God of War: Daughter of War

With their work in the bay completed, as best as they could all things considered, the family returned to the boat without delay and made their way over to where Durlin's office was located, quickly docking near the structure and walking up to the main door, which Kratos opened so everyone else could head inside.

"Excuse me, we're... um, we're looking for Durlin. Have you seen him?" Atreus asked, though at the same time he looked at the various walls and shelves that were around them, some having items that were no doubt used in safety measures while some looked like notes on what needed to be done in the future, and there was a second floor that was the same way, all of which interested him greatly.

"Do you have an appointment?" the dwarf at the counter asked, which was likely the dwarf they were here to see, though at the moment he had his feet up on the work station and he seemed to be reading a book, no doubt on break, or what little time off Odin gave him, and it looked like there was a small aquarium near his feet with a small squid inside it, and his tone told them he likely didn't want to deal with anyone.

"No, we were unaware that an appointment was needed... though to be fair, has anyone ever had an appointment here in the past?" Pandora inquired, because despite this being the 'safety office' it sure looked like almost no one else had been here for quite some time, though her words caused the dwarf to close his book and drop it on the counter as he quickly straightened himself to look at them, where they found that he had a head injury that was covered by his hat, but he did look like a professional of sorts.

"Tell me, are you here to collect on something? Because that severed head doesn't scare me and won't force me to approve Estrid's accretion proposal." the dwarf said, clearly assuming that they were someone else, thugs hired by someone to force him to approve of something he knew didn't fit the guidelines he was forced to follow, while at the same time allowing them to see that he was definitely dressed like an official worker.

"We do not work for this 'Estrid'. We are seeking a prisoner of Odin's." Kratos stated, because they didn't have time for the dwarf's games, as it was only a matter of time until someone in the city noticed the rigs were out, and the creature had been freed from it's bindings, meaning they were now stressed for time until the Einherjar showed up, though as he noticed the look on Durlin's face he realized this dwarf might not help them at all, causing him to turn around for a moment.

"What the... Where did you get that axe? Did you hope off her head with it as well?" Durlin inquired, as he recognized it in an instant, it was a weapon he knew well, had seen it many times, and had dedicated it to memory, though it being on the back of another's back, and in their possession, caused him to open his mouth before his brain could stop him.

"NO!" Kratos snapped, clearly enraged by the mere thought of someone assuming that he killed someone he cared about, a fact that easily reminded him of what happened thanks to Ares trying to make him into a 'great warrior', before he forced himself to calm down before he did anything he would regret later, "No... Faye was my wife, and we shared many good years together. On the day of her death she gifted the Leviathan Axe and her shield to me, but the shield was damaged by a stalker before we decided to visit you."

That actually caused Durlin to pause for a moment, his eyes darting from Kratos to each of his children, mentally coming to terms with the fact that Faye had gotten together with someone after what happened to the rebellion, enough to have a kid in the form of Atreus, causing him to click as he held a hand out towards the tank, allowing the squid to emerge and wrap itself around his arm.

"Dinner and I... well, we wondered where Faye wandered off to after our little coup failed... got a pretty prize for it, all things considered." Durlin commented, showing no interest in the fact that he had angered Kratos a little, but he did pull out one of his mugs and poured something into it, likely mead or something stronger, almost as if he was doing his own toast to Faye's memory, despite their failure to free this realm from Odin, before he sighed as he noticed Flurry's frown, "The best people are already dead... and the ones left alive have to pay the price. I'm afraid that I can't help you with your situation, no matter who it is that you're looking for... and before you say anything, just know I'm not in the business of crossing the All-Father anymore... but I do have something for you."

Flurry raised an eyebrow for a moment as Durlin got up, looked around the office area that was behind the counter, before finding whatever it was he was after, an official looking scroll that he opened and wrote something in, where the squid also spat at it so he could use his signet ring to make it fully official, before he closed it and handed it to Flurry, no doubt trusting her more than everyone else.

"That right there is a fine: one count for hygiene code violation for improper transport of a rotting head; two demerits for speaking the All-Father's given name; a warning to not incite rebellion; and, ugh, a demerit for FUCKING UP MY DESK!" Durlin stated, though at the same time the look on his face told Flurry everything she and her family needed to know, he was in the middle of an act, as he was still a rebel at heart and figured that the best way he could bring down Odin now was through aiding them, especially since his desk was fine, a fact that Kratos rectified as he punched the counter, after Durlin picked up his mug, as he figured it out as well, "Pay it at your leisure, okay?"

