Kid Dynamo Chapter 7A: 
    "Wheel of Fortune"
    by Connie Hirsch
    
    Our Story So Far:  Jessica Pierce is a teenage telekinetic fireproof
 mutant runaway who has taken shelter at Xavier's School For Gifted
 Youngsters, despite her considerable misgivings about the headmaster,
 Magneto. The leader of the Brotherhood of Mutants in his long-ago days had
 tampered with her mother's fire powers, which subsequently went berserk and
 killed her.
    Jessica was showing off for the other students at Xavier's when
 Hassen, a misdirected servant of Loki, kidnapped her, Doug Ramsey, Dani
 Moonstar, Stevie Hunter and Magneto.  Magneto managed to free himself and
 Stevie only to lose the trail of the kidnapper, leaving the two adults
 trapped in a pocket universe; while Jess and her fellow students talked
 themselves into being unwelcome yet honored "guests" of Loki.  Their mutant
 powers (with the exception of Doug's translating ability) mostly blocked by
 spells, the kids have determined to do something about their situation.
 Just what, they haven't figured out....
    
    
    Prologue
    
    There is a high, windowless tower in the castle of Loki.  The lower
 part is built with the local rock, but above the walls it is formed of a
 seamless black substance that is neither stone nor metal.  The tower never
 seems to be quite the same height; sometimes its top is lost amidst a
 strange cloud of mist.  Occasionally lightning is seen to play about the
 summit, on rarer occasions a thin piping music is heard.
    This particular night it was much like this, and the local mothers
 crept up to their children's bedrooms and counted heads.
    Inside the summit room, it was quiet.  Loki sat, exhausted, naked,
 dripping sweat in the center of a great chalked circle that extended halfway
 up the walls.  _That was close_, he thought, and ran a hand across his
 forehead, feeling the moisture run down the back of his forearm.  _A spirit
 of fire_, he mused.  _Could she have been related to Surtur_?
    The question was only academic to the Lord of Lies.  If it did not
 matter to his plans, it did not matter, period.  The mortal wench was dead,
 after all, and thus she had been compelled to yield secrets up, as the dead
 must always tell the truth.  Perhaps he had done her a favor, for now she
 wandered free to seek her fate in this world or the next, no longer bound to
 the side of her daughter by a duty death itself could not break.
    The being occasionally known as Uncle Fox smiled: he had no moral
 objection to a bit of incidental good deed doing.  If nothing else, it put
 his enemies off balance.
    And it had been a productive session, despite the unexpected power of
 his subject.  She had made it uncomfortably hot, but within the confines of
 his protective circle she could do him no harm.  Her answers to his
 questions had yielded some surprises - and a warning - he had not looked
 for.
    Loki had not thought his unwelcome "guests" to be of more than
 passing interest.  The pseudo-Valkyrie might become a pawn in his dealings
 with the dread Sisterhood; but the other mortal children had not interested
 him until he had noticed signs of a protective spirit hovering about the
 tall girl.  That had been ... intriguing ... and the trickster congratulated
 himself on discovering a profitable bit of news.
    Magneto, of course, would be a problem, were he to show up.  It seemed
 impossible he would give up the child; therefore the mutant mortal must be
 at least delayed - and if possible, eliminated.  That would be best.
    However, tonight was no time for that.  Among the ironies of the
 situation was that Loki's magickal abilities were indeed currently strained;
 after the evening's exertion, he was exhausted.  It was time to meditate and
 build his magickal strength, honing it to a fine edge.  A present had landed
 in his lap, a potential tool had been revealed that he would indeed enjoy
 playing with.  It would take some arranging, some fine spell-tuning, and,
 enjoyably, his own personal touch.
    In the dark windowless tower, the eyes of Lord of Lies lit with a
 green glow, and a smile cold as Hela's heart sat upon his thin lips.  _A
 personal touch_, he thought, and laughed.
    
