Helheim (The Nine Worlds Trilogy Book 2)

by Debbie Champion

  "Well that's just brilliant," said Dvalin, throwing his hands in the air. "Come on, I tried," he shouted to no one in particular.

  The air around him started to shift and distort. He closed his eyes and when he opened them, he saw the others milling about waiting for him.

  "I think we have a problem," he said.

  *

  Alex crunched his knuckles, rolled his shoulders and leapt through the force field boldly. He was expecting to meet a few of his teachers and have to apologise to them for bunking off so much. As soon as he was through he felt the torshammere scar on his chest start to tingle.

  "Hmm, that's not good," he said to himself, rubbing his chest.

  He looked around and saw Lokson's henge to his right; he was in the valley. Dark clouds swirled above him in the sky, blocking out the sun and the wind whipped his blonde hair across his eyes.

  "Oh god, don't tell me Garm is pissed at me for beating him and he expects me to apologise to him," he mumbled out loud.

  "Try again," called a voice from behind the central monolith.

  "Pete? Pete, is that you?" Alex called, recognising the voice instantly.

  Pete strolled from behind the stone with a swagger and a sneer on his face. His black hair curled around his pale face and his glasses were half way down his nose. He pushed them up with the tip of his finger. It was a typical Pete mannerism and Alex smiled at him.

  "The great Alex Thornsson, sorry Thorson. Saviour of the universe, demigod, murderer of friends," he growled.

  "Pete, it wasn't me, you know that. It was an accident," said Alex, holding his hands out pleadingly.

  He was glad to see his friend again but terrified by the look of anger and disgust on his face. He also couldn't ignore the tingling in his chest. The torshammere was warning him of danger.

  "It's payback time Alex," snarled Pete.

  He reached behind the stone and drew out a replica of the sword hanging from Alex's waist. It was the Tyrfing sword, complete with the gold headed pommel of a snake's head with ruby red eyes and the body of a snake engraved in the long silver blade.

  "Pete, look I'm really sorry for what happened to you. You were trying to kill me, I was just defending myself. The sword just nicked your arm. I had no idea that it would kill you," he said, backing away desperately.

  Pete was striding towards him purposefully. The sword held in both hands directly in front of him.

  "I recall it differently. There I was writhing in agony on the floor, helpless and you stuck the sword into my heart, you murderer."

  "That was Dvalin, not me. He forced my hand, I couldn't do it, you know that."

  "Ha, you just admitted you were going to then."

  "No Pete, I wouldn't have. You were dying anyway. You were begging for the pain to stop."

  "Yeah, I meant give me drugs or something, not kill me."

  The sword was inches from Alex's head now.

  "Your body was going black, like it was poison, spreading from the cut."

  "The cut you gave me, murderer." Pete's eyes blazed with fury. He pulled the sword back and stabbed it at Alex's head. Alex leapt backwards and the sword whooshed past his nose missing it by a hairsbreadth.

  "Stop Pete, you won't achieve anything from this. I've had a golden apple, I'm immortal, you can't kill me."

  "I can cut you up into little pieces and feed you to the dogs though," snarled Pete, lifting his hands back for another strike. "It's the least you deserve.

  Alex reached for the sword at his side and drew it quickly. He held it up in desperation as Pete's blade sliced towards him in a wide arc. With sheer luck rather than any skill Alex managed to deflect Pete's blade at the last moment.

  "Why do you have my sword?" gasped Alex, playing for time. He was desperately trying to think of a way out of this situation. "Don't tell me there are two of them?"

  "No you fool. This is the spirit of your sword. It will stay with me forever, as it was the weapon that killed me. It may be a spirit sword but it has the bite of the real thing," he said, swiping the sword at Alex's midriff.

  Alex jumped back and used his sword to block Pete's again. The swords clashed together with a metallic ring and sparks flew into the air. A roll of thunder echoed through the valley making the ground tremble and a flash of lightning lit up the stones of the henge. Alex stumbled back and parried Pete's sword again; he had aimed for his legs this time. The clang of metal reverberated in the air and a streak of lightning struck the ground to their right. Alex's chest was burning with pent up energy. The electricity lingering in the air made his hair stand on end and he could feel sparks flashing out of his eyes.

