“Hang on,” I said, my brain clicking into place. “Analise said you were her niece.”
A small smile crept onto Chloe’s pale face. The streetlamp that filtered down the alley highlighted her messy dark-blonde hair. She was an average looking hippie type woman. Ready to try and help me kill one of the most evillest spirits on earth. It had to be a joke.
“I’m Analise’s supposed long lost niece. She didn’t know that I wasn’t of course, but I remember the day very well. Freya came to me, telling me it was time to finally find you. After so long, I almost didn’t agree. Freya took me from my life and made me join Loki’s descendants. Eventually, she replaced Analise’s real niece with me. I think she somehow tricked them into believing me, I don’t know.”
Leaning against the freezing cold brick of the building, I watched her. She shuffled on her feet as my eyes traced the length of her. The only proof I had of her being who she said she was…was nothing. Even her tactic of staying behind when Analise died could have been a ploy to get close to me.
I was about to open my mouth when a rush of wind whisked around us and a bright light appeared next to Chloe. I squinted as I pushed away from the wall, forcing myself to face her beauty. Freya.
“Trygger, it’s been a long time,” she greeted, not looking at her offspring. “I was afraid you’d never get the job done, but I have to commend you.”
Bowing, I swallowed hard as the female goddess approached me. Laying a hand on my chest, she looked directly into my eyes. She was the same height as me, which made a change to the women on earth. I had only ever met one six foot four woman before, and that had been a little odd.
“Thank you, Freya.”
I didn’t know what else to say. It wasn’t often that I was tongue tied, but the goddess surely did that to all men. She was the goddess of love and sex after all. And, I liked sex. A lot. Love on the other hand. That wasn’t for me.
“This is Chloe, a descendant of mine. She’s been blundering along nicely, but she’s here to help you. She lied about her age for some reason. Why is that, dear?” Freya turned to the now bright cheeked woman.
“I…don’t know.”
Frowning, I looked between them as Freya stared and Chloe shrunk in on herself. How often did the two meet? If Freya had trained Chloe, I would most certainly allow her to help me. No one had ever claimed to have had that pleasure. I would have died to have the pleasure of training with the goddess. She wasn’t the guardian of Fólkvangr for nothing.
“How old are you, really?”
It didn’t matter to me. However, if the goddess had mentioned it, it had to be relevant.
“Two hundred and twenty.”
It wasn’t often my eyebrows rose when a woman spoke, but I found myself staring at Chloe. As far as I was aware, there wasn’t any other descendants of the gods that had lived longer than a normal life span. The blood had been too diluted to give them the power to outlive a human.
“How can you be that old and still fight like-?”
“Oh, no you don’t. Don’t you dare make a sexist remark!” Chloe moved forward, her shorter frame coming up to my shoulder.
She could try to threaten me all she liked, it wouldn’t get her far. The crazy woman already had my nerves on edge. And, not in a good way.
“Like I said,” Freya interrupted. “She’s been stumbling along. I want you to train her. With your skills, she’ll become better.”
The goddess’s hair whipped around her face in the non-existent wind. Her bright blue eyes glistened like the sea. It reminded me of home. Or, what it used to be. Scandinavia was no longer the same. The old village I had come from no longer existed. It had been replaced by a fishing town.
“Times have moved on for you, Viking. I see that you’re sad. However, do me this last favour and help Chloe to help you…and not long from now, you’ll have your wish.” Freya leant closer, her scent of fresh meadow flowers washing over me.
Glancing down, I held back my grin when I saw straight down her gold top. Her breasts were pert and oh, so smooth. She was a clever goddess who knew how to get what she wanted.
“Okay.”
Throwing my hands in the air, I moved away from the goddess. Her heady influence made me want to do unspeakable things to her. Things that she would never agree to. As a usually sensible goddess, she wasn’t one to have an affair with a human. Even if that human was Thor’s grandson. Shame really, the tales of Freya’s ecstasy when I was a boy made it hard for me to look at her platonically.
