by Alane Adams
Before Leo could answer, the sound of Eithan calling to him echoed down the tunnel.
Quickly, boy, hide the opening! The dwarves cannot know where I am. Come back later when it’s clear.
Carefully putting the rocks back where they were, Leo backed out of the low tunnel on his hands and knees. She sent him a final message.
We are connected now. If you betray me, I will destroy you.
He kept backing away until he could stand again. Turning around, he came face-to-face with Brok.
“What were you doing down there, boy?” The dwarf pushed his mean face an inch from Leo, baring his lip to show his broken teeth.
“What do you think?” Leo asked, making motions like he’d just relieved himself.
Brok grunted, fingering his whip. “This tunnel’s a dead end. You won’t find your mammy waiting down there. Now, get back to work.” He gave Leo a shove back to the line.
Leo picked up his ax and started swinging. That spot in his lower back, where Loki had stabbed him, that was the source of the ice that now ran through his veins.
Brok was joined by two more dwarves. They were having a heated discussion. A few words drifted over. Something about running out of time.
“Where’d you take off to?” Eithan asked.
Leo ignored the boy. Eithan stared at him, waiting for him to answer, but Leo’s mind was back in that chamber. The pain of Angerboda piercing his head had been worse than any knife wound in the back.
Chapter 27
The passage down to Helva’s underworld had taken a toll on all of them. Since Mavery had been snatched, the hope had been knocked out of Sam. Perrin stood by his side, but she trembled with fatigue. Only Geela remained alert, standing at the edge of the railing, sword in hand, ready to do battle. Every so often a tremor ran through her, and Sam knew that even the mighty Valkyrie grew tired of the endless maze.
It could have been hours or days later when they finally exited the raven tunnel. The ship drifted into a large cavern the size of a football stadium. The water glowed with a sickly green color.
Dark shapes swam underneath, but nothing surfaced, and, after a while, they ignored them. Perrin brought food up from below, some cold stew. They took a short break, eating glumly but needing the sustenance.
The ship listed sharply to the side, tilting the deck. After their short meal, Sam and Perrin went below and used magic to create a small vortex, ejecting the water as best they could. But the water quickly filled back in. The hole in the side of the ship was long and jagged, and they had no materials to repair it.
Geela whistled from the deck.
“Go on,” Perrin said. “I’ll keep at it.”
Sam went back up on deck. It was hopeless. Skidbladnir was going to sink long before they ever got through this never-ending maze. He joined Geela at the railing. Finally, the end of the cavern had come into view. Six tunnels yawned before them.
Sam drew back his hands and released a full measure of magic at them.
Above every opening, a glowing dagger appeared. All identical.
Geela frowned. “Which is it?”
“How do I know?” Sam said as the last flicker of hope died out. They all looked the same, and he hadn’t had a chance to finish tracing the right path.
“What do you feel? Trust your instincts,” Geela encouraged.
Sam gritted his jaw and swallowed back the frustration. He thought of Mavery’s impish grin and the trusting way she would slip her hand into his. He studied the shapes, staring at the glowing symbols. Which one was right? His instincts were telling him nothing. He stared and stared until his eyes blurred. The third one drew his attention. It had a broken tip, like it had been snapped off, or the carving had decayed. Which was it? A fact of nature, or a sign it was the correct path?
Before he could decide, Perrin let out a bloodcurdling scream from below. Geela flew to the steps as Perrin spilled out onto the deck. Something had a hold of her. A thick black tentacle was wrapped around her leg.
“Let go of me!” Perrin shouted, kicking at the thick arm. Sam shot a blast of witchfire at it, trying not to hit Perrin. The wood next to her splintered, but the creature held on. Geela dove in with her sword, hacking at the grasping arm. The deck under Sam’s feet shattered as another tentacle thrust upward, knocking him off his feet. Geela transformed into a swan and flew up, evading its reach. Sam ran, sending another blast of witchfire at it. He stayed just ahead of the thrashing arm. He jumped up and grabbed the rigging and pulled himself higher.
