Fatal Ties: An Urban Fantasy Novel (The Lillim Callina Chronicles Book 7) Read online

  My blast of lightning instantly melted the frost clinging to his body, and as it did, crimson electricity leapt across the chains wrapped around the giant’s body because it turns out that wearing chain was a pretty poor choice of apparel when it came to fighting girls who controlled lightning. Just saying.

  Hrym staggered back, his muscles seizing as I pulled enough strength from Set to practically warp the blade. My wakazashi blazed like a molten torch in my hand as I leapt into the air once more. I came down with both feet on the giant’s chest, using all my momentum to drive my swords straight through his throat.

  Blood splattered across my face as Hrym reached up, trying to grab me while tottering backward. Before he could wrap his giant mitts around me and toss me across the deck, I tore my twin blades free in a sideways slash that revealed his insides to the frosty air. A blast of bloody steam hit me in the face as I kicked off the giant, throwing myself backward just before his hands swiped through the frosty air.

  Hrym’s convulsing body collapsed into a slowly spreading pool of crimson as I landed lightly on the deck of Naglfar. I had half a second to congratulate myself on a job well done before the entire ship erupted into ice-blue flames that danced across the deck, spreading outward from the frost giant’s body like I’d just set off the world’s worst failsafe.

  “Connor?” I asked, turning toward him as the bubble of darkness surrounding us exploded. His power hit me like a shotgun blast, perforating my soul with darkness before crawling across my flesh and worming inside me. I screamed, flailing wildly as Connor reached out toward me, black fire blazing in his eyes.

  “Lillim!” he cried, and as his fingers touched mine, the ship listed violently sideways, sending me tumbling over the side and down into the depths below.

  7

  As the ocean’s cold embrace pulled me beneath the churning waves, I reached out in one last desperate effort to grab onto something. My fingers slipped through the frothy water as a tsunami slammed into me, throwing me into a topsy turvy spin. My lungs threatened to explode as I frantically kicked my legs in an effort to hit the surface.

  My vision darkened with each passing second, but air was only a few feet away. Beyond it, I could see the hazy, burning outline of the ship, but thankfully, I couldn’t hear the screams of the flaming Vikings who threw themselves overboard. Instead, the sound of them hitting the ocean like cannonballs erupted in my ears like depth charges.

  Just as my fingers broke free of the surging waves, something slimy wrapped around my ankle and jerked me violently downward. My mouth opened in a wordless cry of rage and terror as I swung myself around, swinging Set with enough force for the crimson blade to boil the water around it.

  Unfortunately, my blade passed through murky water, easily avoided by the lady gripping my ankle with one golden-nailed hand. Her skin shone like alabaster, and as she set her golden eyes upon me, I realized she was clad in a fisherman’s net and little else, so she sort of looked like a Victoria’s Secret model letting it all hang out. Then again, with a body like that, I guess she had nothing to be ashamed about.

  “I am Idun,” she said and her voice pounded against my brain like the raging surf above. “And I thank you, Lillim Callina. You have given so many souls to me.” Her lips quirked into a cruel smile as the net around her began to writhe like an octopus. “Your offering pleases me.”

  A whirlpool of foam and bubbles exploded out, snatching up every last Viking and drawing them toward her. As it happened, their bodies melted away until they were little more than black pearls bobbing in the surrounding water. There were so many that after just a second or two, she was obscured from my view by them.

  As she dragged me down into the murky depths, I’d like to say I struggled mightily, but it’d have been a lie. I fought, sure, but everything around me was slowing down, falling away under a lack of air. Any minute now I was going to collapse, and once that happened, my mind would shatter. I’d hallucinate I was on the surface and gulp down a lungful of sea water. Then I’d die as the saltwater filled my throat and lungs, which was unfortunate because I really wanted to die in my sleep surrounded by a near infinite amount of great grandchildren.

  One sea-green eyebrow arched curiously up as my last gasp of breath exploded from my lips in a burst of bubbles. “What is going on with you, Dioscuri?” she asked, and her words were laced with concern, and then, like magic, a blush spread across her cheeks. “You cannot breathe. How silly of me to forget.” She shook her head, and her sea-green hair whipped around us, stirring up a whirlpool of water.

