by Kate O'Hearn
They touched down a few yards from the entrance and were immediately surrounded by armed guards in camouflage uniforms. A captain ordered the others to stand down and rushed forward toward Kai, but when his eyes landed on Maya, he headed straight to her as if she had some magnetic pull over him.
“I’m Captain Miller. Are you the Valkyrie I’ve heard of . . .”
“You can call me Mia,” Maya said, being careful not to give him her real name.
The captain frowned. “I was told your wings were broken and that you were grounded.”
“They’ve healed,” she said. “We were at the safe house in California, but the giants destroyed it. I’m sorry, but the soldiers with us were killed, and my raven has been gravely wounded.”
“I heard about that,” he reported. “More giants have appeared on the coast, and California has fallen to them. Like all the others, these giants are moving north.”
Kai stepped forward, thrusting his chest out and confronting the soldier. “Captain, we have brought our family to you. You will protect them with your life, or you will answer to me.”
Maya realized Kai had no experience with talking to humans and still had a lot to learn. “Please excuse my brother’s manners. What he means is that we hope you can offer sanctuary to this baby and these two wingless Valkyries. And I would be in your debt if you would have your medical people help my Grul. He is very precious to me.”
“Of course,” Captain Miller said. “You’re all welcome here. We’ve been authorized to offer sanctuary to all Asgardians”—he smiled radiantly at Maya—“including their ravens.”
Kai shook his head. “Mia and I aren’t staying.”
Brundi choked, “Of—of course you’re staying! You’re both too young to be going off and fighting giants.”
Kai shook his head. “We’re not going to fight the giants. I can feel Greta. She’s back in Midgard and needs our help.”
“Where is she?” Maya asked.
Kai shrugged. “I don’t know Midgard well enough to tell you. Only that I will be able to track her through our link.”
“Greta and her team are in Peru,” the captain offered.
“What?” Maya cried. “What’s she doing down there? And what team?”
Captain Miller called for a jeep to transport them into the tunnel. “We received a message from Greta explaining everything. Let’s get inside and you can hear it.”
* * *
They drove deep inside the busy mountain facility. Everyone they encountered, be they from the air force, army, or foreign services, all reacted in the same way to the winged visitors. They nodded in respect and, in a few cases, even saluted.
Maya acknowledged them with a nod. She could feel from them the hope the Asgardians offered. She just prayed they could live up to the expectations of humanity.
They took an elevator down two thousand feet below the surface. When they emerged, they were escorted to the command center. The room was cavernous, with an incredibly tall ceiling, and filled with large wall screens showing different locations where the giants were marching through the world. Seeing the devastation playing out on the large screens stole Maya’s breath away. Cities were being decimated by the storming frost and fire giants.
Other screens revealed military jets and helicopters trying to engage the giants, but their rockets were useless against them.
“We can’t stop them,” the captain admitted sadly. “Nothing we’ve tried works. Thor and Balder have been the most effective against them, and then the Dark Searchers and Valkyries, when they fight together. All we can do is offer support.”
Everyone stood in silence, watching the screens until a senior officer arrived. They were introduced to General Pickers, the central commander of the International Coalition of Defense Forces for the United States. He was the one who had spoken personally to Freya and recorded the message. He held up his phone for everyone to hear.
Maya heard her sister’s voice and the desperation it held. Freya had been to Vanaheim and had engaged two of the Vanir in their mission. The greatest shock was hearing that Dirian had taken Skuld. Suddenly the war made sense. With Skuld under his control, no one stood a chance against him.
“Muspelheim!” Brundi cried when the message finished. “That’s insanity! She’ll be killed!”
“They all will,” Maya agreed. “I swear that sister of mine is going to be the death of me. General, have you heard anything from Montreal? Is Loki really dead?”
“We don’t know for sure,” he admitted. “By the end it was hard to tell him apart from the others. I do know the city is in ruins and the giants are still flooding through there, so I fear it may be true that he was killed in the fight.”
“Greta is too young to be going to Muspelheim on her own,” Brundi insisted. “She has no idea what kind of realm she’s heading to. It will be a disaster.”
General Pickers nodded. “Perhaps, but she’s our best and only hope against the invaders. The transport dropped them off over Machu Picchu earlier today, and they’ve entered the tunnel to Muspelheim. There is a team of eight soldiers with them, and others are keeping the area secure. We’re just awaiting word.”
“We’re not going to wait,” Maya said. She focused on Kai. “If Greta has gone to Muspelheim to free Skuld, then that’s where we’re going to help her.”
The general nodded. “I’d hoped you’d say that. There’s another air transport fueling up right now to take you there. Your team will be ready to leave with you shortly.”
“Thank you, General,” Maya said formally. She turned to Mims and gently handed over Grul. “Would you take care of him for me and see that he gets lots of special love and care?”
Mims nodded. “I will. I promise.”
To her grandmother Maya said, “I’ve never been to Muspelheim before—what can we expect?”
Brundi was wringing her hands. “You’re not just going to another realm. Child, you’re going to hell.”
