Valhalla Arena
Medical Ward
"Did you feel that?" Izanagi said, stopping for a moment. He could feel something, something almost within reach, shatter beyond repair. Susano'o, Amaterasu, and Tsukuyomi stopped and looked back at their father.
"That monstrous aura?" Amaterasu asked. "Sure did. Haven't felt something like that since…Huh, I think it was because that Greek girl went nuts in Asgard, right? Tsuku?"
"That sounds right, but here in the Medical Ward? Probably just Zeus doing something absurd." Is that what they felt? Izanagi thought. He briefly glanced at Susano'o, who shared his worried look, before looking ahead. No…this is different. Familiar. "Ha. You're probably right, Tsuku. Come on." He walked past them, and the three followed. Susano'o's confused look did not go unnoticed by his father. Sano'o. You felt it too, didn't you? Something happened far away from here. Something powerful. He pulled out his tablet as he walked, tapping on the screen to bring up a text chain.
I am taking a brief trip. Do not worry about me, and focus on watching Takemikazuchi. I should be back before Round Ten starts. We will catch up then.
He shook his head as he walked. Izanagi focused, creating a rhythm with his footsteps and soft breaths. Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu could not sense it, but Susano'o could feel the change in his father, thanks to the constant years of martial training pushing him to a level of awareness his more diplomatic siblings had yet to reach. An invisible force slowly emanated from his body and extended in all directions. Susano'o felt it envelop him and the entire hall as they walked. Father. Susano'o thought. What're you doing? What're you trying to see?
None of them could sense the force expanding out of the hall, out of the wing, then out of the arena and throughout the sky. It reached across the heavens, reaching Svarga, Asgard, Olympus, Tír na nÓg, Vyraj, Ekur, Tian, and beyond. It eventually reached Manu and pierced through the boundary separating it from the rest of the Heavens. The force enveloped the land. He then found what he sought, sensing a familiar presence, and the lack of another. His brow furrowed, his head hung low. You…went and did it, didn't you, Brother? You went to Manu…and put down Ra. Izanagi saw the end of the hall make a sharp left turn and heard voices around the corner. As he turned, he saw a crowd of burly men in mawashis and langots standing in the hall, crowded outside of a room.
"Come on!" One of the Rikishi near the center of the crowd said. "We want to see him!" In front of him stood Johannes Lichtenauer, accompanied by Reginleif on his right. To his left and leaning on the wall next to the door was Hanuman, shifting his gaze between Johannes and the growing crowd of wrestlers.
"And I said you can wait until he's out and recovered. The last thing anyone needs right now is you lot overcrowding the damn room." Johannes retorted. One of the Rikishi in a deep-blue mawashi stepped forward.
"Old man-"
A murderous aura exploded out of Johannes. "Old man?" His voice reverberated off the walls. Hanuman leaned away slightly as Reginleif floated stoically by his side, and Izanagi's family stopped in their tracks. The army of Rikishi and Pehlwan leaned back a little from the Rikishi who misspoke.
"…Sir," The Rikishi said. "We just want to check on our teacher. That battle nearly killed him, and we're worried about him."
"Well, that's fine and dandy, but right now he needs peace and quiet. Speaking from experience here. Now leave," He turned to Hanuman and glared at him. "All of you."
"What? Me too?" Hanuman asked.
"Especially you. They're here to check on him, but you want to fight him."
"I mean, yeah, but only when he's ready. No point in fighting someone so beaten up!" Hanuman smiled, showing his teeth. "We can have a go if you-"
"Nope," Johannes pointed down the hall opposite of Izanagi. "That way."
Hanuman deflated and hunched over. "Fine. I'll leave a message with you. Tell Takemikazuchi he's not to fight anyone but me first after he gets out."
"I'll relay the message," Johannes said flatly. I thought those hucksters back in the day were smug, but Lord, you're awful. However, seems like you can back it up. Takemikazuchi's got his hands full…
Hanuman stood up and walked to the left. The wrestlers cleared a path for him as he walked, and followed after. A few looked back at Johannes instinctively, but departed with the rest. Johannes' aura faded as they left, and Izanagi's party continued to walk their way.
