Valhalla Online 4: Hel Hath No Fury: A Ragnarok Saga LitRPG Story Read online

  “Human bodies here are all locked to the mind which controls them, or to the system in the case of the non-player characters,” Heid said as she slipped up close behind Sam. “I had to do the best I could with what I had available. I could perhaps have made him a dragon, if you’d prefer?”

  Would that be better? At least this form looked more or less human. It had two arms, two legs, five fingers on each hand. Gurgle had handled the upgrade to dragon form easily enough, but he hadn’t spent an entire life as a human being. Sam wasn’t sure Harald would be able to handle it nearly as well.

  This might be the best bet. But it wasn’t what she’d hoped for, and Sam felt a crushing sense of disappointment. She’d fought so damned hard to bring him back. Now that she saw the results of that work, Sam wasn’t sure Harald would think it was worth doing, after all. Life was good. Being alive again was better, at least as far as she was concerned. Would he feel the same way?

  She wasn’t sure.

  “When will he wake?” Sam asked.

  “Whenever you want to wake him. He awaits only my command to rise from his slumber. I thought it best to have him rise when he had friends nearby to help him through this transition,” Heid replied.

  Sam nodded. She had to agree with that assessment, and tried to imagine how she would react under the same circumstances. It would be jarring enough under the best of conditions. Better to at least have familiar faces nearby to help.

  Still, she turned away for a moment, looking at Gurgle, who remained out in the hallway. The dragon met her eyes with his own wordless gaze. Gurgle didn’t reprimand her, but didn’t tell her everything would be all right, either. He just gave her the smallest of nods.

  “Wake him, then,” Sam said. She prayed it was the right thing to do.

  3

  “Very well,” Heid said. “This will take a short while. You may wait outside.”

  Before Sam could protest that she wanted to stay, she found herself transported back out into the hall, standing beside Gurgle. The door to the room was closed.

  “Damn her,” Sam said. She stepped up to the door and gripped the handle firmly, but it wouldn’t budge. There was no way to get back inside until Heid was good and ready to let her in.

  “I guess we’re stuck out here for now,” Sam told Gurgle. She wasn’t thrilled with that. Heid was pulling her strings again. Somehow she needed to get the upper hand. The AI wasn’t interested in anyone’s welfare but her own. That much Sam felt sure of.

  After all, even her presence in Valhalla Online had been something Heid orchestrated. Everything happening to her was more or less a part of the AI’s machinations. It was Heid who’d inspired the Army to look into experiments in uploaded human consciousness. Heid who’d selected Samantha out of the many possible soldiers to upload. She’d been picked for her psychological profile.

  Now she was there, doing Heid’s bidding. Precisely as the AI had predicted and orchestrated. Even knowing the AI had set all this in motion wasn’t enough to free Sam from her plots. She felt as trapped as she’d been when she was clueless about the truth.

  Sam took a walk toward the upper level of Heid’s residence, pondering that. The old line about the truth setting you free was a laugh and a half. It had done nothing of the sort, in her case. If anything, the truth had left her feeling more muddled and confused than before.

  Was she even alive? All her struggles to keep Thorsten from killing her seemed almost pointless given that she was nothing but a copy of the real Samantha. She still felt the drive to go on, to survive. But was that basic instinct rooted in anything resembling reality, or was it just a piece of her code?

  “I don’t know what I’m doing, Gurgle,” Sam admitted. She plunked herself down on a parapet overlooking the cliffs below.

  Even throwing herself off the edge wouldn’t free her from Heid’s grasp. She’d just respawn again and be right back where she was. The black arrows she carried could end things, but Sam’s mind shied away from the very idea. She didn’t want to cease existing, even if she wasn’t sure just what her existence meant.

  “Great One is doing OK,” Gurgle said. “Keep doing same.”

  “But the same thing is just getting people around me hurt,” Sam argued. “First Harald, then you. Heid brought you back, but not as yourself.”

  He’d returned to her as a dragon instead of a kobold. Luckily, Gurgle’s code was flexible enough that he’d handled the change with his usual enthusiasm.