19
DEEP IN THE TUNNEL TO Muspelheim, the sergeant’s spirit stood beside Freya, looking curiously down at his body. “Wow, that was intense . . . ,” he muttered.
The others around him climbed to their feet. “John!” Tina cried.
Freya turned on the sergeant’s ghost. “You foolish man—why did you do that? You knew what would happen if you touched me!”
Sergeant Romin looked around in wonder, and then back to her. “I did it to serve my country and my world. I’ve been in the military for more than twenty years and I’m an experienced soldier. I have skills you need, but I’m no good to you alive. This way we stand a chance of defending Earth against the giants.”
“But it’s suicide!” Archie cried. “You just killed yourself.”
The sergeant shook his head. “No, not suicide. I just changed my skill set for the benefit of the mission.”
“Don’t you understand? You’re dead!” Freya cried. “There is no going home. If we survive this mission and stop the war, there’s no getting your life back. It’s over! You will either ascend to heaven or stay in Asgard. But you’ll never know the love of your family again.”
“It’s because I love my family that I did this,” he insisted. He turned to the other soldiers. “I won’t ask you to do the same. But if any of you want to join us, you must touch this Valkyrie.”
“No!” Freya shouted as she jumped back. “No one’s going to touch me, do you understand? This isn’t a game. It’s life and death.”
“Yes,” another soldier said as he stepped forward. “The life and death of Earth. I don’t have any family back home, but I love my world and I’m prepared to die for it. Each of us knows the sacrifice we might be called to make. I am prepared to make it right now for this mission.”
Freya was struck silent as two more soldiers approached her. “And me,” they each volunteered. “You shouldn’t have to face those giants alone. Not when we can help.”
“This is insane,” Freya cried. “You can’t all want
to die!”
“None of us wants to die,” Tina said. “But if that’s what it takes to defend Earth, we will.”
“Greta, listen to me,” the sergeant said. “We’re grateful for what you’re planning to do. You, Quinn, and Skye have amazing powers. But we have skills too. This is too important a mission to risk on just the three of you.”
“Four,” Archie added. “Don’t forget me.”
The sergeant nodded. “All right, four of you. Believe me, you need us—you just can’t see it. You think because we’re human we’re weak. But we’re not.”
Freya shook her head. “I have never considered humans weak—ever! If you really understood what I am, you’d know that Valkyries bring only the bravest fighters of Earth’s battlefields to Asgard to serve in Odin’s army. Right now it’s dead human warriors who will be taking on the giants when they invade Asgard. So don’t think any of us ever thought of you as weak or undeserving of a place in our realm.”
“So what’s the problem?” another soldier said. “You know we’re brave and strong, and like it or not, we’re a team. And to stay a team, you’ve gotta reap us.”
Freya’s head was spinning. In all her life she’d never encountered a group of warriors wanting to be reaped. It went against everything she believed about humans. She looked up at Orus on her shoulder. “What should I do?”
“What does your heart tell you?”
Freya whispered, “That I should do it. But what if I’m wrong?”
“You’re not,” Archie offered. “We do need their help.”
Quinn and Skye both nodded in agreement. Freya looked back at the soldiers. They were standing before her, looking a little frightened by their decision but determined. If she reaped them, there would be no going back—but they could help their mission. If she didn’t, they faced a dark future in a world devastated by giants.
“This goes against all the rules,” she started. “But the realms have never faced such danger before. Still, it must be an individual decision. No one must feel pressured into joining us. So be warned, I have senses to read people. If you come to me to be reaped and don’t really want to, I’ll know and will send you away. So think hard. Those who wish to continue on this mission, step forward and I will reap you. Those who wish to serve their world by returning and reporting what has happened, stay back.”
Of the eight soldiers, five were reaped. Their bodies were neatly lined up, sitting against the wall, looking more asleep than dead. The remaining three soldiers returned to the surface.
Freya, Quinn, and Skye had to carry the new ghosts’ equipment until their physical presence formed as they passed from Midgard into Muspelheim.
Soon things returned to a strange kind of normal as the soldiers took back their packs and weapons and moved on as though nothing had happened. The only big change was that Freya told them her true name.
Eventually the stink of sulfur increased and Freya’s senses started to pick up on signs of life. “We’re getting close,” she warned. “I can sense it just ahead.”
Quinn nodded and waved his hand in the air. The tunnel filled with light, and a banquet of food appeared before them. “Our powers are back to full strength too.”
Knowing this could be their last meal for some time, they stopped for a break and to make their plans. The reaped soldiers were shocked to discover that they could not only eat, but could actually enjoy all the food of the Vanir.
Quinn pulled out the map Verdandi had given to him. He laid it down on the table. “All right, here is where Verdandi said we would emerge from the tunnel.” He traced his finger along the map until it passed over a large desert. “And here is where they’re holding Skuld.”
“How far is that?” the sergeant asked.
“A good day’s flight,” Quinn responded.
The sergeant looked at Freya. “Now that we’re—you know, dead—can we fly?”
Freya shook her head. “No, not unless you could fly when you were alive. Though when you’re in Midgard, with no substance, you can learn to fly.”
