaldr, there was a great chance for them to grow up. Skegg doubted whether he¡¯d ever have another child survive the years.


    After giving his speech to his son, Skegg finally decided to go and help the others with the workload of the mammoth. He took out a knife, made from white yellowish bone, and started cutting. Ulfvaldr, too, went over to try and help, but there wasn¡¯t much he was able to do. He just carried the meat to their storage pit, and fetched things that the adults needed, together with the few other children.


    Later, Ulfvaldr made his way over to the bright fire, where his mother was at. They were busily cooking meat over the open fire. A delicious fragrance went over the frozen campsite, and made everyone even hungrier; especially the men. When they went on long hunting trips, food would always be a shortage, as vegetation was very rare, and there was a limit to how much they could carry.


    They were largely bound to hunting small game, for their meals. So they were naturally very hungry, after the several day long trip. These parts sadly didn¡¯t have many animals, so they often went hungry. They rarely found any rabbits, or the like. It was mostly just predators. From time to time, someone would get fed up with it and leave the tribe in search for better places, but they never came back. Everyone believed them dead. Ulfvaldr¡¯s mother saw him coming running towards her, and welcomed him with open arms.


    ¡°Ulf kind*, my dear, come help us a bit,¡± his mother, Rafarta, said with a light hearted voice. Rafarta was Ulfvaldr¡¯s mother, but she was not from this tribe. She had been taken from another tribe about eleven years ago, in a raid, which was the norm. People often took mates from neighbouring tribes, be it by aggression, or agreement.


    In this case, it had been aggression, as there had been some grievances between the two tribes. However, those grievances were long forgotten, and both tribes minded their own business these days. Tribes couldn¡¯t afford to hold prolonged grudges. However, from that fight many years ago, young Rafarta had been taken, and the chieftain quickly fell for her. Rafarta also fell back for him, as time passed, and Ulfvaldr was born. Rafarta was a very beautiful woman, in her twenties. She, too, had dark hair, with brown coloured eyes.


    *Kind means child, in the sense of family or offspring. Pronounced kihnd.


    And thus, the moons quickly passed, and Ulfvaldr grew taller and older. On his fifteenth year, he had gone out with his father and the others, for his first hunt. It would be a several day trip, as they were going to go a bit away from the tribe, in hopes of finding some big game. If they were lucky, they might find a mammoth, or a giant elk, or if they weren¡¯t, they could come upon wolves, or even worse, a saber cat! If that happened they might lose a few men, which would be very bad, but the chances of that happening were low. Saber cats were usually alone, and wouldn¡¯t approach a large group of humans, and the same could be said about the wolves. Except that wolves were in packs.


    As they walked, it was quite dark, from all the clouds covering the sky. It was cold, as always, as they trod through the ice and snow. It was very chilly; you could feel the cold to the bones. It was not rare for one to get frostbite; a lot of people missed a toe or two, or even a finger.


    The landscape was very sombre; there was only ice, as far as the eye could reach. Cliffs of ice, hills of ice, ground of ice. Ice everywhere. It was a landscape which you would quickly tire from, but these tribesmen knew nothing else. It was all they had ever seen; only ice. They could only continue to walk.


    It had already been two days, before any prey was found. But they were lucky. They had come upon a small group of woolly mammoths. But that was only the first of it. They still needed to kill one of them, and bring it back, and that was easier said, than done. Charging at a whole group of mammoths was suicide. They needed to find a relatively secluded one, preferably a small, weak one, then chase it into a trap. If they could separate them, it would be sublime.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.


    The group of tribesmen made sure to stay a good distance away from the mammoth herd, as they made their plans. After they finished, about half of the group separated and went for a frozen hill, in the distance. Skegg turned to his son, and put his hand on his fur covered shoulder.


    ¡°Remember, son, you just need to chase the mammoth with us, don¡¯t get too close. When we manage to chase the mammoth to the others, you just stay back, and throw your spears, alright? Remember, just stay back. This is only your first time, no need to show your bravery,¡± Skegg said. Ulfvaldr looked at his father, and nodded his head. He wouldn¡¯t go against the orders of his father, the chief. He knew that if he somehow managed to mess things up, then there was no way he could make it up. As the future chief, he had to be capable, and most of all, he had to not be stupid.


    As they finished talking, and the other group had made their way to the hill, the main group started sneaking towards the mammoths. The journey over, took about fifteen minutes, as they tried to be sneaky. When finally there, they sat down to wait. They needed to wait for the best opportunity. They only had one shot at this; they would only be able to chase a single mammoth. Any more, and they¡¯d be taking a workload beyond their capabilities. They wouldn¡¯t even be able to carry more than a single mammoth, back home.


    The wait was very cold, and they could only lie still on the ground. They all felt the cold chill into their bones, and the temptation to rise and run was great. But they had to fight on. If they messed up, it was all over. If the mammoths ran away, it would be a pain to chase after them.


    Finally, after an hour of waiting, a single mammoth made a small distance away from the herd. Their opportunity had finally showed itself. Skegg looked in the eyes of his son, with a look that told him to prepare himself. Ulfvaldr gulped, as he rose up with the others. With a fierce cry, the group split in two, once again.


    ¡°YAYAYAYAAHAAA!¡± They screamed, as one group chased the lone mammoth, while the other chased the group, with the purpose of scaring them into retreat. However, they only chased a short distance, until they regrouped with the main group. Now, it was a game of chasing.


    They needed to chase the mammoth in a single direction, while making all kinds of cries and screams. The men would go around it, in a half circle, and make sure that the mammoth could only go in a single direction. One of the few advantages humans had over the other animals, was their endurance. They didn¡¯t possess great speed, nor strength, but they could run longer. They took great advantage of that fact, and would try their best to tire down their prey. Chases would often last hours on end.


    As the mammoth tried to run to the side, the hunters would hurl their spear at them, lodging it deep inside it. This would make the mammoth turn direction again, except if they were really unlucky. This happened several times, and as they finally made it to the hill, the mammoth already had five spears lodged in its hide. As they neared the hill, the other group were naturally made aware of them, from the loud screams. In a flash, they appeared from a boulder, and hurled their spears at the mammoth, while a few others toppled the boulder, right towards the huge mammoth.


    ¡°OUT OF THE WAY!¡± Skegg shouted, as the boulder came rolling down the hill. This was naturally a part of the plan, but he still made sure that everyone got out of harm¡¯s way. The ice boulder crashed into the side of the mammoth, and shattered into pieces, as the mammoth collapsed, and was sent a few meters back. As the mammoth lay in its side, all the hunters shouted their war cries, and lunged their spears into the mammoth, until it breathed its last breath. Finally, they had felled the mammoth!


    ¡°YAAAAAAAAAAAH!¡± They screamed in victory, as they raised their spears. Naturally, Ulfvaldr took part in this ritual as well. Then came the dreadful part. They needed to get this beast back home. And it was no easy task. The mammoth weighed several tons, and it would take a lot of effort. But the men could only clench their teeth, and get to work. If they all worked together, it wouldn¡¯t be too hard. Luckily, they had brought some tools to help them. They were composed of large ¡®sticks¡¯ made from bones, which they would tie the mammoth to. Then they would proceed to drag it home. It would be a long, and arduous task, but in the end, it would be more than worth it. The mammoths were truly valuable, to this people of the Ice Age. It contained both a lot of meat and fat, as well as its hide. It had the most fur of any animal.


    In this age, this small community was largely dependent on furs and fat, as well as bones. All their tools were made from bones, and all their clothes were made from furs. In this cold age, they needed warm clothes, or they would freeze to death.


    Then, as they had made their preparations, they finally began pulling. All of the men were helping, and the mammoth was slowly moving. It took about a week of arduous work, before they finally made it back, to their little village. As some child saw them creeping towards the village in the distance, he quickly notified everyone else. In but a moment, all the men and women stopped what they were doing, and came out to wait.


    ¡°It¡¯s a mammoth! By the ¨¢ss*, they got a mammoth!¡± They exclaimed. It had been a long time since they last caught a mammoth, and it was great news for the tribe. Now they would have food for a long time, and wouldn¡¯t have to worry. The pregnant woman also had better chances for successfully bearing children. With a surplus of food and furs, the new-borns would have a greater chance at surviving. It was very important for the tribe that the children survived. After all, there weren¡¯t that many people. The tribe only numbered about thirty people, and that was already quite a bit, for the time.


    *¨¢ss means god, or gods.


    As the hunters finally made their way to the tribe, Rafarta came running towards them, and put her son in a large embrace. She was truly proud of her son. For them to catch a mammoth on the first hunting trip of her son was truly an amazing thing to her. She had no doubt that the gods somehow favoured Ulfvaldr.


    ¡°Ah, my dear Ulf kind! I¡¯m so proud of you, I knew you would do well, I knew it! You must truly be favoured by the ¨¢ss, for you all to catch a mammoth on your very first time! I knew it!¡± She exclaimed gladly, as she held her son tightly. A few of the men looked at them with mocking grins. It wasn¡¯t that they actually mocked them; everyone in the tribe was quite close, but the scene was quite humorous. The great warrior, apparently favoured by the gods, was being hugged by his mother!


    ¡°Mother, please stop, you¡¯re embarrassing me,¡± Ulfvaldr said, with a red face. Not that he was that embarrassed, but his mother was quite strong, and he had a hard time breathing. He started to push himself away, but to no avail.


    ¡°What are you talking about, can¡¯t a mother hug her son?¡± She asked with a question mark. Skegg shook his head, and said,


    ¡°Rafarta, you should stop. Valdr is the next chief in line; he can¡¯t look weak in front his peers and seniors. He must be strong, for the tribe, so stop treating him like a child. He¡¯s already an adult.¡±


    He looked towards his son, and put his hand on the fifteen-year-old man¡¯s shoulder. These days, you were already an adult, by this age. After all, the life expectancy was quite low. You would be lucky to live for forty years.


    After dragging the woolly mammoth back to camp, the work began. They had to skin it and slaughter it, then store the meat. Luckily, it was so cold that the meat would never rot, but instead freeze. They had dug a hole, using their rough bone tools, where they stored the meat. This way, the hole could act like an impromptu freezer. Not that they knew what a freezer was. Digging that hole had been quite the workload, since the ice was quite tough and hard. And the bad thing was that every time they had to migrate, they needed to make a new hole, if there wasn¡¯t something there functional at their new location already.


    After many hours of work, they had finally cut most of the hide off, and stored the meat. Now, there was only a pile of bones left. They just let them stay in corner, where it wouldn¡¯t bother anyone. It wasn¡¯t as important to store the bones, as it was the meat. The bones wouldn¡¯t attract any wild animals, like the meat could.


    After all the work was finally finished, they had a small feast for the first time in several years. But it was only a small feast. They might be primal simpletons, but they still had survival instincts; they wouldn¡¯t splurge at the cost of their livelihood.


    Later, the over two dozen tribesmen sat around their flickering campfire, munching on the brown, slightly black, meat in their hands. Everyone was festive, and were enjoying themselves. They drank water, melted from frozen ice and snow, contained in bone cups and craniums. The men were singing their primal songs, while the women danced. There were festive moods in the air, and everyone was affected.


    ¡°Valdr, my m?gr*, this is what it means to live in a tribe; this is what it means to live. We fight every day, with the sole goal of survival. We are surrounded by enemies; be it the elements, wolves, or sabre cats. Every day we fight. But that is what life is about, don¡¯t you agree, m?gr. But it is on days like this that we truly live. When we come home, to see the expectant faces of our kin, and live up to those expectations. Today we have lived up to the hopes of all our kin. Don¡¯t forget, Ulfvaldr, never forget. When I once pass away, all this will be left to you,¡± Skegg said to his son, with a determined, albeit confident expression. He had high hopes in his son. Maybe, he was like his mate, and truly believed that his son was blessed by the ¨¢ss. But there was no such thing, as being blessed by the ¨¢ss; all that led to this success, was luck. But all luck will eventually run out.


    And that¡¯s when, everything went dark. Fierce winds blew over the campsite, like a thundering mammoth, and instantly extinguished the fire. Soon, everything was covered in a veil of white, and everyone found trouble seeing. A sudden snow storm had struck.


    *M?gr means boy, young man, in special sense of it being your own son. It is pronounced like ¡®Moegr¡¯ or ¡®Moegir¡¯

 Chapter 2

    Chapter 2


    Everybody was taken by surprise, as the storm flew in. It was total chaos, and you could barely see anything in the darkness, combined with all the snow. The only help was the full moon, shining a weak, almost unnoticeable light over the white earth. Skegg quickly grabbed Ulfvaldr and Rafarta¡¯s arms, and dragged them towards the wind. They didn¡¯t go in the same direction as the wind, but instead fought through it. He made sure to get to the other site of the campsite.


    ¡°EVERYONE, COME TOWARDS MY VOICE! COME TOWARDS MY VOICE!¡± He shouted out, from the top of his lungs. He shouted so hard that it stung in his throat. He needed to be heard, so that the others could come to him. Now, they needed unity and to stand together. He knew that the chances of being heard, were best if he shouted with the wind, so that the wind could carry his voice to the others. And sure enough, people started coming towards him.


    ¡°Chief, what do we do?¡± Someone asked. Skegg could barely see who it was, but that didn¡¯t matter. As long as everyone came here, then they could bundle together, and help keep each other warm.


    ¡°We need to stand together, and wait for the storm to pass! When everyone is here, we¡¯ll get into the nearest hut!¡± He shouted back at him, making sure that he was heard once again. Soon, a lot of people had gathered near him, but he had no way of making sure that everyone was there. He wouldn¡¯t be surprised, if he discovered that someone was missing tomorrow. This wasn¡¯t the first time they had been in a surprise storm, but it might be one of the worst, if not the worst. Just before they were about to find themselves a hut to creep in, something happened,


    ¡°AAAOOOOOOOOHHH!¡± They heard numerous howls coming from the other side, where the wind was blowing from. Everyone¡¯s faces paled, as they didn¡¯t doubt what it was.


    ¡°WOLVES!¡± Skegg shouted, then grabbed the hands of his mate and son. He quickly made a decision; a drastic decision that might cost all their lives, but there was no other choice. If wolves settled near their camp, then there was only a single thing they could do.


    ¡°Everyone, grab a hand, and don¡¯t let go. We¡¯ll make a chain, and leave this place! If we stay, we¡¯ll be eaten by wolves!¡± Skegg shouted once more. Quite a few people looked towards him with apparent shock.


    ¡°What, are you insane! We can¡¯t leave in this storm!¡± Someone shouted back at him, however he also knew they couldn¡¯t stay either.


    ¡°If you want to stay here, and become wolves fodder, then go ahead! I won¡¯t stop you! Everyone else, however, grab as much meat as you can, we leave now!¡± He shouted, and grabbed all the meat he could carry. Then, soon later, they all left in a human chain, making sure not to lose each other. It was easy to get lost in a storm, but as long as they held each other¡¯s hands, they wouldn¡¯t get separated.


    And thus, they all left towards the strong wind. It was extremely cold, extremely dark, and it was hard to walk. They walked slowly, praying to their gods that the wolves didn¡¯t follow them. They walked for hours, which soon turned to a full day, before they struck some luck. They had come towards a cliff or something, but they were on the lower end. They decided to follow the walls of the cliff, not that they could do anything else. After about an hour of slow treading, they found a cave entrance. At this point, everyone was freezing cold and exhausted, so they had little choice, but to enter.


    ¡°Men, grab your spears! Hopefully it¡¯s empty!¡± Skegg said, as he let go of Rafarta and Ulfvaldr. Wearily, they all entered the cave, pointing their spears at any potential enemy, but luckily for them, it was empty! Everyone carried the food in, then huddled up together in a corner. The cave was warm, compared to the outside, as not much wind could get inside. Like that, a day passed, then two, then three¡­ In the end, a full four days passed, before they couldn¡¯t hear the blazing storm outside anymore. And these days had been tough. Not everyone survived. Two kids, who Ulfvaldr had considered his friends, died. They were not much younger than him, and were to enter their first hunt soon, but now that was never going to happen.


    However, even though the storm had stopped, it was still pitch black inside the cave. They thought it might still be night, but after hours of waiting, nothing changed. Only then, did they decide to make their way towards the entrance. However, it wasn¡¯t there. All they found, was an ice cold wall of snow. This was when they truly despaired.


    ¡°What is this? The entrance has been blocked? We¡¯re trapped?¡± Someone asked. Some women and children started crying; not that there were many children left. Some men started digging the snow with their bare hands, but it didn¡¯t do much. The snow was hard and tough, so they couldn¡¯t get very deep. Skegg, however, kept his calm. He had to; if he didn¡¯t, no one would.


    ¡°Everyone, keep calm, keep calm! We still aren¡¯t left completely hopeless. We have our spears; if we can dig ourselves out, then we¡¯ll be saved. Our eyes have already gotten used to the dark, so we aren¡¯t as blind anymore, and we also have food. With what we gathered, we can barely last a full moon, if we do it conservatively. Also¡­ there are those two dead kids. It¡¯s best that we don¡¯t let their bodies rot. Rotting bodies have been known to cause sickness; let¡¯s eat them,¡± Skegg said, with a completely serious tone. He had suggested they resort to cannibalism. Cannibalism itself, wasn¡¯t that unusual back then, but to eat your own tribe¡¯s members? That was unheard of, but they didn¡¯t have much choice. Reluctantly, everyone agreed to do it.


    Like that, they spent their days digging, digging, and digging. They were desperate to get out; they had nothing else on their minds. Just, get out. They ate conservatively, but after several days, the only thing left from those boys, were bones. They had also discovered that five people were missing. They probably didn¡¯t make it out of the campsite with them, so, altogether, the tribe had lost six members. That was a very big loss, and there were barely twenty people left. However, at least they didn¡¯t need as much food.


    They had already spent several days, digging, eating, and drinking metlted snow, but they still hadn¡¯t made it out. They had no idea how long they had spent, but they had already dug a sizable tunnel. It went several meters out, and slanted upwards.


    They still had quite a bit of food left, and no one else had died yet. They weren¡¯t really in much danger right now. The wall of snow kept all the cold from outside out, and they were well dressed. They were constantly working, which kept them warm, as well. They had also found that their vision in the darkness was getting increasingly better. And something they hadn¡¯t noticed in beginning, was that there was a weird smell, permeating through the cave. However, it was getting more and more overwhelmed, from all the excrement.


    One day, as Ulfvaldr was eating, he noticed something. In a small corner of the cave, there was a small crevice. Ulfvaldr got curious, and rose up, while munching on his small piece of meat. He slowly walked over to the crevice, making sure that he didn¡¯t trip on anything, as it was still a bit hard to see. When he finally got over there, he saw that there was indeed a crevice, and he couldn¡¯t see the end of it. Determined, he went to get his spear and bow, then entered the crevice. No one noticed him slip away, in the darkness.


    The crevice was pretty small; only a single person could fit in, but Ulfvaldr didn¡¯t mind. He determinedly made his way down. The crevice slanted a bit downwards, and after about half an hour, he finally saw an opening. He got excited, and quickly rushed out. When he finally got out, he was quickly surprised, though. He noticed that the smell from before was getting stronger, and now he had entered a large cave. It was even larger than the one from before. The crevice was overlooking the entire cave, but he still couldn¡¯t see it well in the darkness. He was standing on a small overlook, hanging a few meters from the ground. However, as he was preparing to climb down, it collapsed and he fell to the ground and hit his head. He instantly lost consciousness.


    A while later, he finally opened his eyes again. His head was pounding, and he held it in his hands. He felt something wet on his head, but when he looked at his hand, he couldn¡¯t see what it was. It was simply too dark. However, he wasn¡¯t a fool, and he immediately thought that it was blood, but it had already dried somewhat. He shook his head, and decided to worry about that later. He made his way a bit deeper inside the cave, but the further he got, the worse the smell got. It wasn¡¯t a good smell; it smelled rotten. Finally, after a few minutes of walking, he found the cause. There was a dead animal on the ground, and it was pretty mangled up. When he saw that, he finally got really scared. There was no way that this animal could have gotten in on its own. It was too big to crawl through the crevice. Ulfvaldr was convinced that some animal must have dragged it in, hence why it was so mangled and broken. But, the weird thing was, it hadn¡¯t been eaten. There was only some blood, from some bite marks. Nothing more.


    After looking for a while, he turned tails, and ran back to the entrance. However, he was met with a dead end. The crevice was several meters above ground. When he tried climbing up, he felt a sharp pain in his arm, probably from the fall. Now he truly got nervous. All the food he had, was the small piece of meat he took with him, and now he was afraid that there was some predator in here, with him. In defeat, he sat back down, as a few tears escaped his eyes. He truly didn¡¯t know what to do.


    Two days passed. He had tried several times to climb back up, but every time, he would fall down. His arm wasn¡¯t getting any better. He also didn¡¯t have any food left. He had been starving for two full days. Finally, he made the decision to enter further into the cave. He constantly had his spear at the ready, while slowly making his way inwards. He was scared beyond his wits, but now it was live or die. He wanted to find whatever killed that animal, and then kill it himself. He wanted to eat it.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.


    However, no luck. He wandered for almost a full day, until he found a spot to sleep. He had been gone for three days now. They had definitely noticed that he was missing up there, but there was nothing they could do. They probably wouldn¡¯t find the crevice, as it was too well hidden. He had only found it by coincidence. It was only visible from where he had sat before, and anywhere else, you wouldn¡¯t be able to see it.


    As he woke up, he began wandering again. He had never been this hungry, and his stomach was growling like a wild beast. But there was nothing to eat. That animal from before was already rotten, and eating it would result in sickness. He had always been told not to eat rotten meat. At least not raw. However, suddenly, he heard something sounding like wind from behind him. An excited expression quickly made it onto his face, and he quickly turned around.


    However, the only thing that met him was pain. A giant bat had bitten him in the arm, and flown around him. Ulfvaldr quickly reacted, and readied his spear. This bat was really big. It was about half the size of himself. The bat flew back at him, and bit him once more. This time on the shoulder. Luckily, it didn¡¯t bite through the bone. But it was quick. Ulfvaldr was turning around like crazy, trying to follow its movements, but every time it charged at him, he would miss, and get bit. However, after the sixth bite, he found a rhythm to it. When the big black bat charged at him the seventh time, he was prepared.


    Just before it got to him, he managed to move his spear, and the bat impaled itself on his spear. Ulfvaldr didn¡¯t have to do any work himself, as the bat just flew straight into the spear. He quickly lunged the bat to the ground, as hard as he could, and could hear several cracking sounds, from broken bones. Ulfvaldr took his spear out, and the bat tried to fly away, but to no avail. Too many bones were broken, and it couldn¡¯t move its wings properly. Thus, Ulfvaldr violently stabbed it again and again, even after it stopped moving. He had really gone mad, from the combination of his broken arm, starvation, and several bite wounds on his body. However, after he calmed down, he immediately went on his knees, and started feasting on the raw meat of the bat.


    Weirdly enough, it was the greatest meat he had ever tasted. He immediately ate about a third of the bats meat, before stopping. After he was finally finished, he grabbed the bat by its wings, and started walking back towards the entrance. Somehow, he felt that his arm didn¡¯t hurt so much anymore, and he even had food now. He had even found several small lakes inside the cave, so water wasn¡¯t a problem. Now, he just needed to make his way back, which might be a problem, since it was so dark. However, if he just found a wall, and then followed it, he should get to where he came from.


    Thus, three more days passed. It had been probably two weeks since the tribe entered the cave, and Ulfvaldr had been in the deeper cave for six days. He had just finished the bat this day, but he still hadn¡¯t found the entrance. He was sure that he had probably passed it several times already, but it was truly hard to see. However, his arm was fine now, miraculously. But he still couldn¡¯t find the entrance, so all he could was to keep searching.


    However, while he was searching, he suddenly hunched over, and screamed. There was sudden intense pain in his stomach. It was worse than anything he had ever felt, and he couldn¡¯t help, but fall to his side. He started coughing, and vomited. However, he didn¡¯t just vomit, no, he vomited blood.


    ¡®I need to get back,¡¯ he though with a pale face. This was bad, if he got sick, then he¡¯d probably die. Hopefully, it was just the bat meat, and he would fine quickly. However, he really wanted to get back now. He didn¡¯t want to die here, where no one would ever find his corpse. Thus, he started searching franticly, and it seemed like he was in luck. Not five minutes later, he actually found the place.


    ¡°I FOUND IT, I FINALLY FOUND IT! HAHAHA!¡± He started laughing crazily! He was just too relieved. He was really afraid that he was going to die down here. He was pretty sure that there was no other food down here, as that bat from before probably came here because of the storm, too. He quickly climbed back up, and entered the fissure. A few minutes later, and he finally entered that familiar cave. He could see and hear everyone, and was relieved that they hadn¡¯t left yet.


    ¡°Hahahaha!¡± He started laughing, as he let himself fall to the ground, ¡°I really did it.¡±


    Everyone who heard, seemed to quickly turn towards the voice. They could definitely recognise the voice, but the owner had suddenly disappeared into thin air, several days ago. Quickly, everyone ran towards him.


    ¡°Ulfvaldr, is that you!¡± Skegg was the first one to ask. He quickly found his boy, and knelt down beside him, ¡°It¡¯s really you! Where have you been, what happened!¡± He asked almost angrily. He had been worried to death, for his son. It was truly too weird for someone to disappear like that, considering that they were in a closed, underground cave.


    ¡°Father, it¡¯s me. Try looking behind those rocks there. There¡¯s a crevice there, which leads to another cave. However, when I got down there, I fell down, and hurt my arm. I couldn¡¯t get back up, until now. Luckily, there was some sort of large bat down there, which I killed and ate,¡± Ulfvaldr explained.


    Everyone was truly relieved and happy that he was alright. Rafarta held her son in her arms, with tears in her eyes. She had never been so afraid in her life, when they discovered that Ulfvaldr had disappeared. Even until know, she had hoped that he was fine. But there was no form of celebration for his return, everyone just went back to work. They couldn¡¯t spare the time or food. However, that very night, something unexpected happened. The cave resounded with the screams of Ulfvaldr. He had another attack like the one before, but this time, it was much worse. He didn¡¯t stop screaming the entire night, and kept coughing and vomiting blood. This time, everyone truly expected him to die. If not tonight, then in a few days¡¯ time. They were sure that he had caught some sort of sickness.


    That attack truly was different from the first one, as he wasn¡¯t just fine after it ended. He was weak and could barely walk the day after. However, the second day, he was better, and started working again. Everyone was truly surprised by him. He clearly wasn¡¯t as healthy as before, but he could still work. They all expected him to die in a few days. However, they were once more surprised. After he got healthy again, he started deteriorating. He got paler, and red and blue veins started appearing all over his body. He got skinnier and skinnier, and he didn¡¯t eat. After only a single week, he could no longer stand up.


    Skegg had made a small tent out of furs and hides, and laid him there to rest. Every day, he brought him something to eat, but it would only be vomited back up. The tribe had been in the cave for three weeks already, and they food resources were dwindling. With Ulfvaldr¡¯s sudden sickness, everyone got a bit afraid. They didn¡¯t want to end up like that.


    But perhaps, it was the worst on Rafarta. Her mood plummeted, and she barely possessed the will to eat anything. Her son was the single most important person to her. She simply couldn¡¯t bear the thought of losing him again.


    One night, a week later, everyone was suddenly woken up, by hoarse screams, coming from Ulfvaldr¡¯s little tent. Outside the tent, there was a rather shocked man. He was young, around his twenties. Skegg was the first to make his way over.


    ¡°Broddr, what¡¯s going on?¡± He asked. Broddr was visibly shaking, and pointed to the tent, ¡°I, I,¡± he stammered. Skegg suddenly got suspicious, and quickly looked into the tent. In the tent, there was Ulfvaldr, who had already stopped screaming, and in his chest, was a bone dagger. Skegg furiously looked towards Broddr, and without hesitation, he punched him in the face, sending the young Broddr flying into the cave wall. Without caring further, he entered the tent, and pulled out the knife. However, to his shock, Ulfvaldr, opened his eyes, and looked at his father. There was no blood coming out of his wound. There was only a dry slit on his chest.


    ¡°This, this,¡± Skegg stuttered. He carefully looked at the wound, and examined it. ¡°Father, am I going to die?¡± Ulfvaldr asked with a low, hoarse voice. Skegg couldn¡¯t answer, he just looked on in shock. This was truly shocking. The knife had entered his heart, yet he was alive, and didn¡¯t even bleed? He didn¡¯t bleed, even though there was a hole in his heart. It was as if there was no blood in the boy¡¯s body.


    ¡°Ulfvaldr, does it hurt?¡± Skegg asked. He didn¡¯t even look away from the wound, as he asked. He just found it too hard to fathom, ¡°It does, but not as bad as before,¡± Ulfvaldr answered slowly. Skegg nodded his head.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry son, you¡¯ll be fine. Just get some sleep. You¡¯ll be just fine,¡± Skegg said, not fully believing himself. Since Ulfvaldr got sick, Skegg had somehow accepted that his son was going to die. However, now he wasn¡¯t too sure. If he didn¡¯t die from getting stabbed in the heart, why would he die from a sickness? Skegg couldn¡¯t answer, so he put the question into the back of his mind.


    Everyone was gathered outside the tent, and they had some sort of understanding of the situation, since they saw Skegg punching Broddr.


    ¡°How is it?¡± They asked. ¡°He¡¯ll be fine. The fool missed, and Ulf was only scratched. Everyone, go back to sleep. I¡¯ll deal with Broddr,¡± he said. Everyone looked a bit surprised by his last words.


    ¡°Are you going to kill him?¡± Someone asked. Skegg looked into the eyes of the asker, with determination, and a hint of craziness, ¡°Yes, I am. We are running low on food anyway, so why not eat the murderer? Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll do it in the other cave, so this place doesn¡¯t get bloodied,¡± Skegg said. No one said a single word, as he dragged Broddr in one hand, and held the bone dagger from before, in the other. Broddr tried to fight back, but he couldn¡¯t. He had already been tied up, and Skegg was the strongest man in the tribe.


    About an hour later, Skegg came back, with the body of Broddr. He was completely pale, and there was a large slit on his throat. His upper body was bare, as his clothes had been too bloodied. Skegg had completely drained his body of blood.


    From that day onwards, everyone knew to not to try to kill Ulfvaldr. They would only end up as food. However, such worries were short lived. For only two days later, they actually broke through! After a month of digging with spears, they had broken through the thick wall of ice! They had dug a tunnel that reached about a hundred meters. It turned out that the storm had caused a hill of ice to build up, where that cliff was.


    ¡°We¡¯re out. Hah, we¡¯re finally out!¡± They exclaimed. This was the happiest moment in their lives, as they had finally gotten their freedom back. They didn¡¯t wait at all, as they quickly packed up to leave. With the purpose of carrying Ulfvaldr, they took two spears, and put some hides between it, and laid Ulfvaldr on top of them. Then they covered him in more furs, so that he wouldn¡¯t freeze to death. As they made their way outside, Ulfvaldr was covered from head to toe.


    ¡°Hah, I told you all we would get out! There weren¡¯t even that many casualties! Now, we just need to find some place, to make our home. I don¡¯t think we would ever be able to find our old place, even if we tried, anyway. Let¡¯s not dilly dawdle,¡± Skegg said, as he grabbed one end of Ulfvaldr¡¯s improvised stretcher. Someone else grabbed the other end, and then they finally made their way away from this cursed place.

 Chapter 3

    Chapter 3


    In a vast wasteland of unending ice, there was a group of less than two dozen nomads. These nomads were all dressed in thick furs and marching forwards, as if their lives depended on it. Between these two dozen nomads, two people held a stretcher, which carried a bundle of furs. The air seeped with desperation, as they did all they could, just to get away from there. They had been taken unaware by a snow storm, and had gotten trapped in a cave for a whole month, before getting back out again. And now, when they had finally escaped death, they were met with the scene behind them.


    Dark roiling clouds, covering the entire sky a few kilometres behind them. The clouds were shooting out several strands of lighting, each followed by a thundering explosion, as the clouds made their way forwards. Just a few days after escaping death, they were met by a huge thunderstorm. Luckily, the storm was quite far behind, and they might be able to escape it, if luck was finally on their side. But that, was only part of their problems. They had no food, and no way to get any food. They had tried to find something to hunt, but there was only ice; ice as far as the eye could reach. In the several days, since they left the cave, they had not come upon a single animal. And food had finally run out.


    Ahead of the small tribe they could see a vast mountain range. This mountain range went as far back as they could see, and was completely covered in ice. The tribe had never seen landscapes such as this, but they still determined themselves to continue onwards. Rather go to unknown lands, than get caught in a thunderstorm of ice and lightning.


    Thus, they could only continue to tread forwards. They walked for half a day, before they got to the foot of the mountain range, but now they were truly in dire straits. The thunderstorm was quickly closing in on them, and the terrain of the mountains was truly treacherous. It was steep, and got colder and colder, the higher they went. They had already started climbing upwards, but it was tiring and hard.


    ¡°Skegg, what are we going to do? We can¡¯t continue on like this,¡± Rafarta said. She looked worried, and glanced over to her oblivious son. The times when he was conscious were getting rarer and rarer. Most of the time, he was unconscious, writhing in pain.


    ¡°H?feingi* Skegg, that boy of yours¡­ He¡¯s a burden, if I¡¯m to be frank. I¡¯ve always cared for Valdr, but face it, he¡¯s a lost cause. He won¡¯t be surviving this,¡± a tall man said. This tall man, was even taller than Skegg, and was also his best friend. He always cared greatly for Ulfvaldr, because he never had any children of his own. He was never able to because of a tragedy, which happened in his childhood. On his fifteenth year of life, when he was deemed ready for his first hunt, disaster struck. A great elk had struck him right in the balls, sending him flying several meters. One of his testicles even exploded. Ever since that day, he was never able to spur any offspring.


    *H?feingi means chief, and is pronounced like, ¡®hoefdingeh¡¯ with a soft ¡®g¡¯.


    ¡°Kn?ttr, Ulfvaldr is my only son, and I won¡¯t abandon him! I¡¯ll even carry him on my own, if necessary,¡± Skegg said. Kn?ttr could only sigh, but he kept carrying his end of the stretcher. He wouldn¡¯t make his friend carry him on his own. Especially, since he was basically Ulfvaldr¡¯s uncle.


    As they tried to climb up the mountain in front of them, the thunder storm was creeping closer and closer, ever so slowly. The tribe¡¯s people were climbing sideways along the mountain, trying to get to the other side, but the terrain was treacherous. Sometimes, they would have to climb further up, and then they¡¯d have to go back down again to find another path.


    While they were walking along a seemingly safe path, one young boy slipped. No one reacted quick enough to catch him, and he fell down along the mountain. They were already quite high up, so they couldn¡¯t even see the ground from their position. All they knew was that the boy was dead. They saw his limbs get mangled in unnatural ways, as he fell, so he might even have died before he reached the ground. No one could save him.


    However, that didn¡¯t stop the mother from trying. She screamed the boy¡¯s name, and tried to climb down after him, but it was impossible. She slipped, and ultimately fell to the same fate as her boy. Just like that, they had lost another two people. The father of the little boy, was one of the original people to go missing, when the initial snow storm happened, so just like that, their entire family was wiped away.


    The people of the tribe, however, could not afford to wait, so they immediately continued onwards. However, Skegg did tell everyone to be careful. He didn¡¯t want anyone else to die, no matter what. He had already lost a third of his people to this great catastrophe.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.


    Eventually, they got to a little clearing where they could relax. However, none of them wanted to relax, they were too scared by the incoming thunder storm. But what could they do? The sun had already set, and they could barely even see their own feet anymore. To continue walking, meant walking towards the jaw of death. However, all of them could clearly see the boiling thunderstorm in the sky, quickly reaching towards them.


    ¡°Ah, this time we might truly be toast,¡± someone said. If they got caught in the thunderstorm, they would really be in dire straits. Because, there was no such thing, as just a thunderstorm. Where there was a thunderstorm, there was a snow storm. Rain was not something these people knew of; it was always snow. And with wind, even if it didn¡¯t snow, there would still be a snow storm, as all the snow would be thrown around.


    People were walking in circles, wrecking their brains, trying to find a solution, but these weren¡¯t exactly the most intelligent bunch. Others, sat down on the ground; some even cried. Ulfvaldr, however, just lied in his little bundle of fur, in the corner, still oblivious as ever. He didn¡¯t even know of the impending doom that neared them all. His body was truly a wreck. He was thinner than before, his skin was wrinkly, and shrivelled, and there were red and blue veins all over his body.


    While everyone was either wrecking their brains, or praying to their gods, the thunderstorm quickly came towards them. And it wasn¡¯t long, until it was actually there. It was already too late to leave now, as it was upon them. It would only be at most half an hour, until it reached them. Skegg had gone over to unwrap his son, to see if he was unconscious. All the villagers were close by them, or sitting around the area. It was one of those rare moments, where Ulfvaldr had his eyes open, and Skegg was about to tell him about their current situation. He wanted his son to at least know what struck him.


    However, when Skegg was about to tell him, one of the men was playing with his spear, and accidentally cut his hand. He yelped in pain, as his blood fell to the snow, colouring it crimson. Just as this happened, Ulfvaldr shot his eyes open, and looked over to him, with a never ending hunger in his eyes.


