Page 3 of Outcast

It was definitely forged from the same fires that the demons were. He was the size of a German Shepherd with coarse black fur and a face that was simply a dog’s skull with blue fire blazing beneath it.

“Hello, there,” I cooed as I crouched down on my knees. Something about him called to me in a protective way and I knew he wouldn’t hurt me. “Who are you?”

He walked closer with his head tilted down until he head butted my outstretched hand. I ran my hands over his skull before scratching his mane that looked more like tiny shards of ice and bone than fur. Despite how thick and sharp it looked, he was surprisingly soft and warm.

“You’re a good boy, aren’t you?” I cooed.

“Are you seriously talking to that thing like it’s a puppy?” Drake’s voice had me up and running at him full force, the impact knocking us to the ground. Tears fell and sobs escaped as I crushed him in a hug. I ignored the fact he was naked, for now, we had more pressing issues.

“Harlow, I’m okay,” he promised. I couldn’t talk and he didn’t press me for anything as he held me tight, not even moving from the floor.

“Hiro, Roman, Kol, Monty?” I choked out finally. The defeat on his face was answer enough before the words even left his lips.

“No sign of them.”

ChapterTwo

Drake

Harlow was every bit the goddess she now embodied. Her previously pale skin now held an otherworldly glimmer. Blonde hair had shifted to a bright starlight silver. She was taller, more toned, but just as fucking perfect as she was before.

She might be too freaked out to notice our nakedness, but I wasn’t.

Then she mentioned Hiro, and my boner was gone.

“No sign of them,” I admitted. “I’ve only just woken up here.” It was unsettling to say the least. The blade slicing through me was something I knew I would never forget. That and being sucked into a void that felt more desolate and crushing than anything imaginable.

“Where?” she asked in confusion, twirling around as she studied the room. As she moved, ice and shadows spilled from her hands. She had no clue what she was capable of, how much of Hel’s magic she possessed.

“Harlow.” Her name had her stopping, and only then did she glance down and jump before holding her bare hands up in wonder.

“Holy fucking shit, did I do that?!” Her words may not be that of a goddess, or whatever she was, but her power screamed of it. There was an instinctual protectiveness I felt over her, a connection that demanded I keep her safe. Sure, I would have done that before, now it was something I couldn’t control or turn away if I wanted to.

“There’s a lot you can do,” Loki answered as he popped into existence between us. “But first, clothes.” He snapped his fingers and tight fabric wrapped around me. Glancing down, I rolled my eyes at the tight leather harness and pants that matched.

At least he’d chosen something a bit more realistic for Harlow. She was in a gorgeous midnight blue gown that hugged her curves and trailed behind her as she moved. The fabric shimmered in the glowing blue fires of Helheim.

“Thank you?” It was more a question than anything but my poor girlfriend was overwhelmed, panicked, and in way over her head. “Wait, what the fuck, Loki?! You left me in the mist?”

He shrugged as he perched on the edge of her throne since Harlow wasn’t in it.

“You had to enter from the Land of Mist to Helheim on your own. Technically I wasn’t supposed to help out there, but you were merely a human and I’m not so good at rules,” he admitted. “What became of the creatures?”

“I stepped on them.” With that, she slipped her foot out of the heels he’d magicked onto her and glanced at her heel, nose wrinkling adorably at the red stain. “Gross. I figured they’d grow again and wasn’t taking chances.”

“Smart,” Loki agreed. “I only gave you a few minutes.”

“How kind of you,” she said dryly. “Where the fuck is Roman and Hiro? Kol? Monty?”

“The former humans are safe,” he stated. “The monsters... well you’ll have to be patient. We have more important matters to attend.”

“Nothing is more important than them,” Harlow said, crossing her arms. “I don’t know what magic I can do but if you don’t fucking tell me, I’ll figure out something to use against you.”

Anger flashed at her insolence, and I put myself between them. Loki let out a dark chuckle.

“Do not mistake my kindness or amusement as anything but my whims. You do not dictate anything, you’re not even a goddess, Harlow. You’ll learn your place or die in the process. Your choice.”

She swallowed hard and deflated. “I’m sorry, Loki. But I can’t give Helheim anything until they’re with me again. I didn’t fucking want this, and they didn’t deserve that end.”

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