An aging overweight man who plays too much online gaming receives a gift from Freya, the
goddess of love, lust, beauty, sorcery, fertility, gold, war and death.

Freya's Gift

Chapter 30: Setting the Trap

Monday 2 November

Another 2 weeks and we are no closer to identifying the mysterious Deathe. We have gotten close a few times, but always
just not enough. Lauren thinks the best solution is to use Gloria and Bobby to watch for him at our next archery
tournament, and Jimmy and I are forced to agree, as much as we don't want to put them in harms way. There was one major
problem though. No significant tournaments would be held until March next year.

That's when inspiration struck. We could talk Helen and Richard into hosting a Christmas benefit shoot for the 12th and
13th of December, giving us almost six weeks to get it all arranged. The beauty of it was, that Deathe would surely know
it was a trap for him and Loki, so it would be a near certainty that Deathe would be there. Now all we had to do was
convince Helen in such a way that she would sell Richard on the idea.

The mornings are still as glorious as ever and we slowly prepare for the time the children will come. The only looming
cloud is the identity of Loki's lieutenant.

Gloria is a regular family member with us, and most of the time Bobby is here as well. Gloria has taken over most of the
daily running of the tackle shop allowing Stanley to greet and talk to customers. On the cafe side, Edith relies more and
more on Bobby, it comes as a surprise to everyone, including Bobby that he is quite good at cooking. He even enjoys
himself.

*************************************************

On my patrol that morning, I called Helen to ask when she was available for a meeting. She responded that if time was
pressing, she could see me today at lunch time. I thanked her and told her I would see her then. Then I called Cappie and
asked if it would be ok to take a long lunch with Helen at the Bowtech factory.

Cappie replies, "If this is about the monsters and putting an end to them, then by all means, take as long as you'd
like."

I then say, "Thanks Cappie, you're the best! But what I plan on talking to her about is a two fold plan. And I need your
ok before I can go forward with my ideas."

"What do you need from me?"

"Well, we need to lure out this lieutenant of Loki's. And since he's made a point of showing at the last tournament we
did, our plan is to have Bowtech host a Christmas benefit shoot. And I need a place to put it on at in the park. Got any
ideas for a good spot?" I ask.

He thinks a bit, then says "I'm guessing you're going to want local businesses to be part of this to make it look
legitimate. In that case, out past your turnoff there is a place called Belknap Lodge & Hot Springs. They're right on a
double bend of the McKenzie river, and they should have enough parking for your needs. They even have a walking bridge to
cross the river so you would have lots of area for your shoot. Sound good?"

I thank him, "That's perfect Cappie. Now I just need to talk Helen into it. Thanks Cappie."

He responds good naturedly, "No problem Freya, anything that can help get rid of these pests is worth it. Say hello to
Helen and Richard for me, will you?"

"Sure thing Cappie, talk to you later sir."

*************************************************

I headed for Bowtech around 11:30am, when I got there, Helen and Richard were waiting for me out back in a shaded area
with some tables. They even had food ready for us when I got there. Before I could say a word, Richard says, "I already
got the call from Cappie and Helen has the ball rolling."

Helen adds, "I've made arrangements with the lodge and they have agreed to host the event and we, Bowtech, will sponsor
it with the help of Rhinhart targets. They are sending all of the targets used for the R-100 shoot for our use."

I said, "That's amazing, I thought it would take a little selling to get you on board."

Richard says, "That's nothing, Helen talked them into donating all the targets, so we can make this an annual event.
We've had people on the phone since Cappie called to pass the word. In the two hours they've been at it, they have gotten
commitments from all the other manufactures to have their people here for the event."

"Awesome! What can I do to help? You name it and it's done."

Helen says, "Well, the truck with the targets will be here next Saturday. Cappie said that he had a storage warehouse we
could use. What you could do is plan the shoot layout, where you want the targets to go and the shooting lanes."

"Sounds good to me. How hard do you want to make it?" I ask.

Richard says, "You should make it as challenging as possible for the pros, while still making it fun for the weekend
shooters too."

I say, "Got it. I'm going to need to scout the area this weekend and then start planning. Thank you both so much for
this, you are both so very special people."

Helen laughs, "Are you kidding? Every shoot you do, dressed in your 'costumes', and out scoring all the men! Our sales
for women's equipment and apparel are through the roof. And not just us. Since the Victoria's Secret ads have aired, all
archery companies have seen huge increases in sales for ladies. Freya, you're a freacking gold mine to us and VS. We
would do anything for you. And to make this an annual benefit shoot that stays here in our town, all the local businesses
will be happy and the city mayor will be ecstatic, to say the least."

"Well... , you guys are too nice to me, giving me so much of the credit, I don't deserve.... " The Richard stops me.

"Freya, you do deserve the credit, cause we know exactly what you've been doing. And this morning I cornered Cappie and
got him to admit what we had suspected all along."

I look at them, "What are you talking about?" Knowing where this was headed.

Helen says, "It all made sense after that goddess broke onto every channel on the planet. She's the FREYA, and she said
she had people trying to stop all these creatures to save our world."