    ¡®This, this smell, it, it, it¡¯s delicious!¡¯ He thought. He wanted to scream those words, but he had already lost his ability to speak. The sweet aroma, which entered his nose, drove him crazy. He felt the aroma seep into his lungs, then spread all over his body, causing a nearly ecstatic feeling. Then he felt a deep hunger, a never ending thirst, well up inside the pits of his body. His eyes flashed, with a crimson light. Suddenly, what no one expected to happen, happened.


    Ulfvaldr shot up, of off his stretcher, and lunged towards the bleeding man, like an arrow. The speed surprised everyone; they were completely at a loss for words. Then, something even more shocking happened! Ulfvaldr opened his mouth, and his canines visibly grew, into fangs, like those of a wolf¡¯s. And they sank into the flesh of the bleeding man¡¯s neck; and he drank.


    He drank his blood, in front of everyone. As they watched, yet another shocking thing happened. They could see that his skin was visibly healing. The veins visibly disappearerd, where he was once small and fragile, he grew larger, until he seemed almost identical to before, except he seemed a bit older. Then, as the corpse fell to the ground, Ulfvaldr had almost regained his former appearance.


    No one could say a word. They were complete speechless. They were either shocked, terrified, or both. Ulfvaldr had a mad look in his eyes; his irises shone a crimson red, his sclera was pitch black, with blood red veins throughout it. His mouth was bloodied, and his fangs were bared at everyone. Then, like a flash, he shot at the victim nearest to him, and bit into him.


    That was when the screams began. The women ran away, and the men grabbed spears. Only Skegg and Rafarta stood still. They were too shocked to even move. The men charged at Ulfvaldr, with their spears in hand, but they couldn¡¯t do anything. He was too fast; they could only watch, as he went from one victim, to the next. It only took him an instant, to completely drain a person of their blood. After only a few moments, he had already killed sixteen people. The rest were staring at him in horror, realizing another catastrophe had struck them; one they had no chance of surviving. However, as Ulfvaldr went to drain his mother, everything came to a halt.


    Suddenly, the crazed look in his eyes, vanished. His sclera went back to being white, but his irises remained crimson. He stood, stopped in his tracks, as he looked around himself. He saw the several bodies around him; some looked like a wild beast had torn them apart. One man¡¯s head hung to the side, half torn off. He clearly remembered everything; he knew that he was the one who caused all this carnage. He killed them himself.


    ¡°What have I done?¡± He asked himself, as well as his parents. And those, were the last words the tribes people ever heard. The thunderstorm had already reached them, and furiously struck several lighting strikes on the mountains. Then a deep rumble resounded above them. Everyone looked up, not knowing what was about to hit them, nor knowing what to expect. However, what they saw, scared them witless. They no longer cared about the carnage caused by Ulfvaldr. There was a huge mass of whiteness, tumbling down towards them, and everything else in the surroundings. Everyone screamed in horror, as they grabbed the ones near them. Skegg and Rafarta hugged their son, and Skegg said,


    ¡°Remember, my son. We are your parents, and we will always love you, so never forget us. Remember, Ulfvaldr, live up to our hopes! Live up to everyone¡¯s hopes!¡± He screamed, with a look that made it seem like he knew something no one else knew. Something, not even Ulfvaldr knew. The last movement Skegg did, was to put his hand on his son¡¯s chest, where there was once a deep wound, piercing his heart. Ulfvaldr could only look on, in confusion, as the rumbling mass, of ice cold whiteness, tumbled down upon them. Then, everything was covered in white. An avalanche had struck, burying both the living, and dead.

 Chapter 4

    Chapter 4


    In a mound of ice, surrounded by mountains, upon mountains, there laid two dozen bodies, eternally trapped in ice, never to rot. Amongst these corpses, however, there was a single young man. A young man, with open, moving eyes, trying to his full extent to move his broken limbs. However, no matter how he tried, he could not move an inch as the thousands upon thousands of tons of ice pressed upon his body. However, even though his bones were broken, and his skin lacerated, it was visibly healing. But even though his bones healed, he could still not move in the frozen coldness; even with his gargantuan strength, it was no use.


    Thus, he laid there, unmoving. As time passed, he could only wait for death. He had no food, nor water, so surely he would die in a few days. Then he could finally leave this empty world, and re-join his tribe; re-join his parents, in eternity. However, that sweet, relieving death never arrived. Time passed slowly, and even when he didn¡¯t even know how long it had been, he still lived. However, he was thirsty; hungry. It felt like his stomach was turning in on itself, collapsing. He really wanted to drink; to drink blood. But there was nothing he could do; he was buried in a mound of ice and snow.


    As time passed, the hunger grew ever more. His skin started shrivelling up, as he grew thinner and thinner, until he looked almost like a skeleton, covered only in skin. He already had no idea how long had passed, but it felt like years. But he had no way to know. As time passed, he grew weaker and weaker, until finally, one day, his eyes closed, not to open again, for a very, very long time.


    The sun rose and set again, countless times. In all the years that passed, not a single human set foot on these mountains; not even any animals, except the occasional birds, flying over the mountain skies. As time went by, the snow would quickly rise and fall, over and over again, but it never disappeared. The two dozen tribes people still continued to lie under the snow, their bodies unchanging. However, after the Earth had revolved around the sun countless times, a change finally started to happen. The snow and ice started to shrink. It was ever so slow, but every year, a few centimetres would be shaved off.


    The years continued to flow by, and the mountain of ice continued to get smaller and smaller. After countless moons and years, the snow was finally, almost gone. There were now barely a few meters of snow, above the sleeping ice man. However, it came to a stop. Those few meters of ice, never got any lower, and he continued to be trapped. But even then, the man buried in ice was completely oblivious to this. During the countless years that had passed, Ulfvaldr had continued to be in a state of consciousness and unconsciousness; awake, but still asleep.


    Even after the deep, thick snow had disappeared, the years continued to pass by. However, after many years, something finally happened. Three, fur clad men, were traversing up the mountain. These men continued to climb the cold mountains, with whatever goal they had in mind, until, several hours later, they walked into a small clearing, which had once, several eons ago, been a much larger clearing. However, as the three men were walking past the clearing, speaking in a foreign, unknown language, something awakened; something ancient.


    Deep below the ice, two crimson lit eyes opened, covered in an archaic black sclera. It was as if these archaic eyes could see through the ice, as the three, fur clad men, suddenly felt a cold shiver go through their bodies. Suddenly, in an unknown bout of strength, an arm pierced through the frozen ice, and grabbed one of the men¡¯s legs.


    The man screamed in fright and tried to jump away, but the arm didn¡¯t budge. Next, came a second arm, and grabbed the other leg. Then came the head, torso, and finally the legs. The new sight, frightened the three, fur clad men to their bones. What had appeared before them, was an old man, thin as bones, white hair, and a face so full of wrinkles, it seemed like it was the oldest being alive.


    However, the three men didn¡¯t have any more time to behold the sight, as the ancient being grabbed his first victim, and sank his deep fangs into his neck. The poor man screamed in pain, as the other two shouted in an unknown, foreign language. However, what fright they carried, could only be elevated as they saw what happened next. The body of the ancient ice man, started to thicken; the shrivelled wrinkles started disappearing, and the hair regained colour. Then, when finally, the archaic being had returned to the appearance of a young man, the fur clad man fell to the ground, deathly pale. The two other fur clad men realized that their friend was dead, and turned to run. However, they didn¡¯t even have time to react, as the now young man moved, and then they died. He moved so fast that the two men didn¡¯t even realize they had been killed. It happened before they could even blink.


    Finally, as three corpses littered the ground, the archaic black eyes, returned to a normal white, leaving only the crimson irises. Then, as if his newfound strength suddenly disappeared, the old being fell to his knees. He wasn¡¯t quite sure what had happened. He was in a daze, and everything was foggy. His memories were in shambles, and he didn¡¯t even know who he was. The only thing he really remembered, was his name.


    Ulfvaldr. How he got this name however, he didn¡¯t remember. He only knew what it meant. Wolf; wolf amongst wolves. Then who could he be? A predator; he had to a predator. He drank the blood of others, to survive; this he was sure of. He was the wolf amongst wolves; the predator amongst predators. He was the alpha being of the world.


    However, he still remembered shambles of his old life. He remembered faces; a man with a face full of beard, smiling upon him with a proud smile; a woman with a beautiful face, eyes full of motherly love. Groups of people, eating around a fire; a group of men, chasing a mammoth; a cave, with no entrance. But all these broken memories gave no meaning to him.


    Suddenly, he felt a tear escape his eye. He had cried? Why? ¡®Why would I cry for these people?¡¯ He thought. ¡®Who are they? What happened to them?¡¯ He continuously asked himself. He didn¡¯t know who they were, but he didn¡¯t doubt that they were somehow related to him. However, he didn¡¯t know whether they lived, or died. He had no idea how long he had spent under the ice; he didn¡¯t even know how he got there. However, for now, he could only put such thoughts to the back of his mind. He turned to look at the three bodies. What he saw baffled him.


    Those spears, those bows, those arrows, they were nothing like he had ever seen before. He grabbed a spear, and examined it. From what he remembered, the spears from his past, were all made from bone. The shaft, the spearhead, the bows and arrows, they were all crafted from the bones of deceased animals. However, these weapons, were completely different. The shaft of the spear, was made from an almost soft, brown material. He didn¡¯t remember ever seeing anything like it, however he wasn¡¯t completely sure. It seemed vaguely familiar.


    However, the spearhead was completely different. It was made from a grey, rock-hard material. It was much harder, and much sharper than the bone spears of the past. And he was sure he had never seen something like it before. The bows and arrows were the same. The bow was made of the same brown material as the spear shaft, and the arrows were like miniature spears.


    He was quite excited by this discovery. And even more, full of awe. However, right now he had other thoughts on his mind. He needed new clothes. The ones he wore now, were frozen and broken, and he could barely move in it without breaking a chunk of it off. Thus, he decided to strip one of the three fur clad men, and take his clothes. A short moment, he was dressed in much, much newer clothes. Then, he took the bow and arrows, and strapped them to his back. The arrows were kept in a primitive quiver, and the bow was strapped to his back, using the string. Then, he grabbed the spear, and held it in his hand. Thus, he started his journey back down the mountain.


    He decided to follow the footprints of his victims, hoping that it would quickly lead him away from here. This place gave him a bad feeling in his cold heart. However, he had no idea where this feeling came from, and he didn¡¯t like it one bit. So he quickly ran away from the place. As he ran, Ulfvaldr was shocked at his own speed. He was much, much faster than in his memories. As he ran, everything halted to a slow. The birds in the sky hung in the air, a rabbit hung a few centimetres over the ground, and the clouds sat still. It only took a short instance, until he got up and out of that clearing.


    And what he saw, baffled him. From up there, he could see the ground, but it looked nothing like what he remembered. The ground was covered in green strands of vegetation; tussocks of uniform green grew in patches, slightly towering over all the other numerous strands. Out of the ground, grew thick cylindrical objects, looking weirdly familiar to the brown material, which the spear was made of. Covering these rough, brown objects, were more mint green substances, however these were not in the form of strands. They were wide, and numerous, and covered the top of the rough cylinders in either rough cones, or uneven spheres, or even other weird shapes.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.


    Ulfvaldr, was frozen still from the sight. It was nothing like he had ever seen before. The green strands on the ground were swaying with the wind, and the green vegetation on the wooden brown objects, were shuddering. And the most shocking thing of all, was that there was no snow! The only snow, was up here, far up the mountain. The lower mountains, were either covered in green, or the hard, grey material, which the spearhead was made from. The bizarre landscape was truly awe inspiring. It left him standing there, for what seemed like hours, just enjoying the sights. It made what bad feeling he had before simply disappear into thin air. Then, when he had finally had enough, he made his way down.


    With his outlandish speed, it only took an instant, before he was at the foot of the mountain. Outside the mountains, there were herds of trees, covering the horizon. Ulfvaldr still didn¡¯t know what these trees were, but he didn¡¯t fear them. He already had the impression of being the most superior being in the world.


    Before he entered the forest, he took a look to the sky. The sky, too, looked very different from what he remembered from the shambles of his past. For one, the darkness was no longer darkness to him. He could see far more clearly than he had ever before, and the skies were covered in stars. There had been stars in the sky before, but they were much clearer than ever before, and much more numerous now. He could see entire constellations, and galaxies with ease. Of course, he could see the light of these stars, but not in detail.


    When he was finished marvelling at the sight, once more, he finally made his way into the forest, and continued onwards. As he traversed the woods, he couldn¡¯t help, but to let his eyes wander, as he took the sights in. He was simply speechless; the trees towered above him, and let a veil of green over the roof of the forest. Only small rays of moonlight managed to shine through, in the areas where it was particularly clear. For several hours, he walked through the forest, leaving his footsteps in the ground.


    Several hours later, he finally made it out of the forest, to be met with an extensive plain of emerald coloured grass, overseen by the ever raising sun, in the horizon. Ulfvaldr enthusiastically made his way out of the shadowy forest, to finally step his foot into the rising light. However, as he finally stepped into the sun, he immediately felt the skin on his arms and face burn, as if a basin of burning acid had been emptied over his pale skin.


    ¡°What is this?!¡± He exhaled, as he dashed back into the shadows of the forest. However, even back inside the shadows, the rising sun still showered its rays on him. He could only run further in, while screaming in agony. It was the worst pain he had ever felt in his entire life. Finally, when he got a bit deeper into the forest, and hid behind a tree, the burning pain subsided. He had been unlucky, and stepped out of the forest, just as the sun rose. Or you could say he was lucky that he wasn¡¯t out in the open when the sun rose.


    ¡®What was that?¡¯ He thought, while gasping in pain. The pain from before had left his brain baffled, ¡®Such pain, I¡¯ve never felt it before. Was it caused by the light of the sun?¡± he continued thinking about the new found problem.


    ¡®Could I have offended the ¨¢ss of the sun? Can I have been cursed? Then what are these powers I now hold? Have I been sentenced to being a hunter; a killer that is bound by instinct to kill, to drink? Such great power, but the price is dire. Is it even worth it to keep living, in a world where I shall never meet the sun again? No, I somehow feel that I should live on, that I shouldn¡¯t selfishly die. But why is it selfish?¡¯ He thought. He couldn¡¯t help himself, but to rack his brain at this matter for the entire day. Only when the sun set down, once more, did he put the matter to the back of his mind.


    Now, there was only one thought plaguing his mind. He needed to feed. The ever growing thirst was overwhelming his instincts once more, and he graved for blood. But what should he eat? Whom, should he eat? His senses were greatly heightened; he could hear the sound of the grass swaying in the wind, miles away; he could smell the scents of the animals of the forest, but they didn¡¯t appetize him at all. The thought of drinking the blood of an animal seemed disgusting, compared to the sweet, sanguine blood of the human.


    With his mind set on finding a tasty human to feed upon, he flickered his legs, and flew out of the forest, like the wind. He ran so fast that the animals didn¡¯t even react to his presence, as he had long disappeared before they could even raise their heads. With that kind of speed, it only took a few moments to get out of the forest, before he raced across the vast plains. As he zoomed past the plains, he watched as the as the various animals stood frozen in time.


    There were far more animals than he remembered ever seeing. There were deer and elks in small herds, and there were even some horned animals, with a slightly bigger build. Rabbits, squirrels and beavers were running around, some touching the ground, other hanging slightly in the air, slowly crawling forwards. In the distance, close to a river, he even saw a bear. However, this bear didn¡¯t interest him nearly as much as the river. With an intention, he quickly rushed over to the river, and suddenly appeared only a few meters from the bear. The bear was visibly surprised, and let out a low growl. Ulfvaldr, however, only spared it a single glance, and the bear lowered its head, and turned away. From a single look into his eyes, the bear had realized that this was an unprecedented predator.


    And he truly was. The Ulfvaldr of today, was not the same boy from the Ice Age. He had lost his previous self, his memories sealed in the furthest reaches of his mind. Today, he was only a husk. He had no humanity, only instincts. Emotions were mystical to him, as he had no access to them. Ever since he emerged from the mound of frozen ice and snow, he had only felt lost.


    Ulfvaldr turned to the flowing river, in front of him. He had never seen something like this, and like many other things of this new, strange world, it marvelled him. The only water he had seen before, was the melted snow, and the vast ocean not too far away from the old tribe. However, now, here in the middle of the land, there was a river, with large amounts of water. He tried putting his hand in it. It was warm; at least compared to what he was used to. In fact, everything was much warmer than he was used to. And even when he was up on the cold mountain, he had found that the cold didn¡¯t bother him at all. His body was no longer the same.


    Even though the flowing river was such an amazing sight, Ulfvaldr didn¡¯t stay long. He needed to find food, and it would be bad if he was trapped in the open, as the sun rose once more. Thus, he raced past the vast plains, once more, in search of food. And using his vastly superior senses, it didn¡¯t take too long until he managed to track a tribe down. He had searched for tracks from the humans, and tried to find their smells.


    Once he finally found their tracks, he only had to follow them, and he¡¯d arrive at their tribe. However, this tribe, it was nothing like he had ever seen before. The tribe he was born into had barely thirty people in it, however, this tribe had more than twice the amount! And if that wasn¡¯t enough, surrounding the various primitive huts, was a large, circular wall! It was constructed out of countless logs and trees, and surrounded the entire village. Inside, people were still bustling, working on whatever tasks they held.


    Ulfvaldr, stood on the branch of a tall tree, overseeing the entire village. He was like a silent predator, observing his prey, making his plans. He had to fight himself, just to not go down and slaughter the entire village, and drink all of their blood. However, if he did that, he wasn¡¯t sure whether he¡¯d survive. He still didn¡¯t know his entire strength, and he¡¯d rather not make himself known. So he waited.


    He stood silently on his tree, and waited for an opportunity to rise. However, he was quickly losing patience, as his hunger grew more and more. If he didn¡¯t have his willpower, he would have slaughtered all of them already. However, as soon as he saw someone go out of sight, behind a hut, his body vanished. Before the poor girl could even blink, Ulfvaldr had appeared behind her, and sank his fangs into her neck, with a deep growl,


    ¡°Groowl!¡± He growled, and let the girls crimson blood flow through his mouth. The girl screamed, in both pain and fear, however, it was all wasted effort. As soon as he was finished, he ripped the throat out, and disappeared. In his wake was the corpse of a young girl, with a mutilated throat. It seemed as if a wild beast had killed her. Alerted from the scream, several of her tribesmen quickly rushed behind the hut, only the see the frightening sight.


    As quickly as her blood dry body was discovered, the entire village entered a panic. The warriors started ceaselessly patrolling the village with their spears in hand, and everyone was on alert. For someone to die inside the village was something that never happened, except if a fight broke out, so they were all scared.


    Ulfvaldr however, only chuckled at the aftermath of his breakfast, before disappearing from the vicinity of the village. Thus, Ulfvaldr went in search of a cave, to make his home. He had already decided to stay around here for a while, and haunt these villagers. Not that he enjoyed inflicting fear and pain on others, but it was a steady food source, so he¡¯d feed on them every day, until there was no one left. Then he¡¯d leave for the next tribe, and thus he planned to continue for the foreseeable future.


    He ran through the forest, faster than the normal eye could see, passing various animals, and other interesting sights, until he came to a small mountain range, a few kilometres away from the previous tribe. On the mountains, there were several small and large caves, littering the landscape. After searching for a long time, Ulfvaldr finally found a suitable cave. One that was quite hard to access for the average human. It was located under a cliff, elevated over a dozen meters above ground. For a human, he would find it very hard to get up there, but Ulfvaldr managed to easily climb up. He could even jump the entire distance up, if he wanted to. Thus, he quickly made his way inside the cave, as the sun had already started to rise.


    Inside the cave, however, he was met with an interesting sight. The cave, which he had wandered into, was filled with bats. However, as he entered the cave, all these bats opened their eyes and looked at Ulfvaldr, yet they didn¡¯t fly out, nor attack. They simply observed, as if they knew they had nothing to fear. As for Ulfvaldr, he felt a strange connection to these bats. As if, he was somehow related to them. He felt like they were kin. But he also felt like he could command them; control them. With an intention, his mind suddenly faded into one of the bats, and suddenly he saw through the bat¡¯s eyes.


    As his consciousness went back into his own mind, he decided to tinker with this later. For now, he wanted to rest. Thus, he went to a corner of the cave, and laid down. Moments later, his consciousness faded away, and his body lay completely still, like a corpse.

 Chapter 5

    Chapter 5


    Ulfvaldr was walking through the forest between his new home, and the tribe. As he walked, he was listening to the various sounds of nature. The swaying of the grass, how it rustled when a small squirrel ran from one tree to the other. The pecking sounds from the small birds, pecking at the trees. The sound of a spider, eating a small bee. Ulfvaldr enjoyed taking these walks, in the shine of the moonlight, just enjoying nature. The animals had also come to know him. They didn¡¯t fear him, and he was an expected appearance for the nocturnal animals of the forest


    However, the same couldn¡¯t be said for the tribe. During the last few days, they had come to fear him greatly. Every night, they would always find a new victim. Sometimes, even two. However, they had no idea what they should do. They didn¡¯t even know what was killing them. They had tried sending out a hunting party, thinking it might be a sabre-cat, or some other predator. But after several days, they had still not found the culprit, and now, time was running out.


    It had already been two weeks, and so far, twenty people had died. In fourteen days, they had lost an unprecedented twenty people. This was a third of their entire population.


    But even then, Ulfvaldr paid them no mind. He would continue to feed, until they were no more. All that was important, was to eat. They hunted the animals of the forest; ate them. And Ulfvaldr was the one who hunted them. The only difference was that he hunted more, for every day, he would require a full person of blood. If he didn¡¯t drain at least one person, he wouldn¡¯t be satisfied.


    Of course, he could go for several days without blood, but why should he? The humans ate every day, so why shouldn¡¯t he? Thus, he walked towards the village, without worry; without a care. He only looked forwards to his next meal and enjoyed the night life nature. However, as he traversed the woods, he came upon something he didn¡¯t quite expect.


    A bit in front of him, was a young girl. She looked to be between fifteen, and twenty years old. She was about a head shorter than Ulfvaldr, and donned light blond hair, which was something Ulfvaldr had never seen before. The people of his old tribe always had brown eyes, and dark hair, but this girl had blond hair. However, her eyes were still brown, like all others.


    Ulfvaldr couldn¡¯t help but be a bit interested by this appearance,


    ¡®Hmm, has a meal appeared?` He thought, with a glint of happiness, and even more glee. After all, a meal had just appeared before his eyes, all alone, and ready for the takings. However, he didn¡¯t kill her straight away. Instead he decided to approach her. He felt a weird interest in this girl. Like a shadow, he disappeared from his spot, and somehow reappeared behind her, without making a single sound, or even causing the wind to flow.


    ¡°You, what doing outside?¡± He asked her, in a slightly broken version of the language he had heard the tribespeople speak in. He was quite surprised at how quickly he learned. He didn¡¯t even have anyone to teach him, but somehow, he managed to understand the meaning of the words, after concentrating, and he quickly learned it. The girl however, was clearly surprised, as she jumped in fright, and quickly turned around. She was slightly shaking, but that wasn¡¯t necessarily because of Ulfvaldr, because she had been shaking the entire time.


    ¡°Wh-who are you?¡± She asked back, looking at my face in fright, but there was also a fraction of happiness in her expression, as if someone had come to save her. However, she didn¡¯t recognise this man, so he most certainly wasn¡¯t from her tribe. It might be someone from another tribe, and then he might kidnap her.


    ¡°Answer question,¡± Ulfvaldr said, with an ordering, yet slightly monotone voice. It was he didn¡¯t have any emotion in his speech; like he didn¡¯t feel anything.


    ¡°I-I got lost¡­ I don¡¯t know how to get back,¡± she finally revealed. Ulfvaldr, however, just kept looking at her, expressionless. She truly didn¡¯t know what to expect from this man, however, he somehow didn¡¯t seem to have hurtful intentions. In fact, Ulfvaldr had already decided to keep her alive. He wanted someone to talk to, someone who could tell him more about the world. Right now, he was like a child, and didn¡¯t know anything. Albeit, a very, very dangerous child.


    ¡°I see. Me cannot you help home tonight; you already wander far from tribe. I take you to home, in mountains,¡± Ulfvaldr said, then turned around without further ceremony. The girl stood still for a while, letting it sink in, but she quickly managed to catch up to him.


    ¡°Wait, you live in the mountains? I didn¡¯t know anyone lived there? Are you alone? Perhaps a hermit?¡± The girl asked repeatedly, seemingly having lost most of her fear for this stranger. It was a bit na?ve of her, but what could she do. If she stayed in the forest, she might get attacked by a night predator. Ulfvaldr didn¡¯t turn his head, but still answered,


    ¡°I hunt, I live; always alone,¡± was all he said, not going further into his existence. The girl just looked at him weirdly, completely failing to understand this stranger she had come upon. In fact, she found him quite mystical. She hadn¡¯t put note to it at first, but she had realized that he seemingly just appeared out of thin air. She hadn¡¯t noticed him come upon her at all. She couldn¡¯t help, but wonder just who he was. She was also quite excited to go back to her tribe and tell her friends about it.


    However, she couldn¡¯t help but worry for the both of them, as she knew there was a dangerous predator around here, somewhere.


    After about an hour or two of walking, they finally arrived at the foot of the mountains. The girl marvelled at the sight, as she gazed upon the tall mountains, piercing into the sky. She had never seen the mountain range before, she just knew it was there. However, it still couldn¡¯t be considered a large mountain range at all. The one that Ulfvaldr came from before, was a lot bigger.


    ¡°I forgot to ask, but what¡¯s your name? I¡¯m Tola,¡± the girl, Tola, said. Finally, Ulfvaldr stopped, and turned around to face her. He looked at her, for what seemed like quite a long time, and somehow, Tola couldn¡¯t move, as he gazed into her eyes. There was something weird with those eyes. Something she had never seen before. She hadn¡¯t noticed it before, but his eyes were red. And it wasn¡¯t a normal red. It seemed so deep, like there was a whole world in his eyes, but there came a certain archaic feeling from it; a certain hunger.


    As he gazed into her eyes, she couldn¡¯t help, but to gulp. His eyes were truly intimidating.


    ¡°My name is Ulfvaldr,¡± he finally answered, in a suddenly much more compact language, before he turned around again, and continued walking. Tola was frozen in place again, but quickly calmed herself, and caught up again. Thus, they made the last portion of their trip, and arrived below a tall cliff, with a cave around the middle. Tola looked upwards in confusion, not quite sure why they were there.


    However, before she could ask, Ulfvaldr grabbed around her waist, and directly jumped up, causing the poor girl to scream in fright. As they landed, and Ulfvaldr let go of the girl, she stumbled, and almost fell to her butt. Quickly, she crawled to the edge, to stare down. She gulped, as she saw the two dozen meters down, then looked up to Ulfvaldr, then back again, then finally back to Ulfvaldr,


    ¡°How did you do that?¡± She asked, not quite willing to believe what she just saw; what she just experienced. Ulfvaldr just gave her a nonchalant look, and said,


    ¡°I jumped,¡± then turned around, and walked deeper into the cave. Tola tried to follow, but the cave was pitch black. The only light that made its way into the cave, was the moonlight that entered through the small cave entrance. She looked around herself, nervously, but it didn¡¯t help, since she couldn¡¯t even see the walls of the cave.


    ¡°Um, Ulfvaldr? I can¡¯t see anything,¡± She said nervously, her voice shaking a bit. Only a moment later, she saw two red, glowing eyes approach her. She was about to scream, but then she remembered Ulfvaldr¡¯s eyes. And indeed, Ulfvaldr appeared before her, relieving her.


    ¡°How can you even see in here? Never mind, could you please start a fire or something? It¡¯s way too dark in here,¡± Tola pleaded. She wasn¡¯t really afraid of the dark; or at least not more than any other person, but she was a really big fan of being able to see. However, Ulfvaldr¡¯s answer left her quite hopeless, as well as baffled,


    ¡°No, we can¡¯t make a fire. If we do, the bats might not return come morning,¡± he said. It took a while before those words settled.


    ¡°What do you mean bats?!¡± She asked frantically, after processing the information. She started franticly looking around her, expecting bats to swarm at her, at any moment.


    ¡°Well, you know, bats. Small, furry creatures with wings. They go out flying at night, then come back to sleep during the day. Much like me. I quite like them, and they keep me company here,¡± Ulfvaldr said, as if there was nothing weird to it; as if it was completely normal to live with a swarm of bats.


    ¡°You mean to say that you live with bats?¡± She asked again, causing Ulfvaldr to get a bit annoyed.


    ¡°Yes, I do. But you don¡¯t have to fear them, they won¡¯t hurt you. But I have to go now. You can go to sleep or something; you¡¯re probably not quite as nocturnal as me. I¡¯ll be back before dawn, and I¡¯ll bring you some food,¡± Ulfvaldr said, then turned around, and disappeared like a shadow. Tola just looked onwards, and once more, let all the information process. However, then she suddenly realized,This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.


    ¡°Wait, wasn¡¯t his speaking really broken?¡±


    Even as much as she wondered and pondered, she realized that there was nothing she could do, and just went to sleep, with the hope of not being awake when the bats returned.


    Outside in the forest, Ulfvaldr was once more quickly rushing forwards, towards the village. He had to be a bit quick now, since it was only a few hours until dawn. A few moments later, he appeared outside the village. There was a bit of an uproar going on, since Tola was missing. People were franticly searching around the village, hoping to find her; or at least her corpse. They didn¡¯t doubt that it was the monster that had struck again.


    Little did they know that the girl was still alive and well, and that she had actually met the monster they feared so much. Like a shadow, Ulfvaldr appeared inside the village, between the people. They didn¡¯t seem to take notice of him at all. Then, he searched around, trying to find a suitable victim. Soon, he found a pretty girl, about the same age as Tola, but she wasn''t as beautiful as she was. Then, he moved over towards her, and grabbed her. In an instant, the both of them disappeared, and reappeared outside the village.


    She didn¡¯t even have the chance to scream, before her throat was ripped out, and her body was emptied of blood. Then, he started his little plan. With a bout of strength, he hurled the poor girl over walls of the village, and watched as she landed in the middle of the village, surrounded by her tribe. A huge commotion broke out, and everyone gathered around her. Some people started crying, and one man in particular started punching and kicking at nothing in particular.


    Ulfvaldr, however, quickly made his move. He zoomed into the village, and made his way over to where he had noticed they kept their food. The storeroom was filled with various dried meats and fishes, as well as some vegetable foods. He quickly took a piece of fur, and filled it with as much food as he could carry, which was quite a bit, then made his way out.


    The reason for him stockpiling this food, which he couldn¡¯t eat, was because he had no plans of letting Tola go. She could already be considered the first friend he had made in this strange new world, so he didn¡¯t want to let her go back to the village. After all, that meant he would have to kill her one day. For now, he didn¡¯t want that to happen.


    He also made sure to grab some clothing, before he left. The furs that the girl had been wearing were already a little bit worn down, so she would be needing new clothes soon, anyway.


    Then, as he was finished, he made his way back out again, without ever being noticed thanks to the mutilated corpse in the middle of the village. This day had truly been quite calamitous for the village. They had lost two young girls, capable of bearing children, in one day. In fact, a large portion of the people who had died in the past few weeks, had been young girls, due to Ulfvaldr¡¯s personal tastes.


    A bit before dawn arrived, Ulfvaldr had made his way back to the cave, at practically the same time as his nocturnal friends. Tola had already fallen asleep, but as the swarm of bats and Ulfvaldr arrived, she couldn¡¯t help, but to wake up. And as she did, she screamed. She seemed to be a bit dazed, and didn¡¯t fully remember the previous day quite yet.


    As she screamed, Ulfvaldr quickly made his way over to her, and held her mouth. As he stopped her from screaming, she seemed to remember something, and calmed down.


    ¡°Ah, Ulfvaldr, you¡¯re finally back! It¡¯s quite lonely here,¡± she said, while holding his arm tightly, still a bit afraid of the many bats flying through the mouth of the cave. Ulfvaldr looked at the girl for a while, before he spoke,


    ¡°You can just call me Valdr, or Ulf. I think that¡¯s what people used to call me. And you¡¯ll get used to the bats, sooner or later. Also, I brought some food and clothes,¡± Ulfvaldr said. As she saw all the food, as well as the clothes, her eyes widened. There was really a lot! It would last her weeks, of not months. And it was all long lasting food. Dried and smoked meat, and such.


    ¡°There¡¯s so much! Where did you get all this, and the clothes?¡± She asked, still shocked from the huge bundle, which Ulfvaldr had brought into the cave.


    ¡°I got it from the village,¡± he answered honestly.


    ¡°The village? How did you manage to get all this from the village? And didn¡¯t you say that it was too late to go to the village? Also, why so much? Even clothes,¡± She repeatedly asked, again and again. However, this time Ulfvaldr didn¡¯t mind too much.


    ¡°It would take too long to take you there. The sun would already be up, before we got there. On my own, however, I can make it quite quickly. Also, if you¡¯re going to stay here, then you¡¯ll need food right? And it was quite easy to get. I just killed some girl, then tossed her over the wall. While they were distracted, I went in, and took all the things you¡¯d need,¡± he answered a bit too honestly, maybe even a bit proudly. And as he spoke, Tola¡¯s eyes grew wider and wider, especially at the last part.


    ¡°You k-killed someone?¡± She asked, in almost a whisper, as she took a few steps back, staggeringly. Then a series of thoughts started flowing through her mind. All the deaths the past days, the stranger that appeared out of nowhere, his superhuman powers; his eyes.


    ¡°Y-y-you¡­ a-are the one who¡¯s been killing o-our p-people?¡± She asked slowly, as she backed further and further away.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Ulfvaldr answered without hesitation, as if there was nothing wrong with that. In fact, he was a bit confused at the way Tola was acting. She was clearly very nervous, and maybe even a bit scared. However, her reaction confused him even more. She started tearing up, then screamed, as she turned to run.


    ¡°P-pl-please, please don¡¯t kill me!¡± She begged, as fell to her butt, and started crawling backwards. Her eyes were tearing profusely.


    ¡°I¡¯m not going to kill you,¡± he answered in a matter of fact, kinda way, ¡°I even brought you food. Why would I kill you?¡±


    Suddenly, Tola remembered the food which he brought, and that he mentioned something about her staying there, with him. She just got more and more confused. She really didn¡¯t understand anything, anymore.


    ¡°Then, why? Why did you kill them?¡± She asked, still tears in her eyes. She still didn¡¯t stand up, but she wasn¡¯t backing away anymore. However, this question was clearly confusing to Ulfvaldr. He was not a human anymore, and didn¡¯t have much contact with them. All the memories of his past, had been sealed. He wasn¡¯t much more an than animal, with higher intelligence.


    ¡°Why? The same reason you people kill? To eat, to live. Every day, I drink the blood of a human, so that I don¡¯t starve. That is the kind a being that I am,¡± he answered.


    ¡°You, you drink blood? That makes sense, but why do you have to kill people? Can¡¯t you just drink animal blood?¡± She asked. She really wanted to save her people from this calamitous beast.


    ¡°Animal blood? I prefer human blood. But, I¡¯ve never tried animal blood, to be honest. It just doesn¡¯t seem as attractive as human blood,¡± he said. However, after he finished speaking, the sun rose in the back, and sunlight shone in through the entrance, hitting Ulfvaldr in the back.


    ¡°Aaaaargh!¡± He screamed, and rushed further into the cave, greatly shocking Tola, who quickly rose, and turned around to face him. For some twisted reason, there was even a tinge of worry. It was like she had realized something. This beast which she had come upon, was truly innocent. It didn¡¯t know better. It was like the animals of the forest; killing to live. It didn¡¯t have a choice.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?!¡± She asked, a bit afraid. As she saw the slightly burned side of his face, she was taken aback, but compared to the shock of when she saw those burn wounds rapidly heal, it was much smaller.


    ¡°Wh-what is going on?¡± She asked, once more. Ulfvaldr waited for his wounds to heal, then turned around, to face her.


    ¡°This is what I must live with; the reason why I dwell in the night. The rays of the sun have banished me, not allowing me to back into the sunlight, ever again. It is the curse of my power,¡± he revealed. Tola couldn¡¯t help, but feel a bit sorry for this sad beast. To never bask in the sun, it wasn¡¯t something she could ever imagine.


    ¡°Have you always been like this?¡± she asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ I don¡¯t remember,¡± he said. He only remembered shattered pieces of his past; it was completely in shambles. However, he didn¡¯t think he had been like this forever. Maybe, one day he would remember.


    ¡°You don¡¯t remember?¡± Tola asked. She hadn¡¯t expected this being to not remember whether or not he had been human before.


    ¡°No. I think I, too, was human once, but my past is in shambles. All I remember, is a world vastly different from this one. A world full of ice; ice as far the eyes could reach. There was nothing but ice everywhere. No trees, no grass; just ice and snow. I remember a lot of struggles, just to survive. I remember there being other people. But their faces, they¡¯re all empty. There are no names. The only name I can remember, is my own,¡± he said, with an empty look, as if he tried to remember something, but simply couldn¡¯t.