  A small chuckle escaped her lips as she shook her head like she couldn’t believe she’d forgotten people needed air to survive. The sound of it pushed the water out from beyond the whirlpool, so before I could so much as glare at her, I found myself suspended in the air by her grip, which, of course caused me to immediately collapse against the side of said whirlpool. It was weirdly solid, and as I gulped in a much needed breath of air, I realized the surging wall of swirling water behind me sort of felt like having your back against a million Jacuzzi jets. If it hadn’t been colder than heck, I’d have enjoyed it.

  “Thanks,” I wheezed as Idun continued to carry me downward. We were so deep now, I couldn’t even see the surface anymore. It concerned me, but not as much as what she wanted me for. I wasn’t sure who Idun was, nor did I know why she had rescued me, but I damned sure wanted to find out. You know, before she ate me or something.

  Then again, once I got back to the surface, I’d have to deal with whatever was going on with Naglfar. Connor would be up there, and while I wasn’t sure what was going on with him or the zombie Vikings, I was content to ignore the whole thing for a few seconds. I had Set back, after all. Now I just needed to find Thes and kick some Ragnarok ass. Still, I had to get away from Idun first, and something told me, that wasn’t going to happen until she’d said her piece. That’s cool. I wasn’t a good listener by any stretch of the imagination, but I was really good at pretending to be a good listener.

  “Don’t mention it,” Idun replied as her feet touched down on the silty bottom of the ocean. I had no idea how deep we were, but since we’d been over the open ocean, I was guessing it was several thousand feet. I should have been crushed by the pressure like a tin can under a boot, but I hadn’t been, and I was willing to bet that was because of Idun. Well, at least she’d remembered that part about people. I didn’t want to think about what would have happened otherwise.

  “Okay,” I replied, shaking my head as I tested the ground beneath my feet. It was spongy, and I had half a mind to pocket a handful of it just to show I’d been at the bottom of the ocean. I didn’t though. Once I got topside, it’d just look like mud, and the idea of trying to prove myself with a handful of mud seemed sort of silly. “Why have you saved me?”

  “I want you to stop Ragnarok.” She followed her words with a nervous giggle. “Can you do that for me?”

  “I’ll try,” I said because what else could I say? It seemed like everyone expected me to lay the smackdown on Ragnarok, and I was nothing if not the People’s Champion. “I was sort of going to try to save the world anyway. I kind of like the place. All my stuff is here and all that jazz.”

  “You either do or do not. There is no try.” She stared hard at me as she spoke, and I could have sworn I saw gold flames flicker in her eyes. “I do not have time for those who would try. Only for those who would do.” The whirlpool surrounding us constricted, pressing me toward her. “Am I being unclear?”

  “Look, Yoda. I don’t know if you know what Ragnarok entails, but it isn’t a freaking picnic.” I shook my head, causing my wet hair to swing around with unexpected weight. It was way longer than I was used to, but I hadn’t bothered to cut it. Silly me.

  “I am aware of what Ragnarok entails,” she replied, holding out one white as snow hand. The water surrounding us surged around her hand before falling away to reveal a golden apple that glimmered like the hopes and dreams of the whole freaking pl
anet. Seriously. If Goku had that thing, he wouldn’t have needed all the people to help him Genkidama the crap out of Buu.

  “Um, that’s pretty,” I said, declaring my ability to state the obvious to Idun. Instead of mocking me, an amused smile played across her lips.

  “It should be,” she replied, holding the apple out to me. “Eat it.”

  “Wait a second,” I said, holding my hands up in front of me. It was probably less disarming than I’d meant it to be since I was still gripping my swords, but if it bothered her, she didn’t show it. “There are a whole mess of stories about bad things happening to people who eat apples from strangers.”

  Her laughter seemed to fill the space between us with sunshine and bunny rabbits. “That is an excellent point, Lillim. However, you’re missing one teensy, weensy fact.” Her perfect teeth flashed in the light of the apple.

