Hakon pulled his car into the clearing and shut off the engine, making no move to open the door or get out as Gunnar parked his truck beside him with Frey on the other side with Glin and Queen Elianna in his car. They wanted to have plenty of space for everyone when they got Arianna and headed home and they didn't know what they would have to face to get her out of her stone prison hidden beneath the shack.

Hakon grabbed Astyr's hand before she could reach for the door handle and pulled her back towards him.

"Astyr," he started hesitantly, a look of fear and pleading just creeping into his eyes, "Would you stay here in the car if I asked you to?"

"Why would you ask that?" she said softly.

Hakon brought her hand up to his lips and gently kissed it before answering. "Because I'm selfish," he told her truthfully. "I've lived four hundred years of my life without knowing what living really means. I never felt before that my very existence was tied so closely to another person, but I am bound to you now in a way that makes me more afraid of losing you than of losing my own life. I've rushed into battles before and thought nothing of what might happen, but I can't do that this time. I can't think about you going out there and meeting dangers that I can't even imagine without feeling a fear and fury so strong that I can't breathe. It's too much for me; I just feel like if you stay here where you'll be safe, I'll be able to get through this."

His eyes were burning with passion as he waited, holding his breath, for her reply. She reached up with her free hand and placed it over their intertwined hands, smiling up at him with unrestrained love in her eyes.

"I almost lost you, Hakon," her words were barely more than a whisper. "If you were to get hurt without me there, I don't know how I would get over that kind of pain. I need to be with you and I need to get my mother. The only way you'll keep me in this car is if you stay here with me. Otherwise, I'd really like to have you by my side because I'm going to go break down that door and get my mother back." Her voice cracked at the end, betraying just how deeply she felt about meeting the woman who had given her life.

Hakon leaned awkwardly over the center console and gave her a crushing kiss, letting go of her hand so he could pull her even closer. He pulled back before he let himself get too far carried away and pressed his forehead against hers.

"Fine, we go together," he said hoarsely, "but you stay beside me. Agreed?"

Astyr gave him one last, quick kiss on his lips as she agreed with a smile.

They got out of the car and Astyr joined her grandmother as Hakon and Gunnar got the small cooler out of the back of the car. They had brought more packets of donated human blood both for drinking before they attempted to rescue Arianna and for her to drink once they got her out. It was clear from Randy's memory that she was in very bad shape and they wanted to be sure she had enough energy to run if need be.

Astyr had to suppress a momentary urge to giggle at the sight of the powerful Alfar queen dressed in sturdy dark jeans with thick black boots and a utilitarian black jacket. They were all dressed similarly but on Elianna, the outfit seemed so distinctly out of place. It was like seeing a fine porcelain doll dressed up like G.I. Joe.

Glin, who had obviously not had the decency to not notice her encounter with Hakon in the car, was glaring at her, as usual. Astyr simply ignored him as she waited for everyone to finish getting ready for their trek through the woods to the spot where they were to meet up with her father.

When they all had everything they needed, weapons included, and the cars were all locked up, they moved off into the dark shadows of the trees, following Hakon who was leading them using his GPS unit. Astyr felt a shiver make its way up her spine as the darkness of the forest enveloped them completely.

They moved silently and quickly, without stopping, for well over an hour. By the time they reached the clearing they were headed to, Astyr's nerves were stretched to their limits. She was still far more accustomed to city life than to the unsettling mystery of nature; there were several times along the way when she felt that they were being watched and the noises and calls of the nocturnal creatures did nothing to ease her suspicions.

Astyr ran to her father in relief the moment she saw him, unconcerned with what anyone would think of her for it.

A deep chuckle rumbled through his chest as he held her tightly in return. "Am I to take it you missed me, dear?" he said in good humor. He didn't want to tease her for her behavior because in all honesty, he was greatly enjoying the feeling of being needed by his daughter.

Astyr pulled away enough to look up at him as she answered with a smile. "Of course I missed you. Plus, I was worried that you wouldn't wait for me to get here," she added honestly.

"I was tempted," he admitted freely, "but there are times when a person has to put aside their desires and let their better judgment take over. Despite our scouting trips, it's still not clear who, or what, is still guarding the shack. If I had time, I would raise an army to back me up this time; but the eight of you are enough." He looked around at them all as he said that to gratefully acknowledge their part in the night's activities.

"Let's waste no more time," Elianna cut in sharply, "What do you have planned?"

They all focused on Tyr as he laid out their plan of attack.

"Grima will go with Laure, Frey and Gunnar around the shack to the rear and make sure nobody comes up on us while the rest of us go straight to the front. Hakon and Glin can guard the door while I take Astyr and Elianna inside to get Arianna."

Hakon shuffled nervously and looked to Astyr, clearly worried about being separated from her. Unfortunately, he knew that Tyr's plan was for the best; Hakon couldn't leave their exit unprotected nor could he deny either Astyr or Tyr their right to go in and get Arianna out of her cell. The only thing he could do to protect Astyr fully was to do as Tyr asked without question.

