Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

I hopped awkwardly from each side of the well-worn path from home to the Bifrost site, strategically finding every crispy leaf along my way. They crumbled between my toes and sent a shiver up my spine of satisfaction when the texture was just right—not quite crunchy, not just dry, certainly not soggy at all—simply crispy, like the ever-cool air of our world.

My argument with Mum that morning replayed in my mind again and again, and I kept replying out loud as if she were still listening. “No, I don’t want to wear shoes. No, I don’t want to do chores. No, I have no interest in staying on Narvlheim until my skin turns grey. If Vali could leave home and settle in Asgard at twenty years old, why treat me like I’m still a baby at nineteen? Haven’t I earned the right to be seen as an adult yet?”

She didn’t have much ammunition against me besides her paranoia and usual dose of overprotection. Always insisting that I be within reach of her, of Father, of Uncle Freyr and Nanny...if Vali were still living at home, she’d surely make it his business to keep an ear or eye on me. It had been months since he’d returned to Narvlheim, yet if I convinced him to vouch for my strengths, Mum would have to relent.

Vali’s spring training season would end tomorrow with a new distribution of ranks, and he was expected to take a few weeks’ relief from his duties. In the past eight years since he’d been part of Asgard’s army, he never failed to return home for the short retreats. On the chance that he might arrive early tonight and accompany Father in the morning for the rank announcements, I convinced Mum to let me leave our argument in favor of waiting by the Bifrost site for my brother.

Besides my crispy underfoot companions, I wiled the hours away practicing flash spells and searching for anything unfamiliar and worth documenting, though Vali and I had chronicled everything in this part of Narvlheim long ago. There weren’t many things for me to discover anymore. Still, I exercised the few gifts that seemed somewhat unique to me and didn’t require Father’s stiff discipline to achieve.

Flash. A perfect rendering of me appeared in the tree at my side, comfortably settled in the crux by the trunk.

Flash. Now I threw a projection to another tall perch in a tree across the path.

Flash. Two more of me, one donning my usual deep green tunic and one in all black, walked side by side with alternating gates at the front. They continued down the route without a care.

My projections swayed their hips seductively and twirled their fingers, beckoning invisible foes into my trap. The ones in the trees came down on their own and walked forward until all of us merged together into my singular true self.

If Vali had shapeshifting, I had this. Real illusion. No one could match my skill, not even Father. He taught me well.

The wind breathed small fairy knots into my long black hair, and I didn’t do much to discourage them. I could spend hours untangling them later. Anything to distract me from Mum’s nagging once I returned home...

I barely noticed how long I’d been walking when the deep scar of the Bifrost site came into view. It was practically carved into the tough rock beneath; Father trimmed back the foliage to keep the area clear annually. As the only formal gateway to our world—and him as Steward of Narvlheim—he took pride in presenting it as if he owned the whole planet. A small gesture compared to the grand Bifrost machine on Asgard, which I’d only seen a handful of times.

Hopefully more, though. And soon. Vali liked the comfort of his old room from time to time throughout the year, but I craved freedom. Far-off worlds no one knew yet. Magic we couldn’t dream of. Yggdrasil was new and bursting with possibility, yet if what Nanny said was true, we couldn’t waste time to see it. Humans, Aesir, Narvir, everyone...we were all equally mortal and fragile in ways most weren’t before the Ragnarok, not that I could compare. Frankly, I thought most of the tales my parents told about Old Yggdrasil were exaggerated. Water that healed and gave foresight? A whisper in the mind across distance? Nine whole realms instead of the known four? Ridiculous.

I plopped onto the weathered bench and stretched my back, reminiscing of the days when Vali would walk here with me and wait for Father. Mum rarely came with us since she hated traveling by Bifrost, but she trusted Vali enough to keep me safe. He was the perfect guardian, always careful and kind and...well, a bit too strict when it came to the people who wanted to share my company, though he meant well. Vali never missed an opportunity to tell me how he’d take me with him when he could. Never leave you behind, he’d say. Now the time had come. I’d ask him to keep his word.

I startled when the Bifrost crashed before me—it was still too early in the day for Vali’s training to be over, wasn’t it? I had at least a few more hours to burn waiting for him. Afraid I might be sucked into conversation with some diplomat Father knew, I sprinted to duck behind a nearby tree. A poor disguise, but it didn’t feel important enough to cloak myself completely.

The shimmering lights moved in a way that tricked my mind into thinking they weaved back and forth, up and down, all at once. Eventually, the patterns slowed. Wind kicked up a thick cloud of dust which swirled in all directions. I shielded my eyes with my hand, only barely focusing on the figure at the center of the portal.

He wasn’t Vali—that, I was certain of right away. He was the same height, but more boxy somehow, like his shoulders were a pair of folded wings. His brass helmet was molded like a hawk, with an impressive beak to protect the man’s face and eyes. Even turned slightly away from me, he had a commanding presence that was enhanced by the dancing of a maroon cape.

I squinted and couldn’t help but reveal myself slightly, stepping away from the trunk of the tree for a better view.

The man whistled a few sharp notes which made me wince. In an instant, the tree above me shuddered and chirped. He turned around to witness the commotion and smiled widely, letting the shine of his teeth glimmer in the afternoon light. Homing in on me as if I were his prey, the man lowered his face and didn’t look away, mesmerizing me with the false eyes of his helmet.

I wasn’t enchanted by any spell; no, this was a deliberate stare on both our parts. He was fascinating. Handsome by aura alone. A confidence oozed off him which was matched by his imposing stature and the chiseled mimicry of his breastplate, which made me wonder if he was as striking without it. I presumed yes; he wouldn’t be able to carry himself well if he wasn’t.

A flutter in my gut made me want to bat my eyes at him for no reason other than the fact that Mum would object. She didn’t approve of my seeking carnal attention from anyone. Admiring him was an act of rebellion.

“Fair maiden, why do you hide and wait in such a place?” He came toward me in slow plods, extending his right hand. “The feathers above you say you’re not normally shy.”

I smirked, letting the heat flood my cheeks in a demure way. “Do they? What else do they say about me?”

“Oh, many things.” He came within a full stride of me and stopped, keeping his hand outstretched. Waiting for me to make a move. It was my turn to answer.

Hmm...dual control. Partnership. I fully came away from the tree and approached him, barely resting my hand atop his and making a small curtsey, which felt awkward and too formal for my taste. “Go on.”

He chuckled, raising his helmet ever so slightly, piercing me with cerulean blue eyes and the lovely angularity of his face. “They say you are quite gifted. A sorceress, a painter...one destined to reach far beyond the edges of known Yggdrasil and make the great tree whole again. Why, you are Hela Lokisdottir, of course.”

“I’m afraid knowing my name isn’t much of a feat,” I said while snickering and tugging at a lock of my hair. “I take after my father, and he is difficult to miss.”

“Ah, yes. I can relate to that as well.” He removed his helmet entirely and shook out a shoulder-length mane of loose waves, blonde and thick and touchable.

The flutters in my gut turned to a fast-running river. His appearance was impressive, but only distantly familiar. “Should I know something?”

He shrugged. “I suppose not. It’s been years since we’ve seen so much as a fleeting glance of each other.” His smile was playful, yet soft. He bowed before me with an exaggerated whip of his cape.

I snorted. “Gods, you’re proper.”

“Don’t you deserve to be flattered and wooed?” He took my hand again and pressed his warm, light pink lips against my knuckles. “A woman in your position shouldn’t accept anything less than worship.”

“Worship sounds lovely, but what position do you mean?”

He kept his hand in mine while standing to full height again, enclosing me in his stout shadow. “You and I are similarly burdened by our parents and potential. I have a kingdom to inherit. You do, too; the Narvir expect you to take your father’s place as Steward since Vali’s made it clear his soul belongs to the guard. Hela, imagine what good we could do for New Yggdrasil if we combined our houses.”

“Combined?” I tipped my head and tried to read past his pulsing aura which still mesmerized me, suddenly struck with revelation over his riddle. “Wait, I do know you. Modi—”

He gripped my hand before I could take it away. “Please don’t deny me so soon. A chance is all I ask.”

I felt doused in chilled shame for flirting. “But our fathers are brothers. Our houses are already combined. We’re family.”

“Not by blood.” He didn’t release me at all and brushed his thumb over my knuckles where he kissed before. Tender, yet firm. In control. “You know that, don’t you? That there’s no resemblance between us because we’re from two households?”

I couldn’t help but stare at the throbbing vein in his neck. Visible anxiety. Was that an effect of my presence? The power alone thrilled me. “That’s true, yes.” The longer I stared in his shining eyes, the more I felt a strange pity for his desperation—it was subtle, but he needed me to see his side. Hoped I would see innocence in his approach despite my hesitation.

Modi sighed and released me, returning quickly to the Bifrost scar. “Forgive me. I’ve been too forward. I hadn’t expected to find you so soon after arriving, and my head ran away with me. This was always impossible.”

His crestfallen slouch painted him meek. “Wait.” I swallowed hard and followed him, lightly touching his shoulder to make him turn toward me again. “Did I say something to make you think you weren’t welcome?”

“You don’t need to say anything.” He shook his head while talking. “I should’ve listened to Vali.”

I waited for him to elaborate. His thought was unfinished. It lingered in the air, begging me to ask questions and seize it before the moment was lost. “Listened to him about what, exactly?”

He folded into himself slightly. “He said you would never welcome my presence, and I shouldn’t...oh, it doesn’t matter. He forbade me from trying to see you. Your place is here and always will be.”

“My place?” Suddenly my argument with Mum all morning replayed in my mind with a new sourness. “Well, that’s certainly condescending. Said as if I have no choice.”

“Do you?” His gaze flitted to meet mine. “Or does it sound familiar, like the universe already knows precisely what you’re meant for?”

I swallowed hard. My uncertainty and adolescent wish to carve my own path filled the pause between us. “I suppose it’s not the first time I’ve been told what my future is.”

“I thought so.” Modi’s stare lingered, probing me beyond what little emotion I showed on the surface.

