Enter Into Valhalla

by Michael Anderle

  Addix did as Mahi’ asked, hearing the urgency in her voice. “What’s the emergency?”

  “There are people stranded by the quake,” Mahi’ replied. She waved to the younger of the two males as the Pod took off. “Go with Bor’Dane, and help him get our people to the Empress’ ship.”

  “Be careful,” he called. “I only just got you back!”

  The rest was lost to the wind as the Pod shot into the air.

  “Where are we going?” Addix asked.

  Mahi’ waved in a southeasterly direction. “The foundry in the outer ring. The workers are trapped inside by a cave-in. How many can this Pod hold?”

  “As many as we can fit in. This is an emergency.” Addix recalled the reason for her panic. “There are Ooken outside the Citadel,” she told Mahi’, although she knew as she spoke that it was old news to her.

  “There will be Ooken inside the Citadel soon enough,” Mahi’ replied, her tone stoic. “Qu’Baka is in its death throes. They can have it. All that matters is surviving as a people to mourn the loss of our planet.” The strong words did little to hide the anger and grief behind them.

  Addix found herself at a loss as to how to reply in the face of Mahi’s pragmatism. “Your people are lucky they have you to lead them out of this time of hardship.”

  Mahi’ patted Addix’s shoulder. “We’ll start with getting them out of the Citadel. What comes next isn’t important if we’re not there to live it.”

  Addix nodded.

  The humidity outside the Pod fell sharply as they passed beneath a section of the Citadel that was open to the surface. Visibility dropped to virtually zero as they were swallowed by the snow pouring in from above.

  Mahi’ barely held herself in check. Conditions got poorer the farther they got from the cover of the Baba Yaga.

  The cave-in at the foundry was worse than either of them had imagined.

  Mahi’ let out a low moan as the partially-crushed building came into sight through the blizzard. The entire area was blanketed in snow except for the burning lake around the front end of the building, which was entirely buried under a slab of crushed rock the size of a small town. “The heat exchanger has failed.”

  Addix assumed the heat exchanger was responsible for the steadily rising lava that was oozing from somewhere in the foundry to pool around the site. “We need to find a way in, preferably one that is close to the people we’re here to rescue. Do we know how many are in there?”

  Mahi’ was already working to hurry the scans along. “Yes. Scans show thirty-eight living beings. They’re in a storage room on the first floor.”

  Addix had doubts about getting that many out in one trip. They weren’t going to be left with much choice if they didn’t act soon.

  She pointed at the side of the building where it was melting into the lava. “Which is going to be the ground floor in a matter of minutes. We can’t get in from this side, not without flooding what’s left of the building with lava. Can we get them to move?”

  “They have a holo with them.” Mahi’ looked at the scan data and pointed out a route to Addix. “I can see a possible way to get to them if they can get to this room. We have to go outside the walls and break through somehow.”

  Addix sighed. She had strong feelings about going into the Ooken-infested jungle for any reason, much less bundling a group of freshly rescued civilians through there. “You’ve got a Jean Dukes weapon, right?”

  Mahi’ nodded and lifted her outer robe to show Addix the pistol holstered at her hip. “I have an older model. Does the Pod have weapons? We could shoot the wall out.”

  Addix reconciled herself to not having much choice in the matter. “No need. I can take care of the wall. You concentrate on making sure no Ooken sneak up on us.”

  QBS Cambridge, Cargo Bay

  Gabrielle wrinkled her nose at Bethany Anne. “Are you sure you don’t want a cushion or something? You’ll get ass grapes sitting on the cold floor like that.”

  Bethany Anne smiled and shook her head as she arranged her body into her accustomed meditation pose. “I’m good. Want to go through it one more time?”

  Gabrielle looked askance at Bethany Anne and checked off on her fingers. “You and Michael are going to work from here to close the rift. I’m going to guard and obliterate anything that comes through. John and Eric are going to mop up any Ooken that survived the blast wave. Everyone else is getting the Bakas aboard the Baba Yaga before Qu’Baka shakes itself to pieces. That about cover it?”

