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February 15, 12984 BCE; Bering Land Bridge

The ice creaked with every step they took. It kept them all on edge for the entire crossing. No point ever felt safe. They knew that any of them could have the ground give out underneath them at any moment and drop them into the deadly waters underneath. They all dreaded that thought, but they kept going anyway. The Templars were on the same route. The Land Beyond the Sun was on the other side of this ocean. They had been going for months. They weren't about to give up now.

“They say that great beasts lurk in these waters,” the Mentor told Arktalaki as they walked. “Some are monstrous giants that swim the sea, others are shadows that hide in the icebergs. All of them are deadly.”

“Thank you for the uplifting thoughts, Mentor,” Arktalaki sarcastically groaned.

“I'm just letting you know, Arktalaki. It is always good to be aware of all the dangers that stand in your way.”

“I suppose…”

There was a pause. Arktalaki looked ahead into the distance, saying nothing for a while as they walked.

“I sense that there is something on your mind?” the Mentor asked her after a while.

“Hmm? Oh… it's nothing.” Arktalaki dodged.

“My child, it is not good to keep secrets from your friends.”

Arktalaki sighed. “I guess… I'm just wondering, why me? Why did you choose me to go on this journey? Why am I the one to kill all these people, to find all these artifacts, to lead this tribe?”

“Because you were willing to carry them out. That is all.”

“I… what that's it?”

“What were you expecting?”

“I… I don't know. Some grand Assassin secret? I can't think of any other reason someone like me would be chosen.”

“You say that as though in order to change the world, one has to be special.”

“Well…”

“That is the Templars’ downfall, child. They believe they are above the rest of humankind, that they are the only ones fit to shape the future. We Assassins realize that this is not the case. We believe that there is potential in all people to become heroes, and we encourage all to aspire to greatness. You are on this journey because you as an individual decided to. You lead these people because they put their trust in you, and you have worked day and night to honor that trust. You work to stop the Templars because you decided that you didn't want people to live in a world where such oppressors are in control. That is why you're here, Arktalaki. Not because I chose you, but because you chose you.”

Arktalaki mulled that over in silence for a bit before nodding in understanding. “I just don't feel like I deserve to be in the position that I'm in…”

The Mentor put a hand on her shoulder and smiled. “I say you have well earned your place. And I'm sure you'll get plenty of chances to keep earning it.”

Arktalaki gave a weak smile back. She was about to say something further, but she was suddenly interrupted. One of the tribeswomen came running up to the two Assassins, crying and yelling.

“Help! Help! Chieftess Arktalaki! Please you must help me!”

Arktalaki put her hands on the woman's shoulders and tried to get her calm. “What's wrong, my friend?” she asked. “What happened?”

“My child! I can't find my child!”

“What?”

“My child wandered away towards the shore and I cannot find him! What if he fell in? What if an animal got him? What if-?”

“My friend, please. You have to calm down. We will try to find him, I promise.”

“Thank you, chieftess, thank you!”

“Of course. Now we can organize a small team of our hunters and try to fan out and see if he-”

She felt a tap on her shoulder. She looked over to the Mentor, who was pointing towards the icebergs in the distance. “I believe the search may already be over, my child,” she said.

Arktalaki walked over to the shoreline and squinted to where the Mentor was pointing. At first all she saw was ice, but then she saw movement. She saw a small group of boats paddling through the icy water. One of them had a sack in the back, behind all the armored rowers. A child-sized sack.

Arktalaki swore. “Templars…” she cursed. “They've stolen the child.”

“There's more than one sack,” the Mentor pointed out.

“Some of the others have lost their children too,” the woman informed them.

Arktalaki swore again. She went over to her supply sled and grabbed a few weapons before sauntering back towards the shoreline.

“What do you intend to do, Arktalaki?” The Mentor asked.

“Bring them back,” Arktalaki responded. She paused at the edge. She smiled. “Earn my place.”

And with that, she leapt onto the nearest iceberg and began her hopscotch crossing as she set out to tail the Templars to wherever they were going.

She tried to get in as close as she could to the rowboat and listen in on their conversations.

