by T. G. Ayer
"A presidential campaign. We suspect the new Labor party leader is a frost giant plant. And we need eyes on him and his team. If possible, we'd like to locate the real James Lister and remove the plant before the election happens."
Fen gave me a short nod, which looked strange considering he was lying flat on his pillow. "When do you need me to go?"
"As soon as Eir gives you the all-clear," I said, glancing at the goddess quickly.
"I'd give him a day or so," she said as she washed her hands in a bowl of water. "Then he should be fine. As long as the wounds are healed, he can go. His metabolism can handle it."
Fen grunted in response.
I glanced back at him. "Good, then you can lead that team out late tomorrow."
"When did you become this bossy?" he asked, staring at me, amusement flickering in his eyes. The injury seemed to have taxed him even though he was pretending it hadn't. The lines at the corners of his eyes had deepened and dark smudges underlined his lashes. Even his cheeks had sunken and now had an almost emaciated look to them, but I assumed it mean his body was just busy working extra hard to heal his wounds.
I laughed at his grumpy comment. "When I decided I've had enough of Loki. He needs to be taken down. I'd like to kill him myself, but at this point, I don't care who gets him as long as he gets dead. And fast." Fen simply moved his head in assent. I took a breath and asked, "So can you tell me what happened?"
He sighed, then winced hard as he shifted his body as if the action made the pain recede. "Thor came to speak to me about ways we could take Loki down when the time came. He was of the opinion that we should not kill his brother. I believe Thor still retains some brotherly love for the Trickster."
"That's not surprising. They say you can pick your friends, but not your family."
Fen gave me an odd look, then continued. "We were talking when three men entered the hall and came straight to us. We both knew immediately they were Jotunn, even through their powerful glamor. They moved so fast, especially since neither Thor nor I expected them to attack. We didn't react fast enough. They shot me and threw something at Thor. I cannot be sure, but it looked like some sort of spell. His entire body shimmered like lightning sparking off his skin. Then he went still. They had to carry him out. But as slow as they were, there was nothing I could have done."
He fell silent and I could just tell by the look on his face that he blamed himself. "It's not your fault, you know."
He shook his head. "I should have been aware. We should all be on our guard. I should not have let that happen."
I snorted, glaring at Fen, but he wasn't looking at me anymore. His eyes were fixed on the wooden beams of the high ceiling again. "So what? Do you think Thor, wherever he is, is saying Fen should have saved me? If anything, he's as pissed as I am that these Jotunn managed to get into Asgard without us knowing. It's proof enough that Loki has a way in that we are unaware of. It explains how Brody was taken so quickly and efficiently."
Fen adjusted his position until he was looking at me again. "We need to do something to find this entrance of Loki's. The longer it remains an access point for him, the more vulnerable we will be. Who knows who else he will abduct? The gods are not safe from Loki's machinations."
I rubbed my forehead, then sucked in a breath. "What's the best way? Can we use magic to find it?" I asked, eager to have something practical to do rather than sit around moping.
"Odin was usually responsible for creating and destroying magic within Asgard, but there is one person who would be able and will most likely be willing to help us."
"Who is that?" I asked, very curious now.
"Her name is Vanya. She's an Elf Ancient." Eir's voice drifted to me over my shoulder, and I glanced back at her.
"Where can we find her? I'll send someone immediately."
"She lives in Alfheim, the realm of the Light Elves," said Fen with a sigh. "Frigga or Freya can get her to come. You concentrate on the issues in Midgard."
I nodded. I'd hoped the task of calling her would not be left to me so I could get going with this mission. "Good. I'll be sending teams out as soon as I get back to the war room. They're all hanging around waiting for me. But at least now I can give them some good news when I get back."
"Good news?" asked Fen, his brow bunching up into a twist of lines.
"That you will be fine. The last thing we all need is for you to die on us," I said, getting to my feet. Fen snorted, but I didn't miss the slight tilt to his lips. "I'd better go. You behave and don't give Eir a hard time."
