*evil cackle*
-38-
Elijah
Walking into a trap without a plan wasn't something Elijah typically did. This was generally more Niklaus' speed, but for Isolde he found himself making decisions he typically wouldn't.
Like walking away from his upset siblings to trail after his lover. That was not the usual response from him. He'd done it before, with other women he'd been entangled with, but something felt different about this time. Rebekah was both fuming and afraid at what Isolde had said to her, of course, what was said was not without merit. And after Rebekah had had the audacity to insinuate Isolde would harm Kol, with whom Isolde had the most developed bond… yes he understood his mate's reaction. If it were Elijah he'd have perhaps been a bit more delicate about it, but Isolde did have a point. Rebekah had been riding some kind of royalty high since Theon had come into her life. Even Niklaus hadn't treated his bond to Isolde as so much of a step up as Rebekah had been.
Of course, Elijah harbored no delusions that Niklaus didn't intend to do so. He was simply better at meticulously planning a more fluid declaration of his own power, not riding Isolde's as his own. When Niklaus claimed a royal status, he would ensure that it would be irrefutable.
And he didn't have words for Freya's rage. She'd known a different Mikael. It had been a thousand years that Freya pined for that Mikael she knew. He understood, but it didn't change his own experiences with his father and he was quite glad he was gone for good this time.
Add in that Freya killed Esther without so much as a by-your-leave just days ago and that petty, vengeful voice inside of him was feeling satisfied by Freya's upset.
Still, it worried him that Mikael had been resurrected in the first place, and he wanted to know who had done so.
"Emeric mentioned that Finn is marked, and that was the reason you could trace him. I'm curious as to what being 'marked' entails and how it came about that Finn became so." Elijah mentioned, walking side-by-side with Isolde as she stormed across town with single minded focus.
Isolde's stride did not falter when she glanced over at him. "The other night after Esther died, Finn wasn't in a good headspace. I told him through the flow of conversation what I knew about what was going on," she said this vaguely, and Elijah realized that listening ears were likely everywhere, "he asked to declare fealty. I tried to have him wait until he was in a better position to make clear decisions…"
"...But he insisted." Elijah filled in the blanks as they turned off Bourbon Street.
"Yes," she confirmed, "in my kingdom all my people take the mark. It's a brand, really. Doesn't grant them any access to additional power, just identifies someone as mine and grants them my loyalty and protection. For me it grants access to their location at all times, and the stronger the bond between the marked and myself, the stronger the magic in the brand. Samael and I can communicate telepathically should we need to. N–" she stopped a moment, then continued with a quieter voice and Elijah had an idea of how affected she really was by Nailah's betrayal, "-she can send me emotions, impressions. Mark's eye of Ra allows me to see through his eyes. He hated it, so I never took advantage of that."
"And Finn?" Elijah asked as they left the bustling city as the sun was disappearing from the horizon.
"Too early to tell," Isolde said, leading them to the gates of a cemetery, "but I'm sure it'll be something great. He's a special person, and I say this objectively," she smiled over at Elijah who was eying her curiously, "if Finn wasn't already one of mine Emeric may have tried to poach him."
"Empress." Someone interrupted, an annoyed lilt to their tone, before Elijah could ask why Emeric liked Finn of all the Mikaelsons when he so clearly disliked Elijah. He was arguably the most likable of his family.
The man was seated atop the iron gate, cross legged and balancing on a sharp spike. How he was doing this Elijah was unsure, but the man was looking down at Isolde with unbridled hatred and it made Elijah wary. He shifted closer to Isolde, in case things got ugly. The fight was coming, but they needed to get to Finn first.
Unbothered, Isolde crossed her arms with an unimpressed flat stare. "Paul."
This was Apollo? Elijah observed the sun deity. Nothing about him appeared god-like. He was a handsome man, dark hair, light eyes, tanned skin. If he weren't precariously balancing on a spike without getting run through Elijah would have a difficult time imagining he were any more than a commoner on the street. Elijah supposed that was the point.
