Chaos God 6, page 1
part #6 of Chaos God Series
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Chapter 1
I grimaced as I scooped up the last dismembered leg, and I tossed it into the raging fire pit in the center of the dark elves’ village.
“Looks like that’s the last of them,” I said to my companions.
Elora nodded as she threw a rotting Draugr arm onto the pyre.
The fire burned the ice away from the bits of corpse and sent the rotting stench of dead meat up into my face. My nose wrinkled as I took a step back from the fire pit, and I wiped my hands on my pants.
The dead monsters had stumbled into the dark elves’ village last night just before Elora and I had been about to retire for the night. They hadn’t been much trouble, but it made me feel better about hanging around the village the last few days.
It had been about a week since my warriors, the dark elves, and I had defeated the ice giants in the depths of Niflheim. We’d gone back to Castle Levi to gather supplies, and then we’d returned to the village with a caravan of workers to help us carry everything. We’d brought enough food to provide for the dark elves for at least three weeks, and their Valkyrie leader, Nae, had been very thankful.
I’d convinced myself it was important for me to stay in the village in case more Draugr attacks occurred, but really, I knew Nae and the dark elves could handle any Draugar that stumbled into the village. If I was being honest with myself, Lyrie was the bigger reason why I wanted to stay.
The dark elf was fascinating to me, and I couldn’t help wanting to know her better.
Lyrie dusted her graphite-colored hands on her leather pants, and she smiled at me as the stench of burning, rotten flesh continued to fill the air.
“It will be good to not have to worry about this anymore,” Lyrie said in a casual voice.
“Yeah.” I nodded.
When Elora and I had returned with our stock of supplies, the dark elves informed us they’d made the decision to abandon their homes here in exchange for a new life closer to Castle Levi. I hadn’t been sure what they would decide, but I was surprised at how quickly they’d chosen to leave the valley they’d called home for centuries.
The plan was to construct a new village on the Black Plains where they would have plenty of space for themselves, and they’d be only a few hours’ hike from the castle. So the workers who’d brought supplies with us set out to help the elves to pack up everything they intended to bring with them.
A group of about a dozen of the dark elves and several of my workers had departed two days ago to begin setting up the camp where they would stay as they constructed their new village. Now, I was eager to get Lyrie, Nae, Emneth, and all the others out of here to a safer location.
Lyrie stood facing the stinking flames, and she hugged her arms around herself as a winter wind blew in from the west.
“How is everyone feeling about the relocation?” I asked, and I walked over to stand beside her.
“We are hopeful,” Emneth answered from the other side of the fire pit.
The dark brown-skinned woman had her fists propped on her hips as she studied the charring corpse pieces, and Elora watched the red-eyed dark elf with curious eyes.
My silver-haired lover had insisted on returning to the village with me, and she hadn’t been able to hide her curiosity about the dark elves from me. I knew Elora was as fascinated by the dark elves as I was about Lyrie, and it made perfect sense. Half of her heritage was dark elf, after all, and she’d never had many opportunities to be around people like her father.
Elora had only ever known her light elf mother and the old elf, Wyn, who’d taken them in before she was even born. She’d never been exposed to dark elf culture until we’d discovered this village tucked away in the valley behind Three Peaks.
“It will be strange to leave the only home many of us have known,” Emneth continued, and she raked a dark hand through her short gray hair. “But this place serves us no longer. The ice may retreat further, but the ground was never especially good for growing. It will be very good to have more fertile land to work with.”
“We will be happy to have you all closer to Castle Levi,” Elora said in a friendly voice.
“What else needs to get done before you’ll be ready to move out?” I asked, and my eyes shifted to Lyrie without even trying.
“The altars are the most important thing that remains,” Emneth answered, and she looked at my silver-haired elf. “Elora, I am going to disassemble one of the smaller altars next. Would you like to help me?”
“Yes,” Elora said with poorly contained interest, and she cleared her throat. “I am happy to help however I can.”
“We are grateful for your help,” Emneth said with a gentle smile. “Come with me.”
Elora gave me a sweet smile before she followed the dark elf to the northern end of the village. I couldn’t help but notice the way Lyrie scanned the snow-covered ground for any bits of Draugar to toss into the fire pit, and I watched as she painstakingly picked up a patch of rotting flesh no bigger than a quarter.
“How are you?” I asked.
“What?” Lyrie asked, and she turned to look at me with wide black eyes.
“I asked how you are?” I smirked. “I know you’ve only ever lived in this village. It must be strange to think about living somewhere completely new.”
“It is odd,” Lyrie agreed, and she tossed her long white hair over her shoulder.
Usually, Lyrie’s choppy hair was up in a ponytail, but she’d left it hanging loose around her shoulders this morning. I decided I liked it better in the ponytail because it showed off the strong structure of her cheekbones and the slender length of her neck. I shook my head to clear away the distracting thoughts that came to mind, and I looked around the village.
