I winced at the sight of myself. But the sight of Cade, broken and bleeding, tore my heart out of my chest. I shuddered and turned to him.
“I can hold that for a while. Long enough to get a head start.”
“Good.”
Footsteps sounded, running down the hall toward us.
“We need speed now, not stealth.” Magic swirled around Cade. He shifted into his wolf form and bent low.
I stashed my sword and shield in the ether and leapt onto his back, clinging to his fur. He raced out of the room, down a wide hall, and away from the oncoming footfalls.
I focused my magic on maintaining the illusion of our dead bodies hanging from the pikes. Hopefully they wouldn’t realize we weren’t there until they climbed up and tried to retrieve us.
I had no idea if it was working since I wasn’t there to see it, but I hoped with everything I had in me.
Mayhem flew at our side as I dug into my pocket for the compass stone. I pulled it out, and started giving Cade directions. His speed made up for any loss of stealth, and we made good time through the moving hallways of the creepy castle.
When we spilled out into a back courtyard, I was grateful to see that it was empty. A back gate was all that stood between us and freedom.
But it was as massive and sturdy as the front gate.
Damn it.
“How will we get out?” I muttered.
Mayhem shot forward, flying through the air. She flickered into her dragon form, an illusion that was really weird. Fire burst from her mouth, and she melted the gate.
Cade leapt through, his giant wolf form barely making it.
I wanted to whoop with victory, but restrained myself.
We raced across the jagged earth, following the compass stone as we ran. Wind tore at my hair as Cade sprinted along, his great strides eating up the ground. Mayhem flew alongside, zipping around rocks and shooting fire.
I turned around, searching the castle that grew smaller in the distance.
Hopefully my trick had worked. By the time they realized our bodies weren’t real, we’d be out of this realm. As long as we didn’t run straight into any dangers.
That was the risk with going as fast as we were, but we had to take it.
I clung to Cade, crouched low over his warm body as his muscles moved beneath me. Every part of me ached from my wounds. Honestly, I probably wouldn’t have been able to walk if he didn’t carry me. They were slowly healing from my innate power, but it was taking time. I wasn’t willing to waste what I had in case I needed it later.
Finally, we neared a gleaming black portal. The compass stone pointed right for it.
“The exit!” I shouted.
Cade leapt through it, Mayhem at our side.
We tumbled through space and rolled to a stop on one of the branches of Yggdrasil. Panting, I lay on my back, staring up at the sky and massive leaves.
Next to me, Cade shifted back into his human form, his magic gleaming around him.
“Nicely done,” he said.
“You got us out of there.”
“I’d give Mayhem the credit for that.”
The ghostly PugDragon zipped around the air, blowing fire as she did loop-de-loops.
“I think she absorbed some kind of shadowy elf dragon thing. Or its powers, at least.”
“That wouldn’t surprise me. The Pugs of Destruction have powerful magic.”
“Well, it helped.”
“And what do you think you are doing in my tree?” The voice came from behind, a strange, high-pitched sound.
I sat up and turned, not surprised to see that the voice came from a squirrel.
Except that it was giant. A pile of nuts glowed at his feet.
I struggled to rise, my whole body aching. “Um, hi.”
“Hi?” the squirrel demanded. “Is that how you greet the great Ratatoskr?”
His tail fluffed up behind him, a clear sign of offense.
“I’m sorry, your…” My mind raced. “Your Royal Rodentness.”
Ratatoskr nodded, his long teeth glinting in the light. “That’s better. Now I ask again, what are you doing in my tree?”
I didn’t mention that this was the world tree, technically belonging to the whole world. Cade, wisely, kept his mouth shut, too.
“We’re trying to get to the realm of the Valkyrie,” I said, suddenly realizing that I didn’t know how we’d get there. Last time, the raven had shown up and given us a ride. I looked up. Yggdrasil rose tall above us, so huge I couldn’t comprehend it. We couldn’t climb that. I looked back at the squirrel.
But he could.
And I’d bet money the scroll told me to get his help.
“Would you give us a ride up to the next realm?”
Ratatoskr frowned. “What’s in it for me?”
“What do you want?”
He tapped his chin with his paw. “Well, I deal in gossip, as you may know.”
Right. That’s where I’d heard his name before. Ratatoskr climbed up and down the world tree, passing slanderous gossip back and forth between Níeh?ggr at the bottom and the eagle at the top.
But the eagle had been at the bottom of the tree!
He was supposed to be at the top.
I grinned. “I might just have some juicy gossip for you.”
Ratatoskr’s eyes brightened. “Really? About what?” He shook his finger at me. “It had better be good, now.”
“Oh, it’ll blow your mind.”
“What is it?” He leaned forward, whiskers twitching.
“Have you been down to the bottom of the tree today?”
“Not in a week, no. It’s a long way.”
I grinned. “This morning, I saw Níeh?ggr and the eagle sitting together.”
The squirrel reared back. “You didn’t!”
“I did. The eagle didn’t want to be seen, though. She hopped back behind the snake when she saw me.”
“Impossible! The eagle never flies down. I pass the gossip down.”
“I know. You make them fight, right? Spreading tales between the two.”
“Not tales! The truth! Gossip that I believe to be true.”
Cade chuckled low in his throat. I tried not to laugh, myself. The squirrel was like an old busybody at church.
“Well, the eagle decided to fly down for herself today. I bet you haven’t seen her either.”
The truth glinted in his eyes. “Curses! I knew something was afoot.” He stomped his big back foot and wrung his paws together. This was definitely juicy gossip—Ratatoskr was eating this up. “I must go investigate! This requires a firsthand look.”
“Hang on!” I held out my hands. “You promised! You have to take us up the tree to the next realm.”
Ratatoskr scowled.
“You’re a gossip, Ratatoskr, but you have honor.”
He scowled deeper, his teeth more prominent.
“Take us, or I’ll convince Níeh?ggr to sue you for slander. That’s what the Icelandic poet Snorri Sturluson wrote about you, you know—that you spread slanderous gossip.”
“Sue me for slander? What’s that?”
“It’s really bad. They’ll take all your magical nuts.” I pointed to the little pile that glowed at his feet.
He gasped. “He wouldn’t!”
“He would. I’d help him. So keep your word, and take us up the tree. You’re fast. I bet a strong squirrel like you could be back down at the base of the tree to spy on Níeh?ggr and the eagle in no time.”
He puffed up his chest. “I could. And you’re right—my honor depends on it.”