"They took Missy, nabed her right after Set tore off," he dropped down, delicately landing on first his toes then his feet, "I found the footage already, they've got some kind of liquid in a syringe they injected into her neck and she dropped like a sack of potatoes." He pulled his phone out and tapped the screen a few times, handing the phone over to Isolde.
Elijah was watching the footage, though his attention was split between that and watching Apollo. The god noticed, so he stuck his hand out to Elijah just as Missy was jabbed and dragged off camera.
"Apollo of Olympus, call me Paul," he introduced, and surprisingly he didn't puff out his chest or bother trying to swing his title as an intimidation tactic.
Elijah accepted the hand. "Elijah Mikaelson."
"Original vampire, I know."
The footage cut off and Isolde handed Paul his phone back, jaw clenched. "Okay, so you've tracked her to the same place I've tracked one of my bonds that was taken."
"None of you gave us a heads up that your kingdoms were turning against you, we would've been more careful." Paul scolded as he slid his phone into his back pocket. Elijah thought that he really meant that the Greeks wouldn't have come at all.
Isolde shot Paul with a deadly glare and didn't explain anything. Paul immediately shifted his stance to be more… submissive. That gave Elijah a good insight into who was in charge, and it was certainly Isolde. Perhaps the Egyptians as a whole.
He recalled that first morning after they met, when Isolde told him that she and her family were in charge. He'd asked for elaboration and she'd said it was because they were the eldest and the strongest.
Either that or Apollo was still afraid of Isolde after having been lit on fire in the past in recompense for trying to force her into marriage. Either way, Elijah was pleased to see him submit to Isolde's will. It made him a little less concerned about having to find a way to kill him.
"Let's get them back." Isolde encouraged, and Paul nodded without saying anything.
"Loathe as I am to work with you, I could use your aid in retrieving my sister." The god nodded to Elijah. "He can't get in without an invitation, this is an ancestral burial ground." Apollo pointed out, just as Elijah hit the invisible barrier that barred his entry.
Isolde looked over her shoulder at him with furrowed brows and Elijah's heart sunk at the thought that he'd dragged their whole operation down. "Well that's problematic. Paul, be a dear and fetch me a loose witch. I'm sure the cemetery is crawling with them." She stepped back outside of the graveyard to stand beside Elijah.
Paul scoffed and lowered himself into a shallow bow. "As you wish, your majesty."
"Asshole," Isolde grumbled under her breath as he disappeared, reaching over to place her fingers between Elijah's, he squeezed them, "he's not a bad person, just a jerk."
"I don't think I've ever detested my limitations so much," He pulled her hand up to his mouth to kiss the back of it, eyes boring into hers, trying to swallow his frustrations, "I apologize for slowing us down."
"No worries, Paul's already coming back, see?" She gestured toward the gate and sure enough, he was dragging a witch along by her hair, throwing her down on the ground on the inside of the barrier. The witch squealed indignantly, sputtering profanities as she tried to dust away the dirt and pebbles that embedded in her palms when she hit the ground.
"Hello dear," Isolde greeted sweetly, "please invite Elijah into your cemetery."
The witch was struggling to catch her breath after being dragged who knows how far. She glared up at them all with rage filled eyes.
"Fuck you," the witch spat. Elijah watched Isolde smile as she released his hand and crouched down with fluid, regal, grace until she was almost eye level with the witch.
"So pretty," Isolde's eyes were sharp, her smile threatening as she reached across the barrier to run a finger down the woman's forehead and nose, "allow me to explain," she gently grabbed the woman's jaw, holding her in place, "You have two options, sweetling. You will invite Elijah inside, and we will allow you to run home and barricade yourself in your basement or somewhere else safe from inclement weather and other mayhem. Or–" her voice dripped with saccharine sweetness that both excited and scared Elijah, "I can rip off each of your finger nails. Then your fingers. Then your hands, arms… you see where this is going."
