Thor hurried us inside and then closed the door. Jason cast a light spell, but none of us were very talkative and we soon bundled under the blankets. I was grateful for the cushions. I wasn’t fond of sleeping on the ground under drizzly skies.
As I bedded down, wishing Tam were by my side, I thought I heard a shout from outside, but then all was quiet and I closed my eyes, certain I wouldn’t be able to sleep. But my body proved me wrong, and the next thing I knew, it was morning and Thor was waking us up.
“UP AND AT ‘em,” Thor said, opening the door. “It’s a nippy morning, so bundle up.”
As we tumbled out of the chariot, the encampment looked calm and collected. There was no sign of the bodies anywhere, and a merry fire was crackling with a pot of cereal cooking over it. I grinned. It still astonished me when the gods took part in mundane tasks like cooking or cleaning, but I had come to learn a lot in the past eight years of living in such close proximity to them. The gods were a lot like us, only more powerful, and usually a bit wiser.
I shivered as I gathered my cloak around my shoulders. My shorts left my legs bare, and that meant cool autumn air on shivering skin. I had brought my leather jacket but was saving that for when we were in Seattle proper, where I’d have to be on high alert and able to move easily and quickly. Wearing a cloak protected me from the chill, but it wasn’t quite so easy to dart around in, or to free my whip.
Elan pressed a cup of hot brew in my hands. The Norse gods had given us something else—a nonalcoholic drink that tasted a lot like coffee, had a live-wire kick to it, but was easy to grow in our climate. They called it vaknop, which they said meant something akin to “wake up.” And wake you up it did.
I took a long sip of it, closing my eyes with pleasure as the hot, slightly spicy, liquid flowed down my throat. Instantly, I felt more alert and warmer. As Fortune began to ladle out bowls of the cereal, I carried mine over to a fallen log and sat down next to Hans and Greta.
“Last night was worrisome.” I set my mug down on the ground as I began to eat.
“I had worried about the pack of the creatures who attacked the foragers, but this attack means there must be more than one pack on the hunt. We know lycanthropes roam the woods, but they aren’t all that common and that we have several packs hunting is, yes, quite worrisome.” Greta shook her head. “The winters are getting colder and longer, have you noticed? There wasn’t frost this morning, but it won’t be long before we find it at our doorstep.”
“Gaia cooled the planet during the first World Shift. I’m beginning to think she did so again this time.” Hans spooned his cereal into his mouth, catching a bit in his beard.
Greta leaned over and wiped it off for him and I couldn’t help but smile. They had grown into their marriage, and while Greta had told me she’d never have children, being a Valkyrie, she also told me they had talked about fostering a child. Tam was promoting the practice. He said it encouraged the village to come together, to band as a united group rather than just a town.
“Do you think that has anything to do with the lycanthropes?” I couldn’t see the connection.
Hans shrugged. “Honestly, I don’t know, except they do seem to thrive out in the woods better than they ever did in the city. They had to live beneath the ground there. Remember, they can breed, and out here, they have the space to claim territories. Even as we’ve claimed our boundaries for Willow Wood and UnderBarrow, the lycanthropes may be intent on growing their population and staking out territory, which normally wouldn’t be an issue. Except for one problem: they hunt anything and everything. And they seem to do well in cooler climes.”
“If the world is cooling, and they thrive in colder climates, then we’ve got a long-range problem on our hands.” I motioned for Elan and Jason to join us. Thor followed them over.
“Hans thinks the lycanthropes may be branching out in the woods, trying to expand their population.”
Jason frowned. “But the one problem with that is they’ve never banded together before. Oh, they did to a small extent in the Underground, but more often than not, they are so territorial they’re practically solitary.”
“Then something must be uniting them. And that begs the question of what or who is bringing them together?”
The thought of the lycanthropes banding together under a common banner scared the hell out of me. They were tough enough individually, but if they joined forces, they would be a formidable force. We would be hard put if they decided to wage war on the village. And given Tigra’s information, we couldn’t expect help from anyone else. Everybody seemed on their own.
