Wanderers 3: Garden of The Gods (The Wanderers) Read online

  Rafe swore loudly and vehemently. The black mass was absorbed back into his katana, and then Rafe changed it back into a tantō and sheathed it in his right boot.

  For a full minute, neither of us moved. I was breathing hard, my body shaking with an adrenaline rush that had flooded my system with the onset of a fight or flight response much greater than the one which had hit me during the battle. At least then, I’d had the fight to burn off the adrenaline, but now…

  Rafe’s shoulders were shaking and I walked, hesitantly toward him. I wrapped my arms around him from behind and felt for his mind. Shortly, I felt him opening up to me. He was much more upset than I was. He was going through his own fight or flight response, but while mine was from fear of Rafe’s safety, his was from pure rage. I’d never seen him so angry, not even after Laura’s death.

  As we meshed, I tried to soothe his emotions as he had so often soothed mine. I was unsure of the exact technique, but I tried to send him love and comfort. After a minute or two, he turned toward me. His arms embraced me and his cheek leaned into my cheek. There was dampness on his skin. We held the embrace for long minutes until our hearts were beating at a reasonable level. Then Rafe turned his head, and my lips met his. The kiss was warm and tender and contained none of our usual passion.

  Rafe pulled back, breaking the kiss and staring into my eyes. His brown eyes were moist, but then he blinked away the tears and gave me a weak smile. “I’m sorry, Tess. I guess I sort of lost it.”

  “I understand. I just didn’t know you blamed Loki for what he did. Do you really believe that you would have gotten back in time to save Laura if not for him?”

  His smile broke into a deep frown. He tried to pull back, but I held tight. He gave up without struggling against me and responded, “Maybe. I don’t know. Maybe the shade would still have possessed her even if Loki hadn’t delayed me. I–”

  He stopped suddenly. I could feel the change that was coming over him through our meshing.

  “Hell, I–I want it to be his fault. I want to have someone besides myself to blame for Laura’s death.”

  “But you don’t really think his delaying was deliberate, just to keep you away from Laura until the shade had her?” I asked.

  Rafe shook his head slowly. “No, if I thought that I would have tried to follow him through whatever portal he opened to escape. I think Beast could have tracked him for me.” He shook his head again. “No, I don’t think Loki is that evil. He’s a trickster. Someone who manipulates others for his own gain, but I don’t think he’s evil.”

  “If he comes back are you going to attack him again?” I asked as I noticed movement between our familiars and us. I kept my eyes on Rafe’s and waited for his response.

  He sighed deeply and shook his head. “No, that was not me. I have better control than that.”

  I pulled his face down to mine and kiss him softly.

  “That’s good to hear,” Loki said.

  Rafe’s body tensed against mine and for a moment, I thought I felt his rage returning. Then he pulled back from our kiss and dropped his arms from around me. I dropped mine and stepped back to give him room to turn to face the god.

  “Loki, what do you want?” Rafe said, his voice weary.

  Loki’s sword was sheathed, but he was standing far enough away to be out of range from a lunge by Rafe.

  Loki held up his hands, palm upwards. “I came to talk and to offer my sympathy for your loss. If I’d known about the shades, I would not have delayed you.”

  “If I didn’t believe that we wouldn’t be talking. What do you want?” Rafe asked again.

  Loki turned to study the two lines of burned corpses. “It appears you have more enemies than you knew.”

  Rafe walked forward, passing within touching distance of the god, but he continued on until he reached Beast. “Yes, this wasn’t another of your ‘tests,’ was it?”

  I followed Rafe, stopping beside Maia, I stroked the side of her head with one hand and watched Rafe and Loki.

  “No, I don’t have dealings with mortals; besides, you’ve already proven yourself to me. I learned what I needed to know.”

  “Good, what else can I do for you?” Rafe asked.

  “You know Rowle is opening a gateway in the next few days?”

  “No, not really. Verðandi has summoned us to Colorado, and we’re just about to leave, but I’m not sure what the job is,” Rafe said as he leaned nonchalantly against Beast’s side.

