His hunger, rage, and pain washed over me, and as it did, I fell to my knees in the mud. My stomach clenched and my throat closed, trapping the scream I’d tried to unleash in my lungs. I had to get away, had to escape before it was too late. I scrambled to my feet and turned to see Thes watching the dragon curiously.
He marched past me and stared deep into the eye, and a flicker of recognition went through the dragon. They knew each other, but how?
“Remember me?” Thes asked before kicking the dragon square in the eye. The blow caused a shriek unlike anything I’d ever heard before. The sound broke me from my trance, and as I watched the writhing, squirming creature, I realized it had used a spell to trick me. It wasn’t anything special.
Okay, yeah it was a big lizard, but it was just a big lizard. I could do this. No, we could do this. We could win.
I stood slowly, trying to ignore the sweat pouring from my skin. It had been using magic to scare me. The jerk. I wasn’t sure why Thes seemed unaffected, but he did, and I was incredibly glad for it.
“Come on, Lillim,” Thes said before leaping through the portal after the dragon. I sighed, knowing how stupid this was. Unfortunately, I was going anyway because I was really, really dumb.
As Thes’s body disappeared in a flash of green light, I pulled my twin swords from their sheathes and sucked in a breath that tasted like swamp gas and chili dogs which was an altogether weird combination. Magic thrummed across the edge of the blades, covering me in a dancing spray of blue and red light.
“Are you ready for this?” I asked the swords. They throbbed, humming with power and one single word reverberated through my brain as though spoken in unison.
“Yes!”
I nodded and leapt through the portal to kill a dragon.
18
I landed hard on an asteroid covered in neon orange grass on the other side of the veil. The ground was spongy beneath my feet as my asteroid floated through the grape jelly-flavored air in a slow orbit around the massive dragon. Nidhogg was so large, I couldn’t see the whole of him. I mean, I’d known he was supposed to be big, but this was just crazy.
Hell, I couldn’t make out much more than his massive head and shoulders from where I stood. Pink light filtered through branches high overhead, but I couldn’t see the source of it because the branches and leaves of Yggdrasil were too dense to make out anything above the crest of spines on the dragon’s back. I couldn’t even rightly figure out how tall he was, nor how massive the roots ensnaring his massive body really were because each root looked like it was thick enough to have blotted out the sun and I was at least half a mile away from him.
Thes stood a few feet away from me on his own spongy purple asteroid. As he flexed his claws into fists and relaxed them over and over again, his golden fur gleamed in the pink light. Nidhogg loomed above him, humongous jaws open wide. The dragon’s serpentine tongue snaked out of his mouth as if tasting the air. Gore dribbled down from one shut eye, which sort of made me glad Thes had kicked him. Evidently, objects in the portal were larger than they appeared because that eye was as big as Yankee Stadium.
“So, uh, what’s the plan?” I asked as Nidhogg snorted a gust of cherry-flavored wind at Thes.
While Thes withstood the snort like he weighed ten thousand pounds, the little bit of wind that buffeted off of him and hit me was strong enough to throw me off my feet. I stumbled backward off my asteroid. I had the brief sensation of falling before I smacked into another asteroid a couple meters below.
Air burst from my lungs as I bounced off of its surface like I’d hit a trampoline. I lashed out with my swords, driving them into the side of the asteroid from which I’d fallen. Purple gore sprayed across my face as they sank into the surface of the rock. My shoulders screeched in pain as I jerked roughly to a stop and hung there, trying to figure out how to climb atop the asteroid without the use of my hands or feet.
“Why have you come here, Dunewalker?” Nidhogg asked Thes, evidently unconcerned by my plight. Well, that was fine. If he didn’t want to pay attention to me, I could use it to my advantage. You know, as soon as I got back on my bleeding asteroid. Still, the title he’d used was curious. I’d heard Thes’s Alpha, Halcyon mention it when Thes went to Egypt, but I hadn’t had time to properly research it. Part of me had brushed it off as unimportant, but if Nidhogg knew it, I was willing to bet it wasn’t an idle title. No, it meant something, and I really wished I knew what.
