Valkyrie Black

Chapter 15: Testing

Val soon found herself in a maze of false buildings and makeshift allies. She quickly found herself a dark shadow to hide in along a roof top along the main passage. Here, she didn’t need to worry about passerby’s seeing her, only focusing on Desmond.

Shortly, she could feel his presence enter the street and approach her hiding spot. When he had just passed beneath her, Val flipped soundlessly off the roof and sent a lightning-fast thrust at Desmond’s back. Her blade flowed seamlessly as she made her slash with her dagger just as she had done with countless Shadows. Her signature move was a seamless stroke through the chest and back across the neck.

 However, her blade didn’t complete the motion she had hoped and the next thing she knew, a fist connected with her temple, followed by a spinning kick to her neck that sent her sailing across the ground, tumbling like a limp rag doll.

When light finally broke through the black of her mind and vision, Desmond was towering over her.

Desmond frowned down at Valkyrie, assessing. “I admit you are better than I thought. No one has scored on me in many years.”

Val tried to move but her head throbbed and her neck felt like it was on fire. She felt nothing below that. Desmond’s face flashed with a hint of fear, and then chagrin. “Guess I was a bit more startled than I realized. Take this. you know what to do with it?” he held out a black crystal.

Val tried to reach for it, but nothing happened. Red flashed in her vision and alerts began to appear.

[ Critical Systems FAILURE ]

[ Analysis indicates significant spinal damage, skull fracture, concussion, and internal bleeding. ]

[ Insufficient Plasma available to initiate healing.]

“Damn. Here.” He lowered the crystal until it touched her ear. A tendril snaked out and wrapped around the stone. As the color drained, Val felt her spark send tendrils beneath her skin and begin mending her broken body. She finally sat up with a gasp, trying to draw in a full breath of air.

Desmond stepped back and rubbed his neck. “Sorry about that. I guess I wasn’t expecting your skill and overreacted with full power.”

Val glowered. It had been a painful victory, as small as it was. As the tendrils continued doing their work, her skin itched with every repair they made. She wondered if she could even count her strike as a victory, as broken as she had been moments ago. A kill at the cost of her own life didn’t seems like a good trade.

She hated that the first time she had faced off with a serious advisory after years of facing Shadows had ended as badly as the first time the street kids had cornered her. She might have scored a kill point, but the attempt had left her broken and near dead.

“Don’t worry. You can pay me back for that plasma unit later. You will not be able to score on me again so easily. I will redouble my own training. In the meantime, I will show you a few things before I head out on my own next mission.”

Once Val was back on her feet, Desmond continued, “First, the masters here can teach you to hone your physical skills and talents. You will be more powerful, faster, and better able to heal than anyone you normally encounter. However, that is only the beginning.”

Desmond tapped his head, “As Spark blessed, your ability to integrate with your spark with your daily life will be the only limit to how much more you can grow. Some of the Brotherhood have a spark as well. We know of at least 9, and they are top members of the brotherhood, each controlling whole territories with their businesses, political contacts, and likely deep connections to the darker side of society.”

“They will be more cunning, more ruthless because of it. They will also be impossibly strong. They have discovered that by feeding the Spark certain rare elements and metals they can improve bone strength, augment their human speed to levels that make them hard to detect by the human eye, and even speed the healing of broken bones to mere minutes instead of months. You have already shown that you figured out that last bit.”

Val nodded, careful as she moved her head, testing to see if her skull was still attached to her shoulders.

“If you stay here to train, you will be broken, beaten, subjected to extremes.  Our master trainers will test every inch of your resolve and push every limit. If you survive, you MIGHT advance to level two of the Hall. Should you die… well, the Dark Angel is back home, so it will be safe and there will be one less mouth to feed.”

“You have seen more than almost any other Calodon born. I give you this one last chance to chose to leave. After this, you must be committed to Suria above all else.”

His harsh tone startled Val but when she thought about it, how different would that be from the streets she had been living on? Maggie and Emma might miss her, but the street kids would knife her just as easily as look at her. No one cared if you starved. They only cared if you could pay. Val put a palm to her jaw and cracked it back into place before standing, a defiant glint in her eye.

Desmond grinned as he pulled his practice dagger back out and held it in front of him, crouching low. “Alright then, lets begin.”

Desmond trained with Valkryie for several days before he was called away on another mission. Before he left, he personally introduced her to several of the master trainers. While most would not be able to train her in the use and application of her spark, they would teach her the fundamentals of combat and survival.

Desmond check in on her from time to time when he was near the fort. One week, he brought a letter from Maggie.

“I was near Dockside, so I decided to drop in on them. When Maggie heard I could get a letter to you, she made me wait while she penned this.” He handed her a set of folded papers. One was a note from Maggie telling her how much she was missed. The other was a short note from Emma.

Dear Val, you are an amazing friend, and I would love for you to be back here. However, it is not safe for you in Dockside. Vex has issued a bounty for your capture. 1500 dret for whoever brings you in alive, 700 for your corpse. Val I am sure you realize that represents a month worth of food and dues for the kids of the den. Take heart in knowing you broke his nose when you left and he has smashed every mirror in the hideout because of it. Be safe, and know I miss you.

“Desmond… How do I get rid of a bounty?” Val asked.

Desmond held out his hand and she passed him the note. “Hmm, well the surest way is to kill the one who issued it. If there is no one to pay the bounty, it will go away. Another thing you can try is paying off the one who issued it. I suppose time will also lower people’s interest in you. Stay out of the area long enough to be forgotten.”

Val frowned, “I guess for now, I can stay here and wait it out a few years. Vex is not one to let go of a grudge just for coin.”

Desmond nodded, “Likely best for now. When you finish your training, no one will recognize you and enough time will have passed that most will have forgotten about you. I doubt this Vex will recognize you in a few years.”