“I can hear your thoughts.” There was a crack of humour in Freya’s voice.
Chloe rolled her eyes before glaring between the two of us. “Can you either get a room or get out of here?” she ordered.
Considering she was older than any other woman on earth, she was pretty prudish. That would be trained out of her soon enough if she wanted me to be the one to show her how to fight.
“Why has she been around so long?” I asked Freya.
The goddess knew she had persuaded me. Her smile was genuine as she glanced at her descendant. There was actual affection in her gaze. Something I hadn’t seen on the battlefield back in front of Valhalla.
“I was so impressed by you, Thor’s grandson, I wanted a warrior of my own. Of course, there couldn’t be two of you, so I choose a girl and placed her in the care of Loki’s family. They put up with her, but they didn’t have the skills…” She looked at Chloe again. “…Or, the patience…to train her.”
“I’m not that bad,” Chloe muttered, tucking her hands into her sleeve.
The outfit had to go if she was going to be seen with me. Not that I often socialised with anyone, but a warrior didn’t wear what she was wearing.
“Be easy on her, Trygger, I think you’ll find she has a lot to teach you, too.”
The goddess approached Chloe and laid a hand on her shoulder. “Listen to him, he will help you become all that you can be.”
The woman scoffed, throwing a narrowed gaze at me when I laughed. I couldn’t help it. She didn’t want to be tied to me as much as I didn’t want to be burdened by her.
When had my life become about pleasing Freya? Oh yeah, when she fucking shoved Thor’s thunder into my chest. Bitch.
Her chuckle flowed to me on the breeze. It was probably a good thing the goddess found me amusing, or my body would already be lifeless on the ground, my head rolling away from my neck. She didn’t exactly take kindly to rude men usually, but she obviously wanted something from me. That was the problem with me, I couldn’t say no to the goddess.
“That’s a good man, Trygger. Just think…a few years from now, Thor will be alive again. And, you will be dead.”
“Dead?” Chloe interrupted. “That’s not very nice, is it?”
Freya’s wave of dismissal was law. I couldn’t imagine anyone defying her. She had enough power to wipe out the whole dirty city of London.
The smell of sex and disrespect was heavy in the air. Not that normal humans would notice the darkness that surrounded them. They were too ignorant, too wrapped up in their own pathetic little lives.
“You think so poorly of your kind, that intrigues me. Considering you’re mostly human, I would’ve thought you would have some sympathy.” Freya held up her hand as her offspring went to talk. “Chloe, how much do you still like being alive?”
The young woman snapped her mouth shut. Although Freya obviously cared about her, the threat wasn’t idle. Nothing the gods ever did was in vain.
“Do you still like being alive?” I asked Chloe.
Her gaze dropped to the ground. Her feet in those ridiculous shoes, moved slightly. As her mouth opened to answer me, her head snapped towards the end of the alley. Right at the exact moment I smelt the disgusting stench of a Dark Crawler. The rotting scent surrounded us as the sound of high pitched laughter filled our ears. The hairs on my arms stood up. Dark Crawlers were minions of the Fallen Ones. Lesser evil than their masters, their spirits somehow managed to stay on earth instead of being taken to
Helheim. They jumped from human to human, possessing them until the flesh decayed to the point where the human body could no longer exist.
“It’s time for you to go,” I told Freya, moving to stand in front of both women.
Freya didn’t disagree. Instead, she put a hand on my shoulder, sending a shudder down my spine. That woman was full of sensual energy. I wouldn’t mind pushing her against the wall and ravishing her sweet goddess body.
“Thank you for taking care of her,” she whispered in my ear before a rush of wind whisked her away.
“Like I have much choice.”
My muttered words didn’t go unnoticed. Chloe cleared her throat, squaring up to me as I glanced over my shoulder. The draught made the stench waft up my nose, causing me to gag. Her face fell when she saw my expression.
“Am I that bad?”
