The following rant is brought to you by the demented mind of Daniela A. Wolfe

Well it's finally here! This is the final story in the Ragnarok Rising trilogy. As such if you haven't read Incompatible or the revised version Transfigured I would recommend doing so before reading any further. This story is the final one in the series and as such it won't make much sense unless you read the first two.

I've posted a glossary of terms (including the days/months and their English equivalents) to go along with these stories, it can be found at Bigcloset Topshelf, Fictionmania, & tgstorytime.

Shout outs go to the following people: Beyogi, Maggie Finson, Loki who served as either alpha and/or beta readers, the Rev. Anam Chara who helped edit some of the dialogue (spoken by the characters Hervor, Heime & Gilda) to more accurately reflect Elizabethan era English and last but certainly not least Holly H Hart for her superb editing prowess.

Manadag, the sixth of Morsugur

Holy Frigg. Mom was right Ragnarok is coming. Norns, where the frizz do I even begin? Everything has changed. So many things have been called into question, and I find myself doubting everything. Yeah, today has been hel, and I don't think my life shows any signs of going back to normal. Shit, I am so screwed.

We arrived at the Dingha by travel spell to find some frizzing reporters waiting for us. The Seidskati had never made much of an effort at keeping the times of their meetings private, and the recent news about Mom and me had drawn them like locusts to a wheat field. After our shopping trip the media was having a field day, and most were speculating on whether or not I really was Neil Steinburg transformed into a girl.

We pushed our way through the gaggle of reporters without any comment, and were soon inside the dingha where we were greeted by a gray-haired woman with a stern frown.

"Elizabeth," Mom said with a relieved sigh. "Are they ready for us?"

It only took me a moment to register her name before realizing that the woman was Elizabeth Bathory.

"As ready as they'll ever be," Elizabeth said a scowl and a shake of her head.

Mom smiled grimly and nodded, "Is it that bad?"

"Bad enough, but it's more of the usual. There have been speculation on why you've called the council together, but it is nothing more than speculation," Elizabeth said with an irritable shake of her head.

"Then they have no idea?"

"None."

"Good. Maybe I can catch them off guard."

"Are you ready?" Mom asked, suddenly turning around to lock eyes with me.

"Yeah, I guess so."

Mom nodded then turned to Daniella, "Remember what we discussed."

Daniella nodded before Mom motioned for me to follow her down the long corridor that led to the chamber doors. Daniella, Eva, and Leif all stayed behind as we were ushered inside the council chamber by a pair of women with stern expressions on their faces. I'd never been within the chamber before and I couldn't help but feel self-conscious as the hooded figures above all stared down at us.

"Kona le Fey, why have you called upon the Seidskati?" the wizened figure of a woman asked, glaring down at my mother. I wanted to shrink under the force of the woman's gaze, but Mom held her ground so I did my best to follow her example and not slink into the shadows.

"Ancient Theodora, as I have been forced to reminded you on numerous occasions, it is inappropriate to refer to a fellow member of the Seidskati as Kona," Mother said, meeting the elderly woman's gaze with a glare just as formidable.

Theodora scowled, "Very well, sister, why have called us?"

"I have several reasons for calling the council together. The first of which has to do with the magical awakening of my son," Mom replied placing a hand on shoulder.

"Do you mean to say that this girl is your son?" a scorn-filled voice chimed in.

"That's right, Xiu."

"I must say I find this news disturbing," Theodora said, glaring down with a disgusted look on her face.

"Come now ancient, it is not as if Aryanna has any control over her child's transformation," a woman whom I recognized as Matoaka spoke up almost immediately.

As the only Native Nrylander among the Seidskati, she is nearly as controversial a figure as mother. Unlike the other members of the Seidskati Matoaka represented an entire tribe of people rather than a specific house.

"I am not so sure," Ancient Theodora shot back.

"Neil's transformation was not by my doing," Mother said calmly.

"She speaketh sooth. 'Twas I who did invoke the changes," A figure dressed in white said walking through the chamber doors. It was Hervor, followed closely by my father.

"Queen Hervor," Matoaka said frowning down at the light elf. "What brings you before the Seidskati?"