"I was wondering what was going on," Izanagi said. "Did not realize how popular Take was." Johannes looked their way listlessly. His eyes quietly lit up at the sight of Susano'o.
"He beat Ghulam and made a bold declaration." Johannes and Reginleif turned to them. "It only makes sense."
"Wait," Tsukuyomi interjected. "Aren't you the Human-"
"Swordsman." Johannes interrupted.
A vein popped up on Tsukuyomi's brow under his silvery bowl cut. Amaterasu covertly elbowed his arm while hidden behind her father. "Swordsman who killed Futsunushi?"
"I am. I was also his last teacher and am acting in a way to pay homage to him." Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi shared confused looks while Susano'o and Izanagi softly smiled.
"You are too kind," Izanagi said. "You didn't have to."
"I know that, but Futsunushi would've if he were in my position."
Susano'o walked forward and stood next to his father. "We got it from here, Meister."
"I figured as much." Johannes rolled his neck and shoulders. "I know when I'm not wanted." Johannes and Reginleif turned and walked down the hall. What a shame. I wanted to learn more about that Musouken technique.
"He's an odd one," Izanagi said. Amaterasu smiled behind her father, hearing the tinge of happiness in his voice.
"But a good one. He's the kind of man Futsunushi needed to fight, but I think I put the two of them in a rough spot." Susano'o said. The other three looked at him as he watched Johannes walk away. Halfway down the hall, he let out a loud sneeze and wiped his nose on his sleeve, earning a pinch on the same arm from Reginleif. "I made not only Futsu and Take fight dangerous opponents, but kindred souls." He recalled the iconic duel between two swordsmen on Ganryu Island. "Even if they won, they'd never be the same. Taking the life of a peer you respect so deeply, despite the path calling for it, is never easy…and it may be the hardest thing they'll ever do."
Izanagi looked at his son, seeing the slight sadness in his appearance. You're right, Sano'o. More than you know. He gripped the tablet in his hand a little tighter. I hope you can forgive yourself for performing that mercy kill, Brother. The Ra we knew died a long time ago, and were he to see what he would become, he'd ask you to do the same.
Valhalla Arena
Medical Ward
One Floor Down
Leo's Room
A knock came at the threshold of Leo's room. "Excuse me," Li said, stopping at the entrance and looking in, spotting Hrist, Göll, and Komatsuhime setting the furniture back up. Alvitr stood next to him, her eyes scanning the room. "May we enter?"
"Uh, yeah," Hrist answered, setting the metal chair back under the table. "What brings you here?"
"I want to speak to Brünhilde and tell her we are going next." Li walked into the room, stopping next to a small table.
"Happy for you, but she's kind of busy right now." Li slightly cocked his head to the side and raised his right eyebrow. Not even interested in what happened? Single-minded fight nut.
"A friend of hers stopped by and asked her to go with her," Leo added.
"Where to?"
"Hell if I know," Hrist added. "But it's best you don't get in the way."
"Hrist, was it Pandora?" Alvitr asked. She nodded. "Craaaap…this is bad, Li." Li looked back to her. "Those two are best friends, but there's a lot of stuff going on between them. We do not need to interrupt them."
"I am not tactless," Li answered. "Whatever they're dealing with is not my concern. However, this is." Li walked over to Leo's pod and stopped in front of it. "Leo."
"…Yes, Li?" Leo answered hesitantly.
"I heard you in Round Eight saying you could not take your heart out of the fight, unlike one of your peers. Was that me?"
Crap… Leo thought. "Yeah, it was."
