A human tried to intercept as Pallas walked away. He was lucky her brother didn't immediately kill him. Instead, he grabbed the barrel of the rifle pointed at his face and used the human's grip on it to fling him away. The human sailed several feet before hitting the snow and rolling.
"Very mature, Pallas," Kira called after him.
The snow covered landscape swallowed Pallas.
"Let him go," the woman ordered when her companions moved to engage.
Kira approved of that decision.
In Pallas's current mood, he wouldn't be gentle to any human that antagonized him.
At the moment, no one had died and everyone was still in possession of all their limbs. Kira would like to keep it that way. Especially since this woman seemed to be familiar with Odin. At least familiar enough to know Odin's moniker.
"You've seen my face and know my name," Kira told her softly. "I think turnabout is only fair."
"Brie," a man protested.
"She's right, Doug." The woman pushed the goggles to the top of her head. "One compromise deserves another."
Brie had strong boned features. Expressive eyebrows sat above a pair of blue eyes that suggested the woman had seen her fair share of hardship.
Brie's lips quirked. "I was wondering when the Phoenix would get around to visiting. Didn't think it would take another war to get her here though." She made a show of looking around. "Where's your drone? I was under the impression you never went anywhere without him."
The J1N's antigravs sounded particularly loud in the resulting silence. As was the ominous tinkle of cracking ice.
"Is he stuck?" someone asked quietly.
Kira ground her teeth at the sight of the J1N trapped in a cage of ice and branches. A prison it had wandered into entirely under its own recognizance.
She'd be furious, but by this point, she really had no expectations.
Brie gave the J1N an interested look. "He's not what I imagined from the descriptions."
Kira's smile didn't touch her eyes. "He just needs a tune up. The planet's magnetic field is playing havoc on his antigravs."
That's right. Nothing to see here. Just a drone with a little problem with his positioning system.
Brie's nod made it clear she wasn't entirely convinced.
"Jin, come here," Kira ordered, raising her voice.
The sound of the J1N's engines increased in volume. Wood creaked but that was it. The tree's branches refused to break. As did the ice coating them. A second later, the drone throttled its engines.
"There seems to be a problem," the J1N announced in an emotionless voice.
An amused cough came from one of the humans. They ducked their head to hide their smile.
"I require assistance," the J1N declared.
Do not destroy the drone, Kira told herself, taking a deep breath to control the need for violence. Jin requires a body. If you cut it in half, he will try to do the same to you.
"I'll let you handle that," Brie said with a light chuckle as she moved away. "When you're done, I'll take you to the All Father."
Graydon joined Kira. "Things are going quite well, I think."
Kira shot him a glare that said she wasn't amused.
Graydon's cough covered his laugh. "Are your adventures always this haphazard?"
