The Valkyrie’s Ghost

Authors Note:Whew, welcome to lucky Part 14. I'm itching to get to the action hero section of this saga, which is far more in my comfort zone than the bedroom scenes. But my personal weakness for creating rich, over the top supporting characters keeps pulling me back like I'm Santa Claus checking his list.

So yes, this part took a bit longer than planned. My apologies. If you spot anyone missing from Santa's roster, give me a gentle nudge and I'll slip them back in during edits.

Now for the warnings. This is Part 14. If you don't want to be hopelessly lost, and if your stomach can handle it, I humbly suggest starting with Part 1. Part 14 is a beast. Microsoft Word reports 45,117 words, bringing the grand total to 285,741. Ouch.

Just remember: I did say this was NOT a book, but a series of episodes. Notice the "Beta" tag. Words flow easily for me; staying inside the grammatical lines... not so much. I have editors bravely donning their literary hazmat suits and chiseling away at my prose.

Final warning: all characters, events, and James Bond "Q inspired" gadgets are figments of my overactive imagination and are not intended to represent real life.

Deep appreciation to everyone ready for the next episode of The Valkyrie's Ghost.

PHD

Chapter 66

Riley Rivers

Thursday, January 22nd

The Five House

8755 Ridgeline Hollow Road

Grants Pass, OR

Riley Rivers eyes reluctantly opened. The sleeping form of Lysandra snuggled into his side, her head on his shoulder was a dream, but then the alarm sounded a second time.

"Why did we say four-thirty was a good time for a workout?" Lysandra mumbled into his chest.

"Some crackpot said it was a great way to build discipline." Riley said as he stretched his body like a cat waking up from a nap.

His hand found Lysandra's bare back. She levered herself up on an elbow.

"Good morning." She said smiling.

Riley leaned up and kissed her gently. "Good morning."

Riley's smile was a mile wide. "I love waking up with a world renown beauty who is naked below the sheets," Riley moved in and kissed her a bit longer. "However, the fact that I can kiss you seconds after waking up is a dream come true."

"If you didn't have a gaggle of trained soldiers who would look at me with raised eyebrows all day long, I might show you another advantage of waking up with a naked boyfriend." Lysandra purred and gave him a kiss.

"But you are the CO." She jumped up, pulling back the sheet as if it was a Broadway show curtain, showcasing her naked form as she jumped to the floor. She stopped, looked back, and gave her hips a quick kick to the side. Her laughter followed her to the bathroom.

-----------------

Riley stood on the porch stretching with Lysandra when his comms unit came to life.

"Ghost, Command." Mags familiar voice sounded.

"Command." Riley responded. "Mags, you are in bright and early."

"In?" Mags laughed, "I never went home. Admiral Stratis pulled a rabbit out of her cap!"

"Did she?" Riley asked, somewhat confused.

"She was able procured us not one, but two C-17 Globemaster IIIs. Our Wyvern shipment was diverted to Stewart Air National Guard Base in Newburg, New York. They lifted off at Nineteen forty‑five Eastern, landed at Travis at Twenty‑two forty‑five Pacific, and will be knocking at your door at Zero five forty five Pacific." Mags said smugly.

"That is amazing!" Riley said. "You and the Admiral are miracle workers."

"We need Valkyrie and you to be safe." Mags said seriously. "Make it so!"

---------------

Riley had invited Raptor's Captain to plan today's PT. Helena Ward took the challenge and built a small obstacle course that weaved in and out of his land and adjacent national forest. She laid out the course by tagging trees phosphorescing ribbon. The path had straight aways, but also navigated ravines, fallen trees, and rocks and boulders. Falcon even went as far as setting up six of Riley's heavy duty sawhorses along the north edge of the course and strung a two inch rope across a shallow ravine. The total course was two and half miles in total length.

Falcon started the course in a two-person wide formation, all running in time to take everyone across the course. She stressed areas that everyone should be extra careful navigating. Shawna Baker shared the Eagles are flying, New York is online and if they issue Rome, Vanguard will find and escort Valkyrie to the Five House safe room and Raptor assume assault positions.

It was ninety-minutes later when Riley and Lysandra were finishing their seventh lap. They kept lapping seasoned veterans who were on their third and fourth lap. Riley excelled at the rope walk, but the sawhorses were a bit tall for him, requiring him to use his hands to launch himself over, whereas Lysandra treated them as a hurdle and took them in her ground eating gate.