At the front of the ship, a third arm appeared. The creature was everywhere at once.
No, he realized. There was more than one. Out of the water, three black bulbous heads rose, like giant black octopi, each one the size of a tank.
Akkar. The giant squid-like creatures that guarded Balfour Island were even bigger and uglier here in the underworld.
They circled the ship, trying to drag it down with their slithering arms. There were too many akkar to fight.
Perrin clung to the mast as the tentacle wrapped around her waist and tugged her backward.
“Sam, I can’t hold on!” she shouted up at him.
“I’m coming down!” He started to clamber down, but she shouted at him.
“No. We’re almost there. You have to go on.”
“No! Not without you.” He couldn’t do this without Perrin.
Her eyes were locked on his as she said, “Promise me you’ll finish. For Mavery.”
Then she let go of the mast. The creature dragged her back over the side of the ship and into the sea.
“Perrin!” Sam shouted, dropping down to the deck. He grabbed for her hand, but he was too late. She hit the water with a splash and then disappeared. The other akkar withdrew, as if they had what they had come for, and sank.
Sam stared at the bubbling dark water. Emptiness opened up in him like a yawning chasm. He felt the clawing of anger that arose when the things he loved were taken away. He tried to take a breath and failed, his chest caught in the chokehold of rage.
Geela settled onto the deck, transforming back to her human form.
“Sam, we need to move quickly. The ship will not last much longer.”
“Why didn’t you help her?” he turned to shout at Geela. “Why didn’t you fight? We could have killed those things.”
Geela’s face remained impassive. “Ten more would have risen up. This was a test. Helva knows you’re coming. She knows you are after something. She is taking away everything you love in order to make you easier to break.”
Sam wanted to hit something, pound on someone like he’d pounded Ronnie Polk that terrible day he’d turned twelve.
“Which tunnel, Sam?” she asked.
Sam hated the Valkyrie at that moment, standing with her golden shield and white tunic. He hated her for not breaking down and screaming with him at how unfair it was.
“We can still save them,” she continued. “But we have to hurry. The ship is nearly gone.”
She was lying about saving his friends. None of them were getting out of this alive.
Sam went back to the wheel and turned the ship toward the tunnel with the broken knife.
The ship wobbled heavily as they entered the next chamber. The cavern was small and circular. There were no visible exit tunnels. Water sloshed side to side below. Sam didn’t know how much longer they would stay afloat. Looking behind him, he was surprised to find a blank wall.
“Where’s the tunnel we came in?” he asked.
Geela shrugged. “One-way trip. I believe we’ve arrived.”
They sailed into the center of the cavern, and the ship came to a stop. Water rose to the top step of the galley. In moments, the ship would be overcome, and they would end up in the cold water.
“Any ideas?” Sam asked.
“None,” she answered. “It seems we have run out of time to play the game.”
“You could transform into a swan and fly up, maybe find an exit,” Sam offered.
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br /> The Valkyrie didn’t hesitate. “We go together, no matter what. We don’t break up the team, right?” She repeated his words.
The ghost of a smile tugged at his lips. “Some team. We’ve lost half our squad and busted a ship of the gods.”
“We’ve still got a powerful witch. Can’t you conjure us out of here?”
“No, but I can let them know we’re here.” He rolled his hands and thrust them out, sending a blast of green witch-fire, then another and another, lighting up the domed roof and sending splinters of lightning zigzagging around the chamber.
The crackling sound made his ears hurt, but he kept at it, letting his magic sing, zapping every wall, every rock, putting on an incredible shower of lightning for Geela.
Exhausted, he tried to catch his breath, putting his hands on his knees before looking at Geela. She was pointing at the walls.
Sam followed her gaze. His witchfire had done something to the cavern. The entire chamber was lit up with a green glow. He waited for some horrible creature to appear. The water was up to the level of the deck; any moment now, the ship would simply sink.
