Page 41 of Odin

Loki ducked his head. "Fate played a part. It was almost as if fate wanted those men to die."

"Many men died that day. I still do not understand why we were not among them," Odin admitted. "Truly, I believed we were all marching to our deaths. That is why, when you went out scouting and did not return, we marched anyway. Because I knew Erik's men would be waiting, but I knew our men were not willing to wait any longer for vengeance. Even if it killed us all." He sighed. "The only traitor on the field that day was me, for it didn't matter what I did. I would betray my men by leading them into battle, or I would betray the memory of those who died by running away. Only to be captured by Erik, and offered a choice – the lives of my remaining men, if I agreed to serve him. I believed he would let you live, not that he would turn you into a draugr, as he had me." Odin shook his head. "He was a faithless liar to the last. I hope that man Orm did kill him, and that his death was slow. He does not appear in the history books of this time, so it seems the world has forgotten Erik, while we still live on."

"It is done!" Thor roared as he stomped into the feasting hall.

"What have you done now?" Loki asked, eyeing Thor's snow covered boots.

"The strange metal thing that slayed Sibyl is no more. I have shredded it into pieces so small, they scattered on the wind!" Thor said.

"You've destroyed the sundial?" Freyja said, half rising from her seat.

Odin winced. "He will see it forged anew for you, I promise."

Freyja sat down again. "It doesn't matter. I never liked it anyway. I'm sure it was insured. We'll say it was carried away by the storm. I'm sure the university can afford to commission a new one. Or get some new art to put in its place."

The witch set down her can of beer and belched. "Now I have eaten, I will have some answers. Tell me: where is my father, Erik of Utgard?"

Loki and Odin exchanged glances.

"Well..." Loki began.

Odin cleared his throat. "We believe he was stabbed by a man named Orm."

The witch's eyes blazed. "Where is he? I shall slay the man myself."

"It might be a bit late for that," Loki said.

"Take me to him!" the witch insisted.

Freyja rose. "What's her problem now?"

"She wants to see your ice mummy," Odin said.

"As long as she doesn't touch him, I guess we can do that," Freyja said.

In the cold storage room, it was not Orm's body, but the stone tablet that held the witch's attention. She even laughed. "It is true. The man had no honour, yet my father tried to give me to him. Fenrir was right to take me away, though I did not believe it at first." She tossed the tablet back onto the table. "What will you do with him?"

Odin translated her question for Freyja, who replied, "We will scan him, and learn as much as we can from him. Scholars will study his body, inside and out, so that we may increase our knowledge about the people of your time."

When the witch heard this, she only laughed harder. "Oh, that is a fitting fate for a traitor. Not even as a corpse will he know rest!"

"I'm sorry about your father, and your brothers," Odin said. Not that he felt Erik was any great loss to the world, but he had been the girl's father. And to lose her brothers, too...

The witch waved away his sympathies. "I had many brothers. My father lay with a different woman each night, and had many sons. All of them wished to prove themselves worthy of his notice, so they took many risks during battle, drinking far too much jusquiasmus than was good for them. There was no antidote if they took too much, which they often did. They lived and died as warriors, and the next day, Father would find more to fill their places. He never bothered to claim any of his daughters, except me, because I had magic. He was my father, but he only cared that I was useful to him. First as a witch, then as a wife to keep Orm loyal, which must have failed when Fenrir took me. Come, we must drink to justice, which finally caught up with the traitor!"

When the witch was seated in the cafeteria once more, with a fresh beer in her hand, Odin dared to breathe a sigh of relief. Freyja's ice mummy was safe, and so were they, for the moment.

"But none of you have answered my question. Where is my father, Erik of Utgard?" the witch demanded.

FORTY-SIX

"Erik of Utgard was buried far from here, in a lavish boat burial, together with a runestone that told the story of his conquests. It mentioned the pass where we have been digging as the route to Utgard, which is why I joined the expedition," Sibyl said hoarsely, as she staggered into the feasting hall, using the wall for support.

Freyja jumped to her feet. "You shouldn't be up!"

Sibyl waved her away. "I am fine. She healed me." She pointed at the witch, then switched from English back to halting Old Norse. "I owe you a debt of gratitude, Lady...?"

"My name is Astrid, and your answer is payment enough. My creatures were responsible for your injury, so it was only fitting that I heal it. And I am repaid. Did you see my father's body, lying in state?" the witch asked.

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