"I was entreated by thy peer to appear before thee," she replied.

"For what purpose?" A woman said, standing and removing the hood from her face. It was Mi Cha Shin, a relatively new member of the Seidskati. Her home country of Goryeo had been at war with Nyrland for almost twenty years until an uneasy peace had been declared. Her house had only been recently been admitted to the Seidskati, but she had already proven herself to be a formidable force within the ruling body of the Spellbinders.

"To make you aware of a danger that threatens everything," Mom replied calmly.

"What sort of danger?" Theodora asked with a scowl on her face.

"Ragnarok," Mom said, locking eyes with the ancient woman.

The council chambers suddenly erupted with noise as nearly every single member of the Seidskati began to speak at once.

A soft glow surrounded Mom and she raised a hand to loose a light gust of wind that swept through the room. It took a few moments for Mom's spell to have its desired effect, but silence once more fell upon the chamber. With a satisfied nod Mom dropped her hand and let the air in the room grow calm again.

"Sisters, if you would allow me to talk, I will try to explain."

That only proved to provoke more yelling as a good number of council members were competing to be heard.

"SILENCE!" Elizabeth Bathory yelled from above with a magically enhanced voice. "Sisters, let her speak."

That seemed to do the trick, as the room grew quiet again and Mom looked over to Elizabeth with an appreciative smile on her face. "Thank you, sister. Almost twenty-six years ago, after being named Athilda's apprentice I was tasked to put an end to Ragnarok."

"Tasked by whom?" Theodora asked suddenly. "The Eddas and the Codices clearly state that–"

"Sister, please, let me continue," Mom said interrupting the ancient Spellbinder and continued after receiving a nod of resignation from Theodora. "It was Frigg, the Allmother, who tasked me with putting an end with Ragnarok."

"You speak lies and obscenities! The prophecies are clear. Ragnarok is unavoidable!" Theodora spoke up angrily.

"Well Sister Theodora, it appears then that the prophecies are wrong!" Mom spat back between clenched teeth.

"Now please let me continue! As the goddess has revealed to me, a prophecy merely speaks of a probable outcome, not a definite one. It was the goddess herself who set me on this task. Unless you would question the judgment of one of the creators, Theodora. I would remain silent."

Another shouting match broke out as nearly everyone in the Dingha started yelling at once. Mom raised her hand and seemed about to loose another gust of wind when a voice range out through the whole chamber.

"Hold your tongues!" It was Hervor.

Shocked silence pervaded the entire chamber. "Fools!" Hervor said angrily removing the hood from her face. "Very soon come the Jotun! Ye shall surely fall if ye heed not the words of Lady le Fey. Restrain your doubts and prepare yourselves for the final battle! 'Tis the only way."

The queen's words invoked rippled murmurs throughout the council chambers, but no one came forward to speak.

"It seems likely that our young sister is telling the truth. As a spirit creature, the elf queen is incapable of deceit. It is certain that she believes Ragnarok is on the way. Does that not grant credence to our young friend's claims?" Matoaka said finally breaking the silence.

The woman Mom had named as Xiu glared across the chamber at Matoaka, "The elf may not be capable of deceit, but she can still be fooled."

Unexpectedly, Hervor threw her head back and started to laugh, "Thou thinkest me so easy to fool Seidkona? Many millenia have I lived. Though I be incapable of speaking untruths, I have had numerous dealings with thy kind. Thinkest thou that I be so easily taken in?"

It was about then that I began to feel a strange feeling of unease. There was a malevolent presence in the room that wanted nothing so much as kill me and everyone else within the council chambers. I clutched at my mother's arm, and she glanced back at me with a curious expression on her face, but she turned away in order to reply to a comment made by one of the council members. I tried to make myself speak, but I wasn't able to form the words. I could feel a sense of grim amusement from the evil force, but it did not seem the least bit alarmed that I was aware of its presence. I looked around the chamber. No one seemed to sense what I did, not even Hervor.

"…a traitor within the Seidskati," I heard my mother say, but most of my attention was on the presence.

