by Katrina Cope
“It seems like a strange sort of agreement. If you don’t have to come to live with the Valkyries, why would you want to be lent out to me?”
Oh, I don’t want to have to make the decisions of who has to go when I get older and my mom dies. Some of the dragons get quite hurt. Some even die. Being used for target practice with no protection can make them quite aggressive, naturally.
“So why isn’t this dragon aggressive? He wanted to play.” I indicate Naga, who remains behind me with a vacant look on his face.
That’s because he hasn’t been put under their tests yet. He’s still young and new to the Valkyries. There is still hope that he will remain this way if we can stop them. The other dragons are quite vicious.
“I wouldn’t blame them. I would get quite vicious, too, if I kept getting attacked and used only as a weapon and were constantly injured.” When I stroke Naga’s neck, he nuzzles into my hand, then I turn to look at Elan again, but she has disappeared.
“Where did you go?”
Just then, the stone door slides aside, and in walk Eir and Hildr, my wingless Valkyrie friends from the academy.
“We found you.” Eir walks into the cave hesitantly, her eyes on Naga.
After Hildr closes the stone door, she follows, also being wary of the blue dragon. “We’ve been looking for you forever.” Her gaze darts around the room while her fingers twitch over the hilt of her sword. “Who were you talking to?”
I give them a guilty look. “Oh, nobody. I was just muttering to myself as I clean out the pen.”
Eir screws up her nose. “It stinks in here. Are you done yet?”
“Almost.” I grab the shovel and throw the rest of the mess over the edge of the cliff, then I approach Naga and stroke him briefly on the nose. His eyes widen then dance with excitement.
“That’s odd,” Hildr says, her hand still twitching over her sword’s hilt. “It almost looks like it likes you. I’ve heard these are dangerous creatures, not friendly ones.”
I turn to leave. “I think we’re about to find out that that’s all wrong. The Valkyries mistreat them. Perhaps they would be different if we treated them with respect.”
“Jeez. Did you hit your head while you’ve been in here? You sound delusional.” Hildr grunts as she pulls the stone door open.
I turn around to search the room for Elan, but I still don’t see her. I’m about to leave when I hear her in my head.
Meet me at the edge of the cliff above the dragon pens at sundown.
I nod and help Hildr close the door behind us.
- CHAPTER EIGHT -
“Have you been listening to me at all?” Hildr’s runs a hand through her spiky red hair.
I swallow a mouthful of food then cast her a guilty glance. She only has my attention because she nudged me in the ribs. My mind is still focused on the dragons and why they would pick me. As I look around the dining hall, I nod. “Sure. You keep going on and on about how I shouldn’t have raced off and gone to Midgard and how I got myself into trouble. Blah, blah, blah.” I’m pretty sure this is not what she’s been talking about, but I thought I would add it in as a bit of humor.
She rolls her eyes. “It’s not all about you, you know.”
“I know. I was just adding it in to make it seem like I was listening to something. I’m sure that comment came in somewhere.” I shrug and smirk.
“Where is your mind? Have you not been listening at all?” Eir’s usually calm face clouds with concern.
I expel a loud sigh. “Listening to what?”
“There have been rumors that the frost giants are trying to invade Asgard and take the throne from Odin,” Eir says.
“They will never be able to do that.” I scoff. “They have to get past Heimdall.” I take a gulp of orange juice.
“Well, you did.” Hildr fixes her gaze on me. Her freckled face is pale with concern.
I place my glass down. “That was just a fluke. That creature had arrived just in time. It distracted Heimdall, and I have no idea where it came from.”
“Maybe the creature works for the frost giants. Maybe it was testing out how Heimdall can be distracted.” Eir flicks her fork against the peas in her cottage pie.
“No. Heimdall will be on high alert now. I’ve made sure of that. See, not everything I do is bad.” I smirk.
Hildr groans and stabs her steak with a knife. “There you go again. Making it all about you.”
