I was going to find the moron who had sold Thor a truck, as well as the idiot who issued him a driver's license, and strangle them. No, that would be too quick. Tie them to an anthill. Or some of the diabolical punishments I learned about in history class. Crucifixion might do it. Or scaphism. Yeah, scaphism sounded good.
The Toyota Tundra was supposed to be one of the safest trucks on the market, but Thor drove it with the cheerful abandon of a Viking berserker. That was fine when his primary transportation on Asgard was horses. At least a horse could tell Thor to go fuck himself in its horsie way when he tried to ride it off a cliff or get it to jump a canyon. Modern Earth vehicles required a bit more attention.
I had the Oh Shit handle in a white-knuckled grip as Thor hooked a turn on the mountain road in a way that had my stomach doing all sorts of interesting stunts as both tires on the passenger side met air for a moment before landing back on the ground. A car crash wouldn't kill me, but it would suck.
"Thor, must I remind you that trucks do not fly?" Loki chewed his brother out from the backseat. "I knew I should have been the one to drive..."
"No one drives my truck but me, besides 'tis fine, Brother."
"You think so? Tell that to Tracy, who is white as a ghost and is about to kick the door out to escape!"
Thor looked at me, and I jabbed at the front window with a hand made of Jell-O, trying to tell him with charades to keep. His eyes. On. The road! I was incapable of actual speech at the moment. "Your woman's fine." Then he jerked the wheel to narrowly avoid driving straight into thin air. I was making fierce promises to any deity that was listening that I would behave, I would never swear again, I would never again spike anyone's coffee with the juice from the jar of pickled eggs Sam insisted on keeping in the kitchen even though everyone gagged each time he opened it, as long as this trip didn't end in a crash and however many days it would take me to heal all the broken bones.
Never again. I would never, ever again ride in a vehicle with Thor driving. I didn't care that my driver's license, which Tony had made, was invalid in Norway. I'd drive extra careful to avoid being pulled over. But I was driving back. I swear to God, if I had to bludgeon the God of Thunder with a brick, I would be driving on the return trip to the airport in Oslo.
"You're approaching that boulder too fast!"
"I have eyes, Loki, and I have more than enough time to brake."
"Watch the guardrail, I just saw sparks!"
"Must you provide commentary every time I drive?"
"If you would learn to drive, I wouldn't have to!"
"Both of you, shut up! Why am I being dragged along like this?" I was not whining. I didn't care what it sounded like; I was not whining. Really. I wasn't.
"Because I have need of your particular skill set," Thor answered. "I was going to wait until we arrived to go into detail, but if you need to hear it-" And he turned from looking out the windshield and looked at me again.
"No! It can wait, concentrate on driving!" I wasn't about to piss myself. I really wasn't. First, I had nothing in my bladder. Second, I had better control than that. I think. I'd like to think I did.
"If you can call what he's doing 'driving'," Loki groused.
"I heard that..." Thor growled.
"Not helping! Not helping!" I shouted. I think I shouted. It might have come out a squeak instead.
It went on like this for another two hours, during which I obtained concrete proof that my GI tract still existed in the form of a colon doing flip-flips and cartwheels in response to the roller coaster ride on crack that Thor dared to call driving. I finally spotted the "Welcome to New Asgard" sign, written in both English and Norwegian. At that moment it was the most beautiful sight I had ever seen. Thor almost hit two other vehicles as he was parking. At least it was over. It was over and by some miracle I was still in one piece. I sat in the truck for a moment, trying to get my heart to settle, and Loki opened my door.
"I apologize for my brother, Pet. He tends to forget sometimes that certain things are still subject to the laws of gravity. If you wish, I will sit in front when we go back."
What difference would that make? His crazy brother would still be at the wheel! Front, back, tied to the roof, I would not be having a comfortable ride back to Oslo no matter where I sat. Unless it was on a demented draft horse on skis. "I would rather walk."
"There are trolls..."
"I'll take my chances." When I was sure my legs would hold me up, I climbed out of the truck. Oh, ground. Sweet, blessed ground. I would never leave you again. "And you have my permission to gag me the next time I start to talk you out of renting a vehicle to spare your brother's feelings."
