As they made their way through the giants, Meghan saw the goats, now separated from their chariot, attacking the giants around them. The goats were fearless and tenacious, but the giants mostly ignored them as they strove to take down Jord and Val. Val was standing by the crate, ringed by five of the smaller giants, keeping them a bay with swings of her sword and bashes from her golden shield.
Slowly the giants went down, one by one, and the allies pulled together. Jord fought his way to Val and the crate, taking up a position beside her. The goats joined them also and they ringed the crate, protecting it and keeping the giants away. Meghan found herself in the center of it all, standing on top of the crate. There was a chill, something she couldn’t quite put her finger on, emanating from the heavy wooden box. The dark runes etched into the wood seemed to pulse with power.
There were only five of the giants left when Val went down. A lucky swing of the giants club landed against the Valkyrie’s jaw and threw her to the ground.
Jord cried over the howling wind. “Val!”
The Valkyrie was stunned, and the giant moved in to finish the job, but Meghan stepped forward. She didn’t know where she found the strength, possibly adrenaline or some inner strength she never knew she had, but she swung her club with all her might, straight down on the giant’s head. The surprised giant’s eyes crossed, then it went down hard. It didn’t get back up.
The goats each managed to take down one of the remaining giants, and Jord finished off the final two. Meghan knelt beside Val. She was relieved to see the Valkyrie was still breathing. This was one tough woman.
Meghan made herself visible and smoothed Val’s thick, blond hair away from her eyes. Jord knelt by their side. “Is she okay?”
Val’s eyes fluttered open. “Sorry. Zigged when I should have zagged.”
Jord laughed, and offered her a hand up. His eyes moved to the giant Meghan had downed. Its skull was crushed. There was approval in Jord’s eyes. “That was a mighty blow you struck.”
Meghan thumped Purdr on the ground, returning it to pocket-sized. “I’ve got to pull my own weight. Do you have any idea how hard that is in this group? The damn goats can outfight me.”
Jord laughed, a crooked smile lighting his face. “They’ve been doing that for thousands of years. Give yourself some time.”
Jord shot Meghan a wink, then his eyes came to rest on the wooden crate. “Let’s see if this was all worth it.”
The crate was covered in symbols, most of them Meghan recognized as Nordic Runes. She felt uneasy around the crate. That cold . . . something . . . still radiated from it.
Val approached the crate and put a hand on it. “There’s magic here. A trap or alarm, if I’m not mistaken.”
Jord nodded. “I agree. We’d best not open it out here. Let’s take it back to the university.”
Jord re-hooked the goats to the chariot and hoisted the box into the back.
“What about them?” Meghan indicated the dead giants now little more than mounds of snow in the storm.
Jord took his place in the chariot, maneuvering around the large crate. “The wild animals should take care of most of it. We are pretty far away from civilization. If some poor guy does stumble across the remains he’ll just think he’s found proof of Bigfoot. We’ve got our people in place to clean up those messes. It only happens every once in a while.”
The crate took up most of the space in the chariot and Meghan found she had to stand really close to Jord on the flight back to Minneapolis, not that she minded. He had one arm around her for most of the trip, while the other steered the goats. Val followed, flying behind them. The storm was still in full swing, so there was no one to see them as they landed atop Jord’s office building. The goat chariot was again compacted and stored in the backpack, and Jord led them to an access door and down through the attic of the old building. Val’s armor, weapons, and wings were now gone. The three appeared completely normal as they passed students, faculty and staff in the old college building. Jord explained away the heavy looking crate he carried as a lightweight museum replica he was going to use in an upcoming class.
They made it without incident to his office. The floor of the old building creaked as Jord put the heavy crate down in the center of the room.
“We’re as safe as we can be here in Midgaard. I’ve put protective wards all over campus. This office is heavily runed.”
He pulled a large screwdriver from his desk drawer and used it to pry open the top of the crate. Meghan felt a curious fascination as she peered inside. The crate was mostly empty, but lying on the bottom was one of the greatest artifacts of the Ancient world. Even Meghan, though she’d never seen it before, was pretty sure she knew what she was looking at. “That’s Mjolnir, isn’t it?”
Jord reached in and pulled out his father’s hammer. Meghan could almost feel the power within the ancient weapon. Then she remembered the prophecy.
The power of the three artifacts will be reunited.
Jord now had all three artifacts, the belt, the gloves, and the hammer of Thor.
As Jord lifted the hammer out of the crate, a high-pitched, piercing cry filled the room. It reverberated throughout the building. Like the wail of a banshee, the sound filled the room then echoed away to nothing. A cold chill began to creep up Meghan’s spine.
Val moved to the window and drew back the curtains. “Something is trying to enter our realm. Your wards have blocked it.”
Jord shook his head, his visage grim. “That didn’t come from Jotunheim. It came from Muspellheim. Something powerful is being drawn here from there.”
Meghan searched her brain for a reference. “Muspellheim?”
Val’s visage darkened. “The land of fire. You’ve seen frost giants. Well, they’re nothing compared to the fire giants.”
