by S. T. Bende
And if that was the case, God willing, they’d know how to fix it.
The five of us climbed the winding staircase and walked down the long hallway in relative silence. Our friends Helene and Vidia wouldn’t be joining us—though Vidia had grown closer to Katrin during the past few weeks, she was focused on passing the militant Professor Idrissens’ inter-tribal relations course, and hadn’t been hugely involved in our planning. And while my neighbor and healer-student friend, Helene, had helped us sort out some of the health-related concerns of tribal integration, she hadn’t been involved in mapping out the overarching plan.
This was all on me and Katrin.
Katrin fidgeted with her braids as she trailed behind Axel. She and I had rehearsed our presentation before we met up with the group, and she’d confessed her nerves at not only sending out two teams to sell strangers on our not-so-conventional lifestyle—a plan she worried put me and Ingrid in excessive danger—but also of making any presentation in Freia’s living room. Katrin wasn’t big on attention, so being on the spot in front of our tribe’s founders had her more than a little stressed out—a feeling I completely understood. We had a lot riding on this.
“Major Halvarsson.” The uniformed warriors who stood on perma-duty outside the Halvarssons' door saluted Erik. “The chief and chieftess are expecting you.”
At Erik’s nod, the guards opened the door. Erik gestured for me to enter, and I stepped into the wood-paneled entry. The family suite stretched before me, a chandelier-lit room coated from top to bottom in creams and whites. I’d only been there once before—the day Ingrid and Vidia arrived from Clan Bjorn—and the sheer amount of clean fabric in Freia’s living room sent my heart racing.
“Shoes,” I whispered as Katrin stepped nervously beside me.
“Huh?”
“Ditch your shoes.” I gestured to the cream carpet, couch, and upholstered chairs. “Freia says she doesn’t care, but just look at this place.”
“I don’t care.” Freia entered from one of the side doors. “Things can be replaced. It’s people who matter. Right, Halvar?”
“Ja.” Erik’s dad followed Freia into the living area. They both wore wool outfits in light grey and blue, though the embroidery along Freia’s dress was several shades lighter than the navy edging of Halvar’s vest. The icy hue stood in contrast to the chieftess’ warm demeanor.
“You two look nice. What’s the occasion?” Erik crossed to his parents. He shook his father’s hand, then kissed his mother on the cheek.
“We were at a council meeting. Nothing terribly exciting.” Freia gestured to the sitting area, where a platter of fruit, lefse, and tea was set out. “Now please, make yourselves at home. Feel free to let the guards know if you’d like additional refreshments, and they can communicate with the kitchen. Otherwise, we’ll leave you to your work.”
“You can stay,” I offered. “I’d love to get your thoughts on what we’ve put together.”
“Not tonight.” Freia smiled gently. “I have every confidence in your research, as well as your ability to execute your vision. If you run into any trouble, Erik knows where to find us.”
“Council wore you out, eh?” Erik asked.
“Ja,” Halvar groaned, at the same time as Freia said, “Just a bit.”
“You’re sure everything’s all right?” Axel pressed.
“It’s nothing for you to worry about,” Freia assured him. “You have more important matters to attend to. Like recruiting the tribes who are going to help us stop Bjorn.”
“We hope,” Katrin muttered.
“We will,” Ingrid corrected.
“It’s good to see you, Saga dear. Ingrid. Katrin.” Freia came over and kissed my cheek, then did the same to my friends. “And Axel. I do hope you’re behaving yourself.”
“No more than usual.” Axel grinned at his chieftess.
Freia patted his cheek, before retreating to Halvar’s side. “Come, love. Let’s leave our successors to their work.”
The second they’d left, Ingrid turned to me. “Successors? What’s that about?”
“You got me.” I pinned Erik with a stare. “Your folks planning on retiring?”
Erik’s shoulders rose. “Not that I’m aware of.”
“I think she just wants us to know she trusts us to get this job done.” Axel walked over to one of the upholstered chairs, and dropped into it. Katrin, Ingrid, and I settled into the couch, while Erik took the chair opposite Axel’s.
“Okay then.” Erik rested his elbows on his knees and turned to Katrin. “Where do we start?”
“Well. Um.” Katrin cleared her throat and fidgeted with the black tips of her braids. Her eyes darted between Erik and Axel. “I . . . er, we . . .”
I jumped in. “We’re asking you to go out and recruit on behalf of Valkyris. We need you to present the arguments for why tribes should not only side with us over Bjorn, but actively convert their governance to a style that mirrors ours. Give women leadership opportunities, embrace tolerance on multiple fronts, and allow citizens to pursue career paths that best suit their interests and skill sets. We’re trying to bring Valkyris to the world through argument and reason. And if that fails . . .”
“If that fails, we resort to a language they’ll understand.” Katrin spoke up. “Some of these tribes have only ever responded to violence, and while we have no intention of forcing anyone into our lifestyle, we do want to make sure they hear our message. We’ve divided our teams into two parts—the voice of reason and the heavy.”
“The heavy?” Ingrid’s brows knitted together.
