by Sumida, Amy
“Nicholas has an automatic feeder, a self-cleaning litter box, a fountain water dispenser, and a kitty door; he’ll be fine for a few days. You used to leave him alone all the time before I moved in. Besides, Kirill is there now.”
“This is work,” I spread my hands in supplication, “I'm not going to drag my boyfriend with me.”
“I can trace in and out everyday,” he crossed his arms over his chest.
“Odin will think you don't trust me,” I frowned at him. “Didn't we just go through this?”
He exhaled heavily and then dropped his arms. “Fine, but I’m coming to visit.”
“I’d like that,” I wrapped my arms around his waist and leaned into him. He finally smiled a little at me. “You wanna take me home for a quickie while I pack?” He smiled bigger.
Chapter Six
Valhalla was massive.
Odin gave me a tour after we traced in and I was surprised at how big the place really was. I hadn’t been able to see all of it when I’d stayed across the lake in Thor’s Hall and I’d only been in Valhalla three other times before; once for Yule when I’d only seen the main hall, once when I’d snuck in to do some Godhunter reconnaissance and I’d only saw one room and a long hallway as I ran through it… away from Thor, and once for the training episode that I'd like to forget all about. Having actually seen the main hall where all the feasting was done, I knew that the myths about it being so big that eight-hundred warriors could walk through it side by side(that's almost a mile, in case you were wondering) were true. So I’d suspected its overall size was huge but I really had no idea.
It was palatial, it was immense, it was not something that should be referred to as a hall. The main hall had rooms and offices around it where the fallen Viking warriors lived. Believing that they went to Valhalla upon death, the Viking spirits didn’t move on as they should have but stayed in limbo, bound to Odin. They fought mock battles on the surrounding plains all day then partied at Valhalla all night but they also served Odin as waiters, chefs, and stewards to his vast estate… not exactly the afterlife they imagined I'm sure but they seemed happy enough. Maybe it had something to do with the Valkyries.
“So where’s my room?” I was pretty sure the tour was over, since we were back in the main hall, but Odin had yet to show me where I’d be bunking.
“I don’t live in Valhalla,” he gave me the half confused, half amused look of someone who thought that either you were playing a joke on them or you were completely ignorant.
“What do you mean you don’t live in Valhalla?” I glared at him. His expression was pissing me off. “This is your hall, isn’t it?”
“Sweet apples of life, you don’t know much about me do you?” His lips twisted down and I could’ve sworn it was in disappointment.
“I know enough, one-eye,” I felt my hand fist up and make a home on my hip. “I know you can’t be trusted, so where exactly do you think you’re taking me? It's not to that place with your giant Santa TV is it?”
“Taking you? Santa TV?” Odin shook his head as his mouth fell open. “I don’t live here, Vervain. Valhalla is only one of three Halls I own. This is where the warriors live, where I make plans for war, and where I hold large celebrations, but Valaskjάlf is where I live. I also own Gladsheim but that’s where I preside over the Diar I appointed to regulate the affairs of Asgard, so I only go there when necessary.”
“Yes but where's the Santa TV?”
“In Valaskjάlf, you may see it if you wish.”
“Oh, okay,” I may have felt just a little bit silly. “sorry ‘bout that.”
“You’re forgiven, Godhunter,” Odin offered me his arm. “Would you like to see my home now?”
Fifteen minutes later, we were riding two exceptionally beautiful horses along the shoreline of the Asgard lake. I kept casting glances at Sleipnir, Odin’s magnificent, overly large stallion who, to my great disappointment, only had four legs.
“There are a lot of myths that are just plain myth,” Odin smiled knowingly.
“Excuse me?” I really hated looking like an idiot in front of him but it seemed like I was doomed for a jester hat.
“Sleipnir obviously doesn’t have the eight legs humans wrote about,” he leaned over to pat the horse’s neck affectionately. “He’s just so fast, sometimes it appears so.”