“I don't understand, Qibik, what's the point of kidnapping these little runts?” one of the lesser Templars asked.

The woman at the front of the main boat turned around, slowly and stiffly. She glared at her henchman from underneath her long, raggedy bangs. He eyes were bloodshot and her skin pale. As she frowned at her henchman, Arktalaki scowled at her. Another one of the Templars that burnt her home down. Another target for her to run her blade through.

“I told you all to keep your mouths shut,” she hissed. “The Grand Master has asked us to bring the Yi’alut children to him, and it is our job to obey.”

“But they're only children-”

“Did I give you permission to question my authority?”

“No…”

“Then shut your mouth before I toss you into the freezing ocean for the whales to feast on.”

“Yes Qibik…”

“Good. Now keep rowing. We're almost to the camp.”

The henchmen continued their awkward silence and did as they were told. Arktalaki followed close behind. Tanaguq was at their camp? Perhaps she'd get the chance to end this whole ordeal early.

She tailed them to a small island of ice, where they had made their camp. Hordes of warriors stood guard around the camp, but they were clearly uneasy with the unique terrain. Arktalaki made a note to use that to her advantage. She hopped onto another iceberg and laid down on her stomach, keeping hidden from view as she watched. The boats docked at the shoreline and the kidnappers stepped out, their victims in hand. Arktalaki watched them push past the tribesmen and towards the center of the settlement. Qibik walked up to a large man who was speaking to a couple heavily armored warriors. When she tapped on his shoulder and he turned around, Arktalaki frowned again. There he was, the Grand Master himself, the man who brought more misery to these lands than anyone before him, Tanaguq. He was just as ugly as Arktalaki remembered him. She reached for her quiver.

“You have brought the children?” Tanaguq asked Qibik.

His minion nodded. “I have, Grand Master,” she said. “Snatched them from the shoreline and brought them here, just as asked.”

“Bring them here.”

Qibik nodded and motioned for her underlings to drag the sacks over. They opened them up, and out tumbled the kidnapped children. They had pure fear in their eyes. Arktalaki scowled and returned her arrow to her quiver. She couldn't kill Tanaguq from here. They'd kill the children. She swore under her breath and started to come up with a new plan.

Tanaguq leaned in close to the children's faces. They whimpered and shook with fear.

“It'll only be a matter of time before your chieftess comes for you,” he told them. “And when she does, I'll be ready.”

“Please don't hurt Arktalaki,” one of the children pleaded. “She's a nice person. She helps people.”

Tanaguq smirked and laughed. “Nice people are what bring this world to ruin,” he said. “The only way to tame this brutal world is by being twice as harsh on it.”

“Chieftess Arktalaki says that we should all be nice to people and make friends together.”

“Your leader is a pathetic insect who clings to a dead ideology and it's stupid preaching of hope.”

“You're a big meanie…”

“I can get quite more mean if I don't get what I want.”

He turned towards Qibik. “Do you still have it?” he asked. She nodded.

“Yes, Grand Master. The memory disk is safe on my person. The Assassins will not get their hands on this one.”

“Good. I'm already peeved by our losses. I want to make sure that we find the Apple of Eden on the other side of this ocean before they do.”

Arktalaki anxiously scanned the area, trying to piece together a safe way out of this mess. She would have to get to the children first, that was a given. She couldn't risk the Templars killing them. Her eyes wandered towards the rowboats. The guards weren't as focused on that area as the rest. If she could manage to grab the children and get them onto the boat…

She nodded to herself. She had to create a distraction. She grabbed her arrow once again and drew back on her bowstring. She picked out a guard that was tending the fire pile. She squinted her eyes. If she could get the angle just right…

She let the arrow fly. It soared through the air and flew through the flame of the fire pile before hitting the guard right in the leg. The flames crawled up his furs and flesh, and he screamed in pain as he flailed about, catching fire to some of the settlement structures as he did. All the Templars immediately turned towards him and tried to rush to his aid, just long enough for Arktalaki to leap forward and slide down the ice slope. She jumped down into the island and sprinted with all her might towards the children. She drew her bow and launched another arrow into Tanaguq’s chest. It was hardly enough to kill him, but it did send him reeling backwards and give her the chance to spin around and grab the children.

