“AHTE-NAAH!” I shouted, stunned. As I ran forward to get to him, the male turned to run. “Oh no, you don’t! “HOLD PERSON!” and the man stopped in his tracks, one foot off the ground.
I raced up to the little boy, as his mother cradled his head in her lap. Blainaut, Thaddeus and Elizabet all ran up beside me. Elizabet held onto Blainaut, and buried her face in his shoulder, weeping.
“My boy! Why? Why would he kill you? What did you do to him to make him kill you!?” She screamed, sobbing.
“Let me have him. I can help. Please?” I raised my tear-filled eyes to her face. “Please?” I begged.
She lay him gently on the ground, and he looked over at me, his breathing ragged, bubbling sounds coming from inside his chest. He weakly raised a hand to me, and I took it in my left hand.
“Don’t worry, son. I’m here. I’m going to fix you up, okay? This won’t hurt a bit.” I lay my right hand on his chest, and spoke the words of healing, “Unfeeling flesh, make well, return to health” and with a smooth, swift motion, pulled the knife from the boy’s ribs.
“NOOO! YOU’VE KILLED HIM! YOU’VE KILLED MY SON!” His mother raged and screamed, and began beating me and clawing at my face.
I held an arm up, warding off most of the blows and scratches. I rolled Ahte-naah onto his side, and pounded on his back a couple of times, and he gasped, inhaling a great lung full of air, and coughed, hacking up a blood clot, which he spat on the ground.
His mother, hearing him cough, halted her attack, and I lowered my arm. She looked down at her son, and picked him up, inspecting him for any wounds. She cradled him close, “But…you… He stabbed you. How do you live? What sorcery is this?” She looked up at me, awe evident across her face.
I smiled and reached out to cup her cheek. “My lady, I can use magic. I healed him of his wounds, and he will be just fine, now. What is your name?”
She leaned into my warm hand, and held it to her cheek. “I am called Talah-ma’at.”
“Talah-ma’at. I care for your three sons, just as if they were my own children. As do my three companions. Now. If you’ll excuse me, my lady, there is the matter of the attempted murder to attend to.” I smiled and rose, my face hardening.
“kill him. remove the stain, remove the taint, remove the filth. he killed our child, killed him, killed him, killed him. he must die, yes. die die die die diediediediedieDIE!”
It was only through great effort that I resisted my Anger, and remained calm.
I walked over to the man, and stood in front of him. Compared to the rest of his people, he was huge. Just over five feet tall, his shoulders broad, his frame well-muscled. I realized he would be a fairly fierce fighter.
“Now you.” I said, as I stepped in front of him. “I’m going to release you. If you attempt to run, I’ll simply hold you again. I can do this all day. I certainly hope you will be cooperative, and I won’t have to resort to more…. drastic measures.” I crossed my arms.
Before I could speak again, Elizabet stepped up to me, and faced him. “You should do as he says. He can literally force you to do it, if he wants. I watched him kill nine people armed with only a staff. He hit one so hard, he was thrown upwards a couple of feet.” She leaned in close. “And that was a human. Imagine what would happen to you if he did the same to you.” She stepped back, standing beside me.
I addressed the crowd, “Everyone? Please stand back. If he decides to run, let him go. I’ll just get him again. Okay? Thank you.”
The crowd parted, forming a circle around the three of us. I knelt, touched the ground and whispered “Shape earth” and three seats arose from the ground. I touched the man on the forehead, and spoke the word“Release”, and he stumbled into me. I caught his wrists and smiled.
“Well, sir. Would you please have a seat?” I motioned to the three seats.
The man looked around, and I could see the tension in his muscles. I could see how badly he wanted to run. Sighing, he took a seat. Elizabet and I did the same.
“Thank you. Now, I suppose introductions are in order. I’m Ivor, and this is Elizabet, my Lady.” As I said that, her head whipped around to face me, and she turned red, giggling softly. “And you are?”
The man leaned forward, his elbows on his knees, fingers laced with his chin resting atop. “I am called Talah-ahte. What do you want, human?” He spat.
“Talah-ahte? I suppose then, that you are the father of those three?” He nodded. “Why, then, would you kill your own son?” I glared at him, as the crow flew from the old man’s staff and landed on Elizabet’s shoulder.
He stared at the crow for a moment, then said “He was never supposed to return. None of them were. They were supposed to be sold and I was to get food for my people to last the winter. I got the food, but they are here. They aren’t supposed to be.”