The stench of urine permeated the air and the witch whimpered as Isolde continued. "With that choice, even death will not be the release you hope for. You'll be wasting precious time, and that's going to upset me. So I will send you to the underworld. Your heart will be weighed against the feather of Ma'at and Anubis will glance into your soul and see how you irritated me. He will judge you unworthy of a peaceful afterlife. You will suffer, until the end of existence itself, all because you didn't give me what I asked for. Then, I will ask Paul to fetch another witch to do what you would not. Do you understand, dear?"
The woman was trembling like a leaf, tears running down her cheek as naked fear choked her. She stuttered her response, looking up at Elijah with eyes blown wide. "C..co-come in, Elijah."
"Good girl," Isolde praised while Elijah stepped across the threshold. The witch tried to get to her feet and stumbled over twice before she was actually able to stand, once she got herself steady she started shakily jogging out of the cemetery and down the street.
Apollo has his arms crossed, a deep frown on his face. "I've never heard you threaten someone that severely," he stated, falling into step with them as they trudged down one of the paths laid out before them.
Isolde just shrugged, taking Elijah's hand again. Whether because she needed the grounding or because she simply wanted to touch him he couldn't be sure. She really was walking a fine line, like Vera had said. Elijah wondered what would be the last straw that broke her control over the monster.
Isolde continued on, responding to Paul. "You didn't know me before the tomb."
"Fair enough." Paul said with a slow nod, but kept a wary eye on Isolde.
So Elijah kept a wary eye on him as they stopped right in front of a large, intricately designed mausoleum.
"I can feel that Finn and Marcus are inside, I don't–" sounds from inside the cave reached them, multiple people running towards them, "what the hell?"
They all vanished around the corner just to be safe. Seconds later Finn stormed out of the mausoleum carrying a limp Marcus on his back, Dainn right behind him carrying Missy.
Finn
"I thought she'd be quicker than this." Marcus said, lifting his legs onto the table in front of his chair. "Then again, she was with that fiendish hybrid, slaughtering a good chunk of Gaius' least-intelligent but absurdly loyal wolf changelings."
Gaius had left after Marcus arrived, their strategy being to divide and make it harder for both of them to get caught if things went sideways. He'd stormed out, incensed at the news that a few dozen of his wolf-shifters had been murdered miles north of the city. Why these two decorated military geniuses were discussing strategy and losses in front of their prisoner was beyond him.
It didn't fit what he knew of the Romans (historically and these two in particular) granted he knew little. Why were they so sloppy? Was it intentional or were they just over confident because of the toxin?
"I am curious, Marcus," Finn spoke up, deciding to press for more information while Marcus seemed to be in a talking mood, "what is this 'toxin' you made, how did you manage it?"
Marcus tapped his fingers on his legs, glancing over at him. "I guess it can't hurt to tell you, there's nothing you can do about it, chained as you are," he began, "I don't suppose the Empress had gone into detail about how many gods there are, yes?"
Finn just raised a brow, keeping his mouth shut. Marcus continued, clearly loving the sound of his own voice.
"Well there are still a few minor Egyptian deities around, and they don't usually go visit Pharaoh. When you're as old as they are, get-togethers and reunions happen every several hundred years. Gaius took some of the men who were already loyal to him alone and began to hunt for one that was weak enough to capture."
Marcus dropped his legs, excitement in his eyes and he leaned forward to brace his elbows on his knees. "Eventually they found Renenutet, the gods call her 'Ren' the snake goddess who is the protector of the harvest and granaries. She is the wife of Sobek, the crocodile headed god and the lord of the waters. Comparatively, Ren is powerless in a fight. So Gaius was able to take her, lock her away in a forgotten tomb in lower Egypt, experimenting until we were able to develop the toxin from her blood. It helped that she's a snake, really, her venom was pivotal. We wanted Anubis' corpse but after a thousand years of searching we decided to move on, the Empress hid him well."
