Steel-gray, molten gold, and brutal yellow glow beneath darkening skies. Spearwood creaks as breath stills in tight chests. Low rumbles herald lupine charges, age-rifted kin standing on the verge of battle once more.
I swallow, eyes unblinking, as time rests in an uneasy silence. Thunder claps, a wolf howls, and death walks Midgard. The craghund erupts into motion, meeting the charging wolf head-on with a furious growl.
The wolf''s howl thunders across the land, hitting me harder than anything I''d felt before. I stagger, ears ringing, as warmth wets the sides of my head. Eric shouts something, glancing over his shoulder at the whirling twister of stone and storm, fur and fang. I shake my head and Eric mouths a curse, positioning himself between the brawl and me as winds gather about his spear.
The rushing winds knock me off-balance and I drop to my knees, helpless in the face of such power. My hands shake, my soul quails, and I watch as the craghund throws its head back in a silent cry of pain.
The wolf dives, jaw wide. Stony spikes pierce its face, but it cares not as its lightning-clad fangs close tight around the craghund''s throat. Crackling bolts build, preparing to discharge, only for a spear-shaped blast of wind to shear an eye clean off its head.
Blood sprays in a shower of shattered bone, but the wolf ignores the pain. The tiny window is enough for the wily craghund, however, to slip its long tongue past canine lips as magma-hot saliva drips in heavy loads. The tongue slithers inside the wolf''s maw, filling it with spittle quickly hardening to stone.
The wolf howls as lightning discharges, only for the blast to meet hard rock and explode—inside the wolf''s maw. Bone shards fly in a sea of spraying blood, both the top and bottom jaws of the beast blown away in a shower of gore. Intact teeth and brittle fragments join their brothers as the wolf''s head snaps back.
The craghund dips its head, the remnants of the wolf''s jaws lodged in its neck, as its own maw closes tight around the wolf''s forepaw. Teeth crunches through bone as the craghund snaps its head to the side, tearing the wolf''s paw off and leaving a ragged, bleeding stump in its place.
Though missing eye, foot, and mouth, the wolf still stands. Frenzied beyond all reason, it knows neither pain, nor fear, nor mercy as its storm cloud mane crackles. The wolf pounces, the craghund darts back, only for a bolt of lightning to leap from dark clouds as molten eyes spread wide.
The craghund goes stiff as lightning runs through its body. Steam rises from the defeated beast as it collapses limp against the ground. It sinks into the earth, reclaimed by shadows as it returns to the spirit world.
"Dad!" Eric cries, the sound muted by the ringing in my ears. There''s barely any time to act let alone think as baleful yellow eyes turn to meet twin sets of steel-gray. The wolf gargles in a crude attempt at a howl, fear striking deep in my heart.
I can''t move, can''t blink. My fingers twitch, my body shakes, and breath is a hard-pressed commodity. Wind gathers as the wolf digs claws into the earth. Eric shifts his shield and lowers his spear, its head gleaming with crimson might.
Grass flies as the wolf blurs into motion. A fell-furred bullet, it tears down the hill with hatred in its eyes. Eric meets the wolf''s hate with a battle-cry as spear-wind flies, cleaving limb from shoulder.
The wolf''s intact forepaw tumbles in its wake, but its advance goes unhindered. Carried by its speed, lightning crackles as the beast impacts. Hundreds of pounds of fur-covered muscle meets shield-leather as Eric braces himself against the ground.
Eric cries out in pain as the shield impacts with his shoulder, a sickening crack filling the air as he slides back across the ground. Bracing his spear against the ground, his teeth grind as he pushes himself forward, twisting as he goes to hurl the wolf away.
The wolf tumbles, struggling to its feet, as Eric readies his spear. After-images follow his motion as his spear-arm blurs, a trio of lightning-fast lunges snaking out past his shield. Three strikes carve through fur and flesh, plunging deep into guts and stomach as Eric wrenches his spear out. Reversing his grip, he screams battle-fury as the winds guide his spear.
The spear thunders down, punching through bone and sinew as it emerges, slick with blood, from the other side. But its journey doesn''t end there, for it carries on deep into the earth and pins the wolf to the ground.
"Halla!" Eric shouts as his fighting-hand darts to his work-knife, injury locking his shield-arm in place, "You need to run! Now!"
I want to scream, to cry, to do anything. I-I w-want to run. Anything to get away from this, this horror. And yet...
I tremble, frozen on my knees, as Eric displays his courage.
Eric growls, drawing his work-knife, and turns on the beast. He throws himself at the monster, bodily keeping it pinned as his knife-hand rises and falls at a furious tempo. Blood flies as iron parts flesh and bone, yet the wolf refuses to die.Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.
Its hind paws lash out, claws gleaming with lethal light, as Eric stiffens, eyes wide. He falls back, stomach split open, as coiled-up guts spill out from a ragged wound. Impossibly, in a scathing denial of all good sense, the wolf rises, wrenching the spear from the ground and leaving it lodged through its body.
Lightning crackles across the beast''s mane, charging as Eric grits his teeth. Crimson flames ignite across his body as power surges, his aura strengthened by the stoking of an Aspect. With a great heave, Eric throws his hands to the sky as wind howls and storm clouds gather.