Flurry had to admit that his acting was pretty good, in fact if anyone was listening outside the door they would assume that Durlin was siding with Odin after everything he had been through, though if that someone was Odin she was sure the dwarf would be in trouble, though as they left, through the other door, Dinner spat something else at them, a Yggdrasil seed they might be able to use later on. Atreus tried to see what was on the scroll as they left the office, exiting to an area that had a number of grim and wretches for them to fight, where Flurry kept the item away from her brother as she drew her sickles and approached their next group of enemies. While they did that Kratos spotted a few explosives and sonic points that they could utilize, to which he and his children made sure to use them against their enemies, blasting them when they got close and breaking parts of the area that might be useful in some manner in the near future. In addition to that Flurry spotted a stone chest that her father looted the moment that the coast was clear, causing her brother to ask about the scroll again, as he wanted to know what it actually was, where she told all of them that it was instructions, a map, meaning she had been right in assuming he wanted to aid them in his own way.

With that in mind they opened the nearby gate that was in their way before moving towards the mountain that was where they had to go, it was where Durlin's instructions were telling them to go, which brought them to what appeared to be a cart on tracks, which Mimir identified as a dwarven train.

Flurry noticed that there was another strange grave resting in the flat area nearby, though since there wasn't anything else for them to worry about she allowed her brother, sister, and father to enter the wooden and metal contraption before she found that, once again, there wasn't enough room for her. As her family got the train moving she took advantage of how slow it was and looted a nearby stone chest, though after that she spread her wings and took off, following the track that the train would be following for some time as she kept her eyes open for any hazards. She did overhear that the damage done to Durlin's head was from Heimdall, one of Odin's most trusted followers, as he was the one who carried Gjallarhorn, a relic of unknown origin that was to be sounded during Ragnarok, for the armies of the Nine Realms to march on Asgard, or that was the prophecy anyway. The train came to a stop and the family climbed out before following the path that should bring them to another train, as there was a second one nearby, though the path brought them to an area that a dreki was resting in, a creature that was like a crocodile, and Atreus approached it with his guard lowered, only for them to discover that there was a living dreki nearby, as the first was definitely dead.

The dreki used savage bites, powerful jumps, and quick swings of it's tail to try and bring them down, along with channeling a bit of lightning into the water that was around it, though most of the family avoided the incoming attacks that were coming at them and lashed out at the creature's hide. While they did that Flurry surrounded the slain dreki with her magic to make sure it's body didn't dissolve on them, as she wanted to harvest it as well, though her father wasted no time in striking their foe with enough power to cause it to stagger under the weight of his blows. After a few moments their foe tried one last type of attack, hurling blobs of lightning at them, which was likely spit infused with it's elemental power, though they were able to avoid the attacks with ease and dealt significant damage to the dreki's body. Kratos had a good way to bring it down, which was to smash it's head into the ground, grab onto it and force it's mouth closed, before twisting the dreki's body so Atreus and Pandora could damage it's underside, only for him and Atreus to use their knives to stab it right in the head, killing it in a matter of seconds.

With the dreki defeated Flurry went to work harvesting both of them for their resources, such as a Chaos Flame, which made her father happy to see it, and a runic gem that she gave to her father so he could add it to his arsenal, before removing the scales and other items, since Brok and Sindri might be able to use them in the future.

Once she was done they checked out the rest of the area, finding a locked door that seemed to head to a forge, though since there weren't any other paths available they retraced their steps and headed down the other route that brought them to the area that the second train was resting in. This time around the train wasn't aligned with the track and Atreus seemed to be of the opinion that he could pull a fast one on his father as he placed it on the path, where Pandora stopped him since they were stressed for time and delaying them even a little bit was a bad idea. While they got underway Flurry looted a stone chest before taking to the air, allowing her to fly overhead like the last time her family used one of these, though this time around an army of grim rushed out of the mountain and attacked the train, sending it flying off the train track. Such a thing caused her to rush ahead of the now flying train, spun around as she drew her bow, and rained arrows down on the grim as they tried to get at her family, and the rare few that reached their target were punched by her father or sister, as Atreus was in the middle of freaking out, repeating 'shit' repeatedly for some reason.