  "You're a freak," cried Pete. "Look at yourself," he screamed.

  Alex looked down at his body; he was encased in arcs of electricity. Blue sparks were jumping off him as he reacted to the storm and the danger. He felt as though he were going to explode if he couldn't release some energy. He tried to drop the sword but it felt welded to his hands. He roared a gut wrenching cry and the power within him burst from his chest and soared into the sky. When the energy was spent he collapsed to the floor like a rag doll.

  "Alex, Alex are you ok?" Pete asked, closing the distance between them and kneeling on the floor next to him.

  "Just finish it, kill me," mumbled Alex.

  He was drained of energy and could barely lift a finger to defend himself.

  "Why didn't you kill me?" asked Pete confused. "You could have blasted me apart with that energy."

  "You're my friend," whispered Alex. Even moving his lips was a strain.

  "I believe you," said Pete. "I forgive you."

  Alex looked up into Pete's brown eyes and sighed. Pete's face started to blur and shift and in the blink of an eye he had disappeared. Alex rolled over onto his back and the worried faces of his friends stared back down at him.

  Chapter Five

  "By Odin, what happened to you?" asked Ellewen, rubbing his hand.

  Alex groaned, every fibre in his body hurt and he was struggling to breathe.

  "Here, keep still," she said, placing her hands on either side of his temples.

  She closed her eyes and he could feel an intense heat radiate from her hands. The heat travelled down his body, soothing his aching muscles. He sighed deeply and smiled.

  "Whatever it is you are doing, never stop," he said in a raspy voice.

  "He looks fine now," said Becca, tapping Ellewen on the shoulder.

  "Just a minute more," she murmured, concentrating deeply and rubbing her fingers in a circular motion.

  When she stopped, Alex moaned. "I think I need a bit more."

  "No, you're all good now, fully charged to fight another day. That's what you were doing I assume, fighting someone? You were meant to be apologising, making amends, atoning for your past deeds and all that jazz," she said sternly.

  "It was Pete," said Alex sadly, sitting up. "He blames me for everything, says I murdered him. He attacked me with a sword and I dunno, I think my self-defence system kicked in. I released a huge amount of energy into the sky. He couldn't believe that I didn't finish him off there and then and he said he forgave me. That's when I ended up here. It was intense; I never want to go through that again.

  "You're going to have to learn how to control your power Alex. You could be really dangerous," said Sasha.

  "Yeah, let's send him to Yoda. He can learn how to control the force. Can you feel the dark side calling to you Alex?" laughed Matt, waving his arms around as though he were holding a light sabre.

  "Quit it dork, this is serious," snapped Ellewen. "I guess your dad can help you once we get out of here."

  "Yeah, most dads teach their sons how to shave, drive a car. Mine will have to teach me how not to kill people, great." Alex jumped to his feet and pulled Ellewen up with one hand.

  "Well looks like we all just about survived Tilgivelse," he said, looking around at his friends.

  They all looked pale, drawn and very tired.

  "So, w
hat's next? Shall we rest up and share stories?" he asked.

  "We've done that already whilst we were waiting for you. Well everyone shared except Ellewen," said Matt, looking at Ellewen disapprovingly.

  "It's none of your business Matt," she snapped at him.

  "Ok, ok, keep your hair on. Little Miss Secrets. I just thought it might help you to unburden."

  "I don't need to unburden, I'm fine. Come on we've got to get through the next realm, Vaskr and complete some sort of task to prove we are worthy of entering Hel's domain," she said, reaching down to grab her rucksack.

  Matt rolled his eyes at Alex and shook his head. Dvalin tapped his index finger on his chin thoughtfully.

  "Vaskr, means brave in ancient Norse," he said. "Think I might just sit this one out. Modgud gave me a free pass after all. I may as well use it," he grinned.

  "You can't leave us now," said Becca, shocked that he would think such a thing.

