January 27, 2016:
The Alfar have taken an artifact that Fenris hid … that might be related to why Astryd is Earthbound. Jesana helps
New York
Characters
NPCs: None.
Mentions:
Plot:
Mood Music: None.
Fade In…
"God Wolf please calm down…" The man saying it looks nervous. To mortal eyes he's a tall, fair haired man with hair that's stylishly long but not overly so in an expensive suit. To Fenris' eyes he's one of the alfar. 'Elves' as mortals often call them are a kind apart and mostly they stick to their own worlds but people have legends of them for a reason and some live here on Midgard. Some have lived here for a long time.
"Jyri, do not toy with me." Fenris is well known to small knot of Alfar present. How could he not be? These are his hunting grounds. "You are aware, as well as I, that the bracer I hid here in what became the park was made for the binding of supernatural beings. It's missing, plain as day. Now where is it." The god-wolf's voice rumbles low and the ground seems to tremble a little. Perhaps a trick of the mind but it does underscore how very, very angry he is becoming.
Jes strolls up from behind the elf, having just suddenly and randomly to anyone watching, appeared. Her nostrils flare and browns eyes narrow as she takes in the man's scent. She doesn't like elves. At least not any of the ones she's met thus far. He isn't attacking Fenris though so Jes stops a few feet behind the elf and crosses her arms over her chest as she listens and looks around for any possible threats. Fenris is wholly capable of defending himself but if she is there then he needn't bother. She can and has killed elves. From her expression she won't at all mind doing so again. Or making them talk.. she can do that as well. If anyone else is near they'll see a young native american woman with long dark hair in a leather jacket and boots, jeans and a cheetah print bikini top despite the cold weather. An expert eye would note the knives and gun secreted about her person.
Standing beside and just to the side of Fenris, is Astryd, arms folded over her chest, grey eyes resting on the elf. "It's been a while since you've eaten, hasn't it, Fenris?" The Valkyrie looks … a little formidable.
Seeing Jesana arrive, an eyebrow raises, but seeing the young woman is quiet, she doesn't say anything just yet.
Fenris looks at the elf. "Yes. Yes it has." He growls and steps forward menacingly. He's noted Jesana's approach. The Alfar all take a reflexive step back.
"Be reasonable Fenris…" He looks worried now and his hand goes to his pocket. Not for a weapon surely. A gun wouldn't do anything against Astryd, much less Fenris, and the pocket is rather too small for anything else.
"I'm done being reasonable, Jyri." Fenris snarls.
Out comes the hand and flings a piece of paper into the air which immediately catches fire. "Defend us!" The elf cries out in desperation.
And immediately a couple dozen armed einherjar appear.
"Well…" The God-Wolf has a sword in his fist now. "Since you decided to start the music…"
Her rather angry expression stays in place but her eyes sparkle with amusement at the implied threat in Astryd's question. "I wonder what became of the last elf I gave you, Fenris? Was he any good?" Only someone who knows her well would realize that Jes is having to work at not laughing. She's got a very wicked and to the point of cruelness sense of humor at times. "They just taste *so* much better than humans." The sudden appearance of armed warrior spirits draws a snarl from Jesana. "Little tip, you pointy eared asshole." Jes rumbles by the elf's ear as she grabs ahold of him. "Don't summon a weapon against a God when his greatest worshipper stands behind you." A blur of motion and the iron dagger on her left hip is held against the elf's throat. "Dismiss them." It is a command and she will not repeat it. She also won't kill him, yet. He hasn't told Fenris where the missing thing is. The elf doesn't know that though, and even if he suspects, iron at his throat might encourage him to talk.
Astryd's grey eyes glint as Fenris works with her threat. They'd eaten not that long ago, truth be told. A lovely meal complete with Asgardian Ale.
Seeing the elfs hand go into his pocket, the Valkyrie stills … and as the einherjar appear she rolls her eyes. "Truly…"
Wings appear, giant grey / black things that tower over her head and nearly drag on the ground and her torc, removed from her neck, becomes a spear.
"Einherjar!" Her voice cracks through the clearing "To me and Valhalla, or meet my vengeance." She fully expects these are bound somehow and she's going to have to fight them.
Jesana gets a look, the grey eyes flashing with the fire of battle "He can not, they are here now. But do not kill him. I will wish to question him when this done."
Twirling her spear, she waits … to see how the Einherjar respond.
The Einherjar, bound warriors from beyond but not ghosts, raise blades and charge. They're using spears and axes. Fenris splits one of them at the shaft and kicks the warrior hard enough to send him into the top of a tree thirty feet away. Another trio closes on him as the others split to attack Astryd from the right and Jesana from two sides.
