The shadowy hands led Alda by one arm once they reached what looked like a pile of trees. There they would note once they were closer that it was some kind of dwelling. They were taken inside through a door impossibly held together by what she could only discern as careful craftsmanship.

Inside, it took them up some stairs, through two doors finally arriving in what looked like an empty white room—the walls were white as was everything else she could see; there wasn’t any furniture at all, but there must have been something because behind where he stood when he had first entered sounded very much like footsteps echoing on hard wooden floorboards.

“Come here.” A voice spoke from the white room and they could see a figure, bathed in white light, moving through the room towards them. The figure cast a white glow as it approached, and the voice seemed to ring out with authority.

As its features became clearer in their mind’s eye, they noticed this thing didn’t look like an angel from any of the faith texts but had an otherworldly beauty about them. That was when she started noticing little things; how her brain couldn’t wrap around what she saw before her or why this being would appear here at all? There is no magic left in the world!

“Are you deaf? I said come to me!” The voice shouted, making her flinch uncontrollably before entering cautiously only for her eyes only once the hands had released her. It drew closer and eventually it bent to look her in the face once she had stepped within as it commanded. Glowing blue eyes studied her face briefly before rising and pacing a bit.

Then, without warning, The Voice, as she dubbed him, yanked on her arm hard enough to lift her from the floor, his icy grip tight on her arm. “Why are you here??” He demanded, shaking her violently.

Alda’s hands came up to her shoulders, where he held her in that bright grip. “Please… I do not know what you’re talking about.”

The creature bared its teeth and hissed, spittle flying. “You killed one of mine!” it said in a low voice that carried the weight of centuries old anger. “The forest doesn’t take kindly to its denizens being murdered. You are here to bring war. I can feel it. You will lose in the end, you know this. And now… your kind will pay for their treachery!”

It released her and she slid to the ground with a whoosh of air expelled from lungs that had been holding still since he had spoken. She scrambled away from him as he stalked her, rage firing his movements. Alda was in a corner of the room but he did not seem to care - rather, he seemed drawn after a moment to the family.

The figure walked away, and towards the man and his family who had showed up at her camp. “In fact, I should take one of you in recompense. I need a replacement. He was a good soldier to me.” Speaking with a tone that conveyed sadness, which was as old as the world itself.

The weight of those words was hard to hear and caused Alda to look at the others in fear. He came to stop before the family to bend down with its impossibly tall frame to study them as well. Lingering on the wife and child in her arms. The man noticed and frowned heavily.

“I was the one that killed your man,” he said. He spoke quickly and with urgency, sounding afraid. “Leave my family and the girl out of this; they have nothing to do with it.”

At the mention of the human word for it, he seemed to shift in shape and color for a moment. “You are of the faith of old?” It leaned forward with its face inches from the man’s. Alda was suddenly not just afraid for herself, but the man and his family as well. “What is your name, human?”

“Hadren.” The man spoke and shuffled towards his wife and child. “This is Matilda and Hanna, my wife and daughter of the same faith.” The man, now known as Hadren spoke with the urgency from earlier.

“Hadren… ‘child of god’.” He looked thoughtful from what Alda could tell from its face. “And you?” Facing Alda where she hunkered down in the room’s corner.

“I… don’t believe in anything. They taught me magic and the gods no longer existed.” Her voice quavered with bone chilling fear. Did this mean she wouldn’t be treated like Hadren and his family? The entire scenario had Alda’s mind spinning with disbelief, and yet he was standing there, shadowy figures dotting the edges of the room where his light didn’t shine. They moved and shifted as he did and his light faded on the edges of the room.

“I see.” His voice had calmed a bit and seemed no longer angry and vindictive. “Hadren…” The mans name was spoken once more and they could all feel the power that came from that single word. “You will hand over your family for safekeeping. You can either do it willingly or we can take them by force.” Reaching out to touch the babe on the woman’s (now known as Matilda) shoulder.

Matilda jerked the babe away and looked between Hadren and him. A look crossed her face. Alda couldn’t quite place it, but apparently Hadren did as he spoke, but stopped when Matilda put her hand up for silence.

“I’ll go willingly. Just make a promise that we’ll be safe in your keeping. I know my husband will complete your task. I’m not afraid of you.” And the strength in her voice belied her small frame.

“No!” Harden struggled against whatever held him in place.

A glowing hand reached out and alighted on Matilda’s shoulder. “You have my promise upon my honor. They will be taken care of and come to no harm.” Piercing blue eyes locking on him. “But should you violate our agreement and not complete your task, there will be consequences.” And with that, before Matilda could even say goodbye, he squeezed her shoulder and she just… faded into the light.

Hadren’s face flooded in disbelief, fear and other mixes of emotion which seemed to overwhelm him, bowing his head to gather himself before speaking again. “Leave the girl with me. I will do your bidding. Just please don’t hurt my wife and daughter.”

“Fulfill my task and they won’t.” He spoke, and from the edges, where the shadows gathered, what sounded like a murmur filled the room. He raised a hand, and the murmurs hushed. “I know.” Speaking to what looked like a blank space before him.

“You will go out into your world and find something for me. It was lost to my kind many years ago, and we have been searching for it since. We cannot enter the world when it is daytime and thus our efforts have been small and short. Your kind have decimated our portals into the world, leaving us with very few hidden away to use.” He paused. “That doesn’t mean you’ve escaped punishment for killing one of mine.”

Alda watched as he reached out and touched Hadren who flinched back. “I grant you immortality. Perhaps not a curse to some, but for you, it will be. You’ll watch your family grow old and die while you remain alive, never aging. You’ll be a pariah among your own kind once humans figure out you can’t die.”

Immortality? She frowned heavily. That couldn’t have been possible. And suddenly she remembered the creature the witch had tasked her with. Where was it? Was it safe? She would have to have Hadren help her find it. The shadows hadn’t brought it here.

“The gods have touched me.” She blurted, even though she didn’t believe it.

He turned towards her, and what she could only discern was a smile crossed its face. “I know. Don’t you realize you’re amongst gods now?” And she swore the light darkened in the room to make it a muddy grey instead of bright blinding light. “I can see you have disbelief still. You will see in time the gifts you have. My curse for you is that you will help Hadren in his search. I tie you to him until he finds it, even if that means you live as long as he does. Your fates are intertwined.”