章 38: Chapter 38

Standing behind the old necromancer, who had gripped his staff and held it before himself and Alvar vertically while mumbling a few words softly that Alvar couldn't quite understand, Alvar's eyes wandered from the obvious spell the old man was casting back to the great bonfire in the middle of the great hall.

By now the hall had been plunged into darkness and frost was creeping up the walls while an icy wind softly whistled through the gates of the great hall, bringing with it a foreboding whispering that spoke of promises Alvar hoped would not come to pass, not unlike that night he had seen his uncle's group attacked in the frozen wastes of the Shiverpeak mountains.

While the temperature of the great hall sunk lower and lower commanders of the different professions had snapped out of their shock, obviously having learned from past experiences, and began to below orders that echoed over the heads of the gathered Norn in the great hall.

Hearing the orders of their officers in charge the soldiers of the different professions snapped to attention and began to rush as orderly as possible to the sides of the great hall, where the frost was creeping up to the ceiling by now, and armed themselves with the weapons that had been stored there for just such an emergency.

The families that were amongst the partying crowd of Norn though weren't trained for such a sudden change of event and as soon as the elderly understood what may be about to happen called over to their families to gather together as fast as possible, the sounds of younger children or civilian women crying under the rapid change in atmosphere echoing through the air, only adding fuel to the issuing chaos in the great hall.

Alvar meanwhile had let his eyes wander over the crowd that began to fall further and further into chaos until his eyes came to rest on his friend Veli that was standing besides a young brunette like wooden statues in the middle of the bustling crowd, obviously out of their depth and not knowing what to do.

Without a second of hesitation Alvar made to rush out into the crowd to come to his friends help but an old yet strong grip at his upper arm held him back, causing Alvar to struggle against the obstacle that was now keeping him from doing what he simply needed to do!

"Let me go! Please, I need to help my friend!" Alvar cried out while turning around to the old necromancer that held him back with an iron grip.

"You cannot go, young man! I would be sending you to your possible doom and I couldn't live with myself if I did something like that!" The old man responded with a sad yet firm shake of his head, clearly waring with his own thoughts at his actions.

After hearing the old man's words Alvar turned back around to the bustling chaos in the great hall, his eyes falling back onto his friend Veli that had let his eyes wander over to Alvar's position and took in the scene of Alvar struggling to come rushing over to him, the two making brief eye contact until Veli's form disappeared behind the huge frames of the bustling Norn, causing Alvar to fall even further into a desperate struggle. To him the night began to feel eerily similar to what he had felt when he witnessed his uncle fight his last battle that night and he hated the feeling of complete helplessness he had felt then and he was feeling now, but besides that there really wasn't anything he could do and thus stopped his struggle, for now…

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Gerdi had successfully snuck out of her home and entered the cold air of the night, swiftly moving into the direction of the great hall. While her mind had been overcome by a desire to see Veli as fast as possible the young girl didn't seem to realise that the air grew colder until it began to form small clouds before her face each time she exhaled. Even as she realised the rising cold her mind snapped back to the great hall as she swiftly entered through its gates and began to look around in search for her one and true love.

Though, she was not prepared for what she saw once she found him. There he was, in his usual form radiating happiness, but unlike the other days where she stood right next to him when he did so now he was swinging and twirling from left to right with another girl in his arms.

'The brunette again…! Why. Why is it not me that he is holding like that? Why can he not be happy with me instead? I don't want to feel this pain anymore. Please! Someone! Anyone!?' Gerdi thought with tears brimming in her eyes, threatening to stream down her cheeks until her sadness turned into anger, bright and burning in her guts like a twisting rod of molten iron.

'Yessss, why does he not take notice of you? You are so beautiful and have so much to offer him! Truly a shame... How can someone not see the beauty within your soul? Their arrogance must be paid for…Yessss, paid for, indeed! Join me and I will make sure the pain will become nothing but a faint memory of the passsst…' An eerie voice began to whisper in the back of Gerdi's mind but so lost was she in her pain and anger that her only wish was to make the pain in her soul go away, discarding any logic and reasoning that may have prevented her otherwise from making such a decision.

'Good young one, good! I will give you my blessing and you will spread the word to your friends that they need not fear me as I will take them in with open arms… All they need to do is swear their allegiance to me and they will become more powerful and free than they can possibly imagine…' The voice whispered into Gerdi's mind once again, accompanied by an ice cold sensation that originated at the back of her mind and slowly spread like an icy wave throughout every fibber of her being until she had been taken in completely, bringing with it an icy determination to do what must be done to fulfil her desire and those of her new master…

'You will receive instructions form a teacher under my command to form you into your best version soon enough. Until then endure the feelings raging inside you just a little bit longer. I promise you my daughter, you will get what you want one way or another…' The voice whispered for the last time as it slowly left Gerdi's mind like a frozen illusion of some kind, its words causing Gerdi to smile in happiness. Yes, Veli would be hers or perish...

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The panic that had begun to spread like a fire in a dry forest through the crowd had all come to a sudden standstill when a soft whispering began to fill each and every head in the great hall, at first only softly swirling around the ceiling along the icy winds that had entered the hall, but soon left its amusement behind and descended upon those standing under its sheltering height.

'Hello my dear children…It has been a looong time indeeeed since we last had the pleasure to converse with each other. My, what proud Norn you have become in my absence! I could truly not be any happier at the sight of you and your children's growth.' The voice purred into the silence causing many parents to clutch their confused and scared children to their sides in reaction.

'Ahhh, you need not fear me my dear children… I would never mean to harm you… On the contrary! In fact I have come to offer you shelter as a storm is approaching and I fear that many of you may not survive the cold the next winter may bring without my protection…' The voice continued in its purring way, now and then slightly chuckling at its own words.

"You are not welcome here, Jormag! Leave this place and don't return!" One of the Havroune called out into the silence after the whispering had grown silent for a minute. Behind the Havroune the other Havroune were standing in a united front, all whispering incantations in unison while Alvar could see the sweat running down their foreheads in concentration.

'Hahahahaha! Do you really think you, my little Havroune, can banish me? Please, do not insult me like that. Your little patron spirits are no match for me. In fact it may surprise you that three of their brethren serve me faithfully and it will only be a matter of time until raven, bear, wolf and snow leopard will join their brothers and sisters at my side! Why not skip the back and forth and join me now? You all will be welcome into my arms, and no harm will come to you ever again. That I promise you, my children…!

It seems some have not yet been convinced fully and need another push but don't worry…The last words have not yet been spoken… Until we meet again my sweet children…' The voice whispered with clear amusement apparent in its voice when it spoke to the Havroune, soon afterwards leaving behind the shaking crowd as it disappeared, through the open and by now completely frozen gates, out into the night and vanished like a bad dream…