Even our bags had changed. They were roughly the same size and shape, but they no longer appeared as practical black gear and instead had become stylish but more handmade, like they could've actually been made here in Kurnugia.
I glanced down at my clothes, the gold now glimmering against my skin, but I didn't have much time to admire myself because Lyra was pushing us along, closer to the entrance.
"Yes, yes, you all look amazing," Lyra said as she herded us forward. "When we get to the entrance, don't say anything. I'll do all the talking."
We fell in behind her, and I did my best to look good and meek. When we finally reached a cherub, my stomach was twisted in knots.
"Purpose of visit?" he barked, unmoved by Lyra's smile. I could barely even stand to look at him--he glowed too bright, shining off the diamond wall behind him, so it was painful.
"My friends haven't been here long, and I wanted to show them Zianna," Lyra replied as honestly as she could. Lying to the cherubim would only get her dismissed.
The cherub looked over at us, his eyes blazing under arched eyebrows, and I held my breath as I forced a smile up at him.
"They must be really new," he said finally. "Their aura is so faint. Go on in. Enjoy the city."
"Thank you," Lyra said, but we were already hurrying ahead, afraid he might change his mind.
The dirt path changed to smooth, opalescent cobblestones that led under the archways going through the seven walls, and went downward toward the valley of Zianna.
As we walked under the first arch, I felt a sensation similar to the one I'd felt when we'd first gone into the Gates of Kurnugia. A pins-and-needles sensation that went through my entire body. Based on the startled expression on Oona's face, I guessed she felt it, too. In the Gates, only Quinn and I had been able to feel the mystical wall that shrouded it with protection--just us Valkyries.
"What was that?" Valeska asked, her voice low but her eyes wide.
"It's the protection from the walls that keeps the undesirables out," Lyra replied simply as we headed toward the next archway--this one gleaming gold--several yards ahead of us.
"Undesirables?" Oona asked. "What qualities are considered undesirable?"
"You mustn't have any darkness or evil in you," Lyra said without slowing her steps.
Valeska faltered, and both of us stopped short. Technically, Valkyries were supposed to be neutral--neither impious nor divine, the same as humans. But I didn't know how it was weighted, if my own personal character and actions could deem me as "undesirable."
Based on what Lyra had told me, the cherubs scanning our auras had been our main obstacle to overcome. The arches and walls worked as both a magical and literal reinforcement to keep anyone from being able to break through.
I'd thought the seven walls were merely a fail-safe, not a further test. But with the tingling I felt--the cold sensation of an enchantment running through me, checking my blood and my heart for anything to deny my entrance into the city of the pure--combined with Lyra's vague assertion about darkness, I got the sense that it might be harder for me to get in than I'd thought.
Lyra paused and looked back at us. "Why are you stopping?"
"How do we know if we have any darkness?" Valeska asked. "What happens if we do?"
"You wouldn't make it through." She arched an eyebrow as she eyed Valeska. "Shall we continue?"
Valeska nodded. "Sure. Why not?"
I looked back, beyond the line outside the archway and the cherubim standing guard. At the shadow of She'ol way off in the distance, over the ridge behind us. My thoughts turned to Asher, and my hand instinctively went to my chest, over my heart, where the last words he'd said to me lingered.
I hoped that he wasn't in She'ol. I hoped that he was safe. That he was still alive. That he could wait for me a little bit longer.
Once I was done with this current mission, once we had Gungnir, I would send it back to the earth above, and I would find Asher. If I had to fight every monster in the entire underworld to save him, I would. There was nothing in this world or any other that could stop me from bringing him back to me.
TWENTY-TWO
We went under the golden arch, and the next three, with relative ease. The tingly sensation grew stronger, growing more painful with each arch. It was like being zapped with an electrical current, one that shot through me and left a burning ache in my bones.
Passing through the wall made of glittering blue garnet, I had to grit my teeth, but I made it. I took a deep breath and pressed on, heading toward the ruby archway in front of us.
