The God of Calamity’s Wife

Sirius frantically ran around doing his best to separate the bones from each other so that they would stay apart. I wish I could become a dog right now and bury them!

His mind could only rely on Taz. Shifting was always his solution. If I could blow fire I could burn the bones to ash, then scatter them.

"Ériu please!" He begged, unsure if she could hear him where he was. "Please! What am I supposed to do?!"

——————-

Saoirse and Sroka finished eating a bit of lunch and then decided to make their way back to Sirius to tell him about the cave.

Lachlan was restless to get moving, he had become a wolf after eating and ran around the clearing. This area of Nifilheim was very calm as if creatures didn't dare enter.

"Isn't it strange that there aren't any monsters here?" Sroka commented. "Or maybe we just don't notice them?"

"We should move, it doesn't get darker here since it's already dark, but we are bound to run into something and it's better we find my husband before then."

"Let's jump to him then." Sroka said, "I think I remember where he is."

Alright then. She clasped hands with Sroka and the air around them began to warp. Whoosh!

They had found themselves with Sirius, but he didn't seem to notice them appear. He was struggling with something, a corpse?

He was busy keeping a corpse from reconstructing itself.

"It's a Nanna Zombie!" Sroka cried out.

"Don't look at it child!" Saoirse exclaimed, pulling Sroka away and facing her away from it. "Take your brother and keep him away, I don't want you two watching."

"But I can help!" She insisted.

"I know you can! But….you've got to keep a low profile so that Nanna doesn't recognize you as an enemy someday." Saoirse tried to make up an excuse for Sroka not to stain herself with images of gore so young.

Sroka pouted. "Fine. You liar. I'll babysit my brother." She grumbled.

Saoirse smiled and sent them away to hide.

Then she ran over to Sirius, nearly making it there when thud !

Her body smashed hard into an invisible barrier. What is this? She exclaimed, pounding on it.

He looked away from what he was doing as movement registered in his peripheral vision.

Saoirse was banging on the barrier but it was no use. "You can't get through!" He called out.

Sound didn't get through either.

Then mists began forming at her feet. "Watch out!" He cried. Then a sudden sharp pain clamped down on his hand and he cried out in pain and disbelief as Nanna had reformed a bit and her snarling body had come over and bitten him, snatching her arm that he was holding and placed it in its place. Even in her condition she only cared about revenge. She had no legs, but was regenerating herself faster than he could keep up with.

Saoirse had become surrounded by the mists and the Queen Ériu emerged from them. He gritted his teeth. "I'm sorry Saoirse, you're going to have to deal with her alone; she wants a spectacle and I can't get out of here until I beat Nanna."

Saoirse watched him turn away and pick up the sword, pointing it once again at the moon goddess and wack! He was back at it.

"What is this?" Saoirse muttered as the mists surrounded her feet and a woman emerged from them. "Who are you?"

"I am a goddess." She said. "Welcome wife of Sirius, what is your name?"

Sroka and Lachlan came out of their hiding place as the queen beckoned them over. Saoirse embraced them protectively and looked at the goddess. "I am Saoirse. Did you trap my husband in there then?"

"Yes. But don't be upset. I have agreed to train him to make him worthy of his beast's power."

Saoirse looked at her suspiciously. "And why would you do that?"

"It's so he can win the war, right Miss water lady?" Sroka exclaimed, suddenly next to the woman instead of in Soairse's embrace.

Ériu jumped in alarm, but Sroka continued. "Me and my momma were just talking about that! Daddy needs to be on a third side of the war!"

Ériu looked curiously at the little girl and then at Saoirse, "a third side?"

"She wants me and Sirius to stop Odin's reign and prevent Alastor from taking over. She wants us to rule." Saoirse explained.

"Hmmm. Interesting idea little girl." Ériu said.

"Well if no one is right for the job then I would be on my own side!" Sroka asserted.

Ériu smiled, "very well little child, we shall see about that!" Ériu laughed a bit. Her child who was clinging to her embrace peeked out of her cloth baby carrier and looked at Sroka with curiosity.

"Mahehahehahehma?" He said in a little bit of a bleating voice. "Is she my age?"

The goat child was certainly her size because they were giants.

Ériu let her child down and he stood in front of Sroka.

"I don't think he's my age." Sroka said and clung to Saoirse's leg.

Eriu laughed. "Elatha, tell her how old you are, my sweet son."

"Im five mamma." He said.

"I'm nine." Sroka answered.

"Would you two like to go home and play while I talk to Sroka's mamma?" Ériu coaxed the children.

Sroka looked at Saoirse who seemed unsure.

"We are in my forest. Nothing around here will harm them, I've marked this territory." Ériu assured. "Beasts haven't entered for 1,500 years without my permission. And my labyrinth keeps trespassers out."

"I didn't know a place like this existed in Nefilheim." She said astonished.

"Why? Because you thought it was hell?" Ériu laughed. "Nefilheim is a realm like any other realm. It just happens to belong to the dead."

Saoirse nodded, "alright kids that's fine with me."

"Yaaaaay!" Elatha exclaimed. He pulled on Sroka's arm, pulling her away from saoirse, and scooped up Lachlan like he were his newest doll and led them away.

Sroka didn't want to go with him, she turned around to protest, but in the end she went.

"Alright then." Ériu said, "now to business."