by S. T. Bende
“My child.” The shortest Norn stepped forward. She placed her palm to my cheek. My entire body filled instantly with warmth, and peace, and…
“Love,” I whispered. “You’re the giver of love. Anja worked under you. And you gifted Freya her title.”
The Norn nodded. “I am Verdandi, the fullest embodiment of the present. Of what is. Of Love.”
“You knew my sister.”
“I know all,” Verdandi corrected. “Including your sister. Anja’s corporeal form was a bright light in a world of fog, though her soul shines even brighter now. She continues her work in Valhalla.”
“Then here.” I reached into my jacket pocket and withdrew a folded piece of paper. “My sister wrote this—her supervising norn sent it to me along with her things after she…after. You need to read it.”
Verdandi’s blue eyes clouded over. The taller of her sisters stepped forward.
“That which has past cannot affect eternal prophesy. Freya’s fate was cast long ago, and set into motion the day she accepted her post.”
“Please.” I held out the letter. “Just read it. And if you still don’t think Freya deserves to share in the love she gives…” I couldn’t finish the sentence. Anja’s letter would make them see reason.
It has to.
The third Norn gently pried the letter from my fingertips, and handed it to Verdandi. The three sisters stood together, reading in silence while I bit down on my bottom lip. I winced at the taste of blood, and Henrik reached over to take my hand in his.
“You okay, sötnos?”
I barely managed my nod.
After an eternity, the Norns raised their heads in one synchronized movement. When Verdandi handed me Anja’s letter, I folded it up and shoved it into my pocket. And I waited.
And waited.
And waited.
My heart sank. The Norns’ silence was their answer. They weren’t going to release Freya. Her heart still wasn’t hers to give. The worlds would again crumble in darkness. And I was going to lose a goddess who’d come to mean everything to me.
Again.
“Please,” I whispered. Henrik tightened his grip around my hand.
“Ladies.” Gunnar lowered his head to the Norns conspiratorially. “Isn’t there anything we can do to get Freya out of this deal? I am very open to negotiation.”
Inga elbowed her husband in the side.
“You told me to help,” he hissed.
“That’s not helping,” she hissed back.
Verdandi met my gaze. “You love your love goddess.”
“With all that I am,” I said fiercely. “She’s the family I choose—and every bit as much my sister as Anja.”
“And you desire her happiness not out of self-preservation, but because you see that which your sister saw—that darkness stems from fear; that fear is the absence of presence; and that no being can ever be out of present time so long as they are completely filled with love. Love is the antidote to darkness.” Verdandi drew a soft breath. “Before Ragnarok, there was too much of that darkness in the worlds to allow Love’s focus to be split in any way—no matter how noble. But with Ragnarok behind us, my gift to Freya, and her gift to the realms, must be the foundation that rebuilds the worlds. The foundation on which each realm can draw, providing sufficient strength for self-governance. Self-sustenance.”
I blinked against the tears flowing freely from my lids, and said simply, “Please.”
Verdandi stepped back so she stood between her sisters. She clasped each of their hands in hers, and raised her arms to the sky. The three Norns closed their eyes, blond hair lifting in the gentle breeze, as they murmured a chant in a tongue so ancient, I wondered if Odin himself would recognize it. After a beat, they opened their eyes and spoke in one voice.
“It is done.”
“What’s done?” Gunnar asked thickly.
“That which you have asked of us,” the tallest Norn said.
I dropped to my knees in gratitude. “Freya is free?”
Verdandi’s gaze softened. “With so much of the realms’ darkness finally vanquished, the time has come for your love goddess to love as she wishes.”
My shoulders trembled. Henrik knelt beside me with worry. “Sötnos?”
“Thank you,” I sobbed. “I…she means so much to…I can’t…thank you.”
Through my tears, I barely made out Verdandi’s gentle smile.
“What about your tree?” Inga asked softly. “The snakes…the balance…can anyone stop what’s happening to Yggdrasil?”
