Fate of the Gods 01 - Forged by Fate (27 page)

“You should know by now you are always welcome at our table, Thor. My father will be pleased to have you as his guest.”

“And have I your word you will not abandon me? I fear I will offend Aphrodite unforgivably if I do not have some excuse in your company.”

Athena laughed. “Is not Sif enough excuse?”

Thor unclenched his teeth only with an effort, though his jaw was still tight, and he felt the burn of lightning in his eyes at even the mention of her name. She had shamed him so totally in Asgard, and no doubt Loki had completed his humiliation while he spent his days in Aphrodite’s bed, spreading word of his blindness to any god who would listen.

He forced himself to breathe, to release the tension knotting his shoulders and turning his hands into fists, and only when he had controlled himself again, did he answer: “Not anymore.”

Placed in Olympus, even Baldur’s
skáli
would look humble and dull, and Thor’s brother was by far the most elegant architect among the Aesir. Thor had seen the city before, but something about the mountain retreat made him strain to see everything again, as if for the first time. Olympus shone more brightly than Asgard ever would, filled with statues of gold and silver, littered with luxury. Huge aqueducts even carried running water through the buildings, and turned immense wheels where the water fell, to power parts of Hephaestus’s forges.

Sif would have loved it. He had meant to bring her here, before he had learned of her affair with Loki. He had even spoken with Hephaestus about building her a fine
skáli
in the Olympian style, with hot running water for the bath so that she would no longer have to heat it in cauldrons over the hearth fire while he was away.

“Ah! The Odin-son returns to us!” Zeus slapped him on the back between the shoulder blades so heartily that large and powerful as Thor was, he almost stumbled forward a step. “And what favor do you ask of us this time?”

“I travel for my own pleasure,” Thor answered, bracing himself before another of Zeus’s gestures knocked him off his feet. “Though, I must admit I do not come without purpose, all the same.”

Zeus clapped him again on the back. “You would shock us all the more if you did not! Come, then, and we will speak of it before the wine is poured—Athena, call to your brother, that we might have a proper feast for our guest. You will accept our hospitality, of course, since this business you bring is only your own?”

“If you do not fear my wife’s reprisals,” he said, following Zeus into a strange garden, fenced with gold and silver. “She will turn her ire to your daughters.”

The plants were nothing he had ever seen upon the earth, with leaves of purple and blue, and rainbow fruits. A hissing sound came from beyond his sight, and the smell of wood smoke and heated metal hung thick in the air. A dragon, Thor thought. He had heard of one kept in such a garden as this, guarding the prizes of Hera’s collection.

Zeus laughed. “My daughters are well able to protect themselves from jealous wives, and Aphrodite has been quite anxious to see you since she learned of your wife’s infidelity. I believe she hopes for an opportunity to assist you in avenging the slight to your honor.”

“At the cost of her own husband’s?” Thor snorted. “Though I am flattered and honored by Aphrodite’s interest, I would not do to Hephaestus what has been done to me. It would be unkind in the extreme after the welcome he has given me.”

“Would you have Athena, then?” Zeus asked slyly. “I am certain you would find her just as willing, virgin though she is. Surely Odin would not refuse you the right to divorce, and Olympus would be happy to gain you as a son-in-law. With one marriage, we could have an entire continent beneath our feet, our families working as one!”

Thor shook his head. He had always known Zeus was ambitious, but he had not ever thought his desires reached so far as that. “I would not do Athena the disservice of a marriage built on less than love.”

“No,” Zeus said, his eyes narrowing. “I do not suppose you would, after all. My daughter is as ever most discerning. And I suppose she knows what has brought you here, as well?”

“In this, I did not consult with her first,” Thor admitted. “And I fear it is a very large favor—more than I have any right to ask.”

“Indeed?” The king of Olympus sat down, a vine climbing up and around to offer him a throne. No—not a vine. A tail, mottled brown and green against the earth. And behind Zeus’s head, a pair of bright, glowing eyes appeared. The dragon was all but invisible, its hide matching the plants and trees around it to perfection.

Thor was rather relieved when Zeus did not offer him a similar seat, but only leaned back in his strange throne, studying him, and waved a hand indicating he should continue.

“I wish for lands of my own,” Thor said, his words even and his voice steady. He did not let himself stare at the dragon, or allow his gaze to return to the beast with any frequency.

Zeus’s gray eyes sharpened, and Thor understood for the first time why one of his symbols was the eagle. “Oh?”

“There is a settlement on the far side of the Alps which looks to me, and I have promised them my protection. The lands are not yours yet, but they will be, and I would have your permission to work within them as I see fit, that I might honor my vow.”

Zeus tapped his fingers against the dragon’s hide. “You are not wrong, Odin-son, it is more than you have any right to ask. And how can you be certain the lands will fall into our hands, and not your father’s?”

“If they fall into my father’s hands, I will be free to act as I must. I need not apply to him for permission.”

“And the Celts?”

Thor smiled. The Olympians were not the only pantheon whose influence reached beyond its borders. “The men on the mainland already turn to Odin. Those who don’t will be swallowed by Rome before long. Is that not your intention?”

