Chapter Twenty-Two

Aware of the rapt faces watching her, Erika related the entire story of her adventure with Lord Magnor. The expressions of his companions ranged from disbelief to astonishment to horror. Even the women gasped when she explained Algie’s master plan to space old people and turn the rest of humanity into Trolleks.

The man who’d treated their injuries sat forward. Yaron had soulful eyes and a dark beard. “I can confirm this observation. Algie is very close to achieving the means to accomplish her objectives.”

Zohar grimaced. “Supposing Algie succeeds in her experiments to suppress human genetic material, how will she distribute this biological weapon to the population at large?”

Paz answered. “My informants among the Viden faction have suggested atmospheric dispersal of some sort.”

“With all that volcanic ash in the air? Impossible. Besides, Algie’s plan will be pointless if Loki succeeds in causing a cataclysmic event. It’ll wipe out everyone, including his allies. Togura Island is the epicenter of his activity. Once Nira interprets the runic verse, we’ll assemble there.”

“We’ve encountered another complication.” Magnor told them about the zombie-like beings who had popped into existence at the movie studio.

Erika surveyed the other men while he spoke. Her husband looked a formidable figure with his wide shoulders and agile form, but then so did his friends. They could sell a lot of calendars with all the beefy muscle between them.

Nira turned a bleak face to Magnor. “It sounds as though Hel has unleashed her dead walkers. It’s another sign that Loki grows more powerful. They’re spirits of the underworld who have received the gift of reanimation.”

“How can we stop them if they’re already dead?” Erika asked. Those creatures could have come from a bad horror movie.

“Once they disable you, they suck the iron from your blood. It strengthens their powers, but it also makes them vulnerable to anti-magnetic fields.”

Kaj, the engineer, piped up. “If that’s true, I could rig a defensive shield using the anti-mag generator from our shuttle.”

“Make it so,” Zohar agreed, his brows drawn together. “We’ll need every weapon at our disposal in the coming battle.”

“Speaking of weapons,” Magnor said, stroking his beard, “Hel has the Book of Odin. I can still go after it. The sentinel suggested I offer an item in trade, such as a flagon of mead from the dwarfs.”

Nira shook her head. “Hel isn’t likely to give up the Book of Odin if it leads to her father’s banishment. She and the wraiths in her dominion wait for Loki’s summons to battle. She’ll prevent you from taking the book.”

“Nonetheless, I will complete my mission if you grant me leave to do so, sire.”

Zohar gave him a curt nod. “Take a day or two to gather whatever equipment you’ll require.”

Magnor turned to Paz, who sat fiddling with his PIP. “Can you contact Smitty and ask how I can acquire the mead?”

“Sure, I’ll get on it.”

Nira strode over to Erika’s side and examined her wristwatch. “Your inscription says you are Six of six. Now that we have your final letters, we should be able to interpret the symbols. It isn’t easy. Runic lettering can be read from left to right or vice versa, plus letters can be jammed together. To complicate the issue, runemasters often wrote in secret codes.”

“We need a cryptologist on the team,” murmured their demolitions expert. Dal was a wiry fellow with a gaunt face and a bodybuilder form. He sat next to Lianne, a brunette with long, wavy hair who wore a maxi dress and sandals.

“Paz has a gift for languages. He’s our linguistics expert,” Zohar reminded Nira. “If you need an extra set of eyes, ask him to help. Meanwhile, Paz, bring me the emblem, please.”

Paz put away his PIP, stood and stretched, then sauntered from the room. He did everything at his own pace, Erika noticed. A few moments later, he returned holding a wrapped package that he gave to Zohar.

“Lord Magnor, it is my pleasure to bestow this honor upon you.” Zohar motioned for the others to rise. “Wear this patch proudly upon your uniform sleeve. You’ve achieved full status as a Drift Lord. Congratulations!”

Magnor’s eyes widened as applause sounded around the room. “But why now? I have yet to succeed in my mission.”

“You have already proven yourself, brother. Success comes in degrees, and we recognize your valor. Accept this offering and join our League, but know the obligations that come with it.”

Erika inwardly urged him to pluck the embroidered badge from Zohar’s outstretched fingers. Why was he hesitating?

Magnor accepted the token with a slight frown. “What will happen to the Drift Lords once we strip Loki of his power?”

