The skies above Seville
22:30 GMT+1
Luis slowly forced his eyes open. His eyelids were as heavy as lead. He had been jolted awake by a forceful explosion that had violently rocked the spacecraft. Where was he? Slowly glancing around, he took in his surroundings. He appeared to be in some sort of passenger compartment with odd-looking seats running along the walls. Two armoured figures were sitting opposite him. They were whispering to one another and each grasped a long weapon. Luis sensed someone standing next to him. Raising his eyes, he realised it was the figure that had punched him in the stomach. He desperately wanted to stand up, but before he could move the figure gripped his arm.
“Vas garer, vas garer,” it said in soothing tones.
“I don’t understand. Who are you? Where are you taking me?” He looked around, disoriented.
Now he had a better view. The figure was covered from head to toe in crimson armour ribbed with dark lines that changed to gold where they ran across the helmet. The helmet was decorated with a symbol where he assumed the figure’s forehead must be; the symbol looked strangely familiar but he didn’t know why.
“Let me go! I’ve got to get back to my friends!” Luis burst out, struggling to stand up again.
“Laar menar Zoran!” the figure ordered, grasping his arm tighter.
One of the figures opposite him stood up and walked over to the wall in front of him. It operated something that Luis couldn’t quite see. A small compartment in the wall slid open and he watched as the figure took out a type of small box. It approached the one holding him down, tapped it on the shoulder and said something incomprehensible. The first figure loosened its grip and accepted the object that was being offered to it by its companion. It opened the box and took out a small tube with a pointed end. Luis stared at it; the tube was made from a blueish metal and was covered in a series of unrecognisable symbols. The figure stared at Luis.
“Vas garer Zoran. Caes lot ferar,” it said in a much gentler tone.
“I still don’t understand. Let me go,” Luis looked at her, pleading, feeling more and more exhausted.
Quick as a flash, the figure jabbed the tube into Luis’s right temple. It pressed down hard on the far end, injecting something into his body. Luis flailed around like a trapped animal. The two figures pinned him down; he couldn’t move, let alone stand up.
“What have you done to me⁈” He opened his eyes angrily.
“Vas garer Zoran, vas garer Zoran,” the figure repeated again and again.
“Let me go!” Luis kept shouting as a stabbing pain pulsed through his head.
“Vas garer Chosen One, calm down, Chosen One,” the figure said in a perfectly comprehensible voice that was now clearly female.
Luis froze in disbelief. Stunned, he stared at the being that had just addressed him in his own language. The pressure on his arms lessened.
“What the…?” he stammered.
“Do not be afraid. We will not hurt you, Chosen One,” his captor stroked his arm, as if trying to reassure him.
“How can I understand you now?” His head felt like it was going to explode.
“Because of the injection. We put nanobots in your system. They work as neuronal translators in your brain. They let you understand and speak our language. As we understand yours,” even though he understood her words, he didn't understand what was happening.
“Who are you?” Luis managed to ask.
“It would be better if you saw us.”
Then the figure raised her hand to the right side of her helmet. It suddenly opened and slid backwards, compressing into itself. Luis couldn’t believe his eyes. In front of him was the face of a girl. The most beautiful girl he had ever seen. She shook out her long mane of wavy, golden hair and stared at him with eyes as blue as sapphires. Her strong, firm gaze was utterly irresistible. It was impossible to say how old she was. She looked young but had an air of maturity, of experience earned over passing decades. Luis was speechless. Then the other two figures copied the first and slid back their helmets. Unsurprisingly, they were also two girls, identical twins. They were also extremely attractive, although perhaps not quite as beautiful as the first. Their eyes were blue and they had matching silver hair. Not grey, but brilliant and shining. He had never seen hair like it.
“You’re human… I thought you weren’t from Earth,” Luis looked at them with fascination, for a moment he forgot the pain.
“I am Freya. They are Rista and Mista. We are Valkyries and have come to protect you,” she said, pointing at the others.
