by Audra Hart
Everyone in the hall laughs when real thunder and lightning rip through the skies above Airendell. Morna chuckles and pats the face of her ‘brother’ Thor. Thor laughs as he slaps Taranis, the Celtic god of thunder on the back and says, “This news deserved some real fireworks!” Morna hugs Taranis and says, “Good to see you, brother.”
Taranis nods and says, “My charges send you their love.”
Morna stops at that and looks at him. She knows that deep down she knows what that means, but it evades her at the moment. She smiles and nods and turns to look after her younger children. She calls Damian, Rinda and Elias to her side. “Take some warriors and get my children and my sister to my cottage. They need rest before this banquet.” Morna looks around for Nora and finds her sleeping peacefully in her Grandpa’s arms. “Oh well, it looks like Nora is already resting. Morna looks at the empathic members of her family and says, “I am sorry you had to endure that today. You guys really need to learn how to use those off switches more often.” Morna chides gently. “I love you guys, but there are few things here that Mom and Dad have to take care of. Run along and go rest. We will be there soon.”
Morna turns and shakes the hands of a few dignitaries and accepts their congratulations absentmindedly, but she is watching the Roman envoys intently. Carlisle quickly fills Morna in on the situation in Oklahoma. “Fine Carlisle, I know they are in good hands.”
Finally when Morna fears the Elvish envoy will talk well into the night, she excuses herself and Luca. “Excuse us sir, but we haven’t had a chance to speak to the Roman envoys yet.”
“Oh of course, family obligations must be met. I will see you later at the banquet in your honor. Again, congratulations. I applaud the wisdom of your Elders. The entire Elvish Council has supported you for centuries…” The envoy continues seeming as though he will talk all night.
CHAPTER 13 - THE ROMAN ENVOYS
“Yes, yes…thank you,” says Morna as she walks away toward the Roman envoys. There are only two left now. Luca follows uncertainly. He feels confused about meeting who he can only assume is his mother. And he is doubly confused by Morna’s reaction to her. When Luca joins his mate he feels an abrupt buffer spell go up around the four of them. “Lady Bellona, I presume?” When the goddess of war nods, Morna continues, “Forgive me. You are free to exit the spell anytime you wish, but please introduce me to this young man with you.” The man in question is several inches taller than Luca, and very powerfully built. He has a strong, handsome face, rich auburn hair and brilliant, emerald green eyes.
Bellona chuckles and looks at the young man. “See? I told you that she would know.” The tall man looks amazed and smiles at Bellona before they both turn their attention back to Morna. “Morna this is Lord Verona.” Morna looks devastated when she hears the name. Bellona smiles again and continues, “But the name you gave him was Kylor Michaels.”
Morna’s face is glowing as tears roll down her cheeks. She reaches up and strokes the man’s face lovingly. He tentatively reaches out to touch her face, “My baby!” Morna whispers. “My Kylor. I knew it was you when I entered this hall. I have been dying to approach you.” The tall man takes Morna into his arms and holds her tightly. Both are crying tears of joy.
Luca is rendered speechless and stares at his mate and the man who is presumably his firstborn son. Finally he gathers his wits and addresses Bellona icily. “Madam, please explain.”
She tries to reach out to touch Luca but he holds up his hand to stop her. “I am sorry Lucian. I do indeed have a great deal to explain. Forgive me for being afraid of my Father. That fear has been what kept me from being a real mother to you.”
“Fine. Why is Kylor with you? Why did you make us believe our son had died in infancy?” Lucian demands in a tightly controlled voice.
“Valgullveig was killing Kylor, I faked his death and took him away with me. I had to keep him in hiding until he was fully grown. Mars has presumed him to be my lover for several hundred years, and therefore beneath his notice. However, recently Kylor challenged Mars to battle, in order to get the right for me to come to my son. Kylor defeated Mars on the field of combat, despite the fact that Mars’ minions cheated horribly. Mars grudgingly respects Kylor now and has freed us both to live wherever we wish.” Bellona says softly.
