Ragnarok Unwound: The Awakening

Chapter 15

This is disgusting!

Val sneered as her horse trotted through the mix of mud, soil and fecal matter. She was thankful she had decided against heavy furs as the rain poured mercilessly down upon them. Looking back she could see her her two silent companions riding behind her.

To her left was Rem, who had been distraught since the day Keir and Allison took their leave. Two weeks is not enough time for such petty emotions? Val scoffed loudly, earning a hard gaze from the man. He had pulled his long hair back and properly trimmed his beard. With the few pounds he had put on in muscle and in the armor Keir had given him, he appeared to be a very comely Norse warrior. It was hard to believe that not to long ago he was nothing more than a Roman slave. Val never ceased to be surprised by the man, even after he so easily guessed that she was half Greek. When she asked how he knew he simply responded that he once "knew a woman like her". Shaking her head with annoyance she turned to her other companion.

Stephan rode the horse with a blank stare, his eyes never coming up to meet hers. Val frowned at how distant her only true friend had become. It felt like it had been ages since the last time they talked. Even when Freya let her choose her companions for the mission and she chose him, he could barely look at her. What the Hel? Seriously, what did I do to make him act like such a little girl?

"Val," His voice was a phantom of a whisper but Val could feel the cold sting of hatred in it. Her heart suddenly dropped and she pulled her horse to a halt.

"What?" The word came out crueler than what was intended. She watched as Stephan's gaze whipped up in a narrowed stare.

"Why did you lie to me? Why didn't you tell me?" His voice began a harsh growl with every word. Val couldn't help the confusion that racked her brain.

"I haven't lied to you!" She protested, knowing that wasn't completely true. Stephan scoffed and gestured to area around them.

"You never told me your mother was some sort of Amazon! Or the fact that your father is Odin, literally a god! Tell me, did you know that was going to happen at the school? That, that thing was going to attack the gym and hurt Angie?" He was furious in a way that Val had never seen before; his face bright red and his eyes filled with hate. She wasn't surprised that he found out about her parentage, she was just surprised by his response to it. More so, she was angry due to their situation and what he was implying.

"First and foremost, my mother is not an Amazon! Secondly, I never told you because I wanted to keep you out of all of this madness! And finally; yes, I did know that serpent would attack the gym, I just didn't know that you and your girlfriend would be sneaking around in there!" She bit back with anger she had never shown towards him. He was obviously caught off guard by her honesty. Val found herself indifferent to that. Instead all she felt was rage and the feeling of being hurt. Which in turn only made her desire for him to feel hurt.

"Do you honestly believe that I wanted you here?" Val continued before he could respond. "Do you honestly believe that you are that special? Do you believe that you are some special person with a special fate? That were special enough for me to want to share this part of my life with you? You would be sitting in a History Class right now if not for your own stupid affection for that girl!"

"That 'girl' was my girlfriend! And because of you she was hospitalized!"

"Your girlfriend was cheating on you with half of the basketball team! Now, shut up, I don't have time to deal with you!" Val wanted to catch herself before the cruel words formed. Why? He needs to hear the truth! Why would I feel bad about this?

Stephan fell silent at that, his face a mix of shock and horror. The pain was visible in his eyes and it was obvious that he was hearing this for the first time. Val knew what would come next for him, he would fall into heartbroken dispair. She scowled, not wanting to hear him complain and cry.