Macha's Journey

As Tyr made his way through the dark streets, he tried his best to avoid meeting people. He found standing upright to be a difficult enough task, and he did not want to get in a scuffle. If Ivan found him, he did not know if he possessed enough strength to defend himself. Although running into someone for help would be nice, the risk of the person being one of Ivan"s slaves was too great.

Aži worried about his friend. Tyr"s wound was nothing compared to other ones he received in the past, but the bolt appeared to have been poisoned. He was unsure what the poison would do and how lethal it was. Aži turned to inspect Tyr and shook his head. His friend did not appear well. He wished he could fly to get help, but the arrow had damaged his wing earlier.

Aži led Tyr towards their guild"s district. He decided it would be better to lead Tyr towards headquarters instead of the place. They had medics there that would be able to help his friend. Aži was also unsure if Tyr would make it to the palace and the chance of running into Ivan was too high.

Tyr reached up and patted Aži"s head. "Thanks for the help. I should have been more alert." He frowned, "Sierra was right. My anger blinded me. I should have foreseen an attack like that," he whispered. Regret covered his face, and he cursed his inadequacy at predicting Ivan"s actions.

Aži knew Tyr the longest out of everyone in the guild, except for Luna. He understood his friend"s flaws and merits well. Aži thought Tyr needed to stop shouldering so much blame on himself. He did not like Tyr"s mental state after he had been with Fenrir. She twisted his mind and made him lose confidence in himself. Aži thought Fenrir"s words had dripped like poison, belittling Tyr every day. If he ever stood up for himself Fenrir threatened to leave him. All of this abuse stripped him of the confident man he had been in his youth.

Aži knew Sierra"s warning was correct. Tyr"s anger was too high tonight. Whenever Macha was involved, his friend did not think straight. Aži thought of Macha. She helped control Tyr"s temper, and he liked the woman. Before Aži had time to reflect any further on that subject, he heard a shuffle behind them.

A woman with a red mask came out of the shadows, "You don"t look so well. I"ll help you out by lightening your load. Give me your money or your life." She wore a red mask and dressed in black. A large knife reflected the moonlight.

Tyr turned his body towards the woman"s voice. "Keep walking," he warned in a low cautioning voice. He might be poisoned and injured, but he was still the Captain of the Obsidian Dragons. Tyr was amazed that some street thug would even dare to try something on him. Most people recognized him as the King"s cousin, a war hero, or a guild leader. It had been years since someone tried to accost him of his things in Ma.r.s.eille.

"I"m fine with you handing me your weapons. They look like they could fetch a good price," the woman said in a generous voice. She sized up the man. He looked strong, but right now the bolt in his back crippled him and he seemed like an easy target.

Tyr"s upper lip went up, "Are you stupid? Get out of here before I kill you," his patience ran out. Danger dripped into his voice and he forced himself to straighten up. Adjusting his position caused more blood to pour from his wound.

The woman considered backing away, but the man looked weak a moment ago. His eyes were closed, and he looked pale from blood loss. The trail of blood he left on the cobblestones meant he had lost a lot of blood. She felt confident he was using the last of his strength to intimidate her. "Fine, I"ll take your life, then your stuff."

Tyr reacted to the sound of the woman"s feet moving towards him. He turned his body so her attack would not hit his heart. The pain of a blade piercing his upper arm caused his arm to flex. With lightning-fast reflexes, he grabbed the woman"s wrist, her attack gave away her position, "I warned you," Tyr snarled through gritted teeth. He broke the woman"s wrist with his hand and she cried out in pain. Tyr realized the sound might draw Ivan"s attention to the area. Before he made a move to snap the mugger"s neck, Aži bared his fangs at her.

Aži jumped at the woman and ripped her throat out so she would stop screaming. Tyr"s new wound worried him and he wanted to get back to the guild as soon as possible. Aži did not have time to worry about the robber"s life when the punishment for attempted murder in their guild"s district would be death. Each guild had their own rules and Aži knew Tyr took attempted murder and murder seriously.

Tyr picked up his pace. He wanted to get as far away from the scuffle as possible. If Ivan or his men heard the woman"s cry, they might run to the area. Depending on how close they were, finding Tyr might be easy.