The repeated use of the tactical glasses in the early morning hours had made traversing a forest in the dark second nature. Despite their pace, they often engaged in conversations about their wants and desires.

"You mentioned the other day about getting some court time with your teammates." Riley asked as they had just climbed a steep hill, the loose pine needles padding their journey.

"Not everyone stays in the Seattle area. But for those who do, we would gather every two or three weeks for a group work out."

"Do you remember my story about the scout camp adventure?" Riley asked.

"The place where five animals and one decent human being beat you with fishing poles and violently raped you?" Lysandra spat out.

"Well, when you say it like that," Riley laughed.

Lysandra looked to her right and a begrudging smile appeared.

"Sorry, yes." Lysandra asked, her mind not connecting the dots. "The camp."

"Back in my day, it was the Echo Pines Scout Camp." Riley awkwardly continued. "Well, it is literally five minutes away as the bird flies from the Five House."

The pair paused as they past another cluster of Aegis soldiers. Their faces showed their attention to the terrain, so they didn't break their neck.

"Well, Mark had texted me while we were in Las Vegas that the scout camp turned private resort turned bankrupt turned private resort is now turning bankrupt for a third time." Riley shared. "The old scout cabins were demolished, and the three different developers had wildly different plans for the two-hundred acers."

"Mark shared that they have invested close to seven million in building out the roads to access the different sites. They have eight, luxury cabins that are move in ready that he thought was worth close to five million, another two million in building out the solar farm, water systems, and other utilities." Riley shared as he navigated a stretch of land with several fallen trees.

"Are you thinking of buying?" Lysandra asked.

"Well, I don't think it is a me decision. I think it is a we decision." Riley gulped, and almost started to backtrack. "Well, I don't want any money from you, but I see that you are.." He took a deep breath and yelled. "Pickle Juice! I am messing this up."

Lysandra stopped him, touched the side of his face. "Thank you baby." She kissed his lips. "I feel the same way. I want you to help me think about Seattle and what we should do with the burned husk of a house."

Lysandra saw the approaching soldiers.

"I am not sure if my fragile ego could stand being passed." Lysandra teased, and the pair resumed their run.

"Since I have came into your life, your place seems a bit smaller and smaller!" Lysandra teased.

"Mark knows the bank that is foreclosing and he thinks he could get the right guy to allow us to view the land anytime we wanted." Riley offered hopefully.

"I would love to go house shopping with you, love." Lysandra said as she launched herself over a log.

They had just passed two more clusters of Aegis soldiers. "What are your thoughts on marriage and children?"

Riley's boot slipped on the pine needles, but he quickly corrected his run.

"You might could tell that family is important to me." He laughed at himself. "I always wanted to be a part of a family, but as late as December first, I did not see myself married or a father."

He took a breath, building courage. "I hope this doesn't scare you, but each day I think about it a little bit more."

"As you can tell," Lysandra laughed at herself, "I have been thinking about it as well. My mom was a single mom, so I have no idea about the whole marriage enterprise. Mom was engaged to Aunt Fiona's cousin Declan for years and it seemed like a soap opera on how they felt about each other every other week."

"I might have or might not asked the question of when you know when it is right to propose." Riley said.

This time it was Lysandra who almost stumbled.

"You did?" She asked, extremely interested.

"I did." Riley laughed, which turned into a groan as they approached the sawhorses.

Riley picked up his speed and used his momentum to carry his hands to the sawhorse top, launching his body over the obstacle. He looked like a gymnast mounting a pommel horse only to exit the opposite side without much of a loss in his speed.

"So, who did you ask?" Lysandra tried to sound casual. The fact that she was so interested caused Riley's heart to race.

"Gary and Clyde when they stopped by to measure the sidewalk to Valehalla." Riley said. "I think you, Kate, and Elizabeth were sitting around the fire in the great room."

"Ahh." Lysandra said, again, trying to seem nonchalant about his answers.

"Do you mind that I asked?" Riley sounded unsure.

"Not at all." Lysandra answered.

She ran a good quarter of a mile before she spoke.

"What did they say?" Lysandra asked.

"Both said that there is no magic waiting period. They had met couples who dated years, were engaged and lived together for years more and still divorced." Riley dodged a sapling he almost mist as he kept turning his head to gauge Lysandra's reactions.

"Clyde laughed and shared that his brother knew his wife three weeks before he proposed and they were married a week later." Riley dodged a fallen tree. "They just had their sixty-fifth anniversary last year."

