Thor stepped back around the drift and smiled at the weapon. “I confess I watched what you did. Now that’s what I call real weapon progression. When did instant incineration become possible?”
One side of Stark’s mouth lifted in a grimace. “It hasn’t. The higher setting is my own doing. The Directors don’t want such power to be unilaterally available. I agreed with that decision.”
Thor sighed and he walked back to where Stark stood. Fifteen dogs trotted after him. “I would have loved using one of those.”
Stark nodded. “Next time I visit Glacier, I’ll modify a new blaster for you and bring it back… unless you want to go with me and take up your life there again.”
Thor bowed his head as he passed the precious cargo in his arms back to the General he’d served with for several centuries. “I will consider the offer to return. First, though, you need to hear why I did not let anyone know where I was.”
“You need fear no judgment from me, Thor. I saw my and Topper’s deaths in Arctic’s crazed gaze. I owe you a life debt for saving us both.”
Thor grinned, happier than he imagined being to see someone from his planet again. “I would say this is just like old times, wouldn’t you, General? Perhaps we’re just breaking even at last. Thank the Goddess.”
Stark chuckled. “Yes. I thank the Goddess for many things today.”
“Did you actually retire?” Thor asked. “I figured they’d force you into politics.”
“They tried,” Stark said. “I took a job in animal control and went to live in the ice fields.”
Thor laughed. “I’ve glad to see some things never change.”
Stark looked down at the woman in arms. “And some things do, Thor. Some things do.”
Chapter 8
Topper woke from the strangest dream she could ever remember having and found herself standing naked in the lushest jungle she’d ever seen. Feeling as guilty as Lilith in the Garden of Eden, she looked down at her nudeness and then around at the flowering, blossoming trees.
At least she was warm finally, but how in the Fates had she gotten here from Alaska? And where was Stark? Was he even still alive? Worry brought a frown to her face and a knot to her stomach.
Before she could dwell on the negative thoughts, a tall red-haired woman in a pale green gown stepped out of the trees. She smiled in welcome, but Topper could only frown in reply.
“Hello, Mildred,” the woman said in greeting.
Topper cringed and held up a hand. “Stop. Do not speak that vileness again. That’s not my name.”
The woman laughed. “It was the name your mother gave you when you were born. It was your great-grandmother’s name. It is the name by which you received your Goddess given power.”
“Only one being is allowed to call me that hideous name… and it’s not you,” Topper said defiantly.
She waved a hand over her body to clothe herself, but nothing happened. She glared at the beautifully clothed woman who was still smiling at her.
“I’m glad you find this so funny, but I do not. Did you take my powers away?” Topper demanded.
The woman shook her head. “No. You’re dreaming… mostly. Your mate undressed you before he put you in bed. That’s the reason you’re not wearing clothes.”
So at least Stark lived. “This is wrong on so many levels I can’t list them all. I’m never naked in my dreams,” Topper said.
The woman bit her lip as she fought not to laugh again.
“Well, I’m not naked in this kind of dream,” Topper exclaimed. “And I’d appreciate you not laughing at me. I’m on my honeymoon and today someone tried to kill my mate. I’m a little bit stressed here.”
Her tormentor giggled as she smiled wider. “I can see why the Fates care for you so much. You’re quite entertaining. I also hear you’re a very good cook. Sometimes I really miss eating. It was among my favorites of Earthly pleasures.”
Topper fisted hands on her bare, ample hips. “Okay. I’ll bite. What do you want from me? Why am I here?”
“I want nothing,” the woman declared with yet another laugh. “I just needed to talk to you… alone. Your mate is very protective and I’ve had a hard time catching you without him nearby. I can’t really interact with him too much.”
“Fine. Fine. We all have our rules. Now… who... or what… are you?”
The woman ducked her head. “I died not long ago and now I serve Gaia. That’s all that you really need to know about me. That past was good, but now it’s gone. I prefer to focus on the present and my… tasks.”
Topper’s hand fell to her sides. “I see. I’m sorry then if I was rude. Are you one of Gaia’s priestesses?”
The woman shook her head. “Not priestess… more like her messenger. Are you willing to hear my words?”
Topper nodded, and then sighed. “It would be a lot easier to listen if I had some clothes on.”
The woman bowed her head and lifted a hand. Topper felt cool, sensuous fabric slide against her skin and looked down to see a purple gossamer gown now covered her. It was probably the most beautiful piece of clothing she’d ever seen in her life.
“Wait… it needs adornment,” the woman declared.
She walked closer and touched the top of her head. Even without a mirror, Topper knew the woman had changed her hair color to match the dress.
“Better?” Gaia’s messenger asked.
Topper nodded again. Two chair-shaped boulders suddenly appeared. She numbly walked to one and sat, trying to remember the last time she was so overwhelmed. It was probably when the Fates had taken her powers. She’d hoped never to feel that defenseless again.
Gaia’s messenger sat in the other boulder chair and wiggled until she got comfortable. “Now we can talk comfortably.”
Topper didn’t answer, just waited for her to speak again.
“Your mate has given you an unusual gift. The light he shared with you is the light of creation from his planet. His goddess gifted it to him. Now he’s given some to you. This was not intentional, but the best things almost never are.”