  “One more thing,” Michael supplied as he entered the cargo bay. “Addix is on her way to assist Mahi’. Demon has been found safe.”

  Bethany Anne narrowed her eyes. “Why didn’t Izanami tell us that while we were aboard the Baba Yaga?”

  Michael smiled. “It appears that Demon’s odd behavior of late was due to the call of nature.” His smile widened at Bethany Anne’s and Gabrielle’s blank looks. He sat cross-legged opposite Bethany Anne. “She had need of some feline company, which she found here on Qu’Baka. Izanami is likely embarrassed she startled the new cat into damaging her HLP drive.”

  Bethany Anne slapped the floor in frustration. “I’m not going to hold the cat responsible. That AI needs to think before she acts. Another thing I need to take care of when we get back to Devon.”

  Gabrielle turned back on her way to the door. “No rest for the wicked.”

  Michael snickered softly. “Even less for the sainted. How about we show that Kurtherian the true meaning of payback?”

  Bethany Anne placed her hands on her knees palms up and closed her eyes. “Nothing would please me more. There’s fuckery to spread, and I’m the bitch holding the knife.”

  Calm descended as she breathed away her attachments. The war, the dying planet, all her cares and worries, released on the exhale.

  She left on her next breath, leaving her body behind while her mind soared into the Etheric.

  Michael joined her a moment later and they faced the rift together.

  With perfect clarity, Bethany Anne saw the gaping hole in reality for what it was—unfettered energy set loose to lash the fabric of existence without anything to guide or control it.

  Michael felt Bethany Anne’s anger rise. He abandoned his inspection of the tear suspended impossibly in the near distance to put an arm around her shoulders.

  “They opened the door and ran,” Bethany Anne ground out as she put the pieces together. “There was never any intention of controlling the storm. The soulless bastards aimed to cause as much destruction as they could, nothing more.”

  Michael had figured as much when the initial shock hadn’t been followed immediately by an attack. “How do you suggest we seal it?”

  Bethany Anne raised her hands in the direction of the rift and called the fractured energy as she walked a few steps closer. “Imagine this was a tear in a piece of fabric. Each thread would have to be reconnected to put it back to how it was. Watch me.”

  Michael saw the mist around Bethany Anne first slow its manic rush toward the rift and then reverse direction. He joined his effort to hers, and the affected area spread outward rapidly until one corner of the rift was cleared of excess energy for a second.

  Bethany Anne was ready. She grasped the fragmented energy and overlaid her will to mold it back together, grateful to TOM for skipping the blow-by-blow of the damage she was accruing for her monster effort.

  It wasn’t working. The energy fell apart spectacularly the moment she released it. The rift remained open, causing untold damage to Bethany Anne’s universe.

  Even worse, it appeared to be expanding.

  Bethany Anne held on tightly to the rest of the energy she had gathered, reluctant to release it and add to the growing problem. “What am I missing?”

  Michael touched Bethany Anne’s mind. Remember, you are not alone.

  Bethany Anne’s frustration spilled over. I would like five minutes alone with the evil that opened this rift. How are we supposed to seal it when this en
ergy is…well, broken? She flexed her hands and released the pent-up Etheric energy from her palms in two bright bursts of flame that scattered the churning mists.

  Michael tilted his head in consideration. “What about that energy? It looked fine to me. Did you do something to it?”

  “No?” Bethany Anne looked at her hands, then at Michael. A slow smile spread as she realized the difference was her. “You are a fucking genius.” She grabbed Michael’s face in both hands and kissed him soundly before running in the direction of the rift. “Get back to the other side,” she called back over her shoulder. “I don’t want you getting stuck here.”

  Michael did no such thing. He raced after Bethany Anne. “What are you planning to do?”

  Bethany Anne flung an arm toward the rift without stopping. “I have to run the energy through my body to repair it. It’s the only way to close the rift.”

  Michael caught up with Bethany Anne and grabbed her arm, bringing them both to a sharp halt. “You want to what?”

  Bethany Anne shook Michael’s hand off and fixed him with a frown. “I know you heard me just fine. This isn’t a simple storm. It’s a wound in reality, and I’m the only one who has the power to heal it.”

