A "Captain Scarlet & the Mysterons" story

By Chris Bishop

Chapter 8

Doctor Fawn entered the room in R&D, clutching in his hand the small glass phial containing the antidote he had prepared in his laboratory, with the help of the auto-analyser. Harmony, seated on a stool, stood up upon his arrival, and watched as he came to a sudden stop in front of the tank in which Captain Scarlet was imprisoned. The doctor’s eyes were wide with astonishment and untold outrage. Up to this moment, he had not actually seen the tank, and the whole contraption that had been put in place to keep Scarlet in check; he had only received Harmony’s and Symphony’s reports of what they had seen themselves. Already, he had been angered by the whole concept; seeing it was a totally different thing. It didn’t take long for him to let go of his full anger and indignation at the scene presenting itself to him.

“What a barbaric set up!” he lashed out. “I can’t believe they would hold a human being against his will in such horrible conditions! We have to get him out of this thing, as quickly as possible.”

Harmony nodded, in total agreement with the physician. She watched as he carefully inspected the equipment - all the wires and cables connected to the tank, the electronics and the life-support device. He nodded his head in understanding – and Harmony reflected that he probably grasped most of it much better than she did herself.

He made a stop in front of the seat in which Captain Black was soundly sleeping and observed him for a moment, thoughtful.

“What about him?” he asked scornfully. “Has he shown any sign of waking up?”

Harmony shook her head. “No sign at all, and according to the monitored data, he’s not about to wake up any time soon.”

Fawn nodded his satisfaction. Black seemed as deeply asleep as everyone else he had seen on Cloudbase so far. So he considered it the safest course of action not to touch any of the equipment to which Black was linked. It was far better to leave him alone…

… for the time being, anyway.

Returning to his inspection of the tank, Fawn asked Harmony for the injection gun he had seen on a table nearby, upon entering the room; she quickly went to fetch it and handed it to him. He swiftly screwed his phial onto it, changed the needle for a new one he had brought along, and gently pressed the trigger, removing all the air from the needle. He looked at Harmony.

"Shall we proceed?" he asked.

"Do we have a choice?" she replied. "As you said yourself, we have to get him out of this tank. And hope that at the same time, it will serve to resolve the situation for the others.”

He nodded in agreement. "If waking Scarlet up is the way to stop that game… this would be the solution,” he said, indicating the gun. “I'm just hoping that we're not making a mistake that might cost many lives."

"Will that be enough?" Harmony asked, pointing at the phial, and looking with curiosity as Fawn turned to examine the tank apparatus again.

He nodded, as he introduced the needle into a valve on one of the transparent plastic tubes attached to the tank. He squeezed the trigger gently, slowly injecting the fluid into the tube. "This is highly concentrated," he explained to the young woman. "Yes, I think it should be enough to counteract the effects of this drugged bath. In fact, it will change the chemistry of the drug, and dissolve it completely from the tank. But… it will work slowly – as it has to, for Scarlet’s awakening to be as smooth as possible. I know he's supposed to be indestructible, but I don't want to be overconfident that his relative invulnerability will keep him safe from – emotional ailments. We're dealing with the psyche here. And Scarlet is still very much human in that respect, as much as you or me. Plus, we have to take into account what effect his brutal awakening might have on the others as well. I still remember Bromwell's threat." Once the phial was empty, he put the hypo-gun down on the table behind him and sighed. "Right. I guess we'll just have to wait and see now."

"How long will it take?"

"I don't know," Fawn admitted. "An hour… Less… The counter-effect will be gradual, but when it comes down to it, it might be up to Scarlet's unique metabolism and how it's fighting against the drug. I'm hoping, just like you, that it won't take too long."

A beeping sound from the comm.link interrupted him before he could continue; then the voice of Symphony was heard, with an edgy and urgent tone to it: "Doctor Fawn, you'd better come back here quickly!"

Fawn moved to the comm. and pressed the button. "What is it, Symphony?"

"Something is going on… The computer just started bleeping, and keeps giving alerts about one of the participants."

"Who…?" Fawn asked with a frown.

"Colonel White, Doctor," Symphony answered promptly. "I checked the data – his vitals are going down."

"Damn!" Fawn muttered under his breath. "He's in the Sickbay auxiliary Room of Sleep. I'm on my way to check him." He strode towards the exit, turning one last time to quickly give his last instructions to Harmony, pointing at Scarlet. "Stay here and watch him. Monitor every change, and inform me if anything happens. One way or the other. AND… keep an eye on Captain Black, in case!"

"You can count on me, Doctor."

Fawn was already out, before actually hearing Harmony's swift reply.

* * *

Although valiantly fending off the wolves' attacks, Odin's strength and determination finally failed him, and he fell under the number and the sheer savagery of the beasts; his thick, heavy clothing was barely enough to protect him against fangs and claws that shredded it to pieces then tore into his flesh, drawing blood, and sending the wolves into a renewed frenzy. Seeing their prey down in the snow seemed to give them courage to confront the sharp sword he was still holding, and to press their assault, nipping at any undefended part they could find, and keeping the man down.