  “What’s that?” I asked, hoping she wasn’t trying to fatten me up before eating me. Granted, it didn’t seem likely, but at the same time, I was trapped with her on the bottom of the sea, and I didn’t want to think about what she’d do if she got peckish.

  “Those stories are not about my apples.” She held it out to me again. “My apples are what keep the Norse gods of the twin courts of Aesir and Vanir immortal, lively, and able to kick the crap out of giants.” She waggled the golden apple in front of my face. It glimmered tantalizingly, and like some kind of Pavlovian response, my mouth began to water.

  “You’re giving me immortality?” I asked, pulling my eyes from the magic apple and fixing her in my sights. I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. I mean, okay, I wanted to live forever, but at the same time, I wasn’t sure I could handle immortality. That shit was crazy. I mean, imagine being immortal. You’d be around after this world stops spinning. What the heck would you do then? Sit outside the gates of Heaven and cry? Screw that noise.

  “No,” she giggled. “You are not a god or a giant and thus will not gain immortality.” She shrugged. “Even if you did, my apples only work for a few years at a time, then you’d have to eat more.” She pushed it into my hands. “But it will restore your strength. Bring you back to the state before Jormungand did what he did.” Her face twisted into a sneer. “I’m glad you killed him, Lillim. Take this as payment.”

  “Well, when you put it like that, sign me up.” I stuck my twin blades into the sheathes at my waist. Yes, I’d brought one for Set, I’d set out to get him after all and failing to prepare was preparing to fail.

  I took the apple from her outstretched hand. Just touching the enchanted fruit made my skin crawl with energy. I almost couldn’t imagine eating it. Whatever this thing was made of, it was definitely some next level stuff.

  “I’m glad you are pleased.” As she said the words, the watery cage around us began to rise, carrying us both upward. It was weird because the water beneath my feet felt strangely solid, and it made me wonder just how powerful this sea-witch was. “Now eat and be strong.”

  I took a bite of the apple, and it was like biting into ecstasy. I mean, I’d had things similar before, but compared to this, those things were the difference between putting squeeze cheese on a cracker while watching reality television and having French Brie on the Eiffel tower on a cool summer’s night.

  Power filled every inch of my body in a way oddly similar to when I’d dumped Red Bull in my coffee, only without the shakes and loopiness. No, this was better than everything ever, and as I turned my gaze upon the goddess, I realized I could see golden pulses of magic rippling off my skin in shimmering sheets. I blinked, trying to dismiss it, but I couldn’t. I was glowing, radiating power.

  My swords throbbed in their sheathes, and the satisfied coo of a trio of gods filled my mind. Kittens with cream. And I’d had only a single bite. That was scary. I mean, okay, it was awesome, but what would happen if I finished the apple? I’d be like a god. She said she’d restored my power, but I could already tell she’d lied. I was way stronger than I had been before. Way stronger.

  “Whoa,” I said, tucking the rest of the apple into my pocket for later.

  “So,” she said, grinning at me. “How do you like dem apples?”

  A smile I couldn’t help stretched across my face, and as it did, I realized I genuinely liked her. I mean, most things like her hadn’t even heard of a movie, and she’d quoted two in the span of as many minutes.

  “Thank you, Ma’am. Can I have another?” I asked before I could stop myself.

  “Unfortunately, no.” She shook her head as we broke the surface. “This is where I must say goodbye. Good luck.”

  “Oh, crap,” I said as the whirlpool surrounding us vanished into the frothy sea, taking Idun along with it and leaving me in the churning waves.

  As I glanced around, trying to figure out what to do, I couldn’t break my gaze from Naglfar. The ship was still burning, but that wasn’t the most interesting thing. No, the most interesting thing was Connor. He floated in the air above the ship, one hand outstretched before it. Okay, that doesn’t sound that interesting, I’ll admit, but the torrent of Viking souls getting sucked into him was.

  He turned toward me, and I sucked in a breath. The torrent of souls flowing into him stopped at once, and the blackened horizon lightened ten shades of gray. Then he came toward me, and the only thing I wanted was to not have seen the last fifteen or so seconds because then I might be able to pretend I wasn’t terrified of him. Unfortunately, I had, and as sheer horror wrapped its slimy tentacles around me, I knew one thing to be certain.

