Wings of the Valkyrie

by Charley Case

  As in the vision from the arachnid, there were a good dozen people milling about the street. Now that she saw them with her eyes, she was convinced they were drunk. Their walks were a little too shuffling, and they tended to run into things before bouncing off and stumbling in a new direction. Something about them gave Mila the chills, though. There was something about the scene that wasn’t adding up.

  “They’re not walking together,” Mila muttered, finally figuring out what was off.

  Drunk people clumped together. These people were out on their own, and unlike drunks, they stopped at every window they came to and stared into the buildings before moving on to the next.

  Something else didn’t seem right as she looked up and down the street. There weren’t any cars driving down it. She saw headlights a few blocks away, but all the vehicles turned off before they got to within three blocks of her condo. When she walked around the corner, it was the same on 21st Street. The same wandering zombie-like people peering into windows and no cars driving closer than a few blocks.

  Denver was a fairly large city, and like all large cities it never entirely went to sleep. Mila couldn’t remember the last time there wasn’t a car passing on the street below.

  Zombie-like… Mila’s eyes went wide. Not zombie-like, thralls. Those were thralls down there, and they were searching for the condo. Yaminah knew she lived somewhere near the Market, but evidently not an exact location.

  Tightness in Mila’s chest cut off her breath. What if the thralls found them? There were more people living in the building than Mila and Finn. There were the goblins, the Selkie twins staying in the small unit on the second floor, and an orc family that Finn had brought home a few weeks ago while they got themselves back on their feet. Rising panic built in Mila as she tried to figure out the best way to warn everyone while at the same time trying to figure out where to take them all. She guessed they could probably go to Christine’s in a pinch, but they would still—

  A small purple rune glowing at the base of the railing caught Mila’s attention, and she relaxed. Penny had already thought of all this. Mila ran through the protections Penny had placed on the building.

  She had called it an observation rune. If Mila was remembering right, it made it so that anyone planning to cause harm to an inhabitant simply wouldn’t see the building when they came looking.

  Mila made a note to kiss that little blue devil on the lips the next time she saw her. Which made her wonder how Penny was feeling.

  Mila followed the edge of the balcony as she tried to get a good count of thralls searching the surrounding buildings. She was up to sixteen when she came to the end of the railing that stopped at the back of the building and overlooked the back alley where the garages were. She looked down to see if any of the thralls were back there and froze.

  Missy stomped down the center of the one-lane road, her loud footfalls sending up splashes of water that ran down the center of the alleyway. Her chopped hair didn’t look any better than it had on her broadcast in Times Square. She held her silver sword in one hand while the other held a small flame for light. Black infernal magic tinged the fire and sent odd anti-shadows dancing along the walls.

  Low-volume mumbling rose from the obviously frustrated fallen Valkyrie, but Mila couldn’t make anything out. The closer Missy got, the brighter the rune at the base of the railing became, but it didn’t seem to be in any danger of overloading. At least, not yet.

  “Well, fuck me.” Mila suddenly felt under-dressed and under-armed. “This could be really bad.”

  Chapter Eight

  Arms snaked around Mila from behind, making her yelp in fright.

  “Whoa. Sorry, babe,” Finn said close to her ear. “Didn’t mean to scare you. What are you doing out here?”

  “Fucking hell, Finn. You scared the shit out of me,” Mila gasped while pointing over the balcony’s railing. “A little spider let me know we had a visitor.”

  Finn leaned forward to look down into the alley over Mila’s shoulder. She felt his arms stiffen around her. “Missy? How the hell did she find us?”

  “I don’t think she has.” Mila toed the glowing rune at the base of the railing. “Pretty sure Penny’s wards are doing their job. There are thralls all up and down Larimer and 21st. I think they’re searching the area. Yaminah knew I live close to the Market, but she didn’t get a chance to follow me home.”

  Finn stepped away and Mila saw that he wore only a pair of red boxer briefs as he leaned against the railing beside them and peered down into the street.

