Valkyrie 102

Chapter 3

Death was all around me. I saw it in the orange leaf as it cascaded down the tree, falling to rest in the grass underneath. I noticed it in the darkening of the sky, preparing for the arrival of winter. And I felt it from the m******e of humanity on the battlefield, the corpses piled on top of each other. Names. Dreams. All crushed. Gone in the wind, carried away with their ashes.

This wasn"t the kind of death I"d been told about as a child. This wasn"t the noble and brave demise of heroes and warriors. This was a cold, heartless, ruthless, impersonal s*******r.

The fallen didn"t get to look their challenger in the eye. They didn"t get to inhale the scent of fear or sweat adrenaline. They never even saw the faces of their victor. No, of their killer.

This wasn"t a victory. It wasn"t a battle. And it wasn"t glorious.

"Get used to it," Var said, his dark cape rippling from the wind tugging on it. "This is the world now."

"I—" I looked at the spectacle in front of me. A valley filled with lifeless bodies and faceless people. Their blood staining the earth, their souls hovering in glowing balls slightly above their corpses.

"Don"t waste your words. We have work to do. You know how to bring souls to Valhalla, right?" he asked, his face gritted in an even harder expression.

"No," I admitted.

Var"s expression changed. "What about going to the Veil?"

"... No. I"ve only just started studying at the Afterlife Academy."

"Wings?"

I shook my head, my ears burning in embarrassment even though I had no reason to feel that way.

The old man frowned. "But you travelled through the Veil?"

"Yes, but it was the fault of your poisoned silver chain. It broke my connection with my friend and when I regained consciousness, I ended up here."

A strange look flitted across his face and his thick brows furrowed. "Is that so? Interesting..."

Instead of continuing the conversation, he just rubbed his five o"clock shadow and stared into the distance. Curls of smoke rose from the horizon, only adding to the gentle trickle of ash and soot raining down on the slaughtered bodies.

As much as I sympathised with the fallen, I wasn"t here for them.

"I want my dusk wolf back. His name is Hyde and he has a grey fleck on his nose. He"s mine." Despite my discomfort, my voice never wavered. He was my wolf and I wouldn"t return without him or the others.

Var tightened the hood of his cape. "You can take him back."

"Really?"

His dark eyes bore into mine. "After the job"s done. All these souls need assisting and your wolf isn"t behaving."

I chuckled to myself. "I wonder why."

"This is no laughing matter. Now are you going to obey or do I need to put a chain around you too?"

My hands balled into fists, the anger flaring up in the pit of my stomach. Who did he think he was? Did he think he was the only one serving the afterlife realms? There were a lot of men and women assisting the dead, none of them were stealing wolves and forcing them into submission.

I couldn"t work with a man like that. Not in good conscience. But then... Could I walk away from this? Was I not responsible? Shouldn"t I take responsibility?

My eyes roamed over the scarred landscape. The rubble was illuminated by the hue of the souls floating above their lifeless bodies. There wasn"t an inch of ground left without blood, ash, or flesh. This was an attack on humanity, a stain in nature, and someone had to clean it up. These souls couldn"t just be left here, to wander for eternity until they forgot everything they once were and everything they believed in. Someone had to be responsible.

"I will help, if you promise to release Hyde and the other stolen wolves when the job is done. Also, I have lectures I need to attend. I"m not missing out on class for you."

Var looked at me, his expression giving nothing away. "Fine. Academy during the day, work with me at night. But you"re not to tell anyone about me. If you hold up your end, I will release the wolves. If you blab... You won"t see Hyde ever again."

My hands balled into fists. I wanted to punch him, but that wouldn"t do me or my wolf any good.

"We have a deal," I agreed through gritted teeth.

"Fine. But don"t expect any handholding."

I pulled a face. "I wasn"t counting on it."

"Good. " He turned away from me, his cape rippling in the wind. He looked impressive, focused, driven. But I wasn"t fooled. Regardless of his intentions, his means were despicable. k********g innocent puppies? What a scoundrel.

If I had any choice, I"d turn my back to him and report him to the elemental board. But that involved getting back to the Academy and finding a way to bring the wolves with me. Neither seemed likely. And so, I had to go with the flow. I had to fulfil my end of the bargain and pray he kept up his. But for now, I had no choice. Whether I liked it or not, I"d be working alongside Var until the battlefield was cleaned up.

I took a deep breath, gathering my courage. This was what it meant to serve.

"Let"s do it then."

The first hint of a smirk curled around Var"s lips. "Good."

Conflicted emotions warred through me, but I shoved them down. I’d deal with them when I was safely back at the Academy.

“Can you show me the way out of the forest now?”

Var’s devious smile broadened. “Oh, no. I can’t.”

“What? We had a deal.”

“We do. But you never specified.”

Anger balled my hands into fists. “Jerk! It was implied.”

He chuckled deeply. “No need to get worked up. I’m messing with you.”

“Oh, oof.”

“I wouldn’t be able to show you how to get out of the forest, even if I wanted to. You’ll have to earn it.”

I frowned. “Earn it? From you?”

“No, from the Keeper of Illusions.”

“What?”

Var motioned me to follow, the amusement colouring his face. “I think it’s time for you to earn your first mark.”