Chương 112: Chapter 108 - Returning to Nordrak

Chelsea The wall was not exactly interesting. Chelsea lay in bed with her knees pulled to her chest, staring at the plain surface across the room. Looty was lodged between her cheek and the mattress. The ordinary nature of the wall gave her something to hold onto. She wanted more than anything to forget everything from today. The memories did not come in order.

They struck whenever they wanted, sharp and sudden, until she had no idea whether she was crying because of what she remembered or because she knew the next memory was waiting. A hand wrapped around her. Chelsea flinched. For a moment, she thought Passion had come back and was trying to comfort her the best she could. Passion had been trying all day. But this hand was bigger. Freya. Chelsea stiffened. She didn't exactly want to be near her right now. Freya had created this stupid class.

Chelsea knew it was more complicated than that but she didn't care. Freya curled her body around Chelsea from behind with careful restraint. Freya sucked at the whole creating a class thing. But this was a nice gesture, and Chelsea didn't exactly hate it. After a few seconds, Chelsea accepted the stupid forearm offered to her. She wrapped both arms around it and pressed her face into the palm. Stupid goddess. Stupid calloused palm. Chelsea pushed her face deeper into the hand.

Freya was at least smart enough not to talk. If she talked too soon, Chelsea was absolutely going to tell her off. She wrapped her tail around the outside of Freya's thigh and stayed there, breathing against her palm. This was the first time Freya had been in Chelsea's room since she moved in. That was a big step. Getting her to leave her room was difficult on the best days, and this had not been the best day.

"Do you want to talk about it?" she whispered sweetly in Chelsea's ear. This was her moment. Chelsea had a whole speech ready. She was going to lay into the stupid goddess. She was going to tell her exactly what she thought about the Havoc class and everything Freya had built. She rolled over while keeping her head in the very calloused palm. Then she looked at Freya's face.

"Why do you look like Truth?" Freya smiled and snickered.

"Because I just came from the bath with her and the others and thought you'd find it funny." Chelsea stared blankly at the stupid goddess. Then she groaned in frustration while rolling onto her back. She kept her head in Freya's palm because the hand was still comfortable and she was mad about that too.

"It's so frustrating how much you get me." She rolled back over to face her.

"I had this whole shitty speech ready in my head telling you off about making these stupid classes and making me have bloodlust and you end up doing this which is fucking hilarious by the way!"

"Glad I could help!" she replied with Brea's stupid perfect smile. Chelsea put her hand on Freya's face.

"Stop being so sweet! I'm mad at you!" Freya pushed her face into the hand.

"Why were you in the bath anyway? You don't bathe." She gasped.

"I do too! It's hard to explain the stuff gods bathe in but we bathe. I was in there to find out what happened to you. Why you were so upset." Chelsea narrowed her eyes.

"You snuck in to listen to what they talked about? That's so creepy." Freya laughed.

"No you little goof. I asked." The smile dropped from Chelsea's face. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author's preferred platform and support their work!

"You… you talked to them?"

"I'm allowed to talk to them. I just choose not to. Plus, I was really worried about you." Chelsea stared at her. The anger did not disappear, but it lost its shape for a moment. Freya had left her room, and she had gone to the bath. She had spoken to the Valkyr because Chelsea had come back broken and she was worried?

"You talked to them… for me?"

"I hope that's ok?" Freya asked, wondering if she'd overstepped. Chelsea moved her hand from Freya's face to the side of her head. She brushed some of Freya's hair over her ear.

"You're too good to me."

"Probably not a great time to mention it, but the bloodlust thing is a prerequisite for the class. Meaning you have it naturally." Freya added it quickly, as though trying to get the worst part out before Chelsea could settle.

"Ah. That actually helps," Chelsea said.

"Getting less mad at you by the second."

"Oh! And technically you picked the class?" she added.

"Oh no, the mad meter has started moving the other way." Chelsea let out a breath of laughter. Then the sound came back. Metal tearing. Flesh splitting. The wet rip of a body coming apart in her hands while Celeste laughed inside her. The memory hit so hard that the tiny bit of humor vanished instantly. Chelsea nearly burst into tears.

"Oh shh shh shh," Freya soothed as she pulled Chelsea in. Chelsea did not care that Freya was not Ivy. She needed someone. The sobs came hard, shaking through her whole body. Chelsea clung to Freya and cried with the kind of force that made breathing difficult. The wall was no help anymore. Even Looty no help. She began a new round of apologies to the men she had killed and the families they would never return to.

"I'm sorry." How many wives had she widowed today? How many parents had lost sons? How many orphans had she made?

"I'm sorry." Freya held her through it.

"You truly are too pure for this world Chels," Freya said, holding the wailing girl.

