[ Chapter Eight: Despair ]
My body was battered, broken, and bruised. I had been tortured and maimed in hopes of revealing the location of my island. I had not given the answers desired and have paid the price for it. I would never betray those I cared for.
I had since discovered that the offspring of my beloved dragon had been captured as well. Apparently they were after the rare dragon all along, and had merely won me as a prize in their invasion.
Not only had I been physically wounded, but a far more serious pain had been inflicted on me. The emotional scars from this trip would always haunt me, and I suddenly wished I had never left my island.
I had been raped. Not just once, but repeatedly by multiple men. I had never hurt as I did now in all of my life. The heartache was excruciating… There was only one man in this world I had met that I ever wanted to give myself to, and he was on Berk, hopefully safe.
"I don't think I can get myself out of this one," I whisper to myself, voice hoarse and scratchy. I rake my dry tongue across my chapped, bleeding lips, trying to moisten them and failing.
I needed help.
Switch Point of Views
"We've been looking for days, Hiccup. What if we can't find her?" Astrid murmurs sadly, Stormfly doing a great job keeping up with the overworking they were doing to find Valdis.
"We will find her. Tuffnut left a few days ago on Zera without telling us, and for all we know he is already there. We have to find Toothless' baby too, don't forget."
She nods, never wanting to truly quit the search, but fearing the worst and what they would find. It was possible that they would really never discover the whereabouts, and the possibility of either being dead made Astrid's heart tear into pieces.
"Do you hear something?" Hiccup turns his head, facing the opposite direction. "It sounds like a battle horn."
"Should I sound one back or what?" Astrid holds tightly to her horn.
Hiccup holds a hand up, shooting off in the direction the noise came from, his wife quickly on his heels. She could not hope to catch up to a Night Fury but kept him in eyesight. It wasn't long until they found the massive procession.
What they find was both shocking and frightening.
Tuffnut had not gone straight looking for Valdis, he had actually used his head and done something reputable and intelligent. Instead of wasting his time and energy ravishing the lands for his lost love and wearing down her dragon, he had formulated a pretty decent plan that Hiccup was proud of him for. Apparently he had become a man after all.
He had called upon the valkyries.
Switch Point of Views
I hated to say it, but I was ready to die. It had been a week and still I rotted in this dark room alone, nothing covering me against the cold. I had been lying in a pool of my own blood most of my time in here, for I had no will to move.
I felt pitiful, useless against my captors. I had barely been fed or given water, just enough to keep me alive, and had heard I was going off to auction sometime within a few days, meaning I would be sold as a human slave to the highest bidder. Life was slowly going downhill at this point, and I honestly might have ended myself if I had anything at my disposal to do so.
"Even if it's to late for me, maybe they'll find the baby," I whisper, coughing moments after from a thick bile in my throat. "I'm going to die in this place. I really am. Great, not even a heroic death. I'm sorry Odin, I've failed you. I should have never left the island of the valkyries."
A very comforting feeling enters my head, something unfamiliar and foreign. It was as if someone had wrapped me in a warm blanket, holding me close and unwilling to release, yet no one else was in the darkness with me. I am forced to sit up in the arms, my mind working in overdrive to try and figure out if this person has been here the entire time or not. I knew I wasn't blind, but I had never seen anyone come in from the light.
"You have not disappointed me, my child." The voice was melodious and soothing, making a sigh come from my lips. It felt as if fresh water was poured down my throat. "I have left you to ruin. Just last a bit longer, lass, and everything shall come to pass."
"Odin?" I utter in disbelief, my words quiet and panicked. "No, it cannot be!"
A light surrounds us, showing me the impossible. In front of me, holding my nude form close and raking his eyes over the damage- without the lewd thoughts, mind you-, sat my God. Odin, the ruler of war and death, had me in such a gentle embrace, the light pouring from his skin, and I was able to see the white of his beard, his massive muscles and armor, and the signature wings on his helmet.
"Do not lose hope, child," he orders, his accent thick and words fierce. "Soon, it will be the time to strike. You will know when. Now, do not die in this cell. It is not your time to take others to Valhalla. One more hour, then you will know."
"Yes, my Lord," I bow my head in respect, gently being sat down by the giant man. He places a kiss to my forehead, beard tickling my neck, before his light fades and I can no longer feel his presence in this room.
I felt rejuvenated, as if the horrid trials had not come to pass on my body. I still knew what had happened, still felt it in my subconscious, but felt as if I could fight a thousand wars. I was back, and ready to fight.
