She pulled her gaze away, and the ground stared back at her menacingly. The world went hazy, and her stomach sloshed. She clung to him, digging her nails into his icy flesh.
“Don’t worry, I’ve got you,” he said, his voice calm and confident as they floated even higher.
“But who’s got you?”
“Freedom.” The word rang out like a clarion call, and the sky above them flashed with pale lightning and thundered with the hoof beats of horses.
“Please put me down,” she whispered, though her words were drowned out by the raging wind.
“Have you no faith? Do you not see me here? Are you not standing here with me?” Mal asked, his eyes staring past her into the infinity of the sky beyond her head.
“I see you. That isn’t the problem.” She swallowed, and even as it twisted her up with guilt, she buried her face in his chest. “Just put me down.”
“What’s the problem?” he asked, and his voice was tinged with concern.
“People can’t fly.”
“I’m flying.”
“You’re not people.” Kim shut her eyes. She was going to wake up at any second and find herself in her bed, under her covers, far away from Mal and his obvious crazy. This had to be a dream, didn’t it?
“Don’t close your eyes. This is all you have.” Mal’s voice was like silk, running across her skin, and she shivered against the feel of it. “But if you like, I’ll put you down.”
Malcom released her, and she cried out, reaching out for him, but as her fingers touched him, they seemed to move through him like he was made of smoke.
“It’s okay, Kim.” As the words left his mouth a realization hit her. She was standing aloft in the air… by herself. Kim stared out at the parking lot below her, and for the first time in a long time, she felt happy.
Ian 01:06
“What the hell do you want?” Ian struggled against the chains binding him to the wall, but succeeded only in making the metal bite into his flesh. Each link was thicker than his wrist and ended in a steel cuff that held his arms high above his head. His feet were shackled to the wall in a similar fashion, rendering him completely immobile.
“I want to trade you for my wife. I thought that was clear.” Polyphemus’ voice boomed in the tiny space. The cyclops sat across from him on a tiny wooden stool with three banded-metal legs. Since his capture what felt like days ago, Polyphemus had sat there, his massive hammer lying across his knees. His huge eye stared at Ian, never blinking, always watching. It had been disconcerting at first, but now he was used to it. Still, that didn’t make him want to escape any less. As soon as he got his chance, he was getting out of here, no matter what happened.
“That’s what you said yesterday, but as far as I can tell, no one’s coming to this tiny dungeon.” Ian glared at the cyclops staring at him.
Something to his left shimmered, and the air split open in a flash of crimson light that spilled across the grey stone floor like a wave of fresh blood. A man with messy red hair stepped out of the non-space of the portal and stood there as the rip in space-time closed up behind him like it’d never been there at all. The man grinned and held his hand out toward the cyclops.
“Hello, Polyphemus. I’m sorry it took me so long to come. We’ve been having a bit of trouble with Bellum.” The man shook his head, and his shaggy hair whipped around him, reminding Ian of a dog. “Anyway, I’m sure you’re anxious to make your trade.”
The sight of the man made him tremble. Whoever this guy was, he was capital-T trouble.
“Lord Vali,” Polyphemus said, standing and taking the man’s hand in his own huge three-fingered paw. “If you have Galatea in hand, we can trade now.”
“That’s the thing,” Vali said, extricating his hand from the cyclops’ grip and turning to grin at Ian. “Jormungand won’t let me bring her here. He doesn’t trust you.” The man smirked. “I mean, it isn’t as though he can throw you very far. You’re huge.”
“That wasn’t the deal, Vali,” Polyphemus growled, taking a step forward, his grip tightening on the handle of his massive hammer.
“I know, but you know how tiresome Jormungand can be.” Vali shrugged his shoulders as if to say, “my hands are tied here.”
Behind him, the cyclops dropped his hands to his sides. “Very well, Vali. Let us go to your lair.”
A bad feeling crawled up Ian’s throat and threatened to suffocate him as Vali’s smirk grew twice as wide. “Don’t trust him,” Ian blurted before he could stop himself. He didn’t know why, but he knew Vali was playing Polyphemus, and as bad as the cyclops was, Vali seemed much, much worse.
