The stables of Valhalla were lit by a quivering green light. The magic holding Flee and Flay in place wavered but did not falter.
Thighbiter stamped his hooves in his stall. Despite being a flying horse, magic spells made him feel itchy. The air smelt wrong and his hooves prickled. He snorted and tossed his mane to try and frighten off the weird green light, but it made no difference. The weird green light stayed put.
Only Thighbiter was paying any attention as a shadow crossed the doorway and entered the stable. The horse whinnied.
‘Shh.’ The dark-haired boy laid a soothing hand on his side.
Leaving the horse, the boy circled the two girls. They were completely encased in the magical light, like insects stuck in amber. Faces frozen mid-scream, feet paused mid-step. He stopped next to Flee, peering into her startled face. But it wasn’t the girl who interested Vali; it was the magic.
Carefully he reached out to touch the spell – the green light was cold and hard. He laid his palm on it; it tingled like ice and smelt of mint. Vali pulled his fingers away and rubbed his hands together to warm them. He smiled – there was only one person in Asgard who could do magic like this: his Father.
Breathing deeply, Vali reached out both hands, placing his palms flat on the magic so the cold burned his skin. All he had to do was to find a flaw in the spell, and the whole lot would crack open.
Screwing up his face in concentration, Vali tried to focus on the feeling of magic under his hands. He might not have the powers that Loki did, but he had enough. Memories of his argument with his father kept forcing their way into his mind. Vali shook his head to try and clear it. No matter how hard he tried to concentrate, his thoughts burned through.
Just because he didn’t get the cup, it didn’t make him an idiot or a failure, despite what his father had said. Anger coursed through Vali’s veins. His father had been going on about that stupid boy for years. Vali pushed all the hurt, and anger, and envy he felt into his hands. They glowed spookily against the green spell. A faint yellow light appeared around his pale fingers.
Vali pushed the feelings deeper into the spell. His father had said that Whetstone was important, all because of a stupid cup and a stupid riddle. But what if there was more to it than that? What if his father was planning to replace Vali with Whetstone? Vali knew that Loki had been checking up on Whetstone over the years. He stashed him with that woman in Drott deliberately. The yellow glow intensified. A sharp line appeared between his hands. Vali gave a tight smile, his face deathly-white in the odd light. He had never cared about his father’s plans for the cup and the harp; he just wanted Loki to stop spending all his time away from home.
With one last almighty effort, Vali felt the spell split apart. Shards of green ice flew across the stables, razor-sharp slivers striking the walls and roof. Thighbiter and the other horses whinnied and bucked in their stalls.
With a crash, Flee stumbled into Flay, grabbing her sister around the neck for support. ‘Get it away from me!’ She pointed at the spot where Whetstone had landed on the stable floor.
Flay squeaked in fear and tried to hide behind her sister. The two girls fell in a tangled heap.
Vali stepped forward, breathless from the effort of destroying the spell. ‘It’s all right – there’s no one here but me.’
Flee pushed her long plaits out of her face. ‘What?’ ‘Father trapped you in a spell. I freed you.’
Flee shoved her sister away and got up, peering about the empty stables.
Flay climbed to her feet, twisting what was left of her hair between her fingers. ‘Hi, Vali.’
Flee looked at her sister, then back to the dark-haired boy. Deep shadows hung under his eyes, emphasizing his pale features. He looked miles away from his normally polished appearance. She put her hands on her hips. ‘Well? Where’s Loki and the boy?’
Vali paused, brushing the last magical splinters off his clothes. ‘Who?’
‘The boy. The – living – boy,’ Flee huffed.
‘A living boy?’ A sour lump settled in Vali’s stomach. ‘What did he look like?’
Flay tossed her plait. ‘Small, skinny, smelly. All the S’s.’
Vali’s jaw tightened. Whetstone. ‘Did Father say what he was going to do next?’
‘What’s the matter, Vali? Did Daddy not tell you what he was up to?’
Vali gave a painful smile. ‘I know what he’s up to. He thinks he can use the boy for something, but he’s wrong. That boy is trouble.’ Vali’s fingers still burned cold from touching the magic. He ran his hand through his hair, leaving a trail of frost behind. ‘So Father got you to bring Whetstone to Asgard?’
