“Okay, Pepper, training days are over. It’s time to hit the field.” Tore turned around. I forced my eyes upward before he caught me ogling.
“Why? I thought I had two more pounds to gain, and, like, a thousand more chickens to eat.” I was only half kidding. I’d seen the overflowing bags of individually packed, free-range, organic chicken breasts in the garage freezer. At least Mack took pity on my taste buds and occasionally wrapped said chicken in bacon. But I was also stalling—I wasn’t sure if I was ‘field ready.’
“You do have more muscle to gain, but we just got a tip from one of our contacts in Alfheim. Two night elves opened a portal in their Eternity Woods.” Tore ripped the paper out of his notebook and shoved it into his pocket. “Apparently, an atmospheric phenomenon resembling the northern lights lit up the woods, which signaled Alfheim’s warriors to the intruders’ location. One of the elves escaped, but they were able to kill the other. They searched the body after they eliminated the perp but didn’t find anything on him, which means whatever he was looking for could still be on Alfheim. We need to move fast; we may not get another chance like this.”
“You think he was looking for a piece of Gud Morder?” A piece of chicken lodged itself in my throat. I coughed as images of the jaw-breaking night elf from the complex danced through my brain. “What if the night elf wasn’t alone? What if we get there and we’re ambushed and I have to kill . . .”
“You’ll be fine, Allie.” Bodie patted my hand. “Like we’ve said, when it’s your life or theirs, you find you’re very willing to eliminate the threat.”
Maybe. But that didn’t mean I was ready to go to another realm and do all this crazy save-the-world stuff. Everything was becoming way too real, way too fast. I had grown comfortable with my guys and our safe house. And being alive.
“Besides, Mack, Bodie, and I will be with you. If there’s any killing to be done, we’ll take care of it. We’re not going to let anything happen to you.” Tore’s gaze bore into mine with an unnerving ferocity. I still couldn’t read his energy, but it was impossible not to pick up on his protective vibe. It was all kinds of hot.
We locked eyes for an endless beat, and my heart thudded as Tore slowly licked his bottom lip. Oh. My. God.
“You guys need a moment?” Bodie’s voice sent blood rushing to my cheeks. I’d forgotten he was there. When I broke eye contact with my intense protector, Bodie patted my shoulder. His eyes were crinkled with barely contained laughter.
Shut up, Bodie.
“Bodie, go to the complex, and pull weapons.” Tore ignored Bodie’s jive and tapped at the watch-like device on his wrist that I now knew was a communicator. “Get me a broadsword and my apatite blade. Pick out a blade and a dagger for Allie, and grab whatever you want for yourself. Mack will probably want—”
“My mace and my crossbow.” Mack charged into the kitchen, already dressed in the all black combat ensemble I’d been told to wear in the field. “My brothers called to let me know what they’d seen. I presume that’s why we’re weaponing up?”
“You presume correct.” Tore grimaced. “You guys remember the protection protocol we established, right?”
“Ja.” The back door opened, and Johann jogged into the kitchen. He tapped the device on his wrist. “I got your message, man. I’ll suit up and call Heimdall.”
“Excellent.” Tore pushed himself off the counter to stand at attention. “Johann, you’ll come as far as the drop site with us, and then you’re going to run communication. Mack, you know the realm better than we do. Your job is to scout for the piece of Gud Morder the night elf was looking for. Bodie and I will stay with Allie and protect her while she follows the energy trail to the weapon.”
“Follows the energy trail?” I blinked. “Will I be able to feel it?”
“It’s magically protected, so on your own, no.” Tore shook his head. “That’s what your armor’s for. It contains pieces of the same crystal that binds your weapon. They’ll call to each other, so you’ll know when it’s close. Your necklace is infused with energy from the same crystal as well, though it doesn’t contain any physical traces. Those are only in your armor and in Gud Morder.”
“My armor is going to talk to my weapon? Through crystals?” That was the most ridiculous thing I’d ever heard. Except for ‘Allie, you’re a demigod tasked with killing a demon and saving the world.’ Now that I thought about it, my life was full of a lot of ridiculous these days.
“It’s all energy, Allie,” Tore said. “Think about it. The crystal doesn’t want to be broken. Its power diminishes when it’s incomplete. There’s going to be a natural pull to its other half. Or, in this case, its other eighths.”
Bodie snickered beside me. “Other half. You sure you’re talking about a crystal, man?”
“Shut up, Bodie,” Tore and I snapped together.
Bodie held up his hands. “Touchy.”
“Go suit up, Allie. Gentlemen, get your gear, and meet me on the porch in five. Mack, did you say your brothers are aware of the situation?” Tore asked.
Mack nodded. “You want me to have them meet us at the drop site?”
“I do,” Tore confirmed. “It should be a simple extraction, but the night elves aren’t stupid. For all we know, we’re walking into a trap. If that’s the case, we’re going to need all the help we can get.”
****
My second trip on the Bifrost left me every bit as nauseated as my first. When we dropped into Mack’s home realm, my stomach lurched so violently, I feared I’d throw up a chicken breast—or fifteen—on Alfheim’s pristine pink flowers. Tore kept a soothing hand on my back as I doubled over, but thankfully my stomach controlled itself. When I looked up, an unnerving sight met my still spinning gaze.
“I’m delirious. There are five Macks.” I rubbed my eyes, but the number of lumberjacks did not diminish. Scattered around in a forest that looked like it had been lifted out of a nature magazine were five variations of my bearded protector. Each stood with his combat boots firmly planted in the sea of multicolored flowers. They stared at me, weapons in hand. “How dizzy am I?” I asked.
“These are my brothers,” a sixth Mack offered from beside me. “Elo, Jin, Dor, Han, and Sar. They know these woods inside and out, and if anything’s hiding in the forest, they’ll flush it out.”
I rubbed my eyes one more time for good measure, gave up, and nodded. “It’s, uh, nice to meet you guys.” I was never remembering their names in my Bifrost-addled state. They were, at least for the time being, going to have to be ‘the Macks.’ Or better yet, ‘the Mack Pack.’
One bearded brother returned my nod. He crossed an arm over his chest in what I assumed was a greeting. “The pleasure is ours. Someone in our village has firsthand information to share with us before we head out. His intel will help us better identify where we should go and how heavily armed we should be.”