Jesana rolls her eyes. Seriously? She's not stupid but Astryd just took half her threat away. Sighing she swiftly brings her hand up and raps the pommel of her dagger against the elf's temple. Just hard enough to knock him out for a few. She'd excelled at knowing just how much force to use in most situations, to kill or stun or render one unconcious and she's had months now to adjust to her new strength. He'll be fine and wake with a headache soon.
The coyote woman frowns at the Einherjar. She recognizes what they are is baffled as to why the elf was able to summon them. He is of faerie isn't he? She still has so much to learn of magic. Spears and axes. Awesome, this elf is so gonna talk after this. So gonna talk. So much. Figuring she doesn't need to warn these, Jes goes straight for the kill and throws the dagger at the right one's throat as she ducks and rolls beneath the spear jab of the left to come up behind him.
"I do not wish to harm you…" Astryd may well have escorted some of these from the field of battle to Valhalla. She might not wish to harm them, but as they charge her, her spear flashes, knocking one to the ground and skewering it. Before spinning to face another racing for her.
Fenris doesn't seem to have any compunctions about harming them certainly. One is rather messily dealt with using that large 'war sword' he favors before he spins and literally punches one hard enough to cave it's chest in.
Jesana finds herself the focus of a number of lethal attacks. Her opponents have no regard for their own lives - which makes sense given that they're dead - and seem perfectly willing to try to drown her with numbers. Astryd on the other hand is being herded. The einherjar are trying not to kill her. Hurt her yes but…
She isn't feeling bad about harming them either, clearly. Jes is also grinning wildly and screams out an indian warcry. She rarely comes across anyone who fights like this, without fear, and it's something she can do as well. It's half the coyote in here and half the way she was trained since a child and she's only gotten better with time. Despite her ongoing quest for immortality, death holds no fear for her and it shows in the risks she takes in battle. She let's an axe bounce off the edge of her left shoulder in order to reach and grab a spear from another's grasp and utterly ignores the jab to her left flank from a third. She can use the spear to clear some space, turning and whirling with hit held horizontally in her strong grasp. Later, she will hurt if she survives but that will be okay. The pain will remind her she lives. Her Father's meddling seems to be holding thus far as Jes is clearly enjoying herself and hasn't shut down her emotions. If she's wounded too badly, that is likely to change however.
Astryd incapacitates those that come near, stabbing with her spear, batting them off with wings, punching them as is necessary. But they're holding back, pressing her, making her move …
A wild look to Fenris, she'll let them for now …
Fenris has cut through two more Einherjar and gets to the heart of the matter. He bounds at the Alfar who scatter like crows but he's only after one in particular whom is born to the ground with a blade at his throat. "Call them off or you feed Rhea!" He snaps.
"I… I can't! They're not mine!" Jyri seems panicked.
The Old Wolf growls and yanks his gale rod loose. Moments later winds knock over everything that isn't Jesana or Astryd. That should give the Valkyrie a chance to send them back.
Jes growls as all her targets are thrown aside and she leaps for the nearest landing with a rather sickening crunch on his chest and stomach. She's adjusted to her strength yes, sometime though, she forgets she's heavier now. For a moment she seems confused, why he is dying when she hasn't.. but it doesn't matter, this one is down and she rolls aside and comes up on her feet. Fenris said something? "Send them back?" Perhaps it's time to stop. Panting, Jes moves to Fenris's side and studies the elf. "Can I make him talk for you?" Her predatory expression might be worrisome but it's probably the fact that she seems unaware of the blood dripping from her shoulder and running down her side that is truly disconcerting.
The wind picks up around the Valkyrie, ruffling her feathers and whipping her hair round her face. Focussing on the Einherjar, wings flaring to their full wingspan, the grey eyed woman calls on her innate power and a portal opens … "Take your fallen comrades and head home, brothers. My sisters await you on the other side."
Stopping one of the older Einherjar just before he enters the portal, Astryd looks at him "Who called you and bound you to service, this time?"
The Einerjhar shakes his head. He cannot say. But he is glad to be going back to Odin's halls.
Fenris smiles to Jesana. "Not yet but if he fails to be forthcoming… yes. Now, pay attention because if you haven't started telling me things I want to know by the time the winged one has come back I'm going to feed you to one of these two fine ladies."
Now the elf does look nervous. "We were paid to look the other way. He worked through agents. Or it. We never saw him."