I gaze around at the other Valkyries in the academy and spot all the winged ones sitting in the best corner. Rota glares at me from the other side of the room.
“You certainly made her a stronger enemy,” Eir says before finally shoveling some of her food into her mouth.
“No. If anything, I’ve embarrassed myself. I couldn’t reap the soldier. Though I had the best opportunity ever, I couldn’t do it. We’re clearly not gifted for that line of work. Still, there must be something we can do to help them in the field.”
“Young Valkyrie.” The stern voice comes from behind me, and I can’t help the shivers that run down my spine.
I spin around. “Mistress Sigrun,” I say with the sweetest tone I can muster. “What can I do for you?”
“You haven’t finished cleaning the dragon stalls. Hurry up and finish your dinner and go and finish the job. We need these dragons healthy and feisty.”
“Yes, Mistress.” I have finished my meal, and I am about to get up when I halt. “Mistress, why do we mistreat the dragons?”
If I thought I was in trouble before, that was a mistake. Her voice turns even colder. “The dragons are a vicious breed, and it is in our best interests to learn to fight them to protect ourselves. We do not mistreat them, and it is none of your business as to how we treat them. Your only business is to clean out the stalls.” She abruptly turns and walks off.
I sigh then grab my plate and stand, pushing back from the table. “I’ll see guys later, okay?”
“Have fun,” they say in unison.
“Yep. Because bailing out poop is a whole barrel of fun.” Disappointment taints my voice.
~~~~~
I MAKE MY way to the next dragon stall, push back the solid stone door, and enter. This one is in the corner. Its shackle is firmly pressed around its back leg, chaining it closer to the wall, and a muzzle is over its mouth. Its red eyes glare at me, and it puffs out plumes of smoke. This one does not look anywhere near as happy as the last dragon.
I hold up my hands in surrender. “Peace, my friend. I am here to make your living quarters more pleasant. I will not hurt you.”
The dragon stomps toward me then stops when its chain runs short. The chain clatters and clangs a few times and quiets when the dragon gives up trying to reach me and slumps in resignation, still glaring at me.
“I’m sorry they treat you this way. I’m going to try to stop them from doing this. I hope you trust me with that.”
The dragon says nothing, and a growl rumbles deep within its throat. Keeping my distance, I clean out its water, scoop up its droppings, and throw them over the edge.
This is really not a very nice way for them to live. I do this with a few other dragons and have the same response as I did with the red one. It is breaking my heart to see them like this when I had such a close interaction with Naga and Elan earlier today. They have more to them than being our target practice.
After walking down a stone corridor, I enter another dragon’s stall. This one doesn’t seem quite so old, but it isn’t as playful as Naga. Instead, it cowers in the corner and eyes me suspiciously. It doesn’t have a muzzle, but I make sure I stay out of reach, just in case. It has a tremendous ugly sore running down its leg that looks to be made by a sword, and my heart sinks because of how the dragon regards me.
I finish quickly and look out the opening to see the sun setting. Not much light remains in the sky. I promised that I would meet Elan at the top of the cliff, so I have to run, and I scurry out of the dragon’s enclosure. Just as I exit the rocks, a high-pitched
scream fills the air. Increasing my speed, I search for where this has come from. When I reach a small hill, I climb up it and look around. Another scream fills the air, and my gaze darts in that direction. At a distance not too far away, I can see Rota being thrown around like a rag doll by a frost giant. Other winged Valkyries flock in, ready to attack. As much as I despise them because of how they treat us, I’m not going to let any of them die by a frost giant’s hand. They are too crucial to the cause of Valhalla and the future of Asgard with the coming of Ragnarok. I run toward them, unsheathing my sword.
“Wingless, what are you doing here?” Mistress Sigrun glances at me out of the corner of her eye, and I see the annoyance on her face right before she pushes off the ground.
“You have trained us to fight. I am here to help,” I call to her as she flaps above me.
