Fragments of your Soul (The Mirror Worlds Book 1) (2 page)

“Wait!” the woman by her side exclaimed, startled, but Arvid had already thrown the ball.

It hit the flickering and tore apart the swirling waves. It looked as if someone had hit a liquid surface with a huge paddle, only the resulting waves were disproportionately large. From beneath, gaping long, dark cracks started to spread quickly.

Before Arvid could properly understand what was happening, she was surrounded by a vertical air movement and wild fibrillation. It felt as if it would leave a layer of ice on her skin, and her entire body went numb. Arvid wanted to scream but seemed unable to, and when she wanted to retreat, her body refused. She was overcome by an overwhelming fear when she realized that something terrible was happening to her. She knew she had to get out of this flickering immediately, but at the same time she felt her senses fading. As if through a swirling curtain she caught a glimpse of a figure in blue, but then everything went black.

Arvid awoke choking and coughing as she repeatedly swallowed water. After a moment, she felt a freezing cold and a flow that tugged at her body and began instinctively to kick with her arms and legs. At the same moment the noise around her returned in a sudden, thunderous wave. Rushing water splashed. She heard a loud gasp and snort, which, as she realized a second later, came from herself. The angry-sounding voice of a man shouted and scolded continuously in an unfamiliar language, and only now Arvid noticed that she had just reached a piece of sandy ground.

Her body felt numb and stiff. Her throat was burning like fire, and she had to cough repeatedly. She tried unsuccessfully to get up. It was only when a hand grabbed her roughly by the arm and pulled her to her feet with almost brute force that her senses cleared a little. Around her it was pitch dark. In front of her she saw the face of a man who still shouted at her and looked really angry.

“Oh, I forgot, you don’t even understand this language,” he cried, suddenly clearly understandable, but with a strong accent, which Arvid could not place.

“I don’t even know why I pulled you out of the damn water!” he shouted on. “Actually, you deserve to be devoured by river rats, you worthless piece of shit!”

“What…” Arvid gasped, then broke out in a new fit of coughing. She writhed, as a searing pain shot through her throat. She tried to stay on her feet with all her might, but her knees felt weak and shaky, and the soft ground was giving under her feet.

“I have been waiting for months,” the man shouted at her, apparently still seething with anger. “Months! And then you come along and ruin everything!” He glared at her a moment longer, his face full of anger, then he turned around abruptly and started to go up the sandy shore. “Miserable, useless humans,” he hissed and spat contemptuously. “Let the demons take them all… filthy little worms!”

Arvid was shocked and disoriented. She still coughed, but now made the attempt to follow the man who was slowly disappearing into the darkness. He scared her, but not as much as her environment — a single, impenetrable blackness. The man’s figure had been something tangible. The idea of him leaving her behind in total darkness was unbearable.

“Wait!” she cried hoarsely.  She coughed again and stumbled. “Wait! Where are you going?” Arvid had fallen to her knees, but got quickly up again and stumbled on.

“Away!” shouted the man from the darkness. “If I’m in the mood, I’ll tell the next best human that you’re somewhere down here, crouching in the mud!”

“No, stay here!” Arvid shouted after him desperately. “You can’t just go!”

She dragged herself several steps farther, but then her legs gave in under her weight again. It was freezing cold and pitch dark, and she did not know why. Panic began to rise in her.

“Wait!” she called again. Her voice was now only a desperate sob. “What happened? Where am I?”

Finally the dark figure in front of her stopped and turned slowly to face her. He was wearing black clothes and faded almost entirely into the dark, only the pale skin of his face and hands standing out clearly. For a moment the man stared at her unmoved, then he theatrically spread out his arms.

“Welcome to the Shadow World,” he said. A moment later he was gone.

Later, Arvid could not tell how long she had aimlessly wandered through the darkness. After the man was gone, she had started running in blind panic, over stones and semi-frozen grass. She had beaten her way through shrubbery and foliage until her feet and skin were completely scratched and her body was burning like fire. Only then did she gradually succeed in thinking clearly again.

First, she noticed that she was completely naked. Her wet hair stuck to her head and shoulders, and she was freezing, her teeth chattering with cold. Her fear and confusion were almost overpowering, but she knew she had to try and stay calm if she didn’t want to freeze to death out here.

On the issue of where she was and how she had come here, she had no answers. She knew that somewhere behind her was a river, but it was not the river of her hometown. There didn’t seem to be any houses or other light sources at all as far as the eye could see. The only brightness shone from the sky, so only vague black outlines of trees and shrubs could be made out.

Should she simply wait for help? Would the man who had pulled her out of the river really let someone know or was it just more nonsense, like probably everything he said? But defenselessly exposed to the cold, Arvid’s body already hurt like mad.