They waved at him and smiled. He couldn’t have said which was Rista and which was Mista. Where have these women come from, Luis wondered. Were they part of some secret organisation? Valkyries? Was that a joke? He no longer knew what to think.
“What do you mean, Valkyries? I’m Luis. Why did you call me the Chosen One?” he asked, completely out of his depth.
“These questions deserve to be answered but there is not enough time now. You shall have to wait,” Freya stared at him sadly.
“Wait for what?”
“Until we reach Valhalla and the battle ends.”
“Valhalla?” Luis said in disbelief. The names from the Nordic legends his grandfather had read him when he was a child were suddenly springing to life.
“Look. We have almost arrived,” Freya squeezed his arm for a moment.
Then she pressed a button on the wall and a section transformed into a window, revealing the world outside. Only then did Luis appreciate that they had been ascending at top speed and had now reached a great altitude. A gigantic hulk caught his eye; they were approaching an immense spaceship that was deep in combat. He watched as it fired plasma bolts down at its enemy and was attacked by blasts from a similar weapon in return. The spaceship was so vast it could easily have housed a small city. It was rectangular and extremely long, with two great wings at the end and a type of wide, upright tail that reminded him of a scorpion. The wings and tail all finished in enormous structures that looked like massive cannons. The front reminded him of the keels of two ancient ships that had been fused together, both old-fashioned and hi-tech at the same time. The two separate pieces could only be distinguished apart at the very front. A huge vertical dome rose up where they joined at the centre like a hill from a plain. It appeared to be made from a different material to the main part of the spaceship. He had certainly never seen anything like it before, not even in films or videogames. At first glance he could easily tell that the workmanship was spectacular, it was practically a work of art. Gazing at it, strange new epic sensations stirred in his chest. Such a remarkable sight must surely inspire hope in their allies and strike fear in the heart of their enemies, he thought. Luis attempted to take it all in but it was impossible, he was too drained. He sat down again hard, breathing deeply.
“Don’t worry. We shall heal your wounds with greater care on arrival,” Freya gently stroked his head.
“You’re not from our planet, are you?” Luis looked at her, beginning to realize that it was all true, much to his regret.
“Relax. Soon all you wish to know shall be revealed,” Freya felt sincerely sorry for him.
“We are going to dock now. The captain is waiting for us in the main hangar. She wishes to see the key immediately,” a female voice echoed around the room.
“Very well, Luis. Have no fear. You shall have time to rest soon,” Freya rubbed his sore shoulder, as if trying to comfort him.
Luis was so utterly exhausted that he didn’t even bother to ask who it was that had spoken. Nor who the captain was, or the reason he or she wanted to see him. He watched as they approached the huge spaceship and gained access between the two vast keels he had seen earlier. A massive airlock door opened beneath the great dome and their spacecraft headed towards the opening. It was a highly risky manoeuvre, after all, the spaceship they were trying to enter was moving too. Nonetheless, whoever was at the controls faultlessly guided them in. The pilot was clearly an expert. The force field deactivated just as their spacecraft slipped inside. As soon as they had entered, it reactivated and the heavy airlock door closed.
They found themselves inside a huge hangar with gigantic marble-coloured walls. Unrecognisable vehicles were stationed around the space and numerous people were moving around. The pilot landed their spacecraft in a docking bay. Freya and the twins stood up and asked Luis to follow them. It didn’t occur to him to refuse. Despite the moment of lucidity he had experienced a few moments ago, he was now in a total daze, as if his mind were lost in a dark mist. If Freya hadn’t helped him along, he wouldn’t have been able to walk. They led him along a corridor until they reached an airlock that led outside the spacecraft. Another girl was waiting for them; she introduced herself as Sifrida. As it turned out, this fourth girl had been piloting the spaceship. Her hair was jet-black and she had a keen gaze. As soon as they stepped outside, it became obvious that the battle outside was worsening. The mothership was constantly shuddering from the incessant shots and blasts.