Zohar gave him a puzzled glance. “We resume our former lives until summoned again. When we finish here, I shall assume my place as emperor of the Star Empire. I am likely to need help beyond the boundaries of Imperial Space Command. The League would come in handy performing such a function, but that would mean expanding our duties beyond battling Trollek incursions.”

“Like a special forces team,” Nira clarified. “I can think of dozens of ways we could be useful in that regard.”

Zohar wagged a finger at her. “We? Your days of adventure will be limited to ruling by my side as queen.”

“That doesn’t mean we won’t be together again as a team. You’re still the group’s captain.”

“That may change when I ascend the throne. I mean to open membership to new recruits. It is imperative to swell our ranks, and removing exclusivity is the best way to do so. The prior requirement to possess our special trait will no longer apply. But first, we must avert the threat of Ragnarok. Then we can discuss our plans.”

Erika wandered toward a corner, where the team’s medic had roamed to study a bookshelf. Kaj sidled up to him.

“What about the other prophecy?” Kaj said quietly to Yaron. The engineer looked like a fitness model with his muscled physique. “The future won’t exist if that one comes true.”

“I’m working on it.” Yaron cast a guilty glance at their commander. “There’s no need to worry the others.”

“We might be cutting off the snake’s head by getting rid of Loki, but that won’t stop the body of evil he’s spawned.”

“I know, but it’s better for us to deal with this alone.”

Kaj put a hand on his shoulder. “Dal and I will be there when the time comes.”

Yaron’s face softened. “Thank you, brother. The curse must be lifted before we can make our next move.” He nodded at his lady who’d moved off to stare out the window. She had alabaster skin, golden hair, and wistful blue eyes.

After Yaron returned to the woman’s side, Erika considered their words. What did Kaj mean by another prophecy? Were they hiding something from Zohar and the rest of the guys?

Zohar requested a few moments alone with his team to discuss strategy. Nira led the women into the dining room where they sat around a rectangular wood table.

“What will you do after the show is over?” Erika asked her newfound friends, curious as to how they would fare without a worldwide threat to distract them.

“Zohar and I will get married once things are resolved,” Nira said quietly in response. “Then after I finish my doctoral studies in mythology, I’ll join him on Karrell. The man will need his empress, and I’ll keep busy helping him establish reforms. I’m looking forward to my new role, although it’ll be challenging.”

“Paz is going to move into my place in Manhattan.” Jennifer Dyhr fingered the chunky turquoise necklace around her neck. “He plans to quit his job in telecom and work on his private research project.”

“What about you?” Nira addressed Erika.

Erika’s cheeks flooded with heat. “Magnor and I haven’t discussed our future together. I don’t know if he’ll want to stay married to me.”

“Believe me, if destiny has brought you this far, you’ll be inseparable. I’ve seen the way you look at him, and vice versa. I am glad for him. He was so stern when we first met, and sadness haunted him. You’ve brightened his life.”

“Well, let’s see if any of us have a future first. Tell me about Ragnarok,” Erika said to divert their focus.

Nira clasped her hands on the table and leaned forward. “In the legends, the Norse gods battled monsters and giants at this great battle. The wolf, Fenrir, defeated Odin. Thor fought the sea serpent who resided in the waters surrounding Midgard, where humans dwelled. He killed the serpent with his hammer, but not before the monster fatally slashed him with poison.”

“That beast is still alive,” Jen said. “Paz and I encountered it after we escaped from Togura Island in a Chinese junk.”

“That’s a whale of a tale for later,” Nira told Erika with a broad grin. “At Ragnarok, Loki battled his nemesis, Heimdall, guardian of the Bifrost Rainbow Bridge that connected the realms. The two of them killed each other and Bifrost collapsed. Each of the nine realms fell into the abyss. Fires, earthquakes, and tidal waves swept across the Earth and wiped away the human race. Consumed by fire, Midgard sank into the sea.”

“If everyone died,” Erika said, “how can we be Odin’s descendants?”

“The Earth reemerged from the oceans, and members of the Aesir gods who’d had no part in the battle ruled again at Asgard. Balder, a son of Odin who’d been killed through Loki’s trickery, came back to life and took his seat on the divine council along with his brother, Hoder. Two of Odin’s other sons and a pair of siblings also survived.”

“And humanity?”

“A man and a woman lived and founded a new human race.”

“Like Adam and Eve?”