"Are you okay?" Oona asked softly and touched my arm.
"I'm fine," I lied and looked at her.
She stared at me, her black walnut eyes filled with concern, but with no hint of pain. No sign of the residual shock that had begun to make my eyes water.
"You don't feel anything," I realized and glanced over at Valeska, who appeared similarly unruffled.
"I feel a tingle, but nothing bad," Oona admitted.
Suddenly, a few feet in front of us, under the shimmering red glow of the ruby arch, a man fell to the cobblestones, writhing in pain. I didn't know what kind of immortal he was, since he had a basic human appearance, but we had been following behind him all through the gates.
It wasn't until this one that it had become too much. He convulsed and let out guttural cries of agony, his face contorting with pain as his muscles contracted.
Finally, a cherub flew down and picked him up, pulling him away from the arch and its magic that was causing him so much pain. Then the cherub carried him away, back out of Zianna, back to where we'd come in.
"What happened to him?" Valeska asked.
"The magic grows stronger through the walls," Lyra explained. "It must detect even the smallest impurities in your heart and blood to keep those who do not belong in Zianna out."
Oona loosened her grip on my arm and let her hand slip down so she was holding my hand, and she whispered, "I will pull you through. No matter what. I'll make sure you get through. We got this."
I squeezed her hand gratefully, and we walked forward. The pain was much worse this time--an excruciating jolt that momentarily blinded me--but I made it through.
The final wall was made of black opal, and it was by far the most dazzling. The rich black stone was mottled with brilliant specks of gold, blue, copper, and red. The spatters of color against the darkness made it look like the stars in a clear night sky.
Lyra tried to pause, probably wanting to give me a moment to catch my breath, but dragging it out would only make it worse, so I trudged on ahead.
I walked under the arch side by side with Oona, but as soon as I was under the arch, I froze. The pain hit me so intensely and so suddenly my knees buckled and my stomach lurched. I could feel my teeth grinding as my muscles contracted, and I couldn't breathe.
Then, dimly--almost as if it were happening somewhere else, like I was dreaming--I felt tugging on my arm, and my legs managed to take a couple lumbering steps.
But that was all I needed. As soon as I stepped out from under the arch, the pain stopped, and air filled my lungs. There was still lingering soreness, but it was nothing compared to the agony of before.
"You did it," Oona said, squeezing my hand again, and I realized that she must've pulled me through before I collapsed.
"How was that possible?" I asked, looking over at Lyra.
"You have more goodness in you than bad," she explained with a sympathetic smile. "There's just more darkness in you than the rulers of Zianna would prefer, but they're snobs. You made it through, so you're worthy of being here."
I rubbed my arms, which were stiff from the last arch, and muttered, "I don't feel all that worthy right now."
"You made it, and that's what counts." Lyra's smile deepened, and she stepped to the side and spread her arms expansively. "Welcome to Zianna."
And there it was, spread out before us. The rolling green hills of grass, so green and soft, with streams of cry
stal-clear water. Flowers of every color dotted the landscape, and I swear colors existed here that I'd never seen before. Shades of blue and pink and purple and white that seemed to change and shift and exist out of any spectrum I'd ever seen.
The impossible beauty of it all had a strange dizzying effect, because I couldn't fully comprehend it. The lushness and loveliness went beyond my senses.
While I tried to take it all in, a herd of kirin ran toward us. They looked like white horses, but they were more a mixture of unicorn and dragon. Two dark gray antlers grew out before their ears, and one smaller horn grew in the center, lower on their forehead.
Dotted along their cheeks, foreheads, and all along their backs were iridescent scales that shimmered in the bright light. While their fur was white, their manes and tails had the slightest bit of color, tinged with pastel pink or blue. The tails were long and prehensile, like that of a spider monkey, but with long fur at the end, similar to a normal horse. As they ran, their tails curled up.
"They're stunning," Valeska intoned in awe.