  Connor scared the crap out of me, and I killed things that scared the crap out of me.

  8

  “So are we not going to talk about what the frig just happened?” I asked, trying to twist so I could look at Connor as we rocketed across the horizon toward destination unknown. Okay, maybe that wasn’t quite true. I mean, I was relatively sure Connor knew where he was going, but I was still clueless.

  Connor’s power undulated all around me as the wind whipped at my face, chilling me despite his magic being wrapped around us like a shield. Then again, maybe his dark power was the cause of the shivers racking my body. Every second was like huddling in a dark closet hoping the monsters wouldn’t get me. They wouldn’t because my job was to ruin the days of said monsters, but yeah… it wasn’t fun. Not by a frigging long shot.

  “You want to talk about how you dropped a frost giant like he was the fat girl at prom?” Connor asked, glancing down at me and fixing me with a curious gaze. “I mean, we can because it was badass, but I was there.” He shrugged, and I got the distinct impression he was trying to change the subject. “It didn’t bother me to see you going Xena Warrior Princess on his ass if that’s what you’re thinking.” A grin cracked across his lips. “It was kind of hot, actually.”

  I resisted the urge to slug him in his stupid, chauvinistic face. He thought I was worried about his feelings? Seriously? Did he even know me? As I had that thought, I realized he didn’t really know me. Not even a little. We’d spent a miniscule amount of time together, and most of that had been with me playing normal. He had no idea how my twisted little mind worked.

  “No, you idiot,” I scoffed, my hands tightening into fists I had to consciously keep from pummeling him with. “I mean, holy mother of frig, man. You just tried to absorb a ship full of people with your power over darkness.”

  Connor’s face fell like an anvil in a Wile E. Coyote cartoon. “Oh.” There was a lot of emotion in that word. Anger, betrayal, fear, but mostly? Mostly, there was sadness. “So you’ve figured it out then.”

  “Figured it out?” I asked, repeating him like a dumbass. “Figured out that you’re Nanashi and are destined to kill everyone on the planet?”

  “Yeah, about that…” He reached up to rub his neck, which was scary as hell because he was holding me with one arm around my waist, and while he kept me completely stable, I felt ten kinds of insecure.

  “You will put your other hand on me right now,” I growled, grabbing ahold
of his arm with my hands and pulling it back into place. It was strange because the feel of him was both simultaneously revolting and exhilarating. God, this must be what hate sex felt like.

  “Sorry.” He shook his head. “We’re almost there.” I got the feeling he was trying to change the subject. “Thes can explain better than me…”

  Well, I wasn’t dropping this. Once we got to Thes, he might be able to explain it or he might not. Truth be told, we’d probably be neck deep in monsters, and I would never get my explanation. Unfortunately, I damned sure wanted one because if he was Nanashi and was going to obliterate us all, well, I’d try to kill him long before we reached Thes. After all, what use was it to save the world from Ragnarok, just to turn around and have Connor destroy it?

  “How about you try, Connor?” I said, allowing the emotion to drain from my voice. He’d know that voice, know what it meant. My armor was already slipping into place, and once it did, one of us was going to die. “Try like your life depends on it.”

  He heaved out a breath that seemed to physically hurt him. “You’re strong, but I don’t think you can kill me. I don’t want to find out either.” He closed his eyes for a second. “From what I’ve seen, you’re smart enough to do it, maybe.”

  “Glad you’re taking this seriously.” The chill in my voice scared me a little. It was the same voice my mother would have used before walking across a battlefield like a vengeful god.

  “Yeah…” he sighed. “I am who you think I am, Lillim. I absorbed the spirit of the destroyer to stop him from killing the entire Egyptian pantheon. Ask your swords. They’ll tell you.”

  I didn’t have to do that because the throb in the weapons in their sheathes told me it was true. Part of me wanted to ask them to elaborate, but I didn’t. I’d played Diablo II, and I remembered exactly what became of the hero at the end of Diablo. He’d become the villain in the second game because he’d tried to trap the essence of Diablo within him, and okay, sure that was a video game, but it was an awesome video game, and the parallels to the current situation were pretty freaking sound.