Page 158 of Alien God

Torrance agreed, and together we led the others into the kitchen. The women found places to sit and stand while Aiko flitted about, looking pleased beyond measure to have so many people to feed. She passed mugs of sweetened milk and slices of bread out like it was the most exciting thing she’d ever done.

“I’m so glad you’re alright,” Min-Ji said, leaning against the counter beside my wife as I wrapped my arm around Torrance’s shoulders. “Now we just need to figure out what to do about Suvi and Marta.”

Torrance frowned.

“When I saw they weren’t here, I’d assumed the worst and that... that they hadn’t made it, the way I wouldn’t have made it without Wylfrael. What happened?”

I hadn’t had a chance yet to tell her of what had happened with Sceadulyr – the tearful reunion had taken precedence over all else.

“I believe Suvi is the human Skalla took,” I cut in. “Sceadulyr found his mate among this group – Marta, I assume – and took her back to the Shadowlands.”

“And you didn’t stop him?” Torrance asked, her eyes widening.

“She brought back his star map. She is his mate. I had no right to intervene.”

“But he just took her!” Torrance snapped, and the other women nodded vigorously, in agreement with her and unable to understand anything I said. “We have to get her back!”

“My priority in that moment was to keep the rest of the women safe,” I responded. “Engaging Sceadulyr in battle would not have accomplished that. He had not opened a sky door at that point, and he had more power. I likely would have died and left everyone at his mercy.”

“At his mercy. Like he has much of that,” she scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest, over the place I knew her scar lingered. “He only helped me to get access to your star map. He would have let me die!”

“Sceadulyr is many things, but he would not let harm come to his own mate,” I asserted. “She will be safe in the Shadowlands. Besides, beloved, she will starburn, if not now, then soon. And when that time comes, she will need him.”

“I still don’t like this,” she muttered. “We all should stick together.”

“I can promise to visit the Shadowlands to check on them, if that would make you happy,” I said, hating how upset she was by this. “But I cannot take her away from him. He would fight me, and now that he has a star map, he would follow me. No other stone sky god would support me in this endeavour, either, so he could easily rally allies to his cause to destroy me and this castle, putting all of us at risk.”

I’d almost killed Sceadulyr merely for dancing Torrance out of the room at the gathering. Stealing another stone sky god’s bride from his world entirely was cause for death.

“Well, what about Suvi? Surely this can’t also apply to her! What if Skalla hurt her?!”

“Man, it’s hard to follow what you guys are saying only understanding one of you,” Min-Ji lamented. “What’s he saying, Tor?”

Torrance sighed tightly, no doubt trying to figure out how to explain nuances of stone sky culture she only just was beginning to understand herself.

“We can’t rescue Marta,” she said. “There’s a lot to unpack, but basically, she’s that other god, Sceadulyr’s, destined mate. If Wylf tried to take her back, he’d probably die, and maybe even all of us, too, in the ensuing battle. But he’s promised to go check on them periodically to make sure Marta is alright. He says that Sceadulyr wouldn’t hurt her.”

Groans and cries of dismay went through the group. They disliked it as much as Torrance did, but there was little to be done.

“So, what were you saying about Suvi, then?” Min-Ji asked. “We can’t rescue her either?”

“If Skalla was still mate-mad, and he hurt her with his full strength, there will be nothing left to rescue,” I said grimly. Torrance shot me a look that my webbing could not translate but that I knew was something along the lines of, you are not helping.

But I wanted to. I wanted so badly to. I wanted to do anything for Torrance, and for her friends, if it would make her happy.

“I can go check on them, too, assuming they are still alive,” I offered. “I cannot know their location for sure, but if they are on Bohnebregg, I can at least go there and see what has become of them.”

“But... without the council’s power...”

“Yes. I know.”

Without the council’s power, I’d likely die facing a berserker Skalla if he hadn’t already died while killing his own mate.

“I don’t want that,” Torrance stammered. “I don’t want you to fight him if it means you might die!”

I brushed my fingers along her cheekbone, and she closed her sad eyes.

“I can try to avoid battle with him, if he is even there. I can simply try to locate Suvi and see if she is alive, then leave.”

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