He chuckled and I gripped his arm so I wouldn't fall over in front of the dozen Asgardians who were watching us. That would have made a wonderful first impression. He led me over to where Thor was talking to a—um. I had no idea how to describe them. The best I could come up with was a talking rock and a giant beetle. Did I mention how weird this world was?
"This the tracker you told us about?" The voice came from a very pretty dark-skinned woman with thick, long black hair that curled in the high ponytail she had it up in. She wore a thick jacket over a green sweater, jeans, and hiking boots. Much the same way I was dressed, though I wasn't wearing a jacket but instead a dark blue angora sweater. It was nowhere near as soft as the black cashmere worn by the man whose arm I clung to since the ground was still tilting.
"She's not a tracker, she's my friend, and maybe someday my-" I glanced at Thor as he spoke and he cleared his throat. "Abriel, this is Valkyrie, Valkyrie, Abriel. Ah, no, she doesn't do that," Thor shook his head and caught Valkyrie's hand as she started to reach towards me for a handshake.
"It's nice to meet you," I nodded, trying to save face since Thor had made me come off as a rude bitch who thought herself too good to shake hands. "Tracker?" I asked, since that had caught my attention.
"It's why we needed you. There's been a string of...well, I'll let Valkyrie explain..."
"Might be easier if we just show her. Come...we kept everyone out. No one's been inside since the morning we found it..." Valkyrie led the way. I let go of Loki's arm, my curiosity piqued. What could a bunch of Asgardians possibly need me for?
We stopped in front of a cabin on the outskirts of town. I sucked in a harsh breath through my teeth at what I smelled, and froze in my tracks. My vision began to waver. Loki gave me a sharp look, and Thor looked concerned.
"Is she alright?" Valkyrie asked in concern.
Loki stepped up to me. "Pet," he barked, and my eyes snapped to his in response to the command in his voice.
I took a mental step away from the edge. "I'm fine," I assured everyone after a deep breath. "The smell of blood just makes me queasy. Especially if I'm not prepared for it." It wasn't too strong outside the cabin, but I could still smell it. The stomach-turning odor of iron, a metallic tang I could almost taste. I hadn't been lying when I had said it made me nauseous. More proof that my GI tract didn't stop working just because I'd stopped putting it to use.
"You can smell that from out here?" Valkyrie was studying me.
"Yes. Unfortunately. Not what I need after riding in a truck with Evel Knieval for the past few hours."
Valkyrie grinned. "You have my sympathies. Once was more than enough for me, since then he is not allowed to drive when I'm in the car."
That perked my interest. "Really? How'd you manage that?"
"Ladies," Thor growled.
"Tell you later," Valkyrie winked at me, then she opened the door to the cabin. I walked towards it, bracing myself. The blood stench wasn't quite the smack in the fact I had expected, but it was strong. It overpowered almost everything, and I wondered what specifically I was looking for. No one said anything though, so I followed the most pungent trail through the door into the next room. The dining room.
The table was smashed almost to splinters. Two chairs had been destroyed. Drying blood stained the floor, the walls, and what was left of the furniture. The odor of rotting food added to the already stomach-churning soup made the black spots in my vision turn into fireworks.
I knelt down. I picked up the scents of two people, both Asgardians, and something else. I took a deep inhale. Mint and raspberries. Pine and salt. And...
I coughed when I got to the corner. My eyes watered and I fought not to dry heave. "Tracy?" Loki called out.
"I'm fine. This is the first time I've smelled sulfur in a while." I shut my eyes tight because they were burning along with my sinuses. Tears rolled down my cheeks. Holy fuck, did it sting. It was like someone was stabbing into my brain with an icepick. Underneath the sulfur was some acid smell. I could taste the odor and it was like copper filling my mouth. I was scared to swallow. I stepped away from that corner, where the scent wasn't as strong. It trailed deeper into the house, along with the raspberries and pine. The blood didn't follow. In fact, it stayed in the dining room.
"That's why we needed someone with your nose who wouldn't run away. Even our best dogs ran out of the house and refused to return when they came across whatever that scent is," Valkyrie said upon entering the dining room, along with Thor and Loki.
"I can't believe you had to use dogs. You can't smell that?"
"No. What does it smell like to you?"