“You!” Tanaguq yelled at her as she started to run towards the boats.

“Not the entrance you were expecting, Tanaguq?” she laughed over her shoulder.

“You will not succeed you crafty mongrel! We will find the Apple!”

“Well hopefully you won't need this boat to do it, you bastard!” she shouted back. She jumped into the boat and put the kids in the oar seats as she stayed in the back and readied her bow for another volley.

“Go go go!” She told them. The kids didn't hesitate. They grabbed the oars and rowed as hard as they could away from the shore. The Templars scrambled to get into their own boats and follow. Tanaguq roared in anger. “You will die just like your family did, Assassin!” he bellowed. He turned towards Qibik and shoved her towards the boats. “Go! Kill her! Drag her into the deep!”

Qibik rushed forward to join her men as they loaded into the boats and gave chase in the icy waves. Arktalaki used her arrows to take out their oarsmen while the children did their best to speed against the waves. The Templars had their own archers as well, however, and Arktalaki quickly started having trouble between letting off her own attacks and dodging theirs. She realized she'd have to up her game and find a way to take a large amount of them out at once. She thought back to the fire, and an idea clicked in her mind.

She grabbed a couple flints out of her satchel and brought them close to her arrow head, which she made sure to hang over the edge of their boat. She clicked the flints together and they gave off a spark, a spark that ignited the end of her arrow with a satisfying whoosh. She smiled and readied her bow again. This time, she aimed at their boats. The arrows went flying, and they smacked into the wooden hull of the Templar rowboats, lighting them ablaze. They all panicked as they either lit on fire or fell into the impossibly cold sea. Arktalaki laughed in victory, but found that her victory was short lived.

To Arktalaki’s confusion, Qibik, instead of panicking too, stood on the edge of her burning boat, and she dived into the water. The monstrous Templar suddenly started doing the impossible: she started swimming towards them. And fast.

“Oh come on, that's not fair!” Arktalaki whined.

The Templar came darting up fast, like she was almost built for the water. Arktalaki panicked. She put her bow down and instead grabbed one of her spears. Qibik got closer and closer until she was able to lunge up out of the water and grab the edge of her boat. Arktalaki thrust her spear downwards, but the Templars dodged, going under and popping out the other side. The children screamed in fear, and Arktalaki tossed her spear over their heads before Qibik could lunge forward and grab them. The Templar went under again.

“Move us towards one of the icebergs!” Arktalaki told them, getting an idea. They nodded and did as she asked, moving the boat as close as they could to the nearest solid mass. Arktalaki looked towards the water. “Come on you coward! Is that the best you can do? Come get me!”

Then the Templar reappeared again, lunging out of the water and hissing like a demon. Arktalaki was ready this time. She swung her spear underhand and thrust it into the Templar’s heart, impaling her. As the Templar gargled in surprise, Arktalaki used all the strength she could to yank her foe out of the water and swing her over to the iceberg. She stepped onto land, gave the spear a hard twist for good measure, and pulled it back out just as time slowed down once more.

Reality broke down around them, Ava's mind was able to get a bit of wiggle room, and she watched her ancestor stand over her target in the raw void of Animus data.

“That was an impressive trick you pulled off,” she told her prey. “Most people would've died instantly from the cold waters.”

The dying Templar snarled. “I've spent my whole life training to be more than what is humanly possible, Assassin,” she hissed. “I always wanted to be more than nature provided.”

“I suppose that's why you joined the Templars then?”

“Yes… They gave me a chance to be so much more than the rabble of the world. A chance to be above them all. To be a goddess. Who wouldn't want a deal like that?”

“I wouldn't. All people deserve equality and freedom.”

“The people don't know what is best for them.”

“They do, and if you Templars would pull your heads out of your asses long enough to see that, maybe we'd have far less bloodshed in this world.”

Qibik’s mouth quieted as she tried to say something further, but it was too late. Death embraced her in full, and Arktalaki bent down to do her ritual. “May you be equal in death,” she said. “Let your soul walk free.”

