After the Fire (After the Fire: Book the First) (14 page)

“Because,
child,” said Magda. “Loki cannot be bought. He cannot be
reasoned with. The only thing he cares about is chaos. He would have
great power since...since your death. The only thing that can stop
chaos feeding on chaos is the Fates. My sisters and I could stop this
in a moment if we were all together.”

“So
he has much to gain in keeping you apart,” said Eleni.

Magda
stared at her. “What did you say?” said Magda.

“She
has quite a point,” said Fin. “If it is him, and we're
not sure if it is.”

“Who
else could it be?” said Magda. “He looks exactly like the
two brothers. No one else can disguise himself that well. And no
one looks like the children of Fenrir. I am sure. It must be him. He
is the shape-shifter. He could be anything.” Her eyes fell on
the wolf that lay at Eleni's feet. The wolf's golden eyes stared at
Magda, as if
listening
intently. “Loki could be that wolf. He could be either of you.
I could be Loki and you would never know.”

“What
do they want?” said Fin. “Why are they in the forest?”

Magda
looked at Eleni again. “They are not in the forest,” she
said. “They are at Eleni's old village.” Magda felt an
indiscernible shiver travel through their small group, huddled deep
in conversation.

After
what felt like a long time, Fin spoke. “They've come for
Eleni,” he said.

“Could
be,” said Magda. “But you would be a nice prize as well,
Alaunus.”

Eleni
had straightened and was exchanging a look with the wolf that Magda
didn't understand. There was something wrong about that wolf. Magda
didn't think it was Loki. After all, she had just seen him through
the raven's eye. Even Loki couldn't travel that fast. But that
wolf...she just couldn't put her finger on it.

“Let
me go,” said Eleni.

“Absolutely
not,” said Magda. “Nothing would give them more pleasure.
You are strong for a new god, Eleni, but you are still a new god.
Untrained, undeveloped. You don't even understand everything that you
have inside you. You may be strong enough to kill Skoll and Hati on
your own. Maybe. But Loki will be very powerful.”

“Chaos,”
said Fin quietly.

“The
world has crumbled,” said Magda nodding. “We can build it
again, make no mistake. We can always start again. But nothing is
certain anymore. Nothing makes sense. Loki will feed on that. And if
he really is taking the essence of the gods...” Magda trailed
off. She looked from Eleni to Fin. “I do not know what to do,”
she said, her ancient eyes watering. “For the first time in all
of existence, I am lost. I need my sisters. I have no solutions.”

There
was a buzzing at Eleni's throat and something like a spark. Eleni put
her hand to the bauble and felt the heat of it, hotter than her own
skin. After a moment it stopped. Magda and Fin stared at her.

“I
believe,” said Magda slowly, “that necklace will keep you
hidden.” Magda stood and stared at Eleni's neck. “It is
strong magic, I can feel it.” Magda's eyes widened as she
looked up at Eleni's face. “My sister did not leave you a
memento, Eleni. It is meant to keep you safe. You must use it.”

“What
do you mean?” said Fin, rising and looking at the small lump
under the collar of Eleni's dress. It glowed like a star. Eleni took
a step back, frowning in confusion. “Use it how?” Fin
asked Magda.

“She
must flee,” said Magda. “Over the mountains. There is no
other way.”

“I
am no coward,” said Eleni. “I will stay and fight.”

“No,
you are not a coward,” said Magda. “But if you stay, you
are a fool. These monsters have come for you. For Zaric.”

“Zaric
is dead,” said Eleni forcefully. She narrowed her eyes at
Magda. “I'm not him. Why should they come for me?”

“Because
you have his power,” said Fin slowly. “And you are young.
You won't fight as potently as the old gods.”

“I
fight just as well as any god,” said Eleni. “I have been
killing dark creatures since I was a girl. How strong could they be?
Even the Reivers
fear me.”

“These
three are not Reivers,”
said Fin, and his voice was hard. Both women turned to look at him.
“Everything I had, they took from me. They took my whole
family. We are not new gods. We are powerful island gods. We had
shrines all over the West. My family was worshiped and loved. That's
power, to be loved. And yet, they were killed all at once. They were
fighting together and they died. Do you know how significant that is,
Eleni?” He was looking right into Eleni's pale eyes, and Magda
almost felt as if she were intruding on something private.