    ¡°A world full of ice? Like an eternal winter,¡± she mumbled. She had to admit, that was nothing like the world she knew. Even in the winter, there would be trees. However, after hearing his story, Tola had a determined look on her face. She wanted to save her people, and save this creature, once a man, turned beast.


    ¡°Valdr, you¡¯re going to have me stay here, right? Why?¡± She asked. She had to know the reason why he wanted her to stay with him. There was a slight pause, as Ulfvaldr hesitated to answer, but in the end he conceded.


    ¡°I want someone to talk to, someone to teach me about this world. And you¡¯re the first friend I¡¯ve made,¡± he said, rather innocently. Even after everything she¡¯d learned, she couldn¡¯t help but to smile. He considered her a friend, so she was sure her life wasn¡¯t in danger, at least.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll be your friend. However, if I¡¯m to stay here, then I have a condition,¡± she said, with a determined look. Ulfvaldr was a bit surprised at this development, but didn¡¯t really mind it.


    ¡°Alright, speak it,¡± he said. The girl took a deep breath, as if she was mentally preparing herself for something.


    ¡°Okay. If I¡¯m going to stay here, then I want you to stop killing the people from my village,¡± she said, as her face turned stern.


    ¡°I can¡¯t do that. If I don¡¯t feed, I might die. And I¡¯m not drinking animal blood,¡± he said stubbornly, as he gave her a glance that said it wasn¡¯t up for discussion.


    ¡°Alright, alright, I get that, but do you have to kill them? Can¡¯t you just, I don¡¯t know, drink some of their blood, and leave them alive?¡± She asked again, determined to make him change his mind.


    ¡°Hmm, I guess I could kidnap a person from there, and bring them here, then feed of them for several days. That way the supply will last longer,¡± he said, thinking about it seriously, while Tola gave him a hopeless glance. That wasn¡¯t exactly what she meant, but it was all she would get for now. Perhaps this one person would last months, before he or she died. That way, her village would at least be saved. That way she¡¯d feel a bit less guilty.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll try to do that, but let¡¯s stop speaking now. I¡¯m going to sleep,¡± Ulfvaldr said, before turning around, and going to a corner of the cave. Tola sighed, then also went to sleep, as she was quite tired. After all, she didn¡¯t get a lot of sleep, last night. Thus, the two of them slept, throughout the day.

 Chapter 6

    Chapter 5


    As the sun set down, and the hidden cave darkened, the crimson eyes of Ulfvaldr opened. Without ceremony, he stood up, and prepared to leave. He noticed that Tola was already up. After all, she wasn¡¯t nocturnal, so she couldn¡¯t sleep all day. Ulfvaldr walked towards the cave entrance, startling the girl, as she noticed him. Ulfvaldr didn¡¯t make any sounds, as he walked, so she hadn¡¯t noticed him until he directly appeared in her eyesight. However, she didn¡¯t get a chance to say anything, before he disappeared from her vision.


    Tola walked over to the entrance, too, but she couldn¡¯t see him anywhere. She let her gaze fall down, to the ground. The height made her a bit nervous, but she wished she had some way to get down. But it wasn¡¯t possible. It was impossible to climb, and it was way too far to jump. She could only forget about it, and go back into the cave.


    In the forest, Ulfvaldr was already going at full speeds, towards the village. The sun had already set, and the nocturnal animals came out. Bats flew in the sky, and wolves went out on the hunt. In only a few moments, Ulfvaldr had traversed the few several kilometres, and stood on an overlook, observing the tribe. The atmosphere was heavy, between the tribespeople. Not only had they lost two people yesterday, now they had discovered that a large portion of their food had disappeared. Their fear for this wild animal, was growing ever more apparent.


    Ulfvaldr, however, couldn¡¯t care less. He just started observing, looking for a good victim. If possible, he would rather not go between the people again, in case something went wrong. He was very careful. After a short while, a middle aged man separated from the rest, to take care of business. As soon as he was done, Ulfvaldr flew in, and grabbed him, then disappeared, just as quick as he arrived.


    The middle aged man didn¡¯t even have enough time to react, before the world started blurring before his eyes. He had to close his eyes, or he felt like they would tear open. He felt sharp pains all over his skin, as the sharp wind covered him. He tried to scream, but the winds prevented him from even breathing.


    But it didn¡¯t take long, before the pain stopped, and everything became clearer, again. He noticed that some young man was holding him, and that they were running at impossible speeds. No matter how hard he tried to fight back, he couldn¡¯t budge an inch. It seemed like this young man had monstrous strength. Then he remembered the plight, which had haunted them for two weeks now, and he felt a flash of fear.


    He tried to fight back even harder, but it was of no use. Before he knew it, they had arrived at the nearby mountains, and still continued to dash forwards. Soon after, they stood under a cliff, with a small cave entrance around the middle. However, what then happened left the middle aged man speechless. The youngster who had kidnapped him, jumped; in a single leap, he leapt up to the cave. The middle aged man fell to the floor, and stumbled around, then, in panic, he crawled backwards in a hurry.


    But when he saw the young girl there too, he got confused. He knew that Tola had been missing for almost two days already, and everyone had expected her to be dead. But here she was. It gave the middle aged man hope that he might not die after all. Tola quickly got over to the man, and helped him up.


    ¡°Halfdan, are you alright?¡± She asked anxiously. She felt bad for him, and somewhat guilty, as it could be considered her fault that he came here. Halfdan grabbed her shoulders, rather violently, and looked into her eyes, with his own, fear stricken, eyes.


    ¡°You¡¯re alive? What¡¯s going on?!¡± He asked with a low shout, demanding answers. However, the next moment, he found himself grounded on the floor, looking up to an angry Ulfvaldr. Tola quickly knelt down to him, and helped him back up, while looking into his eyes, with a look that told him to be careful.


    ¡°Halfdan, this man here saved me yesterday, when I got lost,¡± Tola quickly said. Halfdan suddenly looked at him with a new light.


    ¡°He saved you from the monster? But how can he be so strong? I clearly saw him running much faster than any human can,¡± He asked, with an almost urgent look.


    ¡°No, he didn¡¯t quite save me from the monster exactly,¡± she answered, hesitantly. However, before she could say anything more, Ulfvaldr stepped forwards.


    ¡°I am the so called monster you speak of. I¡¯m the one that killed a few of your people, but thanks to the girl, I¡¯ll tone it a bit down, for now. Instead, I kidnapped you, thanks to her suggestion. So I¡¯ll drink some of your blood every day, until you die. Then I¡¯ll grab someone else,¡± Ulfvaldr said. However, as he finished his words, the look of fear in Halfdan¡¯s eyes, were mixed with hatred, as well.


    With a furious expression, he charged at Ulfvaldr, and gave him his strongest punch. However, Ulfvaldr didn¡¯t even step back, a bit. He just let his face follow his fist, then grabbed the fist, and bit. Halfdan suddenly screamed, as he saw the strange man sucking the blood out of his wrist. A while later, he finally stopped, and Halfdan fell to his knees.


    Ulfvaldr had been drinking a full person¡¯s worth of blood every day, but in actuality, after the two weeks, he could settle with a much smaller amount. It seemed as the days passed, he didn¡¯t have to drink as much. His control over bats had also increased greatly. If he wanted, he could control a whole swarm of them.


    As he was finished drinking, he grabbed the weakened Halfdan, and dragged him further into the cave. The cave had several smaller tunnels in it, and one in particular, led into a small room, with just enough room, so that Halfdan could lie down. Ulfvaldr threw him inside, then flashed away, out of the cave. A moment later, he came back, with a small boulder, which he used to block the small tunnel. He could still see inside, but the opening was too small for Halfdan to be able to get out.


    And even if he managed to get out of the tunnel, he wouldn¡¯t get out of the cave. Thus, he let him to his own devices, and went back to Tola, whom he looked at with a stern look.


    ¡°You are not allowed to see him,¡± he said with a tone that allowed for no discussion. Tola nodded her head, without objection. She really didn¡¯t dare to anger Ulfvaldr, as she knew how primal he was. She had already resolved her mind on her new life. She knew that she would probably spend the rest of her life here, with him. It was very common for girls to get kidnapped by another tribe, anyway. Here, she at least would have an easy life.


    A bit later, Tola was sitting against the wall, minding her own business. She had to admit, it was dreadfully boring here. However, as she had those thoughts, Ulfvaldr made his way over to her.


    ¡°Are there other tribes nearby?¡± He asked, nonchalantly. Tola immediately proceeded to tell him about the other tribes in the area. Even if she didn¡¯t want him to know, she found it hard to lie to him. She felt entranced by those crimson eyes.


    ¡°There are others, of course. The biggest tribe is a bit away from our tribe. It would probably take a day or two to get there. I think they number around a hundred or so people. There are also several other tribes around. Like on the other side of this mountain, I believe there should be a small tribe, a bit smaller than our current tribe,¡± she explained. Ulfvaldr nodded his head, and replied,


    ¡°I am going to go. I want to see the other tribes,¡± He said, which caused Tola to get a bit worried. Not for Ulfvaldr, but for the other tribes.


    ¡°A-are you going t-to kill them?¡± She asked with a stutter, showing how nervous she was to ask the question. Ulfvaldr made a small smile for the first time, at least that Tola knew of.


    ¡°I only kill if I get hungry,¡± he replied, thinking it was a good answer, and would please Tola. Then he turned around, and disappeared, leaving a flabbergasted Tola.


    ¡°He¡¯s really going to kill someone,¡± she said, to no one in particular, but a bit sad that someone might lose their life to him again. She really wanted to try to see if she could get him to only drink animal blood. She wanted to help him get redemption. In her mind, she had never seen any being even close to as sad as Ulfvaldr. She couldn¡¯t quite place a finger on it, but she felt that something really bad must have happened to that tortured soul.


    Meanwhile, Ulfvaldr was going towards the tribes, which Tola told him about. First he headed behind the mountain, where a small tribe lived. They didn¡¯t have any walls, but they were surrounded by boulders and hills, so they were well hidden. Then he tried to find that large tribe she talked about. And when he found it, it was indeed much larger than the other tribes.


    Thus, he spent three days, locating all the tribes he could. When the sun rose, he would either hide in the shade of the forest, or seek refuge in a cave. In the end, he was confident that he had located all the tribes, in a rather large area. He had used his tracking skills and heightened senses, to locate them. In these three days, he had killed three people for their blood, but these tribes knew nothing about the struggles of their neighbour. Thus, they only thought it was a wandering animal, since it didn¡¯t happen again.


    As for the first tribe, they were rejoicing, after no one else had died, in several days. They could only hope that it would last, and that the beast had moved on. Since Ulfvaldr was already finished, he returned back home. The trip home took quite a bit of time, since he had wandered a big distance, but on the fourth night, he finally returned. Tola was relieved, when he finally returned. Four days with barely any human contact, had been quite excruciating. She had only met Halfdan, when she went to give him some food. However, she didn¡¯t dare speak with him. She knew that Ulfvaldr had some weird connection with the bats, and it wouldn¡¯t surprise her, if they could tell him if she talked with Halfdan.


    Thus, several days passed. These days, he would always drink the blood from Halfdan¡¯s wrist, and never go to the tribe. Ulfvaldr and Tola would speak together a lot, and Tola would even approach him on her own. She spoke about her people, her friends, stories from her life. She spoke about humans as much as possible. She wanted him to gain some connection to them, and she also wanted to get closer to him. Getting him to trust her, was the first step in redeeming him.


    Break off here


    One day, Tola decided to approach Ulfvaldr, just after he finished feeding on Halfdan. It had already been several days since Halfdan was brought here, and she would always be the one to bring him food. That¡¯s why, every time she saw the ever weaker Halfdan, she would feel guilty. After all, it had been her idea to bring here in the first place, even though that¡¯s not really what she meant. So, she approached Ulfvaldr with the goal of trying to talk him into letting Halfdan go, and maybe even get him to try some animal blood.


    ¡°Hey Valdr,¡± she began, as she approached him. Ulfvaldr looked at her, with his usual expressionless face.


    ¡°Do you need anything?¡± He asked her


    ¡°I¡¯d like to talk to you, about, about Halfdan,¡± she said rather nervously. She wasn¡¯t quite sure how she should go about this. In fact, she didn¡¯t have the slightest idea on how to convince him, but never the less, she felt like she had to try. She felt like she was the only person that could make Ulfvaldr redeem himself.


    ¡°Is that so,¡± Ulfvaldr said, almost as if he didn¡¯t even hear her.


    ¡°I¡¯d like you to let him go. Is there really no way you can start drinking animal blood?¡± she asked him, while making sure to keep eye contact. Secretly, she was actually extremely nervous. She didn¡¯t believe that Ulfvaldr would hurt her, but deep inside, she was still somewhat scared of him.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.


    ¡°This again? Seriously, why should I drink animal blood? I don¡¯t see you tribe¡¯s people eating grass and plants all day, so why should I go down to animal blood?¡± He asked back to her, slightly annoyed by this repeated question.


    ¡°That¡¯s not the same! One are animals, the other plants! But for you it¡¯s either living, breathing human beings, or animals, the same that we eat. So can¡¯t you just try at least? Halfdan is pain, and if you keep him there, he¡¯ll go crazy eventually. It¡¯s cruel to keep him like that,¡± she said with a pleading expression. However, Ulfvaldr just sighed at her attempts.


    ¡°You were the one who suggested me bringing him here, you know,¡± he answered.


    ¡°That wasn¡¯t what I meant. What I meant, is that you should just sneak up on them, and just some of their blood, leaving them alive. Not to kidnap them, and bring them here,¡± she said.


    ¡°Hmm. It¡¯s still easier to just keep him here. That way I don¡¯t have to risk getting discovered,¡± he said.


    ¡°Is that what you¡¯re worried about? I¡¯ve seen how quick you are, when you run I can¡¯t even see you,¡± she pleaded.


    ¡°Even then, I still have to stand still when drinking. Let¡¯s stop this discussion, I¡¯m not going to let him go,¡± Ulfvaldr said, then disappeared from Tola¡¯s vision.


    He was getting tired from that discussion, so he decided to go outside, and thus landed a short distance away from the cave.


    Tola ran to the entrance of the cave, but by the time she made it there, he was already gone. She sighed in frustration, and went back into the cave.


    ¡®There must be some way to change him,¡¯ she thought. But no matter how much she racked her brain, she couldn¡¯t think of anything, and by the time Ulfvaldr got back, she had already fallen asleep. As he saw the girl lying in her dark corner, he, too, began thinking. In contrast to Tola, he just couldn¡¯t understand by she cared so much. In his eyes, it was completely natural for him to drink the blood of humans, like humans ate the meat of animals. After all, he was above humans, like they were above animals. That¡¯s just how the pecking order went. It was simply weird for her to complain.


    But she still didn¡¯t give up. The next day, when she woke up, she immediately started racking her brain once more, as she walked throughout the cave, as if that would boost her thinking capabilities. But, as hateful as she was to admit it, she wasn¡¯t very smart. She just couldn¡¯t get any ideas. Thus, she decided to try the same strategy again, but this time she would drop the matter of Halfdan. Instead, she wanted to try and make Ulfvaldr taste some animal blood.


    She would be satisfied as long as he just tried. As soon as the sun went down, she immediately made her way over to Ulfvaldr, who was just waking up. As he saw her face staring into his, he was a bit surprised.


    ¡°What now? Is something wrong?¡± He asked, making Tola a bit happy that he was worried for her. Or at least that¡¯s how she understood it.


    ¡°Okay, I won¡¯t ask you to release Halfdan again, but can¡¯t at least just try some animal blood? I mean, you¡¯ve never tried it right?¡± She asked him. Ulfvaldr looked back at her with his expressionless face, not revealing his thoughts in the slightest.


    ¡°No, I haven¡¯t,¡± he answered.


    ¡°Then it might be delicious! I mean, you¡¯ve never tried it, so who knows? You won¡¯t know until you try, so don¡¯t you think it¡¯d at least be worth a try?¡± She continued.


    ¡°Tola, we¡¯ve been over this already. Animals simply don¡¯t look appetizing in the slightest. There¡¯s no way they¡¯d taste any good,¡± he said.


    ¡°Hey, that¡¯s not true you know. This one day, they made some sort of gruel in the tribe, and trust me, it looked disgusting, but when I reluctantly tasted it, it was delicious! You should at least try,¡± she said. She was really adamant this time, and she wouldn¡¯t give up no matter what, even if she had to bother him the entire night.


    She was even somewhat surer that he wouldn¡¯t hurt her. I mean, he even said her name, that must be some sort of sign, right? And Ulfvaldr certainly saw how determined she was, so he finally gave in.


    ¡°Fine. One taste. I¡¯ll give it one taste, and if I don¡¯t like it, then it¡¯s not up for discussion again,¡± he said, much to the delight of Tola who immediately brightened up.


    ¡°Great!¡± She exclaimed. Then, Ulfvaldr grabbed her by the waist, and directly jumped out of the cave, and landed at least twenty meters away from it, which caused Tola to scream in fright once more, but secretly, she was happy that he was taking her with him. She definitely didn¡¯t think she did it to frighten her.


    Thus, as they left the cave, they entered the forest, and quickly found an animal. It was a small deer, sleeping under a tree. It seemed like it had lost the rest of its herd, as it was completely alone. Ulfvaldr looked at the sleeping animal; he was slightly hesitant. Not because he felt sorry or anything, but because he was nervous about how it would taste. As she saw his hesitation, she grabbed his shoulder and gave him a brave nod.


    Thus, he walked closer to the animal, and crouched beside it. Slowly, he neared ever closer its neck, baring his fangs. Then, finally, he sank his fangs into the animal¡¯s neck, but the moment some blood entered his mouth, he immediately spat it out in disgust.


    ¡°It¡¯s, it¡¯s so bland! This doesn¡¯t taste good at all!¡± He shouted, immediately waking up the sleeping animal, and causing it to run away.


    ¡°Was it really that bad?¡± The nervous Tola asked.


    ¡°It didn¡¯t taste bad in particular, but it was so bland,¡± he said. Somehow, this actually managed to excite Tola.


    ¡°Then, since it doesn¡¯t actually taste bad, can¡¯t you drink it?¡± She asked excitedly. However, the answer that came, quickly shut down her dreams.


    ¡°No way. There¡¯s no way I¡¯ll drink that stuff,¡± he said, as he started to walk back towards the cave.


    After that little event passed, a month flew by them. In the last month, Tola had used several little plans, trying to make Ulfvaldr into a better person, but she would be turned down every single time. Some of her plans didn¡¯t even make sense. She would sneak weird remarks in, like saying she that animal blood is good for your health, or that it makes your skin brighter. She also said it prevents hair loss, but of course, Ulfvaldr never fell for it. If he did, he would be mentally challenged. And in fact, she just said those things for fun, when she didn¡¯t know what else to do.


    But in the end, she never succeeded to change him in the slightest, and most of the times she would start talking about animal blood and Halfdan, she wouldn¡¯t even be able to say a single sentence, before Ulfvaldr stopped her. But Ulfvaldr never sent her away, or even yelled at her. Deep inside, he was even somewhat enjoying their banters.


    One day, they had sat down together, when Ulfvaldr suddenly asked about her family. He had never asked on his own, about matters pertaining to her personal life, and she had never told him about her parents, even though they talked about a lot of other things, than just changing him. She hesitated for a while, but finally gulped, and decided to tell him,


    ¡°Well, my parents are dead,¡± she said in a low voice. It wasn¡¯t too rare for children to be orphans, as there was a great variety of ways that one could die. However, the death of her parents had always pained her. Ulfvaldr gazed at her with a mystical look; as if it felt familiar, but he couldn¡¯t quite point his finger to it.


    ¡°How, how did they die?¡± He asked with slight hesitation. This was the first time Tola had heard him stutter, or even speak with slight emotion. Whenever he spoke, it would always be in a monotone. He never displayed any emotion, what so ever. This display of emotion, had triggered something in Tola. She decided to tell him the story.


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t actually born in my tribe. I don¡¯t remember those days too well, but my original tribe all died. They were attacked by sabre-cats. My parents, as well as many others, fled, but the sabre-cats all took chase. Eventually, they caught up to my parents, and me. All I remember is that they told me to remember them, and that they loved me. They told me to live up to their hopes, and live a full life. That¡¯s all I remember of them. Then, just before the sabre-cat arrived, they pushed me into a small crevice, only big enough to fit me. It really was quite lucky, now that I think about it, a crevice being there. Later, I was discovered by a hunting party from the tribe,¡± she explained, but she was surprised when Ulfvaldr didn¡¯t display any reaction. He just stared into space, with an empty look; his mouth was agape.


    He didn¡¯t move, and Tola didn¡¯t dare touch him, but inside, she was panicking. She had no idea what was going on. Inside Ulfvaldr¡¯s head, however, a series of images were flashing through. Images pertaining to his life; his memories. He saw pictures of a man and woman; his mother and father. Names started flashing through his mind. He remembered being encapsulated by a snow storm; getting trapped in the cave; fighting for his life against the giant bat¡­ Killing all his tribe¡¯s members.


    Suddenly the most shocking thing to Tola, happened. Two streams of tears started flowing down his cheeks, down from his eyes. He had finally remembered. The story from Tola had triggered his memories. The last words of her parents, to be specific.


    ¡°Mother!¡± He finally cried, as he fell to his knees. He finally cried all his frustrations out; all his regrets. Then the memories from the past weeks flooded through his mind. His emotionless slaughter of the tribe¡¯s people. He completely lost it. However, Tola took the chance, and hugged him tightly to comfort him.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright, it¡¯s all gonna be alright,¡± she consoled. She held him close to herself; tightly, while Ulfvaldr let his tears flow down on her shoulder.


    ¡°I, I killed, I killed so many people,¡± he said in a stutter, ¡°my mother, father,¡± he continued, ¡°I lost all control, I couldn¡¯t help it. But they, they still said they loved me! Why did they have to die like that!¡± He cried. This was when Tola finally realized that he had regained his memories. She immediately held him tighter,


    ¡°Tell me about them. Tell me what happened; maybe it will make you feel better,¡± she said. If she knew what he had done, then she might be able to console him better. To make him stop killing.


    ¡°I, I killed them. Not my parents¡­ But everyone else. I killed the people from my tribe, in, in a frenzy of bloodlust. Then, when I finally regained my mind, it was too late. The thunderstorm came upon us, and triggered an avalanche, burying all of us. I don¡¯t even know how long it has been,¡± he said. He then continued to tell her the rest of his story. As he talked, she couldn¡¯t help, but tear up.


    His story was far more tragic than her own. First, he had lost his home, and been trapped in cave, with no exit. Then he had to fight for his life, against a giant bat. Then, even after all his struggles, he had been cursed by the heavens, unable to ever grace the sun, bound to drink the blood of humans. But then, a certain thought struck Tola.


    ¡°You know, the bodies of your tribe¡¯s people; of your parents; they are probably still there. After all, you won¡¯t rot when you¡¯re frozen in ice. They are probably still buried there, considering that you only managed to dig yourself out now,¡± she said. As Ulfvaldr heard this, his eyes lit up. He was completely heart torn, and had almost lost his will to live, but hearing those words, he gained some small sliver of hope. At least, he¡¯d be able to give them a proper burial.


    ¡°Then I¡¯ll go. I¡¯ll find them, and give them a proper burial, according to the ways of our people,¡± he said, with his still sombre voice. Tola looked at him with a smile, and said,


    ¡°Then take me with you. I want to be there, with you,¡± she said. Ulfvaldr looked at her, with a smile. His smile and the expression in his eyes almost made Tola cry. They were completely imbued with sorrow and despair. But she was also relieved. His human side had finally been recovered. But, there was still one final thought in Tola¡¯s head.


    ¡°Valdr, do you think you can let Halfdan go, and live with drinking animal blood,¡± she asked. Ulfvaldr looked at her, and nodded his head, much to her relief.


    ¡°I¡¯ll try to only drink animal blood, and I¡¯ll let him go back home,¡± he said, and stood back up, then walked towards the prison of Halfdan, with conviction. As the small boulder was cleared away, Halfdan look upon Ulfvaldr with fear. However, when Ulfvaldr shed a tear at the sight, he was instead confused.


    ¡°You can go. I¡¯ve regained my memories; my humanity. I truly regret everything I¡¯ve done¡­ I¡¯ll let you go back home, and I hope you can forgive everything I¡¯ve done, however, I won¡¯t ask you to. Instead, all I ask is that you don¡¯t tell anyone about me, or Tola,¡± Ulfvaldr said. Before Halfdan could say even a word, his vision blurred, and he lost consciousness.


    When he woke up again, he found himself outside the village. He was in a daze, as he stumbled weakly back into the village. When they saw him walking in, everyone went into an uproar. Halfdan, however, remained quiet. He was conflicted. He didn¡¯t know what to say, or to even say anything. When he saw Ulfvaldr for the last time, a lot of confusion had built up inside him. He had seen his guilt wrecked expression; his tone of voice. He knew that there was more to this sad ¡®monster¡¯, than met the eye.


    Back at the cave, Tola looked at Ulfvaldr with a smile. However, Ulfvaldr shed another tear. He couldn¡¯t help himself; he was too emotional right now. He truly hated himself for what he had done. But the warming smile of Tola still calmed him down.


    ¡°I¡¯m proud of you,¡± she said, as she hugged him tightly. He didn¡¯t cry verbally this time, but he couldn¡¯t believe himself. All that he had done. All the evil, the kind, confident boy of the past, had caused. He had killed his closest friends; sown horror into the hearts of the innocent. He didn¡¯t understand how anyone could still care for someone like him. He didn¡¯t understand how Tola didn¡¯t shun him.


    ¡°Thank you,¡± he whispered into her ear, causing Tola to smile again. She just nodded her head in response. Then, as the sun was about to rise again, they went to sleep, Tola holding him tightly in her bosom, as the rays of the sun finally found their way into the dark cave, and the flocks of bats flew in, finding shelter on the roof of the cave. Thus, they slept, until the sun reached its highest point, then settled down, once more, out in the horizon of the world.

 Chapter 7

    Chapter 7


    As the sun set, and darkness shrouded the cave, the crimson eyes of Ulfvaldr shot open. Tola had already gotten up a while ago, like usual. Ulfvaldr, however, didn¡¯t feel like getting up. He felt like shit, for some reason, but he couldn¡¯t really point out why. He felt guilty, for some reason, as if he had done something wrong. He didn¡¯t feel good about himself. But then, as his mind cleared, he finally remembered once more, and he felt pain. Not the physical pain, which marred the body, but the mental kind of pain, you feel when you lose someone close to you.


    Ulfvaldr made up his mind, and stood tall. He had a goal to achieve. He needed to recover all the bodies of his tribe¡¯s members; the bodies of his parents. Thus he walked over to the resting Tola, startling her once more.


    ¡°Really, Valdr, you need to move a bit more soundly. Every time you wake up, you scare the living shit out of me,¡± she complained, causing Ulfvaldr to chuckle at her antics.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to go to the mountains today¡­ To recover the bodies,¡± he said, immediately losing his temporary good mood. He was wrecked with guilt, over the deaths of his tribe; over all the atrocities he¡¯d committed.


    ¡°Then take me with you,¡± Tola replied. Ulfvaldr nodded his head, and then they left the cave behind, with their minds set on travelling to the far away mountain range, which seemed to tower over everything, piercing into the sky. The moon hung in the sky, as they landed on the ground beneath the cave.


    ¡°It¡¯s been days since I was out here last,¡± Tola said, enjoying the moonlight, and her newfound freedom. As she said that, though, Ulfvaldr immediately felt even more guilty. After all, he had kept her in cave, with no way out, for days. It was quite a cruel thing to do.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to be guilty,¡± Tola said, ¡°I don¡¯t regret coming with you to the cave. I enjoy being with you. And in the tribe, I was an outsider. I did like the people there, and they liked me, but I was still an outsider. I didn¡¯t grow up with them. And by coming here, not only did I manage to save them, I also saved you, didn¡¯t I? If my story didn¡¯t trigger your memories, then you¡¯d still be out there¡­ Then, when you finally did regain your memories, the devastation could have been much greater. So, don¡¯t feel guilty,¡± she said. Ulfvaldr smiled at her reassuring words, and no longer felt too guilty over taking her away.


    Thus, they began their journey. Ulfvaldr didn¡¯t want to spend several days travelling, so he carried Tola, which seemed to embarrass her greatly, and sped off. He made sure to travel at a speed that didn¡¯t hurt her. However, they still didn¡¯t make it there in one night. It was only after the second night, and a bit into the third night that they arrived. And Tola was marvelled by the sight. The mountains were much bigger than the ones she was used to, and they were covered in snow.


    ¡°They¡¯re so big!¡± She exclaimed, with a great smile, however, Ulfvaldr couldn¡¯t bring himself to smile, nor like the sight. Those mountains had served as prison for him, for who knows how long. He had no idea how long it had been, but he knew it was a long time. During his entrapment, he had been in a state of mixed consciousness and unconsciousness.


    ¡°Let¡¯s get onwards,¡± Ulfvaldr said, then continued walking. He didn¡¯t carry Tola anymore, as the distance wasn¡¯t great. He only helped her when some troublesome terrain occurred. Then, after an hour or two, they arrived at that familiar clearing. The three corpses were still there, littering the otherwise peaceful grounds. Tola was a bit surprised by seeing them.


    ¡°Who are they?¡± She asked, while pointing towards the three, fur clad, corpses.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. They walked through the clearing when I woke up. Probably hunters, or something,¡± he answered, before going and disposing of the corpses. He went, and buried them a bit away from the clearing.


    Then, the work began. He began digging, with his bare hands, as they worked better than a spear. While he was effectively digging, Tola decided to help, and also started to dig, with a spear. After several hours of work, they finally uncovered the first body. The moment he found him, he immediately started tearing up. He grabbed the cold, rock solid, body, and placed him to the side. Tola immediately came over to him.


    ¡°This was the best friend of my father. His name was Kn?ttr,¡± Ulfvaldr said, trailing off at the end. They decided not to put further thought to him, and continue working. Ulfvaldr looked up to the sky. The moon was slowly making its way down; it was going to be dawn soon. Ulfvaldr needed a shelter for the day, so he started digging a little cave, in the snow. He had already dug a few meters down in a small area, so digging a small cave into the ice walls wasn¡¯t a problem. Thus, soon after, he had a small cave where he could seek cover from the sun.


    But he didn¡¯t stop after that. He continued to dig, until the sun started rising. It wasn¡¯t until the sun started appearing in the horizon that he stopped, and entered the cave. Inside the ice cave, Tola snuggled up to Ulfvaldr, to help fend off the cold. Ulfvaldr looked at her with affection. She was the only one he cared about anymore. She was his salvation.


    ¡°You know, Tola, I¡¯m really glad you¡¯re with me. If it wasn¡¯t for you, I might have already killed myself,¡± Ulfvaldr said. However, unexpectedly, Tola started chuckling.


    ¡°Why¡¯re you laughing?¡± He asked, clearly confused.


    ¡°That was the first time you called me by my name. I¡¯m just happy,¡± she said, with the most beautiful smile Ulfvaldr had ever seen, ¡°If you really care so much for me, how about you give me something?¡± She asked, with a mischievous smile.


    ¡°Give you something? What do you want?¡± He asked back, a bit interested in what it could be that she wanted so dearly.


    ¡°A child,¡± she answered bluntly, with slightly reddened cheeks. Ulfvaldr got really surprised though. Not quite what he had been expecting.


    ¡°A c-child? You mean like,¡± he asked, trailing off at the end, not sure how to finish.


    ¡°Yes, a child between you and me. I can¡¯t always stay up all night like you, and sleep all day. I always get up several hours earlier, and frankly, I think I¡¯m gonna start going to be earlier as well. I want a child to keep me company when you sleep,¡± she said. She was a bit embarrassed, but she didn¡¯t hesitate. She was set on having a child with him. She was the right age too.


    ¡°Alright then, I¡¯ll have a child with you, I don¡¯t really mind. But are you sure you want to have it with me?¡± He asked, failing to understand how this girl could not only want to be friends with someone like him, but even have a child with him.


    ¡°You fool, you¡¯re the only one I want a child with. You might have done some bad things in the past, but that wasn¡¯t really you. And we might have only known each other for a few days, but I always knew you weren¡¯t yourself. I could see that something was wrong; that you were sad. And frankly, I¡¯ve already fallen in love with you,¡± she said, growing redder and redder as she spoke. Especially at the last part, she was red as a tomato. But she certainly wasn¡¯t shy.


    ¡°Alright, then I don¡¯t mind,¡± Ulfvaldr finally said.


    ¡°Great!¡± Tola said with a dazzling smile, as she immediately took off her fur top, revealing her beautiful breasts, and causing Ulfvaldr to redden. He had never seen a girl naked before, so he was a bit shy.


    ¡°You mean right now?¡± Ulfvaldr asked in panic. Tola didn¡¯t mind, though, and took her fur skirt off, revealing her completely naked body, for Ulfvaldr to see. However, she got quite cold, from her skin touching the ice, and immediately got closer to Ulfvaldr.


    ¡°Yes, I want to do it right now,¡± she said, as she started undressing Ulfvaldr. Ulfvaldr could only give in, and let her have her way. Thus, they put their fur clothes beneath them, covering the ice, and started exploring each other¡¯s bodies.


    For an hour, loud moans resounded throughout the clearing, letting anyone nearby know of what act they were committing. However, there was no one nearby, in several miles. They were completely alone, and free to do their business.


    ¡°That was rougher than I expected,¡± Tola said, as she snuggled her naked body to Ulfvaldr, who was also naked by this point. They were covered in furs, and used each other¡¯s bodies to warm up. Not that Ulfvaldr needed it, but it was a great help for Tola.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    ¡°But I quite liked it, even though it was a bit painful at first. But I doubt any other girl has such an energetic mate,¡± she said with a giggle, and kissed Ulfvaldr on the mouth. They had gone for several rounds, and she had felt his seed several times, so she quickly got used to the pain. Then she suddenly got a serious look, as she asked Ulfvaldr,


    ¡°Have you ever done it before? Did you have a mate in the past?¡± She asked, a bit nervous for the answer. She wouldn¡¯t be surprised if he had a mate before, after all, he was quite the strong guy, and she knew he was the son of the chieftain of his old tribe. But she still wanted to be his only one.


    ¡°I never had a mate before; you were my first,¡± Ulfvaldr revealed, much to Tola¡¯s delight.


    ¡°That¡¯s good. Of course, you¡¯re also my first, and only one,¡± she said with a smile. After their little escapade, they bundled together, and slept through the day, until their little, cold cave, was covered in complete darkness. Thus, the eyes of Ulfvaldr opened, and they got up. This time, Tola had slept through the entire day, not wanting to get out of Ulfvaldr¡¯s grasp. However, they didn¡¯t dally, and with conviction, they, once more, started working. They dug, and they dug, throughout the night; uncovering body after body; until, they finally got the area, where Ulfvaldr had burgeoned out of the ice and snow.


    Ulfvaldr was finally hesitant; he knew what remained below, and hesitated to see them; their frozen bodies; frozen faces. He remembered clearly their faces when they were buried; when he killed everyone they knew; everyone he knew. He was corrupted with guilt; with disgrace, with shame, regret, penitence, sorrow; remorse. He couldn¡¯t bear the thought of seeing their final, frozen expressions; yet he couldn¡¯t bear the thought of not seeing them; the thought of letting them stay in their unhallowed, sudden burial ground. With a final conviction, he clutched his fists; Tola grasped her spear; and finally they began digging again.


    It had already been a few days, so there wasn¡¯t much left to dig. In fact, it was only this small area. The only bodies that remained, were that of his parents; his family. The others; a good two dozen, lied in rows, a small distance away from the now much larger clearing. Tola had only done a small share of the clearing; the speed and strength of Ulfvaldr, didn¡¯t allow her to keep up, yet she still helped, without complaint. They continued digging, for what seemed like several hours, even days, yet was only a short few moments, as the area wasn¡¯t that big. As the final calamity had fallen upon the tribe, all the members had been spread throughout the clearing. Especially the last surviving ones. The others, however, had been spread out, through much more nefarious methods. Some had been chased down by Ulfvaldr, others had been thrown over dozens of metres, breaking all the bones in their bodies.


    However, now here he was, the very being that killed them, uncovering their bodies. And he had finally done it. He had dug through the frozen, solid ice, and had finally touched upon ice hard flesh. In a flash, he had uncovered them, and there they were; his mother and father, holding each other in an embrace, with a frozen expression, showing both pain, fear, and regret. After being tumbled by tremendous amounts of snow, they had still managed to hold onto each other. As he saw these two frozen lovers, covered in a frosty veil, he felt his knees weaken, and a cold, dead, liquid, moisten his eyes. Wistfully, he fell down to his knees, and let his tears flow. With a loud, deep growl, he screamed, resounding through the entire mountain, sounding like a savage, feral beast that had its arm ripped off.


    He felt an insatiable anger; an anger, not only for himself, but for everything that had happened. So much had happened to his tribe; to him. They had lost their home, been trapped for weeks, and when they finally got freedom, they met certain doom. If that wasn¡¯t enough, he had been cursed; cursed to a nocturnal life of killing. Normally, he would want revenge, for all the injustice which had been acted upon him. But what should he enact revenge upon, he thought, as he gazed upon the skies, his eyes piercing through the clouds and the dark veil which covered the world; gazing into the unknown void.