“But...how would you know all this? What made you want to seek me out in the first place?”

He hummed and looked above me to the tree again. “They told me.”

“Who?” I twisted and tried to find his focus.

“The birds,” he said with a chuckle. “They have ways to spread words just as they spread their wings. Nation to nation. Realm to realm. I didn’t need to see you myself to know you longed for freedom.”

“Wow.” I shook my head and looked at him with a new shine of admiration. “I didn’t know that was even possible. I’m afraid animal speak isn’t a strength of my father’s, let alone one of mine.”

“Then you’ll have to take my word for it. They told me you could use a hero—who am I to say no to a damsel like yourself?” He raised his right hand toward my face and hesitated for a moment before tucking my hair behind my ears. “My aims are pure, I swear it. You deserve to live the life you wish. And naturally, I hoped to find a companion as beautiful as you. Now that you’re the proper age to decide for yourself, is it so hard to believe that I would at least try to give us both what we’re longing for?”

I told my heart to shut up a bit and stop pounding so hard. “That...does make sense, so—"

“I mean, it’s not as if I’d choose you as a target for some grand scheme to take over Narvlheim.” He cocked a brow, tilting the edge of his lip up in an impish tease.

I smiled. “No, I don’t suppose you’d do that. But you said Vali—”

“Right. Vali.” He stepped away again and sighed.

“I don’t understand. Did you mean what you said? He forbade you from seeking me out?”

“Oh, yes. He’d be furious if he knew I was here. Please don’t tell him.” Modi put his hands on his hips and looked up toward the sky. “If only he weren’t so laden with guilt, he might trust you with greater freedom.”

“Guilt? Guilt about what?”

Modi met my gaze with a heartbroken frown. A secret. A quiver of his gentle lips. “I dare not say.”

I couldn’t beg faster. “Please do. What guilt would make Vali want me to stay here?”

He deflated through a breath. “Coddling you might absolve him of his own neglect. He’s overprotective to make up for what’s lost.” He squeezed the bridge of his nose. “I...I know why you have but one brother, not two.”

I blinked quickly, absorbing his implications. “Are you saying—”

“Please, Hela. Don’t tell him I came, I beg you. For my sake, for yours, for your whole family...it’s best if we never speak of this again.” He bowed a bit and swept his cape around him in a flourish. “I thank you for the pleasure of your time, no matter how brief.”

“Leaving so soon?” My voice jumped in tone to a place much higher than my natural timbre. I coughed to put it back. “I can keep our visit between us, so long as your birds can, too.”

He smiled with a soft glow in his cheeks. “How kind of you. Now I worry we’ll be caught by staying here. Perhaps we can meet another time. Do consider what I’ve said...you have the power to decide your own fate, Hela. If you wish to stay on Narvlheim forever, I will always be an ally. Just know it isn’t your only option. Together, we could join forces and oversee the rest of Yggdrasil, like my grandparents did in joining Asgard with Vanaheim.”

“Alright. Thank you.” I curtseyed for him since that seemed the best way to answer his bow from before.

Modi’s eyes traveled over me, openly scanning my face to my feet and back again as he hummed through a breath. “Remarkable,” he whispered.

“What was that?” I asked, leaning a bit closer to him.

“It’s just...” He brushed against my cheek again, sending a shudder through me. “I didn’t believe this sort of thing was possible. Not really.”

I narrowed my eyes, though I hoped he wouldn’t move away. My expression alone willed him to keep talking.

“Hmm...so it can happen this fast.” Modi found my hand once more and pecked my knuckles before stepping back three times and disappearing in a new prism of light, not even needing to look away to summon the Bifrost stream.

I’d been left alone at a genuine crossroads: one that led to the sky and one back to my home. Perhaps it was the opportunity I’d prayed for, beckoned by songbirds and wrapped in maroon. His open admiration was delicious already, while the prospect of staying compliant had long since turned stale.

My determination to unbridle myself was now greater than it had been after leaving home. And if Vali wouldn’t agree to let me follow him to Asgard, now I knew another man who would.

Chapter Text

I landed on Asgard with a chill spreading from my face through the rest of me, so I dragged my right vambrace across my lips as fast as possible to clear away the frigid sensation of her disgusting skin.

Tyr and Gunnar ran the Bifrost for my quick visit to Narvlheim and greeted me with anxious eyes. “Did it work?” Tyr asked, always half a step behind any of my plans. “Did you meet with the girl?”

“Indeed I did,” I said, grinning like I couldn’t when in her presence. “A few more visits like that, and Lokisdottir will do anything I tell her to. It’s too easy; she’s awfully predictable. After all, what girl her age doesn’t want to escape her parent’s house? Sneak away to go rogue and rebel? She actually believed the birds of Narvlheim could speak with me here.” I shook my head and chuckled. “I read her cold like the ice in her veins. She took the bait. If I cement a strong foundation between us, she’ll never refuse me...give her anything she wants and force her submission later. It’s only a matter of time before she reveals every weakness of our enemy.”

Gunnar beamed and chuckled after I finished, though he laughed from both agreement and anxiety. His rounded face almost swallowed his smile, and he had no clever quips to add. He was daft but loyal. It would suffice for now. Humans were just as naïve as Hela was.

Tyr came away from the Bifrost controls and flipped his dark hair from his face. “What’s next?”

“Right now? We wait. Tomorrow Vali and his father will be here for the announcement of ranks, and I’ll return to Narvlheim soon as I did today.” I strolled to the back of the Bifrost and headed for the palace without asking for Gunnar and Tyr to follow. They would. That was certain. “I’ve done the hard part and planted a seed—something to make her doubt what she knows. With time, it will grow. I’ll feed it with flattery and charm. She’ll be mine.”

“Yeah, so long as she doesn’t tell Lokison what you said,” Gunnar quipped.

“Don’t be such a coward,” I hissed over my shoulder. “He’s blinded by his own cares here. Father has some great job for him. Even if she says something, I doubt he’d care. He’s empty-headed like all of them. Void of thought and warmth and...a soul, really. But this is a game until he’s under my foot. I’ll spill Vali’s blood one way or another; and just think of it—how delicious will it be if I convince his sister to do it for me?”

Gunnar and Tyr cackled with me as fantasies ran through my mind. Victory was in sight. Time was now on my side. I’d been patient enough, and my reign drew near. I was more dangerous than Vali’s famed wolf; from above, I could see everything. Swoop in and take out the strongest opponents to leave only wandering minions behind. He had no idea the allies I’d gathered from the outer reaches of our broken universe, simply waiting for a new leader to summon their strength.

My time had come.

Chapter Text

Feet spread apart to shoulder width. Check the arrow—straight. Nock the back. Pull the sinew. Now, take a breath.

The practice field was busier than usual, filled with recent soldier graduates who wished to join the ranks that would be changed tomorrow. It was their time, as it once was mine. I used their fading voices to gauge the wind’s direction and strength as it carried their words to my ears. Because my time as a minor officer on New Asgard was spent mostly developing programs for defense strategies, it had been too long since I took up archery. I felt like a young child at play.

Like Father taught me, I gave all my anxiety, frustration, and tension to the arrow and sent it downfield. It whizzed forward, cutting the air cleanly, perfectly aligned with the center of my target.

Yet a competing shot knocked it off-course at the very end, sending it to the ground in an anti-climactic clack.

“You can beat me at daggers and magic, Lokison, but you will never land an arrow like I can.” Ragfrieda, youngest daughter of Heimdall himself, walked to my right side with her bow still in formation. Not a moment later, she sent another downfield and landed it where mine had been headed.

“Shit, Riggs. You could at least warn me when you’re about to ruin my record for the day.” I smiled at her with the side of my face, trying to avoid showing her the heat rising in my cheeks.

She rolled her golden eyes, but satisfaction painted her expression, not annoyance. The deep ebony of her skin juxtaposed the light blue of New Asgard’s clear sky, making her shine. Her hair, always done in what looked like thousands of tiny plaits, was tied in a bundle on top of her head with an ornate mustard yellow scarf, matching her armor’s colored bits. She adjusted the yellow-gold breastplate of her armor and took another arrow from the quiver slung across her back. “Why would I do that? Did you bet with Astrid that you’d make that last shot?”

“No. I know better than to bet with her. She cheats.” I winked at Riggs and took up another arrow of my own. She was right about her skills, of course, but that wasn’t an excuse for me to slack with practice. “Can’t blame me for wanting this last session of the training season to be fairly clean. Uncle Thor might be using it to decide which rank I’ve risen to, you know.”

“Right. As if your destiny hadn’t already been decided for you long before you came here today.” Riggs shot two more arrows at the same time, parallel on her bow, showing off yet again.

“I heard my name,” Astrid said. She strolled toward us with her head high, cocking a brow with the same attitude as her simper. The cut of her short auburn hair wasn’t too different from mine, only her choice to keep it short was a matter of style and not a social statement. Unlike Riggs, she didn’t bother with gussying up for attention and focused on performance whenever her feet touched the practice field. “Come on, spit it out. Why do my ears itch?”

“Lokison’s upset that I killed one of his arrows,” Riggs said, dragging her finger down her cheek to mimic a tear.

“And that’s my fault somehow?” Astrid clicked her tongue and whispered something to Riggs. Despite us all being firmly in adulthood, the two of them never quite grew out of quiet gossip.

I shook my hair from my face, aiming once again. “I’m determined to finish this season with a victory.”

“Oo, don’t mess up,” Astrid said, crouching over my right shoulder.

“Better concentrate, Lokison,” said Riggs.

A waft of her pleasant soap came over me. I smiled quietly and used their tease to my advantage. Wind’s that direction now. Better shift the angle.

Astrid started clicking her tongue again like a clock, which only made Riggs do the same.

Enough games. I blocked them from my ears by thinking about a waterfall and shot the arrow with precision. The tip kissed the edge of the center point, which was good enough for me.

“Bravo, bravo,” Riggs said, clapping half-heartedly.

