CHAPTER FORTY-SIX ORKA

CHAPTER FORTY-SIX

ORKA

O rka stood in the darkness, waiting in the shadowed space between the fire-glow that two torches cast. People were gathered around her, Lif and S?unn close to her, more of the Bloodsworn. All were silent, some drinking from water bottles after their forced march, others checking weapons, loosening blades in scabbards, more habit than necessity. Further ahead Orka could see the torch-glow where Glornir stood at the head of their column.

Soon , Ulfrir's voice growled in her head and Orka felt the wolf stir in her blood, a trembling in her muscles. She paced along the tunnel, Lif and S?unn following her, walked past Sulich and a score of his kin, all clothed in their lamellar plate, their recurved bows strung and ready in their belt-scabbards. Orka came to a knot of the Bloodsworn gathered behind Glornir. Vol was there, and R?kia, Svik and Einar and Varg. Glornir was stood before a set of stone steps that led up into nowhere, just a crumbling stone ceiling, vine hanging, dripping with damp.

"Soon," she said to Glornir's look and he grunted.

"We have told him, we also heard his voice," R?kia said.

Orka nodded, then looked at Lif and S?unn. Lif held his shield loose, a spear in his other fist, wore a coat of mail and a steel helm with a wide nasal guard. S?unn was wearing a coat of ring mail taken from a fallen warrior after the sea battle, and wore a plain steel cap, a leather strap buckled tight under her chin. She held a spear in her fist and had a seax at her belt. She had no shield.

But, then, neither do I. Orka gripped a long-axe in her fist, two seaxes scabbarded front and back on her weapons belt, and a short-axe shoved through it, too.

"You did not have to come," Orka muttered to them both. "You are not warriors. You should have stayed at Wolfdales with Breca." She did not want more death on her hands.

"No mistress," S?unn said. "I owe you my life."

"You owe me nothing," Orka growled.

"I am coming," S?unn said, returning Orka's hard gaze.

"Then stay with me. Better yet, stay behind me," Orka said.

"I intend to, mistress," S?unn said. "That is why I have come, to guard your back."

Orka shook her head, buckled up the strap of her helm.

"And you, what is your excuse for risking death?" she demanded of Lif.

"Guevarr might be out there," Lif said, a cold twist to his mouth. "I owe him."

That I understand. He seeks vengeance for his brother, as I seek it for my Thorkel.

Now , Ulfrir's voice snarled in her head.

"Now," Orka said to Glornir, echoed by Varg and R?kia.

" Rúnar innsiglaear hureir, opnar fyrir vini úlfsins, " Vol cried out, a flare of red runes crackling from her hands and seeping into the roof of the tunnel. Lines of fire flowed across the roof, there was a grinding, cracking noise, and a hatch-door appeared, made of wood and stone, an iron bolt locking it. Glornir threw the bolt, dropped the torch he was holding into a puddle at his feet where it sputtered, flickered and died, and in the light of the runes fading glow he pushed the hatch-door open.

"With me," he growled as he strode up the stairs, Vol behind him, Einar, R?kia and the others following.

"Remember, stay with me," Orka said to Lif and S?unn as they climbed the steps and walked out into the Iron Wood. Vol patted Orka's shoulder as she climbed out of the tunnel, and then S?unn's as she emerged into the woodland behind Orka.

"I shall guide you back," Vol said to each of the Bloodsworn as they emerged from the tunnel into dawn, silver-grey light leaking through the canopy above, separating the shadows. It was just enough light to see by, though Orka let the wolf trickle through her, sharpening her senses. Off to her right, about fifty paces away, Orka saw the soft glow of many fires. Glornir was already striding towards them. Orka followed, the Bloodsworn spreading wide behind him. Weapons hissed from scabbards, shields in fists, and they moved, silent and stealthy, through the undergrowth. Sulich split his crew into two groups, each one moving to the flanks of the Bloodsworn. Their bows were in their fists, arrows nocked. Glornir pointed to a cluster of boughs ahead, hanging low before the road, and Orka saw it, a darker shadow, the glitter of reflected firelight.

Sulich's bowstring thrummed, there was a thunk , and a frost-spider fell from the branch and landed with a thud on its back, legs curled.

In the distance, Orka heard a voice shrieking, heard shouting, followed by the clash of steel and iron, screams.

It has begun.

Glornir let out a growling roar and began to run through the undergrowth, Einar at his shoulder.

