Chapter 2: Firing Up Memories

The day had started out so well for Angela Holt. It was a day for simple errands and then she was allowed to take the rest of the day off. It was not a privilege she was given often, so she relished relaxing days such as these. She was an early bird, especially because she owned a stable and needed to feed her horses so early in the morning. As she stepped out of her house and stared at the gorgeous sunrise peeking over the mountains, she stretched her arms above her head and smiled tiredly. She pulled on her muddy barn boots and headed out to greet her horses, who began greeting her with whinnies as they kicked their doors impatiently.

"I'm coming! Hold yourselves!" she called out before bursting into laughter. "Get it? Cause you're horses...?" Glancing around, she was only met with more hungry and impatient responses. "I thought it was funny..." she muttered as she grabbed the feed and got to work distributing it to each horse. Angela was mostly an isolated person, tucked away in her own little corner of Auckland. A few locals rented out stalls in her barn, and she used that money to help pay off the land that had been left to her by her parents. One more month and it would be completely paid off.

Once she was done feeding about twenty minutes later, she went to visit the closest thing she had to family save for her boss. Standing at the gate at the pasture, she whistled and smiled wide as the beast inside spun around and sped towards her. She climbed up and perched on her fence to wait for him, putting her hand out and letting his nose sniff at it. With a loving scratch on his forehead, she glanced over her black stallion.

"Morning, Harley," she spoke calmly, hearing him nicker a reply and leaning her head upon his neck. He scratched an itch on his neck against her shoulder, and she shook her head.

"Oww," she teased before placing a kiss on his muzzle and getting off of the fence. She began walking away from him. "We have to go for a ride in a bit," she called out behind her. Running back to the house, she grabbed her riding breeches and pulled them on, slipping her nicer boots on and making sure she chose a decent shirt before pulling her hair into a low bun. Checking herself in the mirror, she smiled in approval. A bark alerted her to the presence of a dog, and her attention turned downwards. Her dog was sniffing her shoes, and he glanced up at her before dashing over to his food bowl.

"Oh, sorry Rascal!" she laughed softly and quickly fed the New Zealand Eye Dog as well, patting his head as he chowed down on his breakfast. She proceeded to lock up her house and headed back towards the barn to the tack room, all the while humming pleasantly to herself. The blonde-haired woman grabbed her tack and walked back outside to the pasture, where Harley was still standing there waiting for her. With a pat on his back, she saddled him up, making sure he was comfortable.

"Perfect day for traveling," she commented good-naturedly. After putting the bridle on, she lifted herself effortlessly up into the saddle and placed her helmet onto her head, securing it safely into place. "All right boy...why don't we see if we can beat our time from last week?" She used her legs to spur him into a trot, and she focused her energy into him, smiling when she felt him increase his speed until they were practically flying. To a mortal eye, they would appear as an unrecognizable blur. Angela laughed blissfully as they sped through the country and over water.

"Come on...we can do better than this!" she challenged the stallion, who lengthened his legs and sped up, leaving her wonderfully breathless. It was only a matter of minutes before they reached the godly city of Asgard. Dismounting Harley, she took a few deep breaths before walking to Heimdall and smiling. He returned her warm smile and let her pass through, as he enjoyed when Gna would come to visit them. As opposed to the arrogance and selfishness of the other gods, she was a refreshingly kind and humble goddess who loved her work and only wanted to live on Earth with her animals. While the other gods had chosen to return to Asgard, she wanted to stay connected with her mortal body. As soon as she passed through the veil separating their world from the world of mortals, she found herself face to face with Frigg, and she bowed her head respectfully.

"Frigg..." she greeted, though the look on the mother goddess's face prevented her smile from growing. "What is it? What's wrong?"

"Return to Earth...Return home..." She nodded at the warning of her leader, obeying her command and running back past the guardian.

"What is it?" he asked, his body ready for action.

"I'm not sure. I'm needed on Earth," she told him quickly before mounting back up on her stallion and urging him into a gallop, not realizing that she had an invisible passenger joining her on the way back. She was silent as they rode, though Harley stopped short when they were near home.

"What's wrong, Harley?" she asked as his head snapped up and his ears pinned back against his skull. That's when she felt it. There was a presence of another god there with them. She reined the horse around as he began to prance nervously, and they found a gray-haired man standing in their way, smirking as though he knew all of the world's secrets.

"Gna, in the flesh. Such an honor..." his voice was silky smooth as he spoke, his hands casually thrown in his pockets.

