Valkyrie and Family 2.143

Viggo stood in the middle of a forest in the South Midgar region. He was holding his axe in his right hand and looking towards the dark forest in front of him. Fifty meters ahead of him was a group of twenty blinders consumed by Seidr magic. As a result of that, they had golden skin, were bald, and four horns had appeared on the sides of their heads.

Viggo was at the front as the vanguard while Rosewisse was in the rear, pointing his wand. She was going to shoot her magic as she always did, but Viggo said -to my signal, throws a great magic in the center of the group of blinders. Then, leave the rest to me-

Rosewisse looked at the back of Viggo's neck covered by shoulder-length red hair. He turned his face, looked at his sideways, and she nodded with a serious expression. Rosewisse channeled mana to the silver wand and created a bright circle with the sowelu rune. At the same time, Viggo looked forward and began to run at full speed, but without activating the touki.

On the other hand, the reapers let out bestial roars and ran carrying swords and shields.

Rosewisse threw a large fireball that hit the group in the center and exploded in a sea of flames. That threw the ten surviving blinders sideways. Viggo immediately arrived and unloaded his axe with both hands on the head of one of the blinders on the ground. The blinders reacted immediately and tried to stand up. Viggo unloaded his axe on the head of one who was on his knees, opened his head leaving him half dead, but the blinders did not die so easily. Having been human and now being corrupted by seidr magic, they could be considered plant-like existences. As proof of that, many blinders who had been affected by magic raised their hands to the sky, as if they were plants, and the veins on their body glowed a phosphorescent green.

Viggo decapitated the blinder in front of a single movement and moved to the next. Two blinders with shields stood in front of their companions to give them time to regenerate. They put their shield firm and waited for the attack. Viggo threw his axe and hit a blinder who was behind them. The blinders with shield seeing him unarmed moved their shields and unloaded their swords. However, they didn't count on Viggo's axe coming back and hitting them in the back of the head.

Viggo grabbed the axe in the air and seeing the two blinders with shields stunned by the blow of the axe, he discharged his axe from left to right, splitting the heads in half.

At the same time, Rosewisse from the back calculated the distance between Viggo and the group of blinders who were regenerating. She channels mana to her silver wand and create another circle of energy in the air with the sowelu rune in the center. She fired another fireball that flew over Viggo and the five blinders fighting with him. She hit the target and hit the blinders again, destroying their efforts to regenerate.

At the same time, Viggo smiled at the sight of Rosewisse so motivated, roared with each blow, dodged attacks, and in a single movement advanced through a corridor of blinders beheading everyone in his path. He then ran to where the fireball had erupted and found the blinders lying on the ground. He took his axe with both hands and moved quickly and fluidly, decapitating each one.

Two minutes later there was a burning forest, which Rosewisse extinguished with circles of magic with Laguz's rune in the center, like a "1", but with his nose pointing to the right.

-Are you okay?- asked Rosewisse as he saw Viggo coming in his direction.

-Yes, it was much easier than I thought. Your magic is amazing, I wish I were as good as you. That would save me a lot of trouble-

-Everyone has their good points- Rosewisse said with a smile, happy to be recognized -if you want, one day, I, well, could teach you-

-That would be helpful, but at another time. Now let's concentrate on reaching the top of the Jotnar mountain. I didn't think this sector of the forest was so infested with blinders-

-Everything would be much easier if we could fly- Rosewisse murmured and unconsciously waved her wings.

Viggo stared at the white wings covered by a kind of gold armor -I don't know, I've never flown- he said -but I'm curious because your wings wear such heavy armor, but ahead you only wear a kind of ornamental robe-

-Wings are an important part of us Valkyries- Rosewisse said -it's where most of our blood is-

-I understand, but how did you resist attacks of that kind? His hammer was devastating and even though I resisted it with my shield, I get the feeling that he wasn't serious-

-I also think he wasn't serious- Rosewisse replied -with regard to resisting, well, I have my defense magics-

She looked at Viggo, as if wanting to tell him more, but holding back for pure self-protection. Viggo understood that look and shook his head while showing a friendly smile -you don't need to teach me, I also have my own ways. I didn't want to bother you- he said.

-Don't bother me, no, well, it does make me uncomfortable- she said quietly and finished putting out the flames so they wouldn't spread through the forest.

-Shall we?- asked Viggo and she nodded.

The two walked through the forest of the southern area of Midgar, a dark place due to dense foliage and semi-cloudy skies. In the distance you could hear the waves of the Lake of the Nine Realms. Normally Viggo would carry his bow by hand to shoot the spectral crows, but Rosewisse with his wand was unmatched. Its limit was a hundred meters, but that was more than acceptable to detect and shoot down crows.

-It's originally vanir magic- Rosewisse said as they went along -it requires an understanding of the nature of the animal, writing the rune on a solid, preferably metallic, and mana-conducting base, like dwarf steel. In addition to you entering your intention in the rune-

-Intention?- asked Viggo.