    * * *
    
    Interlude One: Westchester, New York
    
    "Dear Lady Moira," Illyana read silently over Rahne's shoulder.  "It
 is now three days since Dani and Magneto and the others disappeared.
 Illyana says they were spirited off to Asgard, and that she cannot follow
 them.  We do not know what else to do - we have sent messages to the X-Men
 but they have not answered yet.  I know we are supposed to come to Muir
 Isle, but we have discussed it carefully-"
    "'Tis _rude_ to read someone else's letter," Rahne said sharply in
 Illyana's ear.  The Russian girl smiled at the little Scot without rancor
 and went back to her seat at the big study table.  
    "You had the poutiest face," she said, ignoring the text books spread
 open before her.  "And you've crumpled up the last two pieces of paper.  I
 just had to see."
    "Och - it's so hard to write the Lady," said Rahne.  "We should be
 stayin' with her, that's the plan, but none of us want to leave the mansion
 in case _they_ show up."
    "If it only wasn't for that damned magickal barrier!"  Illyana seemed
 to change: her face growing darker and phantom armor appearing with
 increasing solidity.  Rahne drew back, obviously scared and Illyana glanced
 down, realizing her demonic nature was in ascendance.  "If I could only _do_
 something," she growled in frustration.
    There was a knock on the door to the library and Sam came in, pausing
 as he noticed the armor.  He struggled for composure: he knew why Illyana
 was reverting to her demonic form and he knew more fuss would only make her
 worse.  "Tom and Amara have gone to the supermarket," he said.  "They're
 taking the radio, so if there's any funny business Illyana can teleport them
 out."  He held up the matching handset and put it on the table, sitting down
 next to her.  _That's it, kid, take it easy_, he thought, wishing he had
 just a touch of telepathy.
    "We're rattling around this house like dried peas in a pod,"  said
 Illyana.  "Maybe we should all be carrying walkie-talkies so we can find
 each other.  I wish you'd take me up on my offer: I'll 'port us to Aruba and
 we could study on the beach."
    "It's a thought," said Sam with a grin.  "But it's time for lessons
 now, so let's get started."
    "Oh, come on," said Illyana.  "Lessons?  At a time like this?"
    Sam shrugged.  "Why not?"
    "Don't you have something to study yourself?" said Illyana.
    "Magneto had organized his notes for the next Physics lesson," said
 Sam.  "But Amara and I can't make head or tail of them, and Tom didn't
 even want to try.  Looks like we'll have our hands full tutoring you and
 Rahne anyway."
    "I like going over the lessons this way," said Rahne.  "Magneto tries
 to be kind but he's too quick sometimes."
    "You have to tell him you're not getting it," said Illyana with a
 pout.  "He'll slow down -- _if_ you speak up."
    "Speaking of speaking up," Sam said.  "We all have got a lot of ground
 to cover if we're going to keep to Magneto's lesson plan.  Rahne, when Amara
 gets back she's going to quiz you on Woodrow Wilson and the League of
 Nations, so you might want to review that.  Ah'll help Illyana now."
    "Oh, you really don't have to," Illyana said.
    "Ah don't want to be the one to answer to Magneto," said Sam,  "when
 he gets back here and you still don't know binomial equations.  If I have to
 sit on you-"
    "Oh -- all right," said Illyana.  She blew some hair out of her eyes
 and  pushed a textbook in his general direction.  "Explain how this stupid
 thing works again, will you?"
    