Eventually the train crashed into a troll that was on the ground, of all things, who grabbed her father as he climbed out for a moment, but that caused him to brutally behead the creature before helping Atreus and Pandora out of the train, and as he chewed Atreus out for losing control, as certain words were a sign of one losing control, Flurry pocketed some items that were dropped from the now dead troll.

Of course there were more grim for them to fight, which none of them were surprised by given everything they had seen so far in this realm, and as they made their way around to what seemed to be the entrance of the actual mine all of the grim were slain without the family slowing down at all. Flurry did make sure to loot anything they passed by, chests on the side of an area or loose bags of Hacksilver that would be useful in trading with the dwarf brothers, all while her father dealt with all sorts of blockages and even crushed some wretches that tried to join the battle. She also uncovered a whetstone Mimir was able to recognize, as it was the 'Whetstone of the Night Ripper', something to add to the collection as they found the path that lead into the mine, something that made her father happy since it meant they could head inside and see if the Giants were right about Tyr being imprisoned in this realm. To move forward Kratos used the axe and froze part of the wooden trough that had been diverted into this area, causing an overflow that pushed some cargo out of their way so they could reach a runic chest, and once they were on the other side he recalled the axe before they ignited the three braziers that allowed Flurry to loot the chest, and a stone one that was nearby.

There was an area where they had to lift Atreus into the upper level, though he teased his father about his knees for some odd reason, even though Kratos ignored the comment as his son opened the way forward for him and Pandora to catch up to him and Flurry.

Sindri caught up with them as they started to enter the actual mine and handed over two lanterns that were like the Bifrost, as he realized that what he gave them earlier wasn't good enough to be an actual light, so he gave one to Kratos and one to Atreus, those were all he could make so far, so Pandora's would be given to her when they returned to the house, since he knew Flurry didn't need one. The grim that showed up after that barely stopped the family as they removed them and made their way into the mine at long last, passing by another crystalline mirror they couldn't do anything with, though while her family did that Flurry tracked down a golden chest and looted it, and collected a Kvasir poem that seemed to be about a pair of friends, one of metal and one of fur. With that added to the collection she joined her family as they descended into the mine, allowing her to give her father the pommel piece she had found in the golden chest, where the official entrance had been collapsed, though there was a side passage for them to use to continue moving forward. Sure enough there were a few more wretches for them to fight, but they were used to this at this point in time and simply continued to clear out the foes that came their way, all while Atreus used the new sonic power of his bow to clear openings for them to use.

As they crawled through the area of the mine they were in the family also had to clear out a number of grim, and even one that was a nest for the wretches, though once all of their enemies were dealt with Flurry found another water trough that was large enough for someone to ride in, thanks to a makeshift boat nearby, with enough room for three.

"You know, sometimes being me is unfair." Flurry commented, where she tucked in her wings and levitated herself with her magic, another useful skill she had picked up during her lessons with Hecate, while her family moved into the boat and got underway, since there was no telling when Odin's forces would arrive to stop them.

Atreus, on the other hand, was more focused on finding Tyr and joining him in the fight against Odin, even though Kratos told him that they weren't here to declare war on the All-Father, only this time it sure looked like his son was lost in his own little world and didn't want to listen to his father's advice. When they reached the core of the mountain they discovered that the place was massive and that Durlin's instructions weren't of any help, meaning they were going to have to check each area just to satisfy Atreus' desire to find the god they were looking for. Eventually the family reached the end of the path and found where Sindri had set up shop again, where Kratos quickly utilized the new Chaos Flame and further empowered his Blades of Chaos, much to Sindri's amazement, before Flurry landed and undid her spell, allowing her to stretch her wings a little before they moved into the mountain's core. Just like when they were outside Kratos had to utilize the freezing power of the Leviathan Axe, along with Atreus' new sonic arrows, to navigate the mess that had been left behind, allowing them to clear a blockage and reach the first of many large doors they would need to check.

It happened to lead to a long forgotten break room, with rats on the old tables, though Flurry looted a stone chest as Atreus opened the way with another sonic arrow, which he definitely liked, allowing them to use a small passage to reach another portion of the mountain core. There were also draugr in the area for the family to fight, not that it mattered since they tore through them and even jumped over the long water trough they had rode the boat through, but this did show that either the area was abandoned or Odin was really keeping Tyr down here. Kratos kept his opinions to himself as Atreus rushed ahead of him and his sisters, where he utilized the axe to mess with the next water trough and moved some water wheels so they could reach the next door he wanted to check out. Atreus really seemed to be of the opinion that Tyr would march out of here and immediately declare war on Odin, and that it was his job to stand beside him while he did so, causing the rest of his family to sigh as they used a lift to reach the upper portion of the area and continued their exploration.

