Freed: (Phoebe Meadows Book 2)

by Carlson, Amanda

  A demigod!

  Nobody had ever suggested that, even though it was right in front of our noses. My brother Tyr was a god, both his parents being gods. Fen was a demigod, his father being the god Loki, his mother a giantess.

  If one parent was a god, you were, by birthright, a demigod.

  But instead of acting surprised at the news, I kept my cool and replied, “Let’s do it.”

  22

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  ____________

  T he plan was for Leela to cause a distraction while I headed down to the closed portal, hoping it would open once I got there. Gundren was out and ready. That was my ticket in. If the cillar didn’t open, plan B was to make it to the other side and help the shieldmaidens fight.

  “Ready?” my mother asked. “We risk a lot, but for great gain. In our world, that’s a payoff worth taking. If the elves attack, I will be down to fight with you.” She smiled. “We will be victorious. I can feel it.”

  I tried not to think of what it would be like if we weren’t victorious. My brain didn’t want to go there. But it made me happy that my mother believed in me and my abilities.

  That was enough for now.

  “On your mark.” I crouched down. I had my eye on the prize. Fen would spot me immediately, as would most of the others. “Willa, stay here. If I get the portal open and the elves stay back, then I want you to run to me. If not, we regroup and I will find you. I promise.”

  She nodded, wringing her petite hands. “I understand. I have no weapons and cannot fight. I will wait here and hope for a good outcome.”

  I grinned. “We will change your lack of a weapon once we get home. I think I know of one that would fit nicely in your hands.”

  Her face brightened for the first time. “You would teach me to fight?”

  “Of course,” I said. “That’s what shieldmaidens do.”

  My mother aimed her broadsword out of the cave entrance. “Here we go.” A burst of light shot out and carried to the opposite side of the cavern, well away from the cillar, causing a small explosion and commotion.

  The moment the light left her sword, I was moving.

  I sprang from rock to rock, going as fast as I could. I wasn’t even halfway there when shouts of alarm echoed into the air. It seemed the entire place had spotted me at once.

  Invaldi’s voice boomed loudest. “Capture the Valkyrie! Turn your weapons on her.”

  Fen’s roar followed as several explosions raced past me. I was almost to the cillar. This was going to work, because it had to. I sent out a silent plea as I ran. Open for me.

  Rae’s voice rang out, loud and authoritative. “Cover Phoebe, no exceptions. Go!”

  I knew exactly when the Valkyries spotted my mother, because there were shrieks and war whoops.

  Ingrid shouted, her voice filled with joy, “Sister! Praise Odin you’re okay!”

  Leela called, “Get to my daughter. Then we fight!”

  More magic bursts flew by me, but the cillar was within reach. A few feet from the wall, I slashed out with my left hand, inserting Gundren deeply into the stone.

  A glow kindled immediately, and I almost cried out. This was going to work! With one hand steady on the hilt, channeling all the energy I could, I twisted around and aimed my right hand into the massive crowd of elves.

  “Take cover!” I heard on elf cry.

  “She is using her energy! Run!”

  “She cannot defeat us! Stand and fight, you ninnies!”

  There was a large crack as multiple bolts of lightning shot out of my sword, followed by a gigantic boom. The force was intense, and I had to grit my teeth to hang on. Those blasts had gone wide, but the next would be on the money. I squinted, focusing on the enhancer.

  With one nod up to my mother, I let the energy loose, this time concentrating my aim. Thick ribbons of energy rocketed out of Gundren. The blast hit dead center, at the heart of the enhancer, sending elves scattering like dried leaves on a windy day.

  Fen was almost to me, still in his wolf form, Junnal right behind him, using his club to whale on any elves that dared get too close. The Valkyries followed, Baldur and Callan bringing up the rear.

  Then my mother was next to me, grabbing on to my wrist. “You must let go, Phoebe,” she urged. “Too much will harm you.” She managed to dislodge my grip, and I fell to my knees, struggling to get air into my windpipe.

