“Oh, but weareworking,” he hums, mock-bowing before the altar like a court jester in a bloodied throne room. “See? I brought you presents.”
He kicks a man forward—shaking, barefoot, eyes wild. The kind of man who once thought he was powerful. Rich. Untouchable. Now? Just meat with a pretty face.
Johnny kicks again. A second one stumbles. A woman this time, breath hitching as she looks up at me like I might save her.
Wrong tent.
Alaska crawls to Johnny’s side and rests her head on his thigh like the obedient little thing she is. Her eyes glitter as she looks at me.
“Do you like them, Bjorn?” she asks, teeth sharp. “Johnny picked the juicy ones.”
I step forward, gripping my axe tight in one hand, letting the weight of it remind me who I am.
The man Johnny pushed first is visibly trembling. Pale. Weak. Not fit for the gods, but they’ll take him anyway.
“Stand up,” I command.
He flinches as he stays kneeling. Stupid.
“Ooooh,” Johnny giggles, rocking back on his heels. “I don’t think he’s listening. Naughty little thing.”
“Maybe he’s broken,” Alaska purrs, licking blood from the back of her hand.
I raise my axe, letting it hum in the air.
The man scrambles to his feet, stammering like he just realized the rules of the game.
“Yes—yes, my lord.”
Johnny claps like a delighted child.
“Look at that! The mongrel speaks. You almost lost your head, little piglet.”
“Would’ve been a shame,” Alaska murmurs. “He’s got such pretty eyes.”
“Mmm, maybe I’ll keep them,” Johnny says, gripping the man’s face, dragging a clawed finger down his cheek. “Pop ‘em right out like candy.”
The man whimpers. Pathetic.
“Enough,” I snap.
Johnny pouts like I just kicked his puppy. “You’re no fun, Bjorn.”
“I’m not here for fun.”
“No, no,” he smirks, “you’re here to—what do you always say? ‘Honor the gods?’ Please. The gods don’t give a shit.”
I step toward him—tall, quiet and full of purpose.
“The gods don’t hear the prayers of madmen,” I mutter.
He smiles wider.
“That’s where you’re wrong,” he hisses, eyes shining. “They whisper to me. All the time.”
I believe him.
Which is exactly why I don’t kill him.
