Chapter 26

Noora

Noora dreamed of wolves chasing her through a dark forest. Little stones, fallen bark, and treacherous tree roots dove through the ground. Reaching for her, in an attempt to slow her down or worse, make her fall.

Noora whipped her head around at a high-pitched howl, seeing that the pack had gained on her at an alarming speed. If she wanted to make it out of here, she would need to be faster.

Her legs burned as she pushed forward, her muscles straining at the unnatural speed she was gaining and then she missed a tree root growing out of the ground in front of her.

She stumbled over it falling and falling…

With a choked inhale, Noora sat up in her bed, her vision blurry as she blinked away the fear she felt from the dream that occupied her mind only mere moments ago.

When the fog in her brain cleared and she could feel the soft velvet material clutched in her hand, she realised that she was not in her bed at all, she was in a chamber that looked fairly different from anything that existed in the orphanage.

Almost every wall of the chamber was filled with dark ceiling-high bookshelves, which were stuffed to the brim, and a few towers of stacked books even residing in front of the shelves out of lack of space.

The windows on the right side of the chamber allowed her to see the already setting sun, beaming its rays onto the wooden desk scattered with multiple papers, a small paperweight shaped like a crescent on top of thick envelopes.

Noora tried to get up from the velvet green settee, someone must have placed her on when a sharp sting drove through her right hand. She looked down to see it wrapped in a layer of gauze, it looked a bit wonky if she was being honest.

“I had to stitch the wound up myself.”

Her head snapped to her right, a leather armchair occupying the place beside a small round side table that was filled with more knick-knacks and unnecessary miniature chess pieces. Slowly, her hazy brain realised that she was still in the office of the prince. Her injured hand was bandaged up so thick, she wasn’t sure she could feel her fingers anymore.

Nikolai put down the book that was covering his face a second ago. He looked like he was sitting on a throne rather than lounging in a plush leather armchair.

“Do you want a gold medal for that?” Noora asked, referring to his words as she swung her legs over the settee, her head spinning for a moment.

When she zeroed in on him she realised that her words were a mistake. His voice was just a disguise of calm which stood in contrast with the blazing rage that took hold of his usual pale eye colour.

Nikolai got out of his chair and slowly stalked over to her, stopping only when his legs bumped against her knees.

Noora tipped her head up to keep staring at him, taking his anger straight on, like a wave crashing against the shore.

When he spoke up again his voice was unearthly deep, sending a shiver over her skin as if her body knew that she was in dangerous territory. “Do you know how utterly stupid, childish, and irresponsible it was of you to just strut around with an injury like that? Did you even take one second to think of the consequences you and other people would have to carry if the bite got infected? You should know better than anyone how serious this was. The wolf was not even going at its hardest. I can only imagine how that would have turned out.”

To Noora’s surprise she saw his body trembling with rage, she watched him curl his gloved hands into fists, trying to compose his anger.

“It is my body and I think I am the only one entitled to make any decision about it.”

“Not if you are so careless with protecting it!” His voice boomed through the small chamber, the sound carrying against the walls which threw the sound back at them.

Without hesitation, she stood up, misjudging her wellness and she got dizzy, her body swaying to her left.

Nikolai’s hand shot up, grasping her elbow to steady her before he bit out, “careful.”

When she was steady enough, she yanked her arm out of his hold.

“Do not ever yell at me like that again. You have no say over me,” she said.

“I am your king. I have every say I want about you. You know more about these animals than anyone, so you should know how dangerous a bite is out of them, god only knows what bacteria could have spread from its oral cavity and infected you.”

“Wasn’t it you who said wolves were harmless?” she spit out now, taking a step closer so the tips of their boots touched.

On a rational level, she knew that he was right, she should’ve gotten the bite cleaned up the second the points of the tournament were announced but she could not allow herself that. What happened today was unforgivable, something so horrific it should not be spoken about.

“That was my wolf, Spike would never hurt you! You said how territorial they are and how aggressive they get!”

Noora let out a scoff. “You still don’t understand the point, Kai. It was not the wolves who were at fault.”