The second door brought them to a collapsed section of the mine and they dropped into a wretch nest, wiping them out in a matter of seconds, before discovering a covered crawl passage that a dwarf had been crushed under, though he was holding a powerful talisman, a relic that Flurry collected. She recalled the dwarves mentioning this at one point in the past, that there were really powerful items in the world, like a talisman or even old weapons, that could give them even more of a boost to their power, so by adding this to her bag, in the portion that all of their gear was in, they could benefit from another type of boost. With that in hand they continued through the now freed passage and reached another portion of the mountain core, another large area with another door that they needed to check out, along with more water troughs and water wheels they had to move to continue on their way. Flurry discovered that they were now above Sindri's location, meaning the mine was like a spiral, before they found an area that allowed them to look into the next room behind the third door, where a draugr hole happened to be located.

Sure enough they found a way to the door and entered the area with the draugr hole, though this time around Flurry simply used the Serpent's Glaive to behead both Hertha and her guards, sealing the hole in the earth in an instant as she picked up all of the loot that she dropped, while her father looted a golden chest and obtained an axe piece that he added to what they had collected during their last adventure.

"Another dead end... where could he be?" Atreus inquired, as this was getting annoying, because he had thought they would have discovered Tyr's location a lot sooner than what was going on right now, and it was easy for the family to tell that he was definitely getting desperate to find the missing God of War.

"Atreus, the mine is abandoned. It is unlikely..." Kratos started to say, though in the next instant his son rounded on him, as if he was trying to act more mature than he really was, while at the same time failing to control his ire over the fact that none of his family members seemed to agree with his desire to find Tyr.

"Tyr's here, I know he is! Durlin's instructions ended at the start of the mine, so we need to keep searching!" Atreus stated, his tone informing them that he really wasn't happy with what they were doing right now, standing against him and his quest to save Tyr from his prison, "Father, you said that you and my sisters would follow my lead, so stop questioning my every decision and do as I say!"

"Atreus, we are simply stating what we see. Nothing more... but you WILL stop treating us this way." Flurry replied, her tone telling her family that she was getting fed up with her brother, who stopped for a moment as they headed out through the door to see if they could find a fourth one to investigate, "Keep it up and you'll really piss me off... and trust me, you don't want to see me when I'm like that."

Atreus thought about it and seemed to back off for the time being, allowing them to double back to a blocked chain that was the next way forward after he used his sonic arrows to deal with a blockage, allowing them to ride it down to another area that had more water wheels and water troughs. Instead of saying anything, or even sighing, the family just focused on using their skills to move things around so they could continue towards the next door, all while Atreus refused to listen to one of Kratos' lessons, as it was a 'mental exercise' that his son instantly failed. It showed them that while his son had made good strides over the years, becoming a better warrior, there were parts he was lacking in and refused to fix his errors, meaning they needed another approach in the future, which was just annoying when Kratos thought about it. Flurry made sure that any green ravens were destroyed in the process, even though this meant they were on the right path, before they discovered that that the fourth door was a bust, but there was a passage leading out that brought them to an area with a barred door with sonic locks on it.

In the next few seconds Atreus broke the sonic locks before Kratos approached the door, only for them to discover that a few Einherjar called out to them before jumping down into the area they were in, annoyed that they were here no doubt, to which the family readied their weapons and engaged them. The interesting thing was that the Einherjar wore no shirts and seemed more like reavers, though their weapons were empowered by the Bifrost, which wasn't something they had been expecting when thinking about Odin's army, but it was something to keep in mind for the future. The skills of the pair were laughable, if Flurry was being honest, which really damaged the idea that Tyr was being held here, because if he was on the other side of the door that meant Odin didn't value his safety very well and almost wanted him to be found. With that fact in mind they were able to overwhelm the Einherjar without much difficulty, even the few more that dropped down into the area collapsed like they were the weakest of Odin's forces, and once the coast was clear Kratos stabbed the wooden beam of the door with the Blades of Chaos.

