Forged By Blood & Mist

As she entered the mausoleum, her cloak billowed down the large spiral stone staircase behind her. As she came to the last step, candles and arrangements of flowers were set out before the coffin but no one was in sight. Good, right on time she supposed. She preferred to be here alone.

After her father King Throian Stormforge died fighting their kingdom's enemies, Selene took it upon herself to uphold the battle he left behind as she was his only heir. There are no enemies left to cross The Kingdom of Shadowmyre. Although many would see this as a great victory, a cost was paid. The Kingdom now cowared within itself out of fear of its Queen. The vengeance she took on behalf was necessary but left behind something sinister in nature.

There was a time when Selene lived a simpler life, a normal princess. She attended courtly dances and feasts and was considered a prize amongst the other royal courts for marriage. She met many suitors and had always turned them down much to her father’s disdain. She needed to marry into a royal bloodline, especially one that could help the political climate and provide aid in the ongoing war. But no one could hold a candle to Tassian. 

Tassian was a simple man. He was not born of royal blood, but his artistry and yearning for adventure are what claimed Selene’s heart. She would often sneak out of her bedroom window, climbing down the latticework without a sound to not wake her parents. They often met in the cover of dusk and stayed throughout the twilight, always ensuring Selene was back in the castle by dawn. They would walk along the midnight-tinted rivers and talk for hours. 

A small cottage in the Eldori Woods across the lake from Castle Shadowmyre was where Tassian lived. The cottage’s exterior was adorned with climbing vines, their leaves shimmering in various hues, and a thatched roof blended seamlessly with the landscape with a cobblestone path leading up to the arched doorway.

The cottage walls were made of stones whose color would change with the sunlight. Two small, arched windows on each side allowed natural light to filter in and the windows were adorned with curtains made of ethereal fabric that gently swayed in the breeze. The inside was just as enchanting. A fireplace cast a warm glow throughout the room and across the rustic furniture when lit. Painting supplies were always strewn about and paintings of the forests, lakes, and small creatures that Tassian could find were hung along the walls. Tassian’s most prized possession was his pencil drawing of Selene in a small sketchbook he kept hidden underneath his pillow. 

When Selene had told Tassian of her plan to enter the war, he fought her day and night.

“Selene, I’m begging you..” He pleaded, his voice small and weak.

“I must. It is my duty, my people need me!” Selene shouted back. This conversation had been going on for too long and she was beginning to grow frustrated. 

Tassian paced back and forth across the mismatched wooden planks on the floor.

“I understand you believe it’s your duty Selene but,” He paused, then let out an exasperated sigh.

“You will die! The Kingdom of Silverwyn has withdrawn its forces and it’s only a matter of time before the Ebonhaven soldiers take the eastern sea. You may be your father’s heir but that does not mean this war is your burden.”

Selene looked back at him as a mist began to fill her eyes. 

“I know this is hard Tass, but I have to go. This is a sacrifice that I must make,” she replied flatly.

“Your father would not think less of you if you fled.” Tassian bit back with a venomous tinge in his words. Regret began to take place in his features “Shit…Selene…I - “

“Do not ever speak of my father again.” Selene cut through his apology with a swiftness Tassian had never seen her express before.

Tassian gave one last plea. “What if we eloped? We could go tonight! There's a small town, Mysthaven Hollow, past the eastern sea. We can take a boat. I’ve saved up enough coins for a trip. We could leave tonight and no one would be the wiser!”

Selene looked at him with bewilderment “You’re asking me this NOW?!” She let out with a thunderous tone. 

“All this time you’ve had to ask me to marry you and you choose to ask now, as a bargaining tool?”

Tassian stopped his pacing, his face turning ghastly. “Selene..I’m so - I don’t know - I’m not sure what I was thinking. You’re right. I shouldn’t have suggested that. Not now.”

“NO, you shouldn’t have.” Selene checked her posture, lifting her chin up and pressing her shoulders back. 

“I cannot marry you Tassian. I need to serve my people.” 

Selene turned on her heel and began to walk out of the room as Tassian whispered, “I’ll find a way to write to you.”

The air was thick with tension on the battlefield, armor glinted in the midday sun and banners fluttered in the wind. The ground beneath Selene’s feet trembled as the soldiers clashed their swords and shields. Screams echoed through her ears as cries of pain formed a cacophony that reverberated through the very earth, the metallic scent of blood filling Selene’s senses. Then came the stench of burning flesh. 

Ebonhaven had formed an alliance with the Mages of the Celestrialis Enclave which Shadowmyre had not anticipated. The Celestralis mages were known to stay amongst themselves. Powerful wizards and sorcerers began casting spells of hellfire that rained upon Shadowmyre soldiers, melting through their shields and armor.  