Clearing my throat, I took a step away from her, waiting for the Crawler to show itself. They were good at hiding in the shadows, the creepy vile creatures. The first time I had seen one was not long after I had returned home from the heavens. My mother had asked me to go to a nearby town to fetch supplies. Never before had I noticed the rancid smell of the streets. As soon as I arrived, I marvelled at the difference. I could feel and smell so much more than I ever could before. Dark Crawlers appeared in human form because of their habitation of the species. However, the smell of them gave them away. Humans were generally tricked by their luring darkness. Humans with a darker soul were always ready and available for the cunning creatures to seize and invade them.
“Can you not smell that?” I threw over my shoulder.
Patience was required when a Dark Crawler decided to pray upon you. They knew who I was by smell, always wanting to please the Fallen Ones by attempting to capture me. To prevent me from my mission. There was no way I was going to let them succeed. Especially not in front of Chloe.
“No, I can sense them, but I can’t smell them. Analise was the same as you, she could smell them a mile away.”
Reaching for my sword automatically, I gritted my teeth when I remembered that I had left it at home. “Shit.”
“Here.” Chloe waved a knife in front of my face. “I grabbed it off the table, just in case.”
Taking it, I scowled at her. “Be careful with that.”
Her eyebrows rose. “Are you afraid that I’ll accidentally cut the greatest Viking warrior of all time?”
It took all my might not to tell her to fuck off. She was already irritating me to death.
“Be quiet,” I ordered, shoving her behind me as the laughter came again, closer this time.
The Crawler had probably felt Freya’s presence. Her power was a beacon to those that would serve Loki and the gods of Helheim. They would feed off any light possible, just to put it out. Humans were their main source of protein. The human species had enough light to sustain a Dark Crawler.
“Why do you always have to fight? Why won’t you run?”
The slight wobble in her voice proved what I already knew. She wasn’t a fighter, she was a lover. A good soul. One totally unfit to help me with my work.
It took me a second to change my usually fixed mind. She was right. There had already been one murder tonight, I didn’t want to put her through another.
The little mare’s retreating footsteps made me growl in my throat. She had taken it upon herself to start running away without my permission. Bolting after her, I ignored the stench that promised me a fight. Instead, I caught up to Chloe and passed her.
“Wait for me!” She panted, her breath coming in short bursts.
My feet thundered on the ground, my thigh muscles propelling me forward. I had to physically stop myself to be able to wait for her small dainty feet to catch up to me.
“We won’t get away if you run like that,” I muttered.
Her wild hair flew out behind her as she rounded the end of the alley. Something in my gut told me that the smell of her would find its way to the Dark Crawler and pursuit would be hot. And, quick.
“Come here.”
The London street was empty. Chloe looked around as she came to a stop next to me. Without saying anything, I swept her up into a fireman’s carry. Her stomach pressed against my shoulder, her head hanging down my back.
“What are you doing?”
The screech of the Crawler in the alley made her gasp. I didn’t bother to explain as my feet started to move. My leg muscles pumped under me as I rushed us away from the area. Chloe had a lot to learn. A hell of a lot. If I wanted to keep her alive, I had to train her in every way possible.
My breath sucked in and out of me in rhythmic fashion. I ran on my treadmill every day, without fail. Just for occasions like this. Chloe stayed silent, just slightly huffing from the movement of bouncing around on my back.
A nightclub spewing out people came into view up the road. If I blended in with them, I would lead the evil Crawler to them, putting them in danger. But, if I didn’t, I could be running all night. I had no choice. Hopefully, the Crawler would be so intent on getting us, he would leave the humans alone.
“Go!” Chloe said when I hesitated for a second.
Listening to the woman, I dropped her to her feet, tucking her under my arm. She instantly put an arm around my waist and walked with me. Straight up to the people who milled around outside the club. A bouncer was nearby, keeping an eye on the drunken crowd.
“Hello,” one woman greeted as we walked past. “You’re a handsome one.”
