Up ahead was rolling green pastures and a campsite where soldiers milled around in preparation for nightfall when Hel’s dead would rise. We trotted to a massive tent, bigger than the others, and dismounted from our horses. A couple of soldiers took the reins from us and went to tie up our horses to be watered and fed.
Thor opened the flap of the tent and waved us in. Fen and I looked at one another before going inside. Thor followed us inside what could only be the war room. In the center was a table with maps showing the current status of troops in the battlefield with a lantern beside it giving the room a dim glow.
“What are we doing here?” I said to no one in particular.
“You’re here to meet me,” someone said from the dark corner of the tent. I squinted to get a better look but couldn’t see anything. He stepped forward, revealing the outline of a figure. He was huge like Thor, big and muscular. When he came into the light, my breath hitched, and Fen growled beside me.
The god before us had long blond hair, deep blue eyes, and his right hand was missing. He cradled his arm in his left hand. We didn’t need introductions.
“You,” Fen snarled, and I had to grab him from the front of his tunic and hold him back.
Thor came around us and lit another lantern to lighten the room, and I scowled at him. Everyone knew the history between Fenrir and Tyr. There was bad blood, and there was no way we’d be able to work together.
“Just listen!” Thor pleaded. “We all want the same thing.”
“Not unless he wants to lose another hand,” Fen growled, his chest heaving and his breathing erratic. I stood in front of him and tipped his head down to face me.
“Calm down,” I muttered, running my hands through his hair, but even I wasn’t enough. Fen pushed me away and ran out of the tent. I stood there dumbfounded for a split second before I got my shit together.
The right thing to do would be to chase after him, make sure he didn’t get into any trouble, but I didn’t always do the right thing. I spun around and faced the two gods before me.
“So, this was your big move?” I pointed to Tyr but spoke to Thor.
Tyr was a god of war and known for justice within the gods. But what he was most infamous for was when he tried to chain up Fenrir as a young boy. When Ragnarök was prophesied, it was foretold that it would all begin with Fenrir killing Odin, so Tyr was tasked with chaining him up. I didn’t know the full details, but Fen bit off Tyr’s hand in the process. And from the looks of it, at least from Fen’s point of view, he was still pissed.
“I can help you in your quest,” Tyr said, finally speaking.
“And why would you want to help us?” I scoffed, not believing him for a second.
Tyr stepped forward and looked down at me. I didn’t realize how tall he was.
“Because I know where Hel is,” he said. “I didn’t have a way to get to her until now.”
Well damn.
6
“You mean to tell me you’ve known all along where she is and haven’t sent soldiers in to get her?” I shouted so loud my voice cracked at the end.
“It’s not that easy, Hrefna,” Thor said, putting a hand out to placate me. “Where she is, it’s practically a fortress. We have no way of entering without alerting her with plenty of time to prepare for our presence. It would be a suicide mission.”
I ran a hand through my hair and started to pace within the small confines. “Where the hell is she?”
Tyr cleared his throat. “She’s in Náströnd.”
My eyes nearly bulged out. “Hel’s in Corpse Shore?” They both nodded, and I stumbled back, needing a place to sit. No wonder they couldn’t get to her. It was surrounded by water, and the only way in would be by ship, giving Hel a heads-up they were coming. We’d be on her turf, and the minute we stepped foot on shore, she’d raise the dead. It would be a bloodbath. She was smart, I’d give her that.
“The only way we can get to her is by water,” Tyr said. “But with a valkyrie …” He let the statement linger, and I knew exactly what he was thinking.
“I can fly in with the cover of the night,” I said, not looking at him.
“Precisely,” he agreed. “It would be a solo mission, but I think you’re up for it.”
“If you need time to process this, we understand,” Thor said, but I shook my head.
“No. I want to do this. I have to. My friends are inside, and who knows what kind of torture Hel is putting them through. I have to save them.”
Thor and Tyr looked at one another, as if contemplating who should speak first. Of course, there was a fine print to this deal.
“What do you need me to do while I’m there?” I raised a brow.
“We need her plans,” Tyr said. “Her next moves. She’s been attacking Asgard every night, but what is her end game?”