Since the sound of the river was the only thing she could use for orientation, Arvid started going in the opposite direction. Her march seemed endless, with nothing changing about her environment. Although she tried not to, her thoughts soon began to move in disturbing tracks. Why was there no light? Even if she was far out in the countryside, there would be houses somewhere in the distance. And why was it even nighttime? Had it not just been early in the morning? There was no logical explanation for it, unless it was all just a dream. Was it possible to think about whether you dreamed in a dream?

At one point something appeared in front of her in the dark, something massive. Arvid stopped and tried to see what it was. Her eyes had adjusted to the dark a little, and after a moment she realized that she was standing in front of a wall, the wall of a castle ruin. She had to tip her head back in order to see the upper edge. What she saw up there made her forget her aching feet and the biting cold for a moment.

Above her a starry sky shone bright and clear, as if she was staring directly into the deepest depths of the universe. There were not only stars, but also gently glowing fogs that seemed to radiate light in all colors. Some were blue, some purple to pink, and here and there was a hint of red. Arvid had seen similar things in photos, but to see all this directly above her, huge and endlessly spreading to all sides, was overwhelming.

A sudden noise tore Arvid away from the amazing sight. The feeling of pain and cold returned all at once, when she realized that it was hurried footsteps that approached her. Arvid looked around, scared, then she saw a figure at a distance. Her heart began to beat hard.

“Hey, you there!” exclaimed an excited male voice. “Over here, quickly.”

The man waved frantically, but Arvid remained rooted to the spot and did not move. On the one hand she was glad to finally meet another person, but after all that had happened, she could not resist a certain feeling of anxiety. Then she heard noises behind her also.

Panicked, she whirled around. Small, red glowing eyes had appeared in the darkness in front of her. The unknown creatures uttered strange, hissing sounds, and even though they were still far away, there was no doubt that they were approaching her.

She was suddenly grabbed by the arm and pulled around so roughly that she cried out, stumbled and almost fell.

“Run!” shouted the man beside her.

Finally Arvid awoke from her stupor and ran. She felt the cold, wet ground and the tall grass under her bare feet, as she heard the creatures behind her expelling terrifying howls.

“Faster,” gasped the man, of whom she still could only see a black outline, “we have to reach the old school; a circle of protection starts there.”

Arvid had no idea what that meant, but her fear drove her on. She reached some dark trees and followed her shadowy companion almost blindly. Low-hanging branches scratched her bare skin, and she moaned in pain as a particularly strong branch scraped her arm painfully. They left the grove behind them, and the ground became firm and sandy.

“There,” the man beside her said, sounding exhausted and pointing straight ahead, where dark buildings and scattered lights became visible. Again a loud wail rang out behind them. It was much closer now.

When they reached the first houses and made their way between the dark walls, Arvid saw that it was nothing but ruins again. The windows were black and empty, doors hung splintered or wrong on their hinges, and there were scattered stone fragments and weathered wooden beams everywhere. Then a square with a large building, illuminated by lanterns, appeared in front of them.

Arvid slowed down involuntarily, but her companion grabbed her roughly by the arm and dragged her on.

Now she saw what they were trying to reach: Across the cobbled ground ran a slightly curved, white line. In the air above it a glitter could be seen, which looked like a ray of light falling on small, floating dust particles.

When she broke through the invisible barrier, Arvid felt a burning pain in her chest. Still, she let out a sigh of relief. At last her companion let her go. He stumbled on a few final steps and then leaned onto a small, leafless tree. Arvid exhaustedly came to a stand as well, but then turned around and stared into the darkness before her anxiously.

What she saw made her doubt her own sanity. Incredulously she watched four, then five, then six strange creatures appearing between the houses, illuminated by the dim light of the square. They slightly reminded her of wolves. They had four legs, a pointed snout and a thin, lashing tail, which seemed to be far too long. Their bodies were shiny and scaly, the heads crowned by arm-long, straight horns. Their eyes were like red-hot coals.

Step by step Arvid moved farther back. It was hard to believe that the fine white line on the ground could really stop these creatures.

“Don’t worry,” said the man next to her. “It’s a very powerful circle. They will not dare to cross it.”

The black creatures actually became slower and began pacing up and down before the barrier restlessly, eyes still fixed on their potential prey. Arvid forced her eyes off the eerie sight of their pursuers to finally look at her unknown rescuer.

He was young, younger than Arvid would have thought by the sound of his voice. He had a thin, pale face and silver blond hair that was braided back over his head from his forehead. His slim, tall figure was concealed to the knees by a black cape with a bushy fur collar.

“Are you all right?” he asked.