  Michael tensed, seeing that she wouldn’t be moved. “What if you don’t survive? You can’t expect me to leave you to walk into what could be your death.”

  Bethany Anne put her hand to Michael’s cheek. “Then I don’t survive. But you will, and our children will.” A single tear escaped and ran down her face, capturing the light of the rift. “That’s all that matters. Go to the other side, Michael. Don’t make this more difficult than it already is.”

  Michael pulled Bethany Anne close and held her wordlessly. They stood that way for an endless moment before Bethany Anne released him with an almost inaudible sigh.

  Michael smiled sadly. “If only for the sake of our children, I’m not going to argue. Just don’t lose yourself in there.”

  “I won’t die,” Bethany Anne promised. “And if I get lost, I fully expect you to find a way to bring me back.”

  21

  Qu’Baka, Citadel, Outer Ring

  Addix locked her legs to secure her balance in the Pod door and hoped like hell she didn’t get blown to pieces for trying to be clever. “Here goes.”

  Mahi’ peered nervously around the chair she was using as cover. “Are you sure this is wise?”

  Addix concentrated on opening the Etheric over her palm. “Trust me, we want to save our ammunition in case the Ooken show up.”

  Mahi’ nodded. “I’m not going to disagree. It would have been better to bring a few warriors with us.” She spoke to the Bakas inside, instructing them to get back.

  “That would mean even less room for the rescued people.” Addix’s mandibles twitched in triumph when her effort to manifest an energy ball came to fruition. “As it is, the strongest will have to walk while the injured take the first trip back in the Pod. Take cover.”

  Mahi’ ducked behind the chair when Addix flung the energy at the wall

  Her skills with the Etheric were crude, but the resulting outward explosion of rock was adequate for the purpose. The workers came forward as the dust settled. Their shock was compounded by the Ixtali swinging from the open Pod with smoke coming from her hand.

  “Stand back,” Mahi’ instructed again. “We’re going to get you out of there.”

  “Bring the Pod in closer,” Addix called to Mahi’. “Keep us steady.” She took the cartridge gun from the Pod’s emergency kit and loaded it with an expanding foam cartridge, then took aim at the edge of the hole in the wall.

  A stream of yellow-green foam shot from the barrel and attached itself to the crumbled stone. Addix jerked her wrist and the free end of the foam snake drooped to the ground. It expanded rapidly, the weight pulling it down as it doubled in length, then doubled again in width, forming a makeshift slide.

  “Wait for a minute,” Addix cautioned. “It has to set.”

  Addix waved the foundry workers on when the slide was ready, then Mahi’ took the Pod to wait on the ground while they made their way down the slide one at a time.

  Mahi’ rushed to assist the elderly female who was the first to set foot on the ground.

  She stared at Mahi’ in wonder. “Your Highness, it cannot be!”

  Mahi’ brushed off the attention. “No need for that. Let’s get you into the Pod, Auntie.”

  The female smiled dazedly at the honorific. “My name is Sa’Mera,” she told Mahi’, turning distractedly when a male came over to take her elbow. “This is Fi’Aren.”

  Fi’Aren nodded, similarly blown away by the identity of their rescuer. “Thank you for saving us.”

  Mahi’ smiled, shaking her head. “No need for thanks. We’re not out of danger yet.”

  “There’s not much time,” Addix cut in as she returned from the Pod. “We have to move since we’ve attracted attention. I’ve programmed the Pod to make two trips. We need to get as many people aboard as we can and get everyone else back behind the wall.”

  Sa’Mera gripped Fi’Aren to stabilize herself. “There’s a gate a kilometer to the west of here. We should get going.”

  Fi’Aren pointed at the Pod. “You are going on the first trip. Everyone needs you to be their strength.”

  The Pod took off with the elderly and the injured a short time after, leaving Addix, Mahi’, and the sturdier Bakas to find a path back into the Citadel and locate a relatively safe place to wait for the Pod’s return.

  The group made their way west, sticking close to the Citadel wall.

