The Last Guardian of Tara (The Guardians of Tara Book 5)

by S. M. Schmitz

  Selena was the first to notice that something had finally changed. She cursed and got her husband’s attention, but Hanna sensed it now, too. Everyone inside the fortress had disappeared, and if one of the vessels had been inside, they most likely took it with them.

  Cameron let his fire die first then Hanna reluctantly gave up, too. With the fires gone, Selena asked Thor to try Mjölnir again. This time, when he swung his hammer at the wall, the Guardians noticed charred pieces of concrete and rock falling to the ground. Thor hit the wall for the third time, and as more debris fell, they could finally see inside Enlil’s fortress.

  He and his followers must have left in a hurry because half-full glasses remained on an oblong table and chairs had been upturned in everyone’s haste to evacuate. Thor stepped through the hole in the wall and the others followed him inside.

  “If you had your soul removed and stored in a box, where would you hide it?” Cameron asked no one in particular.

  Prometheus answered him anyway. “Tartarus. The fact that you were able to find us is kinda miraculous, to be honest.”

  “Stop feeding his ego,” Badb demanded.

  “Technically, I forced Tartarus to bring us to you,” Cameron clarified. “I’m not sure I could have found you otherwise. That place is ridiculously huge and dark.”

  “Please don’t tell me the Sumerians have their own Tartarus,” Macha begged.

  “No,” Thor said slowly. “But they do have their Netherworld, which Nergal has helped guard with Ereshkigal for millennia. If Enlil and Nergal have hidden their souls there, we may never get them back.”

  Athena dropped the box she’d been digging through and groaned. “How could we have been so stupid? That’s why the New Pantheon never found these vessels. They’re not on Earth. I mean, it’s Nergal. We should have known.”

  Cameron sighed and rubbed his eyes before glancing at Thor. “So, old friend, want to go to Hell with me again?”

  Thor sighed, too, and shrugged. “You do keep things interesting, Sun God.”

  “Hey,” Hanna interjected. “Neither of you are going anywhere without me. Everyone else can work on tracking down Enlil and his army, but I’m going to the Netherworld with you.”

  “You got it,” Nemain promised. “Tracking is my thing. I’ll find them.”

  “I’m going with you to the Netherworld,” Prometheus told Hanna, who shook her head, but he kept talking anyway. “I have a unique range of gifts that might be useful, and none of us really know what to expect from the Netherworld. This isn’t like Hel where even mortals have a fairly good idea what the Norse realm of the dead is like. We’re going in blind.”

  “What are you a god of?” Cameron asked. “I’ve been trying to figure this out for a quarter of a century.”

  Prometheus smiled at him and said, “I’m a god of humanity, one of the original Greek gods born from the primeval entities. I was given life to protect life.”

  A quiet, “Oh,” a breath really, escaped from Hanna’s lips, and she briefly hoped no one had heard, but that hope was quickly dashed when both her father and Prometheus gave her strange looks. But while Prometheus’s beauty attracted a lot of attention, even from goddesses like Athena, Hanna had suddenly realized her attraction to him wasn’t just a stronger physical one than she’d ever experienced.

  Even her father’s rescue of the Titans from Tartarus had been part of Fate’s plan to bring together her Last Guardian and her First.

  And eventually, she would expect him to take his own throne at Hanna’s side and to help her bring peace between gods and men. But none of that would matter if they couldn’t survive the Netherworld first.

  Chapter Six

  As they stood at the first gate of seven that led into the Sumerian Netherworld, Thor grinned sheepishly at Cameron and said, “Is now a good time to tell you that according to legend, none have ever left this realm?”

  Cameron crossed his arms and glared at his friend. “Ishtar did. You know, before she died… she’s probably stuck in there now.”

  “I don’t think we’re getting out of having to go through that gate,” Prometheus said. “Unless one of you has a magical ability to pass through walls.”

  “And there are seven of them?” Hanna asked. “What are we supposed to do? Bribe each guardian of the gate?”

