Valkyrie Hunter
Chapter 25

We returned to the corridor, it seemed less busy than it had been earlier. I still couldn’t see Marcella she must have done what she was here for and gone to wherever she was quartered. The Elder’s didn’t encourage anyone to stay once you’d seen them.

“Wait here,” Thirika said and surged away before I could say anything.

I saw a number of black robed acolytes hurrying between those petitioners that were left. I paid them no heed and stepped over to the mural eager to find anything on the Landottir. A vain hope but I had to know if they had chronicled it. I vaguely sensed someone behind me. As I turned to see who it was I was knocked to the floor face first. Someone lay across my back making hard for me to breathe let alone move.

“Stay still,” A familiar voice commanded. “Clear?” The voice asked someone else.

“Clear ma’am,” A different voice answered.

I felt the weight lifted off me and I was help to my feet out of breath. I looked around to see one of Freyagrunn’s guards wiping the blade of her long sword on the robes of a dead acolyte. Her other guard faced away her hands on her coil assault gun. The acolyte’s hand still gripped the knife she was holding. The person that helped me up was Freyagrunn. Before I could ask her what was going on another voice asked that question.

“What is going on here!” an armoured Valkyrie demanded. Her fingers on the coil assault gun strapped to her chest.

Several other armoured Valkyrie stood behind her all looked ready to shoot Freyagrunn and her guards. And behind them we had drawn a crowd of black robed acolytes and petitioners.

“One of your attendants tried to kill a guest,” Freyagrunn said. Anger hovered on the edge of her words.

“Impossible!” the lead armoured Valkyrie snarled at Freyagrunn.

“Can’t you see she still has her blade in her hand?” Freyagrunn pointed dramatically at the body, blood pooling around it.

I thought she was overplaying it but I was in a state of shock. Only Freyagrunn’s firm but gentle grip on my arm was keeping me up. I was shaking inside at the close call I’d nearly had.

“Mother!” the armoured Valkyrie uttered.

Then as she leaned down to touch the knife Freyagrunn spoke. “Don’t touch that it’s probably poisoned. I lost a dear sister to a blade like this.”

Visions of my desperate fight at the Gala can back to haunt me. My training vest had saved me but I doubted Thirika’s coat had the same properties.

Freyagrunn must have seen me visibly shaking and guided me gently to a chair and sat me down. My hand was clenching and unclenching I held it with my other hand. Fear racing through my frame making me tremble in shock. Twice in the same day someone had tried to kill me.

“You’ll be ok,” she reassured me. She turned and regarded the armoured Valkyrie leader. “I want all the attendants confined to their rooms until this is sorted out!”

“You can’t order me around!” the armoured Valkyrie snarled.

I could see bloodshed in the future if this wasn’t resolved. I worried about the collateral damage there were too many unarmed civilians milling around in the background.

“I can and I am,” Freyagrunn replied. “So do it!”

An Elder pushed her way through the crowd surrounding us. She was typically Valkyrie, tall in a black robe her grey hair braided and hung down her shoulder almost to her feet. She came to a stop between Freyagrunn’s guards and the armoured Valkyrie. Her eyes the bluest I’d seen in any Valkyrie regarded the scene, her lined face giving nothing away.

“I’d ask what’s going on,” she uttered in clear bell like tones. “But I can see what has.” She bent down over the body her hand reaching towards the knife.

“Don’t touch that!” I cried as Freyagrunn said the same.

The Elder straightened up. “I wasn’t going to.” She pointed to the armoured Valkyrie with the most to say. The one I thought was the leader. “Send the attendants to their quarters.” Her finger swung to point at another of the armoured Valkyrie. “Clear these people back I want a nice wide cordon around this area. And send me a medtech.”

“Aye Moi,” the designated Valkyrie said with a Confed salute.

She hadn’t finished she snapped her fingers at a third armoured Valkyrie. “Get me a coffee with a drop of the good stuff in it.” She added a proviso. “Note only a drop no more no less.”

The third armoured Valkyrie saluted and moved off as the others cleared the area around us. I watched the scene trying to calm myself down. I sat there with Freyagrunn’s guards flanking me like I was the VIP and not Freyagrunn. I wasn’t sure what a Bond Sister was but it appeared to be important to the Valkyrie. The Elder leaned over the body again not touching.