I vaguely remembered Leif coming into the council chambers and then it happened. The presence reached out and I knew that if something wasn't done we would all die. I reached inward and clawed at the source of untapped magic locked deep within me. Blinding white light shot out from my chest and I screamed as the volley of power slammed into the empty space a mere half a dozen feet above me. Suddenly, I was flying through the air then, just as abruptly my back slammed into something hard. I let out a grunt of pain as I looked down and found that I was pinned by some invisible force against the wall. Darkness crept into my vision and I thought I might pass out, but there was a flash of light and when my vision cleared there was a man with long raven-black hair standing in front of me. I knew then that he was the source of the malevolent presence I had felt before.

"Wakey, wakey," he said with a snap of his fingers.

I gasped as burst of pain shot through my body and the darkness that had been creeping at the edge of my vision was gone.

"Who are you?" I grunted as I realized the magic was still pouring out from my body. I tried to release it, but nothing I did seemed to work. Instead, the light pouring out from me seemed to be growing increasingly more bright. More startling, was that it was shooting right into him and the man seemed completely unaffected by it. Clearly he was able to summon some sort of power, but it wasn't magic, that much was certain. I would have been able to feel it if he were using magic. Of course no man could use magic and live very long, so it was really a moot point.

He grinned maliciously and patted me on the cheek, "Hervor dearest knows who I am. Don't you Hervor?"

Suddenly I lurched through the air and I landed on my belly at Hervor's feet. "Tell them!" he yelled with a manic edge to his voice.

"Thou art Loki," Hervor said staring at him with wide eyes.

"Oh shit," I muttered under my breathe. "We are so screwed."

Frigg preserve us, Loki was alive! How the frizz was that even possible? All the ancient sources said he was dead just like all the male gods, but it appeared he had somehow escaped Hel's clutches. Maybe that really wasn't surprising, considering she was his daughter.

His status as a god certainly explained how he seemed immune to my magic even as it continued to pour out of me and shoot into him. He could call upon the powers of creation that were only available to the gods. What more he was Loki, the god of mischief and chaos.

"Enough of this!" Mother screamed. "Release him!"

"Him?" Loki said and I was suddenly jerked back to my feet. "You mean this pretty little thing? Funny, she don't much look like a him to me."

"Let him go!" Mom screamed frantically and lunged at the god.

Loki laughed manically as he lifted his hand and Mom abruptly stopped mid stride. "Silly girl, you think you can match the power of a god? You are nothing to me, even with your cute little box of magic tricks."

"Unhand her, thou dissembling fustilarian!" Heime growled and stepped forward as he unsheathed the sword strapped across his back.

"Oh, now Heime, old friend, that just hurts. You might offend a fellow with language like that. It's not generally considered polite to yell at an old friend. Especially when said friend happens to be a god. Just for that I'm going to have to make things a little unpleasant for your friend here," Loki said with mock indignation.

"Unhand her!" Heime demanded.

"Now, now, you gotta do something about that temper of yours. Remember what I said about offending an old friend?" Loki giggled.

Heime clenched his teeth and pounced on Loki, but the god of mischief was ready for him and my father went soaring across the other side of the room with a casual flick of the god's wrist.

"What a downer. Now, let's have some fun shall we?" Loki said and suddenly I was spinning.

"Round and round she goes! Where she stops! Nobody knows!" Loki laughed.

The spinning started out slow, but it got progressively worse. I circled the great chamber endlessly until I thought I would pass out, suddenly I slammed into something hard and I heard Loki mutter a "whoops," followed by a laugh. Something snapped inside of me and I could feel the magic building. I tried to stop it, but it was like trying to contain a bonfire with my bare hands. I knew what could happen if a Spellbinder lost control, and I'd been told I was far more powerful than any spellbinder. I could level the entire county, maybe even the whole state, if I didn't put a stopper on the energy that was pouring out from me. I tried feebly to keep it from flowing out from me, but it continued to build, and it was only a matter of time before I popped.

Why wasn't anyone trying to stop what was happening? Couldn't they see that I could kill us all? That's when it hit me. That is what Loki wanted all along. He had revealed himself to me in hopes of achieving this very end. Somehow he was preventing the Spellbinders, and even Hervor from intervening, but how? He seemed completely unaffected by my magic. Perhaps he had some way of keeping Mom and the rest of the magic users from using their powers.