“I’m here to stop you from breaking free,” Thes replied and something about his words felt ancient. There was power in them unlike anything I’d ever felt, power that came from the ages, power like I’d felt around Connor, only, not destructive. It was weird because it almost felt like the yin to Connor’s yang, only… only that wasn’t possible, was it?
“You cannot stop me, Dunewalker,” Nidhogg replied, smacking his huge jaws together as he spoke. The sound shattered my eardrums, reducing my hearing to a whine of tinnitus. Awesomesauce. “My freedom is foretold. Ragnarok is foretold.” I wasn’t sure why, but it almost seemed like the dragon was trying to convince himself.
“You know,” Thes replied, a smirk breaking across his wolfish face. “Practically every single culture on Earth has its own version of the apocalypse. They cannot all be true. It’s statistically impossible.” Thes shrugged. “After all, Thor is still alive. That’s a pretty big thumb in Ragnarok’s eye, wouldn’t you say?”
Thes was right. Thor was supposed to be killed at Jormungand’s hands. It was one of the major facets of Ragnarok. Only it hadn’t happened because I’d killed Jormungand, and if it hadn’t happened, what else might not happen? Maybe the world wouldn’t end in fire and death. Was that even possible? Or were we just missing something and the other shoe was about to drop like an Acme anvil?
A claw the size of Montreal came flying at Thes. As it slammed into the asteroid beneath the werewolf’s feet and flung it across the pink void like a billiard ball, Thes hopped onto Nidhogg’s black-scaled hand and ran up the creature’s arm. It was sort of like watching an ant crawl up an elephant.
“What’s the matter big guy? Annoyed fate might not be all it’s cracked up to be?” Thes’s smile darkened. “I’m the Dunewalker. It’s my job to break fate.” His smile grew wider as the dragon flailed, trying to throw him off. Only Nidhogg couldn’t throw him off because he was still bound within the roots of Yggdrasil. Evert time he moved, the roots cinched down tighter, so with every attempt to dislodge the werewolf, the dragon moved less and less. “You might say I’m fated to stop you.”
“You impertinent worm,” Nidhogg snarled. His nostrils flared wide as he spoke. Gouts of flame shot forth from them and slammed into the scales beneath Thes, turning them white hot in the space of a second. If it bothered the dragon, he didn’t show it.
Thes, on the other hand, was bothered plenty. He’d managed to leap out of the way of the blast, but he had to land somewhere, and the scales all around him were blazing with heat. As he came to his feet, the sizzling crackle of his flesh burning filled my ears. While I couldn’t help him with that, I could keep Nidhogg from attacking him again.
I glanced below, sighting on the asteroid beneath me and jerked my swords free of the spongy surface in front of me. I landed on the asteroid and used my legs to absorb enough impact to keep me from springing up into the air again. Then I turned my gaze on Nidhogg.
“Hey, jackass! Did you forget about me?” I asked, calling upon the power within Shirajirashii. “I’ve got a bone to pick with you.” Energy blazed along my flesh, causing sapphire and ruby sparks to leap from my skin and pop in front of me like I was a particularly expensive sparkler.
“You are not even worth replying to,” the dragons coughed, his good eye still on Thes who was too busy hot-footing it up the dragon’s arm to pay me any mind either. Well, both of them could suck it.
“Yeah, I get that a lot,” I replied, shutting my eyes. I had one trick up my sleeve, but I was loath to do it. Still, if anything would b
uy Thes time, it would be this. I wasn’t quite sure what sort of darkness lived in Nidhogg’s heart, but I was about to find out. “Red Rain.”
The words left my mouth in a stream of crimson fog as my twin swords blazed scarlet. Rusty clouds burst into existence high overhead, and as they did, I extended my right hand toward Thes and whispered a word of power.
A small disc of silver light erupted into being over his head. It wasn’t much, barely more than a millimeter thick. It wouldn’t hold back an attack, but it’d do one thing. It’d keep the rain from touching him. Not for long, but it’d buy him enough time to do whatever he was going to do. At least, I hoped it would. If it didn’t we were going to be in trouble.
Overhead, the clouds coalesced across the whole of the horizon. Lightning arced within them as I called upon all the power of fairy to augment my spell. As the rose tattoo on my wrist writhed like a living breathing thing, the scent of roses in springtime filled my nose. Thorny vines snaked outward across the asteroid beneath my feet. Flowers blossomed, spreading their bloody petals wide, and as they did, a surge of power burst from me.
