Teeth & Claws_A Paranormal Space Opera Adventure

by Michael-Scott Earle

  “My lord,” Aasne said as she looked up at me. Confusion was clear in her eyes, and I took a deep breath before I spoke.

  “I am here to ask you to submit to me so that I may rule over a combined Nordar,” I said.

  “I am not sure I understand,” Aasne asked as she licked her lips and then turned to Madalena.

  “Perhaps I should start at the beginning,” I said.

  I told Aasne what I had just told Skuld, but I put in a bit more detail about my initial meeting with Madalena. I explained how I saved her and her crew from the broken station, and then I talked about how she had felt honor bound to submit to me. I glossed over Madalena’s father trying to kill me during the rite, and I just said that I defeated him in combat because he contested my marriage to his daughter.

  I left out the parts about me being a weretiger and pretty much anything prior to meeting Madalena to prevent additional questions, but when I reached the part of the story with her father, I explained about his request for me to hunt a white stag, and my decision to kill him.

  “He is dead then?” Aasne asked, and I was a bit surprised she didn’t even blink.

  “Yes,” I said.

  “That means I am now the Queen,” she stated.

  “Yes,” I said, “and my armada sits in your homeworld sector awaiting word of our truce.”

  “I understand why you wished to speak with me before I reached Oskmay,” Aasne said. “You would have forced yourself upon me if you caught my ship.”

  “Do not be so arrogant,” Sivaha scoffed. “You are barely a woman, and our husband has us to warm his bed at night.”

  “Yet he is here now to ask for my hand,” Aasne said with a shrug.

  “You mistake my intentions,” I said. “I want to unite the Nordar. While I am sure you are a fine woman, I would have been satisfied with your father submitting to me. The clans just need to be joined.”

  “If I choose to stay here, you will be out of luck,” Aasne said as she crossed her arms over her armored chest. “At least until I pass or fail the test, and if I pass, I can stay here indefinitely.”

  “Or you could join us, and help save the galaxy,” Madalena said. “My husband is the avatar of Odin. It is why I chose to submit to him, and it is why I will cast aside my title as Prime Valkyrie when the time comes. His quest is more important than any squabbles between our people.”

  “Since I was a lass I’ve wanted to be you,” Aasne said, and the adoration was clear in her green eyes. “Now I have the opportunity to stand beside you and be a queen?”

  “Yes,” Madalena said.

  “I am not worthy,” the auburn-haired woman said. “I was first born to my father, and he was first born to his. You are here because I won the genetic lottery, not because of my deeds.”

  “It doesn’t matter,” Sivaha scoffed. “You are the key to the Idonan clan. Your worth is in the decision you will make in the next minute. You can save your people or damn them and our race to a hopeless war.”

  Aasne looked at Sivaha and nodded, but then she looked back to Madalena. “I wish to be like you. I wish to be a Valkyrie. It is all I have wanted since I was young, and I will think of no other task until I have passed their examination.”

  “Don’t be a fool,” Sivaha hissed. “We cannot wait a year for you to graduate.”

  “The process might be shorter,” Aasne said as she bowed her head. “I have trained hard for this day.” The woman looked up at me. “I had no love for my father, so I do not begrudge you for killing him. Your appearance pleases me, you are obviously a great warrior, and the Prime Valkyrie is already submitted to you. The decision I have made was not easy. After I have become valk--”

  “Aasne,” Madalena interrupted her. “I can respect your right to a decision, but you are choosing yourself over your clan and your people.”

  “It is my choice to make, Prime Valkyrie,” Aasne said. “You say that your armada is in my home sector, but you can destroy every last one of my ships and people. They will not kneel as long as I am alive. I will be alive as long as I am here. King Adam, if you still wish to take me as your wife once I have become a valkyrie, you will defeat me in combat, and I will gladly submit. Just as any valkyrie would deal with a suitor.”

  “My husband is no mere suitor,” Sivaha growled. “He will be king of the Nordar. You should be honored that he is here speaking with you.”

