by GR Griffin
Silmeria noted that Brahms tried to be gentle this time, slowly biting into the scarred side of her neck. Hel would gasp, and let out a low keening sound, her hands clutching at his arms for those first mouthfuls. Brahms kept her hands from moving over his body, the vampire grabbing her wrists, and twisting them behind the Goddess' back. Hel would thrash and move restlessly against him, wanting to touch him, wanting to spur him into taking her.
But Brahms was in control this time, drinking her blood and ignoring his arousal. Ignoring hers as well, Hel whimpering in frustration. When he finally finished feeding, Brahms still held Hel captive, not trusting her to throw herself on him. He still felt disgusted, but nowhere near as much as he would have had he taken her body as well as her blood.
Ignoring his aroused state, he stared at Hel. She stared back, her eyes looking almost feverish in their glassy eyed state. Still holding her, he bowed his head, muttering a low apology. "I am sorry Hel. Sorry for everything I have done to you. Everything I continue to do."
Confusion flickered briefly in her eyes, the Goddess not understanding the apology. Brahms felt all the worse for her lack of understanding, his eyes drifting away from her face to her body. He noted the dirt, noted the remains of blood and other fluids that had stained her skin. She hadn't been taking care of herself, not even bothering to wash. The guilt filled him, Brahms knowing he was responsible for this.
In perhaps the greatest act of kindness he could still show Hel, Brahms would guide her into the spring with him. There in Hvergelmir's waters, he would start to bath her, working to clean her of all the dirt and grim that covered her. It was an act that only compounded Hel's confusion, the Goddess not understanding the motive behind Brahms actions. She kept trying to touch him, and for that reason alone did he use one hand to restrain her wrists, while the other worked to clean her.
Her clothing was not worth salvaging. He tried not to look at her body once they were out of the water. Hel just stared at him, waiting expectantly for him to either feed again or use her for sex. He did neither, his frustration mounting at the utter trusting manner in which she would give herself over to both acts. It was that frustration that ultimately moved him to speak, Brahms as exasperated as he was guilt ridden.
"Why do you stay with me?" He hadn't expected to get an answer. Brahms had noted Hel almost never spoke, save to whisper or scream his name. "There is no real purpose for you here, no reason for you to be in the underworld."
"I have a purpose." Hel's unexpected answering startled him, Brahms' jaw dropping in shock. Her eyes were still feverish, but Silmeria sensed Hel was actually looking at Brahms. Seeing him.
"A purpose?" Brahms managed to ask.
Hel smiled, the expression dreamy. "My purpose is you. To be with you, to see to your needs, your desires."
That didn't make him feel good to hear, Brahms grabbing her by the arms. "Why do you say that? How can you want to do anything for me, after what I did to you? The pain I caused you, the pain I continue to cause." She just looked confused, making Brahms want to shake her. "I nearly killed you. I still can! Hel, we don't know how often I can feed off you...how much more of this you can take before breaking."
"I would gladly give my life to see you live....thrive..." It was eerie, the words a reminder of something similar she had said at his sick bed. Brahms remembered how Hel had spoken words, a promise about how she would give her life so that he could live. Back then he had felt she meant it, felt as though Hel had made him an unbreakable promise. Was that promise what drove her now, what brought Hel to him? He was uneasy, frowning at her.
"You shouldn't be here." Brahms told her. "You should leave this place...leave me." Hel slowly shook her head no, her smile dimming in response to his words. "Damn it!" He growled. "I am not asking you, I am telling you what you should do! For your own good, stay away from me!" He would have thrust her away from him if Brahms thought she wouldn't come after him.
"That is not what you truly wish for." Hel said with conviction. She placed her hand on his chest, right over where his heart still beat. "I feel you." She continued, tone soft. "I feel your desires, your wants and needs. They call to me...tell me what to do. They draw me to you, invade my dreams until all I can think of is you. I've felt your pain, the hunger that gnaws at you. You've called to me...called for an end to that pain, the hunger. I can give you that end, and I do so gladly."
