Dead silence (book 5 the Valkyrie series)

Chapter 7

Geri and Freki, Odin's wolf companions, appeared on either side of the throne, as if conjured from thin air. But my imagination was probably wilder than the truth and they'd probably just been sitting behind the throne and only now came forward to greet me. Thor crouched beside me, his bright blue eyes filled with concern. "How do you feel?" he asked, his eyes scanning my face and my neck. He put a finger to my chin and tilted it away, clearly searching for the wound. I pushed his finger away. "Don't bother. I couldn't find it either." "Are you sure you were near death? Or are you just in need of attention?" Thor smirked as he got to his feet and dusted off his armor. He was a sight for sore eyes. Fortunately his looks didn't interest me in the least, a good thing considering he was technically my brother even with a few halves added into the mix. He wore a white silk shirt, black leather pants and boots, and an overdress of glamored armor that was invisible to the standard person's vision. A new development in recent weeks, coming from an armory that seemed focused on creating better and better armor and weapons, since those we had possessed were simply insufficient to defend ourselves against Loki. In recent days, we'd farmed out the weapons construction to the dwarfs, putting Dvalinn in charge. I cleared my throat. "How did Prince Dvalinn and Sarah take having to return to Swartelfheim?" "Reluctantly," said Thor with a snort. "I can imagine." I had to laugh. Sarah was a Midgard girl who'd fallen for the son of an evil dwarf queen. And I knew Sarah too well. She was the type to want to be in the middle of the action. "I'm surprised she didn't refuse to leave." "She almost did. I had to convince her that once she saw the job that they had in store for them, she would be happy to return home. And thankfully, she gave me the benefit of the doubt." "What changed her mind?" "Oh, just the two weapons engineers from Midgard who showed them the plans for their new Jotunn destructors. Or whatever they called them." Thor put his thumbs into his belt loops and grinned, clearly happy with himself that he'd battled with a little human female and won. I returned his grin. "I have to say I'm relieved. At least that places Sarah out of immediate danger." "Why does her well-being concern you so much?" asked Thor, his forehead creasing. "Because she is my friend." I smiled at him, then said, "And she is going to have a baby." "What?" Thor looked stunned. "She never said." Shaking my head, I felt excitement flutter in my stomach. "She doesn't know. Well she didn't know when I last saw her." "How would you know then? She does not look . . ." Thor made a curved motion out in front of his stomach. I giggled and even Frigga's laughed softly. "She won't, not yet. She is only in the early stages." Thor shook his head. "I don't understand how you know." With a short lift of a shoulder, I pursed my lips. "I just do. And it's not the first time. I've dreamed before. In fact, I dreamed of the Vigrid Plains even before I went there." Frigga touched my hand leaning forward to look at my face. "Bryn, how long have you been able to see things?" she asked, her voice soft and gentle. I was hesitant to admit it, but her tone was encouraging enough to make me answer. I looked away, staring into a dark corner of the hall. "It happened a few times when I was very young. It didn't happen as often as seeing pretty shining people. So it caused me less trouble with the head-doctors." "And since coming to Asgard?" asked Frigga. "I haven't paid too much attention to it. It's happened a few times and I've pretty much ignored it." Frigga shook her head and the light glinted on her armor. "Do not ignore it, Bryn. The more you use it the more you will be able to see." When the goddess straightened, Thor glanced at her and asked, "Is she a Volva?" I watched as Frigga nodded, while looking at me with a wide smile on her face. "I do think so." The way Frigga watched me made me suspect something. "I have no idea what a Volva is but I'm assuming it's a seer of sorts?" Frigga nodded. "So, was Brunhilde also one?" I saw her hesitate before she eventually nodded. "So it's likely Bryn would display the same ability?" asked Thor, his forehead wrinkled. Frigga paused for a moment as if she was being careful of the words she chose. "It could be either Brunhilde's DNA or Bryn's own ability. Either way, however she received this power, it is not something to turn your nose up at." I placed a hand on the arm rest on the great throne and held it tightly. "I understand. I wouldn't disrespect such an ability. Even in Midgard people with the ability to sense or see things are regarded as fortunate." Or crazy, I thought. Frigga was a seer as well, and her ability to see things was not one she called upon at will. She touched my hand, "My visions come to me as and when they please. I cannot call them up, cannot answer a question unless I already sense something. I feel a lot more about people than they are able or willing to tell me. But in the end I am at the mercy of the power. And so shall you be." She seemed at peace with an ability that could prove flighty at best, and scary at worst. I nodded then looked away. It would have been easy to resent Brunhilde now for one more thing she'd passed down to me through her DNA but I didn't get to pick and choose what I wanted or didn't. I'd begun to accept that it was okay to be this reincarnation, or reinvention, of the warrior princess, the Valkyrie daughter of the All-father who had died so long ago. With a sigh, I finally let go of my tense hold on the stone arm of Odin's throne, and sank against the backrest. It rose behind me, at least eighteen feet into the air. I craned my neck and peered up to see both Hugin and Munin perched there, watching me as if they expected something from me. Suddenly, the birds took flight and the wolves beside me got to their feet and growled, their lips curling back to reveal yellowed canines. I stood up quickly and a glance around the hall revealed a strange tension, the Ulfr, baring their teeth, growling softly as they tilted their heads as if listening to a distant sound. The dwarfs began to hurry for the door and I could feel the low, insistent rumble beneath my feet. Dust fell from the domed, painted ceiling high above us. The eight columns shivered and groaned, and fear rippled through my veins. Thor flashed away, dissolving into thin air while Frigga's eyes rolled back in their sockets showing the whites, making fear pebble my skin. Making my blood run cold. A loud crack echoed through the hall and one of the columns shifted, scattering dust and small stones on our heads. A thunderous crash echoed through the hall as the column toppled somewhere in the squall of dust, sending a gust of debris in our direction. Before I could cover my head or even think of helping either Frigga or Thor, the nearest pillar began to lean towards the dais. No time to move. No time to even fly away.