KODRAN DID NOT want to say goodbye. He didn’t want to let Erica go again. But he knew he had to. Those were his last thoughts as he stared into her dragon’s eyes for as long as he could. Then all went dark.

Before it went light.

Bright white.

The same white light that had transported him and Erica around in ancient Scandinavia.

Then he swore he saw Erica’s ring flash from above. A shiny beacon in all the darkness.

It became hard to breathe. Just like it had when Grant forced them on their journey. Just like it had when their rock sent them on their first mini-adventure. Those were tests weren’t they? A preparation of sorts.

For this moment.

Right now.

Desperate for breath, he tried to inhale only to realize that he couldn’t breathe because he was still deep underwater. At first, he didn’t struggle just stared at that beautiful white light so far above that had, in fact, originated from the ring. It shimmered down through the water like a peaceful escape from all the pain he had just suffered losing his kin.

Erica.

Maeva.

“Eluf,” came a whisper. “Can you hear me? Do you know where I am?”

Seconds later, he was in his cave in ancient Scandinavia pressing the Gungnir blade into Maeva’s hand. He was saying his final goodbye and sending her on her way. But then something happened. Something that didn’t happen before.

He followed her soul.

From her life in the far future to her death then where she went after that. Somewhere beyond the afterlife. Beyond this world. Kept safe until she could return. When everything grew brighter, he narrowed his eyes and tried to see more clearly. There were people there that held her. Protected her for him.

“Can you hear me, Eluf?” the woman’s voice repeated.

Soon after, he saw clearly where she had been kept before she was reborn. Where her spirit had been in limbo.

Vanaheim.

And under the protection of his kin.

“Can you hear me, Eluf?” a voice rang out again before a face filled his mind’s eye.

The female Vanaheim seer.

“I can,” he whispered.

“Good,” she murmured. “Then follow the light and make your way back to her.”

He tried to respond but couldn’t. There was too much water in his lungs.

“But there is not,” Grant said. “You can breathe, Kodran. If you but keep on the journey that has always been yours, lad.”

And what was that? To follow Grant into the cave at Mt. Galdhøpiggen’s peak? Acknowledge all Eluf had done to get them where they were? To accept that Eluf’s actions eventually led to the ruin of his kin?

“You can breathe, laddie,” Adlin added. “All you have to do is take a breath.”

Kodran stared at the white light. Could he breathe? How? Because he was dead. Or so he assumed. Which meant he must have crossed over to spirit form. If that was the case, he might still be able to help Erica.

“Shit, you run a little morbid, eh?” Kage muttered into his mind.

“Not usually,” Tait defended. “My brother’s typically as quick to humor as me.”

“Right,” Sam said.

“He always seemed it,” Lauren agreed.

It only took Kodran a few more moments to realize what was happening.

His kin were literally coming back from the dead and swimming past him toward the surface. They weren’t spirits but alive, healed and by the looks of it, furious.

“You’re alive?” he managed. Even for a dragon, he had been without oxygen for too long.

“Yes, we are.” Shannon nudged him as she passed. “But if you don’t get motivated, you won’t be for long, Brother.”

Kodran couldn’t help a smile as he watched dozens of fallen comrades make their way up. They really were alive. But how? Had it been the healing power of the ring?

“Does it matter, Cousin?” Heidrek asked as he came alongside.

“Because it shouldn’t,” Cybil said from the other side.

Before he knew it, they were nudging him along until they officially snapped it into his head this was no fantasy. They were alive.

And so was Erica. He could sense her.

They had made it.

He frowned. Or had they? Because Hallstein’s heart was still beating.

Panicked, he shot to the surface straight into the air. The second he did, Hallstein and Erica crashed down into the ocean with Naðr right behind.

“Go after her, Kodran,” Heidrek said. “We’ll take care of everything else.”

Kodran was already gone, desperate to save Erica then rip Hallstein apart. He inhaled enough oxygen to sustain his dragon and dove after them.

Naðr and Erica didn’t say a word. They didn’t revel in his strange resurrection. But he got the sense Erica knew he had returned and was waiting for him before she killed the enemy. She wanted him to be part of this.

Whatever happened, whatever new strength the three of them possessed as they attacked Hallstein, it proved to be lethal. Erica ripped at his flesh, and her dragon did things to his manhood-dragonhood that would make anyone cringe. And it was all done with the Gungnir blade and her talons. A slicing and dicing that was brutal by anyone’s standards. Violent. An ending for a cock he wouldn’t wish on his worst enemy.

