“You’re right,” I agreed. It was large enough to be mountains, whatever it was, but it wasn’t made of earth like the rest of the realm. It appeared to be wood, and I could see the knots and streaks in it the closer I looked.
“I think I know what it is,” Asta announced.
“What?” I asked as I looked over at her curiously.
“I believe this is a root,” the elf girl explained.
“Of course!” Kas gasped, and her violet eyes went wide. “It’s a root from Yggdrasil!”
“I believe so.” Asta nodded. “I can feel it has tremendous power.”
“You can feel the power of the root?” I asked.
“I can,” she agreed. “It is because I am one with nature, and this root, it feels like it is, too.”
“That makes sense,” Kas said. “Yggdrasil is the tree of life, so it is essentially the creator of all nature.”
“It has tremendous power,” Asta repeated softly as she stared at the root with awe in her sunflower-yellow eyes.
I looked back at the strange mountain in front of us. Ramir had told us about the roots, but I hadn’t considered we’d actually be able to see them. I figured they would be below ground, but I wondered if there would be roots in Niflheim and Asgard as well.
“We should find the well,” I said. It was already midday, and the sun was high in the sky.
“Yes.” Kas nodded. “This way.”
The strawberry-blonde looked down at the map, then back up, before she took a step to the left. Uffe sat on her shoulder and looked out at the world around us, but Blar and Inger flew just above us, content to be in the sky instead of on the snowy ground.
Kas led us through the snow and down the side of the massive root, until we came to a large clearing. There was no snow there, only grass on the ground. The entire area was surrounded by large black rocks that created a sort of fence around us, and in the middle of the field was a large well made of red brick.
“We found it,” Kas breathed as she came to a halt.
Blar landed on my shoulder, and I watched as Inger landed on Asta’s. Then we all took a moment to look around at the area before us. I couldn’t feel the cold of Jotunheim, but something told me this place was warmer than where we’d come from. The sun shone above us, and the green grass was lush and full.
“Should we fill the vial?” Asta asked with a smile.
“I think we should,” I agreed, and I took a step forward only to stop dead in my tracks.
A flash of black and white landed on the other side of the well with a loud thud, and once the creature was on its feet, I could see what it was: a giant white snow leopard with black spots. The beast was at least fifteen feet tall standing on four legs, and just as long, with large sharp teeth, and a long tail that swished back and forth as it eyed us with glowing red eyes.
“Shit,” I cursed as I pulled my blade from my hip.
“It must be the guardian of the well.” Asta pressed herself against my back. “Maybe you can speak to him like you did Nidhug.”
The logic was sound, but I wasn’t sure if it worked that way. Nidhug had spoken to me, and I’d been able to speak to that wolf we’d run into in Asta’s world as well, but I didn’t think my ability to communicate with giant animals had anything to do with them being guardians of wells. Then again, I wasn’t sure how it worked at all, so it was worth a try.
I focused my thoughts and tried to reach out mentally to the leopard, but the beast just stared back at me. After a moment, I felt silly, so I decided I would try to speak to it directly.
“Hello,” I said, and I licked my lips nervously. “If you can understand me, I mean you no harm.”
The creature hissed and lowered its neck into a fighting stance.
“I don’t think it can understand you,” Kas whispered.
“Right,” I sighed and cracked my neck from side to side.
It looked like I had no choice but to fight.
I wouldn’t attack the leopard first, but if it came after me, or one of the girls, then I wouldn’t hesitate to defend myself. I needed to get the water from this well, no matter what it took. The fate of all dragons depended on it, and if that required the death of a single snow leopard, I would gladly make the sacrifice.
“Stay back,” I said over my shoulder to the girls. I refused to take my eyes off this leopard for even a second.
“We can help.” Kas’ voice was low but serious.
“Be prepared to step in, then,” I instructed. “But for right now, I need you to stay back. I’m going to try and move closer to the well and see if it attacks.”
“We’ll be ready,” Asta assured me.
I nodded and took a step forward. My eyes were locked on the red eyes of the leopard, and we watched each other carefully as I walked slowly toward the well.
The massive creature hissed and sunk lower as it readied itself to strike any second, and Blar dug his claws into my shoulder as he prepared himself to do the same. The little dragon was a fraction of the size of the beast before us, but I knew he wasn’t scared.
We’d gone up against many large foes since he’d hatched a little over a month ago, and we’d go up against more in the future. He was a fearless little thing, with nerves of steel and an ego far too big for his small head.
“Blar,” I said, and I held my sword up higher so he could easily reach it.
The little dragon breathed a massive blue flame onto the blade, and when he finished, my sword remained on fire. I’d yet to use this capability yet, but I figured now was as good a time as any since I hoped snow leopards weren’t overly fond of fire.
The small sliver of hope I’d had that the leopard would allow me to take the water without a fight had fizzled out quickly. The massive creature’s teeth were bared, and its haunches were raised. It was blatantly clear I was not wanted there, and I was unwelcome to partake of the water in the well without a brawl first.
If this leopard was the guardian of the well, which I assumed he was from how he sunk lower with each step I took toward the water, then I hated to have to kill him. There had to be a reason the well was guarded, and I didn’t want to be the one to leave it vulnerable.