Li stifled a small chuckle. "Well said. It's not in my nature, but I acknowledge that it's not the same for everyone. That does not make it wrong or right, but I have dealt with many whose hearts lead them to their deaths at my hands. However, that was not you, and you proved it can be worthwhile." Li tapped on the pod with the knuckle of his right index finger. "Like you said, we are trying. Each in our own ways. I confess I expected you to lose." Leo flinched a little. "I expected Ghulam and I to pick up the slack after you fell, but no. You came through. I failed to recognize your earnest effort and lost a bet to him because of it."
"I hope it wasn't money you lost," Leo said sheepishly.
"No, Leo, but that's not what I want to tell you." He breathed deeply. "Leo, Ghulam was proud of you. You earned your win. You kept your promise to him and Tadakatsu." Li could sense but not see the tears flowing from Leo's eyes, mixing with the gold liquid in the pod. "You held the torch high, and now know the weight of carrying someone's world in your hands. Ghulam took them both and fought the good fight…" An aura, quiet but fierce and strong, emanated from Li's body. "…and now it is my turn to carry them. You can't watch me, Leo, but know I will carry the torch forward. Carry my share of the world. I will step up to the challenge," The aura exploded out, shaking the room. Hrist, Göll, and Komatsuhime braced against it, while Alvitr remained unaffected. "And I will win."
What the hell?! Komatsuhime thought. This feels like Pandora's! Who is this man?!
"Alvitr, are you ready?" Li asked without looking her way. She nodded. "Göll."
"Y-Yeah?" She answered, bracing against the table.
Li turned to face her. "You got a strong look in your eye. Keep it, and watch us until the end."
Göll nodded. The aura disappeared, and the two departed.
The Heavens
Eden
Far west from the affairs of Valhalla Arena, rested Eden. The once scared garden that acted as Humanity's first home before their 'fall,' the term garden is often considered a misnomer. It is also not a vast forest as some may believe. Nay, it is a prototype for building worlds. Fields, forests, tundra, and deserts make up just a few of the biomes that exist within Eden. Flora and fauna of all kinds exist here from all points in time, and were any of Humanity's greatest scientific minds to ever gaze upon it, it would bring them to tears.
It was here, in one of Eden's vast open prairies, that Brünhilde and Pandora stood behind ornate, white, wooden chairs on opposite ends of a small round table. In the center was an ornate tea set with a multi-level platter of cookies and cakes. Next to Pandora was a dirty red and black duffle bag, and she rested her hands on the chair's back. "So, Hilde. Shall we begin? Like old times?" She asked.
"Aren't we too old for this?" Brünhilde asked, eyeing the duffle bag.
"Never," Pandora smiled ruefully. "It's the only way I can get you to talk half the time."
Brünhilde shook her head. But Brew and Bruise? Really?"
"I always preferred 'Smack and Sip.'" Pandora crouched down and unzipped the bag, pulling out two pairs of boxing gloves, one red and the other blue. "You still prefer blue?"
Brünhilde pursed her lips. "Pan, do we have to-"
"You owe me, Hilde." Pandora glared at her. "You owe me a damn lot more than you think." She tossed the blue gloves into Brünhilde's chair. "Your Dad made this game for us for this exact situation. Now play it."
Brünhilde met her gaze unflinchingly. "…Fine. Get the timer." She picked up her gloves and set them down on the grass next to her chair as she sat down. Pandora put the red pair next to her chair, then pulled a small hourglass out of her bag. She set it down in the middle of the table and sat down.
"One minute." Pandora declared.
"One minute." Brünhilde acknowledged.
Pandora turned the hourglass, and sand flowed down. "I'm first. Starting from the most recent shit you pulled, did you know Set was going to recruit my dad?"
"No, but the moment I saw Hephaestus was on Set's Roster, I had to come up with a plan to defeat him should he ever fight. I had to, not wanted to."
"Even if he was my dad? The one who made that hairpin for Siegfried to give you?"
"Don't act like I wanted to kill him." Brünhilde glared at her. "I loved him like family, but he chose this path because of what that bastard Prometheus did to you." Brünhilde lifted the teapot and poured a cup for Pandora and herself. "You don't have a damn clue what it feels like to kill the people you love."