Fighting against the flash of anger and irritation that the Romans had the audacity to kidnap a deity, Finn pressed on. He was gathering intel directly from the source of betrayal, after all. "And Sobek did not come for her?" Finn asked as Dainn finally began to stir.
Marcus waved a hand. "As I said, they rarely get together. Centuries apart from even your spouse is like a human going on vacation for a week. Don't make the mistake of comparing the lives of gods to your own, Finn, you wouldn't comprehend the magnitude of the differences. Even your dear Isolde is far more than you could imagine, lifeless as she's been for millenia. You haven't seen anything. And after today, you'll not get the chance to find out." Marcus' smile turned wicked. "Because she will be dead, and so will the rest of them."
"I don't understand why you would want to kill her, has she not been good to you?"
"It doesn't matter that she's been good to me," he scoffed, "she gave me power, but she could not give me godhood. I've met someone who can and that's all I want. What good is the power over a nation if I can't have the actual physical prowess of a god to keep them in line?"
"You would betray the Empress for a taste of godhood? Have you learned nothing observing her, observing them, for two thousand years?" Dainn spat, his voice gravely as he delicately pushed himself up into a seated position, looking dazed and rubbing at the back of his head. "They hate the power they hold, Marcus, or at least our Empress does. Can you not see how the burden they bear weighs upon them? It is not a duty anyone should envy."
"Ah," Marcus tisked with one finger raised and a malicious smile, "but you are young, Dainn Halvarson, and you did not see how they beat back the end of all life two thousand years ago. You have never seen them defeat Apophis. For such power," he clapped his hands together with a longing sigh, "I would give everything to obtain it."
"But killing them will not grant you the power you seek," Missy's voice broke through weakly, her accent more European than southern, now. Dainn reached over to help her get upright as she struggled to do it herself, she looked up at Dainn gratefully then swung her head to glare at Mark with fire in her gaze, "you are young as well, Marcus, you have no idea what you're doing. What your betrayal will do."
Marcus scoffed and opened his mouth to rebut but Artemis cut him off. "No, hush now child." She said, and Marcus quieted with flared nostrils. "Isolde– Amunet— she is a goddess that even gods have the good sense to fear. Do you have any clue what she is called in other cultures?" She paused and Mark didn't say anything. "Now you speak, boy." Missy hissed and Finn found himself quite curious and nervous to hear what Artemis had to say.
"She never had another name…" Mark swallowed, though his angry look did not lessen.
"Incorrect. She never had another name in the Western Pantheons. Recall, if you will, that she didn't spend much time in Italy until later. She went East," Missy drew the word out, drawing her knees up to her chest, Dainn's hand on her back keeping her balanced, "she has many names among the Eastern cultures."
"Care to enlighten?" Marcus looked as though he was growing angrier by the second as Missy shared information that had eluded him.
Missy laughed, the sound dry as a look of pure malice crossed her features. "In Japan, she is Izanami-no-Mikoto. The goddess of creation and death. In Hindu, she is Kali. The goddess of ultimate power. In China, she is Xiwangmu. Goddess of death and immortality. Creation and Destruction. In Sumeria, she is Ishtar. Goddess of many things, power being one of them. In South America, where she was entombed they called her Itzpapalotl; the skeletal warrior goddess. Tamoanchan, what the locals called her tomb, became known as the home of human creation. Are you picking up a theme at all?"
Missy paused to let this all sink in before continuing. "Amunet hasn't yet fused with Ra, has not become Amun Ra, but with the being the dwells within she's been able to hold true to her mythos in nearly every culture she's visited— even without being whole, Marcus. Even without being able to leave a tomb, she was still influential in an entire culture for over a millenia." Missy paused again, her wicked half grin pinning each of them before she returned her gaze to a frozen Mark. "Normally, she is docile and tenderhearted. She legitimately cares for others, mortals and god alike. But when angered, she is frightening in such a capacity that you've not yet experienced. This last time Apophis came, she did not fully become the monster. What you witnessed was a fraction of the devastation she is able to sow. You mentioned that your little toxin only works on lesser deities. Amunet is no lesser deity, she is bigger than Set, and Nephthys, Osiris, and Isis, combined."
