Wolves of War

14

  When the morning sun rose, Aspen woke up on the grass on the edges of where the feast had been. The bones were gone. No sign of the feast existed and for a moment she thought it a dream. Bjornolf was sitting nearby, watching over her as the sun rose and birds began to chirp.

"Are you ready to head to see the Vanir ?" He asked, showing off his fangs in amusement. She had been entertaining to watch last night. He understood why Valo had taken her as a mate. She was everything he had said she was in his dreams.

Aspen stood with a long stretch and strapped her sword back on. She didn't feel hungry, or anything really. "I am. How about you?"

They spent the rest of the morning traveling through forests and lush plains. Bjornolf looked at her, he had kept his wolf form for the journey. "You know you can transform if you'd like. I feel like you want to, we are in little danger here."

Aspen didn't think twice about it, she allowed it to happen. Her traveling companion was mildly shocked at her sheer size. A she-wolf nearly as big as himself was a rarity.

"So you are the legend who killed a thousand men in one night, who returned from Valhalla to exact revenge upon those who killed you in your past life?" Aspen noted, looking Bjornolf up and down. "Valo has told me the story."

Bjornolf walked along the road towards The Great Hall. His heart hurt a little. He missed Valo terribly, he hoped he would learn to come and go as the other Gods did. "Valo honors me more than I can say, my dear. I am not sure it was a thousand men though-- it was closer to two thousand!" His laughter rang out and Aspen couldn't help but join in. She could see why he was Valo's adopted brother now.

When their mirth died down, Aspen glanced at Bjornolf when he began to speak, "We can't just barge in on the Vanir, they are not fond of the Aesir, which we are associated with. At least not at the moment. We may spark off war just by entering." Bjornolf said.

She would have frowned, but her wolf features didn't permit it. Her eyes darkened. "Damned Gods are always at war with something. Are you sure there isn't another way?"

"Not that I know of, lass."

In mid afternoon they came out of the forest and into a valley. Snow capped mountains rose in the distance and Bjornolf stopped the steady gate he had kept up since they left the feasting grounds this morning. The valley was lush, studded with huge gray stones that sparkled in the bright sunshine. The mountain river flowed down into the valley and towards the forest, the flow only broken by the river stones that rose from the river bed.

"Look," Bjornolf said, pointing upwards to the top of the mountain. A rainbow stretched from the clouds that surrounded the apex of the mountain. The ending of it was not immediately plain but the destination was the top of the mountain. It was Bifrost, the Rainbow Bridge into Valhalla. The rainbow captivated Aspen, she had only seen it a few times, and today it was brighter than she had ever seen.

"I suggest we stop here for the evening, prepare ourselves for the journey first thing in the morning. It will be an arduous journey and early morning seems to be the best time to avoid the forest guardians," Bjornolf explained.

Aspen was willing to push forward but she saw that he had more experience than she traversing these woods and she would, for once, listen. "I suppose you are right. The sun will go down in a couple of hours, and the woods become dangerous after dark. I would rather avoid it if we could."

Bjornolf was not afraid of the dangers that lie ahead, but he was damned if he let harm come to Valo's mate. He needn't have worried at all, there was nothing there that would scare her. Bjornolf kept his wolf form for the time being. In this body he needed little shelter and was prepared to hunt and fight if need be. Aspen stayed in her wolf form for much the same reasons. They headed to the river for a drink, one keeping watch while the other drank as was the nature of wolves. Aspen was surprised at the taste of the water, it was so pure it tasted like nothing and yet it filled her with a pure nurturing energy at the same time. She drank a second time but Bjornolf stopped her when she attempted a third drink.