“You could say so. The ‘Völuspá’ is a poem that holds the words of a prophetess who spoke to Odin. She predicted that decadence would be followed by a new generation of gods. The world would rise anew, and peace would prevail. This poem is in the Elder Edda, a body of verse in a manuscript called the Codex Regius. It’s kept at an academic institute in Iceland.”

“What else did this prophetess say?”

“The twilight of the gods is nothing more than an episode, and the end of the world is succeeded by another.”

“So history repeats itself.”

“Yes, that is the implication.”

“Then what is the Book of Odin?”

“It’s a continuation of the prophecy from after the Great Peace, but this volume holds the means of breaking the cycles.”

“I thought it mentions a weapon to defeat the Trolleks?” Restless, Erika shifted in her seat. Were they doomed by destiny to fail? Or could they break the chains of fate?

Nira swept her hand in a broad gesture. “Loki’s minions pose a major threat to our efforts. They’re like gnats that must be swatted away so we can concentrate on the bigger insect.”

“How is Magnor supposed to obtain the sacred book?”

“We’ll figure it out.”

“Tell me about the vector device on my watch. How do I control it?” While she had Nira’s attention, dozens of questions came to mind.

“You concentrate on where you want to go.” Lianne, seated across the table, regarded her with dewy eyes.

Erika examined each woman in turn. They seemed so different. How could they possess any shared traits?

Lianne looked like an earth goddess with her long dress and soft, wavy hair. Maggie Holten, a Southerner from her telltale drawl, was Kaj’s girlfriend. The brunette had a sweet, wholesome look about her and a winsome smile. Jen was ultra-sophisticated, like the models who wore her fashions. Nira came across as a practical downhome type of girl, while Yaron’s woman exuded an air of mystery.

“It helps to direct the vector device if you shut your other thoughts behind a mental door,” Nira suggested. “The only open passageway leads to your destination. Picture yourself walking across the threshold.”

“I’ll try that next time.” Clearing her throat, Erika addressed another topic. “Um, do any of you understand the powers we have been gifted?”

The mythologist nodded. “I believe our talents relate to Odin’s shapeshifter ability. Maggie is a jewelry designer who manipulates metal. Jen works with fabric. Lianne can influence water. And so on. We each have a specialty related to the basic elements. Mine is air, or more precisely, oxygen molecules.”

“Like the Drift Lords? Magnor told me they normally operate in teams of seven. Members represent earth, fire, water, air, time, space, and the Creator.”

“That’s right. For example, Maggie’s ability to stir metal relates to the space element. If you think about our planet, at its core is molten iron.”

“I get it. So Jen’s power corresponds to the fabric of time?”

“Uh, huh. And she can start fires,” Nira said, pointing to Yaron’s girlfriend.

“I made a dust storm appear in the desert when we were being threatened. Is that what you mean?”

“Your power must be related to the earth.”

“Who correlates to the Creator?”

Nira quirked her eyebrows. “That remains to be seen. Maybe she’ll make an appearance when Zohar adds a seventh Drift Lord to the team. Presumably, the prophetess recorded our births in the Book of Odin and predicted that each one of us would wield a special power. We’re identified by a birthmark between our right index and middle fingers.”

“Hey, ladies, come here,” Paz called from the family room.

Hearing the urgency in his tone, they scurried over. The men sat staring with furrowed brows at a big orange blob on the TV set. A weatherman reported on the news.

“It’s not even official hurricane season yet, but this storm has sprung up in the Atlantic and is heading northwest toward Florida. Hurricane hunter aircraft will be assessing the winds soon. Geologists say it’s the increased thermal activity of undersea vents that have raised ocean temperatures.”

He went on to quote statistics and to advise residents in the storm’s potential path to stock up early on supplies.

“The weather is screwed up everywhere.” Jen’s eyes reflected her worry. “My parents live in Palm Beach. I’d better call them.”

Zohar’s mouth tightened. “This is Loki’s doing. Before long, he’ll be unstoppable. We have to be one hop ahead of him.”

“You mean, one step ahead of him, big guy.” Nira tapped him affectionately on the chin.

They parted ways to carry out their assignments. Erika hoped she’d have a chance to join the five women again when things calmed down. They had a lot to learn from each other.

Magnor caught up to her in the hallway. “Here you are. I hope you had a chance to ask Nira all your questions.”

“Some of them, but not all. I wish we had more time to get to know each other.”

