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“Your daughter told me about the awesome work you guys are doing. I’m so impressed and glad to help. I just finished constructing a charging station for you guys. Just follow the tracks in the snow until you see the reflective ball. That’s it. Just touch it and release when you are topped up.”
Henry walked back with Ron, who glanced once at Henry then reached out a hand to touch the orb.
“Whoa!” he exclaimed, then put his other hand on it and smiled at Henry. He lifted his hands no more than ten seconds later.
He grinned at the others. “That beats chasing storms!”
Dixie was next and only needed seven seconds before she pulled her hands back.
Henry moved aside with Ron and Dixie as each member of the group took their turn.
“Why do you feel like fresh lightning?” Dixie asked.
Henry smiled as he recalled the same words from-He froze as he saw four familiar faces in the group.
“Sam and Jeannie! Jake and Brenda!”
The Lagrange and Miller couples waved at him, and once they’d recharged, they joined Henry for a group hug. Jeannie was all giggles as she recalled the first time they did this with him. She gestured for Ron and Dixie to join, and suddenly there were seventy-seven Silver People all hugging one Satyr in the center. He let his Wild Magic flow through everyone, and they all grinned.
“Okay, people, we got rescuin’ to do. We can’t be wasting time hugging all day!” Ron called out and got a few boos but more chuckles.
As the group pulled back, Dixie caught Henry’s eye, and he could see she was still waiting for an answer.
“I have a rift to the alternate dimension inside me. The Wild Magic Energy flows out of it. It’s the same energy you get from the charging station,” he explained.
“It feels smoother from you,” Sam said with a grin.
“It’s the filtration!” Jake offered.
“I’m just a filter?” Henry asked with a grin, and Brenda playfully slapped her husband’s arm for suggesting he was.
Ron moved a little closer. “Would it be okay for us to come back to use the charging station from time to time?”
“Come back as often as you need. As long as you enter the property line at a walking pace and watch for playing children,” Henry said.
“What happens if we run across the line?” one of the others called out.
“You’ll get knocked back violently by the force field,” Henry warned. “Also, from outside, you can’t see anyone inside. Running in risks colliding with someone.”
He had their attention. “You can run on the way out, though. It’s inbound traffic that the field protects against.”
“We’ll all follow those rules,” Ron said loudly, and the group nodded.
“Thank you for the energy,” Ron said to Henry.
“You are most welcome. I’m just glad I can support your efforts,” Henry said.
“Sorry to eat and run,” Dixie said with a smile. Henry just nodded.
He looked to the four Midwesterners. “How did you get caught up in this group of the Silver Soldier families?” he asked.
“Who do you think helped the soldiers transform their families?” Sam said with a wave, and the four raced away after their new friends.
Henry was walking back to the house when he came across a group of kids from Tish’s family. Layla smiled as she saw him.
“What are you doing out here?” she asked.
“I just built a charging station for the Silver People. It’s the reflective orb in the woods back there. Please let everyone know to leave it alone, okay?” he instructed.
Layla nodded as she accepted her mission to inform the others. Then they rushed off to take a look at the charging station. Henry rolled his eyes as he headed back to the house. Of course, they’d want to see it for themselves before they told others not to mess with it. There wasn’t really much they could do to damage it, but caution was prudent. He could always add another shield around it to only allow Silver People to get to it, but he hoped that wasn’t needed.
If the kids were here, it meant the adults were too, so he should help finish up the new dining room preparations. He also needed to speak with Sigrid,
He realized last night that some might feel uncomfortable with being in a cave, so he planned to add some windows that would show a live view of what was happening outside the real front living room and rear kitchen windows. He’d found a spell in Baba’s collection, originally designed to disguise deadly pitfall traps with illusions. He thought of a way to source the illusion with the light from the selected window panes.
He went in the back door where Meixiu met him with a fluffy towel. He grinned at her as she dried off his legs and hooves. “How go the preparations downstairs?” he said quietly.
She smiled. “Very well! We placed Sandy’s and Dayshia’s items on the tables and added evergreen boughs and ribbons! It looks so beautiful!”
He gave her a kiss then called out as he saw Mary.
She stopped and wandered back to see what he needed.
