Chapter 9

Two weeks passed by, after Ulfvaldr had left the forest. Indeed, the place where the Horse Primordial lived at, was far away, but Ulfvaldr had no idea just how far away it was. All he knew, was the general direction, so not only was it far away, but he travelled slowly. The reason for that was because he searched the entire way there, making sure to cover as much ground as possible. Thus, he kept travelling in a single direction, but his general area of travelling was several kilometres wide.

That’s why he had already been travelling for two weeks, and still hadn’t found a single clue to the Horse Primordial, even though he had already covered a very large distance. But he didn’t give up; it was paramount to him that he found those Primordials, so that he could return to his former humanity. It wasn’t just for himself that he wanted to become a mortal man once more, but for Tola. Tola was the only person in his life, and he would do just about anything to make her happy.

That’s why he kept travelling, in one single direction, for several months. However, after several months had passed by him, he ran into a wall. Or should I say, the ocean? After months of travelling and searching, he did indeed arrive at the ocean. However, the ocean was not his goal, and for some weird reason, he felt an unnatural, if not unconventional fear from the sea. As he neared closer and closer, that feeling grew larger and larger. It was like all of his senses were screaming at him, to not go into the water.

However, even though all about him told him not to enter the water, his curiosity struck him. Therefore, he decided to enter into the salty water of the sea. He thought that there shouldn’t be too much danger in it. After all, he was standing on a beach, and the water wouldn’t necessarily go above his feet, as long as he didn’t venture too deep.

Thus, he took a step forward, unto the warm sands that were illuminated in the shallow light of the moon. Another step, and he got closer, and closer, until he was only a few steps away, from the point where the sea water reached, as it surged up the sands, time and time again. Then, as the ocean fled down the sands once more, Ulfvaldr took a big step forwards, in a surge of courage. Then, his eyes followed the sea line, as it crept closer and closer, with the speed of a snail, as the flow of time slowed down around him.

Closer and closer it got, until finally, it was only a fingers length from his toes. And then, time returned to normal, and the water surrounded his feet, as he suddenly felt a great surge of weakness, and fell to his knees.

“Ghaaaah,” he gasped, as all the breath was sucked out of his already breathless lungs. He felt all the strength in his body quickly fade away, as the water touched his shins and hands, until finally, the water returned to whence it came, and he felt just the smallest amount of power return to him.

In a surge of pure willpower, he lunged away from the wet sands, unto drier land, away from the sea. Even after he got away, he felt vastly weaker than before, and could barely even stand. Even as he lied on the sand, he was gasping uncontrollably, not for breath, but from sheer weakness.

Thus, he lay there for hours on end, feeling his strength slowly return, until he saw the glimmers of light rise from the distant horizon. Slowly, he rose up from the ground, and walked away, to find cover from the burning sun.

Even after he found a lair, and even after the sun set again, he still didn’t leave, He waited for a full two days, until he was recovered fully. All that from his feet and shins being touched by water. But it still puzzled him to no end. He had often touched water before, but never had he been weakened like that before. He truly didn’t understand. Was it only the water of the ocean that would cause such harm? He simply didn’t have the answer to such a question.

After two full days of recovery, he left the small cover he had found, and ventured back in the direction he first came, back towards the forest of the Wolf. Since he couldn’t cross the sea, he could only go back in that direction, and search even more meticulously.

Thus, he spent another two weeks, searching every corner and crevice he could find, but he still didn’t find anything. However, this time, he hadn’t even made it a quarter of the way yet. However, one day, as he was walking a dark forest, he saw a glimmering light, through the closely packed trees. With his curiosity peaked, he started walking towards the direction of the light, only to find a small group of humans. As he saw them, he felt a slight thirst in his throat, but he quickly shook his head. He promised Tola that he would never drink the blood of a human again.

Instead, he observed them for a while, trying to find out where they were from, but it didn’t take him long to figure out that he couldn’t even understand their speech. They were speaking a language he had never even heard of before. But at least he was pretty certain that they were hunters, judging from the bows, spears, and the dead animal by their side. They also seemed to have a merry time, as they sat around their fire, drinking a strange liquid, and laughing heartily.

However, just as Ulfvaldr started having fun, observing their strange behaviour, he noticed that they were no longer alone. It seemed like several wolves had surrounded them, and were about to have a midnight snack. But to Ulfvaldr, this wasn’t a threat, but an opportunity. If he could gain their trust, he could probably learn their language rather quickly. Then, he could ask them if they knew anything about the Horse Primordial, or the Golden Valley.