“I’ll have you know that anyone else would struggle the same way if they had armor as heavy as mine.” I knocked on my chest, letting it ring. “I have no regrets.”

“Fair enough,” Astrid said, patting her entirely leather ensemble. “I don’t know what the plans are for you tomorrow, but you certainly look like a captain already, Vali.” She tipped her head toward me, respectfully acknowledging my efforts.

“You think so?” I quieted my voice to keep the younger soldiers from eavesdropping. “I admit, I’m hoping this is my year for it. Eight years of service since my endowment...it’s high time I had a bit more authority, all things considered.”

“Well, we’ll find out tomorrow, won’t we?” Riggs opted not to best my final shot and mercifully proceeded downfield to retrieve her arrows.

Astrid patted my arm with the back of her hand. “So—how long are you planning to wait now?”

I furrowed my brow. “Excuse me?”

Her peachy complexion was deceptively innocent—the impishness of her freckles gave her nature away. “You waited too long last time and lost your shot. Do you really intend to do that again?”

“Waited too long for what?”

She sighed with a groan and came closer. “To make your move on Ragfrieda, you idiot.”

My heart jumped. “What? I mean...” I snapped my face toward Riggs on the field, though she was definitely too far away to overhear. “Shit. Are you serious? She’s...you know...”

“Available? Eligible? Unattached? Uncommitted? Free? Single? Use whatever word you like.”

I peered over my shoulder again. “But...what happened to Jacob?”

“Who cares? The point is, you have a small window. Why not open it, hmm? Might be your last chance. G’day, Vali.” Astrid winked and walked past me toward the palace as if she hadn’t stopped to chat with us at all.

Whatever confidence I gained by my good shot with the arrow had quickly disappeared. It lingered in the space between Riggs and me, grasping for a chance to hold her close and reveal the many years I dreamt of her...

I shook my head quickly. Not here. Not now. It wasn’t appropriate to proposition her in such a public place, and I wasn’t ready to let down my own guard. She deserved a more well-thought out confession than the whirlwind of history running through my mind, from the first time she touched my hand with tenderness after a loss, or when we learned to dance and she fell against my chest. There was never a right time to tell her; her fair share of suitors—all good men who had no lack of honor and, therefore, no reason for my disapproval except for the fact that they had her affection and I didn’t—kept me from the action that Astrid teased me for. Was my admiration common knowledge? Jealousy was unbecoming on anyone, so I buried mine in a few love affairs that never lasted longer than a year. No matter how wrapped up I was in someone else, the fair daughter of Heimdall triumphed over every one.

Riggs returned to my position on the field and passed me a handful of arrows, having graciously retrieved mine without asking. “Five shots and a single hit on the bull’s eye. Twenty percent not terrible for being out of practice.”

“It’s dismal. I’m glad destruction from a distance isn’t the skill expected of me.” I deliberately avoided touching her skin when taking them, afraid she’d read my mind and heart without trying.

She organized the different colored fletchings in her quiver without looking at me. “Are you still going to Narvlheim tonight?”

“Aye. Father wants to ensure I’m on time and won’t make a fool of myself. I suppose the pressure of sleeping under his roof will mean I won’t have a chance to sleep in.”

“My father says the same. So much pressure.” She slung her weapons across her back. “I’ll walk with you to the Bifrost if you like.”

Every opportunity to spend time with her alone sent bouncing fear all through my gut, and this was amplified with my newfound knowledge. I’d have to extend my thanks to our mutual friend if I finally obtained the gumption to do as she suggested and make a move. If.

I extended my arm toward the field gate. “Please do.”

“So stuffy, Lokison.” Riggs strutted past, snaking her hips in a manner that felt deliberate, if only because she hadn’t retrieved her arrows the same way.

“Stuffy. Proper. Polite. What’s the difference?” I swallowed hard and fought to keep my focus on the back of her head and none of her lush curves. Now that Astrid put the idea at the forefront of my mind, my tongue felt unbridled and at risk of spilling truths before I was ready. Least I could do was pretend a bit longer.

We had to pass through the main palace on our way to the Bifrost, which always felt a bit like traveling back in time compared to the rest of New Asgard. Humans held on to their culture by sharing their most advanced technologies, though they sacrificed anything that wasn’t sustainable. Old materials that poisoned the uninhabitable places of the realm were outlawed and remembered only as cautionary evidence to treat the world better. Metal and glass could be melted and re-used; water and wind would spread power through the masses. Bright lights in the streets and steady infrastructure kept everyone safe. But New Asgard’s palace was built like the old one, lit with torches and candles in cold marble walls; at least, that’s what Father told me it was modeled after. I could hardly remember the first time I’d seen the old Asgard before it crumbled to dust and changed all our lives.

The usable land of Earth, formerly Midgard, was small enough that everyone knew each other and communication across distance was somewhat a thing of the past. King Thor stressed a need for the people to connect on a personal level that required physical presence. Therefore, the old magic Vanir called conduction was a skill that all but disappeared, along with the human gadgets called telephones. While Heimdall and his seer kin maintained the ability to oversee all life in Yggdrasil, the new Bifrost was truly a bridge for all people, as it was intended to be in ages past.

Riggs and I both gave pleasantries to the workers on our way. The doors were in sight. Still, I took a moment to smile and acknowledge another young squire headed the opposite direction. “G’day Wallace. Do you remember me?”

“Of course I do, Sir,” he said, snapping his ankles together and bowing sharply. “How may I help you, Lord Vali?”

I laughed. “Oh, stop that. Tell me, how old are you now? Enough to join the ranks yet?”

He nodded with an excited bounce of his head and shoulders. “Mmhmm. I mean, yes, Sir. This is my year, Sir.”

“Please. Call me Vali only.” I stepped back for him to acknowledge Riggs; they nodded toward one another. “I suspect we’ll see you tomorrow as the ranks are called, yes?”

“Indeed.” His closed-lip smile was restrained and nearly giddy. It suited the way he sheepishly looked at the floor as he walked away.

“You’re doing that thing again,” Riggs whispered.

“Doing what?”

“You’re introducing yourself to people like they don’t know who you are.” She stood in place while I opened the palace doors for us to exit. “Believe me, there’s no need for it.”

“That’s not true.” I waved her out and cleared my cape before meeting her side again. “Mum taught me never to assume anything like that. No one is so important, everyone knows who they are. Except King Thor, I guess. And your father.”

“And yours.” Riggs grinned. “Don’t discount yourself too quickly. You’re hard to miss.”

“You flatter me.” I thanked the sunset for painting us orange and pink already, because it was becoming more and more difficult to hide as she spoke.

The Bifrost’s marble building matched the palace’s décor, trimmed with gold and white, more grand than any human monument of our time. Through the tall entry doors was a commodious room of huge cogs and wheels that tracked all known pieces of our universe. While it was beyond the understanding of human’s reach of technology, they were welcome to explore it and built their own version of a seer—on top of the roof was a common observatory, and engineers actively milled about making giant telescopes.

“Well, here you are,” Riggs said, stopping short of the platform that would take me home.

I stepped beyond her and turned to see her face. “You certainly look satisfied for ruining my shot.”

“Who, me?” She feigned surprise and gasped. “I was only putting good use to what I’ve learned after years of watching you.”

“Next time we meet, I will not be so easily marked, Riggs. You cannot see my every thought so clearly.”

She cocked a brow. “Not yet. But you are too predictable, Lokison. It will take much to surprise me.”

I wanted so badly to pull her in and prove her wrong. Meet her supple lips with mine and chill her omnipresent heat. Perhaps if I did, we would physically sizzle, steaming the Bifrost like she steamed my dreams.

“It may take less than you think. Just you wait.” Keeping my position pointed toward her, I stepped backward until the portal activated.

Whatever tomorrow’s new ranks would bring, it didn’t matter much to me. My future was a blank slate. Well, blank of all except the girl whose arrow never missed my heart.

Chapter Text

I tired of waiting for Vali after an hour. I told myself it was only a lack of patience, when really, I needed movement to settle my anxious energy. With so much on my mind, it wasn’t worth the risk of Vali sensing something strange with me anyway.

The trail back home was longer than usual, but I liked it. Everything was fuzzy. The leaves I’d crushed on my way to the Bifrost swirled in the wind and knotted my hair even more. It would give me an excuse to cloister up in my room once I got to the house and avoid Mum. Even thinking about her made my ears hot with anger.

Everything felt like it teetered on tomorrow. I took special care to nod at every bird and hoped they’d pass along that I was restless for a new adventure.

***

No clouds above meant the moon was oppressively bright and peered into the kitchen windows like a voyeur. Father, Mum, and I sat at the modest wood dining table and clanked utensils on our plates instead of having conversation. Father had an expression of distraction on his face like he was quarreling with himself, making him hardly aware of us sitting with him. Mum’s lips were pursed tightly, holding in whatever argument she wished to spill all over me. Tiwaz helped calm my nerves by flirting noisily against my arm—he wanted a scrap of gristle from my dinner instead of snuggly affection, but it was charming anyway.

I thought about Modi’s grand appearance and how well he must fit with the palace in New Asgard. He wouldn’t look like an odd decoration—in such a regal place, he might not even stand out. Vali probably looked right there, too, unlike when he was here, dressed in armor and swishing that cape of his. It didn’t fit with our meager surroundings. The house was small—too small, really—and uncomfortably cramped. Mum always said it was exactly as big as it needed to be and no more, arguing that more space would mean more things to clean and less energy for everything else. I hated that. Father was Steward of the realm, for gods’ sake. We were the reason Narvlheim was settled in the first place. Why did we live like peasants?

Narvlheim. The word repeated in my mind a few times, like I’d never really thought about where it came from. One brother and not two. I took another slow sip of water from my cup and tried to coax my heart back to its proper place. Narvi was always on the tips of our tongues but never at our table. A stranger and a symbol, not a member of the family. His absence was a mystery to me; surely Vali wasn’t involved like Modi suggested....

“I’m home!” Vali yelled, bursting through the front door without knocking. He practically shook the house with his heavy boots as he plodded through the main room.

