Vero approached the walls and marveled at the massive crystal formations. “This place is beautiful.”

  “You flatter me, little Vero.”

  “Did you create it all yourself?”

  Adeana appeared amused. “Little Vero, you must take me for some sort of magus or wise man.”

  “If it is not too improper for me to ask… you are a nymph, are you not? How did you come to reside here?”

  “I’ve been here, for as long as this place has been. I cannot explain the matter any more clearly than that.”

  “You said this lake was named for you?”

  “Did I? Such indiscretion, you won’t mention this to anyone else, I hope.” Adeana’s tone was teasing, but Vero noticed that she had deftly avoided the question.

  Rather than press her on the issue, Vero decided to let it drop. She had seen enough hints of Adeana’s power as to be impressed. For the moment, she appeared friendly, and that would suffice. Afterall, if she were not friendly, then it would have been a simple matter to let her drown in the lake.

  Continuing her examination to the frozen doorway, Vero was astounded to find that it was a waterfall cascading down, which had been instantly frozen into place. By what spell or mechanism such a thing was accomplished, she could not guess.

  “You are free to go where you wish, and examine what you like, while you remain here. I will recover your things from the shore once the wolves have lost interest. Follow me and I shall take you to a wardrobe where you may redress.”

  After being momentarily distracted by her wonderment, Vero again remembered her self-consciousness. Although it was plainly ridiculous, given her hostess’ state of undress. “Thank-you, Lady Adeana.”

  Adeana led her through the open passage into a long hallway. Vero saw no sign of torches, candles, or any other flame. Instead, the light from the chamber behind them was refracted and passed along by more crystals embedded into the walls.

  To either side of them were more doorways, leading to further rooms. Vero tried to peer into them as they passed, but Adeana continued forward, intent on her destination. Vero believed it advisable to remain near the mistress of the abode for the time being and hurried after her. From the hastily stolen glances she was able to take, however, Vero saw several rooms furnished like a noble’s estate and the floors covered by fresh spring time rushes.

  Vero marveled at how warm the cave system seemed compared to the freezing temperatures outside. Her wondering was alleviated when they entered the room which appeared to be the source of the heat. It was a cavern very similar to the one Vero had used to enter Adeana’s home. Here the pool of water in the center emitted a pleasant steamy vapor, evidently a natural hot spring.

  Adeana took Vero to several large piles of rocks worn as smooth as river stones, and she found that warmth emitted from them like hot coals from a stove. Adeana took a towel, which had been draped over the stones when they arrived, and handed it over to Vero. She wrapped it around herself and found it pleasantly warm.

  They traveled on until they arrived at what Vero supposed should have been called a closet, although it was in fact larger than most bedrooms. Around the periphery were statues crafted from the blue crystal, and it was these that lit the room. Most of the floor space was empty and the ceilings were vaulted, which contributed to the cavernous feeling of the entire home. Beside the door on either side were small piles of the warm smooth stones to drive out the chill.

  In the center of the room was a single large wardrobe. Vero was hardly a master carpenter, but it looked to her like it was made of pine, which would correlate with the local flora. As they came closer, Vero noticed that beneath the bright rushes, the stone floor changed to soft soil. The wardrobe itself was growing directly up from the earth. When Adeana opened it, Vero could see from the interior that the wardrobe itself was green living wood.

  Inside were dresses in an array of flamboyant colors. “For myself, I find fabric coarse and uncomfortable against my skin. But I keep several dresses for when I wish to explore the ‘civilized’ world of men. I hope you will find one of these suitable. I’m afraid I have no more masculine garments, if that is what you would prefer.”

  Love what you're reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

  “This will be fine.” After a few moments of decision, Vero selected a heavy velvet dress with a dark red hue, and a set of marble buttons along the spine.

  Her choice was more for warmth than style; with her spell fading, she was again beginning to feel the effects of the cold. The warm stones certainly did an admirable job of heating the caverns, but not so much that she could comfortably remain undressed like her hostess.

  Vero slipped inside the garment and Adeana assisted her by securing the buttons.

  “Perhaps you’d care for some food?” Adeana asked.

  At the suggestion, Vero realized just how hungry she was. It was already late, and she had not eaten since she left her companions hours ago.

  “That would be very welcome indeed.”

  “Follow me then.”

  Adeana took her back out into the hallway. They walked back the way they came, until Adeana turned down one of the doorways they had passed previously. Inside was a long dining table with at least enough room to comfortably seat a dozen individuals at once. Like the wardrobe, all the wooden furniture, both the seats and the table itself, appeared to be living pine growing directly out of the ground.