“My grandfather forbade my mother from being a mother to me? I already knew that he forced you to put me in the orphanage. And I know about the betrothal that I screwed up for him when I married Morna. I also know that you have been checking on me periodically over the centuries. But please explain to me, why you never approached me?” Luca asks stonily.
“Because it was better for you to think me an uncaring bitch than to know I was powerless against Mars. He is a dangerous, evil being. I didn’t want you trying to confront him on my behalf. I was terrified when Kylor did it. I thought I would lose him forever. I have given up much to try to protect you, Morna and Kylor. Unfortunately, I really didn’t do a very good job of it.” Bellona admits sadly.
“Lord Lucian?” Luca turns to the man that is apparently his son, the man extends his hand to shake. Luca takes it woodenly, and looks into the face of the man. He has Morna’s eyes, and looks rather a lot like Valliant and himself, just a bit. Suddenly he knows his mate is right, this is their son. He pulls the man into his arms and hugs him fiercely. “Are you really my son? Is fate really kind enough to let me have you back?” Luca asks incredulously.
Morna puts her arm around her mate and says, “Snap out of it, my love. He is our Kylor. I knew it immediately. I could sense his presence when I entered this hall, just like I can the other children. When I saw the woman from Nora’s picture I started looking for her faceless companion from the drawing. I found him, and when I looked closely at his face, I knew in my heart who he was,” Morna says through her tears.
Morna hugs Bellona. “Thank you, thank you my lady. I don’t like it that I had to assume my child was dead for centuries. But it is better to think he is dead than for him to truly be dead. I would have done much the same in your position, I am sure.” Morna assures the goddess of war.
Luca snorts at that, “Like hell, Morna. You would have told Mars to butt out from the very beginning.”
“If I had been his child I would have been stripped of nearly all of my power at birth too. Can’t you feel it Luca? Bellona is Immortal, but she has very limited power. I had heard rumors years ago that Mars stripped all of his female offspring of their powers.” Luca looks doubtful. “Lucian Bellona Michaels, stop being a judgmental ass. Your mother risked everything for you over and over again. She saved our son! Our Kylor lives because of her!”
Luca finally softens and says, “Forgive me madam, I have been carrying hard feelings around for centuries and it seems that I am having difficulty letting go now.”
Bellona sobs and wraps her arms around her son. Luca’s resolve to remain unaffected dissolves and he wraps his arms around her sobbing form. He leads her to a seat and kneels before her. “Can I get you anything Madam, a drink of water perhaps?”
Bellona takes his icy hard hands into her own. “Please call me Bellona. I don’t deserve the title mother, but please at least use my name.”
Luca hesitates and until Morna mutters something so quietly that Kylor and Bellona cannot hear it. Luca nods and says, “But you are my mother. I will call you mother, with your permission, of course.”
Bellona reaches out and caresses his pale, stone hard face with loving fingers. She kisses his lips tenderly. “My baby boy. By all that is truly holy, you have become a truly good man.”
Luca’s heart totally melts and he kisses her too. “Not so much Mother. I have been, as my mate pointed out, a judgmental ass.”
Kylor and Morna laugh at that admission but Luca and Bellona seem to be lost in rediscovering each other. After several moments Luca stands and looks at his son. “You look like a fine young man. You must be a powerful warrior if you were able to defeat Mars. But what kind of man are you?”
“I hope a good one, Father. That is what Grandmother has raised me to be.” Kylor says quietly. “It is been her daily prayer for you too, Sir.”
Luca nods and says in a cracking voice, “You have some siblings you will want to be meeting.”
“Yes, I desperately want to meet them.” Kylor says happily.
“No! Not until we are safely in Asgard or some other protected place. Word of who he really is cannot get back to Mars. He will be in a rage. He will take it out on your entire family Luca, your entire Guild,” says Bellona fearfully.
Luca looks at Kylor for confirmation; “She is probably right Father. He is very controlling and spiteful when he thinks he has been defied.”