  “He needs me,” Aasne said as she shrugged.

  “It is true,” I said as I cleared my throat. “I need you to agree because I don’t want to go to war with your people. I don’t want to lose any Nordar during the process of uniting the clans, but I know that it will be inevitable. Each clan is proud of their heritage and does not wish to be absorbed into a slightly different culture. I can understand why you wish to become a valkyrie. You have lived your life as a princess and this is your chance to prove that you are more than just your father’s daughter.”

  “Yes, you understand,” Aasne said as she gave me a small smile. “There is no honor greater than becoming a valkyrie.”

  “Unless you become a queen,” I said as I shrugged. “Or unless you become a Prime Valkyrie.”

  “Yes…” Aasne said carefully, and then her eyes flashed toward Madalena before returning to me.

  “You are not a valkyrie yet,” I said. “If you were a princess, and I came to conquer your clan, what would be your fate?”

  “You would either kill me or force me to submit to you,” she said with careful words.

  “Which would you prefer?” I asked.

  “I would submit to you,” she said quickly. “As I said, you are handsome and strong. You are the ruler of the largest Blood Overlord Clan, and I respect your two wives. King Adam, if not for my plans to be a valkyrie, I would be kneeling before you right now and cutting open my hand with the knife you wear at your belt. Being a Valkyrie was my life’s goal. It’s my way of being my own person and not some bartering piece for my father.” The auburn-haired woman turned to Madalena. “You must understand my desires. I am following in your path.”

  “I understand,” Madalena said. “However, this is more impor--”

  “If you understood, then you would allow me this,” Aasne said as she gestured to the armored women surrounding her.

  “My husband wishes to save the galaxy,” Madalena said. “The lives of countless billions of people outweigh your desires to be a valkyrie.”

  “I have waited my whole life for this,” Aasne growled as she stared at Madalena.

  “It is poor timing,” Madalena said as she shook her head. “Blame the forces that wish to destroy the galaxy, not my husband or me.”

  “Yet it is your husband who stands between me and my destiny,” the young woman said as she turned her head back to look at me. “I will complete my trials here, and then you may court me through battle. That is my final decision.”

  “You are not yet within the walls,” Madalena hissed, and the air filled with tension.

  “No, Prime Valkyrie,” Skuld said, “but I intend to escort her within them.”

  “If Aasne is going to become a valkyrie, and I’ll have to defeat her in combat for her to submit to me, can’t we just skip her trial?” I asked. “I’ll fight her now.”

  “No,” Skuld said. “She is under our protection now.”

  “Then I will challenge The Six,” I growled, and the armored women that stood behind Skuld fixed their helmeted eyes on me.

  “Then you will die,” Skuld said with a shrug. “Then the Prime Valkyrie and Queen Sivaha will die. Your mission will fail, and the clans will fall into chaos.”

  “I have no other choice,” I said. “Waiting for Aasne to finish your trials could take a year. I have less than half that to prepare for the coming war.”

  “Tell your husband he is a fool,” Skuld growled to Madalena.

  My wife’s jaw hardened, and her eyes actually narrowed so that she looked a bit angry. Of course, the rage pulsing from her burned like a volc
ano’s molten lava, but I wasn’t used to seeing much emotion on her face.

  “He is not a fool. He is the punisher of fools. Prepare your comrades. He will conquer you each in turn and then take what is his. Odin and Freyja guide his hand and our quest.”

  “So be it,” Skuld scoffed, and then turned back to me. “I will alert them to your challenge. You are the first male to be invited to set foot on Oskmay, but you will never live to tell of the experience.”

  “Wait!” Aasne gasped, and we all turned to her. “I have recon--”

  “No,” Skuld’s voice was filled with gravel. “It is too late. The challenge has been issued, and King Adam Vaish’s death will be the result.”

  “I’ve heard that before,” I said as the tiger screamed in my mind. “But I’m still living. When will we begin?”