“Balance will return,” the tallest Norn promised. “Another will rise from Yggdrasil’s roots, bringing an element of earth to mingle with the air.”
“Though this time,” her sister chimed in, “let us bring forth a being from the Midgard root.” She leaned forward to whisper conspiratorially, “Much less drama than that which comes from Helheim.”
If she only knew the half of it.
“How can we help?” Inga pressed. “The red rot the snakes created can’t be good for the tree.”
“No,” Verdandi agreed. “It is not. Though of course, our position forbids us from interfering with such matters.”
“Seriously?” Gunnar balked. “You gals decide our fates—I mean, all our fates. And you can’t get rid of some snakes in your backyard?”
Inga’s elbow was swift.
“Ow!” Gunnar hissed.
“Perhaps you would be so kind as to dispose of the reptiles for us.” The tallest Norn smiled sweetly at Gunnar.
Her sister clasped her hands together. “Is it not your calling to assist ladies in distress?”
Beside me, Henrik choked on a laugh. “Well, that’s settled. Gunnar, you’re on snake duty.”
“Uh…” Gunnar’s skin whitened. “Ull’s gonna need me back on Midgard in one piece soon enough to help look after the new—” He winced as Inga’s elbow struck true again. “Ouch! Well, he needs me in working order, okay? And Inga’s got this new position there she might need backup for, so if anything were to happen to me she’d be—”
“I won’t need backup,” Inga said sweetly. “And nothing’s going to happen to you. They’re just snakes.”
“I have every confidence in your ability to handle this, princess.” Henrik ruffled Gunnar’s hair again. He was rewarded with a severe scowl. “And I have just the place to send our little reptile friends.”
“Really? Where?” I cocked my head.
“One of Yggdrasil’s roots leads directly to Jotunheim. And one of those icy demons nicked my favorite broadsword. Payback’s a tik.”
A bubble of laughter ripped from my throat. “By all means. Lead the way.”
“Go in peace, Asgardians.” The three sisters raised clasped hands. As they stepped backward, the shimmering doorway appeared behind them. “And go in love.”
“Always,” I promised.
With a breath of wind, the Norns swept through the doorway. They vanished in a whirl of golden dust. The powder kissed the lake before disappearing into the trees.
And after a considerably less easy sweeping of Gunnar toward the pit of snakes, we made good on our promise to restore health to the world tree. Then we awoke the four deer, one eagle, and a highly irritated squirrel, before riding Gulltopp along the still nausea-inducing Bifrost back to Asgard.
Where, by the grace of the Norns, we were able to give Freya the news she’d waited an immortal lifetime to hear.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
FREYA
THREE WEEKS HAD PASSED since my friends won me the right to my heart. As much as I’d wanted to revel in their gift, the end of Ragnarok created a litany of to-dos that kept me from fully appreciating my newfound freedom. My responsibilities had kept me running every day from dawn until midnight.
Elsa took the lead on organizing Balder and Nanna’s joint funeral, and the rest of us filled in wherever we were asked. Our High Healer worked tirelessly to arrange for the perfekt vessel to carry her future in-laws to Valh
alla, where they’d no doubt continue their purpose of bringing Light and Warmth to the realms. We had complete faith they’d be every bit as effective in fulfilling their callings from the other side as they had been in life.
Forse and his brother Nils broke down as the funeral ship sailed away, carrying the most loving parents the realms had ever known. Nanna and Balder had blessed each of us with their light, kindness, and purity of love. And while I knew the Styrke brothers would have difficult days ahead of them, I also knew they had all the support they could possibly need in their friend-families—and that they had the presence of mind to lean on us when shouldering their grief grew too wearisome.
Sure enough, in the days that followed their parents’ funeral, Forse retreated to the warmth of Elsa’s love, and Nils set about wrapping up loose ends so he could join us for an extended visit. Something told me we’d be seeing a lot more of the other Styrke sibling in the near future. I looked forward to bringing him into our fold.