His eyes narrowed, but I didn't give him a chance to reply. I gave the goddess a wave as I headed outside, my thoughts already on the missions at hand.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
When I entered the war room, dozens of heads lifted, all eyes curious and concerned. The room was unusually warm, what with all the bodies crammed into it. I walked to my desk, sat on the edge, and faced the teams.
"Okay, the good news is Fenrir is on the mend. He'll be back on his feet by late tomorrow. I've given him the Melbourne team," I said, turning to see the members of that particular group nodding happily. I was still to find a team in who didn't want the Ulfr general on their side.
I myself wished I could have him on our team, but common sense dictated he'd be put to better use with his own team. "You lot can get in some sparring and practicing until you leave. Fen will send for you as soon as he's ready to leave." They were all eager, an air of expectation emanating from them, but none made a move to leave yet, which I thought was good of them. They remained to hear everyone else's missions out of respect to the rest of the einherjar, Valkyries, and Ulfr in the room.
I read out the missions and locations of the rest of the teams, and in a rustle of leather and the chinking of armor, I farewelled each one as they left the room. Everyone seemed to want to head out as soon as possible, and I guessed they were all as impatient as I was to get something done. They all drifted out, taking the temporary warmth with them.
That left my team: Joshua, Aidan, Enya, Aimee, and Siri. As well as an Ulfr and the Valkyrie Myst that Freya had left behind to help me. I hadn't gotten a chance to get to know her much, and I hoped she would turn out to be efficient. Considering she was Freya's right hand, I suspected she was more than capable. I'd already decided to leave her behind to take charge while I was gone.
Now I looked up and met Aimee's angry gaze.
She came toward me, taking hold of my arm. "Can I have a word with you in private?" Her eyes flashed as she stared at me. I knew already what she was angry about, and I had to hide my amusement.
We moved toward the hearth where the fire cast burnished glows onto the grey stone. As soon as we were out of hearing, she said, "Are you out of your mind?" Her voice was filled with anger as her eyes flicked over her shoulder at the rest of the group. Nobody paid us any attention.
"What do you mean?" I asked innocently.
"You know what I mean," she snapped. "What the hell is Aidan doing on the team?"
"Because he asked to come back to field work," I said simply, keeping my voice neutral.
"Just like that?" Her eyes narrowed, arms folding tightly.
I nodded, then couldn't be bothered to play games anymore. I sighed softly and looked at the flames for a moment. "We talked. He apologized for being an ass and said he wants to get back to active duty."
"Wasn't it his choice in the first place to stick with the geek stuff?" she snapped, but her fury seemed to have tempered itself.
I agreed. "It was, and he admitted as much. Look, he has issues. We all know that. Let's just give him a chance to prove himself."
"Yeah, we're all well aware of Aidan's issues," she sniped, her honey eyes flashing.
"Aimee," I said, the slight rebuke in my voice clear enough, "don't you think anyone would have issues if they knew their bloodline consisted of a strong strain of Loki's genes?"
"Yeah, that's exactly what I'm worried about." Her eyes still flashed, but the fight in
her looked like it was slowly dying.
"You don't need to worry. I've partnered him with Enya so he should be too busy looking after her to bother you much. I figured it would allow him to ease into the team and allow you all to accept him in at a slower pace. He's hopefully going to be handy with the technology just in case." I was hopeful he would be, but I hadn't yet discussed that role with him.
Aimee still looked skeptical, but she also appeared to be a little convinced too. "I guess there is that. A geek would be useful."
"Don't worry, Aimee. It will all be fine. He'll fit in well enough in the end." I patted her shoulder.
"Yeah, we'll see," she said softly. "So what's his little sister meant to do? Isn't she a little young for field work?"
I grinned. "If only you'd seen it," I said, recalling Enya's power. "She can create heat as if she's a furnace. Enough to melt stuff. Could come in handy."
"Wow." Her eyebrows shot toward her hairline. "But don't we have the dragon princess for that?"
I shook my head. "Siri makes fire with flames. Enya just makes the heat. Quite thing to see." The excitement coming back flushed my skin. "Her body changes. Her skin looks like a log turned to ash, like white bark."