Desperately I reached outside the council chambers. Perhaps if I couldn't stop the flow of magic I could redirect it. There was a very familiar presence just outside the room and I realized it was Eva. I could feel her desperation, and I sensed that she was being blocked from entering the chamber. I wanted to reach out to her and comfort her and somehow I knew I could do just that. I felt Daniella outside the chamber as well, but her presence was more distant, and I knew I couldn't touch her. I reached out to Eva and… she reached back.

Then it happened, I don't know how to describe it precisely, but suddenly I could feel everything Eva felt. Not so much a her thoughts, but her emotions. For a brief moment I couldn't distinguish myself from Eva. There was no me, there was no her, there was only us. Then that feeling of unity faded and I was myself again. I could still feel Eva in the back of my head, but her presence wasn't as strong as before.

There was a suddenly bright flash of light and a tall statuesque woman appeared within a tall pillar of light that soon faded away. She had long black hair, carried a rather wicked looking spear and wore ornately gilded armor. "Enough with your games, Loki. Release the girl."

"Gna, my, my, my, it has been a long time. Still running errands for Frigg I see," Loki said in a mocking tone.

"Release her," Gna repeated blandly.

"Make me. You don't have the power, even with the help of these witches and Hervor over there," he replied with a laugh.

"She may not be a match for you, but I am," a new voice said.

Suddenly, I fell to the ground as Loki released his hold on me and pain exploded in my breasts from the impact. I could feel the power gush out from me at even greater levels. Goddesses, why couldn't I control it?

"Freya, it really has been too long. Why I was just saying the other day that–"

"Silence!" the voice of Freya commanded. "You will leave this place now!"

A hand touched my shoulder and I looked up to find that it was Leif. "You must let go," he said quietly.

"Let go? If I let go the magic will…" trailing off as I stared back at him, aghast.

"You must empty your mind and let go!" he insisted.

I nodded and closed my eyes. I tried to clear away all my thoughts. For a moment it seemed to work as the magic flickered into nothingness, but then it flared back to life. Suddenly, I felt Leif's lips on mine. Then all thoughts fled as I became lost in the kiss. As we broke for air I realized that the magic had faded away and stared at Leif aghast. I wasn't about to admit it to anyone, but the kiss had felt really good.

"Drat! Foiled again!" Loki bellowed. Then he vanished.

"What the frizz, venn?" I said rounding on Leif

"I– uh– Don't you know your own family history?"

"What the Hel is that supposed to mean?"

"When your ancestor, Athilda was still an apprentice to her mother, Morgana, she lost control of the magic. A rather handsome admirer of hers intervened and managed to get her to loose her hold on the power of the Seidh by kissing her. " Gna said coming to stand over Leif and me.

"Yeah, but I mean– I– I–," I muttered unable to complete my sentence know full well it was a lie. I wanted so badly to say that the kiss meant nothing and I wasn't attracted to guys, but neither were true.

Gna grinned down at me and winked before turning to Freya.

"You are lucky, girl, that Gna and I were watching. Had we not appeared Loki likely would have succeeded in destroying you," Freya said, coming to stand beside Gna with a frown.

"So then he was baiting me?" I asked swallowing hard.

"Yes, see that you don't let him do it again," Gna said with a shake of her head.

"Enough," Freya said. "Neither, Gna nor myself intended to interfere with your meeting, but our presence here has already changed the status quo. I believe a short recess is in order. Then we will discuss the coming of Ragnarok. There is still much that needs done, and time is rapidly growing short."

After the Freya's pronouncement Mom dragged me out of the council chambers and hugged me so hard that I thought she might squeeze my insides out. "Are you going to be alright?" she asked removing her hands from around my middle and bringing them up to touch my cheeks.

"Yeah, Mom. I'll be fine," I said with groan.

"What happened?" Eva said off to my side.

"Apparently, Loki isn't as dead we all thought. He showed up and baited me into loosing my powers on him," I said bitterly.