  “Um… in Ishtar’s story, she used her own clothing to get passage so by the time she reached the great city, she was completely naked,” Cameron explained. “But you’re keeping your clothes on.” Hanna noticed he even made sure to look at Prometheus when he emphasized she wouldn’t be stripping to get into the Netherworld.

  Hanna rolled her eyes and retorted, “None of us are using our clothes as a bribe. But if it’s possible to convince the guards to let us pass by offering them tokens, let’s find out what they want. I can get it.”

  “I guess we should go ask her,” Thor said, eyeing the first guardian warily, who’d been eyeing, just as warily, the living gods that had approached the portal between Earth and the Netherworld.

  “Rock, paper, scissors to see who goes first?” Cameron asked.

  Hanna snickered and offered, “I’ll go,” but Prometheus stopped her and approached the gate instead.

  “Really starting to think I should have left him in Tartarus,” Cameron mumbled.

  “Dad,” Hanna hissed. “Leave it alone.”

  “Can I ground you?”

  “I’m twenty-five. I think your chance has passed.”

  “Can I ground him?”

  Thor chuckled and patted Cameron’s back. “I’d tell you it gets easier, but we both know I’d be lying.”

  “I can still hear you,” Prometheus called over his shoulder.

  “I’m going home,” Hanna sighed.

  “What are you going to offer as a bribe if the guard won’t tell you?” Cameron asked her.

  Hanna gestured toward Prometheus and said, “I’m thinking he has an idea already, and I may not need to come up with anything.”

  The guard planted her feet firmly in front of the gate as Prometheus stopped in front of her. He lifted both hands to show her he was unarmed and she lowered her spear, but not by much, then the Titan placed his hand on her head and she crumpled to the ground.

  “Holy shit,” Cameron and Thor both muttered at the same time.

  “Don’t worry,” Prometheus said. “She’s only unconscious. But we should hurry.”

  “Gate’s still closed,” Cameron pointed out smartly.

  “Then open it,” Prometheus shot back. “You expect me to do everything?”

  Thor tossed Mjölnir into the air and caught it in his right hand, grinning happily thanks to everything he was getting to break through with his beloved hammer and struck the tall wooden and metal gate. A cloud of gray dust exploded around them, and as the Guardians coughed and waved it away, they could glimpse the second wall and gate that lay beyond.

  The guard was obviously expecting them and held his sword up for the invading gods to see, warning them that if they approached his gate, he’d smite them all.

  Cameron laughed.

  Thor kept grinning happily, most likely at the thought of breaking through his gate, too.

  And Prometheus decided to press his luck and approach the gate anyway.

  “Think he’s hoping we’ll smite the guard first?” Hanna whispered.

  “I do like a good smiting,” Cameron told her.

  “Is it just me or is it getting darker in here?” Thor asked.

  Hanna pointed to the sky and nodded. “Each time we pass through a gate, it’ll get darker until we’ve entered the great city where light no longer exists at all.”

  “How do you know this?” Cameron asked her.

  Hanna lifted a shoulder in response. “Fate maybe.”

  “Well, tell Fate it would be really helpful if she’d just smite all of the guards and bring the walls down herself. You know, like a total Jericho thing.”

  “Do you have a trumpet?” Hanna a
sked.

  “If you did, can you play a trumpet?” Thor also asked.

  “Would you all stop talking about trumpets and come help me?” Prometheus shouted back to them.

  “Why didn’t you just ask?” Cameron called back to him, but stepped out of his daughter’s reach first.

  Thor pushed him back toward Hanna and shook his head. “When she kicks your ass, I’m not getting involved.”

  “Just do your Vulcan nerve pinch thing,” Cameron told Prometheus.

  “My what?” Prometheus asked. “That’s just the Roman name for Hephaestus, and he didn’t have any kind of nerve pinch.”

  Cameron blinked at him then threw his hands up. “Dude, what have you been doing on Earth for the past twenty-five years?”

  “Probably not watching television shows that ended almost seventy-five years ago,” Thor supplied helpfully.

