by Smith, Maren
“Sweet boy.” I stroked his flank with even, firm rubs. “Beautiful boy.” He lifted his head and blew out of his nostrils. “I wish you could talk to me, but I suppose that would be taking all of this a bit too far.” He neighed and I laughed. “Shall we go for a ride, sweet boy?”
Surprising even myself, I threw myself across his bare back.
How did I know how to do that?
Sitting astride, it was as if I had been doing this my entire life. As soon as I landed on his magnificent back, every instinct in me kicked in. We were as one. It was natural and a bit terrifying.
Without a word of direction, Winter took off galloping across the field.
I looked over my shoulder at Forseti and he waved me on. I was surprised that he was giving me the freedom to ride him alone, but I suppose he knew I didn’t know where I was or how to get anywhere else. He wasn’t wrong. Plus, he was out there watching me. I wouldn’t leave in the middle of the day with their eyes on me.
As I rode, keeping all of Winter’s feet on the ground, not quite ready to find out what flying would be like, my thoughts wandered. There was one thing that Forseti forgot when describing my Krav Maga training. The very basis of our training was to avoid combat. My instructor’s favorite phrase was, the best way to win a fight is to not get into one. I spent as much time, if not more, practicing how to deescalate and negotiate situations. Avoiding conflict was of utmost importance. I needed to find a way to avoid all combat and see about fixing the situation in a way where no one got hurt.
Sure, Loki was known for his trickery, but what class clown wasn’t looking for attention? How dangerous could he be, really? I thought back to all my Marvel movie watching and remembered seeing Loki more as a manipulative trickster and less as someone who was the dangerous villain they portrayed him to be. Perhaps if I offered him a solution that was more beneficial to both sides, he would take it. After all, I wasn’t a threat, especially being the only one left.
A tiny voice in the back of my mind warned me about finding Loki myself. I shrugged her off. I didn’t need that kind of negative thinking in a time like this. I needed to focus. I wished I had my phone so that I could google and do more research on Loki. I considered this for a moment, and laughed. According to Forseti, men had gotten most details about the gods wrong anyway.
I didn’t have my phone. Not only could I not google more information on Loki, there was no contacting my family, either.
I had now been gone for almost twenty-four hours. My parents, especially my mother would be a worried mess. My coworkers would have the FBI and all available resources out searching for me. I had to get word to them, if not go to them myself and it had to be soon. It would have to be tonight. I leaned forward over Winter’s neck and hugged tightly. I was one with him. Love at first sight seemed to be happening a lot to me lately. I heard the whistle behind me and Winter turned around and galloped back to where they stood, watching.
“That was unbelievable!” I all but threw myself off of Winter’s back and into Forseti’s waiting arms. “I have to figure out how to mount and dismount him a bit more gracefully.”
“Do you have grace?” Forseti teased me. “I mean, you’ve tripped over your feet at least half a dozen times in just the day I’ve known you.”
“Ha ha!” I poked his chest. “I get that from my mom. She’s a klutz too.” I instantly sobered, remembering belatedly that my mom was not my mom. Not in the biological sense anyway.
Forseti must have noticed the change in my demeanor because he wrapped his arms tightly around my waist and pulled me close, kissing the top of my head tenderly.
“I am so glad you like Winter, little goddess.”
“I don’t like him, I love him! Thank you, Daddy.”
“You are so welcome. Although, all I did was bring him to you. Your family on Asgard has been taking care of him.”
The internal conflict raged again at the mention of family on Asgard. Family. Two of them. One there. One here. One I had never met, and one that raised me with love and support.
“He’s glorious, isn’t he?” Edda interjected into the conversation. I was sure she could hear the war battling in the form of thoughts in my mind.
“He is, he really is.” I petted his nose gently.
“You can get him to stop just by commanding it. He understands you. You are his owner, so he will listen to you above all others,” Kara said.
I turned toward Forseti, questioning. A beast that didn’t have to listen to the all-mighty Forseti? Could it be true?
“Aye, it is so,” Forseti confirmed. “Winter will listen to you. But, let me warn you, little goddess, you will be held responsible for your actions no matter if you are on or off of Winter’s back. Got me?”
“Yes, Daddy.” Of course, I understood him. That wasn’t my thought. I looked around, remembering that Edda could read my mind and forced my thoughts to change over to learning more about my abilities and less about my plan to find Loki. “Do you think we can practice sparring some more? It is rare when I have an opponent who is up to my ability.”
“I thought we would try something else,” Forseti said. “I have a small target range set up. I’d like to see how you do with your bow and arrows.”
“I’ve never used a bow and arrow before.” I hadn’t. Archery had piqued my attention at one point, but I had gotten distracted, and my old-fashioned father had assured me that it was much more a male endeavor than a female’s. When I pointed out the same could be said for martial arts training, he confessed, it wasn’t so much that I was a girl but that he was trying to protect me from the possible dangers associated with sharp metal tips flying at my head.
“Valkyries are all proficient with the craft,” Edda explained. “We even have an all-valkyrie led troop that has never been defeated.”
I could tell from how her chest jutted out that she was a member of the troop. She smiled at me, acknowledging my thoughts.
