by Linsey Hall
It was gorgeous here.
Too bad it was built on a foundation of evil.
Mayhem led us across the courtyard to a tall tower. The stairs wound upward, and we followed. At the top, a small round space contained a large weaving loom.
A ghost sat at it, a woman with long hair and a veil across the bottom of her face.
“Don’t make a noise,” I commanded as I stepped inside, giving my voice a hint of Odin’s power.
Her eyes widened and she nodded.
I turned to Mayhem. “Will you go try to find those guards who tossed us in the pit and distract them? Don’t let them get to the Rebel Gods.”
A happy gleam entered her eyes, and she spun away, flying out of the room.
“Twenty bucks she’s going to barbecue them,” I said.
“Aye,” Cade said. “It’s her favorite sport. Besides hunting hams, of course.”
The ghost watched us warily.
“We’re here searching for information about what the Rebel Gods are planning,” I said. “They are hunting me. Tell me where I can learn more about what they want.”
“They meet to discuss their plans in the palace of Agni, the Hindu god.”
Just like the Mayan woman had said. “Do you know anything about their plans?”
Her eyes darkened. “I haven’t left this room in centuries.”
“Do you want to?”
“Of course.” She gestured to the loom. “Does this look like something you’d want to do forever?”
“No, it doesn’t. Do the Rebel Gods make you do this?”
“Of course. How else would they have rugs to decorate their palaces?”
I wanted to suggest they go to the Rug Depot and buy them from a salesman named Fred or George or Sue, but forcing a ghost into slavery seemed more their style.
“If we destroy them, will it free you?” I asked.
“It would.” She laughed. “But you won’t be able to destroy them.”
“I’d say my odds are pretty good. I’ve got determination on my side, at least. Loads of it.”
“You’re not the first one. But if you’re so determined, then I’d hurry. From the ghostly gossip that makes the rounds, I believe this is when they hold their weekly meeting.”
“Where is the palace of the Agni?”
“His section is right next to this one. You’ll find it on the other side of the courtyard. There is a large building—all white, with a blue roof. The room is in there. A balcony on the second floor wraps around.”
“Is there a quiet way to get there?”
“If they haven’t changed it since I left this room, then there is a stairway through the kitchens at the back.”
“Thank you.” I turned to go, then looked back. “I really will defeat them. You’ll be free. Soon.”
She smiled. “I hope to fate that you are correct.”
“But in the meantime, don’t tell anyone that we were here.” I trusted her—at least, I wanted to—but I still gave my voice some of Odin’s power so she had to obey.
She nodded, and returned to her weaving.
It didn’t take long for Cade and me to find the white building with the blue roof. The Indian god’s section was just as beautiful as all the others, though totally different. More fountains glittered in the moonlight, and swans glided across.
Servants—or slaves, more like—swept the paths free of fallen leaves. Fortunately, we were quiet and they were absorbed in their task, so they didn’t see us.
This place would be amazing to explore if it weren’t saturated in evil of the first order.
We made our way quickly around the back of the building, following the scent of baking bread and savory spices. My stomach grumbled. I’d always liked Indian food, but didn’t get many chances to eat it.
Not that I’d be starting here.
Magic rolled out from the windows, a mix of powerful signatures that had to belong to the gods. Most of them were miserable—the sounds of screams, the feelings of grief and loss, the scent of death and decay.
They were all assholes, every one of them. And they were inside this building. If only we had some way to blow it up.
But it was huge—all stone and tile. No way I could create enough lightning to destroy it. And trying would get us caught and killed.
We stopped at the open door and peered into the kitchen. Cade’s hand was gripped in my own so I could tell where he was, and he pressed against my back as we peered inside.
A single cook stood over the stove, stirring a pot of something that smelled delightful. Past him, a staircase went up into the darkness.
I raised our joined hands to point to it, and Cade squeezed.
On silent feet, we crept past the cook. I held my breath, my lungs burning. It would be sound that gave us away, and we couldn’t afford it.
Not when we were so close.
The cook coughed, making my muscles tense, but he didn’t turn to look at us. By the time we were on the stairs, my head was buzzing.
We climbed quickly and silently. Thank fates the stairs were stone and not wood. Creaking would have been the end of us. I worked hard to repress my magical signature.
As we neared the top of the stairs, the Rebel Gods’ magical signatures grew stronger. I had to breathe shallowly, not wanting to take the scent into my body.
The collective feeling of their magic made me want to curl up in a ball and hide.
It was the worst.
At the top, we reached a narrow balcony that ran alongside the entire perimeter of the wall. It was more decorative than anything, a style that made the interior of the room look even richer. Which was a challenge, considering the amount of gold covering all the surfaces. The narrow balcony was built of dark wood inlaid with gold that twined around the wide posts that reached to the ceiling. They provided a lot of cover, actually.
Quietly, Cade and I stepped up to the rail, making sure to stay as hidden as possible behind the posts. We were invisible, but the guards had proven that didn’t always work.
Down below, eleven gods sat around a heavy table that was made of beautiful tiles. One chair was empty—Chernobog?