The landscape had transformed into a nightmarish tableau of carnage. A fiery blast just a few feet from Selene managed to knock her off her horse. The next thing Selene saw was a flash of black as a soft, melodic voice caressed the inside of her head like soft velvet.

“Don’t be afraid." the mysterious voice whispered.

“Father?” Selene asked. She knew it wasn’t him, but she asked anyway out of desperation for solace or hope.

“Call me by any name that suits you, as long as you know I am the key to you and your people's survival,” it whispered back.

“What do you want from me?” She asked in return.

“I’m here to offer you something. Something extraordinary. A power beyond anything you could ever dream to comprehend..” The voice slithered across her mind.

Selene felt it then, the snake that had begun to wrap itself around her very heart. Yet she ignored her instincts and inquired “What kind of power?”

It was almost as if she could feel the mysterious figure begin to smirk “The kind that will reshape your world. The kind that will turn the tides of this war should you so choose.”

“And at what cost?” Selene wheezed. She could feel what little air left in her lungs begin to dissipate. She did not have much time left.

“Details, details. Take my offer, or leave it. The choice is yours, Selene. Do you want to leave your people here to die? Do you want to see your beloved Tassian again?” The voice growled in response.

Selene used the small amount of strength she had to place her hand over her breastplate. His letters. He had promised he would write, and he did. A raven had arrived nearly every week to her outpost camp. She read the letters, exclaiming his utmost apologies for how things were left between them, how he was waiting for her to return so he could propose to her properly. She had never gathered the courage to reply.

“What do I need to seal this...deal with you?” Selene asked.

“Well, there’s no need to shake on it. I’ll let you have a precursor of the power I’ll bestow upon you. And when the time presents itself, I’ll let you know what I need to relinquish it to you, forever. How does that sound?” 

The mysterious voice asked. This time Selene was sure she could feel its grin.

Before she could attempt to take a moment and weigh the proposal, the sound of battle filled her ears again. She could hear the screaming, the clashing of metal, the sound of flesh burned beneath fire. 

“Tsk tsk tsk. Running out of time princess. What will it be?” The voice asked calmly, yet with a hint of frustration.

“Deal”

That was all Selene needed to say before the depthless dark that had surrounded her disappeared as she was brought back to the battlefield, now covered in the cool blues and blacks of moonlight. The eerie glow of the moon cast elonged shadows on the ground as soldiers continued clashing. Selene stood and felt a fiery rage set in her bones. She looked down at her hands and made small fists. She suddenly felt every inch of blood pumping through her veins. As she picked up her sword from the blood-drenched ground, she moved with an unnatural grace through the chaos.

Selene’s eyes burned with a fire begging to burst out from behind them. The sound of battle was drowned out by a symphony of heartbeats. So many heartbeats. With each step she took, a trail of mist billowed behind her, a haunting manifestation of the darkness that now clung to her.

Selene approached an unsuspecting group of soldiers and, moving like a phantom, struck with lethal precision. The night continued to echo with muffled screams as Selene continued her deadly dance from one soldier to the next. Her attacks were swift, leaving the soldiers, even her own, in complete bewilderment. Amidst the chaos, one brave enemy soldier raised his sword high at her and gave out one last rallying cry to his comrades. Answering his call, the soldiers began surrounding Selene in a defensive circle. 

A predatory smile gleamed across Selene’s face. In a swift motion, she lunged at the soldiers, avoiding their desperate strikes with preternatural speed. Her nails elongated through her gloves into gnarled bone-white claws as she tore through armor, skin, and bone. Despite their valiant efforts, the soldiers were no match for Selene’s newfound prowess. The circle crumbled.

The events that happened afterward were a blur to Selene. With the enemy forces defeated she returned home with what little soldiers she had left. Although she returned with a victory, there was a palpable taste of trepidation in the air. Stories of how Selene came to defeat her enemies spread far and wide. She supposed she should be worried or even regretful of her choices and the reaction it garnered from her people. But she didn’t. No, she craved more. 

Selene found herself at Tassian’s cottage door, raising a hand to knock, until she heard the sound of a woman’s voice coming from within, dropping her hand. 

“It is time my darling princess.” The voice slithered behind her eyes. Selene did her best to ignore it as she raised her hand again, this time finding the willpower to knock.

A young woman answered the door. She was beautiful Selene supposed. Dark brown hair set just above her breasts and freckles littered her skin. The woman looked at Selene with big golden-flecked green eyes and backed up a few steps into the home.

“Lady Selene, uh- thank - thank you for coming to our home. Please, please come in!” The young woman stuttered.

Selene stalked into the room, a dark tension following in behind her. She lightly bowed her head to the woman and turned to meet Tassian’s eyes. Something seemed, off, about him.