“I don’t have a choice,” Polyphemus said, grinding his teeth, the sound so loud it was like boulders scraping together.
“Indeed, you do not, my young cyclops.” Vali spun, one hand cleaving through the air, rending it open in a flare of crimson light. The depths within pulsed like a beating heart as Vali gestured toward the portal. “Now into the viper’s den you go. He’ll be in the third door on your left. He’s in a new body, but I’m told you’ll recognize him anyway.”
Without another word, Polyphemus disappeared into the portal, leaving Ian alone with Vali. The slender man smiled and shook his head before turning toward Ian. “I actually like him. Smart for a cyclops. Now where were we? Oh, that’s right. I was supposed to tell you what’s going to happen to you now because you’re going to help me awaken my father.”
“And why do you think I’ll help you do anything?” Ian asked. He wasn’t being brave or obstinate because he was terrified. He was reasonably sure a guy who could order a two-ton cyclops around had a lot of ways to make him talk. Still, something about the man’s posture made him think something far worse than simple torture awaited him.
“Oh you will. That choice is not really yours.” Vali squatted down on his haunches and ran a hand through his flame-red hair. “It’s simple really. I will take away everything you have, and in the end, you will embrace what we have given you.” Vali reached out and touched Ian’s face with fingers that burned like fire.
Ian was about to say something when crackling, blue arcs of electricity shot from Vali’s fingertips, blazing through Ian’s body and setting his cells aflame. His body tore erratically at his bonds as the vile energy raced through him. Wisps of electricity shot through his hair, but Ian never felt any of it, at least, not really. There was screaming somewhere in the distance. Ian knew this because he heard it. He could even make out the desperation in the voice, but it felt so far away. Somewhere, he was vaguely aware of it, but his mind had almost ceased to function. All he could feel was a strange piercing in the back of his mind. It burned as if he had been poked by a hot needle.
Vali pulled his hand away, and Ian slumped forward against his chains, golden smoke rising off of him and coiling against the stone ceiling. “You see, there comes a point when everyone gives up. When the body can no longer endure and starts crying out for the pain to stop.” Vali touched him again. “How long will your body last, Fames?”
Ian shrieked as electricity bounded across his flesh, dancing through his hair and leaping across the back of his mind until he lost consciousness.
When he awoke, it felt like there was a bowling alley in his head, though he wasn’t sure if he was supposed to be the ball, the pins, or both. He opened his eyes slowly, trying to dispel the nausea swirling in his stomach. Even with his vision blurry, he managed to make out the two figures walking toward him through the gloom. He tried to put his hands up to defend himself, to fight them off, to do anything, but found he couldn’t move very well. His hands sort of flopped outward before slumping to his sides like a pair of dead fish.
“Ian, are you okay?” Jesse asked, leaning down close to him so Ian could make him out. His face had a sunken, tired quality to it like he hadn’t slept in weeks.
“How… did I…” Ian struggled for the words, but his mind felt like it was swimming through molasses. “W-where am I?” His mind continued to spi
n, trying to incorporate something it didn’t quite understand into itself. It pulsed along the back of his skull, spreading outward across his brain like a white hot spider’s web.
“We don’t know,” Amy responded, her voice strained and angry.
“Awesome…” Ian replied as nausea overtook him. He flopped over onto his hands and knees, retching violently. His fingers dug into the dark stone until he felt he could move. Now, feeling not just woozy, but sick, he rolled over on the cool stone and shut his eyes.
“He’s acting like how you did after Vali’s first treatment, Ames,” Jesse said as Ian drifted off. “I wonder why I didn’t have any reaction.”
Kim 01:05
The sky was dark by the time they returned to Kim’s car. It sat alone in the vast emptiness of the parking lot. As she stared at the vehicle, still parked in its wonderful parking spot, a smile crept across her lips. She had been so excited about being able to park this close and now she could fly. It seemed like a dream, like any moment she would wake up and find herself in her bed.