“And when is she going to attack Midgard?” Thor said.
“Why do you care?”
“Because I’m returning to Midgard and helping you defend it.” He grinned. That made me do a double take. Thor returning would be a game changer, a huge help. One we needed desperately.
“How do you plan to get your friends out of Corpse Shore? You can’t fly all three of them out at once,” Tyr asked as he held his arm.
I shook my head. “I don’t have to. Verdandi the Norn is one of my friends that was taken. She can open a portal.”
Tyr’s brows furrowed. “I thought Odin killed the Norns.”
“Long story.” I sighed. “Wait for the movie.”
“Either way, it can’t be that easy or she would have portaled out already. They must be restricting her abilities,” Tyr said.
He was right, but I also liked to believe that Verdandi wouldn’t leave without Will or Charlie and that’s why she hadn’t saved her own skin. I had to prepare for the worst.
“I’m ready,” I said with resolve. “Set everything up for me to leave tonight. I don’t want to waste any time.”
I spun around and exited the tent before they could stop me or I changed my mind. I took a deep breath and placed my hands on my hips. It was done. Tonight, I was getting my friends no matter what.
Thor stepped out behind me, and I could feel his overbearing presence on my back.
“Are you going to tell Fenrir?” he asked from behind me.
I shook my head. I didn’t want to speak because I knew my voice would crack.
“He’ll be upset if you don’t tell him.”
He’d be pissed, but he ran off to gods knew where, and I didn’t have the patience to chase after him. I had to concentrate on one task, and that was finding my friends. Nothing could distract me from that goal.
“What do you want me to tell him when he comes looking for you?” Thor asked.
I shrugged. “The truth. I’m no liar.”
And with that, I walked away.
It was dusk when Tyr and Thor escorted me to the portal that would take me to the skies of Náströnd. My wings were unfurled, a sword was strapped to my back, and a dagger was in each of my ankle straps and another on my thigh. My short hair was pulled into a ponytail and away from my face and I was ready in my midnight blue tunic with black leggings.
“Remember, Hrefna, we need her plans above all else,” Tyr said as he eyed me carefully. Those blue eyes followed my every move.
“But if I get a shot at killing her, I’m taking it,” I said without hesitation. No one was going to convince me otherwise, not even Fenrir.
“Be careful, Hrefna,” Thor warned. “She’s clever and extremely dangerous. Don’t underestimate her.”
“I won’t.”
The portal swirled a tornado of colors as the wind whipped around us. The sound was so loud we could barely hear each other against the whooshes.
I stepped forward toward the portal and stuck my right foot inside before looking back at the two gods.
“If I don’t make it back, don’t abandon Midgard,” I said before jumping in, not waiting on a response.
&n
bsp; The portal sucked me in, and I immediately flapped my honey-brown wings against the harsh breeze of the night sky. I squinted my eyes as I adjusted to the change of location and took in my surrounding. I was flying through clouds in the dark sky, the murky waters below me. The wind bit into my skin and made me flinch. Up ahead I could see the shadows of an island—Corpse Shore. It was an outline, so I still had miles to go, but I could see it. I had to keep to the cover of the clouds.
After thirty minutes of flying, I made it to the island, flying above it and looking for a way in. I could see the skeletons on the shore just waiting to be raised. There were hundreds, maybe thousands.
In the center of the island was a fortress with a tower in the center, so high I could almost touch it. There was a window at the top of the tower, and it was dark inside. I could try going in from there and hope no one was inside the room.
I looked around the island, making sure no one would be able to see, and then darted for the window. It was open, and I flew in gracefully, tucking my wings as I dove and rolled inside. The room was dark, but I blinked a few times and let my vision adjust. It was a bedroom. There was a bed in the center of the room with manacles on every corner, but no one was in the room.
I put my wings away and went for the door. It creaked open, and light filtered in as I peeped into the hallway. As I poked my head out, I noticed it was empty and stepped outside the room. On one side there was a dead end, so I walked toward the other side. It led to a narrow concrete spiral staircase. There was only space for one person, so if someone was coming up stairs, this would be an uncomfortable confrontation. I took a deep breath and kept moving down the stairs quietly. The stairs were never-ending, and I realized it was taking me all the way down the tower.
