After dissolving the alternate dimension, Ana, Tania, Epona, Rodrigo, and Athena tended to the survivors of Surtr’s attack. Sadly, many had died, and others were left badly injured: burned, crushed under rubble, or both. The locals blamed it on the war in the north; others whispered that it was some divine punishment, a sign of the coming year 1000.

  Rodrigo felt sick to his stomach.

  He had seen war and death before—his own village, his own people.

  But this time, it had been a god, directly, who caused a massacre among humans.

  For the first time, he felt guilty for the soldiers he himself had killed in his rage.

  Epona was helping the children pray and tried to cheer them up by singing. She didn’t understand their language, but gestures were enough to get the message across. With some flowers, she made a wreath and placed it on the head of a boy who had finally stopped crying.

  Rodrigo couldn’t stop watching her. He was mesmerized by this maternal side of the goddess of horses. There was something wonderful about that duality in her character: at times she seemed like a drunken farm girl, and at others like a sweet, caring woman.

  Ana, meanwhile, was tending to the wounded, always with a smile on her face. She had thrown herself in front of Rodrigo as a shield to save his life, and he couldn’t get the image out of his mind—Ana smiling at him while her insides were being crushed by the giant.

  Why was Ana willing to die for me?

  What’s so special about me? Rodrigo couldn’t understand it.

  He’d also heard the giant call her Morrigan, but she seemed to hate that name. Rodrigo wanted to know everything about her—and help her however he could.

  Tania was obsessively diligent that night. She organized rescue teams, lifted stones, dragged people from the wreckage. Ana worried she wasn’t sleeping and would be exhausted by morning, but Tania kept working nonstop, as if all of this had been her fault.

  It was astonishing how someone who didn’t speak the locals’ language could organize them so effectively. The fire goddess’s leadership skills were undeniable.

  In the end, everyone managed to rest in an improvised camp.

  Rodrigo and Ana slept in the same tent, one of many arranged around a bonfire to keep them warm. The moment Ana’s head hit her blanket, she fell asleep completely; she had spent so much energy in battle and healing that she was utterly drained.

  Meanwhile, Tania stayed up through the night, sitting outside with Athena, who lingered on the outskirts, sipping some mead. The two goddesses didn’t speak. They just watched the sky turn red with the coming dawn, in silence.

  Epona, for her part, slept among the children who had been orphaned that night, like a true mother goddess.

  The sound of birds woke Rodrigo in the morning. He was so exhausted he hadn’t been able to wake up early like he usually did.

  To his surprise, at some point in the night Ana had shifted in her sleep and ended up hugging him. Panic flooded him—no way should the two of them be sharing a bed like that. At the same time, he remembered her trying to sacrifice her life together with his.

  That won’t happen again, he thought. Next time, I’ll be the one to protect her.

  The birds kept singing, louder and louder, until he almost felt like they were talking to him. He carefully slipped out from Ana’s arms and got up to check.

  Outside the canvas tent, several people were still asleep on the ground and the campfire had gone out. It was bitterly cold, and the sun hadn’t risen yet, so the sky was still dark.

  Then he saw them: two birds perched on a dead tree in front of him. They had something shiny tied to their bodies.

  Rodrigo approached them, and they didn’t fly away. It was as if they were calling him over. One bird had a stone tied to it, carved with a little figure of a woman wearing a triangular dress and a crescent moon. The other carried a symbol of three spirals.

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  When Rodrigo took the objects, the birds took off and flew away.

  In that instant, he understood: they were Tania’s and Ana’s totemas. Anpiel had sent them using the birds—though there was still fresh blood on the stones.

  What had happened to the angel? The boy feared the worst.

  Tania, who was still awake and had been ignoring the birds, greeted Rodrigo.

  He immediately shouted:

  “Tania, look! Is this a totema?”

  Tania sprang to her feet and grabbed the stone engraved with the girl in the dress. She clutched it so tightly her hands trembled, tears flooding her face.

  “My totema… it’s my totema,” she whispered.