Richard continues, "It didn't take much of a leap to connect you to her, the same name after all. We know you're not her,
but you are one of the ones helping her. We don't care about the whys, if we can help you get rid of these beasts, then
we've done our part."

I couldn't help it, I started to cry. Helen came and held me till I stopped and Richard held my hand across the table.

Helen rubs my bump, "Besides, it'd be great if you could get rid of the monsters before the babies are born." We spent
the rest of lunch talking about nothing but babies.

*************************************************

I called Cappie as I headed back onto patrol and thanked him for convincing Helen and Richard to join the cause. The rest
of the day was very routine. I stopped by the cafe on the way home to see if Gloria needed a ride. She was just getting
into Bobby's car to head to our place. They followed until I lost them, enjoying the road.

Tonight was a unique night, as Katie and Austin were home before us, since there was no practice scheduled for either
team. As we made dinner, we talked about plans for Thanksgiving. Katie said, "I found out from Michael this morning that
mom has special projects for work out of town on those days, and dad and grandpa are going to Colorado to visit the
family. Maryanne and he don't want to go with them though."

I ask, "You think that if they told your parents they would like to spend the holiday with their girlfriend / boyfriend,
that they'd let them stay at home? Then we can port them here for the holiday and have a huge family gathering. All the
family we can get."

Katie says, "If you want Candy here too, they'll just say they are having dinner at moms. And Maryanne just broke up with
her boyfriend and mom and dad don't know yet. So it could work out as you want."

"Perfect. Let's get dinner on the table, Lauren and Jimmy should be here any time now."

As we finish putting the last plate on the table Lauren and Jimmy entered the house. We called the rest to dinner and we
sat and enjoyed the meal. As we ate I told them all what had happened today and our plans to lure out Walker Deathe. I
also let them know that our 'secret' was pretty much in the open, the only people who didn't know were those that didn't
know my name. Having a Freya and a FREYA was a coincidence, no one was accepting.

I asked, "Who wants to scout out the shoot site with me on Saturday?"

Katie says, "Austin is working Saturday, but I can go."

Lauren says, "I have inventory to do this weekend, so I'm out."

We look at Jimmy, "I wish I could, but my uncle is going out of town Friday and Saturday, and I'm in charge. You know,
before I became a responsible adult with my two wonderful women, he never would have left me in charge. You see what
you're doing to my life." Laughing as he said it.

Lauren teases, "Poor baby, growing up can be so 'hard' at times." We all laughed at Jimmy's discomfort.

Bobby clears his throat, "Erm.... excuse me. You all have been so kind to me and including me in the things your family
does. Well, I've been thinking, though I never imagined my life going this way, but.... " He pushes the chair back from
the table and gets to one knee facing Gloria, "Gloria, I'm not sure if you know how much I really love you! Will you
marry me?"

Gloria starts to cry from the shock, she jumps out of her chair and into his arms, "Oh Goddess, yes! YES, yes I'll marry
you! I love you too." We all stood and cheered for them.

Bobby says, "I don't have a ring yet, but I'm saving for it. Something as special as you deserve."

Before anyone can say anything FREYA's voice says, "I shall provide the ring for the services you provide to this family.
Hold out your hand young man." Bobby holds out his hand, palm up and open. He feels the touch of an unseen hand. As the
feeling fades, in his open palm is a ring and a pair of earrings, matching in a glowing material. "This is amber, it is
most sacred to me. The earrings are my gift to Gloria, for she is a special young woman, as you all know. Peace be yours,
my children, and bless you."

Bobby takes the ring and places it on Gloria's finger, then removes her studs and places the earrings as well. Gloria is
still shocked that FREYA would do something like this for them. She knew that the others had spent time with FREYA and
this was not to be taken lightly. She kissed Bobby and whispered, "Bless you Freya" Meaning both the goddess and her
friend. Everything good that has happened to her has been since she met Freya. Even though her papa was missing, really,
he's been gone since her momma died. She still wished she knew what happened to him.

*************************************************

The rest of the week we all dealt with many small incursions all over the country. The rise was all over the world as the
other teams reported the same things as we were experiencing ourselves. I or Katie let them know our plans to trap
Deathe. When they learned of this, they wanted to be included as well, and we had no problem with that. Could be we'd
need them to take on Deathe.

Since Saturdays scouting would be Katie and myself, I talked Cappie into letting this be part of Katie's Junior Ranger
training. It would be her first day as an official Junior Ranger. Even though she wouldn't get any pay, Cappie and I knew
that Katie could take care of herself better than any Ranger other than me. Friday she picked up her uniform and badge,
but as she was still too young, she was not issued a service weapon. We knew that at a moments notice she could call on
her swords to cover anything that could come up.

7 November

Saturday morning we are up and ready to go check the area for the shoot and trap. When we got to the lodge, we checked,
at the desk to let them know we were here to look over and plan the shoot layout. We were greeted by the day manager and
given maps of the property and the immediate area. After asking where we could have people park, we headed for the foot
bridge that crossed the McKenzie river.