  “Where are all the cars?” Finn quietly asked before looking further down the street to see headlights turning off to detour around the area. He frowned, checked the other direction and saw the same thing. “She must have put up a compulsion spell to keep the area clear. I bet most of the buildings have emptied out as well. Something strong enough to deter drunks has to be a piece of powerful magic.”

  “Why aren’t we affected? Wouldn’t we feel it?” Mila stepped up next to him and wrapped herself around his arm for warmth. The night chill was getting to her as it cut through the thin t-shirt. It seemed she wasn’t entirely dwarf—if she was at all.

  Finn nodded toward one of the glowing runes. “Because Penny’s a badass.” He chuckled. “It’s not the first time she’s saved my ass with some of her patented forethought.” He pressed his lips together and took in the wandering masses before looking over the back railing to see that Missy had come closer, but still seemed unaware of the entire building. “We need to lead them away. I’ve granted far too many people sanctuary here to let them be attacked. Penny’s runes are good, but no rune is perfect. They’re already blazing pretty bright.”

  “I was thinking the same thing,” Mila confessed. “I didn’t want to go out there and chance being seen by our neighbors.”

  “I don’t think there’s much threat of that happening. The spell she has over the area will take care of any onlookers before they become a problem.”

  Mila smirked. “I guess this blows the theory that our mystery woman is Yaminah.”

  “Why do you say that?” Finn looked at her with a questioning eyebrow.

  Mila waved a hand at Missy walking closer. “Because Yaminah was the only one who knew where we were. She obviously told Missy. That doesn’t sound like the actions of someone who wants to help us.”

  Finn snorted a laugh. “I suppose so, but that doesn’t mean it’s not Yaminah. She could have told them back when her Geas was still active.”

  “You don’t know that she broke free of her Geas. I don’t think she’s our girl.”

  “I don’t know. It makes too much sense. She hates Azoth. She’s powerful. I’m pretty sure she hates Missy too, from the things you said. She’s my guess.” He gave her a sly half-smile. “I’ll bet you it’s her. If it is, we install those handholds in the headboard.”

  Mila snorted a laugh much louder than she intended and thanked Penny for the silencing wards. “So, now we’re going to see this mystery woman?”

  Finn shrugged and looked down at the street filled with thralls. “I think we could use every advantage we can get. They’re practically knocking on the front door. We have too many innocents here for them to bring the fight to us.”

  Mila nodded against his arm. “I agree. We need to take care of this.”

  “Take care of what?” Victoria stepped out onto the balcony, the blanket wrapped around her shoulders like a priest’s robe.

  “Victoria,” Mila stepped away from Finn, “we have a situation.” She gestured out at the thralls.

  It took Victoria a few moments to understand the implications of stumbling people wandering the street, but her face soon widened in shock. “They found us?” She leaned over the rail and scrutinized the people as she walked closer to the alley. “They won’t be alone.” Her emotions bubbled up. “Someone has to control them. Have you seen Azoth or—” her jaw clicked shut when she spotted Missy stomping down the alley.

  Mila felt
heat radiate off Victoria before she saw any sign that the older Valkyrie was doing anything out of the ordinary. By the time Mila realized that Victoria’s anger was getting the better of her, it was too late.

  A feral growl rumbled from deep within the tall blonde woman as the blanket fell from her shoulders, exposing her naked body. Her skin glowed with golden light seconds before her power surged forth with a roar of anger and hurt. Fists clenched, Victoria flexed her muscled back and wings of golden light exploded from her, the stylized feathers spreading up and out like a bird of prey flexing before the attack. The wings weren’t connected to her back or made of anything solid, but they were an impressive show of her power.

  The rune at Victoria’s feet sparked, then sent up a blue flame before crumbling to black soot that vanished into the wind. Mila saw the other runes along the balcony glowing brighter than seemed safe, sending up eerie shadows along the walls.

  “I will rip her goddamned face off,” Victoria growled while reaching for the railing.