    He felt a warm touch to his body, as he was wrapped by two arms. Tola held him in her bosom; she wanted to say something, but she didn¡¯t know what to say; yet, she didn¡¯t need to say anything. Only the touch of her comfortable, living, body, was enough to calm him. And that comfort, was what he needed the most right now.


    Thus, he finally began on the last part of his last goodbyes. With his fastest speed, he carried all the numerous bodies of his tribe, down to the foot of the mountain, one by one. With his speed and strength, he could quickly carry two bodies down, so it didn¡¯t take long, before they were all there. Then, he quickly fell a few trees, from the forest nearby, and made an improvised carriage, to carry the numerous bodies. He wanted to bury them where his tribe used to live, but he had no idea where that was. After all, when they came here, he was covered in furs, unable to see anything, during the rare occasions where he was awake. The landscape had also changed drastically. Instead, he could only settle to bring them as far away as he could, until not a hint of this cursed mountain could be seen.


    He would pull the ends of the carriage, while Tola sat on it, doing her best not to touch the thawing bodies. At his fastest speed, he would rush away, as if he had no other cares in life, except getting away from there. For many nights, they would travel, until the bodies started smelling worse, and worse. Tola would sit patiently, and watch as the world flashed by, and she came back to the area she knew her entire life, and saw it fly past her. Several days passed, until they finally arrived at a flat area, with trees covering throughout. Amidst the many trees, there was a single clearing, where the light of the moon shone in, in a magnificent streak of light. Ulfvaldr finally let go of the carriage, and let it fall to the ground, in front of the long streaks, which stretched out behind it.


    Immediately, he began work and dug their final grave, where they would finally find their undisturbed rest, and the proper burial they deserved. He had been digging without rest, for days on end, only a few days prior, however, now, his digging seemed slow, and unmotivated. It was as if his sadness and regret weighed his body down, not allowing him to do what had to be done. However, after a few hours, the grave was still dug. Thus, one by one, he slowly lowered all of them down, into the newly dug grave. Then, as all, two dozen bodies, lay in the grave, he looked over them with a lingering gaze. He wanted to say something, as to apologize for what he did to them, but he couldn¡¯t even open his mouth. But it didn¡¯t matter, he though; they were all dead, after all. Then finally, he refilled the hole with dirt, covering the dead bodies, and finally giving them their much delayed burial.


    A single streak of a tear escaped his eye, and streamed down, making a small wet spot on the ground, as he turned around, and walked away, soon followed by Tola. This location, he would never forget, but he would also not see it again, in a very, very long time. Thus, they made their way back to the cave they had come to call home, deep in the small mountain range, a few miles away from the tribe which Tola once belonged to. However, in the middle of their journey back, they came to a quick halt. Ulfvaldr suddenly stopped, and dropped Tola. He felt a sudden urge; a sudden hunger. He hadn¡¯t fed for days, and it had taken all his willpower to hold it back; the only reason he lasted so long, was because of his desire to give his people rest.


    But now, the hunger came flaring at him. He looked at Tola, with black eyes, adorned in red veins, and a crimson center. There was a deep hunger in his eyes, as he growled, sowing a deep fear in the heart of Tola. It was at this moment that she remembered what he truly was, yet she didn¡¯t truly fear it; she was only surprised. However, before she could even say anything, Ulfvaldr disappeared.


    In an instant, he had gotten far, far away from her, all his senses frantically searching for any sign of life. It didn¡¯t take long, before he saw a small herd of deer. Like a hungering lion, he leapt at them, and dug his fangs into a deer, and ripped its throat open. The poor deer made a shallow scream, as the other deer ran away, the fear apparent in their eyes. However, it was no use. As the first deer fell, the others soon followed. In an instant, he had drained three deer for the entirety of their blood. He was on his knees, feasting on the already dead deer, before his eyes cleared, and his blood covered face moved, to face the night sky.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t taste good,¡± he mumbled. However, his hunger had still been satisfied, and he no longer felt that impending hunger. However, he didn¡¯t feel as powerful as before. It left a small sense of weakness. However, he didn¡¯t mind; he had promised Tola to renew his ways, and he would surely make the effort. As his thoughts trailed to Tola, he panicked. He had left her alone in the middle of a dark forest! Who knows what animals might lay their paws upon her. Immediately, his body flashed away once more, and he quickly got back to her. Luckily, she was fine, and no harm had been bestowed on her. As Ulfvaldr appeared before her, once again, she was startled, and almost fell to her butt.


    ¡°Oh, you¡¯re back. You scared me a bit there,¡± she said, as she looked worriedly to Ulfvaldr. She could see his blood covered form, in the darkness, the light of the moon shining down towards his body. Ulfvaldr stepped forwards, to grab her again, so that they could continue their journey, but Tola hurriedly stepped back.


    ¡°Uhm, maybe you should clean yourself a bit first?¡± She asked, hinting towards all the blood on his clothes. Ulfvaldr was a bit taken aback, but quickly noticed how he looked. He quickly turned around, to go to a nearby river.


    ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t notice,¡± he said, absentmindedly, before cleaning the blood off of him. His face got clean and pure again, but his clothes remained stained in red. No matter how he washed it, he couldn¡¯t get all the blood out, so he could only give up. A short while later, they finally continued forwards, travelling all the way to dawn before stopping. They found a shade-full place to rest, and slept the day away.


    Thus, they continued, until they finally got back to that small mountain range, several miles away from the tribe. They stood below the elevated cave, as Ulfvaldr began sniffing his nose, and looking around. Tola looked at him with a weird expression, not quite sure what was going on. She looked at him with a questioning gaze.


    ¡°Someone was here,¡± he said, as if he knew what she was thinking, ¡°several people, at least half a dozen.¡± Their thoughts immediately drifted towards Halfdan. When Ulfvaldr released the poor man, he had asked him to remain silent about him and Tola, but who said he would obey? Who said he would even be able to? They might force it out of him. However, Ulfvaldr didn¡¯t worry too much. Since they had been here, it was most likely to search for him, and since they didn¡¯t find him, they would assume that he was already long gone, and that they would never see him again. Thus he didn¡¯t worry.


    They simply made their way back up to their cave, deciding not to worry anymore. Now, they would simply live their lives in peace; enjoying the company of each other, starting a small family. Tola would remain in the cave to take care of the children, and Ulfvaldr would go out and hunt animals; drink their blood, then take their meat back home. But, would things truly go as simply as that?

 Chapter 8

    Chapter 8


    One and a half year passed; Ulfvaldr and Tola lived their simple lives together. Every day, Ulfvaldr would go out, get food for Tola, and blood for himself. He made sure not to limit her diet to only meat; he gathered plants and vegetables, which Tola had told him were good to eat. Tola would prepare the food for herself, then they would spend the rest of the night together. After so many days, of spending time together with a nocturnal creature, Tola herself, had become somewhat nocturnal. She was up all night, and slept most of the days, during the summer. During winter, she would usually never see the light of day. The result of this, was her complexion; she had grown much paler, almost matching the skin colour of Ulfvaldr. She was also somewhat thinner. But she didn¡¯t mind. She would spend all night together with Ulfvaldr, then as the dawn arrived, they would go to sleep, after having some intimate fun.


    They wanted a family; a few kids. But they never got any, and they¡¯d been trying; every single day. Sometimes, they would spend hours, mating. But Tola never got pregnant. As time passed, Ulfvaldr began to have a creeping suspicion. Maybe, the heavens didn¡¯t think that it was enough to eradicate all his friends and family? Maybe the heavens didn¡¯t think it was enough, to curse him from the rays of the sunlight? Maybe, the heavens didn¡¯t think it was enough, to curse him to a life of slaying; a life, of drinking blood? Perhaps, the heavens had cursed him, to never leave even a single offspring; to never have children?


    This thought had begun building up inside of his mind, but he didn¡¯t dare acknowledge it. He wanted so dearly to bestow the only wish of Tola¡¯s. Not only that, but he, too, wanted children. The only family he had now, was Tola. No matter how much he had grown to love her, it was a lonely life. Yet, he didn¡¯t dare to go to another tribe. He was afraid of what they would think of him; what they would do to Tola. Thus, they had lived a lonely life, this past year and a half. But Tola never minded. She was ever loyal to Ulfvaldr; almost unnaturally so.


    However, during these years, his mind had also calmed. He was no longer torn of his past; he had somewhat overcome it. Yet, he still didn¡¯t forgive himself; he just didn¡¯t let it bother him as much. From time to time, his dreams would be infested with nightmares, of the days¡¯ bygone. But it never went past that; he still managed to live his life, without much trouble. However, as two years had passed by, the loneliness began to get to Tola¡¯s head. She desperately needed more social interaction, and her complexion was getting worse and worse. Her lifestyle wasn¡¯t healthy for her. She wasn¡¯t naturally nocturnal, or as in Ulfvaldr¡¯s case, unnaturally so.


    Thus, she came up to Ulfvaldr, to ask him a question. Why didn¡¯t they go out and find the secluded Shaman? She made the argument that he might know what was wrong Ulfvaldr, and maybe even cure his curse. And to top it off, she would get some much needed human interaction. Talking with Ulfvaldr, wasn¡¯t the same as with normal people. Sure, he had regained most of his humanity, but there was still his bestial side, and sometimes, he had a hard time controlling it. Often he was void of emotions, and it could feel like talking to a wall, or a tree trunk. So, if they went to find this Shaman, they might need to stay there for a while, and Tola would have someone to talk to. The Shaman was also the least likely person to shun them.


    Thus, they decided to set off. Ulfvaldr, of course, was more than willing to rid himself of the curse, so he had no objections. In fact, if he had known of this Shaman before, he would have long sought him out.


    Thus, the very next sunset, they set out. Tola had never seen this Shaman before, but she had heard of him. He was supposed to live in seclusion, somewhere, deep in the forests. Thus, they went searching, in the direction, in which, Tola had been told through the stories. They went deep into the forest, until they were surrounded by towering trees, and shrouded in shadowy darkness, as not a speck of moonlight was let through the dense roof of foliage. Tola couldn¡¯t see anything at all, but for Ulfvaldr, it was like walking in the midst of daylight.


    Even though his condition brought many curses, it also brought many strengths and advantages. He could run faster than the fastest leopard, see clearly in darkness, as if it was day, hear the breathing of a spider, a mile away. His strengths were numerous. Yet, these strengths did not please him in the slightest, because of the cost they brought. Loathed by sunlight, thirsting for blood.


    Thus, they searched. They spend night after night, scouring the forest, searching for any hint of habitation. Night after night passed, until they seemed sure that there was no stone left unturned in the entire forest, yet, they still hadn¡¯t even found the slightest hint of the Shaman. They had looked in every conceivable place, be it in the trees, in caves, or under rocks. Yet, the only humans they found, were the occasional hunters or travellers.


    Several days later, they were walking through the woods, rather casually, as they had already somewhat given up hope. They had already searched for so long, yet they still had no results to show.


    ¡°Hey, let¡¯s just give up. This Shaman clearly isn¡¯t here,¡± Ulfvaldr said, as he prepared to go back home. Tola looked at him with a slightly hesitant, if not guilty look. After all, this had been her idea, but in the end it had only been a waste of time.


    ¡°I guess,¡± she eventually answered, before they turned around, to go back in the direction of their little, elevated cave. They walked casually, as they were not too far from the mountain range at this point. Yet, somehow, after one hour, two hours, and finally three hours, they still hadn¡¯t made it to the end of the forest. It was only then that they noticed something was wrong. A bit wary, they started to mark the trees where they walked, yet, a few moments later, they came back to those very same marks.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Ulfvaldr asked. Tola shook her head.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± she answered rather anxiously.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go in another direction.¡±


    They started walking in another direction, but the result was the same. Eventually, they would find themselves in the exact same place, as before. They tried several more times, and each time, the time it took them to get back to the same place, was different. One time, it might just take five minutes, or even less, yet once, they walked for almost an hour.


    ¡°There¡¯s clearly something going one here,¡± Ulfvaldr said, his voice a little low. Tola didn¡¯t answer; she didn¡¯t know what to say.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ Then let¡¯s try using speed,¡± Ulfvaldr said, as he grabbed Tola, and suddenly sped away at full speed. But it was no different. They kept going through the same little space, just vastly faster. Finally, he stopped, and shouted a low frustrated growl.


    ¡°What the hell is going on!¡± He demanded. He started looking around, furiously, using his senses to the fullest, trying to hear the lowest of sounds, feel just a slightly irregular wind. Suddenly, however, he started hearing a low laugh. His neck turned around, to an unnatural degree, at unnatural speed, that even caused a bout of wind.


    A bit of a distance away from him, he saw a woman. Once, she was perhaps of tall stature, but now, she was hunched down, supporting herself on an old stick. Her hair was gray, with streaks of white; her face was old and wrinkled, looking quite ragged. However, her eyes were the weirdest part. They were completely white, as if she was blind, but they were incandescent, showing a weird energy or aura. The old woman stepped slightly back, as she noticed that she was found. She gave quite the surprised expression.


    ¡°Oh my, quite impressive. You actually found me,¡± she said with an old, raspy hoarse voice.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± Ulfvaldr asked, as Tola turned around, to look at the sudden newcomer.


    ¡°I believe I¡¯m the one you¡¯ve been looking for, these past days,¡± she answered.


    ¡°You¡¯re the shaman? Why did you hide?¡± Ulfvaldr said in a monotone, emotionless voice.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t quite hide from you; I was just testing you. Or playing with you. I find you quite peculiar; not quite human, if I¡¯m to be frank. How is it that you¡¯re so fast? And how did you find me just now?¡± She asked him in succession.


    ¡°My speed and strength is the reason I came to find you,¡± Ulfvaldr answered.


    ¡°Is that so? Then, let¡¯s go to my home. We can talk there,¡± the old woman said, as she turned around, and started to slowly walk away. As she walked, the scenery around them suddenly changed, and they could even see the edge of the forest now, peering into the small mountain range, quite surprising the young Tola, and not so young Ulfvaldr.


    They followed the old woman, as she slowly walked, and shortly after, they arrived at an old hut. Inside the hut, was an assortment of weird trinkets. Several skulls, not limited to just animals. In the skulls, were various items, like small bones, or various plants. There were even old, dried eye balls in one of them. The smell inside, was not quite pleasing to Ulfvaldr¡¯s nose.


    ¡°Well, young one, pray tell,¡± the old woman asked.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m not sure you could call me young. I¡¯m probably older than you, after all,¡± Ulfvaldr began. The old woman gave him a weird look, gesturing for him to explain further.


    ¡°Well, my story begins a very, very long time ago, I feel; actually I¡¯m not quite sure how long. But, it¡¯s long. I remember being frozen, for a long time, which might be why I retain my youthful look,¡± Ulfvaldr said, as he began retelling his life, from the day the first disaster struck his tribe. The old woman was truly shocked from the story. Not just the events, but the setting too.


    A vast, frozen wasteland, where ice and snow reached as far as the eye could see. She had never even heard of such a place, or such a time, so she knew this was a long time ago. Especially since said frozen wasteland was supposed to be right here, where they stand. However, as they came to the huge bat, her white eyes seemed to sparkle, for some reason. Especially at the part where he ate the beast, and gained his powers, and the curse. Finally, she said something,


    ¡°I think I have an idea. I¡¯ve heard of beasts similar to the giant bat, but my memory is groggy. I will need to go somewhere; a sacred place. The journey shall take me a full moon; you can come find me then,¡± the old woman said. Ulfvaldr nodded, then left without ceremony. For some reason, he felt weary around this woman. Especially when he told her about the beast bat. That sparkling look; it wasn¡¯t just a look of excitement; it was contaminated with greed.


    ¡°She was a lot older than I expected,¡± Tola said, slightly disappointed. ¡°Quite rare,¡± she continued.


    ¡°Yes. But be careful around her. There¡¯s something weird about her; I¡¯m not quite sure what she¡¯s planning. For now, though, we¡¯ll just have to trust her,¡± he said. Tola looked at him, wondering what he meant. She didn¡¯t have quite the knack for seeing through people, like Ulfvaldr did. In fact, Ulfvaldr was unnaturally capable at that. Sometimes, it felt like he could see through your soul, with those deep, red eyes of his. It unsettled Tola.


    A while later, they were back home, in their little cave. Things were calm for the next month, as they waited for the old woman to finish her trip. In the end, they waited for one month, and one week, to be sure that she was finished. Then, they set out once more, in search of the hut. This time, however, they found it quickly, as they had already been there once before. Inside the hut, was indeed the old, wrinkled woman. She looked at the two of them, with a bit of surprise.


    ¡°Ah, you finally came back. About time, I already got back a week ago,¡± she said, slightly annoyed. ¡°Oh, and great news! I found out what that bat was!¡± She said, with a proud look, as she slightly straightened her hunched back.This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    ¡°Well, tell me already then,¡± Ulfvaldr said impatiently.


    ¡°Alright, alright, but you could be politer. Anyways, that bat was one of the Primordials. Beasts born at the dawn of time, or so they say. The beast you fought and killed was the Primordial Bat. It was no small achievement, to kill it. It was probably young, or perhaps sick. Who knows. Maybe you¡¯re just very good at killing Primordials, which would be good, since you¡¯ll be killing more of them,¡± the old woman said, with a mischievous smile, as her white eyes glistered.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Ulfvaldr asked, a bit suspicious in her. There it was again; that look in her eyes.


    ¡°To rid you of your curse, we¡¯ll be needing the bodies of three more Primordials, which would be all the Primordials, at least that I know of,¡± she said.


    ¡°Well, what are they, and where do I find them?¡± He asked.


    ¡°Hehe, straight to point, are you? Well, let me tell you then. I have no idea! Well, not completely, I do know a bit though. Like, what they are. You¡¯ll need to find the Wolf Primordial, the Horse Primordial, and the Fox Primordial. I don¡¯t know if that¡¯s their names though; there¡¯s only that much you can learn from pictures, painted on a wall. As for where to find them; that¡¯s the hard part. I know that the Fox Primordial is somewhere, far towards the rising sun. The other two should be closer, though. The Wolf Primordial is in one of the forests of our land. Quite convenient. As for the horse, I have absolutely no idea. But fret not, the Primordials will probably be attracted to you, if you get close enough,¡± she said, excitedly explaining all the details she knew.


    ¡°Oh, and one more thing. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a good idea to take the girl with you. You¡¯ll be travelling all over, and fighting. She could get hurt. So, I propose that she stays here; that way, I can teach her my ways. As you can see, I¡¯m growing old. I won¡¯t live for many more years, so I want to pass down my ways to someone. I believe Tola has aptitude. What do you say girl?¡± The old woman asked. Tola looked towards Ulfvaldr for a bit, but he didn¡¯t say anything. This was her decision.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll stay. I won¡¯t be able to take care of myself alone, anyway. This is better,¡± she said, with a small smile. Ulfvaldr nodded, then said,


    ¡°Fine. Then, I¡¯ll be leaving. I don¡¯t know how long I¡¯ll take, but I promise to be back as soon as possible. If it takes too long, I¡¯ll come back home, with an update,¡± he said, as he looked Tola in the eyes. ¡°Be careful,¡± he then said, with an expression, which advised caution. And thus, he left.


    His first order of business, was to find the Wolf Primordial. According to the old Shaman, it was the one closest to his current location. Therefore, he left the forest. He was fairly sure that it wasn¡¯t there, since he had already searched it thoroughly before. After leaving the forest, he travelled around for several days, scouring all the forests he could find. Weeks flew by, but he still hadn¡¯t found a single sign of the wolf. He even used his abilities to control swarms of bats, scouring the known world.


    He spent day after day, week after week; month after month, before one day, he came upon a forest; a forest, shrouded in darkness; a veil of shadows, strewn all over the woods. Even during daytime, it would seem as the darkest of nights. The sight stunned Ulfvaldr; it was as if both sunlight and moonlight refused entirely to reach this forest. Of course, Ulfvaldr didn¡¯t realize this straight away, as he would only venture out at night. It was only the next day that he noticed how unnaturally dark it was. Even when he came upon a clearing, it was still dark. As he looked up to the sky, he noticed how there was still a veil of darkness, covering the entire forest.


    Thus, he made a decision. He went to the edges of the forest, despite it being the time of daylight. Outside, however, it was still dark. He could see that it was only a good fifty meters away that the daylight appeared. It was as if there was an invisible wall, blocking all of the light, somehow. Luckily for Ulfvaldr, he had no trouble with darkness; if he did, he would surely be trapped in eternal darkness, doomed to a lonely death in complete seclusion.


    Immediately, he knew, something had to be special about this place. Perhaps, this was the special lair, of the Wolf Primordial? He could only hope. It had already been several months, and he had yet to find even a single Primordial Beast. Thus, with conviction, he once more stepped foot into the Shrouded Forest.


    Inside the forest, he trod carefully; not because he couldn¡¯t see, but because of the unknown. He did not want to suffer an ambush. Thus, he walked, searching in every remote corner of the forest, but the entire forest was completely devoid of life. Not a single animal was to be found in this void; it was completely desolated.


    He could only keep walking through the narrow trees, made of seemingly black bark, as dark as it was. It was amazing in itself that any plant life could live in there, as not a shred of light could reach any of the vegetation, but nevertheless, it was still full of plant life and vegetation. Some places were so dense with trees that you could barely walk through it, and in some places, the grass could reach to your waist, limiting your movement. However, Ulfvaldr was none the wiser; he didn¡¯t possess a shred of knowledge on how plants grew and lived.


    And, as thus, he walked through the forest, for days on end, looking for any sign of the Wolf Primordial, or anything else for that matter. Sometimes, he would speed through the forest at great speeds, but other times, he would slow down, impeded by the dense vegetation of the forest. After several days, there was not a stone unturned in the entire forest; yet, he still hadn¡¯t found anything important, as usual. He didn¡¯t even rest for a moment, as the forest was in a perpetual night, and he didn¡¯t even drink anything, for several days. He was growing very thirsty, and he would need to get something to drink soon.


    Then, he sped up, and started traversing towards the edge of the forest. He¡¯d just have to come back here again later, when he¡¯d found something to drink. However, his thoughts were quickly deferred. For as he was about to step his foot outside the forest, that which he had been searching for, for many days, appeared before him. In front of him, just outside the forest, covered in a perpetuum of darkness, stood a wolf, seven feet tall, with fur as dark that it seemed as of all light in a vast area was absorbed into his fur.


    However, the eyes of this seven feet tall wolf, were the absolute opposite of his fur. His eyes, glowed white and yellow, seemingly in an eternal fight with the light absorbing fur, flickering about, throwing random strands of light into all directions, with seemingly no coordination. Out of the mouth of wolf, grew two, large, canine teeth, almost two feet in length. The silvery teeth were so shiny that you could see your reflection from them.


    It was almost as if it was a giant sabretooth tiger, concealed in the furs of a wolf. Out of its four, large paws, grew large, sharp claws. They seemed as if they could rip apart rocks, and had a shining glister to them. It was truly a majestic beast, in the truest sense of the word. Then, as the maw of the ferocious beast opened, a deep, growly, almost ancient voice resounded,


    ¡°You have searched, and you have found. Why have you come?¡± The beast asked in a human tongue, something Ulfvaldr had never thought possible for an animal.


    ¡°I have come in search of you, Wolf Primordial. There are questions, which I must ask,¡± Ulfvaldr answered back, without even the slightest hint of hesitation or unrest. The wolf stood, staring down at the smaller being, as if judging him, or evaluating him.


    ¡°In these days, I have observed you. You are not as other humans. No, you¡¯re far different; even a beast would tremble from your eyes; even I, tremble from those deep, fearful eyes. I cannot fathom who, or what you are. But I will try to sate whatever questions you bare, if you sate mine,¡± the beast said.


    ¡°You have a deal. If you answer all my questions, then I shall answer thine,¡± Ulfvaldr said, and the almost colossal wolf nodded his head.


    ¡°Then, I shall ask. First, what do you know of the Primordial Bat?¡± He asked, however, the black wolf only gave a confused look.


    ¡°In all my life, I have never heard of a Bat Primordial, and neither had my father, as far as my knowledge spans,¡±


    ¡°Your father? You had parents? Where are they?¡± He asked back, as he didn¡¯t believe them to have forefathers; he believed them to be birthed by the world.


    ¡°I did indeed have a father, but he is long dead,¡±


    ¡°How did they die?¡±


    ¡°How most of us Primordials die; shortly after I was born. You see, at the end of a Primordial¡¯s lifespan, they will give birth to an offspring, who will then be the new Primordial.¡± The beast answered. This new revelation had proven insightful to Ulfvaldr. He now knew that they were not immortal beings, unfettered by time. Then that would mean that whatever Primordials existed back then, were long dead.


    ¡°Interesting. Then, would you mind telling me how long a Primordial lives?¡± He asked.


    ¡°A few hundred years, I fathom,¡± the wolf primordial answered, much to the shock of Ulfvaldr. He had never expected them to be that long lived. He didn¡¯t even know how long he had been frozen for, but he attributed him still being alive, to the fact that he was frozen, and his body couldn¡¯t age as it was frozen. The reason he hadn¡¯t died, was from the fact that he was hard to kill; nigh impossible to kill. He still remembered that time he got stabbed in the heart.


    ¡°I see. Well then, tell me, do you know where the Horse Primordial resides? I need to find him,¡± Ulfvaldr said to the wolf, who looked onwards for a while, wondering why he would need with the Horse Primordial.


    ¡°The Horse Primordial? I do know his location. If you go in that direction,¡± he said, as he pointed with his paw, ¡°then, you will find a valley, quite the opposite of my forest. It is always bright there, and its adorned in golden grass. In that valley, is where the Horse Primordial resides. However, it¡¯ll take at least a few days to get there, even with your speed. Now, let me ask you a question. Why do you need the Horse Primordial, and also, what are you? Are you the Primordial of the humans, if there even is such a thing?¡± the Wolf Primordial answered, then asked.


    ¡°I see. You have served me well, I shall admit. Then, let me sate your curiosity. First, as for what I am; I do not know. However, what I do know, is that a very long time ago, I met the young Bat Primordial, and killed it, then ate it. I suspect that¡¯s where my power is from. However, my power immediately got far, far stronger than even that Primordial, as soon as my transformation finished. And as for the reason I need that Horse Primordial, is the same reason for why I sought you out. I need to kill him, to rid myself of this curse,¡± he said, lowering his voice significantly, at the last few words.


    The wolf immediately stepped back a few steps, and formed a growl with his jaw.


    ¡°You tricked me!¡± He said, as he lowered his body, preparing to attack. Then, without another word, he leapt, swirling his claws at Ulfvaldr. Ulfvaldr, however, easily sidestepped, and got out of his range, then back stepped, deeper into the forest.


    ¡°Hah, are you stupid? Going deeper into the forest, deeper into the darkness? Didn¡¯t you think that I was capable of fighting in the dark, when I live in a forest, shrouded in complete darkness?¡± The wolf howled.


    However, when he followed Ulfvaldr into the forest, he got completely lost. No matter where he looked, he couldn¡¯t find him. However, just as he was about to give up, and escape, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his side, then a colossal force pushed him away, into a tree.


    ¡°Perhaps you might see well in the darkness, but it¡¯s different for me. I don¡¯t just see well in the dark; I live in it. I can¡¯t even step foot outside the dark, and into the sunlight. It¡¯s my entire world. When its night, I can see much clearer than I ever could in the day. In such an environment, its simply too easy to stay out of sight,¡± Ulfvaldr said, as he slowly walked towards the limping wolf.


    The huge wolf looked onwards, with a hint of fear in its eyes, but that slight fear quickly washed away, as it stood tall once more. Then, it lowered its head, ready to attack at any moment. And just like that, the several meter-tall wolf lunged forwards, swiping its large claws in an open arc. However, in the eyes of Ulfvaldr, the wolf seemed to only come towards him slowly, as he almost hung in the air. Ulfvaldr could only sigh, and step out of the way, easily, as the wolf crashed into the ground.


    The wolf tumbled and rolled on the ground, as it finally crashed into a tree, stopping its momentum. As the wolf lay whimpering, below the tree, Ulfvaldr started walking towards it, with a guilty expression,


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I don¡¯t want to live like this,¡± he said, as he neared closer and closer. The wolf seemed frozen in fright, until finally, Ulfvaldr stood right in front of the unlucky wolf.


    ¡°I want to grow old with Tola; to have children. So please, forgive me, and I am sorry,¡± he said slowly, but without change in expression, as he raised his fist and formed it into a spear hand. Then, without a word, without any form of ceremony, he pierced his hand into the chest of the large wolf into its heart. With a powerful motion, he pulled his arm out of wounded wolf, a heart in his hand.


    ¡°If only I had more time¡­ time to grow my strength,¡± the wolf whispered, as it gave him one last, bewildered stare, before the glowing light in its eyes finally faded away, and the wolf lost all its strength, collapsing on the ground. Ulfvaldr stood up, placed the heart in a hide bag, then sighed deeply. He felt guilty about killing the noble and innocent wolf, but he didn¡¯t feel regret. After all, this would allow him freedom.


    But even when he held the wolf¡¯s heart, he still didn¡¯t feel any bloodlust towards it. It even slightly appalled him, like drinking the blood of the wolf would be bad to him, somehow. Even the small was disgusting to him, even though he couldn¡¯t understand why. Even the blood the of normal animals didn¡¯t feel appalling, like this. But he couldn¡¯t think up an answer, he didn¡¯t want to risk trying the blood.


    Thus, as he had killed the wolf, and taken his heart, he finally gave the wolf a burial. He dragged the wolf carcass deep into the forest, to the most beautiful spot, then buried a large hole, which would come to be the final resting place, of the noble Primordial Wolf. With the wolf finally buried, he left this forest in a hurry, towards the direction, which the wolf had pointed prior, leaving the old forest behind him.


    Now, his next goal, was the Primordial Horse.


    Several hours later, as the sun rose in the sky, light shined on the dark forest, for the first time in eternity. As this happened, a lone hunter walked up the hill, and witnessed the sight of the now bright forest. For as long as this lone hunter could remember, this forest had always been dark, even during the day. It was even told in stories to children that anyone who ever dared enter the dark forest, would never return. However, now, the forest had darkened. Thus, the lone hunter made a decision; one that would come to change his life for eternity.

 Chapter 9

    Chapter 9


    Two weeks passed by, after Ulfvaldr had left the forest. Indeed, the place where the Horse Primordial lived at, was far away, but Ulfvaldr had no idea just how far away it was. All he knew, was the general direction, so not only was it far away, but he travelled slowly. The reason for that was because he searched the entire way there, making sure to cover as much ground as possible. Thus, he kept travelling in a single direction, but his general area of travelling was several kilometres wide.


    That¡¯s why he had already been travelling for two weeks, and still hadn¡¯t found a single clue to the Horse Primordial, even though he had already covered a very large distance. But he didn¡¯t give up; it was paramount to him that he found those Primordials, so that he could return to his former humanity. It wasn¡¯t just for himself that he wanted to become a mortal man once more, but for Tola. Tola was the only person in his life, and he would do just about anything to make her happy.


    That¡¯s why he kept travelling, in one single direction, for several months. However, after several months had passed by him, he ran into a wall. Or should I say, the ocean? After months of travelling and searching, he did indeed arrive at the ocean. However, the ocean was not his goal, and for some weird reason, he felt an unnatural, if not unconventional fear from the sea. As he neared closer and closer, that feeling grew larger and larger. It was like all of his senses were screaming at him, to not go into the water.


    However, even though all about him told him not to enter the water, his curiosity struck him. Therefore, he decided to enter into the salty water of the sea. He thought that there shouldn¡¯t be too much danger in it. After all, he was standing on a beach, and the water wouldn¡¯t necessarily go above his feet, as long as he didn¡¯t venture too deep.


    Thus, he took a step forward, unto the warm sands that were illuminated in the shallow light of the moon. Another step, and he got closer, and closer, until he was only a few steps away, from the point where the sea water reached, as it surged up the sands, time and time again. Then, as the ocean fled down the sands once more, Ulfvaldr took a big step forwards, in a surge of courage. Then, his eyes followed the sea line, as it crept closer and closer, with the speed of a snail, as the flow of time slowed down around him.


    Closer and closer it got, until finally, it was only a fingers length from his toes. And then, time returned to normal, and the water surrounded his feet, as he suddenly felt a great surge of weakness, and fell to his knees.


    ¡°Ghaaaah,¡± he gasped, as all the breath was sucked out of his already breathless lungs. He felt all the strength in his body quickly fade away, as the water touched his shins and hands, until finally, the water returned to whence it came, and he felt just the smallest amount of power return to him.


    In a surge of pure willpower, he lunged away from the wet sands, unto drier land, away from the sea. Even after he got away, he felt vastly weaker than before, and could barely even stand. Even as he lied on the sand, he was gasping uncontrollably, not for breath, but from sheer weakness.


    Thus, he lay there for hours on end, feeling his strength slowly return, until he saw the glimmers of light rise from the distant horizon. Slowly, he rose up from the ground, and walked away, to find cover from the burning sun.


    Even after he found a lair, and even after the sun set again, he still didn¡¯t leave, He waited for a full two days, until he was recovered fully. All that from his feet and shins being touched by water. But it still puzzled him to no end. He had often touched water before, but never had he been weakened like that before. He truly didn¡¯t understand. Was it only the water of the ocean that would cause such harm? He simply didn¡¯t have the answer to such a question.


    After two full days of recovery, he left the small cover he had found, and ventured back in the direction he first came, back towards the forest of the Wolf. Since he couldn¡¯t cross the sea, he could only go back in that direction, and search even more meticulously.


    Thus, he spent another two weeks, searching every corner and crevice he could find, but he still didn¡¯t find anything. However, this time, he hadn¡¯t even made it a quarter of the way yet. However, one day, as he was walking a dark forest, he saw a glimmering light, through the closely packed trees. With his curiosity peaked, he started walking towards the direction of the light, only to find a small group of humans. As he saw them, he felt a slight thirst in his throat, but he quickly shook his head. He promised Tola that he would never drink the blood of a human again.


    Instead, he observed them for a while, trying to find out where they were from, but it didn¡¯t take him long to figure out that he couldn¡¯t even understand their speech. They were speaking a language he had never even heard of before. But at least he was pretty certain that they were hunters, judging from the bows, spears, and the dead animal by their side. They also seemed to have a merry time, as they sat around their fire, drinking a strange liquid, and laughing heartily.


    However, just as Ulfvaldr started having fun, observing their strange behaviour, he noticed that they were no longer alone. It seemed like several wolves had surrounded them, and were about to have a midnight snack. But to Ulfvaldr, this wasn¡¯t a threat, but an opportunity. If he could gain their trust, he could probably learn their language rather quickly. Then, he could ask them if they knew anything about the Horse Primordial, or the Golden Valley.


    Thus, he closed his eyes and calmed his mind. Then, he jumped into the midst of them, at an almost normal speed, and rolled over to a spear, once more at a just a bit over normal speed, then he grabbed the spear. As soon as the spear was in his hand, he turned around, raised it high above his head, and threw into the woods. The spear pierced through the air, at a speed as if a normal, albeit strong, human had thrown it.


    The four hunters immediately noticed Ulfvaldr, as he jumped into their midst, and immediately grabbed their spears, ready to fight him. However, as they saw him throw the spear into the woods, they were dumbfounded. They had never of anyone killing their opponent by throwing a spear in the opposite direction.


    However, only a moment later, they heard the pained howl of a dying wolf, and they suddenly understood. Immediately, they turned towards the dark woods, ready to fight whatever would come out. One of the hunters grabbed another spear, and threw it to Ulfvaldr, who easily caught it.


    One of the hunters said something to Ulfvaldr, however, he didn¡¯t have the faintest idea what he meant. Instead, he decided to return his own words to them,


    ¡°I saw the wolves, and thought I¡¯d warn you,¡± he said, in his own tongue. As expected, the hunters didn¡¯t understand him at all, but now they were fairly certain that Ulfvaldr didn¡¯t understand them either.


    Just after Ulfvaldr spoke his words, several wolves rushed out through the woods, ready to kill their prey. One of the wolves rushed towards Ulfvaldr, who easily stepped to the side, and stabbed his spear into the wolf¡¯s side, piercing its heart, instantly killing it. As the first wolf lay dead, he turned to the next wolf that was attacking one of the hunters. The shaft of the hunter¡¯s spear, was lodged in the mouth of the wolf, stopping it from biting him, but the wolf did its best to claw at the hunter. And it was somewhat successful, as the hunter already had several shallow wounds on his body.


    But the wolves struggle was short lived, as Ulfvaldr pierced his spear into the neck of the wolf, quickly killing it. The hunter looked surprised, and said some words, presumably a thank you. However, they didn¡¯t have time to chat, as there were still several wolves. Two wolves were trying to kill two of the hunters, while the last hunter was being ganged upon by two more wolves.


    Ulfvaldr quickly pointed the saved hunter to one of the others, while he himself, rushed over to the hunter being ganged upon. He was already in dire straits, as he had fallen to the ground, and one wolf was biting fiercely into his side, while he just barely managed to keep the other at bay, while grimacing in pain.