“No,”
said Eleni. She was trying to be bold, but Magda could see she was
slightly out of breath.

“My
family had power,” said Fin. “And these three took it.
Just took it. It's an abomination. To take a god's power is the
single greatest atrocity in the known world. No matter how terrible
you deem that god to be, you never take their power. Power is the
soul. It must always be allowed to go. Sometimes they come back just
as bad. But sometimes...” Fin paused, suddenly at a loss. Magda
could see his throat muscles working, trying to get the words out.
“Sometimes they come back better than before. But you have to
let it happen. There must be balance.”

“He's
right,” said Magda. Fin and Eleni started when she spoke. They
both looked at her.

“Fine,”
said Eleni. “I won't try to fight them on my own. But what else
can we do?”

“We
can get you out of here,” said Fin. “Take you over the
mountains and away from god-eaters, away from Reivers,
away from everything.”

Eleni
clenched her jaw. She looked at Magda. “You aren't even sure
what this necklace does. Who can say it won't stop working when I
leave here? I can do what you think is best. But will it work? Will
they stop looking for me if I...run?” she said, spitting the
last word with disgust. ”

“No,”
said Magda. “I think not.”

Eleni
looked back to Fin. “Then I won't run,” she said. “Not
ever.”

Magda
smiled to herself. At least some things never changed. Zaric would
have said the same. “We have a small army,” said Magda.
“A pitiful army, yes. But men that love blood. Men that would
die for Eleni. Men that would rather die in violence than go back to
their starving children as walking wounded. At least they have that
in common with the Northerners. If there were a full moon, it would
be easy. But they will fight just as boldly as men.” Magda
frowned into her hands. “There are others, Alaunus. I could
call them. They would come.” She looked up into Fin's bearded
face, his eyes suddenly alert and wary. “They would come
without question. There is no reason you should fight this alone.”

“There
is reason,” he said, his voice low and quiet. “You know
the reasons. If we go in alone, we have a chance of winning. If we
lose, only two gods lose their souls on this day. To send in an army
of gods when we know not the power Loki possesses...that is madness.”

Magda
raised an eyebrow at him. “I do not wish to be contrary,”
she said, “but your family was quite strong. If he defeated
them, do you not think it would be wise to go in greater numbers?”

“I
do not think it wise to send a dozen gods to the slaughter,”
said Fin, his eyes narrowed. “Do not cloud this task with your
own desires, Magda. Everyone knows what you seek.”

“I
would not risk the lives of gods for my own wishes,” said
Magda. “You had best remember who you are speaking to, Alaunus.
If I had my sisters with me...”

“Then
you would not sully your hands with such matters,” said Fin.

Magda
looked away, unable to argue. He was right. This would never happen
if Magda had her sisters. They would cut Loki down in an instant were
they together.

“Just
let us find what we are dealing with, Magda,” said Fin, his
voice gentler. “We all know what Eleni means to you. She is
another clue to lead you to Anja. But she is her own. You cannot
control things. Not now. Not like this.”

“What
are you saying?” said Eleni, looking confused. She looked at
Magda. “What does he mean?”

Magda
sighed, tearing her eyes from Fin and looking at Eleni. “You
are my blood,” she said. “Whether anyone recognizes that
or not. Your mother was your mother. It has not happened before, but
that doesn't mean it cannot be. I only worry about your safety.”
Fin snorted and looked away. “I will not call them, Alaunus,”
she said. “You have my word.”

Fin
studied her for a moment, then nodded curtly. “Good. I still
think Eleni should flee.”

“You
would not flee,” said Eleni.

“No,”
said Fin. “But I'm afraid for you.”

“What
should we do?” said Eleni, looking at Magda. “Do we wait
for them to come?”

“There
are the women and children to consider,” said Fin. “The
snow is low in the mountains. If they leave here, they would just
freeze to death in their travels. Or worse. Strange creatures roam
the mountains.”

“No,”
said Magda. “They cannot leave here. Not now. You will have to
meet the enemy.”

“And
if they are waiting for us?” said Fin. “What if it is a
trap?”

