Shield Maiden Read online

  Chapter Nineteen - Kendra Flees

  “What!” Anna exclaimed. “How? What exactly happened?”

  “Kendra might rely on sorcery and devices like the Brisingamen most of the time, but she is still our sister,” Lydia said. “As such she is a warrior maiden first and a fearsome one at that. Gurthrunn is a strong warrior too, but a Valkyrie is hard to beat and our strength is much greater than that of a dwarf. She saw the Brisingamen in his belt and attacked him.”

  “Was he killed?” Ellette asked looking close to tears. “I quite liked him.”

  “The two of them fought tooth and claw like warrior gods, whilst my sisters and I battled the svartálfar,” Lydia explained. “Then, as the battle turned and the elves fled, Kendra seized the Brisingamen and struck Gurthrunn down. Before we could reach them she had whistled for her stallion. It came like lightning to her call and she lifted the dweorgar’s body onto its back, mounted up behind him and made off. She is running - even now she is running.”

  Wilburh frowned. “But if she has the necklace she can enchant more people and force them to do her will. “

  Lydia nodded. “Indeed she can.”

  “Then we must go after her – and quickly,” Anna said.

  “I can help. We can use my horse,” Lydia agreed.

  “Your horse?” Anna looked around the village. Here and there pockets of dark elves were still fighting Valkyries. The villagers were slowly returning, the fit and able helping to support the injured. Over in the paddock behind Meccus’s smithy Anna could see the two scruffy mares, both looking agitated and leaning over the gate, but nowhere was there any sign of a horse that might belong to a Valkyrie. Lydia saw her puzzlement, smiled and then clicked her fingers.

  Anna heard the noise of hoofbeats thundering across turf and gasped. In the blink of an eye, a huge and powerful white stallion had simply appeared next to the Valkyrie, as though it had come out of nowhere. Lydia patted him on the neck and then mounted. Holding out her hand to Anna, she commanded, “Come with me!”

  Gulping, Anna just nodded and let herself be pulled up behind Lydia, feeling the animal’s back warm and soft against her legs, for the Valkyrie did not use a saddle. “Where are we going?” she asked, trying to speak firmly ... the ground looked an awfully long way away!

  “Kendra has ridden north.”

  “Then I think I know where she is heading.” Anna looked down at Lar and the others, “Follow us to the barrow!” she ordered. They gaped up at her, Ellette’s face crimson with envy.

  “The barrow?” Lar asked with a frown. “Why there?”

  “She is using Gurthrunn’s route isn’t she,” Wilburh said. “She is using the barrow to open the Bifrost.”

  “Ah, so there is a portal to the Bifrost near here? Now I understand. Yes, that is what Kendra will do,” Lydia said. “She knows that we her sisters, loyal to the gods as we are, will hunt her down, so she cannot just ride away from your village and hide in the next valley. She will open the Bifrost.”

  “Is her horse like yours, can it appear and disappear?” Lar asked.

  “It is, yes, but we Valkyries could still track her if she chose to stay. She must flee this world of Midgard, for the present anyway. The easiest way for her, given she now has one of the gods’ treasures in her possession, is to open the portal. A dweorgar could do that for her. That is why she has taken him, which means he must still be alive.”

  “Gurthrunn would not do it,“ said Ellette, springing to the dwarf’s defence, her lip thrust out in defiance. “He would not let her get away.”

  “He may not have any choice, child. Dweorgars built Bifrost and all the other portals to this world. His warm blood alone would open the door given enough power, and with the Brisingamen Kendra has that power.

  “Our friend is in mortal danger then?” Anna asked.

  “Indeed he is,” Lydia nodded. “Enough talk, we ride. Hold tight!” Using only the pressure of her knees, Lydia turned her steed to face north towards the headman’s hall. Guiding the stallion with her hands, she nudged it with her heels and the beast leapt forward. Anna gasped, for in an instant they were galloping faster than the wind towards her father’s hall.

  “The hall!” she shouted out in warning, her hair whipping back from her head.

  “Trust me, child!” Lydia answered and clapped her hand to her steed’s neck. Anna felt the stallion’s powerful muscles bunch beneath her as it jumped skyward. It was an impossible jump, even for the best of horses and Anna closed her eyes, expecting to feel a gut-wrenching thump as she, Lydia and the horse ploughed into the building. She kept her eyes screwed shut for several seconds, but there was no crash, no impact, just the sensation of ... flying!

  She opened one eye and looked down. She could see the beast’s legs moving up and down, back and forth as if in full gallop. But beneath the flashing hooves there was just air! They were flying through the air a hundred feet above the trees and brook north of the village.

  “Merciful Woden, protect me!” she said. “I have heard stories about Valkyries riding horses through the skies, but I did not believe them.”

