Enter Into Valhalla

by Michael Anderle

  “You’re certain about wearing your light armor?” Michael inquired as she pulled her boot over her knee. “I can remain in Myst form. There’s no need to risk yourself.”

  Bethany Anne looked at Michael and raised an eyebrow as she rolled her ankle to settle the boot. “What risk? The fuckwits would have to catch me, even if they could hurt me. Besides, I’m planning for us to be the ones doing all the chasing. I want complete freedom of movement through the Etheric.”

  Michael shrugged. “Fair enough. With the majority of the prisoners on the way to being reunited with their families, I’m guessing we can expect a stirring welcome however we approach. How sure are we that the Kurtherian is inside the complex?”

  Bethany Anne finished with her other boot and got to her feet. “TOM isn’t likely to mistake the mental signature. Our target is there.”

  They slipped out without being seen and cut through the Etheric to the innermost ring. Another step took them past the walls and into the heart of the ziggurat.

  Bethany Anne poked her head out of the Etheric to check for enemies and pulled it back in just as quickly. “Guards. They’re lined up three deep at the entrance.”

  Michael’s mouth quirked. “You have to give them points for effort. They can’t possibly know we aren’t limited to this plane.”

  Bethany Anne smirked in return. “They don’t know we’re here at all. They’re going to get a hell of a surprise.” She calculated the distance to take them past the guards and opened another path for them.

  Michal activated his gauntlets with a squeeze. “Ready when you are.”

  Bethany Anne held out her hands and manifested a spark of energy in each. “Let’s go.”

  They exited the Etheric into a grand pillared atrium.

  Michael frowned, not recognizing their location from the recon they’d done on arriving in the Citadel. We came out in the wrong place.

  Bethany Anne glanced around the empty space. We’ve come in at the opposite end from last time, is all. We need to figure out where to find our— Oh shit, hide!

  They ducked behind the nearest pillar as the echo of many approaching feet grew louder.

  We can’t be lucky enough to have the Kurtherian pass right by us, Michael murmured. Can we?

  Bethany Anne kept her opinions on luck to herself until the procession cut through the other end of the atrium. I count fourteen. No Kurtherian.

  No Lu’Trein either, Michael confirmed. Pity.

  I know, Bethany Anne agreed. Would it have been too much to ask that we found them right away? I’ve got half a mind on that beautiful bed Bor’Dane assigned us.

  You should keep your mind on the task ahead, Michael teased. There will be plenty of time to laze in bed once we’ve cleared this place.

  Bethany Anne wrinkled her nose. That just tells me you didn’t test the bed. She made a move as the last of the guards left the atrium.

  Twice more they had to dive for cover as they worked their way deeper into the palace. The second time, Bethany Anne barely closed the Etheric around them before the patrol spotted them.

  Bethany Anne paused at a four-way intersection and chose left. This way looks as good as any.

  Michael scanned the surrounding minds as they continued their progress. We’re getting close. I can hear the usurper's thoughts.

  Bethany Anne’s lip curled. She would be immersed in Lu’Trein’s mind soon enough. What is the snake thinking?

  Mostly that he’d prefer not to soil himself in front of his master, Michael told her with a similar look of distaste. Does TOM have a clue as to who we’re dealing with?

  Bethany Anne shrugged. He says his credits are still on a Judkah. Not a clan I’ve come up against before.

  Michael couldn’t recall having encountered any who claimed the title. Same. Do the Judkah have a specialty?

  They die at my hands, just like every other Kurtherian. Does that really count as a specialty, though? Bethany Anne dipped her hand into a pouch on her utility belt to grab the tiny camera drone she’d brought for the purpose of recording.

  Michael Mysted and followed the camera drone into the throne room. He took in the armored Kurtherian on the throne and Lu’Trein kneeling by his feet. I would describe it less as a conversation and more as Lu’Trein groveling for forgiveness. Are you getting the feed?

  I’m running it through my HUD, Bethany Anne told him over the sounds of the Kurtherian raging and Lu’Trein begging.