“Thanks for showing me this, Malcom,” Kim said, smiling ear to ear as she walked along behind him.
“You could have done it without me, Kim. I just showed you the way,” he replied, glancing at her over his shoulder. His face darkened. “Who are you?”
“You two need to come with me, right now,” said the voice of a man who sounded like he could chew up rocks and spit out diamonds.
She spun around, her heart racing in her chest. Scars marred his face and arms, but these weren’t just any scars… No, it looked more like he had been flayed alive and somehow lived to tell the tale. He stared at her, eyes unblinking, before reaching up and tipping the brim of his black cowboy hat toward her, the silver bangle on the band flashing in the darkness.
Mal stepped in front of her and held one hand out, fingers splayed in the universal ‘stop’ gesture. “I don’t know who you are…”
“I am Sabastin Callina,” the man said, reaching out and gripping Mal’s hand and pumping it once. “Now that we’ve met, we need to get going. We don’t have a lot of time. We need to get you out of here before something bad happens.” He glanced warily around. “Why’d you have to come now…”
“We don’t have to do anything,” Mal replied, his entire body tensing as he pulled his hand away.
“You may think you’re strong, Mors, but you’re not. At least, not yet.” Sabastin walked around him and bowed toward Kim, sweeping his hat off his head in one movement. “But I can get you ready.”
“Ready for what?” Kim asked, a bad feeling crawling up her throat as she said the words.
Sabastin stood up as Malcom reached out and put a hand on the man’s shoulder. It happened so fast, Kim wasn’t quite sure what had happened. Mal was suddenly lying on his back as Sabastin stood with one foot on Mal’s chest, idly pressing a spear with long serpentine tassels every color of the rainbow against Mal’s throat.
“Look, you’re intrinsically strong because of your mantle,” Sabastin said, his voice a cross between genial and tough. “It’s the source of all your powers, and if you trained for a while, you could be truly powerful, but don’t think you can take me on right now.” Sabastin tapped his cheek with his thumb. “Do you think I got these scars shaving?”
“Don’t hurt him,” Kim cried, reaching out, and as she did so, Sabastin took a step back. His spear vanished like it’d never been there at all. Well, that was a neat trick.
“I don’t want to hurt you two. I want to train you. I need you to get my daughter back.” Sabastin shook his head. “Of all the schools on the freaking planet…”
“How am I supposed to get your daughter back?” Mal asked from flat on his back. His eyes were dark, but they weren’t angry. Thoughts flitted across the darkness within them, and Kim shivered. She knew that look. It was his “this person can give me something I need” look. She did not particularly like that look. It almost always led to poor decisions.
“I’m going to train you two. Then you’re going to march into the nether and confront the bastard who has stolen her body. You’re going to rip that son of a bitch out of her and bring her back.” He smiled, and it chilled her to her bones. “Are we perfectly clear?”
“What if we refuse?” Mal asked, and the man smiled slightly, flashing perfect teeth at them for just an instant. Even Kim felt it now, the aura of power radiating from him. It slithered over her skin, leaving a slimy trail of fear in its wake. That power made her want to do one thing and one thing only. Destroy him before he had a chance to do something she wouldn’t like.
“I shouldn’t have let her be abducted. I had to deal with something, and when I came back she was already gone.” Sabastin bent down and grabbed Malcom by the hand, hauling him to his feet like he was weightless. “I brought her here so she could have a normal life. So she wouldn’t have to fight monsters. And what happened? One of them took over her body.”
“So what?” Mal asked, pulling his hand away and taking a step back toward Kim. He was shaking. That wasn’t good. Kim bit her lip and steeled herself. She took a step past Mal and smiled.
“Who are you?” she asked, smiling as best she could. “And what can we do to help?”
“As I said before, I am Sabastin.” He smirked. “And I want to tell you a story, Victoria.”
“My name isn’t Victoria,” Kim replied, narrowing her eyes at him. “It’s Kim.”
“It will be soon,” he replied, his eyes gazing off into the distance. “It will be soon.”