"There's something you're not saying." Finn pointed out, brows furrowed, desperate to know what Missy knew, "a piece to all this that you're not sharing."
Missy examined her nails. "It's not my place to divulge when even Amunet herself does not yet know that truth. Eventually, all will be revealed. For now," Missy leaned against Dainn, who didn't look at all uncomfortable by this and Finn fought to keep his serene look when internally he wondered if the two had anything going on between them prior to this imprisonment, or if Missy was just forward, "I am content to watch this one play out. Marcus, you seem to have a benefactor. A word of caution; gods are tricky. You've been played. The only god with the power to create gods is Ra. You've been manipulated into betraying the one deity that has the potential to one day give you what you seek."
Marcus gaped, seemingly stunned silent, and Finn could see the refusal to believe Artemis' words in the elder Shade's eyes as he rose out of the chair to grip the cell doors and sneer at them.
Finn saw this as his best opportunity, having gained the knowledge he'd come for and more. He braced for the pain and pulled at his restraints with every bit of power he possessed. It was painful, excruciatingly so, but he ignored it. Nine hundred years of no stimulus made even this feel sweet, in a way. A reminder that he was out of the box.
The restraints broke, miraculously. Before Mark could recoil, Finn had his hands through the bars and around his neck, snapping it in the same moment.
Missy laughed with elation, Dainn nodding his approval before standing and leaning down to lift the goddess in his arms. she smiled gratefully at him before turning to Finn as the vampire pulled the iron door off its hinges.
"I can see now why you're one of hers. How badly did that hurt?"
"It wasn't as bad as I had expected it to be." Finn answered, zipping out ahead of them to look around the corner for other enemies.
"I see. Well done, Mr. Mikaelson. He's not dead," Finn turned to see Missy gesture toward Marcus, brows knit in frustration, "I don't have my powers right now or I would see to sealing his abilities. We have to take him to the Egyptians for their punishment."
Finn stepped up to Marcus' unconscious form and lifted the man upon his back.
"Careful, he could wake at any moment and slip away," Dainn said, helping Finn get a good grip on the elder Shade, "and the city is crawling with those loyal to him. I have sway, but not enough to get us out of trouble if the wrong Hidden sees us. Not without the Empress' blessing. Perhaps not even then." Dainn stopped a moment, looking between Finn and Marcus before cursing low in the old language. "I always had a feeling he wasn't what he appeared to be, I should've brought it to the Empresses' attention ages ago."
"It's not your fault. Isolde likely wouldn't have listened. Soul bond and all. I don't know how he managed to falsify that." Missy told him, also eying at Marcus as they all proceeded toward the exit.
Finn cursed. "I should've asked about that."
"Another time." Dainn said as they drew closer to the open door of the mausoleum. "I'm sure Pharoh would love the opportunity to torture the information out of him."
"Not Isolde?" Finn asked, looking back at them.
"Torture isn't usually her style." Missy said as they made it outside.
"Usually." Isolde's voice joined them and Finn felt relief wash through him as she stepped out from around the corner of the stone building, Elijah and another man trailing behind her. Finn dropped Marcus unceremoniously to the ground, pinning him with one foot on his back, and opened his arms as Isolde rushed into them and squeezed him tightly.
She came for him.
Isolde had come to his aid, even though it was unneeded. And that meant the world to him, so he squeezed her a little bit tighter. To thank her silently because he didn't have the words to express his gratitude.
Into his chest, she spoke and it was muffled by their embrace; "I find myself more inclined to do so with each passing hour, this day."
Elijah clapped his hand to Finn's shoulder, giving it a squeeze that said all Finn needed to know. Elijah had been worried, and he'd come to try and rescue him too. Their relationship had begun to mend and Finn was happy to see him.