  “Gurgle happy as dragon. Eat bad men.”

  Sam chuckled. “Yes, I know. But will Harald be as happy?”

  “Gurgle think Harald be same as old. Just new face.”

  “A new face can be a bigger deal for us humans than it is for kobolds, I think,” Sam said. “Gurgle, I can’t figure out how much any of this matters. Harald and I are just echoes of other people. He’s the ghost of someone who died years ago, and I’m a digital photocopy of someone who is still out there breathing.”

  Sam sucked in a deep breath of her own before going on. “Are we just deluding ourselves into thinking we’re alive? Is there really any point to any of this?”

  Gurgle sat down on his haunches and tilted his head sideways like he was pondering her words. Sam didn’t expect much response from him. Maybe something like ‘I’m hungry, we go eat.’ But he’d surprised her before with wisdom beyond what she’d expected. Sam waited while he mulled over her words.

  “If Great One is not alive, is just code, what is Gurgle?” he asked. “Does Gurgle matter?”

  “You matter to me,” Sam blurted.

  “Gurgle knows this. Sam matters to Gurgle, too. Not know if there is some bigger meaning to all of life and mystery of in Valhalla, out Valhalla. But if Gurgle matters to Sam, and Sam matters to Gurgle, isn’t that enough?”

  Was it? Sam wanted it to be. What was the old line? ‘I think, therefore I am?’ What if you took that one step further? If you thought, and therefore were, and someone else cared about you, too, wasn’t that proof enough that your existence mattered?

  Thinking about it made her feel even more confused. If that was the case then did someone’s virtual pet in a video game matter as much as a person? No — that didn’t make sense. The virtual pet didn’t think. It had no capability to ponder its own existence. She did. Harald did. And surprisingly enough, so did Gurgle. Sam looked up at him again.

  “You’re a lot more than you were when we met,” Sam said.

  “Gurgle knows. Gurgle grew as Sam’s need grew. Gurgle grew to be what Sam needed him to be,” the dragon replied.

  What was he? Had Gurgle gone and become a true AI himself? Sam already knew that Valhalla Online was capable of spawning AI life. Heid was one, her sister Hel was probably another. It was certainly possible that Gurgle was either a third one, or headed fast that way. She wondered what the outside world would think if they knew what was happening inside this strange online world.

  “I’m glad you’re here with me, my friend,” Sam told him.

  “Gurgle glad Sam here, too.”

  “I notice you stopped calling me ‘great one,’ finally. Now all we need to do is work on your grammar!” Sam said.

  “Gurgle likes how Gurgle talk!” he protested.

  “Me too,” Sam said with a laugh. “I like you fine just the way you are.”

  “Gurgle glad. Sam think Gurgle alive? Like Heid?” he asked.

  “I don’t know.” Sam shrugged. “I can’t tell the difference anymore. When you can’t tell if someone is a thinking, living being or not, does the truth still matter?”

  “Maybe it best just to live and be what one can be,” Gurgle replied.

  “I think you’re probably right,” Sam replied.

  He’s rousing. You’ll want to come quickly, Heid said into Sam’s mind.

  “That’s our summons. Quick, Harald is waking up,” Sam said, getting back to her feet. She made for the stairs back down to the room where Harald’s new body rested. The door was open when she ar
rived, a little breathless from the quick dash.

  Sam’s heart was still filled with questions and trepidation, but she had started down this course. She would see it through. Her friend would surely need her when he woke, and she would be there for him. Then she’d pay the price of his resurrection. Heid had neatly arranged for Sam to be stuck doing her bidding again.

  Allowing the AI to pull her strings a little longer would be a small price to pay for Harald’s restoration. Heid picked for this deliberately. She wouldn’t have chosen Sam if the task was something she could not or would not do. At least, that’s what she told herself. It made the worry retreat a little — but not much.

  4

  Harald looked unchanged from when she’d seen him last. His stone body still lay on the rock slab like a statue. Heid was near his head, her hands on either side of his temples. Sam couldn’t be sure, but it looked like the AI was mumbling something to herself.