"You look like you're going to another battle. Why are you going back?" Passion asked. Chelsea finished securing the last piece of her gear without looking over. She was not wearing the full set she had worn to the battlefield, but she had put on enough that Passion had noticed immediately. The historic pieces caught the light whenever she moved, and the weapon cords were already tied into place.

"I have business there," Chelsea replied simply. Passion watched her from the middle of the room. Her expression tightened.

"Chels, we were just there yesterday. What business could you possibly already have there?"

"Come with me and see," Chelsea said simply. She didn't say it in her normal cute Chelsea way. There was no little smile to soften it. No curtsy. No playful tilt to her voice. She sounded calm. Passion was seriously worried about her. Chelsea was pushing things too fast. Yesterday had broken something in her, and now she was already dressing, moving, and making plans. Passion didn't know what Chelsea intended to do in Nordrak, but she knew she could not let her go alone.

Chelsea left the room with Passion following close behind. Chelsea approached the counter that contained the teleportation cards. An older woman worked behind it, sorting cards into narrow compartments with careful hands. She looked up when Chelsea stopped in front of her, then froze.

"Pardon me?" Chelsea said sweetly. The woman stared at her. One of the Valkyr was speaking to her. They never spoke to her. Her hands hovered over the cards, and for a moment, she seemed unable to decide whether to bow, answer, run, or call for help. Slowly, she squeaked out an answer.

"Honor for the Twelve."

"Havoc we…" Passion started. Chelsea ignored her and continued speaking to the woman.

"And honor for Salvation. I hope you're having a pleasant day so far. Would you mind dearly helping me with something?" The woman blinked quickly.

"O-of course not," she replied. Chelsea placed the castle teleportation card on the counter with gentle care.

"I received this teleportation card from the Empire of Nordrak. This specific one is for the castle. Do we happen to have any others I could borrow?" The woman took it gingerly, her fingers touching only the edges. Her eyes moved across the markings, and the nervousness in her face deepened.

"Ah, no Miss." She glanced up at Chelsea and quickly added the rest, clearly not wanting to anger the terrifying creature in front of her.

"But I do have plenty that go to Nordrak." Chelsea's eyes lit up.

"Perfect, could I possibly borrow two? Also, I don't know if you want it or not but you can have that one." The woman stared down at the card in her hands.

"You don't want it Miss? Internal castle teleportation cards are exceedingly rare and worth a lot." Chelsea waved her off.

"Oh, it's fine. It would just sit and rot in my pouch. Best if it has a cozy home with you." The woman looked completely lost. She knew who stood in front of her. This was the Valkyr of Havoc. Havocs were supposed to be the most volatile and terrifying of all the Valkyr. People lowered their voices when speaking of them, and most servants tried not to be noticed by any of the Twelve at all, especially not the nineth. Yet this one was smiling at her. This one had asked for help.

This one had wished her a pleasant day. The woman had spoken to another Valkyr years earlier, and that brief exchange had taught her exactly how the Twelve had come to rule the city. This was not that.

"Havoc, seriously. We aren't…"

"Don't mind her," Chelsea said.

"She's just grumpy that I'm taking her with me to run errands. Anyway, the Nordrak cards?"

"Oh, right." The woman turned to a large filing box behind the counter and searched through the labeled sections. Her hands still shook, but she moved with more purpose now. She pulled two cards from their own shelf and placed them on the counter. What sort of errands did Valkyr run? The woman had always assumed they had people who took care of everything for them.

The idea of Havoc personally collecting teleportation cards for errands made no sense at all, but the cards were taken from her hand with another gentle smile.

"Thank you so much. I really appreciate your help. Have a wonderful day." Chelsea gave a curtsy and turned toward Passion. Passion looked seriously irritated. Chelsea didn't care. She was the Valkyr of Havoc. If she was going to be dropped on a battlefield and used as a bomb, then every interaction she had with ordinary people was going to be pleasant. She could not undo yesterday. She couldn't give those men back to their families. But she could choose what she did when bloodlust was not holding her mind.

They entered the teleportation room together. The moment they were alone, Passion rounded on her.

"You can't talk to the common folk like that."

"And why not?" Chelsea asked.

"Because we're the ruling class in this city. We don't speak with people. We have servants who do that for us." Chelsea held up one finger, then pulled up her stat sheet.

"The Valkyr of Havoc," she read out loud.

"Havoc is often looked down on by the other Valkyr due to being perceived as naive."

"Well, yeah that's about right," Passion nodded. Chelsea gave her a smile. It was not her normal smile. It looked forced, but it did not look weak.

"Good. Please continue to underestimate me and question my actions."

"Havoc, that's not what I…" Chelsea stepped through the teleporter before Passion could finish.