Pandora's face scrunched up a little as memories of Epimetheus flowed into her mind. "I know you're acting for Humanity, but are you going to kill all of us to protect them? Sacrifice us? Even Sieg?"
"If I could save Humanity without anyone dying, I would, and all this is for Sieg." The hourglass emptied, and a soft tone played. Brünhilde and Pandora grabbed their gloves and rose. They walked several meters away from the table as they slid the gloves on. The two stopped and turned to each other. The hourglass automatically turned, and the sand flowed once more.
Both immediately took a fighting stance; Pandora brought her arms close to her chest, peeking over her gloves, while Brünhilde squared up. Pandora dashed in, bobbing and weaving quickly enough to leave after-images. Brünhilde snapped her left leg up, kicking her skirt up as she fired a spear kick towards Pandora's chest. Pandora slipped to the right, the kick barely missing her left arm. Grit your damn teeth, Hilde! Pandora's knees turned to the right, turning her hips, back, and shoulders counter-clockwise back to Brünhilde. The natural spin of her body fired her right hand like a bullet straight at Brünhilde's exposed left cheek.
Brünhilde hopped back on her planted right foot and spun her body mid-hop. She retracted her spear kick, using the momentum from her hop to dodge Pandora's skull-crushing right cross. The punch passed through Brünhilde's hair as she continued her short spin. She stomped her left down, raising her right leg and swinging it to the left under Pandora's punch. Her shin collided with Pandora's left arm and pushed against it her torso. Still balanced on her left foot, Brünhilde whipped her right leg back and fired it back towards Pandora's face just above her gloves. Pandora rolled to the left, the kick barely missing her as it crashed down to the earth and kicked up topsoil with a heavy thud. Pandora snapped back to the right, her body's mechanics twisting and firing a left hook to Brünhilde's exposed face. Brünhilde curled her right leg and fired it back towards Pandora. Pandora parried it with her right elbow while her fist collided with Brünhilde's raised right arm. Pandora continued the twist, and the force of the blow, even while blocked, threw Brünhilde off her planted foot. She fell back a few meters, but got her feet back under her, staying upright.
Pandora tucked back into her stance and dashed. Brünhilde slowly raised her right leg. That won't work again, Hilde! Pandora roared mentally. She sped up, creating more afterimages as she moved. Brünhilde snapped her right leg out, and Pandora slipped to the left, only to feel a strong blow strike her temple just above her guard. Brünhilde had snapped her right leg back mid-kick and fired a right cross. Brünhilde quickly regained her stance, twisted to the right, and fired a left hook towards the same spot her cross struck. It made contact, and Pandora stumbled back a few meters.
The tone played again. Pandora and Brünhilde, breathing heavily, relaxed from their stances. "When the hell did you learn that?" Pandora asked. She put her left arm under her right armpit and pulled her hand out of her glove. Brünhilde copied her and both dropped their gloves as they walked back to the table.
"Týr. Even after everything happened to Sieg, he still takes time to teach me a few things here and there. Seems like Apollo still trains you."
Pandora smiled. "I am still his best student. Not an out-boxer like him, 'cause brawling is more my speed. He's still a pain in the ass sometimes." She rubbed the spot on her head where Brünhilde hit her. "Trying to be a 'better teacher' with all his 'know thyself' stuff. Gets irritating."
"Pfft! He can be!" Brünhilde said, chuckling as her arm swelled under her sleeve. "But he means well." The two reached the table and sat down. Guess it's back to the real questions, now. She brought the teacup up to her face, taking in the aromas.
"It's your favorite blend," Pandora said. "The same one we drank after we did this as kids." The soft tone played, and the hourglass turned. "Damn it," She shook her head. "What did you mean by this is all for Sieg?"
"Sieg's life…is tethered to Humanity's survival. After he was imprisoned, I did everything I could to keep myself sane. Training, work, reading, anything. It was during all this madness, I found something horrifying."
