The Winter Riddle by Sam Hooker

Author:Sam Hooker [Hooker, Sam]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781732400719
Publisher: Black Spot Books

14

Even in the darkness of the late autumn twilight, Midgard was easy to find from a very long way off. Yggdrasil, the Great World Tree, radiated a pale green energy. It positively thrummed on all of the spiritual wavelengths. The Vikings believed that the tree was the world itself, no concern being paid that they could walk away from it and still be on the world. Very conceptual thinkers, the Vikings.

She’d heard before that Vikings were fond of witches, but she wasn’t about to test that theory by flying down and landing right next to Yggdrasil while she was too tired for quick getaways. She opted instead to land on the outskirts of the town at the base of the tree and walk into it to find an inn. More effort, but less conspicuous.

All of the buildings were very sturdy, made of stone and thick, rough-hewn lumber. The roofs were covered with permafrost, like just about everything else in the North Pole. She walked past men in great horned helmets carrying massive axes and swords. The older ones had big beards in a variety of colors: red, blonde, brown, black, and the oldest ones were grey or white. The white-bearded ones reminded her of Santa, including the long braided bits.

Poor Santa. Nothing could have prepared him for his harrowing tryst with the queen. He was upset with Volgha over that, and she could certainly see why. Just one more flaming disaster that had somehow become her fire to fight.

Some of the streets were cobbled, others just icy earth. Bonfires burned in great stone rings, many surrounded by Vikings telling stories, laughing, and drinking from horns. It seemed a pleasant and happy life. Volgha would have traded it for being born royalty.

Don’t cling to thoughts like that, said Osgrey. Had you been born a Viking, where would you be now?

Volgha didn’t answer. She was too tired to stop errant thoughts from popping into her head, much less defend them.

She had heard that Viking women were warriors like the men, and she was pleased to see that this was true. Many women, with swords on their hips and shields on their backs, drank and joked with the men, patrolled the streets with the watch, or slept in pools of their own sick near the fires, having overestimated their limits as well as any man.

There was a lot of commotion around a big inn near the center of town, which—according to its sign—was called The Leaping Stag. It was stuffed with revelers, no doubt due to the skill of the minstrel playing the lute inside. As tired as she was, she’d loved to have stepped in and listened to the sublime music for a while. Unfortunately, the throngs of onlookers outside were packed too tightly for her to even get close to the door.

No one actually likes being in crowds, it’s merely a condition to be tolerated when everyone wants to be in the same place at the same time. Between Osgrey and Redcrow, Volgha already had all the crowd she could handle.

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