by Garnet Hart
Lawfer clapped his hands, mocking him. “Alright, you’re the silent hero, but you have to go back to Asgard. You are more needed there.”
“I said no,” he replied and walked away, luring Lawfer farther from Asra. Strange, but he was not prepared to let this god see her.
“Your father has something to tell you.”
“Tell him to come down here so he could tell me himself.”
“You know he can’t.”
Of course Fenrir could not come down in Midgar even if he wanted to. Fenrir had vowed to serve Asgard all his life in order to protect the last surviving Lycans, and was incarcerated within an invisible wall that had an effect only on him, making any attempt of escape impossible.
“Fine.” Lawfer gave up. “I’ll just tell your father you’re a very stubborn prick. Now, here’s something from lord Odin.”
Lior crossed his arms. That was what he’d been waiting for. But suddenly, he did not seem to want to hear it. “About the Elf?”
“Good guess. Lord Odin wants me to take care of the Elf while you report back to Asgard, but I don’t think you’d want to hand over the Elf to me.” Lawfer grinned knowingly.
He tried to act nonchalant. Did this prick know what he was just doing a few minutes ago? “I will no’ for the life of me.”
“That’s quite obvious. It makes my second job easier though.”
“What’s your second job?”
“I’ve come down here to seek a hidden portal somewhere in the Amazon. It had been damaged for centuries now, and I’ll go see if I can restore it.”
“Why can’t I do that myself?”
“Don’t insult me, prick head. Lord Odin would not pick me for the job if it was as simple as you think it is.”
Lior had no comment. He had forgotten that this airhead was the best ‘restorer’ in Asgard. “I can go with you if you want.”
“No. The enemies are everywhere. Your job is to keep the Elf safe. Once I find the portal and restored it, I’ll call you and you should bring the Elf with you at once. Don’t forget to bring your army as well. You know, Demons could sniff information rather fast. We might need to fight some Demons to get the songstress through that portal.”
“Be quick. I canna stand that hussy for too long.”
Lawfer grinned. “You just have fun with her for now. She’s all yours until it’s her time to go. Besides, it would be fun taming a wild Elf like that. I can do it for you if you want.”
“Don’t you dare,” Lior warned. Surely, this Aesir knew what just transpired beyond the hill. “She’s under my protection, even from pricks like you.”
Lawfer rolled his eyes. “Fine, I’d best get going. By the way, I don’t have a cell phone. You have to give me one so I can call you. I don’t have time to make Midgar money.”
Lior found that rather strange. This Aesir owned one of the most beautiful castles in Asgard, but here in Midgar he had nothing.
There were no phones in Asgard. They used an artifact called a water mirror for communication, but its use here in Midgar is only allowed inside temples.
He groped for his wallet at his back pocket and peeled off several sterling notes. “You can buy a simple one for now. Call me when you get to Brazil and I’ll send you more. Here’s my contact number.”
Lawfer closed his fingers over the notes and a calling card. “And there’s more news… bad news… or shall I say… terrible news.”
“I canna wait to know.”
Lawfer seemed serious. It indeed looked like a terrible news. “The monster, Grunt… the two-ton mutant Lycan… D’you remember him?”
Fuck. Not that news!
Lior’s jaws tightened just hearing the monster’s name. It had been centuries since anyone dared to mention it.
Legend said that Grunt was the oldest living Lycan, probably three thousand years of age. He had lived long enough to witness the annihilation of the Vanir gods. He weighed about two tons and stood around ten feet, and fifteen feet from head to tail.
Monster was an understatement to describe such creature. His kind was a phenomenon among the Lycans that no one could explain. Because of that, his combined size and savageness had been feared by everyone all throughout its existence.
After the defeat of the Vanir gods by the Aesir gods, the forest-dwelling Lycans became the prominent dwellers of Vanar and started a civilization of their own. Grunt assumed the power to step up as Vanar’s new king, but Fenrir, a surviving Vanir god who had morphed with an ancient Lycan turned into what they called now as Alpha, was favored by the Lycans. Grunt challenged Fenrir to prove himself.
