Ascension - (Alarian Warriors)

Once she regained consciousness, she soon realized her surroundings were unfamiliar. Was this Earth? Her father’s words echoed in her mind, leading her to believe that she had been forced to travel through a fissure and between realms.

It must have been some ungodly hour of the night as the darkness made it impossible to see clearly. Foreign smells and sounds filled her senses causing her to grow uneasy. Her body ached and she couldn’t seem to move very well.

Just how long had she been lying here? Was Anzel alright? Would she be? How was she still alive?

Anzel’s words echoed through her mind, if she was on earth maybe he could find her and save her. That was if her father hadn’t killed him first.

So many thoughts were rushing through her mind that she couldn’t focus.

She coughed, her breath not coming to her easily, blood coated the inside of her mouth. She moaned in pure agony, the burning in her body felt like someone had stuffed hot coals inside her.

Her hand moved to the worst of the wounds, the one her father had made. She hissed as her fingers brushed against the raw skin. Blood flowed freely and she had no way of stopping it.

The heat radiating from the wound was causing her to not heal in the usual manner. The whirling ball of light her father had removed from her, had been her aura and it had been forcibly removed, meaning her body was in a state of withdrawal. The manner in which it had been removed had caused the essence contained in the fragile vessel to burn her in an unnatural way.

Right now, she just needed to patch the rest of her body up and fast, the hole would come later. Maybe she could find a healer, someone that could use essence. But was that even possible in this realm?

Trying to inspect the rest of her body she noted the damage and on top of everything else, her clothes had been stripped off her. What had been the point of that? She sighed at her father’s stupidity but grimaced as the deep breath hurt her more than she anticipated.

“What was the point...” She muttered aloud not understanding. Honestly, she didn’t care, the pain was far too stimulating for her brain as it was, her naked body could wait... Could she maybe catch a cold now, without her Aura’s protection?

She tried to sit up being careful of her arm, leg and ankle that had been broken, probably from the forceful ejection from the fissure. Travelling between realms was normally a taxing endeavour, and she had been unconscious, the damage was extreme.

She groaned in frustration; she couldn’t stay here, but how fast could she heal without her main source of power? She had little to no essence that could be wielded now, thanks to her father. She didn’t know how to draw on any essence without one.

An aura merges with its host, it becomes one with the body. In a sense it’s an inner light, the main source of an Alarian’s, her race's, or so she believed, power. Removing one forcefully causes the host immeasurable damage. Forcefully integrating with one could also cause the same outcome, or so she was told. It had to accept and be accepted, it was in a sense its own living thing, and not much was known of how they were made.

When extracted naturally the aura will simply flow through the skin and reform outside of the body causing no physical damage; but the Alarian bodies became dependent on their auras many years ago, and only a very small number of warriors can live without them. If she had been a pure Alarian she would probably already be dead, much like her mother.

Her pure white hair and fair skin were proof, however, that she wasn’t, but rather she was something else. What though? She had no idea, no one did, it was speculated she was the child of the goddess that looked over the realms. Her mother’s final words came to mind, but she didn’t dwell on them long, she couldn’t.

Taking a deep breath, she tried to ignore the pain. She focused her mind on one thing, staying alive. She’d stay alive for one reason, one purpose. She’d kill her father and banish all Alarians from the realm stripping them of their powers. But maybe leaving their clothes?

Her eyes were burning with un-cried tears for her mother, images on her body relaying in her mind causing her bottom lip to quiver. All she cared about was seeing that bastard’s blood spilled at her feet. She’d make it happen, even if it killed her.

With her one good arm, she shifted her legs in front of her attempting to make herself more comfortable, but it didn’t work. She positioned the upper arm of her broken shoulder against the tree behind her, pushing the pain to the back of her mind. She studied the damage a moment before using the truck of the tree as leverage to push the protruding bone back into place.

She screamed in agony. Once the bone was no longer sticking out of the skin the wound began to stitch itself back together. However, it was far too slow for her liking, she needed blood to hasten the process, and she couldn’t even retract her fangs at this point.

Ah yes, the curse. It was said that a jealous god placed it on her people centuries ago, it was extremely unnecessary in her mind. The auras were originally created as a means to shield them from it, or so she was told.

She’d never experienced it before, drinking blood, the thought sickened her. Only Alarians without auras felt such hunger or ever had a need for blood, the aura stopped the curse in its tracks... when you had one that was.

Her minor injuries looked like they were healing. However, the truth was that they simply closed the gaps on the outside. Internally she would need a lot more time to fully recover. She shook her head. I must keep moving. She told herself. If she didn’t find a way to survive, she would pass out again and probably not awake for some time.