Mum dropped her fork with a crash and greeted him excitedly. “My darling, you’re here.” She hopped to peck at his forehead and held him still by his shoulders so she could investigate him. “You somehow get taller every time you go away.”

“Either that, or you’re getting shorter.” Vali chuckled and stood on his tip toes to be more imposing. “Look at that—you shrank a little bit just now.”

“Oh, stop it, you.” She hit him playfully on the arm and puffed her cheeks.

“Asgard suits you, my son,” Father said, opening his arms.

Vali pulled him in with noisy slaps against Father’s back. It was a caricature of friendly masculinity to see them together. Sincere, sure, but performative. Both of them concerned with how they were perceived, even at home. I’d caught the same bad habit and longed for a comfortable existence.

Tiwaz kept me paralyzed by the back wall, purring hard so I wouldn’t disturb his position on my lap. I stroked him aggressively and tried not to sneer at Mum openly for so obviously favoring my brother over me. She fawned over him. Dripped with joy from her smile when he was around. His absences made his reunions an event I could never compete with.

Vali sighed with his hands on his hips. “And do I get no greeting from you?” he asked me with a careful stare. “Almost full grown and too good for me, hmm?”

I groaned and edged myself out from the corner, pushing Tee onto the floor with a thud. He trotted to Vali’s leg to earn a pat before I made it to his side myself.

“Welcome home,” I said, wrapping my arms over his shoulders for a quick hug. “I’ve missed you.”

He lifted me off the floor a few inches and made me squeak in the process. “Of course you missed me. How could anyone not miss me?”

I laughed in weak protest. “Vali, put me down!”

“No, no. It’s too late. You’re stuck with me now.” He quickly threw me over his shoulder, showing off his effortless strength. No matter how hard I thrashed for release, he was cool as ever and pretended I wasn’t in the way. “What’s for dinner, Mum?”

“Vali...” I grumbled.

“Quiet, you.” He adjusted my position and turned to Father. “Please tell me we aren’t planning on arriving at council an hour earlier than we need to like last year.”

“It might do you some good to wake before the last possible moment.” Father chuckled with his signature impishness, teasing in the same breath he told a small truth. “We’ll leave when I say so. That’s all that matters.”

“Hmm...if you keep me like this, you’ll have to take me with you to Asgard,” I said, finally surrendering to Vali’s grip and going limp.

“Don’t be ridiculous, Hel. I’m soaking in as much of you as I can.” Vali squeezed me once and finally put my feet back on the floor. His long sigh after was a sad song to my ears. He didn’t need to elaborate—it was exactly as Modi predicted. Vali was like Father, like Mum, like all of them, certain my place had already been chosen.

“So, you’re not staying this time?” I asked, twiddling a few strands of my still-ragged hair in front of my right shoulder. “Tomorrow, and that’s all?”

“I’m coming back after tomorrow’s council, of course. But life as a soldier is unpredictable. We won’t be at peace forever. All of us have to be diligent and prepared for the worst. Word has it, Modi’s report on the outer limits of old Yggdrasil will soon tell us if there are threats waiting for any opportunity.” Vali pulled my chin up to meet his deep eyes. “You’re safest here. And what kind of brother would I be if I let anything happen to you?”

I boiled inside. I didn’t need protecting like a fragile flower. Was it cowardice and a secret that made him wary, or was he absolving himself of responsibility by keeping me under our parents’ watch instead?

He tipped his head like a puppy and frowned. “You alright?”

“Yes. I’m fine.” I sank away and rubbed my temple. “Tired is all. I’m going upstairs.”

“Stop sulking, Hela.” Mum bit with her tone.

Swords may as well have shot through my glare. “I’m not. I really am exhausted.”

“If you say so,” Vali said, absently unfastening his long cape to settle in. So much for soaking me in as much as possible; he’d already forgotten I existed once the reunion was over. His lifelong promise to me was empty; Vali left me behind long ago.

I fought back tears of disappointment and let the burn in my chest spread to fuel my rebellion. I was sick of this house. Sick of Mum. Sick of Father. Sick of hearing how everyone loved Vali so much. Now I had a new aim—a new house to fight for.

It was their fault for not appreciating me while I was here. Too late now.

Chapter Text

Restless sleep. Frenzied dreams. Yet somehow I opened my eyes after Sigyn left the bedroom, alone with my thoughts and the looming day ahead. She’d snuck to the kitchen without disturbing what little rest I did achieve.

My girl—never ceasing to surprise me, even after all our years together. I chased her downstairs without lingering on the edge of the mattress to wake up.

As I guessed, Sigyn was busying herself by the sink, cooking a salty breakfast that filled the first floor of our small home with a savory cloud. The quiet tune she hummed while rocking back and forth was a spell that slowed the pace of my heart to match her. Even with her back turned to me, she was irresistible; I buried my nose in her long, silver hair and wrapped my arms around her belly.

“Good morning, Lo,” she sang in tune with her song, continuing as if I hadn’t interrupted.

“Morning, Gin.” I sighed and squeezed her closer. “I take it you slept well with our children home?”

“Of course. And you?”

“I wish I had.” I left her side and went to the icebox for a flask of water before sitting at the dining table; a routine we’d practiced many times in preparation to live alone, just the two of us, as we would surely have to in the near future. Not long now. “I feel electrified. Anxious.”

“About today?”

“Not sure. Truthfully, I can’t even articulate if what’s bothering me is a message or simply a feeling. Whatever it is, it kept me from getting comfortable last night. I’m already wishing it was tomorrow so the council would be over with.”

She got to a stopping point for whatever was in front of her and traded a small towel between her hands while looking at me. “Care to elaborate?”

I smirked. “You always see through me, don’t you?”

“Wouldn’t be your wife if I didn’t. Come on. Spit it out.”

I shut my eyes and focused for a few moments, hoping the lingering presence at the back of my mind would push to the forefront. “It’s odd...uncertain. The energy conflicts with itself. Something positive, something negative. Could be anything, really.”

“Hmm...very specific,” Sigyn said with a sarcastic tilt.

“Hey.” I eyed her with the side of my face. “These things aren’t as clear as they used to be, you know.”

“Well, you can’t be fit with glasses for the visions in your mind. Speaking of which, what happened to your specs?” She went to the bureau by the far wall and pulled out a sturdy black case. Her sternly pursed lips were enough of an admonishment as she handed it to me. “You have to get used to wearing these, or you’ll keep suffering at night with headaches.”

I put the spectacles on with a grumble. “Of all the gifts Yggdrasil has given me, I couldn’t have had Heimdall’s eyes...maybe the idea of everyone at council seeing these is all that’s plaguing me.”

“Nonsense. You look distinguished. Be glad you’re not losing your hair the way Thor is.” She snickered and rubbed the crown of my head. “He’s thinning. I’ve seen it.”

“Yes. Must be grateful for the small things, I suppose.”

“Where were we? Oh, right. Uncertain feelings. Go on; I’m still listening.” Sigyn put out plates and cups to keep herself busy.

“Perhaps I’m more restless than anxious. We’ve been at peace with the universe for far too long. Sure, there are new ranks to earn for the soldiers, but if some threat comes to New Asgard, I don’t think they’re prepared to defend themselves like they’ll have to.”

Sigyn shrugged. “Try not to make that your burden to bear. It’s Thor’s responsibility to make up for their shortcomings if he hasn’t trained them well enough.”

“I suppose so.”

“Are you worried, if he doesn’t, that you’ll have to take his place?”

“No, because I wouldn’t be who takes his place anymore. I’m worried Thor hasn’t properly mended whatever mess he had with his son. I don’t trust that boy. Modi reminds me too much of myself.”

She placed her palm against my cheek. “We cannot concern ourselves over Thor’s shortcomings. We can only hope we’ve done what we can for this house. You’ve set an example for your brother to look up to—his fault if he hasn’t learned from it.”

On cue as usual since he was a babe, Vali cleared his throat noisily behind me, spurring Sigyn to step away from our intimate exchange and attend to the food.

“Good morning,” he said while scraping his chair out to sit. “See, Father? I told you I could be trusted to wake up on my own.”

“Yes, very impressive.” I shook my head and gulped my water noisily. It didn’t quell the uneasiness in my belly, but I didn’t want to worry Vali when his own nerves likely pulled him out of bed. Something in the air kept us silent.

Hela joined us soon after, keeping to herself in typical teenage fashion. Whatever tension strung between her and Sigyn, neither Vali nor I wanted to be tangled in it.

So we ate to the tune of our forks and plates only, ending our breakfast as soon as it started before Vali and I retreated to ready. An unimpressive last meal for life as we knew it.

Chapter Text

I shook my arms out after putting on my armor as if insects crawled over me in waves. Everything from my toes to my fingertips tingled with nerves. And for what? I had been present at new rank assignment ceremonies for a decade, yet not since my endowment had I been so palpably anxious.

Perhaps it was because I felt it was my turn to rise to prominence and be recognized as a real force in New Yggdrasil. Or perhaps it was because I’d decided to pull Heimdall aside once things were over and—once and for all—ask his blessing to pursue my dearest friend as something more.

I muttered a few curse words, grateful Mum wasn’t present to admonish me for doing it in her house. It was unbecoming of a man in my position, she’d say. But since Narvi died, it was my last lick of rebellion that I could largely get away with. In the wake of his death, I was burdened with heavy expectations.

Still, I mumbled. “Okay. I’m fine. This is fine. I can do this.”

“Vali, where are you?” Father yelled from downstairs.

“Coming!” I bent down to catch a better glimpse of my face in the old looking glass and swept my hair off my sweaty forehead. Not enough time to fix anything now, and the walk to the Bifrost would only make it worse. Before I’d do anything potentially stupid in front of the council, I’d have to cast a charm over myself to appear more put together than I was in reality.

Mum waited for me at the bottom of the steps after wiping Father’s shoulders free of Tiwaz fluff. He no longer wore armor like me and instead donned all black, except for a collar of his preferred green and gold—such a decoration was now expected of senior officers such as himself. Both Uncle Thor and even Heimdall dressed in the same way, proving how distinguished they were against youth such as myself.