Before Arvid could answer, voices were heard behind them. Trampling steps and the clink of metal could be heard, and shortly afterward half a dozen figures in capes, armed with lances and swords, came storming around the corner of the school. From the corner of her eye Arvid saw the black creatures fleeing behind them, but she too felt fear beginning to rise inside her at the sight of the grim-looking fighters. But then her savior turned to the soldiers and waved. Apparently, he knew them.

As they approached them, Arvid realized with unpleasant clarity that she was still completely naked. She stepped half behind her companion, who seemed to understand immediately. With a practiced movement, he took off his cloak and put it around Arvid’s shoulders.

Arvid pulled the heavy fabric tightly around her and forced a smile. “Thanks.”

The man nodded, then turned back to the approaching soldiers. The foremost, a long-haired giant with a huge fur collar, vigorously pushed his sword back into its sheath and turned to Arvid’s savior with an imperious voice. He spoke a language Arvid didn’t know, and she looked around insecurely.

All wore unadorned armor and white and blue tabards under their cloaks. While the longhaired man didn’t even look at her, the others all stared at her with undisguised curiosity. They did not look exactly hostile, but very serious and perhaps a little surprised. Two of the men in the very back discussed with muffled voices and repeatedly threw her appraising glances. Only a young woman with blond braids, holding a lance, looked at her kindly.

A second man soon joined the conversation. The giant gestured vigorously while talking, while the young man who had saved Arvid was mostly listening.

Arvid still couldn’t understand a single word. She was cold despite the cloak and her feet hurt terribly. Up to her ankles Arvid was covered in mud and dirt and bleeding from several cuts and scrapes. Although the cloak helped against the cold, she felt a certain anger rise after the initial shock. The men did not seem to find it necessary to pay her any attention.

She was about to say something when the conversation fell silent. A moment later, all eyes were on her.

“I’m Thoke, son of Veli,” her savior presented himself, then he pointed at the longhaired giant. “This is Gjell, son of Bjarni and Commander of the City Guard. What’s your name?”

“Arvid,” she said after a moment’s hesitation. “Arvid Bergen.”

Thoke turned to the giant and obviously translated her answer. Then he looked back at her and smiled.

“You must be confused,” he said. “But don’t be afraid, no one here is gonna hurt you, even if I am, unfortunately, the only person who speaks your language. But now we’ll take you somewhere warm.”

He wanted to turn around, but Arvid stopped him. “Wait! What’s going on here? Where the hell am I? And what are those…” She turned to the black creatures, then it occurred to her that they had already fled.

“The answers to your questions could be very confusing,” Thoke said softly. “Maybe it would be better to…”

“No!” Arvid interrupted him, half scared, half angry. “I want to know what’s going on. How did I get here? Why are you all dressed so oddly, and what were those animals? Is this some kind of a joke?”

Although Arvid couldn’t get rid of the eerie feeling that something was very wrong, her first thought had been that she must have gotten lost and ended up in a theater setting, for both the black creatures as well as the houses and the strange starry sky looked odd and wrong in a very disturbing way.

“Believe me, it would be better to discuss this indoors,” Thoke said.

The people around them began to look at her and Thoke questioningly. Gjell seemed impatient and angry, but Arvid was indifferent.

“I will not take a single step before I have some answers,” she said firmly.

Thoke frowned and seemed to think for a moment. Finally, he nodded and said a few words to Gjell, who responded with an angry snort.

“All right, you shall have your answers,” Thoke then said to Arvid. “This is my hometown; it’s called Black Castle. The animals from before, we call demons. There are many of them, and they are extremely aggressive. However, the circles of protection normally keep them away, because it causes them a lot of pain to cross them. Nothing here is part of your world. Scholars who study the relationships between the worlds call your world the Light World and this one here the Shadow World.”

It took a moment for Arvid to digest all that Thoke had just told her. “You really want to tell me that this is another world?” she finally asked doubtfully. “Another planet on which there are… demons? And these circles of protections are probably some kind of sorcery, or what?” She laughed, but it sounded forced and nervous.

Thoke sighed. “It’s not another planet,” he said. “This is the earth, but… it’s a different world. Another dimension, if you prefer that term. And yes, the circles of protection are using a kind of magic. It’s rune magic.”

Arvid stared at Thoke, stunned. He looked serious about what he just said, but it was absurd. Magic did not exist. Should she really believe that she was in another dimension, like in a science fiction movie? That was no less than ridiculous.

“And I’m supposed to believe you?” she finally asked. “That’s completely impossible.”

Thoke looked almost pitying now. “We should really go now; you need to warm up,” he said softly. “You can either believe me or take a look around and try to find another explanation. Maybe you’re hallucinating.” He shrugged. “If you prefer that notion, that’s all right with me. However, I can tell you that I have been living in this… hallucination for many years. Now come.”