© 2017 SilverStream22. All Rights Reserved.  

~

  Just don't give up
I'm workin' it out
Please don't give in
I won't let you down  

~  

We made the jump a few moments after I blacked out thanks to Hypnos. The portal seemed longer, almost stretched out. Thanatos grabbed my arm, trying to keep me towards him. The look on his face told me that something was very, very wrong. 

Before I could question him, a force tore us apart just as we entered Midgard's realm.

I rolled off to the side, my arm searing as it slid against the dirt road. 

I got up snapping my wings out to clear them from debris and dust. My arm was already healing, the skin grafting over itself in layers.

"Thanatos?" I called out, scanning the area around us. We were near the field again, a little ways off from the tree where Athena and I performed the ritual to summon the death god.

As if she knew I thought of her, my jacket pocket glowed slightly. I glanced in, pulling out Athena's notebook.

In red script, almost scribbled in a violent rush, were the words: BE AWARE OF YOUR SURROUNDINGS

I scanned the thick rolling fields of wheat, nothing particularly catching my eye. 

I called out Thanatos' name once more, and this time he showed up, blowing wheat from his mouth and brushing it from his clothes and hair. 

"Disgusting," he muttered, pulling at the persistent grain that clung onto his clothes.

"So we're good?" I stated, my wings reflecting my agitation. I really wanted to return back to Jasper and Draver.

Thanatos turned to me and all but gasped. His eyes glowed green with envy. "This some nice workmanship on your wings. Do you mind?" 

I noticed his hands gesturing out to touch them. I hesitated. "I'd rather you not. They just seem really sensitive right now. Anyways, what happened back there? In the jump?"

A flicker of annoyance appeared briefly in his eyes. "I'd rather not talk about it. Shall I walk you back?"

I didn't want to deny him twice, especially since he helped me gain my memories back. Instead I accepted his offer.

Thanatos dropped me off at the end of the street, still marveling at the intricacies of my wings. The white of my wings were almost translucent, with iridescent tints of blue and pink. The colors were a network spanning the length of my wings, and every time they stretch out to the wingspan, the colors would brighten vividly.

I tucked them away, shivering now that my back was bare. It felt more natural to have my wings out- free. 

"How do you feel?" Thanatos caught my arm before I could walk down to the cottage. 

I glanced at him, then at my arm. Channeling a current, I zapped his hand. 

The corners of his mouth twitched up into a barely there smile. "So you know the full extent of your powers?"

I bit the inside of my cheek. "Something like that. I feel different, yet the same."

He sighed, cupping the back of his neck. "Alright. I've done my part. The least you could do was tell me what you saw in your memories."

My blood boiled just thinking about it. "Well, first off Artemis murdered Jasper and Draver. All because they were out of hand, slipping from her control. They were her prized possessions, her-her guard dogs. And when they rebelled against her, she created a plague; the Black Plague - that wiped everyone out, not just them. She's the reason for the Hundred's Years War. They died as a byproduct of her insatiable need to keep them to herself."

Thanatos pulled at the collar of his armor, clearing his throat. "Yes. I knew that the plague was due to the gods, but I never knew it was because of Artemis. But why didn't I receive Jasper and Draver's souls if they died?"

I shook my head, still reeling over the shock of what Artemis did. "She kept them to her side, held onto their souls even when their body had disintegrated. And I sat with her for those years, waiting for her to release them so I could take them to Valhalla. But instead she refused to give them up without having an audience with the All Father. They broke the Godly Accords and met, with myself present. The All Father heard her out and decided to accept them as his own personal wolves, keeping them hidden in Midgard as one of Artemis' lycans. At the time I never knew that I was going with them- I thought I'd be staying with the All Father, hunting down Loki to get retribution for all the Valkyries he'd killed so we couldn't recruit anymore einherjar. But instead, he sent me off to be with them, just like he's doing with all the other Valkyries."

Thanatos wiped a hand down his face, suddenly looking years older. "I can't imagine...just wow. This is all so...great."

My muscles froze when he said that. 

"What did you say?" I asked cautiously, taking a step back.

Thanatos chuckled, his skin beginning to morph and shed, his whole figure blurring. "Thank you, Faye, for telling me everything that I needed to know."

To my complete horror, the man before me twisted a grin- not just anyone, a mischievous, malevolent grin.

"Loki," I choked out, stumbling back as the green eyed God of tricks gleamed at me. 

"Yes, indeed Faye." Loki stepped closer, his hand closing around my throat. 

I clawed at his hand, feeling my nails sharpen into talons as I shifted into a Valkyrie. "What did you do to Thanatos?" 

He tightened his grip ever so slightly, tilting my head backwards. "Nothing he didn't have coming to him. Quite pesky, he was."

My eye caught the materialization of black mist. Thanatos reforming before my very eyes. 

I kept my gaze locked firmly on Loki, noticing the greedy look increase exponentially when I gasped out louder for breath.

Just a few more seconds...

Black dots specked my vision before Thanatos lunged forward, his sword glinting like gunmetal as he pierced through Loki's shoulder.

Loki simply grinned, his body shimmering and shaking like a twitching television screen before he vanished into nothingness.