It didn’t look like I had a choice, though.
I took a step toward the well, and the leopard took a step toward me. Its red eyes seemed to glow with rage as it bared its teeth and hissed at me.
I licked my lips and adjusted my stance so I was prepared to attack. I was growing impatient, and I had a feeling the creature would only truly attack if I tried to take from the well.
Blar tensed on my shoulder, and he flapped his wings and soared above me a split second before I let out a war cry and ran toward the massive leopard.
The beast lunged toward me, but Blar let out a blast of fire, which gave me the opportunity to rush it and land a solid blow to the cat’s front leg.
My sword was still on fire, and the heat from Blar’s flames allowed me to cut right through the muscle and skin there. The tissue hung off the leopard’s bone, and it tumbled forward and screeched in pain.
That wasn’t enough to deter it, though, and the beast got up on its remaining three legs. Blood dripped from the front leg I’d sliced open, and the creature clearly couldn’t put any weight on it, but it still stood up and snarled at me once more.
The giant leopard faced me and prepared to lunge again, but just as its body tensed, Asta’s dagger flew into its right eye. The creature yowled in pain and began to shake its head in an attempt to get the dagger out, so I looked up at Blar and nodded at the little dragon.
He quickly teleported over to the leopard and appeared right by its other eye.
When the leopard sensed he was there, it instinctively opened its eye to look at him, and Blar quickly unleashed a blue flame that blinded it completely.
I charged at the beast and jumped up onto the well and then swung down onto the leopard’s head. Gravity assisted my attack, and my sword pierced the beast’s skull and du
g in deep.
The massive creature crumpled beneath me, and once its body stopped twitching, I pried my sword out of its head and climbed down.
“That was incredible,” Asta breathed as she and Kas ran up to me.
“You helped.” I smiled.
“Hardly,” the white-haired elf scoffed.
“It seemed like you and Blar had it under control.” Kas shrugged. “Uffe and I didn’t want to get in the way.”
“You two decided this together, did you?” I chuckled.
“We did,” Kas teased.
I looked over at the dead leopard in the grass. The white of its fur was now stained red with blood, and its eyes were nothing more than holes in its skull.
“Are you sad you had to kill the leopard?” Asta asked, and her eyebrows pinched together as she looked at me.
“I am,” I sighed. “He was the guardian of this well, and it was his job to protect it.”
“Yes,” the elf girl agreed. “But he did his job to the best of his abilities. He simply was no match for you. That’s not his fault.”
“I suppose you’re right.” I nodded.
The girls and I walked over to the well and peered down inside, and Blar, Uffe, and Inger hopped off our shoulders and onto the brick structure so they could look down as well. I strained my eyes, but all I could see was blackness, so I grabbed a rock from the ground and held it above where the water should be.
“Is it okay to do that?” Kas asked.
“What do you mean?” I paused with the rock held up in the air. “We need to know how far down the water is.”
“I don’t know.” The strawberry-blonde bit her lip. “It seems a little… rude. I mean, this is a sacred well, after all.”
“I see your point,” I muttered as I lowered my arm and dropped the rock back onto the ground. Then a thought occurred to me, and I turned to the elf girl at my side. “Wait! Can you use your sunlight power to look down there?”
“Of course.” Asta smiled and held out her hand. Sunlight poured out of her palm, and she turned her hand so the light shone down inside the well.
“There’s nothing,” Kas whispered.
The strawberry-blonde was right. I saw absolutely nothing at the bottom of the well. It was dried up, with just a few rocks and plants where the water should have been.
“I don’t understand.” I frowned.
“This can’t be right.” Kas shook her head.
“Wasn’t there something about your king and this well?” Asta asked. “How did he get water from it?”
“Odin sacrificed his eye,” Kas said, and she looked at me with wide eyes filled with concern.
“Surely that’s not a requirement.” Asta looked taken aback by Kas’ words.
“I hope not.” I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Why wasn’t the water here? This made no sense. It was very clearly the well we’d been searching for.
“A sacrifice,” Kas muttered as she stared at the ground and worried her lip.
“Kas.” I raised an eyebrow at the strawberry-blonde sorceress. “Do you have an idea?”
“The well requires a sacrifice.” Kas stood up and walked over to the dead leopard. She swiped her hand across its forehead where my blade had pierced its skull, and then she walked back over to the well and held her hand out above it. Blood ran off her fingertips and dripped down into the well.
The drop made a small popping sound, and from the point of impact, a spiral of silver sparkles floated up to the top of the well. Once it reached us, it exploded outward, and where the well had been empty before, it was now full of water.
“Wow,” Asta breathed, and she turned to look at Kas. “That was incredible. How did you know to do that?”
“I don’t know.” Kas shook her head and smiled. “It just felt like the right thing to do. The guardian of the well died, but it wasn’t in vain.”
“Thank you.” I put my hand on Kas’ shoulder.
We all looked at the water for a moment, and I admired our reflection in the clear liquid. Out of the corner of my eye, I watched Blar cock his head from side to side as he stared at himself. I smiled at the little dragon’s curiosity, but then he leaned down and stuck his tongue out as if he were about to drink from the water.