Like with my underarmor, a secret lining of purple graced the inside of Father’s left sleeve, forever reminding him that we weren’t alone. We were beholden to someone else and his legacy. Narvi was a better motivation than the ancient gods and goddesses of the past, though; at least, I thought so.

“I’ll never be used to seeing you like that,” Mum said, blinking back a few tears and adjusting my cape at the shoulder. “All grown up.”

“And you’ll never stop saying it whenever I’m here.” I peered into the kitchen and waved to Hela. “I’m sure next year you might be joining us for this, won’t you, Hel?”

She simmered in her own thoughts and continued to scribble in her leatherbound journal, all but ignoring me. With a quick nod, she acknowledged what I said and went right back to whatever commanded her furious strokes.

I raised a brow at Mum and whispered, “I see what you mean about the attitude.”

She sighed. “Don’t worry about her. She’ll grow out of it, I’m sure. But I don’t like the reminder that next year, you might both be far away. I do so wish she wouldn’t rush it.”

Father cleared his throat and opened the front door, leaving with a flourish that told me he missed the drama of his own floor-length cape.

“Better not keep you,” Mum said, finally pulling my face down to peck my forehead. “Good luck.”

I smiled, though the rush of adrenaline through my gut made my mouth water. I don’t need luck...I need courage today.

***

 The Bifrost on New Asgard was busy when we landed; so much so, few actually acknowledged our arrival. It was just as well, since kin from the far-off worlds of Borgheim and Dagheim also came to witness the announcements. It was tradition for family to join their respective soldier for the first calling of rank; Father only attended now for his own duties and not with me specifically. It made Mum jealous, but she understood that I was too old to make a spectacle out of every professional development.

Like a slow-flowing river, we funneled toward the palace and into the common hall. Two rings of seats surrounded the round table at its center. The inner ring was reserved for those with special invitations, myself included, and known diplomats. Established soldiers—some who knew Father before the Ragnarok—stood on the perimeter of the room. Most of them were mentors instead of people expected to fight if the time ever came again.

Father took a chair and pointed at the next spot over for me. I couldn’t decide if I was grateful for his presence or resentful for the fact that he made me feel younger. Too old for a chaperone, aren’t I?

Uncle Thor entered after most everyone was settled, earning a raucous applause and standing ovation from all. His thick red collar was threaded in gold the same was Father’s was, making him ever more lion-like, though his hair was now grey where it once was blond. He smiled in his ever-present wide show of teeth, which finally registered to me as friendly and not the threat I saw as a child.

“My people, friends, brothers, leaders...I am so thankful you would come to my home, our home, to discuss the growth of those whose very hands will hold the future. Please, sit.” After his announcement, Uncle Thor weaved his way between the rows to his seat between Father and Heimdall. Other faces directly at the table included Astrid’s father, Uncle Theoric, and a known Valkyrie named Skál. An empty space waited directly across from me.

Cousin Modi arrived with a commanding stance and filled the spot. His regular companions, Gunnar and Tyr, found space in the second row not far away from him. His expression was as coldly confident as it ever was. Like me, his ensemble set him apart even amongst the other soldiers simply because it was unique. The darkness of his cape made him appear perpetually bloodstained and heavy, even though most Asgardian soldiers had some kind of red as part of their uniform. For the king’s son, he did not beckon anywhere near the same enthusiasm from the room as his father, which made me pity him for a moment.

Perhaps they didn’t clap for him not because they had doubts or dislike, but terror that he could destroy them all easily, so it would be better not to draw any attention their way at all. I waited for him to meet my eyeline so I could say hello with a cursory nod, but he seemed to be working hard to avoid my gaze as much as possible.

Just as well. I didn’t like him, either. Time with Modi reminded me too much of the last days with Narvi. Beyond that, we’d hardly spoken. More like strangers than family.

“G’day, Lokison,” Astrid whispered from the row behind me.

I startled and twisted my neck to see her, though I’d wished for a drop more of composure beforehand.

“Miss any shots today?” Riggs asked with a decidedly flirtatious raised brow.

“I...I-I-I...” The words were stolen straight from my throat, caught in the air between us. How I wished to reach out and collect them before their broken pieces reached her ears.

“Ah, nervous, I see.” She snickered, beckoning the same insect-like itching all over my body again. “Need a kiss for luck?”

My heart slammed painfully against my breastplate. “W-what?”

“Shh. It’s starting,” Astrid said, twirling her finger to make me turn around.

I did so almost fast enough to snap my neck in half. A kiss? Was she serious? Would she do it? What could that mean? My carousel of thoughts went round and round so much, I missed Uncle Thor’s overview of the classes and barely resumed listening just prior to my own introduction.

“...and it is with special honor that I extend welcome to the soldiers who hail from realms beyond New Asgard’s borders. Those of you to which this applies, please rise.” Uncle Thor spoke with a stilted, nearly awkward cadence that seemed too formal, even for him.

Father seared a glare into my face for not standing fast enough. I pretended not to notice his scowl once on my feet.

“These soldiers are the final frontier just as much as they are the future not yet realized,” Thor continued. “Today, they will be honored with specific ranks and duties closely suited to their strengths.” He met eyes with all of us who stood at his call, tacitly asking us to sit again. “We shall begin with our first-year additions to the guard.”

Any year before, I would’ve been simply bored listening to the many names called out and welcomed to service; this time, the knowledge that Riggs sat behind me heightened all my senses and made me feel exposed. Every moment that passes was another moment closer to a dreaded conversation I rehearsed like a prayer.

**

An hour in, and the attitude of the room mellowed. Proud parents of first-year additions tearfully congratulated their soldiers and sank into the background. Wallace, the young soldier I’d greeted in the palace after practice yesterday, said his vows and gave me a nod with a beaming smile. His excitement made me proud. Astrid and Riggs were both declared Forraðs for the Valkyrie, a step up from their previous rank. They kept their composure as long as was required, but at the first lull in activity, the girls resumed the same chittering excitement they would at any other celebration.

I peered over my shoulder at them, but Father cleared his throat at the same moment, so my congratulations would have to wait. It was almost a gift to not have yet another distraction.

Please touch my shoulder, I wished, praying to feel her brush against me. Their gossiping made me wish I could transform my ears alone to their wolven form and catch everything. Was that my name? What’s—

“Vali, stop that,” Father whispered.

“What?”

“Your leg is shaking. Enough.” He refocused on Thor and folded his arms.

Just over halfway through the ceremony, and I’d have to pour my energy into appearing completely still. I sighed and commanded my nerves to stop jittering. Father didn’t chastise me again, so it must’ve been successful.

Every person in the second row was addressed and announced in an ever-closing spiral. At the end, Uncle Thor glanced over his parchment and dropped his congenial smile.

He puffed his chest and held up his right hand for everyone to silence their private conversations. “My friends. It is now time for Modi, Prince of New Asgard, Captain of Arms and the first company assigned to explore the outer remnants to give his report. Let us hear him well.” Thor squared his jaw as if preparing for a challenge.

Modi rose from his seat in a slow display that proved a strong command over his body and armor; anyone else might’ve struggled to be on two feet with so much metal on their shoulders. So close to Uncle Thor, it was almost uncanny how alike they were, except Modi never had the same welcoming aura about him that his father did. Still, the audience of the room gave him reverent attention, myself included.

Modi put his hands behind his back and stared blankly past me, avoiding my eyes just as strongly as when he first arrived and making me wonder if his short speech was written on the wall somewhere. “My men have enlisted the help of humans atop the Bifrost to view the remnants of old Yggdrasil above us. They proved most helpful in giving us an aim to land. We identified several islands of questionable sustainability, and some creatures reminiscent of fire beasts survived the Ragnarok on such lands. We successfully dispatched such threats.”

Father raised his hand and became suddenly invested in Modi’s every word. “You’ve seen battle?”

“I wouldn’t call it battle.” Modi took a breath and firmly met Father’s gaze. “I merely took their lives before they could take ours. Such is my burden as Captain of Arms.”

“And how many lives were there?” Father asked.

Modi sniffed sharply. “Fifty, give or take a few.”

Uncle Thor must’ve sensed the same awkwardness as everyone else and chimed in before they could debate. “Right—a meager number compared to that of the past. Loki, don’t interrupt. Continue, my son.”

“Thank you.” Modi recalibrated his posture. “There is nothing else consequential to report. No hostile forces threaten the delicate balance of the new universe. While we did not identify a new realm for settlement, I have no doubt such places are budding as we speak. When they arise, I’ll make it my burden to risk my life and challenge any creatures who seek to claim them. I give my word, as always, to protect New Asgard and her people until my last and dying breath.”

“To the end,” all us soldiers said in unison. Father only muttered it, apparently resistant to the new tradition.

“Well done. Take a seat, Captain.” Uncle Thor relaxed as Modi sat, like the hardest part of the meeting was over.

Until that point, the anticipation of my name had been mostly benign. Now, I was practically vibrating out of my skin. I resumed my quick leg bouncing involuntarily and twisted my hands together. Come on...what else is there?

Uncle Thor cleared his throat and put his hands behind his back. “It is a rare occasion when we see a soldier rise to the highest ranks, especially in times of peace. But there is one among us who has earned such an honor.” He shifted my direction and nodded. “Vali, son of Loki, please rise.”

Finally. I exhaled through a silent whistle and stood, attempting to do so as smoothly as Modi had. “Aye, King Thor. I am ready for any and all tasks you require.”

The moment I spoke, I swore Riggs’ voice rang like a whispering bell behind me, though I didn’t dare turn to see her. I painted her smile in my mind instead to calm me.

Uncle Thor laughed, filling the room with a new lilt of sunshine. “Vali, you’re unlike any other soul in Asgard’s army. My brother has taught you well. On the guard, all know your name. Most have shared stories with me of your willingness to teach, especially the most youthful additions within this room. You’ve superseded the expectations set before you. State your rank as it stands.”