The place was as busy as a Navy ship, and dark elves and my workers moved busily through the town as they prepared an entire small population for the move.
The sturdy stone houses looked almost barren after the dark elves had taken down and packed all the clothing, blankets, and light orbs that had hung around just yesterday. There were wooden crates all over the place that were stacked with the food supplies we’d brought from Castle Levi, and some of them had been emptied to accommodate the dark elves’ belongings.
The gray stone blocks that formed the altars had been stacked on a large cart, and the wooden wheels sank into the soft snow to the icy ground beneath. If the climate here was rainier, the wheels would surely get stuck in the mud, but thanks to the firm volcanic rock and soil, I suspected the journey wouldn’t be too difficult.
“This has always been my home,” Lyrie spoke, and her bittersweet tone pulled every bit of my attention. “I have known nothing else, but I am quite looking forward to this new adventure.”
“Good,” I said, and a small smile tugged at my lips. “I’m glad you’ve all decided to join us. I don’t like the idea of you living so close to the chasm.”
“I am simply looking forward to a little less cold,” Lyrie said with a playful smirk.
I smiled back at the beautiful warrior with the charcoal-gray skin, and we stared at one another for a long moment as the fire crackled noisily beside us.
I was glad Lyrie and all the dark elves were going to be at a much safer distance from the depths of Niflheim, especially since there was still something down there that was certainly dangerous.
Something powerful enough to block Sylmarie’s ability to see it deep inside the chasm.
A shiver raced down my spine as I remembered the look of anxiety on the Völva’s face when she’d admitted the issue to me.
Then there were the three frost giants Sylmarie had been able to tell me were still down there. Whatever else was still a mystery to us, but I knew that when the time came, I would do whatever it took to defeat it.
For now, the main goal was to move the dark elves out of the village and to the temporary camp they’d started near the tustrium mine.
“My life has been one of cold and isolation.” Lyrie frowned suddenly, and she glared at the last bits of Draugar flesh that were rapidly turning to ash in the flames.
“Isolation?” I asked softly.
I thought back on what the older Valkyrie, Nae, had told me about Lyrie’s past. Both of her parents had died when she was very little, but Nae had given me the impression that she’d been raised by the whole village, so I couldn’t imagine how she could feel isolated.
“We have caged ourselves in this valley for centuries,” Lyrie clarified, and she looked up at me with bitter sadness in her black eyes. “Long before I was even born, my people were confined to this valley by the opinions of those who were different than us.”
“Oh,” I breathed as I realized she was talking about the villagers as a whole rather than just herself.
“I do not remember a life before Ragnarok,” Lyrie continued. “But I know dark elves were always seen as lesser by the peoples of Asgard. Odin Allfather harbored a distrust of my ancestors for millennia, and his bias carried on through the generations and his subjects.”
“Well,” I sighed. “Odin Allfather is gone, an d I’m the king now. I see no reason you and your people should be treated any differently than anyone else.”
“Yes,” Lyrie murmured, and she looked up at me with a hopeful light in her dark eyes. “I can only hope the rest of your people believe as you do.”
“I understand your apprehension, Lyrie,” I said softly, and I laid my hand gently on her upper arm. “I hope it’s reassuring to know that they’ve been through a lot of atrocities since the fall of the Aesir. They’re just happy to have their lives and the sense of safety I’ve been able to bring to them. Every new group of people we’ve found and helped has joined us with open hearts, and we’ve been building a good community together. Elves, humans, and dwarves alike. I don’t see any reason you and your people will be any different.”
“I suppose we shall see.” Lyrie frowned, and I could see she was still nervous about it. “Though nothing would be able to keep me here in this cold and dreadful valley. I am ready to see the world and face whatever opinions others may have of me. It will be worth it to learn about what lies beyond this small place.”
“Are the others as hopeful about this adventure as you?” I asked with a smirk of appreciation for Lyrie’s determination to move forward.
“Some are,” Lyrie said in a dry tone. “The few who remain of our eldest generation are hesitant to leave this place, but they see that staying here would be foolish. Even now that we have destroyed so many of the frost giants, the land is too frozen to farm. We cannot live off the supplies you provide forever. We will contribute to this new community you have built.”
“I can see you’re hard workers,” I said.
“Yes,” Lyrie agreed. “We dark elves are not afraid to pour ourselves into our work, and as grateful as we are for your assistance, we would build our new homes entirely on our own.”
“Well, you won’t have to do that,” I assured her. “I insist on it. My people want to help. I think when most of the people of the world are killed in an apocalypse, it kind of puts into perspective the importance of the people who are still alive.”
“Do not drop that!” Emneth’s sharp voice echoed through the village square.
I turned to find a pair of younger dark elves carrying a huge gray stone between them, and they looked like they were about to lose their grips on it. I rushed over and shoved my hands under the cold edge of the stone block, and I helped the younger elves carry the thing the rest of the way to the cart.