Then the cavern walls rumbled. A split appeared, and the two sides opened, drawing apart. The ship lurched forward, tugged by the escaping water.
As water came over the side of the rails, Sam climbed up the mast, pulling Geela up behind him. They stood on the bowsprit, riding their sinking ship into Helva’s underworld.
As they passed through the gates, the ship came to rest alongside a stone landing that rose out of the water. On it, a man dressed in a simple black robe waited. He raised his hand, and a gangplank appeared, extending out of the stone to where they clung to the mast. Stepping onto it, Sam followed Geela to the landing.
Behind them, the last sign of Skidbladnir was the top of the mast going under in a flurry of bubbles. Sam waited to see if the ship would change into the small handheld carving, but nothing appeared.
Skidbladnir had been destroyed.
Standing on solid ground felt better than Sam could imagine. The rock was slippery and cold underneath his boots, but it was real.
“Hello,” Sam said, raising his hand to the robed man.
The man looked at them with avid curiosity. His redrimmed eyes were a milky gray color.
“You’ve been expected,” he said in a papery voice.
“Well, here we are,” Sam said. “Can you take us to Helva?”
He extended one arm, his bony hand sticking out of the sleeve palm up.
“I don’t have any money,” Sam said.
The man drew back his hand and turned around, walking away from them on a stone path that rose up from the water.
“Wait!” Sam called, “don’t leave.”
“I’ve got gold,” Geela said. She took off the golden cuffs from her arms and held them out.
The man paused, turning his head slightly to study the cuffs. Still, he hesitated.
She unbuckled her breastplate, holding it out with her other hand.
He inhaled a slow deep breath, as if it pained him to accept her offer, before giving the slightest of nods.
The gold offerings in Geela’s hands vanished and reappeared in the man’s arms.
He cradled the vest while he waited for them to join him. Black algae clung to the surface of the stones. Each stone was wide enough for one person to step on. Behind them, the path disappeared, sinking under the water as soon as they stepped off the stones.
Sam stepped gingerly, not wanting to slip. It was difficult to see anything. Fog shrouded the area. Rotted plants poked out of the water. It was cold, and the air smelled of sulfur.
Sam hurried to keep up with Geela and the robed man. At one point, he slipped, but the Valkyrie was there with an iron grip on his arm, pulling him back on the path. For a moment, Sam glimpsed something in the water—the ghostly image of a human face staring at him.
The guide stopped at a heavy metal gate that blocked the path. A towering stone wall ran unending in both directions. From the folds of his robe, he drew out a thick ring lined with skeleton keys.
He fingered them slowly until he picked the one he wanted. The key rattled around before he was able to insert it into the hole. The lock turned with a grinding, rusty clank, as if the gate had not been opened in a very long time. As he pushed it open, the hinges howled in protest.
“Enjoy your stay.” He acted as if they were checking into a hotel, not heading into the underworld.
Sam took a deep breath as Geela rested her hand on his shoulder.
“Ready?”
Swallowing his fear, Sam nodded and stepped through the gates. They turned at the sound of the entry slamming shut. The lock creaked as the key turned, sealing them in.
On this side of the gate, everything was different. Helva’s realm was shaped like a giant bowl with a flat bottom. They stood on the rim that encircled it. The wall ran along the edges all the way around. Sam couldn’t make out any other exits.
A rugged path was cut into the hillside, offering a way down. There was no vegetation, only remnants of trees shriveled with age and dried-up bushes that crumbled when disturbed. The sky overhead was gray, filled with swirling clouds. Bolts of lightning erupted, sporadically shooting out sparks and sending jagged blasts of electricity into the ground. The air was warmer than Sam expected but thick with the dust of ages and trapped air.
Below, in the center, a crumbling mansion was the only sign of civilization. Two columns supported a tall porch with broad steps. Broken pilasters had toppled over where a gazebo had once stood. Lights came from the windows.
“Hurry up, witch-boy, Helva awaits.”