“Oh,” I looked around me like I wasn’t that interested. Everything was cool, just another leisurely ride through Asgard, nothing to see here folks, just move it along. “Holy cannolis!” With supreme effort, I stayed in the saddle.
“Do you like it?” Odin’s face was shiny with pride and just a sparkle of… nervousness? Nah.
Nestled in a clearing before us, was a two story palace made entirely of silver. It was almost blinding when the sun hit it, lighting up the surrounding trees with bright shimmers. Jutting from its middle was an entryway adorned with an arch of two crossed beams with carved dragon heads at each end. Double doors stood open beneath it, awaiting the god’s return eagerly, and through them I glimpsed the welcome relief of polished wood and lush carpets.
Windows were open everywhere, even though there was a slight chill in the air, and smoke drifted up from numerous chimneys. Ancient designs curved and danced over almost every inch, helping tone the brightness down a tad but adding so much visual stimulation, the hall seemed to be moving… or breathing.
“It’s the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen,” my eyes were finally able to pull back a bit and notice the surrounding area. Stables, an open clearing for training, a large vegetable garden, an assortment of fruit trees, and what I assumed were storage buildings, gathered around the silver palace like bums around a steel barrel fire, looking dull next to its gleam.
“I’m so happy you like it,” he gathered the reins of my horse so I could dismount.
“Who wouldn’t?” I was still gaping as I got down. “Is it solid silver?”
“Yes, though most rooms are paneled with wood,” there was a strange note to his voice and when I turned to look at him, he was studying me closely… too closely.
“So, you sure you're going to be able to spare a room for me?”
His quick laughter broke the spell and I breathed a sigh of relief as he led me into the most literally brilliant place I’d ever seen. We went through a small entryway. It opened up into the dining hall which was a much smaller, silver version of Valhalla’s. There was a long table running along each side wall, almost the entire length of the room, and then a raised dais with the head table at the end. The walls were done in the same carved silver as the outer ones, with silver shields hanging in a line down the sides. On the right was a gigantic fireplace and at the back corners, behind the head table, there were doorways. Odin led me straight to the one on the left and into the corridor beyond.
Up a narrow stairway we went and then into a wide hallway. The hallway was eerily quiet, as if it was waiting for approval before going back to its everyday business of being a god’s home. I took a quick glance down it before Odin ushered me along, hoping for some kind of sound; creaking floorboards, settling beams, voices, something, but the only sound was the creak of a door as Odin opened it.
I was thankful he gave me a room on the forest side of the Hall as opposed to the lake side, where I’d be able to see Bilskinir, high up on the cliff where it perched like an angry thunder god. I didn’t need a reminder that Thor was right across the lake from me. Mr. Protector of the Realm of Asgard. Mr. I'm so great, I have a Hall up on a cliff and a shiny hammer. He also had a piece of rock in his head. I'm not kidding, he said he got it in a bar brawl. Now he can sharpen his sword with his forehead. Heh, I'd actually like to see that.
At least I’m not bitter.
“I’ll leave you to look around while I fetch us some refreshment,” Odin put my small suitcase down and gave me a quick smile before he left.
“Thank you,” I hardly noticed his departure, I was too busy gawking at the room.
It was spacious. Aft
er seeing the sumptuousness of Valaskjάlf, I would’ve been surprised if it hadn’t been. Dark wood shone everywhere, from the floor-to-ceiling bookshelves taking up the walls on either side of me, to the heavy bed that was more of a separate suite than a piece of furniture. It smelled like Christmas, pine with a hint of apples lying beneath it.
The bed was snug in a corner of the room, with a row of steps leading up to the overstuffed mattress. At the foot of it, was a large cabinet that appeared wide enough to hold my entire wardrobe… and that’s a hell of a feat. Vibrant tapestry panels hung from the bed's sturdy beams and thick furs were tossed across a fluffy comforter.
A calming breeze blew in through the large windows that dominated the wall across from me, teasing the tree branches into song and playing along my skin in a gentle welcome. The trees pressed in so close, I could almost imagine the room was built right into those generous branches. It was very Swiss Family Robinson…or maybe Ewok, I’m not sure.