Silmeria felt Brahms' confusion, not understanding just what the Goddess was talking about. "How can you feel my pain?" he demanded. "How can you know anything about this hunger I feel?"
Hel reached for his hands, bringing them up to her face. She had his fingers press against her temples, Hel smiling as she talked. "You speak to me here." He just stared at her, not understanding. "Your mind touches mine...has touched mine ever since you bound me to you."
"Bound you to me?" He repeated, letting Hel guide his fingers to the scarred side of her neck. "I bound you to me when I bit you?"
"Yes." Hel said, seeming far too happy about that. "I am yours now. Forever."
"Forever..." He whispered, and felt no joy at that. He felt even worse when Hel tied to go up on tip toe, the Goddess wanting to kiss him. Brahms stepped back out of reach, moving fast as though lightning had struck him. Hel's expression distorted, confusion in her eyes for she did not understand why he avoided her lips.
"If...if what you say is true..." Brahms said, when he had regained his composure. "I have done you a great wrong...." Hel just stared at him, as though not understanding what he had said. "I never meant to do this, never meant to bind you to me."
"I do not mind..."
"Forgive me, but you don't seem to have enough free will left to make up your mind either way!" Brahms snapped. Hel did not even look hurt, just standing there ever patient. "I've taken your free will away." He muttered more to himself than her. "I've all but made you my slave...." She was inching towards him again, looking as though Hel wanted to touch Brahms once more.
"I am happy." She insisted, to which Brahms snorted in response. "I am content, so long as I am with you. As long as I can serve you."
But that wasn't what Brahms wanted to hear. Hel's mindless devotion, her happiness was only horrifying him. It made him want to run, to flee her, even as he knew the hunger would make him seek her out. Since Hel's arrival in Nifleheim, Brahms had stopped feeding on the little scavenger demons. Hel's blood was all he wanted, the craving for it driving him to her, again and again. Even if he left now, Brahms knew he would be back.
"You have to leave." Brahms ordered her, tone fierce. "Being here, with me or without, is no good for you!"
"But I........!"
"You were never meant for the underworld. You are a pure creature, a Goddess of light and love. This realm, these demons, even me, are too good for you." He wanted to scream, to howl as he saw she did not understand him. "Hel, I command you. Return to Asgard."
"But that is not your true wish..."
"The damn it is not!" Brahms growled. "I don't know if I can, but if it's possible, I will free you from this enchantment. Until I find the way, you must stay away from me. You must return to your home in the heavens."
"You will change your mind." It was more knowing than she had previously showed, Hel smiling all the while. "When the hunger and desires get out of control, you will call to me..."
"Even if that happens, you must not come to me!" Brahms told her. "For your own good, and my peace of mind, you will remain in Asgard." Uncertainty flashed in her eyes, Brahms stepping forward to seize her by the arms. "Promise me, Hel!"
"I...I will do only what you command of me." She said, her eyes lowering. It wasn't the promise he wanted, but it was better than nothing. He would just have to avoid thinking about Hel, to not even dream about her or how appetizing her blood was. Maybe then this bond between them would be broken, Hel able to stay away from Brahms and the underworld.
"Get dressed." He ordered gruffly, letting go of her. He knew she could still use
her powers from the fact she had fought off many demons while in the underworld. Brahms would have Hel make him clothing too. It was a step towards making him feel like less of a monster, and more like a civilized being. He told himself monsters didn't wear clothes, didn't have conversations with Goddesses.
"Return to Asagrd." Brahms would tell Hel once more. "Tell no one where you have been. Especially not Odin."
"Of course. I would not endanger you." Hel bowed her head, ether already sparking around her. He saw the sadness of her smile, the agony it was costing Hel to part from him. But Brahms was determined this would be the last time he ever saw Hel, the vampire wanting to save the Goddess from him and from herself.
It didn't work out according to Brahms' wishes. The hunger that was ever a constant presence in his life returned. He'd tried to wait it out, tried to sate himself on demon's blood. But it was never as fulfilling, never as sweet and sustaining as the Goddess' blood. Even as he tried not to remember the taste of her, he would unconsciously call out to Hel. Invading her dreams with his blatant need for her.
