Good Instincts 1.12 - ING. VERSIÓN

It had been a month since the troll hunt, in the southern part of the mountains, about ten kilometers from Kratos' house. Viggo had continued with his regular workouts; exercising, boxing, and hunting as directed by Kratos. However, from time-to-time Atreus and Faye would meddle in his intense training days and take him for a walk.

If you look at Kratos' house to get your bearings; with its dark wood, large lintel made of thick trunks with runic patterns on both pillars. And you looked to the right, following a path to a palisaside made of thin logs, you could reach a small forest, in which all kinds of animals lived. The place had a dimension of more than one kilometer wide and long, which separated Faye and his family from a native village. There were also some ruins that no one came close to. According to local aborigines, it was similar to the great Lake of the Nine Kingdoms, located in the center of the valley, much further north. A place to marvel at, but at the same time respect.

The fact is that Faye took Viggo and Atreus to collect mushrooms in the forest. A rich source of food, but that, if chosen badly can be harmful.

Viggo was behind Faye and Atreus, while the latter was inspecting everything he found, skillfully took out the mushrooms he already knew and deposited them in a basket. In case he didn't know of any fungus, he would call his mother and ask her. Viggo stared at the copper-haired woman, like Atreus's. She explained to him as if she were a teacher and the boy nodded to everything she told him.

For Viggo, Faye was a special existence and inspired a feeling like that of Kratos or the other gods. Kratos told Viggo that the time they went to see the aborigines, it was at her request. He said Faye had been helping people for a long, long time. At least, since he met her many winters ago. Viggo smiled as he remembered his master, that sentence seemed very him. Since most people measure their life time in summers or springs, but only Kratos measured it in winters.

Viggo stop looking at the mother and child and continue to look for some fungi between the bases or crevices of the rocks. He continued to advance along a path made between large rocks and trees, with small water grounds and pieces of snow. Summer was coming to this region and the great sun in the sky affirmed it, Viggo thought. He kept advancing, moving about twenty meters away from Faye and Atreus, reaching a large rock face. Where he saw a large cleft more than ten meters high and twenty centimeters wide. Viggo climbed up a small slope and crooked at the base of the slit to look inward. The place was covered by dirt and ten mushrooms were visible, all shaped like an umbrella. The surface was red and had small white bumps as if they were freckles.

-Auntie- said Viggo raising his voice -Aunt Faye-

Viggo stood up and turned to look back. Faye and Atreus were moving in their direction, passing through the trees. Viggo turned around and kept looking at the reddish mushrooms. He wanted to take them, but something told him it was a bad idea, so he abstained and waited for Faye to arrive.

Viggo heard the footsteps on his back, stood up, stepped aside, and said -auntie, I found some mushrooms-

-Let me see- Faye said, approaching the crevice in the rock and looking at the base -Aaaa! This one is very special, but it is not for eating. Never ingest it in case you feel fatigue, it will produce more problems that help-

-I get it- said Viggo.

Faye pulled away from the cleft, looked at Viggo and smiled —surely Viggo has very sharp instincts— he said.

-Why do you say it?-

-You were curious, right?- Faye ask and Viggo nodded. She continued –but you didn't touch him and didn't try to get them out even though they were within reach of you-

-I thought- said Viggo -I mean, I felt like taking them, but I felt like something was wrong. So, instead of taking them, I waited for you to tell me if was okay-

-Instinct is a thing of feeling danger or that something is wrong. We all have an instinct, more developed or less developed than others. However, only Viggo has that perception– Faye approached Viggo and whispered in his ear –my husband praised you for that-

-Huh!- shouted Viggo in surprise, the bald man had never told him that he was doing something right. On the contrary, it seemed that everything was wrong.

Faye let out a chuckle and went ahead –let him stay between us, if not he can get angry– she said in a funny tone of voice.

-What did Mom say?- asked Atreus in front of Viggo.

-Nothing, I have good instincts- replied Viggo and waved his head to follow Faye.

-How is that about instincts?- asked Atreus advancing with Viggo. They went down the small slope and advanced through the trees. The sun was high in the sky and penetrated the foliage with beams of light interspersed with a faint mist.

-Instinct is when you know something feels strange-

-How?-

Viggo scratched his head as he looked at the road and they followed Faye who was ahead. Viggo pressed his lips and said -for me it's like a hunch, something I should do, but if I do it's going to go wrong. It's like a feeling full of euphoria or restlessness in my heart, but once I look for an alternative way to achieve the same goal, the feeling calms down. It seems that successes provoke fewer emotions than possible mistakes-

-It's strange- replied to Atreus frowning.

-Yes- replied Viggo.

-Don't worry, Atreus- said Faye three meters ahead of them, he was looking around, to see if he found fungi in the roots of a tree -everyone feels differently, the important thing is that you learn to listen to your instincts-

-I will, Mom-

After that, the three of them kept picking mushrooms until noon and set out on the way back.