Jord’s gray eyes smoldered. “Val, where’s the nearest portal to Muspellheim?”
Val bit her bottom lip, lost in thought for a moment, then responded. “Under one of the highway 35W exit ramps, by Currie Park. About a block away from the Metrodome.”
Jord shook his head. “Minneapolis is about to have a visitor—a big one.”
Chapter 14
The three raced back to the roof top and were again out in the blinding snow. Jord could feel the blizzard intensify. He pulled the chariot orb from his pack. The goats were going to be pissed at him. They hated the transformation to and from the storage orb and he’d been bumping them back and forth quite a bit lately.
Jord had other things on his mind though. As the chariot came back to life, he thought about the belt, gloves, and hammer now in his possession. They were probably the most powerful artifacts of the ancient world. He was so much stronger with them in his possession.
But even his father’d had problems fighting the fire giants over the centuries. Thor usually came out victorious, thanks to his uncanny battle instincts and the power of the artifacts. Jord had the artifacts now, but in his heart, he could never match the battle skills of his father.
Meghan touched his arm. “Jord?”
Could she sense his uncertainty? He was about to suggest she stay behind, but he knew how that would fly.
“We’ll be fine.” He had to holler to be heard over the raging storm and the bleating of the newly reformed goats. He held up the hammer. “We have Mjolnir now.”
Val was behind Meghan, giving Jord the look that said she knew better. He just shrugged his shoulders at her. Good old Val. What would he do without her?
The Valkyrie grew out her wings as her armor once again appeared around her. With a great downbeat she launched herself off the roof. Jord climbed into the chariot and offered Meghan a hand up. “Stay close—”
Meghan cut him off. “And stay invisible, I know.” She smiled at him. He could only shake his head. This woman had more courag
e than was good for her.
As they approached Currie Park it was easy to see the giant, even in the almost whiteout conditions of the snowstorm. The creature stood over forty feet high and was completely engulfed in flame. Though vaguely humanoid, the flaming giant form hissed and shifted as it was buffeted by the high winds and snow.
The storm would be the worst conditions possible for the giant, which meant it should be a real advantage for Jord. But as the chariot approached, Jord could feel the tremendous heat the creature generated. Snow was melting as it came close to the giant and falling to puddle at its feet. The puddles of water it was walking through should have been painful to the fire giant but this one seemed to just ignore them.
A really bad feeling began to creep up Jord’s spine. He threw Mjolnir and banked the chariot to the left. The hammer flew straight at the flaming giant and when it struck, the explosion rocked the earth, but the giant only reeled a bit and stopped to look at him.
A rumble, Jord took for laughter, issued from the giant, then a deep, rasping voice filled the air. “Godling, you are not Thor.”
Tell me something I don’t know.
Jord caught the hammer as it flew back into his hand. The frigid air was cooling it, but the hammer still sizzled, radiating heat from its impact with the flaming giant.
The giant’s voice filled the air, echoing over the noise of the storm. “But even the mighty Thor cannot defeat Surtr.”
A chill, that had nothing to do with the raging blizzard around him, filled Jord’s gut. “Oh crap!” This was not just any fire giant. This was Surtr, the big, mean granddaddy of the fire giants. He launched Mjolnir at it again, but Surtr just shrugged off the blow.
Val flew toward him. Her sword and her entire upper body was charred. “I can’t get close enough to strike him.” She hollered over the storm. “He’s too hot.”
Jord’s instinct was to run, but he couldn’t just leave this behemoth to ravage Minneapolis. Who knew how many lives would be lost? The whole Twin Cities area would be devastated if Surtr was left to rampage through it. What could he do?
“Meet me on top of the Metrodome.” Val nodded at him and soared ahead. He was sure the giant would follow him but getting across the highway should slow the thing somewhat, giving Jord time to think.
Megingjörð’s voice boomed in Jord’s head. Mjolnir is more than just a throwing weapon.
He landed the chariot on the roof of the Metrodome, and as Meghan became visible, he handed her the reins. Jord looked down into her eyes and saw the fear there.
“There’s nothing you can do to help me here.” He had to shout to be heard over the storm. “If I fall, the goats will take you back to Asgaard. Go to Odin and tell him what happened. He’ll know what to do. You will be as safe there as anywhere.”
He grabbed her and crushed her to him. As their lips met he realized just how much he cared for this mortal. He let her go and jumped off the chariot.
“Fly. Stay above the battle.”
“Jord, I don’t want to leave you.” Megan’s concern touched him.
“I will be fine,” he lied, forcing a smile and ordering the goats to take her up and away.
Val landed beside him, her skin blackened and singed from trying to get close enough to the giant to fight it.
Val would take care of Meghan. Jord found it strange, but the two seemed to have bonded. He grabbed Val’s arm and shouted over the wind. “You should leave too. Stay with Meghan.”
Val glowered at him. “You know that’s not going to happen, Jord, so just forget it.”
Val held her sword ready, standing by his side as she had for over four-hundred years. Still, they’d never been in this much danger before.
You can use Mjolnir to control the storm. Use the storm to fight.
Jord pondered that. How did he use the hammer?