"What?"
"While going through my dad's old things in his study, I found old journals. I was trying to find things that reminded me of better times before his…" She paused for a moment. "…his betrayal and death."
"What did you find?"
"Everything he, Izanagi, and Ra tried to hide. The truth about the Primordial Gods, why they died, and Sieg's part in all this."
"What?"
"Yes. He kept everything. I don't know why, but it was all there."
"So what you found made you declare Ragnarök?" The tone chimed. Time to change the subject again. Fuck, I hate this game sometimes. "Come on, Hilde. We got work to do." Pandora rose out of her chair and walked back to her gloves. Brünhilde followed cautiously behind her. "So why did Týr train you?"
"He's one of Sieg's best friends and a God of Justice. Maybe he felt his inability to help Sieg made him reach out. I don't know, but I'm happy he was there."
Pandora rolled her eyes without Brünhilde noticing. Damn it, Týr, you're being too kind. This is why you didn't end up with Hilde. She shook her head. No, that's not fair…you two would never have been happy together. Not the way she was with Sieg. She smiled a little when she reached the spot where she had left her gloves. Hilde…you'd even fight against us to save him? She slipped her hands into her gloves, her smile widening. Didn't know you had it in you! She turned around to face her friend, who already had her gloves on and was in a boxer's stance. "You ass. Going to try and out-box me now?"
"Maaaaaaybe," Brünhilde answered, lightly punching her fists together.
"Hilde, before we start, I have one more question."
"You said to play the game. I'm playing." She nodded. "Go for it."
"Did you hope Prometheus would show up in Ragnarök?"
Brünhilde's expression hardened, and her gaze went cold. "I didn't, but my gut told me he'd show up somehow. Humanity's future was on the line, and I doubt the Circles would hold that deceitful bastard forever. It helped that Set wanted him dead, too. One of the few times I was in step with him."
"Did you want him dead for Epimetheus and me?"
Brünhilde looked down at the table. "What he did to you, Hephaestus, and Epi…was unforgivable. More so, he hurt my father and began to break his faith in Humanity. I could not let him get away with it…But I couldn't find a way to make it happen. Not until Ragnarök, and Set put him to fight. Worse, I think Set planned on it and wanted him to die."
"Why would Set want him dead?"
Brünhilde raised an eyebrow. "Not sure, but now's not the time to talk." A cold, sharp aura slowly flowed out of her body. "Let's go, Pan." The tone chimed, and Pandora rushed. Brünhilde fired her left hand out in a blur. Pandora weaved outside and crouched lower. Brünhilde crouched down to Pandora's level and fired her left hand at Pandora's guard, stopping her.
What the? Pandora thought. That was sharp! She side-stepped and charged again, only for Brünhilde's left hand to pierce through her guard. Damn it, this isn't working! She shot through her torso. When did Hilde practice this? Pandora hopped back and let her body go limp, and relaxed her guard. She hopped on the balls of her feet a little. Switching gears. She dashed back in, but kept herself loose and limp. Brünhilde fired more jabs, each one blurring as it flew. Pandora bobbed and slipped past each one, slowly closing in.
Why am I not hitting her?! Brünhilde thought, gritting her teeth. She dropped down and fired a cross at Pandora's solar plexus. Pandora stepped forward and to her left at a slight angle. Just before the blow could hit, she twisted her torso to the right, slamming her left elbow into the side of the punch. The blow was knocked off-course, grazing Pandora's right ribs. She twisted back left and fired a right cross down, making contact with Brünhilde's face. She twisted back to the right, pulling her fist back.
Double-tap! Pandora fired it at Brünhilde's face again. Brünhilde slipped her head to the outside of the cross while firing her own. Pandora matched her slip with her own and followed it up with a left hook. Brünhilde could not see it thanks to her right arm obscuring her vision. As Pandora pulled her right arm back, her left came into view and slammed into Brünhilde's temple. She crumbled to the ground. Pandora stepped back two meters, eyeing her friend. "Done, Hilde?!"