  “Verðandi really should give you more information. One might think she didn’t have your best interest in mind,” Loki said.

  “It’s the way things have always been. Did you come here to attempt to drive some wedge between Verðandi and me?”

  “No, nothing like that.” The god appeared to hesitate, and then he raised his hands to his hips. “I’ve decided to offer you assistance.”

  Rafe stared at him for a second and then laughed derisively. “You want to help us prevent Ragnarök?”

  “Are you hard of hearing? That is what I said.”

  “Why would you want to stop Ragnarök? I thought you Norse gods were all about preparing for it and couldn’t wait for the battle to be joined.”

  “Nothing could be further from the truth. No one welcomes the end times, and although the prophecy shall one day come to pass, most of us do not believe that Rowle will be able to begin it.”

  Rafe nodded thoughtfully and then asked, “How’s Baldur?”

  Loki froze for an instant but then smiled softly. “Odin’s favorite son is well. Why do you ask?”

  “Because Norse mythology says that one of the signs of the coming of Ragnarök is Baldur’s death, at your hands,” Rafe said coldly.

  “Nonsense, a misinterpretation of the prophecies. Baldur is to die at the hands of his brother, Hod.”

  “But you put him up to it,” Rafe countered.

  “Again, nonsense. The fools who wrote down the prophecy misread the original text, as written by Odin. I have no desire to harm my brother.”

  “So you say.”

  Loki groaned. “See here, Wanderer, do you want my help or not?”

  “Honest help I will not turn away, but if this is some game of yours, I will find a way to pay you back,” Rafe said, levelly.

  Behind me, a new voice said, “Don’t trust the trickster, Wanderer.”

  Frak! I jumped about a foot to the side and triggered my shield tat. Whirling around, I started to unsling my crossbow.

  “Hod, what brings you to Midgard?” Loki asked.

  The new person was dressed similarly to Loki, wearing more shiny leather armor, and heavy boots. A broadsword hung from the right side of his waist. Rather than an elaborate helmet, a silk scarf, embroidered with gold threads, covered his eyes like a blindfold. This man was larger than Loki by a couple of inches and maybe fifty pounds.

  He didn’t attempt to draw his sword, and I relaxed a hair. I left my crossbow hanging over my shoulder but didn’t drop my shield.

  “You think you could talk about me and I wouldn’t hear you? What are you up to this time Loki?”

  Loki grunted. “Damn both your and Heimdall’s hearing. Can’t I have a conversation without the two of you listening in?”

  “If you hadn’t mentioned my name, I wouldn’t have heard you. I ask you again, what are you up to?”

  “He’s offering his assistance in stopping Ragnarök,” Rafe said.

  Hod cocked his head to one side and then shook it sadly. “Loki is instrumental in causing Ragnarök. Why would he offer to help stop it?”

  “A good question,” Rafe said. “Loki, what’s your answer?”

  “Isn’t it obvious?” Loki asked.

  “Not from where I’m standing. I guess I should have studied more Norse mythology over the years. It’s something I thought I’d get around to, eventually, but now you two are here, and I guess it’s a little late,” Rafe said.

  “Don’t bother; most of the material written about Norse gods is in error
. Humans rarely relate what they’re told accurately,” Hod said. “But one of the few parts they got right was that Loki instigates Ragnarök.”

  While the gods talked, I slowly positioned myself behind Rafe so that if things got violent, I had his back covered with my shield. Sheesh, while meeting Loki had been amazing, having more of the Asgardians popping in unannounced was troubling. I was beginning to understand how Belgium felt sitting between France and Germany. The little guy in the middle always gets the worse of any disagreement between the powerful.

  “That may be what the prophecy states,” Loki said. “But I haven’t had anything to do with this rogue Wanderer and his attempts to start it. I think he’s interfering with the natural order of things. It’s not his place, and he needs to be stopped.”

  Rafe was shaking his head. “Okay, so Rowle is starting things without you. Does that mean he can’t start Ragnarök?”

