Asgard Awakening 2, ch 16

While Trav cleaned up, he heard Rahim’s voice.  When he got out of the bathroom and saw that Rahim was safe, he felt himself physically relax.  The soldiers that had been with the boy--some of Bravoosa’s company,  told Narnaste that the captain had ordered Rahim brough to Trav.

Then after making sure Rahim was safe and settled, Trav had left the room with two of his valkyries.  Ysintrill and Rahim stayed back in their borrowed chambers.

Trav, Narnaste, and Yaakova were armed again, and three harpy guards followed them--one wore the colors of the Mist family, and two of them were from the royal tree.  The guards hadn’t tried to interfere in any way, but they weren’t being very helpful, either.  Trav had already asked where Tiffany was and none of them had answered.

“You’re sure that Tiffany is at this cottage, Narn?”

“I think so, Master.  It’s where she was when we left.”  Narnaste shrugged apologetically.

Yaakova said, “It is possible that they moved her.”

Narnaste nodded.  “Yes, but I actually hope they did.  The cottage was not exactly...good, and we owe Lady Tiffany a great debt.”

Trav absently nodded.  During the entire time his group had traveled from Najila’s cabin to Bernacia, he’d heard stories of how Tiffany had been cool under pressure and had made decisions that might have saved the lives of Trav’s valkyries.  They might not have liked the Restless woman before, but now they openly respected her.

His group moved down remarkably empty streets, and Trav wondered why until he looked up.  In this part of town, almost all the buildings were connected by simple skyways, and a lot of harpies seem to prefer them.

At first Trav had worried that his group might be stopped or slowed, especially with what had just happened in guildhall.  Thankfully, most of the harpies paid them no mind.  There were other humans and various Kin walking around, so Trav wasn’t notable other than the fact he was armed and armored.  If any of the harpies passing by slowed to look at him too long, a growl from Yaakova sent them on her way.

Some of the harpies they passed took one look at Yaakova and immediately turned the other way.

“Just what the hell was your reputation like before you left?” muttered Trav.

“My life was complicated, New One.”  Yaakova ran her claws through her hair.  “You have still not seen the true range of the magic I’ve learned.  When I was young and rebellious, I studied curses for years.”

After a sidelong look, Trav began, “So what--”

“Trav? Trav is that you?  It is you!  What a treat!”

“Uh oh, Master,” murmured Narnaste.

Trav didn’t even need to look to know who it was--he could recognize the voice.  “Oh hell, this idiot?  Why is he here?  How?  This guy is like a cockroach.”  Trav sighed and turned.  There was no point in delaying the inevitable.

Thomas, the third Restless who’d been at Faith with Trav and Tiffany sauntered up with a wine bottle in both hands, and two young harpies on his arms.  As the inheritor of the mantle of Thanatos, a god of death, Trav had never understood why the man only ever seemed to drink and party.

As usual, Thomas oare a dark leather duster, a jaunty hat, and tanker boots.  The rest of his outfit was very Asgardian.  He had dark circles around his eyes, probably mascara, and had a tie in his long, wavy hair.  His earrings glinted as they caught the light.   Despite the man originally being human and speaking accented English at times, he refused to admit that he’d come from earth too. 

Trav slowly shook his head.  “Thomas.  How are you here?”

“It’s nice to see you too, old chum!”  Thomas took a swig from one bottle.  Both the harpies that were hanging off of him looked highly intoxicated.

“I thought all the humans here were slaves.  How are you just walking around like this?  Again, how are you even alive?”

Thomas rolled his eyes.  “You aren’t the only bloody Restless on this rock, mate.  Do you know what I call people who always have to fight out of every situation?  Suckers.  Look at me!  Knowing you, you ran around, getting into scraps.  Me?  I had a peaceful travel, almost a vacation, wound up here, grabbed a pint and a willing woman or two, and relaxed!”

“Willing?” sniffed Narnaste.  “They smell drugged, or drunk.”

