'….Riley, you need to wake up,' a voice whispered next to my ears.
I tried calling out to the voice but my mouth felt like it was glued shut and my eyes wouldn't open either. A sudden burning sensation burst forth from my chest throughout my entire body, it felt like hot lava was coursing through my veins.
'…Riley... Riley…master wake up
'You need to wake up now master Riley!!'
Annoying. The voices were really too annoying. One sounded childish and nagging while the other sounded aggrieved and panicked.
'....'
'....'
As if sensing my displeasure the voices stopped immediately. Instead, I felt the touch of hands on either side of my cheeks, gently caressing me.
My insides were still burning up and the frustration of not being able to move my body at all just added to my irritation, but the soft touches of the hands on my cheeks smooth me greatly. A while later my mind drifted into unconsciousness.
....
I don't know how long I was unconscious but as soon as I regained consciousness I felt the familiar presence of those annoying voices from earlier. However, this time I felt like I could finally open my eyes. It took longer than I expected but when my eyes opened for what must've been the first time, I was blinded by a pair of two glowing yellow eyes.
"Our Master is awake" two teenage boys with blond hair and fair skin said in unison. They look like twins…
The burning sensation was now gone and my body was feeling much better now.
"Who are you ?" I asked my gaze fixed on them.
"We are your loyal servants and you are our Master," the one with a slightly more mature tone said.
"Where am I ?" I question but this time I directed my gaze to the other twin.
"Riley you are in the frozen kingdom, it was the only place best suited to keep your body until you finally awoke" this twin was the childish and nagging voice I heard in my mind before.
"What are your names ?" I ask taking my eyes from the twins and looking around. I don't know why I hadn't noticed sooner but…this place is completely dark. Not a single light is passing in, so how was I able to see the twins so clearly?
I can make out all the details of this room although, it's not much just a space built from solid ice. The only noteworthy thing is the purple crystal hanging above the rectangular block of ice I am currently laying on, as a sort of bed I suppose. It's like an ice cave.
"We have none," the twins said in unison.
"No names? That won't do…." Glancing back at them, "James…" I said pointing to the more mature one and then to the other twin "Jasper. "
"That will be your names, for now, do you understand– " however, I was cut short as I was momentarily knocked unconscious by a strong force that seemed to weaken my already weak state.
"MASTER !!!" Jasper and James called out to me. The burning sensation I felt before came back…
When I regained my senses…
….light was now entering the room and there was an additional body in the room, this person seemed to be a little angry?? He wasn't even trying to control his killing intent.
"Your indeed their younger brother. You only just awoke and you are already a pain to deal with." The mysterious stranger with purple eyes and hair that resembles the color of snow said in a domineering voice.
"Insolence! How dare he show such aura when appearing before our Master?" James said, eyes glowing dangerously.
"I want…to kill him" Jasper's movements were fast, too fast for a normal person to even read. In a heartbeat, he had made his way behind the stranger and although he had no weapon in hand, I don't believe he needed one.
"Jasper…" my voice came out like a whisper, right next to his ear "who told you that I wanted him dead…or that you had the right to kill him?" My slender porcelain-like jade fingers wrapped around Jasper's neck but it wasn't to kill the other, it was merely done as a warning for this impulsive twin.
I had long realized my current situation. When I awoke, I thought I was in hell or someplace like it. After all, isn't that where people say bad men like me go when we die? You see, I'm a murderer from the 21st century; Los Angeles, and I came from a family of assassins. My name is Riley Courtezs or it used to be.
I remember getting into a fight with one of my cousins that I have yet to remember the name of, I also remember getting on a plane, and then it exploded. Did someone plant a bomb on that plane? Was it that idiot of a cousin or...
No. It doesn't matter now, either way, the Riley Courtezs of my previous life is dead.
The instant my mind regained consciousness and I woke up, I could tell I wasn't in my world anymore. After all, how else could I explain the twins glowing yellow eyes? The whole Master and servant thing? And also...my body didn't feel ordinary at all.