Brünhilde, slowly, lifted herself off the ground and got her hands and feet under her. She slowly stood up, shaking all the while. That was just two punches from her…she's still so damn strong! The tone chimed. "Fuck!" She shouted.
"Swearing? You, Hilde?" Pandora asked melodramatically. "Never thought I'd see the day." She smiled smugly.
"Eat shit, Pan!" Brunhilde retorted, stifling a laugh. Both took off their gloves and walked back to the table, their bodies starting to ache.
"It's what you get for switching from kickboxing to straight boxing. That's my specialty, genius."
"Yeah…guess I should've asked Týr to teach me that more." Both plopped down in their chairs and drank their tea in two gulps. The hourglass chimed. "I don't know what the hell Set's plan is, and that smarmy prick keeps acting like he has everything under control. It pisses me off!"
"Gods, he's such a tool!" Pandora added. "But," She paused briefly as she grabbed the teapot and poured another cup for the two. "he understood my Dad, and I think he cared a lot about him, too. My Dad hates most people, and didn't care for Set. Set, on the other hand, was weirdly honest with him and wanted to help him get justice…"
"For you?"
"For me, yeah. I am angry with him, too, but he wasn't my friend. You were, Hilde."
"I still am, Pan!" Brünhilde felt like a knife had stabbed through her stomach.
Pandora slammed her fist on the table. "Then why didn't you put me on the roster?! You know I am just as strong as Rommie! You know I would have fought with everything I had to protect Humanity and help you! If I am your friend, then why the hell don't you trust me?!"
"Would you have fought your father?" Silence briefly hung in the air. "If I sent you out there, and Set sent out Hephaestus, would you fight him? Would he fight you? I don't think it would happen, but I couldn't take the risk. I couldn't bear the idea of putting you two through it. Not after you rampaged through Asgard and even the Heavens turned their scorn towards you."
"I'm not…proud of that, Hilde." Pandora hung her head. "I couldn't stand it. The sheer indifference everyone had to Sieg's conviction and imprisonment. And who was the one who accused Sieg? Fucking Loki."
"Pan…"
A flame-like, rippling aura flowed out of Pandora. "You know that shit-stain did something! Týr knows something is off, and he gets ignored by his father every time! Everyone knows, but anyone who can do anything won't do a damn thing!"
"I know," Brünhilde responded, her tone controlled and low. "But a one-woman army tearing through every Pantheon's realm between Olympus and Asgard was not going to help anything."
"Hilde!" Pandora shouted. "What else was I supposed to do?!"
The tone chimed. "I don't know," Brunhilde rose from her seat. "I ask myself that a lot, especially when it comes to you, too." She turned and started walking. "Maybe that's why we're doing this. So we can figure it out."
"Hilde…" Pandora said, rising out of her seat.
"Sometimes, we must busy the body so the mind works things out." Brünhilde stopped and reached down for her gloves. "I'm a Demigod and a Valkyrie. You're a Human. Yet," She raised her left hand and clenched it into a fist. "These right here. These." She turned to Pandora. "These make us ask the hard questions we need to ask each other and ourselves. We can't run from it anymore."
Eden
Millennia Ago
"Girls…" Metatron said as he stood in front of a familiar small table and three chairs. His tone was stern, but not cold. His coifed, white hair and stubble sticking out against his slightly tanned skin and cyan eyes. His blue robes bellowed softly in the breeze as he stared down at two young girls in messy white robes with equally messy hair, one with eyes like his and the other a deep red. "Are you done?"
Both glared at each other, then looked away. "Yes…" They said simultaneously.
"Do you know why I had you two do this?" He looked out at the field, eyeing the large chunks of unearthed topsoil and uprooted trees. This might have been a bad idea. He thought.
"Because we were fighting…" Brünhilde said, avoiding her father's gaze.