  “Why do you know that?” Cameron sighed.

  Thor just shrugged again. “The original series was incredibly cheesy. I liked it.”

  “Oh, my God,” Hanna groaned then jabbed a finger toward her father’s chest. “You.” She jabbed her finger toward Thor and added, “And him. Obviously.”

  “Apparently, she’s going to kick both of our asses,” Cameron told Thor.

  The guard of the second gate said, “I can’t imagine why.”

  Prometheus had to stop before he could reach the guard, who’d raised his sword in case the Titan got too close.

  “There are four of us and one of him,” Cameron said quietly. “And I’ve never missed with my Spear yet.”

  “If we can do this without killing anyone, I’d rather we try it the less violent way,” Hanna argued.

  “Yeah, because Nergal’s wife is just going to let us dig through the city of the dead,” Cameron retorted.

  “Good point,” Hanna acknowledged. “Although I’m really not sure what we’ll do about all of the spirits that won’t like us invading their realm.”

  “If we ever get there, I have an idea,” Prometheus answered. “But right now, getting there seems to be a huge if.”

  “Take your pick,” Cameron told the guard. “Death or unconsciousness?”

  “Or bribe,” Hanna hurriedly added.

  “Bribe?” the guard scoffed. “You’re not even Sumerian. Why would I allow you to pass?”

  “Good question,” she agreed.

  “The farther we venture into the Netherworld, the weaker I’ll become,” Prometheus said. “I’m afraid that’ll leave only one option for getting past these guards.”

  “Maybe not,” Hanna countered. She’d suddenly become aware of a new, or maybe just a previously unknown, power within her and she slowly stepped toward the guard, maintaining eye contact the entire time. “Put your sword down and open the gate for us,” she ordered.

  The guard blinked at her then lowered his sword and nodded, turning to the gate and placing his hand on the metal latch. Locks slid out of place and the gate swung open. Behind her, Thor murmured, “Cool. Your daughter’s mastered Jedi mind tricks.”

  “Have you always been this much of a dork or am I just now noticing?” Cameron teased.

  Prometheus leaned closer to her ear and whispered, “Any chance we can leave them here?”

  “They’ll get through anyway,” she whispered back. “You just have to learn how to tune them out.”

  “Good luck with that, Titan,” Cameron said as he walked by him and passed through the second gate. Hanna sighed at her father’s back but followed him and Thor into the wide stretch of land between the second and third walls.

  Prometheus grinned mischievously in Cameron’s direction and said, “At least there haven’t been any giant snakes for you to fight.”

  Both Thor and Cameron stopped so they could curse at him, and for good measure, Thor cursed him in ancient Norse and Greek, too.

  Cameron pouted as they approached the third gate and asked, “Are there any Sumerian snake monsters we haven’t killed yet?”

  “God, I hope not,” Thor replied then quickly added, “I’m invoking Nergal, obviously, since we’re in his underworld.”

  “Anybody have a flashlight?” Cameron asked. “I can barely see anymore, and I want to make sure there aren’t any giant snakes lurking in the shadows.”

  “Light a fire,” Thor suggested. “I think ensuring we’re in a snake-free zone takes precedence over any element of surprise we might still have.”

  Prometheus snorted and told the Norse thunder god and Irish sun god, “Even if Ereshkigal couldn’t sense us coming, she’d hear us. Light your fire if it makes you feel better.”

  Cameron lit a fire near the third wall, but just as Perses had once warned that light couldn’t penetrate the darkness of Tartarus, his fire did nothing to alleviate the blackness around them now. They could see the orange and yellow flames, but beyond their edges, the land of the third wall remained just as dark as before.

  “That’s disconcerting,” Cameron mumbled.

  Hanna nodded in agreement, and she suspected the others did, too, but it was too dark to see them now. She found her father’s hand and pulled him forward. “Come with me to the gate. And the next four after this… you know I’m not a fan of the dark.”

  “Would I ever leave you?” Cameron assured her.

