From Death to Valhalla (The Last Einherjar Book 1) Read online

  Erik turned around. “Tom, listen.” He turned to Göll. “Tell them why you are here.”

  She did not look away, only at Erik. “I have come to guide you to Valhalla.”

  He felt the bottom fall out of his stomach and he looked at Tom, desperate.

  “What? She from Europe or something? I barely know English, so if that was supposed to be impressive, it ain’t working. Five minutes, then I want you and your mail order bride out. And you,” he pointed to Derek, “back to work the second he’s gone.”

  Derek came around in front of Erik and looked at his face. “Holy shit, man, you’re serious. Where’d she come from?”

  Erik’s eyes moved slowly from Derek to Göll and back. “I don’t know.”

  “Work!” Tom was shouting from the far end of the aisle.

  “Look,” Derek said, his voice steady and sober, “Take her home. I’m off at seven, okay? She hasn’t done anything weird, right?”

  “Weird like fucking following me around all day? Shouting me awake? Watching me shower?”

  “Look, she hasn’t tried to hurt you, right?”

  “Yeah, I mean…”

  “It’s fine. If she was going to stab you, she’d have done it while you were asleep.”

  Erik spun, throwing his arms up. “Fuck me, that’s your way of comforting me?”

  “Well? I’m not wrong. It’s not like you can just attack her. And what would you even tell the cops? She says you forced her to dress up like that and you’re done.”

  Erik shook his head. “Fucking… fine. Fine. But don’t fuck around after you’re off shift, alright?”

  Derek nodded and went back to work. There was nothing Erik could do but grudgingly leave the warehouse and walk back to the apartment.

  There were no pictures this time, at least not posed ones. Just shots of Erik walking as fast as he could manage with Göll following behind him. The apartment complex was a welcome sight. He nearly sprinted upstairs to the door, unlocking it. He was half tempted to leave Göll outside, but thought better of it, considering the bathroom door.

  He locked the doors once she was in and dragged himself to the couch. She stood oppressively close, silently looking down at him.

  “Do you have to do that?”

  “I do.”

  He looked up sharply. “So you can do more than tell me that you’re here to guide me to Valhalla?”

  She nodded.

  “Then why are you really here?”

  “I have come to guide you to Valhalla. You are one of—”

  “Odin’s chosen, I get it.” He gritted his teeth. “That’s not…” He took a calming breath, letting it out slowly. “That’s not funny anymore.”

  “It was never said in jest.”

  His heart sank and fear crept over him. “Then how will I—”

  Göll’s head whipped toward the window. A half second later, the building shuddered and the sound of metal being crushed reached his ears. Göll adjusted her grip on the spear she’d been carrying and it began to glow with an intense heat.

  “They’ve come.”

  chapter|2

  The sound of rapid footfalls in the hallway came only a few seconds after Erik had managed to drag himself up from the couch. Göll watched the windows intently, not moving from her place near him. The steps stopped at the door and the doorjamb buckled and splintered as the first kick landed.

  “We cannot stay here.”

  Erik turned, alarmed. “Who is it?”

  Before Göll could manage an answer, the second kick pushed the door into the far wall revealing a girl with light brown hair standing in the hall. She was dressed in a t-shirt and jeans, nothing like what Göll had on. In her hand was a short sword that was glowing white hot.

  The floor cracked where the new valkyrie kicked off. There was a sharp hissing noise as she flew toward him. It was fast, too fast. The sword was aimed dead at his chest and all he could do was close his eyes and wait for it to hit.

  He felt a wave of heat and pressure push against his chest just after a dull metal clang rang in his ears. The edge of the sword that had been aimed at his chest ran across the front of his arm, effortlessly digging a wound and burning it shut in the same instant. At the far side of the room, something impacted the wall, crumbling it.

  He felt a hand on his arm and his eyes opened. It was Göll.

  “This is not how you are meant to die.”

  The spear she’d held was now a warhammer, glowing with a dull intensity that was markedly different from the blade’s.

  “The other will be here soon.”

  “Other?”

  She didn’t dignify the question, dragging him toward the door to his room. She pushed it shut. It seemed like a useless thing to put between them, but Erik was in no place to complain. He stared at the door while Göll moved to the window and inspected it. She raised her foot and struck the frame of the window. It swung out, taking chunks of the wall as it went, hanging for a moment before it fell to the ground below.

  “Haki.”

  “Erik.”

  She gave an annoyed look. “Erik, we are leaving.”

  He walked over to the window and looked out of it, hesitant to jump. The door to his room splintered. As he turned to look, he felt an arm around his waist. Göll had grabbed him and was pulling him off the ground.

  “Hey, hey, whoa. Don’t you jump.”

  She jumped. He was tucked under her arm like a half-drowned cat, and not securely at that. They landed heavy and he slipped from her arms, bouncing off the grass on the far side of the sidewalk with a thud and a wheeze. She moved to him quickly, dragging him up as Erik tried to catch his breath.

  “I am sorry. I had thought that… you are heavier than your form suggests.”