The three of us had never seen a live kirin before. Because of their exquisite beauty, their horns and scales had been prized, and they had been hunted to extinction on earth thousands of years ago.
When they had been wiped out, that was when Odin called for Valkyries, saying that immortals were too powerful to be left unfettered and that they would ravage the earth for all living things. If even other immortals like kirin could be obliterated, what chance would mortals and other less aggressive immortals do with dragons, demons, and vampires controlling the world?
It's because the kirin were gone, enduring only in the underworld, that I even existed.
The herd of kirin turned just before they reached us and ran across the cobblestone in front of us. Up close they were even more beautiful, and Oona let out an awestruck laugh.
Once they'd gone, she turned back with a broad smile. "This is all too much," she said with another laugh that teetered on an overwhelmed mania.
"You really can get lost in the majesty of it all," Lyra admitted, but her tone had an admonishing quality. "But you don't really have time for that, do you?"
"No, of course not." I shook my head, attempting to clear it of the overstimulation and regain my wits. "We don't have much time at all."
"So, where do we go from here?" Lyra asked.
"We need to find Baldur," I said. "He has what we're looking for."
"Baldur?" Lyra thought for a moment. "I believe he lives in the palace, but that's really a city unto itself. I can get you as far as the palace, but beyond that you'll be on your own tracking him."
"That will be good enough," I said.
"You mean it'll have to be good enough," Valeska corrected me dryly.
TWENTY-THREE
It wasn't until we got closer to the palace that I could fully appreciate its size. The central area of the building seemed to be a vast rotunda with a glittering dome in the center. Seven glass towers of varying heights rose up from it, and any of them would dwarf even the tallest building I'd seen on earth.
The palace sprawled out far beyond that, with white marble buildings extending out for miles. That didn't even count the hundreds of acres of greenery that surrounded it. Vaulted terraces of all types of flowers, trees, and fruits created a pyramidesque garden encircling the palace.
We climbed stone stairs that passed over waterfalls and aqueducts, with wisteria dripping around us and vines climbing up the support walls of the terraces beside us. The air smelled even sweeter as we went higher, like peonies and roses and fresh-cut grass and rain.
When we finally reached the top of the steps, we all should've been winded. We'd ascended hundreds of stairs, but I could breathe easier than I ever had before. My legs didn't hurt, and even the ache from passing under the arches had passed. Just being here, so near to the citadel, had a restorative effect.
The mezzanine was the highest level of the gardens. It was a lush plateau that extended the length of several city blocks. Pearlescent slabs lined the pathway, and marble benches and fountains dotted the periphery. Many beings--most of them beautiful or pleasing to the eye, all of them impeccably dressed--milled around the lawn, talking, laughing, reading, eating fruit. It all seemed so peaceful and happy.
"That's the entrance." Lyra pointed to the far side of the mezzanine, to the last few steps that led into the round central hub of the palace.
"Is this where you leave us, then?" Oona asked, her small voice sounding uneasy.
"Yes, this is as far as I go." Lyra nodded solemnly. "There are several orisha that work helping everyone navigate the citadel. They can help you the rest of your way."
"Thank you again for all your help," I told her, wishing that I had a more meaningful way to show her how grateful I truly was.
"It was no trouble." She moved closer to me and took my hand in both of hers, holding it warmly but firmly. Her rich brown eyes locked on mine, and though she was smiling, there were tears swimming in her eyes. "Tell Sloane that I think of her every day, and that I love her so much." She swallowed back her emotion. "Tell her that I'm sorry for what I did. Please."
"I will," I promised her.
She let go of my hand and wiped her eyes. "Thank you. I wish you only good fortune on the rest of your travels." Lyra turned and started walking away, but Valeska called after her.
"What are you going to do now?" Valeska asked.
Lyra smiled demurely. "We all have business to attend to."
I watched her retreating figure for a few moments--her silken black hair swaying behind her as she headed back down the steps. But we had much to do, so I followed the pearlescent paths that wound around the benches.