  The energy had consumed me, my fingertips sparking, my body ablaze.

  “It worked,” I wheezed. “The enhancer is toast.” I gazed down at the damage and was surprised to see the elves gathering again. I was confused. “Why haven’t they left?”

  We were exposed up on a precipice, and if they picked up their weapons, they would be able to pick us off.

  Three feet from me, Fen shifted into his human form fluidly midstep. It was beautiful to watch, even through my haze. He knelt next to me. “That was quite a showing, Valkyrie. Are you all right?”

  His hand was warm on my shoulder. I glanced up. “It’s better than all right. I figured out how to harness my energy. Did you see that? I had some amp from the cillar, but it totally worked.”

  He chuckled. “I did notice that. It was very impressive. But now we must leave. The elves have the advantage.”

  Ingrid came racing toward us, picking up her sister, and swinging her around in a bear hug. “I knew this day would come! It has been too long, sister dear. I didn’t expect to find you looking so well.” She set my mother down. “The years have been kind to you!”

  “Ingrid!” my mother answered, hugging her back. “It’s good to be reunited. A little birdie told me that you have been keeping watch over Phoebe all these years. I am forever in your debt.” My mother kissed her sister’s cheek.

  Witnessing their reunion was miraculous.

  Rae stopped in front of me, the other Valkyries fanning out below her, their attention focused on the elves. “That was a good tactic, well done. But we’re not finished yet. The elves are regrouping, and they will start an assault soon. We must find a new place to finish this battle.”

  I glanced at my sword, which was still stuck in the cillar. “Can we leave this way?” I nodded at the rock wall. “It’s open now.”

  Rae gazed at the portal. “I don’t know. This is unprecedented.” She moved by me and reached a hand out, pressing her palm against the stone. She flinched back immediately, curling her fingers into a fist.

  “Is it still open?” I asked. Even though I had ridden in them, I didn’t know much about cillars.

  “It is, but it’s not reliable. The energy is static, not fluid. I have no idea where it would drop us. Some places could be much worse than this. We use it as a last resort.”

  Ingrid came forward to embrace me, patting me on the back. “Nicely done, Phoebe. You gave us a good scare when you left. I’m not sure I’m going to give that raven the time of day next time I see him, but Huggie had your and Leela’s best interests at heart in the end. Sneaky bird.”

  Rae moved past me and gave my mother a quick hug, their arms interlocking and their shoulders touching. “It is good to see you, Leela. You look well.”

  “Ragnhild, you were just a rising star in the ranks when I last saw you,” my mother said, admiration in her voice. “Are those the markings of a battle leader?” She was talking about a decorative medal pinned on Rae’s tunic. “Congratulations. Well deserved, I’m certain.”

  Fen said, “The elves are bringing in fortifications. We must make a decision.”

  Baldur was the last to reach us. Callan had stopped on a rock below, and Junnal stood in front of him, blocking the elves from seeing his location. The whage had his head bowed, and I couldn’t tell what he was doing.

  My half brother brushed by everyone, taking me up in his arms. “You appeared on this boulder like a festival light atop a twinkling tree!” he boomed. “I’m happy to see you again, sister.” He set me down and turned to my mother, reaching out his hand. “Leela the Lovely,
it is wonderful to make your acquaintance again. While I was at court, I watched my father dote on you. He held great love for you.”

  Leela nodded, taking Baldur’s hand while reaching out to kiss both his cheeks. “It is good to see you again, God of Light. You have been down here a long while, but our paths have not crossed until today, which is a pity. I respect my daughter’s decision to free you, as it is your prerogative whether you choose to live out your destiny or not. But if anything happens, it will be on her to face Frigg. She has no idea what that means, so you must protect yourself and her at all costs.”

  “That is my intent,” Baldur replied good-naturedly. “Once I reach Asgard, I will draw up the paperwork proclaiming her innocence and plan to take a trip to Vanir to confront my mother myself. We will have it out, and it will be epic. But I’m confident I will be the victor this time. All will be well.” The god was all smiles, his countenance as sunny as ever. It was impossible for him not to be positive. I didn’t understand what they were saying about Frigg, or why it was necessary to file paperwork, but I was glad for it. I just wanted my brother to stay safe. In the short amount of time we’d been together, we had developed a strong bond.