  “As soon as I alert the other valkyries,” Skuld said, and then she gestured for us to follow her into the city.

  Chapter 8

  “Well, that was the worst outcome possible,” Sivaha sighed as she flopped down on the couch of the drab waiting room that the valkyries had given us.

  “It’s fine,” I said, as I moved to the door of the room and leaned against the wood so I could listen for footsteps. The Valkyrie guards who had taken us here were walking away, and I found it a bit odd that they trusted me not to leave the room. Then again, I was with Madalena, Lux, and Calisto. They might have figured that three of their order wouldn’t let me sneak out, grab Aasne, and get the fuck off the planet.

  “Husband,” Sivaha sighed. “I find myself fluctuating between having faith that you will overcome any obstacle in your path and the realization that you are fighting The Six. This isn’t just a group of old women. They are the trainers of the most elite of the Nordar warriors.”

  “And I need to save the fucking galaxy,” I said with a shrug. “I’m more worried about accidentally killing them.”

  “You should not worry,” Madalena said. “Fight them to the death.”

  “But if they are dead, I can’t negotiate Aasne from them.”

  “Only one of them will need to live,” Madalena said. “It will be too difficult for you to try to take them alive. They will not have the same consideration for you.”

  “That might not be true,” Calisto said, and we all turned to her.

  “Why not?” I asked.

  “They know killing you will kill the Prime Valkyrie and Queen Sivaha. Killing the Prime Valkyrie might also kill Lux and me.”

  “Hmmm,” Madalena said as the considered Calisto’s words.

  “They will not care,” Lux said with her usual indifferent shrug. “A man has threatened them. It does not matter that he is a king or that the most important member of our order is submitted to him. They need to make a point. These women care more about their laws and traditions than they care about the threat to our galaxy.”

  “I’m surprised you would speak that way of our order,” Madalena said.

  “They had a king and the Prime Valkyrie make a request, they should have told Aasne Idonan that she would not be accepted into their test. Then the matter would have been resolved. Instead, they clung to their pride, like Toriton.” Lux actually looked a bit angry, and I was surprised since the pig-tailed woman’s face was normally more emotionless than Madalena’s.

  “What are the rules?” I asked.

  “You will fight each one in turn,” Madalena said.

  “Right after the other?” I asked.

  “If you wish, yes,” Madalena said.

  “They will choose the weapon,” Calisto said. “I doubt anyone will choose a firearm, but Gonful might.”

  Both Lux and Madalena nodded at Calisto’s words, but then a plan came into my head.

  “Can they change their minds after they have picked a weapon?” I asked.

  “No…” Madalena said, but then her eyes narrowed in confusion when she sensed my excited emotions.

  “Will my weapon choice impact their decision?” I asked.

  “You will be given the weapon that they pick,” Madalena said.

  “What if I tell them upfront that I will fight them without weapons?” I asked.

  “They already think you are a fool,” Sivaha laughed. “Let’s not prove them--” her words caught in her throat, and then her beautiful mouth spread into a smile. “Oh, husband, you are crafty.”

  “Hmm,” Madalena mused. “What is your intention?”

  “I’m pretty sure I’m going to need to shift to fight them,” I said. “As soon as I shift, the clock is ticking. I’ll only have a half hour or so to get through all of them. If they see me shift during the first challenge, then the other five women might choose ranged weapons. I’ll still be fast, but it will mitigate my superior strength. I want them to commit to their weapon selections before I pull the Ace out of my sleeve.

  “That is crafty,” Calisto said.

  “They might fall for it.” Lux shrugged. “If it were me, I would just pick a rifle and be done with the task quickly. They have something to prove though, so you might be able to entice them.”

  “It is too risky,” Madalena said. “I agree that you need to mitigate their weapon selection, but these women are pragmatic. At least one of them will pick a firearm even if you are unarmed.”

  “Alright,” I said as I rolled a new plan around my head. “Can I ask them what weapons they will choose and then pick the order in which I battle them?”

  The three Valkyries looked at each other for a few moments, but then they turned back to me with half smiles on their faces.

