by Envy Mercury
“Have any of you noticed the words on his sword? It is a language that most don’t know, a lady doesn’t speak of her age, but I have been around long enough to know what it is,” the small fairy said.
Everyone took a closer look at my sword on my back, then agreed they didn’t know what the delicately etched words on the golden hilt meant. I had wondered for a long time, but I never got a chance to ask Dulan. “I was going to ask Dulan what it said, but I really hadn’t had a chance as they stayed behind,” I said.
The fairy spoke again, enlightening us with knowledge. “It was given as a gift, yes?”
“Yes, he gave it to me, no questions asked.”
“He was supposed to give it to you, he was most likely told too. That language is of the divine. When he made it, he probably didn’t even know what it said. He just helped produce it.”
“So, you are saying it’s a sword made with the help of a god, like a god of war?” Valentine asked.
Mav just laughed. “Man cannot wield a blade made purely by a god or goddess. It has to be produced by someone that isn’t a god. The images on it, they portray love, beauty, and wealth. Owls for wisdom, then the bird is a falcon. It all hints at which goddess was involved, which in itself is strange. This goddess normally only represents women. The elves may know, it is the twin sister of Freyr, who once was friends with the elves long ago.”
Valentine gasped and held her hand to her lips. “Freyja of the Valkyries?”
Queen Mav nodded. “The inscription says, Love to purify the wicked. It has Freyja all over it. A goddess and a queen to the Valkyries. She is a goddess with a big heart and a fierce mind of war. She had the dwarves produce her necklace long ago. It is fitting your sword was made by a dwarf.” Mav stood up and walked over, slowly running her finger down my face. “I am not sure what you did before when you were here, but you attracted a goddess to you.”
“Holy goddesses Rezzy! You made a goddess fall in love with you!” Mew shouted with her typical fist pump into the air.
“Yeah, I don’t know about that,” I said as I lightly kicked the dirt around a little bit.
“Does the sword speak to you?” Queen Mav asked me.
“In a way, yes.”
Everyone turned to look at me, looks of wonder on their faces. “The sword speaks to you?” Valentine asked.
“Well, it doesn’t like… talk, but it shows me some things. Like the sword kind of guided me with what I should do with it. When I took on that big nasty troll, I saw what the sword wanted me to do technique-wise.”
“That is Freyja helping you personally. Not only is the sword strong, but she is also with it. You are very powerful. You also have friends and even a goddess to help you along your way. Either Freyja finds your task that important, or maybe she does love you. Maybe both.”
I let out a sigh and then chuckled. “Well, I hope Freyja doesn’t get super jealous. Or I’m fucked. I care about a lot of people. I can’t imagine making a goddess angry.” After I said that, all the women kind of tensed up a little with that thought.
Queen Mav laughed a little. “Freyja does care if she is loved, but she doesn’t get jealous like that. She will know where she stands with you. Freyja does care about loyalty, don’t do her wrong on purpose, and you will be fine.” With that statement, the sword put out a slight blue glow that pulsed out a bit of light, then it darkened. It was a soothing light that made me feel good. It seemed to have that effect on everyone else that stood with me as they relaxed as well.
I care for you, and thus I care for all things you care about.
“Thanks,” I said as I looked up into the sky at the stars. My companions looked at me with curiosity, unknowing why I randomly gave thanks out of nowhere. “She actually spoke that time, in my head, I guess. I told her thank you, unsure if I speak out loud or just think a reply. So, I just said it.”
Either way works. Go rest now, tomorrow you shall defeat Victor.
“Is she still speaking to you?” Mew questioned me, looking confused. “You were making a funny face for a bit.”
“She just said she basically cared about all of us and that we needed rest so we could defeat Victor tomorrow. So, I think that is probably the best thing to do.” They nodded, and just like that, we continued towards the camp. It was hard to believe a goddess had my back. It seemed that wasn’t something that happened all the time to people. I thought to her how I was grateful for her help and thanked her for boosting my confidence.
Time to rest and then take on Victor.
Chapter Fourteen
Upon arriving at the campsite that was now more organized, I realized a few things. One the fairies could manipulate nature. The site was cleaned up of the gore from our small conflict earlier, plants were adjusted, making the scenery beautiful and relaxing. Plants were grown in a way to make some kind of natural bedding to rest on. I also realized that Queen Mav decided we were all sleeping right by each other, as this was only done in one area. Looks like I’ll have some cuddling tonight.
I removed my gear but didn’t feel I should leave my sword all on its own. To me, it was the goddess herself. I didn’t want her to be alone. So, I brought it with me, settling it above my head as I laid down. Relaxing on my back, I looked up at the beautiful stars that were shining above me. The sparkling and twinkles they projected from their distance back in time spoke to me. How many other worlds were out there, how many have winked out of existence? What will happen to this world if I fail?
You can’t fail.
That seems to be the case. Mew laid down on my left side and cuddled up against me. She laid on my shoulder, her precious small face looking up at me smiling. She didn’t say anything, and she didn’t have to. Her eyes said enough. They spoke of belief and an unspoken commitment to everything that I was.