You and Mjolnir must become one.
Jord glanced down at the hammer in his hands. The fire giant was still making its way toward him across the Metrodome parking lot. Suddenly the hammer pulled him in.
Jord’s consciousness hovered above the blizzard now. He could see the entire storm center, its structure, how it worked. It was like a puppet, with its strings just waiting to be pulled.
He grabbed the wind and threw a tremendous gust at Surtr. The fire giant reeled a bit in the wind, but continued to advance on him.
“You’re getting it!” Val shouted her encouragment. Jord felt her beside him, supporting him, but his mind was still in the storm around them. He reached for the flying snowflakes, scooping them into a great snowball, and throwing it at Surtr. He felt the giant intensify his heat and the snowball began to melt as it approached. All the same, that great burst of water and slush pushed the fire giant back and the air around the creature cooled. The strike had all but extinguishing Surtr’s fire.
But Surtr flared back to life almost instantly, its flame even hotter than before. This was a powerful, deadly force, from the dawn of time. How was Jord going to defeat it?
“You can do it, Jord. I know you can. You just need a bit more time to figure out how.”
Val kissed his cheek. She’d never done that before. Were there tears in her eyes?
“I’m going to give you that time. So you kill it . . . for me.”
Val launched herself, at full speed, toward the fire giant with her sword extended in front of her. She was like a great, golden spear. Riding the wind the Valkyrie flew straight toward the heart of Surtr.
Too late Jord realized the Valkerie’s intent. “Val, no!”
The force of the explosion rocked the city for miles. The fire giant was thrown back a hundred yards and fell heavily, lying on his back in the parking lot. The pavement underneath it melted to slag.
Jord stood stunned for only a second. Val could not have survived that. Anger grew inside of him, raging at the elemental forces of evil that had plagued the nine worlds since the dawn of time. So much good had been destroyed. So many people had died. Good people . . . people like Val.
Jord’s heart grew cold, embracing the rage and the hate. Her sacrifice would not be in vain. The giant was picking itself up as the rumble of thunder filled the air. Jord pulled the entire force of the great snowstorm into him. He absorbed every bit of power it held. For a moment there was stillness in the air for miles around under the rolling clouds, as if the world had just taken a deep breath.
The giant laughed as it rose to its feet.
“Can you stop a firestorm, godling?” Surtr’s voice boomed in the stillness. “I am living flame—consumer of all things. Death and destruction are all that is left in my wake.”
Surtr began to grow even larger, his flame expanding, as he once again advanced on Jord.
Then, striking Mjolnir down onto the roof of the Metrodome, Jord released the power of the storm directly at the fire giant—the power of the north wind, the glacial frost of the polar ice cap, and the raging elemental force of lightning from the heavens above. Through Jord it all funneled, directed by the magical hammer of Thor, into the evil that was Surtr. Thunder rumbled and the earth shook. Surtr roared as the great force hit him, his flame dying as he shrank in size.
“It cannot be!” The giant’s voice rose above the storm and crashing thunder, then his cry of rage diminished and died away.
Jord saw the last flare of flame, the last puff of smoke, as one of the great powers of the universe died. Then the roof of the Metrodome began to collapse around him, and it was all he could do to scramble forward and roll down the side of the building, falling into a pile of snow. He didn’t have the strength to rise. He could only lie there, breathing hard, his strength expended. As his hold on the elements slipped away, the fury of the storm once again erupted around him.
The morning papers would report the weight of the snow caused the
collapse. Internet footage of the security cameras’ interior view of the roof caving in became viral within hours. Thankfully the mortals would invent their own explanations for what happened to the Metrodome roof.
The broken and melted parking lot, along with the other damage in the area, could easily be covered by agents of Asgaard over the next few weeks, provided Asgaard survived the coming war.
Chapter 15
“No!” Meghan cried out as Val launch herself into the fire giant. She saw Surtr fall down then she saw the giant getting back up. When the storm around her suddenly quieted, she held her breath in anticipation. What could it mean?
Jord was below her, glowing, pulsing with power, and when the strike came she felt the fury of the storm being unleashed. She watched as the fire giant began to diminish, then extinguish completely. All that remained was a dark, charred area in the parking lot below—a great puddle of rapidly freezing water.
Meghan saw Jord rolling down the side of the Metrodome, as the roof of the structure began to collapse.
“Go to him!” She shouted at the goats, grabbing the reins, trying to figure out how to direct them. They seemed to understand and flew directly toward the snow bank behind which Jord had disappeared.
By the time Meghan arrived, Jord was already crawling out of the snow and brushing himself off. Meghan jumped from the chariot and ran to him. He readily embraced her, but then his eyes scanned across the Metrodome parking lot, toward the charred ice rink that formed there.
“Val.” Jord sighed and pulled Meghan toward the spot where Val had fallen.
All they found were a few blackened, skeletal remains, and the hilt of her sword. The blade had been melted to slag. Meghan’s heart burst as she saw Jord go down on his knees. He was weeping openly, the tears running down his cheeks.
Son of Thunder (Heavenly War Series) Page 10