“Interesting,” she muttered. She suddenly looked up. “Oh good you are here.”

I looked in the direction the Elder was looking. Three Valkyrie in bright orange suits pushed through the onlookers each carried a pack with a red blood drop on it. As they stopped in front of the Elder the armoured Valkyrie she’d sent for coffee returned. The armoured Valkyrie strode past the three orange-suited Valkyrie and tried to hand the coffee to the Elder.

“No, not for me.” The Elder pointed at me. “Gwen Hunter needs it more that I do.”

I looked at the Elder surprised by her action. I noted she called me Hunter and not Martin. Thirika had told me I’d been accepted as a Martin as much as I didn’t like it. The armoured Valkyrie promptly handed me the cup and strode off to stand with the rest of her team. I glanced at Freyagrunn she nodded that it was ok to drink. I sipped my coffee tasting the alcohol in it. It burned down my throat and left a warm comforting feeling in my belly. I felt the tension ease off calming my frayed nerves. Idly I watched the scene in front of me play out. One of the orange-suited Valkyrie seemed to be scanning the body.

“Is this why you called us Moi?” The lead orange suit asked. “I’m afraid this one’s beyond help.”

“Have you scanned the knife?” The Elder asked her.

“Yes Moi, I found traces of a human specific toxin on the blade.”

I swallowed hard visions of my fight at the Gala came back to haunt me. Freyagrunn had been right to caution everyone one about not touching the knife. I went cold inside despite the comparative warmth of the alcohol in my stomach.

“Black Stripes,” I hissed under my breath.

I must have said it loud enough for Freyagrunn to hear it. “Oh yes them. Good job stopping them on Davenport,” Freyagrunn praised me.

Elder glanced over to us putting her finger to lips. “Hush the two of you.” She turned back to the orange suited Valkyrie. Some type of medtech I assumed. “What else can you tell me?”

“Not any more. We’ll have to get her back to the lab to do a more in depth scan.”

“Go ahead we’ll deal with things here.” The Elder gave Freyagrunn a long considering gaze. “You may have been justified in doing what you did. But you still spilt blood in the Hall?”

“I’d spill a lot more if it keeps those under our protection safe!” Freyagrunn declared defiantly.

It wasn’t too hard to guess she was on about me. I hadn’t asked for it nor I did want her to get hurt defending me.

“Be as it may,” the Elder said waving me to silence. “You will have to be punished.”

“So be it!” Freyagrunn responded.

I didn’t want Freyagrunn punished she had saved my life. I shot to my feet and shouted. “No!” I must have got up too quick the corridor blurred for a moment.

“Gwen Hunter?” the Elder said no hint of anger in her voice. “Stay out of this!”

“You can’t do that!” I continued my rant. “She saved my life!” My legs wobbled I guess there was something in the coffee and like a fool I’d drunk it.

“Rules, are rules,” The Elder said to me. “They were put in to avoid blood being spilled on these floors because of feuds between Clans.”

“This was no blood filled feud!” I argued. “Your rules didn’t stop her from stabbing me in the back. I won’t let you do this!” I pointed dramatically to the body on the floor in the same way as Freyagrunn had done.

“It must be done there are no exceptions,” the Elder said sadly.

I wasn’t about to let Freyagrunn be punished because she didn’t follow a set of rules. “Then make one!” I threatened not the smartest move on my part but I had to do something. “Otherwise I’ll make you regret it.” It was stupid to do so. I wasn’t a Valkyrie. I had no right to challenge her but Freyagrunn’s life was at stake.

“Is that a threat?” The Elder asked me.

No one stepped in either side. It was just me and the Elder. “No it’s a damn consequence. You hear me!” I took a step and my knees gave way from under me. I only just saved myself from smashing my face on the floor. “Damn it you poisoned me you bitch!” I struggled to my feet giving the Elder my glare and anger surged within me I couldn’t help myself. “In the Empire we award heroes we don’t slaughter them. Barbarian!”

The Elder half-smiled. “Was that you best insult Gwen Hunter?”

I don’t know how but I lost my temper. I surged at her my hands outstretched. Suddenly it went black.

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