“Go and get help instead.” She glares down at me. “You cannot fly, and you haven’t trained to fight against frost giants.”
“No, Mistress. I’m staying to help,” I say with determination in my voice while I survey the situation.
Her eyes are like daggers when I chance a look at her. “You have been given an order.”
I ignore her final statement, and when I notice the frost giant is distracted by the Valkyries overhead, I charge toward him and dig my sword into his shin. He bellows in pain, and before I can dart back, his hand swings wide and whips me away from his leg, knocking my sword from my hands and toward the cliff. It clatters several feet away, stopping just on the edge of the cliff, balancing precariously.
Though I long to dart for it, I have second thoughts when the frost giant’s large hand swoops down at me again. I dodge the swipe and stand just out of its reach. Something flickers in my peripheral vision, and I look to see Rota’s limp form being shaken like a rag doll in front of the different Valkyrie swords. Each time one of the Valkyries attacks the frost giant, they halt only inches away from Rota’s body. I have to try something else. Backing away, I search for a hand-sized rock and unclip my sling from the leather strap at the back of my pants. I slide one of several perfect-sized stones I find into the sling and let it fly, aiming at the frost giant’s head, and hit him firmly in the temple.
He roars, and I slip another rock into my sling and let it fly before the giant works out where these rocks are coming from. This one hits the giant in the left eye, and he roars louder, holding out Rota’s body, almost getting her stabbed by one of her comrades. I step back in shock, trip over a small boulder, and land on my backside. Sharp pain jolts up my torso and down my leg. I glance down to find a place to push off the ground to stand, only to see the giant taking a leap toward me and knocking me firmly off the ground and over the edge of the cliff.
As I fall, I let out a scream and gaze up at the mistress in time to see her eyes widen in horror. While she is distracted, the frost giant swipes at her as though she is a little fly. She too goes flying, except she has her wings to brace her from any fall.
I continue to fall, calling out and wondering what good it will do. I am certain that this is my end. I have achieved nothing, and this will be my fate.
- CHAPTER NINE -
Uh-oh. A voice sounds in my head. Quick! Turn around!
“What?”
Flip around so that your stomach faces the ground. Impatience leaks through the voice.
The wind roars in my ears. This is insane. I attempt to flip, and after several tries, somehow, I manage to face the ground instead of falling back first. A golden dragon appears right underneath me just as I slam into her back. I fling my arms around her neck and cling for dear life as Elan glides forward.
Oh, yay! You finally worked it out. It was cutting it fine, though. The ground is only a few feet below.
I peer over her shoulder right as she tilts her wings, narrowly missing a pile of boulders protruding from the ground. When I realize I had only a few more feet to fall before I would have hit the ground, I feel like I want to pass out on her back. She must feel the shift in my mood, because she gazes over her shoulder at me.
“Thank you.” After a few seconds of resting on her back, the memory of why I was falling suddenly hits me. “We have to go back and help them,” I say with urgency.
You want to save the Valkyries that always belittle you? She gives me a strange look.
I nod.
You’re mad. But here we go. Suddenly, she veers in a different direction. I grip her neck tighter, clinging to her scales and feeling their sharp edges digging into my skin. Something gleams in the afternoon sun. It is my sword, which has fallen part of the way down the cliff and is resting precariously on the edge of a rock protruding from the cliff.
I point at it. “I have to grab that first.”
She looks at where I’m pointing and maneuvers directly at it. Get ready!
“For what?”
For this. Despite me holding on to the scales around her neck, she flicks her body, knocking me off her back and making me free-fall. Panic grips me right down to my core.
“What are you doing?” I scream through gritted teeth.
Before she answers, Elan flips around and catches me in her claws. I can’t get you close to the cliff face with my wings. I have to hold you out and hover while you grab the sword. She flaps her wings until I line up with the surface of the boulder sticking out of the cliff face.