  "I can and I will. I'll probably just slow you down anyway," he said, with a mischievous twinkle in his eye. "Lida," he shouted to the sky.

  There was a loud sucking noise and he shot up into the sky and disappeared.

  "Well cheers mate. We'll remember that," shouted Matt up into the sky.

  "Leave it Matt, we don't need him. We can get through this on our own," said Alex, looking up into the purple sky. Thick black clouds had started to form and a strong wind whipped grit into their eyes. "Come on guys, I think we need somewhere to rest up. You lot look shattered and I don't think Ellewen's turbo charge will work on you. I reckon a storm is brewing too, we'll need to find some shelter."

  "I think I saw some sort of dwelling over that rise over there," said Ellewen, pointing off to the left. "I had a look around whilst they were all sharing and caring," she explained, glaring at them and daring someone to say something to her.

  "Cool, let's check it out Scooby gang," said Alex, leading the way.

  "Scooby gang?" asked Ellewen, wrinkling her forehead.

  "Don't ask," shouted Sasha.

  The wind had really picked up and carried her voice away.

  As they crested the rise they could just about make out a small dwelling through the sand and grit, which was blowing around fiercely in the air. They tucked their heads down and made their way towards it as quickly as possible.

  "Do you think someone lives there?" shouted Becca, trying to look for signs of life as they stood outside warily.

  The dwelling was little better than a ramshackle wooden hut. Peeling shutters hung from the windows and the door was hanging off its hinges and banging in the wind.

  "I doubt it, I mean, we're in the middle of nowhere in the Underworld. I don't think anyone would choose this as a holiday home," said Matt, peeking through a window. "It's not exactly paradise but it has a roof, we should be ok in here," he said raising his voice over the howling wind.

  They hurried inside quickly and the boys shut the front door as best they could. The girls took a window each and battled to close the shutters to keep the wind and grit out. Finally they were secure and they looked around to take in their surroundings. The hut was completely derelict. A sun bleached, broken wooden table was pushed up against the side and an old truckle bed was tucked into the corner. Otherwise it was bare, dark and very, very dusty.

  "Why is this place here?" asked Becca, confused.

  "I don't know and I don't care," said Ellewen breaking a leg off the table. "Figr," she mumbled, holding the log aloft. The end burst into flame, casting shadows into the four corners.

  She waved her hand and the flaming torch hovered in the air, providing light and warmth.

  "Cool," said Matt impressed.

  Ellewen turned away but Matt saw the quick grin on her face, which lit up her pale features.

  They cleared some of the dust and debris off the floor as best they could and Ellewen threw down the blanket she had in her rucksack for them all to sit on. They shared out some food from their provisions and sat quietly, lost in their own thoughts. They were too weary to talk to each other. Eventually Becca yawned which set them all off. They lay down on the blanket, listening to the wind howling outside, mesmerised by the flaming torch hovering just above them. Alex tucked Becca up close to him protectively and they eventually drifted into a light sleep.

  Sasha was the first to wake. The first thing she noticed was the silence. The wind had stopped howling around the hut. She stood up and prised open one of the shutters a crack.

  "Guys, wake up. There's something weird out there," she said, turning back to the others.

  They all jumped up quickly and Alex pulled the door open. Outside, instead of the desolate landscape he could see a forest. Tall trees rose majestically into the purple sky, their canopy was thick with leaves and cast dappled shadows on the grassy floor.

  "Ok, that's weird," he said opening the door wider so the others could see. They crowded around the door frame and took in the sight.

  "Well that's much nicer," said Matt, wandering outside, looking around. "Where are we?"

  "My bet is we have been transported to Vaskr," said Ellewen, peering into the bushes nervously. "It may look nice but we have to complete a task here to prove we’re brave and judging by what we have gone through already it's not going to be easy."

  "I really don't think I can be made to suffer more than I have already," moaned Matt. “I’m emotionally drained, I’m going to need weeks of therapy if I ever survive this.”

  "Nice one Matt, you just jinxed yourself." Alex punched him playfully on the arm.

  "Come on, I can see the path through those trees," said Sasha pointing directly ahead.