Until now.

Naðr kept at him as Kodran tore at his flesh over and over, grateful for every ounce of blood that reddened the water and every scale that peeled away.

At last, his uncle got his jaw clamped down on Hallstein’s neck as they landed on the ocean floor. Kodran thought for sure he would end him there, but he didn’t. Instead, his eyes met Kodran’s. “Erica sensed you were coming back. She saved him for you. Are you ready to take your final revenge?”

“There is no final revenge,” Hallstein seethed, his voice high pitched due to the extreme pain he had to be in. “Because I will be back.” His eyes went to Erica. “Right, my love?”

That was it. That was all Kodran needed. To have Hallstein look at her like that. To remember all this dragon had taken from them. From her. The strife he had caused. And that, it seemed, was all it took to access the power he had possessed in another life.

So when Naðr released Hallstein, Kodran embraced his former self, the power of Eluf and pounced on his enemy. Yet when he roared, met his nemesis’ eyes one last time then tore his throat to shreds it wasn’t any previous life he saw. It was what Hallstein had put Erica through in this life, whether or not she was in her physical body.

After that, it didn’t take long.

Kodran kept his jaw locked on Hallstein’s bare vocal chords as Naðr and Erica pinned him down. Then they all enjoyed the satisfying moments of watching his life seeping away. When Hallstein’s heart thudded one final time, a strange pulse rippled through the water.

“I know that feeling,” Naðr murmured before he left and shot to the surface. “It happened the last time a small boat traveled through time.”

Kodran and Erica made sure Hallstein was finished and were about to pursue when a dark figure sauntered their way beneath the water.

Hel.

Fury lit her eyes as she stopped and looked down her nose at her son. Seconds later, though his body was still in their clutches, his spirit drifted free. Not as a dragon but human.

“Welcome, Son,” she half whispered, half seethed as she eyed him over. “It is time for you to come with me.”

“Never,” he started to say, disgust in his eyes. “You should have relinquished your throne to your better, but you never had the intelligence...”

That was the last thing he got out before she snapped her wrist and he became a flicker of fire in her palm. “I think it is time we start over, Son,” she said softly. “Maybe someday I’ll allow you to live again, but it will not be for a very, very long time and then only if I deem you ready.”

Then she was gone. Vanished.

Kodran and Erica looked at each other. Though not sure what to make of that, they had other concerns. Naðr and what had caught his attention. So they raced after him. When they surfaced, the whole world was stormy and on fire. He and Erica launched into the air and tried to make sense of what was going on. The storm still raged. Ships still burned. But his kin and the ancient Sigdir dragons were scooping up their humans and bringing them inland to safety.

“We’re winning,” Kage said. “Whatever’s been happening has shifted the tide altogether, and we’re seriously kicking their asses.”

Kodran eyed the horizon and tried to figure out where he should go next, whom to fight, but all those who had been killed were rising up and fighting once more.

“I think it’s our ring and blade,” Erica said. “I think they’ve caused this somehow.”

He started to shift left then right, looking for a dragon to fight, an enemy to take down, but all were being conquered. All were being destroyed. His eyes shot to the shore where his Vanaheim seers stood watching him. They were alive and well. Resurrected like the rest.

All three pointed toward Naðr’s ship, and he understood why.

“Erica, the sail is glowing,” he said. “Just like it did before with your ring.”

When Kodran saw Naðr shift and land on the ship, he did the same. A moment later, Erica did as well.

“What is happening, Uncle?” he asked as Naðr raced to the bow and peered into the darkness. It was hard to see through the waves, wind, and storm.

Naðr’s eyes never left the horizon as the battle simmered down and the last of the enemy finally fell from the sky. All the while the sail continued to glow as his father, Uncle Raknar and Uncle Kjar joined them and stared into the distance as well. What were they looking for?

As they watched the horizon, Kodran pulled Erica back against him, grateful to have her in his arms again.

“There,” Naðr finally roared and pointed through the foggy aftermath of the departing storm. “Do you see?”

Kjar joined him and narrowed his eyes as a small smile came to his lips. “I do.”

Kol and Raknar said nothing but came alongside their brother.

Kodran and Erica looked over the side, curious, before he saw what his elders already knew was coming.

A small Viking boat.

One built by Megan and Sean a long time ago.

One that had brought Megan back in time once to her true love and had just done it again.

Naðr flew down the ladder and leapt into the boat before it even brushed the side of his ship.