“Just because they aren’t repressed little wolfies like you doesn’t mean they aren’t happy, waggy little Narny.”  

When Narnaste frowned and her tail bristled, Trav decided he should step in.  “Don’t talk to Narnaste that way, Thomas.”

“She started it!  Did you hear what she said?”  He stroked the cheek of one harpy companion, nuzzled the neck of the other, and asked, “Are you girls unhappy?  Would you rather be anywhere else, loves?”

One harpy just moaned, and the other said, “Of course not, Cupcake.”

“Cupcake?”  Trav eyed the other Restless and shook his head.  “Actually, I don’t want to know.”

Thomas huffed and switched to English.  “Oh, look who is all high and mighty now, your Lordship.  You think you’re better than me, but here you are, walking around with a couple bints of your own, right?”

Trav shook his head.  “You deny coming from earth, but listen to you.  Tell you what, if you’re brave, say what you just said so these two can understand.”

“You think I’m stupid?”  Thomas scoffed.  “Besides, it might not go so well for your little strumpets.  I am Restless too, ya know.”

“What I know is you are beginning to annoy me, and you don’t train and I’ve never seen you fight.”

Thomas took another swig from one of his bottles.  “I should probably bugger off now, right?”

“Yes.  Now.”

The irritating man shrugged, then wandered off with his two harpies and Trav released a breath.  “What was that all about?” asked Narnaste.

Yaakova nodded.  “I would like to know too.  You were speaking English?”

Trav nodded.  “He was just talking nonsense.”

“Would it make us angry if we’d been able to understand?” asked Narnaste.

“Yes.”

“Figures,” said Yaakova.

“I really do not like that man.”  Narnaste’s ears quivered and Trav felt for her.  Thomas could definitely be a dickhead and Trav always felt an urge to punch the other man in the face, but dislike for Thomas had created a religious crisis for Narnaste.  She was Faithful, and was basically a member of a religion that had been waiting for the Restless to return.

Now that they had, some of the Faithful had realized that they didn’t like some of their new gods and were already picking teams.  Welcome to religion, thought Trav.

Narnaste and Yaakova led him to a line of cabins at the edge of town, and before they’d even reached the porch, Leonard was already outside, giving them a carefully measured bow.  “I am glad to see you well, my lord.  The lady had informed me that you would be arriving.”

“Hi Leonard.”  Trav felt a little awkward.  How was he supposed to address his wife’s servant and high priest.  He absently noted that Narnates and Leonard both wore rapiers now.  “If you could use a new weapon, remind me later to make you a new rapier.”

“My lord, this sword was crafted by a master smith.”  Leonard sounded indignant, and Trav understood.  The weapon was beautiful, much finer and more detailed looking than Narnastes.

“Sure, but I can enchant it for you.”

“Oh?”

“Yes.  I’ll talk to you about it later.  Is Tiffany inside?”

“Indeed.  I will inform her that you’ve arrived.”

From inside the cabin, Tiffany’s voice rang out, “Leonard, just let them in.  This place is not very big--I could hear everything.”

Somewhat stiffly, Leonard opened the door.

Tiffany was sitting in a comfortable looking chair, dressed in a skirt, a low cut top, and pumps.  She looked like she’d just bathed, and she was even wearing makeup.

“What’s the occasion?” asked Trav.

“You are.”

He blinked.  “You knew I was coming?”

“Of course.  I have the mantle of Zorya, remember?”

Yaakova and Narnaste brushed by Trav and both of them took one of Tiffany’s hands.  “We brought him back!” said Narnaste.

Yaakova sort of bowed over the hand she was holding.  “Have you been well, Lady?”

Trav was taken aback.  “What the hell?  ‘Lady?’  Why don’t you ever talk to me like that, ‘Kova?”

The harpy shrugged.  “You are my lord and we are tied together now forever.  I respect your power, but this one...has style.”