  “There’s blood on it… Anpiel…” Tania pressed the stone against her chest and closed her eyes.

  Rodrigo moved closer and placed a hand on her shoulder.

  “His sacrifice won’t be in vain,” he said.

  Tania nodded.

  Ana, who was still happily snoring away, was woken up by a solid kick from Tania.

  “Get up, crow-face! Look at this!” the fire goddess shouted as she kept kicking her.

  Ana woke up in a panic, but her expression changed the moment Tania shoved her totema in front of her face. Emotion lit up Ana’s features.

  “Thank you, Anpiel. I knew you’d make it,” she said, thrilled.

  She too noticed the blood on her totema, and her expression shifted from joy to rage.

  “Tania, I’m going to kill Anat, you hear me? Even if you decide to become my enemy, I’m going to kill her,” Ana snarled.

  Tania shook her head.

  “No, Ana. I’ve already made my choice. Anpiel’s blood helped me decide. I’m joining Athena’s group too,” she said, furious.

  Ana smiled. At last, all three of them would be together.

  The two goddesses went to wake Epona, who was still fast asleep, wrapped around several children. They roused her by shoving the totemas in her face.

  “I can’t believe that useless idiot actually—” Epona started, then noticed the blood.

  “Is he okay?” she asked.

  “We don’t know,” Tania replied.

  “If he’s alive, he must still be in Lel—and we have to rescue him,” Ana said.

  The children woke up, and although Epona didn’t understand their words, she managed, with gestures and expressions, to ask them kindly to give her a little privacy because she had something important to discuss.

  The three goddesses stayed inside the tent and sat down on the ground.

  “So what do we do now?” Epona asked. “Do we go fight Loki? Or, Tania, I don’t know…”

  “I’ve joined you too,” Tania said.

  “Oh, great. So now all three of us are deserters from Lel,” Epona remarked.

  “There’s no reason to fight Loki right now. We need to find out what happened to Anpiel,” Ana said.

  At that moment, Tania slapped Ana across the face.

  “Why did you hit me, Tania?!” Ana snapped, furious.

  “Are you going to throw away Anpiel’s sacrifice? Did you already forget the people and children who died last night?” Tania shouted.

  Ana and Epona fell silent.

  “Besides,” Tania continued, “Lel must already know our totemas are gone. They’ll start hunting us. Those Celtic gods they sent to kill Loki will now come for us instead.”

  “That’s why we have to invite Loki into our group,” Athena said as she stepped into the tent where the goddesses were arguing.

  “I don’t want those bastards anywhere near me,” Tania growled.

  “The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Right now, you don’t have a choice. With your record—and now with your totemas—you’re a threat to Lel,” Athena replied bluntly.

  Tania let out a deep sigh.

  “Fine. But I’m going to kick his ass first, that miserable bastard. And you only need Loki—not that giant from yesterday,” she said, glaring at Athena.

  “Kill that bastard if it makes you feel better,” the Greek goddess replied.

  The goddesses stepped out of the tent. Ana noticed Epona was looking down, her expression clouded.

  “Are you okay, Epona?” Ana asked.

  “I told him… stay there… and now he’s dead… because of me,” the blonde goddess said, eyes glassy.

  “It wasn’t your fault, Epona,” Ana said, resting her hands on the horse goddess’s shoulders.

  “And he’s not dead. I’m sure of it. And we’re going to crush whoever did this to him. I swear it,” Ana added.

  Epona nodded.

  Around eight in the morning, the sun’s rays finally began to break through the clouds. The survivors ate bread and drank a bit of beer or water. After eating and saying their farewells—while the townspeople thanked the goddesses for their help—Epona secured five horses for their journey to Aros.

  “The moment of truth has come,” Tania said.

  “Let’s bring those bastards down,” Ana said.

  “Let’s make them pay for the people they killed,” Epona added.

  “And let’s rescue Anpiel,” Rodrigo said.

  Athena nodded with a smile, and the five of them set off toward Aros.