“Thank you, King Levi,” Emneth said, and then she turned to the younger elves with a sour frown. “If you cannot do the job, do not volunteer for the job.”
“Yes, Emneth,” one of the young elves said with a regretful frown.
“It was much heavier than it looked,” the other said.
“Yes, well,” Emneth grumbled. “They are stone. They are quite heavy.”
The two youths kicked at the snow with their toes as they waited for further scolding from the gray-haired elf. It was plain to see that Emneth held a place of authority in the village, and I knew why. Emneth was among the strongest magic users in the village, and her light-beam bone staff was incredibly astonishing to watch in action.
The short-haired warrior narrowed her red eyes at the younger elves, and then she sighed heavily.
“Come along,” Emneth said. “We have much more to do, and now that the base stone is set, the rest will be lighter.”
“Thank you, Emneth,” one of the dark elves said.
The red-eyed elf huffed, turned on her heel, and stalked back toward the northern end of the village.
“I’d hurry up if I were you,” I whispered to the two younger elves. “I don’t think she’ll ask again.”
The younger elves grimaced at each other before they hurried off after Emneth, and as soon as they caught up with her, she started giving them instructions.
I felt Lyrie walk up beside me, and I saw her smirk from the corner of my eye as she watched the younger elves.
“What would happen if one of the altar stones broke?” I wondered.
“The entire altar would be compromised,” Lyrie explained. “It would likely be unsalvageable.”
“How many stone altars are there?” I asked.
“More than twenty,” Lyrie answered, and her white eyebrows knitted together with concentration. “It is a very delicate process to disassemble the altars.”
“Why?” I asked.
“They are filled with magic,” Lyrie said with a teasing glint in her black eyes. “If one breaks, it endangers the entire altar.”
“Huh.” I nodded thoughtfully as I pictured the stone altars like electrical conduits.
“The source of our magic comes from deep within the bowels of Asgard,” Lyrie continued. “The magic is weak on the surface here.”
Lyrie gestured around at the snowy ground as she spoke, and then she turned and pointed directly north to the break in the planet’s crust that led down to Niflheim.
“That is why our magic is stronger in the chasm,” Lyrie said. “There is less to obstruct the magic from reaching us down there.”
“Right,” I said, and I felt a bit like I was back in a high school science lecture as I focused on her words.
“The stone altars have been constructed carefully and precisely to bring the magic to the surface.” Lyrie smiled, and I could tell she enjoyed the logic behind the magic. “Much like you would dig a well to access the water below the soil.”
“That’s very cool,” I said.
“Our magic has no temperature,” Lyrie said, and her eyes narrowed with confusion.
“No, sorry,” I laughed. “That’s a saying from Midgard. I mean it’s interesting.”
“Oh, I see,” Lyrie said with a smile.
My three lovers, Elora, Shalanna, and Freesia had gotten so used to my Earth lingo that I didn’t really think about it much anymore, and I reminded myself I’d known Lyrie for all of two weeks. She and the other dark elves wouldn’t understand most of my colloquial language yet.
“There is magic within the stones themselves,” Lyrie explained. “It must be protected before the altar can be taken apart.”
“What do you mean?” I asked with confusion.
“It must be…” Lyrie pursed her lips as she tried to describe the process. “Much as we have packed our belongings in these wooden boxes. The magic must be packed inside the stones so that it does not escape during the relocation process.”
“That makes sense,” I said, and I shifted my electrical conduit metaphor to something more like batteries.
“This one will be the most important,” Lyrie said, and she stared at the large stone arch and its pool of demon blood in the center of the village. “And the most difficult.”
“I figured this was the main altar.” I nodded. “What about the demon blood? What does it do for the altars?”
“The demon blood strengthens the power within the stones,” Lyrie explained. “Our ancestors understood there was magic in blood, in the life force itself, and they found a way to harness that power through ritualistic sacrifice.”
“Animals?” I asked.
“Mostly other people,” Lyrie said with a grimace. “I suppose there was plenty of reason for other peoples of our world to distrust us… or even hate us. There was a time, long ago, when dark elves would use the blood and life force of people who came into our lands for their own benefits.”
“Oooh,” I hissed through clenched teeth.
“To be clear,” Lyrie said hastily. “It was no one who still lives among us. This was very long ago, and we have found ways to gain these benefits from the blood of animals and even demons.”
Lyrie pointed at the pool of dark red blood at the base of the stone arch.
“This is demon blood,” Lyrie said. “I expect if there was any life force left within Draugar that was not as rotten as their flesh, we would have found a way to use that as well.”
“That sounds a bit like trying to eat meat that’s gone bad,” I said as my stomach lurched at the thought.
“Yes.” Lyrie nodded.
“I haven’t been able to learn as much about magic as I would like,” I explained. “So this is all very fascinating to me. I’ve mostly learned through trial and error. It’s nice to talk to someone else who knows more about magic than I do.”
“Magic has always been a part of our lives here,” Lyrie said. “I know nothing else.”