Morna shrugs and says, “Let’s go to the cottage. We can introduce him to everyone else as Lord Verona. Just don’t let Breena or Rinda get a good look at him until we are inside the cottage. I will get Rinda, Breena, and Collingwood to put up spells to protect anyone from seeing inside. The combination of their type of spells should serve to keep even Mars out.”
“I doubt he is looking. He thinks we are beneath his notice. He only came today because Odin invited him. But if word got back to him that we deceived him, it would not be good.” Kylor admits with a chuckle. “He can truly be a mean son of a bitch.”
“Well our main enemy may have already overheard and be on her way to give him the news,” says Luca stonily.
“Dammit!” Says Morna. “I should have thought of that already. Let’s shut up and go to check on the kids. We can wait on introductions until it is safe.” Something, a presence draws her attention, and she looks up into the rafters of the Elder’s hall and sees a hawk perched there. It’s overly intelligent eyes are trained right on the group. Luca follows his mate’s gaze and nonchalantly pulls a rock out of the pocket of his slacks. He throws the rock with lightning speed and deadly accuracy. The hawk falls to the ground. The group goes over to it and Luca picks it up. He wraps the bird’s corpse in a table cloth and puts it under his arm.
Morna looks at her mate in amazement. “Why did you have that stone in your pocket?”
Luca laughs happily and says, “Nora! Before we left Asgard, she picks up several rocks in the front yard and finds one she likes and hands it to me. She says, ‘Keep it in your pocket Daddy. You will protect my brother with it.’ Needless to say, I did as she told me.” Luca looks around for the stone and puts it back into his pocket. “Just in case this isn’t the brother she meant.” He says with a shrug.
Kylor looks at them in confusion. “Do you think that bird was magical?”
“Beyond a doubt.” says Morna. “I could feel its magic and its malice for us. That is what made me look up. I just don’t know who he reports to.”
“That’s why I am keeping the body. I want to find out if anyone recognizes him. Okay, no one uses Kylor’s real name again until we are safely back in Asgard. We can have Heimdall erect his version of a buffer spell. I am sure Valgullveig can’t get through that. But in the meantime, we don’t take any more chances. Sorry son, but this rather puts a damper on our reunion.” Luca says sadly. “I really wanted to introduce you to your younger siblings.”
Kylor smiles and says, “We have waited this long, we can wait a little longer. But I have watched Aideen before. At her hospital in Chicago where she is a surgeon. She’s really amazing. And Mother I came to watch you at times over the centuries. It always amazed me that I could tell it was you, despite the differences in your appearance. I could always sense you, your psychic energy and your eyes have always been the same. I also came into your bar a few times too, in this most recent incarnation. You look really different than you did then, and I don’t just mean the pregnancy.”
Morna hugs her son and kisses his cheek. “It’s a very, very long story. We will fill you in when we get to Asgard.” Morna rubs her belly and says, “I am truly blessed.”
“When is the baby due?” Asks Kylor.
“Around mid-April,” says Morna.
“So soon? You don’t look that far along.” He says in surprise.
“This baby grows much faster than other babies. He grows as much in one day as a typical child would grow in a week.” Luca looks at his son and says, “You know what I am, right?”
“Yes Father. You are a vampire. So the baby is yours?” Kylor asks.
Morna ducks her head, Luca wraps his arms protectively around her. “Who do you think might be the father if not me?” Luca demands coldly.
“Sorry Mother. I handled that badly. Last time I checked on you in Oklahoma, you still thought you were Deidra Montfort. You were nearly crippled and badly scarred when I saw you last. You look to be four or five months along, and I know that you have not been with Father again that long. It is obvious that a great deal has occurred since I last checked on you two months ago. We can cover it in Asgard.” Kylor hugs her and says, “I am so sorry if I hurt your feelings. I didn’t mean to imply anything unsavory about you, Mother. I certainly don’t believe anything sordid about you. I handled that badly. Please forgive me.”
