by Katrina Cope
When the dragons have disappeared, we go to the tanning yard and remove pieces of leather from soaking in the saline solution. Then we get to work.
Hildr groans. "I hate doing this. It’s just so boring and mundane." The hide lies on a large, flat stone, and she rubs her sharp-edged rock over the coat, removing all the fur from the outside.
"I find it peaceful." Eir’s face is relaxed as she works on her leather.
I brush aside the fur I have removed and study the smooth leather underneath. "I can’t say that it’s my favorite thing. Although I certainly appreciate the things I have made, including the saddle for Elan and my cloak, so I'm going to keep making things."
Britta brushes her hand over the skin, works on removing the remaining fur, then cuts it into strips. She copies my movements as though they are instructions. We all work together on our different saddles, remaining at the same stage. A saddle is not something we make every day and is not something the winged Valkyries teach, as they rarely need to ride anything.
Britta releases a frustrated sigh, and I look at her.
"I can't believe how Mistress Sigrun treats you,” she says. “I know she doesn't like wingless Valkyries, but you have defended all of the Valkyries with Eir and Hildr's help. And then to hear that Mistress Sigrun wiped her hands of you in front of the other senior Valkyries, acting like you’re worthless even though you saved her and helped defend Asgard and the Valkyries." She shakes her head in disgust.
"Yeah, I know. It stinks, but it’s not a surprise. It doesn't seem to matter how well I do. She still turns around and slaps me across the face for my effort. Even after I protected her from the dark elves, she still made out like I was in the wrong."
A rock clatters around the corner, and the four of us pivot to stare at the spot. Beautiful white wings frame the thin, petite body and the beautiful face that studies us from only a short distance away.
"Rota?" The name tumbles out of my mouth, and my brow furrows.
She glances down at the ground briefly, fiddling with her fingers before looking at me. "What Mistress Sigrun did wasn’t nice, but she’s in a tough place. If she doesn’t do everything that Odin and the senior Valkyries want, she’ll be stripped of her title and possibly her wings. As you can imagine, it would be a very harsh treatment. If there’s any threat against her, she is naturally going to rebuke everything that you've done and protect herself and her own interests.” Her face takes on a vacant look. “If a Valkyrie loses her wings…" She pauses and looks at us, her face suddenly overcome with guilt. "Well, then she is defamed—stripped of everything she's worth. They may even kill the Valkyrie, and if they don’t, the Valkyrie may end up killing herself."
"Welcome to our world." Hildr doesn’t hide the sarcasm her voice. Her top lip lifts into a sneer as she stares at Rota.
Rota’s shoulders slump. "I know. And I'm sorry. It’s a hard path to follow either way. I was born into a prestigious title. I have much to lose if I associate with wingless Valkyries. I would have to deny it. I could lose a lot, like the position that I may be getting when I’m older. Not only that, Odin and the senior Valkyries would disgrace my family as well—my mother would be shamed.” Apprehensively, she steps closer to us and squats next to Hildr. "May I help? I like working with leather.”
"Knock yourself out!" Without a moment’s hesitation, Hildr pushes backward, sliding on her backside away from the leather.
Hildr watches Rota as she works nimbly, her fingers showing off her experience.
"Thank you for helping." I pull a strand of leather through a hole and pull tightly, securing the pieces together.
Rota’s smile is sad. "Oh, no problem. Perhaps one day, I'll get to ride a dragon too."
"Why would you need to ride a dragon? You have wings," I say. "How would flying be different than riding a dragon?”
She places the piece of leather on the ground and looks at the blue sky with a dreamy look in her eyes. “A dragon is a creature with such magnificence. I don't like the cruelty that is shown to the dragons either. I have seen how you've bonded with your dragon, and I’ve heard how your dragon helped to defeat the frost giant that you saved me from. I have many reasons to be thankful for these creatures. I want to change my outlook.”
A clatter of rocks sound at the entrance, and as I glance up, I notice Rota has suddenly taken off in a different direction.