"Are you going to ask those orisha for help or whatever?" Valeska asked as she fell in step beside me.
"No."
The orisha were helpful spirits, but I didn't know how eager they would be to help us disturb the order of their world. In reality, we were only hoping to maintain it, but seeking out Odin's son to get the spear he'd hidden would most probably seem like an intrusive disturbance to them.
"What's the plan, then?" Oona asked. "How are we going to find him?"
I stopped beside rosebushes near the steps up to the palace for a bit of privacy. Valeska must've known what I was about, because she spread out her large black wings, shrouding us even further from any prying eyes.
I quickly rummaged through my bag and pulled out the solarsteinn.
"There's no sun here," Oona pointed out, her voice tight with anxiety. "Is that a problem?"
As I stared down at the translucent stone in the palm of my hand, I answered, "I think it only needs light, and there's plenty of light around here."
Valeska stared at it with her arms folded over her chest, scrutinizing it before asking, "What does it do?"
"You have to focus on what you want to find most, and this stone will show you where it is," I explained.
"And what is it that we want to find?" Valeska asked. "Are we going after Baldur, or straight for the spear?"
"I'm afraid that the spear will be locked up or inaccessible to us, since Baldur took it to hide it from his father," I said. "If we find Baldur, we can reason with him and tell him what Odin said and what's happening up on earth."
Valeska scoffed. "You think he'll hand it over?"
"Odin said that Baldur was the most compassionate of his children," I reasoned. "He'll have to be sympathetic to our cause."
"And what if he's not?" Valeska asked.
"We'll use the stone to find it," I said firmly. "And then we'll do whatever we have to do to get it. I'm not leaving Zianna without it."
Valeska smiled then. "What are you waiting for? Let's get to it."
The solarsteinn had worked for me before, so I tried to remember what I had done earlier. I closed my eyes and focused on Baldur, on every detail I knew about him. Then I started chanting in my head, Show me where Odin's son Baldur is. Bring me to him.
Then I
opened my eyes and held up my palm, so the stone could catch the light. And we waited.
I held my hand up even higher, as if I were offering the solarsteinn to the gods. I could see the light hitting it--a bright beam shining through. Just when I thought all hope was lost, a prism of color shifted inside the stone.
A rainbow of light shone out from it, pointing right toward the palace.
TWENTY-FOUR
It was busy inside the palace, and that worked both for and against us. We were easily lost in the crowd, but that left us with no privacy to use the stone.
Inside the lavish rotunda, underneath the glittering glass dome, was a grand open room. At the edge, where the extremely high ceiling ended, was a stoa encircling the space. Thick columns surrounded the walkway, creating a semi-open hallway, which had dozens of ornate archways leading out of the main room.
Despite the rather monochromatic color scheme--a great deal of white marble and granite, with only the occasional splash of copper or gold, and even most of the guests inside seemed to be wearing white or gold--it all had an air of sophistication and elegance.
This also made the place stunningly bright, so I quickly palmed the solarsteinn. With this much light, the stone would be liable to cast a giant rainbow over everyone, and I did not want to draw any attention.
As Lyra had predicted, orisha were waiting around the entrance, happily asking if anyone needed help finding their way around the citadel. I declined as politely as I could and scanned the room for even the smallest hint of seclusion.
The space was filled with breathtaking architectural flourishes, and it was impossible to take them all in. Oona had become mesmerized by an elaborate rose gold mandala inlaid in the white marble floor, and I had to take her hand to get her moving again.
"I wish I could take pictures," she moaned, gazing around the grand room as I led her to the far side, to hide in the shadows behind a pillar.
A trio of immortals were walking toward us, chatting, but once they passed, it looked like I have might have a few seconds when I could take a peek at the solarsteinn. I leaned back against a column and waited.
"This isn't a vacation," Valeska chastised Oona, but I saw the way she looked around the room--she was as enamored with it as Oona and I.