With his eyes narrowed threateningly, he growled and visibly clutched his hands into fists. He slowly stepped back, allowing me to proceed. A smirk was evident on my face.
"I want a key." I requested, looking to the side. "A-A key? What on Earth do you need a key for?" Johan asked, obviously confused. "That's none of your business. I believe you are called Trader Johan, correct? I'm sure you made a trade for a key that's soft enough to be bent."
He gave me an intense stare but deliberately muttered a 'follow me'. I hesitantly glanced towards my brothers; they did not have a pleasing face on. My feet carried me towards the exit before I could give the order.
I followed Johan through the large tables packed with food and then through the gloomy forest. My stomach growled every time I looked at the rich food being served. Regrettably, I kept my focus on Johan. Soon we reached his legendary boat that sailed the seven seas, which I had, to be honest, it was quite disappointing.
His feet pounded against the wood of the deck, while mine only made a faint shuffling noise. He slammed open the hatchet and descended an old ladder. I stood above deck, still holding the prized possession in my hand.
A few minutes of hearing several pots and saucers being thrown on the ground, Johan finally appeared holding a small metal object in his palm. He escalated out and stood tall, holding out his hand. I casually handed the Dragon-eye to the outstretched hand, he, however, took a look to see if it was in fact the real one.
After a minute of him studying the artifact, my impatience bestowed. I firmly held out my hand as he did, but his eyes never met my move. "Johan," I warned. He casually lifted his head and smiled with pure arrogance. "You wanted something, Miss Imora?" He teased. My hands reached for daggers, expecting a fight. " The key, Johan." I remind him, with a forceful stare. He raised his brow, continuing the game. " Oh, this?" He asked, grasping the key tighter. "We made a deal." I snapped. "Mmm, I believe you did, when you gave me Dragon-eye. I never said our transaction would be from both sides." I stare at him blankly, then, total instinct took over.
'By that I mean the instinct my father told me; " When someone hits you, you hit back. When someone betrays you, you finish the deal." Of course, he intended, killing them, I was just too young to know what that implied. But now, I knew what do to and how to do it.'
I swiftly pulled out two daggers and lunged forward, trying to grasp his neck. His eyes widened and luckily pulled back just in time. I growled as I threw a dagger to his foot. He bounced back and pocketed the Dragon-eye, pulling out a dagger himself. "Who knew you were so agitated?" Johan asked, laughing. I threw another dagger to his head, he ducked. The dagger buried itself inside the wood, making a fling sound. Now, he lunged and successfully managed to grasp my hand. He twisted it, making my hiss in pain. My foot lifted and kicked him in the gut, sending him half-way across the deck.
Gradually, he stood tall once again and waited for my attack. I rubbed my arm soothingly and then, I became a ball of fury. I was blinded by anger as I ran towards him, drawing more daggers and flinging then towards him. ( Please keep in mind Imora has a total of 61 daggers on her body.) To my absolute surprise, he dodged every single one of my daggers. When I neared, he crouched and swung his foot under my feet, making me tumble to the side. I fell with a grunt and felt a cold stinging on my neck. "And, I thought you of all people would be more skilled in fighting with daggers. I guess I was wrong..." He sneered next to my ear. I could feel the gentle drizzle of tears slowly running down my cheeks, and if it couldn't be worse, a warm sticky fluid slid down my neck.
My insides felt as if the Mighty Thor himself, struck me with his unbreakable hammer. But for some odd reason; I didn't focus on the pain present, I was currently wondering about Thor's hammer. I knew the stories told that his hammer was unbreakable, but I wonder if it really was indestructible. Surely, even the gods don't have the power to determine if something is brittle, for we all have something that scares us, something that terrifies us to the bone, something that can hurt us- even if we claim to be unbreakable. " Nothing to say?" Johan's voice wandered into the clearing. His voice was alarming since he was up and I was down. A glint caught my eye, as I tried to look him in the eye.
Then, as if the gates of Valhalla suddenly opened, something fell to the ground, almost touching it- if it wasn't for me. I seized the object quietly and inspected it.' The key. ' What am I supposed to do with a key?' I asked myself. "Well? Any last words red-fish Grimborn?" He taunted. I noticed two details that slipped his mouth; one- He used me for the sake of getting what he wanted. And two- something I only stumbled upon later; red-fish.
' For you see dear reader; unless you had ever dealt with someone as deceiving as Johan, I advise you look for the simplest of things. You see, even Loki, the God of trickery, mischief, and lies got tricked at some point. Perhaps, not everything is as it appears to be.'
My mind clicked, like a bell signaling supper- I understood what to do with a simple, bendable key. My cold fingers grasped around the edges and pulled it upwards, then my plan was to put in action. "Well, actually, yes." I smiled upwards. Then with a mischievous smile, I answered: "I'm good at stealing." Then, with a quick flick of my wrist, the key skidded over the deck. The sound, I recognized, was the exact sound of a Deadly Nadder's spine attack. Exactly what I needed. His head turned around quickly in pursuit of finding the sound. I lifted my feet as a flashback came into mind. Astrid's defeat on the edge.
I shook out the memory quickly and kicked him in the stomach. He groaned and fell to the ground; just like Astrid did. I stood above him, holding out my favorite dagger; The Grimborn star. I lifted my eyebrows in a cocky manner and on my face was a devious grin. "Any last words Traitor Johan?" I asked in the same mocking voice. "Why, of course my dear." He started sweetly." Maybe you should consider to look behind you." He finished with the same grin as I had. 'Oh dear.' I thought, as the hairs on my neck pricked up. I glanced behind me. I guess I was too busy to notice another presence. A red dragon; similar to the-dragon-I-once-thought-was-a-changewing-but-was-actually-Snotlout was hovering in the air with a bright, blazing light issuing from its mouth...