The student was almost too excited to meditate, and it was well after midnight before she achieved the Void. "What could the Master mean, 'tomorrow, you embark on a journey?' "

Dawn arrived, and with it the student's apprehension grew. She had never traveled beyond the walls of the temple. She tried to wait patently for the Master to arrive, yet those few minutes after dawn were the longest of her life.

The Master eventually arrived, explaining that the coffee machine was down and so he had had to pick and grind his own beans. "What of this journey I am to make?" asked the student. "Ahh yes tadpole. You are to travel forth from this temple, and seek out the only one who can further your education, the immortal warbird, Reykjavik. If you survive the encounter, and he is in a good mood, he will teach you the unstoppable skills of the gods.

Unsure of her skill, yet knowing this moment would change her life, the student left the temple, and began the long journey to Reykjavik's temple, high upon Mt. Reyk.

She passed humble villages filled with friendly people, each more willing to rob her than the last. From this part of the journey she learned that all were her enemies, and only her swords remained loyal.

There were mighty rivers to ford and great chasms to leap. Through it all she kept her gaze fixed upon the ever increasing visage of Mt. Reyk. As she walked this path, her muscles became firm, and her resolve was strengthed by constant attention to the infinite might of Reykjavik. He would teach her, she knew he would. And deep in her mind, she promised, if he wouldn't teach her, she would kill him.

At night she slept naked beneath the stars, for the not-so-great master had made it clear she could take nothing with her except her weapons. And he had meant it. In the light of the risen sun she walked onward, for three nights and two days. And on the third day she reached the base of Mt. Reyk. Now, she thought, surely the hard part of my journey is complete. As she reveled in these innocent thoughts, her gaze drifted upwards, and her relief turned to fear, as she spied the sheer granite wall which confronted her.

That night she slept fitfully at the base of the mountain, her dreams filled with troubling images of large walls, and small tadpoles plunging from them. The morning came just as she achieved peace, but she had no choice but to arise and begin the long climb, to either her doom, or her greatest reward.

Surprisingly enough, the climb was not that difficult. There were few handholds, but they were spaced at just the right distance to allow her to climb quickly and easily. She reached the summit by nightfall, and there, under the light of a full moon, the student saw the most incredible fight. It appeared that a giant bird (whom she assumed to be Reykjavik) was simultaniously fighting several other gods, whose identities she could only guess at. All around him lights exploded, great weapons of titanic distructiveness rended the night, and though it all, Reykjavik remained undisturbed.

As the student was pondering this strange method of fighting, Reykjavik begin to move. It was only a blur, but suddenly one of the attackers was lying on the ground, his life force already gone. Another was realing, presumably from the feather protruding from his chest. The final god was surrounded by a whirlwind that was rapidly tearing it apart. The entire action only took a few seconds, yet in that time, Reykjavik had killed two gods and mortally wounded a third. At this point Reykjavik noticed his spectator. Instantly he was upon her, feathers bristling at the intrusion.

The student, already shocked, was now terrified. She was not sure what would happen next, but after her long journey, she was determined to at least ask. "Please oh great and mighty Reykjavik," the student begged. "I have traveled far and long to seek your guidance. My not-so-great master has decried that he can teach me no more, and that the only remaining step is to learn your unstoppable attacks."

At this Reykjavik was pleased, and invited the student to begin her training. "First slime ball, you must taste the blood of your enemies. You must take it within you, and learn to treasure its warmth." With these words he directed her to the mortally wounded god, the feather still penetrating his chest. "Remove the feather, and drink of his life essence. Once you are sated, sleep. Tomorrow you will learn my secrets."

The student drank, and the blood made her sleepy. She fell asleep with Reykjavik perched nearby, watching. In the morning her greatest trial began. The student learned to dive, to fling, and to blast her enemies into oblivion, and she learned a rumor that there was still another level of violence which she could exact once her mastery of the others was complete. She studied hard and as the night fell on that long day, she had rediscovered herself through the dance of battle, and as she drifted into an exhausted sleep, she was glad Reykjavik had consented to teach her, and she had not had to kill him.

-story by Amystery