“Had I spoken to Athena first, she would have warned me not to tempt you,” Zeus grumbled. “Now that I have, I can hardly deny our hopes for the continent. But why come to me, and not Ra, who holds our vows?”

“Athena is my friend, and to you and your people, I owe a debt.”

Zeus grunted, scratching his jaw. As he shifted, so did the dragon, cat-eyes gleaming pale green. “My daughter was right.”

“She is rarely wrong,” Thor agreed, “though I do not know to what you might refer.”

The dragon’s tongue flicked out, tasting the air, and Zeus lifted a hand, causing it to still. “This settlement in the Alps, these people you have promised to protect, it is the House of Lions. Elohim’s people. And what would your father say, if he knew you wished to claim them, to nurture them, though they will never give us their worship, the power of their prayers?”

Thor said nothing. He had never told Odin of the vows he had made, knowing his father’s opinion of granting favors to those who did not make proper sacrifice. And if Thor had not cared overmuch what became of Eve’s family before, after living as her husband, he could hardly turn from them. With that marriage, he had bound himself to them, made them his own kin. Odin could not understand, and Thor could not risk being forbidden to act.

“The lands are yours, if you want them,” Zeus said at last. “They are worthless to me. But consider, Thor, that you lend the True God power with every act, and it is only because he yet sleeps that we are suffered here. If their faith spreads and Elohim rises, you will be in no position to keep your vows. We will all be cast out.”

Thor bowed, concealing his relief. “I owe you another debt, Thunderer.”

“And when you marry my daughter, I will forgive them all.” Zeus waved a hand, dismissing him. “Go and feast. Drink until you cannot stand. Dionysus will ensure that none remember whose bed you choose to share.”

It was, perhaps, too tempting a thought.

Sun woke him the next morning, streaming through the window into his eyes. There was a soft groan beside him. A shapely arm reached for a tassel and then drapes shut out the light. Athena rolled onto her side to look at him, naked but for the sheet that covered her below the waist.

A rising anxiety swept over him as he tried to remember what had happened the previous night, but it was all a blur of wine and laughter.

She laughed and stroked his face. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t laugh at you, but your expression is so comical. Peace, Thor. I brought you here to keep you safe from my sister. We slept, that’s all.”

The reassurance allowed him to breathe, and he exhaled heavily. “I don’t remember much of the night.”

“Of course not. One of Dionysus’s duties is to keep us from agonizing over our drunken revelry. Father can’t stand when his feasts are ruined by fighting or regret. I assure you, you did nothing more than exchange a few kisses with anyone, and those you did not suffer gladly.”

“I thank you, Athena, for not taking advantage.”

She lay back, her arms flung over her head as she stared at the drapery above them. “I’m not sure anyone could take advantage of you, Thor, if you did not wish it.”

“Aphrodite showed great determination until Ares arrived.” He studied her face, wishing that the lines in her brow would smooth. He didn’t like the frustration in her eyes.

“My sister is not fool enough to flaunt herself in front of him. Ares would dearly love a contest of might with you, to prove himself the more powerful. And when he lost, he would shame us all by provoking a war, no doubt.” She looked at him and smiled, though it didn’t reach her eyes. “I think if she had won you, I might have helped him, though I never realized myself so jealous until now.”

He propped himself up on an elbow to look at her. “I shall always be flattered by your regard, though I cannot return your feelings.”

Her eyes met his and a flush crept up her body from her breasts to her cheeks. “Such pretty words. Odin trained you well not to give offense.”

“I do not offer them for my father’s sake.” He followed the blush to her chest to the edge of the sheet which hid the rest of her body from him. “But I wish I could speak otherwise, Athena. I wish I could offer you something better than this.”

She sat up, the sheet falling away, and brought her lips to his. He didn’t pull away, nor did he encourage her, and she sighed and turned away. “Perhaps the next time you join us, your heart will not be so unyielding.”

“Athena—”

He was stopped by a shake of her head. “You have given me no reason to hope, Thor. I know that. But let me pretend otherwise, just for this moment.”

He nodded, though her back was to him, and watched her in silence. He understood now, why she had invited him to her bed. Drunk as he had been, as she had ensured he would be, she had hoped he would turn to her for comfort. But the comfort she offered and desired was pain to him, his heart too sore still from Sif’s betrayal, and aching yet, for Eve. It had been, perhaps, an unsubtle test of his resolve, but between her sister Aphrodite, and her brother Dionysus, Athena could be sure that his refusal only came from his heart, and not some twisted sense of honor or allegiance. And she would know it applied to all, not just her, if he denied her sister as well.

It was a relief and a regret that it would come to this, and he hoped in her divine wisdom she would still be able to accept his friendship.

She dressed and when she turned to him again, her expression was pleasant. “Would you like to eat before you leave us?”

“If it would not be an imposition, I could use some food to sop up the last of the wine from my stomach.”

“Stay, I’ll find you fruit and bread. Perhaps this way my sister will not remember that you slipped away and take offense.” She smiled, and then left the room.

Alone, he dressed, wishing that his trouble could be as easily fixed as his hangover.

Chapter Twenty-five: Present