Bryn’s eyes widened briefly and she quickly dropped her gaze once more. Asterios smiled awkwardly to himself, afraid that he might have taken it a little too far considering how insecure Bryn was about her figure. A deep silence fell onto them as they continued to bathe together.

  When the time came for them to leave, Bryn calmed down enough to accompany Asterios out with just a slightly shy smile. They hastily dried each other off enough not to drip on the floor and jumped back to the girls with their bodies wrapped with comfy towels. As the second pair went in, the others helped with Bryn’s feathers and hair.

  With everyone fully done about half an hour later, they crashed on the bed together. Ast’s girls piled up on him completely naked but he tried to assure Bryn that she didn’t have to follow their lead, actually wearing something to bed.

  In the end, the Valkyrie decided to join in as she was and they made some space for her in front of Asterios. It didn’t take long before he was pressed into her and she was pushed into him. Thankfully, Bryn only chuckled quietly at their position and wrapped her arms around Asterios as there was no better place to put them. He did the same and they soon dozed off in each other’s embrace.

  In the morning, Asterios woke up in mild darkness. It confused him to some extent as he was pretty sure that it should be morning and he didn’t remember the windows in their room having shutters or curtains. Another unusual thing was the soft, tender sensation pressing into his cheeks from both sides.

  Trying to move, he noticed that he was tightly held in place. After looking around a little bit more, he realized what kind of situation he was in.

  There was no doubt that the pleasant sensation on his face was Bryn’s impressive breasts as she hugged his head to her chest. Additionally, it seemed that she had somehow covered them both with her wings, locking them inside a warm and comfortable cocoon that didn’t let almost any light through.

  Sensing the other girls being awake and watching them with pure amusement, he chuckled to himself and attempted to wake their winged friend up by lovingly grazing over Bryn’s back. In response, the Valkyrie squished him even more into her ample peaks while mumbling something under her nose, which she pushed into Ast’s hair from above as she rested her face on top of his head.

  After a good while, she lazily opened her eyes and blinked a few times. Noticing something wrong, she furrowed her brows and quickly realized what was going on. Soon, one of Bryn’s wings unfurled from around them and revealed her deep blush as she dearly squeezed Asterios to her body. The girls chuckled at them and helped both of them up.

  Sharing a quick breakfast with the other patrons of the inn, they wasted no time and headed straight for Atra’s house. The scholarly Valkyrie was already awake too and they immediately ventured out toward the central castle. She had supposedly called for the Council to gather and everyone should already be waiting for them.

  They walked through a similar palace like the one in Tyr but naturally in a slightly different fashion, dominated more by square motifs literally everywhere. The number of armored guards was much lower too, which felt quite logical considering that their first ARK was the military-focused one.

  The meeting chamber seemed to be the only universal thing as numerous valkyrjas still stood by the edge of a round table. Miria pouted adorably, expecting to see a grand square or rectangle instead and Grea huffed to the side something about the lack of consistency.

  Right from the moment Asterios and the others walked in, all the gazes were directly on him. The winged ladies whispered between themselves much livelier than the Council members from Tyr. They were still quite confused but not as shocked or flabbergasted as their sisters-in-arms from the other ARK.

  “What is the reason behind this sudden gathering, Atra?” one of the valkyrjas asked while crossing her arms under her chest.

  “There’s a MAN standing right next to me at this very moment. Isn’t that enough of a reason?” The caramel-haired Valkyrie snorted to the side and fixed her glasses. “But, since I’m painfully aware of how busy all of you are with your own studies, let me get straight to the point. I need full clearance for him and his companions. They have been sent by Tyr and they are heading to Odin, more accurately to the Descending Spire right under it. They are going to take it back and activate Tyr’s Aegis. That’s why they need to know as much about it as they can.”

  “That’s suicide!” a different woman shouted.

  “Here we go again.” Grea snickered with a wide grin.