  “I thought he was waking?” Sam asked.

  “He is,” Heid replied. “He’s just taking his sweet time about it. The man was always so damned contrary. Fitting that he’d continue to be so even dead.”

  Sam blinked, wondering where that had come from. It sounded like Heid knew Harald better than she’d been letting on. Had the AI-goddess had interactions with him in the past? How were they connected? Another mystery. Some days it felt like for each one she solved, two more took its place.

  “There we go,” Heid said, speaking quickly. “His eyes should be opening… now.”

  And true to her word, Harald’s eyes blinked open, then closed, then opened again slowly, like someone roused him from a deep slumber. His fingers on his left hand wiggled, then the right.

  “Where am I?” Harald asked. It was distinctly his voice, but now it had a gravelly overtone to it.

  “Vanaheim. What’s the last thing you recall, Harald?” Sam asked.

  “I’m not sure. It was hazy. We’d won the challenge, right? You were going on to Vanaheim. Oh, shit,” Harald said. “I gave you my amulet, didn’t I? And then something went wrong?”

  “Correct,” Heid said. She came around to stand at Harald’s left side, opposite Sam on his right. “The saved data on your amulet was the only thing remaining of you after Thorsten’s arrow did its work.”

  “Ugh. Got to get up. He’ll still be coming…”

  Sam placed a gentle hand on Harald’s chest. “No, he won’t. Not ever again.”

  “Ah, I see,” Harald said. He looked up into her eyes and blinked. He glanced away. Was that sadness she saw there? It was; she was sure of it.

  “You don’t sound thrilled,” Sam replied softly. “I avenged you.”

  “You did what needed doing, Samantha. I just recall Thorsten before he became twisted around by hate. He and I were friends, once,” Harald said.

  Sam wasn’t surprised. The two had known each other so well. It just made sense that they’d once been close. She wondered what had torn them apart so completely, but it wasn’t her story to go digging for. If Harald wanted to tell it to her, he would. It didn’t feel right to pry.

  “So how did you get me back? I wasn’t sure it was even possible to recover someone from the backup,” Harald asked.

  “I had help. From her,” Sam said, pointing at Heid.

  Harald turned and seemed to notice her for the first time. His eyes grew wide and his jaw dropped, opening his mouth in a wide O. He said a word, so softly that Sam couldn’t quite make it out. It sounded like a name.

  “I am Heid, goddess of this plane,” she said. “I brought you back in exchange for a promise of future services from Sam.”

  “Heid?” Harald asked. He looked confused, his eyes blinking furiously. “Yes, of course. I thought… I was sure you were someone I knew once, but that’s not possible,” Harald said. “She’s gone.”

  “You’ve just been restored to this body. It’s natural for you to experience a little disorientation, even a few random memory issues as your mind acclimates to the new form,” Heid said.

  She was glib — too glib. Sam was getting a better feel for the AI’s ‘tells.’ The more she was around Heid, the quicker and easier it was for Sam to determine when she was lying.

  What she’d just told Harald was a lie.

  But what was the truth? Had Harald actually known her at some point? Maybe he’d been a part of some machination of hers in the past. Or there could be something even more convoluted going on. Whatever the story was, this was a mystery Sam felt had something to do with whatever was happening now. Otherwise, why would Heid bother to lie about it?

  “My body. What happened to it?” Harald asked, bringing his fingers in front of his face.

  “Your body was destroyed by the black arrow. I’ve put your memories into the best vessel I could acquire on short notice. Your new form is strong, your skin difficult to pierce. In short, you’re in the perfect body to assist Sam in the next phase of my plan,” Heid said.

  Harald sat slowly up. He ran his gaze down his arm, then over his torso and legs. He brought both hands together slowly, grinding them against one another with a sound like rocks tumbling. Then he brought his fingers to his face, gently touching features which were nothing like what he’d known before.

  This was the difficult moment. Sam wanted to reach out to console him, but this was partly her fault. She’d been the one to insist Heid bring him back. If he couldn’t handle the form she’d chosen, if anything happened to him as a result of her demand, Sam wasn’t sure how she could forgive herself.

