Nightmare

Sounds of joyous laughter like that of a child echoed in the thick fog accompanied by the pitter-patter steps of a small person running around.

Within the fog, a slim figure stood there in a daze following the sounds of laughter with her eyes. The figure was Freya. This wasn't the first time she had had this dream before but this was the first time she felt ecstatic hearing that laughter.

In the past, her heart would ache and she would be crying unwilling to look at this happy scene. But today she wanted to see it. She wanted to see her mother and father. She wanted to see herself and what could have been.

When she took a step forward the hem of her dress flattered lightly and the thick fog parted creating a path.

As the sounds grew louder she looked up and in the sky was a bright red kite with sparkly dust trickling down as it flew high in the sky.

Her pace subconsciously increased to the point that she was almost running. Overwhelmed by the joyous emotion she began to call out mother and father softly her voice brittle.

When the fog finally cleared she was met by a beautiful woman clad in white standing there while beckoning her over.

The joyous laughter from before died down. That sweet sound that could stir people's hearts seemed to have been coming from her before.

The woman smiled happily while calling out, "Freya... come on. Come to mother," her voice as beautiful as that of a siren.

Freya froze on the spot her lips contorting in an ugly twist as she broke down crying. That was the same woman in the pictures her uncle showed her. That was her mother.

The woman beckoned her over once more and Freya let go of the kite string that had appeared in her hand at some point. As the kite flew away into dense clouds Freya ran over straight into her mother's arms and broke down crying.

"Mother," she whimpered softly while tightening her embrace. She felt a warm hand stroke her hair soothingly as a soft hum like that of a song came from her chest.

Freya's chaotic thoughts mellowed as the warmth from her mother enveloped her like that in a womb. The warmth seeped into her bones comforting her but in an instant, her heart dropped as a biting chill invaded her body.

Fear overwhelmed her as she tried to free herself from the tight embrace and look at her mother. But just like a child in a womb, she was trapped. The warmth dissipated sharply and the wind stopped feeling like a tactile sensation but an urgent pain.

She could feel the chill in her trachea and air sac. Freya could even feel it seeping into her blood freezing it in her veins.

Warm tears trickled down her face as she tried to free herself from the ice box now surrounding her. The fear of death took hold of her as she struggled hard. After a long struggle, she finally had a way out. She moved her stiff muscles and pushed through only for her to sit up on her bed with a jolt.

Gasping for air she clutched her chest tightly like she had just survived a drowning. While she was trying to get herself together, she heard a familiar voice coming from her bedside.

When she turned to look she saw her aunt lighting up a second incense stick her movements elegant. She turned to look at Freya and asked, "Nightmare?"

Freya pulled away the quilt and moved her feet to the ground her breathing still erratic. Her entire body was covered in sweat with a slight tremble in her muscles.

That incense stick wasn't a fragrant incense but a herbal medicine named rokisil that could force one awake. Her aunt Cara had probably heard her struggling in her sleep and came to wake her up. If she didn't wake her up things might escalate like before and Freya would stop breathing in her sleep.

"Thank you," whispered Freya as she wiped the sweat off her forehead with the back of her hand. Cara set aside the incense stick and crouch down next to Freya.

She took out a pearl white handkerchief with an embroidered black rose in one corner. With motherly doting, she looked up at Freya and wiped away the sweat on her forehead while saying, "You don't have to do this... You can live a simple life and find a lovely boy to marry. That's what I want for you."

Freya looked at her with a blank expression but there was a faint ripple in her eyes. Her chest rose and fell deeply as she stared into blank space seeming lost in thought.

Cara pat Freya's neck dry as she continued to say, "If you do decide to continue... we will have your back. We will fight with you and if you change your mind we will back you up."

Hearing this Freya turned to look at Cara with a hint of gratitude in her eyes. "They were killed for something they hadn't done. They did everything to save the crown prince but they were rewarded with death," she whispered her jaw clenched tightly as a teardrop hung at the rim of her eye like a small pearl.

Cara stroked her hair and nodded her head slightly before saying, "A blood debt for a heart."

Freya nodded her head and repeated her words. "A blood debt for a heart."

These were the words that kept her going even when she wanted to give up. This was her goal, the very reason she was alive. She should have died with her mother but she didn't all for one goal.

"Remember what I taught you... Men might be different in personality and looks but their hearts are the same. I know you can do it...I believe in you," said Cara and Freya nodded her head slightly.

Satisfied Cara got up and left the room after making sure Freya was okay. She grew up with Maeve Livia, Freya's mother and if it weren't for her she wouldn't have met her soulmate. They were best of friends sisters even, so when Maeve was executed like a dog on the street it was as though her heart was cut out of her chest alive.

The pain was so unbearable. When she rushed over in the dead of night with Linox to retrieve Maeve and Wayne's bodies she knelt before her and swore to make every single one of them pay.

As she knelt there crying she noticed Maeve's pregnant belly had been stabbed several times. Her heart sank when she realised what had happened. She didn't need anyone to tell her who did it. Maeve had stabbed into her own belly to give her baby a surviving chance.

Cara was the one who cut Freya out of her mother's womb and brought her back to life when it seemed very impossible.