Once we reach the other side of the river, we headed right, upstream, and began plotting the shooting lanes. Using the
natural clearings and terrain, we walked for about a mile and a half, ending up with 40 shots. We used the backs of hill
to cover any possible chance to keep the participants safe from other shooters. Katie mapped it all out on a tablet to
keep track of each shoot lane and safe walking track using a GPS function. The total distance was about 1.5 miles start
to finish.

It may sound as if we just walked and pushed a button at random. But we actually were thinking to make some shots
difficult, like having to sit or kneel on the ground to make a particular shot. Making notes for each shot as well and
the preferred animal for each location. We probably spent 4 hours total before we were happy with the layout.

We head back across the footbridge to the lodge and spoke to the manager again. Katie sent a copy of the planned out map
to their printer, to give them as much information as possible. I told her that Helen would call to let them know when
people would be here to set up the targets a few days before the shoot. She thanked us and asked for any fliers for the
event to be emailed to her lodge website. We thanked her and made our way home.

*************************************************

At dinner later that day, the family talked over plans for Thanksgiving dinner. Austin told us, "I talked on the phone
today with Michael And he agrees to your plans to bring them here. He said Maryanne would be easy to convince to keep
quiet."

Katie added, "Since we would normally go to the desert for Thanksgiving if everyone was home. They can just say they're
going with our friends out to Buttercup for a few days and no one will think anything of it." Katie looks forlorn, "We
loved that you took us to the desert and taught us to ride."

I said, "I loved taking you guys, it was always so much fun. One of these days, when the children are old enough, we'll
plan a trip for the family to go again.

Austin adds, "There's great places to ride dunes here in Oregon, the Siuslaw National Forest has tons of areas to ride,
as well as fishing lakes and camping all in the same areas."

Jimmy says, "And it's just west of us here in Eugene. The best part is, that it's nowhere's as hot as the SoCal deserts
you're used to."

Lauren says, "Sounds like a lot of fun to me, I can't wait to try something like that. I think as soon as the kids can
walk, we start thinking about a trip to the dunes."

I say, "We had many great times in the desert. It was the only time Katie and Michaels father got along with everyone,
just so he'd be included into the trips."

Katie smiles, "Yeah, we'd go for a week at Thanksgiving, and then from Christmas day after presents, till after the first
of the year. Sometimes almost two weeks straight."

"Ok, but getting back to Thanksgiving. So Michael, Candy and Maryanne will come for the Saturday before, till the day
after. That gives us five days for the family to be together."

Lauren says, "I have an idea, when it's time for them to come here, Cassie and I will go to meet them where ever they
want to port from. Then I'll ride with them to bring them back and Maryanne can ride Cassie."

I say, "That sounds like a marvelous idea, Maryanne will love it. That's just one of the many reasons I love you. You're
always thinking of others."

Lauren responds, "That wasn't always the case. But you and Jimmy bring out the best in me. And that's the number 1 reason
I love both of you. That and since I accepted FREYA's gift, I'm at least 10 years younger than before, and have never
felt better in my life."

Katie says, "And for me since I received her gift, I've had more energy and feel so alive. The funny thing has been my
periods."

I ask, "What about them?"

She answers, "Well, you know, since I started having them, they were always so terrible, horrible headaches and the worst
PMS. Now, the ones I've had since have been a cake walk in comparison."

I said, "I know what you mean, I only had the one before I got pregnant, but it was so light, and no cramps or pains of
any kind. I thought it was just cause it was my first time."

Lauren says, "No, usually the first is always the worst, at least for most of us. But if you're saying that our monthly
visitor will be easier on us, then Thank You FREYA! And bless you for picking our girl to be your champion!"

I was a little embarrassed and it showed on my face. We cleared the table and cleaned up before taking time to sit and
enjoy the fireplace. I decide to have them all play the game together in the living room while I went to the office and
did some work.

As I entered the office, I glanced at the side of the room that was set up as a nursery. I really hadn't looked around at
the things there and spent some time doing just that. There was a large beautiful crib that was big enough for all four
of our babies to share, that was something I thought was a great idea, the children would grow up together closer than
most children do. They would bond at a very early age, and always be the best of friends.

There were changing tables and loads of supplies, diapers in many sizes, cleaning wipes, enough for a small army. Having
changed diapers for Katie and Michael, and even Maryanne, I knew how you could go through those wipes. I was thankful
that FREYA had provided for us, I really was like she was our mother. And for me she almost was, except for my mom who
had birthed me first. She who was my friend as well as my mother, my fishing buddy and the first person I could talk to
about anything.

After taking a mental inventory, I sat at my desk and checked a few things online first. All bills were scheduled on auto
pays and nothing was due. Checking on our bank accounts showed we were sitting pretty now. I think we could be a little
extravagant come Christmas time. With the other four playing out in the living room, I started a new player on another
server in the game. This was to be one of a couple emergency characters I was planning to build in case the need came up.

The first one I started was another gunner, though this one was Castanic, but still female. She ended up looking a little
like Katie's game form. I played until Lauren and Jimmy were ready for bed, ending up at level 17.

End of Chapter 30