A group of people had gathered outside their spacecraft, including several men dressed in heavy combat armour. Some of the women in the group were wearing similar clothes to Mista, Rista and Sifrida. The welcome committee all stood a few steps behind an older woman. She was also wearing body armour but hers was decorated with a greater number of marks and symbols than the others he had seen so far. The woman was the very image of seniority and strength. Beyond, Luis noticed a line of small spacecraft that looked like futuristic fighter jets. Numerous people were buzzing around them. Freya walked him forwards until they came to a stop right in front of the older woman. She scrutinized him closely through sharp, intelligent eyes, weighing him up. He must have made a sorry sight. What remained of his shredded clothes was stained with blood and vomit. At least his wounds had stopped bleeding. Had the Valkyries tended to them while he was unconscious?
“Freya, are you certain that this is the key?” The woman's voice was imperious and firm, conveying great authority.
“I saw a Hekkar mind ripper scan him with the Great Father’s tracer. It was positive. The tracer unmistakably chose him,” Freya replied without hesitation.
“I find it hard to believe. Did you recover the tracer?” She kept scrutinizing Luis.
“Yes, Captain.”
“Scan him again. If we survive, there will be time enough to discover how they obtained it…” the older woman muttered to herself.
Freya stood in front of Luis and detached a device from her belt. It was the same machine used by the evil creature that had tortured him. Memories came flooding back into Luis’s mind: Eva’s death and the agonising torment of that great eye… His legs doubled underneath him and he would have fallen if Mista and Rista hadn’t caught him in time. Surely this couldn’t be happening?
“He is badly injured, Captain. Alexandra must heal him properly. Otherwise I do not believe he will last long,” Freya looked at him feeling pity.
“Scan him now. There is no time to tend to injuries. Our time has nearly run out. Baldur has just informed us that we have lost four Falkrs. I will not risk our remaining support until the Valhalla is operating at full capacity,” her face did not move in the slightest despite Luis's condition.
As if to underscore her words, several blasts struck the Valhalla at that very moment. The ground lurched beneath their feet. A girl standing next to the captain reported that several spiders were focusing their firepower on the spaceship at once. Freya resigned herself and switched on the scanner. As before, the device beamed a laser onto Luis’s body and scanned him up and down. Then Freya turned him around to scan his back.
“By the Great Father!” She opened her eyes in surprise.
The device emitted a beeping sound and then they all heard it say:
“Genetic sequence analysed. Activation mark confirmed.”
Freya showed everyone the back of Luis’s neck where he still had a scar from the skydiving accident. Luis didn’t understand the significance but was too weak to protest. He felt like an automaton. Now their expressions changed. They stared at him in surprise and disbelief.
“I expect you must be wondering who we are and why you are here,” the older woman said, fixing him with her piercing gaze.
“Well, yes…” It was the only thing he could articulate, he felt a lot of pressure.
“My name is Brunilda. I’m the captain of this spaceship, the Valhalla. The finest creation of the Great Father. We are the Order of the Valkyries, the protectors of his legacy. Regrettably, there is no time to lose. We are deep in battle. All you need to know is that the Great Father, in his infinite wisdom, decided that you should be the key that would fully activate this spaceship.”
“The key? How can I be a key? There must be some mistake,” putting each word together cost him a titanic effort while he continued to disbelieve that what he heard was true.
“I am not the one to decide what is and is not true. That is the place of the Great Father, He who sees beyond the stars and time. Eskandal, do you understand how to use him yet?” Brunilda ignored Luis to focus her attention on the woman to her right.
Eskandal was dressed differently to the others. Instead of armour, she was wearing more workmanlike clothes that allowed her to carry numerous different tools. She had short, chestnut hair and a type of visor over her left eye that was connected to a strange device attached to the left side of her head.
“Not exactly. But I have an inkling. I trust that the spaceship will detect the key when he passes through the decontamination chamber. The chamber has several biometric sensors and I still do not know the purpose of one of them. With luck, the spaceship will give us a sign,” Eskandal looked at Luis with keen interest.