"I'm afraid I haven't had the pleasure of knowing your name well enough to return the favor," she answered, feeling the muscles of her horse bunching up as he shied away from the stranger. "Easy..." She stroked his neck soothingly without taking her eyes off of the man.

"Then why don't I help you remember..." He spoke again, and a line of fire shot right past her head and struck the tree behind them. Harley reared up, and Angela wasn't prepared for it, so she toppled off of the back of the tall horse and hit the ground hard. The wind was knocked out of her, and she crawled away from the fire, gasping for breath.

"Harley...go. Get...out of here...NOW." Harley took off into the woods, leaving behind the goddess.

"Did that enlighten you?" His pun was not appreciated at that moment.

"L-Loki..." she managed to croak before more fires popped up around her, closing her in. "You...you're supposed to be...in Asgard..."

"It didn't take," he replied with a scoff. "Why would I stay there, when Earth is so...bendable...so full of opportunity..."

"Go screw yourself," she snapped at him as her breath returned, though her heart slammed against her chest. Loki was the one god she could not stand. He was, to put it simply, a soulless douchebag. He only laughed, his eyes dark and dangerous as he stared down at the woman on the ground.

"Impossible...though I'll take other offers," he teased, and she glared at him in disgust.

"Not for all the power of Asgard," she fired back.

"Suit yourself." As he spoke, she heard growling behind her and turned to see a giant beast looming over her. It lashed out as she flew back, and its claw struck her in the arm. She cried out and glanced down to see the blood staining her new shirt. "You like my pet? His name is Jack the Ripper..." It was a mixture between a wolf, bear, and man, and she immediately pushed herself backwards to distance herself from it.

"Dear gods..." she whispered in horror. Suddenly, a new voice entered her mind, and she felt her body shiver in response. It was not like Loki's voice, demanding and cold though seductive with a dangerous undertone. It was softer, smoother, like a whisper on the breeze. It made her feel like she could do anything she wanted to.

Hold on. We are coming. She clung to that voice speaking those desperate and reassuring words. Visions of a god laughing and also yelling her name clouded her thoughts before they were gone, just as she once again felt alone here with this powerful and evil god.

"Well...not quite...this is a berserker...you know, evil rabid killing machine..." Loki's eyes danced with amusement as he grabbed her from behind and held her head so she could look at the beast. "I'm the one to say whether or not he tears you apart...and that offer is still on the table...there's no need to end up like your parents..." The god's voice dropped low as he whispered against her ear, and she felt hot tears spring into her eyes.

"Fuck off, you sick son of a bitch!" Without thinking, she slammed her elbow into his gut, and in angry retaliation, his hands burned against her skin. The goddess screamed and struggled in his arms, feeling his touch singe her skin painfully.

"I was asking nicely...but now I won't be so nice." The creature stalked towards them, and Angela tried to do whatever she could to escape. However, the major god was stronger than she was and held her fast. He dragged her back and slammed her into a tree, wrapping one hand around her throat and letting the other dig into her wounded arm.

"COLIN!" Another male voice rang out in the middle of the woods just before they felt a chill pierce the air. Angela's eyes widened when she saw her quickened breaths in the cold air. "Let the woman go. You only get one warning." The fires around her were gone in a heartbeat.

"Shit..." she heard Loki growl in her ear. "I've got to go...next time, the gods won't be there. I'm going to enjoy watching you suffer, bitch."

"Get off!" she bit down on his hand stroking her cheek, and he threw her several feet away, her body colliding with the ground once more and rolling towards the berserker. When his arms were free of her, the god took off at a run in the direction of the berserker, as anyone who wanted to follow him would have to get through the beast first. He put up a ring of fire to block them from following, though Ty easily took care of it.

"No! Fuck!"

"I've got her!"

"Take care of that thing. Loki's mine!" Angela was hearing the many voices around her but her eyes were focused solely on the monster speeding towards her. However, just before it struck, it halted suddenly mid-strike. Ty rushed forward, used his gifts to turn the beast into a popsicle as Mike slammed a large branch into it to break it apart, sighing in immense relief as it was detroyed. She felt someone pulling her away from the area of danger and immediately began fighting back.

"Woah! Hey! Calm down! It's all right...we won't hurt you..." The voice was mesmerizingly soothing as a hand stroked her hair, and she turned her head to stare into delightful blue eyes which were staring right back at her. That voice...it had been the one she heard in her mind just minutes before.

"H-how...how did you stop it?" she asked without hesitation.

"He isn't a god, so he isn't immune to it..." was the reply that came from the blonde man embracing her.

"Immune to what?"

