Valkyrie's Shadow

Chapter 11

Ludmila opened her eyes and was greeted by a wall of white. A wall of white…and a smell.

She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to sort her scrambled senses. Fingers and toes; arms and legs…something was pressing down on her legs. Looking down – or was it up? – the sight of a giant, armoured black pauldron brought recent events flooding back to the forefront of her mind.

The concussion arrows had succeeded in bringing an avalanche down on their heads. Though it was clear that no one would be able to escape, they weren’t quite done yet. Ludmila dashed behind the armoured Frost Giant’s – Sigurd’s? – legs as the torrent of ice and other debris smashed into them. Her gamble paid off: Sigurd activated Invulnerable Fortress to withstand the initial impact. Ludmila activated Fortress a moment before the Giant’s Defensive Art expired.

After that…nothing. The mountain was unimpressed by their defiant bid for survival and buried them anyway.

How much time had passed since then? The Frost Giant’s ravaged corpse had apparently sheltered her from the worst of the avalanche; there was even a large hollow left in its wake. Her elemental protection prevented her from freezing, and the Ring of Sustenance kept hunger at bay. She briefly imagined emerging from the ice, only to discover that years had passed. No…the fresh stench of death would have long dissipated if that was the case.

Though it might actually happen if I can’t get out from under this corpse.

She tested the weight of the shoulder over her legs. Platinum-rank physical combatants were far stronger than the average Human being, but the Giant probably weighed four or five tonnes – more, considering there was a suit of full plate mail. In attempting to move her legs, she shifted the Giant upwards a bit. Thankfully the joints of Sigurd’s armour were flexible enough for her to manipulate.

Ludmila activated Ability Boost and edged out from under the corpse bit by bit. In a few minutes, she was free. The hollow she was stuck in stood barely a metre high, and she went about on her hands and knees trying to find traces of fresh air. There were a few cracks in the jumble of ice and stone, but none were large enough for her to crawl out of. She turned back around to examine the portion of Sigurd’s corpse sticking out of the debris and considered her options.

There were dozens of glass arrows in her Infinite Haversack, with plenty of fire and concussion arrows amongst them. She doubted that there was enough to melt or blast her way out. She wasn’t even certain how deeply she was buried, but there was an oppressive feeling to her surroundings that suggested that it wasn’t just a few metres to freedom. With enough time, she could probably dig her way out with Lady Shalltear’s glaive: the weapon had proven that it could slice through mundane materials with ease.

Then there was Sigurd. Such a powerful opponent probably had more than a few magic items. At the least, there was whatever was conferring the Freedom effect when she had tried to stall him with tanglefoot arrows. Ludmila wasn’t sure to what extent it would work, but if being stuck in ice was considered a movement restriction, she might be able to just walk out.

She crept over to his right hand and struggled to work off his metal gauntlet. There were no rings on his fingers, nor any sign of a bracelet. After removing her own, she stuck her hand into the Giant’s gauntlet. Nothing happened. It wasn’t a magic item, else it would have shrunk to fit her.

Ludmila crawled over Sigurd’s arm to check his waist. There was a belt, but she couldn’t tell what it was, or if it was enchanted at all. The corpse was also buried in such a way that only his right shoulder and head stuck out, so she couldn’t get it off. She couldn’t recall if he had any pouches, but none were exposed to her. Frowning, she went back to Sigurd’s head to check for accessories.

His helmet looked about as plain as his gauntlet, and she couldn’t see if there were any earrings under it. The cowl that was wrapped around his shoulders looked like it could be removed, as well as the dull metal chain around his neck. Ludmila unclasped the cowl and slowly tugged it out from under him. When she moved to equip it, the black fabric tightened and shrunk to fit her. She didn’t feel herself change in any way, so it probably did not augment her physical attributes. Aside from that, she had no idea what it did.