Thanatos snarled viciously, his eyes a pure silver, reminding me of Artemis.

"Are you okay?" he grimaced, sheathing his sword. 

I calmed myself down, touching my bruised neck with tender fingers. 

He swept his hair back as a gentle rain began before collapsing down onto the ground. I fell with him, breathing heavily as my lungs gasped for breath despite my sore neck.

"Fuck," he swore, slamming his fist down against the floor. "Hypnos betrayed us."

I coughed, the vibrations itching my throat. "Isn't he your brother? Why would he betray you?"

Thanatos smiled wryly. "Family among gods doesn't exactly ensure loyalty. I knew something was off when he exuded a lot of power, causing you and I to be off guard for a moment. That must've been the opportunity for Loki to sneak in and watch without me sensing his presence. What I didn't understand is why? What is Loki promising him?"

I didn't know how to answer, so we just sat there, looking at each other. 

"Are you okay?" he asked softly.

I nodded. My body was still quivering, bowing in fearful submission to the absolute power of Loki.

"I'm fine. I've never had a god attack me before." I laughed hysterically.

He got up once the rain began to beat down hard. "I'm sorry I couldn't get there fast enough. Loki had transported me to Jotunheim. Not a nice place to be. I was about to leave after a few days- but I thought I'd be too late."

I stood up as well, wringing out my wet locks. "A few days?"

"Time passes differently." he added. "Now let's get you back. I need to return to the Underworld and deal with Hypnos."

~

Thanatos dropped me off at the door, stepping down the stairs while vanishing midstep in a flurry of black mist.

I opened the door to see Jasper and Draver sitting on the edge of the bed, glaring at me.

"What were you doing with Thanatos in the Underworld?" Jasper asked quietly, a storm brewing behind his eyes.

"And why are there two other male scents on you?" Draver stood up.

I stepped back, seeing how angry they both became.

"I was out. With Thanatos. We went to the Underworld to get my wings back-"

"And the two other scents?"Jasper snapped, stepping closer to me.

My mouth ran dry. "Hypnos, god of sleep."

"Who is the other scent?" Draver growled, his eyes flashing yellow- the color of his wolf, Freki.

And suddenly, Jasper shivered, goosebumps rising on his skin before he opened his eyes, a similar burning gold. But something about their eyes were dangerous, almost older.

"You belong to us, don't you understand that Faye?" Draver's voice was strange- more animalistic and deeper.

This wasn't the twins I was speaking to, it was Geri and Freki personified. 

"And we don't appreciate someone laying their hands on you." Jasper whispered softly, his voice edged sharply.

I felt like I was walking across a tightrope. 

"So who was it?" Jasper repeated the question.

I grimaced, prepared for the onslaught of anger and hurt as I got ready to tell them. "Well, it wasn't a big issue, it was just-"

"LOKI!?" Draver reared back away from me before he leaned closer, pulling my hair to show my bruised neck. 

Jasper whiffed the air before growling low. "He hurt you, had his hand around your neck. I'd know that disgusting scent anywhere."

I flinched back when Jasper's hand reached to brush against my throat.

At the sight of my neck, both of their anger simmered beneath the surface, no longer boiling over.

"Come here, love." Draver muttered, grabbing my hand as he pulled me to the hot springs outside.

"I don't want to go." I insisted, yanking back. "I'll be fine just taking a shower."

Jasper nudged me further, "You're in no place to make demands, Faye."

I was too tired to fight them on the matter- simply seeing the bubbling stream and rising heat from the clear water made my bones into jelly.

Jasper stripped me down before doing the same. Draver was already in the water and guided me in. To my surprise, the air wasn't sexually charged, but rather more filled with troubled contentment.

Jasper massaged my head and shoulders, the only time he got near my neck was to cup water against it.

"Why did you leave?" Draver whispered softly, heartbroken. "Do you know how much you scared us?"

I frowned, confused. "I was only gone for an hour."

He shook his head. "You were gone for two weeks. Time passes differently, remember?"

My eyes widened. "Two weeks?"

Draver nodded, gently pressing into the knots in my hand. "And to see you return with the scent of three males, two unknown, was frightening to us. Especially since one of them was Loki, the one person trying to actually kill you."

"I'm sorry. I never meant to scare you. I never intended for you to find out. After all, this is my fight not yours."

But I guess that wasn't true anymore. It was their fight as well, one against their own creator, Artemis.

Jasper sighed low in my ear, pressing his cheek against mine from behind. "Please...refrain from doing that. I can't handle it if I lost you."

I sank against him, turning to nuzzle against his jaw. The deep rumble in his chest told me he appreciated the submissive gesture. "I'm sorry."

"By the way," Draver stated coolly. "You're not off the hook. Since you're hurt, we won't be yelling at you today. But tomorrow? Be prepared to face us. Because we're going to set some ground rules."

"Ground rules?" I asked cautiously, noticing the predatory gaze in his eyes.

He gripped my waist, detaching me from Jasper as he kissed the side of my throat. "Yes. Ground rules."

Jasper bit my ear hard enough to make me squirm. "And consequences for breaking them."