The Wars for Valhalla

Midgard

21 years later,

Shields clash as hooves beat the ground all around me. I heard shouts of war. I raise my shield to block a volley of arrows. Just as one passes my shield, I jolt awake. “It’s. Just a dream,” I reassured myself. “It was just a dream.”

I get up, hit the gym and then head out to work on my portfolio I am working on for the travel blog that I’m freelancing for. They want to try and bring in more tourists to our town during our fall and winter seasons. People flock in during the spring and summer months for the yearly spring and summer equinox celebrations. The yule and Samhain celebrations are always dead.

I was walking down main street, and I was drawn to this quaint little shop that I'd never seen before. As I walk in, I see this weathered old lady trying to pull a heavy trunk into the showroom. I rush and help her and get it moved to where she needs it and then start looking at her wares. And I am instantly drawn to a necklace that has this weird shaped etching on it and ask her what it mean.

She then tells me that it's the bind rune for breakthrough and that if I ever feel stuck in a situation, it’ll help guide me. So I buy it and leave, but something still draws me to that place.

I get a few good shots of downtown and then head to where the festival of Odin is set up and start taking shots of what it looks like the booths and the different things that are set up to honor the Alfather. When I bump into a solid hard chest.

“Uh sorry,” I mumbled as I looked up into the most gorgeous silver eyes with gold flecks.

“Watch where you’re going,” he growls. “You just ruined my favorite shirt.”

Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed, I thought to myself. “I said," I’m sorry, you didn’t have to be a dick.” I quipped back. “I can buy you another,” realizing I spilled his coffee all down the front of his white shirt.

“You couldn’t even afford it, he muses. “It's Gucci. I highly doubt that it's in your price range.”

“Below my price range?” I scoff, “I make more than you realize. Let me sweeten the deal and buy you coffee.”

“Fine,” he replies, “But I have the perfect spot, so I pick.”

“Okay, let's get that shirt fixed first.” Cant have someone with a chest that lethal running around without a shirt. “I’m Astrid nice running into you, although I don’t mean it literally.” Jeeze, I really need to watch what I say when I’m nervous.

“Well, hello Astrid, it's nice to meet you,” he chuckles. “My name is Heimdall.” As he reached out his hand to shake mine, I get this weird feeling that this meeting wasn’t just by chance, and that I’d be seeing this god of a man again after this.

we go to the mall to buy him a new shirt. I swiped my black card, and then we proceeded to go get me a new shirt, and we go to the coffee shop. And we talk for what seems like hours. I found out that he’s here visiting the festival with friends and was heading back from the coffee shop when I ran into him. He then tells. Me that he’s a travel agent and helps people get to their destinations. Which I found cool, and I offered my services to freelance for him, which he turned down, saying that he has no need for a photographer when he has other ways of showing his clients their intended destination. f*****g hot shot to think I was slightly attracted to him. We leave, and I decide to call it a day because everyone knows the fun really starts at night. As I’m walking home, I pass the old lady’s shop again and decide to stop in. She comes shuffling in from the back with a smaller box, and I start asking about the things in her shop and ask her why she chose to set up here and not have a booth at the festival. She then explains to me that her people and the people who celebrate Odin have been at war for years and centuries to be exact. She then looks as if she is going into a trance and starts saying something that almost sounds like a spell or prophecy.

“The first night of the full blood moon, a daughter will rise, a kingdom will fall, the lands that were once held captive will be free, the magic of the land will once flow again once the traitorous one is killed and the rightful heir is returned.”

She snaps out of it and apologizes for what happened. I asked her what she meant. She then pulls out a bag of what looks like bones and tosses the contents on the table. Then she explains that the runes say that things have been set into motion, that they say the daughter has been tested and not yet found worthy. I ask her what she means, and she then asks me about my history. I tell her that I was adopted and found out on my twentieth birthday when things started to happen around me and then explained that I felt a pull to this shop as I passed it this morning. She then asked me my name. I then told her my parents named me Astrid because it was the name in the letter that was left with me when I was left at their door.

“I have read and reread that letter over and over again to try to figure out some clue as to who my real family is.” I quietly admit.

She touches my hand and simply says, “I know, child, I know. I have something for you, but only when you are ready I knew your mother well. I was the one who placed you on their doorstep. I knew that the binds on who you truly are would start breaking around your twentieth birthday.”

I look at her in shock. “You what?!” I almost shout. “Have you been watching me this whole time?”

“No child, I left you and let you be as I was ordered.” She replies “The magic we used to bind your true self would unravel if I stayed with you, and it would give them the means to find and kill you If you were unbound before your twenty-first birthday.”

I want to leave, but now my interest is piqued, so I ask, “Who exactly are my parents? Why were you ordered to bind my true essence? Where are my parents? And why my twenty-first birthday?”

She slowly answers my questions, but before she can answer them, she tells me that she has to start at the beginning, so she starts with how my mother was the queen of another realm.

Your mother, some here in what we call Midgard, would consider your mother Freya a Goddess, the Goddess of war and fertility. The people her used to pray that she would choose them to walk her halls when they died in battle. That was until your father became king." She started, "Your mother when she met him. Your father gave him everything to prove her love for him and, in doing that, she gave him the power over her very life. They lived harmoniously together for sixteen years and then Odin, your father, decided that he had to conquer the other realms that didn’t worship him as a divine being. So it caused a rift between the two of them. Freya wanted to live peacefully with her subjects and rule the nine realms in harmony with the leaders of each realm. Odin, your father, did not. When he grew tired of her fighting him on the matter, he had her locked up and stole her power, which left her weak. Odin didn't know that she was pregnant when he locked her up. He took on a mistress and left your mother for dead. She was only allowed one servant. I was the only one allowed in the tower with her. I was allowed to move about freely, which is why I was able to secretly get you out of Asgard. Freya left me with two letters for you, one to give to your new parents, and one for you when you come looking for who you really are. I swore to your mother that I would keep you safe as long as I could. Your mother didn't want you corrupted by your father, and knew that one day you would be the salvation of Asgard."

I ponder everything she has told me, and ask her one final question. "Who are the ones loyal to my mother?"

"We are the Valkrye. I am Hildr you may call me Hilda." she says.

I thank her and leave with the second letter from my mother.