    * * *
    
    I got lost.  How it happened I'm still to this day not sure.  The
 third day at Loki's castle, I got turned around on my way back from a horse-
 riding lesson.  I'd been thrown going over a jump and had landed in a mud
 puddle.  While Dani and Doug took care of the horses, I went back to our
 suite and changed.  I was supposed to rejoin them for weapons practice.  I
 got lost on the return trip - I swear I retraced my steps exactly - and
 ended up in a section of what was clearly servant's territory.  But it
 seemed to be in the right direction, so I kept going.  I couldn't get _too_
 lost, after all.
    I didn't think anything was out of the ordinary when I heard the
 Beatles singing "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band."  It's the sort of
 thing you hear all the time - back on Earth.  Luckily, I'm not as stupid as
 I look.  When it sank in I turned on my heel and went to investigate:
 Something was _really_ Out of Place.
    The music was coming from up a little staircase.  I knocked on the
 door and when a voice bade me enter, I threw it open to reveal a tiny tower
 room stacked to the ceiling with boxes and books and scientific equipment of
 all kinds.  And one portable CD/Stereo on the desk of the bespectacled young
 gentleman who rose to his feet as I entered.
    "May I be of assistance, gentle lady?" he inquired.  He was tall, over
 six feet and on the slender side.  He seemed about 25 years old, with short
 black hair and green eyes.  He was dressed in jeans, a flannel shirt from L.
 L. Bean and a down vest.
    I must have looked surprised because he said, "You are perhaps lost,
 my lady?"
    Boy, was I ever.  "You're from Midgard," I said and realized I could
 switch to English.  "Are you from the States?"
    He looked surprised.  "I'm sorry, I assumed you were an Aes," he said
 in English.
    I smiled and said, "Hi - I'm Jessica Pierce, I'm from ... Westchester,
 New York."
    "Ah, glad to meet you," he said.  "Forgive the excessive formality.
 When you have to stay on the good side of the Aesir it helps to be polite." 
 He offered me his hand and as I shook it he added, "Lucas Jorgensen, grad
 student in anthropology, University of Minnesota."
    "You're quite far from home then," I said.  I couldn't wipe a foolish
 grin off my face.  At last somebody who spoke English, and knew about
 television and the American Constitution and the Beatles.  I'd never known
 how much I liked stuff like that, until now.
    "So - what is a nice girl like you doing in a place like this?" he
 said.
    "I was kidnapped," I said, thinking fast.  "I'm a student at a private
 school in Westchester.  This guy called Hassen kidnapped me and my two
 friends, thinking we were somebody else...."  I repeated the story of how
 we'd become 'guests' of Loki's, omitting any mention of mutants.  This guy
 might turn out to be a mutantphobe.  "...So I was hoping you'd know how to
 get back to Earth," I finished.
    "Well," he said regretfully.  "I've been worried about that myself.
  Evidently the passage between Earth and Asgard is blocked."
    "You and me both," I said.  "So what is an anthropology student doing
 here in Asgard anyway?"
    He smiled.  Lucas has a great smile, a sexy smile; sensuous might be a
 better word, but it was masculine sensuous.  "Researching religious beliefs
 - in a society where the Gods are actually walking around - for my thesis.
 My advisor knew somebody in Norway who had connections in Asgard and pulled
 a few strings.  The result was, three of us drew straws and got tapped for
 some deep background fieldwork.  Frankly, it's the chance of a lifetime,
 this is the first time American anthropologists have been allowed to visit."
    "I guess," I said.  "I suppose it's more exciting if you're not in a
 hurry to get home."
    "I'm sorry I can't do more for you," he said.
    "Why, of all places, Loki's castle?" I said.
    Lucas smiled again.  "Of all the 'mythical' Asgardian pantheon, he's
 the most approachable by Midgardians.  He has little love for the Aesir and
 their ways.  Also he - or Lady Sigyn - is willing to trade for technology
 and technical expertise."
    Lucas was amazingly easy to talk to.  He pulled out a bag of chocolate
 chip cookies and our friendship was sealed while he regaled me with details
 of how he'd combined the digging of an Artesian well with an ethnographic
 survey of the workmen who'd been assigned to help him.  I could have
 listened all afternoon, but I abruptly realized Dani and Doug were still
 waiting for me in the practice yard.
    Lucas did his work with servants and common people - he wasn't
 supposed to interact with the nobility because of the terms of his agreement
 of his stay at the castle.  So I suggested I bring Dani and Doug down for a
 visit.  I wanted us to get together.  Maybe we could come up with a few new
 angles, or perhaps even a plan.  In another week the roots of my hair would
 start showing, and then the shit would hit the fan.
    