- Chapter Three -
* * *
That was strange. A small little noise sounds in the corner, and Rota takes off. I have to be cautious of this friendship. I want to believe her intentions, but I’m not quite sure what to think after what she has just said and how she reacted to the noise.
"Where did she go?" Eir stares vacantly at the spot Rota was in only moments before.
I shake my head and toss my arms out from my side with my palms up. "I'm not sure. She might be worried about being caught with us. After all, she was saying how much she had to lose, just like Mistress Sigrun. At the first threat of being discovered, she takes off.” I put my leatherwork aside and stand, gazing again at Rota’s vacant spot. “It's a strange but nice feeling that she's come to talk to us, but I don't know if I can trust her yet. She's been my archnemesis since day one. She's picked on me every single day. Then suddenly she’s changed? I think we should take this one day at a time.”
"Maybe she's just working another angle." Hildr’s auburn eyebrows knit together as she looks up from her work.
"Trust you to be the negative one, Hildr." Eir shakes her head then flicks her long brown hair over her shoulder.
"I don't know. You might have to be careful. Rota has always had winged Valkyrie mentality through and through. It runs in her family." Britta’s brows push into a frown. "Her sister finished at the Valkyrie Academy a couple of years ago, and she was much the same as Rota with her attitude. They do have a lot to lose, and you do need to take it cautiously as Hildr says."
I sit back down and start to work on my spare saddle. “I don’t like it, but I understand what you’re saying. I like to give people second chances when they deserve it, and I hate to think that there may be a manipulative, underlying reason for the change in attitude.”
We start to pack up after several hours of work on the saddles, but another sound on the outskirts of the area interrupts us. A strange uneasiness stirs in my stomach, but I push it away. There’s nothing there. It’s probably the wind or something else insignificant.
We move away from the tanning area with our saddles almost complete.
I sling my spare saddle over my arm. "We should stop by the dragons and try these on them to see how they fit. We can adjust them from there and then work on the final stages another day.”
Hildr shakes out her hands. "My hands are cramping. I don’t know how you do this stuff."
"I could do it all the time, Hildr,” Eir says. “It's very relaxing."
Hildr shakes her head and screws up her nose, pushing her freckles together. "I find fighting more relaxing."
"Both my hands and arms ache after fighting. I would much rather the stiffness be from creating something." Eir flexes her hands a few times, observing them.
Britta lifts an eyebrow. "Eir, don't you ever think you’re in the wrong line of work?"
Genuine confusion etches on Eir’s face. "What do you mean?"
Britta tosses her saddle from one arm to the other. "A Valkyrie is supposed to be vicious and always fighting. Yet you always want to be peaceful, and you hate fighting."
"Now that you mention it, I often think that. I wish Valkyries had a peace camp. I’m sure I would get top marks on that one." She fiddles with one of the newly made leather straps on her saddle, turning it over in her hand and admiring the intricate details of the plaits around the edges. Her face lights up. "Perhaps they could make a craft school. That would be peaceful."
We head out of the tanning area with our arms full of the leather goods. As we exit the rock formation, my stomach twitches. Something in the air isn
’t right. I search the area, trying to work out what's wrong, but I can't place it. The sensation in the air feels like it did before the dark elves arrived, but we got rid of all the dark elves. They should be all gone from Asgard, and they have increased Asgard's security. My search comes up empty. I start to think I’m just imagining things. Perhaps I'm just feeling Gilroma, but it doesn't seem to match his magic scent, and I don’t quite remember the sensation I picked up from the other dark elves before they showed. I shake my head, trying to rid myself of the disconcerted feeling, and we continue to head to the academy.
We enter an area enclosed with large boulders, when suddenly my body is yanked from where it stands and slammed against a boulder. My quiver slightly softens the blow. Something is pressing me hard against it. Nothing visible is holding me, leaving only one other option—an invisible force. I cry out, and my lungs burn. The force is so strong, it is hard for me to recover my breath. My feet dangle in the air as I’m pushed against the hard surface. I feel as though a large vehicle is pressing against me, flattening me against the rock. I attempt to search for my magic and gather it together, but I’m not having much luck. I drag my vision along the ground and lift it to focus on a distant area. Six dark elves approach.