  “Wait. I heard something about this,” someone else joined in. “It’s a fresh rumor but he supposedly became the Champion of the War Games while coming out victorious in a four-on-one battle that almost destroyed the arena. A full mobilization was announced after the match and the entire army of Tyr is preparing for the upcoming conquest.”

  “Precisely!” Atra pointed at that Council member. “My friend here, Bryn, is their representative bearing the Tyr’s Wing. He and his companions showed enough power to convince the entire ARK that they truly can succeed. It’s our duty as scholars to aid them with our knowledge and assure that we really take the Spire back!”

  “Have you confirmed that he is indeed a man?” the first speaker asked again.

  “Uhhhh…”

  “I have only recently become aware of the depictions of the ancient men but I can testify under an oath that my master, Asterios, definitely is one. I saw everything that can be seen, including his acts of procreation,” Bryn replied confidently with her cheeks tainted with the faintest blush.

  “Yeah!” Atra nodded with a wide smile. “And that’s why—”

  “We can’t grant your request,” the same person interrupted her.

  “Wait what?” The short Valkyrie didn’t hide her shock and confusion.

  “He closely resembles a god and could very well be one,” someone else said.

  “I know! Isn’t that amaz—”

  “All the gods abandoned us and ran away, forsaking not just our race but all the realms. We can’t give access to our sacred records to someone who might be one. He could have returned to use us again, aiming to steal something from the Spire and bring it back to the rest of those traitors,” an older valkyrja stated coldly.

  Atra’s mouth fell agape as she looked between the people who had spoken. “Are you serious right now? Do you know how much lost knowledge we could recover if we succeeded?”

  “That could be his goal too,” the same woman shot her down instantly. “He might have been sent to destroy or retrieve things that those bastards don’t want us to get our hands on. They have always been controlling and petty, as the legends say.”

  “Additionally, Atra, how could you involve a person from the outside in the guarded secrets of our race?” The woman who had begun the meeting almost spat at Bryn and her friend. “Did you forget how heavy such transgression is?”

  Before Atra could reply, Asterios stepped forward. “She didn’t involve anyone. I was the one to reach out to Bryn first by summoning her into my realm. I was the one to approach Atra in hopes of receiving your help. Your secrets are safe. We don’t care about them. All we need is the information on the Descending Spire which is the goal of our expedition. We will leave immediately after learning as much as we can.”

  “Do you think we can trust the words of an outsider? We can’t know what kind of tricks you could have used to manipulate our sisters-in-arms into following you. You will get nothing.” The last woman sneered at him.

  Asterios sighed softly. “We don't mean anything bad. You can send someone with us to keep an eye on our movements. We have already worked with one of the Councils and gained their support. If I remember correctly, your people value high-quality alcohol, which you should currently be trading for with Tyr, right?”

  “So what?” she growled.

  “My family is their current supplier and it was Bryn's initiative that led to the establishment of those relations. I think it could be considered a small favor she did for you, and you could kindly consider aiding us as repaying it. If that doesn't sound right to you, we could possibly whisper a word or two to a few people and work out some better terms, such as increased quantity perhaps.”

  The rude valkyrja opened her mouth but didn’t get to bark a reply before someone sealed her lips with a hand from behind.

  “Give us some time to discuss this situation amongst ourselves. It’s a lot to take in and the topic is extremely serious, thus the raised emotions,” the perpetrator said and a few women nodded to her words.

  “Time is of the essence here so please, don’t delay this for too long,” Asterios said and turned around, starting to leave.

  The girls quickly caught up to him alongside the petite Valkyrie and they walked out of the meeting chamber. There was no reason to stay there and argue endlessly.

  “I’m sorry…” Atra apologized with a dejected expression as they entered the open air. “I had no idea they would be like that… I thought they would be ecstatic about the chance to learn more about our past…”

  “It’s alright. I can’t exactly blame them for being so hostile. They brought up quite sound arguments.” Asterios patted the short girl on the head.

