EV B2 Chapter 16:

Nearly an hour later, I brought Astrid down the stairs right at the appointed time. The concierge waved us through, and we were back in the luxurious steakhouse with fine dining. Astrid appeared incredibly nervous and very much out of place, wearing her leathers and carrying her bow. I also felt out of place in my garb, but I was comfortable in such a setting.

Loki stood as we walked toward his table, Astrid a half step behind me, slightly hiding behind my back. Loki raised his arms from his sides in a welcoming gesture, almost as if he were about to give me a hug, but he stayed on his side of the table.

"Miles, my friend," he said and reached over to shake my hand.

I was surprised—it was the first physical contact I'd ever had with the god. His hand was cool and dry, not clammy at all as I might have associated with cold hands, but almost as if he'd walked out of a refrigerator. It didn't make much sense—Loki wasn't typically associated with winter—but I didn't let my thoughts wander further. Not in Loki's presence. That was too risky.

"I'm a bit disappointed you didn't come to chat earlier," he said.

"Well, all right, it was a bit of a time crunch," I said, deflecting his slight rebuke.

Loki laughed, and I could sense his persona was slightly different than what I was used to. It was still mostly the Loki I knew, but he was adapting just enough to suit the moment. He wasn't necessarily putting Astrid at ease, but he was achieving whatever end he wanted with her.

As we sat down, Loki said, "I'm so sorry to see what happened with Alana, but I didn't think it would work between the two of you anyway."

I blinked. That was news. It wasn't surprising that Loki could watch me across the worlds, but the fact that he knew Alana's name? That was unexpected. Maybe I could get some answers from him.

"Um," I said intelligently as my brain struggled to process the new information. Finally, I latched onto his last statement. "It's not like that between us. I think it's more of a surrogate father-daughter relationship," I said, feeling my cheeks heat slightly.

Loki chuckled knowingly. "Tell her that, then," he said as he laid a finger on the side of his nose.

"Anyway," he continued before I could follow up, "I heard you were thinking about bringing someone into the fold." His eyes flicked to Astrid.

"Ah, yes. I'm sorry. Where are my manners? Loki, this is Astrid. Astrid, Loki," I introduced her.

"It-It's a pleasure to meet you, sir, uh, my lord," Astrid stammered, bowing. She hadn't sat down yet.

Loki waved her off. "Please, sit. Astrid, sit."

A server who didn't hold my attention arrived and dropped off drinks. I sipped an aged bourbon neat. It was one of the smoothest bourbons I'd ever had, even if I couldn't place it.

"I seem to remember you being more of a wine guy," Loki said.

"But I was in the mood for something a little harder," I replied with a shrug, enjoying the scent of the glass.

"The mead and beer up here are significantly better than the lesser hall," Loki remarked, "but still not this."

I raised my glass in a slight cheer, Loki reaching over and clinking his with mine.

Astrid stared at the glass in front of her. It wasn't the bourbon we had, but rather a strangely red-colored liquid in a cocktail glass. She leaned forward, sniffed it, and then took a sip. Her face lit up.

"What is this?" she asked.

Loki just chuckled. "It's a cosmopolitan. I was pretty sure you'd like it."

"It's so sweet," Astrid said. Astrid was a bit of an enigma, but I didn't have time to ponder it as Loki turned and gave his full attention to her.

His facial muscles shifted slightly, becoming a little softer and a little less prone to laughter but somehow also a little sterner.

"Miles has made the introduction, but you have something you'd like to ask from me?" His voice was not nearly as warm as when he was speaking to me, and I couldn't help but be reminded of who Loki was and what he was.

"What do you want?" he asked Astrid directly.

She froze for a second, her eyes flicking to me in panic. I gave her a slight nod. It seemed that Loki was going to make her do the negotiating. I couldn't find a good way of stepping in without undermining her position. I'd have to trust Astrid to do it for herself—if she actually wanted the help rather than just me assisting her through Loki.

"I need help or a blessing of some sort. Um, Miles said you could use followers, or maybe you have a friend who could use a follower," Astrid stammered.

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Loki leaned forward, putting both elbows on the table as he rested his chin in his palm. His other hand was idly tapping at the rim of his whiskey glass.

"This is not normally how it's done," he said, his eyes never once leaving Astrid's face. "As strange as Miles's introduction was, his was even more normal than yours. It is extremely rare that someone even becomes aware of the gods before we give our blessing. Usually, the first time you'll ever meet a god is when you've already received their blessing. Just like Miles did."

He paused, letting the weight of his words settle in. "Of course, there's a lot more than just a simple blessing involved. Sometimes, people won't even meet a god when they get a blessing. But here you are, asking for a blessing from me. This is all too interesting."