  The room was lit by chandeliers of crystal which hung from the ceiling above the table at either end. All along one side of the room the wall was transparent like glass. On the other side was an aquarium filled with fish, so large that as she looked into it, Vero could not see it’s backwall. It seemed to comprise an entire underground lake.

  There was an opening in the wall just above the water level of the aquarium, and this could be reached by ascending a small step ladder. Adeana did so, and placed her arm in as far as the elbow. When she withdrew it, she held a small herring by the tail. It wriggled in her hand gasping for air and she quickly slapped its head against the wall to end its suffering. Once the fish was dead, she handed it over to Vero. She then retrieved another fish from the teeming schools of his fellows.

  Adeana descended back down the steps and smiled to see Vero in confusion. “What’s wrong, little Vero? Don’t you know how to eat a fish.”

  “Well, normally I gut it and cook it.”

  “Adeana shook her head. She turned her face upwards and held the fish above her. Then she opened her mouth and dangled the fish down into it, biting off the whole thing.

  Vero shrugged her shoulders and did likewise. The herring was very salty, but also had a wonderful flavor. Only the knowledge that she was eating cold fish put her off, but she was willing to overlook this drawback.

  “Another?” Adeana asked, and Vero readily nodded her assent.

  They easily ate two dozen herrings between them. Once their hunger was sated, they retired into a cozy sitting room with thickly woven felt carpets and sofas for reclining in the Imperial style. They lay down to digest their ample supper.

  The centerpiece of the room was a large bowl made from brass, which contained a pile of the warm smooth stones. Although there were blankets draped on the sofas, they were hardly necessary due to the wonderful heat given off by the brazier.

  “It used to be that this lake was once fished almost to extinction. Before the owner of the castle above us declared it off limits.”

  “How can that be? Ice must cover it at least half the year, to say nothing of the march out here through the wilderness. The population of the castle and village nearby shouldn’t be near enough to threaten the web of life in a lake this size.”

  “Forgive me, I was speaking of very long ago, by the way that you reckon time into centuries and millennia. The population was much higher then.”

  “I wouldn’t think this climate could support a larger population. Man can’t live on fish alone. The soil here is good, but it’s much too cold.

  “It was much warmer and flatter here then.”

  “When was this? Who was the Kaiser in the north, or the Emperor then?”

  Adeana laughed like jingling bells. “Vero, I don’t know such things. You may as well ask me when a particular pine needle fell from a particular pine tree. How am I to notice every little thing that passes every single cycle of the seasons? Much less to remember them all?”

  “The passing of a pine needle and the passing of a king are hardly to be considered equal in significance.”

  “No, I agree. The pine needle is much nearer to me, and nourishes the totality of my life, thus being marginally greater in importance. But the difference is so small as to be easily passed by.”

  Vero realized she would need to be cleverer in her questioning. She had never spoken to a nymph before, only heard about them in stories. “But you do remember when the owner of the castle above us first came here.”

  Adeana smiled. “Oh yes. He came to me a man of… about middle age, as you humans live and die… but with bold determined features and flashing eyes. He swam through my lake and sought me out. He knew my name and told me that he came to learn from me. Perhaps he was being honest with me when he spoke of his intentions then. I confess, I wish that to be true. Although looking back, I cannot help but have my doubts. We lived together here as lovers for decades. When he aged, as mortals do, he came to me for help. I taught him what I knew of nature’s power to preserve his longevity, to keep him healthy and vital even into old age. What he ultimately wanted, however, was something I could not give him.”

  “Immortality.”

  “All creatures die, and their bodies return to the cycle, nourishing new growth. A break in that perfect wheel creates stagnation, and precipitates the end of all things. I tried to explain this to him, but he refused to listen and continued his own course.”

  “He became a vampyre- a striga?”

  “Not at first. He built a tower to brood and experiment in. Then he sought out a conspiracy of likeminded individuals. They explored many paths to eternal life. But those others were elves, and he was descended from mortal men as you are. When his health failed him, he turned to undeath as a final resort.”

  Vero had a dark feeling. “Tell me about this conspiracy of elves.”

  If you're in a position to support my work financially, I have a Uncut versions of all publicly released chapters are available there at the free membership tier, as well as pieces of flash fiction not available here on Royal Road. The early chapter reward tier list is hidden in spoiler text:

  $3 - 5 early chapters, this tier is available as a one week free trial

  $5 - 10 early chapters

  $7 - 15 early chapters

  $10 - 20 early chapters

  $15 - 30 early chapters + the exclusive short stories

  If you've enjoyed this book you can also leave a rating, review, follow, and/or favorite. According to my analytics, most of you aren't members of Royal Road, but even without an account, you can still support my work just by sharing, boosting, and recommending this story to anyone you think may enjoy it. I have listings on and

  Also find me on and .

  Thanks for reading!