Valentine came up to my right side. She was taller than Mew but still much shorter than I was. She just closed her eyes and laid upon my chest, like she was listening to my heartbeat. Mei was behind her, her back to Valentine’s. Valentine was already fast asleep, her hand up towards her mouth as she lightly snored. I ran my hands slowly through Mew’s hair, looking into her eyes. I studied each strand that belonged to this wonderful girl. She relaxed and closed her eyes, then drifted off. I was once again alone as everyone slept, just me and the stars. Well, in a way, I was never alone now.
I am here.
Yes, you are here. Are you there always Freyja?
Only from you being near the sword. It is our connection now.
Why the sword, and why help me?
The sword is all that is left of me, for now. We made a bond before, and you helped me. It was before you left this world.
I don’t remember, so this doesn’t really make a lot of sense to me.
It won’t, but in time it will all make sense. Just focus on your next task with defeating Victor.
Thank you for helping me, Freyja.
Supporting you is the least I can do. You earned it from me. Now rest.
I closed my heavy eyes and started to drift off to sleep. I was about to take the stage for the next part of my adventure that was my fate. I had so much I needed to accomplish, but it really was just one step at a time. I felt soothing feelings as I laid there, literally surrounded by people that supported me. I had a goddess with me that I was somehow connected to because I helped her. I found sleep a short time later.
There was a light tickle to my face that turned into a light tapping on my nose. I slowly opened my eyes to a tiny butt in my face, or more like on my face. Queen Mav was straddling the bridge of my nose and hitting the end of it with her tiny fists. She was singing a song, something about waking up and having a wonderful day. The thing about fairies that most may not know is that they are very human-like. They are also naturists. They like to be natural in the environment. This may or may not be essential to know. It is possibly vital if they are sitting on your face, using your nose as a drum, and singing a song to wake you up.
; I was now fully awake. “Hey there, good morning.”
She turned around to look at me and giggled. “You are finally awake!”
“So, I see fairies don’t believe in panties, learn something new every day.”
“What are panties?”
She stopped drumming and flipped around to face me, she had a wicked smile, so mischievous. I didn’t know if she was doing this on purpose, or she was just a fairy doing fairy things.
“Well…”
“I know what they are silly, but no- we just wear our dresses. Why is the dress too much? I can always remove it if it’s an issue.”
“No, you can keep it on, definitely keep it on. It’s fine.”
She flew off of my face in fits of laughter, spiraling up into the sky. Which, in turn, caused everyone else around me to begin to wake from their slumber. Mew gave a small yawn and stretched her arms above her head. Her hair was sticking up all crazy, a result of her head pressing against my body. Valentine just woke up slowly, still looking about the same. It must be an elf thing. I wondered if they could ever look bad. They both eased away from me, and I was able to sit up. The area looked even more beautiful during the day. Everything was greener, more full, just healthy, causing the environment to appear completely different.
Mav flew back down as happy as ever and landed on my shoulder. “I’m glad you are all awake. We have breakfast for you.” We all gave her our thanks and appreciation. She skipped over to my ear and blew on it. “Unless you are already full from looking at my rear end.”
Mew was trying to fix her hair. “What is she talking about?”
I poked the small fairy softly in the stomach. “Nothing, I’ll tell you about it later.”
“We also made some gifts. We are so thrilled that you came.”
They had collected different things from the forest that we could eat, amazing looking berries and some nuts. I picked up a sizeable purple berry, and I took a bite, a little juice making a mess of me. It was the best berry I had ever eaten, though I didn’t eat them very often. We all sat down and ate our fill as we conversed and enjoyed the company of the fun-loving fairies.
Valentine looked peaceful as she sat, looking content from the meal she just enjoyed. “It’s strange how calm it is, so quiet with what I know will happen later today.”
Mei sat beside her just as peaceful. She was delicately adjusting little bits of Valentine’s hair, making sure she looked perfect. “It is a little surreal.”
“Do you have some Master plan, Rezzy?” Mew was still eating, and her mouth was a little full. Not a challenging task with how small she was.
“I don’t have any plan yet, but I’m sure I know where I can get some ideas.” I picked up my sword, leaning it more on my lap as I gazed upon the words that marked it. “Do you have any thoughts, Freyja?”
I do. You won’t be able to be stealthy this time. This will be more of a siege. The good thing is there are so few of you, you will not be seen as a threat. Victor also has a lot of pride; he will send a few out to contest you. Then he will send out the rest. That is when Victor will also personally come to you. He will not want to appear weak from hiding.
I repeated what she had told me to the rest of the party. We all agreed that it seemed pretty logical and straightforward. I was sure Victor had a big ego. Most that accomplished things in a wrong way weren’t usually the most charming of people. If Freyja was sure of it, there wasn’t any reason to doubt it. She was a goddess, after all. A few fairies flew over and playfully started grabbing our clothing, pulling us to come with them. They took us over to a large tree. There were a few items at the base of it. They were the gifts Mav had spoken about. She flew over and landed on my shoulder.
“These are the gifts that we made for you. We did the best we could. The princess had a bow. We improved it into a bow that would be worthy of you. We also crafted many arrows for you last night. They should work quite well.” She looked over at the elves and pointed at Mei. “We couldn’t work with your preferred weapon, but we made you an outfit more fitting for a battle. We made forest armor for both elves.”
