Lotta used the rock to lever herself up. Her ankle burned like fire, making her feel queasy. She swallowed and forced herself to focus. The heavy boot dragged on her twisted foot, but she dared not take it off.
Nidhogg snored, little gusts of smoke escaping from his nostrils. The smell made Lotta’s throat feel thick. She gave up on standing, dropped to her knees and crawled towards the place where Whetstone lay trapped.
‘Wotcha.’ Whetstone waved at her with his free arm. His voice was cheerful, but his face was pale and strained.
‘You’re not getting stuck now.’ Lotta stretched her arms around the dragon’s enormous tail. It burned against her dark skin. ‘We’re taking that cup back to Asgard, if it’s the last thing I do.’ She heaved. A sheen of sweat broke out across her forehead and black spots flashed in front of her eyes. She pulled until her arms felt as if they were going to pop out of their sockets.
‘I can’t – it’s too heavy.’ She sank into the mud next to Whetstone’s trapped body. ‘It was a good idea though, putting the dragon to sleep. For a minute I actually thought it was going to work.’ She smiled at him. ‘You’re not as thick as you look, are you?’
‘Wow, Lotta – that was almost a compliment.’
‘Don’t get used to it.’ She thumped him on the arm.
Whetstone smiled. It felt good to have someone on his side, even it was only because she needed him to get out of trouble with Loki. It was almost like having a friend.
Lotta rubbed her hands over her face. After a moment, she tossed her head back, soot drifting out of her dark curls. ‘I guess it’s all over. It’s time to DREE OUR WYRD.’
Whetstone stopped smiling. ‘What? Are you talking Epically again? Now? It really doesn’t help.’
‘Dree your wyrd means to feel sorry for yourself for what is about to happen to you. It’s something Tragic Heroes do. Like when they’re crushed by a dragon. Like you, right now. Maybe we could sing a sad song?’
‘Please, don’t.’
Whetstone gazed into the sky as he weighed up what to do. He was stuck under a dragon, but Lotta wasn’t. She’d saved his life twice now – he owed her something, even if she was only helping him because she was scared of being banished. If she turned into a bird again, she might make it back to Asgard in time. She had warned him not to take the harp … Whetstone sighed. He always knew he wasn’t cut out to be a Hero.
Whetstone made a decision. He picked up the golden cup, which felt cool and smooth in his hand. ‘You should go, take the cup and get back to Loki.’ With almost no hesitation, he tossed the cup towards her.
Lotta gazed at the cup but made no move to pick it up. ‘What happened to Fame and Fortune?’
Whetstone shrugged, his shoulders squidging in the mud. Somehow Fame didn’t seem so appealing any more.
‘I can’t just leave you here to be eaten by a dragon. It’s not very brave or noble.’
‘I’m not worth being brave or noble for. I’m a thief, remember?’ Whetstone tried to grin, his face sticky with mud and sweat.
‘I think you’re worth a lot more than that,’ Lotta muttered. ‘For starters, you just tricked a dragon.’
Whetstone didn’t know what to say. He turned his eyes upward. ‘Somewhere up there is Asgard and Broken Tooth,’ he reminded her.
Lotta groaned. ‘This is all such a mess. I just want to go home.’
‘So go. I’ll be fine here on my own. And if I do end up in Snifflheim, at least I’ve already made a friend.’ He patted Nidhogg’s tail.
Lotta hunched her shoulders. ‘It’s Niflheim. And shut up, will you? I’m not going anywhere.’
Relief flooded through Whetstone. ‘So you’re not going to give the cup to Loki? You had me worried for a minute.’
Lotta snorted and threw a clump of mud at Whetstone. It missed, landing on the dragon’s side, where it steamed. ‘You were right. Even if he did keep his promise, he’d just hold it over me forever. Maybe there are worse things than not being a Valkyrie.’
‘Like being a human?’
‘Like being in Loki’s debt forever – it would be as bad as being Vali. Maybe I should just tell Scold and get it over with.’
‘Are you sure? I don’t think you’re going to be able to convince her I’m a Hero. Heroes normally fight dragons, not get stuck under them.’
‘Maybe there are different types of Hero,’ Lotta mused.
‘And different types of Valkyrie?’
Lotta shrugged. She wiped her hands on her skirt. ‘So if you don’t want the cup, and we’re not going to give it to Loki, what are we going to do with it?’
Whetstone shrugged one shoulder. ‘Give it back to Awfulrick, I guess. Except it doesn’t belong to Awfulrick – it actually belongs to Frigg. I overheard Loki talking to those girls in the stables. They’d been helping him look for it.’
Lotta clenched her fists. ‘And they wanted to get me into trouble!’