"Ancestors preserve," Eva whispered, and I could feel her concern and worry seeping through the strange bond we now shared. I felt a twinge of guilt for the kiss shared with Leif, but I batted that guilt away. Why should I feel guilty? I hadn't initiated the stinking thing.

"I couldn't control it. I could have destroyed us all. I mean, if Leif hadn't kissed me…" I said and almost immediately wished I hadn't. Frizz, the whole not being able to lie thing was going to cause me all sorts of trouble.

Eva pursed her lips and cocked an eyebrow, "He kissed you?"

"I didn't ask him to," I mumbled and looked down at the ground feeling my cheeks burn at the memory of Leif's lips locked around my own.

"Frizz, it didn't mean anything," Leif said, and I realized for the first time that he had been there the whole time without me noticing.

"We shall see," Eva said with a shake of her head.

"Look, let's just get back in there," I muttered seizing on the opportunity to change the subject. "I'm sure Freya and Gna have better things to do than to wait on us."

Mom nodded, "The sooner we get this done with the better."

"Art thou– well?" a voice asked off to the side and I looked over to find my father standing a few feet away. I don't think I was really prepared for the intensity of the emotions I saw in those eyes.

"Fine," I muttered averting my eyes.

"Very good," Heime muttered with a nervous smile. "I shall see thee in a few moments. Yet must thy grandmother and I attend to certain things before we return to the council chambers."

"Okay," I said with a nervous smile of my own.

Heime nodded, flashed me another nervous smile then walked off in the opposite direction.

This time when we entered the council chambers, Leif and Eva followed us in. It wasn't until the doors closed behind us that I realized Daniella was missing. I pointed it out to Mom, but she only smiled and said that there "was nothing to worry about."

Gna and Freya, as well as the rest of the Seidskati were waiting for us as we returned to the chamber.

"Sisters," Mom said to the subdued council members. "I think by now you have all come to understand the seriousness of the situation. I would like to continue where we left off. As I stated before, there is a traitor in our midst."

"What evidence do you have of this?" Theodora asked warily.

"This young man is a descendant of the Lady Aquitaine," Mom said placing her hand on Leif's shoulder. "He overheard his mother and the head of his house speaking of a recent attack on the Le Fey estates. What I have learned from him gives me reason to believe she was behind the attack, and that she is consorting with Jonas Talman and Josef Mengele."

"Florette, what do you say to these accusations?" Xiu said, but there was no reply.

"Florette?" Xiu repeated looking around the chamber.

"Forget it sister, she's gone," Matoaka said with a shake of her head.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Gna said with a smug grin on her face.

Suddenly, the doors to the chamber burst open and a figure flew through the air and landed at Mom's feet. A brief moment later Hervor strode in accompanied by my father.

"This one hath attempted to flee," Hervor muttered blandly.

"Florette, so nice of you to join us," Mom said kneeling down next to the woman.

"Sister Aquitaine, you stand accused of orchestrating an attack on a fellow member of the Seidskati. What do you have to say to this?" Theodora asked glaring down at Florette.

"It was necessary," she said quietly.

"So then you admit your involvement?"

The Lady Aquitaine's lips twitched and she opened her mouth as if to speak, but instead she leapt to her feet and ran right for me. There was a blur of motion as Eva stepped in, and suddenly Florette was on the ground, convulsing and clutching at her throat.

"You alright?" Eva asked. turning to face me.

"Yeah, th–," I started to say, but stopped short when I felt bile rise in my throat at the sight of the dead body. "That was close. How the hel can you move so fast?"

Eva shrugged, but I could see the haunted look in her eyes. "I was trained to always be ready."

"Bryn, are you alright?" I heard Mom ask and it took me a second to realize she was talking to me. I still wasn't used to being called by my new name.

"Oh just crenking peachy! Why the hel is everyone after me? Why the frizz am I so damned important?"

"They fear thee. They know not the reason for which thou wert conceived," Hervor muttered coming to stand a few feet away.

"Yeah? Them and me both!" I growled, rounding on her.

"Mother mayhap…" Heime muttered leaving his sentence incomplete.

Hervor sighed and held her hand up, "Mayhap 'tis time. Brynhilde, 'tis given unto thee to complete a bold task," Hervor said, staring at me with that familiar weird gleam in her eyes.