  “No,” Hod said. “What he’s doing can lead to Ragnarök. If Loki decides Rowle has altered the balance between the gods and the giants and the giants have a chance to overrun Asgard, this may still be the beginning of Ragnarök.”

  Loki laughed long and hard. The rest of us waited. Me, I wasn’t going to interrupt anything between the Asgardians, but I don’t know why Rafe and Hod let him go on so long. Maybe it was because the laughter seemed so out of place in a conversation about the end of the world.

  Loki finally got control of himself. He wiped at his eyes with the back of a leather-clad hand and then placed his fist on his hips in a Superman pose. “Hah! Hod, you old fool. What makes you so gullible? You should know there is no advantage in my destroying Asgard. What would I gain?”

  Rafe spoke without giving Hod a chance to answer, “Rowle says that the others, including Asgardians, want access to Earth again. That the other races are tired of being banished and want to reclaim lands they originally held.”

  “Nonsense,” Loki said with an air of finality.

  Hod crossed his arms and nodded. “There could be some truth in what Rowle has said. Not in most Asgardians, we’re happy with the way things are, but some of the other pantheons are not as happy. Having access to Earth would give some a chance to regain their followers.”

  “Say what now?” Rafe asked.

  The two gods stared at each other without answering. I was trying to decide if Hod could see through that ornate blindfold. He certainly didn’t seem handicapped by it.

  After a minute or two, Loki nodded. “Hod has a point. Asgardians have experienced a resurgence of followers over the last fifty years. The other pantheons are consequently weaker in relation to Asgard.”

  What? I was getting confused, hah, as if I hadn’t been confused ever since Hod showed up out of nowhere. But this talk of multiple pantheons and followers was beyond me.

  “You’ve developed more followers?” Rafe said. “Well, bully for you. Then why would you want to see Ragnarök?”

  “Exactly my argument,” Loki said.

  “Excuse me,” I interjected, tired of being lost in the conversation. All three turned to stare at me. Sheesh, I hadn’t wanted to become the center of attention. “Could you please explain what you’re talking about? I don’t understand most of what you’ve said.”

  “Lady,” Hod said. “Loki is referring to the resurgence of belief in the Norse pantheon in the latter half of your 20th century. The various pantheons strength comes from how many followers they have on Earth. It’s a prestige thing.”

  “And humans are worshipping the Norse gods more than the others?” I asked.

  “It doesn’t have to be true worship,” Loki said. “Just talking or writing more about us gives us an advantage over those that are ignored.”

  “Even Loki has garnered much respect of late. A century ago he was thought of little more than a fool, now he’s gained nearly as many followers as Thor and Odin,” Hod said.

  “I don’t get it,” Rafe said. “What’s behind this resurgence?”

  I finally caught up with what they were talking about. I slapped my forehead with one palm. “Of course.”

  Rafe stared at me. “Of course?” he questioned.

  “Yes, don’t you go to the movies?” I asked.

  “Sometimes, not too often,” Rafe said.

  “Hod said that just writing about the gods give them more prestige. The Norse gods have been the center of a bunch of comic books and movies. Recently their movies have been huge productions with millions of people seeing them.”

  “Exactly,” Hod said. “Although no one in Asgard can figure out why Loki has been figuring in so many of these movies.”

  Loki laughed again. “That’s because my fellow Asgardians don’t have a publicist.”

  “A what?” Hod asked.

  “You have a publicist?” I asked, confused since he just claimed to not have dealings with humans.

  Loki gave me a wink and a smile. “Did you think anyone would have that much screen time without a good publicist?”

  “What is a publicist?” Hod demanded, his voice actually hurting my ears.

  “It’s someone who promotes your work. It’s a celebrity thing among humans. The really good ones can get their clients much larger parts in movies,” I said.

  “But Loki hasn’t been in any movies,” Hod said. “Or have you?”

