Valkyrie Hunter

We returned to the way station with armfuls of brush. Miranda didn’t comment on how long it had taken.

“You’re back, lay the brush on the platforms and some on the floor one of you will have to sleep there.”

“I’ll do that,” Ella volunteered.

I wasn’t about to argue with her about that. I laid the brush on a platform. Suddenly something the size of my palm leapt out and onto the floor. Of course I screamed. The tension of everything was getting to me. I trembled with fear my heart beating ten to the dozen and sweat trickled down my face. Before it had a chance to move Ella stepped on it. Shakily I realised that it had been the bundle I’d had close to my chest. I’d carried the damn thing it with me. It had all that opportunity to bite me but had only reacted now.

“Thanks,” I stuttered. “What the hell was that?”

“Wood crawler,” Miranda replied. “Not really the season for them.”

“Ugh!” I shuddered. “I hate anything with eight legs!”

“Wood crawlers have ten,” Ella said not really helping.

“Oh great.” I had a thought. “Is it poisonous?”

“Yes,” Miranda said. Which wasn’t helpful for my current state. “Ella clear up the mess. Gwen take a shower the water isn’t warm but it will help.”

I did as I was told, carefully watching the bundles of brush as I went past. The bathroom had a flushing toilet, a washbasin and a working shower. The water wasn’t as cold as I expected and there was even soap in a little cabinet above the washbasin. Using the soap I washed the streaks of green off the exposed parts of my body. I noticed where the sap had touched it had banished the welts caused by the insect bites. I stepped out of the shower and dried myself off. Reluctantly I put on my dirty clothes. They were all I had. The only good thing was that I managed to wring out my socks in the basin. Hopefully they would be dry enough in the morning. Entering what I called the main room I dubiously stared at the bundles of brush on the platforms. It would just be my luck they would be full of the creatures. The one Ella had stamped on was nothing but a darkened stain on the floor.

Something in my expression made Miranda speak up. “It was the only one. They normally don’t come out in this weather. Cold makes them sluggish.”

“Gee thanks,” I said I hadn’t meant to be sarcastic but I was still jumpy after the thing leapt at me. I understood that. It was cold outside and warm in here. I speculated and I seemed to be doing a lot of that. It wouldn’t have bitten me earlier except that it was too cold.

“Don’t worry about it.” Miranda turned on another light.

Frankly I was surprised this place had power for working lights. What did worry me was the energy signature this place was giving out. Some of Lieutenant Wulfgara’s lessons must be sticking. For some reason Wulfgara seemed to think I’d have a ship of my own some day but that was highly unlikely. One of our discussions had been about ship’s energy signatures and how they made it easier to detect a ship.

“Our energy signature?”

“Can’t be detected from the outside,” Miranda answered promptly. “We are still within the mountains. We have to get a lot lower before we reach an altitude free of its influence.”

Which meant to me a lot more walking. Not that I minded but the more practical part of my mind reminded me that there was a greater chance we could be found. To tell the truth I was worried about Miranda. She may not look it but she was older that the Empire and it must be affecting her. I worried about her health. “And our pursuers?”

“Will have to find us first. There are hundreds of ways out of the mountains. This is far from the easiest route down but it isn’t the worst. I picked this route because it is a random choice.”

That was logical I supposed. With the Confederacy use of telepaths probably the only one. Another thought occurred to me and I cursed the logical part of my mind for saying it. “Won’t they be able to lock onto our comms once we get a message out?”

“We’ll deal with that when it crops up. Gwen stop worrying about ‘what ifs’ we have take things one at a time. ‘What ifs’ will only slow you down when you need to move fast,” Miranda told me.

That was me told off. Miranda was right we had to focus on the now. “Sorry,” I apologised.

“Don’t be,” Miranda replied to me. “Eat and get some rest, Ella take a shower and do the same. I want to be up early and out of here.”

I ate my rations and tried to sleep but the thought of wood crawlers intruded on my dreams.

With no windows I wasn’t sure of the time when Ella woke me. I was still tired from the night before. Even a cold shower failed to revive my tired state. I followed Miranda out and as before we emptied the way station of brush. I did it with a lot of trepidation. The last thing I needed was for one of those things to jump out at me. Following Ella’s lead we scattered the brush as we went I couldn’t see the point but Miranda insisted we leave the way station clean. I’m not sure how far we walked before the sun came up. When it did Miranda called for a halt.

“How far now?” I asked my mind on the rations we had left. I reckoned we had enough food for another four days. Water wasn’t a problem there were more that enough streams running down the mountain.

“We are still too far in the mountains to get a signal out,” Miranda replied.

“And conversely no one can scan us from the air,” Ella added.

I looked up at the treetops they were dense enough to stop us from being spotted from the air.

“So what happens when we reach a spot we can comm out from? Won’t whoever is after us lock on to our comms signal and locate us?”

“We been over this before Gwen,” Miranda said patiently. “We deal with it when we do. It is useless to speculate on ‘what ifs’ I’ve told you this before.”

“We need a plan as how to deal with the enemy?” I countered.

“Oh you are calling them the enemy now?” Miranda wasn’t being snarky she sounded thoughtful. “Yes that’s a good way to call ‘those’ that drove me from my home.”

“Gwen,” Ella addressed me. “We have the back up of the whole clan.”

“But they aren’t here?”

“No we are clan,” Ella stated.

I raised my wrist with my silver bangle on. Funny enough I had been striped naked and left to die in the snow but they had left my bracelet on. I speculated it would easier to recognise me with it on than without since the damn thing was molecularly bonded around my wrist. “This says different.”

“No it says you are clanless but to be clanless you had to be part of the clan to start with. You are a Martin and a Landottir which is also Martin.”

Yes there was that. But I hadn’t known my connection until I had arrived on Alfheimir. Had it not been, then as Thirika once told me I would have handed her Solstrid’s bracelet and sent on my way. Thinking about it sent a shiver down my spine. I could have easily been picked up by the Black Stripes and sent to the same prison as Monica and Alicia. I hadn’t got to the reason they were there but from the few fragments of gossip I’d overheard the place had been some experimental laboratory. Thinking further over all I said and done it had been a good thing I was a Martin. Had I not been summoned by the Elders, Alfheimir would have been a smoking ruin. Then they would have never sent me to Saros. Without my bracelet Ljufu would have never believed me. Saros City would have been destroyed and the Alliance blamed. Miranda was correct it was not good dwelling on the ‘what ifs’ all it did was give me a headache.

Miranda stood brushing the dirt from her pants. Not that it really mattered our clothes were dirty. Despite the shower I still had to wear my gritty underwear and clothes. Then we were all in the same boat here. Not one of us had a change of clothes. With that thought to the fore we headed ever downwards.