Mark of Odin: The Awakening

Chapter 5: Brothers forever

The blackness. Once again he was plunged into shadow. Nothing lay ahead but the hard, marble steps. He had no other choice. All he could do was slowly climb upwards towards the faint white light visible above. Gradually working his way up the stairs, he finally reached the top. The corridor stretched out in front of him; once more, the heavy metal door sat at the far end. The eerie source of light gleamed around the door from the other side. He hesitantly approached it and briefly rested his hands on the handle. Then, pulling it firmly towards him, he wrenched the door open and squeezed through the opening. He found himself back in the vast, brightly lit cavern. Its walls soared up high above his head, fading into the remote shadows beyond, the ceiling a mere suggestion in the distance. A wide, snowy expanse stretched out before him. His bare feet recoiled at the icy touch of the ground. His eyes scanned the cavern. Where could the snow have possibly come from? He weighed up his options and decided to press on. After all, what choice did he really have? It was either that or turn back and return to the sinister darkness.

He trudged slowly forwards, ever more lost in the white vastness. With every step, the freezing snow worked its icy fingers deeper into his core. His whole body convulsed with violent shivers and his eyes wildly searched for anything that could provide heat, life. He stared into the distance, at the pale horizon of that peculiar underground world. He wouldn't be able to keep going much longer before hypothermia set in. Just then, he noticed something hard beneath his feet. Looking down, he saw that he was standing on ice. Without realising, he had walked straight onto the middle of a frozen lake. It was disconcerting; the lake stretched out for miles around him. It would have been impossible for him to have crossed so far without noticing.

He stumbled onwards. A couple of steps later, a translucent splinter pierced the sole of his right foot. Blood began to gush out from the wound, staining the ice beneath him. He clutched his foot with his hand and tugged at the splinter, cursing. When he pulled it free, crimson red spattered across the frozen ground. Why was there so much blood, he wondered in alarm. All of a sudden, the surface of the lake began to tremble. He quickly looked at the ground. Horrified, he saw that the ice was turning red. Blood red. A red circle was rapidly spreading outwards and he was at its centre. What was happening? The circle of blood expanded outwards until it must have stretched out three hundred feet across. Then it stopped. Just as fast, it now started to recede. The surface of the lake shook again, this time more violently. Aghast, he stared at the ice, unable to move, incapable of fleeing. The bloody circle dwindled until it reached his feet. Then, without warning, blood-stained stalagmites smashed upwards through the ice next to him and the surface began to crack. The water beneath him had vanished. In its place, he was now standing at the edge of a black pit, a torturous chasm that plunged down into the earth. He was hurled down into the void and choked back a scream as the white sky disappeared above him.

Slowly, he came round. He was lying face down on a shore. His legs were drenched with water. How had he got there? It was beyond all comprehension. Dragging himself to his feet, he realised his body ached all over, as if he had been beaten. He stared at his now familiar surroundings. There it was. The giant tree, its aura and presence eclipsing everything in its vicinity. There was nothing else to be seen. Wearily, he set off along the shore of the lake, trying to memorise every feature of the tree, each branch, every detail of its trunk. It must be hundreds of feet high. Perhaps even miles. It was impossible to guess its height or to judge any distances there at all. Nothing was as it seemed in that ominous place.

Suddenly, there was a sharp gust of wind. He spun around to see where it had come from. There was nothing behind him. He was about to keep going when he heard it. At first, it was just a low rumble. Then it began to grow louder. A rhythmic pounding sound, like a huge animal galloping towards him. His whole body tensed; again, he turned to look. Still nothing. The noise grew louder and louder until it was impossible to ignore. It was practically on top of him. Where could he hide? Then, barely sixty feet away from where he was standing, the water at the shore rippled as if shocked into movement by an explosion. The cavern instantly fell silent, a sudden quiet that was even more unnerving. Squinting hard, he still couldn't make out what could have caused the sound. Taking several hesitant steps towards the water, he was suddenly offered a fleeting glimpse of it. An immense horse with eight legs, silver from nose to tail, drinking water from the lake. The vision barely lasted a second, long enough to paralyse him with fear.