A low rumbling began. Lotta eyed Nidhogg. ‘Someone’s a heavy sleeper.’
‘That’s not Nidhogg.’ Whetstone squinted up into the sky. ‘It sounds a bit like … footsteps?’ Something was moving in the clouds above them, coloured streaks coming together to form new shapes.
Lotta used the sleeping dragon to lever herself upright, her hand leaving a brief muddy imprint on the dragon’s burning side. Her good foot landed on the cup and pressed it into the mud with a damp, sucking noise.
‘It can’t be,’ she muttered, scanning the horizon. She unsheathed her sword and held it out in front of her, its point wavering in the air.
‘What’s going on?’ Whetstone asked, watching as dots of rainbow light danced across the dragon’s tail.
Lotta gulped. ‘You should really read that guidebook some time. They’ve opened the Bifrost Bridge – it links Asgard and Midgard. Someone is coming.’
Whetstone held out his hand as the points of light sprinkled down on to his palm. It felt like icy rain. ‘Who? No one but Loki knows we’re here.’
The rainbow lights grew brighter, pouring down to form an enormous loop, trapping Whetstone and Lotta in the centre. Whetstone stretched out to touch the rainbow wall. It crackled and make the hair on his arms stand on end. The loop stretched and solidified, becoming a tunnel, which arched upward into the sky.
‘I always wondered what was at the end of the rainbow.’ Whetstone chuckled. ‘It’s me!’
Lotta stepped back, her bad ankle crumpling under her. She landed heavily on the ground, dropping her sword.
Whetstone peered up into the rainbow tunnel. A dark spot appeared. As it approached, it formed into the shape of a tall, armoured woman in a pointy helmet. Behind her lurked two girls with three long plaits between them.
‘Oh no.’
Scold stamped to the end of the Bifrost Bridge, making the lights quiver. She glared down at the boy and trainee Valkyrie. Her smooth olive skin had gone a dark, ominous red, her armour shining like the anger of the Gods. Scold sucked in an enormous breath, her massive chest swelling until she looked in danger of bursting out of her breastplate.
‘BRINGS-A-LOT-OF-SCRAPES-AND-GRAZES!’
Lotta’s eyes watered and her hair streamed out behind her.
‘IN ALL MY YEARS OF BEING A VALKYRIE, I HAVE NEVER SEEN SUCH A BLATANT DISREGARD FOR THE VALKYRIE CODE!’
Lotta opened her mouth to speak, but no words would come out.
‘NOT ONLY DID YOU BRING A LIVING HUMAN TO ASGARD – YOU THEN TRIED TO HIDE YOUR CRIME BY SMUGGLING HIM BACK DOWN TO MIDGARD AGAIN!’
Lotta stared at her grazed knees; she couldn’t find the words to explain. Flee and Flay sneered down at her, their pale faces glowing with happiness.
‘Do you mind speaking a bit more quietly?’ called Whetstone. ‘Only, you’re going to wake the dragon.’
Scold squinted at him, her nostrils flaring like a pair of bellows. ‘Never mind the dragon – right now we need to decide what to do with the CRIMINAL. Lotta, we were all stunned when you managed to get negative marks in axe-throwing, and your Epic Poetry is a disgrace, but this is a new low, even for you. I have never been more disappointed in a trainee.’
Lotta wrapped her arms around her knees, a ball of embarrassment.
‘You are coming back to Asgard right now to explain yourself to Odin.’ Scold clicked her fingers at Flee and Flay.
Lotta’s head shot up. ‘Wait – we can’t just leave Whetstone here!’
The two girls hauled Lotta to her feet, her bad foot dragging uselessly, her sword left behind in the grass.
‘That’s exactly what we’re going to do,’ Scold sniffed.
‘But he’s stuck—’
‘You are in enough trouble, young lady. Don’t make it worse for yourself!’
The Bifrost Bridge contracted around the group of Valkyries. With a fizz of electricity, Whetstone felt the lights pass over his skin, leaving him outside the tunnel.
Whetstone shoved at the dragon’s baking tail. ‘Lotta! Come back!’
He could only watch as the rainbow light faded, taking Lotta and the Valkyries with it. The last thing he saw was Lotta staring at him, her face twisted in sorrow.
He lay back in the mud. Who was I kidding? I’m not a Hero – I’ve let everyone down. Maybe I’m only good for sweeping out the wolf kennels after all.
Whetstone rubbed his free hand over his eyes – the rainbow light had seared bright lines into his vision. A shadow fell across his face. Whetstone dropped his hand and squinted to try and see who, or what, it was. The figure took another step forward, and Whetstone’s vision cleared.
He gasped in surprise. ‘Light Finger?’