She waited for the pain in her arm to ease a little before working on straightening the broken bones in her wrist, leg, and foot. The gaping hole in her torso still refused to show any signs of closing. She was covered in her own blood and now dirt from the gritty cold ground. Could she get an infection? Would she die because of this? How likely is she to survive in this state? She hated to admit it but she needed help.

This world was a huge unknown to her, and her sheltered life up till now hadn’t prepared her for this. Only her mother’s teaching gave her little, tiny snippets of knowledge of the human world.

“What the hell!” A male voice came from afar.

She looked up, she hadn’t even heard him approach, that realization shocked and scared her. She was far too weak and vulnerable for her liking.

She was panting rather hard as he approached her. The first thing that caught her attention was the sound of his heartbeat. It was so incredibly loud she turned her head sharply away. She couldn’t risk losing herself so soon. The need for blood was high on her priority list, could she lose control and become a fallen? Joining the ranks of the soulless was not on her to-do list.

“Miss, what in the world happened to you!?” He asked, concerned.

“Get back!” She tried to sound commanding, but her voice formed a faded whisper.

She knew that humans were weak to commands by Alarians but she didn’t know how to use that ability, or even if she could. But, to her dismay, nothing had happened. She could only imagine what she must look like, a blood-soaked, naked woman lying in the middle of a dirt path.

And do not forget the hole in your stomach. She thought bitterly to herself. Aveyon wanted to slap herself, this was not the way she had first pictured her visit to a different realm.

She was a Princess! A journey to Earth ream was meant to be a welcome and... His scent was so inviting; her mouth was watering. She had to mentally slap herself, she had to get her head straight.

Stop Aveyon do not do something you will regret. She told herself.

What he did next surprised her. She had always thought humans minded their own business. She had been told that they normally ran at such a sight, not wanting to get involved in dangerous affairs.

“Young woman, do you need help?” He took off his jacket and handed it to her. The exchange was awkward, and they stared at each other for a moment. He urged her to take the clothing again.

“I-I think I may need it.” She finally coughed. It was a difficult task to speak.

“Thank you.” she tried to say but only seemed to mouth the words.

She tried to reach for the jacket but failed. Her arms proved to be much weaker than she had thought and as he released his grip on the clothing, it fell out of his hands and bundled on the ground. She looked at the heap disappointed.

“Here, allow me?” He asked, taking a step closer.

She stiffened, growing nervous with his approach. Nodding she told herself that she would get through this, she had to. She tried to stand up, but her feeble attempt made him rush to her side.

“Hey careful, there’s a mighty hole in you, we need to get you medical attention.” He pointed out.

“NO!” She yelled a little too quickly. She pushed him away as soon as he touched her. Her breath grew ragged, and she seemed to be slightly hyperventilating. His warm skin sent an awareness of the urge to feed into overdrive. She felt her eyes glaze over like she was about to give in, she couldn’t let that happen.

“No, please, no medicine, no healers!” Even though it could be the best place to find assistance. “They won’t be able to help me.” She added in a whisper.

They would most likely lock her up to be a new study project. Her kind were a medical mystery to humans, and if this was earth as she suspected a fair few of her kind and other creatures had been captured and never seen again. Her voice was shaky, but it was clearer now that she was half standing. However, it didn’t stop her from coughing up more blood or cringing from the pain that followed.

The man frowned for a moment. His eyes widened as he noticed her body slowly knitting itself together in parts. Heavens... you, you’re not human, are you? Are you a Vampire, a creature of the night?”

“Why do they always call us that?” She muttered to herself wanting to roll her eyes.

It wasn’t unheard of for a human to know of her kind. Considering he was watching her ankle heal itself at an alarming rate.

“What was that young miss?” he asked, looking concerned for her.

“I guess...In your world...Yes, I would be. However, the term is incorrect. I am Alarian.” She answered wincing from the pain.

Her legs gave out from under her, and she slumped onto the tree and slid down it unable to stop herself.

“I could take you to my manor, so you can heal. If a healer is out of the question that seems the best course of action.”

He had a fitting argument, so she nodded in agreement.

“That would be a wise choice, I need to find a healer that knows of essence injuries.” She replied. What else could she do? The goddess only knows what would happen to her if she stayed here.

Before she could say anything else, he tossed the coat over her naked form and picked her up gently in his arms.

She gasped. He was much stronger than he appeared.

“Young Miss, forgive me, this will be quicker... are you okay?”

She shook her head with gritted teeth as gripped the piece of clothing to her chest.

“It’s dangerous for you to be so close. Please put me down!” She added a little too sternly than she had intended. Suddenly a wave of weakness washed over her, like her body had been drained of the energy that remained.

He placed her feet back on the ground and took a step away. That seemed more like the humans she’d heard about. He blinked a few times and stared at her in surprise. Shaking his head, he frowned.