    * * *
    
    Stevie watched Magnus watch the sky.  He stood on the peak of the
 small mountain they'd landed upon, with the expression of a cat staring at
 nothing, or of a dog listening to a sound a human couldn't hear.
    That was a good analogy, she thought, struck by the image of a whistle
 only a mutant could hear.  Of course, Rahne probably could hear dog
 whistles....
    She schooled her expression as Magnus came down towards her, feeling
 like a girl caught passing a note.  He was just too deep for her sometimes;
 his explanation of why this was a pocket universe made little sense no
 matter how slowly he explained it.  She was prepared to take on faith that
 it was, for she had no better explanation.
    "You look cold," he said.  His forceshield sprang up around them and
 the wind stopped.
    "You didn't have to come down," she said.  "I was fine."  But she
 hugged the cape closer to herself.  She'd have had frostbite long before
 this if he didn't periodically warm it "like an electric blanket."
    He was right, the hunger was easier on the third day.  She still
 couldn't ignore it completely, as he seemed to, but at least her stomach had
 stopped growling.
    "We must make a decision," he said, breaking into her reverie.  She
 didn't much like the sound of his tone - it didn't sound like the decision
 would be a fun one.
    "What is it?" she said.
    "I've been monitoring some ... strange phenomena in the air," he said.
 "Sporadic, moving loci of weak magnetic forces.  I did not notice them at
 first.  There has been one above us for several minutes now and I gave it my
 full attention."
    "Go on," she said.  "I don't know how I can help you with this, but
 tell me."
    "It is what it implies," he said.  "First, this locus - this spot -
 does not register normally on radar.  There is nothing _there_ - it
 'contains' a strange _absence_.  From the right angle, the locus seems to
 swallow the radar waves."
    "The second is more interesting, particularly because it is exhibited
 strongly by the locus above us at the moment," said Magnus.  "It is emitting
 warm air.  A steady stream, in one direction, in fact."
    "That's odd," Stevie said.  "Does that ever happen back home?"
    He smiled and shook his head.  "If it does, I have never seen or heard
 of it.  No, these characteristics suggest a singular phenomenon that we may
 turn to our advantage."
    She looked at him blankly.  He smiled and lifted fingers one by one as
 he enumerated points.  "First, we are dropped in midair by our kidnapper,
 who promptly disappears from a closed universe without a trace.  Second,
 there seem to be midair loci that do not conform to the physics that we are
 familiar with, emitting streams of warm air and absorbing radar waves.  What
 this adds up to, Stevie, is this: dimensional 'wormholes' leading out of the
 pocket universe."
    "Wormholes?" Stevie said, thinking of apples.
    "Exactly," Magnus smiled broadly, as though he'd invented them.
 "Holes in the space-time continuum.  Doorways to other places."
    "Oh!" she said.  "So we just have to go through one of them and we'll
 get out of this horrible place."
    "Ah, yes," he said.  "Presuming we _can_ 'just go through.'  The next
 step is to examine a locus at first hand.  I have no guarantee that a
 journey through it will be possible - or if possible, that it will be
 survivable."
    "But you think there's a chance or you wouldn't have brought it up."
    "Just so," he said.  "I - We've traveled a more than reasonable amount
 in this universe without finding any food or any means of exit.  The
 wormhole may be our only escape - or it could be our death."
    "If we stay here, we'll starve to death," Stevie said.  "Better we try
 now, while you are still strong.  Besides, couldn't you send a rock through
 or something?"
    "You anticipate me.  I intend to try that first," he said.  "I suppose
 what I want in this circumstance is your ... approval.  Your understanding
 of the situation.  You have a right to know."
    "Maybe I don't want to," she said, looking away.  "I'm so _powerless_
 in this, it would be easier just to be a passenger.  You've been kindness