"Sulfur laced with acid. Two Asgardians were here too."
Thor nodded. "Sven and Aasta. They're both missing."
I took careful steps around what was left of the table, stepped over a chair, and followed the trail of scents out of the dining room into a mud room. The door to the back was closed. I opened it and sniffed, and sure enough the trail led outside. Both Asgardians and whatever the sulfur smell was, but no blood. I walked out of the house and through the low grass, hearing the others following.
I followed the scents for an hour, aware of the three Asgardians trailing me the whole time. Soon the sounds of them moving and breathing were joined by the roar of crashing waves. The sea did nothing to cut through the sulfur and acid, which led directly to the cliff. I slowed down to move more cautiously as I approached the edge, then peered down. My brain recoiled in horror at the macabre sight that greeted me.
"I don't think Sven and Aasta are missing anymore," Loki stated after he came up beside me and checked out what I was looking at.
The rib cages had been cracked open, that I could see even at the distance we were at. Loki started to grab for me when I began to climb down, but remembered at the last minute that doing so might result in one of us falling into the ocean. I heard him growl in frustration under his breath. We'd probably be talking later, but right now I scaled the rocks, making my way to the bodies that I could smell. A sick, sweet decaying odor that raised the hairs on the back of my neck clogged my throat the closer I got. Thor beat me to them, flying down to land on the bodies. "If you had waited, I could have carried you down."
"Having you transport me once in a day was enough." I held the back of my hand against my nose. The sulfur was competing with the decay for most gag-inducing smell. There was another scent hidden among the miasma of odors. I leaned in. "Oh God, oh my God."
"I'm right here," Loki piped up behind me. "What is it?"
"I smell saliva." It was a faint alkaline, slight metallic taste, similar to semen (and yes, unfortunately, I knew what that smelled like thanks to various spots in New York) but much weaker in strength. "On the wounds."
"They were eaten?" Thor exclaimed in dismay.
"Tell me whatever it was choked on them," Valkyrie said when she joined us.
Thor bent down to examine the corpses. "The hearts and livers are missing from both."
I flinched and almost backed into Loki. The movement brought my attention to another trail. The sulfur and acid leading away and further down the cliff. I began to climb down further.
"Let me carry you this time," Thor suggested.
"Then I won't be able to follow the scent," I pointed out. I went all the way down to the beach, the others scrambling behind me, and then stepped towards the waves. The scent vanished into them. I paced slowly along the water, but I didn't catch it again.
"It lives in the ocean," Thor stated after he landed beside me.
"I didn't smell sea water." Of course, the sulfur and acid had been wreaking havoc with my nose so I could have missed it.
"We'll send patrols out here, just in case," Valkyrie said. "Other areas of the coast as well. They'll be stretched thin, but whatever this is has killed five of us. We should show her the other three dwellings, so she can confirm if their scent trails head towards the sea as well."
"That can wait," Loki said, not taking his eyes off me. The sulfur and decay were wearing on me, and my head was spinning.
"But she can find their bodies..."
"They aren't going anywhere, they're dead. They can wait," Loki repeated firmly as I began to walk in slow circles.
"I agree. They've had a long journey, Valkyrie, and another day will make no difference for those poor souls."
The heels of my hands were pressed against my eyes in a futile effort to relieve the burn. I could feel sharp concern from all three of them now, all focused on me. "Very well," Valkyrie agreed.
Bad shape or not, I still refused to let Thor carry me.
Loki's New Asgard cabin was just as extravagant as his New York penthouse. The color scheme was warmer, dark browns and beiges, but everything was so polished that I could see my reflection in the coffee table. Just like his New York apartment, the only other scent I detected besides his was Thor's. And just like his New York apartment, the place was a shrine. I stared at the portrait of himself Loki had displayed on the wall behind his bed, wearing fresh clothes and hair still damp after a shower. We really needed to address this massive ego of his.
I wasn't annoyed though. I was staring at it as a distraction from my spiraling thoughts. I could not lose it like I almost did. I had seen and smelled blood and all sorts of other bodily fluids before. I had seen dead bodies...especially in the labyrinth...before. I didn't know why I couldn't handle
Dead, they're all dead...
things out there. I hated being weak.