"Four weeks." Lysandra mumbled to herself.

"Gary mentioned the three pillars of a strong marriage." Riley said when he saw the rope.

Riley increased his speed again and leaped into the air to grab the rope. He used a monkey bar approach where he was swinging from arm to arm before he dropped to the pine needle forest floor. He turned and watched the strength of Lysandra's upper body as she systematically moved across the rope before she dropped next to Riley. They looked at each other and resumed their run.

They found Viper's Wyatt Granger running beside Jackson Reed. Both large men were breathing deeply as they kept a steady place.

"To the right Torque. Bolt." Rily announced and the two men moved to the left of the pseudo-trail.

Bolt called out. "We are just trying to make you look good Ghost!"

"Gentlemen, I appreciate your sacrifice." Riley offered in reply. Their laughter chased Lysandra and Riley down the trail.

"Pillars?" Lysandra asked.

"Yep, three pillars." Riley said. Hurdling a small boulder. "Love, Respect, and Trust."

They happened across Wraith, Whisper, Shade, Falcon and Kite.

"To the right ladies!" Riley announced.

The five female Aegis employees continued their run lined up single file. Riley nodded to Lysandra who took the lead around the contingent.

"Ghost, what lap?" Talia asked.

"Babe is this six or seven?" Riley asked.

Riley was sure he heard aFuck meescape one of the runners.

"Thanks for making the hurdles neck high to us short people!" Riley teased Helena Ward.

"Ghost, I shared my displeasure a couple of times." Elise said. "But the just laughed at me! It is cruel being right size in a tall world!"

Riley laughed loudly. "You just wait until they can get to that bottom cabinet. Then their cruel worlds will come home to roost!"

Three minutes and fifty yards, Lysandra turned to her PT partner.

"Love, Respect, and Trust." Lysandra said in reflection. "What did Gary say about the pillars?"

"He said he always loved Paula, but when she supported Brett unconditionally, he lost respect for her. When she took it a step further and said some of the things she did, she shattered that pillar and he just couldn't be with her. He knew she loved him. He would trust her never to cheat and always to love him, but without respect, the other two pillars would crumble and fall and then love would turn to hate, trust would turn to suspicion, and every minute of their life would be tainted."

Riley's heart was beating at the speed of light. He took a deep breath and let it out.

"Just so you know, there is not a person I love more. In fact, before you, I wasn't sure that I was capable of romantic love. You made that possible. Each night when I fall asleep with you in my arms" Riley turned and smiled at her, "Or me in your arms, I think ok, that is all the love I can possibly hold. But the very next day, it grows!"

Lysandra moved behind Riley as he launched from one rock to another to cross a dry streambed. She followed in his footsteps.

"As for respect. I think that was what started my crush. I have seen you compete and I have read your biography. But then I met you and found that you are not the surface that everyone sees, but you are deeper than the deepest seas. Those few who you let in, you love them like sisters. Your passion for rural schools and STEM is amazing as other athletes social media is either about them or their pursuit of fun." Riley again turned to Lysandra and smiled. "Although, I have seen your passion for fashion. I have never seen you roll up to a game in a designer suit or dress, so the gala's provide you the perfect venue for your secret love."

Lysandra stopped and made out as if she is looking behind the trees for eavesdroppers. "Shh, don't you dare let people know my one true weakness. I could see a point guard start asking my about Gucci and driving to the basket with my eyes dreamingly thinking of the dress!"

Riley ran a good hundred yards when he continued.

"Trust." He said, allowing his mind to catch up to his heart. "Trust was the pillar that we had to develop together. I think I told you in Chicago about the micro-interactions. The minute you said,'I will put the tea on."when Elizabeth showed up. That is when I knew you were worthy of trust. Followed by suggesting we come to the Five for Christmas. For you're your quiet strength when Cole..." Riley swallowed his spike of grief.

"When you put up the mugs, you spaced it perfectly and then rotated the handle, so it was the same as my other OCD-fueled craziness. You spending your mad-money turned gambling winnings on our pearls." Riley said.

"Our pearls?" Lysandra asked, her voice full of emotion.

"Love, they love you." Riley said. "They built you a palace. They have enough love to share." Riley paused, unsure of himself. "If you will have them."

Lysandra stopped and when Riley slowed and turned, he was pulled up into a hug.