“Then we should go. Everyone else, take up your positions. Once the spaceship is activated, we will be granted access to all its blocked systems and restricted zones. The time frame will be minimal. We must learn how to control the Valhalla’s new functions immediately if we are to destroy the Hekkar battleship,” at Brunilda's voice everyone mobilized.
Freya guided Luis to a nearby door, closely followed by Brunilda and Eskandal. It slid open as they approached it. A narrow corridor lay on the other side and an observation corridor ran parallel to it. There were circular platforms on the floor of the first space, each one about three feet away from the next. Freya steered Luis forwards and stood him on top of one of them. Rista and Mista removed his clothes and took them away. Luis stared at Freya, scared but unable to resist or object.
“Don’t worry. All will be well,” she also hated that situation.
Freya moved away to join Brunilda and Eskandal in the observation corridor. Luis was left alone and entirely naked.
“Initiating decontamination process.”
The words boomed out in a man’s deep voice all around him, as if the spaceship itself were speaking. Suddenly, a crystalline substance shot up from the platform and he was enclosed inside it. Then he was sprayed with jets of hot water and other, unknown liquids. Finally, a burst of warm air dried him in a matter of seconds.
“Decontamination complete. Initiating analysis of subject.”
A metal ring now emerged from the floor, encircling him. It rose upwards, beaming several lasers at him at once that scanned his body. It reached the ceiling and then began to descend, repeating its journey. However, this time it paused at the back of his neck. An ear-splitting alarm sounded across the spaceship.
“Master key recognised. Initiate total activation protocol. Central core unlocked. Take subject to central core.”
The ring continued downwards and disappeared into the ground, followed by the crystalline film that had surrounded the platform. Luis dropped to his knees, his battered body aching all over. Although the decontamination process had cleaned away the dried blood caked on his skin, he still had several wounds that required urgent attention. Freya helped him to his feet. She was unfazed by his nudity but Luis felt exposed and humiliated. She could intuitively tell he was uncomfortable and swiftly went to fetch something from another room, returning with a tunic made from a finely-woven fabric. Draping it over him, she guided him to the other end of the corridor and through the exit, which led to another, larger corridor. Brunilda and Eskandal were waiting for them about thirty feet away, next to a type of round access point.
“The multidirectional lift will take us to the central core faster,” Eskandal was explaining to Brunilda as they drew close.
“Captain, with all due respect, the boy will die if he does not receive immediate attention. Let Alexandra treat his most serious injuries,” Freya was becoming increasingly concerned about his condition.
“Freya, there is no time. If the boy must die, it shall be the will of the Great Father. But first he must fulfil his destiny.” Brunilda was unfazed.
“I find it hard to believe the Great Father would want the bearer of his mark—” Freya began, when a tremendous jolt interrupted her.
The Valkyries and Luis were all hurled through the air, smashing into the corridor walls. Luis instinctively protected his head, but another hard blow was too much for him. Coughing up blood, he was beginning to lose his grip on reality. Suddenly, he was plunged back into darkness. His surroundings vanished; he was oblivious to the events on board the Valhalla.
Next to him, Brunilda and Eskandal dusted themselves down while Freya pulled Luis up, supporting his weight across her shoulders. She looked at him, deeply concerned. The boy was no longer responding at all, it was as though he were completely absent.
“Bridge, damage report,” Brunilda barked over her transmitter.
“The accursed things dared to use their ion cannons against us, even though we are not in space. I barely managed to evade a double direct impact. If our situation does not improve, we are certain to fall,” they heard Fruor reply, the Valkyrie navigator on the Valhalla.
“Do you see, Freya? Do not think that I feel no pity or compassion for this young man. But if we cannot use the spaceship to its full potential, every last one of us is doomed. Him, us and every living being on that planet,” Brunilda gave her a most dismal look.
“Let us hope that he is strong.” She gave in, knowing she was right.