  Addix stayed at the periphery of the group as they traveled. Mahi’ was at the head of the group. Addix kept herself clear to defend when the Ooken found them. There was no if—she heard them closing in, drawn by the noise of the rescue.

  Once the Ooken came upon the foundry, it was just a matter of how long it took to follow the trail left by the group.

  There was a tense moment when they came within sight of their goal and discovered the wall was still intact, and the gate barred and locked from the inside.

  Addix inspected the featureless slab of metal and turned to Mahi' with her mandibles clicking in dismay. “There’s no way to open it.”

  “There should be someone here!” one of the workers called.

  Another laughed coldly. “Those traitors got out if they knew what was good for them.”

  Fi'Aren took to pounding on the gate with his fists. “I would not abandon my post.”

  Addix listened to the bickering with growing annoyance. “This isn’t getting us anywhere.” She rose to her full height. “Everyone, shut up and move!”

  She frowned at the conundrum, her heart rate rising as the severity of the situation gripped her. “The Ooken are coming. Every one of us is going to die if we don’t get that gate open.”

  Her words had the intended effect.

  The people stilled their arguments and cleared the space around the gate while Addix set her Jean Dukes Special to level two. “I don’t want to destroy it,” she explained when Mahi' looked at the weapon skeptically.

  Mahi' averted her eyes as Addix fired. The gate shuddered but remained intact.

  Addix swept a hand toward the gate. “All yours.”

  Mahi’ grinned. “My pleasure.” She lifted the hem of her robe and set her stance, then whirled to meet the gate with the sole of her right foot.

  The gate clanged open, falling off one of its hinges to sit askew against the rock.

  Everyone froze when a screech sounded nearby.

  Addix cringed as her worst fears became a reality. “Get inside,” she yelled. “Quickly!”

  “Scatter!” Mahi’ added as the workers dashed through the hole. “Get to the highest place you can find and wait for the Pod.”

  Addix and Mahi’ waited on tenterhooks for the attack to come.

  The first Ooken broke out of the jungle tentacles-first.

  Addix fired, to no effect. “Shit!”
>
  Mahi' had her back. She took the Ooken down with three well-placed shots. “Dial it back up!” she roared over the screeching.

  Addix growled at her forgetfulness and thumbed the dial without looking to see where she’d set it.

  There were more Ooken incoming. Addix skittered back toward the wall, pulling Mahi' along with her. “We need a better position. Here, take this.” She held out her emergency weapon. “I’d give you my JD but you need both hands intact.”

  Mahi' accepted Addix’s offering, her eyes searching the tree line for the unnatural blue that heralded the Ooken. “Defend the gate or let them in and pick them off?”

  Addix considered their options. “Defend the gate. Give the people a chance to get safe.” She activated the emergency beacon in her neural chip, sending an SOS to Izanami.

  Izanami spoke up immediately. Addix, what danger are you in?

  Me, Mahi’, and twenty-plus civilians, Addix told her quickly. We need a pickup, preferably before we’re overrun by Ooken.

  I’m sending— The rest of Izanami’s reply was swallowed by a grinding tremor. Addix exchanged glances with Mahi’ as a massive chunk of the roof crashed down a few hundred feet away, flattening a large section of the jungle.

  “We have to move,” Addix told Mahi' as snow began falling around them. “We can’t defend from here.”

  Mahi' ran for the gate. “There will be stairs on the other side of the wall.”

  Addix glanced at the trees before following at a run. She caught up with Mahi' on the stairs as another screech cut the air. “Hurry!”

  They reached the top of the wall out of breath. Addix screamed her frustration as she slipped on the rapidly freezing slush. “Izanami is sending help,” she shouted to be heard over the rumbling of the planet. “We only have to hold the Ooken off until they get here.”

  “Split up,” Mahi’ yelled in response, waving an arm to indicate Addix go right. “They’re coming from everywhere!”

  Addix dashed to the edge of the wall and saw that Mahi' wasn’t exaggerating. The jungle was being torn to splinters by the Ooken. She stared for a moment at the blank spaces left behind by their progress—a portent of the devastation headed their way.