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I couldn’t see him in the gloom, but I could picture his solemn nod. “It’s part of our gift. Or curse, depending on how you look at it. We can ignore pain when it happens and heal it quickly when the fight is over. Assuming we haven’t lost our heads or a major limb.”
“But ribs and a collapsed lung are just peachy?”
“Oh, it hurts like hell, but I will heal, and that’s what matters.”
I let out a low whistle. It echoed back to me in the confined space. I scrambled off him and tried to feel my way around in the dark. The silence that surrounded us was eerie after nearly being killed by supernatural creatures. I tried to calm my racing heart by counting Torsten’s breaths. They sounded less labored with every minute that passed. Torsten may have hated what he was, but I was grateful for it and him. The things we’d gone through would have killed an ordinary man.
The surface beneath us was smooth and cold, an Arctic juxtaposition to the place we’d been moments before. I felt around for what felt like an eternity before my hand touched something long and slender. When I jiggled it, it moved.
“I found something,” I whispered.
“What is it?” he asked, and his voice sounded stronger. No more wheeze.
“I don’t know exactly, but I think it’s a lever. Pulling it could either kill us or get us out of here.” The axe in my other hand began to throb like a heartbeat. “What should I do?”
I suddenly felt Torsten’s hand on my shoulder. “We just battled fire giants. What’s the worst that could happen?” he snorted. “Pull it.”
I turned my head, but couldn’t find a shape in the darkness to glare at. “Oh, now you’ve done it?”
“Done what?”
“You said ‘What’s the worst that could happen?’ Haven’t you ever watched a movie? You don’t say stuff like that when you’re stuck in a hell dimension. It’s just asking for trouble.”
He sighed. “This isn’t a movie, Jovi.”
“It had better not be,” I muttered, getting a better grip on the lever. “Because I don’t like the plot one bit, and the stingy bitch who sent us here won’t offer a refund.”
He laughed weakly. “Come on, Jovi. We’re wasting time. If it’s bad, we’ll deal with it. We always do.” He was right. If we’d dropped from the fire into something worse, we’d find a way to muddle through it.
My muscles clenched as I eased the lever down. A loud whoosh was followed by the sound of grinding metal. Light spilled into our hiding place as the portion of wall I’d been leaning against simply fell away. Torsten’s hand shot out, seizing me by the elbow before I could tumble town the sloping corridor that had opened before us.
“Careful,” he said quietly, guiding me back from the ledge. “You defeated fire giants. It would be embarrassing to be defeated by the floor.”
I couldn’t help a laugh. “Right? ‘Squashed by giant’ sounds way cooler than ‘tripped and broke her neck.’”
He chuckled before nudging me to one side. “I don’t want you in the lead if this turns out to be some kind of trap.”
“It was Brisingr who brought us here,” I pointed out. “He saved my life out there, over and over again. Doesn’t that earn him a little goodwill?”
“A little. But in my experience, dwarves don’t do things for free. He’ll want something in return. I’ll take the lead until we know what angle he’s playing.”
I couldn’t argue with that, so I stepped to the side. Torsten held the sword out, moving to take the lead, ready to defend me if necessary. Meanwhile, I lifted my own weapon just in case.
We moved slowly down an enormous corridor with gilded columns that revealed the same runes as Brisingr’s armor.
“Are we… underground?”
“Yes. This is a dwarven refuge,” Torsten answered. “I had thought all of them were destroyed in Muspelheim during the great wars.”
“You’re going to have to tell me about those sometime,” I said, staring up the line of one column. If we had time, I would have stayed and admired it for a bit. The craftsmanship was superb. Every sight, sound, and experience I’d had since leaving Midgard had been nothing short of awe-inspiring. Terrifying, yes, but still awe-inspiring.
“I’ll give you a history lesson after we deliver the world from the three winters. Now hush. I think I hear something.”
He was right. The sound of a hammer banging on an anvil echoed off the walls, and grew louder as a blacksmith’s forge came into view. Brisingr’s armor was displayed on a leather mannequin near several racks of weapons. The dwarf barely spared a glance in our direction as he continued working.
“I saved ye both. Ye owe me an explanation. Why are ye ‘ere an’ why do I get the feelin’ ye be needin’ me?”
Torsten moved to stand in front of me, completely shielding my body from view. I stepped to one side and gave him a reproving look. If Brisingr had wanted to hurt or kill me, he had plenty of opportunities before now.
