I crouched down beside Sigi's empty working space, she left not a single item behind. Not even a trace of where she had left to, she was smart to do so. I opened a box that was under her table, full of rubbish and scrunched up notes.
"Waylin, can you please take this and see if anyone can gain some useful information out of it?" I asked, handing the box to the middle aged man. He nodded and took the box.
"Do you really believe Sigi would have done this?" Vili asked, he stood leaning against a wall near by, his face covered in disappointment.
"I don't want to believe it, but she is the only lead we have now. Why else we should lie about leaving to see family in the North? The only people living in the realm are those of the village." I said as I started pacing slowly.
"Do you think it might be worth exploring the mountains for any trace of her?" Vili asked, he had a good point.
"Hmm, probably. One the companions get back I will get a team together. Flying would be much quicker, but I don't want her to see us coming." I said as I played with a bead in my braids.
"Where you go, I will follow you Freya." Vili said a smile, I smiled back knowing he would do whatever it takes to help us. As if on perfect timing, Keon burst through the door on the invention's floor, his face full of life as if he had just one a battle.
"I have NEVER felt so alive!" He roared, scaring multiple of the workers in the room.
"Aye, and you just about scared the life out of everyone here." Vili said with a laugh. Keon laughed and shoved Vili in a playful manner. Keon walled up to me and placed his hands on my shoulders.
"Freydis... I heard it speak to me, my inner beast spoke to me. I could feel it, as if it were right beside me! Its calmness, the peace it felt. I never knew this was possible." Keon said, his hands gripping tight on my shoulders, his eyes full of wonder.
"You completed the connection. It's an amazing feeling." I said with a smile.
"You... You heard Anacalongon?" He asked with a wide smile.
"I did." I smiled back, being able to communicate vaguely with your inner beast was the sign of a strong connection. The ability to speak with the strongest of all living beasts was true and real power though.
"You can all speak with your dragons?" Vili asked, walking towards us.
"Yes, but only in short words. The connections are strong, but we will work to make them the strongest they've ever been." I said.
"That is beyond amazing!" Vili shouted, it pleased me that he was always as excited about learning new things about our dragons as we were. Keon gave me one last squeeze of my shoulder before walking proudly out of the inventions room. As he did I felt Vili's presence come closer behind me.
"Do you think, now you can speak with it, to see if Anacalongon will accept me so we can fly together?" Vili asked softy. Ever since we first met he has wanted to fly, not with anyone else but me. To fly the skies on the black beast, the most powerful creature in the universe. But every attempt he made to come close, ended harshly. I had control over my beast, but instincts of Anacalongon would come through whenever anyone other than my companions tried to come near. It broke my heart that I was not able to carry Vili through the skies, I knew a way. But I had never told him such a tale.
"You cannot be accepted Vili. There is but one way, and I will not tell you that." I said turning to face him, his eyes looked sad. Only a person mated to the beast, could tame the beast. If Vili and I were to lay together and committed to life long bond, only then would Anacalongon would accept him. It is why, I had never laid with another man before, nor would I. The power a mated one has over their companion is too great a risk, especially male. My other companions laid with many women before, but they knew their boundaries with such a thing.
"Please, Freydis. Let us unite as one." Vili said grabbing my hands.
"We cannot Vili, it is too great a risk. A risk that may take a toll on what we share here now. I will not see that fade." I said, gripping his hands. He let out a loud sigh and looked towards the floor momentarily.
"Or empower everything we both dreamed of us becoming." He said looking into my eyes, his beautiful blue eyes fixed on mine.
"I cannot place this burden on you Vili, it will cost you too much." I said, he had never been so adamant about this subject. He has suggested it many times but he has never pushed it this much before. I looked into his sad eyes, I don't understand why he wanted this so much now.
"Why now Vili, why has this become so important to you now?" I asked, his eyes meeting mine once again.
"I feel a connection to you Freya... A pushing urge, a longing, something I cannot explain as I do not understand it fully. But being with you, uniting with you is the only thing that begins to cease it." He said, his voice full of concern.
"I am not going anywhere, Vili. You have me." I said with a smile.
"Not in the ways I want you though, I want to be a apart of you, in you." He said, he eyes full of mystery.
"In me? What do you mean?" I asked puzzled, how would one be inside of me? And then it hit me, like a fist to the face.
"I want to lay with you, Freya." Vili said, his eyes almost glowing blue. A near by worker dropped a box, over hearing our conversation. I was just as shocked as they were.
"Vili, I..."
"No, don't say a word. That is how I feel about you, how much I want you. I think you need to know that." Vili said, after a moment of silence he dropped my hands and walked towards the exit. The workers cleared a path for his huge body as it stormed through, his black fur cape lightly brushing the ground and his great large battle axe hung to his back. I never thought a berserker, a commander of our warriors, son of the Earl, would capture my attention. It was beyond strange.
A week had passed since my return from Asgard, the days were filled with planning and training. Ivarr and Loki were sent to the human realm to start tracking the Dark Knights, their objective being to capture and return one here to me. Keon, Koba and myself were preparing for a trip to the Northern side of the realm, to where the mountains touched the skies and the snow was 2 foot deep. My realm was a 200 mile radius from where the castle lie in the centre, a huge dome. With each of our berserker warriors at our side and a small team of their best fighters, we had a group ready to search the North.