The sword finally escaped from Odin’s hand when teeth viciously sank into his forearm, and he found himself defenceless; it was all he could do to try to protect his throat, head and chest with arms and legs against the relentless assaults. In a desperate last attempt to get back on his feet, he stumbled again into the snow – and stayed there, barely able offer any further resistance.

His fogging mind, tinted with red, faintly registered a black mass of fur coming right at him, snarling, sharp teeth bared in a huge, foaming mouth. He was vaguely conscious that it was his own death approaching – yet, he couldn’t even move; his eye closed tiredly.

The black wolf leapt, and was about to victoriously tear into the downed man’s neck when, all of a sudden, two arrows struck it in the flank. It yelped in pain and backed away, missing Odin’s body by an inch when it fell down on its paws. Another series of arrows rained on its companions, forcing them to back away as well from their prey.

From beyond the gorge, two riders came swiftly at them, roaring with such fury that the wolves quickly fled; that didn’t save one of them from being trampled under the hooves of the first horse, while its rider let go of a new arrow against another beast. The second rider, discarding his bow in favour of his spear, charged the black wolf who was limping away – the two arrows in his flanks had hurt it, but it obviously still had enough life in it to evade the spear and snap angrily at the rider.

“Lo, Hel’s offspring!” Tyr jumped off his horse, using his one good hand to steadily hold the spear aimed at the black wolf now facing him. “This time, vengeance shall be mine – I will repay you for the hand you took from me!”

“Do not waste time with the beast, Tyr,” Freyr called to his companion; he stopped his horse next to Odin and swiftly dismounted to check on the injured man. “Let it go. We have far more pressing business to attend to.”

“Aye, it may be so,” Tyr replied grimly. “But this assault on Aesgard’s liege will be Fenrir’s last sin, Lord Freyr. This I swear.”

He had not noticed another wolf, standing nearby, preparing itself to pounce at him; a new arrow, coming from the gorge, struck the beast in the chest, killing it instantly before it could reach its target. The animal falling dead at Tyr’s feet provided a moment’s inattention that the black wolf obviously thought it could use to its advantage. Fenrir leapt forward, fangs bared, ready to tear its opponent’s heart out. But Tyr was waiting for it, his feet well planted on the ground. He sidestepped and his iron fist thrust forward – right into the wide-open jaws of the wolf.

“Try to eat THAT hand, hellish beast!” Tyr snarled. His fist crushed teeth and jawbones, forcing a gurgling sound from Fenrir who fell to the ground, blood pouring from its huge jaws, offering its flank to the mercy of the spear that Tyr, disengaging his iron hand from between the broken jaws, finally plunged into the wolf’s heart with a howl of victory. There was barely a sound from Fenrir, as it finally died at its vanquisher’s feet.

At the same time disgusted and satisfied, Tyr let go of the spear and turned his back on the beast, seemingly not taking any interest in it now that it was dead. From out of the gorge, a third, slim rider appeared, riding a white horse, and Tyr went right to them. He bowed his head as he helped the rider down.

“My thanks to you, my queen,” he said as Freyja handed him her bow. “You saved my life, with this last arrow…”

“How is Lord Odin?” she asked, directing her steps towards the fallen man. “Have we arrived in time?”

“He still lives,” Freyr answered as both Tyr and Freyja lowered themselves to his level. “We did arrive in time, my lady.”

“’Twould seem you were right about Lord Vali, Queen Freyja,” Tyr remarked, looking around, obviously in search of the missing warrior. “He is nowhere to be seen… He has disappeared, leaving Lord Odin to his fate.”

“I remembered that Vali was not happy that Iduna had been betrothed to Hodur. I thought he might be part of some conspiracy against him – and even that he was an accomplice of Loki.” Freyja huffed her disgust. “I feared he might even turn his sword against Lord Odin himself, if he were to be alone with him.”

“He did far worse than that…” Tyr grumbled. “Delivering him to Fenrir’s brood… I could not think of a worse death.”

Freyr had carefully turned Odin on his back, and laid his own fur coat on him, in order to keep him warm. While doing that, he examined the injuries the older man had suffered. He didn't like what he saw and grunted. “He is seriously injured, Queen Freyja," he announced, looking up to the young woman. " ’Tis a miracle that we arrived when we did… Or the wolves would have killed him."

A moan coming from the injured man attracted Freyja’s attention and she knelt by his side. Gently, she lifted his head, cradling it on her knees, mindful to avoid the bleeding wound now cutting his cheek in two. He muttered something, that none of them could grasp clearly.

"“If we do not tend to his wounds soon, I do not think he will survive," Freyr continued.

“He must live,” Freyja said fiercely. “We cannot leave him to die.” She leaned over the injured man who, groaning again, was moving slightly. "Lord Odin, stay still. We will take care of you…"

Odin's one eyelid fluttered and opened tiredly; he looked at her concerned face with a haggard expression. His lips trembled as he attempted to force words out of them.

"D- Destiny…" His voice was but a murmur, and it was all he managed to say, with this first – and last – effort. It sent a twinge of pain to his head, his face contorting, and his eye closed again.

"What does he mean by that… ‘Destiny’?" Tyr asked with a deepening frown. He was interrupted by the sound of a horn, coming from the distance beyond the gorge they had just crossed, and all of them raised their heads.