“Blar, no!” I exclaimed.
The little blue dragon stopped with his head halfway down to the water and his tongue sticking slightly out of his mouth.
“No,” I warned sternly.
Blar rolled his eyes and lifted his head back upright.
I wasn’t sure if it would make a difference or not, but I figured it was better to err on the side of caution. I didn’t want the little dragon to drink from the well and end up owing it an eye.
After a moment, Kas reached into her satchel and pulled out the three vials. She held them in her hands and looked up at me through her thick blonde eyelashes.
“Which one do you use?” she asked softly.
“I don’t know,” I answered honestly.
“You should try and feel them,” Asta suggested. “Touch is a powerful tool.”
I wasn’t sure it would work, but I had no reason not to try it, either, so I closed my eyes and placed my hands on top of the vials. At first, I sensed nothing, but then a tingling sensation ran through my fingers all the way up to my neck.
I grabbed the bottle those fingers were touching and held it up. It was the dark-blue vial. The bottle was shaped like a triangle, and the deep-blue sea glass was murky but still transparent. It reminded me of the water that surrounded Asgard, and even though I had absolutely no reason to feel it was the correct bottle for this well, I knew it was.
“This one,” I said as I held the vial up.
Blar sniffed the bottle and then nodded his approval.
I pulled the cork out of the top of the bottle and slowly lowered it down into the water. The liquid was cold on my fingertips, but I ignored the sensation and allowed the bottle to fill to the brim.
Once it was full, I placed the cork back in the vial and held it up to the sunlight. While I looked at it, the bottle suddenly began to glow. A deep red color emanated from the glass, and it pulsated in my hand three times before it faded back to its original color.
“What was that?” Asta whispered.
“I don’t know.” I shook my head.
Blar leaned forward on my shoulder and eyed the vial curiously.
“You must have chosen right,” Kas said.
“I think I did.” I nodded.
I glanced back down at the well just in time to see the water begin to drain. The liquid swirled as if it were being pulled down a drain, and after a few seconds, it all disappeared into nothingness.
Blar, Inger, and Uffe jumped down to the edge of the well and peered inside, and then Blar turned to look at me with wide blue eyes.
“Where did it go?” Asta asked.
“It served its purpose,” Kas said softly.
I looked down again at the bottle in my hand, and a warm feeling of accomplishment swelled inside my chest.
We had one vial full.
Now, there were only two more to go.
Chapter 10
Blar’s portal brought us into the countryside of Asgard, but we weren’t far from home, so we started the trek back to our house. It was early evening, and the air was warm and smelled of fresh flowers and rain.
The ground wasn’t wet, so I knew it hadn’t rained while we were gone, and that meant it would rain soon. I didn’t want the girls or the dragons to be out in rainy weather, so we needed to hurry home. We’d managed to fill one vial, and that was a victory for the day.
“Are we going to look for the well in Asgard next?” Asta asked as we walked.
“I think that would be best.” I nodded.
Blar curled himself around my neck and laid down, clearly tired from our battle earlier. He’d exerted a lot of energy, and if he needed to rest on my shoulders for a while, then I would gladly let him.
“We have the i
nvisibility spell we can use again,” Kas said.
“What about Blar’s portals?” Asta asked.
“He’s been doing a great job,” I said, “but they aren’t extremely precise yet. If we tried to have him portal us into the castle, then we could wind up somewhere nearby instead, and still have to find a way inside.”
“I suppose you’re right.” The elf girl nodded and looked down.
Blar sighed on my shoulder, so I smiled and reached up to stroke under his chin.
“It’ll take more practice,” I told the little dragon. “You’ve only been able to teleport for a week. Don’t be so hard on yourself.”
Blar nestled against my neck then, and I figured I’d managed to save his ego from deflation.
“Rath is right,” Kas encouraged. “It took me years to become the sorceress I am today. You should be proud you’re able to control your abilities so quickly.”
“Yes.” Asta nodded. “It took me a long time as well. You’re so young, but so powerful.”
Blar preened, and I rolled my eyes. I wanted to make sure his ego didn’t deflate, but I didn’t want to inflate it even more.
“How long will the invisibility spell last?” I asked to change the subject. “I can’t remember.”
“A couple of hours at most,” Kas answered. “It requires a lot of energy.”
I pursed my lips as I thought. We had the map to tell us where the well was located, but it didn’t give us an outline of the castle, only an indication the well was located near it. Ramir said the well was below the castle, so that was where we’d start, but if we were going to sneak in we needed to know where we were headed first.
We might have to do some reconnaissance to find the well first. If it was beneath the castle, though, then we might not have enough time to find it before the spell wore off, but hopefully there wouldn’t be anybody in the area we were headed to.
I didn’t want to kill any of Odin’s guards and my fellow Asgardians. Somehow, that didn’t seem like it would bode well for me, even if it was for the sake of all of dragon kind.
“We’ll need to locate the well,” I said. “Hopefully, the spell will last long enough for us to do that, but if it doesn’t, then we’ll have Blar with us to create a portal and get us out of there.”
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