"Stop that and drink this," I felt Loki come up behind me, winding one hand in my hair, the other to hand me a glass of white wine. I realized I'd been chewing on my thumbnail. "Come, dine with me." He knew I didn't eat, but he had brought out food anyway. I had to admit it smelled good. It was some kind of salmon dish with capers.
I followed him to his dining room and sat in the chair he pulled out for me. I noticed something else about the food. I should have smelled whoever prepared it, but the only scent I picked up was..."You made this?" He just smiled and took his own seat. "You cook?"
"Why is everyone always so surprised when they learn that?" Loki cut into his fish.
"It's not a hobby one would expect you to have," I replied. I forked up some salmon. I may not need to eat, but I could still taste it.
"The kitchen has its own type of magic," he stated. His blue eyes landed on me as he asked. "Are you okay, Pet? After today? I know that was difficult for you..."
The capers exploded on my tongue. "The blood caught me offguard," I answered him. "And then when I saw them...it brought some things back."
"What things?" Loki's eyes pinned me as he picked up his wine.
I took a deep breath and told him some of what had happened to my mind when they had a hold on it. I told him about the labyrinth, told him about a few of my experiences in it. How I had lost all sense of reality, was forced to witness horrible things, couldn't tell whether or not any of it was real or delusion. Or if some of it was real and some of it delusion, and which was which.
"So, what you are saying is that seeing those bodies put you back in the time when those creatures butchered you psychically, and you came close to having an, as you put it, episode." He nodded. "I knew it had to be something of the sort. I just wanted to hear you say it. I also wanted you to say out loud that you managed to overcome it."
"Barely."
"But you did not give in. You fought and won." He smiled at me. "I am very proud of you, Pet."
We moved to the sofa after dinner, proceeding to drink wine and talk for a few hours. The hour was getting late, Loki felt a bit jetlagged, and I had a feeling that I at least would be requested early. The problem was that there was only one bed. "You take it. I will sleep on the sofa," Loki offered.
"I don't sleep, so I don't need the bed."
"I insist, Pet."
"You need your bed more than I do."
"I will feel much better if you would sleep in the bed."
"I don't sleep!"
"Try."
We stared each other down. We both knew who was going to win. There was no way I could hold that dominant piercing gaze for long. I blinked first. And that's how I ended up in the bedroom, on a soft mattress with a gazillion thread count sheets and fluffy pillows, staring out the window at the Aurora Borealis dancing on the horizon. It wasn't thoughts of dead bodies and blood I was trying to distract myself from this time.
Loki's ice and peppermint scent saturated the room, the bed, the sheets, the shirt I had borrowed. It was making me edgy and needy, setting my belly on fire, and soaking my panties. I knew Loki was feeling the same. I could feel him awake in the other room, and smelled his arousal, the musk of it drifting to me through the wall and closed door. My nipples were so hard that they were in agony and I could not get how the bulge in his jeans had felt between my thighs a couple nights ago out of my head. My brain wanted to find out if he was as big as that bulge had suggested, as did my lower lips. I grabbed a pillow and squeezed it over my head, but that didn't help. It only gave me a face full of the smell of his hair. I kicked the covers off to cool myself down. That wasn't happening. I glared at the ceiling.
Loki wasn't doing much better.
This was ridiculous.
I got up and padded towards the door, which opened before I reached it.
He was bare-chested, and wearing black pajama bottoms. He had both arms braced on the doorframe as he panted while his eyes raked me from head to toe. His tendons were standing out, the cords on his neck taut and throbbing. I walked up to him and placed my hands on his heaving chest, looking deep into his eyes. I had to get on my toes even after he leaned down to allow me to place my lips on his. My arms went around his neck, and I felt his arms move...
"Damn it," I snarled when I found myself at the foot of the bed, one leg up, knuckles smarting. I sank to the mattress. "I hate this, I hate being so broken and fucked up that I can't..." I covered my face with my hands. I heard Loki move around, and then he sat on the corner of his bed.
"You are not broken and you are not fucked up," he said in a stern voice. "You are getting better, it will just take more time. We both need to be patient."
I remained curled up, hands on my knees, torso bent over my thighs, cheeks on my palms.