After pulling the door down, which was rather easy to do, they found that it was a cage on the other side of the door, where a tall figure was sitting on the ground and glanced at them with a look that indicated that he wasn't believing his eyes, which were the Bifrost crystals like what Mimir had. Tyr seemed totally broken, as he took one look at Kratos, someone he had extended an invitation to all those years ago, and assumed that he was here to kill him, despite the fact that Kratos cut the rope that was attached to the collar around the imprisoned god's neck. After that he seemed to notice Mimir and freaked out without even giving them time to explain themselves, as he pushed by Atreus and headed down a passage as Atreus just followed after him, even though the passage collapsed after that and caused Kratos and his daughters to sigh. Flurry knew that imprisonment could change someone, or allow one's hatred to fester, but this was ridiculous for the short period of time that Tyr was supposedly locked up for, meaning his mind was either incredibly fragile, or someone was playing them for fools.

It was to the point that she just ignited her magic and crushed the Einherjar that dropped down into the area, she wasn't in the mood to deal with them, allowing them to smash their way through the passage and follow after Atreus, who was near a collapsed Tyr that was begging for mercy, causing Kratos to grab him by the shoulders and pin him against the wall. While he spoke to the disturbed god, however, Flurry growled as she found more Einherjar descending on the mine, dropping down through holes that had been made before this point and confirmed that Odin was trying to trap anyone who dared to come for Tyr, regardless if he was the real one or not. With that in mind she raised her bow and loosed arrows empowered with her magic, causing them to race down the passage and blast her targets backwards, tearing into the earth around them in the process before one of the walls collapsed, allowing them an opportunity to flee from the mine. She could see that her father had gotten through to Tyr, or at least it sure looked that way, even though he spouted some nonsense about the fact that he was easily confused, that he didn't always know what was real and what was his own imagination, and he asked a few innocent questions as they found a lift he pulled down for them to use.

The one thing that caught Tyr by surprise was the fact that Baldur was still alive, despite knowing that his death meant the start of Fimbulwinter, where Atreus explained that the Giants had another version events that came true instead, that the 'Valkyrie of Death would take Baldur's invulnerability', which is what happened, eventually causing him to sit down near a dwarven ferry, the one connected to the area the Door they stepped through was located in.

"Before we go any further, I must ask for the truth: what is it that you want from me?" Tyr asked, because that was the part he didn't know, especially since they had spent time making sure he wasn't insane and had calmed down after seeing Mimir in his new state, causing him to look down at his hands for a moment, "If you came seeking a God of War to follow you into Ragnarok... or worse yet, lead you into it... you might as well kill me where I stand."

"Oh by the titans... you want to die that badly, after everything we went through to save your sorry ass?" Flurry remarked, as she was getting far too frustrated with everything that was going on right now, to the point where she actually swore despite never caring for the words that Brok loved to use every chance he got, and she wasted no time in shifting her stance as she drew the Blade of Olympus and pointed it right at Tyr's heart, shocking Atreus in the process while she found that Tyr was actually terrified of her right now, "Fine, I can mercy kill another god, if that's what you want."

As Atreus moved to defend Tyr, because of course he would, Mimir noted that there were more Eirherjar descending upon the realm and that they had better get going, as in there would be time to deal with Tyr and his attitude later, to which Flurry growled for a moment before taking off. Instead of saying a word to the others she loosed arrows into the sky from another area of the wetlands, causing Odin's forces to come for her and not everyone else, to which Kratos made sure Tyr was on the ferry before they started to pull on the chain, though while he was likely reprimand Flurry for losing control he couldn't fault her in the slightest. He, too, was disappointed in the Norse God of War, as Tyr was nothing like he had imagined, even if he took an extended prison sentence into his thoughts, as he was far worse than Mimir was when they found him at the peak of that mountain, but decided not to say anything for the time being. Thankfully Atreus was silent throughout the venture, as he had to think about the fact that Tyr was different from what he and the Giants had been expecting, and Kratos hoped that by the time they returned to Sindri's his son would have realized that there were other paths for them to take, to avoid the start of Ragnarok.

After a few minutes of carefully moving the ferry, slow enough to avoid detection while going at a good speed to get out of the area, Kratos rushed to the Door and opened it with his Key, allowing them to head back to Sindri's, and Flurry joined them before the Door closed, allowing them to relax for a time as they wondered what the next few days had in store for them and their friends.