The unnamed man breezed past them to pull Missy out of Dainn's reluctant arms. Missy was smiling wide and making grabby hand gestures like a child for the newcomer, who swept her up in seconds, holding her tightly to his chest. Her southern accent returned in full force, though it had faded away in the cell. "Aw, Paulie cakes, did ya miss me?"
"What did they do to you, why can't you walk?" Paul asked her, ignoring her question outright.
"They've developed a neurotoxin that can rob a god of their abilities and make you killable," Finn stated, pulling back but not releasing Isolde. "Marcus said they kidnapped the goddess Renenutet and experimented on her for this purpose."
"They kidnaped Ren?" Isolde asked, wide-eyed. "And Bek hasn't come for her?"
"That's what I asked," Finn responded, feeling justified in his earlier disbelief, "he said that gods view time differently than the rest of us do."
"Well yeah, but when it's your spouse it's different," she rubbed her forehead, stepping back from him and bumping into Elijah who was right behind her, "I hope nothing has happened to him as well."
Isolde stepped away, pushing her toe against Marcus' face. "Wake up."
"You sure you wanna wake him up, sis?" Missy asked as her brother backed them up a few paces, away from the gathered group.
Isolde's face gave nothing away as five tendrils rose from her body, each slamming into Marcus and running all the way through him. One in each arm and leg, and another through his abdomen. He woke up screaming as she lifted him several feet into the air.
Even Finn took a step back in wide eyed shock at how fast Isolde had done this, and without warning. Her eyes met his briefly and he saw a brief sadness in there before she shuddered it behind a layer of cool indifference.
His reaction hurt her, he realized. And now he had a sinking feeling in his gut. Disappointment in himself, for not being better prepared to see her do the monstrous things she had already warned him she would do.
"She's angry and close to losing control, according to her siblings." Elijah informed him in a low voice.
Finn couldn't respond, because Isolde was now speaking to Marcus and everyone else waited on bated breath to see what would happen next.
"Marcus," she drawled, stretching his name like a prayer, "you have made a grave error, old friend."
"Perhaps I have," Marcus choked out as blood began to spill from his mouth, "we'll see. You're slow, and rusty."
"Excuse me?" Isolde's jaw clenched, nose twitching as her rage bloomed.
Marcus grinned at her.
And so focused they were on Marcus, they didn't see Gaius sneak up on them from behind until he jabbed the neurotoxin into the back of Elijah's neck.
Several things happened at once, recalling them was difficult for Finn. But when Elijah roared in pain as the toxin invaded his system, the temperature dropped and ice immediately began to form on everything in their vicinity. Tendrils lashed and whipped, grabbing Gaius and shredding him into thin strips of flesh, bone, and innards. Blood rained down over them all, freezing into sharp projectiles as it fell. Marcus scampered away, narrowly avoiding a tendril.
Missy and Paul were shouting for them all to fall back. Finn watched Isolde's face morph into something that didn't seem real. A vaguely dog shaped snout began to form. Her body expanded, and kept expanding. Her skin rippled and darkened to a bluish-purple hue as more and more tendrils burst from her body. And the roar…
The roar was unlike anything he'd ever heard. It shook the earth, and it's vibrations collapsed several of the structures around them into rubble and dust. The fog from the ice and the dust from the buildings collapse shrouded Isolde and they could no longer make out her form.
"Behold the being within." They heard Missy say, just as the monster broke through the fog just enough so they could see it for the first time.
And Finn Mikaelson was afraid.
OH HERE WE GO. We'll catch up with the others in the next chapter and Isolde will have completely lost it. Sorry Finn wasn't as badass as some of yall hoped he'd be here. I think it's super badass to be able to keep the enemy spilling all their little secrets and managing to fight through the pain of being restrained with vervain, snap the bad guys neck and gtfo of the jail, myself, but as far as the actual fighting goes he's a bit out of his league here. The Mikaelsons are still coming to terms with everything that's been going on and coming to grips with their new reality. After this battle in NOLA we'll begin to see a shift.