“Why is that?” Kim asked, and Malcom glanced at her, giving her the ‘this guy might be crazy’ look. Kim nodded and shot him the “we tried it your way hot shot, now we’re going to play it cool because he probably is crazy” look. At least she tried to shoot him that look. Either way, he shut his trap.
“It’s a long story, and I don’t think we have time. We need to get somewhere else before they come back.” Sabastin glanced around and when neither of them moved. “Fine.”
“Many years ago, two men and two women were given great power to stop a great evil. I’ll be honest, I’m not quite sure who bestowed their powers upon them, but nevertheless, it is said to have happened. Being that I am staring at two of you now, I’m inclined to believe the legend is actually true… if it is, then something bad is about to happen.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” Mal said, his hands clenching into fists.
“This is going to take even longer if you keep interrupting me.” Sabastin shook his head. “We can do this nicely, or I can knock you both unconscious and take you to my evil lair. I’ll admit, I’m partial to that idea because I keep my cigars there.” He held out his hands palms up. “Decide now.”
Kim put her hand on Mal’s shoulder and squeezed in an effort to keep him from doing something stupid. His skin was so warm, it surprised her. Earlier it had been as cold as ice. That didn’t bode well. “We’ll listen and then decide. How about that?”
“Sounds like a plan.” Sabastin moved past them and sat on the hood of her Civic. “Anyway, the last time the four showed up, it was to stop the Norse god Loki from unleashing Ragnarok. In case you don’t know, Ragnarok is the Norse version of the apocalypse.”
“Are you being serious right now?” Mal asked. “That’s all just myth.”
“No, the myth is that Loki succeeded in destroying the Norse Pantheon. He almost succeeded too. So what did Odin do? He locked Loki up, binding him in a deep, dark cave. Unfortunately, the underworld has been going crazy lately. Something bad is coming. Something really bad. It has allowed the Loki’s monstrous middle child to awaken.” He pointed at Malcom. “Do you know who that is?”
“I must have missed Norse mythology,” Malcom said as Kim reached out and took his hand, though she wasn’t sure why. The moment she touched him, he seemed to ease.
“The world serpent. A creature so massive if it actually pulled its bulk from the nether and tried to slither across the earth, it would encircle
the globe.” Sabastin leaned back on the hood. “Thankfully, that’s pretty much untenable, so he usually just picks a body to inhabit.”
“And he’s picked your daughter?” Kim asked.
“Yes.” The man nodded grimly.
“Why?” she asked, and Sabastin sighed.
“Because she’s strong. Too strong for her own good. Jormungand is powerful, but his power is limited by the strength of the body he possesses. He’s moving into his end game, that’s why he took her body. It makes sense if you think about it.”
“And what’s his endgame?” Mal asked, concern filling his voice.
“To awaken Loki and bring about Ragnarok. Most of the old gods aren’t in the realm now, but let’s just say our small world probably won’t survive a battle of godly proportions if they decide to come back. The world will run with blood, civilization will be destroyed, et cetera, et cetera.” Sabastin made a “you know” gesture.
“What if they stay away?” Kim asked, swallowing down the fear creeping up her throat and making it hard for her to breathe. What Sabastin was saying sounded insane, but what if he was telling the truth. What if Ragnarok was really beginning? What if they were all doomed?
“That’s worse. A lot worse.” Sabastin shook his head. “First, all the people like me will step in, and in all honesty, be killed trying to save the world. Then Loki and his ilk will sweep in and take over with no one to stop them. You won’t like that because you’ll either be dead or imprisoned by them.” His words made her knees shake, not because they were inherently scary, but because of the truth in them. She wasn’t sure if he was lying or not, but she was sure of one thing. He believed what he said.
“And how are we supposed to stop Jormungand?” Malcom asked. “Assuming I believe you.”
Sabastin laughed, but it wasn’t as mirthful as it should have been. “The four of you need to awaken and call upon your mantles. If you do that, you’ll be strong enough to kill anyone, even a god.” Sabastin glanced from Kim to Mal. His eyes lingered there for a long time before he said more. “Especially you, Mors.”
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