HELHEIM: SKYLAR
She darted through the trees. In truth she didn't need to scout, the area was easily survey-able from the cliff anyways. She just needed to let the boys have time to themselves, and she wanted to have some space.
She pondered what the boys would do in her absence, they'd be happy, and that's enough for her. She began carving pattern onto one of the trees, completely immersed in her thoughts. She vowed that Victor would be happy, oh and Maximilian wasn't a bad fit for him. She loved how awkward they could be around each other. Maximilian was a leader, a born warrior, but one cannot fight love. And Victor was a trickster at heart, he was always a cynic, and could she blame him? He was a very cerebral person, but love could not be thought through. Like the old saying went, put two blind people on a field and eventually they'll find each other. And she truly hoped their hearts would find each other.
She kept carving, her knives splitting the bark with rigorous force and artistic precision. She was weaving an abstract web of lines, almost absentmindedly.
What was love to her? She knew where she stood of course. That would never waver. But love isn't just romantic, it's what she felt for her friends, and that love, that love was unkillable. They were the two other people that mattered.
There was a rustling if the leaves behind her.
Skylar whipped around and drew her bow.
Staring back at her was a woman with her own white hair, silver pauldrons ghostly white tunic, sharp features. It was her mother. A ghost.
She had known deep down this would have happened. There was always the dread that her mother hadn't made it out. But the hope he always existed but it no longer existed to comfort her. Skylar felt her eyes tear up: "Mother is it really you?"
Skadi smiled sadly, her translucent features blew in a non existent wind: "I regret, not in the flesh."
Skylar felt her voice being caught, as tears began building in her eyes: "No... no... no... mother... I'm sorry. I should have stayed for you."
Skadi shook her head: "I told you keep Victor safe and you have. But more importantly, if you stay safe I feel I wouldn't have been gone in vain."
Skylar bowed her head in shame: "Will you forgive me mother? How can I ever live with myself knowing I failed you?"
Skadi brushed her ghostly white fingers under Skylar's chin, Skylar instinctively tried to reach for it but her fingers passed through them. Skadi's voice came to reassure the girl on her knees: "You haven't Skylar. But I had to see you once. Now go make me proud." And Skadi's ghost dissipated back into whence it came.
Skylar closed her eyes when the wind blew through her mother's ghost and softly whispered: "Rest well mother."
Skylar packed up her things. And headed back to the cliff with new resolve and peace in her. She climbed up the steps to see the two boys had fallen asleep on each other watching the forest below. She couldn't help but feel happy for them, she simply laughed and draped a cloak over them. Before she went to take a dip in the stream to clean herself off.
When she drifted off under the trees, she was woken by the sound of struggling where Maximilian and Victor were sleeping. She grabbed her bow and knives and ran out to see what was going on. She was too late, she saw a chariot drawn by skeletal horses speed off, no doubt with her friends in it. She fired two arrows at the wheel but chariots swerved out of the way.
Her hunter instincts kicked and shot a grapple arrow at an overhung tree that seemed firmly rooted, and jumped off the cliff, using it to swing high up. The swing gave her almost 10 feet of lift and she saw the chariot speed into the dead woods below her, weaving like a snake through the trees. She shot two arrows midair and saw them collide with the chariot causing it to smash into several trees. She landed back on the ground and slid back down the cliff side to examine the wreck and find her friends. The chariot was made of black wood and the horses were now piled messes of bone. She drew another two arrows and moved to the door. She cried out: "Come out. Or I will stick this thing with enough arrows to make it look like a porcupine."
The doors opened and two boys stepped out, one looked about as old as the three were, the other looked slightly younger. However both boys were perfect twins. They both had seaweed green hair that was tousled like Victor's, they had yellow eyes like gold. Their faces were impish, they looked Latino almost. They were by no means ugly but Surtur be blessed if they weren't scruffy. They wore different tunics, one wore a grey fur coat, the other a brown one. Both wore black leather pants. However the younger had a white scar across his neck. The taller boy held Maximilian in a chokehold with Gram unsheathed at Maximilian's throat. The shorter boy held Victor the same way with Victor's blade at his throat. Both Victor and Maximilian were bound with rune covered cord and gagged. Maximilian's eyes were wild as the blade hovered close to Victor's neck, while Victor's eyes were squeezed shut and small tears rolled down his cheeks. The taller boy smiled at Skylar, he looked very similar to Victor when he smiled: "Hello darling. The name's Narvi, the other fine fellow there is my brother Vali. Sons of Loki at your service. Now take another step and I'll slit your friends' throats. Now run along."
Skylar didn't waver: "I'm guessing you don't care much for family?" She nodded at Victor.
Vali spoke, his voice a touch higher pitched than Narvi: "Oh quote on the contrary, we get special dispensation from our sister Hela so we have a body and in return we obey only her, our own law, and our illustrious father Loki! Now your friend here has slandered our father and Loki has plans for him. Now please, you look like a pretty reasonable young lady, so leave us be."
Skylar looked at her friends. Victor's eyes were open now, his eyes blazing with anger. Maximilian was still fixated on Victor. Skylar realised that Vali and Narvi would probably respond very well to this form of persuasion, a tactic Victor tried before. She was going to hate herself for this, but for her friends she would attempt even this.
She lowered her bow and sighed dramatically: "You're right I can beat you two. Perhaps we can discuss this somewhere private?" Running her hand down her hair, letting her shirt's shoulder fall a little. Tentatively biting her lip. She saw three different reactions, Maximilian had a very confused look, Victor looked like he'd been hit with a spanner, and the other two boys looked like they had struck gold. Narvi spoke first: "Well of course we can come to an arrangement."
Internally Skylar was bewildered by their stupidity in lust, but who was she to judge? If it worked. In a matter of moments, both Victor and Maximilian were tied up to the tree and Skylar had to leave her weapons behind. And the boys, grinning from ear to ear, lead Skylar into their crashed chariot.