"Yes. But more than that, you two were fighting in the worst way possible." He crouched down to their level, his gaze soft. "You were ignoring each other, and that is not what friends need to do if there is a problem."
"But she said-!"
Metatron raised his left hand. "Hilde, I understand she said something mean, but did you tell her it hurt to hear her say it?"
"…No..." Metatron looked over at Pandora, catching a frown and a sad look in her eyes.
"Panny, do you feel bad for what you said since it hurt Hilde?" Pan started tearing up and nodded. "Then you know what you should say."
Pandora turned to her friend, tears starting to fall. "I'm sorry, Hilly."
Brünhilde turned to her friend, seeing her cry. Her lip quivered like Pandora's. "I'm sorry, too!"
Metatron smiled as the girls teared up and made amends. "There you go. Now, Hilde. What did Panny say that was so bad?"
"She said your hair was dumb and Uncle Hephy could beat you in a fight."
Metatron blinked a few times. His eyes darted from left to right a few times as he fought back a smile. That is a little silly, but thank you for defending me, Hilde. He thought as he ran his right hand through his hair. But what is wrong with my hair?! My hair is incredible!
Eden
Present Day
"Back to it, Pan," Brünhilde said, slightly hopping off the balls of her feet. She lightly tapped her gloves together as Pan shifted her knees left and right to make her body gently sway back and forth. Their auras flowed out and coalesced. The grass at their feet bent away from them as the wind kicked up around them.
"I guess so, Hilde." The tone chimed, and Pandora serpentine forward, her guard strong. Each step kicked up topsoil as she raced down the field. Brünhilde flung her left arm towards Pandora. It blurred as it extended out and formed into dozens of blue curving blows aimed. Pandora bobbed and weaved into the torrent, each blow slamming into her guard or grazing against her face and arms as she tried to push forward towards Brünhilde as she back-stepped. One blow snapped right into the center of her guard between her arms and forced a small opening. Shit! She broke through- Brünhilde's right hand snuck up through the guard and slammed into Pandora's chin.
Or so she thought. Pandora stepped back just as the blow broke through. The blow barely struck her chin. She tried to regain momentum, but Brünhilde's right fist hung in the air, blocking her vision. A sudden, sharp pain erupted from her solar plexus; something fast and heavy caught her as she tried to regain momentum. She caught a glimpse of it, a right spear kick just in front of her injured torso. She almost lost her breath, but her abdominals held firm against the strike. Pandora parried the kick with her right elbow, knocking Brunhilde off-balance. As she parried, she stepped her right foot forward at an angle and brought her arm close to her chest. She twisted hard to the right and fired a left hook into Brünhilde's solar plexus. She felt her gloved fist collide as if against a stone wall, but Brünhilde's expression exposed the pain. Brünhilde's right foot landed on the ground, and she twisted her upper body to the right. Pandora mirrored her. Both fired a right cross at each other's face. Their fists collided with each other's faces, snapping their heads back and throwing them both off their feet. Both felt something warm and wet flowing from their noses, but they kicked back up onto their feet and went back to their stances. Brünhilde gritted her teeth and threw more jabs. Pandora was struck by the first two before she got her guard back up and bobbed and weaved through them. She slipped under another jab and fired a cross at Brünhilde's stomach, only to hit her left elbow. Brünhilde dropped and scooped up her right hand, smacking Pandora in the face with a make-shift uppercut.
Son of a bitch! When the hell did Týr teach her all this?! When was she practicing?! Why was she practicing?! These thoughts raced through Pandora's mind as she let her body relax and get back into its sway. I gotta get my momentum back! She bobbed and weaved and crouched down further. Brünhilde's jabs were barely grazing off the top of her head. Finally, she was within range. Got you! She rocketed up, her right hand ready to fire an uppercut. Brünhilde twisted her body to the left and fired a chopping right straight into Pandora's face as she rose. Pandora dropped to the ground and fell over.
"HOT DAMN!" Brünhilde shouted triumphantly. "That's for earlier!" She dropped to the ground, breathing heavily. "Pan! You still with me?"