"What sort of task?"

"When the eve of the final battle is upon us, thou art to descend into Helheim and deliver Odin and the other fallen gods back into the world of the living."

The silence that followed was so absolute, I could hear the beat of my own heart. I didn't so much as move a muscle, I could only stare at Hervor in disbelief. Of all the people in Midgard I had been born for this purpose, but I couldn't quite wrap my head around it. It didn't make any sense, I mean, yeah I had enormous magic power, but I kind of doubted I'd be able to gain enough control of it in time for it to do me any good. Wasn't there someone else, someone better suited for the task? Didn't it make more sense for one of the goddesses to make the trip?

"This has to be some sort of mistake," Mom said finally, breaking the silence.

"'Tis no mistake, Seidkona," Hervor muttered quietly averting her eyes as if ashamed to meet my mother's gaze. "'Tis Brynhilde's destiny to undertake this journey."

"But why me?!" I asked staring at her wide-eyed.

"Frigg hath foreseen it," Hervor said with a sad smile.

"There's something you're holding back, isn't there?"

Hervor nodded, "Aye, child."

"And you're not going to tell me are you?"

"Nay, I cannot," Hervor said as tears started to roll down her face.

"Shit, you've got some nerve, lady," I growled.

"You mean to say, that this girl is meant to rescue the dead gods from hel? No living mortal, or goddess for that matter, has managed to pass through the gates of Hel. What makes this child so special?" a new voice spoke incredulously.

I blinked and looked around. With everything that I had happened I'd completely forgotten we had an audience. I looked up at the woman. She was really young-looking to be a member of the Seidskati, and I thought she did look sort of familiar. Then my eyes grew wide as I realized who she was, Marianna de Clisson, the daughter of Olivia and current head of House De Clisson.

"The elf spoke correctly. This girl is the only one who stands any chance of bringing our male counterparts back from Helheim," Freya added.

I could hardly believe my ears. I was the only one who stood a chance? What made me so special?

"And how is she to accomplish this task?" Theodora growled.

"I can't believe I'm about to say this, but I may have the answer," Mom said quietly.

The soft glow of magic surrounded my mother as a swirling cyclone of wind magic shot out the council chambers carrying her voice with it, "Daniella, bring her in."

A moment later Daniella appeared followed closely by my grandmother, who was carrying a cloth sack slung over her shoulder. Mom hurried over to Gramor and grabbed the sack. She upended the bag and out fell an old warhammer.

"I made a bargain with Eitri the dwarf for information. As part of that deal he agreed to give me a weapon. I had no idea what sort of weapon that would be until I sent my mother to retrieve it," Mom muttered quietly.

"Eitri?!" Theodora gasped. "The same Eitri that forged Mjá¶lnir with his brother Brokk?"

"The same," Mom muttered quietly.

"But that would mean…" Xiu muttered trailing off.

"It means, sister that it's a very good bet that this hammer is Mjá¶lnir," Mom said staring back at Xiu.

"The hammer is Mjá¶lnir. I haven't seen it in eons, but I would recognize it anywhere. Brokk and Eitri's work is unmistakable," Gna spoke up.

"Even if it is Thor's hammer, I don't see what good having it will do. It is written that only a god may wield the power of Mjá¶lnir," Theodora said.

"Actually," Gna said folding her arms across her chest. "That's not entirely true. Only a god may harness its full potential, but anyone may wield the hammer. Of course, a powerful vattir such as a princess of the royal Elven house, would be able to wield Mjá¶lnir to near its full potential."

I felt a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach at the realization that the goddess meant me. I hadn't even thought about what my relation to Hervor meant, but my transformation had left me female, which meant I was a damn princess. Just frizzing great.

"Forgive me goddess, but who are you referring to?" Marianna asked.

"She means me. I'm a half-elf. Hervor is my grandmother," I said staring up at Marianna with wide eyes.

"Is this true?" Xiu asked staring down at me with a thoughtful expression on her face.

"It is true, Seidkona. The child is my daughter," Heime spoke up.

"Sister le Fey, I'm assuming you were aware of your child's parentage?"