-Yes, intention. The rune itself is a source of power, but intention is what gives it purpose. For example, I occupy the Rune of Sowelu in my magic circle, but my intention causes the force to condense into a fireball. Mana is just the container that allows me to extract a certain amount of power from the rune. The more power, the more mana I need to contain it and give it the shape I want-

Viggo nodded, took his hand to the leather bag at his waist, and stuck his fingers inside. Then he took out three stones and showed them. Rosewisse saw the gesture and brought his left hand closer, as with his right he was holding his silver wand.

-This was done by a mother- said Rosewisse, looking with some affection at the rune -berkana, linked to motherhood. Women being able to generate new life can be considered the closest thing to the Yggdrasil, who feeds the Nine Realms. The person who made this rune drew strength from his state and created this rune in order to strengthen the person who carried it. It's old, very old- she said, seeing the scratches and cracked edges -that person must have died, but that mother's resolve was so strong that the enchantment lasts to this day- she looked at Viggo and smiled -they don't serve you, right?-

Viggo shook his head while smiling -no, it doesn't help me at all, but I kept them to understand where his power came from. The other runes are also berkana, but they have different strengths-

-I understand- Rossewise said with a smile, returned it to Viggo and he put them away.

Viggo looked up at the treetops and although he couldn't see the crow in this position, he felt it as if it were a needle going through everything in this direction -it seems that the AllFather, really wants to know everything-

-More crows?- asked Rosewisse, stopping her advance.

Viggo nodded, stopped, and looked into her eyes -about three hundred meters from here- said.

Rosewisse smiled at the certainty with which Viggo claimed such a thing, she could not see it either, but considering the three previous times that he said the same thing, she believed him without hesitation -they are, some, very sharp instincts-

-I had already been told- replied Viggo.

They kept walking, taking care of the surroundings, but except for the crow in the top of a pine tree, there were no enemies in the vicinity.

-It seems that it was a kind of line of defense that they had put around the mountain of the Jotnar- said Viggo.

-So, it seems- Rosewisse replied -when I flew over these forests, I didn't notice all those creatures-

-In that case it may have been a move by Thor to cut us off-

-Or to know at what speed we move-

Rosewisse and Viggo looked into each other's eyes seriously. They nodded at the same time and started running. The AllFather would soon know of the fall of his troops, he only had to send one of his crows. And when that happens, tell his son to come and review what happened. Midgar was his domain, and no one could set foot in this place without his permission.

They quickly reached a distance where they could see the crow at the top of the tree. Roseewisse pointed his silver wand and channeled a small circle of magic with Isa's rune inside "I". The next instant a small fragment of ice flew out and hit the spectral crow, fading it into a cloud of green smoke.

-How convenient- said Viggo.

-It takes the same practice as with a bow to be able to achieve that precision- Rosewisse said proudly -the greater the distance, the more difficult it is to maintain the trajectory and aim of the projectile-

-I understand, it seems complicated, but I can reach a greater distance-

-Lets me see you? prove it- Rosewisse replied with a smile.

Viggo handed his axe to her with a smile on his lips, she took it with her left hand while holding the silver wand in her right hand. Viggo took out his bow and quivered with arrows. Then he waved his head to keep them walking. Viggo went to the front and Rosewisse followed closely.

For three hours they were advancing along the south coast until they had to continue east and continue climbing the mountains that faced a snowy closure. The cold became more intense and the snow spots more common in the surroundings. The clouds became darker, decreasing the amount of light reaching the region. At the top of a crag, three hundred meters ahead and on an upward incline, was a spectral crow.

-It seems like your time has come- Rosewisse said with a defiant smile.

Viggo smiled confidently, which made him look bright in front of her. He took out an arrow from his quiver, put it in the bow, and pointed into the distance. The wind was strong when they were on the slopes of the mountain. So, he calculates that the arrow would move from left to right. Viggo raised the bow and pointed the arrow as if pointing at the snowy closure, high above where the spectral crow was at the tip of a rock.

Viggo released the arrow, flew through the skies curving its trajectory according to the direction of the wind. It reached its maximum height and descended forming an arc until it fell on top of the spectral crow. Viggo was satisfied with his shot, one of the best, he thought modestly. Then he looked at Rosewisse, but she didn't smile. She was incredulous at the aim of that shot.

-Did you occupy magic?- asked Rosewisse full of disbelief.

-No, not at all- replied Viggo with a smile brimming with confidence -it was just skill, strength, and experience-

-I don't believe you- she said with a disgruntled expression -let's see, show me that bow. Sure is magical-

-Not at all- replied Viggo, somewhat surprised by Rosewisse's sudden confrontation. He handed her the bow, and she handed her the axe she was carrying in her left hand. She even made the silver wand disappear so she could take the bow with both hands. It was black, with a rigid structure that only someone with a lot of strength could handle. She tried to tighten the bowstring, but it cost her. She looked at Viggo full of discontent. She spent more than ten years of her life perfecting her aim with her magic, only to have someone prove to her that he could be better with a filthy bow.