I suddenly felt as if my words were automatic and I merely witnessed the scene. “I am Vali Lokison, agent of Asgard and Narvlheim, Forrað of the company assigned to defend New Asgard’s immediate territory.”

He smiled at Father before addressing me again. “I think you’ve done enough to prove your worth, don’t you think?” He spoke slowly now, like his words were a binding contract. “And so it is, Vali, son of Loki, agent of Asgard and Narvlheim, until such day comes that you are either honored with the crown or stripped of your title, I declare you Captain of Defense.”

I blinked quickly and fought against the urge to smile, which only left my face twitching. “Thank you. I...I’m proud to serve.”

“So it is. With this title you are granted free reign to travel throughout the realms. Your duty is to work beside the Captain of Arms on the front line of battle, should it ever arise, and guide those around you to protect the people. With your magic, there is no foe Asgard will ever face that cannot be conquered.”

Father brushed my hand to force my gaze on him. An undeniable spark of pride flickered back at me. It was just enough to ground me back to the honor of the moment and stop being distracted by any other goals for the day.

I nodded with new purpose. “Again, I thank you. My life has been pledged to protect those who cannot protect themselves, to carry with me any soul claimed by my hands, and to give of myself unto anyone who needs something I can provide. With this call, I reaffirm my vows to all of Yggdrasil and Asgard, to my last and dying breath.”

All yelled, “To the end!”

The room seemed to erupt with congratulations, save for a distinct void in the voices straight ahead. Modi didn’t cheer; he avoided looking at me altogether and clenched his jaw tightly enough to make it look more like a wince. He didn’t need to say what I knew he was thinking—my new status trespassed on his station. Both Captains. Both privileged. We’d never gotten over the too-painful reality of our traumatic introduction to one another, and now we’d be forced to work together unlike ever before. His two closest favorites folded their arms behind him, clearly as biased against me as he was. Yet Modi was a prince—heir to Asgard’s throne—and I’d never eclipse that, so what was the issue?

Uncle Thor adjourned the council while I was still standing, and my heart sank when I found Riggs and Astrid missing. Seems more time had gone by than I thought before regaining full consciousness. Just as well, since I couldn’t hope to say what I needed to if she was close.

Heimdall stood at the same time Father did, and I worried he’d escape just as quickly.

“Lord Heimdall,” I said, clearing my throat when he didn’t seem to hear me.

His booming laughter at something Thor said shook my armor. “Yes, Lokison?”

I felt Father was too close and prayed he’d notice my anxiety enough to step away. “If it’s alright, may I discuss something with you in private?”

Uncle Theoric interrupted the thought to shake Father’s hand and mine after, congratulating me with some compliment I barely heard over the pounding in my head. I nodded congenially but hoped he’d go away. Not now. Please not now...

While I impatiently flickered my eyes toward Heimdall in a silent signal to stay where he was, the room progressively emptied. Modi disappeared with Gunnar and Tyr without a word. Wallace waved at me, but didn’t bother trying to work through the throng to see me directly, for which I was grateful. Time was running out. It would only be more awkward if I asked again with an intimate audience.

But Uncle Thor surprised me by touching Father’s shoulder, keeping him in place. Heimdall gave Father a look that said the same. The four of us stood in virtual silence, giving nothing but pleasantries to the few attendees who remained.

Father shook his head once we were all alone. “Thor, what—”

“Actually, we have more to discuss with you,” Heimdall said, squarely addressing me. “Take a seat, Lokison.”

All the blood in my body left my head for my feet, dragging me down, weighing me toward the floor. Their six eyes were even more oppressive than the last time we were all alone, presenting me with armor and the load of life’s expectations. The signposts of my life were easily marked and traceable to moments much like this one—my birth, Narvi’s death, dancing with Riggs, my endowment—even if some that I’d been promised were yet to be fulfilled. A first real love. My first kill. A war won. A new realm found by my eyes over others.

Somehow this felt equally important. Whatever they said, whatever they knew, I would leave a different man.

Chapter Text

What do they want? What’s this about? Do they see right through me? Shit! I was overly conscious of every small creak of my chair and how harried Father looked as well. If he was uncertain, even with his omnipresent calm...

“What is it you need of me?” I asked, folding my hands together on the tabletop to show I had no tricks, just in case I’d somehow been caught in a slight I was unaware of.

Uncle Thor chuckled and looked at Father. “I can’t believe the man he’s turned into. Can you? Why, I still remember when he was just a child, constantly getting into trouble. Hasn’t lost any of his resemblance to you, though.”

Father blinked a few times and nodded, though he was reserved. His expression gave little away other than his uncertainty.

“Mm...and the people of New Asgard have taken notice of him as well,” said Heimdall, smugly pressing his lips together in a smile that reigned in an impish attitude I normally saw in Father. “He’s a natural leader. A good teacher. Cares for the people and has enough strength to be seen as a shield as much as a sword.”

Uncle Thor finished his thought without hesitating. “Right. And since you’ve set such an example for the citizens of Narvlheim, Loki, there have been talks by the people of New Asgard to adopt an election since they have a preference for someone other than who is expected.”

I furrowed my brow at the twisted code, still too surprised to easily unravel what it meant.

“What do you mean by that?” Father asked, putting words to my thoughts.

Uncle Thor looked sternly into Father’s eyes, then kicked his chin toward me.

At once, Father’s eloquence was stolen. “What?” He flustered back and forth between looking at me and Thor. “Are you certain? But...w-what about—”

“I don’t believe he desires it, nor has he earned it. There is much for him to learn. Ruling isn’t in his heart, as it was never truly in mine. You always had a greater understanding of such things, and your boy has clearly taken after you in this respect. All he needs to do is agree, and steps can be taken to ensure his ascension is protected and prepared for.”

“Do you understand what’s being asked of you?” Heimdall asked, commanding my attention away from the downright stare I gave straight at Uncle Thor.

I was lightheaded. Dizzy. Why is the room moving?

Father quickly swiped his eyes—a move I hadn’t seen in nearly a decade—and rested his hand on my right vambrace. “Gods, in all my life, I must’ve wished for this a thousand times. Vali...the people have chosen you.”

“I don’t understand.” I held my hands up and backed away from the table in hopes the rocking of the world would stop. It didn’t. “What’s this about rule? A soldier’s duty is never to rule.”

“That is correct; a soldier’s duty is to serve. But a king...” Uncle Thor gave me his patented grin, almost cloying in its optimism. “A king’s duty is to rule with a benevolent hand and act as a mouthpiece to the rest of Yggdrasil. Words given to you have not fallen into an unknown void; you’ve honored all who come to you by listening and learning. You aren’t daft or dense. Not too prideful to deny your mistakes. Your power speaks for itself and is used to help others instead of prop yourself up. Vali, can’t you see...you are exactly what these people have been waiting for.”

“If you say yes, you’ll be the next king, Vali.” Father’s lower lip quivered, never able to fully hold back like a dam restraining his strong emotions. Now, it threatened to break.

“King?” I didn’t think my heart could beat any faster than it was when we arrived, but I was wrong. Oh, so wrong. “Am I worthy of such a thing?”

Heimdall chuckled. “The fact you have to ask only proves the answer, young man.”

“I...excuse me.” I stood with a jolt, unsure if the nausea creeping up the back of my throat could be squelched fast enough.

Father leapt with me. “Vali, wait—”

“No, no. I’m fine. Just give me a moment, please.” I turned my back to them and felt the same disconnect from my body that I did when Thor declared me Captain. It took nerve not to wrap my blue cape around myself like a blanket. I wasn’t a child anymore, like they said; I was a peer. Equal. Equal and...elected. My deep breath was doubly contained by my breastplate. I no longer felt claustrophobic inside the armor, though at times like this, I missed the freedom of expanding my chest to its full potential.

“Sit, Loki,” Thor whispered, followed by the distinct scrape on the floor of the chair again. At least my uncle had the courtesy to give me space to think.

What did I think of? Anything. Everything. Mum’s stories of her parents and the hierarchy of royalty; none of it fit what was happening here. To her, traditional nobility claimed authority without keeping their promises, while Father showed me how claiming a title wasn’t about his will over anyone else’s. Being King was far from permanent; it was an agreement. A job, in its simplest form. The mere prospect of being responsible for so many souls made the ceiling close in above me. I shrank in size and spirit, one second after the other, sucking in through my nose to keep from gasping.

Yet there it was—a note in the air that was all too familiar. Subtle, but present. The sweet pear Riggs used in her hair. It doused my overexcited nerves and helped guide me to worthy questions.

With my back still to them, I commanded my voice to be steady. “It won’t happen soon, will it? This is far in the future?”

They shuffled behind me a bit again. “Right,” Uncle Thor said after clearing his throat. “The only reason we’re discussing this now is so you have time to learn.”

“And I presume this is not to be shared beyond this room?”

Father’s tone was uncharacteristically soft. “Except family. Your mother of course, and Hela.”

I resisted asking Heimdall about Ragfrieda’s right to know, because if she knew, Astrid would know, and if Aunt Thyra knew, everyone would. A predictable line of spread. As surprised as I was, a wash of warmth came over my core despite the draftless room. The fact that enough people expressed this wish to Thor and Heimdall made me wonder who had vouched for me—and who would risk upsetting Modi in the process. Without doubt, he had no clue.

That would have to be addressed at a later time. Right now, a decision had to be made.

I looked at my clean vambraces—ignoring the brief pang of emptiness to see Narvi’s name—and gave myself a minor note to have the armor polished since the joints were tarnished. It wouldn’t do for such an auspicious occasion.

Aye...it wasn’t quite fit for a king. At least, not yet.

I put my arms down at my sides and said my soldier’s pledge—the only thing that felt appropriate. “I will serve Yggdrasil and all her people, however they see fit. It is my duty to protect, defend, and uphold the realms. I shall continue to do this until my last and dying breath.” With that, I turned to face the three again.

They clenched their jaws in unison, poorly hiding their anticipation.