Hop on. She pushes me forward. I land on the rock, pick up my sword, and slide it into its sheath. She spins around the other way, facing out, and looks over her shoulder at me. Now jump and grab on.
Too scared to breathe, I brace myself and back up a few steps then sprint and jump off the edge of the boulder, aiming for her head and intending to grasp on to her large horns, but they are just out of my reach, and I start to fall. I reach out, barely managing to wrap my arms around her neck. My body weight pulls me down, and I clasp my hands in front of her throat as I feel myself slip. When I jolt to a halt, I gasp then breathe a sigh of relief when I realize that I am secure. Elan straightens and flies ahead, taking me away from the side of the cliff face. At the same time, she disappears.
“What are you doing? I can’t see you.”
No. And neither can the frost giant.
“But it will still see me.”
You are much smaller than I am, and you will have more of an element of surprise. My body rises and falls as she labors to lift us higher up the cliff face.
We rise high enough to hover above the frost giant and the Valkyries still trying to attack it. I watch as they work in vain. He is much larger than they are, even the tall Valkyries. They are managing to injure him, but with each injury, he is becoming more aggravated and lashing out more. Each time a Valkyrie flies toward him, he continues to hold out Rota’s limp body, blocking the attack. They will not cut one of their own.
Grab your sword. Elan pulls my focus back.
“I hope you know what you’re doing,” I say as I reach with my right hand and pull the sword from its sheath. The sound of metal grinding against metal is blown away by the wind in the opposite direction of the frost giant.
I’m staying downwind so the frost giant can’t smell me, either. Their noses are quite sensitive.
“Okay. I didn’t know that. What’s the plan?”
I’m going to remain invisible and aim for his neck, and you aim with your sword straight down into his heart.
“Sounds vicious. I like it.”
She circles to the front of the frost giant, and if he looks my way, he will see me gliding alone in the air, no wings or anything. It will be strange. The Valkyries, on the other hand, are too busy fighting him off to turn around to see me. Elan flies directly toward him and dodges by a few inches when he flicks his arms to fight off another Valkyrie blocking the view to his neck.
Hook your legs around my neck, and hang on to my scales with your spare arm.
I take her advice, and she flips upside down, dodging his arm. I hold my sword firmly in my right hand.
Moments befor
e we hit, his eyes focus on me, and they widen in surprise. By then, it is too late. He can’t even see the dragon and is looking right through her.
As her teeth clamp around his neck, I thrust the sword deep into his heart. I may be upside down and hanging on for dear life, but I still manage to pierce his skin. His knees buckle, and his hand clasps my sword hilt, which is protruding from his chest. He drops the unconscious Valkyrie, and her comrades fly in and catch her up before she hits the ground. They all look confused as to what was happening and are only reacting to the motions of the giant.
The mistress’s gaze darts everywhere as she tries to work out what has happened and why the frost giant has fallen. Eventually, she spins around and spots me flying alone in the air with no wings, and watches with wide eyes as I land not far from the ring of Valkyries. Confusion is written all over her face.
Elan giggles. Look at her face, would you? She still looks annoyed, even though she has no idea what is going on.
“Young Valkyrie, what are you up to? What have you done? And how on earth are you flying? You don’t have wings.”
As I feel the thump of the ground underneath Elan, a smile spreads across my face. I watch the gold fill out underneath me as Elan exposes herself. The Valkyries immediately pull back and ready themselves for a fight, their swords aimed directly at my dragon.
“Put your swords down,” I say. “She’s a friend. She is the reason why the frost giant has fallen. Can you not see the big bite mark around his neck?”
They look too scared to take their eyes off the dragon, but one of the Valkyries quickly looks at the frost giant and sees the large puddle of blood staining the soil beneath him, then she looks at the hilt of my sword, which can just be seen protruding from the frost giant’s chest. She regards me with a look of confusion and hesitation before returning to the other Valkyries surrounding Elan.