Thus, he closed his eyes and calmed his mind. Then, he jumped into the midst of them, at an almost normal speed, and rolled over to a spear, once more at a just a bit over normal speed, then he grabbed the spear. As soon as the spear was in his hand, he turned around, raised it high above his head, and threw into the woods. The spear pierced through the air, at a speed as if a normal, albeit strong, human had thrown it.

The four hunters immediately noticed Ulfvaldr, as he jumped into their midst, and immediately grabbed their spears, ready to fight him. However, as they saw him throw the spear into the woods, they were dumbfounded. They had never of anyone killing their opponent by throwing a spear in the opposite direction.

However, only a moment later, they heard the pained howl of a dying wolf, and they suddenly understood. Immediately, they turned towards the dark woods, ready to fight whatever would come out. One of the hunters grabbed another spear, and threw it to Ulfvaldr, who easily caught it.

One of the hunters said something to Ulfvaldr, however, he didn’t have the faintest idea what he meant. Instead, he decided to return his own words to them,

“I saw the wolves, and thought I’d warn you,” he said, in his own tongue. As expected, the hunters didn’t understand him at all, but now they were fairly certain that Ulfvaldr didn’t understand them either.

Just after Ulfvaldr spoke his words, several wolves rushed out through the woods, ready to kill their prey. One of the wolves rushed towards Ulfvaldr, who easily stepped to the side, and stabbed his spear into the wolf’s side, piercing its heart, instantly killing it. As the first wolf lay dead, he turned to the next wolf that was attacking one of the hunters. The shaft of the hunter’s spear, was lodged in the mouth of the wolf, stopping it from biting him, but the wolf did its best to claw at the hunter. And it was somewhat successful, as the hunter already had several shallow wounds on his body.

But the wolves struggle was short lived, as Ulfvaldr pierced his spear into the neck of the wolf, quickly killing it. The hunter looked surprised, and said some words, presumably a thank you. However, they didn’t have time to chat, as there were still several wolves. Two wolves were trying to kill two of the hunters, while the last hunter was being ganged upon by two more wolves.

Ulfvaldr quickly pointed the saved hunter to one of the others, while he himself, rushed over to the hunter being ganged upon. He was already in dire straits, as he had fallen to the ground, and one wolf was biting fiercely into his side, while he just barely managed to keep the other at bay, while grimacing in pain.

Ulfvaldr managed to rush over to him in three large steps. As soon as he arrived, he lunged his spear into the side of one wolf, then lifted it up, all while he grabbed the second wolf with his bare hand. The other hunters were looking at him in awe, as he directly threw the wolf in his hand, into a tree, and smashed the other into the ground, killing it. Then, only a short instant later, as he had freed his spear, he threw it at the wolf that was whimpering by the tree.

The first hunter had already managed to help his friend kill the wolf, but they were both too dumbfounded by Ulfvaldr’s display, to help their other friend. Thus, Ulfvaldr didn’t waste a second, and lunged at the last wolf. Once more, he directly grabbed the wolf with his hand, and grounded it with a smash. Then, he repeatedly smashed its face with his fist, with an almost manic expression.

When he was certain that the wolf was dead, and his hand was dirtied with blood and brain matter, he stood back up. When he finally saw the four hunters’ expression, he realized that he might have overdone it. He even tried to hold back, so that he wouldn’t seem unnatural. However, just as he thought that they would run away, they ran up to him, started shaking him, and jumped up and down, all while saying some words that he couldn’t understand. However, one thing was for sure; they were really excited and gleeful; all, except for one them. One of the hunters had been gravely wounded, when he was ganged up on by two wolves.

The hunters tried asking him all kinds of questions, but they quickly remembered that he couldn’t even understand them, and calmed down. Instead, Ulfvaldr grabbed a pointy stick, and started drawing on the ground. Using the stick, Ulfvaldr told them a heart wrenching story, of how his entire tribe was killed by fierce predators, and how he had to flee for his life, until he had gotten so far away from home that he couldn’t even understand their languages.

Being the gullible simpletons they were, they naturally fell completely for it, and didn’t doubt in the slightest. As a thanks for saving their lives, they naturally asked Ulfvaldr to come with them, through gestures of hand. Even though he was slightly hesitant to be amongst humans once again, he did agree, as it was his reason for saving them.

After story telling was over, and they had done what they could for the wounded hunter, the hunters seemed to want to sleep, but Ulfvaldr shook his head. As they looked on in confusion, and slight wariness, he grabbed the stick once more. This time, he would tell them a heart wrenching story, of how he was cursed by the Sun God, in exchange for the power to defend his tribe, only to fail, and be forever cursed by the light of day. Of course, they believed him unconditionally, and even shed a few tears.