"Heimdall!" Freyja cried with hope in her voice. "He must have found Thor and they are coming this way… Lord Tyr, go to them and bring them back here. We might still have a chance to save Lord Odin… But you must make haste, before it is too late!"

* * *

Running back to sickbay in a record time, Doctor Fawn went directly to the auxiliary Room of Sleep. He barely waited for the door to open to stride right in; squinting against the pulsating coloured lights, he looked around to find the bunk on which Colonel White was resting. The unnerving, throbbing lights made it difficult for him to see, so he savagely punched the button controlling the lights, killing the effect instantly, and selected a normal light to take its place. At this point, he reflected, we might as well stop the light effects. We have nothing to lose, anyway.

He went to White's bunk and checked on the data displayed on the control panel over the head of the bed. The readings Symphony had reported him from Bromwell's computer were repeated here, and seemed to indicate that White's condition was deteriorating quickly.

"Damn," Fawn repeated in echo of his earlier reaction. "Damn, damn, damn, damn!" He sat down on the bed, and made a quick physical assessment of the Spectrum commander, cursing all through it – against that blasted stupid game, against Bromwell, against the Mysterons… against the whole set up that was keeping all his colleagues – and friends – from waking up and coming back to the ‘normality’ of their already unusual lives.

“Come on now, Charles, you’re not going to do this to me, are you?” he muttered under his breath, checking the pulse in White’s wrist. It was far too fast for his taste and neither did he like the irregular way his heart was beating. Even White’s breathing had became laborious. So far, the symptoms didn’t look like anything that had happened to Anna Preston – but Fawn could read the signs. They were not good at all.

Fawn unzipped the colonel’s white tunic, and tore open his shirt, and started massaging his heart, hoping that whatever efforts he could make would be enough to actually make a difference.

“You’re not dying on me, do you hear?” Fawn reiterated, leaning over his commander and addressing him with as commanding a tone as he could muster. “I will not let you do that, Charles…”

A beeping sound made itself heard from the comm.link.

“Doctor Fawn?”

“I’m in the auxiliary Room of Sleep, Symphony,” Fawn answered without stopping his treatment. “I’m tending to Colonel White – what is it?”

“Something new on the computer’s data…”

Fawn nearly groaned, hearing the concern in the young woman’s voice. “What now?”

“Nearly all readings on the Spectrum senior staff are changing, Doctor. They all increased suddenly - nothing to indicate that they are dying or anything like that – it seems to indicate that they are… anxious – like if they were all going through some kind of upsetting or distressing experience…”

“Something is definitely up, all right,” muttered Fawn. “I do hope it’s not related to our attempt to wake Scarlet up – that it didn’t bring something bad down on all of them…”

“His data have risen the same as the others, sir. If slightly higher. Maybe that has nothing to do with what you did…”

“Then it might simply mean that the game is going into the next – and maybe final – stage. Keep monitoring – and inform me if that changes.”

“S.I.G…”

“Harmony!” Fawn called forcefully.

“I heard Symphony’s report, Doctor Fawn,” the voice of the Chinese pilot said over the comm.

“No change in Scarlet yet?”

“No, Doctor. He is still unconscious. But the computer here gives me the same data about him as the one Symphony is monitoring: His subconscious seems to be experiencing some kind of traumatic event – and the scales keep rising.”

“Let’s just pray that he will wake before they reach the critical stage,” Fawn grumbled. “Keep checking on him.”

“S.I.G…”

“Now, Charles,” Fawn said, addressing White again. “You’ve always been a fighter – you will NOT let a stupid computer game kill you. Whatever is happening in that blasted place, you will continue to fight – and you will live, damn it – to tell me what the hell’s happening over there!”

* * *

Blue’s back hit the ground roughly, expelling the air from his lungs; the viciousness of Scarlet’s attack was such that it had driven both men down. Scarlet had let go of his sword, obviously preferring to confront his opponent with his bare hands, and was kneeling astride him, keeping him down under his weight. Blue had trouble fighting him off; his friend was like a man possessed, his grip was like steel, and his fist was like a hammer, each of his punches connecting painfully.

At first, when he had seen him dump the sword, Blue had entertained the hope that Scarlet didn’t really want to kill him – perhaps hurting him badly enough to punish him for whatever he imagined he was guilty of; but seeing the mad way in which his friend was fighting, it seemed suddenly obvious to him that Scarlet wouldn’t need the sword at all to finish him off.

He was quite capable of killing him with his bare hands, if he wanted to.

Blue somehow found enough leverage to push Scarlet off, sending him flipping over his head; that obviously took the Englishman enough by surprise to compel him to let go; he fell roughly onto his back and Blue took the welcome opportunity to quickly scramble to his feet. He staggered away from his friend, who was already getting up too.

“I don’t want to fight you!” Blue said, gasping, presenting a calming hand towards Scarlet. “Please, I don’t want to hurt you!”

“It is too late, brother!” Scarlet growled, his eyes flashing with anger. “You already did hurt me! Now I want to do the same to you…”

“Paul, listen to me… This is not you talking… This is not you acting like this!”

“I do not have to listen to you!” Scarlet raged. “Come and fight like a man, coward!”