She reached into the soggy furs of the Templar’s robes and from it, she grabbed her prize: another memory disk. She smiled and stowed it away in her satchel before turning to leave. Ava's mind fell back apart as the past rebuilt itself and Arktalaki returned to the boat. She ruffled some of the children's hair and sat down to rest at last.

“Come now, little ones,” she said. “Now that the bad people are gone, let's get back to the tribe. Your parents are very worried about you.”

And so the children put their rowing into high gear, and they set their course for home.

------------

February 16, 12984 BCE; Bering Land Bridge

“You did good today, Arktalaki,” the Mentor told her that night.

They were resting until morning. The tribe made sure to get far away from where they were earlier before stopping. The Templars would be halted while they recovered from the damage Arktalaki did, but it wouldn't stop them for long. At least for now, they knew they could rest soundly. The children were returned to their parents, who were thrilled and endlessly thankful to their heroic friend. All was well. For now.

“I'm just do what I need to do,” Arktalaki said to the Mentor.

“And that's why you continue to make me proud. I'm sure your family would be too. You've grown to become such a noble young warrior.”

“Thank you, Mentor.”

“Arktalaki, call me Wamuneq. I feel you've well earned the right to.”

Arktalaki looked at her for a silent moment, and then smiled. “With all due respect, Mentor, you'll always be the Mentor to me.”

The Mentor gave her the same surprised look, and then that same appreciative smile.

Arktalaki reached into her satchel and pulled out the memory disk. “Now I think it's time I gave Eve another visit,” she said. The Mentor nodded and stood. She crossed her arm over her chest in respect, and then left Arktalaki to her privacy.

Arktalaki gazed into the ever-increasing light of the disk as it hummed louder and louder in her ears. The golden glow engulfed her whole range of vision, leaving her in a blinding white void as her mind was warped and twisted into a form long past. She felt the breeze become hot with smoke and ash. She could hear the distant explosions of war machines way in the distance. She could smell burning gas and flesh.

Asgard was, quite literally, on the edge of destruction.

Description
February 15, 12984 BCE; Bering Land Bridge

The ice creaked with every step they took. It kept them all on edge for the entire crossing. No point ever felt safe. They knew that any of them could have the ground give out underneath them at any moment and drop them into the deadly waters underneath. They all dreaded that thought, but they kept going anyway. The Templars were on the same route. The Land Beyond the Sun was on the other side of this ocean. They had been going for months. They weren't about to give up now.

“They say that great beasts lurk in these waters,” the Mentor told Arktalaki as they walked. “Some are monstrous giants that swim the sea, others are shadows that hide in the icebergs. All of them are deadly.”

“Thank you for the uplifting thoughts, Mentor,” Arktalaki sarcastically groaned.

“I'm just letting you know, Arktalaki. It is always good to be aware of all the dangers that stand in your way.”

“I suppose…”

There was a pause. Arktalaki looked ahead into the distance, saying nothing for a while as they walked.

“I sense that there is something on your mind?” the Mentor asked her after a while.

“Hmm? Oh… it's nothing.” Arktalaki dodged.

“My child, it is not good to keep secrets from your friends.”

Arktalaki sighed. “I guess… I'm just wondering, why me? Why did you choose me to go on this journey? Why am I the one to kill all these people, to find all these artifacts, to lead this tribe?”

“Because you were willing to carry them out. That is all.”

“I… what that's it?”

“What were you expecting?”

“I… I don't know. Some grand Assassin secret? I can't think of any other reason someone like me would be chosen.”

“You say that as though in order to change the world, one has to be special.”

“Well…”

“That is the Templars’ downfall, child. They believe they are above the rest of humankind, that they are the only ones fit to shape the future. We Assassins realize that this is not the case. We believe that there is potential in all people to become heroes, and we encourage all to aspire to greatness. You are on this journey because you as an individual decided to. You lead these people because they put their trust in you, and you have worked day and night to honor that trust. You work to stop the Templars because you decided that you didn't want people to live in a world where such oppressors are in control. That is why you're here, Arktalaki. Not because I chose you, but because you chose you.”

