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“Both want to end the war, but they have different ways.”
“I talked to Cri. He doesn’t trust the Valkyries. Does Talon?”
“No. But Talon believes mortals should fight in the war. Cri believes they cannot. Only Einherjar and Valkyries can survive.”
Talon might be on to something.
If a mortal could fight with a Valkyrie blade, then they could kill the Raiders just like the Einherjar. The risk was significantly more, but wasn’t that what the hunters back home needed? They were more than willing to fight. But according to Valkyrie law, a mortal was thought too weak to control a Valkyrie weapon, or so it was written.
“Talon wants to leave Eir to recruit mortals to fight?”
“Yes.”
“It goes against the Valkyrie creed. Only Einherjar can be chosen for the army.” As if I had memorized them yesterday, I could recite the ten Valkyrie laws in order. This whole blending of minds had its perks.
“He knows,” Lana mumbled.
I wasn’t sure if it was a good plan or a suicidal one. It was certainly a desperate strategy. One that should be done carefully, if ever at all.
“Does Talon have any solid strategy to protect the mortals?”
“The armor he made you at Ales’ request. It provides better protection from the Raider blades than others.”
Talon had a gift for making them. Mine was brilliant, and fit perfectly, unlike any other clothing. Ales had shown me in his mind last night. It was Ales’ design, but Talon made it come to life. He hunted the towering animals I hadn’t yet seen, then treated the hide from the beasts on the island with special oils that from plants growing in the mountains, making it almost impenetrable to weapons. But would it work against the Raiders’ teeth?
“Your brother is very talented. Is that who the arrows are for?”
“No. For me.”
“You hunt?”
Lana flashed her eyes to me. “Better than Talon.”
“I’d like to see that.”
We spent the remainder of the morning completing four dozen arrows between us before I asked if we could go practice together. Since most of the morning was wasted sleeping, I could probably squeeze a few hours of training into the day.
Lana eagerly agreed, and we hiked to a spot in the forest, not far from the main village. There was an area where the trees became less frequent, before the coast began, and it would be perfect for summoning what I needed. The exotic pine trees had grown at varying degrees of distance and angles, making excellent targets.
Lana was an exceptional archer. After a few close shots, she aimed at further distances, hitting five hundred yards away, easily. Her tiny arms were deceptively strong for their build.
If the others saw this, the Einherjar might fall to their knees with envy. She grinned as she named her mark, aimed, fired, and nailed it dead center.
When it was my turn to practice, I tried to pick the furthest tree before the coast. It was barely visible in the distance. I focused every thought on how the bark would splinter apart under the vine when my arrow struck it—how it would slice through the humid air and stick straight into the vine tangling around its trunk. With the arrow nocked in my bow, I drew back as I closed my eyes, then let the arrow fly.
Lana and I couldn’t be sure where it hit on the tree. We sprinted closer to the coastline.
Holy crap!
It nailed the one-inch vine dead into the bark.
“Hell, yeah!” I whooped, shouting into the forest so loud that the birds scattered away in terror.
The sensations of the Valkyrie were present at every moment, almost déjà vu when holding a bow, as if I had done it all my life.
Lana started shrieking with me, throwing her hands in the air and laughing after every arrow I shot. She got so excited that she was clapping and dancing around, picking new and impossible targets after each arrow hit true to its mark. I would confirm the target, imagine without a doubt where it would hit, and then know my body would do the rest.
I didn’t need to explain to Lana that every shot was a miracle for me. She knew those targets were impossible to hit, and she’d seen Charlie before—coming home covered in dirt and blood, staggering to the fireplace to eat dinner, and then crawling into a bath before entering a coma.
