Lagertha;

[Tiphon]

BUT HOW COULD YOU KNOW THE SWEETEST SUFFERING
OF MOVING ON

If there is one woman he doesn't fear to face, it's Lagertha. He didn't abandon her. He didn't crumple in front of her when his son died. Their meeting was as political as their own child. There are no emotional ties to her, but she has still crossed his mind. Their son has crossed his mind.

With the wind at his back Tiphon travels south from the Dale to the Jungle. A humored grin shadows across his lips as he considers the fact that he has procreated with two Amazon Queens. Nothing has come of the incidents except for children that found life and moved on. He hasn't checked in on any of them, but after having witnessed the curse of mortality Tiphon reels himself from the shadows to track down what he can. Are more pieces of his mind and soul flaking away with the death of his children, or was it only Tiberios' that shattered him completely? These past few years he hasn't felt whole. His heart has pieces torn that are beginning to eat away at him. It makes him yearn for distance so that he never has to again experience such pain and loss, but he can only stray too far before it still hits him with Elysteria and Talulah's faces attached.

He can't leave them again. They don't deserve it.

They bring him joy even despite his childhood vow to steer clear of love.

A river dissecting the land brings Tiphon pause. His molten eyes stare into the rushing current as a deep breath is swallowed into his lungs. In the near distance, only miles away, he can see the change of scenery. The wild Jungle is ahead, staring at him viciously as it always has. He isn't a woman and he certainly is not a slave; he doesn't belong and so the Jungle scorns him more and more as the distance ebbs away. Its emerald leaves rustle as the wind blows suddenly against him as though a large beast has opened its gaping jaws in warning, the touch warm and humid. Although unfazed Tiphon remains respectable. With hushed footsteps he brings himself to the edge of the Jungle where the trees rise high toward the clouds, and waits for Lagertha to arrive. It will only be a matter of time until she does.

TIPHON

STARLACE AND INFECTION

[Lagertha]

I AM IRON AND I FORGE MYSELF

If Lagertha were to reach back, deep into the recesses of her memory, she might be able to find someone she would prefer not to face again. But afraid? No, no one she is afraid to face. Perhaps that’s because she’s kept her personal relationships to a minimum, or perhaps it’s because she’s simply unafraid of the truth. Hatred does not scare her, whether it is from a kingdom or an individual. The gray mare is well aware that there are those who dislike her with a fervent intensity, those who disagree with the way she runs her kingdom and her ambitious nature. Let them. She’d served under a Khaleesi she never respected, and if they don’t have the willpower to do the same, she doesn’t want them there.

The irony is that Lagertha and Scorch were both excessively ambitious. It’s just plain stupid to think they’re different. The actual difference is that Scorch plotted for her children. Lagertha plotted for the Jungle.

The edge of her dangerously beautiful home is slowly creeping outward again, though the edges are still thin and ragged. The light filters through the canopy in bigger splotches, giving her an unusual view of the sky. A flash of gold catches the corner of her eye, and she yanks her head around. There, in the distance, it comes again. At the edge of the trees. Lagertha squints, but there is nothing more than the glint of the sun off of something, so she turns to investigate it. It takes very little time from the moment Tiphon lands, to when Lagertha breaches the woodline.

My, is she surprised. They must have missed each other while she was visiting the Dale. There’s no way he can miss the slightly surprised look on her face as she ventures towards him. “Tiphon," she says in greeting, “It’s been years.” And it has. The truth is that her thoughts never once turned to the gold and white stallion after Ramiel took the Dalean throne. Dalten has made an effort to stay away, and without him, they have very little in common. Nevertheless, he is powerful and they had once worked together - so she has nothing but goodwill for him. “What brings you here?”

Lagertha

Warrior Queen of the Amazons