Grunt was defeated.
The shame of losing a duel against Fenrir and being overthrown from its throne had made Grunt mad like hell. Even after Fenrir spared his life, Grunt refused to acknowledge the new king.
Grunt disappeared for many years that they thought it had gone out of Vanar to found a new kingdom where he could be the king, but his terrifying legend had been told for many generations.
But Grunt’s hatred had not diminished over those many years. During those times that Asgard threatened to attack Vanar once again, the monster emerged, now stronger than ever, killing hundreds of Lycan warriors, thus weakening Vanar’s defense against the threat of Asgard.
Fenrir, and a few surviving Alphas, fought the monster, but their blades were useless against Grunt who had developed the ability to regenerate its severed body part instantly. All Lycans had that ability, but it would usually take a week, not in mere seconds.
Fenrir retreated and gathered all the Lycans to one place where he could protect them. With the help of the Dwarves of Svartalfar, the beast slayer, which they later called the Grimrist, was forged, all for the sole purpose of defeating the horrible monster.
The sword was only meant to be wielded by an Alpha like Fenrir. It was a precaution. Should the sword fall into the hands of someone like Grunt, the Lycan race and the remaining Alphas would be totally wiped out.
But before Fenrir could put the sword to use, the Aesirs, who had known of Vanar’s decline in defense, arrived.
After days of fighting, Fenrir had lost too many warriors to keep on with the battle, and Grunt had not stopped its own separate attacks. To save what was left of his people, Fenrir surrendered, but demanded that he’d fight the vicious monster himself… for the glory of Asgard.
Lior was already a young boy then, and he had witnessed how the Grimrist pierced through the monster’s chest and consumed the flesh around its blade into a ring of ember that slowly died down into ashes.
But Fenrir still had the heart to show mercy. Before Grunt could draw its last breath, Fenrir pulled the sword out and ordered his men to heal Grunt.
Days later, Grunt had recovered but had lost his ability to transform back into his humanlike form.
Fenrir had locked Grunt in a cage and had brought him to Asgard, hoping that Odin could tame the monster. But even the supreme god had failed to tame Grunt, and so it remained locked in Asgard for centuries.
The gruesome memories of that monster formed a lump in Lior’s throat that. “Who will forget that monster?” Lior was afraid of what Lawfer had to say. When Lawfer remained silent, he continued, “What about it?”
“…It escaped.”
He’d expected something terrible, but not as horrible as that. “When?”
“Nobody knows when,” Lawfer answered. “No one had checked on Grunt for months, and when someone finally did, he was gone. But they found footprints around the area, so it’s probable that Grunt managed to shift back to his humanlike form once again.”
A shiver ran through Lior’s spine. This can’t be happening. With the deadliest monster of Vanar on the loose once again, horror was all that could be expected from it. “Do you have any idea where he could be now?”
Lawfer shook his head. “Not a clue. Odin ordered a search a week ago but they didn’t find Grunt. They’ve doubled the guards on Vanar though, to make sure Grunt does not return there.
”
He was a bit relieved. “At least they’re protected.”
“Yes, but knowing Grunt’s history, he’d always find a way, and the next time he decides to show up, he sure knows how to bring the terror of Hell with him.”
Indeed, Lawfer was right. The havoc that Grunt had wreaked six hundred years ago still left a bad taste in the mouths of the people of Vanar. Its terror had never been forgotten, and would never be forgiven, especially with the fact that Grunt had greatly contributed to the defeat of Vanar to Asgard. Now that this monster was roaming freely again, bloodshed was inevitable.
“You don’t think it’d come attack your farm, do you?” Lawfer asked.
Lior cleared his throat. His long silence could have made Lawfer sense the fear in him. “It is possible.”