Just beyond the trees, I could see the well maintained vegetable garden and the source of the apple scent, trees filled with the bright red fruit. Behind those, the mammoth forest took over but it looked barely held in check, like at any second, it could spring its bounds and lunge for the Hall.
Giving my attention back to the room itself, I found myself a little surprised that Odin hadn’t given me a more feminine suite, but I was also glad. I loved the space immediately. There was an almost tangible feeling of acceptance in the room, a warmth that seeped into my skin and lured me into lingering. I started to worry that magic was afoot but then I concentrated my little witchy senses and discovered that the only magic in the room was a spell of protection and preservation, probably for all the books.
I kicked my shoes off and padded through the thick silk carpets so I could scrunch my toes up in them, sighing as the softness wrapped around my tired feet. The room was perfect.
Off to the right and near the windows was a round table and chairs, out of the same dark wood the walls were paneled in. A well loved desk stood near one of the bookshelves on the left, like a wooden librarian guarding her wards, and in the exact center of the room was a sunken, circular, sitting area with a round hearth in the middle of it. A chimney hovered above the hearth, paneled again in the polished wood, and disappeared into the ceiling. There was a fire already crackling happily, and the round couch built into the sunken walls that circled the hearth, had thick furs and blankets strewn about it invitingly. I couldn’t resist their siren’s call. Odin found me curled up there when he returned with mugs of hot mead.
“This room is amazing,” I accepted the mug and smiled at him as he sat down next to me.
“I thought it would suit you,” he watched me with a guarded expression. “Have you perused the books yet?”
“I looked at a few of them,” I’d been a little surprised to find antique occult books and spell books of unknown origin but I knew Odin was an avid student of the occult, so it wasn’t too strange and as far as the unfamiliar spell books, I had an inkling of where they were from. “Do you use this room a lot? It seems like the books are a valuable collection.”
“I visit often,” he looked far off for a moment. “I like to come here to read. I feel at ease here.”
“It does feel very peaceful,” I sipped my mead, savoring the rich, sweet spiciness of honey and cinnamon.
“I hope you’ll be happy here,” his large fingers curled around his mug. “This room hasn’t seen happiness for a long time.”
“I’m sure I will,” I felt a tremor of unease at his wording; it sounded more permanent than my visit should. “It’ll only be for a little while anyway.”
“You’re staying until we’ve discovered the traitors, right?” There was a note of anxiety in his tone.
“That was the deal,” I frowned, wondering if I’d underestimated the task. “It shouldn’t take that long though.”
“I hope not but I can’t promise anything,” he searched my face again.
“We’ll work it out,” I looked into the fire and saw Trevor’s eyes glowing back at me. He wouldn’t be pleased with a long visit.
“Thank you,” Odin’s voice brought my gaze back to his face, which was etched with intensity.
“Thanks for switching sides,” I tried to lighten his mood with a big grin. “I never looked forward to having to fight you.”
“You’d never betray me, would you?” His face didn’t lose an ounce of seriousness.
“Not unless you betrayed me first.”
“That’ll never happen,” he sounded almost cryptic and I found myself laughing to dispel the mood. He just frowned deeper.
“I’m sorry,” I patted his arm and he stared at my hand with such naked longing, I withdrew it quickly, confusion and a little longing of my own, making my stomach clench. “I didn’t mean to offend you. It’s just that you sounded almost sad that you wouldn’t betray me.”
“Not sad,” he lifted his gaze and the yearning was still there. I felt a shiver run down my spine, “just resigned. There’s something between us, Vervain. I couldn’t hurt you. It would be like hurting myself. I know you can feel it too.”
“There is something strange going on,” I sipped my mead to give myself some time to think. “The best way I can describe it is that you feel familiar to me, a sort of déjà vu except it’s with a person.”
“Yes,” he shook his head. “We don’t have to analyze it. I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable around me. I know you love VѐulfR and I wouldn’t try to come between you. I just want you to know that you can trust me. I thought that if you were able to acknowledge this connection we have, then you’d know you’re always safe with me.”