“There is nothing for me to forgive you for Ky… Verona. I am just overly sensitive about some things.” She takes his face into her hands and kisses his cheek gently and stares lovingly at him for a few moments. “Forgive me Verona, but when we drop these spells I have to walk out of here and act as though I just met you. I would skip the banquet if it wouldn’t arouse so much suspicion. If Nora reacts to you, convince her to keep it to herself. I will try to warn her first.”
“How is that my younger siblings are alive? I thought they all perished in the crash.” Kylor asks confused.
“The elves rescued them. Again, a long story. I am sorry to keep putting you off son, but it can’t be helped.” Morna kisses him and hugs him again. “Later, I promise, beloved boy. But we have been here hiding behind a buffer spell too long. Plus we need to know more about that damned bird.” Morna turns her attention to Bellona. “Bellona, I cannot thank you enough. I am forever indebted to you. You kept my first born alive!”
Bellona nods and smiles gently. She is uncomfortable with all of Morna’s acceptance and outpouring of love. Verona, and one other special man, are the only ones who have ever treated her with love and respect, and Bellona simply doesn‘t know how to respond.
“Let’s go join this party. I suspect I have a lot of work to do. Luca my love, I am thirsty too. I don’t want to have to leave the party to hunt.” Morna says as they walk out of the hall.
“Don’t worry love. I have laid in supplies at the cottage. Or rather I asked Ingrid to see to it. I am surprised that she hasn’t come to deliver it personally. It is passed time,” Luca says with a chuckle.
Morna and Luca both laugh riotously when they turn the corner to leave the square and nearly run into Ingrid carrying a travel mug. “I know, I know,” Says Ingrid. “I am not reading your thoughts exactly, but I got the gist of what you two were talking about.” Ingrid hands the cup to Morna and falls into step with them. She is reading all of the emotions from the group and looks at Morna with deep confusion on her face. Morna pats her and says, “It’s okay, don’t try to make sense of it. I can explain when we get back to Asgard.”
Luca looks at Ingrid thoughtfully, she seems to know a great deal about a great many things for a serving girl. He unwraps the bird and shows it to Ingrid. “Do you know this animal?”
Ingrid gasps, “That is Valgullveig’s hawk. He spies on people for her.”
“Does he have to fly to her to report in or can he do it some other way?” Luca asks.
“I am not sure.” Ingrid admits. “Heimdall just showed me an image of the bird and told me to watch out for him while I was with you. I guess you have figured out that I am not just here as Morna’s assistant or maid or whatever. Odin assigned me to protect you Morna, I am one of his Valkyries. Odin took mercy on me centuries ago. Because of my empathic nature, serving in battle for him was very painful for me. So I serve him in other ways. He is releasing me from
his service soon to marry Reagan and move to Midgard.” Ingrid’s face lights up when she mentions Reagan. She smiles at Morna and asks, “So, are we expanding the banquet tonight to celebrate the return of your…” Morna puts her finger over her mouth to indicate Ingrid should not continue. She tells Ingrid telepathically that Kylor’s identity must remain a secret for the time being.
Ingrid sighs and nods. Morna smiles and says, “Ingrid please meet my mate’s mother, Bellona. And her companion, Verona.”
“Nice to meet you.” Ingrid says politely. “Is this your first visit to Airendell?”
“No, I have been here a few times before.” Bellona says with a faraway look.
The group walks in silence until they reach the glen. There are huge tents everywhere, rows of festive tables and glowing party lanterns light the glen. Morna is overwhelmed by the transformation that her little glen has undergone. “Morna, please tell me I didn’t go overboard?”
Morna takes her hand and says, “It is lovely. It is just so different than I remember it. I haven’t been here since the battle with the Trolls, and that was only for a few hours. Before that it had been nearly six hundred years. I taught Luca about Spell Weaver lore in this glen. We declared our love for the first time here. We were married here, we conceived two of our children here. I birthed one of them here. I died here. This glen is as much a part of us as any place can be. I don’t object to it looking different, it’s just big adjustment,” Morna says honestly.