As if he had decided that Blue wasn't moving fast enough, he launched himself at him without any warning, and tackled with the force and the rage of a charging bull. Blue didn't have time to protect himself, and his stomach suffered the worst of the blow. Scarlet used the momentum to push him back, and Blue thought he would fall down again; instead, his back roughly came into contact with the trunk of the tree to which Rhapsody had been tied earlier. The impact sent a wave of pain throughout his body, and he heard an audible crack; something had given way – a rib, most likely. At least, it felt like it.

Scarlet pressed the attack and brutally pushed Blue’s head against the trunk behind. Blue saw stars, and gave a loud moan; he could barely stand up, and was threatening to slide down the bark of the tree. One last punch into his injured side finished weakening him. Then Scarlet grabbed him and threw him into the clearing where they had started the fight. Blue slid down the slight slope into a flip, and landed none too gently on ground covered with dead twigs of mistletoe and yew; it left scratches and splinters in his beaten body, forcing a grunt of pain from his lips. Moaning, he stayed there, sprawled on his side, scarcely able to move, stunned between consciousness and oblivion, and fighting to get his focus back.

Through a fog, he could see the victorious Scarlet, standing at the top of the slope, and looking intently at him.

Scarlet gave a snort of contempt, before slowly walking down, toward his fallen enemy. Passing by his fallen sword, he leaned down to pick it up.

"You are not as big and strong as you imagined you were, are you, my brother? And you thought you would be able to hurt me!” He walked threateningly toward Blue, a grim determination on his face, as he toyed with the sword. “Now it is time to end this charade… dear brother.”

* * *

“Oh no…”

Still monitoring the data from Bromwell’s computer in sickbay, Symphony Angel was suddenly interrupted in her task when she heard soft moaning coming from one of the three bunks behind her. She only needed a glance to realise it was Blue who had started agitating himself. She was off her seat and next to him in less than three seconds.

“Adam?”

She could see his face, showered with sweat, and frowning as if making a violent effort; his jaws were tight and he was grunting, fighting against the restraints of his bed; Symphony thought it was a blessing that he was strapped down, or he would probably fall off the bed and hurt himself.

Was he in pain – or was he just trying to wake from that forced sleep of his? Symphony wasn’t able to say, but she didn’t like the readings she was seeing on the control panel over his head; they were going off the scale; far higher than those of Rhapsody, who also seemed to be agitating herself in her sleep. As for Burgundy – the creep’s data remained very steady… as steady as his rest.

“Doctor Fawn?” Symphony called. The comm.link had been kept open, so she knew that the doctor would hear her from the Room of Sleep. “Something is going on with Blue! The readings have changed again…”

“I can’t leave Colonel White’s side for now, Symphony. He’ll go into cardiac arrest if I can’t stabilise his condition. Is there any indication that the same is happening to Blue?”

“No…” The best she could, Symphony tried to read the information on the controls panel. “No… It’s like previously – but it’s like whatever he’s experiencing in that fantasy world has worsened, somehow. And he’s getting restless.”

“Harmony to Sickbay,” the voice of the Chinese Angel then said over the comm.link. She had obviously heard her colleague’s information.“The same is happening to Captain Scarlet here. He’s starting to agitate himself in the tank. More than earlier. Perhaps he’s breaking free?”

“Keep monitoring, you two!” Fawn instructed. “Symphony, you have training in first aid. If it should come to it, will you be able to attend to Blue?”

She hesitated. “I’ll do my best, Doctor…”

Do I have any choice? she added inwardly to herself.

She leaned toward Blue and stroked his damp brow, gently brushing aside the sweat-matted fringe of blond hair.

“Hang in there, Big Blue,” she whispered. “I’m staying here… Whatever is happening, you have to fight it… and come back to me, safe and sound!”

“You are deluding yourself, my dear…”

The calm and sinister voice, so close behind her, froze Symphony on the spot. She turned around – to gaze, with untold surprise, into the pale face of Technician Bromwell, very much alive, standing over her and looking at her with a very cold expression. The side of his head was covered with his own blood, but underneath that blood, the injury caused by the bullet he had put in his brain seemed to have disappeared completely. He had his gun in his hand, aimed at her, and his other hand was resting on the comm.link control. He had just turned it off, by the flick of a button.

She paled, understanding suddenly that Fawn had been wrong about Bromwell earlier… and that he was not what the doctor thought he was.

“You’re a Mysteron agent,” she whispered.

He smirked at her. “Of course I am. Did you think the Mysterons would really leave a simple human to direct this operation?”

With that, without any warning, he struck at her, hitting her violently over the head with the gun. She didn’t have time to react to avoid the blow, and fell down to the floor with a gasp, between the two bunks occupied by Blue and Rhapsody.

Bromwell looked down in contempt at her prone body. The side of her head was bleeding where he had struck her and she was either unconscious or dead – in any case, apparently unable to put up any opposition to him. He could always use the gun to make sure she would not, but the shot might attract unwanted attention – Fawn was still nearby after all, and he had shown already he was a force to contend with. Besides - it seemed like it would be a waste of time. He had more urgent things to attend to.

He put the gun aside and came to stand in front of his computer, before looking at Captain Blue, who was still agitating himself in his sleep.

“Dear Captain Blue,” he said with an evil smile, as he keyed a command into his computer, “I think it is about time for you to fully join the game now… ”

* * *

"That is enough!"