“This doesn’t make any sense,” I stared into my mead as if it might hold the answer but I’d never been a seer and I found nothing in its citrine depths.
“Things don’t always make sense,” he took my hand and kissed it quickly. “As students of the occult, we both know that, and we also know that sometimes it’s better to let them be a mystery.”
“Okay, here’s to a little mystery then,” I raised my mug and he clicked his against mine, the wood making a hollow sound which seemed to echo inside me with foreboding.
“To mystery,” he agreed.
Chapter Seven
We decided that the easiest way to begin to find out who was friend or foe, would be to announce at dinner that Odin was joining with me and the God Squad(my little band of gods who fought beside me).
He’d invited his cronies over for an extended visit and they’d been arriving all day. The sounds of their socializing drifted up to me, making my shoulders tense. There wasn’t a single god down there, besides Odin, who was on my side of the war. I could be walking into a serious situation, one I hadn’t pondered fully before agreeing to this arrangement.
What if it was all an elaborate trap? What if Odin was down there laughing with his friends over how gullible the Godhunter was and how much fun it was going to be to kill her slowly? A knot of anxiety filled my tummy for a second before I took a deep breath and calmed down. Somehow I knew what Odin had said to me was the truth. There wasn’t going to be a lynching, unless it was Odin who got strung up. It all depended on how his associates took the news.
Since I didn’t know what to expect, I dressed carefully in some tailored black pants and a long sleeved, blue, silk blouse that hid most of my long, leather, fingerless gloves. The gloves were my weapon of choice, having claw-like blades that extended over each finger with a downward flick of my wrists but then would retract with the pull of a lever. They were easy enough to hide, really easy to unsheathe, never ran out of ammo, made each swipe and punch potentially lethal, and were practically impossible to lose. Oh, and they were imbued with god magic. I affectionately referred to them as my Wolverine gloves. I also had my bodice dagger but I decided to leave off the short sword. I didn’t want to antagonize anyone with my weapons, better to keep them hidden.
While I was checking my make-up
in the bathroom mirror, someone knocked on the bedroom door. I took one last look at my hair, which I’d left in loose waves to hang down around my hips, and then ran to the door. I opened it to find Odin standing there in an outfit that almost exactly matched mine.
“What the hell?” I looked him up and down, black pants and blue silk shirt, just in a masculine style.
“I guess great minds think alike,” he laughed.
“Yeah,” I smirked, “and so do ours.” He laughed harder. “Maybe I should change; I don’t think it’s a good idea to look like the Bobbsey Twins tonight. People might think we're trying to make a statement.”
I turned and went to root through the cabinet at the foot of the bed. I heard him shut the bedroom door as I walked into the bathroom to change.
“If it makes you feel better, Vervain.” He called out, “but I think the verbal statement I make tonight will surpass anything a set of matching clothing could say.”
“It does make me feel better,” I called back to him as I slipped the blue silk off and replaced it with a long sleeved, black sweater with a plunging V neckline.
When I came out of the bathroom, Odin turned to me with a smile. It froze on his face. He looked over the expanse of cleavage the top revealed and swallowed hard. Anyone else and I would have laughed, I would have teased, but with Odin, I could only stand there and feel the blush steal over my face, my knees suddenly filled with water and my heart running for the hills.
He cleared his throat, “Uh, you look beautiful.”
“Thank you,” I brought up Trevor’s face in my mind and concentrated on it as I let Odin lead me out of the room and down to the dining hall.
The dining hall of Valaskjάlf wasn’t as big as Valhalla’s by any means but there was still more than enough room for all the gods Odin had invited. They filled the tables about halfway, staring up at me intensely as we took our places at the table on the dais. I don’t know why I’d assumed that all the gods there would be Norse, after all Blue was previously in league with Odin and he was the Aztec God of the Sun, but I was a little surprised to see the mix of ethnicity.