"Pet...Tracy...stop. Look at me. Look at me," Loki commanded.
I slowly obeyed, uncurling to turn my head and gaze back at him. "You are making excellent progress. When we first met, you would panic if I was in close proximity. But just the other night, you kissed me. If the two of us hadn't been dressed..." He shut his eyes, curling his hands into fists, and breathed deeply. He swallowed.
"I still can't even let you give me a hug without blacking out!"
Silence for a moment. "We will get there," Loki sighed. "I apologize, Pet. I should not have-"
"Stop it. I don't think either of us is having a restful night."
His nostrils flared as he looked towards my thighs. "So I gather." I knew smelling my musky wetness was not helping matters for him. Fuck, it wasn't helping matters for me. I chewed on my thumbnail again, pressing my thighs together, my other arm around my midsection. This was so absurd. I hated it that they had taken this from me, like they had everything else. They took my home, my family, my universe. They took my sanity and humanity. Now...
Fuck that. I was not going to let the bastards win.
"No!" Loki shouted when I crossed my arms and begin to lift my shirt. He grabbed the bottom of the garment and held it down, preventing me from pulling it off. "Don't. I am barely in control of myself as it is. If you remove that, I will-" He cut himself off and removed his trembling hands.
I studied him. He wasn't lying.
I wasn't giving up.
"What are you doing?" His eyes were laser focused as I rolled my panties down to my feet and kicked them away.
"You can't touch me, but I can touch you. So, I'm going to give us both some relief." I got up and stepped around the bed to him.
"You...you really don't need to do this."
I straddled his lap. "Shut up, and sit on your hands if you have to."
"I am not a 'lie back and think of England' type of man." He almost growled the line, his teeth clenched and pupils dilated as the small patch of hair between my legs tickled his lower abs.
"Try." I placed my hand on his cool cheek and kissed him.
I felt the comforter move when his hands gripped it, but I felt something in him surrender as I tasted his lips. He tasted like ice and peppermint, and a chill ran down my spine. I pressed the front of my body against his, and he groaned.
I broke the kiss to nip his jaw, then went lower to suck the side of his neck. He hissed, trembling. I felt his struggle and his need. This wasn't ideal for him, but he was also savoring this contact with me. But I knew if I dragged this out, he would find it harder to resist becoming a more active participant. I lifted my hips, reached between us, and grabbed the waistband of his pants. I tugged, making sure I was careful not to hurt him, then reached for him. A sharp breath greeted me as I wrapped my hand around his throbbing length. He was thick and long, perfect just like the rest of him. I lowered my hips, guiding him in as I settled.
"Not yet," he ordered as I started to move, then locked eyes with me. He still wasn't moving, was remaining passive, yet he couldn't keep his dominance in check if he tried. His hand inched up until he fisted my hair, staring into my eyes while both of us quivered. I squeezed the inner muscles that gripped him, and he groaned in response, his eyelids fluttering.
I began to move my hips slowly, grinding on him, kissing his lips, his neck, his collarbone, where ever I could reach. "Pet," he gasped, but he held still except for the fist tightening in my dark locks. I was moaning, grinding the pearl at the apex of my lower lips against his lower abs as I rode him, my breath coming out in quick pants that grew faster. He yanked my hair back, and my eyes teared at the burn along my scalp. "Not yet," Loki growled. "Together. We go together."
I gyrated and bounced my hips on him harder, milking him, watching his eyes, focused on the hunger I saw. I felt it too. I felt everything, including him getting closer to his release. I made a whining noise in my throat, then screamed when both of our orgasms overtook me, an electric surge making my body rigid and stealing my breath away. My nails dug into his back, and when we both came down, I was still gripping him as he fell back onto the bed from his sitting position.
Both of his hands were in my hair. We breathed in sync. "Well now," Loki said in a quiet voice. "That wasn't quite how I imagined our first time, but it was..." He took a deep breath. He pulled my head back by my hair so I would look into his eyes. "It will be so much better when I can touch you, but that was spectacular. I love you, Pet, and I have from the moment I first saw you."
My throat was dry, and my heart raced.
"It is quite alright, Pet. You don't need to say it back. Not until you're ready." He ran his fingers through my hair. And I stayed with him until he fell asleep.