Demons (Eirik Book 1) (26 page)

“I know. Once I’m gone, he’ll forget I was ever here.” Then I realized what I just said.

“Good, because he tends to have an unhealthy fixation when it comes to girls. First was the girl he was raised with, then her best friend. Then Maliina.”

The goddess really didn’t know anything about Eirik. “You should try asking him about his life on Earth, instead of assuming. You’ll be surprised.”

“His past is of no consequence. I’m only interested in his future, which lies here with me. Come.”

I hesitated. I didn’t trust the woman not to push me inside an Eternal Hall and lock it with magic. “Where are we going?”

She glanced below one last time. “I want my son to be strong and ready to lead. At this rate, he will decimate my reapers, and I need them to recruit more warriors. If he can’t have a friendly practice with them, then he’s ready for the next step in his training. I want you to see what he will be facing.”

What could be worse than this? And why show me? Eirik was still in the ring. The one time when I needed him and he was busy pounding some guy. No, getting pounded on. He finally met his match. The goddess nodded at her guards and one of them created a portal. On the other side was a bridge. I could see the snowy landscape through the glass walls. It was snowing hard.

“Come now,” she said.

Not trusting her, I dragged my feet. Maybe she was going to take me outside and leave me there just for the fun of it. All I had on was a T-shirt and leggings, neither could offer much protection against the biting cold.

She turned and studied me. “From what I’ve seen and heard about you, I figured you are either very brave or very stupid. Which one are you?”

Possibly the second one because I actually wanted her to like me. Lord knows why since I was leaving and never coming back. I glanced down just as Eirik looked up. He was the only one who could stand up to his mother. I waved him up, but he mistook my gesture because he waved back.

Distracted, his partner clipped him and knocked him on his ass. He landed in the corner of the ring. My heart hurtled to my throat. That must have hurt despite the runes. He didn’t get up right away and my stomach hollowed out.

“Come on, Eirik! Get up.”

He rolled over and sprung to his feet, turned, and faced the man again. The crowd cheered. He rushed the guy, feinted a jump as though he was coming for an upper-body attack, then went into hyper-speed, dove down, and tackled the man. The man went down.

“Yes!” I yelled before I could stop myself. Damn, I was becoming bloodthirsty.

“He must have picked up that move from Asgard,” his mother said, her voice ringing with pride.

“How can you watch him without cringing? What if he gets hurt? I mean, seriously hurt?” I asked, feeling like a hypocrite. I’d enjoyed watching Eirik get the upper hand.

“He’d heal. You see what just happened? He was caught off guard because he looked up here. You are distracting him.”

I glanced at the arena, and the Grimnir had Eirik pinned to the ground now. I tried to look away, but couldn’t.
Get him, Eirik!

“Come along,” the goddess commanded, and I couldn’t refuse.

I stepped onto the bridge and the portal closed behind me. My jaw dropped at the scene below. There was some kind of outdoor arena packed with spectators, and in the middle were about a dozen fighters dressed like post-apocalyptic survivors. The snow didn’t seem to bother them.

Their clothes appeared to be rejects from the Salvation Army. Layers of strips and tattered fabric wrapped around their arms and legs gave them added cover. And they were hell-bent on killing each other with medieval weapons. No, change that to magical weapons. Axes and daggers flew from person to person as though directed by invincible hands. The absence of sound as they body-slammed, kicked, threw, and stomped each other made the entire scene seem so surreal.

I smothered a scream, my sketchbook landing on the ground with a thud. Someone’s head just got hacked off, blood spewing every which way. My gag reflux kicked in. Someone rolled the head back to him, and the man picked it up and slapped it back onto his neck. He turned his head right and left as though removing kinks, then went back to fighting.

“Who are these people?” I asked.

“Souls from Corpse Strand,” the goddess said. “Nothing can kill them except fire. Each has a chance to prove himself or herself worthy to join my army. If they survive Ragnarok, they’ll stay in this realm as Immortals. A few lucky ones will join my household as guards.”

“And those unworthy?”

“Fodder for the fire giants. I like to give people a fighting chance, Celestia. Once they disappoint me, I don’t show mercy.”

Okay. That sounded too much like a warning. I didn’t respond, just continued to follow her like a lamb to the slaughter.

“I don’t like liars and weak people,” she continued. “Centuries ago, we’d get visitors from Midgard. Witches and Immortals. Once they got here, they would find a reason to stay. Some claimed their powers had waned while others lost them completely.” She stopped. “I’d give them an ultimatum. Go home or else.”

My stomach dropped. She knew about me. “Or else what?”

“Do you think Eirik will enjoy training with them?” she asked instead of answering my question. Then what she said registered.

“You expect Eirik to fight these people? That’s insane. Why?” I couldn’t mask my outrage.

“Because I can. Insane is believing that he can’t. That they are better than him. No one is better than my son.” She turned and smiled, but her eyes were not focused on me. “How nice of you to join us.”

I turned around and saw Eirik. How much had he heard? His face was pale. His mother might think he was invincible, but the fighters under the bridge were not ordinary either.

~*~

EIRIK

Celestia wore a stricken expression as she closed the gap between us. Mother had just threatened her. I pulled my arms around her. She was shaking.

Focusing on calming her, the panic I’d felt after finding her gone melted away and a weird calmness settled over me. I pulled her closer, my eyes meeting with Mother’s. She watched us with an expression that was partly annoyed and partly smug. I hoped my feelings were crystal clear too. She had no business threatening Celestia.

“Really, Mother? Is that how you treat guests in your hall?”

She studied Celestia, her expression hard to read. “I didn’t know she was one. Most visitors don’t go beyond the front hall. The lucky few who get to spend the night leave at first light.”

