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Chapter 7: A Chosen Follower

A specific villager walked behind Simon and was wanting to speak to him about Delphine and where her location is.

"You there, hunter. You’re the one who was carried into town yesterday. A warrior dressed in black was looking for you," The villager said. Simon turns himself around and looks at the villager, and he wanted to know more from that person.

"What? Where? Where is she now?" Simon asked.

"Well, she left town and headed for the woods nearby," the villager answered.

"Thank you!" Simon said. And so, he ran towards the forest that the Villager mentioned without stopping for anything or anyone.

The forest was quiet, and there were hardly any animals that roamed around; they must’ve been scattered or driven away by some unrecognizable force. Simon began to slow down his breath after the countless minutes of continuous running on the road. He allows his hand to rest upon the bark of a nearby tree, and he looks down at himself as if he started to regret finding Delphine. Then, someone began to stroll from the shadows and stopped moving as the person saw Simon standing next to the tree.

"Delphine!" Simon said. Unfortunately, it wasn’t Delphine of Moria, the Ebony Warrior; it was somebody else entirely who seemed to take Delphine’s appearance.

This woman had fur armor, fur boots, fur gauntlets, and wore a large black cloak around her body; she wielded a greatsword made entirely of what seems to be the bones of a werewolf. Her name is Lagertha, and she is known by many to be the queen of the wolves; she had gold thick slit vertical eyes and pale skin.

It’s... it’s not her. Simon thought.

"Are you alone?" Lagertha asked.

"Yes. Are you the one who saved me?" Simon asked.

"Oh, that. No need to thank me." She answered. Then, she started to walk towards Simon with her sharp eyes staring back at his face as the afternoon began to start.

"But why did you do it. You don’t even know me. And you even paid for my food and lodging," Simon said.

"You come to this village because you need the one who hunts demons," Lagertha said.

"Don’t mistake me for some stalker. Everyone out there already does that. I believe in horrors, but I need to know more. I’ve exhausted my other options, and all the stories say the woman who walks in the night has secret knowledge."

Then, Lagertha placed her left hand onto Simon’s right cheek and continued to have a bold look on her face.

"I am Lagertha of Stockholm. I rule all the wolves, I have wolf-blood inside me, and no blade can pierce my heart. I do not get many visitors. What have you to trade for my power and wisdom, seeker of the Ebony Warrior?" Lagertha asked. Her voice sounded threatening, and it seemed as if the heavens themselves were starting to tremble and be separated.

Then, Simon shoves Lagertha away from him, and he backs away to the tall tree that he laid his hand upon.

"Go away, woman! I don’t need the likes of you! I will not be your pet, and your pagan magic shall not touch me!" Simon shouted. Then, Lagertha simply stood there and remained speechless for a short while as she was stunned by the way Simon reacted.

"Oh, is that so? I didn’t know. I’ll have to remember that," Lagertha said. A split second later, she uses the biceps of her arm, and she pins Simon to the tree and keeps her arm onto his throat.

Simon began to gasp for breath, and it was not possible to do it so quickly from the brutal strength that the Wolf Queen had. Lagertha’s powers were beyond comprehension, and the strength of her sword arm was magnificent. Then, she grabs Simon by his hair and drags him in front of her, and she kept him locked into her right arm.

Then Lagertha’s eyes gazed at the shadows, and she shouted, "You’re pretty smart. But you followed me here, just as I planned. Enough skulking in the shadows! I know you’ve been following me! Step out from the darkness, Ebony Warrior!"

"What are you gonna do to me?" Simon asked. Before Lagertha could answer, Delphine began to stroll from the darkness and started to walk towards the Wolf Queen.

Delphine stood before Lagertha and had eyes that were full of hatred towards the queen of the wolves, and she refused to waste her time with her. Ten years ago, Lagertha was the one who carried Delphine away from her burning village as the demons started to gain control over the world. Lagertha was the one who offered her blood to the young girl as she lay dying from the wounds caused by the demons. The Wolf queen knew that she also had demonic blood inside of her, which allowed her to cut through many opponents with her bare hands. Simon was utterly defenseless, and he had nowhere to run as Lagertha held onto him; he didn’t even know whether he was going to die or not.

"You just don’t get it, do you? No matter how far I run or where I hide, you stick to me like a shadow. I’m sick of it," Lagertha said. Then, Delphine continued to walk towards Simon and Lagertha as she held onto the handle of her greatsword.

"Let that man go, Lagertha. You don’t know what you’re doing. If you put so much as a scratch on him, I’ll give you a few more scars than you already received," Delphine said.