Narnaste nodded.  “I was confused and didn’t know what to think about it when you married Tiffany, Master.  But when Faith fell, we saw how she acted, how strong she was, and she saved us.  She saved a lot of people.  I should have known that you would make such a wise choice, Master.”  Narnaste’s eyes shone.  “You are building a new pantheon!”

Trav coughed.  He wasn’t sure what to say to that.  He was suddenly struck by the situation itself--talking to his new wife who looked human but was actually a reborn goddess, in the presence of his non-human girlfriends.  What would Dad say about this? Hell, what would Mom think about this? He thought, and suppressed a laugh.  Behind his valkyries, he saw Tiffany smiling at him.

The reborn goddess freed her hands and folded them in her lap.  “I’ve gotten stronger, you know.  You probably have too, right?”

“Yes.”

“I can feel it.  My ability to sense these things has improved.”

That was news to Trav.  He just raised an eyebrow.

Tiffany smiled and stood.  “My abilities and control have grown too.  I can actually adjust the time dilation of my domain now.”

“You mean--”

“Yes.  I can either make time move even more slowly, or faster there now.”

“Why have you had it locked up, then?”

“Oh, you noticed that?”

“Of course I did.”  Trav frowned.  “I was stranded in a forest and living in a cabin for like a month.  Your domain would have been a nice place to escape to and maybe make my way to wherever you were.”

“They really do already sound like a married couple, don’t they?” Narnaste loudly whispered to Yaakova.

The harpy just shrugged.  “I wouldn’t know.  Harpies don’t really marry very often.  I have several half sisters.”

Narnaste made a face at Yaakova, and Trav ignored them.  Tiffany glanced at the valkyries but met Trav’s eyes again.  She said, “That’s not how it would have worked.  If you traveled to my domain and came back, you’d just return from where you started.”

“I could have at least told you what was going on.  Why was it locked up tight?”

Tiffany sighed.  “The truth is that until we all got here, we were in massive danger and constantly moving.  Then after I got here, I’ve been under constant watch.  The official story that Yaakova came up with and that Hravalin eventually endorsed was that I was a powerful human witch, and Yaakova wanted to learn my style of magic.  I think some of the other harpies suspected I was Restless, though.  I was afraid that if I used too much of my power, a watcher might notice and I’d be dissected, killed, or put under tighter.  Worse, I was worried an enemy Restless might find me.

“Every day I’ve been here, I’ve been spied on.  To be honest, I’m not sure if they were trying to figure out if I was Restless or just observe new magic, I’m not sure, but I’ve had to play it safe.  A handful of other refugees made it here from Faith but they’ve kept quiet.  Some of them visited me from time to time, at least when it was safe to do so.”

“Sounds boring.”

“It was.”  Tiffany nodded.  “But Jang-mi has been visiting me, and at least we are all still alive.”  She gave Narnaste and Yaakova a look and said, “I want to take your master somewhere with me, but this time we will only be gone for a moment.”

Yaakova and Narnaste nodded.  Narnaste’s face was calm, but her tail moved in a way that let Trav know she was distressed.  Tiffany must have also noticed, because she moved closer to the Kin woman and put a hand on her arm.  Tiffany said, “We’re coming back soon, and we aren’t in territory controlled by the Church here.  Relax.”

“Yes, Lady.”  Narmaste’s hand rested on the hilt of her rapier, though.

Tiffany took Trav’s hand.  “Would you like to come with me?”  She drew her fan and raised an eyebrow.

Trav frowned.  “Why can you go now?  You just told me why you’ve kept the entrance locked up.”

“Things have changed.  Word spreads fast, and I bear the mantle of Zorya, remember?  Sometimes I just know things that are happening nearby.  As I get stronger,  the range will increase.  But anyway, you made a massive power play and it seemed to have worked.  Even though it’s only been a couple of hours, a solid number of harpies in the East Tribe know you are Restless and believe it.  Most don’t seem to know how to feel about it so far, though.”

Trav slowly nodded. “So that’s why my power hasn’t increased.”