  “What now? Do we just hang around and wait for their decision?” Miria asked curiously.

  “I’m afraid that it won’t come that fast, nor will it be a positive one considering how strong the opposition against gods is. We, scholars, bicker amongst ourselves for weeks about the tiniest topics. They will try their best to delay it as long as they can. A slight increase to the alcohol won’t change that much.” Atra sighed heavily and then straightened her posture, looking straight ahead. “If they don’t want to help, we will help ourselves. There's a lot at stake here, including the life of my close friend. I’ll get you to that information no matter what. Let's go.”

  Chapter 23

  The Path Below

  “What do you have in mind, Atra?” Bryn asked, taking a glance at the determined face of her friend.

  “There is no other valkyrja that knows the ARKs as well as I do. I’m fairly sure you are aware of that already.” Atra smirked at her proudly. “Therefore, I’m going to take you straight into the main archives. Heads up, though, it won’t be exactly easy and comfortable.”

  “So, we are planning to break into a highly guarded and tightly secured vault of knowledge?” Grea raised a brow at the caramel-haired Valkyrie.

  “Well…” Atra looked slightly aside with a wry smile.

  “Count me fucking in!” The demon lady suddenly cheered and threw her fist into the air.

  Their new scholar friend clearly hadn’t been expecting that kind of a reaction but everyone else just chuckled quietly, already used to Grea’s everyday nature.

  “So, how are we going to do that?” Miria took a curious peek at Atra’s face, arriving at her side.

  Atra warily scanned their surroundings before continuing, making sure that they were more or less alone. “There are countless maintenance shafts and industrial passages. The ARKs have no secrets before me. All I need is time and I can get literally anywhere, utilizing those unknown paths to reach places nobody would ever expect to be reachable any other way than through the main entrance.”

  “She isn’t boasting, Master.” Bryn nodded softly. “The ledge I showed you, I learned about it from her. Everything I know about those special areas comes from Atra.”

  “You took him there?” Atra didn’t hide her shock as her eyes went wide.

  An apparent blush plagued Bryn’s delicate cheeks as she tried to avert her gaze from Atra and Asterios. He felt like that place held some importance to the two women, judging by their reactions. Perhaps it was their secret meeting spot that only they shared or something like that.

  “Isn’t this dangerous?” Silvia broke the intense silence that had fallen onto them, turning to the shorter Valkyrie. “I mean, dangerous for you as a member of the Council and one of the valkyrjas. If we get caught or noticed, they are surely going to punish you. They already seemed quite unhappy with our situation.”

  “Silvia is right.” Bryn sighed wistfully. “I would hate to see another friend banished into the Core Chamber.”

  “Another?” Atra furrowed her brows.

  “It’s a complex story. I’ll tell you later.” Bryn showed a melancholic smile and Atra chose not to pry any further, nodding at her friend respectfully.

  “In any way, they already hate me, as you said. Giving them another reason for that won’t change much.” Atra sniffed while scrunching her nose. “I really want to help you, and not just because there’s a godlike man amongst you. This is clearly the right thing. You seem to have proven yourself in Tyr and Bryn believes in your strength. I trust her judgment. If she says that we can take the Spire back, I will do everything in my power to make it happen. No matter the cost.”

  “For the sake of our dream.” Bryn looked ahead, far into the neverending sky.

  “Which I might or might not have infected you with by accident through all those overblown stories I kept yapping about constantly.” Her friend chuckled warmly. “The more reason for me to take responsibility for it. What kind of a friend would I be if I hid away while letting you take all the risks and do all the dirty work?”

  “You are an amazing person and a precious friend, Atra,” Tina commented, making the lithe Valkyrie hide her faint blush behind her dainty hand, acting as if she was fixing her glasses.

  “Where do we begin, then?” Asterios asked after she was done with her act.

  “Follow me,” Atra replied and took off in a flash.

