The Crystal of Yggdrasil by Gianni Perticaroli

And you’re not very talkative, either, she said. You got a bad grade in Italian and you haven’t been studying very much. I’ve noticed that you’ve been a little distracted lately. But pretty soon my 5 year-old sister, Aurora, would be coming in to change the channel and get her morning dose of cartoons. The TV was turned on, with the volume muted, to a news channel. Not that it was necessary to open so early, but now it had become a habit for him. He was a vet and had an office in downtown Pieve Olympia, which he would always open before 8 o’clock. Since mom had lost her job, she frequently made cakes, and I couldn’t be happier because I’ve got a real sweet tooth.ĭad - whose name is Cesare - had already left for work. I went to the kitchen and smiled at seeing there was chocolate cake for breakfast. I still hadn’t figured out how it got there. I turned the ring over several times in my hand before putting it back in the box and closing the drawer.Īlso hidden in the same box was a Nuevo Sol, a Peruvian coin minted in 2010 that I had found on the crystal of Yggdrasil. Without that ring, I probably wouldn’t have survived the fury of Hel, who is the goddess of Yggdrasil’s underworld. I hadn’t appreciated it much when it was given to me, but later I was infinitely grateful to the two dwarfs. It was an iron ring with a runic inscription engraved on it, forged by two dwarves named Eitri and Brokki. Way in the back, behind a book I had never read and the watch case from the present my grandparents had given me for my First Communion, I had hidden a small box where I kept something very special. I sat up again and opened my nightstand drawer. On my first journey with the Sphere of Time, I also met Odin, Thor and Loki, along with other Viking gods who live in a parallel world called the crystal of Yggdrasil.Īchille, get up or you’ll be late, my mother called. Now, don’t think I’m crazy or something, because they really do exist. The Nidhogg exists, as do elves, trolls and fire giants. In fact, if you believe that dragons are only mythological or made-up creatures, I can tell you with absolute certainty that you’re totally wrong. But it’s not true everywhere, like in the worlds called parallel crystals. After all, it was just a bad dream, because there are no such things as dragons in our world, which is the world that exists in the primary time.

The early morning light filtered through the blinds and there was nothing to worry about. I was in my bedroom and there was no winged dragon.

I would dream that the Nidhogg, a kind of winged dragon with horns, was coming after me, with the intent of roasting me to a crisp by blasting flames out of its fearsome mouth. I had been having the same nightmare for several nights now. I woke up with a start and sat straight up in bed with my heart pounding in my chest.

The Crystal of Yggdrasil by Gianni Perticaroli