    Ulfvaldr managed to rush over to him in three large steps. As soon as he arrived, he lunged his spear into the side of one wolf, then lifted it up, all while he grabbed the second wolf with his bare hand. The other hunters were looking at him in awe, as he directly threw the wolf in his hand, into a tree, and smashed the other into the ground, killing it. Then, only a short instant later, as he had freed his spear, he threw it at the wolf that was whimpering by the tree.


    The first hunter had already managed to help his friend kill the wolf, but they were both too dumbfounded by Ulfvaldr¡¯s display, to help their other friend. Thus, Ulfvaldr didn¡¯t waste a second, and lunged at the last wolf. Once more, he directly grabbed the wolf with his hand, and grounded it with a smash. Then, he repeatedly smashed its face with his fist, with an almost manic expression.


    When he was certain that the wolf was dead, and his hand was dirtied with blood and brain matter, he stood back up. When he finally saw the four hunters¡¯ expression, he realized that he might have overdone it. He even tried to hold back, so that he wouldn¡¯t seem unnatural. However, just as he thought that they would run away, they ran up to him, started shaking him, and jumped up and down, all while saying some words that he couldn¡¯t understand. However, one thing was for sure; they were really excited and gleeful; all, except for one them. One of the hunters had been gravely wounded, when he was ganged up on by two wolves.


    The hunters tried asking him all kinds of questions, but they quickly remembered that he couldn¡¯t even understand them, and calmed down. Instead, Ulfvaldr grabbed a pointy stick, and started drawing on the ground. Using the stick, Ulfvaldr told them a heart wrenching story, of how his entire tribe was killed by fierce predators, and how he had to flee for his life, until he had gotten so far away from home that he couldn¡¯t even understand their languages.A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.


    Being the gullible simpletons they were, they naturally fell completely for it, and didn¡¯t doubt in the slightest. As a thanks for saving their lives, they naturally asked Ulfvaldr to come with them, through gestures of hand. Even though he was slightly hesitant to be amongst humans once again, he did agree, as it was his reason for saving them.


    After story telling was over, and they had done what they could for the wounded hunter, the hunters seemed to want to sleep, but Ulfvaldr shook his head. As they looked on in confusion, and slight wariness, he grabbed the stick once more. This time, he would tell them a heart wrenching story, of how he was cursed by the Sun God, in exchange for the power to defend his tribe, only to fail, and be forever cursed by the light of day. Of course, they believed him unconditionally, and even shed a few tears.


    Of course, Ulfvaldr didn¡¯t tell them the true extent of his powers, or that he had to drink blood to survive. He needed them to trust him, and if they thought he was a monster, that might prove slightly hard to accomplish. Thus, the five set off. The hunters weren¡¯t too scared of the night, as they were accompanied by Ulfvaldr. They might not realize just how powerful he was, but they knew he could see and hear well, even in darkness.


    Thus, the five walked for a few hours, until they reached the village the hunters came from. It was not a large village; it only had a few houses, and everyone was asleep, apparently. When they finally entered the village, one of the five hunters shouted out some unknown words, making the villagers aware of their presence.


    Not a minute later, seemingly all of the villagers came running out of their little huts, to that see their brave hunters had returned; in the middle of the night. Indeed, the villagers were rather worried, and when they saw a stranger in their midst, that worry only elevated. However, the same hunter that shouted their presence, stood forwards, and seemed to explain their situation. As soon as he finished, four women rushed forwards.


    Three of them ran up to Ulfvaldr, presumably to thank him, while the fourth ran up to the last hunter, the worry very apparent on her expression. She immediately brought him further into the village, and was quickly followed by a few other women, as well as a very old man, who wore several animal bones on his body. Ulfvaldr assumed that he had to be a Shaman, for him to wear such an outfit.


    After the wounded hunter was brought to rest, the rest if the villagers gathered in the middle of the village, where a fire was started. The leader of the hunters then started to explain in detail about Ulfvaldr¡¯s situation. His plight, as well as his strength. Many of the villagers were both amazed and saddened, for such a noble man, to be cursed by the Sun God. It was indeed a very sad story, but Ulfvaldr believed the true story to be even worse.


    What was worse; for you to lose your entire family and friends, even after trying your hardest to save them, or you killing them yourself, in a monstrous frenzy?


    After they were finished discussing Ulfvaldr, everyone returned to their huts, leaving a lone Ulfvaldr behind. And like that, he sat still, until the sun started rising from the east. Only then, did he enter the hut of the first hunter, and rested until dusk.


    And indeed, the moment the sun set, his eyes opened, only to meet the gaze of others. Surrounding him, were several children, and a few adults, including the hunter, whose hut he had slept in. As soon as the children saw him wake up, they ran away in fright. The hunter was left back, as the other adults left the building, avoiding his gaze. The hunter, however, didn¡¯t seem to fear him in the slightest; he only had admiration for Ulfvaldr.


    As Ulfvaldr sat up from his little bed, the hunter started pointing at himself, while saying,


    ¡°Starolf.¡±


    He kept saying his name a few times, then he pointed at Ulfvaldr, expecting him to say his own name. A few seconds passed, but Ulfvaldr quickly caught on.


    ¡°Ulfvaldr,¡± he said. Starolf gave a content smile, as he repeated the name. Then, he waved Ulfvaldr to follow him, and left the hut. He spent the rest of the night showing Ulfvaldr around, and introducing him to the villagers, and even teaching him a few words and meanings.


    And just like that, several months passed by, while Ulfvaldr spent his time with the tribe, learning their language, and becoming friends with them. He even helped them greatly. He became their head hunter, as when he went to hunt, they would always find prey, thanks to his great senses. And he most definitely gained the reputation of being the fiercest warrior in the area, as several men, from both the village, and other tribes, had challenged him to a fight. Naturally, he always won.


    There were even a few fair ladies that had asked him for his heart, but he always refused them. There was no place for anyone, but Tola in his heart. And for every second he spent in the tribe, he never forgot about her.


    By the time he had spent almost an entire year with them, he had completely mastered their language. Of course, it had taken him a very short amount of time to actually learn it, but he purposely made it seem like it took longer, as to seem more natural. One moonlit night, he was heading towards a lone hut, on the top of a small hill; the hut of the Shaman. He had rarely spoken with him, in the year he had spent there, but now he wanted to see him. He wanted to know if he knew anything about the Horse Primordial, or the Golden Valley.


    Thus, he entered the hut, to see the Shaman grinding bones into a fine power. The old man immediately got aware of his presence, and turned around.


    ¡°Need anything?¡± He asked in his hoarse voice. Ulfvaldr nodded his head, and stepped further into the hut.


    ¡°Have you ever heard of the Primordials?¡± He asked directly. The Shaman looked at him for a while, before answering,


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid not. What are they?¡± He asked back, as his curiosity had been peaked.


    ¡°That doesn¡¯t matter, but let me ask you another question. Do you know about a golden valley that is always covered in light, and grass made of gold?¡± He asked once more. This time, the Shaman got even more curious.


    ¡°You know; I¡¯ve always been a bit suspicious about you. You are much stronger than a normal human, and can¡¯t touch sunlight. All that was explained, but what I can¡¯t understand is your diet. No one has ever seen you eat anything; I even asked the villagers. But oh well, you are good for this village, and I can¡¯t sense any ill intent from you. But to answer your question, no, I have never heard of such a place. Why? What do you need with such a place?¡± The old shaman said.


    ¡°The reason why no one has ever seen me eat, is simple; I don¡¯t eat. And for why I need to find that place, all I¡¯ll tell you is, it¡¯s the key to getting rid of my curse. However, I¡¯ll make my leave now. It was nice chatting with you,¡± he said, as he turned around and left the dim hut.


    The old Shaman stood in the doorway, slightly puzzled by how emotionless he was,as he watched the mysterious stranger of the tribe walk down the hill, towards the village.


    As his business was finished with the Shaman, he walked towards the hut of Starolf. Inside the hut, Starolf was getting ready to sleep. Starolf was one of the few men in the village who didn¡¯t have a mate, nor child. The woman who had run up to him the year prior, had been his mother, but sadly she passed away just a few months ago.


    The same happened to the wounded hunter. The wounds he got from the wolf got infected, and he died only a few days later. Ulfvaldr remembered well the tears of his mate and child. He didn¡¯t know why, but he felt strangely empty back then.


    ¡°Oh, Ulfvaldr? What brings you here? I was just about to go to sleep,¡± Starolf said.


    ¡°I¡¯ve come to say my goodbyes, I¡¯m afraid,¡± he said, much to Starolf¡¯s surprise.


    ¡°What, you¡¯re leaving? Why?¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t stay any longer. I, I haven¡¯t been completely honest with you people. The reason why I¡¯m here isn¡¯t because I ran, but because I searched. I searched for the cure to my curse. And I wasn¡¯t completely alone. I have a mate, waiting for me, far away from here. However, I like you, I like the villagers, and I like this place, so when this is all over, I will come back. This won¡¯t be the last time you see me. But for now¡­ it¡¯s goodbye,¡± he said, in one last breath, then disappeared from Starolf¡¯s eyes, before he could even say a single word.


    In but a single breath, he had already gotten far away from the village. The world surged around him, as he ran on top of tree tops, towards the place he had gotten to call his home. It had already been a year since he left, so he needed to go back. He already could bear it no longer; he had to see her, he had to see Tola.


    Thus, he surged past trees and mountains, rivers and plains, for a full week, stopping only during the day. Then finally, he arrived back at that dark forest, where the old woman made her home. A moment more, and he arrived outside the old hut. Another moment, and he stood inside it, and in front of him was the old Shaman that sent him on this journey.


    ¡°You¡¯re back,¡± she said, not as a question, but as a fact.


    ¡°I found the Wolf, and I killed it. But I couldn¡¯t find the horse, no matter how much I searched. By the way, where is Tola?¡± He asked, as he looked around he hut, trying to find her, but to no avail.


    ¡°Do you have the heart?¡± She asked, as she finally turned around.


    ¡°I do,¡± he answered, as he took the heart out of the hide bag he first put it in. Strangely enough, it hadn¡¯t rotted a bit, since he first killed the wolf. At least it wasn¡¯t beating. The old woman immediately took it out of his hand, the moment she saw it. Her eyes glimmered, as she held it front of them.


    ¡°Where¡¯s Tola?¡± He asked once more, but she still didn¡¯t answer. Instead, she took the heart to her table, and started doing something to it. She made several cuts, and chanted lowly, doused it in several powders, all while her eyes were glimmering uncontrollably.


    ¡°Where¡¯s Tola?¡± He asked again, this time a bit more annoyed. This time, the look in the old woman¡¯s eyes, got a whole degree more serious, and a slightly wicked smile appeared on her face.


    ¡°I made her go to the village, and tell them all about you; how you killed several people of their tribe, how you kept some of them for food, all of that stuff. Naturally, they killed her; that was the entire point,¡± she said.


    As her words entered his ears, he found it increasingly hard to breath, and he felt his chest tighten. He took a step forward,


    ¡°You killed her?¡± He asked, his voice hoarse. The thoughts going through his head, were on the point of slaughter. He wanted to kill her, but even more, he didn¡¯t want to believe her. He took another step forward.


    ¡°You could say that,¡± she said, as she stabbed her knife into the Wolf¡¯s heart. As Ulfvaldr¡¯s eyes watched the knife go deeper and deeper into the heart, he suddenly felt an extreme pain, as the heart started withering in front of his eyes.


    ¡°Wh-what did you do?!¡± he screamed, as the unbearable pain only increased.


    ¡°It¡¯s a pity that you didn¡¯t find the other items. That way I could have gained even more power,¡± she said, as her appearance started rapidly changing. Her gray hair started gaining colour, and her wrinkles started disappearing, until she suddenly regained a youthful appearance.


    ¡°What did you do?¡± He asked once more, with an even weaker voice.


    ¡°I took some of your power for my own, and I used the heart, as well as the sacrifice of someone dear to you, to kill you,¡± she said, as she turned around, and started walking towards the door. As she drew increasingly nearer to the door, Ulfvaldr¡¯s vision started to fade, his words were stuck in his throat, and he started feeling increasingly weaker, until finally, everything went black.

 Chapter 10

    Chapter 10


    Ulfvaldr¡¯s eyes slowly opened, to reveal the ceiling above him. It was not a ceiling he felt familiar with; he had no idea how he had gotten there. As his eyes had fully opened, and he tried to sit up, he suddenly felt really groggy. His head was hurting like crazy, and he felt weak all over; he even wanted to puke all over the floor. But no matter how much he gagged, he didn¡¯t puke a single drop. Slowly, he tried to stand up, and when he finally stood erect, he felt just how dry his throat was. He couldn¡¯t recall ever being this thirsty before. He couldn¡¯t help, but wonder what the hell had happened.


    Then, as he really took in his surroundings, he suddenly remembered where he was. It was the house of that old Shaman woman. He couldn¡¯t remember how he got there though; the last thing he remembered was being at the village, talking with Starolf. Wondering, he walked over to a corner of the hut, where a pair of clothes lied. These clothes were a bit different from what the old hag usually wore. They were plain; the Shaman usually wore clothes full of bones and dry skin.


    As he took the clothes into his hands, he suddenly remembered. These clothes belonged to Tola. Right Tola. Where was Tola, he wondered. Then suddenly, his hand reached to his side, where a hide bag was supposed to hang. He always had it on him, never letting it go, yet now, it was gone!


    That was when he finally remembered. He remembered what had happened; the old hag had tricked him! And, and¡­ she killed Tola; or rather, had the villagers do her dirty work for her. Suddenly, tears starting running down his cheeks, as he had truly realized what was going on. He started walking around the small hut in a daze, then outside the hut, as if he wanted to find Tola; as if it was all a dream. But no matter how hard he looked, there wasn¡¯t a trace of her.


    Then he remembered what happened with the Shaman. She said she stole some of his power, and that she used some curse to kill him. Then, why wasn¡¯t he dead? He clearly remembered the pain, and remembered the feeling of his life leaving him. Yet here he was, alive and well. Almost in the same state as before, except the thirst. He had barely lost any power at all.


    While still in a daze, he walked back into the hut. Only when he stood in the middle of the hut; the same place he collapsed, did he fall to his knees.


    ¡°Why did she die?! Why didn¡¯t I die?! Why?! WHY?!¡± He screamed as if his life depended on it. He couldn¡¯t understand it. The only person he ever cared for, after becoming whatever it was he was, was killed! And then when they tried to kill him, they couldn¡¯t!


    ¡°Why did she need to die?! Why?! Why did they do it?! Those, those, those HUMANS! How dare they take her away from me! I¡¯ll, I¡¯ll, I¡¯ll kill them! I¡¯ll kill the old hag, I¡¯LL KILL HER! The humans, they¡­ they must die,¡± he said with an increasing fury. Only the last three words were said with cold calmness. It was in that moment that he grew such a hatred for humankind that it went above them just being a food source. No, they were vermin; vermin in need of extermination.


    With his eyes still crying, he slowly stood up, with a new conviction. But before he did anything, he needed to be sure; to be sure that Tola was truly dead.


    Thus, he set out, towards that village, which he once terrorised. The village where Tola once lived, and where Tola died. The village wasn¡¯t far away, and with the rage in which he travelled, it certainly didn¡¯t take him long to arrive outside the village grounds. The village looked just as ordinary as it always did; a circular wall surrounding it, composed of fallen trees, a hurdle of small huts dotted all over the village. The occasional midnight wanderer, walking between huts. It was as ordinary and calm as it had always been.


    Ulfvaldr walked towards the opening in the wall, his eyes bloodshot. There was no one standing guard or anything, so he simply had to walk through the gate. However, as soon as he entered the village, one of the night walkers noticed him. The moment he realized that this person was a stranger, he quickly ran to the tribe chief.


    Before Ulfvaldr even managed to get to the center of the village, an old man, accompanied by three large man, as well as the first guy, walked towards him. The old man had a puzzled look on his face, as he got closer and closer. The moment he saw the bloodshot eyes of Ulfvaldr¡¯s, and his nigh manic expression, he even got a bit frightened.


    ¡°Who are you? Why did you come here?¡± The old man asked, but Ulfvaldr didn¡¯t bother answer any of his questions. Instead, he got eerily close to him, in an instant, and asked,


    ¡°Where¡¯s Tola?¡± with a voice that made your hair rise, sent shivers through your spine, and made your skin bumpy. The old man instinctively backed up a few steps, before he even realized the question. However, the moment those word registered in his small brain, his eyes widened. That name, was one he preferred to never hear again.


    ¡°Tola? You knew her? She¡¯s¡­ wait, don¡¯t tell me,¡± the old man said, however, before he could finish his sentence, he seemed to have a realization. After all, there aren¡¯t many people who¡¯d ask where Tola is. And this stranger, with the crimson eyes, didn¡¯t seem like an ordinary traveller.


    Ulfvaldr, however, didn¡¯t let him make any further assumptions, as he grabbed him by the neck, and raised him above the ground. The three large men, in return raised their spears against Ulfvaldr in an immediate reaction. However, they didn¡¯t attack right away.


    ¡°Where. Is. She?¡± Ulfvaldr asked once more, one word at a time. The fear in the eyes of the beholder grew ever more apparent.


    ¡°She, she,¡± he stammered, but before he could spit another word, Ulfvaldr grabbed his forearm, and directly squeezed it until it cracked.


    ¡°Ghaaaagh!¡± He shouted in pain, as he grabbed his broken arm with his free hand. Once more, Ulfvaldr looked the old man in the eyes,


    ¡°Where. Is. She?¡± He asked again, just as slowly, but with an increasingly serious tone. The old man coughed for air, as he tried to avert the bloodshot, crimson eyes of Ulfvaldr.


    ¡°We, we killed her,¡± he said. For some reason he found it strangely difficult to lie to those crimson eyes. As soon as his words came out, Ulfvaldr suddenly squeezed even harder, making it even harder for the old man to breath. All the while, the three men were looking on in panic. They simply didn¡¯t dare do anything, as they feared for their leader¡¯s life.


    ¡°What did you do to her?!¡± Ulfvaldr shouted practically in his face, sending spit and saliva on his face.This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    ¡°I said we killed her!¡± He returned in a higher pitched scream.


    ¡°No, I mean where did you put her?! Her body,¡± he said. The old man looked at him a bit differently.


    ¡°Her body? We, we buried it, t-to the west of here, just a bit outside the village,¡± he said, however, as soon his last word escaped his mouth, Ulfvaldr squeezed to the point where his neck cracked, and his body went limp.


    ¡°You filthy humans,¡± Ulfvaldr said, as the body hit the ground. Then, his body blurred, and the heads of the three large men disconnected from their bodies.


    While all this was happening, a crowd had already built up around them, and as they saw the three largest men and their leader die, panic ensued. Women and children started running in all directions, while the braver of the men grabbed whatever weapon they could find. However, no matter what weapon they used, it was futile against the might of Ulfvaldr.


    As one, particularly brave man charged at him, with his readied spear, Ulfvaldr simply grabbed the shaft of the spear and lifted the poor warrior off the ground, slamming him back down, breaking all the bones in his body. Then, his body flickered, only to appear next to another poor warrior. However, the warrior didn¡¯t even have time to say his prayers, as Ulfvaldr grabbed him by the neck, and bit.


    As Ulfvaldr finally felt the sweet nectar of the human being flow through his throat, he felt ecstatic like never before. He directly ripped the throat out of the warrior in his excitement, spilling blood all over his torso. While he was drinking, another man charged at him with his spear, hoping to catch him unprepared, but he wasn¡¯t even given a single chance, as Ulfvaldr grabbed him with his free hand,


    ¡°Wait your turn!¡± He shouted, before he went back to his snack. Only a moment later, one body fell to the ground, and he started drinking from another. All this happened in only a few short moments, as he was able to drain a male adult very quickly.


    As soon as the second body hit the ground, he jumped at the next nearest person, and directly ripped his throat out with his fangs, while his hand pierced into the chest of another. One after the other, he killed everyone he could find. He ripped their throats out, tore off their arms, and broke their bones. He drank the blood of women and men, elderly and children.


    He ran all over the village, like a frantic maniac, pulling the throats out of any person he came upon, feasted on any woman or man, without discrimination. Like a hungry beast, he drank blood to his heart¡¯s content, until large patches of grass and dirt were coloured sanguine. Each time he passed a person, he would quickly be followed by a spray of blood, sometimes accompanied with a severed limb, or a torn off head.


    Yet, even though such a monstrous carnage was spread all over the village, the men fought bravely with their lives on the line. They knew that the very fate of their village was at stake, and if they died, then so did their family and friends. But no matter how many times they attacked, how many times they lunged at Ulfvaldr, they always died, only to become a meal.


    One mother was running away, holding her child in her arms, however, the moment Ulfvaldr appeared before her, she knew all hope was lost. Still, in one last, futile attempt, she threw the child away, and charged at Ulfvaldr. But it didn¡¯t go the way she wanted. Instead of ripping the mother¡¯s throat out, instead of tearing her arms of; instead of killing her, he walked towards the young child, only five years old at most.


    He grabbed the innocent child by the neck, and raised it up to his eye level. Then he opened his mouth wide, clearly revealing his two, long, sharp fangs, and bit into the neck of the child, and enjoyed the sweet blood, of an innocent child.


    The mother couldn¡¯t bear to watch the brutal scene, so in one last, suicidal attempt, she grabbed a nearby stick, broke it in half, and charged at Ulfvaldr. Ulfvaldr, however, didn¡¯t even pay her mind; he was too absorbed in the blood of the young child to even care. Thus, the mother got closer and closer to his exposed back, and finally, when she arrived behind him, she lunged her sharp stick into his back, right behind the heart.


    With her adrenalin fuelled attempt, the wooden stick pierced first through the furs, then the skin, and through an opening in the bones, until it finally pierced the heart. The moment the wooden stake pierced his heart, Ulfvaldr let go of the dead child, and turned around in a frantic movement. The mother got directly affected by his rage, as her head was directly torn of her body, before Ulfvaldr fell to his knees, gasping for breath. The pain was so unbearable that he couldn¡¯t even scream.


    He tried to turn his head around, to see whatever it was that was stuck in his back. He clawed at his back, but he just couldn¡¯t get his hands on whatever it was. All the while, the remaining survivors were observing. It took them a while to realize what was going on, but as soon as they caught on, they didn¡¯t hesitate.


    ¡°KILL HIM!¡± One of them shouted, as he ran frantically towards the fallen Ulfvaldr, with his spear in hand. As one charged, the others soon followed. Ulfvaldr looked on, as the angry warriors ran towards him, but he couldn¡¯t do anything. He could barely even move. Thus, the moment the first man arrived, he struck his spear into Ulfvaldr¡¯s side, and then another arrived, and another spear was lodged into his body. Like that, two more spears pierced into his skin and bones.


    But when the fourth man arrived and struck his spear, he hit next to the wooden stake in Ulfvaldr¡¯s back, and somehow managed to move it away. As soon as the stick went out of his heart, he could move once more, and with four spears in his body, he lunged at the remaining survivors. In a frenzied rage, he tore them limb from limb, and completely desecrated their bodies, until there was not a single living person in the village.


    Only after he had killed everyone, he turned to look at whatever it was that had caused that entire situation. It was only then that he realized that it was simply a wooden stick, covered in his own blood.


    ¡°This? This, caused me such harm? A simple stick? How can that be? Is my heart my weakness?¡± Ulfvaldr pondered aloud, as he held the wooden object in his hand.


    ¡°Impossible. It didn¡¯t feel like that, back when I got stabbed in the heart, back then,¡± he thought. Then, he let the wooden stake fall to the ground, and he started walking towards the west, where Tola was buried.


    He didn¡¯t run, but he walked, slowly. As he walked through the woods, it seemed darker than usual, and he couldn¡¯t help, but feel like time was flowing too quickly. As he walked, he observed the many animals of the night; they seemed so peaceful; so unafraid. So simple. He hadn¡¯t been told exactly where the grave was, but somehow, he felt like he just knew where he needed to go.


    And indeed, an hour later, he appeared in a clearing, where there were signs of a hole being dug recently. In front of that spot, there was a large stone, with hand painted markings on it. The markings depicted a young girl, running away from large saber cats, then being saved by the heroes of the tribe. It showed many things of her life in the tribe, both happiness and sorrow, but towards the last pictures, it showed her being led away, by a tall monster with crimson eyes.


    As he saw the pictures, he couldn¡¯t help, but cry. He felt his knees weaken, and he fell to the ground. As soon as his knees touched the ground, he started franticly digging through the ground, until finally, he uncovered a rotting body. The once beautiful body, was now riddled with worms, and her hair was mostly gone. On her throat, there was a gaping slit, and signs of running blood. As he saw the dead body, a new liquid started flowing out of his eyes. A crimson red liquid; tears of blood.


    Like that, he sat on his knees, holding her body, crying silent tears of blood. He sat like that for hours on end, not making a single motion, not making a single sound, until the sun started to rise from behind him. It rose higher and higher, until its rays started entering the clearing, until finally, it reached his body.


    Then, as he held her body in his arms, his body started burning. It started with the sizzling of the skin, then the skin started to rupture, and then finally, it blew into a full blown fire, crackling in the wind. The fire slowly burned his body, then covered the body of Tola as well, but even then, he didn¡¯t utter a sound. As the sun rose in the sky, it burned the bodies of Ulfvaldr and Tola, until there was nothing but charred corpses left.

 Chapter 11

    Chapter 11


    In a large forest that spread over several miles on end, there was one, small clearing, in the midst of countless closely packed trees. This clearing, was the only place where the sun could reach, in many miles. In this clearing, where the sun shone, there were two charred black bodies, holding each other in a tight embrace, seeming as if they had no other care in the whole wide world, as they were burned to ashes.


    As the sun shone on the two charred bodies, they continuously burned, until finally, the bright sun started descending to the far horizon. As time passed, it crouched lower and lower, the light being slowly overtaken by shadows, until finally, the two charred lovers were once more enshrined in darkness. But, even as they were covered in a veil of shadows, they sat unchanged, as the moon rose higher and higher into the sky, throwing its rays unto their darkened bodies, illuminating them.


    However, finally, as the moon reached its peak, and began its descending course, there was a change in the two sun hallowed lovers. The slightest movement happened in the body of the larger lover, and the dusty ashes fell from his body, revealing a naked male, with dark brown hair, pale skin that reflected the shallow lights of the moon, and crimson eyes that radiated a fierce hunger in them.


    Finally, the eyes of the sun hallowed lover opened and fell upon the last charred body. Another slight movement happened in the depressed man, and that slight movement stirred the charred body of his lover, causing it to collapse and blow away in the wind, covering the entire forest in the slightest with ashes. As the ashes flew away, Ulfvaldr reached up with his hands, unwilling to give her up, but the ashes of his deceased lover were already beyond reach. Thus, he shed two, blood red tears, and watched Tola fly away, as he said his final goodbyes.


    ¡°Why did you have to die? Why did you go to the humans?¡± He finally asked, speaking his first words ever since he left the, now desolate village. He let his eyes wander in the direction of the old village once more, but all that accomplished was to increase his anger; his hate, even further. Then, once more, his eyes wandered to where the ashes first spread, but they had already long disappeared, spread in the wind.


    ¡°I promise you Tola, I will avenge you. I will make the entire human race pay for your death. I¡¯ll kill them. ALL OF THEM!¡± He screamed from the top of his lungs, with all his might, sending shivers through any living being in a very large circumference. That day a deep, far rooted hatred had been born for the humans, in the one being that should never have been angered. That day was the one that started a very dark age for the human race, threatening its entire population.


    As the words had left his mouth, and resounded throughout the world, he fell to his back, taking the moon into his eyes. Like that, he observed the movement of the moon, all the way until it descended back into the horizon, and the sun started to rise. Once more the sun rose, sending its holy rays unto the prone body of Ulfvaldr, once more burning his body alive, causing excruciating pain. But even then, he still didn¡¯t make a single sound, or single noise. He simply observed the rising sun, all the way until his eyes had been turned to ashes, and everything turned black once more.


    As thus, the sun continued to burn the body of Ulfvaldr, all the way until it had reached the peak of the skies, and returned down the horizon, only to be replaced by the moon. Then, Ulfvaldr¡¯s body slowly started recovering, until the burned ashes fell from his body once more, once more revealing the naked body of Ulfvaldr. And once more, his eyes opened, revealing empty crimson eyes.


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t I die?¡± He wondered,


    ¡°Frozen once, impaled in the heart once, burned twice, still alive,¡± he said aloud. Another hour passed, before he finally stood up once more. This time, he turned in the direction where the cave he once called home was. One step at a time, he walked towards the cave, completely naked.


    A while later, he finally arrived at the mountain range, and another moment, and he stood below the cliff, looking up, towards the cave. The cave looked the same as it always had. Elevated a few meters above ground, and as hard to reach as always. Ulfvaldr, however, simply jumped up there in one leap, and easily landed on one foot, then walked in as if nothing happened.


    The cave was completely empty for living beings, as it often was at night, when the bats hunted. Slowly, he walked towards one lone corner in the cave, where his clothes were kept. He took his clothes and stared at them for a while; these clothes were the last thing he had to remind him of Tola. Tola had made them herself, but now it was the only clothes Ulfvaldr had. Thus, he wore them.


    With his new outfit, he walked back towards the entrance. Before stepping out, he took one last look at empty cave; this place gave him so many memories; too many. This is the place he had spent the most time with Tola. He could even smell her faint scent, even though it had been over a year since they first left the cave. Smelling the familiar scent, his eyes teared up once more, before he finally turned around, and left the cave.


    As the cave got further and further away in his background, Ulfvaldr made his way towards the nearest village he knew of. He walked in a steady pace, not being too slow, while also not hurrying. When the sun rose again, he found himself shelter, and the moon replaced it, he continued, until later, the next night, he arrived outside the village. This village was similar to the other one; a circular wall surrounding it.


    Slowly, he walked towards the entrance to the gate, taking a single step at a time,


    ¡°I¡¯ll kill everyone in this village, then I will continue to the next village, and the next, until I find her,¡± he said lowly, before he finally entered the village. In the middle of the village, there was a large bonfire going on, and there were festivities abound. Children, women and men were dancing and having fun. Some men and women were even being intimate with each other, and no one seemed to notice as Ulfvaldr walked into their midst.


    At least not until he grabbed a child by the neck, and doused him in fire, making sure he burned well and good, before throwing the screaming child into a building. It was only then that they noticed, and the screams ensued. The women screamed in fright, while the men grabbed their knives and spears, and charged ahead.


    As one man thrust his spear towards Ulfvaldr, he simply grabbed the man, doused him in fire, then threw him into another building. In only a few moments, four different villagers had been doused in fire, and thrown into four different buildings. As the buildings burst into the fire, several more men charged at Ulfvaldr.


    Two men thrust their spears at the same time, one in front, the other from behind, Ulfvaldr simply stepped to the side, grabbed their spears and thrust them into each other. The two men looked at each other in disbelief as they were impaled, before they fell to the ground. Blood leaked out of their wounds, as one man swung his knife at Ulfvaldr¡¯s back. As the knife drew nearer and nearer, Ulfvaldr grabbed the man¡¯s arm, then kicked to the side, into the abdomen of another charging warrior. The unlucky warrior was sent flying and puked up a mouthful of blood. Meanwhile, Ulfvaldr stabbed the knife wielder into the abdomen, and threw him at another charging warrior, who immediately collapsed under the barrage.


    One after the other, sometimes several at a time, they attacked Ulfvaldr with all they had, but no matter how hard they tried, they never even managed to touch him. For every swing of a knife or club, they lost an arm. For every thrust of a spear, they got impaled by an arm. And while these foolish villagers were being slaughtered in their own home, Ulfvaldr had a splendiferous feast, composed solely of blood.


    For every other fool that attacked him, he would grab him by the neck, and sink his fangs into his throat. Almost every time he did this, another fool would see it as an opportunity and attack. However, without fail, it would always end up in that person¡¯s death.


    And like that, fifteen minutes passed. After only fifteen minutes, the entire village was soaked in blood, and burned to a crisp. In only fifteen minutes, Ulfvaldr had killed well over sixty souls, and enjoyed a sumptuous feast. As Ulfvaldr left the village, he left it full of both rotting and burned corpses. Without mistake, if anyone was to enter this village, they would be utterly abhorred, and might even puke their midday lunch up. That was the aftermath of Ulfvaldr¡¯s rage on humanity, and that, was the beginning of humanity¡¯s plight.


    After leaving the village in its desolate state, he immediately continued towards the next village, with the exact same goal in mind. Utter annihilation. He wouldn¡¯t rest until there wasn¡¯t a single human being left on this earth. But with the steady pace, at which he walked, it took him an entire two days before he came upon the next village. This village didn¡¯t have any walls surrounding it, and was left completely in the open. There were only a couple of huts; it was a small village. Maybe only a dozen people lived there, at most.


    Thus, he walked towards the small cluster of buildings. There was no one outside at this time of the night, so he directly entered one of the buildings. Inside the building, there were three people. Two adults, and one infant. Of the two adults, the female didn¡¯t look much older than Ulfvaldr did, and the man looked like he had aged a few more years. Silently, Ulfvaldr walked over to the three humans. The man and woman both slept side by side, with the young infant in between them. It seemed young, the infant. It couldn¡¯t have been long since it was born.Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.


    ¡°So young, yet so close to death¡¯s door. That is the price to be payed, for being a human,¡± Ulfvaldr said, without waking them up. Ulfvaldr knelt down, and got closer to the naked woman, who was only covered by a fur blanket. He removed the blanket slightly, revealing her beautiful, tanned neck. As he felt the hunger swell up inside his depths, he neared closer, until his lips almost touched her neck. With a decisive motion, he opened his mouth, revealing the two, white fangs, and let them sink into the woman¡¯s flesh. As the fangs penetrated her neck, slicing her artery, the blood immediately started flowing into his mouth. As he tasted the plentiful blood, he closed his eyes in pure ecstatic bliss.


    Only a few moments passed, and the woman was already bled dry. She never even realized what happened to her. As he retracted his fangs from the, now dead girl, his eyes wandered over to the infant. As the infant entered his eyes, he felt a sudden urge; he had never tasted the blood of an infant before, so he grabbed the child without hesitation.


    However, as he raised the child, and was about to sink his fangs into her, the father woke up. First he was groggy, but it didn¡¯t take long until he noticed the cold body of his mate; she was much paler than ever before, and there were two bloodied holes in her neck. He started shaking her, not even noticed Ulfvaldr in front of him, but he quickly noticed that something was missing; his child wasn¡¯t beside him. Immediately, he started looking around franticly, trying to find his daughter. It was only then that he noticed the tall figure, illuminated by the moonlight flowing in through the open doorway.


    It was only then that he noticed his young child in the man¡¯s grasp. Immediately, he jumped up, his hand tightened into a fist, as he was about to hit the stranger with all his might, However, that all changed the moment the stranger easily caught his fist in mid-air, and easily stepped towards him, and grabbed him by the neck. The young man finally started to fear, as this mysterious intruder easily lifted him off the ground, and started squeezing his neck to the point where he couldn¡¯t breathe.


    For the entire duration of the strangulation, Ulfvaldr kept eye contact with the man. As the man observed the eyes of his murderer, he didn¡¯t see any hints of anger or maliciousness; he only saw annoyance, and coldness, it made him shiver to the deepest depths of his bones. And then, he finally started to fade away, as the asphyxiation slowly killed him. Finally, as his eyes closed; there sounded a loud crack, and the body fell to the ground.


    By this point, the child had already awakened, and on her expression was neither fear, nor sadness. The child was completely careless, even as Ulfvaldr neared closer to its neck, and bared his fangs. The child simply didn¡¯t even show a single strand of fear; it was only simplistic, innocent purity. Just before he was about to sink his fangs into her neck, he stopped. He pulled his face back, and looked at the child. The child gave an innocent laugh, and tried to reach for his face, as she saw his crimson eyes.


    Then, for a reason he would never be able to understand, he left the hut, with the young infant in his arms. He didn¡¯t kill the child, but held it with rough care, as he walked towards the fading bonfire, and grabbed a torch. Then, as he still held the child, he walked towards one hut after the other, and set fire to all them, killing all the inhabitants. But, in the end, he never hurt a hair on child, and even left with her. He didn¡¯t even know her name, and he even killed the young child¡¯s parents, but he still chose to leave with her in his arms.


    Thus, he left behind yet another desolated village, yet this time he brought out a survivor. As he walked away, he looked at the child in his arms, who had already fallen asleep. Ulfvaldr truly couldn¡¯t understand himself. He couldn¡¯t fathom whatever it was that had urged him to take the child with him. It was simply unprecedented. He already held a deep hatred for humans, but something about this little child made him feel different; not for humans in general, just this one child.


    The child was covered in a simple purity; it wasn¡¯t tainted by the wickedness of humanity. It was a blank slate. It was then that he decided to really take the child with him, and protect her; raise her. Thus, he went deep into the forest, so deep that no one would ever wander there, for fear of the more primal predators. So deep that the roof of the forest wouldn¡¯t let a single strand of sunlight in.


