by Leia Stone
Haha! Yes! My celebration was cut short when the elf’s knee came up fast, knocking into my stomach. Air whooshed from my lungs, but I used the close proximity to feign forward. Hitting out quickly, I jabbed his ribs with my weapon, then slammed my right palm into his shoulder. In one move, I pushed him away while sucking out another chunk of energy. The dark blob followed the path of the rest, and slithered into the bowl behind me.
“Yes, Allie!” Tore yelled, and I couldn’t hide my grin. The dark elf was sweating now, and I knew this battle was nearly over. As the demon cowered behind the chair, I readied myself for the kill. Sword through the heart, I could do this. I could kill. Right?
My moral dilemma lasted a second too long. As I hesitated over him, the elf sprang up from his crouch. He bolted forward to sock me right in the chin, knocking me back. Then he leapt on top of me, fangs bared and eyes blazing.
That was when the lights went out.
****
“Ow,” I groaned. My chin throbbed, sending a searing pain from my jaw into the center of my head. I brought my hand up to my cheek and gently peeled my eyelids open. The bright overhead lights of the complex sent a fresh wave of agony through my skull. Now I had a jacked-up jaw and a migraine. Fan-freaking-tastic. Tore’s face swam into focus above me, and I croaked out one question. “What happened?”
My protector sighed. “You were fighting the night elf. It was a good first run—you very nearly took him out. But you hesitated before the kill. If he’d had a weapon, or if the four of us hadn’t been right there to off him, you would most definitely be dead.”
Crap.
Tore bent down so he squatted beside me and gently touched the back of his fingers to my face. I winced as a fresh wave of torture shot through my nerves. “The elf fractured your jaw. It looks like a mild break, but it’s got to hurt. Are you okay?”
I groaned again. “No. Help me up?”
Tore carefully held one hand out for me to hold, then placed the other behind my shoulders. He guided me to a sitting position, and I squeezed his palm as pain rocked through me again.
“Hold your necklace, Allie.” Tore guided my free hand to the crystal at my neck. I cupped it, and a warm energy wove up my neck and through my jaw. Its healing powers lessened the pain, and I knew my demigod genetics were kicking in. The physical pain from my attack would be over soon. But the emotional scars . . . I shuddered as I looked around the complex. The night elf lay dead on the floor, a thick stream of black ebbing from its body. Johann, Mack, and Bodie stood around me, their weapons dripping with a tar-like goo and their faces carved with concern. My energy bowl was gone.
I’d failed.
“Sorry,” I muttered. But I’d learned my lesson. No way was I making the same mistake twice. Tore was right. I could have died because I decided to entertain a moral dilemma in the middle of a life-or-death battle. Stupid newbie. Valhalla wasn’t looking like a possibility for me.
Mack crouched down and placed a warm hand on my shoulder. “The first kill is always the hardest,” he sympathized. “Trust me, once we’re in the field and it’s your life or theirs, you will be able to do it.”
God, I hoped he was right.
CHAPTER SEVEN
“THIS MORNING? ARE YOU sure?” Tore stood at the kitchen counter, frowning at his phone. Two weeks had passed since I’d failed to kill the night elf, and the guys had been training me around the clock—even on Christmas day. Swords, knives, hand to hand, energy . . . they drilled me every day from dawn until midnight, only giving me breaks to lift weights and eat the insane amount of protein that had become my normal. If I saw one more chicken breast, I swore I’d lose my mind. I hadn’t had a designated cooking night since the time I nearly gave us all salmonella with my undercooked meat—it wasn’t my fault Gran never taught me how to cook—so I didn’t get a break from the menu ever. But the guys’ methodology worked. Between the training and the poultry, I could bench twice what I’d been able to when I’d first come to the safe house, and I had a sweet four-pack of abdominal awesome. Despite the chill, I’d taken to wearing tank tops. I liked seeing the slight bulges that previously had been non-existent. My muscles were nothing compared to the guys’, but they were more than I’d ever had before, and I was proud of them.
“Were you able to get the coordinates? Or at least a general location? What color was the light?” Tore continued to interrogate whoever was on the other end of his call.