The crow cawed at Talah-ahte a few times, and he was visibly dismissive. I took the moment to gently stroke the bird's plumage, hoping to calm it down.
“You know, you shouldn’t ignore her. I don’t know what she was saying to you, but I know you should not ignore her. The Great Mother may be kind and loving, but I would wager that there are crimes she cannot forgive.” I shook my head sadly.
“What does a human know of The Great Mother? You know nothing! She was there when I sold the runts! She saw it all, and she did nothing! And I’m supposed to be concerned about what she thinks? Paah. Never again.” Talah-ahte was getting angrier by the minute.
“What do I know of her? Well, for starters, she brought me to this world. Specifically to end the practice that you seemed so keen on perpetuating. She brought me and my gods to Chaia. The only reason I haven’t sent you to meet her is because she’s right here.” I motioned to the crow, who bobbed her head a couple of times.
“The crow? Anyone can train a crow. IF that’s The Great Mother, then she can tell me herself what she thinks!” He was suddenly standing, hands clenched into fists of rage.
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Before I could react, the crow was no more. Beside us stood a translucent, shimmering image of The Great Mother, just as I saw her in Asgard.
The crowd went to their knees in supplication. I simply looked over at her and smiled. “It is good to see you again, My Lady. I didn’t expect you to intervene.”
She smiled at me, and lay an ethereal hand upon my cheek. Her voice was warm and smooth, like fresh honey “And you, Ivor. I am glad to see that you have been able to maintain your temper. I know how it rages and boils inside you right now.” She turned to Talah-ahte, and knelt beside him.
“My child. Why have you done this? Why would you murder your own child? Tell me true, son.” She embraced him, and he wept on her shoulder.
“We were hungry, Mother! Hungry, and you were not answering our calls! I did what had to be done. Three children to last the winter? A good trade. Now that they are back, the humans will return and take their supplies back. As well as several of us. We cannot survive that. We will be too few to fight them off. I had to remove them, and keep them from sight. Surely you understand, Mother?” Tears flowed down his face freely.
“Oh, child. My child. There were ample supplies, had your people ranged another mile to the southeast. I will not simply give you the things you need. I give you the opportunity to take them. You failed in your task, my child. You failed in keeping your family safe and fed. And then you attempted to cover it up.” She sadly shook her head.
“You must be punished, my son.” She looked at me.
“I claim the right of vengeance, My Lady.” I said, standing tall.
The Elder rapped his staff on the hard packed dirt. “You are not the boy’s father! You can claim no such thing!”
“Oh, but he can, my son. Since Ivor met these children, he has treated them like his own. He has loved them and cared for them. Played with them and scolded them. He and his companions have endeavored to be the family they were deprived of thanks to this one’s actions!” The Great Mother had risen to her full height, still clutching Talah-ahte like a babe. “I say he is just as much their father as this one is. More so, in fact. He has been their father since day one. It’s part of why I chose him. Part of why I brought him here to Chaia. Ivor claims right of vengeance, and I support him.” She set Talah-ahte down gently.
I looked at Elizabet. “Elizabet, take my coat and the bag.” I said, taking my gloves from the pocket. I pulled off the bag and my coat, handing them to her.
“Be safe, my love.” She whispered, and kissed me softly.
“I will. You can count on that.” I pulled the gloves on, and turned to face the boys’ father.
“Well? Are you going to attempt to kill me, Talah-ahte?” I spread my arms wide. “I’m unarmed, and I swear I’ll not use magic on you. That would be too easy. You, however, may use any weapon you wish. Go ahead. I’ll wait.” I crossed my arms.
Talah-ahte growled, and looked around, hoping to find support. Seeing none, he spread his hands, and crouched down into an offensive posture. “Pitiful human. The Haarthuu have natural armor, natural weapons. We have claws that rip, teeth that tear, hard scaled to help fend off blows. I need nothing to kill you.” He leapt forward with surprising speed, and I felt two swipes across my belly.
I looked down, and saw my shirt was untouched. “Try again, Talah-ahte. It looks like you missed me.” I laughed at him.
“What? No! Impossible. I hit you twice. Your insides should be spilled all over the ground, ready for me to feast upon. Humans always go back on their word.”
“Oh really? Let’s even the odds, then. It’s true, my shirt has been spelled to fend off all attacks. So, let’s take care of that, shall we?” I walked to Elizabet, removing my shirt in the process. “I’ll be back for this.”
