Macha's Journey

The house now appeared to be dark and empty. Tyr did not know where all the servants went but a.s.sumed Sierra reported Ivan"s attack. Freyr would have acted against Ivan as soon as he found out about Ivan"s resistance. Tyr knelt in the shadows and listened. There was no sound or movement coming from within the house.

Sticking to the shadows, Tyr moved silently across the gra.s.s. His boots made no sounds, and he masked his presence. He climbed up a metal trellis attached to the side of the house. One of the windows on the second floor had been left ajar and Tyr climbed through it.

Tyr walked through the house, listening for any signs of life. He found Ivan"s bedroom and moved to the dresser. On it, he found an ivory comb that had a few strands of hair stuck between the teeth. Tyr plucked the strands from the comb and pulled out the orange stone his father had given him.

Tyr focused his energy into the stone and placed the hairs against it. The orange stone heated up in his hand. Tyr searched around him, the warmth meant Ivan was nearby. The Searching Stone grew warmer the closer the person was to what they searched for. The only drawback being he needed a piece of what he wanted to search for. It was not the most useful artifact his father could have given him, but Hymir wanted to make sure Tyr could find Luna if something separated them on a mission.

Tyr looked at Aži and mouthed, "He"s here." Aži nodded and watched Tyr"s back. He did not want another ambush like last time.

Tyr searched the house and descended the staircase, the stone grew warmer with each step. He checked every room but did not find Ivan in any of them. When he made his way through the kitchen, he found a stairway in the pantry that led to the bas.e.m.e.nt. Tyr put the stone in his pocket and drew his lance.

It was pitch black below, but Tyr heard the soft steady breath of someone else in the room. The air felt thick and moist and he inhaled the metallic smell of blood. Tyr crept along the wall towards the sound of breathing.

Dim red lights flooded light into the room and he found Ivan sitting in a chair. Tyr now realized that a thick white smoke filled the room. Ivan wore a mask over the lower half of his face that looked like a serpent"s mouth.

"You look so serious Tyr," Ivan leered. He foresaw that Tyr would come for him. He found Tyr"s actions predictable and rash. Ivan had waited for the King"s men to leave his home and then he went back to prepare for Tyr"s arrival.

Anger took hold of Tyr and he strode to Ivan with his lance raised but stumbled. He shook his head. Something was not quite right. Tyr gave Ivan a scowl and was surprised to see that Ivan had transformed into a large snake. "Your tricks won"t save you from me."

"What"s wrong? You don"t look well, Lord Tyr," Ivan hissed. He knew the hallucinogen was taking effect. Tyr"s movements were sluggish. Ivan understood he could not beat Tyr in a fair fight, so he needed to use his brains and tricks to win. Ivan unhooked a whip from his waist. He snapped it on the ground.

Tyr watched the serpent"s tail smack the ground and a loud crack echoed off the walls. It slithered towards him, its white belly gliding along the ground. Tyr backed up, unsure if the tail would attack or the head. His movements were slow and he needed to put some s.p.a.ce between the serpent and himself so he would have time to react.

Aži clutched onto Tyr"s pauldron. The smoke made him sleepy and he was unsure how much longer he would be able to stay awake. The room was spinning and he felt Tyr hand him the stone with a lock of hair.

"Aži, give this to Freyr!" Tyr ordered. He grabbed the wyvern and threw him towards the stairs. Tyr knew Aži would be useless in this fight and decided to send his friend to get help in case he could not finish the job.

Aži grabbed the stone and the lock of hair. He flew up the stairs, hitting the wall a few times. Aži understood Tyr"s intention and made his way to the palace as fast as his wings would carry him.

Seeing Tyr throw his wyvern towards the stairs, Ivan chuckled, "How touching. Trying to save your friend because you realize you"re about to die." He cracked the whip again and reached over to a table to pick up a hook sword.

Tyr backed up into a table and looked behind him. He saw the mutilated body of a child. It had been strapped to the table and skinned. The chest cavity had been opened and the heart was missing. Tyr"s head shot back to the snake, he barely dodged. The snake"s tail shot out at him and hit the dead body, causing the clotted blood to splatter.