Tyr approached headquarters and the guards saw him. His weakened figure leaned against his lance and he dragged his feet across the cobblestones. His feet left b.l.o.o.d.y tracks along the ground as his blood oozed down his body and filled his boots. Tyr"s appearance usually beamed with energy and strength, but the poison and blood loss left him drained and frail.

"Captain!" the guards shouted. They were confused about why Tyr was not at the palace. They thought he was supposed to be there till daybreak, overseeing the masquerade. One of them ran to get help, while the other led Tyr inside.

Meanwhile, Tyr"s mount reached the palace walls and saliva dripped from Sierra"s mouth. She strained to breathe and could barely move her muscles. Her mind was fine and she worried about Tyr. She remembered that he fell off the mount while they were pa.s.sing through the park.

The palace guards recognized Sierra"s body fastened to the mount and rushed to help her. They could tell she had trouble breathing and tilted her head back as they carried her inside.

****

Macha fell asleep on the bed next to Freyr. He comforted her, and she could relax around him. Macha tried to stay up, but soothing music played in the background and the excitement of the day caught up with her.

Freyr"s eyes healed enough that he was able to open them and gaze at Macha lying next to him. He ran his fingers through her soft black hair. A bittersweet smile touched his lips. Freyr thought how it would be a romantic moment if it were not for the medics in the room with their hands in his face trying to heal him.

He thought of all the things they have been through. Freyr wished he could lay next to her forever, but understood she did not feel the same way towards him. Macha had the wrong impression of him from the start and he wanted to make it right. His eyes still hurt being opened, but they screamed for him to gaze at her body lying next to him. Freyr saw this as a rare chance that might not happen again.

His heavy bedroom doors opened and the Vice-Captain entered the room. He was a middle-aged man with light brown hair, dressed in the royal armor. He gave Freyr a grave look. "My King, I"m sorry to disturb you. Captain Sierra has returned."

Freyr made a motion with his hand for Djalu to lower his voice. He did not want their conversation to disturb Macha"s rest. In a hushed voice, Freyr reminded him, "Djalu, I already told you, you have known me since I was a baby. You can call me by my first name. What did Sierra find out?" Freyr looked at his old mentor and could tell something bothered the man. Unaware of his actions, he reached out and took Macha"s outstretched hand for comfort.

Djalu"s eyes glanced over to Freyr"s hand for a moment. The hour was late, and the King was recovering, but he felt the King needed to be updated on the situation. He moved closer to the King so his voice would not be too loud. "Someone poisoned Sierra. She is being treated now. What concerns me is that she"s calling Lord Tyr"s name." He knew Tyr and Freyr were close, he hoped nothing had happened to the king"s cousin.

Freyr looked at Djalu, his dark brown eyebrows furrowed with worry. "What about Tyr? What did he say happened to Sierra?" Freyr worried about Sierra. They had fought alongside one another many times and he considered her a good friend and comrade.

Djalu shook his head. "Lord Tyr didn"t return with her." He was aware the two left to investigate Ivan Mikhailov"s house. He did not want to agitate Freyr too much, but he could not lie to the King when asked a direct question.

Freyr"s eyes shot to Macha"s sleeping body. He wanted to make sure she was not awake. "Send guards to Ivan"s house. Have them question all the slaves. I want his a.s.sets put on hold and throw him into the dungeon. Update me on any news." Freyr whispered his orders, afraid that Macha would wake up and overhear the conversation. He wanted to search for his cousin but knew his place was at the castle. Freyr hated how he felt chained to the palace.

Djalu nodded and bowed before leaving. He hoped the King got over his parent"s death and was finally in a relationship. This was the first time he saw a woman welcomed into the King"s bedroom. The crown did not have an heir and Djalu worried about what would happen if the King died.

When Djalu left, Freyr leaned his head against his headboard and sighed. He did not think Sierra and Tyr would run into trouble tonight. Both were outstanding fighters. Freyr closed his eyes and took a nap. He needed to rest so he would be able to deal with the situation clearly when they found out more information.