The oomph of leather hitting the ground as Hildr drops her saddle draws my attention and is followed by the high-pitched grinding of metal as she draws her sword.
Again, I attempt to break free from the invisible force, but I can't do it. "No," I grunt. I helplessly watch as Hildr approaches the evil force. I need to get out of this and help my friends.
Eir’s face blanches, and she drops her saddle, too, before reluctantly reaching for her sword, only to find her hands frozen over its hilt. I'm surprised. This is odd for Eir, even though I know she hates fighting. Perhaps there is another force at play, like the one holding me firmly against this rock.
Britta grabs her sword and pulls it out. I welcome the sound of screaming metal until suddenly it's magically flung from her hand and clangs against a rock. Her eyes widen as they follow the direction of her fleeing sword. "Oh, Vanir!"
Hildr grunts and charges. The elf flicks his hand, and she smashes sideways into a rock. She slumps to the ground, where she lies unmoving. I hope she is only knocked unconscious and nothing worse.
The dark elves move forward in a single line. Excruciatingly, I pull from my magic, but I can't move my arms. I have only mastered the use of magic through my hands and arms. I don’t know if there’s any other way to use it. We are completely outnumbered by the six elves. I fought against more the other day, but they weren't expecting magic from me, so I had the advantage.
Eir’s knees buckle underneath her, and she folds until her bottom sits on top of her heels.
Britta lurches forward, our last line of defense. She stops midstride, her foot poised in the air, her body frozen as an elf concentrates on her.
My hands remain stuck by my sides. It’s irking me to watch these dark elves approach us, and there is nothing I can do. I’m dying to call out to Elan except I know that she won’t be able to hear me. She would be too far away by now, visiting her mother in the wastelands. I gaze at Hildr, and seeing her like that jerks at my thoughts.
I cry out, "Drogon!" Then my mouth slams shut, and my lips remain fastened together, muffling any other cries. The elves have even used their magic to seal my mouth.
As a dark elf nears, I recognize him as the same one from the other day. The chief of the dark elves’s eyes fix solidly on me, and his long, dark leather jacket whips around his ankles as he walks forward. His upper body is covered in dark armor camouflaged over his dark leathers. His long, dark hair flows loosely behind his shoulders, parted by his ears, which point out the sides. When he gets within a few feet of me, his eyes narrow as he observes me stuck against the boulder.
"You disgraced us, young Valkyrie." His voice is full of venom. "What's going to protect you now?" He paces in front of me and continues the motion slowly around the boulder as if stalking his prey. "What's to stop me from ripping you apart, limb by limb, and letting your friends watch?” He cocks an eyebrow as he glances at Hildr then flicks a dismissive hand in her direction. “Except for the one unconscious.”
He paces some more, remaining in front of me. "I would love to do that to you, and my colleagues would like to watch.” He pauses his pacing and looks at me. “We are a strong race, and you have disgraced us. You have taken from us what is ours. The palace that Odin occupies is meant to be ours." His voice grows louder with each word, and his eyes bulge red as the anger bubbles to an explosive point.
I try hard to pull my hands away from my sides, and I can feel the magic stirring within me, the magic that I desperately want to direct at the elf.
"Let this be a warning." He moves closer to me, and his long fingers stroke under my chin. I flinch, trying to pull away. I can see in his eyes that he has recognized my effort to flinch away. "My main beef is with the winged Valkyries. This time, seeing that you are wingless, I will send you some pity. I believe you are trying to prove a point, but if I give you this chance, I trust that you will not fight against us next time we come. I understand your kind needs to prove yourself against these cruel creatures, the winged Valkyries. And I have always felt a kinship to someone who wields magic." He strokes my chin some more, continuing the motion down my cheek, and I can't help but contort with a shiver. He cocks a dark eyebrow. "No. This will just be a warning. The next time, remember if you go up against us, I will select your friends first and remove their limbs, one by one, in front of you, until eventually, I will work on you. If this is not a deterrence, then I do not know what will be."