Up until now keeping away from the fight, and watching it unfolding with growing concern, Rhapsody thought it was now high time for her to intervene. Swiftly, she stepped in front of Scarlet, stopping his advance toward the barely-conscious Blue, and blocking his way.

He frowned deeply, and growled, "Step aside, woman!"

"No! Not until you hear me out!" Rhapsody defied him.

"No more talk!" yelled Scarlet. "I have had enough!" He pointed to Blue in an accusing way. "’Tis the second time today you take his defence, Nanna. If this is not proof enough that you are lovers…"

"Oh, please! How wrong can you be!" Rhapsody said, nearly rolling her eyes. "Don't tell me you give credence to what Gerda told you? You were right the first time – Loki put those accusations in her mouth – and then into yours! You would give credit to Loki's words?!"

"Loki has nothing to do with this. Vali exposed both of you!"

"Vali is Loki's spawn," Rhapsody replied, insistently. "Haven’t you worked that out yet?"

"Did you and Hodur NOT run away together?" Scarlet accused.

"We did not. You don’t know everything that happened. I was abducted by Loki! He came after us," Rhapsody said, pointing to Blue. "To stop you from falling into the trap Loki was laying for you!"

"A likely story," Scarlet mumbled. "But I do not believe a word of it! If it was true, Loki would be here! I do not see him! But I see the two of you!"

"For God's sake, don't you realise what this place is – the danger it represents to you?" Rhapsody persevered, gesturing around.

"Aye – and you think that scares me!?" Scarlet made a step forward toward Blue, attempting to go around Rhapsody to get to him. The young woman sidestepped to keep between the two of them.

"You won't listen to me at all, will you?"

“Neither to you and nor to him! Step aside, woman!" he said again, warningly. "The time to talk is done – now is the time to act!"

Rhapsody didn't like the murderous flash in his eyes. She was genuinely afraid he would hurt Blue. And the latter, as far as she was able to judge at the moment, was obviously having trouble regaining his focus. He would be defenceless against Scarlet.

She had to keep Scarlet – Balder – busy, until Blue was back on his feet, and could join her in trying to make Balder see sense. For now, she realised, she wasn’t making any progress at all.

Furthermore, she was upset – so very upset that he would entertain such thoughts about Blue and herself, and wouldn’t listen to her.

Of course, it isn’t Paul who’s having those thoughts – but Balder… Paul would never think such things.

With Balder, however… It’s another, different story…

And suddenly, she understood why her attempts to get to him were not working: she was trying to reason with him, as if she was trying to reason with Paul… as if she were trying to reach Paul that way. But Balder was nowhere near as rational as Paul was, far from it. That was a big mistake she was making and it was obvious now that she would never be able to reach through to her fiancé that way.

And that realisation made her suddenly change tactics; maybe she would be able to make Balder react to her – somehow – before he did something he – and Paul – might regret.

She gave him a violent shove that barely made him step back, but obviously surprised him.

"You’re a fine one, accusing me – us – of disloyalty towards you!" she snapped angrily. "Explain to me why you should care so much – considering how fickle you are yourself with women!”

He blanched, and stared at her with a strange expression on his face, obviously startled that she would speak to him in such a way. “What…”

“You heard me, you cretin!” Rhapsody lashed out again, pushing him once more, this time more forcefully, and this time able to make him back off a step. “You’re nothing but a philandering scumbag, who thinks of nothing but taking your pleasure with the first available girl, then moving on to the next bed!”

Whatever cold anger he felt towards her suddenly transformed at that moment; he stood over her, almost threateningly. “How dare you speak to me like that?” he spat with irritation. “Do you not know who I am, and what you are to me? I am Balder, Prince of Aesgard – and you are my wife! As such you owe me respect and loyalty!”

Oh, big mistake, buster…

“I’m showing you the same respect you’re showing me, Prince Balder!” Rhapsody snapped again, looking up defiantly at him.

“Oh, I see… Because of a few past escapades, you would repay me in kind with my own brother!? Is that the game you are playing?!”

“ ‘Few escapades’?” Rhapsody scoffed. “That’s a rather elegant way of describing it! I have a feeling that there were more than a few…”

“What I did in the past,” Scarlet growled, his eyes flashing, “is in the past… We were not even together at the time. And now, you should know my feelings for you.”

“They do not run deep, those feelings, if you think so little of me - thinking I would have an affair with your brother?! This is what I’m talking about – that insulting lack of respect you have for me, even to think I would do a thing like that! How many times do I have to tell you that there is nothing between your brother and I?”

Scarlet didn’t reply and contented himself with glaring at her, his jaws tight and his eyes flashing. She was still looking at him with defiance. It was all she could do to keep herself calm; already, she could feel her emotions threatening to overwhelm her.

“What’s the matter, nothing to say in your defence?” She pushed him again; he barely moved. “What will you do now? Send me to sleep in the stables, like you did with Gerda?” Tears were prickling her eyes, tears of rage and desperation – and of distress, as she didn’t know how long she would be able to keep it up before crumbling down in front of him. She gave another shove, and he still didn’t budge. “Or will you use that sword of yours and kill me after you kill Hodur?”