Of course, Ulfvaldr didn’t tell them the true extent of his powers, or that he had to drink blood to survive. He needed them to trust him, and if they thought he was a monster, that might prove slightly hard to accomplish. Thus, the five set off. The hunters weren’t too scared of the night, as they were accompanied by Ulfvaldr. They might not realize just how powerful he was, but they knew he could see and hear well, even in darkness.

Thus, the five walked for a few hours, until they reached the village the hunters came from. It was not a large village; it only had a few houses, and everyone was asleep, apparently. When they finally entered the village, one of the five hunters shouted out some unknown words, making the villagers aware of their presence.

Not a minute later, seemingly all of the villagers came running out of their little huts, to that see their brave hunters had returned; in the middle of the night. Indeed, the villagers were rather worried, and when they saw a stranger in their midst, that worry only elevated. However, the same hunter that shouted their presence, stood forwards, and seemed to explain their situation. As soon as he finished, four women rushed forwards.

Three of them ran up to Ulfvaldr, presumably to thank him, while the fourth ran up to the last hunter, the worry very apparent on her expression. She immediately brought him further into the village, and was quickly followed by a few other women, as well as a very old man, who wore several animal bones on his body. Ulfvaldr assumed that he had to be a Shaman, for him to wear such an outfit.

After the wounded hunter was brought to rest, the rest if the villagers gathered in the middle of the village, where a fire was started. The leader of the hunters then started to explain in detail about Ulfvaldr’s situation. His plight, as well as his strength. Many of the villagers were both amazed and saddened, for such a noble man, to be cursed by the Sun God. It was indeed a very sad story, but Ulfvaldr believed the true story to be even worse.

What was worse; for you to lose your entire family and friends, even after trying your hardest to save them, or you killing them yourself, in a monstrous frenzy?

After they were finished discussing Ulfvaldr, everyone returned to their huts, leaving a lone Ulfvaldr behind. And like that, he sat still, until the sun started rising from the east. Only then, did he enter the hut of the first hunter, and rested until dusk.

And indeed, the moment the sun set, his eyes opened, only to meet the gaze of others. Surrounding him, were several children, and a few adults, including the hunter, whose hut he had slept in. As soon as the children saw him wake up, they ran away in fright. The hunter was left back, as the other adults left the building, avoiding his gaze. The hunter, however, didn’t seem to fear him in the slightest; he only had admiration for Ulfvaldr.

As Ulfvaldr sat up from his little bed, the hunter started pointing at himself, while saying,

“Starolf.”

He kept saying his name a few times, then he pointed at Ulfvaldr, expecting him to say his own name. A few seconds passed, but Ulfvaldr quickly caught on.

“Ulfvaldr,” he said. Starolf gave a content smile, as he repeated the name. Then, he waved Ulfvaldr to follow him, and left the hut. He spent the rest of the night showing Ulfvaldr around, and introducing him to the villagers, and even teaching him a few words and meanings.

And just like that, several months passed by, while Ulfvaldr spent his time with the tribe, learning their language, and becoming friends with them. He even helped them greatly. He became their head hunter, as when he went to hunt, they would always find prey, thanks to his great senses. And he most definitely gained the reputation of being the fiercest warrior in the area, as several men, from both the village, and other tribes, had challenged him to a fight. Naturally, he always won.

There were even a few fair ladies that had asked him for his heart, but he always refused them. There was no place for anyone, but Tola in his heart. And for every second he spent in the tribe, he never forgot about her.

By the time he had spent almost an entire year with them, he had completely mastered their language. Of course, it had taken him a very short amount of time to actually learn it, but he purposely made it seem like it took longer, as to seem more natural. One moonlit night, he was heading towards a lone hut, on the top of a small hill; the hut of the Shaman. He had rarely spoken with him, in the year he had spent there, but now he wanted to see him. He wanted to know if he knew anything about the Horse Primordial, or the Golden Valley.

Thus, he entered the hut, to see the Shaman grinding bones into a fine power. The old man immediately got aware of his presence, and turned around.

“Need anything?” He asked in his hoarse voice. Ulfvaldr nodded his head, and stepped further into the hut.

“Have you ever heard of the Primordials?” He asked directly. The Shaman looked at him for a while, before answering,

“I’m afraid not. What are they?” He asked back, as his curiosity had been peaked.

“That doesn’t matter, but let me ask you another question. Do you know about a golden valley that is always covered in light, and grass made of gold?” He asked once more. This time, the Shaman got even more curious.