“Husband,” Megan said as she stood, tears in her eyes. It was clear she was weak. “Is it really you?”

Naðr didn’t waste time with words but pulled her into his arms and held her tight. Then he gave her a kiss that put all to shame. The way he loved her was thorough, all theirs. And Kodran understood that more than he ever had before.

“I hate to break up a good time,” came a soft, teasing voice. “But perhaps we could take this onto the ship?”

“Angie?” Erica exclaimed, peering down at the shifting burlap in the back of the boat. “Is that you?”

“Please, call me Mema Angie,” she said, her voice muffled until she stuck her head out. “Forgive the delay in my introduction. It’s been a wild ride.” She peered down beneath the canvas. “And I’ve been trying to keep things safe.” Her eyes widened on the ship. “Thank goodness for that glowing sail. It led the way through the storm.”

What things was she trying to keep safe beneath that burlap?

“Come.” Kjar smiled. “Let’s get you both onto the ship then we’ll get this boat towed to shore.” His brows rose. “It wouldn’t be the first time, after all.”

Raknar leaned over and held his hand down to Megan. “No, it wouldn’t be the first time.”

Megan smiled at him and took his hand as he helped her up. “I guess we’re just repeating history, aren’t we, Brother?”

“We are,” Raknar murmured as he set her in the boat and hugged her tightly before Kol and Kjar did the same.

“It’s so good to have you back,” Kol murmured and kept an arm around her lower back. “Do not ever leave us again, woman.” He kept her close as Raknar looked her over, his eyes concerned as he touched her here and there. While some might think it inappropriate it was normal for those dragons considered their own. They might be able to feel the mind, but they also needed physical contact. They needed to know that their lifeblood was okay. And though Megan might not be dragon, she was theirs.

Kodran was about to speak to Erica, to embrace and kiss her properly, but became distracted by the way Naðr and his uncles inhaled as they stepped close to Aunt Megan. They were catching a scent.

A good scent.

A cancer free scent.

“Well, I’d say something favorable is going on by the happiness in everyone’s eyes as you’re sniffing me,” Megan said. “But if you wouldn’t mind, I’m pretty tired and would like to sit.”

Kodran squeezed Erica’s hand and nodded. Megan might be weak and gaunt, but whatever had happened, she was healed.

She would survive.

And he suspected it happened because of the ring’s powers. Vanaheim’s healing metal. The very same reason everyone had returned to life.

“It’s a good day,” Mema Angie declared as she joined them and grinned at Kjar as he lugged her big package onto the boat. “Demi-god Viking that he is, he just loves to do things the hard way.” She winked at him. “When magic would have worked just as well.”

“I am doing things the way I know you want them done, woman.” He nodded over her shoulder. “Just ask the dog. She agrees.”

Erica’s eyes widened on Guardian as she appeared behind them.

“What, dear?” Angie asked Erica. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

“It’s just,” she murmured, not sure how to phrase it as she glanced at Megan.

“Well, I do,” Mema Angie said, clearly following her thoughts. “You, like everyone else, was under the assumption Megan would die and be reborn as Heidrek and Cybil’s child. Mainly because of Guardian being determined to protect Cybil’s womb, the baby inside, a soul that had treated her so well when she once lived.”

“That’s right,” Erica said.

“Perhaps that might have happened but it won’t anymore thanks to you and Kodran.” Her voice softened with respect. “Eluf and Maeva.” Her eyes went to the blade and ring. “And of course, those.” A smile came to her lips as she seemed to see something they couldn’t. “No, now another soul entirely will find its way to Cybil’s womb.” Angie’s eyes went to the dog as Guardian began to fade away. “Perhaps Guardian is determined to protect that soul instead. One that was good to her in yet another life she lived.”

That made sense. And it was a much better outcome than having lost Aunt Megan.

As the ship headed inland and his aunt spent most of her time in Naðr’s arms, Kodran figured his uncle had the right idea. It was time to be with their mates. To appreciate that they were together and had a life ahead of them.

Erica didn’t say anything at first, telepathically or otherwise, but he knew her thoughts were churning. He knew she was still trying to make sense of things. So he pulled her to the back of the boat, sat her down, wrapped an arm around her waist and kept her close.

“He’s gone, Erica,” he murmured and kissed her temple as he followed her thoughts. All the sudden worry and doubt. Above all, the absolute fear that somehow, someway, she had let everyone down. “Every last one of our people was brought back. My kin and yours. All of them resurrected.” He tilted her chin until their eyes met. “We survived and won.”