  Bryn chuckled while shaking her head. “My apologies. She isn’t used to moving around with people who can’t casually travel through the sky.”

  “You two go after her, my Lord, and we will join you in a moment,” Selene suggested with a ladylike smirk.

  Asterios nodded at the girls and they launched themselves into the air with Bryn soon after. It didn’t take them long to catch up to Atra and she almost lost control of her flight after noticing his very different wings. Slowing down a little, she continued flying all around Asterios, examining him from every possible angle. Bryn just kept shooting him apologetic smiles as their pace was slightly reduced due to that.

  A few minutes later, Atra had to pause her curious examination as they reached the place she meant to take them to. She descended towards the ground first and the other two followed shortly, landing on the roof of a quite common-looking house. It was made in the same rectangular style with square columns as most of them. Just like a few other buildings next to it, its roof was perfectly flat.

  “We are quite far from the main archives,” Bryn commented as she and Asterios looked around.

  “We can’t just waltz inside the biggest library and hope to find a less busy moment to sneak into one of the secret passages. Besides, it’s not like the most restricted section is located exactly in that building,” Atra replied.

  “The vault is somewhere outside of its walls?” Asterios pondered out loud.

  “Precisely. There’s a heavily guarded hallway leading to it, which we obviously can’t take. But, I more or less know how long it is and in what direction it’s going. With that, I should be able to lead you through a bunch of maintenance areas so that we end up right next to the vault. Then, we just need to figure out how to get inside and we are home,” she explained.

  Finishing up, Atra stopped walking in circles all around the roof and focused her gaze on one of the corners. She pressed her foot into a few different spots over the hexagonal metal pattern and one of the honeycomb-shaped tiles clicked in with a quiet noise. A dozen or more of them did the same and they retracted themselves to the sides, uncovering a hole in the roof with a ladder leading down.

  Atra gestured at them with a smile and a dark crimson gate arose next to Asterios. Right after all the girls joined them, the scholarly Valkyrie led them inside the hidden passage. They walked down one by one to avoid accidentally falling on top of each other. Within two minutes, they all stood on the very bottom, inside a quite narrow metal tunnel illuminated by yellowish gems.

  “Alright. Let me just recall all the blueprints and schematics…” Their guide frowned deeply while massaging her forehead, releasing somewhat silly sounds as she concentrated as much as she could.

  “Are you sure you don’t need to take some of them with you or something?” Tina asked.

  “Don’t underestimate the mind of a researcher.” Grea waved a finger at her. “It might be mostly filled with useless shit but it can be extremely precise and detailed regarding the important things too.”

  “I got it. We have a little bit of walking to do. Watch your wings. Those of you who have them, of course.” Atra chuckled awkwardly after noticing that it was now only her and Bryn who sported a pair.

  Everyone fell into order and they started moving in a single line. Just in case, the toughest warriors took the spots closest to the front and the back. It was never unwise to take some precautions even if they technically were walking through the insides of one of the safest places in the entire realm, with only eleven others floating around the rest of it.

  Atra continued leading them through extremely narrow passages, clearly not meant for everyday use. Some of the claustrophobic tunnels forced them into a crouch even. Thankfully, they were all illuminated more than decently well. Even if they weren’t, Bryn would have made sure they knew exactly what was in their close vicinity.

  After about half an hour of squeezing through tight spaces, they finally stepped out into a much more spacious section. Asterios quickly recognized the area as one quite similar to the place with the giant cogwheels and pistons back from Tyr. Instead of ending up on a ledge in the shape of a half-circle, they walked onto a metal path with no railings extending forward, right into the dimly lit distance between the massive machinery.

  “Be careful not to fall. There are many dangerous things that the light doesn’t reach.” Atra directed her warning towards the women with no direct means of flying. “And don’t get surprised by sudden releases of steam and things like that. It can get pretty loud in places like this one but we have to pass through it. I don’t think I have to remind you not to touch anything, right?”