Jes grins at the elf and very slowly runs her tongue across her bottom lip and then again her front teeth. "Mmmm… there's nothing like live prey." She stalks up behind the elf and sniffs the side of his head, moving down along side his neck and hovering with her lips over his pulsepoint. She rumbles softly. "Can I eat him now?" Then licks the edge of the elf's earlobe with a wicked grin. He might not see it but it seems entirely sincere. Really she's just stunned by how stupid this creature is. What price in all the world could be worth pissing off her God-Wolf?
"Go in peace, Brother." Astryd lets the Einerjhar go. Grey eyes sad for a moment.
"He's too stringy for my tastes." Astryd responds to Jes as the coyote toys with the elf "Have at him, Jesana … and I'll have his soul when you're done. He will never find peace when we're done."
"Not yet Jesana." Fenris smirks. "What agents, elf?"
"Dwarves." Is the immediate response. "The dwarves west of here. In the mountains. There's a hold-"
"I'm familiar with it. Is that where you had your dealings?"
"No… they came to us. Said they'd pay us handsomely for the removal of any artifacts." Jyri is quite pale right now looking between Astryd and Jesana. "And they did. Left us things that we can parley over the mortals. And protection."
Fenris sighs. This is his hunting ground. Sure the elves live here, but…
"Well, what should we do with him ladies?"
Jesana's eyes flick towards Astryd for a moment. She heard the note of sadness and it suddenly hits her why and she winces internaly. She could have been a bit less..gleeful in her killing of their opponents. She'll need to remember if they face such a thing again. Her next expression might be more easily read by Fenris. It's the one Jes gets when she comes up with a particually "interesting" idea or question. Just what she's thought of the coyote keeps to herself for now.
Her mouth drops open in surprise when the elf starts talking again. Dwarves? Dwarves are real? Realizing the elf is looking at her, Jes licks her lips again and sighs longingly as she reaches out to poke at his middle. "Mmmmm.." Honestly she hates the taste of elf blood almost as much as human blood, not something the elf ever needs to know though. "He's too stupid to live, I think. I mean, really. What could they have offered you that you thought it worth betraying Fenris God-Wolf?" She truly wants to know.
The Dwarves again. Astryd sighs and her eyes fix on Fenris. Jes has already asked the question "I would like to see what they gave you." Perhaps Fenris or another Mage could divine them.
"Send him to your sister, Fenris. Let her decide his fate." Fenris sister might well enjoy a Elf for a plaything for awhile. Astryd has no use for such a thing.
"I… don't have it here…" The man stammers at Astryd. "But gold. Minor enchantments. Things that help, you know." He says.
"Yes dwarves are real." Fenris sighs and kicks Jyri. "Go. Hope that I do not see you again any time soon." Because that won't go well.
The elf flees without answering Jesana's question. It's, er, not worth it.
"Seems like we have to pay the dwarves a visit."
Jes stares after the elf with a predatory expression. She has his scent now, she very well may decide to go looking for him later. He betrayed her God and for gold? Gold? Jesana growls. "You were too kind to him I think." It's then that a voice murmurs in Jes's mind and she falters in her anger and looks around rather wildly. After a moment when whatever she looks for apparently doesn't appear, the demigod visibly relaxes and sighs. Before they can comment or ask she shakes her head. "What do dwarves look like? Are there many? How do we fight them?" She's not sure yet what she thinks about this new discovery.
"Much like you'd expect, I suppose." Astryd watches Jyri as he flees. "And it's probably 40 pieces of gold…" yeah, the goddess can have a wicked sense of humour at times.
"I guess we get to visit the Dwarves, then, Fenris…." and try to find out more about who is protecting the feather bearer.
"Short people, lots and you don't if it can be avoided. I'm not going to war against an entire race, Jesana." Fenris sighs and opens a Way. "Back to regroup before we go, er, beard the dwarves in their hold, as it were." And then he's through. Yes, they'll be going to the hold. After he gets a few things.
Jes follows after Fenris looking startled. That many? An entire race of dwarves here? Part of her is wary of such a vast enemy but mostly it thrills her. How many more things like this there must be in there world and she wants to discover them all. She's been exploring the wild and remote and everything in between since she joined Primal Force and she's still seen so very little. "Dwarves.." She breathes out in an excited whisper. It isn't until she's on the other side Jes remembers her injury and curses. "I need to stich this.." She moves off in search of Fenris's first aid supplies. It's not so bad she needs healing. Probably.
Stepping through the Way, casting a look over her shoulder, Astryd looks worried. The spear transforms to the Torc again that is fitted to her neck and wings furl till they disappear.
"Whoever it is, Fenris. Is powerful." She's got some thinking to do.