The necklace was adorned with a single polished tooth. It, too, adjusted in size when she moved to put it on. She looked down at the tooth again. It had originally been so large that Ludmila thought it could only be from a Dragon or some other giant creature. Now, it looked like a fang that might have come from any number of carnivores. As with the cowl, she felt nothing change upon equipping it.

Reaching into her Infinite Haversack, Ludmila broke open a tanglefoot arrow and spilt its contents into a corner. She dipped her finger into the alchemical glue, then pulled it away just as easily. Removing the necklace, she tried it again with the same result. After removing the cowl, her finger became stuck. She awkwardly re-equipped the cowl with her free hand and freed her finger.

Taking a deep breath, Ludmila crawled forward into the nearby wall. She ended up with a face full of ice. As she brushed it off, she decided that the idea was probably a bit too optimistic.

Without knowing what the tooth necklace did, she decided to leave her Lesser Amulet of Natural Armour equipped. Reaching into her bag, she pulled out an extra globe of magical dye, recolouring the cowl to match the rest of her equipment. She checked over the exposed portions of the corpse one last time, then called her glaive to hand. With great shame over the fact that she was using such an excellent weapon as a digging implement, Ludmila tentatively started to scrape at the ceiling.

After a minute, something came loose and a great amount of snow and debris started to spill from the ceiling. Ludmila scrambled away, hoping that she hadn’t buried herself. Eventually, it stopped. She pushed as much as she could into an unused part of the hollow. The portion that had fallen left a space where she could stand. There still wasn’t any sign of the surface, but at least it was now easier to move around. She tried to figure out the orientation of the mountain slope as best as she could, then set about clearing a way out.

Minutes and hours passed as Ludmila slowly tunnelled up a moderate incline. Every once in a while, the ceiling gave way and she could only press herself against the ice, letting the debris tumble past her. Once she settled into an admittedly haphazard routine, her thoughts turned to the fate of the expedition.

Had they been able to escape? She wasn’t sure how many Frost Giants were nearby when she brought the mountain tumbling down on their heads, but it was likely that they had split up to go down either side of the glacier. Given the rate at which the Giants advanced, the expedition’s best chance of escape would have been to go down into the gorge below where they could avoid the worst of the storm. With Feoh Raizo so close, however, the temptation to flee to the deceptively close promise of safety may have been too great. If that was the case, then they were probably all dead.

Not knowing how much time had passed was also a problem for Ludmila. If her timing was really bad, she would surface just as the Frost Giants were returning from their ambush. If she had been buried for too long, a vast number of the Undead might be waiting for her. The lesser Undead were not a problem for her, but there had been so many Undead on the glacier and in the pass that she was certain stronger ones could manifest.

The ceiling started to collapse again, and Ludmila waited as the ice and rocks bounced off of her armour. A constant moan filled the air – she had broken through to the surface. What greeted not Giants or the Undead, however, but the howling winds of a mountain storm. She looked over the edge of the opening, peering into the surroundings. Beyond a hundred metres, her vision was completely obscured. What she could see was not much different. The ground was littered with the leavings from the avalanche and layered in snow, creating a speckled field of dirty white.

There was no sign of Giants or any Undead, but it didn’t mean much when she could only see so far. Ludmila lowered herself back down, hoping that no one would notice the hole that she had emerged from. It would be better to wait out the storm and make her escape when visibility was improved. Surviving, only to be killed by a boulder from an unseen Giant was the last thing she wanted. She withdrew an extra bowstave from her Infinite Haversack – the longbow that she carried previously could not be found – and strung it, testing its pull as she waited for the storm to pass.

Several hours went by. A shudder sent rivulets of loose powder down from above. Another shudder followed, then more in steady cadence. Something large was moving around nearby.

The steps came closer, then stopped. Ludmila dared not go up again to peek outside. After a while, the steps resumed, then stopped again several moments later. They travelled a ways, increasing in intensity, then fading away again. Ludmila edged deeper into her tunnel.