“Last night, the bodies smelled funny. I was trying to place the scent. I’ve smelled it before, and it’s related to the feeling I felt at the Frostlings’ village.” Thor paused, closing his eyes for a moment. “For a moment, I thought maybe Loki was back, but even though the scent reminds me of him, it’s not quite the same.” He shook his head again. “No, I can’t recall. There have been so many battles, and so many enemies over the years. It will come back when it’s time. Are you ready?”
I nodded. “We should get moving.” I looked up at the overcast skies just as they burst open and a deluge of rain broke loose. Pulling my hood over my head, I headed for the chariot as Wheel began to gather the dishes and put out the fire.
Within minutes, we were underway again, heading over the land bridge into the Green Lake district. But it wasn’t long before Thor stopped and opened the chariot again.
“You need to come out. We’ve been stopped.” He didn’t look particularly worried, so it couldn’t be an attack, I thought.
“What’s up?” I asked as I stepped outside, into a steady downpour.
We had crossed to the other side of the land bridge, only to find a gate barricading the entrance to the Green Lake area. Guards lined the gate, dressed in curious uniforms that looked ragtag and thrown together, but they were all wearing dark green and purple, and they were carrying swords.
Stepping up beside Thor, we advanced toward the gate, with Zed and Elan behind us.
From the midst of the guards stepped a tall man. He was wearing a leather jacket and leather pants, and around his head, he wore what looked like a leather headband with metal spikes on it. He was carrying a sword and wore what looked like a fine mesh chain tunic beneath his jacket. For some reason, he looked familiar, but I couldn’t place him.
He looked at Thor and said, “Who are you and what do you want?” He sounded like he was clenching his jaw and I could see he had a couple missing teeth.
Hans stepped forward. “May I present Her Majesty, Queen Kaeleen the Fury of UnderBarrow, and Thor, Lord of Thunder.”
The man blinked, cocking his head. “UnderBarrow? Didn’t that used to be down in the Sandspit?”
I nodded. “Yes, but Lord Tam, my husband and King of UnderBarrow, moved it before the tsunami hit. Might I ask your name?”
For a moment, I thought he was going to order us to turn around, but then he seemed to relax. “I’m Karl Shefford, the sheriff of the Green Lake district.” He scanned the rest of our party. “I thought you might be coming to raid our goods. There are a lot of marauders out and about these days.”
I nodded. “Easy mistake, and it’s always better to make certain of who’s passing through your borders. We need to get through to Seattle. We’re not here to make trouble, just passing by. And if you have time, I’d like to sit down and discuss any news that might benefit us both.”
It occurred to me that it would be a wise idea to find out if they were having lycanthrope issues, and if so, for how long. I also wanted to see if they had any information on any news coming out of the Tremble.
“Then follow me,” he said.
We quickly found ourselves heading toward a large house just inside the borders of the Green Lake district. The mansion had obviously gone from upscale to being retrofitted to manage with present conditions.
“This is my house. Welcome and well met.” Karl ushered us
toward the gates.
I noticed the number of guards staged around the perimeter of the land, and I also noticed that any houses that must have been nearby had been torn down.
A barbed wire enclosure ringed the house, with yet more guards positioned around the perimeter. More guards watched from watchtowers that had been built out of red brick and wood. The barbed wire was three layers thick, and there were sharpened logs angled toward anybody making a run for the wire walls. Just how many enemies were they attempting to keep out?
The guard at the gate saluted as Karl approached, but gave us a sketchy look.
“They’re all right. They’ve come on a peace mission. They’re just passing through.” Karl waved to the guard and he slowly opened the gate as we entered. Thor left the goats to stand guard over the chariot, along with Wheel, Fortune, and Shawna. Elan and Zed flanked me as we entered the house, with Thor at the front and the others in back.
Karl led us into the house. A number of the walls had been removed to make one large room, with a few down a back hall. A woman was in one corner, cooking over a wood stove. The smell of stew hit me hard, and my mouth watered, but as I glanced at Thor, he shook his head in a slight warning.