  Billie called up to Rae. “The elves have wheeled out something new. It’s much larger than the last one. It’s time for us to either fight or disperse. What are our orders?”

  The Valkyries had already fanned out, weapons up.

  They looked formidable, but we were in danger. Ingrid and my mother joined Rae by my side. “How did you enter this land?” my mother asked Ingrid. “It had to be by force, as the ground shook like a massive earthquake, like none I’ve witnessed in all my years here.”

  Ingrid answered, “When your daughter disappeared through the closed cillar at the stronghold, we questioned the raven. After much discussion, he told us there was only one way to enter this realm without permission. But to do so, we had to journey to another portal. We left that same night. We traveled two hundred miles to find an old oak tree near the Rocky Mountains. The elves use oaks for travel, as you well know. We waited patiently for it to quiver, and when it opened, we went through. It let us in near this cavern, but our arrival took time and was noisy, which alerted the elves we were here. But there was no other way.”

  Rae asked, “Is anyone familiar with the layout of this mountain? Are there any places that would give us a greater advantage than this cavern?”

  “I have a mixed elf in my service, sent by Odin himself,” my mother answered. “She is up in that tunnel.” She gestured to where Willa was waiting. “But there are so many of us, I don’t believe we have enough time to reach the main artery, which would lead us outside, without coming under fire from the elves. We are in the very bowels of the mountain, and the passageways are narrow and small. It would be an easy ambush.”

  “I say we use the cillar that Phoebe just opened,” Ingrid said, pointing a thumb to the wall. “I don’t care where it drops us. The odds are it will be better than here.”

  “We can only ride two at a time, if that,” Rae said. “There is a very high likelihood we will get separated and sent to different places. A cillar is unpredictable at best. As the battle commander, I cannot allow it. It would lessen our strength and place us all in jeopardy.”

  I didn’t want to be separated from my mother after just finding her, but I knew if we had to go, I would go through with Fen. To accentuate that point, Fen settled his arm around my waist. “If we stay here, we are easy pickings,” Fen said. “The elves have taken over the entire cavern below and are busy assembling their next weapon. There is nothing to do but fight. We should engage now or leave.”

  We all glanced down.

  The elves looked positively gleeful. The new thing they’d rolled out was bigger than the enhancer and shiny silver.

  “Do you think you can blow this one up, Phoebe?” Ingrid asked. “I’ve never seen a Valkyrie harness that much power, and you’re still glowing.” She shook her head, clucking. “And here I thought it would take time for you to learn to master your energy, but you’re a pro right out of the gates.”

  “I don’t think pro is the right word,” I said. “I kind of cheated and used Gundren.”

  Ingrid shrugged. “Hey, whatever works. If I’d had a weapon like that when I was a young Valkyrie, I would’ve used it, no problem. I would’ve been blowing stuff up left and right. We will work on your mad skills of harnessing it without Gundren when we get back.”

  I was going to answer her about blowing up the elves’ new weapon, when I noticed Callan out of the corner of my eye.

  He’d moved to the edge of the precipice and stood with his arms raised. I nodded toward the whage. “What is he doing?”

  “No idea,” Ingrid said. “He just kind of showed up. We figured he was with you. He’s a white elf prisoner? Looks like he’s been here a long time.”

  “He is actually a very powerful mage,” Leela answered. “He came to avenge his king many years ago, but found himself trapped here.”

  “We found him on the cursed level,” I said. “Or what the elves consider to be uninhabitable. When he freed his king, he spread white magic throughout that level. He’s been there a long time. Too long. He needs energy and sunlight to survive. He would’ve died had we not come upon him.”

  Rae said, “He appears to be trying to channel something.”