“You know; I’ve always been a bit suspicious about you. You are much stronger than a normal human, and can’t touch sunlight. All that was explained, but what I can’t understand is your diet. No one has ever seen you eat anything; I even asked the villagers. But oh well, you are good for this village, and I can’t sense any ill intent from you. But to answer your question, no, I have never heard of such a place. Why? What do you need with such a place?” The old shaman said.

“The reason why no one has ever seen me eat, is simple; I don’t eat. And for why I need to find that place, all I’ll tell you is, it’s the key to getting rid of my curse. However, I’ll make my leave now. It was nice chatting with you,” he said, as he turned around and left the dim hut.

The old Shaman stood in the doorway, slightly puzzled by how emotionless he was,as he watched the mysterious stranger of the tribe walk down the hill, towards the village.

As his business was finished with the Shaman, he walked towards the hut of Starolf. Inside the hut, Starolf was getting ready to sleep. Starolf was one of the few men in the village who didn’t have a mate, nor child. The woman who had run up to him the year prior, had been his mother, but sadly she passed away just a few months ago.

The same happened to the wounded hunter. The wounds he got from the wolf got infected, and he died only a few days later. Ulfvaldr remembered well the tears of his mate and child. He didn’t know why, but he felt strangely empty back then.

“Oh, Ulfvaldr? What brings you here? I was just about to go to sleep,” Starolf said.

“I’ve come to say my goodbyes, I’m afraid,” he said, much to Starolf’s surprise.

“What, you’re leaving? Why?”

“I can’t stay any longer. I, I haven’t been completely honest with you people. The reason why I’m here isn’t because I ran, but because I searched. I searched for the cure to my curse. And I wasn’t completely alone. I have a mate, waiting for me, far away from here. However, I like you, I like the villagers, and I like this place, so when this is all over, I will come back. This won’t be the last time you see me. But for now… it’s goodbye,” he said, in one last breath, then disappeared from Starolf’s eyes, before he could even say a single word.

In but a single breath, he had already gotten far away from the village. The world surged around him, as he ran on top of tree tops, towards the place he had gotten to call his home. It had already been a year since he left, so he needed to go back. He already could bear it no longer; he had to see her, he had to see Tola.

Thus, he surged past trees and mountains, rivers and plains, for a full week, stopping only during the day. Then finally, he arrived back at that dark forest, where the old woman made her home. A moment more, and he arrived outside the old hut. Another moment, and he stood inside it, and in front of him was the old Shaman that sent him on this journey.

“You’re back,” she said, not as a question, but as a fact.

“I found the Wolf, and I killed it. But I couldn’t find the horse, no matter how much I searched. By the way, where is Tola?” He asked, as he looked around he hut, trying to find her, but to no avail.

“Do you have the heart?” She asked, as she finally turned around.

“I do,” he answered, as he took the heart out of the hide bag he first put it in. Strangely enough, it hadn’t rotted a bit, since he first killed the wolf. At least it wasn’t beating. The old woman immediately took it out of his hand, the moment she saw it. Her eyes glimmered, as she held it front of them.

“Where’s Tola?” He asked once more, but she still didn’t answer. Instead, she took the heart to her table, and started doing something to it. She made several cuts, and chanted lowly, doused it in several powders, all while her eyes were glimmering uncontrollably.

“Where’s Tola?” He asked again, this time a bit more annoyed. This time, the look in the old woman’s eyes, got a whole degree more serious, and a slightly wicked smile appeared on her face.

“I made her go to the village, and tell them all about you; how you killed several people of their tribe, how you kept some of them for food, all of that stuff. Naturally, they killed her; that was the entire point,” she said.

As her words entered his ears, he found it increasingly hard to breath, and he felt his chest tighten. He took a step forward,

“You killed her?” He asked, his voice hoarse. The thoughts going through his head, were on the point of slaughter. He wanted to kill her, but even more, he didn’t want to believe her. He took another step forward.

“You could say that,” she said, as she stabbed her knife into the Wolf’s heart. As Ulfvaldr’s eyes watched the knife go deeper and deeper into the heart, he suddenly felt an extreme pain, as the heart started withering in front of his eyes.

“Wh-what did you do?!” he screamed, as the unbearable pain only increased.

“It’s a pity that you didn’t find the other items. That way I could have gained even more power,” she said, as her appearance started rapidly changing. Her gray hair started gaining colour, and her wrinkles started disappearing, until she suddenly regained a youthful appearance.

“What did you do?” He asked once more, with an even weaker voice.

“I took some of your power for my own, and I used the heart, as well as the sacrifice of someone dear to you, to kill you,” she said, as she turned around, and started walking towards the door. As she drew increasingly nearer to the door, Ulfvaldr’s vision started to fade, his words were stuck in his throat, and he started feeling increasingly weaker, until finally, everything went black.