Viggo walked the happiest all the way, chatting or laughing with Atreus. However, once they broke through the palisaside and saw Kratos standing in front of the house, everything changed. His master had a serious face, his frown, and his cold look. Although he only wore the usual leather breastplate, he seemed to be immune to the cold of the mountain. Beside him was the old man Xiao, who said a few things to him, and Kratos, folded his arms, nodded.

Old Xiao looked in the direction of Faye, Viggo, and Atreus, and like other times, he made a kind grandfather smile and raised his right hand to greet them. Viggo was happy, Atreus super excited, ran to the old man, and greeted him willingly. Only Faye had some apprehension, as did her husband. Ignorance was happiness, and these children were ignorant of the kind of terrible monster in front of them.

On the other hand, Viggo was changing his expression from joy to a serious one. He had the same feeling as when things were going to go wrong, something was going on here, he thought. He took a deep breath and kept walking until he reached in front of the old man and his master.

-Old man, How are you?- asked Viggo in a serious tone.

-Oh, don't you call me Grandpa anymore? And I brought you something as a gift - Xiao replied in a kind tone, and at the end, he would let out a chuckle.

-With the gift of the other time is more than enough. The cave was much more than I could expect-

-Yes, Grandpa- said Atreus super excited -the other day I slept in that bed and it was incredible, it was like, it was like, it was like...-

-Sleeping the clouds?- said Viggo to complete the expression

-Yes, yes, like sleeping in the clouds-

-They were very violent clouds, some that elbowed and kicked- Viggo said half-jokingly. Atreus turned red and bowed his head. Faye came behind Atreus and put her left hand on his shoulder and her right hand on his head.

-It's just a joke, Atreus- Faye said in a reconciling tone -Viggo is laughing-

Atreus raised his head and saw Viggo smiling, then he also smiled. However, Viggo stretched out his right hand and squeezed his nose in the form of punishment.

-I'm not angry- Viggo said as he squeezed his nose and Atreus gave him a slight slap. Viggo let go of his nose and continued –but the kicks and elbows are true. If I had been a normal person you would have thrown several teeth at me-

-I'm sorry- said Atreus, bowing his head.

-Okay, the better your way of sleeping is fine. It's not the first time I've been sleeping with my siblings. Tatsumi is calm, but Flora is a hurricane of kicks. In the end we had to send her with dad and her mom when we tried to sleep the three of us together.

-Is that what your brothers are called?-

-Yes, you will see...-

-Boy, we must talk- Kratos interrupted him in his hoarse and serious voice.

Viggo stopped smiling and raised his gaze to look his master in the eye. Viggo nodded and Kratos gestured to him to follow. Both moved forward without saying anything to anyone.

-Well, it seems that master and disciple are the same in many respects- old Xiao said to Faye and Atreus, with an uncomfortable smile -don't worry, we will only go to chat one thing with Viggo. They will be back in a while-

Then he turned around and Faye and Atreus watched them advance to the other side of the house and disappear into the corner, where the shed began.

Faye crooked down and pulled her face up on Atreus' right side –don't worry, they'll be back right away. Help me prepare the food- she said. Atreus nodded, and Faye gave him a kiss on the cheek.

On the other hand, Kratos led all the way to the backyard, where he had several pieces of log that he occupied to chop firewood. He sat on one and Viggo who was coming behind him, sat in front of him. Old Xiao moved forward quickly as he saw the master and disciple with the forest in the background. Behind Viggo was a pile of firewood freshly cut and piled up. Behind Kratos was a large rock.

Old Xiao sat on a log between Viggo and Kratos. He looked at master and disciple, while both looked at each other with a serious and intimidating look.

Xiao put his hand to his mouth and coughed –if I may interrupt his gaze contest– he said.

-We're not competing on anything- Kratos and Viggo replied as they looked at old Xiao.

-Yes, well, whatever they say- old Xiao replied without any trouble. He looked at Viggo and said - we have many things to change-

-Which ones?- asked Viggo in a cutting tone.

-Your lack of discipline and perseverance, training is only giving you experience, but it's not strengthening you- Kratos said.

Viggo passed his gaze from old Xiao to Kratos and looked into his eyes. It always seemed to Viggo that his master's eyes emitted a deadly glow –what do you mean?– he asked.

Kratos let out a growl and frowned —have you been using your energy to heal your wounds?— he asked.

-Yes, from the beginning. I have managed to distribute my energy in such a way that I can beat the cold and heal the wounds it causes me-

-Training generates injuries, boy Do you pretend to be strong in the midst of comfort?-

-Never-

-Then don't complain-

Kratos and Viggo squinted, staring at each other. Kratos seemed willing to throw a punch while Viggo gave the impression of being attentive to any movement.

Xiao let out a sigh and said -okay, cut this game. Viggo we are only talking about a change, no one is threatening you-

-Funny thing you say old man- said Viggo frowning and speaking in a biting tone -my master taught me to be attentive to my instincts and they tell me that you are going to harm me or something similar-

-Hard heads- old Xiao said in a sign of annoyance. It was quite a topic to deal with the type of warrior based on strength and instincts. They were the best on the battlefield, but once they felt the danger, they were like mad beasts.