Nova stood outside the entrance to the Temple of Lady Echidna. They were currently in tall mountains where even he was uncertain of their actual location. In the far distance, the sun rose in the sky.
Wispy shadow circled around him as Lady Echidna stepped close, her elegant dress giving off tendrils of darkness. “Such a glorious sunrise,” she mused.
Nova asked, “Is it just me, or is the light from the sun. . . diminished?”
She laughed in her throat and brushed her gloved hand against his face. “The time is almost upon us. The light will fail and darkness will reign. My shadow will march across the face of this Earth.”
“BADGE won’t take it laying down.”
“Of course they won’t. But, we gave a little time of peace, and they will be anxious and grow unsure of themselves. However, that time is almost up. Come, there is much to discuss. I have questions for you.”
***
The rolling hills and deep valleys of Norway basked in the glorious blue skies with fluffy white clouds casting shadows across the well-tilled ground. Farmers drove their equipment out of the field, parking in the ruins of what was once a sturdy barn.
Torrik walked with Gar along the side of the field, looking at the recent work. Gar asked, “Are you sure this will work?”
A farmer in well-worn clothing approached with a nicely dressed woman. The woman, with a small name-tag on her jacket, greeted them. “Glad you could make it. Are you the superhero BADGE sent for this operation?”
Torrik took her hand and held it for a second and then let go. He still hadn’t fully grasped the shaking of hands as per human custom. “I’m not a superhero. I’m a Satyr. But, yes, BADGE sent me to help.”
“We’re so glad to have your service. The recent conflict in the ocean with Midgard has left much of our farmlands in ruins. Our crops are utterly gone.”
“Yes. That is what I heard. Now, I warn you, magically grown crops are quick and productive, but they don’t have the finer taste of naturally grown produce.”
She asked, “Will it still be nutritious?”
“Yes. It will have the same nutrition.”
She now translated this to the farmer, who did not speak English. He shrugged and then nodded. She smiled at Torrik again. “Please, go ahead.”
Torrik left the group and cracked his knuckles as he surveyed the farmland. “Okay. So, let’s see. This is a root crop. Right. And, no need for pollination, so that should be fine. All right, let’s get this done.” He stamped his hooves, spread out his arms, and then thrust both hands forward. A wave of green energy spread out from him and covered the field. Sprouts of vegetation sprung up and then grew quickly, putting on leaves and even flowers. The rows of raw dirt soon thrived in thick plants that continued to grow. Finally, he clapped his hands together and the exponential growth came to a stop.
Torrik walked over the plants, avoiding stepping on them as he went between the rows. All three observers on the side of the field were in awe of what he had just done.
“There you go. These... what did you call them?”
Gar said, “Potatoes.”
“Ah, yes. The potatoes should be ready to harvest. Good luck.”
The farmer asked the woman something. She asked, “Is it safe?”
“Sure. The magic is done. This is just a normal field of plants now.”
She relayed this to the farmer, and then he became giddy and said something to Torrik. She translated, “He would like to invite you to have dinner with his family, to show his thanks.”
Torrik said, "I can understand him, I can understand all languages." He spoke directly to the farmer, “Thank you, kind sir. But I have several more farms to help today. Just be kind to nature and keep up the good work.”
The farmer bowed his head in thanks as Torrik and Gar left.
While on the way back to the shuttle, Gar asked, “Did they have to plant those potatoes, or could you simply create them with magic?”
“Oh, they have to plant them. I just made them grow faster.”
“But you’ve made plants before out of nothing. You covered half the station with vines when you first arrived.”
Torrik chortled at that. “Yeah, I did. But, those were made of magic. That disappears quickly. Any fruit from a magic plant has no nutrition and will never fill. And magically enhanced growth like I just did doesn’t make the best produce. Real, good, basic growth is the best. But we have a job to help clean up the mess from the battle with Midgard, and feeding the hungry is part of that mission.”
They left the farmlands and flew in the shuttle back to a temporary base camp in the middle of an empty field. BADGE agents and heroes buzzed around it like a beehive. They were not too far away from the area where the battle with Midgard took place. Large helicopters and several flying heroes lifted destroyed parts of the former dock out of the water. Another set of heroes lifted several sunk barges out of the ocean.
Chase carried a tablet in one hand and held her earpiece with the other as she talked. “Yes, I want five more trucks for the South Field operation. No, just the trucks. There is a lot of debris to get to the recycling system. Thanks. Oh, and give Red Fury the news that he can now join the demolition team on the North Sector. They need his four arms to smash through a partially destroyed roadway.” She tapped her earpiece, and the call ended.
Gar approached. “We grew the potatoes!”
Chase checked something on a tablet in her hands and then looked up at Gar. “Good. The prime minister has been asking about food production. Do you have the other farms up and running?” She addressed this question to Torrik.
He shook his head. “We were just heading there now. Remind them I can help with plant growth, but when it comes to animals, I’m not able to do anything to help them grow.”
She checked her tablet again. “It’s a cattle farm, but don’t worry. They just want the grasslands replenished. A massive fire took out most of the grazing lands during the conflict.”
“I can grow grass.”
“Thank you. You aren’t officially part of BADGE, and yet you are doing so much to help.”
“I’m a highly trained warrior and special operative from my world. I spend days and nights hunting criminals and dealing with dark magic problems. However, I trained in nature magic. I rarely get to apply it like this. It’s nice. Besides, a lot of people got hurt.”
Gar said, “I wish I could do more than just be the escort for Torrik.”
“You get your wish. Justin just contacted me and said he needs you back at the station. His team is ready for the dive and he’ll be joining them planet-side. You’ll be in charge of station operations.”
Torrik asked, “Is this the dive that’s going to be going down to the bottom of the ocean?”
Chase signed off on a document and handed it over to an agent. “Yes. In fact, it’ll be the deepest part of the ocean on Earth. The Mariana Trench.”
“Why don’t you go?” Torrik asked Gar. “You’re indestructible. I can sense the magic holding you together. You’re amazingly tough.”
Gar frowned and shook his head. “I will not go in the ocean, ever.”
Chase spoke before Torrik asked ‘the’ question. “He had an extremely bad experience in the ocean. Gar experienced being buried at sea for centuries. Since then, he avoids the water at all costs.”
“Oh, sorry about that.”
Gar said, “It is okay.”
Torrik asked Chase, “Any progress made in finding Lady Echidna’s new location?”
“No. And it has been three months since the battle with Midgard. She’s too quiet.”
“I know she hasn’t made her move on the Great Divide yet. Heroes and defenders are there all the time.”
Chase said, “This Lady Echidna is patient and calculated, which makes her nearly impossible to predict and terribly clever when she does move. I don’t like it.” She quickly tapped her ear piece. “Good. Torrik, your shuttle is ready. Gar take the main shuttle to the station. It is leaving in five minutes.”
They dispersed to their various locations as the clean-up work continued.
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