In my last life, I died at the age of 23, and even among my family and generations of assassins before me, I was regarded as the very best of them all. So naturally, I had a very fearsome 'killing intent' or as they seem to call it in this world, 'aura.' But all that was in my last life...
Yet, something unexpected is happening, right now. I hadn't noticed it but my body is giving off waves of deadly and fierce aura...and another thing, it's black. My aura is like black energy swirling around me.
"M–Master please calm your anger," James said trying to reach for me.
This...this is...
"Master, please s–stop...I–It hurts.." Jasper fell to his knees and so did James.
How did this happen? I thought I would have to work hard to get back my aura from my last life but...It seems my worry was unnecessary. This black energy pulsating from my body is too terrifying even more so than in my previous life.
Suddenly I was pulled into someone's embrace and cold hands combed through my hair.
"Shhh...just close your eyes and breathe" It was the mysterious stranger.
....I didn't expect he could be so gentle.
In truth, the reason I gave off such a dangerous aura just now was my fault, I had only just awoken in a new world and a new body but my mind was going a million miles per second just trying to comprehend everything at once, not giving myself the time to adjust. In the end, my new body couldn't take the strain. I lost control of myself, it was unintentional. Still, it wasn't because of something Jasper or any of them, in particular, did to anger me. I lost control because my mind was a mess; without a strong mind and willpower it's impossible to restrain such an aura as mine.
With this guy holding me like this, it calmed me down. Moments later I was able to retract my aura.
"I think it would be best to change out of these clothes, they are a tad bit too big for me," I said looking at the stranger.
"Hmm, those clothes were merely meant to keep you warm. My name is Klaus Caldwell, the eldest son of the noble house of Caldwell" the stranger said meeting my gaze.
"I'm in the frozen kingdom...?" I decided to just take it slow but I still need some information.
"Yes. The place you are currently at is in an underground cave located right below my family's manor. As to the reason you were kept here..." Klaus still wore a serious look but he had withdrawn his aura from before, "you can ask them yourself when you meet them."
"Meet who?" I asked wanting to know who 'them' were referring to.
"The Salvatierra demons. More specifically your elder brothers" Klaus said, his voice not giving away his emotions.
"Are they really demons?" It was just then that I seemingly remembered a certain set of twin brothers.
I glanced back at Jasper and James who had their heads down, they were both still kneeling on the ground, despite not needing to as I have already pulled back my aura.
Jasper especially seemed ready to cry at a moment's notice, on the other hand, his brother James has a look of surprise...?
"You will come to understand it soon enough," Klaus said. "In the meantime, come with me I'll take you to meet my father and I will see to it that you have a change of clothes."
"Right. In that case, I hope that Sir Klaus will continue to take good care of me" I said with a smile.
"Only until your owners come I have no interest in a troublesome brat like you," He said with hostile eyes glaring at me, a stark contrast to how gentle he was earlier on.
"Sir Klaus, I honestly don't know anything about myself and what happened to me. I don't even remember my name or where I came from. I woke up in such an unfamiliar and scary ice cave and I'm just a child. How could you be so hurtful to a small child like me? Sir Klaus did I do anything wrong, or else why are you bullying a small and harmless child?" I said quite pitifully while biting my bottom lip to look cute.
Klaus didn't know whether to laugh or cry as he looked at the boy who only moments ago was giving off a dark aura that could kill someone. He couldn't help thinking to himself that 'if this boy was really as harmless as he says he is. Then I'm afraid no one is innocent...'
Nonetheless, how could Klaus deny this boy's obvious cuteness? In the end, Klaus gave in to him and his once hostile eyes became gentler.
"Regardless of how naive you claim to be, you are still a direct descendant of the noble house of Salvatierra, and that alone is enough of a reason for me," Klaus said as he didn't bother to wait for a response and took hold of the much smaller boy's delicate hand and led the way.
I narrowed my eyes focusing on the ground as I blindingly follow behind Klaus, too deep in my thoughts.
'Because I'm a Salvatierra that's enough...' Then just who the hell are the Salvatierras??
At that time how could Riley, have known that his new family was even more terrifying than his last?