Arktalaki mulled that over in silence for a bit before nodding in understanding. “I just don't feel like I deserve to be in the position that I'm in…”

The Mentor put a hand on her shoulder and smiled. “I say you have well earned your place. And I'm sure you'll get plenty of chances to keep earning it.”

Arktalaki gave a weak smile back. She was about to say something further, but she was suddenly interrupted. One of the tribeswomen came running up to the two Assassins, crying and yelling.

“Help! Help! Chieftess Arktalaki! Please you must help me!”

Arktalaki put her hands on the woman's shoulders and tried to get her calm. “What's wrong, my friend?” she asked. “What happened?”

“My child! I can't find my child!”

“What?”

“My child wandered away towards the shore and I cannot find him! What if he fell in? What if an animal got him? What if-?”

“My friend, please. You have to calm down. We will try to find him, I promise.”

“Thank you, chieftess, thank you!”

“Of course. Now we can organize a small team of our hunters and try to fan out and see if he-”

She felt a tap on her shoulder. She looked over to the Mentor, who was pointing towards the icebergs in the distance. “I believe the search may already be over, my child,” she said.

Arktalaki walked over to the shoreline and squinted to where the Mentor was pointing. At first all she saw was ice, but then she saw movement. She saw a small group of boats paddling through the icy water. One of them had a sack in the back, behind all the armored rowers. A child-sized sack.

Arktalaki swore. “Templars…” she cursed. “They've stolen the child.”

“There's more than one sack,” the Mentor pointed out.

“Some of the others have lost their children too,” the woman informed them.

Arktalaki swore again. She went over to her supply sled and grabbed a few weapons before sauntering back towards the shoreline.

“What do you intend to do, Arktalaki?” The Mentor asked.

“Bring them back,” Arktalaki responded. She paused at the edge. She smiled. “Earn my place.”

And with that, she leapt onto the nearest iceberg and began her hopscotch crossing as she set out to tail the Templars to wherever they were going.

She tried to get in as close as she could to the rowboat and listen in on their conversations.

“I don't understand, Qibik, what's the point of kidnapping these little runts?” one of the lesser Templars asked.

The woman at the front of the main boat turned around, slowly and stiffly. She glared at her henchman from underneath her long, raggedy bangs. He eyes were bloodshot and her skin pale. As she frowned at her henchman, Arktalaki scowled at her. Another one of the Templars that burnt her home down. Another target for her to run her blade through.

“I told you all to keep your mouths shut,” she hissed. “The Grand Master has asked us to bring the Yi’alut children to him, and it is our job to obey.”

“But they're only children-”

“Did I give you permission to question my authority?”

“No…”

“Then shut your mouth before I toss you into the freezing ocean for the whales to feast on.”

“Yes Qibik…”

“Good. Now keep rowing. We're almost to the camp.”

The henchmen continued their awkward silence and did as they were told. Arktalaki followed close behind. Tanaguq was at their camp? Perhaps she'd get the chance to end this whole ordeal early.

She tailed them to a small island of ice, where they had made their camp. Hordes of warriors stood guard around the camp, but they were clearly uneasy with the unique terrain. Arktalaki made a note to use that to her advantage. She hopped onto another iceberg and laid down on her stomach, keeping hidden from view as she watched. The boats docked at the shoreline and the kidnappers stepped out, their victims in hand. Arktalaki watched them push past the tribesmen and towards the center of the settlement. Qibik walked up to a large man who was speaking to a couple heavily armored warriors. When she tapped on his shoulder and he turned around, Arktalaki frowned again. There he was, the Grand Master himself, the man who brought more misery to these lands than anyone before him, Tanaguq. He was just as ugly as Arktalaki remembered him. She reached for her quiver.

“You have brought the children?” Tanaguq asked Qibik.

His minion nodded. “I have, Grand Master,” she said. “Snatched them from the shoreline and brought them here, just as asked.”

“Bring them here.”

Qibik nodded and motioned for her underlings to drag the sacks over. They opened them up, and out tumbled the kidnapped children. They had pure fear in their eyes. Arktalaki scowled and returned her arrow to her quiver. She couldn't kill Tanaguq from here. They'd kill the children. She swore under her breath and started to come up with a new plan.