Kara came out of the house carrying an extra set of weapons and handed them to me. She showed me how to wear the bow quiver on my back and how to draw. Reaching the course, Forseti stood back and observed while Kara and Edda showed me the ropes. The first shot I fired hit the dead center of the bullseye, so did the second, and then the third. It was almost as if the arrows had a mind of their own. I pulled back, imagined the arrow striking the target, exactly where I wanted it to, just like Kara had instructed, and then as if by magic, it did.
“I haven’t seen one with this great of skill in a long while,” Forseti said, complimenting me with a long whistle.
“I am speechless,” Kara agreed.
“Coming from her, that is quite a compliment,” Edda added, and they all three laughed.
I laughed too, mostly out of surprise at my apparent skill, and also, quite simply, because they were. It was easy to feel at ease with them, as if I had known them my entire life, instead of simply a day.
“Let us try something else,” Forseti said, walking over to stand beside me. “I’d like to check out your speed and agility.” He pulled Edda aside and spoke to her in a hushed whisper before he approached me again. His thumb went under the tender skin on my chin and lifted my face toward him.
“Do you trust me?”
“What?”
“Do you trust me, little goddess?”
“Yes,” I said, and meant it. I shouldn’t, for he was a stranger. But, something inside of me told me to trust him and trust him I did.
“Good.” He leaned in and kissed me softly. “We are going to play a game, of sorts. You and Kara are going to run across the field, shooting at targets and see who can get the most bullseyes. Okay?”
“Is that it?” It seemed too easy.
“For starters. It is a timed race. Are you two ready?”
I wasn’t sure. I loved games and I had always had a competitive nature, but the unknown sent a stab of unease I felt in the pit of my stomach.
Forseti counted down and we were off. At first, we just ran at a sprint strai
ght down the field. I hit three bullseyes in a row, no problem. The fourth time, I was beginning to feel a bit winded, but Forseti wanted us to go again.
I took off running, sure he was testing my endurance. Something flew by my ear, a bug perhaps. Then something else. The hairs on my arms stood up, I turned toward the next one. It was an arrow! Edda was shooting arrows at us. I looked over at Kara and saw her running, not in a straight line anymore but in zig-zag motion. I followed her example. We reached the end of the field, and Edda fired at us as we both shot our targets. Kara hit a bullseye; I was off by just a hair. My heart was racing so incredibly fast, it was pounding in my ears. The adrenaline was flowing, like hot liquid through my veins.
“Again,” Forseti called.
I didn’t want to. I wanted to quit. This was insanity. Why would I want to run back and forth across a field on a hot day while arrows zipped past me? What was the point of all of this? I looked back at him, planning on telling him no. The fire in his eyes had me pausing. I remembered last night, the spanking I had received for not listening to his orders and the promise of more to come if it happened again. His warning about not pausing, not disobeying, for that could cost someone their life had been truly impressed upon me.
I took off running. This time, the arrows came closer and closer. I found myself dodging, ducking and trying to outmaneuver them. They were relatively silent, just a swish here or there as they flew by, barely missing my body. As I ran and they came whizzing at me, I began to get angry. It fueled my desire to win. I outran Kara and found myself at the target again.
“More!” I heard Forseti’s command to Edda and the arrows came then, a barrage of them, flying down on me like a horde of steel-tipped mosquitoes. I moved then, like I had never moved before. Acting completely on instinct, I dropped down onto one knee, slid across the dirt and shot my arrow. Bullseye. Turning, still on my knee, I rose to my feet and ran across the field, still being shot at. I made it back to Forseti, out of breath, mere seconds before Kara did.
“Very good. Kara and Edda trained their entire childhoods learning to do this. It takes a valkyrie years to get as good as you are,” Forseti praised.
“That was insane!” Kara said, huffing and puffing, trying to catch her breath. “With a little training, she will best every valkyrie on Asgard.”
“I wouldn’t go that far,” Edda said.
“I would. I would bet on it. Have you ever seen that level of natural talent?” Kara asked.
Edda shook her head.
“I’m starving; that worked up an appetite. Are you done with us for now, boss? May we go prepare lunch?” Edda asked and Forseti nodded his agreement. As they turned and walked away, I turned to him.
“Was that necessary?” I was angry. I could have been hurt, killed even. This went beyond games.
“Yes, Morrigan. Everything I have you do is necessary.”
“Why? Why was this necessary?”
“Morrigan.” The warning was clear in his tone, I was overstepping. “Come here, little goddess.”
He opened his arms expecting me to run into them. I couldn’t. While I had tempered my tongue, my anger still flowed through my veins.
“Little goddess, come here.”
I shook my head and half expected him to come to me.
He didn’t. “Listen to your Daddy.”
His tone washed over me, soothed me. Damn him and damn his powers. I ran into the strong, open arms of the man of my dreams. No, my dreams could never be this magnificent.
Chapter 13
Forseti
“Remember what I told you last night, little goddess?” I had held her until her pulse had slowed to a steady pace and then walked her back over to see Winter again. She brushed him as we spoke.
“Which part, Daddy?”
“The part where I said that everything I told you to do had a reason behind it?”