“There is no time to lose. The shield will not hold forever,” Eskandal said as she scanned through a data report on the spaceship. It was being projected as a hologram in front of her by the device attached to her head.
They activated the control panel on the circular access point. The doors opened and they entered a spherical transporter. Eskandal entered the destination in the holographic panel and they instantly shot off at high speed across the spaceship.
After a few brief moments that felt as though they had lasted an eternity, the transporter stopped and the doors opened. Freya tugged Luis behind her; he meekly followed like a zombie. His mind was still lost in darkness, unaware of the sights and sounds around him. They were now in a large hall. On the far side lay one of the locked doors the Valkyries had never been able to access. The small group walked over to it, but it gave no sign of opening.
“Place subject with active mark next to door for verification process.”
Following the spaceship’s orders, they positioned Luis in front of the door. Another ring rose up from the floor and scanned his body.
“Verification complete. Door unlocked. The subject may access the central core.”
The heavy shielded door slid to one side, revealing a dark corridor that ended in a long staircase. Amid the dark mists clouding his mind, Luis saw the stairs and a light that could be made out at the very top. It was the first sign of light he had been able to discern since falling into darkness. He distantly remembered being in this very situation before, but it was impossible to say how or when. Nevertheless, he put one foot in front of the other and shakily stumbled towards the stairs.
Brunilda, Eskandal and Freya watched as Luis moved forwards as if in a trance. They followed him at a prudent distance, not wanting to hinder his progress. They reached the stairs and looked on as Luis climbed slowly upwards, step by step.
He was desperate to escape from the darkness, yearning to be free of it. An unknown force was driving him on, insisting he reach the light at the top. It was the only way. Finally, he reached the top of the stairs. A narrow corridor stretched out in front of him with an ominous metal door at the far end. The three Valkyries followed behind, intrigued. Cautiously approaching the door, Luis gently rested his hand on it.
“Opening central core.”
The door gently swung open, as if it were as light as a feather instead of weighing several tonnes. A semi-spherical hall lay on the other side and the source of light sat at the centre of the space. The light was emitted by a gleaming blue throne. There was nothing else there. Luis knew that he had no other choice but to take his seat on the throne. He was not returning to that darkness.
“Place the subject in the core seat.”
Luis heard nothing, but Brunilda, Freya and Eskandal reacted to the words. Eskandal was checking the screens on her holographic projector. The further they advanced, the more data she could access from this part of the spaceship. Information that had been entirely unknown to her up until now. This area, the core, appeared to be some type of nerve centre, the brain controlling the spaceship. It was connected to every system and zone on the Valhalla.
Fascinated, they watched as the boy slowly approached the metallic blue throne. He gently stroked it and then turned to sit down. Luis noted that the blue light had been transferred to his fingers. There was a familiar tingling sensation. No matter. He wanted the light to stay with him forever so that he never need return to the terrible darkness. That one burning desire drove him on to take his seat on the throne. But the moment he did so, blackness once again overwhelmed him.
It happened so fast that there was no time to react. As soon as Luis sat down, metal bars sprang out of the throne, trapping his arms and legs. A glass dome rose out of the floor, entirely covering him. Then a metal appendage slid out of the back of the chair and jabbed itself into the nape of Luis’s neck, right into the mark of the Great Father. He screamed in agony; his eyes white with terror.
“Initiating activation process. Implanting symbiont.”
“Symbiont? What does that mean?” Brunilda turned to Eskandal.
“I cannot say. But this is truly remarkable,” Eskandal replied, moving her fingers over the holographic projections. “Millions of data are now being released at once.”
“By the Great Father… Look!” Freya pointed out, alarmed.
They watched as the dome filled with a transparent liquid until Luis was completely submerged. The tunic covering his body dissolved.
“He is certain to drown!” Freya looked at Eskandal questioningly.
“Wait… I have the answer. It appears that the subject needs a symbiont to interact with the spaceship’s neuronal interface and complete the full activation. This is part of the process. I do not believe it will kill him,” Eskandal raised her right hand to Freya and Brunilda, calling for calm.