“You folks hungry or thirsty?” Karl asked.
I paused, then said, “No, thanks. We ate on the road, and we don’t want to deprive you of any of your rations.”
“Then have a seat over there around the table. I’ll be back in a moment.” He headed down the hall.
It occurred to me that Karl didn’t seem to have any deputies, though the guards could be considered as such, I supposed. In fact, when I looked around, the only people I saw inside the house besides the woman cooking at the stove were guards. I leaned toward Thor.
“Don’t you find the lack of other townsfolk odd? Karl seems to be running things on his own. Even in UnderBarrow, Tam and I have Damh Varias and other advisors.”
He cast a careful look around the room, then gave me a sharp nod. “There are more things that are off than that, but this is not the place to discuss them. I suggest we keep the meeting short, and do not reveal much about Willow Wood or UnderBarrow.”
I glanced up at him. The concern in his eyes had me more worried than his words. Perhaps we shouldn’t have come back here with Karl, but then again, could we have passed through the Green Lake district without trouble if we had?
Karl returned with a drink in hand. It looked like beer, with a heady foam. “If you folks want a drink, please say so,” he said as he swung a chair around, then straddled it, leaning against the back. “We have plenty.”
He seemed more relaxed than he had a moment ago and I felt my alarms beginning to stand down. Maybe he had just been on edge for some reason.
“So, you’re the queen of UnderBarrow.” He paused for a moment. “You’re also a Theosian. I remember you from when Seattle still stood.”
I blinked. “Have we met? I’m sorry, but…” I paused, thinking again that he looked all too familiar.
Karl laughed, then, sipping the beer and wiping the foam off his lip. “You did me a kindness one day. You gave me a cup of coffee. I was on the Monotrain. I told you my name was Gin, short for Gino. Which was the nickname they gave me back then. Probably because I used a lot of Ginotep.”
And then it flooded back. I remembered. I had been on my way to work at Dream Wardens and I had stopped for coffee. On the Monotrain, I had met a homeless man, a drug-dazed bogey with a couple missing teeth. I had thought him high on Opish, but apparently Ginotep was his drug of choice—it was rougher than Opish, and easier to score on the cheap.
He had seemed sad, and had looked so longingly at my coffee that I gave it to him. As the memory drifted back, I stared at Karl. Yes, it was the same man, though he looked a long shot healthier and far stronger now. He still had the missing teeth, but his eyes were clear and he looked well-fed.
“I remember you. You lived at Evermore.” The government shelters were harsh. They’d give out drugs for free, but no coffee and little food—the bare minimum for survival. They basically kept the Broken, broken. The memory seemed so far away and yet it had only been about ten years, if that.
“Yes, indeed. I did. When Seattle fell, they locked the shelter down. If you were inside, you were basically zombie food. Luckily, I was outside. I was looking for work up here in the Green Lake district the day the city fell. I never went back, so I wasn’t there during the tsunami, either. I managed to find a house that had been deserted—this house—and moved in. The rest is history. I built a community here over the years and managed to rise to sheriff.” He polished off the beer and set the glass on the table.
He was telling the truth, and yet he wasn’t. That much I could sense. There were strands of truth woven through his story but there was more he wasn’t saying, and that was the part that made me nervous.
“You did me a good deed, so I’ll do you one now. We don’t let many folk pass through here unattended, but you can go through without trouble. I’ll tell my men to let you pass. But I suggest you find another way home,” he said, eyeing me closely. “Also, a word of warning. Watch out for lycanthropes. We’ve had a real problem with them over the past month or so.” Karl frowned. “We fought off a raiding party two days ago. They headed west over the land bridge. We lost three men.”
“I think we met them,” Thor said. “They won’t bother you again—at least that particular party.” He cracked his knuckles and snorted. I realized it was a show, but it was a good one because Karl eyed him steadily, looking slightly alarmed.
“You killed them?” Karl asked.
