Tournament of Thieves

12

Trekking through the dark passageways, Skadi held her bow tilted sideways in front of her, clutching the string under the arrow fletching with her first three fingers. Loki crept along behind her, sword drawn and angled downwards, ready to be swung up to defend himself.

They kept silent as they moved forwards, listening carefully to ensure they were not ambushed. For several hours they proceeded that way, eyes and ears alert for any danger.

And then they turned a corner and ran into another competitor.

The frost giant who loomed before them was nine feet tall, and he carried a ginormous, blood-stained axe. At his heels was a large wolf, which bared its teeth in a very threatening way. It reminded Loki of his daughter's hound, Garm, who guarded Helheim and was destined to slay Tyr at Ragnarok.

As Skadi brought her bow up and fired, the giant thrust his hand out and an icicle shot out and knocked the arrow off course as it jumped off the string. The arrow clattered to the ground as the icicle shattered against the wall, making Loki jump.

"I am Agmundr!" the giant roared. "And I will be the triumphant one who destroys the Asgardian puppet once and for all! Eydis, attack!"

The wolf lunged at Loki as Skadi leaped at Agmundr, drawing her dagger. With a booming laugh, the frost giant swung his axe at the giantess, who threw herself to the ground and slid under the frightening blade. Bringing her blade up, Skadi slashed at the giant's leg with her dagger, making contact. Once past the giant, Skadi spun until she was on her hands and pushed herself up, dagger still gripped tightly.

Eydis the wolf snapped at Loki's face as the trickster held the monster at bay with the flat of his sword. Violently twisting the blade, Loki cut at the wolf's flesh and the beast leaped back, growling angrily.

Agmundr, a two-handed grip on his axe, chopped at Skadi. Rolling to the side, the giantess evaded the blow and lunged at Agmundr again. Just as her dagger was about to pierce his chest, the giant pulled one hand back from the axe's handle and thrust it out in front of him.

Ice crystallized in the air, coming from a point on the palm of Agmundr's hand and spreading out, stretching through the space between the two fighters. The ice struck Skadi in the chest, hurling her backwards into the wall. Her dagger fell from her hand with a clatter as she slid limply to the ground.

Loki stabbed at Eydis but the wolf ducked and propelled himself at Loki's throat. Punching the wolf in the nose, Loki gained a few brief moments of respite, enough to notice Agmundr approaching Skadi slowly, an ominous smile touching his lips. He hefted his axe and raised it high, preparing to end her life.

Darting forward, Loki leaped in front of Skadi. As he stood there to face Agmundr with his sword, he wondered briefly why he was defending Skadi. Why was he putting his life in danger for her?

The thought distracted Loki, almost allowing Agmundr to chop him in half. But Loki swung his blade up just in time and managed to deflect the axe to the side and into a crack between the stone tiles. With a growl, the giant whirled on Loki, tugging the axe out of the ground.

"I will enjoy ripping your entrails out," Agmundr hissed, bringing the axe up and around. Eydis stood behind his master, teeth bared. "And I will forever be known as the slayer of Loki!"

Loki raised his sword to parry the axe as he heard Skadi stirring behind him. The giant brought the axe rushing down at Loki, and the trickster's eyes widened as he realized the force behind that sharp blade.

He barely had time to think Uh, oh before the axe smashed into his sword. The blade splintered, leaving the trickster with just the hilt and the remnant metal shards sticking up from the crosspiece.

Agmundr laughed as Loki skittered out of his reach. Skadi was on her feet now, bow in her hand. Her free hand was clenched into a fist. Jumping forward, the giantess shot ice from her fist at Agmundr as she simultaneously morphed into a large eagle. "Come on, Loki!" she screeched as she winged away.

Loki watched her go, fully aware that he had no way of following her. The giant scowled after her retreating figure and then whirled on the trickster. "Now, I have you."

Loki glowered, but he knew Agmundr didn't consider him a threat. All he had was a broken sword hilt and a shield. He'd be finished off within minutes.

Letting out a growl, Eydis moved out from behind his master, eyes fixed on the trickster. Loki gripped his hilt tightly and thought desperately of anything that could save him. But he hit upon nothing, and retreated back to the wall, eyes pinned on Agmundr's axe.

As Loki felt his back press against the cold, unyielding wall, a thought flashed through his mind, accompanied by a bright image. Sigyn, standing in a meadow, looking at Loki with love in her eyes.

The image jolted Loki into action. If he ever wanted to see his wife again, he had to survive this battle. Dodging Agmundr's axe strike, Loki felt adrenaline flood his veins as he moved under the giant's reach, gripping his hilt.

As Loki drove forward, jabbing at Agmundr with the jagged shards still left on his hilt, he sensed something closing in on him from the right. Before he could turn his attention that way, he felt intense pain in his thigh as Eydis sank his teeth into Loki's leg.

With a howl of pain, Loki wrenched away from Eydis, turning his back to Agmundr as the axe came down again. With a horrendous bang, the axe blade slammed into the thick shield on the trickster's back, knocking him to the ground.

Rolling onto his back as pain shot through him, Loki stared up at Agmundr, towering above him. Adjusting his grip on the hilt, he hurled it at the giant and scrambled to his feet as a shadow passed by overhead. Skadi, in the form of an eagle, swooped down and snatched his upheld wrist in her sharp talons. She yanked him off the ground and climbed steeply into the air.

Talons digging into his flesh, Loki reached up and grabbed her other foot with his free hand, steadying his wildly swinging body. His back sent out spasms of pain, and he felt the dent in the metal pressing into his skin. But he was free, and alive, and they were escaping from Agmundr and Eydis.

But he could feel the blood dripping from the slash in his leg, and the absence of any usable weapon tore at him. Combined with the agony in his thigh, Loki knew that unless something changed for him, he was not going to be in this competition much longer.