Fate Rebellion

Unknown location — Midgard 

Somewhere in Midgard, a jagged mountaintop rose into the heavens, its cold peaks shrouded in a tempest of icy fury. The winds howled like mad spirits, whipping snow and ice into a blinding, chaotic storm. The clouds above churned wildly, alive with bursts of crackling blue-white lightning that split the sky as thunder shook the mountain to its core. 

It was here, at the very top, that Eilin stood on a small flat area near the peak. A small barrier of soft-black light pulsed around her, surprisingly no longer in the same green colour as before. The storm, impotent in its rage, beat against the barrier uselessly, unable to break through. 

Frustration, fear, and anxiety burned in her eyes as she stared intently at a dark orb of power in between her hands. "Come on, come on…! Lock!" she snarled to herself, voice quivering slightly. 

Finally, her eyes lit up. "There!" she screamed and pushed the orb forward. 

It instantly turned into another puddle, and the woman didn't skip a beat. She stuck her hand in and pulled it back immediately. Less than a second after opening the portal, it closed again, but not before spitting out a second person, who crashed onto the snowy ground. 

Rurik panted heavily and blinked as he lay on his back. "What… the hell…" he cursed, more out of confusion and lingering terror than anything else. 

With the earlier dreadful pressure finally lifted, he felt lightheaded. An intense amount of relief flooded his mind… yet, he knew the image of that dreadful dragon and his rider had been seared onto his eyelids. 

At the same time, he looked up at the furious storm raging just outside the semi-see-through barrier in awe. He couldn't even be bothered to care about how he ended up there, as nature's rage held him in a trance. Even the deafening howls and thunderclaps were dampened by the barrier. 

But his thoughts couldn't dwell—either on the storm, or his near-death experience. Suddenly, Eilin's body crashed into his, and they tumbled over the snowy ground. "Holy shit, thank anyone who'll listen that you're still alive!" 

Her arms wrapped around him tightly, her face pressed into his chest. "I swear, if those Norn bitches had touched a hair on your head, I—" 

With a deep sigh of relief, Rurik interrupted her. Having finally recovered enough to form proper thoughts again, he wrapped his arms around her and squeezed tight. "Bloody Hel…" he muttered softly. "I don't think I've ever been that scared before…" 

'Eilin' released a shuddering breath, slowly recovering from her own fear and anxiety. She nodded slowly, her head still buried in his chest, "Yeah… That's their manifestation aura. In the face of someone so powerful, even lacking a fear of death won't change anything… you'll be immobilized by sheer, instinctual dread." 

She looked up at him with regret and cupped his cheek. "You might be a little traumatized by that encounter for a while… I'm sorry, my love. If I'd waited, they would have instantly attacked... I did what I thought had the best chance of saving us." 

Rurik sighed and smiled, pressing 'Eilin's' body deeper into him. He could feel the scar of fear etched onto his soul, but he wasn't going to blame Luna for that. Not after she saved him, and especially not after just reuniting with her. 

"It's fine, Luna…" he muttered, still a little agitated, but getting better rapidly. "I'll get over it. The important thing is that we're safe, and together again…" 

Silence fell for a moment as they enjoyed the hug, but then Rurik raised an eyebrow. "At least… we are safe, right?" 

"As safe as we can be right now…" she sighed into his chest. "They can't track my portal, and they can only sense the initial ingress of a rebellious fate into this world, not actively follow it." 

Rurik's body relaxed a little more, and they went back to silently enjoying each other's presence. "Man…" he muttered absentmindedly, looking up at the cataclysmic storm raging a few feet away. "How could anyone survive in weather like that?" 

An amused, but somewhat strained voice came from his chest. "Hehe, you don't," the possessed Eilin chuckled. "Why do you think I created this barrier? Neither of our bodies are strong enough to survive that right now. We'd be ripped apart in less than a second." 

Before Rurik could respond, she pulled herself up his body with a suggestive smirk. "But do you really want to keep staring at that, or would you rather kiss your wife after 18 years apart?" 

Rurik blinked for a moment… then grinned. With no hesitation or preamble, he assaulted 'Eilin's' lips with his own. She quickly responded by smiling broadly and wrapping her arms around his neck. 

For a full five minutes they kissed passionately, but calmly, under the watchful eye of an apocalyptic winter storm. 

Eventually, however, 'Eilin' pushed him off. They were both panting heavily, looking at each other with eyes that each reflected their own endless abyss of heavy, possessive love. 

Relief and joy reflected in their expressions. It was a charged moment… and it wasn't long before Rurik tried to continue their earlier fun, and perhaps even expand on it. 

Unfortunately, Luna stopped him with a smirk. "I'd love to continue this, my love, but we don't have the time." She held up 'Eilin's' arm and showed him some minor cracks in her skin. "Eilin is a good girl, but her body can't handle my power for long. We need to get moving." 

When he saw the cracks in her skin, Rurik immediately realized the urgency and jumped up. Now being sure of her identity, he extended his hand to help Luna up. 

While she grabbed his hand and rose up, Rurik raised an eyebrow. "So, I guess this reunion isn't permanent?" 

Luna wiped the snow off Eilin's clothes and chuckled with a shake of her head. "Hehe, no, unfortunately not." Then, she looked up at him mischievously, "Besides, I'm currently possessing Eilin's body, would you really sacrifice her for me?" 

Rurik fell into a sombre silence before muttering an answer. "…If there was no other choice." No one was more important to him than Luna, but sacrificing this devoted, loveable firebrand gave him pause. 

Luna smiled and kissed him softly. "As it should be!" she winked. "But don't worry, I have a different plan for my resurrection. Let's talk on the move, though! We don't have too much time!" 

Before Rurik could ask any more, Luna walked to where the mountain met the platform—and didn't stop when she reached the stones. Stunned, Rurik's eyes widened. He was about to step forward to stop her… when she walked straight through the mountain wall.