  Mila saw Missy’s demeanor change in an instant. She went from frustrated to focused and began searching the area with narrowed eyes.

  Mila stepped forward at the same time Finn did and they both grabbed one of the enraged Valkyrie’s arms, pulling her back and putting themselves between her and the railing.

  Victoria’s eyes glowed with golden energy as she snarled at the two of them blocking her way. “Move. I will have my revenge for my sisters.”

  Mila felt dread deep in her core. This was a woman who had lived longer than any empire on Earth. She was trained to be a warrior against enemies that could rip the human race to shreds. She was power incarnate. Mila’s body wanted to shrink away from that power. It wanted to apologize and let her elder pass. She couldn’t stop Victoria if she tried.

  Mila felt a spark snap her in the lower back a breath before Finn gently touched her with light fingertips. The zap made her breath catch in her throat, and her eyes widened in shock. Power flowed from his hand into her. It wasn’t like he was giving her magical power—this was something different, something more than magic.

  Suddenly, the growling powerhouse of a woman standing in front of Mila wasn’t frightening at all. She was an impetuous and reckless child who needed to be dealt with.

  Mila’s eyes narrowed, and she stepped right up into Victoria’s personal space. The blonde woman was a good foot taller than her, but Mila didn’t care. She pressed a finger into Victoria’s chest and pushed the surprised woman back a step.

  “You will do nothing of the sort. You don’t have the right to take revenge at the cost of the innocents living in this building. Those people are protected by Finn and me, and if you do anything to bring harm to them, then you’re bringing our wrath down upon you.”

  Victoria’s expression changed from pure rage to wide-eyed surprise as she stumbled back a step. The light of magical power faded from her eyes.

  “Those fallen Valkyries are not your sisters. They were our sisters. You are putting us and the rest of the inhabitants of this building in danger by lashing out like a child. You’re smarter than that, Victoria, and I’m ashamed that you don’t know how to control yourself.” Mila stabbed her finger into Victoria’s chest again, this time making the Valkyrie wince in pain. “You will stand down and stop this petulance. We’ll take care of Missy and her thralls, but we’ll do it in a way that doesn’t put us all in danger. Is that understood?”

  Victoria’s wings faded to motes of golden light that faded from existence as they floated away on the breeze. She swallowed, her wide eyes locked onto Mila’s. “I… I understand.” She swallowed again before looking down in shame. “I’m sorry.”

  Mila reached up and lifted her chin so that she was looking at her once again. “I understand your anger. Betrayal is the most vicious of attacks. But you have to think about those around you.”

  Victoria nodded, her eyes glassy with tears. “I’m sorry. I do know better. Thank you.”

  “I know you’re here somewhere, bitch!” Missy called up from the alley, the insanity making the inflection of her words sound off, as if she were emphasizing the wrong syllables.

  Mila patted Victoria’s arm, then stepped to the railing. The blue-haired woman was waving her silver sword around her head as she slowly spun in a circle looking up at random buildings.

  “If you don’t show yourself in the next five minutes, I’m going to have my thralls start tearing into buildings at random. They’ll kill everyone they come across until we find you.” She held up her wrist and pointed at the watch on it. “Look here! I even have a timer.” She clicked the button, making the watch beep. “Five minutes. And for fuck’s sake, bring the Reaper.”

  Missy smiled, showing far more teeth than she should as she walked out of the alley and into the street, swinging her sword like a bat at a parked car. Sparks shot up as the sword sliced through steel and glass like it wasn’t even there.

  “Uh, is everything okay?” Remmy stepped out onto the balcony, surprisingly wearing the t-shirt that Victoria had been wearing earlier. Mila had figured the little goblin would be naked as usual.

  Tossing the discarded blanket to Victoria, she and Finn headed back inside. “Missy’s here. Finn and I are going to take care of it.”

  Remmy’s brows rose up her forehead. “What do you want me to do?”