    And when he finally found a forest that large, and managed to get that deep, he found himself a nice spot. There was a tiny little clearing, letting the smallest river flow through. When he got to that little clearing, he found himself a nice little spot, where he placed the little child, covered in a bundle of furs. Then, as the child rested nicely on the ground, he got to work. Of course, as he now had a child to take care of, he couldn¡¯t just wander around constantly; he needed a new home. However, the old cave of his past was off limits, so he had decided to build himself a new home, deep in the forests where no one would disturb them.


    Thus, he started felling tree after tree, until the once small clearing was just a bit larger. Then, he started placing the felled trees down, forming them into a wall, and tying them into place using whatever material he could get. Finally, after a few hours of work, he a had himself a little hut, complete with a roof. However, he still had several trees left, and the foliage left from them. These trees weren¡¯t of the thick kind, and the thickest were barely a forearm in width.


    That¡¯s why he decided to tie them to the other, still living trees, making the frame of a roof above his clearing. As that was finished, he placed foliage on top of it, completely covering the clearing, and enshrouding it in total darkness. As it was now, he wouldn¡¯t need to fear the rays of the sun while he slept.


    And just as he finished, the sun did, in fact, rise. He also felt a bit tired, so he went to where he placed the little child, and grabbed her once more, and headed inside his brand new abode. The inside of the hut was pretty bare, as he hadn¡¯t had the opportunity to make any kind of furniture. But it wasn¡¯t like he wasn¡¯t used to sleeping on the ground, so he simply lied down, and let the child sleep on top of his chest.


    This was the first time he could remember feeling so close to a human, except for Tola. But this was different. He didn¡¯t feel any lust towards this child; only pure curiosity. He wanted to see what she would grow up into; if she would be any different from the other humans. And thus, he fell into a deep sleep, as the sun rose in the horizon.


    However, that didn¡¯t last long, as he was suddenly awakened by the fierce cry of an infant! First, he tried to ignore it and continue sleeping, but after an entire hour of constant weeping and bawling, Ulfvaldr finally gave up on his dream of getting a good day¡¯s rest, and sat up, grabbed the child¡¯s body, lifted it up to his face level, and kindly asked,


    ¡°WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?!¡± in the kindest, most sympathetic, most amiable tone possible. However, much to his surprise, the child didn¡¯t actually stop crying, but only started weeping even louder, as if the kind words actually scared it, instead of calming the infant down. In the face of a crying infant, the vanquisher, the slaughterer of man, the plight of humanity, Ulfvaldr, wasn¡¯t quite sure what to do.


    In the face of this new calamity, he started lifting the child up and down, side to side, and even caressed its head and back, doing everything he could ever remember seeing anyone do to a baby, to calm her down. But she only continued crying. But then, as if he was struck by a sudden insight, a revelation; a truth of the universe! He had an idea.


    ¡°Maybe she¡¯s hungry,¡± he thought aloud, looking into the closed eyes of the crying baby.


    ¡°Infants need milk right? I can hardly get any human milk, without subjecting her to the cruelty of humanity, though. I wonder if animal milk is fine?¡± He continued wondering aloud, as if the child needed to hear him, in case he needed to be stopped before he did something regrettable. However, the child didn¡¯t understand speech, so she wasn¡¯t quite able to help him in the matter. Thus, he set his mind on getting an animal, capable of producing milk, and left the hut after laying the crying child back to sleep.


    However, as he left the hut, another worry struck him; what if a predator came into the hut, and ate the child? With a sigh, he walked back into the hut, and grabbed the child, before leaving again. But then, once more, as he left the hut, and headed towards the end of the clearing, he was met with yet another problem. It was daytime. The roof above the clearing had made him forget that it was, in fact, still morning. But he still needed to get the child some food, so he was quite perplexed.


    But it didn¡¯t take him too long to come up with another idea. Once more, he put the child back into the hut, before climbing up a tree, to find himself a hiding spot. He wanted to stay up there, until he could spot a milk bearing animal. And it seemed like he was in luck, as after only five hours of waiting, a large black animal, with large horns appeared. He recognised this animal. Tola used to call it an Auroch*, and they were often hunted for meat. He didn¡¯t know how its milk production was, but judging from the utters on its belly, it at least possessed the ability.


    *Aurochs are an early subspecies of the modern cow. They are said to have first appeared around 2 million years ago, and were first domesticated around 9,000 years ago. They went extinct in Poland, in the year 1627. And their huge.


    As he spotted the Auroch, he quickly glanced around him, trying to find any penetrating sun rays, before he quickly, but sneakily charged at the cow. It was really big, about two meters tall, and it must have weighed at least a thousand kilos. But even a thousand kilos were doable by Ulfvaldr. As the Auroch noticed him, it tried to run away, but before it could, Ulfvaldr had already grabbed it by its horns and turned it around, felling it to the ground.


    Then, he simply dragged it towards the hut, but even he had to admit that it was rather heavy. He still managed to quickly get it to the hut, though. But then, he was presented with another problem. He had to stop it from escaping. He wasn¡¯t quite sure how to do that. He guessed that he could tie it down with a rope, but he doubted the Auroch wouldn¡¯t be able to break the robe. But then, as he thought back to those old villages, he had an idea.


    With his plan in mind, he started tearing tree after tree down, all while making sure that the Auroch didn¡¯t escape, which was quite a task. After he finished, he started piercing the sharp ands of the trees into the ground, forming a thick and durable fence, where he could keep the Auroch. But even then, he reckoned that it would be able to break through. So, he simply fell even more trees, which he placed as supports behind the wall. After he was finally finished, the sun had already long set, when he walked into the hut, with a wooden cup of milk in his hand.


    However, the child wasn¡¯t crying. She simply lied in her little bed, her eyes barely opened, and looking generally weak. As Ulfvaldr saw this, he panicked and quickly rushed over to her side. Luckily for him, he could hear that her heart was still beating, albeit slowly. He immediately made the child drink the milk, which she quickly gulped down, even though it tasted differently than what she was used to.


    As she drank the milk, she seemed to calm down, and slowly got better. And when the cup was empty, she fell asleep.


    ¡°I guess it wasn¡¯t such a good idea to make her wait an entire day,¡± Ulfvaldr admitted, before sitting down in a relieved position. But he felt weird. He had actually gotten worried for the child.

 Chapter 12

    Chapter 12


    If you were to stand on the tall mountain, located only a few hundred meters away from the village, you would notice the fact that said village, was enveloped in a blazing fire. However, if you possessed the keen eyes of an eagle, and the ears of a bat, you would notice that there was neither chaos, nor panic in said village, even though their homes and food were being burned to a crisp. This was simply because of the fact that they were all dead. Strewn across the ground, torn to pieces; all killed in the most gruesome way you could imagine.


    This was sadly the state which many villages had ended up in, in the past few years. And it was all done by a single beast. Said monster would choose a random village, kill everything in it, both man and animal, then go to the next one. He would never leave a single human alive, be it children or elders, they would all die.


    However, there were a few select villages, which met their plight in an all different manner. These villages, all had one thing in common; they were outside one large forest; so large that the tribe¡¯s people never dared enter it deeply. And the way, in which these people met their plight, was not a quick death; a slaughter, but it was slow and gruelling. In contrast how the other villages were slaughtered in an instant, and then there could be a several weeks wait until another one fell, these villages all lost a single person, every few days, or sometimes weeks. But it was constant, and their population slowly dwindled. During the past years, some of the villages had even gone extinct.


    And said monster, which had just turned a village to ashes, was currently venturing through that large forest, where the people dared not enter deeply, heading for a deep clearing, far inside the forest. This small clearing was like a cave inside a forest. Even inside this clearing, you could not see the skies through the thick forest roof.


    And inside said clearing, there was a small hut, and a fenced off area, where a large, two meter tall Auroch lived. As soon as the monster of humanity, known to other¡¯s as Ulfvaldr, entered the clearing, a young girl ran out of the hut. This young girl was small in stature, maybe five or six years old, and had a head full of messy, brown hair. She had big, bright eyes, and was adorned in a large smile, as she ran towards the much taller Ulfvaldr. ¡°Ulf!¡± She shouted, as he jumped into the hold of Ulfvaldr. She made sure to hug him tightly, as if she was scared he would leave again.


    ¡°Ahh, not so tight, Tora!¡± Ulfvaldr squealed, as if he was actually being pained by the small girl. Tora always liked to think she was strong, and Ulfvaldr always liked seeing her happy. Indeed, this young girl was the one he had taken from that one village, just over six years ago. Of course, she had named her after the late Tola. As for Tora, she had stayed in the small clearing almost her entire life. The only intelligent being she ever talked to, was Ulfvaldr. But she never complained; after all, she never knew anything else.


    She knew that there were other humans out there, but she had always been taught that the humans were evil beings; lowly beings. Ulfvaldr always told her that she was the only pure human in the world. And naturally, she believed it whole heartedly. Anything that Ulfvaldr said, was bound to be true. After all, there was no smarter being, than Ulfvaldr in the world, right? So even though she didn¡¯t have any other human contact, she still thrived in her own way. But she still did have one friend,


    ¡°How has Arry been?¡± Ulfvaldr asked the cute little girl. Tora brightened up at the mention of her sole friend.


    ¡°Arry took me for a ride yesterday! It was really bumpy, though,¡± She said. Of course, Arry, referred to the towering Auroch. She had already spent six years with them, as their domesticated pet, so to say. She also provided milk for the young Tora. The Auroch was a pretty intelligent animal, and it cared for the young girl. It never ran away, either, even though the gate to its pen was always left open.


    Back when it was built, it was supposed to keep the animal trapped, but now it was just where the Auroch slept. Even Ulfvaldr valued the animal. Not only did it provide milk for Tora, it also protected her when he wasn¡¯t present. After all, the Auroch was no small animal. It towered over two meters tall, and weighed over a ton. Even for Aurochs it was rather tall. And its horns were nothing to be joked about. If Arry slammed into you, you would definitely be impaled.


    Of course, Ulfvaldr would never leave Tora in the hands of Arry alone. Using his connection to the bats, he always had an eye on her. Even if he might not be able to get to her quickly of something happened, he was able to make a swarm of bats attack whatever creature was bothering her. And, in fact, it had happened before. Once, a pack of wandering wolves came upon the clearing, and the moment they saw the young Tora, they thought they had happened upon a meal. Never did they expect to be swarmed by bats.


    As the two were finished, Tora ran over the to the pen of Arry, ready to milk her. Tora always liked to have a little drink, before she went to sleep. Much like Ulfvaldr, she slept mostly during the day, and stayed up at night, even though that wasn¡¯t the norm between humans. It was quite weird, how she was able to cope with it.


    Just before the sun set, she would usually be the first to wake up. Then, she would immediately proceed to shake Ulfvaldr awake, saying,


    ¡°Ulf, I¡¯m hungry. Make me something to eat,¡± with her eyes barely open, as she was still groggy from sleeping. Ulfvaldr, however, would quickly wake up, and proceed to start on her breakfast. He would never let her make warm food herself, as he was afraid she would be burned, so when he was away, she usually ate cold stuff, like fruit and mushrooms. For her delight, there were a few orange trees, as well as some apple trees nearby. And there was no shortage of mushrooms to be found.


    However, when Ulfvaldr was there, he¡¯d always make her favourite food; beef liver and mushrooms. It was quite strange, for a child to like it so much, but she always had a strange craving for it. She also loved fish, especially the fatty ones, but they were quite hard to come by, in the middle of a forest. Usually, Ulfvaldr would raid it from the villages he destroyed. Especially the ones near the sealine.


    As Ulfvaldr finished making her breakfast, she immediately started gulfing it down, as if she was a mad beast that could eat the world. Then, as soon as she was finished, she would charge outside with all her might, straight over to Arry for her breakfast milk. Ulfvaldr liked the little girl, but it always felt strange to him. He never understood why he took her from that tribe, but one thing he was certain about; she wasn¡¯t like the others. She was pure. Innocent.


    After he was finished caring for her meals, and the sun had really set, he set out to get his own breakfast. Outside his forest, there were several villages, and he would always alternate between them, so as not to extinguish them too quickly. He didn¡¯t want to have to move away from there too soon, because of a lack of food. But never the less, that day was nearing quickly. There weren¡¯t many people left close to him, and he reckoned that he would be able to last for at most a year more.


    But he put such thoughts to the back of his head, and headed towards one of the villages. It didn¡¯t take long, until he exited the forest, and saw the rising moon in the horizon. The skies were clear that day, and he could easily see the billions of stars in the sky. If there was one sight he enjoyed, it was the night star sky. He liked the night; the peace it brought, the tranquillity. He had always liked taking walks through the silent forests, and to watch the starry sky, even before he met Tola, and even before he regained his memories. It was one of his few joys in life.Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.


    Thus, he enjoyed the tranquil night, as he neared ever closer to the walled village. This village was once the largest village in the area, originally numbering over a hundred people, but now, not even half remained. Of course, it was still the largest village, and one of the few that hadn¡¯t fled away yet. Usually, when a village lost too many people, and they finally realized that something was wrong, they¡¯d simply flee. However, this village hadn¡¯t resorted to that yet.


    As he neared the village, he spotted another group nearing it; probably a hunting party. They seemed to have had a good hunt, as they carried large prey. It was of the same specie as Arry; an Auroch. They were very good prey, and had a lot of meat on their bodies, but they usually preferred plains, instead of forests. In fact, finding one as deep in a forest, as Ulfvaldr did, was nothing short of a miracle.


    As the hunters entered the village, Ulfvaldr followed them, without being noticed. In the back of the group of hunters, there was one individual lacking a bit behind. It seemed like he had injured his leg, so he was a bit slower. As this individual was behind them, they couldn¡¯t see him. Seeing the opportunity, Ulfvaldr quickly neared the injured hunter, and grabbed him. Holding his mouth shut, he sped away as quickly as he arrived, without being noticed by the other hunters.


    Then, as he was behind cover, he sank his teeth into the poor hunter and drained him dry, ending the poor man¡¯s life. He was never even able to see what hit him, before he fell to ground, lifeless.


    It wasn¡¯t until after the hunters entered the village that they found out that their friend was missing. Naturally, chaos ensued, as they began searching for him. It didn¡¯t take too long, until a few guys stumbled upon his corpse, a short distance into the forest. That¡¯s when they made a rather stupid decision. As they had recovered the corpse, the men of the village got together for a meeting.


    ¡°Damnit, this is the second one this month. It¡¯s been like this for years already,¡± one of them said. They were starting to panic.


    ¡°Yes, but this time we actually have something to go on. It was careless this time. We actually found the corpse,¡± another said. In fact, until now, they had never recovered a single corpse, ever.


    ¡°Let¡¯s gather together a few men, and put an end to this. This monster clearly lives in the forest, and it can¡¯t have gotten far. It¡¯s at most twenty minutes since he died,¡± the second man continued. Many men agreed with him, but some were a bit more sceptic.


    ¡°Are you really sure we should do this? This is clearly no normal beast. It¡¯d be better if we just packed up, and left,¡± the third man to join the conversation stated.


    ¡°Are you stupid? We can¡¯t just leave our home! Out tribe has lived here for generations, and I¡¯ll be damned if we leave because of one ugly beast! If we just stick together, this beast won¡¯t stand a chance,¡± the first man said. The third man was still against it, but in the end, a whole fifteen men gathered together, and left for the forest. They wielded both spears and torches, as well as bows and arrows. They were prepared for war.


    Thus, the fifteen brave warriors headed for the dark and dim forest, where few men ever ventured. Inside the forest they were ensued in darkness. If they didn¡¯t have their torches, they wouldn¡¯t have been able to see anything at all. But bravely, they ventured deeper and deeper. They had first gone to where the first hunter died, and then ventured deeper from there.


    Naturally, Ulfvaldr had already noticed them, as he had kept a careful eye on them, ever since the search began. And the natural result, was that they angered him. This forest was his home; his domain. How dared those filthy humans enter his territory! So he quickly came to a decision; they needed to die. But he wouldn¡¯t simply kill them. He needed them to feel fear.


    So, as he followed them, he also made a swarm of bats fly to their location, ready to swarm the poor hunters. While they steadfastly continued onwards, the bats quickly made their way over. In only ten minutes, they arrived, and they immediately charged into the midst of the hunters.


    ¡°What the¡­ GHAAGH!¡± One of them exclaimed, as the bats charged into them, biting at them, and extinguishing their torches.


    ¡°Bats!¡± Another exclaimed. The bats flew in a swarm, and flew right into the hunters, throwing them around, biting and scratching them, before they disappeared as quickly as they came. However, now they had no torches; no light. And without light, they couldn¡¯t see. Thus, panic ensued quickly.


    ¡°Shit, I can¡¯t see! Where are you?¡± One of them shouted, trying to find his friends, however, the next sound he heard was not a pleasant one,


    ¡°GHAAAAAAH!¡± One man screamed, as Ulfvaldr appeared behind him, and impaled him through the chest, killing him.


    ¡°Who was that? What happened?¡± Another asked, however, he never got an answer, as he was the next victim. Ulfvaldr appeared in front of the man, scaring him, as he could see the glowing eyes of the monster he oh so feared. However, even that fear was short lived, as his throat was pierced by the sharp fangs of Ulfvaldr, draining him for blood, sending the pale corpse to the ground.


    One after the other, the fifteen warriors were slowly killed, until there was only a single man left. He was wandering through the dark forest, trying to find his friends, but no matter how often he shouted for them, he never got a single answer. Everything was completely silent, not a sound to be heard. Even the night sound of the crickets had disappeared. The only thing he could hear, was the gentle breeze of the wind, swaying the grass on the ground, and the leaves on the trees.


    Desperately, he walked the ground, going from tree to tree, constantly searching for his friends, but he never found them. Like that, he continued for hours, all while Ulfvaldr was following him quickly. In the midst of the slaughter, this had become a bit of an experiment for him. He wanted to see what this human would do; how he would react to such a desperate situation.


    And it certainly didn¡¯t take him long to crack under. After only a few hours, he started weeping, calling for his mother. Ulfvaldr found it fascinating how these humans so easily got scared by loneliness and darkness, not realizing he had been the same way once. Back in the day, Ulfvaldr, too, almost lost it, when he was trapped in the dark cave. But these days, he barely ever thought of his human days.


    After a few more hours of wandering, Ulfvaldr had lost track of where they were going, as he was too engaged in stalking the poor human, and before he knew it, they neared closer and closer to that small clearing of his. And indeed, after a few more hours, just before the sun rose, the man stumbled into the clearing.


    ¡°What the¡­ is that a house?¡± He said, widely surprised by the sudden appearance of a hut, so deep in the forest. But other than surprise, there was also hope. And coincidently, the young girl Tora just so happened to walk out of the hut, with groggy eyes, just as the man was walking towards it. The moment Tora saw the stranger, she screamed, and ran back into the hut, yelling,


    ¡°Ulf, Ulf, Help! Arry, save me!¡± frantically, as she crouched under the table inside the hut, trying to hide from the evil human. As Ulfvaldr saw this, he frantically panicked, and charged straight at the human and decapitated him, with a single swing of his arm. Tora stared in fright, as she saw the strangers head fall to the ground, and she screamed even more. However, Ulfvaldr quickly cleared away the corpse, and rushed over to Tora, who was shivering in fright.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, don¡¯t worry, he¡¯s gone already,¡± Ulfvaldr comforted her, as he held her in his arms, and she quickly calmed down. After all, if Ulfvaldr was there, surely nothing could ever happen to her then, right?


    ¡°Wa-was that a, a human?¡± She asked in her high pitched voice, shivering even more at the thought of what an evil, wicked human could have done to her.


    ¡°Indeed it was,¡± Ulfvaldr admitted. ¡°But it¡¯s gone now, so you don¡¯t need to be scared,¡± he said, as he held her tightly and comfortably. Then, it didn¡¯t take long, until she fell asleep in his embrace. Whenever the young girl would get in danger, Ulfvaldr would always enter a frantic rage. He felt that if he lost the girl, it would be the same as losing a vital part of himself. It was as if the girl was an important part of him, one that he lacked. If he was to lose her, like when he lost Tola, he would slowly go insane, and wreak havoc on the world. The young girl Tora, like the late Tola, was his humanity.

 Chapter 13

    Chapter 13


    After the fifteen hunters of the tribe never returned, panic struck the hearts of the tribe¡¯s people. Now that their strongest men had disappeared, they had little choice in what to do. So, they gathered all their food and left the village. But there were mostly women left, and they were not as capable as the hardened men. Therefore, they could only spread out, and join the various tribes surrounding the forest. They didn¡¯t all go to the same village, as hardly any village would accept such large number of people, in times like these. There were simply too many mouths to feed.


    Thus, the villagers spread out, and friends were separated. But Ulfvaldr wasn¡¯t happy from these events. If things continued on like this, all the tribes would leave soon, and then he¡¯d have to find a new home. If it was just Ulfvaldr himself, then it would be simple enough, but he didn¡¯t want to subject the young Tora to travel such a far distance. At least not yet. That¡¯s why he made a new plan.


    From now on, he would control his feeding more. He¡¯d only feed when necessary. With his current capabilities, he supposed he could hold for about a week, before the hunger started becoming really unbearable, to the point where he wouldn¡¯t even be able to be close to Tora. He supposed if he fed once every five days, he¡¯d be fine. Since there were five villages around the forest, that meant that every village would only lose a single villager every twenty-five days. Considering the number of villagers in every village, he should be able to last just under three and a half years, before everyone was dead. Of course, it would be less than that until they actually decided to flee.


    And like that, time passed. Every five days, Ulfvaldr would go feed, already on the verge of starvation. Every five days, a village would lose a single person. Of course, Ulfvaldr never stopped his purge on humanity. He would continue seeking villages out, continue destroying them. By the time tree years had passed, the young girl Tora was already eight years old, meaning that the purge of humanity had already spread out over eight years. Every month, at least two tribes would face their demise, meaning that in eight years, Ulfvaldr had killed well over ten thousand humans. Like a war machine, he slaughtered and slaughtered, causing terror in the hearts of thousands.


    Naturally, a lot of tribes were made aware of what was happening, as travellers came that had seen the desolate villagers. From time to time, there were even some people claiming to have seen the deed, telling tales of a crimson eyed monster, so fast that the eye could barely catch it, so strong that it could directly rip your head off! As more and more tribes met their demise, the human population became more and more desperate. But there was nothing they could do; they never managed to find the monster.


    After Ulfvaldr had spent those eight years in the forest, raising Tora and killing humans, the surrounding area had finally become void of any humans. The surrounding tribes had fled, telling their tales of horrors to the tribes far away, spreading rumours of the monster¡¯s lair, and it didn¡¯t take long until people came aware of the cursed forest. They had finally come aware of where the monster rested, but still, none dared enter the forest, for the fear of death struck them deeply.


    Not just the fear of the monster¡¯s strength, but also the inherent fear for the dark, which all human possessed. They didn¡¯t dare enter the forest, for they knew that the forest was the monster¡¯s territory, where it could roam free. Thus, everyone simply stayed away from the cursed place, never treading near it.


    But all that effort in staying away from the forest, was wasted effort. After all, as Ulfvaldr¡¯s source of food had dissipated, he had to leave. And that¡¯s why, on a moonlit day, Ulfvaldr approached Tora.


    ¡°Tora, I¡¯m afraid I have some bad news,¡± he said to the eight years old girl. She looked curiously at the tall man she treated as her father.


    ¡°What is it Ulf?¡± She asked with her high pitched voice.


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid we¡¯re going to have to leave this place soon. There is no food left for me, so we can¡¯t stay any longer,¡± he said, slightly guilty that he had to take her away from her lifelong home.


    ¡°What? But I don¡¯t wanna go!¡± She complained.


    ¡°There¡¯s no discussion. We simply can¡¯t stay. Listen here, we can¡¯t stay, but instead I¡¯ll take you to any place you want to go. You¡¯ve stayed your entire life in a forest, never seen anything else of the world. You may have heard many stories from me, but you¡¯ve never seen them for yourself, right? So where do you want to go?¡± Ulfvaldr asked, hoping to make her feel a bit better about moving. A moment passed, before she finally answered,


    ¡°Well, then I¡¯d like to go a large plain or prairie somewhere! Somewhere where there aren¡¯t any trees. Some place completely open, where I can see the stars and the moon, and the clouds and the sun!¡± The said excitedly. The poor girl had spent her entire life in a forest, where the sun could hardly reach. She was always in darkness; this had caused her to be sickly pale, and fragilely thin. She wanted to play out in the sun for once.


    And Ulfvaldr wasn¡¯t one who could make himself deny her, even from all the disadvantages it would bring him. Deep in his heart, he was still a bit guilty of keeping her here, in such a dark place. But even then, he didn¡¯t regret it in the slightest. He considered himself to have saved her, from the corruption of humanity.


    ¡°Alright, Tora. I¡¯ll bring you to the prettiest prairie in the world, and I¡¯ll build you a pretty hut. And we¡¯ll bring Arry, and then you can play in the sun as much as you¡¯d ever want to,¡± Ulfvaldr said kindly, as he caressed her head. Tora had a huge smile, and hugged her father figure tightly, seemingly having forgot all about the prior sadness at leaving this place.


    Thus, the next day, as the sun lowered beyond the horizon, the three of them, Ulfvaldr, Tora and Arry, left the darkened forest, and left towards a distant prairie. Several years ago, when he had been far, far away from the forest, the farthest he had ever been, he had found a large prairie, full of yellow grass covering the ground as far as the eye could see. That¡¯s where he decided to head, even though it was so far away. It would be no short journey, as he had to take the weak Tora and the slow Arry with him. Even on his own, it took almost two months to make the trip over and back. He never knew why he risked going so far away, when Tora was all on her own back home, but now, he didn¡¯t regret it.


    Thus, they travelled. During the night, they would walk onwards, and during the day they would seek refuge. Like that, they spent three full years as travelling nomads. It wasn¡¯t that it was that an unsurpassable distance, but they simply didn¡¯t walk in a straight path. They basically walked in a circle to get there. But in their long journey, the young Tora got to see many pleasant sights. See saw majestic creatures, both big and small, she saw huge mountain ranges, even some that made Ulfvaldr gawk, and she saw oceans and beaches.A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.


    When they arrived at their first ocean, Tora really wanted to go play in it, but Ulfvaldr didn¡¯t dare let her. If she was to drown, there was nothing he could do to save her, as he seemed to lose all power as soon he stepped into the ocean water. And that fact made the sea a sore sight to him; he felt like the world was against him. The heavens themselves wanted to see him in pain. Not only was he cursed by the god of the sun, he was also cursed by the god of the sea! But at the very least, he was favoured by the god of the underworld; the god of death.


    Thus, they spent three years travelling the world, until Ulfvaldr finally managed to locate that golden prairie that he had found back then. As they arrived, all they could see was golden dried grass, as long as the eyes could reach. There wasn¡¯t a single tree in sight, no matter where you looked. In the past three years, Tora had been constantly moving around, so she was already quite used to seeing areas void of trees, but this was still quite something. Not only were there no trees, the grass was dry and yellow in most places.


    ¡°Here we are,¡± Ulfvaldr said, as he stood behind the eleven years old girl, ¡°at our journey¡¯s end,¡± he continued. Tora simply watched the surroundings, a bit stoic. This was the place she was going to live in from now on, and it was vastly different from her old home. She wasn¡¯t quite sure what to think. Next to the two, was the already quite old Auroch, mooing indifferently.


    ¡°This is so different,¡± the young girl said, as she looked onwards. She started taking a few steps, then she started running into the grasses, which were tall enough to tower over her at some places. For ten minutes, Ulfvaldr watched the little girl play in the grass, or should I say, listened. After all, it was impossible to see her through all the grass, but he was able to hear her. With his hearing capabilities, he would be able to hear any moving object in several kilometres radius, if he focused.


    But he couldn¡¯t stand around for too long; the sun would rise in only a few hours, so he had to raise their home. Thus, he sped off at his fastest speed, to the nearest trees, and fell as many as he would need, before he came back carrying more trees than any mortal man ever could.


    Thus, he started construction. He did it in a similar manor to his previous hut, where he made a cone shaped hut with the logs, then covered it in foliage, so that neither sun, nor rain should penetrate through. However, this time, it was a bit larger, and it had a door. The previous hut had an open doorway, but this one had a door, so that no sunlight would slip through while he slept. After all, he had to be much more careful now. He was in a completely open area, and there were barely any shady areas, where he could cover from the sun.


    And as the house was finished, it was only about an hour until sunrise, so he entered his humble abode. The young girl Tora had already gone to sleep, as she had tired herself out by playing in the dark prairie. For any other child, it would have been impossible to play in such darkness, but Tora was different. She lived her entire life in darkness. She could see rather well in it. Of course, she couldn¡¯t compare to Ulfvaldr, who could see even clearer during the night, than during the day in his human years.


    As the sun was about to rise, Ulfvaldr went to sleep, and as it rose, indeed, not a single ray of light made it into his primitive hut. A few hours later, when the sun hung high in the sky, Tora woke up and decided that she would finally see the sun. Thus, she carefully walked over to the door, doing her best not to wake up the sleeping Ulfvaldr. During the many years she had spent with him, she had gotten quite good at that.


    Then, she carefully opened the wooden door, made from tightly packed sticks, making sure not to make the slightest sound, and she breezed through like the wind. And as she stepped outside, into the bright world, she was flabbergasted. It was so bright that she instantly got blinded. Even in the past three years, she had never had the chance to see sunlight, as Ulfvaldr would always make sure that they were both protected from its rays.


    As the sun shone into her small eyes, she couldn¡¯t see the slightest thing. She had to wait for a full five minutes, before she became somewhat capable of seeing. But even then, she couldn¡¯t even move. She was simply struck with awe. The sun shone unto the ground, shining it in a golden light. She could see the reflections bursting out of the nearby river; how it sparkled. She started slowly walking towards it. As she arrived by the river, she suddenly felt a sudden need; she just had to jump in there.


    She had never been one much for swimming in rivers; after all, it was so cold, but the sight of the sparkling river was simply too refreshing. She could even see small fish swimming in it. Thus, she quickly took her clothes off, and jumped into the river. As she touched the water, she was expecting to feel a shiver of cold, but instead she was met with refreshing warmth. It was neither cold, not too warm. Thus, she played in the waters for an hour, but she didn¡¯t dare go too deep. She wasn¡¯t able to swim, after all. She never learned how, since there weren¡¯t any big rivers close by their clearing, in the forest.


    But on that day, she made a conviction; she wanted to learn to swim! Surely, Ulfvaldr would be able to teach her. Thus, she jumped back out of the water, and started playing in the grass, until she dried off, and could wear her clothes again. Then, she started waiting for sunset, so that she could bother Ulfvaldr.


    And when it came, bothered he was. As soon as the sun was beyond sight, she raced into the hut, and jumped unto Ulfvaldr¡¯s sleeping stomach, yelling,


    ¡°Teach me how to swim, teach me how to swim, teach me how to swim!¡± Repeatedly. But sadly, her dreams were immediately crushed.


    ¡°Swim? I don¡¯t think I know how to swim,¡± he confessed. After all, he was an Ice Age man. There weren¡¯t exactly many places to swim, where he grew up, so he never learned how. Not even in the ten years he had lived after waking up.


    ¡°What? You can run faster than a sabre-cat, but you can¡¯t swim? How¡¯s that even possible?!¡± The young girl complained. In her brain, it was simply not possible for the amazing Ulfvaldr to not be able to swim. After all, he was all powerful, and all knowing, right? Once, many years ago, Tora gotten lost in the forest, but he had no trouble finding her, so surely he knew everything, right? This was the logic that Tora believed in. But even then, the simple truth was that neither Tora, nor Ulfvaldr could swim. But that didn¡¯t matter, for even if he could swim, he didn¡¯t have time to teach her right now.


    ¡°It¡¯s the truth, Tora, but even then, I don¡¯t have time right now. I need to go check out the area surrounding our new home. See where the nearest villages are, and all that. I won¡¯t be back until sunrise,¡± Ulfvaldr said, as he stood up from the ground, and prepared himself to leave.


    Thus, he left the annoyed Tora behind. She had even looked forward to swimming, but her dreams were just not meant to be. Not yet, at least. Ulfvaldr sped away from the temperate grasslands, and started scouting the area in many miles surrounding their new home. All in all, there was quite a bit more distance between villages there, than it was back in the forest, but there were still a number of villages to choose from. The nearest one was even about a three hour walk from the house, in normal walking speed.


    It was a bit short for comfort, but he supposed that it was fine. As long as he was there, there was no danger to Tora. And she knew not to converse with humans, so she should be fine, right? Then, as he had scouted the area, he went to one of the villages, for his daily meal. He chose to raid the village nearest to the hut, as it was on the way. As soon as he arrived, he started observing them. As so many other villages, their goings were pretty average. Most people were sleeping at this time, a few were keeping guard, so that no rival tribe, or hungry beast attacked. But never did they suspect that the hungriest beast in the world was just about to do just that, attack.


    Thus, he quickly sped into the village, charging straight at a lone guard. Before he even felt the wind from Ulfvaldr, his throat was already ripped out, killing him in a flash. A short moment later, a body drained for blood littered the village grounds.

 Chapter 14

    Chapter 14


    On a prairie, where the grass was so golden that when the sun shone, it would reflect back at the heavens, making a spectacular show of golden bright lights, the rays of the sun shone unto a small wooden hut, standing lone on the prairie. As the sun shone on this lone hut, not the slightest sign of life could be seen. It was not until the sun descended past the mountains in the horizon that activity began to bustle. It was only then that the wooden door, comprised of tightly packed wooden twigs, opened, revealing a tall man, about twenty years in age, or so it appeared. This young adult, with brown hair, a slender build, and crimson red eyes, walked out of the building, composed purely of wood and foliage. As soon as he had stepped as much as three steps out of the building, his body suddenly blurred, and disappeared in a straight line, towards the far horizon.


    The next movement of activity didn¡¯t happen until an entire hour later, when a young girl, in her late teens; perhaps seventeen years old, walked out of the wooden building. As soon as she stepped out, she started looking around her, warily, as if she needed to be sure that she was alone. Then, she turned around, in the opposite direction from the one the prior male left in, and started waving her hands, and jumping up and down. As she did this, from the edge of the far away forest, a young male sprung up from the ground, and started running franticly towards the girl.


    The forest was rather far away; several kilometres in fact, and time was sparse, so he knew that he had to hurry as much as possible. He only had until an hour before sunrise at best. Thus, he sprinted with all his might towards the lone hut, and the lone girl. But he was swift; he done this run many times before, and his physique was already far above that of his peers, from all the frantic running. In fact, he believed it a miracle that he was even alive. The fact that he had never been caught flabbergasted the young man. But he was willing to risk everything, to get to this girl.


    As little as thirty minutes later, the gasping young male made it up to the girl, who immediately ran up to him, with a cup of water. The young runner immediately grabbed the cup, and gulped it down in a flash, then followed the young girl to the river, where they sat down next to a fire that the girl had already prepared.


    ¡°How have you been the last days, Tor?¡± The young girl asked, with a kind smile, as she sat next to the male, looking at the fire, reflecting unto the sparkling river.


    ¡°I¡¯ve been quite good. The villagers are a bit scared though, since one of the youngsters died from sickness. They¡¯re scared it might spread, so they immediately burned the body¡­ How about you, Tora?¡± The young man, Tor, said, then asked.


    ¡°I¡¯ve been fine, too. Just a bit lonely¡­ Ulf is always out, so you¡¯re really the only one I can talk to,¡± Tora said, with a slightly sad expression, as she thought back to the late Arry. The old Auroch had died a few years prior, so since then, Tora didn¡¯t have anyone to play with, when Ulfvaldr wasn¡¯t there. But almost a year ago, she had met the young lad to her side, Tor. He was from one of the villages close to here, and he¡¯d always visit when Ulfvaldr was away. This time, it¡¯d be a short visit, though, since Ulfvaldr was supposed to be back by sunrise.


    Ulfvaldr always told Tora when he¡¯d be away several days prior, so she wouldn¡¯t be taken by surprise, and so that she could properly prepare. Shortly after she met Tor, they had machinated a messaging system. The day prior to Ulfvaldr¡¯s departure, Tora would make a smoky fire, telling Tor that he would be leaving, and how long he¡¯d be gone.


    Then the next day, Tor would wait in the forest next to the prairie, where there were several animals with heartbeats and the need to breath, and where Ulfvaldr couldn¡¯t hear him anyway; at least not without focusing. And Ulfvaldr wouldn¡¯t often take the effort to listen to that place in particular. He might certainly be rather antagonistic, slightly insane, but he most certainly wasn¡¯t paranoid. Being paranoid was beneath him; he had simply no reason to worry over lowly humans.


    Then, as he lay at the forest edge, he¡¯d hold an eye out on the hut, and watch out for Ulfvaldr. He¡¯d not always be able to see him, though, so an hour after Ulfvaldr left, Tora would go out and signal him to come.


    That¡¯s how they had worked at meeting each other for almost an entire year already. But even though they might seem like starlit lovers that was not the case. And frankly, the boy had certainly been trying, but it just didn¡¯t work on Tora. Not that she didn¡¯t possess the slightest feelings for him, but she just didn¡¯t have any understanding for love. She had never been taught about it, other than the fatherly love she possessed for Ulfvaldr. If the young Tor brought up the subject of love to her, she would simply find it weird, as if Tor confessed that Tora was like a mother or daughter to him.