 itself in the past few days, when all I've done is slow you down."
    "You've kept my spirits up," he said.  "You've distracted me from my
 hunger, kept me focussed on my goal.  Hardly luggage."
    "A pet, then," she said.
    Magnus put a hand upon each of her shoulders and looked down into her
 eyes.  "My associate, with whom I am honored to work."  With a trace of
 self-consciousness he removed his hands.
    Stevie smiled up at him.  "Thank you letting me know the odds.  The
 way I figure it, there couldn't be anyone else in the universe - the real
 one, I mean - who'd have a better chance."
    "We shall see, shan't we?" he said.  In answer she held out her hand
 and he grasped it with a firm grip.  _He'd make one heck of a hero_, she
 thought.
    She wondered how Magnus could be so calm as he carried them aloft in a
 magnetic bubble, a small load of iron-bearing ore floating along.  Now the
 danger of their situation began to sink in; the pit of her stomach rumbled
 uneasily and she could feel the sweat of real fear begin to trickle down her
 back.  She found herself praying for the both of them.  There was so much
 more she'd wanted to do with her life; and not only that, the kids were in
 danger, with no one to protect or advise them.  It was too unfair; she and
 Magnus had to survive this.
    "There - can you see anything different about that part, there,"
 Magnus said, pointing to air that looked no different.  After a moment of
 steady gazing Stevie noticed a sort of vague haziness, like a heat ripple
 only steadier.
    "There's something there, but I haven't the slightest idea what," she
 said.
    "Time for a few tests, then," he said, detaching some of the ore,
 which flew straight for the hazy patch - and abruptly disappeared.  "Ah," he
 said.  "The wormhole behaves as expected.  I still have a hold of the ore -
 let me see if I can draw it back to us."  He was silent for a moment.
  Stevie noted the way he took a breath as he concentrated.
    "There," he said and the chunk of ore popped into view.  Magnus
 brought it over for close inspection.  "The surface warmed a full five
 degrees Celsius," commented Magnus.  "The other side of the doorway is
 noticeably warmer."
    "You were able to keep hold through the wormhole," said Stevie.
    "Yes- although it was rather like fumbling for one's keys.  I had to
 find the precise angle of attack."
    Stevie tried to wait patiently as Magnus tested the wormhole in
 several painstaking ways - how wide it was, if organic matter was adversely
 affected by passage through it.  To this last test she contributed a small
 spiral bound notepad from her pocketbook.  She still felt like squirming.
 Adventures were more fun when they happened to other people, she decided.
 They just tell the high points without mentioning the parts inbetween.
    Magnus examined the notepad thoroughly, until she wanted to scream.
 "I am satisfied," he said at last.  "Though I can not guarantee our safety,
 our chances of survival seem high enough to court such a risk.  If you
 agree."
    Stevie nodded, not trusting herself to speak.  _This is it_, she
 thought, _the moment of truth_.  Magnus gestured and the bubble was
 reconfigured so that they sat closer together, the walls translucent,
 visibly thicker than ever.  With the part of her mind not frozen in fear,
 Stevie marveled at how like a conductor Magnus was at this moment, his arms
 raised as though to signal an invisible orchestra.
    There was a sense of movement, and then just as suddenly as changing a
 channel, they were in a different place.
    _Is that all there is to a wormhole_?  Stevie thought in delighted
 relief.
    It was brighter here, a sky of pale blue, and a sea of golden sand
 below.  In the hazy distance, she could see a line of dark mountains.
 Judging from the color, there might be vegetation there.  They were saved,
 at least from starvation.
    "I don't think that we're in Kansas anymore," Stevie said with a
 smile.
    Magnus turned from surveying the desert below.  "I was not under the
 impression we were _in_ Kansas," he said, and watched in bafflement as she
 burst out laughing.
    