  “That might work,” Madalena said.

  “I’ll fight the ones that pick firearms first and only shift if I need to.”

  “I will beg the boon from them when they arrive,” Madalena said. “They will probably honor it since they will think that it is my last living wish.”

  “They don’t know our husband,” Sivaha said. “But they will soon learn that you do not disobey the tiger.”

  I was still leaning against the door, and I heard footsteps approach. I gestured to the women and then stepped away from the door a moment before a pair of armored Valkyrie guards entered.

  “Come with us, my lord,” one of the women said, and I nodded before walking out into the hallway.

  Sivaha, Madalena, Calisto, and Lux followed, but none of us talked as we passed through the endless hallway system that connected the longhouses. There were windows to see out of, and we hadn’t passed a single person in the halls when they first escorted us into the walls of the city. I guessed that there must have been an alert to keep everyone away from the area where I was being kept, and I wondered if the challenge battles would be conducted in private.

  “Through here, my lord,” one of the Valkyrie guards said as she gestured to an open set of double doors. I nodded to her, and we walked past her and into a long meeting hall.

  The walls were made of clean cut white limestone, and the ceiling had dark wood joists with hanging bronze chandeliers. At the far side of the room, a set of six large metal chairs sat on a raised dais, and women in Valkyrie armor sat upon each of them. There was no one else in the room beside The Six, and Skuld raised her hand from her armrest to beckon me forward.

  “I am Skuld,” stated the woman I had already met. “I am the past, the present, and the future.”

  “I am Skogul,” said the woman who sat to the right of Skuld. “The tall and the strong.” She was tall, with long blonde hair that fell to her waist and eyes that were as sharp as knives.

  “I am Gunnr,” said the next women. “The battle and the blade.” She was a redhead, with scars along her cheeks and neck.

  “I am Hildr,” said the next women. “The war and the death.” She had black hair styled in pigtails like Lux.

  “I am Gondul,” said the next woman. “The wielder.” The woman looked to be the oldest of the group, but her eyes were bright and stared at me with obvious anger.

  “I am Geirskogul,” said the last woman. “
The spear.” She had long brown hair braided over her shoulder, and she was the only woman holding a weapon in her hands. It was a long spear, and she pushed the butt against the stone floor as she rose from her chair. “We bow before you, King of Vaish.”

  After she finished speaking, the other five women stood and tilted their heads forward as a sign of respect. The gesture caught me a bit off guard, but I mirrored their movement until they raised their heads.

  “Thank you for your respect,” I said. “I do not wish to challenge The Six, but my quest puts us at odds.”

  “We understand,” said Geirskogul, “the valkyries were created by Odin to humble men, but serve those who were worthy. In short order, we will find out which you are.”

  “May I speak?” Madalena asked, and the other women turned to her.

  “Of course, Prime Valkyrie,” Skuld said.

  “Which weapons will you each choose to battle my husband?” she asked.

  The other women seemed puzzled by her question, and they glanced at each other before turning back to the Prime Valkyrie.

  “I will use the bow,” said Skuld.

  “The longsword,” said Skogul.

  “An axe,” said Gunnr.

  “A rifle,” said Hildr.

  “A pair of revolvers,” Gondul said as she gestured to the weapons at my belt.

  “My choice is obvious,” Geirskogul said with a dry laugh, and I assessed her spear again. It was about two meters in length, with a leaf shaped blade that looked like it was sharp enough to shave with.

  “I will challenge Hildr,” I said. “Then Gondul, followed by Skuld, Geirskogul, Gunnr, and Skogul last.

  The Six were good at keeping their faces calm, but I could see a bit of surprise in the eyes of Gunnr and Gondul.

  “Very well,” Hildr said as she shook her head slightly. “We will engage in the colosseum. The guards will take you there while we prepare weapons for you.”

  “There will be no weapons to prepare after Hildr,” Gondul scoffed.

  “You said revolvers?” I asked the older woman.