Boughs burst to life above them, Orka seeing snatched glimpses of legs and eyes and fangs. Spiders descended on glistening threads, bowstrings thrummed, arrows hissing, and spiders were falling. Orka glimpsed one of the Bloodsworn thrown to the ground, a spider's legs wrapped around him, fangs lunging, other Bloodsworn hacking at the spider's abdomen, gouts of blue-tinged blood erupting. A flash of something to Orka's right and she twisted, bringing her axe round, saw a shadowed form flowing from the trees like mist, a glimpse of a haggard, emaciated face, mouth open wide, skeletal hands grasping at her and S?unn stepped before the night-hag, swung her spear. It passed through the night-hag as if it were mist, the hag's fingers closing around S?unn's throat. S?unn stumbled backwards, gasping, stabbing frantically with her spear but each blow slipped through the hag's body as if it was not there.

Orka snarled as she hefted her axe, but Lif was already stepping in front of her.

" Skuggar skilja ," he yelled and stabbed at the night-hag with his spear. It sank deep into the creature's side, and she let out a hissing scream, reared back, clutching at the wound as Lif ripped his spear back.

" Skuggar skilja ," he yelled again and plunged his spear into the night-hag's chest. With a shriek she exploded into a thousand black shards that melted to mist. Orka grabbed S?unn by her ring mail and heaved her up.

"Remember the Seier-words Vol taught us," she snarled. "And what happened to staying behind me?!"

"Aye, mistress," S?unn rasped, " skuggar skilja, skuggar skilja ," she repeated, even as the Seier-words rang out around them in the forest, more of the Bloodsworn encountering the night-hags.

And then their warriors were crashing out of the undergrowth onto the road.

Tents were everywhere, more than Orka could ever have imagined, filling the road both north and south as far as Orka could see. Figures were emerging from them, blinking, stumbling, dragging on brynjas , buckling on weapons belts and helms, but there were others standing ready, clusters of warriors with steel already in their fists, skraeling snarling, crude weapons of iron in their hands, Orka saw the shadowed bulk of a troll behind them.

Glornir charged from the forest, crashing into a knot of skraeling, his long-axe hissing, and blood flew in a dark arc, screams ringing out. Einar and Svik were right behind Glornir, Einar taking a skraeling's head from its shoulders with two blows of his hand-axe, smashed his shield into another that sent them hurtling into a fire. The skraeling rolled, came to their feet in flames and staggered, screaming, arms flailing, and Svik kicked them crashing into a tent. The hiss and sizzle of flames catching, and black smoke billowed. All along the road Bloodsworn surged into the camp, leaving blood and screams in their wake. Orka snarled and ran at the warriors in front of her, all drengrs , swung her axe looping over her head and smashed into a raised shield, hacked through it into the meat of an arm and sent the woman holding the shield crashing into the warrior beside them. They both fell and S?unn stepped in, her spear stabbing in and out, dart-fast, a grunt and scream, fading to a whimper, and blood was staining the forest floor. Orka put one foot on the shield of the fallen woman and wrenched her axe free. Lif shoved past her, catching a spear meant for Orka on his shield, pushing it away and stepping in, a short stab of his spear and a man was falling back, blood spurting from his throat.

"On," Orka snarled, the wolf in her baying for blood, and they waded into the camp, hacking, stabbing, kicking, stamping, all around them the din of war deafening, filling the forest. Flames were spreading, smoke billowing. Orka saw a troll loom out of the murk, heard the snap and twang of bows and the troll stumbled and let out a mournful roar, fell to its knees, pierced with a dozen arrows.

Voices to Orka's left, shouting out in a strange tongue, and through the smoke and gloom Orka saw the crackle of rune-magic.

Dragon-born . She turned and strode in their direction, two skraeling blocking her path and she gripped her axe two-handed, like a staff, slammed the butt end into a jaw, sliced the blade left to right and both the skraeling were down. Stalked on. Saw shadowed figures through the flame and shadow, glimpsed a warrior, tall and broad, black-haired, heard a snarling in her blood. Was dimly aware of Lif shouting, moving away from her right-hand side.

The smoke parted and Drekr stood there, dark and hulking, raven-feather tied in his hair, silvered scars raking one side of his face. He saw her and stopped, eyes narrowing, the two of them locked. Orka set her feet, hefted her axe in a wide, two-handed grip and gave him a lip twisting wolf-snarl.

And then he was running at her.