  That staff is more than interesting, Michael noted.

  Bethany Anne had been thinking the same thing about the Kurtherian’s armor. Concentrate on apology gifts for Jean after we’ve taken care of the Kurtherian.

  “I’ll get more test subjects,” Lu’Trein promised, clinging to the Kurtherian’s legs. “Better, stronger ones. The humans are not untouchable. I’ll get them for you, O Holy One! What wonders could you create with human DNA?”

  The Kurtherian slapped Lu’Trein away. “Are you an imbecile? Do not approach humans under any circumstances. That you drew them here is bad enough. How do you think Gödel will take your betrayal? Our agreement is void.”

  Girdle? Bethany Anne asked. What the fuck kind of name is that for a Kurtherian? Did someone invent the mathematical formula for the perfect figure and name themselves after it?

  Gödel, Michael corrected. His memory turned up the name out of nowhere, although any other detail about the human who had owned it was beyond his grasp at the moment. There is no reason for a Kurtherian to know that name. I don’t like this at all. We need to keep searching for any leads back to the Seven.

  Bethany Anne saw Michael’s urgency. I can handle this. Go. Search.

  Forget that, TOM exclaimed. There’s something…something. At the back of my mind. I don’t know what it is, but it’s telling me to get the hell off this planet.

  Bethany Anne shrugged. I’m not leaving without doing what we came here to do. Wait, what’s Lu’Trein saying now?

  Lu’Trein’s begging had gotten to the desperation stage. “How will we Ascend without your guidance? I gave you everything, and you promised I—we would Ascend to the glory of the Ancients.”

  The Kurtherian sneered, brushing Lu’Trein off easily as he stood to leave the dais. “You were never worthy of Ascension, you fool. All you were good for was giving us easy access to the genetic material of your people. There is too much risk now there are humans here. It’s over for you.”

  Lu’Trein wept uncontrollably, his words lost to incoherent sobs.

  Jackpot. The Bakas can’t refute that evidence. I don’t give a shit what this piss-splurt’s abilities are. He won’t get a chance to use them. Bethany Anne stalked through the ornate double door and lobbed the energy in her hand at the Kurtherian’s head as an opening distraction.

  Her entrance threw the guards scattered around the room into a panic.

  Lu’Trein was first to move, and first to find himself pinned to the floor when Bethany Anne waved a hand and tripled the gravity in the room.

  One word fell from his gaping mouth. “Blasphemy!”

  “Blast you?” Bethany Anne misheard cheerfully. “My pleasure.” She released the energy in her right hand, forming a blast wave that tore the flesh from Lu’Trein’s bones.

  It also killed every Baka in its path.

  Bethany Anne winced at the noise the wall behind the throne made as it collapsed, taking out the one behind it.

  The Kurtherian, however, was not affected. He launched an attack on Bethany Anne, his eyes flaring red inside his helmet as he came at her mentally with all the delicacy of a cargo freighter.

  Bethany Anne laughed aloud when the Kurtherian’s mind met the immovable object of her will. “What’s wrong? Bit off a little more than you can chew, huh?” She smiled. “I’ve been doing this for, well, probably not as long as you’ve been alive. Long enough that I can’t be bothered with whatever monologue you’ve practiced. Sic ’em, TOM.”

  Hello there, my friend, TOM greeted in his most beatific
pilot’s voice. You have strayed from the path, I see. Do you have a moment to…eat shit and die?

  The Kurtherian’s eyes flared impossibly bright when TOM gripped his mind and squeezed before tearing through it without regard in search of any information.

  Bethany Anne tapped her fingers on her folded arms. What are you finding?

  Nothing! TOM’s reply was somewhat snappier than he intended. Someone is shielding his mind. I can’t touch anything beyond his immediate intentions.

  The Kurtherian’s body suddenly stiffened.

  TOM, get out, Bethany Anne ordered.

  The Kurtherian’s expression went blank as the battle for his mind was won by some unknown external force. He collapsed to the floor clutching his helmet, his whimpers of pain echoing eerily off the crystal walls as he writhed in agony.