“Creation light?” Topper repeated. “What does that mean?”
“Creation energy is both orderly and chaotic at the same time. It brings unpredictable magic into the world, yet also replenishes passion and motivation and… it always, always bring great change.”
“Is that why I exploded snow? I was trying to freeze the person attacking my mate,” Topper said.
Gaia’s messenger looked pensive. “Yes. At the moment that energy is inside you looking for a place in your body to manifest. It needs your permission to do what is in its nature to do.”
Topper frowned. “What’s that mean?”
“The light will either dissipate and move alongside your own powers to eventually enhance them… or it could become a child… or two. This is the choice you need to make.”
Topper sat back and shook her head. “What kind of choice is that? I’m too old to become a mother. That’s for younger women.”
“What is your true age? Do you even know?”
Topper sighed. “I only know because my sisters and I track the passing of time,” she said.
“Yes, but what do human years mean to a witch? Some part of you has always been and will always be. You will never stop being.”
Topper sighed. “Okay. I admit that I chose the age others see when they see me. I’ve chosen to be that same age for a good while now. My sisters have gone along with me so we all look nearly the same. Apparently their children liked having older looking parents.”
“And you’ve chosen to be your current age because it served you in your leadership role.”
“If you know all my reasons already, why are you making me state them?” Topper asked.
“Because I think you’ve succumbed to human influence too much. You are Gaia’s witch and the Fates watch over your life. As was the woman whose name you don’t like sharing. Your mother chose to bring you into the world when she was also beyond no
rmal years to do so. She loved you so much that she repeated the experience to have your sisters—to make sure she’d contributed all she could to the power continuum of your family. She lived to see all her daughters well into witch adulthood, did she not?”
Topper nodded. “Yes. And I still miss her.”
“Because you have neglected to see that your mother is still with you. Her energy clings to your family. Each new addition brings a little more of her back into the world. Your niece Lacey… she received a healthy portion.”
“Yes. Lacey is a lot like her… and has some of her gifts. Are you saying my mother wants to be reborn through my children too?” Topper asked.
Gaia’s messenger smiled. “Any child of yours would certainly bring a large part of her back to the Earth. It would also bring the power from another world here as well. You and Lacey have unique opportunities.”
“But…”
“Not all women are gifted with children. I did not have any in my physical life. My energy is all here now with Gaia because it has nowhere else to be. Yours will face that same fate and the line of Gaia’s witches would end.”
“But…”
Topper thought of what raising a child meant. All the work. The struggles. The training.
Goddess, Lacey said she and Frost didn’t sleep a whole night for months after their baby came. If she had a child, there could be no more dangerous safaris or crazy adventures until the child reached a proper age of wielding magic. She’d have to content herself with family vacations. What were those even like?
Topper stared off into space as a million things occurred to her. When she finally escaped her thoughts, Gaia’s messenger was still smiling at her.
“How long do I have to decide?” Topper asked.
“I’m not sure. The power within you is restless. It won’t settle down until you make a decision.”
Topper put a hand on her stomach. “I…” A tiny spark lit there, and then fluttered.
Gaia’s messenger smiled as she stood. “I think you’ve made the right choice. Gaia will be very pleased.”
“But…”
The messenger sighed and Topper watched the raw grief on the woman’s face.
“Since I’ve delivered Gaia’s message to you, will you deliver one for me?”
“Uh… I guess so,” Topper said, suddenly more wary than ever.
“Remind him that his destiny did not die with me. My death was just a new beginning for him.”
Then the jungle was gone, the messenger was gone, and Topper woke up groaning.
Baby? She couldn’t be having a baby. Where had that come from?
And who in the world was she supposed to deliver such a strange message to?
Topper sat up quickly, breathing hard. It had been a dream. Wow… what a strange dream that was.
Running a restless hand through her hair, she glanced down at her body and saw she was wearing a purple gossamer dress.
Chapter 9
Thor met his former superior’s kind gaze. “No matter how I tell this story, it does not negate my actions. I accept responsibilities for all my decisions, sir.”
Stark held up a hand. “Set aside your emotions. Tell it like a report. I’ve already promised not to hold it against you.”
Thor nodded. “Very well,” he said, leaning back in the chair. “I chased my target to Earth after apprising nearby Rangers of my intentions to do so. Both our ships crashed in a very remote area of Alaska. It was during a time of treacherous weather conditions. The ship Laral had stolen was more damaged than mine after landing. Neither craft was flight worthy. Laral was wounded, but not dying. I was wounded, but only in a minor way.”
“Sounds like the Goddess didn’t mean for either of you to die that day,” Stark mused.
Thor nodded. “That was my thought as well at the time. To survive, I forced Laral to combine both our rations and resources. I set the emergency beacon on my ship, but had to turn it off after a couple weeks in order to direct power to any available heat source. Two months after the crash the weather got even worse. We fled my ship just in time to avoid a true avalanche—one with rocks and mountainside included, not just ice and snow. Both ships were buried beneath what now is half a mountain of rubble. It was hard going, but we hiked to a nearby tribal community. It was there I realized what had happened. After all we’d suffered together, I’d come to care for her.”