Flee tugged at her plaits. ‘Ew, no. We brought back proper warriors from our battlefield trip. Lotta brought him.’
‘Lotta?’
‘You know, the rubbish trainee with the stupid dog. She was in the stables when we got here.’
‘I knew he wasn’t a real Hero,’ Flay muttered.
Flee focused on Vali. ‘Loki wanted our help to find the boy—’
‘But instead he just appeared.’ Vali rubbed his cheek. ‘Lotta must have hidden him here.’
Flee put her hands on her hips. ‘What’s going on, Vali? Did Loki ditch us?’
‘Looks like it.’
‘But he promised to fix my hair!’ wailed Flay.
Vali thought quickly. His father had never liked getting his hands dirty, so he’d probably sent Lotta and Whetstone to Midgard to get the cup. Vali smirked as an idea occurred to him. If Loki was using the Valkyries, why shouldn’t Vali? They would be able to catch up with Lotta and Whetstone easily, and they might even be able to stop his father’s endless trips to Midgard too … Odin wouldn’t be pleased to hear that Loki had been meddling with humans again.
‘So Whetstone arrived in Asgard by accident,’ Vali mused aloud. ‘Just think about how much trouble he could cause for the Valkyries if he gets caught.’
Flee and Flay exchanged a look. ‘What does that mean?’ Flee spluttered. ‘Lotta’s the one who’s going to get in trouble.’
‘Really? It’s not going to look good for any of you. Just think – how is Odin going to react when he finds out his wonderful Valkyries brought a living human to Asgard?’ Vali tutted. ‘No one will ever respect the Valkyries again. This is about all of you now.’
‘What do we do?’ Flay whispered to Flee.
Vali pulled one of the ever-present knives out of his belt and twisted it between his fingers. ‘You need to prove that it’s all Lotta’s fault. No one else’s. You should tell Scold, right now. Then you can go after them, catch Lotta in the act of sneaking the living human back to Midgard.’
Flee narrowed her eyes.
‘How long ago did Father freeze you? You’ll have to move fast,’ he added. ‘They’ve already got a head start.’
Flee narrowed her eyes further until they were tiny slits in her face. Then she nodded. ‘OK.’ She nudged Flay with her elbow. ‘Come on – let’s go and tell Scold.’
‘Start looking in Krud,’ Vali called, spinning the knife in his hands. ‘That’s where she got him from.’
‘Wait a minute,’ said Flay. She turned back to Vali. ‘What about your dad? He might be with them.’
The knife stilled in Vali’s hand.
Flee stepped closer. ‘Yeah, why is he so interested in Lotta’s warrior?’
Flay nodded. ‘The boy might not be a Hero, but he might be important for some other reason.’
Vali forced himself to smile. ‘He’s nobody. Father was wrong.’
Flay took a step closer and peered into Vali’s face. ‘There’s something you’re not telling us.’
With a flick of his wrist, Vali sent the knife spinning across the room – it stuck in a wooden post near Thighbiter’s head. The horse bucked and reared in shock. Flay gasped in surprise. ‘I said, he’s nobody. Do you want to catch them or not?’ he snapped.
Flee prowled towards the boy. ‘If you’re lying to us,’ she said, giving him a poke. ‘If this is some sort of trick …’
Vali held up his hands, a picture of innocence. ‘Honestly, I just want you to catch them. Maybe you should mention Father’s involvement. I’m sure Odin would like to know what he’s up to.’
Flee gave him a hard look and a final poke in the chest. ‘You’re a loser, Vali. And just because you’ve helped us, it doesn’t make us friends.’
Flay batted her eyelashes. ‘Bye, Vali.’
‘Leave him alone,’ Flee muttered, pulling her sister out of the stable. ‘That whole family is trouble.’
Vali lowered his arms as the girls vanished out of the door. He crossed the floor to retrieve his knife, smiling coldly as he imagined how the Valkyries would react when they found Whetstone. He stuck his knife back in his belt and left the stables to find his father.