He pivots in the opposite direction, and his long, pointy shoes scatter rocks as he walks away from me while leaving me secured to the boulder by his magic. I look at Britta and Eir, and they remain stuck in the same positions, their eyes facing away from me and their bodies rigid. It breaks my heart to see Hildr still unconscious on her side. Her spiky red hair is a bright contrast to the gray rocks.
Flapping sounds behind me in the form of beating wings. A large thump above follows, and my boulder shakes from the force. Above me, a massive roar screeches, followed by a large plume of fire shooting over my head and toward the dark elves. I can't maneuver my face upward even though I am using every effort to search for the instigator of the flame.
A moment later, all of my effort proves wasted. Drogon pushes off the boulder and lands on the ground in front of me. He throws his head forward and roars again at the dark elves, only to be joined by Tanda on his right then Naga on his left. Both of the additional dragons join him by sending out plumes of fire before roaring out smoke. As Drogon throws his head forward again, the elves suddenly disappear.
The three dragons cease their roaring and stare into the distance. Drogon’s thoughts meld with our minds. Where did they go?
Naga don't know.
Tanda stretches her neck up high, searching the area. I can't see the dark elves anywhere.
Drogon peers over his shoulder and spots Hildr lying flat on the ground. He twists and charges toward her. His nose nuzzles her. Hildr! Hildr! He nudges her some more with his nose, and she stirs softly. Oh, dragon scales! You're okay! he cries out with excitement in his voice.
Suddenly the magic releases me, and I drop to the ground. “That was close. I can't let that happen again.”
- Chapter Four -
* * *
It takes all of my strength to pull myself onto my feet. As soon as I do, I head straight to Hildr. I crumple beside her and lean over her, putting all my weight on my knees. The rough rocks dig into the thin layer of flesh, but I ignore them. "Hildr, are you okay?"
Her green eyes flicker open and gaze at me vaguely, gradually focusing and becoming more alert.
Drogon snorts over the top of us, and her eyes flick up to him. With great effort, she reaches her hand up to him. The big brown dragon moves in, and I lean out, avoiding his many horns. He nudges Hildr so
ftly with his nose. You had me worried, Hildr. I don't want anything to happen to my Valkyrie.
Weakly, she strokes his nose and up his snout. "Drogon. Would you miss me?" Her voice is husky.
He pushes her slightly again with his nose. I have grown rather fond of you.
"Come on, Hildr. Let’s get you up." I offer her my hand.
She grabs one of Drogon's horns and my offered hand, and we pull her up together until she rises to her feet. She lets go of Drogon’s horn and stumbles a bit. I tighten my grip on her.
Britta scrambles over. "Here, let me help." She hooks her shoulder underneath Hildr's arm.
Eir pushes me aside and ducks under Hildr's other arm. "I’ll take her. You had a bit of a bashing back there."
I release Hildr to Eir’s care and drop back with Drogon. "Did you hear me call you, Drogon?"
His dark-brown eyes are serious as he nods once. It was faint, but yes, I did hear you. Before Elan left, she told me to keep an eye on you.
"Thank you, Drogon." I stoop down, pick up the saddles, and throw them over my arms. They are heavier than I anticipated, dragging me down on my left side. I do my best to ignore the strain.
They look too heavy for you, Kara. Let me take them to my stall, and you can come and collect them later.
"Would you do that, Drogon?"
I’m not fond of saddles, as I don't like the idea of being restrained, but I like the idea of making my Valkyrie safe on my back. Hildr is a bit of a daredevil, but I don't want to lose her off my back. I would feel guilty for the rest of my life. It would kill me inside, knowing that I had options for keeping her safe and didn’t use them.
"Thank you." I gaze over at Tanda. "How is she doing? Is she settling in with this idea okay?"