“If
you know of another way, I would like to hear it,” said Magda.

“What
will you tell the Reivers?”
said Fin.

“I
will tell them Eleni needs them to fight,” said Magda. “As
do I. Now you two go get some sleep before it is time to leave. I
will handle the Reivers.”

Magda
watched them go, Eleni disappearing into her tent and Fin lingering
just a moment too long, watching the place where she disappeared.
There was a movement near the trees and the old woman turned to look.
Two golden orbs looked back at her before the wolf turned and ran
into the forest. Magda blinked, then her eyes traveled up. The tips
of the first rays of morning sun appeared behind the mountains.

The
camp was beginning to stir. Women were emerging from tents, shivering
in the morning air. Elek's head popped out of his tent followed by
his hulking body, bent low to clear the low entry. He stretched and
scratched his black beard. He was shirtless and wore only trousers
and boots. He didn't appear to be affected by the cold. He saw her
looking at him and walked over, his long arms swinging at his sides.

“Magda,”
he said, nodding to her. “Been up all night?”

“Yes,”
she said. She was so weary it was hard to even get the words out. She
knew the Reivers
would join them with no hesitation. With glee, even. But she also
suspected how it was going to end. They would be lucky if even a few
survived. She wasn't happy with what she was about to do, but it had
to be done. It was hypocritical of her to worry about the women and
children after chiding Eleni for doing the same. It was unfortunate.
These women had led joyless lives. Losing their husbands could
destroy them. But Magda had to stop the trickster. A world without
gods was no world to live in. And Loki seemed to be on a path that
would allow him to take down gods with greater and greater power.

Elek,
seeming to see through her, narrowed his eyes. He crouched down
beside her. “What is it, Grandmother?” he said.
“Something has happened, yes?”

“They're
here,” said Magda.

It
started to snow.

Chapter
Twelve

Loki stepped out of the rancid-smelling hut and breathed the cold air
deep into his lungs. He felt the snow fall onto his face, melting
immediately upon contact. He loved the snow. It reminded him of home.
It had been so long since he'd been home. It would not be much
longer, he thought.

There
was a crash and snarling inside the hut and he sighed. It was
difficult for him to remember that these beasts were his blood. Had
he been free when Fenrir fathered them, he would have intervened in
the way they were raised. Beasts like this, with their strength and
bloodlust, had to be trained. They could have been the most powerful
fighters in the world. But they had their father's shortsighted mind.
They only cared about tearing and ripping and the small doses that
Perun had been doling out to them. If only they knew they had been
getting a few drops of what Perun could give them. The foolish god
used the rest for himself when they were dazed in the snow. Loki had
been watching.

It
would be a happy thing when he did to the lightning god what Perun
had been paying Loki's grandchildren to do. Perun was getting old. He
saw Zaric everywhere he looked. In the end, Loki would make Perun
tell him why he was so desperate to kill the fire god once and for all.
It made no sense. It had always vexed Loki. Perun had killed Zaric
once, of course, but that was because the bone horn had been bestowed
on him.

Loki
touched the heavy pouch at his waist. It wasn't the horn, but the
symbols that carried the power. . The symbols, carved over a century
old, so old they had nearly been worn away.
All this
had been explained to Loki when he had been freed from his prison,
from the torture that Odin had devised just for him. So many seasons,
made to feel even longer because they had cut out his wife's tongue.
She couldn't speak and when she did, it came out garbled and inexact.
The burning poison on his face had been nothing compared to the lack of
stimulation. He had talked to himself for a hundred winters. His
sweet wife, Sigyn, had gone slowly mad, at first from infection and
pain, and later from the banality of it all. Loki ground his teeth
when he thought of it. She never should have died.

The
pounding in his head brought him back around from his rage.
Not
now,
said a voice in his head.
Odin will pay later.

Loki
nodded to himself. When he was strong enough he would take Odin. He
would have Odin's essence in the end. He would drink it from the horn
like the finest mead. All of it had been Odin's fault, even Sigyn's
suicide. She had shoved her own face into the mouth of the snake. And
then he had felt the now-familiar pounding. And the voice. And then
he had been free. He had held her body in his arms for three days
before he buried her.