Her eyes held his for a long moment before her gaze dropped to the ring on her finger. “When we...when you...”

He took her hand and rubbed his finger lightly over the ring as she trailed off.

“Something happened, and I’m not sure what it was.” He cupped her cheek so that her eyes returned to his. “Maybe it was all part of the elaborate spell Eluf cast. Part of Maeva’s fairytale happy ending.” He kept his touch soft, his words even softer. “All I know is that it worked.” Red skirted his vision as their eyes held. As his dragon made sure her dragon truly understood. “We’re here, and everyone’s safe, Erica. The war is over, and it’s time for peace.”

“So everyone’s alive again?” she whispered, her heart in her damp eyes as she came out of what had to be shock. “My sisters? Your family?” Her eyes narrowed with curiosity mixed with concern. “The Vanaheim seers?” Pain flickered in her gaze. “All of our people?”

“All are well,” he confirmed. “And busy trying to keep the villagers safe and to bring order.”

Erica nodded, her eyes still concerned as she finally seemed to come out of her daze. As she realized it was finally over. “So in the end, everyone pulled together to fight for your tribe? All dragons, humans and seers?”

“As a unit,” he assured as he pulled her even closer and brushed his lips across hers, eager to get her home into his bed where she belonged. “Now we have won, and Eluf and Maeva finally got what they have been trying for all this time.”

“They have, haven’t they?” she murmured after they shared a deep kiss. One that pushed everything she felt into him. How frightened she had been when he died. How broken. Like him, like all of them, she had been through so much. It hadn’t been easy.

“But, somehow,” Mema Angie said softly as she crouched and cut away the burlap from her heavy package. “We pulled together and found a way to rise above.”

Megan smiled as Naðr kept her close and Kol, Raknar, and Kjar helped Angie with her package. The storm had abated, and the sun was rising over the Norwegian Sea, casting the water into a vast array of warm oranges and cool purples.

All fires had been put out, and though some ships were crippled and broken, they were dockside, and every last human, seer, and dragon had been saved. All because they had come together to help each other. Erica and Kodran stood and acknowledged the Vanaheim seers standing on the dock in the distance.

“Thank you,” Erica whispered to the female seer. “For saving my life.”

The female’s eyes stayed with Erica’s as she said one last farewell. “We are proud. Stay strong, dragon.” Then her eyes met Kodran’s. “Thank you for trusting us, Eluf. Fare well, my kin.”

He had no chance to respond before they vanished and the horizon filled with life as their ship drew closer to shore. Villagers lined the docks waving and joyous. Aunt Aella and her daughters smiled and waved. Meyla nodded her approval with pride in her eyes. Sean and Svala were laughing and kissing. Even Vigdis seemed happy as she was spun around by a tall, handsome villager and carried off.

Erica smiled and laughed as the sky filled with dragons.

With their family.

“Welcome home,” Heidrek and Cybil said into their minds proceeded by so many others.

“One helluva a fight,” Sam led out, a chuckle in her voice as she soared overhead. “Way to go, you two.”

“I am very impressed,” Bjorn said with a bit of grumpiness because he couldn’t protect them better.

“You took too many risks,” Lauren said, pleased as her dragon swooped low. “But that is what we fierce dragons do.”

“I never doubted you, Brother,” Tait said. “Or your mate.”

“Way to get the job done,” Shannon said, a smile in her voice as her dragon raced past.

“I’m proud to call you kin,” Matthew said, right behind her.

Then Sven, Runa, Kadlin and the children cruised over, free, happy and grateful.

Kage and Viv were next followed by all her dragons. All the Sigdir’s ancient ancestors.

“I’m proud of you, darlin’,” Kage said. “Damn proud. You and Kodran kicked ass.”

“Hell yeah,” Viv added. “We’re both proud of you both.”

Meanwhile, Mema Angie finally displayed her package.

Side by side, she lined up Cybil’s Dragons of Winter Harbor Collection on the ship as the sail continued to glow.

First Rise as they now called the picture Cybil had taken of Heidrek in the ash tree before she traveled back in time. Then the ones she took before that. Vengeance, Soul, Fury, and Pride. The moment Angie set Pride down something miraculous happened. As all five portraits were finally together on display here in Scandinavia, here where so many dragon mates had come together, new life was found in the midst of so much death.

And four tiny heartbeats thumped for the first time.