"Of course, sister," Mother said.

"And you did not see fit to make us aware of this?"

"No, Xiu, I did not. I wasn't sure who I could trust, just as I wasn't sure whether I could trust the Seidskati with the information regarding the coming of Ragnarok," Mom said staring up at her with a look of defiance.

"Is there anything else you haven't told us?" Theodora asked with a weary sigh.

"Well, there is one more thing," Mom said with a mischievous grin.

"And that would be?"

"You probably ought to know about my army," Mom replied.

"Your WHAT?!" Theodora asked staring at my mother with wide-eyed shock.

"I wasn't sure if I could count on the backing of the Seidskati when the time came. So with the help of a former associate of Jonas Talman, I began quietly amassing the forces I would need to help fend off the Jotun," Mom said, staring up at the ancient woman.

"How have you managed to do this without our knowledge?"

"My associate is very skilled at what he does," Mom said with a knowing smile.

"Sister, this is no laughing matter. Do have any idea of the magnitude of what you have done?!" Theodora spat out angrily.

"I am sure sister Le Fey is fully aware of the implications, Theodora. It is a waste of time to argue over Aryanna's conduct. She has taken steps in preparation for the final battle with the Jotun. As far as I'm concerned she is above reproach," Matoaka said suddenly.

"I am inclined to agree," Marianna de Clisson said her voice barely audible from across the room.

"Regardless, something of this magnitude must be put to vote," Xiu said with a weary sigh.

"Agreed. But what shall we vote on, sisters?" Theodora asked with a scowl on her face.

"Oh, I have a few ideas," Mom said with a smile.

"Wait! Shouldn't we test the hammer? Assuming it really is Mjá¶lnir, shouldn't we know if the girl can wield it or not?" Motoaka asked suddenly.

"Aye, methinks that be prudent," Hervor nodded with a sage smile.

"Bryn, come over here," Mom muttered, staring at me with a look of concern on her face.

I walked over to where the hammer was resting on the ground and shook my head, "What do I do?"

"Pick it up. See if anything happens," Mom muttered squeezing my shoulder gently.

I nodded and bent over to pick up Mjá¶lnir, and nearly dropped it when it started to shake and quiver. Lightning shot up my arm and I could feel the power of the hammer flow through me. When I first picked up the hammer, the haft was far too wide for me to fit my hand around it, but with a blink of an eye the hammer shrunk and became the perfect size for my hands.

"Whoa! Talk about a rush! So… what do I do now?!" I gasped.

"Try throwing it," my grammor suggested.

"Okay, here goes nothing," I muttered and tossed the hammer into the air above me.

I wasn't really ready for what happened next. There was a sudden flash of light as the hammer transformed into a bolt of lightning and shot into the roof of chamber, then it returned to its original form and fell back to the ground. I dove away, afraid that the hammer would hit me, but instead it just sort of hovered there in front of my face.

"Holy frizz," I muttered staring at Mjá¶lnir in awe as I reached out to grab it out of the air.

I looked up at the ceiling where the hammer had struck and felt my jaw drop as I realized the hammer had punched a huge hole in the roof of the dingha. "I guess that's yes on whether I can use this thing."

"It's settled then," Mom muttered her voice full of awe.

There was a call for votes, and the endless arguing and debate started. After what seemed like hours they finally made their decision. I was accepted as an initiate as a Spellbinder, the council would declare war on the Sons of Odin, Loki, and the Jotun, the Council of the Seidkona would be called together and all magic users down to the lowliest Charmer would be summoned to appear. It was rare for the Council of the Seidkona to be called together. Generally the Seidskati saw fit to rule on matters without input from the greater magic community. Of course, the really amazing part was that they agreed to call together all magic users. As far as I knew, such a thing had never been done.

They even voted to meet with the leaders of the world and ask for their help. I highly doubted any of that would have been possible without the presence of Gna and Freya. I mean, almost everyone in the Seidskati hated Mom and believed her to have usurped the Le Fey legacy. With the goddesses present they had no choice but to accept the truth that Ragnarok was coming and that Frigg had chose my mother as her champion.