It was a need the Goddess would not ignore. She'd come to Nifleheim again and again, eager to see to Brahms' appetites. Those were perhaps the worse feedings, the taking of her neck and body violent. Brahms always felt worse after she left, horrified over what he continued to do to Hel. He'd even begin to see the futility of keeping them apart, Brahms allowing Hel to make daily trips to the underworld all in order to feed him before his appetites took him over and had him hurt her.
Hel's visits didn't just serve to sate his hunger. She brought him information, Brahms learning of his brother. Odin was busy as King of all Creation. He was seeing to the population of the realms, creating new races to live and prosper under his rule. There was the elves of Alfhiem, the giants of Jotunheim. And among all these races, was the mortals of Midgard.
The humans were Odin's pet project. A short existence whose souls would live on, Odin put all his effort and care into developing this race. The humans were quick to worship the God, to cower in fright of his wrath, and to make daily offerings to earn his blessings. They were still in their infancy, barely better than animals at this point, but already their whole existence was based on pleasing Odin. Their faith and devotion seemed to empower the God, Odin gaining even more strength from their belief.
He had yet to set up a system for the judging of human souls. At the moment they lived and died, only to reincarnate and repeat the cycle. It was still some time away before Odin would set up a warrior's paradise, and damn all the other souls to the demons of the underworld. At that moment, Odin was content, thinking he had no one to challenge his position of power.
It seemed Odin had all but forgotten Brahms. As though he had assumed the vampire had died shortly after his arrival in Nifleheim. The news did not appease Brahms. He was angry that Odin did not think him a threat, even as he was grateful his supposed death had bought him the time to heal. The time not only to heal, but to grow into his strength.
At that time in the memories, Brahms had yet to discover any powers. He had noted the loss of the use of ether, the divine energy just a persistent tingle under his skin whenever he tried to call upon that power. But he was strong, perhaps as strong as when he had been a God. And his speed? It was unnatural, Brahms able to move faster than anything in the underworld.
He had not yet learned to teleport, to mesmerize with his gaze. But the beginnings of the compulsion were there, Silmeria noting he had to have use it in order to bind Hel so thoroughly to him. The Goddess continued to feed him, and only her divine status kept her from withering away from how often she gave up her blood. Brahms continued to feel guilt over what he was doing, over how he was using Hel. And yet he couldn't stop, nor would he risk binding another God or Goddess to him in the manner he had done Hel.
And then one day, Hel's visits stopped. As sudden as she had appeared in the underworld, now she was gone. No amount of hunger pangs could draw Hel to him, Brahms suffering once more. Forced to feed off the many demons, all in a manner to prolong his life. Brahms was losing his strength, the demons' blood unable to do more than sustain his life.
Brahms had no way of knowing what had happened to Hel, or why she had abandoned him. But he realized he had become dependent on her, and not just for her blood. He missed talking with her. Hel had been a fount of information, keeping him abreast of Odin and the other God's doings. She had been his connection to the Heavens, to his old life. She had been his one link to civilization, and without her, he knew only hunger.
How long did Brahms remain in the underworld after Hel had gone? Silmeria could not tell. But he wasn't gaining strength feeding off the demons, wasn't doing anything but prolonging his misery. He needed to find a new food source, and yet he didn't dare return to the heavens. If Odin didn't kill him on sight, any God or Goddess Brahms tried to prey on surely would.
How low he had fallen, Brahms often thought to himself. That he would actively plot to feed on another, to do to them what he had done to Hel. To do what he had once thought he'd never be able to repeat. But his time spent in the underworld, feeding off of the many demons had jaded Brahms. To the point he was certain he'd have no trouble feeding off another.
That certainty, along with his hunger, was what ultimately got Brahms to leave the underworld. But it was not to Asagrd that he went to. He'd emerge out of the underworld, stepping out onto the land of Midgard. It would be nighttime in this part of the realm, the moon just a sliver in the sky. The air smelled cleaner here, free of the sulfur and brimstone stench of Nifleheim.