  Hanna smiled to herself in the darkness as her father approached the third gate with her, even though she wasn’t sure how she’d get the guard to obey her if she couldn’t even see him. But since she had no other ideas, she kept walking. The footsteps behind her signaled that Thor and Prometheus weren’t far behind, and bright blue flames lit up beside her as Cameron procured his Spear from the Otherworld.

  Like her father, Hanna could fight with a spear, and thanks to one of her closest friends, Badb had helped her master swordsmanship as well. But she’d never felt drawn to a particular weapon like Cameron or Badb. Her gifts were her weapons. She paused as she neared the third guard and demanded, “Open the gate.”

  A shuffling noise answered her, and her father’s grip tightened around her hand. But the creaking of hinges and a gust of cool air as the gate swung open told her the guard had obeyed, allowing them to enter the land between the third and fourth walls, where the Netherworld seemed impossibly darker.

  Hanna took a deep breath and quietly told her companions, “These guards aren’t gods. They exist between the worlds of mortals and immortals. I won’t be able to command Ereshkigal the same way, and she’ll be waiting for us beyond the seventh gate.”

  “Get us to her city,” Cameron replied just as quietly. “I’ll take care of her.”

  “And Nergal? What if he’s returned to defend his world, his wife, and his soul?” she asked.

  A breathy laugh escaped from her father and he said, “Well, I’ve killed him twice already, so maybe the third time’s a charm.”

  “After all this, I just hope I’m right about these vessels,” Thor said.

  “It’s not like we had a better idea,” Cameron offered. “Besides, how many gods can claim they’ve survived three different lands of the dead?”

  “Tartarus isn’t really a land of the dead,” Prometheus interjected. “It’s nothingness.”

  “Dude,” Cameron warned, “don’t make me bring you back.”

  “Technically, you can claim four if you count Findias,” Thor added helpfully.

  “Totally counts,” Cameron agreed.

  “Coming here may have been my worst idea ever,” Hanna pretend-complained. She’d spent her entire life around Thor and her father, and their behavior in dire situations really wasn’t any different than their behavior sitting around the Dagda’s table for a banquet. In some ways, the fact that neither of them seemed overly concerned or scared helped to calm her own nerves about what they were walking into.

  But her father played along anyway. “Because of the dark or because of us?”

  So Hanna pretended to think about it then said, “Both.”

  “How long,” an unfamiliar woma
n’s voice asked, “are you going to stand there annoying me?”

  “Is that a challenge?” Cameron asked back.

  “Please say no,” Prometheus begged.

  “Just open the gate,” Hanna ordered.

  The Guardians passed through each gate after Hanna forced the guard to comply, and the Netherworld became darker and darker, even when she thought it couldn’t possibly be blacker than before. As they reached the seventh and final gate, even Cameron and Thor’s normal bantering stopped. None of them could see the guard or wall or gate, but what worried them all, even without having to verbalize their fears, was what lay beyond the final gate.

  Cameron’s Spear still emanated those uniquely blue flames, but they couldn’t pierce this darkness either. Hanna closed her eyes briefly and imagined where each spirit waited for them on the other side. She could feel them, just as she could feel Ereshkigal, whose anger over the trespassers into the Netherworld seemed palpable, as if she could reach through the seventh gate and grip that anger in her hands.

  Her father brought her hand to his chest so she could feel his heart beating, a gentle reminder of his presence and his faith in her, and she opened her eyes, commanding the seventh guard to open the gate.

  And there, beyond the final wall that protected the great city, waited the goddess of death.

  Chapter Seven

  Ereshkigal’s rage radiated from her body like a halo of light. Black misty shapes, the same spirits Nergal commanded on Earth to spread disease, fanned around her like smoke from a flame, and the gate slammed closed behind them as the last guard broke free from his stupor. Hanna had suspected her control over this final guard wouldn’t last, because unlike the previous guards, he seemed to be a minor deity.

  “Neti,” Ereshkigal said, “why did you admit these gods?”

  “I don’t know, my Queen,” he answered. “I have no memory of it.”