“Should the time come that they ask me to be king...I will accept.” Once the words left my mouth, it was too late to reclaim them. In this space, with these men, my statement was as good as a formal contract.

Father didn’t bother trying to hold back and immediately stood again to yank me against his chest. He squeezed me in a way I couldn’t recall feeling ever before. His staccato breath explained why he didn’t speak; words couldn’t do his thoughts any justice.

Having his support—and the knowledge that he wouldn’t let me fail—let me unwind a bit. I hummed and spoke to him instead. “I’ll do the best I possibly can, Father.”

“Oh, Vali.” He sniffed sharply and pulled away to see my face. “I see it. You were meant for this. Always.”

I gave him a reserved smile, still far too nauseated to celebrate properly.

Uncle Thor stepped beside us and patted both my shoulder and Father’s, ignorant to how he interrupted our private moment. “Both of you, reflect on this in the coming weeks before the guard meets on Asgard again. Decide what you will tell the people when it is inevitably released. Loki, help Vali learn your role on Narvlheim and mimic it. Your method is precisely what the people say they want.”

Heimdall didn’t congratulate me the same way Thor did, instead putting his hands behind his back and proving how much taller he was compared to the rest of us. He stood in silence until I pulled away from Father enough to look him in the eye.

“What is it you wished to speak with me about, Lokison?” he asked.

Right. That. I gulped audibly, though I hoped he hadn’t heard me. The weight of what I’d just agreed to was far too intense to add anything else. If he didn’t approve, it would spoil the good news, not to mention the humiliation of saying my thoughts out loud in front of both Uncle Thor and Father.

Heimdall raised a brow of impatience.

“It was nothing. Nothing, um, important, anyway. I wanted to ask if...if it would be appropriate to visit Dagheim in the coming weeks to congratulate Ragfrieda on her new position. That’s all.” My modest smile felt forced. If I had a true tail at that moment, it would’ve been firmly tucked between my legs; didn’t I know better than to lie to a seer?

He chuckled. “Of course, Lokison. It’s never inappropriate to congratulate my daughter. Now, speaking of which, I have matters of my own to attend to.”

“G’day, Lord Heimdall,” I said, bowing deeper than I would’ve normally, afraid his eyes would read me too well if I didn’t.

“G’day to all of you.” He didn’t wait for me to stand straight again before leaving, sparing me the pain of facing him again.

Father and Uncle Thor bantered with one another about nonsense while I tried to piece together the past hour of my life—my very last as a common man, and now the first as future king.

Chapter Text

It wasn’t the first time the redheaded servant tripped in front of me on purpose. Wasn’t the first time I took her hand and offered her my company for the night. Certainly wasn’t the first time I ordered her to strip bare and service me: first with her hands; then her supple, warm mouth and the parts of her body she swore had never been touched by a man.

But I knew they had been. I’d done it all before. She just couldn’t recall, the poor thing; whenever we’d trysted in the past, I found a way to steal her memories and keep her begging at my door for attention. That didn’t change her promiscuous past, yet I was the only man she tried to flatter with her lies. Virginity meant little; I only wanted her effortless submission, which was easier to obtain if she believed I saw her as anything other than an easy way to satisfy carnal release. In truth, she was worthless, like all women in the palace: a pawn with a pair of eyes and ears alone.

As I relaxed with my arms behind my head and looked toward the ceiling, she rolled into my side and trailed her fingers into my chest hair. “Will you be ready for another?”

I chuckled. “Oh, yes. But the night is getting on, and soon it will be time for you to go back where you came from.”

She bristled a bit—something I was used to. The greatest benefit of my trickery was the freedom to speak however I’d like, and I tested the waters each time. Would I ever say something so callous and cruel to make her leave on her own without throwing her out? It made a delightful game.

“Surely you would rather I stay here and keep your bed warm, right, Sire?”

“Keep it warm?” I shifted to see her face and brought her chin up. “My bed is far from frigid, with or without you. And, my dear...oh...what was your name again?”

She furrowed her brow. “Rona.”

“Yes, of course. As I was saying, my dear Rona—I might think you were out of warmth to give after spreading it to the sheets of every man in my army.” I sat up and stretched my back with a groan, spreading my arms wide.

“Excuse me?” She finally reacted with something other than a passive acceptance and included an edge to her tone. Rising to her knees behind me, Rona touched my shoulder with intent to put me in my place. “Did you just—”

“Surely, you’re aware it is a crime to lie to me.” I patted her hand twice gently.

She froze. “Yes, Sire.”

“And I trust you do not take me for a daft man.” I softened my eyes when meeting her gaze again. “A woman who knows little about touch wouldn’t be so willing to extend another invitation so soon. There is no need to be coy about your experience, Rona; I am well-versed in all your wiles. Relax.”

The light in her eyes dimmed. Her hope for more than a single night’s tryst disappeared—an appropriate assessment once she realized how little she had to offer me if she didn’t have flattery, though that didn’t stop her from trying. “Would it be worthwhile to admit how you rank amongst the conquests, then?” Rona chose seduction over innocence and spread her hands over both shoulders now, admiring my back tattoo. “Perhaps I can entice you with comparisons...secret desires...things to use as weapons against other men?”

“How clever.”

“I can be of use to you. Maybe even enough to...earn some change of station?”

She certainly understood the importance of a bargain. I stood from the bed and made my way to the cabinet by the wall; as I spoke, I poured us both a small glass of liquor. “Go on, then. Spill those lips.”

Her smug hum was accompanied by a vulgar spread of her legs. Any shyness she brought with her to the room ceased to exist. “Which ones?”

I chuckled and came back to her side with glasses in hand, though I didn’t offer hers just yet and placed it on the nightstand. Instead, I rubbed my thumb over her lower lip. “Tell me what I want to hear, and I’ll give you the pleasure of tasting me again.”

She raised a brow and pulled my forefinger into her mouth, teasing me with a back and forth of her tongue before bringing it out again. “What a treat.”

“Enough stalling. What secrets hold any value to me?”

Rona curled into herself slightly and looked at the mattress instead of my face. “Are names worth anything?”

“Whose names?”

“The men who doubt Asgardian power.” She tucked her hair behind her ears in a tic that wasted even more time. “The ones who aren’t loyal to Thor’s house.”

“Ah. Now that is prized, indeed.” I sipped from my own glass and hummed from the bitterness before the heat coursing through me, then set it on the floor. “Traitors have no place in my army. If I give you parchment, will you expose them?”

“Can you guarantee the source won’t find its way back to my chamber?”

“Of course. I’ll be in debt to you.” I caressed her check sweetly. “Your chamber from the palace basement will surely be elevated.”

Rona was all too eager to agree, and we wasted no time in her written confession. It was only a handful of names, yet in Asgard’s small army, every one made a difference. Any dissention to my rise in power could be disastrous, and I wouldn’t risk a single one’s influence tainting the ranks. None of them surprised me, and most were already marked in my mind for some other small slight that served as evidence of their disloyalty. As expected, she claimed Gunnar and Tyr openly praised me whenever they could. Their confirmation was worth just as much.

“Anything else you think I’d like to know?” I asked while tucking the list into my bedside drawer.

“Somehow I doubt you’re interested in their preferred sexual appetites.”

“Oh, on the contrary.” I laughed and nibbled her ear. “I’m simply dying to know if you’ve let more than one claim you at a time.”

“Why are you interested in that?”

“Because that would all but guarantee how insatiable you are.” I shoved her down on the bed, greedily spreading her legs once more and taking control without hesitation. She didn’t protest or move my hands in any way—her perfect obedience allowed me free reign of her body, granting me entrance wherever I asked. As predicted, Rona enthusiastically writhed and changed positions more than she had when we started, no longer pretending to be demure.

So unbecoming. Far from a lady. Only whores would so openly enjoy being used the way I violated her.

She wasn’t keeping my bed warm, but she certainly was burning time in it. The least I could give her was a final thrill, which she confirmed in muffled screams and soiled sheets that would leave no mistake behind of what we’d done. If she was truly satisfied or not, I didn’t care. I got more than what I wanted.

When I came for the last time, I stayed perched above her on my hands, letting the sweat drip off my forehead and onto hers. She moved my curls away from my face and grinned.

“I take it I’ve pleased you, Sire?”

“Yes, Rona. You’ve done well.” I pecked her forehead slowly. “Though I do have a question for you.”

“Anything.”

“What do you know of Vali Lokison? Did you bed him?”

She deflated a bit and averted my gaze. “No. He’s a mystery.”

“You seem disappointed.” I tipped my face. “Tell me why.”

“It’s nothing.” That was all. A clipped answer.

Her avoidance was a lie. It annoyed me. Angered me. My ears ran hot. “No, that’s not how this works.” I brought her eyes back to me by directing her chin with my thumb and forefinger. “What do you know of Lokison?”

Rona swallowed hard. “Very little, Sire.”

“I am sure even that amount is important, or you wouldn’t be coy.” I squeezed her chin firmly. “Speak, or I’ll hurt you.”

“Yes. Alright.” She grimaced. “He...he denied me once.”

“Just once?”

“The only time I tried.” A single tear leaked from her eye—fear or sadness, it mattered little. “Caught him alone in the palace and offered to keep him for the night. He’s a curiosity to the women in the servantry. Thought I could at least draw his attention. But he declined and said it was a pity that I couldn’t see...”—her voice tapered, almost like she became aware of her words’ gravity as she spoke them—“...see my worth.”

My eyes narrowed. “Why a curiosity?”

“Many things.” Her focus drifted again. A cast of blue seemed to fall over her. “His magic. His kindness. Knows all of our names even though he lives beyond the palace walls. The way he carries himself...not like other men at all. Even smells different.”

“Mm-hmm.” I rolled my eyes. “Sounds like he prefers the company of men.”

“Oh, no,” she said sharply, almost as if the thought offended her. “He’s known to few, but all of them women. Loves privately. There’s a rumor he preserves himself because he yearns for affection not returned.”

“From whom?”