  “Let’s just…”

  Göll turned her eyes up to the window. The valkyries looked out of the hole in the wall. Without wasting a breath, Göll spun her hammer and slammed it to the ground. The earth rippled away from the strike, shifting the building. Stucco and glass broke away as it swayed. There were terrified screams from all three floors.

  “Run. Now.”

  There was no room in his mind for an argument. He wasn’t more than a hundred yards away when the building began to collapse. Dust and chunks of concrete flew past him but none hit him directly. He could hear the debris slapping heavily against Göll’s armor until they were out of range.

  They made it to the street before Erik looked back. Two buildings had gone down under the power of the hammer. He stared at the destruction, not sure how to feel.

  “What is this? What’s happening?”

  “I have come—”

  “Ah! No! Okay.” He shook his head clear. “Are they dead?”

  Göll shook her head. “We cannot die. It will take them some time to dig out from the rubble.”

  “So, we shouldn’t be here when they get out?”

  “We should not.”

  Erik nodded intently, collecting his thoughts. “Right. Okay. Maybe the bus.” He patted his pockets, happy that at least his wallet was still there. “Let’s go.”

  He started walking, deciding that trying to board a bus near the ruins of an apartment building didn’t look great. Checking his front pockets, he found that he didn’t have his keys and that his phone was smashed.

  “Why are they doing that? Why are they attacking me?”

  Göll seemed almost confused. “What do you mean?”

  Erik narrowed his eyes, confused by the response. “Valkyries take great warriors to Valhalla, right?”

  She shook her head, but then scanned the skies around them rather than expounding.

  “Okay, so what do they do?”

  “We guide great warriors to Valhalla.”

  He clenched his teeth and took a deep breath. �
��I feel like that’s what I said.”

  “They are not the same.”

  There was a bus at the stop so he let the frustration of the conversation be replaced with a panicked run to flag the driver down. He went to the rear door of the bus, hoping that the driver would ignore them. He entered without much fuss, in spite of the slowly dripping blood coming from his arm. If anything, it made sure he got less attention than he otherwise would have. Göll entered the bus to a completely different reaction. There was immediate chatter and phones were pointed at her straight away. Sitting at the rear of the bus did little to help.

  Still, in defiance of every dire expectation running through his head, the bus started moving. He let out a relieved sigh, thankful that bus drivers weren’t paid well enough to bother with what was obviously a shit situation. Erik settled down for a second, figuring if they just rode silently, they would be left alone.

  The growing noise of the chatter from the seats ahead of him killed that dream before it could find a comfortable place in his mind. Göll was doing little to help draw attention away from herself. She stood in front of him, staring down at him. He’d been dealing with it all day so it had almost slipped his mind how insane it must look.

  Erik stood, his voice as quiet as he could manage over the noise of the bus. “Can you do something about your… armor or whatever it is?”

  “Why?” Göll was not a whisperer.

  He nodded over her shoulder. “You’re attracting a lot of attention. Too much.”

  She looked back at the people on the bus who had no intention of pretending not to be gawking at the scene.

  “I can change them if you want.”

  “Change them? I mean, aren’t you wearing anything underneath?”

  She ignored the question and a silver shimmer started at her head. It ran down to her feet, replacing the leather armor with jeans, a shirt, and a thick jacket. Aside from being unseasonably warm clothing, she had just magicked herself into new clothes in front of a bus full of people.

  The noise ahead of them could no longer be called chatter. They were in open awe of what they’d seen. More phones came out, this time to make phone calls. He immediately leaned over and pulled the wire to stop the bus. The driver pulled over dutifully and opened the doors.

  “Go. Get off. We can’t stay on here.”

  She turned and walked down the steps and Erik kept himself close behind her, stopping at the bottom step to jog back up.

  “If any of you follow us, I’ll fucking cut your throats!” He stuck his tongue out and made the weirdest noise he could think of before running back down the stairs. The bus took off at speed before anyone could even stand up.

  He walked over to a pitiful wooden fence near where they’d been dropped off and leaned against it, letting out a ragged sigh.

  “Where can we go? How do we get to Valhalla?” She ignored the questions and Erik felt his temper begin to fall apart. “I just watched you fucking murder a few buildings worth of people, can I have some answers?”

  “No.”

  He spun and punched the fence. The pain radiated through his hand and that was enough to calm him down. Göll turned at the sound and looked at his hand.

  “And what if I don’t want to go?”

  Her attention went back to the sky. “You must go.”

  “Why?” he shouted. “Why must I go? Huh? Explain it! Any of it!”

  “You have been chosen.”

  He groaned in frustration and shook his head. “Fine. What about those other two? Who are they? Why are they after me?”

  “They are Hild and Thrúd. Since they have failed to stop you in their first attempt, they will seek anyone who might aid you in reaching Valhalla.”

  “Seek them and do what?”

  She didn’t even bother to look back when she said it. “Kill them.”

  Erik pushed himself away from the fence, looking down the streets to orient himself. They were only three or four blocks from the restaurant. He started running toward it, Göll coming up beside him.

  “There is likely no hope for your friends. They would have aided you.”