A human’s base nature when drunk was appalling. Their darkness came out more, waiting to be allowed to play. The things I had seen humans do, sickened me more than the evil sometimes. But, then, I shouldn’t forget what fed their dark desires in the first place.
“He’s mine.” Chloe’s snapped reply made me glance at her as we threaded our way through the throng of people.
We left the woman behind, our steps too quick to hang around. Hopefully our scent would have mixed in with the club goers. I released Chloe as soon as we were out of eyesight of the humans. If the Crawler had followed us, he would be near them by now. They were better at tracking smells than picking up on facial features.
“Why did you get all jealous back there?”
Taking her hand, I started to jog towards the nearest tube station.
The Crawlers rarely went on the trains, although, they did like to hang around the stations. Changing my mind, I waved down the late bus. We didn’t speak as we bundled on, Chloe smiling kindly at the driver. We looked like a right pair. Me, with tight leather trousers and a tight fitting ripped shirt. Perfect to fight in. Her, with a weird get up of a costume, ready to fall over from exhaustion.
The driver didn’t even look twice as we moved to the back of the bus. He was obviously used to seeing all sorts of weird and wonderful types of people. London was one of the most diverse capitals in the world. And, quite frankly, I was becoming sick of it.
“Firstly, I didn’t get jealous, I was acting. You know what that is? Secondly, thank you for…you know…”
I wrapped my fingers around the pole in front of me. Sentimentality was not something I had experienced often in my world. Even back over all the years I had been alive.
Since the moment Thor’s thunder was in me, I dedicated my whole life to saving him. I had never allowed myself to get emotionally involved. With anyone. Not that I was feeling that with Chloe, but her sensitive ways were transparent already.
“Chloe isn’t a very old fashioned name.”
Clearing her throat, she looked down at her lap, folding her hands in her skirt. “No. I had to assume that name when I was swapped for Loki’s descendant. Anyway, it helped me to blend in. Unlike you.”
Watching London go past, I longed to go back in time. If only I hadn’t gone to the bar with that whore, I wouldn’t be saddled with a mumbling female. I would have happily had a fight with the Dark Crawler. And, then, be comfortably on the way to my bed.
“I am who I am, like it or not.”
It was a motto I had used for many centuries. Human’s understood this better than other types of creatures. When I had said it to one man, he had agreed so whole heartedly, I asked him why he didn’t try to change me.
“Because, my man, our lives are so short, the only way to live in this world is to live for ourselves.”
That man had become a very good friend. His philosophy on life had taught me a lot. I had forgotten the humanity of the world, because I had been in it for so long. Every now and then, back in the times when I still had a bit of a heart, I allowed myself friendships with interesting people. It had been a while, though. Watching those you were fond of die, over and over, wasn’t enjoyable. It hardened the soul.
“I am who I am, like it or not,” Chloe muttered under her breath. “Well, so far…it’s not.”
3
History Unravelled
“THIS IS YOUR HOME?”
Chloe’s nose turned up as she circled. The sparkle that was in her eyes when she burst through the door in the apartment was gone. It was no wonder after everything that had happened in the space of the last few hours.
“Yes, this is my home. I wasn’t expecting company.” I paced away from her, into the bathroom.
The apartment was above an old factory in the middle of the city, on the bank of the River Thames. An old church was right beside my home, just for shits and giggles. Although the church was less effective with evil nowadays, it was still somewhere dark ones avoided.
It had taken us an hour to get through the city of London. Chloe had fallen asleep on the bus, leaving me to my thoughts.
The apartment had two bedrooms, but one was my gym. I had never entertained the idea of anyone staying with me. In fact, why had I even brought her here?
After relieving my bladder and washing my hands, I re-joined my new apprentice in the living space. The kitchen area was at the back of the room and the bedrooms were up the stairs that were against the wall of the downstairs area.
“Where do you live? I was going to take you home, but when you zonked out, I decided to bring you here for the night.”
Thunder Hunter: Viking Soul Book 1 (Viking Soul Series) Page 3
