Kelly woke up, sitting up in shock. The ceiling of the apartment was different. Not the peeling paint, but far more ornate. Designs were etched into a white stone.

  Marble? There was a lot of it. She could see fluted columns holding up the immense and heavy looking roof. The interior was clear, the sides just columns. The building sat on a rocky brown hill, the blue of the sea visible on three sides, the hill sloping down to a city on the fourth.

  “Welcome Kelly Brady,” a calm and strong female voice said from behind her.

  Kelly sighed, fighting back an urge to jump up and attack. She knew that voice.

  Freyja.

  Taking a calming breath, Kelly stood up, still not turning around. She resisted the urge to walk forward, starting walking down to the city. It would be useless, she’d end up back in the temple at some point. This was Freyja’s realm. It was all under the Dawnmother’s control. The Concept Of Life. Kelly wanted to walk away, to show defiance, but there were other ways she could do that. Other ways to show Freyja that the Concept of Life held no power over Kelly Brady.

  She turned, hands hanging at her side, as she looked at Freyja sitting on her throne.

  It was all marble, inlaid with gold, at the top of six wide steps, spreading out on three sides. Only the throne was at the top. And only Freyja was there.

  No one else was in the temple. Kelly was surprised there were no guards, attendants or worshippers.

  The Divine Being was beautiful, wearing a white dress, more of a greek style than nordic. Long blond hair hung down past her shoulders, most loose but some intricately braided. She wore a crown that looked to be made of gold, with a bright jewel shaped like the sun in the middle. One hand held a long golden spear.

  “It has been a long time since we talked,” Freyja said.

  The steps the throne sat on were about twenty, maybe thirty feet, from Kelly. She knew that Freyja wanted her to step closer, the Divine Being was raising her voice, but Kelly wouldn’t. Getting closer meant she’d have to look up at Freyja, craning her neck uncomfortably. Kelly was fine where she was.

  “A very long time,” Kelly said. “But I noticed you did a lot of speaking through your priestess.”

  “That is what High Priestesses are for,” Freyja said.

  “To speak for you? So you don’t have to speak to the little people?”

  Kelly inwardly smiled, seeing a flash of anger in Freyja’s eyes.

  “Not at all,” the Divine Being said, projecting the calm aura and demeanor.

  “Why am I here?”

  “So we could talk.”

  Kelly wondered if Freyja knew of Thor’s visit. The two Divine Beings were using the Bradys for their own purposes. Loch had written of his last encounter with Thor, explaining the Concept of the Storm’s warning about Freyja. A warning that had proven true. From her own encounter, Kelly knew what Thor wanted. The same thing Freyja wanted. They were just going about it two different ways.

  Kelly knew which way she preferred.

  She hated all of it, wishing the Divine Beings would go and bother other people. They were risking lives with their games, and of course they didn’t care. So it was up to Loch and Kelly to care.

  “What do we have to talk about? How your big plan was to take all those people and strand them in a small valley with very little food and protection from the winter so in a couple months, we’d all be begging you to save us when you decided to open that portal and take us away to wherever? Rome, right? And then you’d have a couple hundred eager new recruits for your grand army. Wasn’t that the plan?”

  Freyja was silent, one hand tightly gripping the marble arm of her throne, the other held tight to the spear, which shifted a little toward Kelly. She shifted her feet, trying not to be obvious, but ready to move if that spear was sent her way. The Divine Being visibly relaxed.

  “It is not wise to anger one such as I,” she said, her voice again calm. “Especially when it is I that granted your people safety.”

  Kelly laughed. She had tried to hold it in but couldn’t. Not any longer. It was a bitter sound.

  “Safety? Is that what you call it?”

  Kelly started walking forward, finger pointing at Freyja.

  Find this and other great novels on the author's preferred platform. Support original creators!

  “You lied to us from the very beginning. You didn’t care about us, just what we could do for you.”

  “I am a Divine Being,” Freyja said, leaning forward, eyes hard. “I grant you my power so that you can Advance in my name. So yes, it is about what you can do for me. That is the way it should be.”