Energy crackled in the air as bloody rain began to fall from the heavens. Fat red drops struck Nidhogg, and as they did, I knew I had only a few moments left before I was pulled into the world of the dragon’s nightmares. See, that was the problem with this spell. It summoned the deepest, darkest pain of those afflicted and threw it in their faces. Unfortunately, I saw it right along with them, and this time, was likely to be no exception.
A scream tore from my lips as the world itself came undone. My vision went blurry as I slumped to the ground. The twin blades of Shirajirashii slipped from my hands and hit the asteroid with a dull thwap as I fell head over heels into Nidhogg’s nightmares. Hopefully, Thes took full advantage because while I wasn’t sure what I was about to see, I was pretty sure it’d mess me up good and proper.
The dragon’s mindscape was unlike anything I’d experienced before, and as it pulled me in, darkness filled everything around me, spreading out like a cloying spider web and ensnaring every ounce of my being as I tried to fight it off.
I slammed hard onto the sparkling silver ground next to a man of average height with his back to me. His back was bare, revealing his well-muscled ruddy skin. A tiger’s skin was wrapped around his waist and his long black hair was pulled into a tight ponytail that hung to his knees. In one hand, he held a trident that was not only made of snakes, but each point was a fanged serpent dripping green ichor.
Darkness writhed around him like a living thing, and as he turned to regard me, I realized he was beautiful, faultless, and utterly perfect. But instead of making that seem attractive, it just made him seem alien and apart. Like an alien who’d decided to take all the best traits of humanity and meld them into a statue of perfect horrific beauty.
His teeth curled into a shiny, movie-star smile as his gray eyes took me in. Behind him, the world was fractured into a million possibilities. Everything from fire to flood ravaged the planet. It was like watching every apocalypse ever.
“Hello.” The word wrapped around me like cream and chocolate, taking my breath away and pulling me toward him. It was a sugar rush mixed with a shot of turpentine. The sound of it sauntered up my skin, made me tingle with heat and shiver in the cold. It was all things and nothing.
“Hello,” I replied, although I’m not sure how I managed it. Something like this had never happened before. Normally, I was pulled down into the memories of everyone around, forced to relive particularly horrible horrors right alongside the victims of the attack. Never before had I been pulled into a place like this. No, something was wrong. I wasn’t sure if it was good or bad, but I was willing to bet it wasn’t going to be cupcakes and ice cream. To be fair though, I’d settle for walking out of this with my sanity intact, and thus far, that seemed somewhat likely. See, silver lining. Hopefully, this particular cloud didn’t strike me with lightning.
“I am surprised you have found me.” He shook his head as he approached, alternating spots of molten lava and springtime daffodils sprang from his steps. “Few have.”
“I’m not sure I understand,” I replied, trying to shake understanding into my brain. In the screen directly behind him, Nidhogg rose, tearing the plant asunder as he pulled himself free of the earth. Yggdrasil splintered and cracked, and as it did, volcanos exploded and rivers turned to steam. The earth cracked like a soft boiled egg, spilling molten rock into the cold vacuum of space.
A smile quirked his too perfect lips as he stopped a few feet from me. “You did not know, did you?” It felt like a silly question because I was as lost as I’d been when watching the show of the same name.
“Uh, yeah.” I took a deep breath. “This isn’t how this normally works.”
The man waved a hand behind him toward the destruction of our planet. It spread out across a million screens in a million variations. Like magic, the one in the center came to life. I saw Thes running up Nidhogg’s arm as bloody rain fell from the sky. The dragon writhed under the onslaught, slapping at himself as though trying to fend off millions of ants.
“You missed a spot.” The man pointed toward the top left of the screen. My eyes were drawn to it, and I realized someone was falling from the sky. Someone else had been hit by my spell.
“Oh no,” I cried moving toward it even though that wouldn’t help me to see who it was. Only I knew who that falling form belonged to. Bloody rain covered his face, his body, his green hair. I’d hit Connor with my spell. Holy crap!
“Indeed,” the man replied. His smile fell away like the last vestiges of truth at a banker’s convention. “That is why I am here because, in the end, this is what I fear.”