“Kill you?” By the look on his face, the very idea seemed to shock him. “How can you think I would be able to do that?” he protested. “You are my wife…”

“Whom you’re accusing of having betrayed you with your brother!” At this point, Rhapsody was pounding his chest with her closed fists. “And you are prepared to kill him.”

“Nanna, you should know that I would never hurt you…”

“It’s too late for that!” She barely realised now that she was using the same words he had earlier, while talking to Blue. She was continuing to punch his chest, angrily, the tears now showing on the brims of her eyes. “You’re hurting me more than you will ever imagine. Worst than if you ran me through with this sword!”

“Stop it…” he whispered.

“You are nothing but a barbarian,” she continued, not hearing him out, “a savage who regards me as just a possession…”

“That is not true…”

“… who is ready to kill his own brother just to remove an obstacle between himself and the object he thinks is his… Well, I have news for you, buster…”

“That is enough…”

“… You DO NOT own ME!”

“That’s enough, I said!”

The last shouted word was followed by a swift slap; on the brink of hysteria, Rhapsody never saw it arrive and so didn’t have time to evade it. It struck her on the right cheek; the surprise more than the force of the blow made her foot slip on the uneven and slippery ground. She fell back, and even as she did, Scarlet grabbed her by the wrist, reacting just in time before she fell to the ground. She slipped forward and he pulled her up, bringing her roughly against his chest, and he kept her there, forcefully.

Resting against him, not daring to look up into his fierce face, Rhapsody’s heart was beating like a hammer inside her chest. Well, if I wanted a reaction out of him, I just got it… she mused inwardly, nursing her cheek with her free hand. The slap had been violent, but hurt less than the fact that he had actually struck her. She was trying to play down the act, and somehow comfort herself that it didn’t mean anything at all. He could very well have used his sword, but he had not. Surely, that counted for something?

You’re deluding yourself, she finally admonished herself inwardly. This is definitely not Paul. Paul would never hit you. This harsh barbarian could NEVER be the man you love… You will not reach Paul through him…

“D-Dianne?”

The whisper she heard just over her head, brushing against her hair, made her heart miss a beat; she swiftly looked up to the man who was holding her so tightly; Scarlet was looking down at her with a lost, almost horrified, expression on his face; he was shaking his head, his brow furrowed, as if attempting to decipher what was happening to him.

“Paul?” Rhapsody murmured, not really hoping that it was really him this time.

He shook his head again; There was a guilty flicker in his blue eyes, as he raised his hand with uncertainty, and caressed the cheek where he had hit her.

“I’m sorry… I- I didn’t mean to… I don’t know what…”

The voice, at that brief moment, devoid of that lilting accent, was Paul’s; and hope flared in Rhapsody’s heart.

It died almost instantly.

A shadow suddenly came into view from behind Scarlet, leaping like a panther toward him, with a roar of anger, sword drawn and ready to strike; alerted to the presence, Scarlet had scarcely the time to push Rhapsody away from him, sending her sprawling onto the ground, and to parry the low blow that would surely have severed his right leg if he had not reacted in time. The violent impact struck sparks from the two swords as they locked together. Scarlet brought them up swiftly, to find the face of his opponent only a inch away from his own, distorted in complete rage. Rhapsody gasped in shock, identifying the clothes, but scarcely recognising the features of the man now clashing with Scarlet.

Blond, untidy, long hair fell on his neck and across his face, which was half covered with a short but unruly beard of the same colour; bushy eyebrows surmounted pale blue eyes ablaze with fury – but unmistakably familiar.

“Unhand the woman!” Blue roared into the face of Scarlet. “I swear to you, I will not let you hurt her again, my brother!”

A sinking feeling of despair hit Rhapsody as she noticed in Blue’s voice that same lilting accent she had heard from all those who were possessed by the game…

* * *

Locating Thor, Sif and Heimdall had been rather easy for Tyr, as they were on the same trail he had first followed earlier with Freyja and Freyr, while they were looking for Odin. Once he had joined with them, he only had to guide them back, riding to the spot where they had found the king of Aesgard.

As soon as they arrived, Thor jumped off his horse and strode purposefully towards the scene, eyes wide with something akin to horror at the sight of a wounded Odin lying on the ground, being tended by Freyja, while Freyr stood guard over them. He crouched near the young woman and made a quick assessment of his sire’s injuries.

They were bad.

He checked around, and noticed the bodies of the wolves surrounding them, a huge black beast lying not that far away, its skull crushed and its side pierced by a spear. He looked up to Freyja.

“Fenrir?” he murmured.

She nodded. “The foul beast led his pack against your liege,” she answered in a low tone. “If we had not arrived, they would have devoured him alive. ’Tis a miracle that he is still alive.”

“He will still die if we do not tend to him, however,” Freyr noted grimly.

“That is why you are here, Lord Thor,” Freyja added.

“Me?” Thor asked with surprise. “I am no physician, my lady… We would need Master Mimir to tend to him…”

Tyr stood over him, holding Thor’s hammer in both hands; he presented it to its owner. “You may not be a physician, but is it not true your weapon is imbued with the power to heal?”

“We realise you are more accustomed to use it to strike at your enemies,” Freyja added, as Thor took his hammer, with an unsure expression on his face. “But it is time today to use it differently… and show us if the legends are true.”

