Page 20 of Between Broomsticks and Beating Wings
“You have no clue where Apple is taking you, do you?”
I scanned Rayna’s hardened features, knowing Rune trusted her but not quite sure if I should do the same.
“No,” I said, though Rune had mentioned something about the mist, whatever that was.
Rayna closed her eyes for a moment before her pegasus pulled up into the sky and looped back around to fly back in the direction she came from.
“That’s just perfect.” Her grumble drifted to me as we shot in opposite directions, Apple flying farther and farther away from Rune’s home. I gripped her tighter when Tove let out an annoyed mew. I could feel him rustling around in the bag, and I used his presence to ground me when I was so far from said ground.
Stone buildings soared past me, all lit up from the inside. I could hear the whispers of the wind mix with faint music in the distance, the gush of moving water through river rock. I wished the sun was shining down upon this place so I could see Valhalla in all its glory, but as we flew deeper into Asgard and away from Odin's Hall, I noticed the moon doused the trees in glowing silver.
My breath caught in my throat at the thought of spending an eternity somewhere so beautiful, so serene. I suddenly understood why so many fought to get here, as if their mortal lives were nothing but a sacrifice for eternal glory—a mere stepping stone. Something twisted in me knowing I wouldn’t have come here after my death if Rune hadn’t bypassed Odin’s rules and broke her very own oaths. And for what? To tease me?
I wasn’t sure how this couldn’t all be some twisted trick put on by the Goddess of Death, as if my ancestral curse hadn’t been enough for her. But what had I done? Was this punishment for going to the market that day and leaving my family behind while they all had their final moments?
Having Tove whole, escaping the pressures of my village, and being able to see my eyes for the first time in my life was all made possible by leaving Midgard. Asgard had given me the things I dreamed of for years.
I had dreamt of this, hadn’t I?
I recounted the visions that had wormed their way through my mind, keeping me up and giving me a mugwort addiction in the name of uncovering its truth. Shining gold emerging from a star-lit sky. Black and white feathers raining down upon the ruby floor. By the end of the dream, I hadn’t had any senses, no eyes. I thought at the time that if I had no eyes, that must’ve meant I had no curse. I realized everything I’d seen in my vision was now my reality.
I was meant to be here upon Apple’s back, flying into the unknown mist. Tove was meant to be strapped to my back, and I was meant to see my own face without fear. If I knew anything, I knew this. No one was going to take my new reality away from me, even if it was all just a horrible trick. I would claim it, make it into something that served me instead of something that worked against me. My reality was my own, and no god, goddess, or strange valkyrie would have a say in it, not anymore.
CHAPTER TEN
INTO THE MIST
Rune
Kari screaming into the mirror was the last straw.
The second to last straw was Bodil admitting I couldn’t return the seeress to Midgard without being responsible for her death. That was when I knew there was no point asking Odin for his blessing to send Tove’s spirit back to Midgard, even if it was an incentive to lure Kari back to where she belonged. It didn’t matter now if she couldn’t return without twisted consequences.
I wouldn’t put her on the Allfather’s radar, nor would I admit to my mistakes—my broken oaths—if there was a risk he’d send her away despite the outcome.
Had I made a horrible mistake flying away with her that night?
No regret plagued me for slaying the mortal raiders, but maybe, just maybe, if I’d left Kari there, she would’ve been found by people in her village. Maybe she would’ve been saved. These were all “ifs” hinging on even more invisible circumstances. There was no point lamenting them, but what Icoulddo was ensure my mistakes didn’t cost the mortal her life now.
I rushed over to the pounding sound and swung open the door to my apartments just as Asta’s fist came slamming through the air once more. She glowered at me with unmatched distaste as she held herself back from smashing her knuckles into my undeserving cheek. I cared little for the frown twitching upon her un-aging face, but all I had to do was distract her long enough for Kari to get away unnoticed.
Apple was the fastest in her herd, so I assumed my task had already been completed. She would make it to the mountains, and it wouldn’t be long before Apple was back for me.
Asta had many questions for me about the screams, why I wasn’t at the feast, where Rayna was, and who knew what else. My ears grew weary after she’d asked her third question without leaving room for me to speak. At a certain point, I sighed, leaned into the doorframe, and asked her if she was done. It wasn’t long after that I shut the door on her and went barreling back toward my bedchamber.
I stuffed a bag full of items for both Kari and me, including that scroll she’d asked for. I wasn’t sure how much it would help her now, but I was willing to give anything a try.
A tingle under my skin told me Apple had almost arrived. Looking around the room I’d given forty years to, I patted the window pane as I leaned upon it. There was a chance I’d never see this place again, and I wish I could say that didn’t sting. I wish I could say leaving behind every gift Odin had given me for my service didn’t feel like I was erasing hundreds of years of hard work, all for one wild decision made on a drunken night.
Saving Kari’s life can’t end mine.
As I jumped out the window, trusting Apple would come swooping by, I swallowed my indecision. I would live with my actions, and Hel, I’d make the most of it.
I hit Apple’s back with a light ‘thud’, and as she darted away, I saw the glint of a tipped over bottle on the balcony below. SinceKari had arrived, I hadn’t been tempted to let mead wash away my bitterness. Since she’d arrived, I hadn’t stared at myself in a mirror, wondering who I’d become. Those two facts fueled me as I flew away from the only home I’d known since Odin brought me to his hall.
We flew and flew, and I could sense we were getting close when the air on my face grew sticky and thick. The mist had a warning barrier, an uncomfortable ring in its first few layers that warded off anyone who’d unintentionally wandered too close. For a moment, the humidity was so heavy on my lungs, the air felt as if it could drown me. The knowledge of what awaited us on the other side kept me going, and I wondered how Kari had fared. Apple wouldn’t have let her turn around regardless. She knew better than to fear the mist.
The air lightened until it felt crisp and clear once more, the mist parting to allow our entry. On the other side, I noticed several flickering fires in the distance that warned pegasuses of the impending mountain. They would collide with it if they didn’t make a swift turn to divethroughit.