Lawfer cocked his head to one side and shrugged. “I don’t think he’d bother coming to Midgar. But to be sure, better alert your men. It’s a mad monster we’re talking about here. We can never predict Grunt’s next move.”
“I have more than a thousand men and women who are capable of fighting. If that monster is wise enough, it should think twice before daring to come here.”
“Indeed,” Lawfer nodded with a big grin. “So stop your worries and take care of the Elf. I’d best be on my way now.”
Lior watched as Lawfer summoned a portal to another place. Only a few gods had this ability, and Lawfer was damn lucky to possess it.
He did not have it, but a few Alphas used to have this ability as well. However, they were all executed by the Aesirs. “You’re going straight to Brazil?” he asked.
“Nope. My power’s not that strong. I can only jump several miles from one portal to another.”
“Be careful then. You might step out before a pack of Demons.”
“That’s not gonna happen,” Lawfer said and waived his right hand. “Gotta run, bro. I’ll see you soon.”
Lawfer stepped into the portal and disappeared behind the multi-colored light. When the door faded away, he heaved a deep sigh.
His number of forces could be of an advantage against Grunt, but that monster knew how to make surprises.
The Grimrist was their only hope, but the beast slayer had been trapped in his body since he was a boy. When Odin had demanded for the Grimrist from Fenrir, his father instantly knew Odin’s purpose. Fenrir had decided to morph the sword into Lior’s body.
The Grimrist can only be extracted from his physical body if he can shift into his ultimate form, that of a Vanir god.
But afterwards, Odin had sealed the Alpha’s ability to shift into their ultimate form, to make sure that they would never be powerful enough to repel Asgard’s rule over their land, or to start any sort of rebellion against Asgard.
And if Lior could not shift into his ultimate form, he can never make use of the beast slayer. There would be no one to stop Grunt in case it decided to run amuck… not even him.
Chapter 9
“This is an insult!” Asra grumbled as she followed the path to the market. “That she-monster actually ordered me to go to the market?”
She was referring to Ginny who woke her up very early this morning and ordered her to go buy some vegetables and fish at the market. She, the daughter of MacLeod, was to buy some stinking fish? She even insisted that she’d wear this knee length dress with an apron in front like the attire of her servants in Dunvegan. And that bastard Lior did not even defend her.
“You can no’ just be a freeloader around here. You have to work,” he had told her, and she wanted to strangle him for that. To hell with him and his faux Scottish accent.
After what transpired between them in the woods, it did not change the way he treated her. She knew all along that giving in to him would be another mistake, but she was simply stupid. She had never learned her lesson. He just took off his shirt and she was all over him at once.
She saw a place crowded with people and stalls. She supposed that was the market. She approached the nearest stall and handed the vendor the list of items that Ginny had written. As she waited for the vendor to fill her basket, she heard women laughing behind her.
“Isn’t that the whore staying in lord Lior’s house?”
“What happened to her hair?”
“I heard Ginny cut it, because she was such a slut.”
When she could no longer bare the insult, she turned around to see them. It was those three women she had seen by the river. “Why does it bother you if I’m staying in Lior’s house? Are you jealous?”
“Listen, whore. Our lord will not marry you. He’s brought you to his house without introducing you to the rest of the pack. It means he only wants you as his whore.”
Her ears threatened to elongate as she felt the anger boiling inside her, but she calmed herself. She had seen how strong Ginny was. If she provoked these three Lycans, she doubted if they could bring her corpse, in whole, back in Lior’s house.
“You women are full of envy,” she said instead and turned back to the vendor. “Are you done?”
“In a minute,” the man replied.
They surrounded her.
“We don’t envy a slut,” the one on her right said.
She wanted to ignore them, but it was hard. “You dare call me a slut? Aren’t you just jealous because Lior never even invited you in his house? Perhaps he only wants beautiful women and you could not have him even look at you because you are just too damn ugly for him?”