And it was true, for only an hour passed before I heard crashing within the room. Shouting comes, followed by my door being opened and one of the other guards to pull me out, thinking my body still drained and weak.
Arriving out into the main hall, I am happy to hear 'the Vikings have brought valkyries!' ringing from the rooms. Tuffnut had come after all… And he'd brought the valkyries to find me. Very smart move indeed, otherwise I might still be lost to the world, wherever I was at.
"Take the girl to the back room. Do what you want with her. I want them to see her," the leader sneers, motioning me away. Another guard joins the first, both dragging me to the back to partake in whatever sick fantasies it was that they had.
I'm thrown on a table just as I hear the door burst open to the main hall, the man dropping his pants and getting ready to take me again. When I feel him get closer, noticing the other man stroking himself, I leap forward and take hold of the hard appendage of the one trying to rape me, twisting and pulling it and listening to his screams.
The other man clumsily runs forward, aiming to stop the irate valkyrie, but is met with the sword attached to the first guard's hip. I ram the blade through his nether regions, then pull it back to allow him to bleed out on the floor. The same is done to the other man as he writhes pathetically at my feet.
I look about the room for my clothing, but realize it was probably in the main hall still. At this point, I did not care about my nudity, but my lust for death was prominent. I rip the door from its hinges, letting out a fearsome battle cry as I see the war waging in the room. A few close by turn to me, my allies eyes wide at the sight of how broken I was. I did not care for now, and was fueled by the adrenaline of Odin, urging me to fight and win.
I pull my matted hair around to cover my ample breasts, leaping forward and onto the table, loping heads off as I go. The leader was near the end, battling against a familiar blonde, and did not even realize that I had leapt from the table, taking him down to the ground painfully.
Straddling the man, his eyes grow at the rage he could see in my own. "Got some fight left huh? I thought we broke you of that days ago. Guess I didn't get rough enough."
"More than enough," I growl, reaching behind me to grab his dick, digging my dirty nails into it and feeling blood gush down. He begins squirming, howling in pain and hollering for me to stop this. "Nope, I'm going to make you feel the same pain that I felt."
I was sure I had temporarily gone insane, for the thoughts that raced through my head were horrendous and vile, yet I was desperate to try them on this man. I would not make his torture last, but I would certainly not make his death quick.
With a violent tug, twisting his shaft, I use the cuts made by my nails as a severing point, ripping the appendage clear from his body with a cruel strength that Odin had blessed me with momentarily. The remnants that I held were stuffed into his mouth, grabbing the sword and stabbing him straight through his chest, nailing the weapon into the ground so he could not get up. He would either bleed out, choke on his own appendage, or die from his organs getting run through. He would be dead within the hour, hopefully longer if the torture suffices.
"We've won! We've found the baby and Valdis!"
At last the weariness I felt had caught up with me and my nude form falls to the ground, barely conscious and drifting in and out of this world. I was tired, hungry, and parched again, for my God had only given me the last ounce of strength needed to end my torment.
I was flying, cradled against a scaly hide, the cold air tickling my face. A thick fur was wrapped around my form, hearing the familiar coo of Zera in my ears. I believed she was carrying me, but I was unsure. Who was riding her? I could make out a faint outline through the hazy darkness. She never allowed anyone to ride her…
My body was lying against the cold ground, almost immediately retrieved by a pair of strong arms. I was passed off to another, and then felt cool water sliding down my throat. I could barely perceive how to swallow but do so quickly. The coarseness of my throat lessened slightly.
Only moments later, I'm being bathed and scrubbed of the impurities and blood. My hair was dowsed and washed thoroughly. My body felt lighter by the minute.
"She's near dead," a voice calls quietly, that of the doctor of Berk, I believe. "Amazing, considering she's even alive. The woman is beaten to pieces. Her hand is broke, a few ribs as well, and she's lost a lot of blood."
"Will she survive?" That voice was one that called to me, one I yearned for. It had to be Tuffnut, but I could not open my eyes or speak.
"If Old Wrinkly has anything to do with it, she certainly will. Now get out, I have work to do!"
I was burning. Every place that I could still feel was alive with fire. The numbness was gone and I could hear screaming. Wait, I was screaming. Why? Was I burning alive? Did they come back to kill me?
"Shut up, lass! You'll wake all of the village. It is merely a concoction to heal you faster. It will burn!" Old Wrinkly was trying to scream over mine.
I was unconscious again moments later, dreams of dying in fierce fires plaguing my mind.