“They are.” Sif had knelt beside Thor, and her confident tone caused him to look in her direction. “I am sure they are.” She put a comforting and encouraging hand on his stooped shoulder; he noticed the sheer gentleness of her gesture, and it filled him with assurance.

He nodded in Odin’s direction, took his hammer by the handle and brought it closer to the wounded man.

“Take his hands, and put them on the hammer’s head,” he instructed Sif and Freyja. “And pray to all the gods that you know… that it will work…”

"It may be a pointless effort, my lords and ladies," Freyr then remarked quietly. He was standing just over Thor who raised an inquiring – and annoyed – eye to him. Freyr wasn't even looking down. His head was raised, and he was scrutinising their surroundings, his eyes narrowed with attention.

There was a low, but still audible curse from Heimdall, as in turn he discovered what was attracting Freyr's attention that much; he unsheathed his sword. Everyone looked around then.

From the side of the hills to the edge of the gorge, they could see shadows of men, standing in waiting, all looking in their direction. Dozens of them, all around, seemingly unbothered by the strong winds and snow that were lashing at them.

Just waiting patiently.

Slowly, Freyja rose to her feet, a grim expression on her face.

"We are surrounded," she stated coldly.

"It looks like we fell into a trap," Freyr commented.

"All of you, form a circle," Freyja ordered. "Around Odin. We must protect him, while Lord Thor tends to him." As the warriors obeyed her and unsheathed their swords and prepared their bows - except for Thor who, as instructed, stayed near Odin – the Vanaheim queen turned a determined expression toward the enemies that had trapped them.

"Prepare to do battle," she announced with grim determination.

* * *

“Adam! Stop it!”

Rhapsody’s protests fell on deaf ears as she watched, in complete dismay, the two men – best friends in life, almost brothers – trying to kill each other in front of her eyes.

She could scarcely believe the change which had operated within Blue; he was now totally possessed by the character he was meant to play in this lethal game. Nothing so far had led them to suspect – even imagine - that the events would evolve in that direction… although truthfully, Rhapsody told herself, it was an obvious conclusion for the Mysterons’ plan to succeed. Blue would never have willingly played their game and killed Scarlet as they wanted him to do. The only way for that to be achieved was indeed to suppress his real personality and to replace it with that of ‘Hodur’, the Viking prince he had now become, fighting with ferocity and rage, fully intent on destroying the enemy he was now facing.

As for Scarlet – if his real persona had emerged for a brief instant, when he had held her in his arms with a contrite and confused look on his features, it had now totally dissolved once again, and ‘Balder’ had reappeared almost instantly under Hodur’s attack.

Both men were exchanging savage blows with their swords, each delivered with fury and strength behind it, and parried with equal force and determination. No quarter was asked, and none given, and neither one of the opponents seemed willing to surrender or retreat. It would obviously be a fight that would end with the death of one of the two warriors.

“Stop it, you two! You will kill each other!” Rhapsody had risen to her feet, and was following the two warriors, as they moved around the clearing that served them as a battlefield. She had to find a way to end this fight, before one of them got hurt – or killed. Each blow made her heart pound with dreaded anticipation. It could only be a question of time before one of the two men would make a mistake that his opponent would use to his advantage.

“Adam!” she called again. It was as useless as when she had tried to call to Paul earlier, she realised. They were both ignoring her calls – but at the same time, she noticed, they were trying to keep away from her. They were obviously both ensuring that they did not accidentally hit her, during their fight.

This spurred into her a sudden and desperate move; the second she saw both opponents pushing each other away, she quickly stepped into the middle, disregarding the danger she could put herself in by acting that way, before they could rush to each other once again.

“Stop this madness!” she demanded forcefully, extending her hands toward each of them. “You are playing their game! They want you to kill each other!”

If there was but a faint hesitation in Scarlet’s eyes, there was none on Blue’s part; rushing forward, obviously deciding that nothing would stand in his way, he brutally pushed her out of his way; she fell roughly to the ground again. Scarlet only gave her a glance, and the hesitation disappeared from his eyes.

With a roar of anger, he precipitated himself once more on his opponent – it was impossible for Rhapsody to decide if he wanted to avenge the harsh way she had been treated or if he just wanted to get at Blue. Either way, the result was the same: he narrowly avoided the blade of Blue’s sword as it slashed over his head and, forgetful of his own weapon that he let drop at the last possible second, he violently tackled Blue and seized him with both arms around his midsection. They both tumbled down to the ground. The strategy worked and gave him the advantage.

“No…!” Eyes wide with horror, Rhapsody saw Scarlet, now kneeling over Blue, unsheathing his dagger; with his free hand, he was keeping Blue’s armed hand down under his knee, and was preparing to stab him in the chest. The blond man caught his wrist as he struck, and kept it away from its target.

Both men struggled for brief seconds, trying to break away. Rhapsody got to her feet again and swiftly approached, again with the intention of stopping the fight. That was when Blue finally jerked his knee up and caught Scarlet in the groin, making him flinch; then Blue let go of his sword to use his now free hand to get a good grip on Scarlet, and forced him to roll over. They both hit Rhapsody, who was too close to avoid them, and knocked her to the ground once more; her head hit a root, half-stunning her. For a brief instant, Scarlet looked in her direction, with obvious concern. It was his downfall.