    *  *  *
    
    "Listen, are you sure this is a good idea?" Doug said when I finally
 caught up with him and Dani back in our rooms.  "I mean, what were you
 planning on telling him about _us_?"
    "Um," I said.
    "He might not went to help us if he knows we're mutants," he added.
    "This guy hangs out in Asgard, studying _gods_ and you're going to
 worry about mutantphobia," said Dani.  Like so many of the warriors, she
 wore a great deal of armor at all times and it made her look more formidable
 than usual, not that she needed to.
    "I hadn't thought about that," I said.  It had seemed like a good idea
 at the time.  "I didn't mention that you were mutants, and he didn't see my
 collar."  Dani and I had both made a point of wearing high necks and scarves
 with our clothing; chokers had an unfortunate connotation in Asgardian
 society.  "What can we tell him that won't implicate the school?"
    "Good point," said Dani.  "Listen, Jess is already on record as being
 a mutant anyway.  A nice safe little mutant who can't get burned.  We just
 don't mention telekinesis.  Or languages or spirit forms.  Maybe later if we
 get these collars off."
    "I hate false pretences," I said and Doug snorted softly.  "I do," I
 said defensively.  "Look who's talking," I added.  "If you had told your
 parents, we wouldn't have to hurry back to Earth."  Doug looked away first,
 but I realized I had my own reasons for getting back as soon as possible.
    "We'd better not say anything about the Valkyries either," said Dani.
    "Well, how could we- we're just a fairly ordinary bunch of prep school
 students, right?" I said.  "Let's get the show on the road."
    Lucas was cautious with his offer of help, once we'd poured out our
 story, such as it was.  He didn't even seem to be fazed by my revealing
 myself to be a mutant.  Luckily my passive power - to absorb heat - wasn't
 affected by the magic choker.  I held my hand in a lantern flame for him.
   Despite the pathos of our story, he wasn't going to go out on a limb
 where Loki was concerned, no sir.  Not that I blamed him - me, I had no
 intention of attracting Loki's attention any more than I already had.  I
 said as much and Lucas smiled.
    "It happens I planned to go to Bridagard," he said.  "About three or
 four days, depending on how fast you want to ride.  That's maybe halfway to
 Asgard City proper.  The stretch to Bridagard is the rougher half of the
 journey - the country after that is tamer.  You could travel with me."
    "You think we have a good chance of making it all the way to Asgard
 City?" said Dani.  She'd taken the lead and Doug and I had played along.
    "If you get hooked up with a trader's caravan in Bridagard."  Lucas
 said.  He'd brought out some more of his precious stash of cookies and
 insisted on passing them around - we hadn't protested much.  "The toughest
 part may be going through Bridagard itself.  Lady Bridagan rules there.  She
 bears no love for Loki, and someone with Loki's favor will not get a nice
 reception."
    "Great," said Doug.
    "I have some bonafides that don't mention Loki," said Lucas.  "So long
 as you're with me it should be no problem."
    "Lady Bridagan," Doug said.  "She stole the Heartstone from Loki,
 didn't she?  I think I heard something about it from the head bard here."
    "The great white jewel, the Heartstone.  Some kind of magical
 intensifier from what I've heard.  Cheated, not stolen.  If it had been
 stolen, Loki could have declared war," said Lucas with a shake of his head. 
 "She tricked the Trickster into promising not to steal it back.   Many
 people have tried to steal it back for him, but they've all been defeated by
 Lady Bridagan's Lake of Fire."
    "'Brightly burning, always aflame, confounding her enemies, and
 aggrandizing her glory,'" said Doug.  
    He must be quoting, I thought.  "You mean, it never goes out?"  I
 said.
    "Yeah, magic fire," said Doug with a sudden grin.
    There was one of those silences where you know what everyone is
 thinking.  Dani broke it.  "We should think about whether we can get Lady
 Bridagan to help us _first_," she said.
    "Only thing she hates more than Loki and his allies are Midgardians,"
 said Lucas.  "Even enemies of Loki who are Midgardians."
    "Even assuming we _were_ able to get the Heartstone, would it get us
 in good with Loki?" said Dani.
    "I think it would," said Lucas.  "Evidently he's promised rewards
 often enough - he'd lose face if he couldn't reward a boon offered to him.
 Particularly on a point of pride such as this.  Because of his oath, he
 can't ask directly for help in getting it back."
    "Tough luck," I said.  "For him.  For us...."
    "It _is_ on our way, anyway," said Doug.
    "It's gonna be guarded," said Dani.
    "If it's on a Lake of Fire I bet they don't check it too often," said
 Doug.  "I'll get the full story from the other bards tonight.  They'll know
 the layout of Lady Bridagan's castle and a bunch of useful things."
    "If you're going to try anything like that," said Lucas with a trace
 of nervousness, "wait until I'm away from it all, okay?"
    "No prob," said Doug.  "We wouldn't try anything unless we can get a
 clear shot at it anyway."
    "When we get there we can check out the situation," said Dani.    "I'm
 not trusting _verses_, I'd rather see with my own eyes what the situation
 is.  _Then_ we can make up our minds."
    "What do they teach you in that prep school, anyway?" said Lucas.
 "Advanced Espionage?"
    "Oh, we just play a lot of Dungeons and Dragons," I said glibly.  "And
 we _are_ gifted."
    "Yeah, well," said Lucas with a nervous laugh.  "You get caught, Lady
 Bridagan will probably only ransom you back to Loki.  But if she caught me -
 well, they don't give people jail terms in Asgard...."
    Doug said, "You mean ... they find you innocent, or -"
    "Or they kill you," Lucas finished for him.  "Not uncommon in feudal
 societies.  Prisoners are overhead."
    I don't think I've ever missed the old U. S. of A. quite so much.  
    Now that we'd decided to go, there was an awful lot to talk about.
 Our cover story to Lady Sigyn would be we were traveling in the direction of
 Bridagard in order to see the countryside.  The aristocracy were always
 taking hunting trips and the like, so this was nothing to get excited about.
 What we wouldn't tell the Lady was that we'd keep going when we reached the
 border.  After that, things would get interesting.
    With luck we might make Bridagard in three days.  Figuring another
 three days to make it back with the Heartstone, or another five days to
 travel on to Asgard City, we might make it by Doug's inescapable deadline.
 Me, I just figured on wearing my helmet a lot...
    