  “I say we let him do his thing,” Ingrid said. “If that doesn’t work, we take this here cillar out of this crap hole, or Phoebe blows up the silver box with a huge kaboom.”

  Before I could comment, Callan’s voice boomed out. “Drop your weapons!”

  23

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  ____________

  T o the absolute shock of everyone in the cavern, including Invaldi, the elves complied. Their combined weapons sounded like a hundred trays of silverware clattering to the ground at the same time.

  The only one more dismayed than we were was Invaldi himself.

  The elf leader must have been the only one immune to Callan’s magic, and he was beyond furious. His voice boomed, verging on a terrifying scream, echoing against the cavern walls. “You will pay for that, whage!” He shook his fists as he turned to his elves. “Pick up your weapons and fight! That is a direct order.” They appeared confused by his anger, glancing down at their discarded guns with blank stares. “What are you waiting for? Pick them up!”

  This could be our way out.

  I had an idea.

  Still glowing with lots of spare of energy, I made my way down to Callan. As I came up next to him, he startled, surprised to see me, his eyes dazed. He looked beyond tired, on the verge of collapse. Performing a mind-meld on the elves had taken everything he had.

  I grasped his hand and asked, “Are you ready to do this?”

  He gave me a small smile. “Of course. I told you we would prevail.”

  “Because of you.” As we held hands, energy began to flow from me to him. He nodded once and lifted his other arm into the air, clearing his voice before he commanded, “Leave this place!” Callan’s voice, even though he was physically drained, was level and certain. “Go back to your homes!” Energy rushed over me, prodding me, causing the hair on my arms to extend. He was clearly a very powerful mage, and I was relieved his magic was not directed at me.

  The elves appeared confused by his directive, knocking into each other as they turned in circles.

  Invaldi quaked with anger.

  But instead of ordering his elves to fight again, he stormed over to the silver box and picked up a large object. It resembled a machine gun—if machine guns were made of a shiny white material and had a barrel opening the size of a grapefruit. The weapon was attached to the silver contraption by a hose. “I will finish you myself. No one comes into my realm without paying the price!” He cocked the thing and pulled the big hook of a trigger.

  A large shock of green light raced out, barreling straight at us.

  “Disperse!” Rae sh
outed from behind me. “The magic is concentrated!”

  I let go of Callan’s hand, pushing him roughly to the ground. The first blast hit five feet to my left. The explosion was intense, and I was thrown backward, landing hard.

  Scrambling up, I ran toward the cillar. I needed both swords.

  “Phoebe!” Ingrid shouted. “What are you doing? Take cover. Right now!”

  I glanced over my shoulder. My mother waited for me ten steps away, her hand extended. “Come, Phoebe,” she urged. “We must take shelter. The magic is too strong.”

  I reached for the sword hilt I’d left in the cillar, energy racing into my arm at breakneck speed. I yanked it out. It came with no resistance. “Take cover!” I shouted. “Gundren can deflect magic.” That’s what everyone had told me, and I could feel the power deep inside the weapons. “I have to trust in them.”

  I caught Rae’s eye as I passed her. She nodded once and grabbed on to my mother’s arm, dragging her to a safer place. The battle captain had given me the go-ahead to try.

  Once I reached a good position to take on the dark elf, leaving him no other option than to shoot straight at me, a growl erupted from behind my left shoulder. Fen had changed into his wolf to back me up. It would be futile to tell him no. I just had to make sure he didn’t get hit.

  Invaldi was livid that he’d missed his mark and was readying for another blast. Lucky for us, the machine seemed to need to charge up after creating a blast that big. The cavern was almost empty of his elves.

  My legs were splayed, my swords up.

  I was ready.

  This was what I’d been training for.

  Each shieldmaiden excelled in one area. Some could shoot an arrow true, some had great strength, and some were incredibly fast.

  This was my skill. I could combat magic.

  Fear left me, and the world steadied.

  Invaldi launched another blast, aiming right at me, his lips curling in glee. I could feel his anger, his malice, his negative energy radiating out into the room. He wanted me gone almost as badly as the Norns did.