“It’s what we call the intimidator where I’m from,” I explained.
“Farm country, right?” Ingrid asked.
Something like that. “Yup.”
“So, the voice of reason—that’s Saga and Axel—will use the talking points to try and convince the tribes to embrace our lifestyle. Or at the very least, to side with us over Bjorn,” Katrin explained. “If neither of those work, then the heavy—that’s Ingrid and Erik—will remind the non-conformists that we’re on the brink of war. You’ll want to really spell out the consequences of being caught up in a fight of this magnitude. Especially considering Valkyris has never lost a battle.”
“And seeing as how nobody wants to be on the losing side of a war . . .” I shrugged.
“Siding with us is in everyone’s best interest.” Ingrid nodded. “Got it.”
“Exactly.” Katrin reached into her bag and removed a bound stack of papers. Our report was easily two inches thick, and contained a veritable trove of information.
“You said I’m a voice of reason?” Axel eyed the report as Katrin set it on the table. “Exactly how much of that am I supposed to remember?”
Bless his heart.
“The full report is fairly substantial,” Katrin admitted. “We probably overdid it on the research, but preparation is rarely wasted effort.”
I blinked at Katrin. “I have been saying that all my life.”
“Because it’s good sense,” she agreed.
“So, I have to memorize that whole book?” Axel balked.
“No. You just have to memorize the talking points. They’re outlined here.” Katrin opened her bag again, and removed individual sheets of parchment. She passed one to each of us.
“The full report serves as an argument for why the Valkyris lifestyle is beneficial, both for the individual and the whole.” Katrin glanced at her paper. “Our hope is that all tribes willingly transition on principle alone. But realistically, we know many will be hesitant to side against Bjorn. In those cases, we wanted to provide as much data as possible on how our society benefits both its citizens and its government.”
“Sounds intense.” Axel stretched his arm across the back of his chair. “Let’s hear it.”
“Okay.” I studied my paper. “The initial section of the full report breaks down the fiscal and military benefits of the Valkyris lifestyle. The key takeaway from that is the increased pr
oductivity of the tribe, owing to increased efficiency from the remaining members when traditionally male warriors depart on expeditions.”
“And from a military standpoint, the most important benefit is the mandatory warrior term. By requiring everyone to be able to defend themselves and their settlement, regardless of station or gender, armies are fully stocked year-round,” Katrin explained.
Axel leaned back. “What else?”
“The second part of the report explains the social benefits,” I said. “The biggest take from that is an increased sense of community. People who feel like a valuable part of a team are more likely to support that team when times get tough—which will undoubtedly happen if Bjorn makes good on their promise to hunt us down.”
“They’ll never find us.” Axel cracked his knuckles.
“Because we’ll find them first,” Erik vowed.
The intensity in their stares made me very glad they were on my team.
“The third and final section outlines the action plan,” Katrin finished. “This is a breakdown of how, where, and when each tribe should implement societal changes. It starts with the least impactful, and moves up to the larger-scale shifts.”
The room was silent as Erik, Axel and Ingrid read, their eyes moving back and forth across their parchments. A full minute passed before Erik looked up.
“I can tell you right now, most of these tribes are not going to do number ten—instate a male and female co-chief.”
“Maybe not,” I agreed. “But if we can get them to number eight—allowing women to sit on councils . . . or even number five—letting them run operations while the men are in battle or on expeditions, then they track their clan’s productivity and measure it against normal operating standards . . .”
“Then we’ll be able to definitively prove that our lifestyle is advantageous,” Katrin finished. “In which case they’d be fools not to consider conversion.”
Ingrid leaned forward. “How far do we push them if they refuse?”
“We don’t push at all,” I said. “We’re not here to force anyone into being like us. That goes against everything we believe, and everything Freia and Halvar have fought to build.”
“But you said the heavy would—”
“The heavy needs to present cold, hard facts,” Katrin interrupted. “Bjorn is attacking freedom and hope. War is coming. And Valkyris has never lost a battle.”
“But if a tribe wants to remain neutral, or align itself with the losing party, then that’s their right,” I stressed. “We can’t force the world to change—we can only present each group with the choice to side with either hope or fear. Then, we pray they choose the best course of action.”
Erik stroked his beard. “Saga’s made no secret of her belief that the world is inherently good.”
“Because it is,” I reminded him.
“Maybe.” Erik sighed. “I still have concerns, but I appreciate the optimism and I’m willing to give this a go. Who are we reaching out to first?”
Katrin pulled two more pieces of parchment from her bag. She smoothed one out on the table, revealing a detailed map of the top third of Norway. “Saga and Erik, you two are going to visit the northernmost regions. They’re remote, but they make up a powerful network of seafaring tribes who have managed to evade allied control. This suggests their warriors are strong, and their ships fast. We could use them on our side. There are a lot of them, so reach out to as many as time permits within one week, then come back here to regroup.”
“On it.” Erik nodded before folding the map and slipping it into his pocket.