When I heard voices coming from below, I knew I was close to the bottom. It wasn’t Hel, but I was almost positive it was her hellhounds. I could attack them and leave a trail of bodies in my wake, or I could be covert about it and stick to the shadows. I was better off with the latter.
I plastered my body to the wall and peeked around the corner at the end of the stairs. Two hellhounds were patrolling the hallway, and I’d have to get past them without being noticed.
Creeping toward the hellhound with his back to me, I reached for the knife in his holster and slipped it out slowly, freezing every time he jerked. When I was finally able to remove it, I looked for another hellhound around the area as I squatted behind the hellhound I’d stolen the knife from. I found my target, aimed for the thigh, and threw the knife before quickly running back to my hiding spot.
“Ah! What the hell!” the hellhound who was hit yelled. “You stabbed me!” he accused.
“No, I didn’t!”
“It’s your knife!”
“But it wasn’t me!”
I crawled out of my hiding spot to see all of the hellhounds had congregated around the hellhound who had been hit with the knife. Taking advantage of the opportunity, I rushed down the opposite direction in the hallway.
As the hallway curved, I heard voices coming toward me. I looked around and saw an opening up ahead for a set of stairs that went down. I dashed for them just in time to bypass whoever was coming toward me.
The stairs were lit with torches, and I grabbed one as I descended the stairs. There was a mildew scent mixed with feces, and I blanched at the odor. I almost went back upstairs, but I was too curious at what was down here. When I got to the last step, my foot landed in a puddle, and I could hear the flow of running water and the groans of somebody.
Moving the torch around, I took in what looked like a boiler room until the light landed on the cages. There were two, and I didn’t recognize the two bodies that were inside, at least not from where I stood. They were slumped on the ground, unmoving, and if I didn’t know any better, I would have thought they were dead.
I approached the cages, noticing the first one held a man in rags with overgrown hair and a long beard. I could barely see his face as he was lying facedown on the ground. I couldn’t see the prisoner in the cage next to him from my viewpoint, but I saw it had a muzzle on, and I wondered if they were experiments.
The one with the muzzle lifted its head and saw me. It ran up to the bars of the cage and began to groan, unable to speak. It banged on the cage bars, trying to get either my attention or the man on the ground. I stood frozen, unable to move. The muzzle was like a helmet; it covered its whole face, and with the rags and how dirty they were, I couldn’t even tell if they were a man or woman.
“Shh.” I tried to quiet down the muzzled prisoner. I didn’t want to attract anyone’s attention. I looked up at the stairs, and the prisoner looked up too and quieted, realizing what I wanted.
The man on the floor moved, twisting his head in my direction, and his eyes flickered open. He gasped.
“Raven?” he croaked.
My eyes widened. “What did you say?” I squatted down to be at eye level with the man and grabbed onto the bars.
He tried to stand but fell to the floor again.
“Raven,” he said again. “Are you really here?”
Could it be? I shook my head. No, it wasn’t possible. He looked nothing like Will. Then again, this man looked like he hadn’t eaten in months.
“Will, is that you?” I choked out.
“Yeah,” his voice cracked.
I shot up from the bars and ran to the other cage and looked at the muzzled prisoner. It must be Charlie so she wouldn’t shriek since she was a banshee.
“Charlie, is that you? Gods, please tell me it’s you,” I pleaded.
She nodded multiple times and reached for my hands through the bars. Her hands were grimy and full of dirt. I squeezed them tightly and brought them to my chest. I found them.
“I’m getting you both out of here,” I said with resolve.
I pulled my hands away, and she let them go with reluctance. I retrieved my sword from my back and reached for the lock of the cage. With one sweep I broke the lock, and the cage swung open.
Charlie charged for me, hugging me fiercely, and I was surprised I hugged her just as hard. I exhaled a sigh of relief to have her in my arms and safe.
Once we let each other go, I sheathed my sword and pulled out a dagger to break her out of the muzzle. When I pulled it off, she gasped as if she was breathing fresh air for the first time.