“Yes, Daddy. I remember.”
Good, my lesson had made an impact. I thought it might have with how she had controlled herself earlier and obeyed, even though it was obvious she was tired. I didn’t want her to think of me as a monster. I was pushing her in part because I had to and because I knew, without any question, that she could do everything I was asking her to do.
“The problem here is time. We don’t have any. I have to assess your ability and find your weaknesses so that we can help turn those into strengths. To do so, I have to throw things your way that I wouldn’t normally ever throw at a beginner. I could tell from wrestling with you last night that your hand-to-hand skills are more than adequate. I needed to see your skills with a bow today, sweets.”
“But, was it necessary to shoot at me?”
“Yes. The enemy isn’t going to care if you are new or not. You are a threat and defeating you is their mission. You learned some valuable lessons this morning. A straight line makes an easy target. Arrows are all but silent. You have to feel their presence and be hyper aware. It is harder to hit your target under fire; you have to concentrate that much more.” I named the lessons, ticking them off on my fingers as I rattled them off.
“I guess that makes sense,” she begrudgingly replied. “I’m still not happy about it.”
“I’m sure you aren’t. I wouldn’t be happy about someone shooting a barrage of arrows at me, either.” I paused, and sobered. “We have a lot more training to do today, little goddess. Why don’t we go inside and get some lunch before running some more drills?” I watched her shoulders slump as she turned to obey.
“I don’t want to leave Winter.”
“He’ll be just fine here. He has waited his entire life to meet you. He won’t be going anywhere.”
She pouted but turned to leave Winter’s side.
“Good, it makes me happy when you obey, little goddess.”
After a quick lunch with the team, the rest of the afternoon was spent training and observing Morrigan. She had impressed the hell out of me. She had a super human strength that almost rivaled my own. She was agile, fast and had a higher pain tolerance than any valkyrie I had ever met. Unless at the mercy of my hands, she felt next to no pain. Kara and Edda, giving her the best they had, couldn’t fell her. I found it odd that a swat from my hand on her butt could make her cry out in pain, but when a stray arrow pierced her arm, she didn’t even notice. We had to stop her and pull it out.
As the afternoon progressed, an uncomfortableness settled over me. Something was wrong, off. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but something was there. She wasn’t happy. It was as if she was nervous.
Of course, she is nervous, you fool. You are asking her to do things that she had thought before today were impossible. You are forcing her to expose talents she never knew she had and asking her to be vulnerable with strangers.
Though that was the best answer I could come up with to explain it, my gut told me something more was going on, but what?
* * *
Morrigan
After dinner, we gathered in the living room. There was a table that hadn’t been there before. On it were two items, a sword and a spear. Both were weapons we had used earlier in the day. Like the bow, I was incredibly proficient with both, although I had never touched either before.
“These are for you, Morrigan. This sword is all but indestructible, a lot like the clothes you currently wear. Beyond that, it is your gateway into Asgard. It will allow you to transport between worlds. Guard it with your life and it will guard yours.”
A magical sword. Of course. What else would it be?
“And this is your spear,” Forseti continued. “It is enchanted, it is like a magic wand. When you need food, supplies or aide, it can provide it with a flick of the wrist. It is also incredibly important for hand-to-hand combat.”
“It is collapsible,” Kara said. “Our models are so much cooler than our ancestors were. Check it out.”
I watched as she reached into her belt loop, pulled out something no longer than a pencil and with two flicks of the wrist turned it into a
large spear with an incredibly sharp and pointed spearhead.
“Humans are so proud of the way their cell phones shrink in size, but we have spears. Much more useful.”
If you say so.
I had found myself missing my phone more and more. I ached to take a photo of Winter and send it to Monica. She would never believe me if she didn’t see it herself, although she’d likely accuse me of photoshopping the picture. I’d love to be able to open my Kindle app and finish the Daddy Dom book I had started. How would I ever know if the billionaire Daddy and small-town barista were going to fall madly in love or if their marriage of convenience was going to sizzle out? I needed to know! Would they have hot marital sex, would he spank her naughty behind, or would they stay far apart?
Dang.
Now I was really itching to have my phone back. I didn’t say any of that to Kara.
“Cool,” was the response I muttered instead.
Edda’s laughter filled the room. She laughed so hard she was crying.
Damn you. Stop reading my thoughts.
“Another cool thing that you can do with your spear is use it to block Edda from reading your thoughts,” Forseti said, standing. “Until you learn to do it yourself. Simply touch the spear and your thoughts are yours alone. Many young valkyrie walk around with their hands resting on the pocket that holds their spears for this very reason.”
I snatched the spear right out of his outreached hand, and the three of them erupted in gales of laughter.
I had all but gotten a headache from blocking out my desire to go see my parents, my true parents, the ones who had raised me, and take away the worry my mother was surely feeling. Now, I could think freely without worrying about Edda hearing me. We sat in the living room for an hour or so, chatting.
They chatted, at least. My thoughts wandered over my plans. I thought of everything I had learned that day. I was stronger than I knew. I could do this. I would do this. The best part was, without even knowing it, they had empowered me to do this.