Valentine picked up the bow to look at it. It was two times larger than it was when she had it before. They had filled a few quivers with countless arrows for her to use. She pulled the string, lightly giving it a pluck. It vibrated and let out a sound that was clear and beautiful, like a harp.
The elves looked at the forest armor they held and then looked at me. I got the hint. “I’ll turn around, so I can’t see you change.” After a few moments, they communicated that they were finished, and I didn’t have to look away anymore. The women looked amazing, and I really appreciated this world. The armor was a mixture of cloth and leather. The tops cupped their breasts and were cut short, so their stomachs showed. They had light fabric that wrapped around their necks. The bottoms were skirts with split sides and a wide belt that could hold knives and other items. They had boots that came up to their knees that wrapped around their lower legs. It was like elf cosplay.
Mav flew over and poked them in spots. “It is thin and light, but it has strong durability. I made sure of that. Don’t underestimate it.”
Mei adjusted it, even though it looked like a perfect fit. “It’s wonderful, thank you.” She smiled.
“Don’t worry about it, I have to keep my new friends as safe as possible. I also made sure you looked attractive too, have to give him motivation, right?” The elves blushed, causing Mav to cackle with laughter. Everyone organized their weapons, Valentine collecting and putting on her quivers that fit perfectly with the armor she wore. Mei collected a weapon that looked like a kusarigama. It had a sickle on one end, chained to a ball on the other. Mew was already ready to go. She always seemed dressed for conflict.
I noticed that a few fairies flew over to Valentine, and they were carrying a tiara made from plants and flowers. “You may not have your kingdom right now, but I think a princess should look like one. So, we also made you this, Princess Valentine, a forest tiara. Besides being pretty, it has some special properties as well.” Mav landed on my shoulder and gave my hair a few tiny tugs. “Who knows, end of the day, maybe you’ll have a new castle with this guy.” The fairy queen sure knew how to make people blush, that was for sure. I knew she was a specialist when Valentine had to look away. I don’t think any of us had escaped her wrath. Even if she didn’t intend to, her jokes and playfulness did lighten the mood. She was a great little person.
“Mav, aren’t you going to come live with me too? I mean, some fairies might be nice to have around.” That time I made her blush. I felt like I just won the championship game. She flew over and kissed my nose lightly.
“We don’t really have a home anymore, so if you wouldn’t mind us there, I would gladly and humbly accept.”
“I would like you there.” I kissed my fingertip lightly and then touched it softly to her face, causing a giggle to escape her lips. She flew over and landed on my shoulder.
Valentine came over and helped fasten my sword to my back. She looked deep into my eyes and smiled. I returned her smile. “You look so handsome. Are you sure you don’t need more armor?”
I looked at what I was wearing and hummed in thought. I guess it wouldn’t hurt. I walked over to where the armor that the guards had been wearing previously was piled up over by the main building, and I started digging through it.
Mew skipped over and bent down to watch me. “I think you deserve better than that dirty guard armor Rezzy, why not make some?”
I paused and looked up at her and let out a chuckle. “I discovered a while ago; it is easier and takes less energy if I change things instead of using more mana, creating it out of nothing.”
“Ah, I see. Make sure you look good. I can’t like someone that looks like a poop stick.”
I raised my eyebrow at her. “You are so sweet and adorable.”
“I know, don’t even have to try.”
I brought some of the armor back over, Mew helping me carry
some. She was sweet and adorable like that. I couldn’t believe how fast she had changed with how she felt about me. Mew was a totally different person, and that was a good thing. She seemed a lot more confident and happier. It made me think of my women that were taken from us. I hoped they were alright. Part of me didn’t want to ask, but I did anyway. I had to know.
“Freyja? Can you tell if Mecci and Yumi are alright?”
There was silence.
Mew set down the armor she had been carrying. “Things ok?”
“She hasn’t answered me yet.”
I organized the armor to keep myself busy while I waited. Freyja normally answered almost instantly. All the girls stood silent while I finished setting up the old armor to get it ready to be customized into some new badass wear.
It was harder for me to see in there. Things are murky, which raises some other questions. They are alive. It would be wise to get there soon.
“She says they are ok, and we should get going. I am going to get this finished up really quick.” I stood up and focused on what I wanted to happen. I thought about how I fought and what would work best customized for me. I held out my hand over the armor on the ground and closed my eyes in concentration. I felt the magic working and things changing around my body. After a few moments I was finished and I opened my eyes.
Valentine walked up and touched her palm to the chest of my new armor. “I never knew you could do that. That is amazing.” I just smiled at her. The armor I made was light and thin. I didn’t use all the resources I brought over. My armor was a very dark blue that looked black until the light hit it just right. It had side collars that came up slightly to protect my neck. I decorated the armor with gold trim to match my sword handle. I put the same emblem crest, only larger, in the middle of the chest in honor of Freyja. Lastly, I added the writing for a nice finishing touch. Love to purify the wicked.
You honor me. You look very formidable.
It is my pleasure. I wish I could do more.
Just win. Love to purify the wicked.