But they were even more unnerved by what happened next. The appendage injected a strange blueish, metallic liquid into Luis’s body.
“Initiating genetic and symbiotic recombining process.”
The metallic liquid spread through Luis’s veins, even the whites of his eyes turned dark blue. He twisted violently in the throne but was held down by the clamps. Suddenly, he stopped completely still, almost lifeless. There was no longer any trace of the metallic liquid in his body. Outwardly, at least.
“Recombining process completed. Initiating full activation of Valhalla.”
The holographic data screens went wild, flashing up an endless series of data while the hall around them was suddenly illuminated.
“Bridge, on stand-by. The spaceship activation process is now complete. Our priority is reinforcing the defensive shield and boosting the weapons systems,” Brunilda ordered over her transmitter. “What is our situation, Eskandal?”
“This is incredible. It will take days to process all this new data. The spaceship is far more than we ever dreamed,” she replied, transfixed by the new information projected in front of her.
“Initiating final activation process. Transferring subject to main hangar.”
Suddenly, the throne rose up from the ground and tipped forwards, just as a gaping hole opened in the floor. The clamps released Luis’s arms and legs and the appendage withdrew from his neck. He plummeted forwards, hurtling through the hole with the liquid. Before anyone could react, he had vanished. The opening immediately closed and the throne returned to its original position, as if nothing had happened.
“Main hangar? Why is it sending the boy there?” Freya looked at her without understanding.
“This is remarkable. What we have been using as a hangar is actually only a loading bay. There are at least two more hangars. The main one is… Ah, yes! I have it. One moment… Gungnir?” Eskandal opened her eyes, smiling in disbelief.
“What does that mean?” Brunilda approached her to get a better look.
“According to the data, the boy is being taken to a combat unit called Gungnir.”
“Gungnir? Like—” Freya could feel her chest swelling.
Brunilda cut her off. “We should go. I must see this place immediately.”
“Understood. We should hurry. To the transporter,” Eskandal said, breaking into a run.
The vehicle carried the Valkyries through several new sections of the spaceship, areas that had only just been unlocked and were entirely unknown to them. Finally, they reached the main hangar, a huge space over three hundred feet high. They stepped out onto a central gangway that hung from the ceiling. It led onto two more gangways that ran towards two vast docking bays. The right bay was empty, but the left bay, on the other hand…
The three Valkyries were completely stunned. What lay before them surpassed their wildest expectations, their most brilliant dreams. They slowly edged closer. Eskandal couldn’t tear her eyes away from the data appearing on her screens.
“This is…” Freya's voice trembled and she felt her eyes grow moist.
“Yes. It is Odin’s Spear. The Great Father’s most powerful weapon,” Brunilda was visibly excited too.
“It is far more than a weapon…” Eskandal murmured, saturated with new data.
They stood before a massive hulk that soared up over a hundred and sixty feet high. It looked like a gigantic suit of armour with arms, legs and an imposing head. Various modules sprang out from the back. They were currently folded up, making it was impossible to see exactly what they were. However, glancing at their shape, Freya couldn’t help thinking that perhaps they opened and unfurled like vast bony wings. A type of cannon appeared to be attached to the right leg. The most striking feature of all was undoubtedly the metallic face with its firmly shut eyes and winged decorations on either side of the head. It reminded her of images she had seen of the Great Father’s helmet when she had visited her temple as a child. Runes were engraved across every inch of its surface.
“Subject installed in Gungnir unit. Initiate launch to complete link.”
They paused in front of the armour and noticed a control panel on one side. Eskandal checked it with her device.
“This is unexpected. I thought that simply inserting the key, the young man I mean, would be sufficient to activate the unit. Look…” Eskandal pointed to one of her screens.
They saw an image of Luis inside the armour, naked and unconscious. He was propped up in a pilot’s seat and attached to it by an appendage that had been inserted into the nape of his neck, similar to the one on the throne.