    * * *
    
    Magneto kept watch while Stevie splashed about out of sight in the
 oasis pool.  He'd insisted on sounding its depths thoroughly before
 pronouncing it safe for the purposes of bathing.  Stevie had grown impatient
 with waiting; he could tell by the set of her lips and the tiny creases that
 appeared in the corners of her eyes.
    He couldn't regret his thoroughness, despite her anger.  Just because
 the oasis appeared to be a traveler's dream, was no reason to let up on
 safety precautions.  After all, they were not on Earth, no matter how
 earthlike their surroundings.  For one thing, magnetic north was still
 straight up, a decidedly unnatural condition.  Magneto could already spot
 strange constellations appearing in the darkening twilight sky.  At least
 there would be a moon to see by.
    He gratefully sipped from a cup of clear cold spring water.  The oasis
 had provided weary, hungry travelers a variety of food and drink, including
 water from a bubbling spring, coconut milk and several kinds of fruits.
 There were no animals larger than rabbits, one of which had already been
 consumed by Stevie and himself.  They would sleep well tonight - in separate
 beds.
    _What a shame, that it must be separate beds_,  he thought.  _It is
 totally inappropriate_, he reminded himself.
    It was hard not to feel ... frivolous, he thought, taking another sip.
 After the privations they'd endured, a small amount of lightheartedness was
 understandable.  The air was like silk; not too humid, and just warm enough
 that sleeping with the lightest of coverings would be comfortable.
    He glanced out at the pool.  Stevie was concealed by a bend in the
 shoreline.  He could see the ripples she created spreading outward to lap at
 the base of the stone obelisk that rose in its center.  One of his first
 actions upon landing in the oasis had been to examine the artifact.  There
 was no making sense of  its runelike markings; they reminded him vaguely of
 Old Norse.  _In a desert_? he wondered again, and nearly chuckled at the
 thought of terribly misdirected Vikings.  Perhaps his subconscious had known
 what it was about when it sent him a dream warning of Loki.
    He felt drunk, he supposed.  Drunk on life.  _It is mere relief_, he
 thought - Stevie and he had escaped the pocket universe.  This oasis would
 let them regain their strength, before they set out to find the children.
    Briefly he considered removing the top of his jumpsuit.  It was warm
 enough to make bareness truly comfortable.  But though he and Stevie had
 been unavoidably ... intimate over the past few days, he felt it would be
 inadvisable to permit further informality.
    Magneto found himself regretting the necessity of it all.  By rights
 this could be considered a romantic sort of adventure; Stevie was a most
 agreeable companion - and a beautiful woman.  It was well that they had
 escaped the pocket universe when they had; another night of sleeping,
 cuddling with such an agreeable but untouchable partner would have been
 unbearable.
    Magneto shook his head, disgusted with himself.  He was no animal, to
 give into his lusts.  Of course, he could have maintained the necessary
 self-control.  Just the same, he felt relief that control need no longer be
 tested so stringently.
    Magneto was watching the stars when Stevie came back from her bath.
 He spared her only a glance as she entered the clearing but quickly did a
 double take.  She was naked.
    "Stevie- Ms. Hunter," he said, not knowing where to look.  Perhaps she
 assumed after their several days together there need be no modesty between
 them, yet she had readily agreed to his suggestion about the bathing
 arrangements.
    Stevie walked right up to him and attempted to put her arms around
 him.  Magneto took a step back.  "Have I thanked you for all you've done for
 me?" she said with an impish smile.
    _She couldn't be drugged, could she_?  "Ms. Hunter," he said again.
 "This is not at all appropriate."  She laughed.
    "I'll be the judge of that," she murmured, and advanced again.
    Magneto felt faintly ridiculous.  He was the Master of Magnetism yet
 he was fleeing the embraces of a human woman half his age.  He would not use
 his mutant power to 'protect' himself; he remembered full well how upset Lee
 had been with him.  "You must understand," he started to say as he realized
 his heel had touched the curbstone that circled the oasis pool.  His slight
 moment of unbalance was all that was needed for Stevie to push at his chest
 while simultaneously hooking a foot around his leading ankle and pull.
    Even a Master of Magnetism must obey the physical laws of nature once
 in a while.  He fell backwards into the shallow clear water, Stevie landing
 on top of him.  "I want to thank you," she said, plastering his face with
 wet kisses while he got thoroughly soaked.
    At least the water wasn't cold; it would be pleasant if not for his
 predicament.  "I ... appreciate your thankfulness," he said, attempting to
 unpeel her from himself.  At last he managed to gather her in his arms, like
 picking up a cat that preferred not to cooperate.  She nibbled on his ear as
 he carried her to shore.
    Magneto tried to put her down but she clung to his neck, on tiptoe.
 "You must be drunk," he said, hampered by the fact that she was trying to
 insert her tongue in his mouth.  "Perhaps you ate some fermented fruit?"
 _Something_ has _affected her, myself as well_, he thought.
    "I just ... _want_ you," she said, looking up into his eyes.  "I love
 you ...  I want you to love me too."
    It would be like ... kicking a puppy to give her a flat denial at this
 point.  He'd have to let her down gently.  He put his arms around her and
 patted her gently.  "You must not say such things, my dear."
    It had been a while since he had held a willing woman in his arms, he
 thought, his hands resting on her shapely rear.  "This is not right," he
 murmured, more to himself than her.  It felt as though reason had deserted
 him, and without reason he was lost.
    "Of course, it's right," she said and kissed him on the mouth again.
 Despite the vague prompting of his conscience, Magneto responded, exploring
 hers in turn, the tide of lust beginning to turn in his body, his hands
 tracing and caressing her body eagerly.
    They stopped for a breath and Magneto found himself laughing with joy
 and nervous excitement.  How long had it been since he'd relaxed so
 completely, lost himself in the pleasures of the flesh?
    Stevie touched his sopping wet hair.  "Your hair is so beautiful," she
 said.  She ran her hands over his body, around his waist and up to the
 collar of his jumpsuit.  "No fair," she said laughing,  "I can't find a
 zipper!  Not even a seam!"
    "That," he told her gravely, "can be taken care of."  Like a wave
 receding from a beach, the metallic fiber of his outfit ran down his body
 and pooled beneath their feet as a clean stretch of blanket.  "Better?"
    In answer, she kissed him enthusiastically.  He tried, and failed, to
 come up with a reason to avoid any further action, so he lowered them both
 to the ground and began a very slow and thorough visual and tactile
 exploration of her body.
    