While Elsa handled Nanna and Balder’s funeral arrangements, I focused on finding a more permanent home for Hyro and her own friend-family—the rebel fire giants who’d aided us at Ragnarok. Hyro had forged a connection with the meadow elves during their brief time together, and the elves were more than happy to offer a parcel of their property to Hyro’s compatriots in exchange for help with their land. As it turned out, this particular cell of fire giants happened to be highly gifted farmers; they owed their self-sufficiency to their time in hiding on a barren Muspelheim. The meadow elves were thrilled to have such competent help, and the rebel giants were over the moon to have a place they could finally call home. The feyndrals, having developed a fondness for the giants, opted to stay nearby. Hyro and her friends built a stable in the woods behind their settlement, and assured the meadow elves that their new dragon neighbors would not accidentally burn down the forest.
They hoped.
Once Hyro was settled, I devoted myself to overseeing Runa’s funeral. As promised, Tyr’s sister lay in the valkyrie chapel for nine days, during which time she received wreaths from my sisters in arms. In her final moments, Runa had demonstrated a strength of character that shone as a testament to the twin powers of love and ære—the very virtues my valkyries, and all Asgardians, fought for.
On the day of her funeral, Tyr led Runa’s candlelit procession from the chapel through the forest, the hand not clutching his candle wrapped tightly around Mia’s. Once the processional reached the sea, we sent Runa to Valhalla in proper valkyrie fashion, complete with a flaming arrow salute fired from our pegasus-riding ceremonial team. As the ritual wound down, Tyr’s pain drove him to his knees. I wiped away my tears at the sight of my dear friend, his body broken in grief, releasing the sister who’d given her life so that he could live his to its fullest. Had it not been for Mia at his side, her steady hand on his arm, I doubted Tyr would have made it through the ceremony. Henrik and Forse rallied behind him as Runa’s ship sailed into the horizon. They lent not only emotional, but also physical support as we guided Tyr back to the V.C., where he promptly fell into an exhausted, sorrow-stricken sleep. It took him almost a full day to emerge, but when he did he was resolved to live each day to the utmost, ensuring his sister’s sacrifice not be in vain. Word around the V.C. was that before he left the compound, he and Mia had a very serious discussion about the future of their relationship—the outcome of which I couldn’t wait to be privy to.
In light of this, I’d had a very serious discussion of my own with Asgard’s ruler. The worlds were changing, I’d argued, Asgard along with them. Despite Odin’s lifelong resistance to admitting mortals to the realm of the gods, he had conceded my point that Asgard would have fared far worse at Ragnarok had it not been for a certain mortal’s assistance. And he’d agreed said mortal’s willingness to sacrifice her own life to dispel the darkness was the very definition of ære—and the very heart of what it meant to be an Asgardian. He’d further agreed that he was likely to lose a key member of his council if he remained unwilling to amend his admittedly restrictive position. So it was with Odin’s unexpected blessing that I’d been able to present Tyr with an additional option for his future—one none of us had truly dared hope for.
Now I hoped Mia would accept Tyr’s offer. Almost as much as I hoped Tyr would manage to put it to her in a way that wouldn’t scare our sweet, analytical mortal out of her logic-loving mind.
With my work nearly complete, I couldn’t wait to join my team at our temporary Asgardian residence. But before I could take a break and push my nose further into my friends’ personal business, I had to attend to one final piece of valkyrie business. Brynn had been hesitant to accept my promotion, claiming our organization had only ever had the one leader, and that if we were to take on a second, she was hardly the most qualified to accept the post. It had taken a solid day’s argument from me, and another day’s persuasion from Henrik, but she had finally signed the paperwork reassigning her as co-high commander of the valkyries. She and I would govern our brethren as equals, providing the realms with the additional support they needed during this post-Ragnarok transition, and allowing me to devote more time to my duties as Goddess of Love. Now that I had access to all of my heart, I was more determined than ever to gift the fullness of personal power that came from embodying love to every being who was willing to accept it.
Including myself.