Bodie walked into the kitchen and raised an eyebrow. “Who’s he talking to?” he whispered. He plopped onto the stool next to mine at the island and snatched one of the chicken strips off my salad.
“Take them all. Please.” I was so freaking sick of chicken.
“Nope. You still need to put on some more pounds, Skinny Minnie.” Bodie chewed.
I rolled my eyes and flexed my arms. “Skinny Minnie? Seriously? Have you seen these guns?”
Across the kitchen, Tore tucked the phone against his shoulder and jotted something down in a notebook. “That helps. Any additional information you’re able to gather, pass it on to Johann. He’s going to run communication while Mack, Bodie, and I are on the ground with Allie.”
“Who is he talking to?” Bodie asked again.
“Dunno. Somebody from Elfheim?” I speared another forkful of salad and dutifully chewed.
“Alfheim,” Bodie corrected. He leaned forward on his elbows. “Wonder what’s going on.”
I shrugged, then resumed slogging my way through my lunch.
“Okay, thanks. We’re going to weapon up right now, and we’ll call for the Bifrost in fifteen. Takk for the tip.” Tore ended the call and turned back to the counter to write something else down. As he did, he tucked his phone in the back pocket of his jeans. They were faded, and fitted, and hugged his lower half in places that I probably shouldn’t have stared at. But I did. A lot.
It wasn’t my fault the world’s most irritating guy had the world’s most impressive butt.
“Okay, Pepper, training days are over. It’s time to hit the field.” Tore turned around. I forced my eyes upward before he caught me ogling.
“Why? I thought I had two more pounds to gain, and, like, a thousand more chickens to eat.” I was only half kidding. I’d seen the overflowing bags of individually packed, free-range, organic chicken breasts in the garage freezer. At least Mack took pity on my taste buds and occasionally wrapped said chicken in bacon. But I was also stalling—I wasn’t sure if I was ‘field ready.’
“You do have more muscle to gain, but we just got a tip from one of our contacts in Alfheim. Two night elves opened a portal in their Eternity Woods.” Tore ripped the paper out of his notebook and shoved it into his pocket. “Apparently, an atmospheric phenomenon resembling the northern lights lit up the woods, which signaled Alfheim’s warriors to the intruders’ location. One of the elves escaped, but they were able to kill the other. They searched the body after they eliminated the perp but didn’t find anything on him, which means whatever he was looking for could still be on Alfheim. We need to move fast; we may not get another chance like this.”
“You think he was looking for a piece of Gud Morder?” A piece of chicken lodged itself in my throat. I coughed as images of the jaw-breaking night elf from the complex danced through my brain. “What if the night elf wasn’t alone? What if we get there and we’re ambushed and I have to kill . . .”
“You’ll be fine, Allie.” Bodie patted my hand. “Like we’ve said, when it’s your life or theirs, you find you’re very willing to eliminate the threat.”
Maybe. But that didn’t mean I was ready to go to another realm and do all this crazy save-the-world stuff. Everything was becoming way too real, way too fast. I had grown comfortable with my guys and our safe house. And being alive.
“Besides, Mack, Bodie, and I will be with you. If there’s any killing to be done, we’ll take care of it. We’re not going to let anything happen to you.” Tore’s gaze bore into mine with an unnerving ferocity. I still co
uldn’t read his energy, but it was impossible not to pick up on his protective vibe. It was all kinds of hot.
We locked eyes for an endless beat, and my heart thudded as Tore slowly licked his bottom lip. Oh. My. God.
“You guys need a moment?” Bodie’s voice sent blood rushing to my cheeks. I’d forgotten he was there. When I broke eye contact with my intense protector, Bodie patted my shoulder. His eyes were crinkled with barely contained laughter.
Shut up, Bodie.
“Bodie, go to the complex, and pull weapons.” Tore ignored Bodie’s jive and tapped at the watch-like device on his wrist that I now knew was a communicator. “Get me a broadsword and my apatite blade. Pick out a blade and a dagger for Allie, and grab whatever you want for yourself. Mack will probably want—”
“My mace and my crossbow.” Mack charged into the kitchen, already dressed in the all black combat ensemble I’d been told to wear in the field. “My brothers called to let me know what they’d seen. I presume that’s why we’re weaponing up?”