Stark nodded. “Now I see why you never got in contact again. You developed an intimate attachment to a criminal you were sent to arrest.”
Thor nodded once more. “Yes. And at that point, I could never have turned her over to pay for the crimes she’d committed. We both knew her lifespan was not much longer than an Earth human’s. I knew I would outlive her by centuries. So we stayed in that remote and primitive place. I left that village only after Laral died of old age. If given the same circumstances, I would make the same decision, General. Though not true mates in the Glacieran sense, I did consider Laral mine to protect. My Star Ranger career was over the first time I kissed her.”
“How did you end up in Seward? Are you Sandra’s mate now? We saw evidence of children,” Stark said.
Thor chuckled. “No. Sandra and her husband are part of the native population. To make my way in the more civilized world, I eventually migrated to, I took a job rescuing people who went out on the sled runs and got stuck. And as to why Seward… Laral told me to go there just before she died. She learned to serve an Earth Goddess named Gaia. Though she never said so, I think she saw her service as penance for her crimes. Now I also think I was being positioned so I could be there for you when you needed help.”
Stark closed his eyes. Fate was such a delicate dance of circumstances. “None of this shocks me, Thor, because my mate is Gaia’s witch.”
“Witch?” Thor asked. “I thought they were just a myth. Most of what I read says that about them.”
Stark snorted. “Topper can change a creature into any other creature she chooses. My mate is very real… and very powerful.”
“I can see why you’d be a good match then. I’ve never met your equal on any planet,” Thor said.
Stark bowed his head at the compliment. “Thank you.”
“So what do you want me to do?” Thor asked. “Should I go back to Glacier and confess my crimes?”
Stark shook his head. “Love is never a crime, though politicians can twist anything into one. I don’t recommend going back if you’re happy here.”
Thor shrugged. “I’m not sure what happy feels like, but when Laral and I were living in the village among the natives, I was at least content. It was not a feeling I’d experienced much in my life. I did not want to give it up.”
“You’re welcome to come to New Mexico and live with us if you want. The town of Magic is very welcoming to those who are not human and not typical. Frost is there. He’s taken a mate and has a child. I’m sure he’d be happy to see you.”
Thor hung his head. “Perhaps I will visit. I’ll give it some thought. Thank you for the offer… and for understanding.”
Stark started to reassure Thor, but movement drew his attention to the bedroom door of their suite. Topper stood there. She looked radiant in her purple gown and matching purple hair. She looked youthful and glowing. Her rest had been rejuvenating.
He stood up and smiled as he looked at her. “I think I’m disappointed.” He grinned when she glared despite their company. “You changed your hair color, but didn’t change mine. Is that any way to treat your husband on your honeymoon.”
Topper’s hand went to her hair. She’d forgotten Gaia’s messenger has changed it to match her gown. She had far more important things to worry about, but if Stark was asking, she knew there was a reason.
“You want it changed now or later?” she asked, narrowing her gaze as she stared up at him.
“Topper, this is former Star Ranger Thor… now just sled rescuer Thor. He’s also from Glacier… and he saved us from our attacker… who was yet an
other male from Glacier. I think your goddess sent Thor to save us. I would prefer Thor knew the truth of those like you before he comes to visit us in Magic.”
Topper glided across the room, nodded to Stark’s handsome visitor, and then waved a hand over Stark’s chest. His hair changed to purple in a wave of shifting color. His visitor straightened in his chair.
“That’s just a parlor trick,” Topper said, smiling at his nervousness, which she was enjoying very much. She snapped her fingers and a fire—normal sized this time—jumped to life in the grate, complete with fresh logs. “Now that’s better. I know you guys don’t like the heat, but I’m suddenly hoping I never have to be cold again.”
“We’ll visit that hot tub you spoke of later,” Stark promised. He took her hand and pulled her down into his lap as he returned to the chair.
“Your mate is all you described, General,” Thor said softly. “But far more lovely. Topper is a beautiful, but very unusual name.”
Topper snickered at the reluctant compliment. “Alien males have very unique tastes in females. You remind me of dragons.”
“Dragons? They are real as well?” Thor asked, his eyes travelling to Stark.
“The sheriff in Magic is a dragon. The ghost of the old sheriff occasionally visit—how he kept his energy together is something I still do not understand. The rest are a mix of various animal shifters and supernatural species. Magic is not your typical town.”
Thor grinned. “I believe now I must accept your offer to visit just to see this for myself.”
Topper slid off Stark’s lap. “Forgive me for being too curious, but are you mated, Thor?”
“I had someone in my life, but she died many years ago,” Thor said.
“I’m sorry for your loss,” Topper said. “Do you perhaps have a picture of her?”
Thor shook his head. “Not really, but I have her space pilot license.” He took a tiny disc from his pocket and set it on the table. He held a finger on it and a slow spinning image of a woman spun above the disk. “This is how she looked when he met. It was a hundred years ago now, but sometimes it feels like yesterday.”
Magic, New Mexico: Touching Topper (Kindle Worlds Novella) (My Crazy Alien Romance Book 2) Page 7