“Raven!” she cried.
“Shhh,” I quieted her. “We have to be quiet. They still don’t know I’m here.”
I put the dagger away and pulled out the sword and unlocked Will’s cage. When I put it away, I had to go inside and help him up. He was worse off than Charlie.
“What happened to him?” I asked Charlie as I put his arm around my neck and wrapped my arm around his waist to hold him up.
“They’ve been starving him,” she said, wincing. “He’s not going to make it much longer, Raven.”
“We’re not leaving him behind,” I growled. “Where’s Verdandi?”
She shrugged. “We haven’t seen her since we got here.”
That worried me. What did Hel want with the Norn? There was no way we would be able to find Hel’s plans and find Verdandi with Will in his condition. We were bound to get caught.
“Do you know the blueprint of this place?” I asked Charlie.
“Very little. We weren’t let out much,” she said, squinting. Her glasses were missing.
“We’ll just have to fight our way out,” I said, hefting Will up in my arms. “Those vocal cords still work?” I grinned at Charlie.
She cleared her throat and smiled. “You know it.”
“Good. Let’s go.”
The three of us went up the stairs and back to the main floor where the hallways were empty. I went the opposite direction I’d come from and had Charlie lead the way while I watched our backs. It was a bit difficult with Will in my arms, but it was better than getting a surprise attack.
We made it deep into the hallway until it fanned out into a big room. As we reac
hed the center of the room, we were surrounded. Hellhounds came from behind the columns, and there was no way out but through.
“Leaving so soon?” Her voice echoed in the room, and I swiveled around, trying to find where it was coming from. “But you just got here.” Hel taunted us, but I couldn’t see her.
“Show yourself!” I yelled, my sword tight in my hand.
Charlie and I stood back to back, and she whispered for me to turn around. We swapped locations, and that’s when I saw Hel. In full, shiny leathers and boots, her black hair fanned out around her, and dark makeup to accentuate her paleness, she was death incarnate. And Verdandi stood beside her. The Norn looked different from the others. Unlike Charlie and Will, she didn’t look like a prisoner. She was clean and properly dressed and wasn’t in shackles.
“Verdandi …,” I whispered, taking a tentative step forward.
“Oh?” Hel raised a brow. “You like my new pet?” She stroked Verdandi’s long dark hair, which in reality was Lana’s since she was using her body as a vessel. If I didn’t rescue the Norn in time, the medium would return to her body as a prisoner to Hel.
“Let’s finish this, just you and me,” I told her as I gripped my sword and pulled it out. I missed the Sword of Souls, but that was being kept safe so no one could get their fingers on it. But I itched to feel it just one more time.
“You want to fight me, valkyrie?” Hel chuckled as if the thought were preposterous.
“I want to end this once and for all,” I said, taking another step toward her. “It’s over for you, Hel.”
She smirked wickedly, and it sent a chill down my spine. She uncoiled her bracelet, letting out a whip that she snapped in the air. The leather braid wrapped around my wrist of the hand that held my sword, and she tugged me forward, making me stumble. I was so shocked at how fast she got ahold of me; it took me a moment to dig my heels in to stop her from bringing me closer.
I tossed my sword to my other hand and slashed at the whip, cutting it from my wrist. The leather untangled from my skin and dropped to the floor. I heard Charlie shriek behind me, but I didn’t look back. She was taking care of the hellhounds while watching out for Will. I had to focus on Hel. She ran for me, dropping the whip, and I met her halfway. I swung my sword, and she ducked. I narrowly missed her head, slicing a few strands of her hair. She punched me in the gut, and I stumbled back. Using the butt of the sword, I hit her in the face. Blood spurted out of her, and I didn’t slow down. I kicked her in the stomach, and when she tumbled back, I went to stab her in the gut, but she grabbed the blade and held it still. Her hands gushed crimson as the sword cut her skin, but she avoided an abdomen wound. It wouldn’t kill her, but it would give me the advantage I’d need to take her down.
The Last Valkyrie Series Complete Boxed Set Page 40