  “No,” Kelly said, stopping, still far enough away that she didn’t have to look at too sharp an angle. She lowered her hand, shaking her head. “That is not how it should be. The strong help the weak to grow. They don’t do it for any other reason than because that is how it should be.”

  It was Freyja’s turn to laugh. Harsh and mocking.

  “Child, you are young. You do not know how life is in the wider Connected System.”

  “That’s right, I don’t. But how it is now doesn’t mean it has to be that way.”

  “You sound like your husband.”

  “Good,” Kelly said, smiling. “He’s a smart man.”

  She knew that Freyja hadn’t meant it as a compliment. But there was nothing the Divine Being could do that would make Kelly think less of Loch. Freyja was wasting her time.

  “You are both fools,” Freyja said.

  “Maybe,” Kelly said with a shrug. “We’ll see.”

  Freyja’s hand gripped the spear harder. The Divine Being visibly relaxed, taking a long drawn-out breath.

  “You are not listening to Senora or the other Elves,” Freyja began.

  “Nope,” Kelly said, interrupting.

  Kelly knew she was playing a dangerous game. She could feel the power that Freyja had, far more than Kelly herself or even Loch had. But Freyja was also limited in what she could do, how much of that power she could use. She wasn’t fearful, but Kelly knew she needed to reign her aggravation back. She still needed Freyja.

  “We are thankful for what you attempted to do,” Kelly said, continuing as she saw the hardening of Freyja’s eyes. “But the elves are not helpful, they do not truly understand, so we had to take matters into our own hands. Senora has never been friendly or caring about the needs of my people, just what her mission is.”

  “And is not that the most important?”

  “Not at the cost of the lives of my people,” Kelly said.

  “That is a good answer,” Freyja said, leaning back in the chair. “I knew I chose well.”

  Kelly knew that was a lie. Freyja was changing her tactics. Trying to intimidate hadn’t worked, so now she was going for the carrot.

  “Our people need to be taken care of,” Freyja said. “So they can be strong for when they are needed.”

  “Needed for what?”

  “For the coming war of course. They will join my armies as we reunite your world under my banner. Then we will push on to the Connected System.”

  Freyja wasn’t looking at Kelly but up at the ceiling, eyes alight as she envisioned the glory. Kelly didn’t see it that way and she didn’t like how fanatical Freyja looked.

  “And you will be at the forefront, leading the army,” Freyja said, looking back down at Kelly.

  “No, I’ll be where my family is,” Kelly said. “That was the deal.”

  “And they will be there with you,” Freyja continued.

  Somehow I doubt that, Kelly thought, but didn’t say out loud.

  ***

  Kelly sat up, looking around the room. She pulled the blanket tighter as she lay back down. The floor was cold, the sleeping bag and blankets under her barely any insulation. She shivered a bit, trying not to make too much noise and wake the others.

  A little light came through the open door, leading out into the hallway of the apartment building. The unit she was in, a one bedroom, was overloaded with people. She’d bunked down in the area near the door, the closest in case some trouble happened. Looking through the door, she could make out the sounds of the guards on the first floor as they moved and stomped their feet to keep warm.

  Where Freyja had chosen to camp them for the winter had one lucky thing going for it. They were in the middle of a city and most of the buildings had remained. There were more apartments than they had people, especially if they bundled up and shared spaces. That meant so many places close by to raid for blankets, mattresses, sleeping bags, pillows and clothing. They had found plenty to use to help keep out the cold.

  Food was still an issue, and would continue to be but at least they had shelter and access to water. The shelter was insulated as well. It kept out most of the cold, but it was far from warm.

  Still better than the tents in Freyja’s little valley.

  Kelly knew she’d have to be careful. That visit with Freyja was a warning. The Divine Being had been testing Kelly, trying to figure out if she was still loyal and if so, how loyal. Kelly didn’t think she had passed the test. With all the elves roaming around, Kelly knew she’d have to be careful.

  Just her. Freyja wouldn’t go after any of the others. If Kelly was eliminated, they would eventually fall in line. Or be given the choice before being eliminated.

  But Kelly was the threat.

  Turning to face the door, Kelly pulled the blankets tighter, trying to find a comfortable position with all the bulky clothes she was still wearing. It was going to be a long night.

  And a long winter.