    * * *
    
    Interlude Two:  An Unnamed Pocket Universe
    
    He broke into the air above the hard, snowy landscape nearly
 soundlessly, his great wings beating gusts of cold air as he oriented
 himself to the little world.
    The trail led here, there was no doubt in him.  With his more than
 five senses, he could "scent" their passing presence: especially Ozone and
 the woman he dubbed Flower Musk after her characteristic perfume; but the
 Beloved had been here only moments.
    Still, he decided to fly down and investigate the metal structure
 Ozone had constructed, if for no other reason than curiosity.  Ozone always
 did the strangest things, far stranger than any other member of the
 Beloved's herd.
    He nosed the door open and set his front hooves on the metal floor of
 the hut, his nostrils flaring as he read the story of its occupants.  Ozone
 and Flower Musk had rested here at least two nights.
    He felt satisfaction; Ozone was properly protecting Flower Musk,
 guarding and herding her the way a real male will.  He wondered how long it
 would be before she foaled; given the mutual attraction he scented, it would
 not be long.
    Thoughtfully, he left droppings on the threshold, to proclaim to all
 he'd been there, though he doubted the ability of the Beloved's herd to
 appreciate its significance.  They were always so quick to wash off the most
 interesting scents; he had never been able to understand that.
    But the Beloved was not here so he did not linger, taking to the air
 again.  His magic nature negated the weight of his half ton body so his
 wings could lift him.  He flew from gate to gate, looking for the trail
 those he sought would have left behind.  He found the gate Ozone had used
 almost immediately.  He snorted in disgust; there was no scent of the
 Beloved about it.  Ozone was pursuing a dead trail.
    He finally located the proper Gateway: the Beloved, Talker and the
 female he had tentatively named Girl Who Destroys Things had been taken
 through here.  He paused, circling the gate.  To go straight to the
 Beloved's side, or to seek out his Herd?  He had tried to tell the Beloved's
 herd what he was going to do, but Garlic Breath had merely patted him on the
 nose and fed him two lumps of sugar.  Perhaps if he sought his own Herd they
 might be willing to help.
    He would have to do his own best to rescue the Beloved, he decided,
 though the Herd was his second choice.  Mind - such as it was - made up, he
 flew through the gate, leaving behind a single silvery feather that floated
 down out of the sky.
    
    
    to be continued in
    Kid Dynamo Chapter 7B:
    "Wheel of Fortune"
    
    This story (c) 1992 Connie Hirsch
    The New Mutants, Magneto, the Hellions, Loki, and all constituent
 characters (c) 1992 Marvel Comics Group.  
    This story is not for sale and is not to be distributed without
 permission of the author.
    
.