  Mila looked over her shoulder at Victoria following them inside and hiked a thumb at her. “Keep Victoria inside. She’s going to sit this one out.”

  Victoria opened her mouth to protest but snapped it shut at a look from Mila and nodded. Her face was still dark and clouded with anger, but she seemed to understand that she was too emotional for the delicate situation right now.

  “You guys fighting in your skivvies, boss man?”

  Finn chuckled. “Wouldn’t be the first time, but no. We need to gear up.”

  Remmy nodded as she led Victoria back to the couch and pushed her onto it. “Probably for the best. It’s no good fighting with your dangly bits hanging out.”

  Chapter Nine

  Mila and Finn stepped out onto the roof of the condo through the stairwell door. The city was laid out in front of them, sparkling in the moonless night.

  They had changed into their battle gear. Finn wore a pair of jeans and a black t-shirt with his brown leather harness over his shoulders, and Mila a gray V-neck and the black leather pants and moto jacket she had picked up with Remmy in San Francisco along with her corset holding Gram and the Ivar pistol.

  Stepping to the edge of the roof, Mila looked down and saw that Missy had taken up a position in the middle of Larimer Street, her sword held to her side as she watched her wrist.

  “Two minutes!” Missy called, a look of glee on her face.

  “How are we doing this?” Finn planted a foot on the short wall at the edge of the roof.

  Mila glanced up and down the street, trying to see the battle as it would unfold. Missy stood at one end, with her thralls all having moved past her in their systematic but fruitless search.

  “Can you handle the thralls by yourself?” Mila already knew the answer.

  Finn snorted, a half-smile on his face as he looked her way. “Are you serious?”

  She smiled. “Just making sure. Okay, I’ll head over that way and come up behind Missy. I’ll get her to turn around and put her back to the thralls. You climb down the fire escape, and as soon as her back is turned, you take them out. She probably won’t expect you to be here, so hopefully we can take her without much of a fight.”

  “Are we killing her or taking her captive?”

  Mila bit her lip and considered the pros and cons. “In the end, she’s a victim, even if she did kinda start this whole thing. I would like to save her if we can. I think once Azoth is gone she might recover.” She frowned. “Eventually.”

  Finn nodded in agreement. “Plus, we might get some information from her. We still don’t know what Azoth is planning.”

  “True. Information is our fri
end at this point, regardless of where we get it from.” Mila looked over at Finn with a thin-lipped frown. “That said, if we need to, don’t hesitate to take her out. I would like to save her, but not at the cost of more lives. She chose to do this even if she didn’t realize it would get this bad.”

  He nodded. “How are you going to get over there? I don’t think you can sneak two blocks with all those thralls down there.”

  Mila pulled the hem of her moto jacket down as she stood as tall as she could. “I think it’s about time I learned how this whole flying thing works.”

  “You think you can figure it out in a minute and a half?” Finn headed for the fire escape.

  “I’ve been working it out in my head. I have an idea of how to do it.” She smiled at him. “No time like the present to learn.”

  He winked and swung his leg over the ladder. “I believe in you, darlin’.”

  “I know you do,” she replied before he slid down the iron ladder with a smile. She blew out a breath and looked out over the skyline. “Now, I have to believe in myself.”

  Mila closed her eyes and felt for the power that was always churning in her core. It was warm and lively, making her feel strong and alive like nothing she had ever experienced before coming to know what magic was.

  She had talked the process over with Victoria on several occasions, but there was always some excuse for why it wasn’t time to try it. Victoria had drilled the method into her, and to be truthful, it sounded almost too easy. Mila knew she could do it. She’d levitated a little while she was practicing in the shower the other day.

  The truth was that Mila wasn’t a huge fan of heights. It was silly when she thought about it. It wasn’t like she was afraid of falling—she would be using her power to hold herself up, and she trusted herself. It would be like flying in an airplane. She was fine with that. True, the takeoff always made her a little queasy, but once she was up in the air she was okay. This would be like that.