And of course, Mom mentioned sending envoys to various Vattir, including the exiled á¡lfar tribes and the Dvergar Conclave. Eva's name was put forward and the Seidskati agreed to send her as an ambassador to the various exiled elven tribes.

Finally, it was over and I let out a sigh of relief as we turned to leave. I just wished I could escape the feeling that I was being led like a lamb to the slaughter.

Eirdag, the seventh of Morsugur

Okay, well where should I start? My mind is seriously frizzed up right now. I'm really freaking out about all this Ragnarok business, but it's not just Ragnarok that's getting to me. It's Eva, Mom, and everything. The worst part is Leif, I can't get him out of my head since he kissed me. Yeah, apparently I'm attracted to guys now. Yeah, that's right I only finished changing into a girl yesterday, and already I'm crushing on my best friend!

And there was Eva, I mean don't get me wrong, I'm still crazy about her, but I keep finding myself drifting off and fantasizing about making out with Leif. Goddesses, what the hel is wrong with me? I think my transformation is messing with my head. Somehow I think Hervor has something to do with it. Although what she would stand to gain by making me attracted to guys is beyond me.

Then there was the bond that Eva and I shared. She was always there in the back of my head and I wasn't sure if she was a permanent occupant or not. I really needed to talk to her, but I'd kind of been avoiding her. Okay, yeah I'm just going to go find her, this is ridiculous.

Later…

I found Eva pretty easily, as she spent almost all her time out in the gardens. I think she liked it out there even more than I do.

"Hey," I muttered quietly.

"You've been avoiding me," she said quietly.

"Yeah, I have."

"You're feeling guilty," she said matter-of-factly. I didn't even need to ask how she knew. It was pretty obvious she had sensed my emotions through our weird bond.

"Eva, what happened? Why are we connected like this? Why can I feel your emotions?"

I detected a faint trace of amusement as she answered, "All elves possess the ability to link ourselves with others. Dark elves use that ability to control and manipulate others. Light elves generally use it for much more benign purposes, usually as a marriage bond."

"Marriage bond?" I coughed staring at her wide eyed.

Eva threw her head back and fell into a fit of hysterical laughter, "Don't worry. This doesn't mean we're married."

"Eva, there's something I need to tell you."

"You're attracted to your friend Leif."

"How did you know?"

"Do you really need to ask?" she asked giving me a pointed look.

I could feel her emotions through the bond and I wasn't sure what to make of them. There were a whole slew of emotions half of which seemed to contradict the others. There was jealousy mingled with fondness, amusement mingled with possessiveness and strangely enough, there was even a bit of guilt.

"Eva, I want to be with you. I don't want to feel this way about Leif, but this new body of mine doesn't seem to understand that."

"Elves are sexual creatures, much more so than humans. Those of us that actually try to suppress our urges have a much more difficult time of it than a human would. Since your changes, you have taken on many elven traits. I think this sudden attraction to your friend is probably due to your elven side gaining dominance." She traced her fingers across my cheek.

"It bothers you that I'm attracted to Leif, doesn't it?" I asked. With the link we shared it wasn't really necessary, since I already knew how she felt, but I really felt like we should talk it out.

Eva nodded, smiling sadly, "I don't want to share you."

I stared at Eva, not really sure what to say. She couldn't honestly believe that I would take Leif as a second lover as she seemed to be suggesting, or maybe she meant just that. I never got the chance to ask her to clarify as she spoke first, "I'm leaving tonight."

"Eva–"

"Ragnarok is so close. Your mother wishes me to leave as soon as possible. If I can convince the exiled elves to join us then they'll need time to prepare."

"So you're really going then?"

Eva pursed her lips, "This is a chance for me to do some good. If I can convince at least some of the exiled tribes to join the fight maybe it will negate some of my own transgressions."

"Eva, you're not the same person as you were," I muttered, touching the palm of may hand to her cheek.

"That's where you're wrong. I've changed in so many ways, but a part of me will always be that twisted creature that almost killed you," she muttered smiling sadly.

"Eva–"

"Good bye, Bryn. I love you," she muttered with a sad smile. Then in moments she gone.

"I love you too," I muttered as she left, but she didn't give any indication she had heard me.

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