“You are my go-to carpentry person. Especially for framing!” Henry began with a grin, and Mary raised an eyebrow at him. “I need two frames built which mirror this wall of windows.” He pointed to the windows on the kitchen wall that faced the gazebo and back yard. “And the wall of windows in the front sitting room. I’m going to mount them on two walls of the cave and project what can be seen from these windows in the new frames.”
Mary nodded, impressed with his idea. “Seems simple enough, but I’d need tools, screws, and lumber. Do you have these?”
“No, but Roy does back at VRL,” Henry suggested.
Roy was entering the kitchen, looking for Mary. “I heard my name.”
Mary smiled. “We have a project. A quick one!” she added to defeat Roy’s pout.
Henry walked with them to the vestibule and linked the spare door to a door in VRL’s basement.
“We have it from here, Henry. When the frames are ready, I’ll find you. Sigrid was looking for you,” Mary said.
“Oh! Thanks!” he said and headed back upstairs.
There was a fair amount of noise coming from the dining room, which seemed to be the adults’ default gathering spot. Most of the kids were outside though a few were in the front sitting room playing games.
Sigrid was seated at one end of the table with her ever-present guardian, Hilda. The mother saw him at the doorway and stood to approach him. Henry immediately felt himself tense up. Hilda caught this and frowned sadly.
She gestured for him to follow her into the kitchen where they’d be alone.
“I’m sorry for leaving you with the impression that I’m always on the attack. You have my word that you have nothing to fear from me. You’ve proven your mettle in battle and your compassion when you healed me. I have to thank you as I haven’t felt this good since I was Sigrid’s age!”
Henry relaxed a little and nodded to her.
She continued. “I’ve spent a few decades in my mountaintop villa in Italy. That last battle against the Archdemon who’d replaced the village magistrate almost finished me. I was left with knees that would fail me under pressure and hands with diminished strength. I had no choice but to retire.” She took a deep breath as she seemed to be struggling with something.
“Those three decades were a self-imposed exile. I shut myself away from everyone, even my own daughter. She’d visit from time to time, but they were painful reminders of what I was no longer capable of being. When Sigrid came to me this time, she was pregnant, and once more, my world was shaken. There hasn’t been a Valkyrie birth since Sigrid came into this world. We don’t choose our partners lightly. I had to know if you were worthy or had used magic to somehow trick her into carrying your child. How you defeated me left me with questions. Honestly, you really aren’t very skilled in battle. It was embarrassing to admit you’d won, but when you healed me, how you guided and goaded me to survive, I knew you understood. You’ve endured greater battles than the one with me, even with your feeble fighting skills.”
She seemed to notice Henry’s scowl as she quickly finished. “Valkyries define our worth on our ability to fight the forces of evil.” She clasped Henry’s big hand in an arm wrestler’s clasp between them as she looked into his eyes. “You have my eternal gratitude for restoring me to my former strength so I can come out of retirement and stand side-by-side with my daughter once more.”
He nodded to her and raised an eyebrow to let her know he was aware of her grip’s increasing pressure. She didn’t stop until he ramped up his own grasp. She pulled her hand back with a joyful bark of laughter.
“You are a suitable mate for my daughter! Tonight’s birth ceremony will be glorious! The Valkyries I’ve summoned will be in for an amazing surprise!”
Henry blinked at the woman. “You’ve summoned Valkyries to join us here? Tonight?”© 2024 Nôv/el/Dram/a.Org.
“Yes! They must witness the birth!” Hilda said joyfully.
“Is Sigrid aware of this?” Henry asked.
Hilda made a dismissive gesture. “It is the way of Valkyries!”
“How many are you expecting to show?” he asked.
She tilted her head to look at him, puzzled by his continued protest. “Between fifteen and twenty.”
“An extra twenty people are going to descend on the mansion without any preparation for them? You have been under a rock for the last three decades if you don’t grasp the logistical difficulties that just added to our Christmas Party!” Henry snapped.
He turned and went into the dining room, where he saw all eyes looking his way. “Did you hear that?” he asked, and Sigrid shook her head. “Fifteen to twenty Valkyries will be arriving tonight to witness a Valkyrie birthing ceremony.” Sigrid’s eyes flew wide in surprise then she looked to her mother.