Midgard was a lot different then from the realm it would become. It was still mainly a lush, green paradise. The mortals had yet to reach the stage of advancement where they would be capable of building cities. They couldn't even make fire, having to steal embers of it when lightning struck the forest, and set trees ablaze. The humans though were crafty enough to keep the fire they stole blazing, and use it to keep away many of the predators that roamed the land. But there was one predator who did not fear the flames. Brahms was that predator, walking into the cave, pretending to be one of them.
The humans were too trusting, too welcoming. They never suspected the monster that was walking amongst them, until after Brahms had began to feed. He didn't do it out in the open, drawing aside a human female. She was not like Hel at all, she died when Brahms savagely tore into her neck. He'd feel remorse later, too busy at the moment drinking down her blood.
The human female wouldn't be the last one to die. Brahms would feed on several more, men and women. He'd have to learn to control his bite, to be gentle instead of rough. He'd learn just how much pressure he could exert to not kill a human, but by that time the mortals' fear and anger were roused. They had put together that the deaths had started occurring just as the stranger Brahms had arrived. Fearful though they were, they attacked him. Sticks and stone weapons being used against him. Brahms did not want to hurt these humans, did not want to kill anymore. But he couldn't allow them to hurt him. He fought back only enough to get away, and all the while feared his punches and throws might have killed even more.
He'd move on, find another settlement of humans. The act would repeat itself, Brahms feeding off humans until they got suspicious of him. And then he would be driven off, sent to find another group. He should have stayed away from them, but his hungry needs guided him. As did the fact that their blood was better than the demons, more nourishing, more empowering. It wasn't anywhere like the blood of Hel's, but it was something that did more than just sustain him. He found the humans were a more than adequate replacement for Hel's blood.
It was a boring time for Brahms. Hs days consisted of finding a place to hide from the sun, while his nights were focused on hunting humans. He missed Hel's companionship, the sound of her voice. These humans could barely communicate with one another, their language still developing. But they began to spread stories about him, about the monster that preyed on them.
Even worse, they
began to pray to their God. To beseech Odin to save them from that which fed off of them. Odin might not have paid attention to just one group's prayers. But if was more than just one group, people gathering all across the land. Any settlement Brahms had come in contact with and preyed upon, now knew to fear him. And with that fear they asked for deliverance from the monster that stalked them.
That deliverance would come in the form of a lesser deity. A warrior Goddess that would become known as a Valkyrie. Silmeria startled to get a look at the first Valkyrie, never having dreamed that her kind had been created from the mortal's need of protection from Brahms. The battle maiden arrived in a bolt of lightning, human looking but retaining an air of divinity to her.
The humans fell to their knees in awe and worship, prostrating themselves before the beautiful Goddess. Though she looked human, she was set apart from the mortals, her bearing regal. She was clean where they were dirty, and her clothes and armor were unlike anything the mortals of Midgard had ever seen. Her clean hair was a pale, buttery yellow, and her eyes were a blazing emerald color.
Brahms had been hidden up in a tree, surveying the humans for his next meal when the Goddess had arrived. He had instantly hungered for HER blood, the very divinity that flowed through her veins calling to him. The Valkyrie herself had seemed to know he was there, her emerald gaze lifting to seek him out where he hid. Brahms had felt a prickle of unease, but more than that he had relished the thought of taking down this woman.
In a way, she truly was a gift from the heavens. What Odin had meant to be the monster's destruction, might very well be his salvation. Brahms thrilled at the thought of a divine food source, at the thought of the power that the Valkyrie maiden would give him. It made him careless, Brahms leaping down from the tree branches, to stalk into the crowd.
The humans noticed him, and with screams they scattered. Only a few brave men remained, holding their sharpened stick spears and stone axes. But they didn't dare approach Brahms, just kept a wary eye on him as he stalked towards the battle maiden. She let him approach, drawing her sword when he got but a few inches from her. Brahms barely took notice of the sword, making a near fatal mistake as he lunged to close the distance between them.