“Who’re you calling ugly?”
“You, who else? All you Lycan women are ugly!”
The women’s eyes widened. Even the vendor looked at her as though he anticipated trouble.
“What did you say?” the one to her right asked, her eyes flaring dangerously, but Asra did not back down.
“I said you Lycans are ugly! D’you want me to say it again?”
“I’ll tear your limb from limb.”
“Oh really? Just you try pulling a strand of my hair and your dear lord Lior will kill you himself. He will protect me with his life from ugly beasts like you.”
Someone pushed her from behind, but it landed on her back like a blow, knocking her on the ground. Her face plunged into the mud. She wanted to stand and fight back but she was momentarily paralyzed by the blow.
The vendor came to help her up. She heard the women laughing at her.
“Now, who’s the ugly one?” they mocked. “And where’s lord Lior to help you now?”
“Shut up!” the vendor scolded them. “Leave her.”
She spat some mud out of her mouth. “When I get my castle back, you three will be the first ones to burn at stake,” she threatened but the women just went on laughing while walking away.
The man carried her into an old pickup truck and drove her back to Lior’s house. He offered to help her in, but she refused.
She did not need any help, not especially from these Lycans.
She climbed the porch and was about to open the door when her tears started to flow. She did not want Ginny or Lior to see like this.
She dropped the basket at the doorway and ran around the house, going to the cellar. She closed the big door and hid behind a stack of cases of wine. There, she burst into tears.
She felt so pathetic. The heiress of MacLeod did not even have an ounce of power to punish those who dared harm her. She was surrounded with a pack of beasts whose power remained unknown to her. Everyday, she was at the risk of dying under their terrifying claws, and she had no idea how to defend herself. She hated to accept the fact that Lior was the only one who could protect her from all these monsters.
Frustrated, she grabbed one bottle and smashed it on the ground. It broke into several pieces, and the red liquid splattered around the floor and some coated the mud on her dress.
Something about the liquid caught her attention. She slowly went down to her haunches to take a better look at the spilled wine.
This was not wine. Its texture was too thick and the color was too red to consider it as just mere fer
mented fruit juice. And it smelled strange.
To clear her doubts, she dipped a finger on the liquid and rubbed it with her thumb. She could not be mistaken. This was blood.
She quickly rose to her feet and looked around. Stacks and stacks of cases of bottles filled the vast space, and she knew all those bottles were filled with blood.
She tried to scream in horror, but no sound came out of her mouth. For a long moment, she just stood there—cold, shocked, and trembling.
“Why that long?” Lior asked as he spoke with Gustavo on the phone.
The Rochford’s butler had just arrived in Essex from the Philippines and had called to inform him about the private jets that he had wanted to purchase.
“Boeing cannot accommodate your purchase until next month. Gulfstream has one ready and available right now, but you’ll need to wait for a few more days while they do some tests.”
Lior sighed. He needed a jet to bring Asra to the portal in Brazil. They could not ride a commercial plane to go there. It was too dangerous, especially that the Demons were after the songstress. They might attempt to hijack the plane and kill every human passenger on board just to get Asra. A few choppers and a thousand ton ship for hauling supplies for the Vampires were all that he owned. He had never expected he’d someday need his own jet.
Lysander offered his own private jet for whatever personal business he had, but he had to decline it. Lysander’s Airbus was too famous as it held a record as one of the most expensive luxury jets in the world. The press could easily identify that plane once they landed in Brazil and disclose their location on the internet, giving the Demons a lead of their whereabouts.
Another thing, he wasn’t sure when would Lawfer finish repairing the old portal to Alfheim. It could take a while, but by the time it was ready, he’d have to fly Asra to Brazil without delay.
“Alright, close the deal with Gulfstream. I need the plane as soon as possible. The other one can wait.”
“The Gulfstream is worth fifty million US dollars, so I’ll need to take additional fifteen from your bank account.”