    Instead, they would simply talk about various things that might catch their interests. And those things, included Ulfvaldr. Indeed, he wasn¡¯t there purely to pursue his unrequited love for Tora; he was also there to get as much knowledge on Ulfvaldr as possible. He wanted to both save the poor girl from the monster, as well as kill it. He completely believed that Ulfvaldr had kidnapped Tora, and corrupted her mind. And it wasn¡¯t entirely false.


    On the other hand, Tora still believed humans to be evil creatures. She just believed Tor to pure and innocent, just like her. Perhaps it was in the name; Tor and Tora, the two pure humans. But she had no reason to not believe it. Tor had never done anything that seemed evil to her, so why shouldn¡¯t she trust him?


    And in the past year, he had learned a number of things about Ulfvaldr. Like his weakness for sunlight, his dislike for being stabbed in the back with wooden stakes, and his distaste for being dowsed in sea water, as well as his thirst for blood.


    ¡°So, Tora, he¡¯s coming back at sunrise, right?¡± Tor asked.


    ¡°Yeah, he won¡¯t be long this time. You know, I think you should meet him. You¡¯re not like the others, you¡¯re just like me! I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll like you, he¡¯ll probably immediately realize how nice you are,¡± Tora said, urging him to stay. She fully believed that Ulfvaldr would like him, but Tor realized the truth.


    ¡°No, it¡¯s for the best if he never even knows I exist. If he does, he¡¯ll surely kill me,¡± Tor stated with confidence. He truly didn¡¯t doubt it.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    ¡°If you say so,¡± Tora replied, a bit disappointed, but she hadn¡¯t expected otherwise. After all, that conversation had come up several times before.


    ¡°Has he always looked like he does? I mean, so young. I have never seen him close up, but he doesn¡¯t look like someone who raised a seventeen years old kid,¡± he asked.


    ¡°No, he always looked like that. He hasn¡¯t changed in the slightest, since forever. I¡¯m going to look the same age as him in only a few years. And to be honest, it was only a few years ago that he realized himself. One day, when he was washing himself in the river, he kinda just realized that he had never aged. He made quite a fuss about it, but I can kinda understand,¡± Tora said with a bit of a distant look,


    ¡°After all, I really don¡¯t want to look older than him. He¡¯s pretty much my father, after all,¡± Tora continued, ending with a sigh.


    ¡°So, he doesn¡¯t age, huh?¡± Tor stated, as he looked into the starry sky. He had to admit, it was rather tranquil, sitting under the shade of the night, like this. Before he met Tora, he never really sat in the open, in the middle of the night, gazing at the starlit night skies. He rather enjoyed it, truth be told.


    ¡°Have you ever wondered what those lights in the sky are? I mean, they seem so distant, yet they shine so far. It fascinates me,¡± Tor said.


    ¡°I haven¡¯t really thought about it before,¡± Tora replied


    ¡°I wonder if anyone will ever be able to touch them,¡± Tor wondered.


    ¡°Touch them? How would anyone touch them? I mean, no matter how high you reached, they would still be so far away. Ulf once took me to the top of a mountain, and even there I couldn¡¯t reach them. Seriously, they¡¯re really far away!¡± Tora said, amazed at how far away they were. I mean, she couldn¡¯t even reach them on the top of a mountain! Madness!


    As the night flew by, the two talked about various things, and enjoyed a hearty meal by the crackling fire, until it was finally time for Tor to leave. Thus, without further ado, he sprinted away, through the tall grass of the prairie, towards his village in the forest. His village was pretty well hidden, staying inside the forest. If you didn¡¯t already know the location of it, it would be impossible to find. It was so far inside, that it took the young man another hour to get there, even after he got into the forest. Even Ulfvaldr didn¡¯t know about it, since he rarely ventured into the forest.


    But this village wasn¡¯t your normal, ordinary village. It was both large, and also the strongest tribe in the area, and every time the tribes met for their yearly tribe meeting, they would always be the bigshots. That¡¯s why the operations of the young Tor, were of utmost importance for the tribe, and that¡¯s why the moment he returned to the village, he was immediately swarmed by the elders of the tribe. They always met him as he returned, and always pestered him about anything he might have learned. Of course, Tor wasn¡¯t one to deny them the knowledge.


    ¡°So boy, did you learn anything good this time?¡± The first elder quickly asked, urging him to tell. Even though he had returned so many times, without any important information, they always continued to ask him.


    ¡°Yes, I did. Quite a significant piece of knowledge, even,¡± he began, spurring the elders onwards, exciting them.


    ¡°Apparently, he doesn¡¯t age, since his appearance has stayed the same for at least seventeen years,¡± Tor stated, but the elders gave him a bit of a questioning look, as he talked.


    ¡°What? Is something wrong?¡± He asked, slightly nervous. He didn¡¯t have the slightest idea what was going on.


    ¡°You refer to it as a he, now?¡± He was questioned, rather rudely.


    ¡°What? Well, yes, he, I mean it, looks completely human, except for the red eyes, and large fangs, or so Tora says,¡± Tor answered, as he backed away, scared what the elders would do to punish him. As he backed away, the elders started getting angrier and angrier, until, they finally started bursting out, laughing.


    ¡°Hahahaha! We¡¯re just teasing you!¡± The elder exclaimed.


    ¡°So tell me, lover boy, how goes it with the girl,¡± they asked, excited for any news. They knew about the girl, of course, and they were completely supportive of his love for her. After all, even they wanted to save the poor girl, and set her back on the right path.


    ¡°Oh, well, eh, she¡¯s as oblivious as ever, I guess?¡± Tor answered shyly, as his cheeks started to redden. The elders loved to tease the young man about his crush, even though he was more than old enough to hold a mate.


    ¡°Ah, fret not my boy, for your time will be soon. The other tribes already know that the monster is here, and they have been told to bring all their men for the next tribe meeting. That¡¯s when we strike. We¡¯re already prepared. We¡¯ll strike at day time, and we¡¯ll do our mightiest to destroy this beast, before it, destroys us!¡± The elder finally said, with an absolute determination, if not confidence. He was prepared to do whatever it took to destroy this plight of humanity¡¯s.


    ¡°But the casualties won¡¯t be low. There will be many an orphan, and many a widow,¡± he continued.


    ¡°Then, then, we can finally be together,¡± Tor finally finished, before he went over to his own hut, and got some much needed sleep. After staying up all night, and running so much, he was exhausted.


    Two moons passed, and the time of the tribe meeting had finally arrived. But this tribe meeting wasn¡¯t like the others. This time it wasn¡¯t just between the tribes in the area, but tribes had come from distant lands. Every tribe that could come, had come. For this time, they had to deal with a problem that the entire human population shared. Thus, as the sun rose in the sky, the various leaders of the tribes stood out in the open, ready to discuss the fate of humanity. There weren¡¯t just a few dozen chieftains present, but hundreds, if not thousands. The leaders of tribes, both small and large had arrived, converging perhaps the first army in human history. And on the top of a boulder, stood the leaders of the three biggest tribes.


    These three leaders were large and mighty, known throughout several clans. They were known as the fiercest of warriors, and faced many battles, with both men and beast alike. Thus, they spoke,


    ¡°People of mankind, leaders of the various tribes, I, the leader of the Forest Tribe welcome you. All of you know why we are here, but still, I¡¯ll tell you why anyways! We are here today, to deal with the biggest disaster any human has ever faced. This monster has already killed tribes, numbering in the hundreds, maybe over a thousand. But now we stand a fighting chance, for our brave young one has compiled a list of his weaknesses, and we can abuse them to kill him entirely!¡± The middle aged warrior exclaimed, causing the loud outburst of cheer from his peers. Then he continued,


    ¡°Then, let¡¯s set out! The night may be his, but the day is ours! As long as we¡¯re out in sunlight, he¡¯ll be burned by its rays, so let¡¯s set out and kill this beast!¡± He roared, causing yet another outburst of cheers, before they actually set out.


    Thus, the many, many tribes of humanity set out of the forest, traversing towards the golden prairie, where the monster lay. The huge force ventured forwards, until the sun hung two hours into the sky, before they finally broke through the forest, and arrived at the edge of the golden prairie. In the distance, they could see the form of a small hut, standing alone on the vast prairie.


    Thus, the army of humanity gave their loud roars of war, and charged forwards, shaking the ground beneath their heavy feet.

 Chapter 15: End of book 1.

    Chapter 15


    As the sun shone on the lone hut, two lone beings slept their rest inside the secure darkness of their abode. However, this short rest was abruptly interrupted, from the shaking of the ground, and the roars of angry men. As they shouted, Ulfvaldr immediately woke up, and stood erect. He had no idea what was going on, and from the looks of things, neither did Tora. Tora stood up, her eyes sleepy, and looked towards the already awake Ulfvaldr.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± She asked, still confused by the noise. Ulfvaldr shook his head, as he stepped towards the door, but he didn¡¯t dare open it, and look outside. If he did, he would surely be burned by the fire of the sun. He looked towards Tora, who immediately walked over to the door. As soon as Ulfvaldr was out of harm¡¯s way, she reached towards the door. However, even before she managed to open it, the sudden shaking of the ground stopped, just as abruptly as it began. Tora still didn¡¯t open the door, but instead looked over to the just as confused Ulfvaldr, but he still shook his head, once more.


    But even though the shaking had stopped, the incessant roaring persisted. Meanwhile, the advancing army of humanity had stopped a good distance away, from the lone hut. In front of the army, were the various leaders of the many tribes, and in front of even them, were the three leaders of the army. These three men looked at the messy ranks, in front of them. There was no order in how the warriors stood, but naturally, the three leaders found no fault with it. They weren¡¯t trained to manage armies, as there had simply never been such an army, as this one. Indeed, this was the first army, in human history. Instead, they settled for giving a pre-victory speech. Thus, the leader of the Forest Tribe stood forwards, ready to address his men, and the men every other tribe.


    ¡°Here we stand, ready to face the largest plight humanity ever faced, but rest assured, we will win!¡± The speech was not one abound in the magnificence of rhetoric, but was one of a rather simplistic nature; after all, they were people of the Stone Age. They were no master negotiators. But to these simpletons, it was enough. But even then, he wasn¡¯t finished yet,


    ¡°As you know, we have armed all of you with wooden spears, and wooden stakes! Now, you might wonder why that is! It¡¯s simple! Just poke your stick at the monster, and pierce into its heart, and the monster shall fall! If we pierce its heart with a stick, it won¡¯t be able to move! Then, we just need to hack it into pieces, and burn it until there is nothing, but ashes left!¡± He roared, causing the incessant jubilation in the men of earth.


    ¡°But beware! With this monster, is a human girl! She must be saved, and purified from the monsters greed and cruelty,¡± he said. As his final words left his mouth, the door of the lone hut finally opened, and out came the head of a young girl, about seventeen years of age. The young woman was clearly frightened, as she saw the thousands of humans, holding spears and torches. As he appearance appeared in the vision of others, a certain young man stepped forwards.


    ¡°Tora, come here! We¡¯ve come to save you, and finally kill the monster, which has held you captive your entire life!¡± Tor shouted, as he ran towards the young girl. At this moment, there were only a few hundred meters between the army, and the hut.


    ¡°What? No! You can¡¯t hurt Ulf!¡± Tora screamed, as Tor neared ever closer. She stepped a few steps back, seemingly frightened by Tor¡¯s words. But he didn¡¯t let it deter him.


    ¡°Tora, you don¡¯t understand! Ulfvaldr is an evil being, trying to destroy humanity, without reason!¡± Tor stated.


    ¡°You¡¯re lying! Humans are inherently evil! Only you and I are pure! You can¡¯t let the cruel humans trick you, Tor!¡± Tora screamed, once more. It was clearly apparent that she had been thoroughly brainwashed by Ulfvaldr, ever since she was just an infant.


    ¡°No, Tora, you¡¯re the one being tricked!¡± Tor said, however, before anything more could be said, the door burst open once more, and from the shadowy depths of the hut, appeared two crimson eyes. The very moment Tor saw those deep, bloodthirsty eyes, he immediately backed up. No matter what, he dared not go close to him; at least not on his own.


    ¡°Tora, run in the opposite direction of the humans. I will find you,¡± Ulfvaldr said, before he suddenly burst out of the hut, like an arrow, shooting straight into the ranks of the humans. Tora didn¡¯t waste a second, and immediately ran for it. She never even doubted his words, and would always trust him, without condition.


    Thus she ran, and naturally, Tor noticed. He looked towards the leader next to him. The tall leader of his tribe looked at the young man, a determined look in his eyes.


    ¡°Go, young Tor. Save this young girl from her plight. We will cover you,¡± he said, before turning around, to where the monster was already slaughtering to its heart¡¯s content. Without further hesitation, Tor chased after Tora. Meanwhile, Ulfvaldr was continually tearing the soldiers of humanity apart, limb from limb, all while the rays of the sun were sizzling at his skin.


    For every breath that went by, ten, or even tens of people died, but for every dozen victims, Ulfvaldr still managed to suffer wounds. There were simply too many people. He was completely surrounded by a hugely thick wall of humans, to the point where he was even somewhat covered from the sun. But even then, he was still being burned by the sun.


    As he ripped the head of one spear wielding soldier, he simultaneously pierced his hand into the chest of another, torch wielding soldier. As the torch wielding soldier died, his torch dropped to the ground, just as a wooden spear was pierced into Ulfvaldr abdomen. As the torch touched the ground, it set the dry grass ablaze, covering both man and monster.


    As soon as the fire spread, Ulfvaldr immediately sped away, like an arrow, seeking refuge from the burning fires. As the fires touched his legs, he felt a pain like never before, perhaps even worse than the sunlight itself. As he got away from the fire, he looked at his left leg, only to see an already charred stump. However, looking at the rest of the body, it wasn¡¯t too far off. He was continuously burning, from the sun¡¯s rays, and he figured he didn¡¯t have much time left.


    Thus, he charged into the midst of the humans, once more, killing in the hundreds, and being stabbed in the tens. Every time a single spear or stake touched his body, tens of lives would follow the river of death.


    As this happened, one particular soldier, a leader of his tribe, looked at the carnage being spread by this one single monster. This man, he looked to be in his late forties, and was of large build. He had come from a tribe very far away from here, and his tribe had already left a long time ago, for the tribe meeting. However, now, as he was here, he could do nothing, but stand frozen. For, he recognised this evil being, slaughtering his men. For, this very monster had saved his life once, many, many years ago, and he had even lived in his tribe.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.


    ¡°Ulfvaldr, what happened to you?¡± Starolf asked, as he watched the ensuing carnage. But there was no way he could get his answer. The only thing he could do, was to save him, by killing him. Thus, he charged ahead, with his spear held high.


    Meanwhile, Tora was running away with all her might, and Tor was chasing with equal determination. However, he was a hardened man, used to running vast distances, and she was a rather weak girl. Tor was easily able to catch up with her, and for every minute that passed, the distance was continuously shortened.


    ¡°Tora, please just stop! I just want to save you!¡± Tor shouted, but he didn¡¯t get a single answer from Tora. She was too fatigued. Just running such a distance was draining her physically. But she still continued to run, with an unshakable determination. And thus, they played the game of cat and mouse.


    Meanwhile, in the distance, this whole ordeal was being observed, by a young woman, perhaps in her late twenties. She was rather tall of stature, and had dark hair, with a single gray streak going through it. However, her eyes were rather different; they were completely white, making her seem completely blind. But even then, those eyes seemed to adamantly follow the battle going on, down below on the prairie. They were even chasing that one figure, going through the hordes of humanity, like a scythe through wheat.


    ¡°How, is he still alive?¡± She wondered aloud.


    ¡°That curse was guaranteed to kill. And this power¡­ It¡¯s vastly superior to the power that I stole. How is this even possible?¡± She continued to ponder. But she didn¡¯t interact. She just continued to observe, from afar. She dared not get involved in that battle, for a fear in her life.


    And while she observed, the wanton slaughter continued wantonly. Ulfvaldr was mowing through the humans, but he, too, was getting wounded gravely. His body was already burned, and there were wooden spears lodged all over his body, both shattered and whole. As he charged through the hordes, those wooden spears would catch the soldiers on his side, either killing them, or shattering the spear itself. But even though he slaughtered so wantonly, the humans didn¡¯t seem to lessen. There were thousands of them, if not tens of thousands. Everywhere his eyes could reach, there were just seas of stone age soldiers.


    And thus, as he fought, there was finally one lucky soldier that managed to lodge his stake in the correct place, between his ribs and piercing the heart. As the wooden stake pierced into the flesh, and eventually the heart, Ulfvaldr¡¯s body suddenly froze in paralysation. And thus, he fell to the ground, unable to move his limbs.


    And the very moment he fell, tens of spears were lodged into his arms and legs, almost completely destroying them, leaving them unusable. Thus, as he was being mauled and burned, he started biting those around him. Tens of people were bitten, even including several leaders of humanity, who had immediately charged ahead, as they saw the beast fall. But those bites were only able to kill some, others were only wounded.


    But, it was only then that the true carnage began. And this carnage, it wasn¡¯t enacted by Ulfvaldr, but instead, it was acted by those very humans he fought. They started biting back. Eating his flesh, and drinking his blood, in the one hope that they could steal whatever power it was that this former human held. If they could muster that power for themselves, they would truly become kings amongst men.


    And when they were finished, there wasn¡¯t much left of Ulfvaldr, other than small, desecrated pieces of meat and bones. But they were still not satisfied. They needed to undo any chance of Ulfvaldr ever coming back. Thus, they hacked even the bones to pieces, and burned them, until there was nothing, but ashes left. Then, they finally spread those ashes over a hundred-meter radius, and buried them in burned dirt, hiding the ashes in the depths.


    And thus, the plight of humanity had finally ended.


    Meanwhile, as all that was happening, Tora was still running away from Tor, but he was already getting increasingly close to her. By this point, there was barely two arm lengths between them. Only a few minutes later, Tor finally managed to jump the tenacious girl. They rolled over the ground, as he tackled her, and finally, a short moment later, Tor sat on top of her, holding her arms to the ground.


    ¡°Let go!¡± She screamed, however, Tor didn¡¯t let go in the slightest. She kept fighting back, kicking with her legs, trying to bite his arms, but she couldn¡¯t reach.


    ¡°Let go of me! Go away! You¡¯re just like them, you¡¯re evil!¡± She continually screamed.


    ¡°Be quiet! It¡¯s not as you think! Humans aren¡¯t evil, nor wicked. All what you know about humans, is what that man planted in your head. He kills humans without reason, putting fear into everyone¡¯s hearts. He¡¯s the evil one,¡± Tor said, starting to lose his patience. However, Tora¡¯s response left him baffled.


    ¡°You¡¯re wrong! All the death he¡¯s caused, is because of humans themselves! They¡¯re the ones who made him do all this. He told me, about his life before he met me. He loved humans, protected them even. But they betrayed him; killed his one love. Humans are the ones who betrayed him, not vice versa,¡± she stated. Tor was left slightly flabbergasted, from this short insight into the past of Ulfvaldr, but even then, his beliefs didn¡¯t stir.


    ¡°Even then, that¡¯s no reason to wreck carnage over all of humanity. Every human didn¡¯t convene to kill this lover of his. It was the ones who did it that were responsible, Tora. Their evilness doesn¡¯t spread all over humanity. Humans are separate beings. One can be evil, the other can be good,¡± Tor said. This time, it was Tora who was surprised.


    ¡°You mean, not every human is wicked? That¡¯s not possible!¡± She refused.


    ¡°Yes it is! Think about it. If you¡¯re pure and nice, is it really possible for no one else to be? And can¡¯t there be something in between pure goodness and pure evil?¡± He said. She remained silent for a while, but she wasn¡¯t fighting back anymore.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± she finally answered in a low voice. However, as she lied on the ground, she finally noticed how quiet it had become. She tried to look towards where she ran from, but she couldn¡¯t see anything from the tall grass.


    ¡°Tor, hasn¡¯t it gotten rather quiet?¡± She finally asked. As she asked, Tor noticed it too, and decided to stand up, and look. As he saw the sight, a few kilometres away from him, he was left silent. He saw only a sight of vast carnage; however, said carnage was finally over. People were either wailing in pain, or wandering about in lost purpose. Tora saw this too, naturally, as she stood up. As the sight entered her eyes, she started tearing up. No matter how she thought about it, she could only come to one conclusion. Ulfvaldr lost.


    ¡°No, no, no, no,¡± she started chanting. Then she fell to her knees, and started full out crying. Tor went down on one knee, and held her around the shoulder, pulling her into his chest. As she rested on his chest, her tears wetted his furry garment.


    ¡°It¡¯s going to be alright,¡± Tor said, ¡°I¡¯ll take care of you.¡±


    Meanwhile, a good distance away from the burned battlefield, was the young woman, with the gray streak through her hair. Her expression bore a distant look, as she observed the burial of Ulfvaldr¡¯s ashes; his sanctification.


    ¡°So, even he isn¡¯t completely invincible. But is he really dead? Even my curse didn¡¯t kill him,¡± she stated, as she turned around and left the area, which in the future would become known as a holy ground, where no blood must ever be shed.


    ¡°Only time will tell, I suppose.¡±

 Eternal Chronicles, book 2: Golden Blood, chapter 1

    Eternal Chronicles:


    Golden Blood


    Chapter 1


    On an old prairie, once golden, now dead and dreary, covered in ashen grounds, there was not a soul to be seen. Indeed, on this vast area, where no life had grown in eons, there wasn¡¯t even the closest sign of life; yet there was someone there. A lone man, middle aged, but pale as snow, with crimson red eyes. As he stood the dead grounds, he seemed eternally lonely, if not guilty. He looked at the grounds around him, where once, a very, very long time ago, a great battle was fought. So long ago that no mortal man could still remember it, nor have experienced it, yet still, this man was very present at said battle.


    He was one of the very few men who still lived from that time. Men above all others, with power, able to completely overwhelm anyone below them. They were the rulers of the world. And this power they held, it came from this very place. It came from the very being they fought to defeat, at this very place. They had manned an army, numbering in the tens of thousands, just to defeat one being. In the end they won, but not without casualties. Thousands had died in that battle, all in the hand just one man.


    Back then, he was hated by humanity, but things changed. It had been eons since then, and now, he was just a legend; a myth. There were only a few collect people that still knew for certain of his legacy. Some of them feared him, others worshipped him, for the power he bestowed upon them. However, there was one man, who was unlike all others. He didn¡¯t hate him, nor worship him. He simply cared. He had known him more than any other, except for one girl. But that is not important now, for it was this very man, who now stood on the ancient battlefield.


    Since ages bygone, he had become the Keeper. The Keeper of the Grave, they called him. He was the protector of that ancient place. He watched over the place, and made sure that no one ever desecrated that holiest of places. He was the one who made sure those thousands of souls could rest. He was the one who made sure his old friend could rest. He was the one who made sure Ulfvaldr could rest. Ulfvaldr, the one who once saved the lives of him, and his comrades, and the one who gave him this power.


    However, he could not be so attentive, to spend all his time in an out of the place holy ground, just to keep it clean. Thus, he employed his own apprentices; his minions. They were known as the Priests of the Grave. When the Keeper himself was not present, a Priest would always be there. These priests had been trained for at least a hundred years, before they even set foot on the holy Grave, and they were the fiercest warriors you could find.


    But, as was said before, there was no life in the Grave. Ever. Because, these Priests, as well as the Keeper, neither of them possessed a shred of life. They were, in all ways of the word, dead. Their heart did not beat, and their lungs did not breath. But in this day and age that was not such a peculiar predicament to find yourself in. No, it was all too normal¡­


    The Keeper looked around himself, one last time, taking in the sorrowed sight, before he finally left. As he left the area of the Grave, one of his twelve Priests stepped in. However, compared to the stoic Keeper, this priest seemed far too different. On his face was not an expression of loneliness, nor guilt. No, there was a wicked, excited and vengeful expression on his pale face.


    ¡°Oh, dear Keeper of mine, you took away that which I cared for the most, so now, I shall desecrate that which you hold dearest,¡± the Priest said, as he, too, walked away from the Grave. However, he only stepped slightly off of it, to an offside area, where he was met by other people. These people were not quite like him. Their complexion was livid and coloured, and he could hear the beating of their hearts, and the breathing of their lungs. They were alive. And they were about to break the most sacred law of the modern world. They were going to spill blood, and wreak havoc on the Grave. However, they were none the wiser. They simply believed they were there to take care of a simple task. In fact, they didn¡¯t even know they were at the sacred Grave.


    ¡°Ah, Lord, you have arrived. My men are all ready, just say the word,¡± one of the mortal men said. Behind this man, were a good two dozen more men. Many of them were armed with shiny weapons, and armour. Behind the men, were carriages, fully loaded with building material.


    ¡°Good. Follow me,¡± the Priest said, then led them to the middle of the ground, which most knew as the Grave, even though these men were none the wiser. It was simply because no one knew where the Grave was. Many even believed it be just as much legend, as the tale of the age old battle. Of course, the Keeper and his Priests couldn¡¯t have any mortal man know of its location, since no living being was to ever enter its grounds. They even had a Priest be there constantly, to keep all animals out.


    ¡°I want you to begin construction here,¡± the Priest said, when they arrived in the center of the Grave. This was supposed to be were that man originally fell, or so the Priest was told. Of course, none of the Priests were alive in that age. Only the Keeper was, as well as a few others who were unaffiliated with the Grave.


    ¡°You won¡¯t need me here. I need to take care of something,¡± the Priest said, before he left them in the dust, disappearing from their vision in an instant. And those constructers actually weren¡¯t surprised by that amazing feat of speed. They were only awed, by the power of a Priest.


    A short instant after he first disappeared, he appeared on the other side, inside a forest. Inside this forest, there was yet another group of mortal men. However, these mortals were not like the ones from before. They were not construction workers, but warriors. All two dozen of them wore armour and weapons. At the sudden appearance of the Priest, they were startled, but they had still expected him.


    ¡°Master,¡± they said, as they kneeled before him. The Priest looked over his minions, before speaking,


    ¡°Go forwards, into that plain, until you find a group of construction workers, then kill them. Soak the ground in blood,¡± the Priest said, then disappeared, once more. Thus, the warriors rose, and charged out of the forest, towards the non-expecting workers.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it


    And thus, the Priest¡¯s revenge had begun. Indeed, this was no great revenge that would ultimately result in the death of the one who wronged him, but simply an insult. He didn¡¯t dare do anything other than something deceitful, for anything else, would only result in his failure. If he dared attack the Keeper, he would only die, before he even realized it. The power of the Keeper was not something the Priests could contend with. Even if they all teamed up, they would still lose, for the Keeper had lived a thousand years longer than even the oldest of them.


    Thus the priest fled. He didn¡¯t even want to see what was going to happen. The only thought on his mind, was to flee. To get as far away from there as possible, for when the Keeper found out, all hell would break loose. Indeed, he knew he possessed little chance of getting away, for the Keeper was his sire. He had no way to stay hidden from him, but at least he would try. He did not mind if he died; he had lived a long life. If only he died, knowing he had caused him some small amount of sorrow, he would be happy. Thus, he fled.


    Meanwhile, at the old prairie, now known as the Grave, the group of warriors charged forwards, in a straight arrow towards the workers. It didn¡¯t take too long, before the workers noticed their war cries, and saw them running towards them.


    ¡°We¡¯re being attacked!¡± One guard yelled out, and only a moment later all the other guards gathered, ready to fight. The workers quickly grabbed weapons; whatever they could find, be it a woodcutter¡¯s axe, or a sword, and joined the guards. As worry for what was about to come, they waited for but a moment, until finally, the attackers were upon them.


    And as soon as they were as little as a dozen meters away, the attacking warriors threw their spear into the midst of the workers and their guards. The spears either pierced into the bodies of the unlucky, or missed into the ashen ground. Then, they unsheathed their swords, and charged into the group of workers and guards, swinging their swords with deadly precision. The workers, however, swung their weapons with reckless abandon, even hitting some of their own. As they fought, blood flowed to the ground, however, as it touched the ground, something unexplainable happened; it continued flowing, going into the ground, disappearing completely.


    However, no one noticed this strange phenomenon, and they simply continued fighting, and blood continued being absorbed by the ashen ground. By the time that six bodies, with big gashing wounds, laid on the ground, you would even be able to visibly see the blood flowing over to every corner in a hundred-meter radius. Then, as the blood was absorbed, small particles of burned dust started raising up from the sky, as if levitating. By the time enough dust particles had raised, they suddenly started gathering together, and flying towards the group of fighting men, absorbing their blood before it even touched the ground.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± One of the fighting soldiers asked, as the dust covered him. The other soldiers stopped fighting, too, by the appearance of this sudden sandstorm. However, before they knew it, the storm of dust that covered them, suddenly got much more localised, as it gathered together in a single spot, forming the shape of a humanoid.


    ¡°Wait, what is going on? Why does it look like a human?¡± Another man asked, however, his question was answered all too quickly, as the human shape started condensing, until the dust started transforming into bones and flesh, and finally skin. Before them had appeared a naked humanoid, with deadly pale skin, and a body that looked ancient. He was covered in wrinkles, and his head was bald. But his eyes¡­ they were red like the blood moon, and there was a deep, lusting hunger in them.


    Suddenly, the beast growled, as it grabbed the dead body on its side, and drained it of its remaining blood. It was at this moment that they realized what had appeared in front of them.


    ¡°I-It¡¯s a Vampire, and it¡¯s hungry!¡± One of the workers screamed, as he turned away and ran. However, as unlucky as it was, he was the next person to lose his life. As soon as the hungry beast let go of the body, it appeared in front of the fleeing worker. The worker didn¡¯t even have the chance to say his last words, before his throat was ripped, and his body was drained by blood. When finally, that body had been drained, too, the monster seemed to have regained his former appearance, except for his hair. In front of these frightened workers and soldiers, appeared a now young man, perhaps around twenty years old. His skin was still pale, but now it was smooth, and he towered a good foot above the men in front of him.


    Then his body flashed, and a moment later, the ground was littered with several dozen corpses, all drained from blood. Indeed, the plan of the old Priest had been completely ruined, for even after every single man he had sent here had been killed, not a single drop of blood touched the ground. It had all been drunk by Ulfvaldr.


    As Ulfvaldr was finally finished having his long overdue meal, he noticed something. As the blood entered his mouth, and flowed down his throat, it was as if he could see their memories, or at least parts of them. He saw flashes of past fights, images of their friends and families, and even some of their knowledge entered his mind. But it was rather limited. For example, he got close to no information of the world around him, but he did get some knowledge of their language. Which wasn¡¯t too bad, since that was what he needed the most right now. And as he was finished seeing past memories of his latest victim, he noticed something else; he was completely naked. That¡¯s when he walked over to one of the cleaner bodies, and noticed something else. These clothes that they were wearing, they looked so weird. He had never seen something quite like it. They weren¡¯t adorned in rough furs, but smooth, thin fabric. It was the thinnest piece of cloth he had ever seen, and it was so light! He took the clothes off of the deceased man, and wore them for himself, and he had to admit; they were comfortable.


    It barely felt like he was wearing anything at all, but still gave him a sense of covering up his naked self. It quite interested him, how such items could even be crafted. But he still deduced that there was no way he would figure it out in the here and now, so instead, he looked at his surroundings. They seemed familiar, yet very different.


    He could still recognise that it was the place that he lived in for several years, but everything was so different. There was no life in the area surrounding him, and the forest was completely different too. It seemed to have grown a good deal further into the prairie, but there was one spot, where it abruptly stopped. And it wasn¡¯t where the cease of any living growth began, but further away than that. It was as if it was purposely stopped from growing any further, somehow.


    That, too, quite interested him. But not even that, nor the clothes pickled his mind quite as much, as one other particular matter. Why was he still alive? He remembered it clearly; being hacked to pieces, smashed to bits, burned to ashes; being devoured. But even that had failed to kill him. He had still managed to find a way back, somehow. Yet, this time he didn¡¯t have the slightest idea how long it had been. Unlike when he was trapped under the snow, when he was in a state of both consciousness and unconsciousness, this time he was completely gone. He didn¡¯t even have an inkling to how long it could have been.


    Thus, he decided he would leave this place, and follow the tracks of one of the two groups, which he could distinguish with his acute senses. In the end, he decided to follow the tracks of the group that had the weird wooden construct, which seemed to carry both stone and wood.


    However, as he walked, he did something he never knew he could do. He grew his hair, on command. His hair started rapidly growing, until it reached the state it had been at before; just above his shoulders. Ulfvaldr found this weird, for even in the about twenty years he had spent awake, before the battle, his hair had never even grown an inch.

 Announcement

    So, I have a bit of bad news. I''m not dropping the story or anything, but I''ll have to enter a small hiatus. I won''t go into details, but I will have to leave my country for a few days, and I won''t be able to write anything. It will be a week at the earliest until I''m back, so there won''t be any chapters for a while.This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.


    I''m sorry, but that''s how it is. See you then.

 Yet Another Announcement!

    Well, I''m back from my trip already, so that''s nice...


    What isn''t nice though, is the part where I''m in agonizing pain if I don''t take a shit ton of drugs... Yeah, not so nice. So yeah, I''m a bit sick, but it isn''t dangerous, just painful. The medicin I take also makes me a bit tired and drowsy, so I won''t have the energy to write as much, so expect a bit slower updates for the next probably up to two months. Anyways, I''ll upload chapter 2 later, even though I intended to stockpile a few chapters, but that will take too long now, so I''ll just upload as I finish I suppose.Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    But oh well, at least I have an editor now, so hopefully the quality shouldn''t fall low.


    I''m really sorry, but there is nothing I can do, and I just hope you understand. I will try to upload one chapter a week at the very least.

 Chapter 2

    Chapter 2


    ¡°What the¡­¡± the Keeper wondered aloud, as the eleven Priests stood behind him. At this moment, he stood at the center of the Grave, looking at the sight before him. There were dozens of corpses, all drained for blood, dirtying this ground he found so holy. Not long ago, he had noticed that his twelfth Priest had started running away from the Grave, at great speed. He had already gotten quite a distance away, since the Keeper didn¡¯t notice right away. Since he was fleeing so adamantly, the Keeper came to the most natural conclusion.


    The Grave had been attacked. However, the events the scene before his eyes described, was not what he had expected. The most holy Grave had been dirtied by human filth, and the protector of the Grave, the trusted Priest, was running away. But that was not what puzzled him so much. There were clear signs of an actual battle being fought here; not just a one sided slaughter, which would have been the case, if the they had fought the Priest, but an actual battle. Then, why was there no blood on the ground? But it made him think that it ought to have been the Priest that brought them here in the first place. After all, there was no way a group of construction workers would be here otherwise.


    ¡°Damnit! Go find that bastard, and bring him to me!¡± the Keeper shouted at his minions. Without delay, every single one of the Priests sped away in the direction of the twelfth Priest. As the Priests disappeared from sight, the Keeper stood alone on the ashen grounds of the Grave. He had spent so much time here, protected it for so long, but never before had something like this happened. Never before, had he let something like this slip through. And it was all because of that last, twelfth Priest! He had only served him for a few centuries, and he did indeed have reason to betray. But the Keeper thought he¡¯d put all that behind him.


    ¡°Why did he have to do this? No matter who does it, the punishment for dirtying this sacred ground is always death,¡± the Keeper spoke, as he finally walked away from the defiled area. He couldn¡¯t bear the sight anymore, and he also couldn¡¯t lower himself to cleaning the ground himself. He¡¯d have the Priests find someone to do it.


    Meanwhile, Ulfvaldr had already gotten quite a distance away his own gravesite. But as he walked, he was puzzled. He could feel all these connections, in all directions. These connections, they felt like small treads, connected him, and whatever was on the other side. Some felt like they originated thousands of miles away, and some like many sources were clustered together. He could even feel a good dozen connections behind him, which he guessed originated around where he just came from, and another one a bit farther away. For now, he decided to follow the one nearest to him, other than the ones at the grave.


    He didn¡¯t want to go back to the strange gravesite, since he didn¡¯t feel like it was a good idea to go see something that appeared just after he escaped. Thus, he walked towards another small group relatively nearby. This group consisted of only a few tread strands, so if whatever it was, was hostile, then he should still be able to at least escape, if not defeat it. He knew that he was much stronger than any human, but he didn¡¯t dare underestimate these ¡®treads¡¯. They most certainly didn¡¯t feel human.


    After a good hour of traveling, what appeared to be some sort of village appeared on the horizon. However, this village, it was nothing like he had ever seen. It combined a beauty he could never have imagined; the walls surrounding it were tall and straight, and made of stone constructs. The buildings were tall and majestic, and made from an assortment of stone and wood. But most of all, they seemed stable like nothing he had ever seen! It was simply amazing. Ulfvaldr didn¡¯t doubt that rain or wind would never make it through and bother the residents.


    The people inside this village wore clothes similar to the people he just killed. They were made of that same, thin fabric, and the weapons of the guards were just as shiny. It really seemed like it could cut through anything. He even saw two guards sparring, and each time their swords clashed, they spurred a golden glister; it was truly spectacular.