I hoped this was all of them, because they were terrifying grouped together like this. Their magic nearly sent me to my knees.
If they were in fight mode?
We wouldn’t stand a chance.
We would need every ally we could muster to have any hope of winning. And I’d need every ounce of power I could get.
Down below, Cocidius and Eris sat next to each other. Cocidius’s large horns glinted golden in the light, and his gaze looked angry. No doubt because he’d lost Rowan. Eris looked as insane as always, her white robes flecked with blood. Red streaks dripped down her face.
I looked at the other gods, trying to identify them. They all wore historic dress, which helped. But there were still ones I didn’t recognize.
Did I dare take a picture with my phone?
What if it made a noise?
I couldn’t risk it.
Instead, I set about memorizing each one. Features, clothing, power signature.
A slender, blond god was speaking, his blue eyes glinting rabidly in the light. Norse. Somehow, I knew it. I also knew there was no way I’d ever be getting the gift of his power.
I listened hard, trying to pick up every word…
“Once she comes into the last of her new power, the spell will be complete,” the Norse god said. “We will find her then. She will be like a beacon in the dark.”
“Tracking her through the magic of the other gods.” A dark-haired god grinned and sat back. His clothes were simple—brown robes with a heavy-looking golden disk hanging around his neck. “Genius. She is hidden. Her magic is not. Only you could manage it, Hod.”
“When she became a Norse Dragon God, the game changed. Became easier.” His gaze moved to Cocidius and Eris. “A good thing, given that you lost their sister.”
“Her power was weaker, anyway,” Cocidius
growled. “Not a Dragon God.”
“Not yet,” Sven said. “But we will hunt the one who is. And her magic will lead us to the magic of the other two. We will wait until Bree has her magic and she is with her sisters. We will be able to sense that their magic is together. Then we will find them in one fell swoop. Once we have all three, their power will be ours. We will walk the earth again. All of us. Permanently. But we must have all three of them.”
I swallowed a gasp.
Oh, shit.
The only thing protecting the earth right now was the fact that they couldn’t visit. Not for long, anyway. I knew our Dragon God magic could give them the ability to visit earth—I hadn’t realized it could be permanent.
But it could be. If they caught us and took our magic for their own.
“Then we will rule.” Eris grinned, her smile manic.
I knew exactly what she had in mind for her time as ruler. Misery. Disaster. Strife.
Everything that she fed on.
All of these gods would wreak havoc.
“The rise of darkness will come,” said Agni, the Indian god. A smile stretched across his face that made my skin chill and my stomach lurch.
At the far side of the room, a door burst open. A man ran in, hair smoking and eyes wild.
The guard.
Mayhem followed, blowing fire at his butt, trying to reach him.
Oh, shit.
That was our cue.
Run, Mayhem! I willed her to hear me. I didn’t think they could hurt her, but she needed to get the hell out of here.
As if she’d heard, she looked up and met my gaze. Somehow, she could see me, despite the fact that I was invisible. I shooed her out. She spun around and flew from the room, so fast she was nearly a blur.
Cade tugged at my hand.
I turned tail and followed, running down the stairs as quietly and quickly as I could. Our stolen information was only good as long as we lived to share it.
We sprinted through the kitchen, footsteps silent and forms invisible. The cook was still standing at the stove, back to us. I strained to hear anything in the building, knowing that the guard was probably telling them about us. As far as he knew, we were still in the dungeon, which gave us a bit of a head start.
I hoped it was enough.
My heart thundered as we rushed out of the kitchen and into the dark night.
“I’ll shift,” Cade whispered.
His hand left mine and his magic surged briefly. I couldn’t see him, but I knew that he must have shifted.
His big warm body pressed against my legs, and I jumped on, holding tight to his fur. I crouched low over him as he took off, sprinting around the building and across the courtyard.
I looked behind just in time to see the Rebel Gods spilling out of the main entrance. Cade darted behind a building.
I used Heimdall’s power, but couldn’t hear a shout of warning from the guard who could see through invisibility.
Thank fates.
Cade charged through the Arabic god’s world and approached the Mayan worshippers. There was no way to cut through easily, but we also didn’t have the time to sneak through.
What if the gods had already discovered that we were gone? The dungeon hadn’t been far from the Indian god’s palace.
“Run between them,” I said.
We’d knock some over, no doubt, but hopefully they wouldn’t realize what was happening until we were through. We no longer needed subtlety the way we had before.
Cade charged into the crowd, expertly darting through the masses of people. We definitely knocked some over, and fights started in our wake, but no one realized this was an escape.
Not yet, at least.
By the time we reached the edge, the shouts had started.
Yep, this had been risky.
But we were so close to the end. Cade sprinted faster, his breath heaving and his body hot as a furnace. I clung tightly, grateful for the ride. I could fly, but then we’d have to separate. Without being able to touch him to know where he was, I wouldn’t know if he’d been hurt.
This was safest.
The Roman Forum held far more people than it had previously—some kind of party under the moonlight. Torches gleamed, throwing golden light over the pale togas worn by the attendees.