"Sounds cool," said Aimee, her shoulders finally relaxed.
"Oh, I think I'll leave you in charge of our two girls. And if it makes you feel better, you are welcome to keep an eye on Aidan."
"You want me to babysit him or spy on him?" She raised an eyebrow.
I snorted. "What do you think?"
"Fine." She sighed as if I'd just given her the task of cleaning out the cage of a hungry tiger. "As long as I have permission to run a sword through him if he puts a foot wrong."
I glared at her in answer, then choked back a laugh as she rolled her eyes and walked back to the group. I followed close on her heels. But as we reached the group, someone walked into the room. His arrival drew shouts of happiness and huge grins from everyone who knew Brody.
But my stomach hardened and I felt a little ill.
He was dressed in black leather, the fabric fortified with Glasir leaf magic. A while ago, Frigga had developed the new softer and more impenetrable Glasir chainmail. After its success, she'd commissioned the rest of the black garments to be redesigned using the Glasir magic, making it stronger, more durable, and harder to penetrate. Frigga's workers had also designed a black undershirt that went beneath the upper body dress of silver chainmail. And finally, the long black coat completed the picture, making him look decidedly attractive.
Yet still pale and thin.
I drew abreast of him, but the look he gave me was one filled with worry.
"What's wrong?" I asked, my forehead rippling with a frown.
"Er ... nothing really. I just thought you'd want to send me straight back to recuperate."
"Why would I do that? If you're here, it means you're ready to join us. The only thing I would expect is that you leave the more strenuous stuff to us." I spoke with authority, more so because I wanted to ensure that Brody would listen instead of doing something foolish and reckless.
His expression was slightly relieved. "Thanks. I'll behave. It's my first time out with you anyway. I don't think I'm in any condition to try my hand at being a hero." He gave a self-deprecating smirk.
"Hey. The last thing anyone here is concerned with is being a hero," said Aidan. My gaze jerked to his face, and I had to admit I was surprised he'd spoken those words. I paid closer attention as he continued. "We are all just here to do our part. If the situation requires bravery, then so be it. But I don't think anyone here is looking at this or any other mission as a route to heroism."
I was impressed, and from the look on Aimee's face, she was too. I glanced at Joshua and he gave me a small smile. He hadn't expressed any negativity toward Aidan joining the group, and I was glad he hadn't given me a hard time too. Aimee I could handle. Joshua would be that much harder.
I was about to speak when an einherjar entered the room and had to skid to a stop to prevent himself from crashing into me. I caught him by the elbow and stared at his flushed face, concerned. He was about to speak when he saw Brody and did a double take before he glared at him. Brody flushed, his skin darkening with the rush of color to his cheeks.
Nobody needed to explain anything to me. One look at the two warriors told the whole story clearly enough. Brody had escaped to join us. Which meant he'd lied to me, in front of the whole team.
I patted the warrior on his shoulder. "Thank you, einherjar. You may leave now."
He looked at me, then glanced at his charge. "But--"
I held up a hand. "Don't fret. He will be returned to you soon enough. He just has some responsibilities to fulfill." The warrior hesitated, but the look on my face convinced him to leave without another word.
When he was gone, I turned my attention to Brody. Seemed the other who knew him were equally disappointed in him, because before I opened my mouth, Aimee said, "You know, we get how much you want to join us and be part of the team, but lying isn't the way to go." He hung his head, staring at the stone floor.
"How can we trust you now?" I asked softly.
His head shot up, his eyes landing on my face. "I'm so sorry, Bryn. I just wanted to join the team."
I sighed. "You do realize this lie could have potentially killed someone on our team?"
He stuttered, "But how...? This is one of the best teams in Asgard."
"That may be true, but only when we are at our strongest. You would have introduced a weak link into our team, a link we would have been ignorant of until it mattered. Whatever we say when we are out there--never leave a man behind, it's team or nothing--none of that matters if we don't have full honesty within the team."
He looked at the ground again. "I'm really sorry. I guess I didn't think about the consequences."