“Sure.  Knowing something exists is not the same thing as caring about it.  Anyway, now I’m not as worried about keeping secrets.  I’ve already tied my fate to yours, and what’s done is done.  For the record, I think you made the right decision, though.”

“You do?”

Tiffany nodded seriously.  “The Faithful are scattered to the winds, and Faith has been destroyed.  The fact so many Restless are turning up on Asgard is a big deal, and I’m worried about it.  The more friends and allies we can make now, the better.”

“Couldn’t you just make your portal, slow down time on the other side, and wait out any danger?” asked Yaakova.

“Nothing is ever that easily, especially for Restless.”  Tiffany smiled.  “That applies to magic too, something you probably know well, right Kova?”

As Yaakova nodded her head in agreement, Tiffany took Trav’s arm and said, “Ready?”  She held up her fan.

Trav paused.  A bit of his old paranoia from the mines crept up in the back of his mind, and he suddenly saw familiar text overlaying his vision.  <You are really damaged.  Why Odin chose to give his mantle to you I may not ever understand.  The oaths your wife swore were very powerful.>

Hello Oracle.  You haven’t communicated in a long time.  Why now?

<Because I want you to live and to thrive.  If you start doubting the people you should trust, it will eventually lead you down a path of paranoia and isolation.  That would be bad for both of us, and this is the best place in the timeline that I could give you a nudge to avoid making a terrible mistake.>

So that does matter, Trav thought.  

<Yes.  And I live in your head, remember?  I know you’ve figured out that not hearing from me is probably a good thing, that no news is probably good news, at least right now. >

The exchange had only taken a few seconds, and Trav came back to the present.  The Oracle was right.  Trav had reasoned out a while ago that since the Oracle was conserving power, she likely wouldn’t have any reason to give him information unless he was screwing up somehow. 

“Sure.  Let’s go,” said Trav.  Tiffany smiled and made a slashing motion with her fan, opening the way to her domain.

***

“Oh thank the stars!  I’m finally back and I can stop pretending like I always know what the hell is going on!”  Tiffany ran a hand through her hair and sat on the edge of a fountain outside her temple.  Overhead, stars twinkled in the vastness of space all around her pocket dimension.

“Huh?”  Trav was tired from the events and stress of the day, and really hadn’t expected Tiffany’s sudden shift in mood.

“You know, luckily I really do like your Valkyries, but they can be needy.  How do you deal with it so easily?”

“Needy?”  Trav thought of his Kin as powerful, vicious, and resourceful.

“Then again, I guess that just being around you is reassurance enough.”

Trav didn’t say anything, just sat down next to her.  He was getting the feeling that Tiffany wanted him to listen for a while.

“I don’t know how it is for you, but my compatibility with Zorya’s mantle actually wasn’t exceptionally high.  It was enough to join with her, but both she and I kind of got thrown into the partnership.  You on the other hand...I don’t sense any of the fluctuations from you like the ones I can feel in myself as I adapt.”

“What do you mean?”

“Have you found yourself doing things you normally wouldn’t do, or thinking ways you might not usually think?  Do you feel like you’re becoming a different person?”

Trav thought about it.  “Not really.  I know what you’re getting at.  We’ve talked about this before, and I’ve worried about Odin’s influence on me.  But lately I’ve been crafting, fishing, and learning martial arts.  Sure, I’m curious about learning new things, but I always have been.  Odin told me that I was a good candidate for his mantle.  I’m starting to wonder if people just never really understood Odin all that well.  I haven’t felt like I’m really changing all that much.”

Tiffany sighed.  “You’re lucky.  Meanwhile, I have not had sex in a very, very long time.”

Trav blinked.  “Huh?”

“Zorya is, or was, a virgin goddess.  After I accepted her mantle, I became Zorya, or at least I started to.  The Restless are old school.  Nobody really knows where the original Restless came from, and passing on a mantle is rare.  Now I have to obey certain rules that get stronger the longer I have the mantle.  My power came with a price.  I have felt interest in sex, great interest, but my body isn’t on the same page.  Emotionally, I couldn’t tolerate the thought of it, either.  It’s the weirdest, most uncomfortable thing ever.”