“There’s never enough time.” His hooded gaze raked her over, making Erika wonder if he referred to their relationship.

“I still need to hear how Kaj freed himself from imprisonment by the Trolleks. Zohar said our engineer had already fled by the time he and Dal arrived. How Kaj met Maggie or where Yaron found his lady are tales for another afternoon. Zohar’s orders are to focus on current tasks.”

“Congratulations on being made a full-fledged Drift Lord.”

He lifted one shoulder in a half-shrug. “I have yet to earn the honor by completing my mission. We journey to the dwarf kingdom. Paz has contacted his friend, Smitty, to provide transport. Gather what you need and meet me in the foyer.”

“Do you believe the dwarfs will simply hand over a flask of mead without asking for anything in return?” She plucked at a piece of lint on her pants, pleased Magnor wanted her along.

“They hate the Trolleks as much as we do. Paz considers them our allies.” His mien, all business, gave nothing away of his personal opinion.

“I hope he’s right.”

“If not, we’ll still get what we need.” He patted his sword, strapped onto his hip once again. His cape flowed behind him. He wore a fresh black uniform that gave him an air of authority. She noticed he’d fixed the emblem on his sleeve.

“I’ll get my purse.” Heaven forbid a woman should leave the house without her handbag.

Minutes later, they stood outside by the curb while Erika glanced anxiously up and down the residential street. She felt exposed out here, where any one of their neighbors might turn into a puppet under Trollek command.

Magnor’s hand snaked into hers. “I’m glad you had the chance to meet my friends.”

“They’re a great gang.” She smiled at him.

“This could end badly. Maybe you should stay here. I’m being selfish in wanting your company.”

His voice held such a note of longing that she lifted on her toes and kissed him. “You can’t get rid of me that easily. I’m your wife, remember? We belong together. Besides, this is the most excitement I’ve ever had.”

But as the ground vibrated and a sudden screeching sounded, she wondered if her foolhardy sense of adventure had displaced her common sense. A dust dervish arose mere feet from where they stood, obscuring the cause of the commotion.

From the settling cloud emerged a short bearded fellow wearing a plaid shirt, loose trousers, and pointy boots. Beyond him sat an open tram, bits of dirt and pebbles streaming onto the ground from its surface. Where had that conveyance come from? Or him, for that matter?

“Well, don’t just stand there. Get in,” the dwarf ordered in a gruff tone.

Paz banged open the front door of their safe house and rushed down the sidewalk.

“Smitty, you old devil! Thanks for coming. These are my friends, Lord Magnor and his wife, Erika.”

A thrill twirled through her at the introduction. Being married still seemed unreal. Maybe when she returned to Arizona and found the marriage certificate in her mailbox, it would bring home the reality of their hasty wedding.

She threaded her arm through Magnor’s, reassured by his presence. At least he appreciated her value. His warmth seeped through her. How could she ever part from him when he completed a segment of her she hadn’t known existed?

The dwarf scowled at Paz. “Where’s the reward you promised me?”

“Your hair has grown longer,” Paz pointed to the dwarf’s scraggly dark hair that reached his shoulders.

“Aye, and I’ve got my powers back, so don’t make me angry.”

Paz offered him a kewa stone, while Erika gawked. Did every Drift Lord have a supply of these uncut diamonds?

Smitty gazed at it with a grimace. “Why would I want this worthless rock?” He scanned Erika and Magnor from top to bottom then pointed to the gold medallion around Magnor’s neck. “I’ll take that necklace as my price. Give it to me!”

Magnor’s hand flew to the trophy he’d won from the ogre. “Will this ensure we get the flask of mead?”

“It’ll ensure I take you to my king, human.”

“Very well.” Magnor lifted the gold chain over his head and handed it to the dwarf. “But you’d better not betray us, little man, or you’ll feel the wrath of my sword.”

Smitty grabbed the item of jewelry and hung it around his neck. “Don’t argue with me, or I’ll take your weapon, too. Climb into the transport. I don’t have all day.”

Magnor assisted Erika to enter the ore car before he squeezed in beside her. They sat on a bench seat behind Smitty who rode in front. The driver flipped a switch, and their vehicle rose vertically into the air.

Smitty spared them a glance over his shoulder. He grinned, showing a row of tiny pointed teeth. “You’d better hold on. The ride can be rough.” And he thrust a lever forward.

Erika barely had time to grip a hand bar before they dove straight down toward the ground.