“You?” I asked, turning my gaze back to him, and as I did, his image twitched in a way that made me think he was having trouble containing himself.
“I am the one you call Nanashi.” He gestured toward Connor’s falling form. “I am he who resides within your friend.” He said the last word like it was a curse. “He has held me back for now, but he will not for much longer.”
“Yeah, okay, whatever,” I said, swallowing down my fear and facing him as though he was just another person. If he was talking to me, it meant he wanted something. “What’s up? What do you want?”
“I want him.” He gestured toward Connor. “To kill these weakling gods and prevent that.” He gestured toward the world ruptured by Nidhogg. “That is why I am here. I have allowed him to retain control thus far, but I will not do so much longer. He has already allowed too much destruction.” He shook his head. “I appear when forces are not equal, when the guilty have plagued the land too long. I am the cleansing fire of the forest, the conquering flood. I stand before you and say this. Let me do my job.”
“I’d be more than happy to let you do your job and stop this.” I shook my head. Talking to him felt like I was making a deal with the Devil. I felt it in the very essence of my being, but at the same time, the truth in his words was obvious. He would help us stop Ragnarok. He could assuage the apocalypse. Unfortunately, he might also destroy all life in the process.
“There will be a moment when you will remember this conversation. You will have to trust.” He reached toward my face, and as he touched my skin, his fingers dissolved into silver steam.
I coughed, staggering away from him as mist filled my lungs. Tears streamed from my eyes as I clawed at my throat in a desperate effort to breathe. “What… what have you done!?” I tried to ask, but the words came out as a raspy gurgle. My lungs felt filled with foam and as I coughed and clawed, nothing but bloody spray came out.
“Take your wolf and go. Nidhogg will not be defeated by the likes of you.” The essence of the destroyer turned away, and as he did, the whole of the world shattered into a billion rainbow-colored fireflies.
19
My eyes snapped open. Connor plummeted from the sky amidst the bloody rain drops, and even from here I could tell the aura of destruction that had surrounded him
since I’d woken up was nearly gone. It was coming back, but too slowly for it to matter.
Already the clouds were starting to disperse, but I knew the effect of my spell wouldn’t dissipate soon enough for Connor to stop himself from slamming face first into the razor sharp spikes jutting from Nidhogg’s flesh. If I didn’t do something, he was a goner.
As I grabbed ahold of Shirajirashii, I sucked in a deep breath and rose to my feet. My clothing was plastered to my body by red rain, but I ignored it. I had half a mind to draw power from the weapons, but I needed my hands. Reluctantly, I sheathed my swords and sprang from the asteroid. I smashed into the adjacent one hard enough for my teeth to snap together. Connor wasn’t far, only a few yards away, but there wasn’t much between here and there. I’d have to jump it. Well, I could do that.
I called upon my power, and it rose up inside me, revving for action like a turbocharged Supra. A snarl left my lips as I leapt again, throwing my body forward with all the strength my magic-fueled muscles could bring to bear. My outstretched hand caught Connor by the left arm as I careened through the air. The sudden jerk of his weight, nearly tore my shoulder from my socket as I pulled him into me and twisted. I slammed into the dragon’s scaly hide while narrowly avoiding getting myself sliced to ribbons. Breath shot from my mouth as I lay there dazed and somewhat surprised it had worked.
We skidded to a stop as the last of the scarlet clouds vanished from the horizon and pink light spilled over us. Connor lay on the back of Nidhogg, lips twitching and eyes blank as bloody liquid dripped down his face. I reached out, unconsciously brushing away the locks of green hair stuck to his forehead, and as I did, the last vestiges of my spell evaporated.
The dragon roared. The cry blew out my eardrums. Agony exploded through my body as blood gushed from my ears and nose. I wiped it away with the back of my hand as I turned toward the sound. Nidhogg’s head whipped around in a frothy frenzy as man-like creatures pulled themselves from his flesh. Only instead of hands, long spikes protruded from the stumps of their wrists. The black-scaled monsters rushed at Thes who was barely to the dragon’s shoulders. Geez, what had he been doing this whole time?
Fatal Ties: An Urban Fantasy Novel (The Lillim Callina Chronicles Book 7) Page 12
