Page 20 of Berserkr
By the time we stumbled out of the forest, I was close to giving up. Why hadn't I thought of the technology the Vikingar had access to? Surely, they wouldn't let anyone approach the house they lived in. Maybe they had some sort of deceptive tech that would hide them from view. After what I'd seen on the spaceship, I could imagine anything. I'd been beamed up there, for fuck's sake. I should have anticipated that they wouldn't want a random walker to come across their home.
Our last hope was the other house, a fifteen minute drive from here. Jenna wasn't in the best mood either, so I drove while she muttered about what a mistake it had been listening to me and how she'd much prefer to be back in our London office. I agreed with almost everything she said, except that I had to find the aliens. I needed proof. Nicole hadn't believed me, and she'd known me for years. How would anyone else trust my story?
This time, we were even more careful in our approach, leaving the car a mile down the road before proceeding on foot. Jenna complained every minute or two, until I was ready to throttle her. Without forest cover, we were exposed. Gorse and heather grew along the road, but I didn't really want to get scratched by the prickly gorse. So we stayed on the road, hoping to find a footpath that would get us closer to the house without being seen.
No such luck. The house came into view, an imposing mansion with turrets and an iron-wrought entrance gate. A high fence surrounded it, separating it from the gorgeous scenery around it. Rolling hills as far as the eye could see, with some of them so high their summits were wrapped in clouds. For a moment, I understood why people would want to live in such a rainy country. The rain certainly made everything green. Every shade of green met the grey of the sky.
Not a blue sky like the colour of Rune's eyes. Ugh, I was thinking of him again. I had to get him out of my system.
"Let's stay here for a bit and see if we can spot anyone with the binoculars. If not, we can walk once around the fence."
Jenna didn't look happy, but she pulled out her camera again and got into position a few yards away from the road. We stood there for at least half an hour, scanning the windows for any sign of movement. The wind was picking up, making us shiver in our wet clothes. I persisted for as long as I could, but when my teeth began to chatter, I decided it was time to move a bit. Maybe we'd be luckier on the other side of the mansion.
But luck wasn't on our side. With darkness fast approaching, we had to concede defeat. I was glad Jenna didn't say anything. Facing Nicole in London would be bad enough. It was time to look for a new job.
13
Laurel
One week later
Life was miserable. I was miserable. I'd spent the past eight days moping on my sofa, watching silly shows on the telly and eating takeaways. Even junk food wasn't enough to make me feel any better.
At first, I thought it was because I'd been fired. Nicole had sent me a text the moment I'd returned to London, telling me to collect my things the next day. So much for the hope that she'd keep me on for old times' sake. I'd written good stories in the past, done some great investigating, but it all didn't matter when faced with the huge bill the Hot Tatties agency had sent her. I bet Nicole was going to try and fight it, but I was no longer part of that now. At least she'd agreed to let Jenna complete her internship.
But that wasn't the only reason why I was feeling terrible. I missed Rune. It was ridiculous, I'd not even spent 24 hours with the man, but he'd left an aching hole in my heart that no amount of cheesy chips could fill. I couldn't stop thinking of him. When I ate, I thought of the alien food during our impromptu buffet. When I put on socks, I thought of how he'd healed my ankle injury. When I went to the loo, I thought of the strange alien bathroom on board the spaceship. When I...
It had to stop. I couldn't do this anymore. I had to focus on this next section of my life. Get a new job. Forget about everything that had happened. Try to continue on as normal, even though I now knew that aliens were real, circling our planet in their ships. Rune was somewhere up there. Did he think of me? Had he forgiven me yet? Would I ever see him again?
He haunted my dreams. Last night, I'd dreamed he was strapped to a table, writhing in anger or pain, foam coming from his mouth. I'd woken up shaking, my pillow wet from crying in my sleep.
I needed a distraction, but I couldn't get myself to leave my home. Outside, there were people. Normal human beings who had no idea of what I'd seen, what I knew.
Three days after my return, I'd stalked some conspiracy theorist forums online, trying to find someone who described an encounter with the Vikingar. But I'd given up after a short while, mostly because those forums were full of crazies who only wanted attention, and because it triggered yet more thoughts of Rune.
I wished I'd never taken that assignment. I should have stuck to my guns instead of letting Nicole convince me that it was a good story. If I'd continued my research into the industrial espionage case, my heart wouldn't be broken. I wouldn't be sitting here in my tiny flat, eating greasy food, watching crap daytime telly and having tearful nightmares.
Could life ever get back to normal? Could I forget about what I'd seen? I was surprised the agency hadn't followed up with me, making me sign a non-disclosure agreement or something like that. But then, who would believe me? I'd be just yet another crackpot trying to convince others that aliens were real.
Life would never be like it was before. I had to accept that.
Which also meant I had nothing to lose.
A strange calm filled me as I picked up my phone and dialled the number of the Hot Tatties agency.
* * *
Rune
I knew I was dying. They tried to make me as comfortable as possible, but everyone was scared to come too close. I'd bitten Njal when he'd adjusted one of my restraints. I barely remembered it. Just one of many foggy moments. I only had a few clicks of clarity every day. The rest was filled with the agonising urge to kill everyone on board this ship. When I could think clearly, I knew that wouldn't bring Laurel back to me, but as soon as I lost my grip on reality again, it made perfect sense. They were keeping me from her. They were killing me.
I'd long lost track of time. Had it been days, weeks or months since I'd last held Laurel in my arms? I could still remember her scent. The way she'd felt when her body was pressed against mine. The sound of her laugh.
She was gone. Now all I had to do was wait for the end. The fýst would kill me. It was a slow, violent process. If I didn't get free from my restraints and die battling my friends and crewmates, I'd perish here on this bed, strapped down like an animal. Already I was getting weaker. I could no longer hold food down. And throughout, my mating axe burned as if on fire.
I'd always hoped I'd die in battle, glorious and drunk on the blood of my enemies. I would kill many, injure even more, leaving a lasting legacy. My foes would speak of me in hushed tones long after I was gone. My allies would sing songs about me.
But none of it was going to happen. The fýst was claiming me.