“Then we must do something around here to be more courteous to people. Father already started by extending Celestia an open invitation to stay as long as she wants until…”

Mother’s eyebrows lifted. “Yes?”

“Until
she
is ready to go home. And she is
my
guest, not yours.”

She chuckled. “I don’t recall giving you permission to invite anyone to my home.”

“I didn’t think I had to ask. This is my home, too.” A look I couldn’t explain flashed in her eyes. I would say it was approval, but then she was difficult to read sometimes.

“Then by all means let’s give your guest a tour of the hall before she leaves us,” she said smoothly. “It’s been centuries since we received an uninvited visitor from Midgard.”

Celestia stiffened and my arms tightened around her. How long had my mother known about Celestia? And why hadn’t she said anything?

“I got you, always,” I whispered to Celestia and she relaxed. My mother continued to watch us. “Somehow, I knew you’d find out the truth.”

“Nothing happens in my hall without my knowledge, Eirik. Remember that. Would you like to join the tour?” she added.

“Why not?”

I tucked Celestia to my side as we crossed the bridge and entered a larger foyer in the next building. There were no chairs or tables. Just a plain room with one ancient-looking door marked with runes.

“This is called the Veil,” she said, pointing at the door. “It leads to an Eternal Hall for souls,” my mother said. “The hall is large, and time and space have no meaning inside. The souls rest or relive their memories. Each souls can recreate as many places, scenes, and moments as they want.”

She pointed her wand at the door. Runes appeared in the air like tendrils of smoke. They floated to the door and it absorbed them. The runes on the door glowed so brightly Celestia and I shaded our eyes.

Birdsong and insect chirps reached us first before a scenic creek with an old man fishing appeared. A mongrel dog wagged its tail at his feet. To his right, a woman around his age was knitting and laughing. We didn’t eavesdrop on their conversation, but they seemed happy.

“Most souls don’t intrude on each other’s memories. Young Trudy visits often to get ideas for her paintings, but she knows to never enter a soul’s mind because there’s no coming back. You enter one and you’ll get bounced around. You could spend eternity in there and never realize it.”

She pointed her wand again and different runes appeared. The scene faded and laughter and Christmas music reached us before we saw a lavishly decorated tree. Three boys and two girls crowded around the table playing a game. Grown-ups sat in stuffed chairs, drinking eggnog. From their hairstyles and clothes, the memory was from the sixties.

“I can smell freshly baked cookies and hot apple cider,” Celestia whispered. She was no longer shaking.

“And eggnog,” I added, and we exchanged a grin.

We became voyeurs of people’s memories as they celebrated important events with their friends, families, or tribesmen. Some were at clubs or parties. Others preferred more private memories, eliciting a chuckle from my mother and a blush from Celestia.

“The moment the souls go through this door, they enter their homes and their thoughts, wishes, and memories come alive. If they want to go to sleep, their bedroom appears. They can relive weddings, their children’s graduations, family gatherings, over and over again. If they have regrets, they can change things to suit them. It’s all about their peace of mind.” She turned and stared pointedly at Celestia. “No one has ever left an Eternal Hall and made it to my hall. And no soul has ever left the Sorting Hall either.”

No wonder she’d known about Celestia. “How about those in the east wing?”

“I allow them to join me whenever I require their presence, but their situation is no different from these other souls.”

“What do the runes mean?” Celestia asked. “I noticed they were all different.”

Mother didn’t hide her surprise when she glanced at Celestia. I grinned. I’d known curiosity would loosen her tongue.

“Brave after all, little Witch,” Mother said, and I knew she was referencing a conversation she and Celestia must have had when I wasn’t around.

Pink tinged Celestia’s cheeks. “I’m sorry I ended up in your realm, ma’am. It wasn’t my intention.”

Mother’s eyes volleyed between Celestia and me, and lingered on the arm I had around her shoulder. A chuckle escaped her. “Somehow, I doubt it. The runes are the name and birthday of a soul down to the fraction of a second he or she was born. Do you have relatives in my halls, little Witch?”

“Grams,” Celestia said, smiling. “I mean, my grandmother. I never knew my grandfather.”

“Would you like to see her again?”

I wanted to warn Celestia not to be fooled by my mother’s friendly demeanor. She didn’t do people favors unless she wanted something.

“No,” Celestia said. “I’m happy she’s at peace. She led a colorful life and has happy memories to draw from.”

“That’s too bad. I’m the only one who can retrieve a soul from an Eternal Hall. I could have summoned her back and the two of you would have spent a little time together before you left for home.” She led the way back to the bridge. Celestia frowned as though actually considering my mother’s words.

“Don’t even think it,” I whispered to her. “She doesn’t do favors.”

Her eyes were on my mother, who was standing in the middle of the bridge with her guards, watching the fighters below. “Trudy can do it.”

“No. The fact that my mother volunteered that little bit of information so casually is enough to make me suspect something. She doesn’t make a move without a reason. Everything she’s done since I arrived here has been calculated. Do not trust her.”

“I don’t.”

“Good. I’m happy you didn’t mention the cave and being lured here. I want to know why the person brought you here to help me.”

“I’ve been thinking about that too and I think they are our answer.” Celestia pointed at the fighters below. “Your mother wants you to fight them, and the only thing that can stop them is fire. So you need fire.”

If only I could confide in her, but some secrets were better left alone. “I’ve got fire.”

She laughed. “I’m talking about
creating
fire.”

I couldn’t wait to test my fire-breathing abilities. “I can wing it.”

She rolled her eyes. “That’s pride talking. Those men down there won’t give you time to wing it. You need to master fire spells fast. We need a private room.”