"You know I can’t do that. And you know that it’s tough for me to be convinced by the likes of you. Now, don’t make another move," Lagertha said. Then, Delphine listened and didn’t walk another step; she realized that the Wolf Queen had something up her sleeve while holding Simon captive.

"I know you, Delphine of Moria. Your feelings will betray you. You may have fought hundreds of demons, but even you will never defeat an immortal creature such as myself. Now, drop your sword and don’t pull any tricks," Lagertha said. Delphine could sense no peace or tranquility towards the Wolf Queen as she spoke with her, and she also lived a life of hate and deceit.

Without hesitation, Delphine kept holding onto the handle of her greatsword, and her blood pressure started rising.

"What makes you think a hostage will stop me?" Delphine asked. Fearfully, Simon kept staring at Delphine, and he found it deep inside of his heart that she cared for him.

Lagertha started to sense some sort of bond between Delphine and Simon as she stood with them, and she began to notice a pattern take shape. It wasn’t jealousy that entered into Lagertha’s mind, but it was confused as she stared at the Ebony Warrior.

"I never thought it would... at least, not until yesterday. But when I saw you carry him into town with such care, I changed my mind. That’s when I knew he would be useful," Lagertha said. Delphine had no idea what Lagertha was talking about, and she was already bitter towards her.

"I will not allow you to stand in my way, Lagertha. You will tell me why you’re even here, to begin with," Delphine said.

Then Lagertha said to her, "Very well. You think by taking this man with you, you believe you can do anything you wish to him? Do you not know of the danger that will be brought upon him if he follows you? You may be a part monster and a ruthless killer, but you used to be human. Even if you can keep your emotions in check, a warrior of darkness can never forget the memories of your past life. For instance, when darkness never clouded your soul, you might have had a little brother. Maybe this man reminds you of him."

"You haven’t even answered my question, Lagertha. Why... are you here?" Delphine asked.

Then Lagertha answered and said to her, "To warn you of the events that shall come to pass. To remind you of the danger that is coming for you as you walk this road. I don’t want to kill you or this man, for it’s far more important that you stay alive. By the way, I’m not standing in anyone’s way. What makes you think that I will put this man out of his misery? What makes you believe that I will cut him down and reduce him to ashes before you can scream?"

"If you’re not going to kill him, then release him from your grasp," Delphine said. Then, Delphine pulls out her greatsword and pierces the blade onto the ground as she kept staring at the Wolf Queen.

Lagertha releases her grip from Simon’s throat, and she strolls towards Delphine as she was feeling concerned for her.

Lagertha spoke to Delphine again, saying, "This demonstration used just five ounces of fear for that man. Tomorrow, this will seem like child’s play. Delphine, this is your only warning. Do you think you can win against the stronger onslaught of demons coming for you? Sooner or later, you will be consumed with fear. Before the end, even you will be down on your knees, begging for your life to be saved."

Delphine had nothing more to say to her for a long while; even though she did not take a liking to Lagertha, she still had to honor her. She was always loyal to the Wolf Queen because she saved her from the brink of death and almost from bleeding out. Lagertha ruled the wolves for as long as she could draw breath after her mother died and her father succumbing to darkness. She was a creature who was beyond any sort of redemption to her soul, and her body aged like a fine wine; she may be older than Delphine, but her body was still soft and full of beauty. Like Delphine, she had the blood of both a wolf and a demon, and she carried all sorts of dark magic and sorcery.

Then, Delphine falls on her knees, and her arms were clinging onto the grass as she was before Lagertha and Simon. For the first time, Simon started to see fear and torment in the eyes of the Ebony Warrior; he now knew that even she had a weakness. Delphine had sweat dripping from her face and her shoulders, and she appeared as if something frightening appeared before her eyes. Lagertha walks up to Delphine and places her hands onto her arms, and she gently plays with Delphine’s blonde hair. Simon had no clear idea of what to do, and all he could do was watch and tremble instead of pulling out his sword.

Then, Lagertha looked at Delphine and said to her, "You know who I am, Ebony Warrior. You know that I live to make sure that the demons are driven away from the world. I live to make sure that everything that I have foreseen will come to pass. I know your past, your present, and your future. You cannot hide from the truth. You cannot force yourself to succumb to the darkness you swore to destroy fully."

"Please... just leave me alone," Delphine said. That was all Delphine ever wanted in life, to be left alone as she fights the night creatures.

Then, Lagertha stops touching Delphine’s hair and shoulders, and she started walking away from her and Simon. As Delphine was kneeling, Simon stood there and watched Lagertha strolling down the road and slowly disappearing from plain sight. It was indeed one of the many powers that the Wolf Queen had in herself; she could control the minds of others and make herself disappear. Lagertha wasn’t entirely happy with what she was able to do, and it did get very lonely for her during these days. Then, Simon watches Delphine slowly getting herself up from the ground and pulling out her greatsword from the grass.

