H40 Strength of the Valkyrie

Book cover

**Strength of the Valkyrie** is the 40th book in the series.

## Synopsis

Alex hires Jackal to help deal with the formidable Miss Crowbone, who inevitably shows up while the team searches for clues to lift Lulu's curse. This time, the team manages to learn more about their enemy and discovers a way to undo the curse - defeat the deadly Valkyrie. Because the Valkyrie proves too strong an opponent, Alex invites Miss Crowbone to bring down the Valkyrie together.

## Cast

* Alex
* Lulu
* Jackal
* Hank
* Miss Crowbone
* Madam Moja

## Plot

### Chapter 1: The Past

Jackal wakes up from his usual nightmare. Alex wants him to teach him aerial combat to defeat Crowbone. Jackal thinks he's not good enough. Hank proposes to bring him along to fight Crowbone. Jackal gives her his price, then leaves.

At night, Jones encourages Jackal to join Alex to relieve himself from his nightmares because they stopped when he was with Alex, but happened again when he had become withdrawn. Jackal promises him that the incident won't repeat itself.

Alex and co. are now at Dagali, Norway. Alex absorbs his coffee's heat as he has discovered that Luminus can also absorb heat. That was how he overheated Nacho without affecting Lulu.

### Chapter 2: Gods of Other Worlds

Alex and co. have arrived at their destination, the Dagali Museum. They meet the person they're looking for, Madam Moja. She tells them the story of half-human, half-beast warriors who were chosen by gods.

This universe is part of the multiverse, where there are other universes beside this one. Between universes is a space where time is non-existent and the domain of powerful evil creatures, whose goal is to devour all existence. Gods of other worlds raised armies to fight these creatures. Some came to this universe to give potential warriors divine beast powers. These warriors had to pass severe tests. Those who passed would fight the creatures alongside otherworldly warriors.

Different gods have different tests. Moja has no idea if half-beasts can become human again, but Alex and co. can ask the people of Skåbu. Crows stalk them from the trees. Alex and co. set up a camp for the night, while an owl stalks them too.

### Chapter 3: Cat and Sheep

There's not a single soul in Skåbu, but Jackal finds a puzzle with three small stone sheep in a cage with a small stone wolf outside. After solving the puzzle, Alex and co. are shown the way by one of the sheep. Lulu chases the sheep. When she catches it, Crowbone bites her. Both of them are engulfed in red light.

### Chapter 4: Power

Instead of gaining more power, Crowbone became a little girl like Lulu's cat-girl form. Speaking of Lulu, she reverted back to her cat-girl form! Alex theorises that Crowbone absorbed Gaia's "poison". When Lulu touched Gaia during the fight with Sigurd Bodon, Gaia must've put her "poison" into Lulu that made her stuck in her cat form. That "poison" was what Akhazane couldn't help heal before. With Crowbone having bit Lulu, she absorbed the "poison", turning her into a form Lulu is usually in. After her last encounter with Nacho, she doesn't work with him anymore.

Crowbone is an orphan. Two years ago, her orphanage sold her and a few of her friends to a wealthy Turk. She and her friends escaped, but her friends were captured. She left them and collapsed in a cave with a crow. Telepathically, the crow told Crowbone it'll lend her its powers. Crowbone became a crow, then found a cup of holy water guided by the crow. Her last guidance was to fight a ferocious adversary. After defeating it, the crow told Crowbone to find the God of War. With her immense strength, she went back to save her friends, but they've been tortured to death. She burnt the place to the ground. She decided to look for the God of War to get his approval and gain more power, but now she's lost it.

### Chapter 5: Guide

Jackal finds the sheep circling around a mound of earth. After digging, it is revealed to be a bow of a Viking ship. Behind it is a puzzle, where the dragon heads facing each other must be connected without touching them or using tools. Alex and Hank go to the head's left and right, as seeing the head from that angle will seem like it is connecting. Alex finds a hole where the sheep can be inserted in.

After inserting it, giant translucent half-beasts carry the ship. Moja tells them they are the warriors who fought the creatures of chaos. After sacrificing their lives, they returned as guardian spirits. Moja is but a guide to guide the ones with the power of the cat and crow. She commands the warriors to take them to the God of War's temple.

### Chapter 6: Valkyrie

Hank puts her armour on. The ship has arrived at the temple, which is floating in the sky. At the other end of the temple, the final test begins... **the Valkyrie**. Moja turns to stone, and only her voice can be heard in the mind. Alex takes the rope off from Crowbone. Everyone faces the Valkyrie together.

### Chapter 7: Invincible

Alex ties the Valkyrie with his rope, electrified by Tempesta's lightning. She cuts the rope. Hank fires her missiles, but the Valkyrie is still not damaged and releases a blast from her sword. Lulu and Crowbone attack her from behind, but that fails. Alex ties her again, but uses Luminus' flames. Hank fires again and Jackal throws his spinning blades to prevent the Valkyrie from cutting the rope. The rope burns from the fire.

Alex runs towards the Valkyrie, then jumps to her back and uses thermal expansion and contraction to crack her armour. Alex unleashes a flame whirl, exploding the Valkyrie. Unfortunately, she has a non-corporeal form. She rains down a shower of fire.

### Chapter 8: Queen of Birds

Alex fire whirls again to deflect the fire. Jackal blasts his jetpack towards the ship to make an escape since the Valkyrie is too strong. Crowbone and Lulu crack through the ship. Alex escapes while a furious fire chases him. As he falls out of the ship, the cat mummies form themselves into a parachute, but the Valkyrie blasts through it.

Crowbone calls all the local birds to get Alex and co. down safely. If they fall and die, she'll be free, but decided to do what she did as Lulu is her key to restoration. Crowbone joins the team?

## Trivia

* In H33 Encounter in the North, a blue bird being was seen talking with Caelus when Tempesta was talking about Shambhala. It appears again here when Moja talks about the legend of the beast warriors.
* The ones who captured Crowbone's friends when they escaped were Ferocious Four men.