“That we did, with only a few scratches on our part.” Thor cleared his throat. “We should be on our way. Thank you for the warning. We’ll find another way home without treading through your lands.” He stood, straightening his shoulders and stretching in an impressive show of brawn. He picked up Mjölnir and tossed it in the air, spinning it once and then catching it as though it weighed nothing.
Once again, Karl grimaced. “Then be safe and may you find what you’re looking for. But the ghost city is deadly. Watch your step. The entire area is tainted with decay and death.”
Karl guided us to the door where he, along with two men who easily looked as dangerous as he did, guided us back to the chariot. As soon as we could, we were off, skirting the edge of the Green Lake district toward the point where bridges had once connected across to Seattle.
There were a couple ferries there now—one large and one small. We paid the ferryman the fare for the larger one, and he and his crew began to row us, along with the chariot, across what had once been called the Locks. The trip was short, and it was less than an hour before we set foot on the other side.
I breathed a sigh of relief as we left Karl’s lands behind. As the ferryman departed, rowing back over the lake, I turned to Thor.
“I can’t believe he actually remembered me.”
“We’re lucky he did. A fortuitous chance, or I think we would have had a fight getting out of there.”
“You think so, too? There’s something about him that makes me nervous. Something I didn’t feel the day I gave him the coffee.”
“Living through disaster changes people. I think, in his case, it wasn’t for the better. But I’ll bet you he’ll outlive a lot of others.”
I nodded slowly. “I don’t think that house of his was abandoned when he found it.”
Thor shook his head. “Nor do I. I’m pretty sure the owners are dead and buried where they won’t be found. We should pass the information about Green Lake onto Verdanya, and to Wyfair. I doubt if Karl would attempt to spread out toward our area—it would be a long hike—but on the chance that his head grows too big for his britches, we should be prepared.”
“We should just destroy that land bridge,” Jason said with a shake of the head. “It wouldn’t be that difficult, and it would erect a difficult passage between them and us. If we want to visit the ghost city again
, there are plenty of other options.”
“That might not be a bad plan. Bring it up at the next Sea-Council. Meanwhile, thanks to Karl, we have a longer trip home, I fear. I don’t relish the thought of going south through the Bogs. We don’t even know if the road is still navigable.” We hadn’t been that way in a long time, and I had no doubt the Bogs had grown even more wild and the passage more dangerous. Plus, that would take us right by the World Tree, and who knew what was coming off it now?
“We won’t have to go through the Bogs.” Thor stroked his long red beard. “We can contact Jerako—cross over to the Arbortariam. From there, it’s not a bad jaunt back to Willow Wood. The Greenlings are our allies, so they will offer us safe passage.”
“But can we find a ferry?”
The Arbortariam was an island across Wild Wave Inlet, inhabited by the Greenlings—beings devoted to Gaia who were much like trees, only sentient and mobile.
Thor frowned, then shrugged. “We’ll figure it out. Come along.”
We set out south on a broken stretch of freeway. There were no cars, other than the rusted heaps sitting on the sides of the road. The asphalt was in pieces, with plants thrusting their way through the cracks. The roads had buckled during the earthquakes, and the tsunami had done a number on what was left.
All along the sides of the road were strewn the ruins of houses and apartments and stores—now mostly rubble. Here and there a building still stood, weather worn and covered in Wandering Ivy. Other structures that had remained upright reeked of danger, precarious as they waited for an errant windstorm to topple them into the last stage of their lives.
We were approaching the turnoff to the Tremble. Part of me really wanted to venture out on the plain, to seek out Rasheya and find out whether she had truly been trying to contact me in the dream. But one look at Thor told me that I wasn’t going to be able to cadge him into the side trip. I might be a queen, but he was a god, and his jaw was set in that way that told me not to even bother asking.
As we climbed into the chariot and headed along the road, I leaned back against the metal and closed my eyes. We were all tense, especially after meeting Karl. I thought back to the lonely, lost soul I had met on the Monotrain. Now he was king of a domain that I knew, in the core of my soul, he had taken by force. That was what our world had come to. Maybe that was what it had always been.
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