Cade dodged them all, sprinting through the crowd on silent feet. His breathing grew quieter, and I could only imagine the control it took when he was so out of breath. Fortunately, it worked, and no one heard us as we raced past them.
The portal gleamed green in the distance, situated in an alcove. There were no guards, likely because most of the individuals here were trapped by the gods’ power. The rest of them wanted to be here.
The magic pulsed as we neared, and Cade leapt in. The ether sucked us through, making my head spin, and spat us out in the darkened room deep in the earth.
I rolled off Cade’s back, panting and sweating, and let Loki’s illusion drop. Cade stood in front of me, huge in his wolf form. His eyes were bright and his chest heaved. He turned, ready to keep running.
We couldn’t lose our lead.
Mayhem hurtled out of the portal behind us, giving an excited yip. She flew out of the room.
I scrambled to my feet, following Mayhem and Cade. As soon as we entered the enormous cavern where the lions had been, I unfurled my wings and took to the sky.
Below me, Cade galloped, his powerful strides eating up the ground. I flew as fast as I could, keeping up with ease in my Valkyrie form. Mayhem stayed close by my side, her little wings moving in a blur.
The village loomed in the distance, and I knew we’d need to be fast. Cade seemed to be holding back some of his speed, if I wasn’t mistaken.
I hoped I wasn’t—because he was going to need it.
We crossed the threshold into the village, and Cade sped up, running so fast it was hard to believe. Yep—he’d held on to some energy.
We were a third of the way down the main street before the ghosts seemed to realize we were there. I was well out of reach up here in the sky, but worry for Cade kept my gaze pinned to him on the ground.
By the time he’d reached the halfway point, the ghosts had started to surge forward.
I flew low, commanding, “Stop!”
They didn’t seem to be able to hear me.
I flew lower, level with the tops of the buildings. “Stop!”
They halted, gazes turning to me.
I could feel them fighting my power. I focused, pretending I was Odin, trying to muster all the command he would use so naturally. “Don’t move!”
They scowled, dozens of faces turned up toward me. Their arms and legs twitched as they tried to break my hold. Cade was three quarters of the way.
Sweat dripped down my temple as I pushed my magic. It weakened, feeling frail inside me. Like a wire about to snap.
And then it did.
The ghosts surged forward.
“Run, Cade!”
He sprinted forward, still a hundred yards from the edge of the village. The ghosts were fast, racing to catch him.
Mayhem swooped low, darting for the ghosts and blowing fire. It repelled a few of them, but her blasts were small.
I flew lower, trying again to command them. “Stop!”
They hardly hesitated, trailing Cade far too closely.
A flash of ghostly white caught my eye, just before pain flared through my left wing. It faltered. Panic tightened my chest.
I looked over, catching sight of a ghost falling to the ground.
Had he jumped off a roof and tried to grab me?
Shit yes, because I was plummeting to the ground, my left wing frozen. Just like my arm had been when a ghost had touched me on the first trip through here.
I slammed to the dirt, pain temporarily stunning me, then scrambled to my feet, folding my wings back into my body.
Only my right one went. The injured one hung off my back, frozen.
Cade was a dozen feet ahead of me, May
hem darting around him and blazing fire. Some of the ghosts who were surging toward him turned toward me.
Their cold eyes landed on me.
“Don’t move!” I screamed, giving it my Odin all.
They stopped briefly, fighting the hold of my magic.
I started to run.
Cade halted, ears pricked as if he could tell I was on the ground now, then spun to race back to me.
“Go!” I yelled at him. One of us had to make it out of here alive to tell the Protectorate what we’d learned.
If we both died….
The Rebel Gods would get my sisters.
I’d never let that happen.
“Go!” I screamed at him as I ran, my wing dragging and slowing me down.
The ghosts strained at the bonds of my magic.
He gave me a withering look—normally, it’d be hard to tell with a wolf. But this was clearly withering.
He was at my side a moment later, growling low in his throat.
Commanding me to get on.
I gave him a withering look of my own, but climbed on, my heart pounding. He spun and raced down the street as I clung on, my heavy wing making it difficult.
The ghosts fought my magic, creating a tearing feeling inside my chest. I struggled to hold them, a strange battle of wills. But they broke through, rushing for us.
Mayhem kept up her attack, darting back to blast her flame at them. I looked behind. She was slower, her fire smaller. She was faltering too. My magic was nearly spent.
“I can’t hold them!” I cried.
Cade gave one last burst of speed and lunged toward the border of the town, where the last house stood. I turned around to watch as he kept going, leaving the wailing ghosts behind. They slammed into the barrier and hammered their fists against the invisible wall, unable to follow.
I stuck my tongue out at them, knowing it was totally immature and not caring even a little bit. Mayhem darted after us. Cade stopped and I tumbled off of him, every muscle aching.
I landed awkwardly on my wing, pain flaring slightly. But it felt good to be lying down, so I stayed there. Just for a moment, staring at the darkness. Breath heaved through my lungs as exhaustion stole over me. I didn’t want to get up.