Tanaguq leaned in close to the children's faces. They whimpered and shook with fear.

“It'll only be a matter of time before your chieftess comes for you,” he told them. “And when she does, I'll be ready.”

“Please don't hurt Arktalaki,” one of the children pleaded. “She's a nice person. She helps people.”

Tanaguq smirked and laughed. “Nice people are what bring this world to ruin,” he said. “The only way to tame this brutal world is by being twice as harsh on it.”

“Chieftess Arktalaki says that we should all be nice to people and make friends together.”

“Your leader is a pathetic insect who clings to a dead ideology and it's stupid preaching of hope.”

“You're a big meanie…”

“I can get quite more mean if I don't get what I want.”

He turned towards Qibik. “Do you still have it?” he asked. She nodded.

“Yes, Grand Master. The memory disk is safe on my person. The Assassins will not get their hands on this one.”

“Good. I'm already peeved by our losses. I want to make sure that we find the Apple of Eden on the other side of this ocean before they do.”

Arktalaki anxiously scanned the area, trying to piece together a safe way out of this mess. She would have to get to the children first, that was a given. She couldn't risk the Templars killing them. Her eyes wandered towards the rowboats. The guards weren't as focused on that area as the rest. If she could manage to grab the children and get them onto the boat…

She nodded to herself. She had to create a distraction. She grabbed her arrow once again and drew back on her bowstring. She picked out a guard that was tending the fire pile. She squinted her eyes. If she could get the angle just right…

She let the arrow fly. It soared through the air and flew through the flame of the fire pile before hitting the guard right in the leg. The flames crawled up his furs and flesh, and he screamed in pain as he flailed about, catching fire to some of the settlement structures as he did. All the Templars immediately turned towards him and tried to rush to his aid, just long enough for Arktalaki to leap forward and slide down the ice slope. She jumped down into the island and sprinted with all her might towards the children. She drew her bow and launched another arrow into Tanaguq’s chest. It was hardly enough to kill him, but it did send him reeling backwards and give her the chance to spin around and grab the children.

“You!” Tanaguq yelled at her as she started to run towards the boats.

“Not the entrance you were expecting, Tanaguq?” she laughed over her shoulder.

“You will not succeed you crafty mongrel! We will find the Apple!”

“Well hopefully you won't need this boat to do it, you bastard!” she shouted back. She jumped into the boat and put the kids in the oar seats as she stayed in the back and readied her bow for another volley.

“Go go go!” She told them. The kids didn't hesitate. They grabbed the oars and rowed as hard as they could away from the shore. The Templars scrambled to get into their own boats and follow. Tanaguq roared in anger. “You will die just like your family did, Assassin!” he bellowed. He turned towards Qibik and shoved her towards the boats. “Go! Kill her! Drag her into the deep!”

Qibik rushed forward to join her men as they loaded into the boats and gave chase in the icy waves. Arktalaki used her arrows to take out their oarsmen while the children did their best to speed against the waves. The Templars had their own archers as well, however, and Arktalaki quickly started having trouble between letting off her own attacks and dodging theirs. She realized she'd have to up her game and find a way to take a large amount of them out at once. She thought back to the fire, and an idea clicked in her mind.

She grabbed a couple flints out of her satchel and brought them close to her arrow head, which she made sure to hang over the edge of their boat. She clicked the flints together and they gave off a spark, a spark that ignited the end of her arrow with a satisfying whoosh. She smiled and readied her bow again. This time, she aimed at their boats. The arrows went flying, and they smacked into the wooden hull of the Templar rowboats, lighting them ablaze. They all panicked as they either lit on fire or fell into the impossibly cold sea. Arktalaki laughed in victory, but found that her victory was short lived.

To Arktalaki’s confusion, Qibik, instead of panicking too, stood on the edge of her burning boat, and she dived into the water. The monstrous Templar suddenly started doing the impossible: she started swimming towards them. And fast.

“Oh come on, that's not fair!” Arktalaki whined.