  They breakfasted quickly on some left over fruit whilst they gathered their bags and then they made their way towards the path. Alex reached the brick path first and looked around. They were surrounded by tall trees and thick, leafy bushes. There was a cold breeze whistling through the branches and they swayed alarmingly.

  "Ok, let's take a nice stroll through the creepy forest. Keep your eyes peeled everyone. We don't know what's out there. These trees are too dense, we won't be able too see much on either side," said Alex, reaching for Becca's hand and pulling her close.

  He looked up the path. The trees crowded in closer further up, blocking out the purple sky completely. It looked very dark and menacing ahead.

  "Ellewen, I don't suppose you could create a little light here?" he asked looking behind him for her. "It looks pitch black up there."

  "I need something to set light to," she said rooting around some bushes and pulling out a thick branch, which had fallen from a tree.

  She quickly lit the improvised torch with a spell and held it out in front of her.

  "Come on, let's hurry, this place gives me the creeps," she said shuddering.

  They started to move off in single file; the path wasn't wide enough for two abreast.

  "Hang on guys, I'm not going last," called Matt from the back. "I'm wearing a red t-shirt, everyone knows the guy in the red shirt at the back always gets it," he said, looking behind him, fear etched on his face.

  "What are you talking about?" asked Sasha confused.

  "Ha, you're not a Trekkie then?" said Ellewen smirking at Sasha.

  "A what?" asked Sasha.

  "Trekkie, a Star Trek fan," explained Matt.

  "The extras who wore red shirts and went exploring with Captain Kirk, always died first, Matt's right, he's likely to get picked off first. Whatever is out there to get us will hone in on him like a shining beacon. Matt take the torch and lead the way, I'll bring up the rear, I'm wearing black," said Ellewen.

  Matt pushed his way to the front and took the torch off Ellewen. He wasn't sure it was any better being at the front and leading them into the unknown and he jerked his head nervously from left to right, looking for any sign of danger.

  They walked for half an hour through the trees and saw no sign of life at all. There were no birds, insects, nothing, just the dark forbidding trees hanging over them. The
foliage was so thick now they couldn't see the sky at all and had to rely on the flaming torch to light their way. Suddenly Alex's chest started to tingle.

  "Guys, wait up, my spidey senses are picking something up," he said stopping.

  "Your what?" asked Becca, looking at him concerned.

  "Whenever danger is near, my torshammere mark starts to itch. Like Spider-Man feels something when something's wrong," he explained, looking all around for the danger.

  "On the positive side that's good to know. On the downside that means our bravery is probably about to get tested," said Sasha, peering into the gloom. "Ellewen can you see anything back there?"

  Ellewen had her back to the others and started to step backwards towards them.

  "Er, you might want to get moving. I'm pretty sure there are a pair of eyes back in those bushes," she said, pointing to the left.

  Suddenly a loud growl split the air, making the hair on the back of their necks stand up. It was so loud, the ground trembled and the trees shook, making dead leaves tumble about them.

  "Run," cried Ellewen, pushing into Alex's back.

  They all stumbled over each other in their haste to get away from whatever was behind them and ran as quickly as they could deeper into the forest. The sword banged against Alex’s legs and then became entangled, tripping him up and making him fall to his knees. Alex could hear something crashing through the trees behind him and he jumped to his feet quickly and caught the others up. As he reached Ellewen she looked looked over her shoulder and let out a piercing scream, which sent a shiver down Alex's spine. He glanced around too and saw an enormous wolf pounding through the trees. It was so big that the trees were falling over as though they were strands of wheat. It's eyes glowed bright yellow and blood dripped from its muzzle as it ran. Suddenly it stopped, sat back on its giant haunches and howled an ear splitting howl into the sky. The ground shook again making them loose their balance and they staggered into the branches of the trees surrounding them. The sharp branches snagged on their clothes tearing them and tore at their skin making them bleed.

  "Hurry," gasped Ellewen, trying to untangle herself from a thorn bush she had fallen into. Large beads of blood ran down her arms and face and she rubbed them away irritably.