myself up, lunging for the gunnel. My fingers had just brushed the edge when the wyrm’s tongue wrapped round my stomach.
She jerked her head and tossed me high into the air. I spun, twisting awkwardly. I flung out my arms, trying to steady myself. Below me, Nidhogg tore through the remains of the long boat. Pale skin, eyes, and fangs long as lances. She lunged for me.
Everything seemed to move in slow motion. The wyrm’s mouth gaped so wide that I could practically see down its throat. Her fangs flashed, coated with green venom. This was it. The end of my life. Swallowed by a giant snake.
And then I knew where to find Levateinn. At the moment of my demise, I knew I’d discovered the final resting place of Loki’s wand.
There was only one thing to do. The wyrm’s jaws snapped shut, closing around me, ready to cut me in two, but I was gone—vanished in a flash of purple light.
Chapter 53
Marroc
A burning pain overpowered my senses. It grew hotter and hotter, like a fire poker piercing my stomach. I could feel my skin burning, my viscera scorching. It felt like my curse had been condensed and focused on just one part of my body.
I would get out of this. Wyrd had decreed it. My magic had never been wrong before.
Blocking out the pain, I reached down, fingers gliding over the wound in my stomach—a six-inch hole punched clean through me. Pain lanced up from my fingertips as venom burned them.
It all came flooding back in an instant: the ship, the wyrm, the fang that had impaled me, the final moments as Nidhogg’s jaws snapped shut. The end of everything. My magic had failed, and I’d failed Ali.
Guilt spread through me, burning hotter than the poison.
I opened my eyes. I saw only darkness. I closed them and reopened them. Still darkness.
I tried to inscribe sowilo, to shine light in this infernal darkness, but nothing happened. I tried again—still nothing. My body didn’t work. I had no magic.
Fear rose within me. That could only mean one thing. I was dead. Actually dead. Sent back to Helheim for the shades to collect their debt. Beneath me, a thick mud oozed. The shades would be on me in minutes.
I’d promised them I’d raise their queen. Clearly, I’d failed, and they would want vengeance. My chance at regaining my soul was gone. Lost. The shades would not be kind.
I considered standing, trying to run, but there was no point. Even if I made it as far as the iron wall, I’d already confirmed that it was impenetrable. This was one prison from which I couldn’t escape. Besides, I deserved what I had coming.
I lay in the mud, my eyes closed, and silence pressed down on me.
Ali…
Her face came to me behind my shuttered lids. I’d failed to protect her. Left her to die in the sea of the dead. Nidhogg would tear her to shreds. This was the worst possible outcome—and it was all because of my unwavering belief in my own magic.
Why had I been so certain of myself that I’d led her into the very depths of Helheim?
She was my perfect counterpart. I wished to be near her now. To hear her voice. To see her. To smell her. I should have left her in Boston, safe in my home, and visited the Nastrand on my own—even if my magic had told me otherwise.
So why was it that I could still feel the wand, its magic like a shimmering balm over my skin?
A faint voice came from the darkness. “Marroc?”
The shades were coming. I was ready for their punishment. I certainly deserved it.
“Here,” I gasped.
“Marroc?” The voice again, louder. I lifted my head from the mud, and the ooze trickled from my ears. Something wasn’t right. This shade’s voice was clear.
“Marroc?”
My entire body stiffened. Pain erupted from the wound in my gut. But now, I recognized the voice.
“Ali? What are you doing here?”
Chapter 54
Ali
I reappeared in darkness on my hands and knees and felt for my vergr crystal. My fingers wrapped around the stone, and I slid it into my pocket.
I stood slowly as my eyes adjusted to the gloom. I was in a narrow corridor. It was hot in here, and wet. It smelled terrible. There was no question where I was now. Nidhogg’s stomach. Exactly where I’d intended to go.
“Marroc?”
My voice echoed faintly in the cavern, but there was no answer. I peered around, looking for his massive form, but