Page 81 of Thorulf
Caught in a freefall, they bit and clawed at each other, using everything they had. Tail spikes, sharp teeth, wings, and sizzling fire. Evil Celtic magic against good Celtic magic. Around and around, they spun, tumbling and fighting for all they were worth. In fact, they fought so ferociously Thorulf lost Loki’s Dagger when Evil landed an especially hard blow to his chest.
“I’ll get it.”Jade zipped after the blade when the wind shear caught it. Thor’s way of keeping it out of the purple dragon’s clutches when she broke free of Vicar and started gaining altitude again.
“We’ll go after the purple one,”Dagr said when he and Maya appeared on the horizon in all their Helheim glory. Leviathan and Destiny were right behind them.
Thorulf cursed when the black dragon split off from him, not all that far from the Stronghold. Ithadsensed this place earlier. Knew how important it really was. Roaring in fury and fear for his people, he whipped after the beast but feared the worst. Evil was damn fast, catapulting toward far too many villagers running for cover.
“The Stronghold’s protected like the Fortress and Realm, isn’t it?”Jade asked, just as worried.“It’s...”
She trailed off when she figured out what he just had.
Evil was using their connection, what they had discovered within the Stronghold's walls, to bypass its protection. To infiltrate and raze the place to the ground, including every man, woman, and child. Leviathan and Destiny were heading that way, too, but they wouldn’t make it in time.
“We can save them,”Jade vowed.“I know we can.”She snatched Loki’s Dagger out of the air seconds before Maya and Dagr roared Helheim fire at the purple dragon. When the enemy veered off to avoid their debilitating magic, Jade zinged in the opposite direction.“There’s a way, Thorulf.”
He knew she didn’t dare say much lest Evil overhear.
“Just remember I love you,”she said, then repeated,“love,”a few more times.“It can be distracting. Too distracting at a time like this. But it’s now or never.”
What did she mean? Because she was trying to tell him something beyond her loving him. He focused on what else she’d said. Let his godliness home in on the words that stood out.
Distracting.
Time.
Now.
She was going to distract Evil. Buy time. Right now.
As sure as he thought it, Jade struck a bargain with the enemy.
“Leave the villagers alone, and I’ll give you Loki’s Dagger,”she pleaded, nearly halting Thorulf midflight with her bold proposition.“And me.Me and the Dagger. Everything you need to stop this war in its tracks.”Then she appealed to its pride.“Everything you need to show all gods on both sides how powerful you really are.”
“How can I trust you?”Evil hissed, defiant. Yet Thorulf sensed its hesitation. Its curiosity and realism. After all, it had two Norse gods and two couples who had already Forged in Fire, making its life very difficult. So said the battering the purple dragon was taking from Maya and Dagr, not to mention the one the black dragon was about to face with four dragons on its tail.
“You can trust me because I know exactly what you’re capable of,”Jade said to Evil.“And I don’t want to see my family or Thorulf’s people suffer your wrath.”Then, to feed the ego.“Because they will. All of them. You’re too strong. Too much for any of us to ultimately defeat.”
Thorulf noticed the fighting had suddenly lessened all the way around. Maya and Dagr had eased up on the purple dragon, and Thor and Loki’s godly wrath seemed to have paused, waiting to see what happened next.
“I am very strong,”the enemy conceded, clearly pleased to hear her acknowledge such. It wasn’t a fool, though. Evil knew its true strength lay in manipulation rather than brute warfare in the sky. Feeding people’s fears rather than attacking so openly. And that made all the difference.“I accept your offer.”
While relieved, Thorulf still wasn’t sure what Jade had planned when the black dragon swung back and gained altitude, and the purple dragon soared lower. Evil was leaving its larger, physically stronger counterpart to fight if need be, under the impression it could down them all if Jade betrayed it somehow.
“Meet me on the mountain.”Jade headed for one of the taller peaks away from where people could be harmed.“Away from anyone that could get hurt.”
It said a lot about Evil’s take on Jade that it didn’t think she realized everyone would be hurt anyway by her doing this. That once Evil won, it would crush everything in its path.
It followed her to the mountaintop, and the three of them landed on a flat area visible to all.
“You do not need to be here,”the purple dragon sneered at him. Gone was the flirt. In its place, pure hatred.“You no longer have a part in this.”
“No,”Jade agreed.“And he needs to understand that.”She looked at Thorulf.“He needs to realize that this is for the best. I’m going and the war’s lost. But at least our people will be safe. Less lives will be lost.”
She stepped close to Thorulf but not too close, her gaze hard. Or so that’s what she wanted Evil to think. That she was ending things when, in fact, Thorulf saw something else entirely in her eyes. Complete and utter love. So much of it, he knew she was about to make a great sacrifice. All for the sake of love. He thought about that. The word love. She’d said it over and over again. That’s when it hit him and hit him hard.
He knew what she was going to do.
The only problem? He realized it one second too late.
A second that ended up changing everything.