“You presume correct.” Tore grimaced. “You guys remember the protection protocol we established, right?”
“Ja.” The back door opened, and Johann jogged into the kitchen. He tapped the device on his wrist. “I got your message, man. I’ll suit up and call Heimdall.”
“Excellent.” Tore pushed himself off the counter to stand at attention. “Johann, you’ll come as far as the drop site with us, and then you’re going to run communication. Mack, you know the realm better than we do. Your job is to scout for the piece of Gud Morder the night elf was looking for. Bodie and I will stay with Allie and protect her while she follows the energy trail to the weapon.”
“Follows the energy trail?” I blinked. “Will I be able to feel it?”
“It’s magically protected, so on your own, no.” Tore shook his head. “That’s what your armor’s for. It contains pieces of the same crystal that binds your weapon. They’ll call to each other, so you’ll know when it’s close. Your necklace is infused with energy from the same crystal as well, though it doesn’t contain any physical traces. Those are only in your armor and in Gud Morder.”
“My armor is going to talk to my weapon? Through crystals?” That was the most ridiculous thing I’d ever heard. Except for ‘Allie, you’re a demigod tasked with killing a demon and saving the world.’ Now that I thought about it, my life was full of a lot of ridiculous these days.
“It’s all energy, Allie,” Tore said. “Think about it. The crystal doesn’t want to be broken. Its power diminishes when it’s incomplete. There’s going to be a natural pull to its other half. Or, in this case, its other eighths.”
Bodie snickered beside me. “Other half. You sure you’re talking about a crystal, man?”
“Shut up, Bodie,” Tore and I snapped together.
Bodie held up his hands. “Touchy.”
“Go suit up, Allie. Gentlemen, get your gear, and meet me on the porch in five. Mack, did you say your brothers are aware of the situation?” Tore asked.
Mack nodded. “You want me to have them meet us at the drop site?”
“I do,” Tore confirmed. “It should be a simple extraction, but the night elves aren’t stupid. For all we know, we’re walking into a trap. If that’s the case, we’re going to need all the help we can get.”
****
My second trip on the Bifrost left me every bit as nauseated as my first. When we dropped into Mack’s home realm, my stomach lurched so violently, I feared I’d throw up a chicken breast—or fifteen—on Alfheim’s pristine pink flowers. Tore kept a soothing hand on my back as I doubled over, but thankfully my stomach controlled itself. When I looked up, an unnerving sight met my still spinning gaze.
“I’m delirious. There are five Macks.” I rubbed my eyes, but the number of lumberjacks did not diminish. Scattered around in a forest that looked like it had been lifted out of a nature magazine were five variations of my bearded protector. Each stood with his combat boots firmly planted in the sea of multicolored flowers. They stared at me, weapons in hand. “How dizzy am I?” I asked.
“These are my brothers,” a sixth Mack offered from beside me. “Elo, Jin, Dor, Han, and Sar. They know these woods inside and out, and if anything’s hiding in the forest, they’ll flush it out.”
I rubbed my eyes one more time for good measure, gave up, and nodded. “It’s, uh, nice to meet you guys.” I was never remembering their names in my Bifrost-addled state. They were, at least for the time being, going to have to be ‘the Macks.’ Or better yet, ‘the Mack Pack.’
One bearded brother returned my nod. He crossed an arm over his chest in what I assumed was a greeting. “The pleasure is ours. Someone in our village has firsthand information to share with us before we head out. His intel will help us better identify where we should go and how heavily armed we should be.”
Awesome.
One of the other Macks grinned at me. “Plus, Mom’s dying to see you. She made pickleberry pies.”
The original Mack’s eyes lit up. I could practically see the drool pooling at the corners of his mouth. I sincerely hoped the pies had more to do with berries and less with pickles. But since Gran had been a stickler for manners, I knew I wouldn’t be able to refuse if they offered me a slice. Pickles or not. Please, no pickles.