The wolf''s remaining feet leave the ground as the wind picks it up by the scruff of its neck. Bodily hurling it across the fighting ground, Eric musters his might as the spear dislodges, spiraling free and to the earth.
A crown of curling iron spikes sprouts from his brow, the tips igniting one by one as Eric stokes a second Aspect. The surge of power knits flesh as it repairs his spilling stomach, returning organs to their proper homes as Eric turns steel-gray eyes to me.
"Halla!?" He hisses, anger spiking behind his eyes, "I told you to run!"
I open my mouth, instinct overriding fear, only to blink as a splash of blood paints my face. Thunder claps as rain beats a wet drum, the burning smell of lightning rising in the air.
Eric cries as a lightning-clad and heavily-furred missile impacts his chest and throws him to the ground. Tooth fragments gnash, working to tear deep chunks of flesh from bone as blood spills. Eric writhes, lashing out with knife and hand as best he can with back to the ground.
Fingers twist into fists as I grit my teeth, life returning to limb when I force myself to my feet. How can I call myself a warrior if I just stand aside in the face of danger?
Power surges as I throw myself into action. Heart''s heat pounds in my ears as I race towards the fallen spear, its rain-slick haft sprouting straight from the ground while booted feet drive deeper into mud-churned earth. Fingers flex, wrapping around the leather handle as I wrest the weapon free.
Twisting, I round on the wrestling bundle of brother and beast. Spear held high, I aim and aim and aim, but never do I find an opening. Eric wrestles with the wolf, the writhing mass leaving no chance for me to strike without fear of killing kin.
I freeze, limbs trembling as I hesitate. I have to do something, I can''t just stand here! B-but, but if I attack now, I''ll hit Eric!
Lightning crackles through the mane, taking my hesitation for the weakness it is, as the wolf''s head dips down. Its mangled maw overpowers Eric''s weakening arm, its few remaining teeth plunging deep into his throat as his head snaps back, stiff; face frozen in pain.
Thunder claps and a flash of storm''s light blinds my eyes. I blink and stagger, spots filling my vision as smoke rises, billowing out from where Eric once laid.
Smoke clears as spots fade, revealing the fallen form of Eric. A thin trail of smoke rises up through the gaping tunnel making up most of his torso, its source the scorched-black ground under his body. His head falls back, limp; empty gaze glossy as he stares at the dark heavens.
Ears deaf to the noise, a scream splits my lips as legs take mindless steps forward. Thunder rings in my head, its source the heart pounding against my chest.
E-Eric... H-he''s de-dead.
He-he''s dead.
He''s dead.
…
Eric is dead.
Three words, just three syllables.
Eric is dead; a simple phrase, one pre-eminently easy to say. It''s so simple, so easy, that I just can''t help myself! I laugh, long and hard, as my heart beats the drums of war.
My brother is dead, his killer is right there, and I have a weapon in my hands.
I''ve balanced the equation, all I need now is to prove it.
An odd sense of calmness swells in my mind despite the ever-harder pounding of my heated heart. Flames flicker in the corners of my vision as light glows beneath my skin. Whips of fire split through flesh to lash against the air; the power lurking in my clan''s heart-blood making itself known as I lift the spear above my head.
The Stoker State, the heritage of my kin, a bloodline rich in heroic might, now hums in my heart as I step towards the unknowing wolf. Its head dips low, further mutilating Eric''s body, and completely disregarding me as a threat—its mistake.
Fire surges as heart-hammers reach their zenith. Though my clan hesitates to speak of the truth, the Stoker State is quite simple both in concept and execution. Heat builds up in the heart and provides ample fuel for one''s might. Simple, easy to grasp, and very effective.
My mouth hinges open, jaw going slack, as a jet of flame erupts from my throat. It scorches my tongue, burning my flesh, as tears leak from the corners of my eyes. I can''t handle the power of my heating heart running at maximum, but anything less would only tickle the beast.
The sudden gout of flame grabs the wolf''s attention, but it''s too late now. Power surges through my limbs, the spear tip shining with molten fury, as my mangled throat gives wind to a wordless war cry.
The spear descends, the wolf reacts, but there''s nothing that could save it now. Fur burns as flesh sizzles, tendons snapping as vertebrae severs. Flames erupt from the spearhead, bathing the wolf''s insides in hungry heat. Ravenous, tongues of flames swallow chunks of flesh, turning all they taste to black charcoal.
The wolf collapses, dead.
So why don''t I feel anything?
An odd haze settles across my mind as I stare at the wolf''s smoking corpse. My knees buckle, dropping me to the ground. I need to get up, to get Eric to the Seeress, but my traitorous limbs refuse to move.
The spear slips from numbing fingers, but I hardly pay attention to the sound of wood on grass. After all, the graven face of Dad now fills my vision as smoke spills from his open maw.
His arms wrap around me, his warmth the only thing I can feel. Brewing tears break the dam, spilling down my cheeks as I shudder and shake.
"It''s okay, Halla," Dad says, comforting words whispering into my ear, "I''m here."