She realized then that she had the ability of... suggestion? She wasn't sure what to call it. But it seemed it required physical contact to work. That small realization gave her hope. What other powers had survived after her aura had been removed? Would she be able to learn to control them anew?

“Amazing, I didn’t even know you were controlling me, better than I’d expected.” He seemed almost excited.

She could breathe easier now that she was no longer in close proximity to him, but she was still weary. If she wasn’t careful, she would start herself down a path that she could not return from.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to help you?” He questioned.

“I’d rather you keep your life, and I my soul.”

He half smiled as if understanding. “Are you in the first phase?”

He thought she had just been turned. What an idiot! Humans are so quick to judge. She shook her head. “You assume incorrectly, your knowledge is but fairy tales.”

“It’s just what others tell me, so it wouldn’t surprise me if all I know is wrong...”

“Have...Have you met my kind before?” she asked curious as to why he was so calm around her, though a fallen Alarian would be completely different to her.

“No, you’re my first.” He said the words almost in a possessive manner.

Aveyon found it slightly intimidating but didn’t question it at the time. He saw her frown even before she released, she was doing it and laughed. “I’ve met many different types of beings young miss, mainly because I practice wicca myself.”

“Warlock?” Aveyon continued to cough as she spoke. She knew talking wasn’t a good idea right now, but she didn’t want to have to face the silence, in it she could hear far too much than she wanted to. She took a few steps and he moved with her, but he stayed a fair distance away, for which she was grateful. Blood was beginning to seep through the coat that had been wrapped around her. She prayed he wouldn’t mind, perhaps she could replace it for him one day.

He began to lead the way, which wasn’t that far thankfully. Perhaps he had been going for a walk and had stumbled upon her.

“In a way, I wouldn’t call myself one, but others would. We humans that have magic abilities are rare, so I wouldn’t really know what to call ourselves.” He added after her question. He had at least confirmed to her that they were in the Earth realm, humans did not exist on the others.

“Humans do not have the ability to harness essence eh... magic, as you call it, therefore somewhere in your bloodline it’s tainted. You have another race missed in.” She informed him.

The man seemed only shocked for a moment. “I think we have much to learn from each other.” He said as they reached a large building made from stone and brick. It was old but it seemed to have aged well, it was a rather elegant-looking manor, surrounded by small gardens and had a paved walkway to the entrance. Walking the path, she studied her surroundings. Something felt eerie. She leaned against the wall for support as he opened the main door for her.

“Come, we’ll get that wound wrapped up and hope it heals. I can call for an elf I know that can heal.” He told her as he followed behind.

That sent a wave of relief through her, it seemed she had been blessed. The man knew what she needed, it felt too good to be true.

Once inside he showed her to a place to sit and rest. He disappeared for a short while but soon returned with towels, a basin of water and bandages.

Aveyon found what happened next rather embarrassing, but he was gentle and kind to her. He placed a large towel on the floor and was grateful that she would be able to lie down, sitting was more painful them she had realized.

“I am sorry for the trail of blood...” She added as she noticed it, though he didn’t seem to mind.

She unwrapped the clothing from her body and made a small sound of protest as she knelt on the floor. It was a painful process, but she managed to lay herself down and relax her sore muscles.

“I have sent word to the elf, though it will be a few days travel for her to reach us.” He stated while he proceeded to wet a small piece of cloth. Placing it on her skin he began the gentle process of cleaning her wounds.

She hissed from the contact but didn’t move. Her skin was torn and tender all over and he was trying his best to help. All the while being very careful not to make contact with his own skin.

They remained silent until he had finished bandaging her, once completed she dressed herself in some of his clothes. Finally, she didn’t feel quite so helpless or weak.

He offered to move her to a more comfortable part of the house, but she told him she’d rather stay still for a while. The floor was as good a place as any. She just needed to allow her body to heal enough to move without causing any more damage.

“I’ll make you something warm to drink-” He cut himself short and looked down at her. “Can you drink and eat normal food?” He smiled as she nodded in response.

“However, I will require fresh blood to heal faster.” She commented.

His reaction surprised her. He seemed to stop dead in his tracks, turning towards her with wide eyes. “Well, um, you could drink from me?” His words were almost like he was intrigued, did he actually want her to drink from him? She frowned eyeing him strangely, surely not.

“No, that would be far too dangerous, animal blood would be better in my condition, do not worry once I am strong enough, I will attempt to hunt on my own, but...ah... thank you.” She wasn’t quite sure how to respond to that.

He seemed rather disappointed but agreed. “Oh! I guess I should introduce myself, my name is Bevan.”

The images of a time long, long ago faded into darkness... Why was she remembering all this?