Verena's Whistle: Varangian Descendants Book I by K. Panikian (essential reading txt) 📗

yellow eye winked at me. “Okay, I’m convinced that in a sparring situation, you’re not going to turn insane. I’m withholding judgment on what will happen in an actual battle.”

“Fair enough,” Owen said. He let go of me and sheathed his sword. When he let go of the pommel though, his eyes rolled back in his head and he hit the snow hard.

I helped Julian hoist him up and carry him into the house. “Next time,” I panted, “we should remind him to wait to let go of the sword until he’s inside the house.”

We placed him on the couch and I covered him with a couple of blankets. He snored softly.

I went into the kitchen to make some tea and think about dinner. We had the stuff for a couple of different meals. Theo was at the counter on his laptop and I asked him, “Chicken or shrimp?”

“Chicken.”

I started a brine and got the chicken inside and then pulled some green beans out of the fridge, washed them, and started trimming them.

“I’ll do that,” Theo said and washed his hands.

I left him to the beans and checked the pantry for spices to make a rub for the chicken. We had lots of rice in there too, so I got the stuff out for pilaf.

Theo and I were companionably silent when Julian came in, looking freshly showered.

“Any aches and pains?” I asked. “You went down hard a few times.”

“Yeah, I’m thinking about getting in the hot tub later.” He grabbed the stuff to set the table. He came back into the kitchen a minute later and went to get a glass of water. “Owen’s awake,” he said.

“I’ll take it to him,” I said and took the water from Julian. He smirked at me.

“Theo, you got the rice?” I asked and got a head nod back.

I found Owen sitting on the couch, looking groggy. I handed him the glass of water and he downed it thirstily. I sat next to him and ran my hand through his messy hair. “That one looked like it took more out of you,” I said.

He nuzzled his cheek into my hand. “Yeah,” he answered, his voice raspy. “I was in the form a lot longer, I guess.”

“You looked amazing,” I told him. “After I stopped being scared, it was really astonishing to watch. I’ve never seen anyone move that like.”

He smiled at me in delight.

“How did you know what to do?”

“I didn’t think at all; I just moved. It’s all instinct.”

“Well, it’s looking this is one of those divine gifts without terrible consequences. I stand corrected.”

“I feel like I should record this historic moment,” he responded and I leaned over and kissed his nose.

I stood up and helped him get to his feet. “We’re working on dinner. You have time for a shower first, if you want.”

“Do you have time to join me?” he wiggled his eyebrows.

I laughed. “No, I have to get the chicken in the oven. Next time,” I promised.

“Probably for the best,” he answered and staggered a little when he took a step. “I still feel a little weak.”

“If I hear a crash, I’ll come check on you,” I said and headed back into the kitchen.

AFTER dinner, we had our council of war. If Theo’s original count of 20 besy was correct, and we’d killed 10 of them with Greek fire, plus the psoglav on the trail and the azhdaya by the lake, and 5 went back through the gate, that left 3 besy unaccounted for. We needed to start hunting them.

There were also, at some unknown point, going to be more besy to track and fight, but we didn’t know how many or when they would come through the portal. The best we could do right now was try and monitor the crater for magic.

Finally, we had instructions from Mesyats to close the gate for good. This last task daunted me the most. I had no idea how we would do it. So far, the only thing we knew for sure about the portal was that a piece of meteor from our side of the gate had blown through the worlds in the initial blast, and that piece allowed someone to open the magic door from either side. And currently, that piece was in the portal world, out of reach.

“If we just got that fragment from the bes commander, wouldn’t that stop them from opening it again? That would close the portal to all traffic. Then we could crush the key or something and no one could use it again?” Theo asked.

“What if they open it more carefully next time?” I countered. “One bes stays in the portal world with the key and opens it and closes it for groups to come through. How will we get it?” I asked. “Or what if more than one meteorite piece blew through the gate?”

Julian added, “And what if some other magic object that we don’t know about could force it open? I think the god was pretty clear it needed to be permanently shut down.”

I agreed. “Yeah, maybe stealing the key is a good first step, but we need more.”

“But how do we destroy a mystical gate?” Owen asked.

No one answered.

“I guess we could try some research,” Julian offered. “Put the aunts and uncles on it. Ask them to search for myths and folklore stories that have magic gates in them.”

“That’s a great idea, Julian,” I said excitedly. “Like stuff about Stonehenge, or that place in Peru.”

“The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe,” added Theo and Julian thumped him on the back of the head.

“How do they destroy the Stargate portal in the movie?” Owen asked. “I forget.”

“They don’t destroy it; they bury it.”

“Oh yeah.”

“Bury it,” I mused out loud. “I feel like that idea has potential….”

Chapter 22

I woke up to a pulse of blue light in my bedroom. I sat up, groggy, and looked around. The video receiver on my nightstand was glowing blue. I remembered we split up the