  Bethany Anne crossed to the Kurtherian and dropped to a knee to remove his helmet. She grabbed his jaw and forced him to meet her eyes. “You made a mistake coming here.”

  The Kurtherian gurgled out a thin stream of pale foam, beyond words now. His red eyes dimmed, and his gaze slid to the side as whatever animated him departed.

  Bethany Anne was about to let go when the corpse blazed with light. “What the…”

  Another entity had taken control of those dead eyes.

  Bethany Anne narrowed her eyes, undeterred by the unease she felt. She knew a sociopath when she saw one.

  Without a single word being exchanged, she pinpointed something lacking in her observer’s stare. She fixed that dispassionate intelligence with a look that gave no doubt as to the truth of her next words. “Whoever you are, enjoy your final days. It doesn’t matter where you hide. I’ll find you. I’m going to make you hurt before I end your miserable existence. That is the penalty for fucking with me and mine. Do you hear me?”

  The observer stared a moment longer, then the light in the Kurtherian’s eyes faded for good.

  Bethany Anne released the Kurtherian’s jaw with a growl of frustration and got to her feet. She picked up the discarded staff and examined the twisting metal around the jewel at the business end. “This was not what I planned.”

  Michael chuckled inside her mind. Are there any survivors?

  Bethany Anne sighed, putting the encounter on her mental list of things-that-bit-her-in-the-ass-unexpectedly. Not one. It is what it is. At least we got the evidence Mahi’ needs to save her planet from civil war. Plus, we have your apology gift for Jean. Both the scepter and the armor are intact.

  We have more than that. Michael streamed back into the throne room and reformed his body. He grinned at Bethany Anne and pressed the camera drone into her palm. “Follow me.”

  Bethany Anne skipped around Michael and put a hand on his chest to halt his progress. “Where exactly are we going?”

  Michael pressed his lips together and stepped around to take the lead again. “If you’re so determined to spoil the surprise, there’s a dungeon I missed the last time we were here.”

  Bethany Anne raised an eyebrow. “It’s a palace. They do tend to come with the dungeons included.”

  Michael narrowed his eyes at her refusal to play along. “It’s the occupant I’m interested in.”

  Bethany Anne knew he wasn’t going to give it up. “Fine, but at least let’s get there a bit faster than a walk.” She grabbed Michael’s shoulder and dropped them both through the Etheric, then brought them back out on what she sensed was the lowest floor. “This where you were aiming for?”

  Michael looked around and nodded before taking the corridor at a run. “Yes. This way. I’ve found him.”

  Bethany Anne couldn’t help but smile in return. She broke into a jog to keep up, her annoyance fading in response to Michael’s excitement. “Okay, you’ve got me. Who did you find?”

  Michael paused before six thick metal doors. “Haven’t you figured it out?”

  Bethany Anne made a little “o” with her mouth that spread into a million-watt grin when the only possible answer occurred to her. “Let me get that door open.”

  18

  Qu’Baka, Jungle

  The dawn, such as it was, brought Demon back in range of the male cat’s territory.

  The river thundered in the background, filling the air around her with effervescent rainbows that vanished when Demon passed through them. She avoided the river entirely, making her path through the undergrowth between the riverbank and the tree line instead.

  Her focus was entirely on getting revenge for that smile. It had played on her mind the whole time she’d been finding her way back.

  He must be smart. Maybe as smart as her, Demon had concluded. There was no other explanation for how he could have bested her. She chose not to dwell on the unexpected swim or the two days it had taken her to find her way back to his territory.

  That…that male would see where his smarts got him as soon as she caught up with him.

  Demon smelled him nearby. She also smelled fresh food. He had made a kill, another of the elusive pig-beasts she’d yet to lay eyes on.

  The ass.

  Demon’s stomach rumbled. She wanted that meat. She lowered herself to the ground and inched along until she got to a tree she could climb without being seen.

