Sigmund - The Infernal Uprising

Chapter Ten - Nightmares of the Past

  Completely alone, Sigmund pressed Alistair’s axe into the icy ground beneath him to serve as a gravestone for his friend. Sigmund had buried Alistair here, “It’s not much,” he thought to himself, “but it’s the least I could do for you.”  Wiping his eyes of the tears invoked by his friend’s passing Sigmund looked around, hoping to see signs of life nearby but to no avail.

  All that had been left after the battle was a scar on the landscape, a red carpet of blood surrounding the frozen bodies of dead soldiers. Revenge has claimed its prize, though much blood had been spilt and the lives of many had been lost some light was shed on the situation.

  “The Einherjar. My home, my life. It is all but a scam, a corrupt system!” Angered, Sigmund looked to the Valkyrie Stronghold, “Freya mentioned that the Einherjar act in malevolent ways. I must seek answers from her.” He muttered to himself before looking at Alistair’s grave once more, “I’ll make you proud by putting an end to this. I promise.”

  Seeing the small burial mound he created for his friend, Sigmund began to think back, recollecting his past memories.

38 years ago

  Rushing around, a woman could be seen checking the inside of an oven for what it looked seemed to be a sponge cake. The cake was almost ready as it began to rise and at that moment the woman briskly lost her balance as a man attempted to walk past, “Could you please be more careful?” She said under her breath attempting to remain calm before looking at the cake once more.

  The man pulled open the wooden cupboard doors from within the kitchen to locate a set of plates, “I’m sorry dear, I didn’t mean to. Is the cake ready?”

“Just about, okay it’s done!” She replied before opening the oven door to obtain the freshly made dessert, “Quickly now, he’ll wake up soon!” She said before they both made their way through an archway and up a single flight of stairs. The floor they arrived on began with a wall; they turned to the right to see the rest of the room which looked to be a small cot accompanied with a bedside cabinet.

  From within the crib situated a small child not three years of age. The two adults looked at each other with a smile before looking back, “Hey little guy, it’s time to wake up. We baked something special for you.” The woman whispered gently.

The man laughed heartily, “He’s already awake, you can tell from the smile he’s trying to hide. Do you know what day it is today son?” he joked before posing a question to the child.

  Yawning intently the child sat up and rubbed his eyes, smiling at the two before him, “Birthday!” He shouted with an innocent laugh that only a child could have. Feeling excited he began to jump up and down on the spot without lifting off the ground.

“That’s right it’s your birthday today. You’re three years old so we baked you a cake. Here let me slice some for you.” The man said before putting a piece of cake onto a plate for the child, “It’s just for you, aren’t you lucky?”

  The woman looked at the man, “We shouldn’t give him too much Arthur I don’t want our child to get fat.”

Laughing the man replied, “Don’t worry little Sigmund knows exactly what he’s doing. He’s like his old man in a sense.” Giving the woman a kiss the man stood up, “There are some things I need to take care of about you know what, so look after little Sigmund for a while until I return okay?”

  Staring at Arthur oddly she turned to face Sigmund before looking back once more, “Okay. Send my regards to my brother for me. I just hope this is the right thing.” She said before looking to Sigmund once more.