"You're telling me," snapped Joshua, his face revealing to poor Brody how much he'd disappointed him.
But I didn't want to draw this out too long, especially since Brody had had the best of intentions. I cleared my throat. "Just before we leave, I want to introduce you to a few additional team members." I beckoned Myst and the Ulfr who stuck beside her. They'd spent much of their time in the room to themselves, and I chided myself for not introducing them earlier.
"So this is Myst, and this is Edrik, who will be my Ulfr partner. Edrik will be joining our team permanently, while Myst will be supporting me in overseeing our efforts. Myst will remain behind as our point of contact." Myst smiled at the gathered members, and Edrik gave a small bow, then proceeded to shake hands with everyone.
I gave them a few minutes to chat, then said, "Right, people. Let's grab our weapons and get ready to leave. I'll meet you all at NY HQ."
Everyone trickled out the door, with even Enya bearing confidence in her step. The only one that lingered was Siri, and I knew why. I glanced at her. "Siri, you stick with me, okay? You'll find your feet sooner or later, but for now, I want you to stay close. I'm not sure when I'll be needing your skills."
Siri nodded and then helped as I closed and stacked files before storing them in the tall wooden cupboard that sat against one of the far walls.
At last, with the place neat, we left the room and hurried to the transfer room.
Once we entered, we were welcomed by the low heat of the fire that blazed in the middle of the room. All around us were hooks on the walls and boxes on the floor. Hooks were for furs and cloaks that were left behind on a mission. Boxes were for weapons that were delivered to the transfer room by the Huldra or respective servants of the Valkyries, warriors, and Ulfr.
A few Huldra lurked about, ready to help their masters or mistresses with cloaks and weapons. Among them I noticed Turi, who threw me a brilliant grin the moment she met my gaze.
She hurried to me, her skirts flapping, orange hair flying. "Good. You are here. Come, I have your cloak and your sword and helmet ready." Her cheeks were flushed and it looked like she'd been doing a lot of hurrying.
I shook my head at her offer. "Coat and sword only, Turi. I won't be needing the helmet just yet."
She bobbed her head and bent to an engraved box to grab hold of my black coat. Long and made from the same special black fabric as the rest of my clothes, it was soft and looked amazing. I slipped my hands into the sleeves and enjoyed the feel. The hem reached my knees and seemed precisely shaped to my figure in spite of nobody ever measuring me for the garment. I'd always suspected Turi had something to do with the sizing.
Now she fussed and tried to help me with buttoning up the coat, but I waved her away.
Siri giggled beside me. She'd already arrived dressed and ready. Someone must have ensured she received the proper garments in time for our departure. Now as I looked at her, I was struck by how young and vulnerable she looked.
I bent my head closer. "I know we haven't had a chance to practice anything. Are you comfortable enough in dragon form to carry me on your back?" I asked softly.
"Don't worry. My father made sure I was well trained." Her expression was a little bittersweet.
"What happened?"
"Oh, nothing really. Sometimes I wish I could just wipe the past clean and start again. Now I have responsibilities, and then this Ragnarok thing." She sounded sad and a little defeated.
Grabbing the bag of weapons that Turi held out to me, I slung it over my shoulder, then reached for Gungnir. With a shake, the spear lengthened and Odin's sword shone in the light of the fire. Just touching it gave me a little more strength, a little more bravery.
I glanced back at Siri, feeling at little sorry for her. I asked, "Do you still feel this is not your fight?"
Siri folded her arms and looked away for a moment. The flames of the fire threw a glow onto her face, making her already golden eyes seem so much brighter. "To be honest, when I arrived, that's exactly what I'd thought, but now that I've seen firsthand what we are facing ... the way they came for Thor and what they did to Fenrir. It made me stop and rethink a few things. Fenrir and the god Thor, son of Odin. Neither of them were able to protect themselves from the attack, and that is a bad sign. To me, it says we are up against a very powerful enemy and we need all the help we can get." Her voice was soft and determined, not a hint of doubt anywhere.