Geela had already set off down the path. Sam hurried, not wanting to get left behind. He had that prickly feeling at the back of his neck, like there were eyes watching him everywhere. He could feel the intensity of the gazes.
He looked up as they passed under a mottled black tree. His knees buckled as a figure moved into sight for just a moment. It reminded him of a gargoyle. Its eyes glowed red. Hunched wings arched over gray scaly legs. Its face was scarred and snarling. Then it moved back into the shadows.
“Wait up,” Sam called, hurrying after Geela. After that, he didn’t look at the trees. Better not to see some things, he reasoned.
The path flattened out and turned into a muddy bog. Geela stepped into it and sank to her knee. She pulled out her foot with a sucking noise. The mud smelled foul and slimy. The Valkyrie trudged on, jerking her head at Sam to follow. By the third step, he’d lost his first boot. He tried to dig it out, but it was useless. By the fifth step, he threw his other boot away.
“What do you know about this place?” Sam asked, hoping to pass the time.
“Not a lot. Helva lives in that mansion. She is tended to by her servants. The door is guarded by her pet, a dog named Garm.”
“That’s it? Just a dog guarding the entrance?”
Geela shrugged. “A big dog. Helva will invite you to eat with her, but you mustn’t agree.”
“Why not?” Food sounded wonderful to Sam. His belly had been empty for hours.
“Her dining table is called Hunger. All who sit at it feel only the pain of famine. The knife she carves the meat with is called Starvation.”
“Friendly type, huh?” Sam joked.
Geela stopped her trudging to glare at Sam. “This is no time for laughter. Helva will do everything in her power to deny us what we came for. She is even now planning the meal she will make out of our bones and the gown she will knit from our skin.”
“Chill out,” Sam said. “I get it, okay? She’s bad stuff. We’re probably going to die. Welcome to my world. But if Odin is here, all we have to do is find him.”
“And then what? Do you think she’s just going to let him go?”
“No, but he’ll be able to help us.”
“What if he can’t?”
“He’s Odin.”
“What if we’re too late and he’s moved on from here?”
“Wh
ere else can he go?” Sam cracked, looking around at the gray skies and smoldering fire pits. “Isn’t this as low as you can go?”
Geela shook her head. “There is a place beyond this, but it’s not a place. It’s a void. When a soul is stripped from its body and destroyed, there is nothing remaining.”
“Frigga told me. But that hasn’t happened to Odin,” Sam said, acting more confident than he felt. “He’s here, and we’re going to get him out. And Mavery and Perrin, too,” he added with less confidence. “If they’re here, we’ll find them.”
The Valkyrie smiled, looking at him with renewed respect. “You are different than I first imagined. You are reckless but also fearless.”
Sam laughed. “I’ve been told that before by a dwarf friend of mine. Must be all that witch blood.” He winked at her.
After that, the going got easier, as if the mud gave up on sucking them down. They finally made it to dry ground and began climbing a short hill covered in a thick layer of dead grass.
“It’s not far now,” Sam said as the walls of the mansion got closer.
“Be careful as we approach. We don’t know what traps she has lain.” A gravel path cut across a wide lawn that was brittle with dead grass. A wrought-iron fence encircled Helva’s home. They could see more choked weeds and dead trees through the bars.
The path ended at a gate.
“Do you think it’s locked?” Sam reached for the handle.
Before Geela could answer, a giant mastiff leapt out of the bushes and landed on Sam’s shoulders. It knocked him to the ground. Its slobbery breath was hot on his neck. Sam waited for the sharp bite of teeth, but the beast howled in pain.
Rolling over, Sam saw Geela facing off against a dog as large as a horse. It had a broad chest, gray wiry hair, and thick drool hanging down from its jaws. The beast limped toward Geela, its front leg bleeding from the gash of her sword.
“Move behind me,” Geela called.
The mastiff leapt at her, fangs outstretched. Sam acted without thinking, thrusting his hand forward and using his magic to push the dog to the side so that it impacted head-first with the wall. It yelped and crumpled to the ground.