Chapter 863

"High noon."

After the battle had dragged on long enough to thin out the enemy ranks, someone finally decided it was time to end things properly.

Mackena loaded the last round into Colt, the oversized revolver at her hip, then holstered it.

She stepped calmly out in front of everyone.

A gust of wind swept through the street, carrying a veil of sand with it. A tumbleweed rolled past her boots while the short black cloak over her shoulders snapped dramatically in the breeze.

She looked like she’d walked straight out of a legendary Western gunfight.

Naturally, everyone noticed.

Mostly because, for some inexplicable reason, a slow guitar melody and the mournful twang of old Western instruments had started playing somewhere nearby.

The agents exchanged glances.

Then someone recognized it.

Red Dead Redemption.

Apparently the U.S. government was so committed to promoting Hollywood that it had started giving its agents cinematic background music during active combat.

Capitalism truly knew no bounds.

Mackena, however, didn’t care.

Her entire perception of the battlefield had changed.

The world was now black and white.

The zombies stood out in brilliant red.

Everything moved in slow motion.

Spatial coordinates locked.

Evasive trajectories calculated.

Weapon mechanisms and magical energy reserves functioning normally.

Mackena exhaled a long stream of smoke.

The barrel of Colt began glowing a brilliant crimson.

Every variable had been calculated.

Every target had been accounted for.

All she had to do was draw.

Then pull the trigger.

The bullets would go exactly where she wanted them.

Her fingers flexed.

Her hand slowly descended toward the revolver.

Her wrist twitched so quickly the motion was almost impossible to follow.

The gun began to clear its holster.

"Scorching Hellfire—burn them all!"

Mackena froze.

Her lower lip trembled.

Her eyes nearly bulged from their sockets.

One hand was still gripping the revolver as she drew it, while the other hovered over the hammer.

Had she completed the motion, it would have looked spectacular.

Frozen halfway through it, however, she looked ridiculous.

The zombies she’d been preparing to shoot were already on fire.

Every single one of them had become a human torch.

The undead were already partially desiccated, so they burned remarkably well. After staggering around for a few seconds, they collapsed in smoking heaps.

Mackena stared.

Her hand slowly returned the half-drawn revolver to its holster.

She looked like she’d just swallowed a mouthful of blood.

Couldn’t you have waited another three seconds?

She’d finished charging her ultimate attack, only for someone else to jump in and steal every kill.

Evenson finally lowered his hands.

Flames still danced across his fingers.

At last, his thoughts had caught up with the situation.

The culprit was almost certainly Asgard’s eldest princess.

Hela had finally decided to make her move.

Exactly what she was planning was another matter.

The zombies weren’t intelligent enough to provide any useful clues.

The simplest solution was obvious.

Kill the undead.

Walk inside.

Ask Hela herself.

"Coulson."

Evenson didn’t turn around.

"I’m going inside to meet whoever’s responsible for this. Stay here."

Coulson cautiously poked his head over the top of the vehicle.

He surveyed the battlefield.

There were no enemies left standing.

Only then did he straighten.

"Are you sure you want to go in alone?"

"I’m sure."

Evenson nodded.

"For your own safety, I’d recommend finding somewhere far away and preferably cool."

He glanced at the piles of ash.

"Because if you end up looking like those things, I won’t be able to turn you back."

Coulson sighed.

"All right. Just be careful."

The intelligence Sif had provided was clearly incomplete.

Or, perhaps, Coulson had simply misunderstood it.

Lorelei supposedly used her voice and physical contact to destroy a man’s will and turn him into a puppet.

Maybe that wasn’t some form of magical seduction after all.

Maybe she literally turned people into mindless undead.

And if she was inside that bar, ordinary SHIELD agents weren’t going to accomplish much by charging in after Evenson.

They would only get in his way.

"Then I’m coming too."

Sigrun stepped forward.

Her flail still dripped with chunks of flesh and bone.

She casually rested it over her shoulder.

Evenson looked at her.

"You sure?"

"I’m not SHIELD. You don’t get to order me around."

Sigrun smiled.

"Besides, I have orders. Whatever is waiting in there, I intend to face it."