Astrid squirmed in her seat, but Loki wasn't done.

"Still, you want help getting through the challenge? You still have a day left. Do you really want to tie yourself to me just to avoid a month of working some extra shifts at a bar or something?"

"Why didn't I get this sort of pitch?" I asked. "It's like you're trying to talk her out of it."

Loki ignored me, and Astrid just shrugged.

"You know, you might fit, but—"

"Some—" I interrupted him, deciding that enough was enough. Loki was clearly working some sort of—maybe not actual magic, but social magic—on Astrid. I imagined that if I let him go for too long, she'd do whatever he wanted. And as much as I liked Loki, in some ways, I didn't quite trust that.

I originally came here to see if a similar deal as last time was on the table, where I could go and gather souls for you," I said.

"I was wondering if you'd forgotten," Loki replied. "If you recall, the last time we spoke, I told you that it would take some time for you to consolidate your power before I could send you off again."

I nodded, remembering. "Um, yeah. You didn't exactly give a time frame."

"Well," Loki said thoughtfully, "I might be able to send you out, but it would be a little bit more risky. As for sending Astrid..." He shook his head slowly, side to side. "You can see it's potentially possible, but I think there might be better options."

"I'm open to alternatives," I said, making a wide, inviting gesture.

Loki tilted his head. "Mm. Well, if you're willing to risk it, I might accept it as payment. Maybe with her? Maybe not. We'll see. But I am sad you didn't come to see me earlier. I told you that I might have a job for you."

I remembered that, and truthfully, I hadn't been sure I wanted a job so soon. "Yeah," I admitted, "I was thinking about that, but I also… wanted a little time to sort things out in my own head."

Loki sighed, though there was a note of understanding in it. "Oh, I understand. But perhaps… this might help you. I have a few people who might use some help in the challenge themselves."

"Oh?" I asked.

"Yes. Someone you might be familiar with recently made it out of the Lesser Hall and is in a similar predicament to yours," Loki said. "There's normally a bit of a grace period, but it's only a few days for new people to try the challenge for that first month. And there are always people who are a little stuck and might be willing to risk favors for help. I just need you to carry them."

"Three people?" I asked, not wanting to leave Astrid behind.

"Yes," he confirmed. "The challenge will be slightly different because of that. But I think, with one more attempt and a little more knowledge, you can make it. You might be unable to do it in a day, but it's okay. As long as you enter the challenge before the end of the month, you'll be fine."

Astrid raised her hand slightly, trying to catch Loki's attention. His gaze shifted to her, and he smiled faintly. "It's okay, Astrid. You don't need to raise your hand."

"Um," she began, "so if we just sit in a challenge for a month?"

"Well," Loki explained, "if you don't get the 20% when you come out, you'll still be punished. And you might miss the next month's challenge as well."

I blinked as understanding dawned. It was a clever system—both forcing quick completion but also giving everyone up to the last possible second to finish.

"Now," Loki continued, "like I said if you had come to me sooner, you would have been doing me a favor. But now I'm doing you a favor."

"I still think I'm doing you a favor," I said, though I admitted, "I might owe you a little bit for the information that we can still run it. We were still going to try to run the dungeon one more time."

Loki looked at me thoughtfully. "I agree that's fair. I'll think of something small for the bit of information. But you," he said, turning to Astrid, "you aren't doing me a favor."

Suddenly, I couldn't hear their conversation anymore. Loki had done something, likely magical, to keep their exchange private. I sipped my drink quietly, waiting for them to finish their negotiations. Apparently, Loki didn't want me to know what Astrid was offering—or what she might be paying.

It didn't take long. After a few minutes, Astrid stood up, bowed to Loki, thanked him, and told me she'd be waiting outside. I blinked, surprised.

"Why didn't you want me to hear that?" I asked. "I understand if you can't tell me, but…"

"Well, it's rather rude to give information away about another god," Loki said. "I don't think I'll bless her myself, though she is tempting. But I do have a lot of step-nieces, nieces-in-law…, and others who could use a follower. They aren't exactly the most well-known deities, but some of them Astrid might find more palatable than me. And besides, I do need a few prices."

He shifted his attention to me, his eyes flicking toward my waist. "Now, you still have the Edge of Folly with you."

I glanced down at the dagger on my belt, a weapon I'd been completely ignoring until now. No one else had seemed to notice it either. "I haven't used it yet," I said. "It seems like it's best kept for when I absolutely need it."

"That's a wise policy," Loki replied, leaning back in his chair.

"So," he said with a grin, "what do you think of Baldur's trial so far?"

With that, we launched into a genuinely pleasant conversation.