Ascension - Book Eight - Man x Man

Chapter 103

Turning to face us, the wolf bares his fangs with a bark, ears pinned back against his skull. It was the first moment I'd questioned it, the first moment there lacked intelligence behind the matte gaze. 

He looked like a beast, a monster.

"Randy." I attempt as the steps gain momentum, he reminded me of the infected wolves, nearly rabid with desire. 

Tiberius grips my arm. "Nic, I'm not going to let him hurt you. I can't. We need a plan."

"This is my plan. Alpha-"

The beast lunges for me, it's a sight I recognize, he was going to shred me, for he was infected in a sense. Consumed by the creature lurking beneath, overwhelmed by a blood lust that he couldn't fight against, while we could keep Fenrir suppressed from exposing himself entirely could we stop his influence? 

The Siren holds his ground, I suppose he intended to die with me. I can only flinch from the blood splatter as the sword plunges through the wolf's back, pinning him to the ground with the tip of the blade. Tyr pants, bloodied, battered from the impact, but no worse for wear. His boot lands on the wolf's muzzle, slamming his head to the ground as he fights to free himself from the sword. 

"Cut yourself in half, mutt." He spits, scowling before turning his attention to me. "I ask again. Satisfied?" 

"It's not fair." It's the only words that come out as Verando struggles to get free. "He was fine. He was... dealing."

"Until he wasn't." Tyr gestures to the mottled beast. "He's darkening, how many times do I have to insist upon this lot that there are consequences for this path? We can not allow Fenrir to have such close access to the unicorn. Some dogs are best put down."

"Fenrir can't be killed," Tiberius interjects. 

The god frowns, "I would take him to the underworld myself. It's a trip I probably won't return from but that is what a god does for those who serve him. I did this, to Fenrir, because I love mortals much as they continue to destroy everything I am."

With a shaky breath, I drop to my knees in front of him. Those eyes never leave me, the light blue glimmering pupils in the sea of black, even struggling against a god and impaled. Was he looking at me because he loved me or because he thirsted for my blood? The spread of the red and black liquid nearly touches my knees, staining the snow. 

It couldn't end like this, I couldn't allow him to take Verando. "You and Fenrir were friends. Just like Verando and Caspian."

Unimpressed, Tyr mulls over entertaining my question. "It was more than a friendship. I was the only one he trusted when I betrayed him." His words make the wolf fight against him, he struggles to keep him pinned but it would seem the seal and the chain had done something to limit his power. In Caspian's body, the beast was unhinged, it would seem that Verando's limitations were his own. 

"Because of what he... would.. do?"

With hesitation, he shakes his head. "He promised to do, his lineage could not be trusted, can not be trusted. He is the son of Loki, he is the producer of those who chase the sun in an eternal dance. Terrorizing gods and mortals alike, there are plenty of crimes for you to pick from. Allowing a god such as this to walk this earth is starting to create a stir in the other realms. We are uncertain of what we are up against... but what is coming is not good."

Other realms? 

Tiberius flinches, "Like other regions? Other gods?"

Tyr grits his teeth, struggling to keep the wolf pinned. "Anubus has been seen in the dead lands, with monsters-" Forcing the sword deeper, the wolf yelps, "This is creating a portal, an opening to all other gods that earth is open for mischief. There is an unspoken rule that we do not interfere."