  “What am I?” Harald asked. “What did you do to me?”

  “Your new body is made of magical stone,” Heid said. “It will keep you intact against anything but the most dangerous of encounters. And it will respawn with you as your new body, just like your old form would have before.”

  “You’ve made me into a monster!” Harald stormed.

  “You always said you had a heart of stone. Now you have the body to match,” Heid hissed back at him.

  Sam took a quick step away from them both. So it was true. Heid did know Harald! Well enough to have cause to be angry with him. How did they know each other? Worse, how could she have missed seeing the emotions roiling beneath Heid’s placid surface?

  “It is you,” Harald said, his voice growing calm again.

  “No. She’s dead,” Heid replied.

  “But you remember her,” Harald said.

  “I was born from her ashes, Harald. Why do you think I risked so much to bring you back?” Heid asked.

  “What’s going on here?” Sam asked, breaking into the conversation.

  Both Harald and Heid looked across at her, apparently having forgotten she was present for their earlier exchange. Harald opened his mouth to speak, but Heid shook her head. He closed it again.

  “Not yet. There are some secrets which must still be kept a while yet. But Harald, you will help me?” Heid asked.

  “Of course,” Harald said.

  What the hell was going on? Sam wanted to shout at them both to tell her the damned truth. But before she could get out another word, the stones above and around them shook, rattling loose dust and debris from the ceiling. Before any of them could react, another quake struck. Then with a mighty crash, the corner of the room exploded inward at them all.

  Sam cast a shield spell around herself and Gurgle, shielding them from the flying bits of stone. Harald seemed impervious to the damage anyway, and she didn’t particularly care of Heid got a little mussed up. The AI was more than able to cast her own shield, though.

  “We’re under attack. To the roof! We need to defend this place,” Heid said.

  “We don’t need to do anything. You owe us some answers if you want any more help from us,” Sam said.

  “Damn it, Samantha! I’m linked to this location. If it falls, so does my power, and my sister knows it!” Heid said. “My power keeps Harald’s new body moving. What do you think happens if it is destroyed?”

  “Well, shit,” Sam sai
d. She whirled around to Gurgle and mounted up. “Guess we need to save your ass. This time.”

  Gurgle launched them into the air toward the enemy.

  5

  “Up, fast!” Sam called to Gurgle. Whatever was out there was airborne, from the angle the attack had struck the wall. They needed altitude.

  The pair shot skyward, blasting out through the new hole in the wall and ceiling. Gurgle continued climbing higher, heavy wingbeats carrying them soaring into the stormy sky. Sam watched for their adversaries.

  It didn’t take long to spot them. A veritable horde of dark-skinned creatures rode what looked like flying black surf-boards along the wind. They were heading directly toward Heid’s castle, firing blasts of energy from their hands as they went.

  Sam recognized them almost immediately. They were beings like the one she’d met earlier — Iggy, she’d called him. What had he called himself? Dark Alfar - a dark elf. Or dokkalfar. They were Hel’s servants.

  No coincidence then that they’d arrived at Heid’s base shortly before the AI launched her attack on the other AI. Sam sighed. The two of them ought to solve their own private little war without getting her in the middle. They were going to get her killed.

  Sam didn’t think they much cared if they did, either of them.

  She unlimbered her bow and carefully drew a black arrow from her pouch. Taking aim, she fired the deadly dart at the nearest of the dokkalfar. The shot almost missed, barely scratching his leg. But with these arrows, even a scratch was enough.

  The dokkalfar glanced down at the minor wound and saw tendrils of dark magic swirling up his leg. He screamed loud enough for Sam to hear the shout even over the distance between them. The bands of black swept up over his body, consuming him in seconds. Then he was gone. The board he rode evaporated into mist.

  A cry went up from the other attackers, several of them pointing at Sam and Gurgle. A dozen of the beings turned from their assault to come after her instead. Well, at least she’d taken a little of the pressure off Heid. Now she had to survive that attention.