    Warily, he made his way closer to the village gate. He was prepared to fight at a moment¡¯s notice, but if possible, he would prefer to avoid fighting for now. There was too much he didn¡¯t know. Thus, he warily tried to enter through the gate, but he was quickly stopped by a guard.


    ¡°Hey, stop! Who are you?¡± the guard asked, but as his eyes hovered over to Ulfvaldr¡¯s eyes, his expression changed.


    ¡°Oh, excuse my behaviour Lord! Let me bring you to the manor. I¡¯m sure the other Lords will want to meet you,¡± the Guard said. Ulfvaldr was glad to see that he could understand his speech, which was no doubt thanks to the several dozen victims from before. Their memories had been enough to give Ulfvaldr a relatively complete understanding of the language.


    Thus, they walked the village, and for every step they took, he was even more astounded. Even the ground was marvellous! It was covered in the smoothest stone he had ever seen, and everything was so clean. But he was also rather puzzled. He was puzzled by the amount of people who were outside, at this time of day, and the way they looked at him. They no longer looked at him with fear and hatred, as they had done in the old days, but with awe and respect. He simply could not understand why.


    A few moments later, they appeared outside the largest construction Ulfvaldr had ever seen. It was a building, made out of smooth, white stone, even smoother than what they walked on before, and it was taller than any building he had ever seen. In the building there were also holes carved in, but they were all covered in some sort of cloth that seemed even finer than the clothes everyone wore.


    As they arrived outside the entrance of the building the guard had called a ¡®manor¡¯, Ulfvaldr was entrusted to another guard.


    ¡°Bring this Lord to see the other Lords, will you?¡± the guard asked the other. The manor guard looked at Ulfvaldr, and his expression immediately changed to one of awe and respect.


    ¡°Of course!¡± He answered, and quickly opened the door, to let Ulfvaldr in.


    ¡°Right this way, my Lord,¡± he said.


    Inside the building was also quite the marvellous sight. Everything was decorated with the finest items Ulfvaldr had ever seen, even though he had no idea what they were. Some of them seemed somewhat familiar, though, from all the memories he absorbed.


    The guard led him through several hallways, before arriving at another interesting construct. He had seen this several times before, as he was led through the manor. It seemed to function as a door, but you had to pull down some sort of handle to open it. It was rather marvellous.


    The guard knocked on the door, only for it to open on its own, much to Ulfvaldr¡¯s marvel. Ever since he revived, he had seen wonder after wonder. As the door had opened, the guard took a step inside but didn¡¯t move further into the room.


    ¡°Lord, there is a guest,¡± the guard announced. The man inside the room glanced towards the door and saw Ulfvaldr.


    ¡°Show him in,¡± the man said. The guard bowed, and left the room, letting Ulfvaldr inside. As Ulfvaldr stepped into the room, he made sure to look around him. Around the room, stood several shelves, filled with weird, rectangular objects. These objects were, as Ulfvaldr noticed once more, unfamiliar. Other than the shelves, there contained a few fine chairs, as well as a table placed more to inside of the room and, in front of the mysterious stranger.


    ¡°Please, sit down,¡± the man said, as he gestured to a chair, in front of the table. Ulfvaldr didn¡¯t say anything, and sat down on the chair. A short while after Ulfvaldr settled, the man finally spoke again.


    ¡°What brings you here?¡± He asked.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.


    ¡°The need for knowledge,¡± Ulfvaldr answered. The man was slightly surprised, because he noticed a slight accent in Ulfvaldr. It was rare to see anyone having an accent.


    ¡°Knowledge? Then what do you need to know?¡± The man said.


    ¡°What are you? You are not like the others; the humans. Your eyes, they¡¯re like mine,¡± Ulfvaldr said, much to the man¡¯s surprise.


    ¡°What am I? You mean you don¡¯t know what we are? Have you lived under a rock your entire life?¡± With man asked with apparent shock.


    ¡°Well, I suppose you could say that¡­ Or at least most of it,¡± he answered back.


    ¡°Hmm, well, this is strange, I must say. You really must have lived a lonesome, and sheltered life. Do you know how you became what you are, and how long it has been? And how¡¯s your thirst?¡± The man continued.


    I do not know how I became like this, nor how long it has been, but I quenched my thirst not long ago,¡± Ulfvaldr said. He had decided to not reveal the truth of his identity, knowing that it might bring countless troubles.


    ¡°Is that so? Well, I must say, that is very irresponsible of the one who turned you. To just turn a random stranger, then disappear. We will have to report this; he could be a danger to our society,¡± the man said.


    ¡°But oh well, I suppose I¡¯ll just have to help you. I¡¯m not one to abandon a helpless young Vampire,¡± he continued.


    ¡°Vampire?¡± Ulfvaldr asked, ¡°What is that?¡±


    ¡°Oh right, you lived under a rock, right? Well figuratively at least. A Vampire; that¡¯s what we are,¡± he said.


    ¡°A Vampire?¡± Ulfvaldr said. At this moment, Ulfvaldr¡¯s brain was wrecked as never before. He didn¡¯t doubt this man. Both of them were vampires, he was sure of it. Even from the beginning, he could feel a connection to him; a sense of familiarity. But before he revived, before the battle, he had never felt any treads like these. It had only been him. Just what could have changed, to make so many of them? And were they all just as powerful as he was?


    ¡°Just what is a Vampire? How are they born? Where did they come from?¡± Ulfvaldr asked.


    ¡°Well, the Vampire is a being of the night; a predator, like no other. As I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve already noticed, we cannot step into the sunlight, and we need blood to survive, but we possess unimaginable strength. As for how we¡¯re made, it¡¯s quite simple, actually. A human has to drink the blood of a Vampire, and then, in turn, be bitten by said Vampire. That way, a certain venom is injected into the human. Then, a few days later the human will die, and rise as a Vampire,¡± the man said.


    ¡°But for where we came from, that¡¯s a hard one. There are legends one how we came to be. Some think we always existed, but the most popular origin story, is the legend of the Grave. It goes something like this: once upon a time, there was a single beast that wreaked havoc upon humanity, killing tens of thousands, until finally, humanity formed an army and fought this original Vampire. The battle resulted in its final defeat, and the first vampires feasted upon his flesh and blood. The first vampires were the ones lucky enough to get bitten, by the original Vampire¡¯s final struggle. Whether it¡¯s true or not, I have no idea, however, the Grave is said to exist. One of the first vampires is its Keeper, and has twelve Priests as his helpers,¡± the man said.


    ¡°Hmmm, that certainly sounds interesting,¡± Ulfvaldr replied.


    ¡°Indeed it does. If you want to know more about our history, then you could visit the capital one day. There¡¯s a lot of historians there, but I¡¯m not too knowledgeable on that subject. Anyways, before we continue, maybe we should introduce ourselves?¡± the man said with a smile. It was only at this moment that Ulfvaldr realized that neither of them knows the other¡¯s name.


    ¡°My name is Ulfvaldr, but you can call my Valdr,¡± Ulfvaldr said.


    ¡°Ulfvalder? That name is a bit weird, and honestly, it doesn¡¯t really fit in well. How about I just call you Valdis? That way, you won¡¯t raise any questions,¡± the man said.


    ¡°I suppose,¡± Ulfvaldr answered.


    ¡°Great, then Valdis, let me introduce myself. My name is Labrax Draco, and I¡¯m the leader of this small town, as well as the head of the Draco family. I shall introduce you to the others later, though,¡± Labrax said. Labrax was a good looking man, but he was quite a bit shorter than Ulfvaldr, and his hair was of a lighter colour.


    ¡°What now?¡± Ulfvaldr asked, and to reply, Labrax gave him a wide smirk,


    ¡°Now, I will teach you about the true nature of our race, and all our abilities. You see, our physical strength isn¡¯t the only thing that makes us superior to humans. We also possess other, more mystical powers. As we age, we will gain even more of these powers. For one, we have the power of compulsion. With only the use of our eyes, we can force any mortal man to do anything we please, to any degree,¡± he started. As Ulfvaldr heard of this, he was clearly surprised. Even back in the day, he didn¡¯t know he had such a power.


    ¡°Is that true? Then, how do I do it?¡± Ulfvaldr, or Valdis as he was now called, asked with clear excitement. This was no minor power.


    ¡°It¡¯s simple, really. You just need to look your target into the eyes, then order them. You¡¯ll somehow feel the power inside you, but it might take a few tries, before you succeed. That¡¯s why we¡¯re going to practise now. Although, you should know that it only works on humans, so don¡¯t go trying it on any Vampire, or you¡¯ll risk angering them,¡± Labrax said, before standing up from his chair.


    ¡°Well then, follow me,¡± he then said, before leaving the room. Ulfvaldr promptly followed. After leaving the room, they took a short walk, until they found the nearest guard.


    ¡°He¡¯ll do I suppose. Just look him into the eyes, then pull that power up from deep within yourself, and order him. You¡¯ll probably fail the first few times, so don¡¯t worry,¡± Labrax said. Thus, Valdis moved in front of the nervous guard. As he looked him into the guard¡¯s eyes, he started searching within himself, for a hidden power. However, much to his surprise, it took barely a second, until he felt like he could grab at a majestic power. It was unlike anything he¡¯d felt before; it made him feel like he could control anything, no matter what it was. Without breaking eye contact with the guard, he said,


    ¡°Don¡¯t breathe,¡± and suddenly, the guard stopped breathing, all while an anxious expression built up on his face. It didn¡¯t take long, until he started clawing at his mouth, then throat, trying to breath. However, no matter what he did, he couldn¡¯t breathe at all. Meanwhile, Labrax was looking at his new friend in shock.


    ¡°Oh my, you¡¯re a quick learner¡­ I¡¯ve never seen anyone do it on their first try, or even to this degree. But, you should really let him breathe again. No reason to kill him,¡± Labrax said.


    ¡°Oh, right,¡± Valdis said, before looking him into the eyes once more, ¡°you can breathe again,¡± he said, and the guard started gasping uncontrollably.


    ¡°Thank you, thank you kind Lord,¡± he said, as he had finally caught his breath again. Then, the two vampires left him behind without ceremony, or even a word.


    ¡°What other powers do we possess?¡± Valdis asked, as the continued walking through the halls of the manor.


    ¡°Hmm, we do not have as many powers at a young age, as when we¡¯ve aged some. However, there are still some. For example, if you concentrate, you should be able to see the aura of the people around you. Seeing the aura of people, is a great way to distinguish between vampires and humans, for example. A normal human, usually has a red aura, but a vampire¡¯s aura tends to be darker, like grey, or even black. Try it now, and tell me if you succeed again,¡± Labrax said.


    ¡°Alright,¡± Valdis answered, as he started to concentrate. Thus, he closed his eyes, and focused, until, after only a short moment, once more, he started to see a grey light through his closed eye lids.


    ¡°I can see it. Your aura, its grey,¡± Ulfvaldr said, causing Labrax to give a magnificent smile, as he grasped at Valdis¡¯s shoulder.


    ¡°Magnificent! I¡¯ve never seen someone as talented as you! It¡¯s just amazing,¡± he said, with clear excitement. This wasn¡¯t just the marvel of seeing a talent, but the fact that this talent was under his own nurture. This would greatly benefit his sphere of power, so he¡¯d certainly want Valdis to work for him.


    ¡°Alright, now try concealing your power. I¡¯ll look at your aura, and check how well you do. Are you ready?¡± He asked again. Now he wanted to see just how far he could take it; learning the abilities in an instant.


    ¡°Alright,¡± Valdis answered, and once more started concentrating. And indeed, once more it only took him an instant, before he saw the power within himself. This time he attempted and managed to hide it, where no one could see it. Again, it only took an instant for Labrax to, once more, have a shocked expression.


    ¡°This, this, I didn¡¯t even seen your aura yet, and you already concealed it? Just how far does your power reach? Ah, it doesn¡¯t matter, this is tremendously good news! Listen to me, Valdis, it¡¯s best if you keep your powers concealed, you hear me? If other larger powers hear word of your prowess, they¡¯ll try and steal you away. Sure, it might sound good, but trust me, it¡¯s best if you stay here, until your power is solidified. That way, you¡¯ll be able to secure yourself a better future,¡± Labrax said.


    ¡°Well, if you think that¡¯s for the best,¡± Valdis said.


    ¡°I do think it¡¯s for the best. Your freedom will be seriously restricted, if you join one of the big powers, at least compared to how it¡¯s here,¡± he said.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll trust you. After all, I know too little of this world,¡± Valdis said, as a strange light entered his eyes.

 Chapter 3

    Chapter 3


    ¡°As you know, we vampires possess many powers, but most of them only manifest as we age. As we age, our physical strengths will also increase, but what makes elder vampires so strong is their mystical powers. For example, some rare vampires even possess the powers of clairvoyance and divination,¡± Labrax said. Currently, Labrax and Valdis were both walking through the gardens behind the manor. It was quite the sight, as there was a huge assortment of plants and flowers, and the entire garden was surrounded by a green wall of vegetation.


    ¡°Clairvoyance and divination? What are those powers exactly?¡± Valdis asked. By now, he spoke the language perfectly, and without even a hint of an accent. This caused Labrax come to the conclusion that Valdis possessed great mental capabilities, which might be why his abilities were so powerful, and why it was so easy for him the master them.


    ¡°Clairvoyance is the ability to see events that are happening elsewhere, or places out of view. Divination, on the other hand, is the capability to see the future. Divination is one of the rarest ability for any Vampire to have. Personally, I¡¯ve only heard of vampires possessing it, but never seen one,¡± Labrax explained.


    ¡°I see. Those abilities certainly sound powerful,¡± Valdis admitted.


    ¡°Indeed. As I said, only the most powerful vampires have them. Other abilities that you can gain, include mind reading, and photokinesis. Oh, and photokinesis is the ability to manipulate light. It¡¯s also one of the more powerful abilities, but most vampires develop to get a similar ability rather quickly, which is shadow manipulation. It is considered a sub power of photokinesis, I suppose,¡± Labrax said.


    ¡°These powers, they all seem so powerful,¡± Valdis admitted, quite overwhelmed. All those powers, greatly exceeded what he was capable of before the battle, or at least what he knew he was capable of.


    ¡°Indeed, but that¡¯s not all. Not only do old vampires get powers naturally, as they age, but some are even able to develop their own unique abilities, somehow. For example, one developed the ability to manipulate metal, or ferrokinesis, as it was dubbed. Another one developed clairaudience, which allowed him to hear sounds from the Spiritual Plane,¡± he said.


    ¡°Spiritual Plane?¡± Valdis asked, once more being introduced to an unknown concept.


    ¡°Oh right, I keep forgetting just how ignorant you are, no offence,¡± Labrax said with a laugh.


    ¡°The Spiritual Plane is the plane of spirits. Surprising, right? Wait, you do know what spirits are, right?¡± Labrax explained, then asked, slightly worried about the inconceivable ignorance of his friend.


    ¡°Yes, I do know about spirits,¡± Valdis relieved him.


    ¡°Wait, how quickly does a Vampire get stronger, exactly?¡± Valdis asked.


    ¡°Hmm, well, it depends, actually. You see, not all vampires are equal. vampires are usually divided into the generations. The first generation, are, as you might imagine, the first vampires, other than the legendary Progenitor. The second generation vampires are the ones who were turned by the first generation, and the third generation were turned by the second generation. There three generations are the strongest ones. After that, comes the collective ¡®fourth generation¡¯. You see, all vampires after the third generation are usually just called the fourth generation, as the power difference after that becomes exceedingly minor. As for what generation you are, we can only wonder, I suppose,¡± Labrax said. So far, this had all turned to be very informative. Apparently, Ulfvaldr, or Valdis, was supposed to be the Progenitor of this race, yet he knew so little of his own people.


    ¡°I see. I suppose that makes sense. What about you? What generation are you from?¡± Valdis asked.


    ¡°Oh, me? I¡¯m from the one and only, third generation!¡± Labrax announced with a proud smile.


    ¡°The third generation? Then you ought to be quite old right? And while we¡¯re on this topic, is there any limit to a vampire¡¯s lifespan?¡± Valdis asked.


    ¡°Not as far as I¡¯m aware of. Also, I¡¯m not really that old, to be honest. If I was really old and powerful, I wouldn¡¯t only rule over a small township. Usually the third generation are all bigshots, and very old, but really, I¡¯ve only lived for a few centuries,¡± he admitted.


    ¡°A few centuries? That¡¯s not considered a lot?¡± Valdis asked. Back in his old world, they did not have the concept of centuries, but luckily for him, he had grasped that concept from the memories of his victims.


    ¡°Sure, for a normal Vampire, it¡¯d be considered quite old, but most third generation vampires are already over a thousand years old,¡± he finally revealed with a self-mocking smile. He seemed a bit embarrassed by how young he was. He made him feel inferior to his peers.


    However, as the two men were speaking, suddenly something happened. Another man, also a Vampire, rushed out into the garden, looking for Labrax.


    ¡°Labrax, there¡¯s trouble! Or at least I think it¡¯s trouble,¡± the man said. This man had hair as dark as the night itself, and his hair hung all the way down his back, which was much different, compared to the shorter, much lighter hair of Labrax. However, as he announced the arrival of trouble, his eyes trailed over to Valdis.


    ¡°Wait, who¡¯s this?¡± He asked. He was quite puzzled over the arrival of a new Vampire. And to top it all off, he couldn¡¯t even feel a hint of his aura. The only thing that revealed the stranger¡¯s true nature, were his eyes.


    ¡°Ah, this is Valdis. He just arrived here, seeking help. He¡¯s a newcomer to the Vampire race, and apparently lived under a rock. So, he doesn¡¯t really know anything about anything. That¡¯s why I¡¯ve decided to help him. Now, tell me, what exactly is wrong?¡± Labrax said.


    ¡°It¡¯s, it¡¯s the Priests! Two of them have arrived here, asking questions. They requested that you come immediately,¡± the man announced.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    ¡°Who are the Priests?¡± Valdis asked.


    ¡°They¡¯re second generation vampires, working for a first generation Vampire, known as the Keeper. He¡¯s one of the most mysterious first generation vampires, and also one of the most powerful. I¡¯ll tell you more later,¡± Labrax said, before he rushed out of the garden, into the house. However, only a moment later, he came back out, followed by two, white robed men. The three headed in a straight course over to Valdis.


    ¡°Valdis, these two gentlemen are two of the Priests I told you about,¡± Labrax said, rather nervously.


    ¡°They would, eh, like to have a word with you,¡± he finally continued. However, Valdis didn¡¯t even get a chance to reply, before one of the Priests butted in.


    ¡°Did you just come from the Grave?¡± The Priest asked.


    ¡°The Grave?¡± Valdis repeated, just before Labrax butted in.


    ¡°Oh right, exalted Priest, Valdis is very ignorant. He knows little, since he¡¯s lived a secluded life until now,¡± he said.


    ¡°I see,¡± the Priest said. ¡°Did you just come from an ashen plain, covered in human corpses?¡± The Priest then asked. As he talked, he showed very little emotion, and almost sounded monotone.


    ¡°What is it to you?¡± Valdis asked back. He was on guard now, afraid that these Priests would do something drastic. However, the only answer he got, was,


    ¡°Answer the question.¡±


    The Priests wouldn¡¯t even answer a single question of his; the only thing they were interested in were answers for themselves. The reason they had come here in the first place, was they had discovered independent tracks, leading away from the Grave. Thus, they had come here, where the tracks had led them. When they arrived, they had quickly questioned Labrax, and the fact being that they were Priests, he didn¡¯t dare withhold any important information. Especially not for someone he just met, no matter how talented he was.


    ¡°I suppose,¡± Valdis finally answered. As he answered, the Priests finally showed interest.


    ¡°Did you kill the humans there? And how did you get there?¡± They immediately asked him. There was even a hint of intimidation in the air. However, Valdis decided not to tell them the whole truth. Without even showing a single sign of lying, he said,


    ¡°I did kill them. I woke up a short distance away from that dead plain, with a thirst that seemed never ending. That¡¯s why killed them all, and drunk their blood. However, it¡¯s worth to note that they were already fighting, before I got there.¡±


    The two priests looked at each other, before nodding their heads a single time.


    ¡°You don¡¯t seem to be lying,¡± the first Priest said.


    ¡°And it¡¯s also possible that he turned you, before running away, attempting to lead us astray,¡± the other continued. Then once more, they looked at each other for a while, silently, before continuing.


    ¡°Alright, all is good for now. We will be back later, to confirm whether he¡¯s the one that turned you, or it was just coincidence. Either way, make sure to stay here, until everything is cleared up,¡± the first Priest said, before they turned away.


    ¡°Wait a second, who is this ¡®he¡¯ you refer to?¡± Valdis asked, before they left.


    ¡°That is not important for now. If you¡¯re destined to know, you will know soon enough,¡± the second Priest said, and then they left.


    Outside the town, they two Priests appeared, in an open area.


    ¡°He most certainly didn¡¯t lie,¡± the second Priest said.


    ¡°Indeed. We will bring him to the Keeper later. He will be able to tell whether or not he¡¯s from his bloodline. Until then, he just needs to stay put,¡± the first Priest stated.


    ¡°Then we¡¯ll order someone to watch over him, so that nothing unexpected happens,¡± the second Priest continued, before they disappeared once more. Meanwhile Valdis and Labrax were still standing in the garden. From the moment the two Priests left, Valdis had been still and silent, focusing his entire intent of listening to the two Priests, as the left. And indeed, he had managed to eavesdrop on them, even when they were so far away. But even then, he hadn¡¯t learned much.


    ¡®I wonder who this Keeper is,¡¯ was all he could think in his head.


    ¡°Well, that was¡­ unexpected,¡± Labrax said, as he looked at his new friend. Originally, he had wanted to recruit him, and have him stay here, but now it seemed like he didn¡¯t even have a choice. Valdis was going to have to stay with him.


    ¡°Did you really come from the Grave?¡± Labrax asked. He himself had never even seen the Grave, so for this stranger to have come from there was rather weird.


    ¡°I suppose so,¡± Valdis answered. ¡°You mentioned the Grave before right?¡± Valdis continued.


    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s where Vampirism was supposed to have started. A very religious place,¡± he said.


    ¡°Oh well, let¡¯s go back inside. You¡¯re going to have to stay here from now on, so I¡¯ll get you a room. But it¡¯s just as well; this way we¡¯ll have time to teach you the norms of our world,¡± Labrax said, as he walked towards the entrance of the mansion, and Valdis followed. The two entered the building and walked through several corridors, even going up stairs a few times, which quite caused the ignorant Valdis to marvel again. Never in his life, had he seen stairs before. Before he knew it, they had arrived outside a door that was quickly opened by Labrax.


    ¡°This¡¯ll be your room. Go make yourself comfortable, and get some rest. The sun will be coming up soon, so we¡¯ll talk further tomorrow,¡± Labrax said, as he showed Valdis into his new room. It seemed like this night had just been filled with marvel after marvel, and now, once more, he was being marvelled. As he entered the room, he saw a bed like no other. It was larger than any cot he had ever slept on; it even hailed half a meter above the ground.


    As he touched it, it was like the softest thing he had ever touched. And its white surface was smooth, like the finest silk, and it felt very comforting to the skin. Valdis was simply frozen in place, at the luxurious room. It wasn¡¯t only the bed. Even the floor was adorned in a soft carpet.


    ¡°I see you quite like it, huh? It must be different from what you¡¯re used to, I reckon. Anyways, have a good rest. I¡¯ll have someone bring a wash basin here, as well as a change of clothes. What you¡¯re wearing is rather common, after all,¡± Labrax said, as he left the room, and closed the door behind him.


    When he was finally left alone in the room, he finally laid down on the bed, flat. He was rather tired, after everything that happened. Coming into a new world, where absolutely everything was different, and he even met with a whole race sharing many of his characteristics, which was rather stressful. Thus, he closed his eyes, and let himself fall into a deep, relaxing sleep.

 Chapter 4

    Chapter 4


    Valdis stood in front of perhaps the strangest object he had ever seen; although, he had experienced that quite a lot the last day. Said object was clearly solid, and even hung on the wall, but even then it was like the clearest of all rivers. He could perfectly see his own pale complexion reflected on its surface. It was even clearer than any river, which were often covered in ripples and waves. He could see his messy dark hair, his crimson eyes, and even the retractable fangs in his mouth.


    Indeed, it was quite the sight. It was only on occasions such as these that he could truly see the differences between him, and the humans. The skin of humans was always so colourful, sometimes straight out dark, while his skin was pale as snow. Never had he seen a human which eyes like his own, either. Indeed, he remembered that once, a long time ago, he too possessed normal, brown eyes, but that was already a long time ago, in an age long passed.


    Ah, those humans, how much pain they had caused him. They had taken his only love away, and in the end, they had been the end of him; or so he had thought, until he awakened once more. As he thought of the humans, his mind naturally trailed to that little girl, he had cared for so long. In the end, it was she who had betrayed him, but he supposed it wasn¡¯t her fault. She was na?ve, and knew little of the world. And in the end, it could even have been his own fault. Indeed, as the little girl, Tora, had fled away, and been captured by the young man, he had still heard their conversation, even while he fought.


    He supposed that he had somehow forced them to act against him, and perhaps he had enacted his wrath over the wrong people. But even then, he could not forgive. What he did not realize at the time, was that he had long since avenged his past lover, at least for the most part. There was however, still someone left that had to pay; the true perpetrator; the Shaman. He no longer possessed the dire need to kill all of humanity. He simply wanted to find out if the Shaman still lived, and perhaps punish those who had fed on his own flesh.


    But did still not dare act against them. He could feel that he still didn¡¯t possess his full power; like he hadn¡¯t unlocked the power that had built up over the millennia he had slept. His personal theory was that it would quickly come to him over the next few years, but he supposed he would speak to Labrax about the issue.


    On the matter of the first vampires however, he was still somewhat conflicted. Should he kill them, or should he let them be? It was his own blood that now flowed through their veins, so were they not his family now? His descendants? He truly did not know whether he should kill them or not. For now he would stay his hand, and instead focus on finding out the fate of the Shaman, as well as Tora. If the vampires have shown her cruelty and killed her, he would show them no mercy, and destroy all of them, but if she had lived a full life, then he could forgive.


    The possibility of her being still alive also existed. After all, he had already learned that his vampirism could be spread to others, and it gave an eternal life span, so she could still be alive, somewhere. It wasn¡¯t impossible that one of the first vampires had turned her, or that Tor guy. From what he understood, Tor was the one who led them to him, so it wouldn¡¯t have been weird for him to be rewarded.


    For now though, these were all just thoughts. In the here and now, he would instead focus his attention on learning about this mysterious world he had found himself in, and solidify his strength. He seemed to have found himself in safe hands, too. He always had a knack for seeing through people, and he never saw any ill intent in the eyes of Labrax. Perhaps a bit of selfishness, but that was the nature of any self-aware being.


    Even Ulfvaldr, or Valdis as his name now was, had shown selfishness on numerous occasions. First, when he had Tola, his late lover, stay with him in the cave, and second, when he took Tora, and raised her. When he did those two things, it had instinctively been for himself, and himself only.


    As Valdis stood in his own thoughts, he started getting thirsty. Thus, he left his room, and then the mansion, exiting through the main door. As he left, the mansion guard saluted him, and Valdis nodded to him. He felt weird, being saluted by a mortal human. For most of his life, humans had been scared of him, but now everyone looked at him with awe and respect.


    After leaving the mansion, he wandered a short distance away, until he came upon a lone woman, who was hanging her laundry to dry. Even this, was a strange sight to Valdis¡¯ eyes. She hung the clothes unto strings, where they would be left to dry throughout the night. This, of course, was not something the Ulfvaldr of the past had seen before.


    But he had not come here to gaze at the wonders of the new age. No, he had come to feed. Thus, he walked up to the poor woman, who immediately froze in surprise, before she quickly greeted him.


    ¡°Good evening, my Lord!¡± She said, but before she could utter another word, Valdis had grabbed her by the neck, and bit into her flesh. The woman was shocked, as two sharp fangs sank into her neck, but she found herself unable to both scream, as well as breathe, for her neck had already been torn to pieces. Only a moment later, her corpse decorated the ground.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    Not another moment later, Labrax appeared out of nowhere.


    ¡°Ah, hells! I was too late! What the hell are you doing?¡± Labrax screamed, grabbed his head with both arms, almost tearing his hair out, but, he quickly calmed down. Valdis looked at him weirdly, not sure what exactly was going on. He just went out for a drink, that¡¯s all.


    ¡°Ah, of course, you wouldn¡¯t know any better¡­ I keep forgetting just how ignorant you are. Look, Valdis, my friend, you can¡¯t just go around killing someone, whenever you¡¯re thirsty. There are rules in place, you know,¡± Labrax explained, much to Valdis¡¯ surprise.


    ¡°Rules? You mean you don¡¯t just kill someone when feeding?¡± Valdis said.


    ¡°Great, not only are you ignorant, you also don¡¯t know the value of human resources. You see, if we kill a human whenever we¡¯re thirsty, they will quickly go extinct. And we need humans, not only for food, but work as well. Without humans, we won¡¯t have any workers, you understand?¡± Labrax explained once more.


    ¡°Yes, I think so. I guess that makes sense,¡± Valdis said.


    ¡°Good. So, don¡¯t kill people randomly, or you¡¯ll normally get a fine of a few coins. Only vampires get off with such light punishment, if a human kills another human, he¡¯ll be either imprisoned or executed. Punishment is usually laxer on vampires, but there are still numerous laws to follow, which I will teach you later, so don¡¯t worry. Now, let¡¯s go back, you still haven¡¯t met the others of the Draco house,¡± Labrax said, as he walked back towards the mansion.


    ¡°Alright, and I¡¯m sorry for the trouble,¡± Valdis apologized. Before they entered the mansion, Labrax told the entrance guard to have someone clean up the corpse, and compensate the family. It was surprisingly kind of him to do so.


    At that moment, Labrax decided to teach Valdis common sense. He seemed to be severely lacking in that department and would surely bring trouble upon himself and possibly Labrax¡¯ house if left alone. Thus, they entered the mansion, appearing in the entrance hall, and then walked straight forwards, into the main hall. The main hall had a large dining table in the middle, and around the dining table, four people were seated. One of them was the long dark haired man who announced the arrival of the Priests.


    Another of them was female. She, too, had long hair, although it was a bit shorter than the first man¡¯s, and of a lighter shade, similar to Labrax¡¯. Her face was abnormally beautiful, and even Valdis found his throat dry for words at her appearance. Her skin was as smooth as silk, and as pale as snow. Her breasts bulged out of her chest, and were perfectly accentuated by her clothes. She had the most perfect curves, but somehow still managed to look modest and refined. Valdis¡¯ eyes kept lingering on her for a while. It was the most stunning beauty he had ever seen, even compared to Tola.


    The third person was another male. Compared to the long haired one, he looked more manly, with his short, dark brown hair, and squared face. He even looked a bit brawny. The fourth, and last, person, too, was in perfect contrast with everyone else. Compared to the brawny and feminine look of the two strangers, and the charming, almost playful look of Labrax, this one looked refined, and wise. He kept his sight fixed on a book he held by the center with his fingers, as he drank out of his chalice.


    As Labrax and Valdis entered the room, all eyes suddenly fell upon the newcomer. The three, whom Valdis had yet to meet all looked excited, while the long haired one was a bit more curious than excited, and only wanted to learn the newcomer¡¯s name.


    ¡°Everyone, this here is the newest addition to our family, Valdis. It is very important that all of us help him in this strange time, since he truly knows nothing of our world. Now, everyone, introduce yourselves,¡± Labrax said. As soon as he finished speaking, the brawny stranger stood up, the excitement clearly visible on his face.


    ¡°Oh, this is exciting! There¡¯s hasn¡¯t been a new addition to our family in ages! Let me introduce myself. My name is Parmus Draco, and I¡¯m the second youngest of our family, not counting you,¡± he said.


    Next, was the intelligent looking youngster,


    ¡°My name is Pythos Draco, and I¡¯m the youngest, still not counting you. I must say, it will be nice to not have to live with that role anymore¡­¡± Pythos said. The third male, the most feminine of the bunch, perhaps even more so than the female herself, was the next to rise,, maybe even more so that the female herself.


    ¡°I¡¯m Actos Draco, the third oldest, nice to meet you,¡± he said, rather simply, then sat back down to sip his drink. The fourth, and final one to stand up, was the beautiful woman.


    ¡°My name is Alayla Draco and I¡¯m the second oldest, as well as the true sister of Labrax. I¡¯m honoured to meet you,¡± she said with a kind smile, before sitting down again. Then, it was finally Valdis¡¯ turn, to introduce himself.


    ¡°The honour is all with me,¡± he started. He had never been taught that he should respond like that, but it still felt like the natural response to him. After all, should he not be honoured to see such a peerless beauty?


    ¡°As you know, I am now known as Valdis, however, I was born with the name Ulfvaldr. It is fine to call me Valdis, though. It is my honour to meet all of you, and I look forward to our time together,¡± Valdis said. As he spoke, everyone suddenly found themselves speechless, including Labrax. There was a strange warmth in his voice and eyes, and as they heard him, they could feel it, and as they looked into his eyes, they could see it. It was as if Ulfvaldr had finally found a place where he could belong. He had finally found someone he could call family. Because in Valdis¡¯ mind that is what he wanted these people to be. They were his descendants, people reborn from his blood; his family.

 Hiatus

    Well, here comes the bad news...


    I think I''m going to stop posting for a while. It''s just that I don''t really have any motivation to write any more. As simple as that. Now, don''t get too worried, this isn''t anything new. Some of you may know that I actually started writing this book before I started posting it on here. Back in November, to be exact. Back then, I wrote the first eight or so chapters, before I stopped. Then I began writing again around the time, I first started posting, and finished it in like less than two weeks.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.


    So, my decision is that I will stop posting for now, until the second book is either finished, or close to finished. Then I will release it on big swoop. I might even make a website, where I''ll put all the chapters up at once, then release it once a day, or every two days on here. You know, for exposure :P


    Until then, I might dabble with other stories, until I get enough ideas about what to write in EC:GB. Don''t know if I would post it, though.


    Also, if you have any requests or ideas, this is where to post them. I''ll periodically check this post out, and if I see any good ideas that I like, I''ll use them.


    Thanks for your understanding and support,


    The Chronicler.

 Book 1 now out on Amazon and Smashwords!

    Hello, and long time no see. Recently, I decided to finally publish the first book, so I went through it and edited it. I fixed many mistakes, but I''m no professional editor. Maybe I''ll hire one.


    But anyways, you can buy the edited version on Amazon and Smashwords for $2.99 now. Oh, and you''ll get 25% off until 18th of May on Smashwords. I''d appreciate it greatly if you''d buy the book, but the first book is still available here on RRL. I might not upload the second book here, though.This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.


    And speaking of book 2, it''s in the works. Hopefully, you can count on seeing it within the next few months, but I''ll post here when it''s out, no worries. Also, after the 18th of May, I''ll probably post again, with a new coupon code for you loyal RRL readers, and I''ll do the same with book 2 and onwards. This is where I began, so I do appreciate you people. Buy my book if you want to read it again with a better reading experience, and thanks!


    The links are up above and below, since I can only do links in the pre and post chapter notes, apparently.

 New Website and Promotional Offer

    Hello, readers. As some of you may know, book 1 one the Eternal Chronicles has been released on Amazon and Smashwords, and the second book is in the works.


    To celebrate, I''ve decided to do a promotional offer. I will give a free copy of the book, to everyone who subsribes to my mailing list, until the 23rd of May, 2018.


    To join my mailing list, all you have to do, is go to my website, linked in the pre and post chapter notes, and fill the form in the upper left corner on the home page. It just required your email, nothing else. I won''t share it with anyone, or send you any spam, so don''t worry. You will just get updates on the new book, and maybe some more deals in the future.Stolen novel; please report.


    When you have subscribed, you will be sent an email with instructions on how to claim your free book.


    I hope many of you will help grow my email list!


    Thanks,


    The Chronicler

 Paperback version now available! Also, theres a promotional offer for a free copy of the eBook!

    Hello, readers.


    As you may know, I just released the first book of Eternal Chronicles as an eBook, and now I''m happy to announce that there is also a paperback version available. For now, the versions have separate pages, due to Amazon taking a while to combine them.


    You can buy the eBook for $2.99 and the paperback version for $12.99, on Amazon.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    And in case you didn''t know, there''s also a promotional offer running until next Wednesday, the 23rd of May. All you have to do is visit my website, and subsribe to my email list by filling the form in the upper left corner. All you need is to enter your email address. I won''t share it with anyone, and your mailbox won''t be filled with spam. I will simply email you on future books and updates, as well as some promotional offers from time to time. It''s the pristine way to stay in touch with my work.


    Thanks for reading!


    The Chronicler

 Get book 1 for free on amazon now!

    For the next five days, until next Saturday, 26th of May, a free book promotion will be going on. You just need to go to Amazon, and grab the book! Then, you''ll be able to read it on your kindle, or kindle app.


    Also, make sure to sign up for my mailing list on my website, to stay informed on future updates on Eternal Chronicles, and more promotional deals!


    Also, please make sure you review the book on Amazon! And please go to myTwitter</a>and help spread the word, by following me, and retweeting my tweets. Thanks in advance.Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    The Chronicler