Katrin smoothed out the second parchment. This one showed the network of settlements due east of Valkyris. “Ingrid and Axel, you two are going to take the eastern tribes. What they’re lacking in ships they more than make up for in resources. The mountainous tribes are excellent trackers, and the farm regions have food stores and domestic livestock that we’re going to need if we’re expanding our footprint.”
Ingrid nodded. “What about the regions beyond our borders? Should we reach out to those groups?”
“Visit whoever you can reach within one week,” Katrin said. “We don’t know when Bjorn will attack, and we want as many allies as we can rally.”
“And we’re going to reach them by . . .”
I tilted my head at Ingrid’s question.
“Obviously, you and Erik can take the boats,” she clarified as she pocketed the map, “since you’re heading to seafaring villages, you can sail up the coast. But how are Axel and I getting to the east? The fjords will take too long, and horses won’t be fast enough, will they?”
“I don’t do horses.” Axel’s dimple popped. “We’ll take the dragons.”
Ingrid’s eyes practically bugged out of her head. “What?”
“We’re all taking the dragons,” I jumped in. “They’re faster, less likely to be attacked, and they carry a certain intimidation factor ships and horses just . . . don’t.”
“I’ve never ridden a dragon,” Ingrid hissed.
“Well, aren’t you the lucky one.” Axel crossed his long legs at the ankle. “It just so happens I’m an excellent teacher.”
“No,” I objected. “Ingrid can ride tandem with you. We need to leave by the end of the week, and as I recall, it took you much longer than that to get me to comfortably ride solo.”
Axel raised a brow. “Did it ever occur to you that you’re a slow learner?”
I reached over and punched him in the arm.
“Do you think you can be ready to go on Saturday?” Katrin asked. “Saga and I didn’t know what to allow for prep-wise, but if you can get ahead of this next storm it will make your travels considerably easier.”
“I don’t see why not.” Erik stared at Axel. “We’ll pack the dragons with rations, camping gear, basic level weapons, and . . . what’s a good bribe for the tribes who need an extra push?”
“Is there anything älva we could give them?” I asked. “Something useful that might stimulate crop growth, or heat their villages through the last days of winter?”
“Ooh.” Katrin rubbed her hands together. “Leave that to me. I’ve got an idea.”
“Perfect.” Ingrid stood, crossed to the silver food cart, and extracted a piece of lefse. “Except for the part where I have to spend weeks alone with him.” She jabbed her thumb in Axel’s direction.
“Most girls would give anything for alone time with me.” Axel’s voice was slightly too casual to be convincing. Had Ingrid’s insult needled its way through his thick layers of ego?
“Ja. Well.” Ingrid shrugged.
“It won’t be weeks,” I reminded them. “We’re looking to be gone for one week, tops. If Bjorn attacks, we’re going to need all hands on deck.”
We hashed out the last details of our departure plan. Erik and Axel would spend the next few days gathering supplies and readying the dragons, while Ingrid and I memorized the action plan and finished out the week at the academy. On Saturday morning, we’d meet in the Dragehus and take off for our respective assignments.
If we were lucky, we’d be back home before we knew it.
Chapter 3
“SAGA, CAN WE TALK?” Erik’s voice was low in my ear. I glanced to my left, where Axel was helping himself to thirds from the snack tray, while Ingrid and Katrin slipped into their boots in the entry.
“Sure. Now?”
When Erik nodded, I reached out and snaked the last piece of lefse from the plate.
Axel treated me to his very best glower. “Not nice, Saga.”
“You snooze, you lose.” I popped the flatbread into my mouth with a smile.
“You say the weirdest things.” With a frown, Axel joined Ingrid and Katrin at the front door.
“You guys go ahead,” I called. “I’ll be a few minutes behind you.”
A teasing sparkle illuminated Axel’s eyes. “You only take a few minutes, eh, Erik?”
A low rumble came from Erik’s throat.
Axel opened the front door with a laugh. “Might want to release that pressure valve, man. You’ve been awfully uptight lately.”
From beside me came the distinct cracking of knuckles.
“Don’t you have some dragons to pack up?” I asked Axel sweetly.
“That I do. Come on, Katrin. Ingrid. I’ll walk you back to the academy.” Axel’s eyes ran up and down Ingrid’s body as she brushed past him. My friend held her shoulders stiffly and stared straight ahead. Since Axel had rescued her and Vidia from Clan Bjorn, she’d asked enough questions to let me know the assassin had caught her attention. But I also knew she’d ruled him out as boyfriend material—his player past was more than she wanted to deal with while learning the ropes of a whole new clan. It was a smart decision, especially considering the two of them butted heads every time they were in the same room. Still, I couldn’t help but wonder what would happen if they dropped their guards long enough to see each other for what they were—two strong, fiery warriors intent on bringing good to the world. If they ever got over themselves long enough to see eye to eye, I had no doubt they’d be a formidable team.
I also knew they were both too stubborn to ever figure that out.
When the door clicked closed, I turned to Erik with a smile. “That went well.”
“It did. You and Katrin made a solid presentation. You should be proud of yourselves.”