Had she been spotted? The pacing above might be a Frost Giant searching the area, periodically stopping to look around for places where she might be hidden. Ludmila waited quietly as it continued to move about.

Eventually, the steps receded into the distance. Ludmila carefully crept back up and looked around. It was still snowing, but the storm looked to have finally passed. With the much-improved visibility, she stared wide-eyed over the landscape.

The avalanche had deposited her a third of the way down the glacial valley, but it had continued to run its course from there. A huge field of debris stretched out along the length of the moraine, scouring away whatever Undead might have remained there. As she continued to look around, Ludmila found the Giant that had walked away.

It was far stronger than she was – about as strong as the huntress that had accompanied Sigurd. The way it carried itself, however, did not match the gait of a warrior or a huntress. Lifting herself out of the tunnel, Ludmila stalked after it to get a better look.

As she closed the distance, she could identify strings of feathers and bones hanging from the Giant’s garb. Multiple satchels hung from its belt. It carried a short – if six metres could be called short – spear in one hand, using it as a walking stick. Several fetishes and other oddities hung from below the spear blade. The Giant slowly made its way up the glacier, its shock of long, frost-white hair whipping in the wind. It was seemingly oblivious to any dangers that might be nearby, and Ludmila considered the possible opportunity.

Though much larger than the Demihumans she was familiar with, this Giant’s garb marked it as some sort of mystic. According to Ilyshn’ish, it was possible to speak to one depending on the circumstances.

Ludmila looked over her shoulder, in the direction of Feoh Raizo. The Adventurer Guild continued to have issues with the Frost Giants without any opportunity for civilized diplomacy. Heading to the Dwarf city would mean her own safety, but it would produce no gains for the Sorcerous Kingdom. Looking back ahead of her, she continued following the Frost Giant.

Their trek brought her to the crest of the glacier, revealing a field of ice and snow that stretched beyond her sight. Craggy peaks broke out from the frozen crown of the Azerlisia mountains, creating a pristine and ancient landscape that was both breathtaking and alien at the same time. A place where Humans could never dwell and only a fortunate – or unfortunate – few would lay their eyes on.

The Giant turned and headed towards some sort of shelter nestled against the side of the nearby peak. As it approached the entrance, Ludmila called out to it.

“Excuse me.”

The Frost Giant turned in Ludmila’s direction, spear brandished. A face with chiselled, yet feminine features looked about until the Giant lowered her gaze towards her. The angle of the spear lowered, and the Giant furrowed her brow.

“Hobgoblin…?”

“Human,” Ludmila corrected her. “I am Baroness Ludmila Zahradnik of the Sorcerous Kingdom.”

For whatever reason, the head of the spear wavered when the word ‘Baroness’ left her mouth.

“What is your purpose here, Baroness?”

“I was here with the Sorcerous Kingdom’s Adventurer Guild,” Ludmila said, “but our attempts at diplomacy with your people have been dismal, at best. I was hoping I could speak with you.”

“Diplomacy,” the Frost Giant snorted. “Wait – was that your doing down there?”

“If you mean the avalanche, yes,” Ludmila replied. “I encountered four of your people, at least. Two went by the names of Sigurd and Brynhild.”

A wave of hostility washed over Ludmila. She tensed, ready to dart away if the Frost Giant charged her. If she started casting spells, Ludmila would loose a fire arrow towards her face.

“Brynhild was my closest friend,” the Frost Giant narrowed her eyes. “Sigurd was my husband. Are you saying that you killed them?”

“…I am.”

The sense of hostility reached a crushing intensity. Face twitching, the Frost Giant glared down at her. Then, all at once, the hostility vanished. The Giant returned her spear to an upright position.

“Then I have been rude,” she lowered her head. “I hope you will forgive my breach of proper conduct. I am called Gudrun. Baroness Ludmila Zahradnik: you are welcome in this place.”

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