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Prelude
She kicked and yelled, clawing at Mammon’s iron grip as he drug her by her hair through the dirt, her voice low and guttural and furious. Furious at the way she was being treated, furious at Mammon for, once again, overreacting to something she had done to protect his, and the whole of Nifelheim’s, interests and well being no matter how shady she had to go about doing it. Yes, she had betrayed Mammon, but she hadn’t betrayed herself nor her people, family and friends. She did what she thought was necessary and she would do it again a hundred fold, should she have to.
The wound in her side from where Hel had stabbed her with the poisoned blade burned so intensely that jumping into a fire would be a relief. It also prevented her from turning and gaining purchase with her feet to battle Mammon’s grip, but all she could to was protest in agony. She could feel the muscles in her head begin to give way and she cried out, water beginning to pool in her eyes. Mammon caught the cry of pain and gave her hair a harsh tug, pulling a chunk of the hair free from her burning scalp, the tearing sound echoed deftly through Div’s ears.
A roaring sound, like heavy rapids before a waterfall, caught Div’s attention, stalling her cries and protests, stilling her body, her eyes widened with fear. He was taking her to the Vortex.
“Stop this, Mammon.†She protested, fear evident in her tone.
He ignored her and continued on down the dirt path. Div tried to roll over to her left side but a tug from Mammon prevented her from doing so, sending her rolling the other way onto her wound. She cried a blood curdling scream as her side was drug along the path, dirt and rocks embedding themselves into the wound, the momentum opening up the wound further. She rolled onto her back again, blood flowing freely from the open stab wound, shock beginning to take over, she could feel herself cool as the blood left her face, her strength completely stolen away, spilling its bounty into the dirt. Mammon must have left her with a small scrap of her divinity, she thought, otherwise she would have passed into death by now not only from the loss of blood, but from the poison that coursed through her body that was designed to kill Gods. Her hands fell to her sides and she stared blankly off into the distance, fully realizing that this was her end, Mammon had finally reached his breaking point and was going to permanently solve the problem.
Div’s eye lids grew heavy, wanting to close and rest, but could not as if held up by an invisible thread. Her body was dying, of that she was sure, but she could feel her soul trying to escape but the dark, evil grip of immortality tugged at it, keeping it in place so it could feel the full extent of death, and the experience that was soon to come.
Div felt the earth beneath her stop moving as Mammon came to a halt, the roaring of the Vortex whipped about in a furious wind that curiously did not kick up any dust, he looked around a moment, studying the darkness before him that dropped to the purple spiral below with black tendons weaving their way in and out of the pool that was the Temporal Vortex. The muscles in his arm tightened, his grip on Div’s hair solidified even more, and with a grunted heave, he tossed her through the air towards the Vortex.
She hit the ground hard, the wind stolen from her lungs, and slid on the ground, coming to a stop at the edge of the cliff. She coughed coarsely, clearing the dust from her lungs while trying to catch her breath as more dust was pulled in. She lay there in a fetal position for a few minutes, Mammon waiting for her to catch her breath as he slowly strode up to her. Her breathing coarse, but steady, as she peered up to the short, powerful God through dry, red eyes. She swallowed hard, her mouth and throat dry, and forced herself to her knees, her left arm resting across her stomach as her hand cradled the wound on her side. She looked defiantly at Mammon.
“You have crossed me for the last time, Div.†Mammon’s voice reamed with power as it echoed throughout the darkness around them, overpowering even the Vortex’s roar. “What you have done is a sin against Odin himself and is therefore rendered unforgivable.â€Â
“I…†Div’s voice cracked and she had to force herself to swallow. “What I did I did for you, for Nifelheim.†Her voice was low, barely above a whisper, yet Mammon had no trouble hearing her. “I do not regret any of my actions nor will I apologize for them.†She coughed, the metallic taste of blood filling her mouth, a small bit dribbled down the side of her mouth. She looked back up to the God. “One thing, however, I do regret is that you cannot, will not, see past my actions to their true purpose. So blinded by rage you are that you cannot see what I have sacrificed for you, Mammon. I lost a mother, a father, a brother, even my one love for you and the sanctity of Nifelheim, to ensure Hel’s demise and to protect our way of life.†She was shouting, tears running freely down the side of her face. She felt a warmth within her that gave her strength and she forced herself to stand on shaky legs. She stood to her full height, a head taller that Mammon himself, and stared down at him her hair whipping about in the wind, strands sticking to her dirtied face. “I will not back down from you and I will---“
Mammon thrust the God hammer Mjollnir into Div’s gut, not giving her the chance to finish. There was a pulse of power, followed by a boom that sounded out in reverse and ending with a loud clap-like-thunder that sent Div flying out into the darkness, plummeting down towards the spiraling Vortex. Mammon watched her fall, her arms and legs flailing about like a cat that had been tossed to high in the air trying to find its feet. He watched as she was swallowed up by the massive whirlpool, disappearing into its center, never to be heard from or seen again. He huffed, a sudden jolt of sadness weighing down on his shoulders, then turned and walked away. He didn’t look back.