  Once she'd gained the canopy, she saw him clearly. He had two pig-beasts! One, he had eaten his fill of. The other he had not touched, save to open it from throat to gut. The entrails lay nearby, the tastiest tidbits laid out separately.

  Demon didn’t know what to make of that at all.

  The male cat lay a short distance away from the carcass, alert to the jungle around him while he cleaned his muzzle with his paw.

  Demon’s indignation flared. What was this? Was he waiting for her?

  She hopped down from the tree and padded back the way she had come.

  The male cat heard her movement. He flowed to a sitting position and started chuffing softly, calling to Demon.

  Demon backed away, confused. She didn’t like her reaction to his voice. It made her want to rub herself all over his body and entwine herself around him.

  No freaking way, as Sabine was so fond of saying.

  Demon found herself responding to the pheromones pouring from him. The very air tasted of him. The purr came unbidden from deep in her chest.

  What drove her to do that?

  The male's ears pricked at the return call. He got to his feet and called again.

  What was she supposed to do? Demon had never met a male cat, much less had one try to seduce her. Her tail twitched as indecision wracked her, reducing her decision to instinct alone.

  There was only one thing to do.

  She turned tail and ran.

  The jungle flashed by as she pelted full speed away from the source of her confusion. She didn’t want any part of that male.

  Damn him for confusing her!

  Demon ran until her chest heaved with the effort of drawing breath. She wanted to be as far from the river and that male cat as she could possibly get.

  She would return to the Baba Yaga. Izanami would send a Pod if she called for one.

  Yes. That was the best thing to do. Avoid that male and his scent altogether.

  A yawn erupted from Demon’s mouth without warning. The run, coupled with a lack of food and the adrenaline dump, had exhausted her. She would have to take a nap before she had the energy to switch her chip on and make the call.

  Order of action decided, Demon made the short climb into a suitable tree and curled up to sleep in the fork of a wide branch.

  She woke sometime later, disturbed by the sound of something approaching her hiding place.

  Demon peered through the leaves and her heart dropped.

  He’d followed her. Worse, he’d brought another gift of food.

  This wouldn’t do. She had no patience for this pushy male.

  Her nose twitched as the scent of a fresh kill hit her nostrils. Her stomach growled its pleas for her to accept the food.

  The male dropped the kill at th
e base of the tree and stared plaintively at Demon’s hiding place.

  Demon peered through the leaves and was caught by the cat’s amber gaze. She pulled her head back in with a hiss. Go away.

  The male chuffed sadly in response.

  She refused to leave the shelter of the tree.

  The male paced around the base of the tree for a few minutes, then laid down a short distance from the kill and began to call again.

  Demon cursed inwardly. Pride prevented her from contacting Izanami as she’d planned. There was no way she wanted to be rescued from a tree like a common housecat. Besides, the male wasn’t threatening her.

  In fact, he appeared to be pleading with her to come down from the tree and eat.

  Demon was starving, and the smell of the meat was torture. Her nanocytes needed fueling. She wasn’t entirely sure whether they would start feeding on her if she kept refusing the meal she was being offered.

  Maybe she was being too cattish.

  Sabine always told her that she missed opportunities by refusing to consider new elements. Demon was pretty sure Sabine hadn’t been talking about the quandary below.

  She could accept the food without accepting him. That wasn’t the thing dividing her.

  Demon’s reticence had everything to do with the deep-down knowledge that this male was entirely acceptable as a mate.

  He was definitely handsome, even with those overly large fangs. His skills as a hunter were unquestionable. He had a certain intelligence, one she was somehow certain she wouldn’t encounter again anytime soon.

  She definitely couldn’t stay in this tree forever.

  Decision made, she stretched her neck to look out on the male. He rolled in the grass at the sight of her, exposing his striped stomach.

  Can you speak? Demon asked.

  The male moved to a sitting position and shook his head, giving her a low grunt.

  But you can understand me?

  He dipped his head in the affirmative, then indicated the food at the base of the tree with his muzzle.

  Demon fixed him with a long stare before speaking again. Move away, she told the male eventually. I will come down.