Now sitting with all his weight on Scarlet’s stomach, Blue took advantage of his position and violently hit his opponent on his exposed temple with his free fist, not letting go of the hand that was still holding the dagger. The rage within Blue, his desire to destroy his adversary, was such that he didn’t hold back. It was with intense satisfaction that he heard the grunt of pain coming from Scarlet’s lips and saw him wince. With a cruel smile, Blue grabbed a rock lying on the ground nearby and raised it. Scarlet did try to avoid it, but he was just a second too late. The rock hit him just over the cheekbone; stunned, he fell back, finally letting go of his dagger.

Blue picked the weapon and looked at it intensely. A dagger was not enough to finish Balder off – it would only stop him temporarily. He glanced around, and his eyes fell on a piece of dead branch lying just within reach; one end of it was shaped like a jagged, sharp stake… A piece of yew wood – Balder’s only weakness against death itself…

Blue swiftly picked up the piece of wood. He was still pinning Scarlet down with his weight, gripping his throat and pushing his head back. His opponent, still stunned, was now at his mercy, defenceless against the killing blow. With a roar of victory, Blue raised his arm high in the air, the jagged point aimed at his enemy, ready to strike a forceful blow.

“ADAM! DON’T DO IT!”

Coming from nowhere – or so it seemed to Blue – Rhapsody, who had regained her senses just in time to see the tragedy about to unfold, suddenly appeared nearby, shouting with all the strength of her lungs. The stake went down like a flash… And suddenly stopped, a inch away from Scarlet’s throat.

Panting hard, Blue – Hodur - was looking down with blazing eyes at the helpless man sprawled underneath him. Balder – his brother… his enemy. The man he was fated to kill… The stake was pricking his neck and Hodur would need to give only a strong shove to thrust it into his throat and kill him – definitely. He blinked in annoyance, faced with his own hesitation.

What was he waiting for?

Don’t do it…

The voice was coming from inside his head now; a man’s voice this time – his own voice, calling to him, attempting to tell him something. He grunted, trying to ignore that voice, struggling to push it away into the recesses of his mind. His hand holding the stake was trembling, as if fighting with a life of its own to go down and finish the job started.

DON’T do it…

“Adam…” The whisper was not from inside – but nearby again. A female voice… He glanced briefly to his side. Standing there was the Valkyrie princess he was trying to protect… Nanna…

No… Nanna was not her name…

Rhapsody…

She knelt beside him, hesitant to touch him, almost afraid that even the slightest contact would break the spell that seemed to have frozen him. She could see he was battling with himself, a part of him – Hodur – wanting nothing more than to kill Balder, while the other – Adam – would not let him.

“Adam, do you hear me?” she said very quietly. “Do not play their game, Adam... Do not let them win…”

Them… Hodur repeated inwardly. The enemies of all humankind. Those who wanted to destroy them all, to destroy the world… and who were planning to start with Balder…

The Ice Giants…

No, not the Ice Giants… Those ‘others’…

A moan coming from Balder made him look down; he saw his brother slowly recovering, shaking his head from side to side. Hodur’s hand trembled again. He should kill him while he still had the chance.

No… you can’t kill him… He’s your… He’s your…

Friend.

Paul… Oh no…

God… I came so close…

Hodur closed his eyes and exhaled sharply; his trembling hand suddenly let go of the stake, as if it were a branding iron, and it fell to the ground. He moved off from Balder and crawled on hands and knees to a small spring he could see three feet away from him. When he reached for the so-desired and needed water, his fingers only grazed an ice-covered surface. He grunted with annoyance and hit it once with his closed fist. The ice was thin enough, and he was able to take a handful of the water running underneath. It was very cold, and he drank from his hand, greedily, before splashing his face, in an attempt to regain his senses.

Crouched down over the spring, he looked down with glazed eyes at the image the disturbed and dark surface of the water was returning to him; bushy beard, unkempt hair, falling freely all around his face… Only his eyes were familiar, in the image of this stranger reflected in the troubled water. He frowned deeply, as the undulations he had caused slowly dissipated…

… And the image changed. He finally recognised his own face, looking back at him. No beard, shorter hair, surmounting a very pale, confused and almost sick-looking face.

Still crouching by the spring, Blue hugged himself with his arms, and shivered, thinking of what he had just experienced.

“Adam, are you all right?”

Rhapsody was next to him again, and was wrapping her arms around his shoulders; she could see the distress on his face – the face of the Adam she knew, who had apparently succeeded in fighting off the influence of the game to the point of regaining his whole persona. Why he had been able to do it, she could only imagine.

That would be something to think about later on…

“You’ve done it, Adam. You beat them…”

Blue shuddered, and shook his head; he looked like a man in shock. “I nearly didn’t, Dianne…” He swallowed hard. “Now I know how it is for them - the total freedom… the absence of any restraint… only the desire to give in to your most basic and instinctive needs… Then that hunger for battle and for blood… The berserker rage in me… It was so strong… I nearly killed him… I wanted so much to kill him.”

“You were not in control,” Rhapsody remarked.