Tore opened his arms and tilted his head forward. The Mack Pack quickly turned around. They moved through the trees as one, their steps silent against the forest floor. They ducked under low branches, not rustling a single leaf. These were some seriously stealthy elves. Or maybe all elves moved like that. I was hardly an expert in elfin mobility. Heck, I was still surprised none of them had pointy ears.
We broke out of the thicket of trees and entered a clearing. My jaw dropped as I stared at the scene before me. Was all of this for real?
Mack had said we were going to a village, but this was unlike anything I’d ever seen before. This was . . . this was magical. Modern elements mixed with nature to give Mack’s village a whimsical-suburban vibe. The cob houses were completely smooth on the sides, and their roofs were actual slabs of grass and flowers. Their roofs were living things! The windows of the structures were comprised of intricate geometric patterns, not unlike humans’ mandalas. And when my eyes roamed over the streets, I gasped. Actual crystals lined the roads. Talk about energy efficiency! The lanterns dotting the streets resembled glass sculptures, and the village’s gardens put even the most artistic Midgardian landscaper to shame. I was seriously in the most beautiful fairytale . . . but everything about it was real.
“Nice, isn’t it?” Tore’s whisper in my ear snapped me from my shock.
I could only nod—there were no words. Each cob house was connected to another, forming a circle. The houses were clumped in groups of five, with a communal garden in the center of each ring.
“What are the circles?” I finally found my words as I moved with the guys. We made our way down the tall, grassy hill.
Original Mack answered me. “In Alfheim, we live in communities—what we call pods. There are five families to each pod. Each family takes turns hosting dinner one night each week, to diminish the workload on the individuals. Our society very much believes in sharing our blessings with one another. If a family falls sick, one of the other families takes care of them until they are better. If one family needs help and another family can step up, they do.”
“That sounds amazing.” It had always been just Gran and me growing up. I’d have loved to have been a part of a community like this. These pods sounded like one big party, all the time.
Mack beamed his soulful smile at me, and now I knew why he was so deep; so in touch with his spirit. He’d had an amazing upbringing—one of community, sharing and kindness. How could he not be as enlightened as he was, with such a beautiful beginning to form him?
When we reached the base of the hill, a tall woman with chocolate-brown hair waved to us. She stood beside a man that had to be Mack’s father—the guy looked just like o
riginal Mack and his five doppelgangers. And if that man was Mack’s father, there was a good chance the brown-haired woman with Mack’s twinkling eyes was his mom. I made a quick note to thank her for raising such an awesome son. He may have been par for the course in Alfheim, but where I came from, he was one in a million.
Mack’s parents opened their arms in greeting as we drew closer. Their elegant, hooded cloaks billowed behind them. Mack’s dad shook Tore’s hand, clapping him warmly on the back as he stepped closer. Mack went to hug his mother, but she sidestepped him and went right for me. I tried to hide my surprise as she pulled me in her arms and held on tight. The smell of apples, cinnamon, and warmth enveloped me before she pulled back to hold me at arm’s length. She looked me up and down with an approving smile before meeting my curious stare with tear-lined eyes.
“Oh, Allie.” She hugged me again. “I’ve waited so long to see you. I’m sure you don’t remember me. I’m Elora, your godmother.”
My mouth dropped open at the sudden revelation.
“Mom!” Mack hissed. “Remember, we talked about this. We’re trying not to overwhelm her.”
Elora stroked my hair in a loving gesture. “Nonsense,” she chided her son. “Allie, this is my husband — your godfather, Ryul.”
“It’s a pleasure to see you again, Allie.” Ryul’s warm eyes were crinkled in what I thought was a smile—warmth radiated from him, but I couldn’t see his mouth beneath his bushy beard. Apparently, the Mack Pack’s facial hair was a multi-generational deal.
“Hi,” I whispered. I had a godmother and a godfather? Which I guess meant I had six light elf god-siblings. Mack was practically my brother. Ha!
“Mom, please.” Mack frowned. “Allie’s had a rough couple of months, and she really needs to—”
“I know what she needs, dear. Now go inside with your brothers, and your father, and the rest of your friends. Allie and I have something to discuss.” Elora flashed me another smile.