Evenson studied her for a moment before nodding.

He understood the situation.

Sigrun’s hatred of Hela wasn’t something that could simply be talked away.

Perhaps he could convince the Valkyrie not to start a fight the instant she saw Hela.

But asking her to hide, avoid Hela, or retreat from a confrontation?

That was never going to happen.

"You too, Sif?"

Evenson had only taken a few steps before realizing Sif had left the SHIELD agents behind and was following them.

Sigrun was one of his own people.

Having her along merely meant their eventual conversation with Hela would be slightly more explosive.

Sif was another matter entirely.

"Of course."

Sif smiled at Sigrun.

"If you can’t stop her, you certainly aren’t going to stop me."

She paused.

"And I have orders from the All-Mother as well."

"This may be more complicated than you think."

Evenson leaned closer and lowered his voice.

"There could be... sensitive royal family matters involved."

He gave her a meaningful look.

"Are you sure you want to know everything?"

Sif hesitated.

She remembered the invasion of the Dark Elves.

She remembered the murals on the ceiling of the throne room.

The hidden images that had been revealed during the battle.

She remembered the Einherjar who had accidentally seen them.

They had been annihilated by Odin’s Gungnir almost instantly.

The memory alone made her hesitate.

But once she’d remembered that mural, she couldn’t forget it.

The image was still perfectly clear in her mind.

The woman standing beside Odin.

The woman riding a monstrous wolf into battle.

The army she had once commanded.

It looked disturbingly similar to the undead they’d just fought.

And if Evenson was connecting this incident to the Asgardian royal family...

Then that woman had to be involved.

If she had suddenly appeared now, could she threaten Frigga’s rule?

Could she threaten Thor?

Sif’s expression hardened.

She stepped forward.

"I am currently acting commander of the Valkyrie Corps. If something concerns the royal family, then it falls under my authority."

She smiled coldly.

"The acting commander is the royal family’s watchdog. If this involves royal affairs, that gives me even more reason to investigate."

Evenson sighed.

"Fine."

There was no point arguing.

Sif had decided she was going in.

The three of them entered the bar beneath the watchful eyes of the SHIELD agents.

Immediately—

Grrrrr.

Their stomachs growled.

All three stopped.

They looked at one another.

The smell inside was overwhelming.

After an awkward moment, they closed the door and continued deeper into the building.

The bar itself wasn’t particularly large.

There was nothing unusual about the interior.

A long counter stretched across the room.

A woman appeared from behind it, wiping her mouth with a napkin.

"Sif..."

The woman smiled.

It was Lorelei.

"I didn’t expect you to find me so quickly."

She tilted her head.

"You have quite the nose. No wonder people are always trying to keep you as a pet."

Sif’s expression darkened.

"You..."

She was ready to snap back, but then she stopped.

Something was wrong.

"Are you really Lorelei?"

Sif had history with Lorelei.

They knew each other well.

Sometimes enemies understood one another better than friends ever could.

The woman standing before her looked exactly like Lorelei.

But her voice was completely different.

Lorelei’s voice had once been smooth, sweet, and dangerously seductive.

Now it was hoarse.

Rough.

It sounded less like a silver bell and more like a barbell being dragged across concrete.

"I’ve changed."

Lorelei slowly lifted her chin.

The scar across her throat became visible.

Her eyes darkened with memory.

"I see."

There was unmistakable satisfaction in Sif’s expression.

She was an expert with a sword.

One glance was enough for her to recognize a blade wound.

That sword had struck directly across Lorelei’s vocal cords.

It hadn’t completely robbed her of speech.

But whatever supernatural quality had once made her voice irresistible was gone.

"So you can’t control men anymore."

"No."

Lorelei nodded.

Her eyes were filled with the weariness of someone who had endured far too much.

Then she smiled.

"But you’re still the same."

Sif’s expression tightened.

"You’ve always seen yourself as a pet."

Lorelei’s smile widened.

"You were like that when you were with Thor. And now you’ve become Frigga’s loyal hound."

"You know perfectly well that my powers never worked on Thor."

She took another step.

"And yet he still chose to be with me."

Her eyes narrowed.