“I am aware of that.“ If possible he stepped even closer, making his breath brush over her cheek. “And I will make sure that something like that does not happen again and if I have to yell at every member of the palace and set an example I don’t care. No wolf is ever going to get hurt again under my watch. But you have to realise that you still have to fear things and take them seriously.”

Noora shook her head. “It is not the animals I have to be afraid of, Kai, it is the humans that are the real monsters.”

At her words he took a step back, all rage dissipating from his hard features. His shoulders straightened again as he clasped his hands behind his back, all mighty king again. It was as if Noora could see the cold mask slipping over his face, robbing him of any emotion.

“I see.”

And if possible Noora hated this even more than him raising his voice at her. This cold mask enveloped him in a case that lacked humanity.

His eyes did not meet hers again as he spoke up for the last time. “While you were passed out, the remaining wolves were let out into the nearest forest, I have preserved the body of the one that attacked— defended himself against Kekoa. If you wish, Raphael will take you to bury its body accordingly, I know you have certain rituals you maybe would like to hold. He will organize a sled that can take you to a place you would like to bury it.”

He waited as if she was going to say something again and Noora felt inclined to do so but then she could not get the words out.

Nikolai nodded before disregarding the office with quick steps, leaving Noora behind with a pulsing hand that somehow turned faster and harder once he left.

As promised Raphael picked her up from the office only moments later and changed Noora into warm wool breeches and a jacket lined with red cashmere. They both took a sled that was provided at the stables and drove over the five-meter-deep snow until they reached the edges of a forest. After half an hour of howling wind and the sinking sun, Noora couldn’t feel her hand anymore, despite the cashmere gloves shackling her hands.

Despite her warm clothes, Noora felt the chill of the weather through her bones, burrowing so deep she feared she would be cold for the whole night.

They had to be quick about their business, as it was only minutes that separated them from the dark night sky. Noora felt too exhausted to fight any creatures of the night, in deep snow and freezing temperatures, which were certainly lurking in the depths of the shadows surrounding them.

The body was wrapped in a white, thin linen cloth, debunked in the intricately designed sled. Noora could not stop herself from rolling her eyes when noticing the gold engravings at the sides of the vehicle. Swirling with ice-blue snowflakes they formed the practical means of transportation, into another display of wealth from the royal family. A practical brown-coloured sled couldn’t provide for such beautiful and aristocratic people.

“We should start or else we might have to spend a night here.” Raphael pulled her out of her bitter musings before he stepped onto the skid and obtained two shovels from under the seats.

Hopping down, he threw one at her and she quickly caught it with her hand before stomping through the cold wind and towards the tree that caught her attention when they first arrived.

The forest stretched over enough metres that Noora could not see where it began and where it ended, so deep that she could not make out the center of all the trees littering the ground.

Most of them oaks, Noora could tell by hard, gray, scaly bark littered with deep grooves and ridges. Moss was covering the bark, crusted with amber-coloured resin that painted small little diamonds along the trees. The ground was frozen a few snowdrops poked their heads out, their necks hanging low as they clustered in small groups along a foot-trampled path.

Raphael grunted behind her as he propped the body over his shoulder, following her into the forest of gray melancholy, littered like gravestones as high as a castle’s towers.

Noora cringed at the heavy steps of the guard behind her, fearing that it might provoke the habitants in the forest. When walking over thick roots that grew out of the ground, she noticed something eerily.

Her steps faltered and Raphael huffed behind her. “What is it?”

She turned slowly, trying to concentrate her natural gift on her surroundings, and the more she focused, the more dread filled her up entirely, drowning the need for warmth.

She turned quickly to look at Raphael, now that they were both enclosed by the many trees and bushes, the low whistling of the wind disappeared.

“Don’t you hear that?” she asked.

“I don’t hear anything.”

“Exactly.” Noora turned slowly, her boots surfing the mixture of snow and gravel beneath her feet. There was not a single sound in the forest. “Where are all the animals? Owls, squirrels, birds, or even hawks. They should be marking their territory.”

“Maybe because it is getting dark, they are probably going to sleep.”

She raised a brow at Raphael’s ignorant answer.

“Do you sleep when the sun goes down and your mighty king goes to rest?”

