"We need to go back," Meabh argued, Ivan said nothing in return. "I know you are not deaf."
"I am not, but I am a man of my word. Loki saved my life before, I told him, no matter what he would ask in return, I would do it, his request was to get you away from there, so I am doing so."
"A stupid request."
"One to save you, the mother of his children. I may not have a family of my own, but I know the importance of such. Those children need their mother, not for their mother to kill herself for their already dead father."
"He is not dead, he is still alive," She snapped, slipping down off the horse.
"For how long?" Ivan turned it to face her again, "There are more of them than there are us, they are armed, we are not, we are injured, they are not, there is no way for us to win that fight."
"How in the realms did Asgard get as many lands as it did, when you left the women at home and sent the idiots to try and take them." She growled turning and heading back to where Loki was left, rushing as fast as she could; Ivan and Johan looking to one another, not knowing what to do. When she got to the trees, she was terrified to see her husband being kicked in the side by a man with a sword in his hand, spitting something in a foreign tongue that sounded somewhat like, yet not identical to her own as he did so. She looked around, other men were further back but fast approaching. She was about to take the small dagger from her leg when two more men came, just as armed as the first, with rope in their hands. She watched as they dragged Loki to his feet, unable to stand straight with the force of the blow he had taken, and tie the rope around his neck, as soon as she saw them toss the other end of the rope over a tree limb, she ceased thinking and starting moving.
Loki, who had been readying himself for being beheaded or simply stabbed several times with a sword as a form of death, but when they tied him up and began to noose his neck, he privately began to feel scared, he knew from witnessing such things, that hanging was never a nice end, it hurt like hell and took several minutes. He was trying to remain calm, thinking that Maebh was safe, that she would live on and look after their children, until he saw her walk out from behind some trees, her face calculating yet almost inhumanly feral. He wanted to get her to leave, but he knew she was beyond reasoning. He watched silently as she walked up, the men only realising after she slit the firsts throat that she was even there, as he fell to his knees, blood spurting from his neck, the other two took a moment to process what they were seeing, by which time, Maebh had put her dagger into the next man's temple, the whites of his eyes becoming bloodshot before blood began to see from his nose and eye sockets. She let go of the dagger, still lodged in the other man's skull and went for the final man, who had his sword raised, but with a sudden movement, she collected the second man's sword and though it was far longer than any she tended to use, she swung it around and eviscerated his abdomen while ducking his attempt to decapitate her. The man fell to the ground with an agonising yelp as she rushed to Loki, who was staggering and loosened the rope. "You kept training." He stated drowsily.
"Obviously, my husband goes on raids, I need to protect our family."
"You disobeyed me."
Maebh gave her a withering look. "When have I ever been one to obey like a trained dog?"
"You should have left."
"I cannot leave, do you not get it yet you fool, I love you."
"So you will leave our children orphans to die with me?" He growled.
"No, I will bring your concussed ass back so that you can stand beside me as our sons and daughter wed, so that you can tell your mother once more that you are proud to be her son, so you can hear me curse you to the Norns once more as I bring your next child into the world."
Loki was about to make a comment when her final comment made its way through his hazy mind. "Next?" She nodded. "I am just that good." He boasted proudly. "Norns I will have more children than there are realms to raid to feed."
"Please note which one of us does the hard work," Maebh growled, putting his arm around her shoulder and walking him forward.
"I put them there."
"Yes, you seem so put upon doing so."
"I am only doing my duty as a husband." He jested, leading Maebh to scoff. "If you are sure you carry another, why are you still here? You should go."
"I am not leaving you Loki."
"You are risking our child."
"I am risking no one, I am far more capable than these filthy sheep fornicators." She grinned, sitting him upright behind a rock, "Besides, I am privy to something you are not."
"And what, Norns tell me, is that?" He asked, not sure what she was implying.
"Just rest here, I will be back in a minute," she leant in and kissed him for a moment.
Before she pulled away, he grabbed her hand. "Maebh," She rubbed his face. "I am sorry."
"You were trying to protect me, but you cannot see, I can only be safe if I know you are," She smiled. "When this is over, we will be back on Asgard, I will be getting fat again and you will be wondering how to stop this happening."
"No, no I will be wondering how to survive you wanting to hurt me, my mother wanting to castrate me and the idea that as another child comes, our older children are growing closer to adulthood, where I will lose all my hair to the worry they will be as cursed as us for getting injured." Maebh laughed for a moment and kissed him again. "I should help."
"You can only help by staying out of the way." She stated, rising to her feet and heading towards the three dead men, taking her dagger from the second man's skull, as well as a shield and a smaller sword as those who came to assist came to her side. "Ready?"
"Whenever you are princess, and let me be the first to give my congratulations on being more deadly than ever, even with, what is this, the sixth child now?"
"Do not joke Fandral, it is my fifth child to carry."
"You could repeat the twins." another voice stated to her other side.
"Norns but that is not even a joke Volstagg, so cease such talk right now," Maebh commented as she tried to stretch her shoulders out.
"Ivan said you just had an arrow removed."
"And?"
"Are you sure you do not want to rest with Loki, Hogun is protecting him?"
"I will rest when the men that hunt me are dead and rotting on the ground, and not a moment before." She snarled through clenched teeth.
Fandral raised both his hands, "Fair enough. So how do you want to do this?"
"Get the horses, we are still lower numbers, but we have hounds and horses, that is our greatest strength right now."
"They have some of both too."
"They are local huntsmen, we are the strongest warriors of Asgard, if you think so little of yourself, then that is not my fault, but I am capable of slaughtering them all like lambs, and none will argue anything other than that to me."
"If it is any consolation, princess, I doubt there would be any stupid enough to question it," Fandral commented as he watched her mount her horse. "Are you alright?"
"No, I am half left." She stated sarcastically. "Now, we have half a day's travel to go after this back to the boats, if we delay, we may be caught by the Midgardians, that is not something we need, so let us do this." She added as the other men mounted their steeds, being flanked by all those who had come to their rescue, as well as a tired Johan and Ivan. "Shall we?"
"Lets." They grinned as they kicked their horse's sides and charged into the startled and unprepared local people who thought they had only a few injured unarmed Aesir to contend with and not a cavalry charge of ten highly skilled warriors, armed and bloodthirsty.
