Valhalla | H.S Short Story

The Fourth Part

"Higher."

"Faster."

"Again."

His sharp commands brushed through the silence of the forest, interrupted by her loud gasps as she struggled for breath.

"I cannot go on any further."

"You can, Freyja, and you will."

"My arms hurt."

She dropped the axe to the ground, watching as the sharp edge of it lodged itself into the dampened earth.

"The aches mean you are doing well."

His words of encouragement did not go unappreciated, but she was exhausted. He had never trained her this hard before. It had always been basic defense and aim. She excelled with a bow and arrow, but he had insisted on more direct combat with an axe.

He had one made for her. With a slimmer handle and lighter head that made for easier wielding. But it was a difficult task nonetheless, mostly because he hardly allowed time for breaks.

"You are leaving your middle vulnerable to attack." He said, circling around her. "If you are not quick with your hit, you will be taken down."

She gulped, but he continued, stalking her.

"I will be there to protect you with my life. Always. But in the off chance we become separated, you need to be able to defend yourself."

He was leaving to raid tomorrow. Without her. They would return within the coming weeks, and then endeavour on another raid further west. That one she would be joining him on.

He wanted her primed and ready for battle. He could not suede her decision to join the raiding party, so it was his duty as her husband to prepare her for the chaos to come.

"What do you suggest I do?"

His lip quirked up, and he brushed a few loose strands of hair off his sweaty forehead. "You are small and quick so use that to your advantage. Dodge attacks. You know very well how to predict movements, and dodge them before they come. As for your positioning, hold your arms here." He brought her arms up, poising them as if she were holding her weapon. "Only go for the strike if you know you can do so with speed." He tapped her tummy, drawing attention to her exposed middle again. "I want to see this improved by the time I return, or there will be consequences."

"What is it like?" She lowered her arms, reaching for the waterskin attached to his scabbard.

"Battle?"

She nodded, taking a few hearty gulps of fresh water.

"It is... liberating. Messy. There is a rush to kill before you are killed. There is a lot of blood. Guts. Cries. Yells. The victory is euphoric, but the aftermath is a harsh reality. You have taken lives, those who had families and loved ones. Had stories. It gets easier over time, but you never forget your first kill. The way you can see the life leave their eyes."

She remembered Knut. How he had vanished into oblivion before her. The depth in his eyes turned into shallow pools of nothing. To Valhalla. Or Hel. She did not know but prayed she did not meet him in the afterlife.

"Not to worry, my Valkyrie. You made your first kill the moment I first saw you naked."

She jabbed him in the stomach and he grunted, laughing at her displeased expression. "Is that an insult, husband? Need I remind you that I wield an axe? I have great aim and I am sure you do not want to lose a hand."

He laughed harder, gripping her face in his hands, breathless. "My love. My life. I did not mean to offend you. The first time I saw you naked, my breath was cut short and my cock was hard. There is nothing insulting about that."