Our team had temporarily relocated to the Fredriksens’ Asgardian residence—the family home Elsa and Tyr had shared with their parents, once upon a time. It was there that I retreated after relocating the fire giants, restructuring the valkyrie administration, securing Mia’s position, and sending Forse’s parents and Tyr’s sister off to Valhalla. And it was there that I finally let myself settle in—for the first time in a very long time—to the possibility of sharing my life with someone else.
Even though that someone wasn’t at all what I’d imagined.
“There she is. Love herself. I was starting to worry you might not make it.” Jason stood in front of the mirror in one of the Fredriksens’ guest rooms, his muscular arms tensing as he buttoned his dress shirt. When he finished, he held out his arms. I quickly strode from the hallway and stepped into them, letting Jason’s hands rub the tension from my back.
“Sorry, another batch of paperwork at the V.C. But that’s the last of it. I am officially on vacation.” I rolled my head to one side, then the other. Jason’s hands changed course, pressing gently against the newly cracked vertebrae in my neck. “Gods, you have no idea how much I need this.”
“Mmm. Need anything else?” Jason moved his hands back down to tug my hips into his.
I laughed. “I can tell that you do.”
“You’ve had a hell of a couple of weeks. I’d be more than happy to help you…relax.” Jason lowered his head to nip at my ear. I angled my chin so he could kiss lower. And lower. And lower. When he reached the deep V of my dress’s plunging neckline, I strongly considered dragging him to the bed and finally taking the much needed alone time we’d been waiting for since the Norns released my heart. But I only had minutes before I needed to be downstairs to officiate Elsa and Forse’s wedding…and what I intended to do to Jason Ahlström would require much longer than that.
I’d waited an eternity to be with my perfekt match—a few more hours weren’t going to kill me.
Though they might kill poor Jason.
“Freya.” Jason groaned as I pushed him away.
“Shh.” I stepped backward so my calf rested against the bed. The lure of the downy surface was too tempting, and I sat, permitting myself a few seconds of doing nothing. “Sit with me for a minute?”
Jason crossed to the dresser. When he returned to my side, he carried a cup in his hand. “I had a feeling you’d be home soon, so I made you tea.”
My fingers wrapped around the warm mug as gratitude filled my heart. “Thanks. I needed this.”
“You’re sure tea’s all you need?” Jason waggled his brows.
&nbs
p; “At this moment, yes.” I nestled my head on his shoulder. We sat together in silence, Jason’s comforting presence filling my entire being with peace. The feeling was new. And more than a bit overwhelming. “I haven’t done this in a long time—let myself be…”
Jason wrapped an arm around my shoulders, tugging me to him so he could rub his thumb across my tricep. “Mmm?”
“Be still. And vulnerable,” I whispered. “It’s scary.”
“You’re high commander of the valkyries. You have nothing to be scared of.” Jason’s lips brushed my hair.
“It’s a big deal for me, letting myself fall for you. But I know things will be different this time—that you’re not going to go off to battle and…and die.” I spoke the last two words on a whisper.
“Freya,” Jason whispered.
I drew a deep breath. “I glossed over some… some details when I told you about how my falling in love nearly broke the worlds. See, when the Norns told me I couldn’t be with my first love…that they wouldn’t release my heart…when everything inside me went black, and I couldn’t do my jobs, and Midgard fell into darkness…”
Jason gently squeezed my hands. His unconditional acceptance radiated like a beacon within my heart, giving me the strength I needed to share this final piece of my journey.
“Rhylark was one of Asgard’s finest warriors, and the light realms were his to protect. He vowed to save Midgard, to keep its people from killing each other long enough for me to pull myself out of my darkness—to save us all from a world without Love. But I couldn’t do it—I wasn’t strong enough then. Rhylark was slain while I mourned a heart that dwelled within my chest but contractually belonged to the Norns. If I had been able to see beyond myself, he would have had a long, fulfilling existence. Possibly with another goddess, but even so—his life wouldn’t have been taken from him.”