“He should be glad to see you princess…” the voice slithered yet again “Yet look at how he grimaces at you. Is that any way to be greeted by the man who devoted himself to you?”

Selene continued to stare into Tassian’s eyes in silence and began to realize her malevolent friend was right. Tassian wasn't scared of her, no. He was angry at her. Of all the people in her Kingdom, Tassian was the one who held contempt for her. Selene tilted her head at him in an ever so slightly questioning manner.

“Selene. Please just leave us be.” Tassian asked. Except this time there was no pleading. Now there was just pure disdain. 

Selene pulled Tassian's letters from her breast pocket and laid them at the small table in the center of the dining area. That same fire behind her eyes began to kindle again. 

“So much for his promises.” The voice whispered across her spine.

“Look at you..what, what have you become?” Tassian asked. There was a twinge of sadness in his voice this time.

“I became what was needed,” Selene replied with a steady indifference.

“You became a monster!” Tassian screamed.

“Do it, NOW!” The once silk-strewn voice boomed within her ears.

With the same swiftness she showed on the battlefield, Selene found herself behind Tassian’s new love. She could smell the terror emanating from the sweat falling from her brow. Selene’s nails elongated from her fingers as she wrapped her hand around the woman's throat. 

“STOP!” Tassian screamed through the woman’s panted cries. “What do you want from me?!” He asked.

“I want to know why,” Selene asked.

“Why what?” Tassian replied.

“Why didn't you WAIT for me? You PROMISED!” Selene yelled. The cottage suddenly lost its warmth as a dark mist poured from her skin and snuffed out the candles and fireplace.

“I DID! I waited for months on end. But, once I heard what you had become...what you did to those soldiers, HOW you did it...I-I was beside myself. I thought for sure it was just some folklore. A tale a bard spun about the war for some notoriety. But then I saw you once you returned. You weren’t - you AREN’T the same.” He was begging now, trying his best to level with her. 

“So please,” he continued, “If you have any love left for me in your heart, let her go and leave us be.”

“It’s time princess.” The voice commanded.

Selene’s movements were quick and precise. It was almost as if her body moved before her mind could attempt the thought of her actions. Selene swiped her talon across the woman's throat in one swift motion. Tassian was screaming, Selene knew for sure, but she could not hear it. She dropped the woman where she stood with a hard thump against the mismatched wooden floor planks and watched as Tassian crawled to her body with tears streaming down his face. Selene stepped over both of their bodies crumpled on the ground, not bothering to look down at them.

“Our pact is not done Stormforge. You must submit a heart into the mists from which you will be fully reborn. This is the price.” The voice beckoned to her.

Selene turned on her heel to face the couple again. She slowly stalked to Tassian, picking him up by the collar, flipping his grief-limp body to face her, and lifted him into the air by his throat with her right hand, her left dangling at her side. 

“What-what do you want from me now MONSTER!” Tassian screamed against her, though physically he put up no fight. 

Selene lifted her head and stared into Tassian's soul with her now piercing red eyes. 

“If I can’t have love, I shall have power. A heart-“ she said as she plunged her left hand through Tassian’s chest. “For a heart.” 

Selene pulled Tassian’s beating heart from his chest and dropped his lifeless body next to his lover’s. She cupped the still-beating heart in her hands and felt herself fall into a deep trance. This heart, Tassian’s heart, was calling out to her, begging to be devoured.

“Feed Stormforge, and it will be done” The voice bellowed. 

Selene opened her mouth and began to feast upon Tassian’s heart. 

When the heart was dry, she dropped it next to Tassian’s body and stalked out of the cabin. She could feel a misty shroud clouding her lungs and chest. Instead of breathing air, she breathed in the darkness around her. She could see for miles, all the way inside the castle windows. Her muscles vibrated, begging to move faster and faster. And so she answered their call, disappearing into the darkness of the trees and into the forest as a bolt of loud thunderous lightning clashed across the night sky. 

Selene remembered the events of a millennia ago as if they were yesterday. She knelt beside Tassian’s coffin and placed her hand atop it. In all the years that have passed, she never found another person that could take his place even in her dead still-beating heart. Anyone who had loved or even considered her a friend was either dead or coward away from her once they realized the cruel beast she had become. She was…lonely, and found herself without the option of dying to end the ache embedded within her.  

As she laid her head atop Tassian’s coffin she let out a shallow breath and whispered,

“I’ll find a way to go back. To stop me from making that pact. I would've rather died out there in that field than to have lived this long without you.” She felt a tear of blood fall to her chin. 

“I promise you.”

“Our pact cannot be broken, Stormfordge. You are forever mine.” The voice reminded her.