He then walks over to her as he begins to feel distressed about what he has done; he believes that he is the reason why Delphine felt so weak against Lagertha.

"Delphine!" Simon said.

"What?" She asked.

"Are you okay? Delphine, I’m sorry! I’m sorry, Delphine! It’s my fault. I’m the reason why you’re like this!" Simon shouted. Then, Delphine walks over to Simon and puts her greatsword back to her sheath, and she wipes away a few tears from his eyes.

Then Delphine said to him, "None of this is your fault. But don’t get the wrong idea. I didn’t pierce my sword on the ground because of you. I only did it to have that whore stay out of our way. If I’d gone through you to get to her, she would have killed you and gotten away. So I refused to put up a fight against her. It would’ve gotten bloody."

"Oh... I see," Simon said.

"What are you doing here, anyway? You’re a long way from your village," she said.

"It’s not my village. It has never been," he answered.

"What do you mean?"

"I... well... my village was destroyed by fire, long ago. Ever since then, I took everything I had left and traversed the four corners of this world."

"Did they throw you out? Or was this entirely your choice?"

Simon felt stunned and surprised after hearing the question that Delphine asked, but answering it was tough for him to do.

"No. This... was my choice, entirely. It’s not like I could wait around and wait for my death to draw near," he said. Delphine stood there and stared at Simon as she was trying to decide what else to do with him; she knew that she couldn’t just leave him here all alone.

Suddenly, Delphine began to remember how it all started all of those years ago when she started to take on the role of the Ebony Warrior. The city of Moria has fallen by the hands of the demonic beasts who killed anyone who would resist. The Grim Reaper was there with them and was ready to take anyone’s soul with him, and he stared boldly at the people running for their lives. Delphine watched as her father held a sword in his hand to fight back against the creatures that burned his city to ashes. The Grim Reaper appeared and killed her father with his Scythe, and all of his blood and gore stained the walls of his house and the ground.

Delphine ran with her mother out from the city walls and believed that they would make it out alive by some luck or miracle. Then, the Grim Reaper came and threw his Scythe at Delphine’s mother, and the unholy weapon pierced her back. Delphine was left with no family, and she had no sword to fight back against Death itself; all she could do was watch helplessly as her city crumbles into nothing. The Grim Reaper takes Delphine by the throat and starts choking her and holding her up in the air with one hand. Then, his other hand held a large dagger filled with a toxic poison that whoever is stabbed by it will become like the demons.

Without hesitation, the Grim Reaper stabs her on the side of her left shoulder, and she could feel her own life fading away; he then gives her his power to use as a weapon against her enemies. Instead of dying, Lagertha offered her blood to Delphine, and that was how she became the Ebony Warrior. Delphine’s vision ends, and she is back in reality with Simon, and she looks down at herself of the dark knight that she has become. Now, she uses that destructive power to rip and tear her enemies to shreds as she is on her journey to defeat the Grim Reaper.

"I... I made that choice. I refuse to surrender to any creature of any form. I choose to fight to the death against them," Simon said.

"Are you good at cooking?" Delphine asked.

"What?"

"You said before that you’d do the cooking. Are you any good?"

"Oh. Yes... of course, I am."

Then, Delphine holds out her hand, and she wanted him to join her on her journey; she believed that Simon had nothing left in his life and wanted to make sure if following her was okay.

"Will you come with me?" Delphine asked.

"I... well, I was just..." Simon said.

"Was that why you were trying to find me to begin with? If you can cook, you can follow me. Also, you need to make sure that you’ve experienced with the bow and the sword. You can follow me... to the very end. Again I ask, will you come with me?" Delphine asked. Simon was surprised a little after Delphine asked him this question; he was given a chance to start a new beginning in his life.

"Okay," he said. And so, Delphine allowed Simon to be her follower as she continued her journey to reach her greatest enemy.

A few hours later, Simon’s stomach was growling, and he was in desperate need of food as he and Delphine were walking on the road. They have been walking for what seemed like four hours as the sun was slowly setting down, and it started to get a bit chilly.

"What is it? Are you hungry?" Delphine asked.

"Yes. Of course, I am. I mean, I haven’t eaten anything since this morning, and we’ve been walking for over four hours. It’s kind of strange you’re not hungry," Simon said. Delphine gave him a quick glare and looked forward, and she looks around to see if there’s any animal that they could eat.

Then, Delphine pulls out her greatsword and throws it at his distance to make sure it pierces an animal so that they can eat it.

Next Chapter: Chapter 8: The Black Card