We all met down by the training grounds for the warriors, Vili's turf on the western side of the castle. The grounds were large open fields of grass and dirt, archery targets laid out everywhere and wooden weapons for training. There was an access point by the castle, our warriors had three floors of the castle to them selves. As Keon, Koba and I walked down the stairs and down onto the training grounds, we observed the warriors in training. A man yelling at the younger recruits was easily noticed, Vili did not train these men lightly.
"What are you trying to do?! Scratch his balls for him? FIGHT!" He yelled at a man who seemed to be new at battle, he picked up his sword and begun swinging it back at the other man. Vili was dressed in his black leather and furs as usual, carrying his two handed battle axe on his shoulder and balancing it with his free arm. His ruffled black hair was getting long on top, reaching his eye brows as it fell forward, the sides of his head still clean shaven. He watched the warriors for any sign of restraint or incorrect formation, he was particular about his training.
"You know, he would make a great King." Keon said, I looked up at the man in disgust. Now that we were all connected, they could sense my feelings towards the man.
"Stop, Keon." I said as I looked back over the fields, Vili's eyes had met mine as he started walking towards us. I had not spoken to him since he admitted wanting to lay with me. But we had not had the time for speaking of such matters.
"Where in the lands of the Gods did you get these men? They're all barely off their mothers tit! Still drinking milk with their maiden hands" Vili yelled.
"Don't poison the Queens ears with that filthy mouth of yours." Joked Keon as they shot each other devilish smiles, my ears were poisoned long ago by all of their filthy jokes.
"You helped to recruit these men remember." I said as I looked at the training men, they needed more time. Vili rolled his eyes as he slung his battle axe onto his back.
"Are we ready to leave then?" He asked as he faced his warriors, crossing his large arms over his even bigger chest, my eyes wondered to the tattoos that covered his arms.
"We will after someone gets her fill of staring." Keon said looking down at me with a smile. Koba looked at me with the same smile.
"Staring at what?" Vili said as he turned to face me, his blue eyes full of sarcasm. He knew I was staring at him. I rolled my eyes and walked past them all and towards the horses who were saddled and ready for the journey ahead. There was 15 of us all going, we didn't usually travel in such sizes but we didn't know what awaited us in the North. At the front of the saddle horses was my beauty. A beautiful white horse with a black mane.
"Hello pretty." I said as I stroked the horses neck. Vili rode up beside me on his black mare.
"Come now Freydis, we don't have time for staring." He said, his voice full of sarcasm.
"Speak for yourself." I said not bothering to look back at him, he let out a laugh knowing he had won this time. I mounted my white mare, noticing I was the last one, I begun to ride ahead. The company slowly followed. The ride was going to take 6 days total. Two days to get there, one day to explore, two days back. A decent sized ride. By the time we return, the inventions would have updated some necessities in the castle too. As we rode through the gates of the castle and into the open fields I begun to reminisce, I used to explore these forests all the time. Whether it be with my companions, or Vili, I started to miss the adventures we had. As the rode along the path I observed my surroundings, the grass was thick and green full of life and colour. The tree line ahead was much the same, and above that the mountains of the North could just be seen through the trees. I recall Vili, trying to walk up to our dragons in these fields, it ended in him running for his life to the trees for cover. I chuckled at the thought.
"A coin for your thoughts?" Vili asked as he rode beside me.
"Just reminiscing on the time you almost became a roast pork in these fields." I laughed.
"Are you referring to me as a pig?!" Vili yelled as he pretended to be hurt.
"If the show fits Vili." I laughed, as he did too. We rode in silence for some time, listening to the men sing songs and tell tales.
"You know, if you let your beast accept me, I would not of been a near pork roast that day." Vili said as he looked at the tree line that was approaching.
"Vili, you know I can't do that." I said, looking over at him.
"And why is that?" Keon said, trotting his chestnut mare in line with our horses.
"It truly is quiet easy." Keon said, I shot him a look as I noticed he obtained Vili's attention too.
"Keon." I warned, he dismissed my warning and continued.
"To become connected with a God and its beast, you need to lay together. But, a connection needs to be felt prior. Like a signal that he or she will be connected. Only then will that man or woman be accepted by the dragon." Keon said.
"Like and urge? A pulling like a moth to a flame?" Vili asked as he stared at the road ahead.
"Correct! My young apprentice. The urge needs to be felt by both parties, that's how to know you're a mated couple. A strong enough connection that you connect with their beast too." Keon said. I watched Vili, his face scrunched up as he thought. I remember his words, that he was drawn to me, a connection that he did not understand. He knew I felt it too.
"But, once the connection is complete and they two have laid together, they are connected. If one slips and tries to bed another, the connection will be lost never to ignite again." Keon said. It was a life long commitment, a bond that would last an eternity. Breaking this, would break any formation once build by the pair. I remained silent, only to watch Vili's face processed the information. I never had the heart to tell Vili, I would not allow him to sacrifice his life to be with me. I could bare him no children, he knew that. We rode in silence for sometime, Keon drifted slowly back to Koba, leaving Vili and I to ride in silence. He hadn't looked my way or said a word, his silence was frightening.
"Do you feel it too?" Vili finally asked, we had reached the forest before he had spoken a word.
"Can you define that Vili?" I asked, I knew what he meant but I needed to hear it.
"You told me in new york you had feelings for me. Do you feel the pull, the connection we shared? The one Keon described." He said as he looked back at me, his face was full of confusion. We both knew the answer, neither of us knew what the outcome,
"Yes, I do. More now than ever."