“Wait a minute. We have to launch the Gungnir to activate it?” Freya gesticulated, in disbelief.
“That is what the data indicate. The systems cannot be initiated for the first time inside the spacecraft. It needs to be outside. And a safe distance away…” Eskandal activated a simulation.
“But the boy is unconscious… And even if he were awake, will he know how to use the Gungnir?” Freya shook her head.
“If the Great Father designed the system this way, he did so for a reason. Eskandal, initiate the launch process,” she had blind faith in his plans.
“But Captain, we could lose the boy and the Gungnir. We cannot release it in the middle of a battle!” Freya felt that she should be the one to sacrifice herself.
“This is precisely what the Great Father wanted. Every great warrior is born from the heat of battle. The young man will have the opportunity to show us that he is truly the Chosen One. Have faith in the Great Father,” Brunilda's eyes shone with fierce determination.
“I hope you are right. Otherwise, all is lost…” Freya resigned herself, praying to the Great Father that they were not mistaken.
“Eskandal, launch it. Now,” Brunilda looked at her, there was no time left.
“Selecting vertical launch magnetic catapult 1. Route set. Activating launch protocol in three, two, one…”
“Gungnir unit launch initiated. Total activation imminent.”
The Gungnir loading bay trembled as the platform beneath the vast armour began to rise upwards. The roof opened and vanished.
“We had better return to the bridge,” Brunilda turned around.
They retraced their steps along the central gangway until they reached the transporter waiting by the entrance.
“We can observe from here. The Gungnir is now being moved to an electromagnetic shuttle that will catapult it outside Valhalla at full speed,” Eskandal activated several holographic images.
Her screens displayed the Gungnir as it was transported to a new platform. The armour was rotated around until it lay flat on its back, facing upwards. Two clamps latched onto its feet.
“Initiating launch of Gungnir unit.”
As they were whisked away to the bridge by the transporter, they suddenly saw the Gungnir ejected upwards. Eskandal’s holographic screen instantly changed and it now displayed the skies outside the Valhalla, above the main deck. They watched as the enormous armour rocketed upwards. But it gave no sign of activity or life.
“This is most peculiar. The name of the other hangar…” Eskandal opened her eyes.
“What is it?” Brunilda looked at her, bewildered.
“It says it is the Valkyrie hangar. We should examine it…” Eskandal interacted non-stop, something had sparked her interest even more.
Eskandal fell silent when she and the others saw that the Gungnir had reached its peak altitude. It hung in the air for a moment before plummeting down to earth.
Luis didn’t know how long he had been tumbling through the blackness. It felt like an eternity. He was oblivious to everything. When he finally managed to open his eyes, the brightness dazzled him. He was inside a vast, brightly-lit cave and was lying face down on the shore of a seemingly endless lake. Struggling to his feet, he looked down at his naked body. His wounds had vanished and there was no longer any trace of his injuries. Perhaps he really had died and would now, at long last, be permitted to rest. But if so, why was he back in this dream again?
He stared at the titanic tree that dominated the entire cavern. It emanated a remarkable sense of knowledge and power that he had somehow never noticed before. There was a splash in the water. Whirling around, he saw it. The enormous silver wolf. Its head was lowered and it was calmly lapping water from the lake. It turned to stare back, but the experience was very different to his previous dreams. Luis didn’t freeze with fear or suffer any pain. Moments later, two shadows passed overhead. Raising his eyes to follow them, Luis spied the two huge crows. They were on his left, staring at him, but remained still. There was no suggestion that they would fly down to tear out his eyes.
Just when it seemed as though the dream was going to be more peaceful this time, there was a great commotion. The elegant, commanding charger appeared out of nowhere. It trotted nearer and nearer until its flaming head was just in front of his face. Then it pushed him towards the water with its nose. Luis stepped backwards, afraid. He stared at the beasts. There was something physically different about them this time too. Each one had a type of metallic plate on its forehead decorated with the same symbol that had been branded into the back of his neck. The symbols gleamed with a brilliant blue light.