  He ignored her, running as fast as he could. His legs were burning when he first saw the smoke. “No, no.” He forced himself to move faster. “Come on.” He watched the smoke rise above buildings that cruelly blocked his view.

  He put his head down as he came to the edge of the last building, rounding the corner on the street where Bosko’s sat. Everything in his mind told him not to look up, but he did.

  The building was in flames, the roof half collapsed. Erik started toward it, running directly at the fire. Göll passed him and tripped him. His body hit the concrete and slid. He flew to his feet and swung at her, his fist striking her shoulder squarely. She barely shifted and the pain was horrible, like punching a slab of concrete.

  Erik immediately bent over, clutching his hand and swearing. “Why? He might still be in there.”

  “This is not how you are meant to die.”

  “But I am meant to die, right? Just like Chris?”

  She nodded. “There is no other way to Valhalla.”

  “Why would I want to go there?!”

  “Very few do.” The voice was new and came from behind him. Erik spun on his heels and Göll moved in front of him, her hammer shifting back to a spear.

  She looked barely eighteen, thin and short. She had black hair and eyes to match that contrasted against pale skin.

  Erik stood up, still holding his fist to keep the pain as dull as he could manage. “What do you mean?” He walked to Göll’s side and she gave him an annoyed glance.

  The girl looked at Göll before speaking. Her voice was flat and hoarse. “It was stupid of you to come here. She knows that.” The girl nodded at Göll. “You’ve been given a poor bargain, Haki Erik Styrsson.” She paused, looking at the flames, her face never giving away the slightest hint of emotion. “But Hel wishes to meet with you, and offer her assistance.”

  Göll flew into a rage and stomped her foot, splitting the sidewalk. “Never! There can be no gain in a deal with that creature.”

  Erik looked at Göll. She was seething, focused intently on the girl across from them. “Who are you?”

  “I am called Vár. Surely even the modern people know Hel?”

  Erik knew the name. “Loki’s daughter? She rules the realm of the dead.”

  Vár raised an eyebrow. “Near enough.” She turned her eyes to the sky around them. “There is a place not far from here where you can sleep without worry. She has prepared it for you and the valkyrie.”

  There was very little to consider. There was no safety elsewhere and he had no reason to trust Göll any more than Vár.

  “Take me there.”

  Göll looked at him with angry eyes. “It is not safe to trust this girl or her master.”

  Erik started walking and Vár turned to lead them. “She hasn’t tried to kill me yet, at least. And where else would I sleep?”

  Göll scoffed but offered nothing in the way of an argument. Vár moved along at a leisurely pace, casually checking the air from time to time, her loosely braided hair shifting whenever she did.

  They had walked nearly a mile when Vár came to a stop in front of a dingy motel that Erik had passed only a few times before. It hadn’t been updated in decades and he’d never seen more than a car or two in the parking lot.

  “You will be safe here. Two rooms have been afforded by Hel’s kindness so that you might both sleep in comfort.”

  Her voice hadn’t given any hint of it but Erik couldn’t help but think there was some sarcasm there. As they came close to the motel, the air changed, warming the slightest bit and growing still.

  Vár produced a key and opened the door to room 19. “For Odin’s chosen.”

  Again, his instincts told him there was moc
kery somewhere in her words but he walked into the room anyway. Göll followed him in with Vár behind.

  “The rooms are modest, for which Hel apologizes.”

  “And when do we meet her?”

  “Not until the morning.”

  Erik took in a deep breath, letting it out as a tired sigh. “Fine. Not much else I can do.”

  Göll ignored their conversation and stood in front of the window, watching through the blinds.

  “Is there anything else you desire?” Vár asked Erik the question, but her eyes kept finding their way to Göll.

  “No. I just want to sleep. Or… sit. Quietly. I don’t know.”

  Vár nodded and walked to the door. “Should I show you a room, valkyrie?”

  Göll didn’t look at the dark-haired girl. “Do not talk to me.”

  “Then, I will look forward to the morning.”

  chapter|3

  What little sleep Erik was pretending to get was abruptly cut short when a loud knocking sound came from the bathroom, followed by a few bumps and the muffled sound of an argument. Göll’s weapon began to glow as she turned toward the noises. It was only a moment later when Vár stepped out, brushing the plum-colored dress she was wearing to smooth it out. She moved to the corner of the tiny alcove without a word and motioned away from the bathroom door.

  A woman came out. She was no older than thirty, dressed in tight jeans and short, bright red heels. There was a loose off-the-shoulder t-shirt under a leather jacket and curled stark-white hair at the top of her head. Erik looked at her, hopelessly confused.

  She walked to the end of the bed before looking over at Vár. “This is him? I’m not convinced.” She looked back at Erik and pointed at Göll with a thumb. “And with her track record…” She sighed. “Hi. I’m Hel. You go by Erik, right? Not Haki?”

  He nodded slowly.

  “Well, he can hear anyway.” She looked around the room. “Isn’t there a chair in this dump?”

  Vár ran to the door and left when the question was asked.

  “You’re Hel?” Erik was slightly annoyed at not having a better question to ask, but it was as good a starting place as any.