"He could have chosen you. You were always following him around."

"But he didn’t."

Lorelei raised an eyebrow.

"Why?"

"Because I gave him something different."

Her smile became deliberately provocative.

"To him, I was a woman."

"You were his pet."

Lorelei tilted her head.

"Who falls in love with their pet?"

Sif’s face went rigid.

"Believe me, I dumped Thor once."

Lorelei gave a dismissive little wave.

"But if I snapped my fingers right now, he’d come running."

Sif’s forehead twitched.

Her veins stood out.

Her eyes began glowing green.

Evenson immediately realized where this was going.

"Cough. Cough."

He cleared his throat loudly.

Sif’s transformation halted.

Evenson looked between the two women.

So this is why you insisted on coming.

He was beginning to suspect that Sif hadn’t entered the bar because of royal security concerns at all.

She’d come here to argue with Thor’s ex-girlfriend.

And frankly, the whole situation was ridiculous.

Thor already had a girlfriend.

These two were arguing over a man who had apparently managed to accumulate both a former girlfriend and a backup girlfriend.

What exactly were they fighting over?

Lorelei suddenly looked past Sif.

"Oh, I didn’t realize we had another guest."

Her expression changed instantly.

She dropped to one knee.

"Your Grace."

Evenson’s eyes widened.

Sif slowly turned toward him.

Her expression said one thing.

Explain.

Evenson was just as surprised.

Great High Cleric?

Right.

He technically was one.

He’d acquired the title from Hela in exchange for several boxes of instant noodles.

But why would Lorelei just casually reveal his secret identity?

Evenson was beginning to think Hela’s greatest weakness wasn’t her temper.

It was personnel management.

No wonder her rebellion had ended so badly.

"That’s... complicated."

Evenson gave Sif an awkward smile.

Then he looked at Lorelei.

"So you’re Hela’s emissary?"

Lorelei rose.

"Yes."

"But from what I know, Hela isn’t exactly known for mercy. How did you become one of her people?"

Lorelei sighed.

"That’s a very long story."

It had, in fact, been remarkably simple.

When Lorelei had first encountered Hela, she’d immediately knelt.

Why wouldn’t she?

She wasn’t a hero.

She wasn’t stupid.

She’d taken one look at the terrifying woman in front of her and realized she had absolutely no chance of winning.

Why keep fighting?

So she surrendered.

Hela had appreciated the practicality.

She spared Lorelei and brought her into her service.

Then Hela learned what Lorelei’s powers were.

Her expression changed.

She drew her sword.

One slash.

Lorelei’s vocal cords were ruined.

According to Hela, being born a woman didn’t mean they couldn’t accomplish everything men could.

If they wanted something, they should take it themselves.

If someone refused to give it to them, they could use a sword.

Relying on seductive powers was beneath them.

Lorelei had been devastated.

She respected Hela’s strength.

But she hadn’t exactly asked to become Hela’s ideological disciple.

Then came the other half of Hela’s method.

A punishment followed by a reward.

Hela produced a box of instant noodles and gave it to Lorelei as a welcome gift.

She even promised that if Lorelei remained loyal, she’d get more.

Eventually, even the good stuff.

Lorelei had to admit that Hela’s methods of handling subordinates were surprisingly effective.

"There is an order."

Lorelei suddenly straightened.

She faced Evenson.

"The Goddess commands you to appear before her immediately."

Evenson sighed.

Of course.

He’d already expected this.

There was no point trying to resolve today’s disaster without speaking directly to Hela.

"Fine."

He brought his hands together.

He prepared to establish a spatial connection.

Darkness began spreading across the room.

Then Evenson suddenly opened his eyes.

He stopped the spell.

The darkness immediately receded.

He’d remembered something.

This time, he was going to be cautious.

Before opening a dimensional portal to Hela, he’d sent her a quick message through their mental connection.

We’re about to meet. There are quite a few people around me. Is this a good time?

There was a brief silence.

Then came the sound of frantic eating.

What? Already?

Another pause.

Hold on.

Slurp.

Almost done.

Slurp.

Evenson stared into empty space.

Of course.

The Goddess was busy eating.