The Templar came darting up fast, like she was almost built for the water. Arktalaki panicked. She put her bow down and instead grabbed one of her spears. Qibik got closer and closer until she was able to lunge up out of the water and grab the edge of her boat. Arktalaki thrust her spear downwards, but the Templars dodged, going under and popping out the other side. The children screamed in fear, and Arktalaki tossed her spear over their heads before Qibik could lunge forward and grab them. The Templar went under again.

“Move us towards one of the icebergs!” Arktalaki told them, getting an idea. They nodded and did as she asked, moving the boat as close as they could to the nearest solid mass. Arktalaki looked towards the water. “Come on you coward! Is that the best you can do? Come get me!”

Then the Templar reappeared again, lunging out of the water and hissing like a demon. Arktalaki was ready this time. She swung her spear underhand and thrust it into the Templar’s heart, impaling her. As the Templar gargled in surprise, Arktalaki used all the strength she could to yank her foe out of the water and swing her over to the iceberg. She stepped onto land, gave the spear a hard twist for good measure, and pulled it back out just as time slowed down once more.

Reality broke down around them, Ava's mind was able to get a bit of wiggle room, and she watched her ancestor stand over her target in the raw void of Animus data.

“That was an impressive trick you pulled off,” she told her prey. “Most people would've died instantly from the cold waters.”

The dying Templar snarled. “I've spent my whole life training to be more than what is humanly possible, Assassin,” she hissed. “I always wanted to be more than nature provided.”

“I suppose that's why you joined the Templars then?”

“Yes… They gave me a chance to be so much more than the rabble of the world. A chance to be above them all. To be a goddess. Who wouldn't want a deal like that?”

“I wouldn't. All people deserve equality and freedom.”

“The people don't know what is best for them.”

“They do, and if you Templars would pull your heads out of your asses long enough to see that, maybe we'd have far less bloodshed in this world.”

Qibik’s mouth quieted as she tried to say something further, but it was too late. Death embraced her in full, and Arktalaki bent down to do her ritual. “May you be equal in death,” she said. “Let your soul walk free.”

She reached into the soggy furs of the Templar’s robes and from it, she grabbed her prize: another memory disk. She smiled and stowed it away in her satchel before turning to leave. Ava's mind fell back apart as the past rebuilt itself and Arktalaki returned to the boat. She ruffled some of the children's hair and sat down to rest at last.

“Come now, little ones,” she said. “Now that the bad people are gone, let's get back to the tribe. Your parents are very worried about you.”

And so the children put their rowing into high gear, and they set their course for home.

------------

February 16, 12984 BCE; Bering Land Bridge

“You did good today, Arktalaki,” the Mentor told her that night.

They were resting until morning. The tribe made sure to get far away from where they were earlier before stopping. The Templars would be halted while they recovered from the damage Arktalaki did, but it wouldn't stop them for long. At least for now, they knew they could rest soundly. The children were returned to their parents, who were thrilled and endlessly thankful to their heroic friend. All was well. For now.

“I'm just do what I need to do,” Arktalaki said to the Mentor.

“And that's why you continue to make me proud. I'm sure your family would be too. You've grown to become such a noble young warrior.”

“Thank you, Mentor.”

“Arktalaki, call me Wamuneq. I feel you've well earned the right to.”

Arktalaki looked at her for a silent moment, and then smiled. “With all due respect, Mentor, you'll always be the Mentor to me.”

The Mentor gave her the same surprised look, and then that same appreciative smile.

Arktalaki reached into her satchel and pulled out the memory disk. “Now I think it's time I gave Eve another visit,” she said. The Mentor nodded and stood. She crossed her arm over her chest in respect, and then left Arktalaki to her privacy.

Arktalaki gazed into the ever-increasing light of the disk as it hummed louder and louder in her ears. The golden glow engulfed her whole range of vision, leaving her in a blinding white void as her mind was warped and twisted into a form long past. She felt the breeze become hot with smoke and ash. She could hear the distant explosions of war machines way in the distance. She could smell burning gas and flesh.

Asgard was, quite literally, on the edge of destruction.