  Loki shook his head and grinned. “That’s the beauty of a publicist. I don’t need to be personally involved; I just need to make sure the actors playing me have a juicy role in the plots. It’s taken decades. I had to start with comic book writers. A little schmoozing at the right time, cocktail party invites to certain editors, and then after decades of work, I finally got the editors and writers at the same parties as the movie directors and producers. Like they say down here, Rome wasn’t built in a day.”

  “You’ve sunken yourself to their level just to increase your fame and prestige?” Hod asked.

  Loki gave me another wink and smiled at his fellow Asgardian. “There’s nothing like success.”

  “How distasteful,” Hod said.

  “Okay, so you’ve helped yourself in Hollywood,” Rafe said. “I have no problem with a man, or a god, having a publicist, but how does that prove you’re not in league with Rowle?”

  “Seriously?” Loki asked, his voice betraying incredulity. “After decades of work to improve my position among the Asgardians you think I would destroy all that I’ve accomplished?”

  “Well–”

  “Oh for Verðandi’s sake!” Loki exclaimed. “Wanderer, you would look a gift horse in the mouth.”

  “TANSTAAFL,” Rafe said, softly.

  “What?”

  “There ain’t no such thing as a free lunch,” Rafe explained. “It means everything costs, even if the costs are hidden. What does your help cost me, Loki?”

  “Costs? Why nothing more than your friendship…and maybe someday you’ll be able to do me a favor.”

  “What kind of favor?” Rafe asked.

  “Nothing that would compromise your standards,” Loki said.

  Hod harrumphed loudly.

  Loki shot him a glare.

  “I could not force you to do anything that you didn’t want to,” Loki added. “Whatever I ask of you, you may always refuse.”

  Rafe seemed to consider it. After a few seconds, he nodded. “All right, Loki. I’ll accept your offer of assistance, even if I don’t know what form it may take.”

  “Be careful of making deals with Loki,” Hod stated.

  “He’s made up his mind, Hod. You can leave us in peace,” Loki said.

  Hod frowned, but a second later, a portal opened behind him. He stepped through, out of sight, and the portal closed behind him.

  Loki dipped two fingers into a pocket of his leather armor and took out something. I stepped closer to see when he held it out to Rafe. It was a tiny wood figure.

  Rafe took it and turned it over in his hand. “What’s this for?”

  “When you need my assistance, break it. I’ll com
e immediately,” Loki said.

  “That’s it? You’ll show up and help me?” Rafe asked.

  “My help is no small thing,” Loki said. “My magic can make the difference between success for you and Ragnarök being instigated by Rowle.”

  Rafe nodded and tucked the small charm into a pocket.

  “All right, Loki. Thanks, I guess,” Rafe said.

  Loki laughed again. “Don’t be so glum, Wanderer. With my help, you will be known throughout the worlds as the greatest Wanderer to ever stride the Earth.”

  Loki vanished.

  I looked around, making sure a third god hadn’t shown up to confuse our lives. When I didn’t see anyone, I dropped my shield and walked back to Maia. I stroked the side of her head as I admired the beautiful creature.

  “Wow! You are gorgeous,” I said.

  “Ah, thank you. You are pretty also,” Maia responded.

  “Thank you. I wasn’t fishing for compliments. I’ve never seen a hippogriff before, and I had no idea how magnificent you are.”

  “Well, we are a great breed. Some more so than others,” Maia said.

  “Okay, there’ll be time for getting acquainted later. Right now, we should get moving,” Rafe said. “Beast, change please.”

  Beast began shifting back into his Harley form.

  “Maia, can you change back into my Harley?”

  “Certainly, is that your wish?”

  “Yes, please.”

  A few seconds later, rather than having my hand on the neck of a beautiful hippogriff, I was holding the left handlebar of my Harley. It was cool, but it wasn’t a hippogriff. “Ah, Maia, can you still hear me?”

  “Yes, quite well.”

  I had figured she would be able to, I mean, what good would it do to change if she couldn’t hear me once she changed?

  I threw a leg over the seat and got comfortable. Rafe was already on Beast and the Harley’s engine roared to life.

  “Are we in a hurry?” I asked.