"Thank you." Lysandra chanted. "Thank you. Thank you."

"Ghost, command." The comms unit sparked to life.

"Command. Go." Riley said, his arms around Lysandra's neck, his eyes aflame with love.

"Your shipment is two miles away." The disembodied voice informed.

"Thank you command." Riley replied.

"Nyx, Falcon. Ghost." Riley thumbed his ring.

The dual clicks informed him they were ready for the message.

"My apologies to the soldiers, we are going to have to cut PT short today." Riley apologized. As Lysandra dropped him to the forest floor, they could hear the shouts of joy from the scattered troops. "All hands to the Five House to support the unloading of the trucks."

Riley turned and touched Lysandra's chin. She bent down as he stood on his tippy toes, and he kissed her, his hand caressing her cheek.

"I don't have words like you do, but I feel the same exact way." Lysandra shared. "I love you, respect you, and trust you more than I do myself."

"Thank you for sharing that." Riley said appreciatively. "I may sound confident, but your heart is much to dear to me to assume things."

"Do you want to finish strong?" Riley said. "We have a quarter of mile to hit our twenty mile mark!"

"Catch me if you can Mr. Ghost!" Lysandra said as she exploded down the trail.

She laughed at Riley who was at her side. Step for Step.

----------------

The chorus of heavy diesel engines pulling the pair of large semi-trucks down the drive echoed throughout the early morning. The last trailer sporting a yellow wide load sign glowing in the blinking redlights of the breaks. The semitrucks slowly navigated the low hanging trees and narrow driveway.

Seven storage containers that were lined up on the opposite side of the woodshop. The gantry crane was attached to the first storage container to be pulled the sixteen foot container and the soldiers escorted behind the shop and had the trainer drop on a series of four-by-four posts. The gantry crane made three more trips, two other sixteen foot shipping containers and an almost comical eight foot container. The twelve foot wide containers required the trucker to use a wide load sign and heavy-duty trailer typically reserved for the heavy equipment.

Miko "Shade" Tanaka and her counterpart on Raptor, Chase "Owl" Donnelly were at the first container. Owl held up a tablet as Shade typed in the sixteen digit encryption code into the container's keyboard lock with a small LED screen.

"Ghost, do you have your cuss word ready?" Mags voice came over the Hermes communications platform.

"I am sure I can get a cussing interpreter if I don't." Riley responded.

"I can help you out Riley!" Lysandra offered. "I have a few choice cusswords I let slip once and a while."

"She may just be too good for you Ghost!" Mags said, "But then again, you may be too good for her."

The lock clicked. The handles lifted and rotated; the cams released the hold on the container and the doors swung wide. LED lights flickered to life, showcasing the mystic offspring of a first-person shooter, a HUMVEE, and an ATV.

The front section of the... Riley's mind struggled with a descriptor. It had a wedged shape of a rattlesnake head. In the middle of the front hood of the vehicle was what appeared to be a cockpit ripped out of a Star Wars A-Wing fighter and dropped in between the two towering wheel wells that housed massive offroad wheels and tires. Right behind the cockpit was a twelve inch window that wrapped around the main body of the vehicle. The skin of the vehicle seemed to be a strange mixture of metal and fabric.

"Oh, my goodness!" Riley said.

Lysandra thumbed her ring. "I think Riley just said Holy Shit."

"You better fucking believe it!" Mags cackled.

"Whisper, report to Ghost." Mags called over the Hermes net.

"Command, Whisper enroute." Elise's excited voice sounded.

"Shade. Owl." Mags called a second time. "Stick with Ghost."

Two clicks sounded.

Elise Hart jogged up and her eyes went wide with wonder at her first glimpse at the Wyvern.

"Powering up Ramoth." Mags said with the excitement of finding a new car with a bow on it for her birthday gift.

"Are you a Dragon Riders of Pern fan Mags?" Riley asked.

"I have a brain, so of course I am." Mags chuckled.

Small lights blinked on and flooded the group of people gathered at the mouth of its layer.

"Opening the driver's hatch." Mags said.

Almost as if it was a tongue, a ladder dropped to six inches of the container floor. At the same time the canopy of the Wyvern slowly opened.

"Ms. Hart, your ride awaits." Mags said.

Whisper turned excited eyes towards Riley, who had an encouraging nod of the head. She climbed up the ladder, onto the hood, which she hustled across to stand next to the cockpit. She twisted and dropped into the cockpit.