The dark god made his illusions vanish as he approached Ana to finish her off with his staff.

  “Ana, you have to get up!” Rodrigo shouted while struggling to escape the web.

  “Damn it, Ana, you’re not that weak!” Epona yelled furiously.

  But Ana heard those voices as if they were far away.

  “I can’t feel anything anymore,” the goddess thought as she slipped deeper into unconsciousness.

  Then she began to see a vision: two girls very similar to her stood at her sides, one with red hair and the other with blonde hair, though both had beautiful blue eyes like Ana’s. They were playing and laughing in a lovely meadow that looked like a mountainous region of Ireland.

  Suddenly, flames appeared, and she heard the screams of the two girls—behind them, the shadow of a tall man wearing a cloak and holding a gigantic staff.

  “Badb, Macha! Don’t leave!” Ana screamed in her dream. “Don’t leave me alone!”

  At that moment, her mind turned blank, and she stopped thinking.

  “I’m finally dead. Farewell, sisters; farewell, Tania; farewell, Epona; farewell Master and farewell, Rui… please forgive me,” she thought right before losing consciousness completely.

  Suddenly, Ana began to feel a warm energy inside her body—she didn’t recognize it, yet it felt strangely familiar.

  Right then, she started remembering the people Rodrigo and Tania had helped in Coimbra, the women they rescued near Toulouse, the people they aided in Horsens. Somehow, Ana felt those people close to her—it was something like faith, but different. A comforting sensation that made her feel alive once more.

  Instinctively, the black-haired goddess opened her eyes in fury and shattered the ice spears. She was covered in blood, but kept herself standing through sheer adrenaline.

  “I’m not dying yet! Do you hear me?! A cheating piece of trash like you will never defeat me!” Ana roared at Loki.

  The Irish goddess created two swords in her hands, forged from her own black feathers. She grabbed both blades.

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  “These swords are Caladcholg and Fragarach. They are Irish magical blades that grant me increased speed,” she said, raising one of them toward Loki.

  The god of lies laughed and conjured his illusions again. Hundreds of Lokis formed new ice spears, all shouting in unison:

  “Hrímtursar k?sia (Spear of the Ice Giants)!”

  The spears flew toward Ana—she allowed them to strike, but since they were fake, they vanished on contact.

  Then suddenly, a real ice spear pierced her neck, making her vomit blood.

  But at that instant, Ana disappeared—and almost immediately, she reappeared in front of the real Loki and slashed him with both swords. Rebounding off the dimensional wall, she tried to strike again, but the god turned into an illusion.

  Having already learned Loki’s tricks, Ana hurled herself to the place where she predicted he would reappear—and struck him once more.

  Loki then used his cloak to defend himself, shouting:

  “Jarn skikkja (Iron layer)!”

  The cloak transformed into adamantine, the hardest metal in Asgard, repelling Ana’s attack.

  Ana, still with the ice spear stuck in her neck, tore it out—blood gushed out in a torrent. She was losing focus, but her fury pushed her to attack again.

  Loki blocked once more with his cloak while the goddess attempted to break through his defenses. Ana dismissed her twin swords and summoned her previous blade, Dyrnwyn, striking Loki and smashing him into the ground with incredible force.

  Immediately, Ana switched back from Dyrnwyn to Caladcholg and Fragarach. Hovering in the sky above the fallen Loki, she shouted:

  “Beanna an bháis (Crow of Death)!”

  The goddess slashed the air with both swords toward Loki.

  Two violet rays covered in dark feathers descended at tremendous speed toward the Norse god. He tried to defend himself with his cloak, but before he could turn it fully adamantine, the rays pierced through it—one burying into his chest, the other into his abdomen. Loki vomited blood.

  Ana then dove straight toward Loki and impaled him with both swords. The goddess began cutting him repeatedly while screaming in furious rage; Loki only writhed in agony.

  At that moment, Athena grabbed her left arm.

  “Ana, that’s enough!” the Greek goddess commanded.

  The Irish goddess made her swords disappear, fell to her knees, and showed a look of frustration.

  “I’m sorry, I’m sorry… I lost control again, Master. I’m sorry…” Ana said, covering her face in shame.

  Loki tried to crawl away despite the immense pain, but then a foot stepped on his arm.

  It was Tania, who had finally escaped the block of ice.

  “You’re not going anywhere, you miserable bastard,” Tania said, pressing down on the dark god’s arm.

  At that moment, Loki knew there was no escape.