"My persuasion..."

"You're a god..." she spoke in a whisper, something familiar nagging at the back of her mind.

"Bragi, god of poetry...but here I'm known as Anders..." He wasn't smiling as he introduced himself. He couldn't stop looking at her face, thinking that he knew her from somewhere.

"Did you actually know he'd stop for you?"

"Not really...I was taking a lucky shot there..." His answer was genuine, and she smacked his arm angrily, to which he winced and released her. "Damn, I was just being honest!" She scrambled up and away from him, her eyes staring around her at everyone until they landed on a familiar and anxious face.

"Hanna!" she exclaimed, running into the arms of her friend, who held onto her for dear life.

"Thank the gods you're all right!" Hanna responded eagerly. "Angela, you are all right, aren't you?" The men stepped closer, just as Axl returned, out of breath and without Loki.

"He disappeared..." the youngest brother reported, and everyone took turns cursing, hitting something, or a combination of both. The young goddess grimaced and pulled back from the bridal shop owner, looking down at her arms. Hanna guided her to sit down, looking at the scratch and burn marks.

"That son of a bitch burned her..." she glared back at the brothers, who exchanged furious glances with each other.

"Who are they?" Angela pointed to the others in the group, and Hanna cleared her throat.

"The other reincarnated gods...Odin, Hodor, Ullr, Baldr, Bragi, and Snotra." As Hanna introduced everyone, she would point at them and they'd give her a wave. "Or, as mortals call them, Axl, Ty, Mike, Olaf, Anders, and Ingrid."

"I thought everyone was supposed to return to Asgard. That's what you told me."

"We did, for a time. And then all of a sudden, we found ourselves back here on Earth."

"Loki wants to bring about Ragnarok," Mike told her gruffly. "The gods returned to stop him."

"How? How could he do th-" Angela began to ask.

"By killing you," Olaf was blunt and direct, not one to beat around the bush, and Ty reached over to hit him. The blonde woman stared at him in fear, prompting Anders to stand and take a few steps towards her.

"Way to go!" The cold brother scolded, wanting to turn his grandfather into a block of ice. Olaf shrugged innocently and stuffed his hands into his pockets.

"We are not going to let that happen," Anders told her firmly, bending down next to her and looking her in the eyes again. Once again, that unsettling feeling churned in his stomach, and before long, they both found themselves looking away. She looked instead at his bloody arm.

"Your arm...that's exactly where that thing clawed me...how is that possible?" Her voice was full of wonder and confusion as she reached out to touch it, not realizing her mistake. A jolt of electricity struck him when she brushed her fingers against his open skin, and he tried not to jump. Instantly, she dropped her fingers down, swallowing hard. From her expression, he could tell that she had felt it too.

"Apparently, the two of you had a connection when Hanna was trying to find you," Mike explained as he came down to sit next to Hanna, who took his hand to seek comfort.

"That's for damn sure..." Anders muttered, and no one but Angela caught what he had said. She shot him a look, which he returned.

"What we don't know is why the two of you had that physical connection. It's never happened before when I've tried to find people..." Mike glanced at Hanna with a frown.

"I've never met him before," Angela argued.

"I've never met her either," Anders agreed, leaning back from her.

"Why don't we get out of here and figure this out later? We have to get her to a safe place," Hanna suggested, to which she heard murmurs of agreement around the group. Hanna and Mike stood up and began to walk away. "We'll take her back to Anders' house..."

"That might not be a good idea..." Mike nodded his head at his brother, who was moving slowly to the group while his eyes kept darting back to the injured goddess.

"Harley...I need to find Harley!" Angela tried to stand up, but she found her legs were still wobbly and almost fell back down, but Anders was by her side in an instant. His arms were around her waist to keep her upright, and he was glancing her over and making sure she was all right.

"Take it easy...Can you walk?" he asked her, an uncomfortable frown as their bodies remained in such close proximity, and Ty walked up to them.

"I'll carry her," he suggested to his older brother. He just figured that Anders's arm was hurting him and wanted to help, and when Anders nodded, Ty used his strength to pick up the woman and hold her securely against his chest.

"I...I seriously could have walked, guys..." she blinked at the both of them. "I mean...you didn't even give me time to answer...I'll be fine..."

"Give your legs a rest. Let him carry you," Anders replied to her shortly before stalking off to join the others, his mouth dry and his head swirling. He felt her eyes on him as they walked back to the cars and was horrified when they put him in the same car as her no matter how much he fought them on it. That ride home, however short it was, was going to be the longest car ride of his life.