As everyone moved to get whatever they needed for the mission, Hakon went to the small cooler and took out a few plastic bags. He handed them to Astyr, telling her to drink one or two now and to save a couple in case she needed them later. He intended for her to be as prepared as she could be for anything that they might face. She did as he asked and put the extra packets of blood into one of the pockets of her jacket.

The battery powered lanterns that they had been using to light the clearing were shut off and Grima moved off with Laure in one direction while Frey and Gunnar went in another.

Astyr's heart sped up as the rest of them waited for a few minutes to give them a chance to get in position. Without the lights, the shadows that surrounded them seemed almost alive. There was little moonlight to make its way down to the ground of the mature forest and the little that did penetrate did nothing but make the shadows have different depths of blackness. Hakon squeezed her hand in reassurance and she felt a little calmer knowing that he was there beside her.

Tyr had made the unusual choice of carrying a seax, a long knife that was rather like a heavy machete and Hakon had a sword in his hand and a high-tech compound bow slung over his back with a quiver attached that carried eight arrows. Astyr was carrying a sleek black katana that Tyr had given her after learning that she had studied Kendo. It was an authentic nihonto made of traditional Japanese steel and Astyr had practiced with it a lot since it had become hers. Only Elianna and Glin were armed with nothing more than the gifts they had been born with, but that still made them the most lethal of the group.

Tyr stepped into the trees and the rest of them followed closely, moving silently through the oppressive gloom that surrounded them. Loki had chosen his hiding spot well; this part of the woods was so old and thick that they were many miles from any human activity or presence. It was doubtful that any humans had ever laid eyes on these trees. The people nearest to the area told tales of the forest being haunted by an evil witch and that no one who stumbled into the woods ever came out again, but none of the five who were working their way to the front of the old shack knew of those rumors.

Astyr was jumpy about what they were about to do; she wasn't used to going into battles and she definitely wasn't comfortable in the unfamiliar surroundings. She almost gave a sigh of relief as they reached the large clearing that held the near-crumbling shack. The openness of the space let more moonlight show the emptiness of the area they were about to cross.

Tyr stopped them, still well into the shadows of the trees, and signaled that he and Elianna were going to run to the front door with Astyr in between them. He wanted Glin and Hakon to wait until they reached the front door before leaving the trees and taking up their posts. Astyr nodded her understanding as she felt her stomach tighten in fear and anticipation, but Glin made a signal that he wanted Tyr to wait.

Glin knelt down and placed one bare hand on the ground. Astyr felt a tremble through the thick soles of her boots as he loosed a bolt of energy into the earth. There were a couple of muted popping noises and then a loud explosion as traps that were buried under the dirt of the front yard were set off by the power.

Tyr nodded at Glin as he rose, dusting off his hands, and then signaled to Astyr and Elianna to get ready to run. Astyr's heart gave a jolt as she realized that it was time to cross the last empty gulf that separated her from her mother. She tensed her muscles and on her father's cue, shot out into the clearing with Tyr on one side and Elianna running nimbly on the other. There was less than one hundred feet between the tree-line and the front of the shack and Astyr kept her eyes firmly on the door that she was headed to as they sped through the night faster than any human could have managed.

They reached the decrepit wooden structure in just a few seconds and Tyr quickly pushed the door open and entered. They were all keeping a shield of energy around themselves as they moved down the hallway to what had once been the kitchen and followed the trail in the dust on the floor to the false wall that was hiding the secret staircase. Tyr knew exactly where to push thanks to Randy's memories and Elianna provided a beam of light from her hand to light the way down to the stone-hewn chamber.

Astyr's heart was pounding wildly as they approached the door. Elianna quickly grabbed the shiny padlock and it crumbled away as she jerked on it. Tyr pushed the door open and wasted no time in rushing into the tiny cell. Elianna and Astyr were forced to wait outside since the cell was too small for them to enter and Astyr could hardly breathe from nervousness, fear and anticipation.

There was nothing in her life that she had ever wanted more than to meet her mother and now that it was about to happen, her thoughts were wildly scattered and she was almost shaking from excitement.

The sight of Tyr backing slowly out of the cell sent her reeling in confusion. He was too tall and too broad for her to see past him but he was not acting like a man who was being reunited with his long-lost love.

As Tyr stepped back further Astyr was able to see inside the dim interior of the stone prison. The sight made her stomach drop.

A woman, dressed from head to toe in dark leather that clearly defined every curve of her body, was holding Arianna in some kind of contraption that looked like a muzzle.

Astyr gasped in surprise as Elianna growled in anger.

The leather-clad woman turned her dark eyes to Elianna and they widened slightly in surprise. Whatever the mysterious woman had been expecting, the Queen of the Alfar wasn't it. She kept one hand firmly on the stiff leash that let her control Arianna's movement and used her other to indicate that she wanted them to go back up the stairs.