I turned to face my foe. “Let it never be said that I am not willing to fight fairly. Try again, Talah-ahte.”
The reptilian man leapt forward again, claws extended, and swiped at my midsection. This time, however, I anticipated the attack, and grabbed his arm. Using his momentum, I pivoted to my left, and slung him into the dirt, watching him roll away.
He rose, clearly disoriented, and I waited for him to clear his head. “Human! I’ll kill you, yet!” He roared and charged at me, leaping into the air, teeth bared. I darted to my left, ending up about ten feet farther than expected. He quickly spun in my direction and charged again. This time, instead of leaping, he simply balled his fist up and punched me in the jaw, and I felt a crack.
“Hah! First blood is mine!” The man crowed, raising a triumphant fist in the air.
I merely nodded, and placed my hand to my face. “Knit bone, heal wounds” I muttered. A moment later, I felt my jaw realign, and searing heat flashed through my face, and I shrieked loudly in pain. “Very good, Talah-ahte. You hit hard. I’ll grant you that. Would you like to taste mine?” I spat blood onto the dirt, and readied my fists again, bouncing on the balls of my feet.
“You liar! You swore no magic!”
“On you, yes. Never said a word about myself. Come on. Hit me again. I dare you.” I leaned forward, exposing my chin and throat.
Talah-ahte screamed defiance and sprinted at me once more. His claws spread wide, he attempted to swipe at my face, until I landed a quick jab with my right hand into his palm, and I felt something snap. He screamed and clutched his hand, one of the digits bent at an unnatural angle. Grasping the offended part, he yanked it back into place, and experimentally flexed his hand.
“Care to try again? I’ve yet to break a sweat.” I walked around the perimeter of the circle, the onlookers gawking at me.
Talah-ahte growled and stalked toward me, his hands opening and closing rhythmically. Standing in the middle of the circle, he seemed to be breathing heavily, in an odd pattern. I walked closer, my hand poised to attack, and that’s when he did the unthinkable.
A gout of fire washed over me.
If you’ve never been set on fire, be thankful. It is excruciating. I screamed, and dropped to the ground, rolling over and over in an effort to put the flames out. I could feel my flesh bubbling, smell the stench of my hair as it burned away. I rolled over and over, trying to put the flames out.
“IVOR!” Elizabet screamed. She was screaming, sobbing hysterically, but was held back by the throng of people. “Ivor! Water! Whatever water you can! Use it!”
I tried to calm myself, I truly did. The only thing I could come up with was “Water sphere!” And I then found myself in another predicament.
I had understandably cast the spell on myself. However, I was now engulfed in a sphere of cool water, and the flames were slowly extinguished. I was still in incredible pain, however. Unfortunately, I also inhaled some of the water, leading me to cough, which caused me to inhale more. Once I lost concentration, the water fell, and I hit the dirt heavily. Heaving, I began to expel the water in my lungs, coughing through a scorched throat. I breathed in sweet air, only to cough blood and fleshy bits out.
Clutching my chest, I raspily spoke again: “Heal wounds, knit flesh” and writhed on the ground in unimaginable pain. The pain of healing burns raced through my body in moments, feeling like a lifetime. As the nerves regenerated, more pain spread across my body. I screamed in wordless agony as my wounds healed, and my flesh knitted back together.
Chest heaving, flesh steaming, I stood once more, facing the powerful man. My stomach growled in protest. This time, I went on the offensive, and sprinted towards the scaled man.
Drawing back my right hand and arm, I offered a silent prayer to Thor, asking for the strength to do what needed doing.
As I reached the man, his mouth opened wide, I saw a glow begin in the back of his throat, and my fist rocketed forward, right into the man’s lower jaw. I felt resistance, and then nothing as my fist passed through his jawbone.
Talah-ahte stood still, his chest expanding ever larger. He fell to his knees and pitched forward, his body swelling obscenely.
“Ivor! He will explode!” I heard the Great Mother say.
Realizing many lives were quite literally in the line of fire, I dropped to my knees, slamming my palms to the ground, and shouted “Dome of Force!” and saw a shimmering dome appear over Talah-ahte’s body. Seconds later, he detonated, spraying fire and flesh all across the inside of the dome. I waited until the fire consumed all the oxygen and burned itself out, then released the dome. Smoke rose from the three foot deep crater, and all that was left of the boys’ father was a pile of greasy, smoking ash.