"Ugh…" Pandora groaned.
"Yeah, you're still with me!" The tone chimed. She stood up and walked over to Pandora, removing her gloves. She leaned and offered a hand. "Need some help?"
Pandora looked up at her with an irritated look, but raised her gloved hand. Brünhilde grasped it, and Pandora lifted herself up. "Got me good that time…"
"Thanks…but I think that's all I got in me." Her gaze softened. "Pan, I'm sorry." Pandora squinted in confusion. "After Epi's soul was absorbed into the Sin Cluster, we scoured the globe trying to find Prometheus. We spent days, weeks, even months trying to find him," Her head hung low. "I even looked in Helheim and Valhalla. Everyone told me to give up, even Sieg. I wasn't eating or sleeping. I just wanted to find him and make him suffer for what he did." Her eyes began to tear up as her lip quivered. "I couldn't face you and tell you I failed. It felt like betraying you. That I was a bad friend to you…" Tears fell. "I'm sorry I failed you…"
Pandora sighed. "Man, that's why you avoided me all those years ago?" Pandora walked up to Brünhilde and wrapped her arms around her, her face buried in Brünhilde's shoulder. "Hilde, you almost died just trying. How could you think I'd see that as you failing?"
"I don't know!" Brünhilde wrapped her arms around Pandora. "I just wanted to make things right! I wanted you to be happy after all of Humanity blamed you for the flood. For something to work out!"
"Fuck, Hilde…" Pandora's hold tightened slightly. "Thank you for trying. That means more than you know…and I'm sorry if I ever made you feel like that."
Brünhilde pulled back. "But you didn't! You were nothing but a good friend!"
"No, I wasn't…" Brünhilde gave a confused look. "After Týr tried to speak on yours and Sieg's behalf and was ignored, I just lashed out. I wanted to find Loki and Odin and pummel them. But I realized only after I had just made things worse. Gramps and Grammy had to spend days doing peace talks with Odin, Sieg was still put in Tartarus for Fafnir's murder, and you and your sisters were made pariahs because you were my friends, and you especially because you were Sieg's fiancée." She sighed. "I really wanted to see that wedding…"
"I wanted that, too, but fate is cruel. Had I known why my Father kept an eye on him, maybe I could have done something to protect him."
"What does Sieg have to do with any of this?" Pandora slipped her hands under her armpits and pulled them out of the gloves
"In my father's journals, he wrote of a group of Primordial Gods who threatened the lives of the Gods they created."
"I sense the irony here, but continue."
"After he and several other Primordial Gods sealed them away, the leaders of that group managed to send artifacts that contained parts of their souls out into the cosmos. One of those four…is Odin, and he wants to free the others."
"You're shitting me."
Brünhilde shook her head. "And Sieg is the key to freeing them. He's one-half of it, and the other is the Water of Life, an energy which can only be formed by the complete and total annihilation of a species on a universal level."
"Wait…you mean…"
"Like what the Gods are trying to do right now."
Pandora's eyes widened as she slowly shook her head. "Who else knows this?!"
"Buddha and a few peers, thanks to a friend I helped enter Asgard a while back. That's why I'm doing this. I didn't want your father or you to get caught up in all this…"
"Shit happens, Hilde. We can't always be in control of things. My dad made his choice, even if I didn't like it."
"Pan, I don't blame you for hating me for all this. Hiding the truth and all, but I don't want things to stay like this between us. Can…can we be friends again?"
Pandora stepped back and glared listlessly at her. "Dumbass, we never quit being friends." She made a quick jab at Brünhilde's left shoulder. "But you promise me you won't pull a stupid stunt like this again."
Brünhilde's body went lax, as if a massive weight vanished. She grew a small smile. "Thank you."
Near where the table was, the two heard a clapping sound. They turned to see the source, eyeing Set, clapping his hands. "Well, well," He said. "Hope I'm not intruding."