“Of course not but that is different. I am his royal guard.”

Noora shook her head at him, dread crawling inside her veins. “The forest is their castle, Raphael, if some strangers were to infiltrate the castle they would attack.”

The same happened when the prince pretended to be Kai and ran from the bear. Not only was he looking for prey but someone invaded its space and it was making sure that it did not happen again. In their world, only the strongest would be the survivors.

“Well, what does this mean then? Where are they?”

“I don’t know and we better not find out.”

Now it was Raphael’s turn to look around suspiciously and Noora could tell that he was growing concerned.

“Let’s just bury it at that tree and get the devil out.” He pointed over to a measly-looking oak, its branches almost hanging downward, the ridges in its trunk looking like a sharp grimace, opening its mouth wide in a wail.

Noora blanched. “Are you mad? We cannot just bury it anywhere, come on.”

Just for good measure, she protruded a small knife out of her right boot and they continued throughout the silent forest until Noora spotted her destination.

The forest opened into a wide circle, the ground was free of snow, protected by the tree and its branches that formed a protective tent over the circle. Small brown mushrooms littered the circle like a border, the scent of mint and rosemary tickling Noora’s nose.

“There it is,” she whispered and her steps turned hurried as if the tree was drawing her in, attached to her by an invisible string.

The crown of the tree was as narrow as the circle around it and in contrast to the leafless trees this one maintained theirs. They resembled the shape of feathers and were approximately fifteen centimetres long, sitting alternately on the branches.

When Noora was close enough her hand shot out and came into contact with the gray, almost smooth texture of the trunk.

Though it resembled the colour and melancholy of the other trees, this tree felt different as its life rushed through its trunk and right into Noora, bathing her in a feeling so overpowering and glorious one could not form it into proper words.

It was as if she could see right inside it, the many colourful lines that ran through the bark, connected to every single leaf, down into the roots embedded into the ground. She furrowed her brows when she felt something nagging—“Is this suitable to your liking?”

Jumping back, she cut the connection and turned to look at Raphael.

“For the burial?”

“Oh, right. Yes, this is good.”

Not a moment later, Raphael dropped the body onto the ground without care and Noora glared at him, which he did not notice as he was busy driving the shovel into the ground.

Instead of berating the guard Noora took her shovel to the ground and began to dig.

Spending the next fifteen minutes in gruesome silence, they both dug a hole into the ground, the cold seizing their limbs and making them inflexible.

The earth was frozen as well, making it hard to infiltrate the ground.

Clenching her jaw, Noora kept digging, despite the growing pulsing in her injured hand. When they dug deep enough according to her instructions, red splotches bled through the gauze.

“That is enough,” she gasped and threw the shovel aside. “Help me get the remains out of the cloth. We will not need the material, it will only separate the soul further from earth. Kekoa has done enough damage.”

Raphael threw her a critical gaze at her words but still followed her instructions. After the remains were situated accordingly, Noora gripped the end of her braid taking a small bundle of white hands into her hand. Without remorse, she cut a few strands with the knife and littered them into the hole. Raphael watched her and she shoved the dug earth back into the grave until it was covered. She started to pat the earth smoothly until she was certain it was enough. Dirt collected under her nails and along the lines in her skin, painting her once-white gauze a dirty black.

“Frigga, I call you in sorrow and pain, a life has been wasted for the purpose of horror and disdain. Proving that the mortals may divert from their humane ways. Its soul has departed, and its body rests. I beg of you, let the soul thrive through the earth and combine in the weaving of life to its rightful place. Alt ended i for begynnelsens skyld, hvil i fred.”

Noora got up from her knees, dusting her breeches, two wet patches, and a few stones embedded into the cloth.

“What was it you said at the end?” Raphael spoke into the silence but Noora did not bother to answer. Taking the shovel into her pulsing hand, she made her way out of the forest.

Raphael followed her and in no time they reached the edge of the forest. The sled was still in place, waiting for them.

“You should tell your king that his land is rotting, decaying every second as we speak.”

Raphael’s steps hesitated for a moment. “How do you know that?”

She turned to look at him. “Because the Yggdrasil told me.”