“I tried it,” Archie said to the soldiers. “I managed to float for a couple of seconds, but then fell back down to the ground. I wouldn’t recommend it.”
“That’s because you keep thinking like a living human,” Orus cawed. “You’re hopeless at letting go.”
“That’s easy for you to say,” Archie said. “You’ve got wings. It’s harder for me.”
“Flying is hard for everyone until you know how to do it,” Freya said. She looked at the map again. “If we stay on the ground, it is a good distance over terrain that may be too hot to walk on. But I should be able to carry at least three of you.”
“I can carry two,” Quinn offered.
A light blush came to Skye’s face. “I’ll carry Archie again. I—I mean I don’t mind, and he’s not too heavy for me.”
Freya stole a look at Archie and saw the color rise in his face. He was looking at Skye and smiling. Freya gave him a nudge. “Archie, focus!”
“What?” he protested. “I was.”
“Yeah, right, and I’m a golden eagle!” Orus teased.
“I’ve never been to Muspelheim,” Freya said, drawing the conversation back to the matter at hand. She pointed at the mark on the map where Skuld was being held. “I don’t know what we’ll encounter or where this is. It could be some kind of keep, prison, or even like Valhalla. I just don’t know.”
Archie nodded. “There’s only one way to find out what it’s like. Go there.”
* * *
The soldiers checked their weapons as they prepared for the final leg of the journey. The air became hotter and the wall of the tunnel, the root of Yggdrasil, grew thick bark that would occasionally shed away as it developed newer and thicker armor against the hostile environment.
“Now I know what a Thanksgiving turkey feels like,” Archie complained as the tunnel started to climb. “I’m being roasted alive!”
“We all are,” Freya agreed. She was keeping her wings open because it was too hot to keep them closed and pressed against her back.
“I didn’t think we’d feel the heat,” the sergeant said.
Freya stopped. “Maybe I should tell you this now. Yes, you are dead, and on Earth, you’d be nothing more than insubstantial ghosts. But here in this realm, you are very much alive. You have bodies and they will feel everything as before. That means you can be hurt. The only difference is, you will heal much quicker, and if you are killed, you will rise again.”
“We’re immortal?” Tina asked.
Freya nodded. “You are, unless Skuld has been ordered to end your destiny. Skuld holds the power over each of our futures. Which is why this mission is so important.”
“Can she kill us?” the sergeant asked.
“No,” Quinn answered. “She can’t. But what she can do is cut the thread of your future. So if you’re killed on this mission and she’s cut your lifeline, you won’t rise again. If she hasn’t cut the line, you will. But you must be killed for any changes she has made to take effect.”
The sergeant shook his head. “I don’t think any of us realized just how important this is. Stopping the giants won’t mean anything if this girl, Skuld, isn’t safe.”
“Exactly,” Freya agreed.
The heat intensified, but so did the smell of fresher air. Before long they saw light filtering down through a narrow gap in the ceiling. The group stopped beneath the gap and looked up.
“Please don’t tell me that’s where we’ve got to go,” Archie said.
Freya nodded. “That’s the entrance to Muspelheim.” She looked up at Orus on her shoulder. “Would you fly up there and tell us what you can see?”
The raven cawed and launched from her shoulder. They followed his progress through the narrow gap at the top. After a few minutes, Orus returned.
“You won’t believe it!” he cawed excitedly. “It’s not all fire and dead, burnt things. It’s beautiful up there. Hotter than I’ve ever felt be
fore, but it looks just like Asgard. I couldn’t see any giants.”
“If everyone is ready, Skye and I will get us up there.” Quinn whispered a few words, and they lifted off the ground and floated toward the tunnel exit. As they got near the top, Quinn spoke again and they moved, single file, through the narrow gap.
They touched down on the ground between blades of grass that rose higher than their shoulders. It was more like walking between trees than grass.
Archie shook his head. “Orus, you said it looked like Asgard. . . .”
“It does,” the raven said. “Yes, the grass is much taller and everything is giant-sized, but it’s very similar.”
“I don’t think so,” Archie said as he stood amid blades of grass. “Since when does Asgard have red grass? And look at the trees—the leaves are orange.” He looked around. “There’s nothing green here at all. It’s all shades of red, yellow, and orange.”
“It looks the same to me,” Orus said.
“Then you’re as blind as a bat.”
“Orus doesn’t see color the way we do,” Freya explained. “To him this looks the same. To us it’s very different. Lovely, but different.”
Skye came forward. “I thought everything would be burning in Muspelheim. But it’s normal. Just much bigger than I’m used to.”
A scream rose from behind them, and they turned to see one of the soldiers standing beneath a fruit tree, bent over at the waist and clutching his hand. “It burns!” he cried.
Freya ran up to the young soldier. “What is it? What burns?”
He lifted his hand and opened his closed fist. The skin on his palm was red and blistering. “I just picked an apple from one of these low-hanging branches. But it was like touching a burning piece of charcoal!”
“That’s not an apple,” Freya warned. “This is Muspelheim, a giant realm. That’s a small berry bush.” She looked up at the tall bush and tentatively touched the skin of a berry with the tip of her finger. “Ouch!”