Tears of rage and frustration sprang to Astyr's eyes as Tyr put out a hand to push Astyr back behind him. They slowly moved backwards as the woman kept pushing Arianna on. Astyr felt the wooden step hit the back of her leg and she stopped, putting her hand up to her father's back to let him know that she had gone as far as she could.

When Tyr stopped with Astyr behind him and Elianna beside him, the woman signaled for them to go up. Tyr, unwilling to let Astyr go first since they knew that they were compromised, reached back and pulled Astyr around in front of him.

Both the woman and Arianna gave a gasp of surprise at the sight of Astyr and Elianna took advantage of the split second of distraction to send a blast of energy straight to the woman's chest.

The woman dropped the leash and grabbed her chest in pain. Elianna quickly moved in to put herself in between her daughter and the mysterious captor and Astyr quickly grabbed her mother, who was unable to move well because her hands were bound by a rope that was tied to a stick connected to the muzzle device, and pushed her into the corner beside the staircase as Tyr moved forward to join Elianna in her attack.

Despite Elianna's power and Tyr's ferocity, the woman fought bravely. She had recovered quickly from the shock and was now using a shield against Elianna and skillful martial arts against Tyr. The small space made it difficult for Tyr to use his seax effectively so he tossed it back to where Astyr was standing protectively in front of her mother and charged in to fight hand-to-hand.

Astyr turned to her mother and started to try and find a way to remove the strange apparatus from her head. It was made of both metal and wood but was held closed by a locking mechanism in the back. Astyr used a stream of energy to break the pieces of the lock apart and quickly pulled the thing off of her mother's head. She untied the rope around her wrists and pulled out the extra packets of blood from her jacket pocket.

"Here," she said urgently, "drink these quickly."

Astyr had to tear them open and help Arianna bring them up to her lips but when Arianna was done, she started to look better right away.

Arianna smiled at Astyr and briefly touched her face before they turned back to watch the three-way fight that was still going to.

Elianna had stopped trying to shock the woman as soon as she realized that she was shielding and had instead started to use the energy like a battering ram. Whenever the woman would try to kick out at Tyr, Elianna would knock her leg aside. Whenever she tried to jump aside to avoid a blow from Tyr, Elianna would force her forward, driving her head into Tyr's fist. Working together, Tyr and Elianna were turning her into a bruised and bloody mess.

"Stop!" Arianna commanded from her place in the corner. She put her hand on Astyr's arm and they moved out into the center of the room where the woman was lying prone, unable to get to her feet.

"We may need her to get out of here alive," she explained to Tyr, "Take off her hood."

Elianna bent down and roughly removed the head covering that was part of the woman's leather outfit, careless of how much pain she inflicted as she ripped it away.

The part of her face that wasn't bruised showed her to have golden skin and almond shaped, light brown eyes. Tyr almost roared as he saw her and he kicked her in her side hard enough to slam her into the stone wall before he could stop himself.

"What are you doing here, Menha?" he shouted to the moaning young woman, "Where is your mother?"

Astyr was lost. She had no idea how her father knew the woman; she had never heard the name before, but it was clear from Tyr's fearsome anger that this was not a good development. Astyr was more than a little frightened by the anger coming off of her father in waves even though she knew that it wasn't directed at her. Whoever this woman was, and whatever her mother had done, it was obvious that Tyr was not going to be lenient on them.

The woman started to laugh; short barks of laughter that clearly hurt her every time. "She's waiting for you outside," she said breathlessly, "She knew you'd be coming."

"What's going on?" Astyr couldn't resist asking. The curiosity and shock were wearing on her already overworked nerves.

Tyr turned to Astyr sharply and Astyr cringed back against her mother instinctively.

"No, no," Arianna cooed to her softly, "Don't be afraid, he's not angry at you. That woman there is the daughter of his first wife." Astyr's eyes widened in disbelief and she turned to look again at Menha, a question clearly forming in her eyes.

"No," Tyr answered her unasked query, "she's not my daughter. Her mother was already pregnant with her when she came to be wed to me."

"Oh!" Astyr said with raised eyebrows. She finally understood her father's feelings of betrayal about his first marriage. This, however, was definitely not the time to go over painful family history. "So, your ex-wife is outside, waiting for you to try and rescue my mom, and..." She trailed off, not knowing what else to say or ask of her father.

"And," Tyr said forcefully, "We have to get out of here, get past Isis and get home in one piece."

Arianna broke out in laughter and Astyr stared at her in shock as Elianna joined in and even Tyr started chuckling.

"Don't worry, Astyr," Arianna said to her, still laughing, as she reached up and put her hand against Astyr's cheek affectionately, "We're together, at last. Anything else, we'll find a way through, together. Got it?"

Astyr stared into her mother's silvery-blue eyes and felt a rush of joy. She put her arms around Arianna and hugged her tightly, trying to squeeze nearly sixteen years' worth of love into that one act. Elianna came and put her arms around them both and soon even Tyr joined in.

There were tears of joy in more than one eye as they broke up their reunion and started to plan their escape.

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