“So, what exactly does that mean?  For us.”  Trav scrunched up his brow.  If he understood correctly, he was beginning to think that the wedding night he’d assumed had been postponed when Faith had burned down might actually not happen at all.

“Come with me.”  Tiffany stood and held out a hand that Trav took.  She led him to the temple, her temple.  They passed through the beautiful central room, down one hallway and through a set of carved double doors.  “Turn around.”

If Trav hadn’t been so tired, both emotionally and physically, he might have asked questions, but he just turned around with a shrug.  Besides, the Oracle has basically told him to roll with the punches.

He heard a rustling of cloth behind him and wondered what was going on, but also felt a powerful curiosity building, wanting to know what exactly Tiffany’s purpose was.  Finally, she said, “Okay, turn around.”

Trav turned and his jaw dropped.  Tiffany had changed--now she was wearing sheer negligee the color of rose petals.  She also wore a silver crown with tiny twinkly stones and matching earrings...and nothing else.

He couldn’t help it--Trav’s eyes ran up and down the length of her body.  Tiffany blushed a bit, but she also threw her shoulders back and gave him a smoky look.  Her nipples were hard, poking through the thin fabric of her see through clothing.  She had more extreme measurements than Trav would have imagined.  Tiffany was shaped like a nightclub singer--all curves and femininity.  Her breasts were smaller than he’d assumed, but still nicely shaped--very nicely shaped.

Her expression was shy, but instead of covering herself,  Tiffany grabbed Trav’s hands and lightly placed them on her hips, with his fingers resting on the swell of her ass.  She reached up, placid her hand behind his head and pulled him down into a kiss.  After coming up for air, Trav smiled a bit and kissed her back.

His hands around her hips tightened.  This time Tiffany broke off the kiss with a gasp and a light giggle.  “Oh wow, thank you for that.  You have no idea.  I’ve always thought you were a good looking guy, and something about your eye patch just drives me crazy.  Like I said, Zorya was a virgin goddess, but she was also a horny girl.  So I have been slowly remembering thousands of years of pent up sexual frustration, and adding my own with no possible release...until now.”

“We got married,” said Trav, understanding.

“Exactly.  And now you’re all mine.  We can stay in here for days, and only a few minutes will pass on Asgard.  I knew you were coming, remember?  We have plenty of food, and everything we need.  A wedding day is not enough.  This is going to be our wedding week.”  Her cheeks colored darker and she looked at the floor.  “Well, if you, you know, want to.”

Trav studied the little blond goddess and laughed.  Tiffany’s eyes darted up, but she relaxed when she saw his expression.  “I think I might have lucked out on this deal,” said Trav with a grin.

“You have no idea, you stubborn man.”  She shook her head.  “Zorya watched other people copulating for a millenia, mortals and Restless, and never got any action herself.  The things she fantasized doing with a man...some even involve magic!  Seriously, you have no idea what she thought up.  I’ve been going crazy--I don’t know how she endured it.”  Tiffany suddenly pushed her face into his chest.  “I’m married!”  She did a little dance on her toes, then drew back and said, “Saving my world is my goal, but I have to admit, I’m really happy right now.  I have--”

Trav cut her off with a growl and a kiss.  His weary brain had finally caught up with the situation and was in agreement with his body.  He ran one hand up her back until it was on the back of her neck, and slipped her negligee off with his other hand where it made a silky puddle on the floor.  He kissed her until she melted against him.

Then he picked her up and carried her to the bed.  The ceiling overhead disappeared, showing a view of space and the stars outside, and about an hour later when Trav finally noticed, he wasn’t even surprised.

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I'm pretty proud of this chapter from a craft perspective.  A year or two ago, I would not have been able to write a chapter this way.