As the snake"s fangs descended upon his shoulder, Tyr took out his second lance and used it to block the attack. His body was weakened and the serpent"s mouth slowly drew closer. Tyr drew energy into his legs and kicked the serpent back. He immediately moved in to impale Ivan to the wall.

Kicked towards the wall, Ivan lashed his whip out. The leather flayed, and the force pushed Tyr back, knocking him into the air. Ivan then spun around and used his whip to grab Tyr"s ankle.

Tyr watched the snake"s tail grab hold of his ankle and toss him against a wall. He heard the clang of his armor against the stone. The snake"s head rose above him, ready to bite his head off and Tyr thrust his lance into the serpent"s mouth.

A force of air cut Ivan"s cheek when Tyr"s lance stabbed at the air between his sword and face. A wicked smile spread across his face as Ivan sent the hook on his blade into Tyr"s back.

Tyr felt the fangs dig into his back. Summoning winds to wrap around his lance, Tyr used the shaft of his lance to heave the creature towards the ceiling. The strong gust of wind caused the tables in the room to fly into the air.

The pole knocked Ivan"s body into the ceiling. Ivan heard a crack when his head hit the wood, but he held onto his sword. Spots of black filled his vision and a dull pain spread throughout his head. Ivan gritted his teeth despite the pain because the sword was still hooked into Tyr"s back and Tyr had been forced into the air with him.

The snake"s fangs yanked him into the air with it. To ease the pressure he jumped up, not wanting to cause his body more damage than needed. The snake hung on, refusing to let go of him.

As Ivan fell to the floor, he let go of the sword and wrapped the whip around Tyr"s neck. He realized Tyr was still too dangerous to fight, so he dug in his pocket and opened a small vial. Ivan took off the cork and drank the elixir.

The snake"s tail tightened around Tyr"s neck and began to strangle him. The serpent"s head loosened its grip, and Tyr used this moment to tear the fangs out of his back. He glanced at his hand and deep red cuts bled from touching the fangs. When Tyr looked up, the snake had disappeared.

Ivan observed Tyr rip the sword out of his back. He was now invisible and recognized that he had the upper hand. The elixir he bought would work for half an hour before wearing off. This gave him plenty of time to toy with Tyr and enjoy mutilating his body before killing him.

Tyr understood he was not alone. He still felt a presence in the room and Ivan could not mask his killing intent. Tyr decided he would use an ability that affected the whole room. He hoped it would reveal Ivan"s location. Tyr did not know what he inhaled, but it made him weak and nauseous. He wanted to end this fight quickly.

The room became cold and frost formed on the walls as Tyr"s weapons glowed red. Tyr exhaled and a cloud of air blew from his lips. He scanned the room hoping that Ivan did not hold his breath.

Ivan picked up a scalpel off the floor. He watched as Tyr moved his head, trying to a.s.sess the situation. The room was getting colder and Tyr"s head snapped to where Ivan stood. He did not understand how Tyr perceived his location. Ivan stopped moving and waited to see what Tyr would do.

The bloodied body of the mutilated boy froze and Tyr could feel the wounds in his body freeze shut. The moisture that was in the air earlier froze and fell to the ground. Flecks of snow began to form at the tips of Tyr"s eyelashes. "Found you," he growled in a low voice.

Bright sparks glowed from Tyr"s lances, drifting up into the air. The sparks grew bigger and brighter and lashed out to fill all corners of the room, burning everything in its path.

Ivan felt the heat in the room rise then the strong force of Tyr"s attack. The fire threw him against the wall and latched onto his skin, clinging to his body as it burned away his flesh. The heat and flames in the room rose and Ivan ran out of the house to escape the fire before he melted.

Ivan dropped on the gra.s.s and rolled around until the fire was out. His skin bubbled and burned all over. He looked back and saw his house burning to the ground. The windows had shattered and flames already reached the rooftop.

Tyr"s dark figure strode out of the front door, wood crashing down around him. Some debris burnt on his armor, but the flames did not touch him.

Ivan stood transfixed by Tyr"s outline in the doorway. He realized that he had lost for today and should run before the elixir wore off. Ivan looked at Tyr one more time, burning the man"s image into his mind. For now, he would flee to Phocée and take shelter with some family he had there. One day he would return to kill Tyr and gaze upon Macha"s tormented face.