  Lydia turned to shout a reply. “Why should the stories lie? This is what we do. As the gods command it, we ride back and forth between all of the Nine Worlds. How else do you suppose we take the souls of brave warriors to feast with Woden in Valhalla? Ah, now there she is,” Lydia pointed.

  Anna could see that they were now passing over the ruined villa. Ahead of them was the barrow. She could just make out a figure with a white horse standing near the entrance. Lydia directed her own stallion downwards and it increased speed as they started to descend. As they reached the ground, without breaking stride the horse landed effortlessly and continued to gallop, speeding on across the grassy meadow towards the barrow.

  As it drew closer, Anna’s eyes widened in astonishment at what she saw: the door of the barrow, which before had been dull stone, was glowing with a bright light. Then she spotted Gurthrunn. The dwarf warrior was slumped down near the doorway. His sleeve was rolled up and she could see it bore a nasty wound. Splatters of blood were splashed around the door frame. They were too late! Kendra had cut him and used his gushing warm blood on the door.

  “She is opening the Bifrost. We don’t have long,” Lydia shouted and urged her mount on even faster.

  As they closed upon Kendra, the sorceress turned to glance at them. Irritation showed on her face and she took two steps away from the barrow, held out her hand and a bolt of lightning leapt forth from her fingers and shot towards them.

  Lydia spoke a command to her horse. It swerved instantly to one side and the bolt flew past to smash into a tree in the woods behind them. Another bolt came at them and this time Lydia held up her hand, which now glowed with a faint golden light. The lightning bolt hit her palm and deflected away from her.

  “How did you do that?” Anna gulped, clinging to the Valkyrie’s waist.

  “We all have some magic,” explained Lydia, “but Kendra was always the strongest of us.” As she spoke she slowed the horse to a canter and then stopped. She slid off its back, landing on her feet and drawing her sword in one easy motion. Anna followed suit, hanging onto the stallion’s rump so as not to fall. As soon as she felt the ground beneath her feet, she pulled out her seax. They both faced Kendra, who was now barely twenty paces away.

  “That I am,” sneered Kendra, “much the strongest and yet still you dare to face me?”

  “Strongest at magic, I should have said. I was always better with my blade,” Lydia said as she moved towards her sister, sword point rising menacingly.

  “Why do we need to fight? Why do you two come at me like this? You could join me. Imagine what we three could do together with the Brisingamen and the horn.” Her voice was soft and enchanting and Anna might have believed her had she not already seen through Kendra’s trickery. She shook her head, but it was Lydia who answered.

  “You know that the Brisingamen will not work on me, sister.” L
ydia glanced at Anna and a smile came to her face, “And it seems not on this mortal child either. We are both too strong for that; too strong for you in fact. Give yourself up and I will speak to Woden and the others and ask them to forgive you.”

  The sorceress laughed and it was not a nice laugh. “You would speak to the gods? Do you think they would listen? I betrayed them. Do you think they would be merciful to me? I will not beg for forgiveness.”

  Lydia moved towards Kendra, sword help at her side. “Can’t you see it is over, sister? Give yourself up and your life may be spared.”

  Kendra shook her head. “You are wrong, sister, it is not over. It has only just begun. You think you have won today. This ... this defeat is nothing. I have lost the horn, but with the Brisingamen and the dweorgar’s blood I have opened the Bifrost once more. Everywhere - do you understand me - EVERYWHERE! On all the Nine Worlds, Loki, my master, has followers. The gods thought they had defeated us by closing the Bifrost - but no longer.“

  “What have you done, Kendra? Do you realise what might happen if the doors between the worlds are open? See what carnage a few svartálfar brought here today. They and a few other beings are the only ones who can travel between the worlds, but if the walls are down and all creatures everywhere can travel as they wish, we could be plunged into chaos again.”

  Kendra stepped back towards the doorway and smiled. “My master likes chaos,” she said. Then the smile vanished as a fist seized hold of the necklace in her hand. Gurthrunn had revived and though he looked weak and very pale and his arm was still bleeding, he had a strong grip on the Brisingamen.

  “Your master will not have this!” he hissed at her.

  Gasping in shock, Kendra raised her sword ready to stab the dwarf. Lydia leapt forward and blocked the thrust with her blade, but her own sword was knocked out of her hand. The sorceress swung again and in desperation Anna flung her seax. The knife spun over and over and crashed into Kendra’s sword, sending it hurtling against the side of the barrow. Now it was the sorceress who was defenceless. She snarled at Anna; took a step towards her, lightning crackling around her right hand. Her left hand still held tightly to the Brisingamen and she and Gurthrunn fought for its possession.

  Lydia had retrieved her sword and advanced once more on her sister. Seeing her approach, Kendra let out a great cry of frustration. Releasing the necklace, she jumped through the doorway and ... was gone.