“Don’t hurt me,” Luis murmured.
DON’T BE AFRAID.
A deep voice boomed inside his head, echoing all around the cavern. It was different to the one he had heard in the other dreams, the one that ordered him to wake up. And yet it sounded vaguely familiar. Luis looked this way and that, trying to find out the source of the voice.
THE TIME HAS COME.
“Who are you? What do you want from me?” Luis shouted in exasperation, his words vanishing into thin air.
The four beasts gazed at him in amusement. The horse stepped forwards again and gave him another gentle shove with its nose. Then it rejoined the other mythical beasts. Luis turned back to examine the great tree more closely. That was when he spotted the figure. An old man sitting on one of the vast roots emerging from the water. He was dressed in a finely-woven silver and gold tunic. His hair was grey, his careworn face marked by a thousand lines. A golden patch covered his right eye. He sat, motionless, his eyes fixed on the crystalline water.
YOU MUST CHOOSE.
“Choose what?” he shouted at the old man, feeling desperate.
IF YOU WILL FIGHT.
The beasts took a step closer, their staring eyes beaming out blue energy. Luis gazed at each of them until his eyes rested on the powerful wolf. It began to snarl and pace closer. The hairs on its hackles were raised and its lips had drawn back from its fangs, ready to attack. But instead of hurting him, it simply pushed him towards the water with its nose.
“Fight? I’m no warrior. I can’t fight!” Luis only felt helplessness and desolation.
THAT WHICH YOU MUST DO. THAT WHICH YOU WISH TO DO. THAT WHICH YOU CAN DO. ONLY YOU KNOW THE DIFFERENCE.
“But how? I don’t understand!”
Luis took a step back in fear. Perhaps it would be safer on the shore. The old man slowly stood up and stared straight at him. Luis froze, paralysed by the force of his gaze. He wanted to scream at the top of his lungs, but all sound died on his lips.
THE PAIN SHALL HELP YOU CHOOSE.
As soon as the wolf heard these words, it was as if a switch had been flicked; it arched its back and sprang on top of Luis, knocking him to the ground. It placed its two forelegs on his chest and stared down at him with flaming eyes. Then in one swift movement, it snapped at his body, slashing open his chest. The last thing Luis felt were its terrible fangs closing around his heart.
Time halted and thousands of images flashed through Luis’s mind. His childhood. Life with his parents and brother. School, friends, university lectures. Everyone he had ever known. Recent weeks, the days working on the Hermes Project. The last day of his life, his birthday dinner. He saw Seville razed to the ground, his family and friends suffering. Suddenly, he once again saw Raquel’s lifeless face lying in front of him, twisted in horror. And finally, Eva, his beloved Eva. Their night of passion at his flat. Their years of friendship, trust and laughter. The good times and the bad. Then the images changed, her beautiful face was horribly disfigured, destroyed by that evil creature when it snapped her neck. He had promised to protect her and what had he done? Nothing. Her glassy eyes held a darkness worse than anything he had ever seen. A darkness with a voracious hunger, ready to devour everything, to consume the future. They had all depended on him and he had done nothing to save them. And then it dawned on him… He was the only light capable of confronting the blackness that threatened his world. The only one capable of fighting back, of protecting those still standing. There was no other choice…
I UNDERSTAND.
This time it was his own voice that rang out loud and clear. Luis’s eyes suddenly flicked open. They shone blue and silver. In his mind he was still in the middle of the lake. But now he also became aware that he was in a cockpit that began to flash and light up around him. His entire body was suddenly covered by a dark blue metal that spread outwards from the plate he now had on his neck. The metal formed a protective armour around him. His mind was no longer exclusively his own, it had fused with the wolf that had savaged his heart. They acted as one. Tears brimmed in his eyes as he felt his body swell, then he screamed like no one had ever screamed before. The cavern dazzled with a blinding light.
And after waiting sixty thousand years, the Gungnir awoke…