“Not sure. But I’ve seen him with the old seer’s daughter now and then. Wouldn’t be surprised if she meant more than it would seem.”

“Very good.” It wasn’t much, but could prove useful if accurate in the slightest. To thank Rona, I released her chin and slowly kissed her. It was far from what I preferred, yet I needed to practice such things before repeating the performance with Hela in the coming days.

She sang with her breath as I released her lips. “I hope you haven’t interpreted my words as admiration for anyone but you, Sire. You’re by far the grandest prize I could achieve.”

“Yes, I know.” I sat up and encouraged her to do the same, reclaiming my glass on the floor and hers on the nightstand. “Now, shall we toast to your change of station?”

Downright glee popped from her face. She took her drink without question and held it up for me to meet. “To Prince Modi, future King.”

“And God of Wrath,” I finished for her.

“Is that right?” She blinked a few times. “I’m surprised I didn’t know that.”

“Father thought it was better to describe my gift as one of passion—yet I prefer the darker label, don’t you?” After tinking our glasses together, I took a long sip.

She did the same and shook her head quickly. “Wow—quite sweet, isn’t it?”

“Somewhat.” I swirled the fluid in my hand. “You know, Rona, I have secrets as well.”

“Oh?” Another light sip on her part. “Have I earned the privilege?”

My half-smile was playful on purpose. “I’d say so. Tell me, have you heard of the Dagheim mystics?”

“Not familiar.”

“They’re quite fascinating. Almost the opposite of the great seers who live there. Since New Asgard came into being, they’ve perfected their craft and sell tonics for a high price. One such elixir dumbs the mind.” I snapped my fingers. “That quick. A small amount, and one completely forgets the previous day. Quite useful magic.”

Her brow folded. “Sire?”

“Don’t worry. That isn’t what I’ve given you.” I nodded toward her drink. “I don’t want you to forget this time.”

She stared at the liquid for a moment. It couldn’t lie. “This time?”

“Of course. This is not our first night together. Did you think I read your mind to know exactly what would make you shiver?”

Her grip tightened on the glass. She inched away from me toward the end of the bed.

“Come, now. Don’t act as if I’ve harmed you.” I snatched her forearm to keep her still. “You fell at my feet and practically begged for it each time. No different from tonight. If anything, I have been used. The prize prince, as you said yourself.”

“But Sire...”

“Our bargain still stands, if you wish.” I threw back the remainder of my drink and put the glass down. “Finish yours, now.”

Doubt flashed in her eyes. Not enough, though, to stop her. Rona did as she was told, then surrendered the vessel.

I chuckled against her ear. “There, see? Was that so hard?”

“N-no.” She sucked in a breath, though it staggered on its way. “Was that your only secret?”

“Not quite.” I pulled away once more to stand above her. “How deep do you think the palace basement is?”

She shook her head, then started coughing. First, into her hand. Then, against her forearm. “What...what is th-this?”

“I would wager that the servants’ quarters are somewhere around twenty feet down, give or a take a few.” I feigned worry with a hand over my mouth. “Gods...your lips are turning blue.”

She gasped with each breath as her eyes went bloodshot. “S-Sire—”

“Can’t be too surprised, though it is working faster than I thought it would. Those mystics are clever, but Midgardians still have reserves of things that kill without a trace. Father charged me with destroying their invisible weapons; as you can see, I kept some for myself. It seemed too useful to waste.”

The girl folded into herself on the bed, clutching her knees to her chest and groaning. Her surface muscles popped audibly with strong twitches.

“Hmm. Looks like it hurts. I’m sure it will end soon.” I sat beside her again and combed through her hair. “Such a shame. We could’ve avoided this fate.”

She whimpered with a high pitch that I could only interpret as a scream, though she was out of strength to project it.

“Oh, but it’s true,” I said with false sincerity. “You committed treason against me and my house. You held the names of men who spoke poorly of me. Your knowledge of their thoughts tells me you engaged in the dissent.”

Her movement slowed. Bubbles poured over her lower lip. A few quick coughs. Still breathing. Still alive enough to hear me.

“I’ll admit, this pains me. I’ll miss how easily you opened for me. Of course, you’re little more than a hole. Or three.” I laughed and knelt in front of her, making certain her eyes were locked with mine before her inner light went out. “Well, like I said, your chamber will rise after all. Six feet down is still higher than twenty. Pity, I’ve already forgotten your name.”

With that, she deflated altogether. The tone of her skin was a sickly grey and her eyes now a crimson that blotted any spark of life. Cold in my bed, she’d returned to the nothing she was when I brought her in. I spat on her face and closed her lids to keep her death stare from burning through the wall.

I didn’t bother wrapping her in the sheets before retreating to my private washroom to clean myself. With the scalding shower, I erased her fingerprints from my shoulders. The grand eagle tattoo across my back was unsullied. The water ran unnaturally hot, though I let it burn me and didn’t try to move. It was a show of my power. Proof of my strength. My skin could callous and bubble and burst, much like my indifference to ending a life. It had gotten easier over the years. Only one ever haunted me.

While remaining under the false waterfall, I whistled a five-note tune and waited. It was still night, and my gifts were suited for secrecy.

A quick gust of wind. Sharp clacks from the bedroom. His claws scraped the floor and circled my bed. He’d know where to take her. Dispose of her properly. Leaving no trace, I’d be blameless come sunrise. When the draft slammed the window closed, I left the washroom to be sure it was done.

The sheets were still soiled, but no violence remained. Only a black plume from my grand accomplice even suggested another soul’s presence. I dragged the long feather through my palm with a satisfied smile.

Hela, a list of names, and Lokison’s pining. So much work to be done.

Chapter Text

Father never celebrated so much before. Not with me, anyway. He insisted I join him with Uncle Thor in the main hall of the palace for drinks, which I couldn’t refuse even if I wanted to. The news was too big and too life changing to be comfortable, yet they carried on as if the universe was still the same. I nodded in silence while they laughed about days before I existed and complained about how different the beer was from what they’d grown up with; since I was used to the flavors of New Asgard, I couldn’t relate.

Father might have been revered across the known universe, but Mum taught me to see my origins as humble. With each sip of ale, I reran my new oath in my mind. A promise to be more than I ever thought I’d be—more than anyone expected of me.

A surge of adrenaline through my stomach felt suspiciously like guilt. I folded my arms to cover my vambraces, as if they were watching me. Troublemaker. Troublemaker. I’ve always been a troublemaker. The lifelong family joke had new meaning to me now, and it made me doubt the work I’d done up to this point. What if the beacon of destiny found me by mistake? Or worse—fell to me by default?

The slap of Father’s hand on my back snapped me out of my introspection. “Your mother’s waiting.” He stood to embrace Uncle Thor quickly, and I didn’t wait to shake any more hands. Unlike the day before, I didn’t pause at every acknowledging glance on the way to the Bifrost; I couldn’t. Fortunately, Father’s presence seemed to chill my approachability; with him near, I noticed fewer eyes even if my new station as Captain warranted some congratulations. All that would have to wait.

When we landed on Narvlheim, alone at last, Father cracked his lower back and sighed while looking at the stars. “I certainly didn’t predict all that today. Did you?”

“Definitely not.” I sucked in the cool night air around us and told myself to unwind. Home had a way of making me feel grounded, regardless of how much time went by.

“Not bad for a routine calling of ranks.” Father nudged my shoulder and smiled with an impish gleam in his eyes.

The longer I looked at him, the more pressure lifted off my shoulders. Perhaps it was a delayed effect of the drink; either way, I let the joy sink in. I could simultaneously be anxious about what was ahead and excited that I’d been set apart; the two conditions didn’t negate one another. Our quiet trade of glances soon erupted into uncontrolled laughter which followed us all the way from the Bifrost site to my parents’ front door.

Definitely the drink. We were both troublemakers.

Mum rushed down the stairs of the darkened home with annoyed resolve. “Shh! The two of you should know better than to tumble in well past the moonrise without—”

“Ginny, you won’t believe it,” Father said, taking her shoulders firmly. He lilted this way and that on his feet with her, like the excitement coursing through him couldn’t settle in one place.

“I’ll believe if the whole realm wakes up with your racket,” she returned without softening her tone.

“Sorry for disturbing you, Mum.” I swallowed the last of my chuckles so they’d only escape through my nose. “We’d give away our position in battle for sure. Captain of Defense should mind his conduct better.”

“Captain? Really?” Her eyes lit up for a moment before falling in a familiar nostalgic sigh. “Oh, Vali. Congratulations.”

“That’s not all,” Father said, rubbing her shoulders now. He met her gaze and locked with it. The silence between them was a coded conversation that changed his demeanor and snuffed our unsuitable laughter. A betrayal of tears threatened to hide his elation, but for Father, they fit better than a smile.

“Lo, what is it?” Mum wiped his cheek and looked to me for more, but all I could do was shrug, not sure where to begin.

“Our son is destined for great things,” Father said. He took a heavy breath. “He’s...he’s been chosen.”

She furrowed her brow. “Chosen for what?”

“Everything.” Father let out a single chortle and shrugged himself this time. “The people want our son, not Thor’s.”

Mum absorbed what Father said in yet more silence while the color drained from her face. Her mind whirred—almost audibly—at all the possibilities ahead.

“It’s only Captain now,” I said, much more comfortable in the expected promotion that paled against all I’d agreed to.

“Now?” She stepped away from Father’s grasp and stood before me, touching my cheek in the same tender way she always did. “And what later?”

I was taller but felt like a child. Like when I earned my endowment and was supposedly a man, everything changed, but I wasn’t different. The only shift was the whole universe and the invisible passage of hastening time.

“King, Mum. The people in Asgard have nominated me as King, and I said yes.”

She gasped and covered her mouth with both hands. “My son...my Vali?”

Father wrapped his arms around her middle and stood behind her, weeping in the same lack of control as he did with his laughter when we first arrived. Something about his fractured composure splintered my own strength.

What if I fail? What if I’m not ready? What if they deny me? What if—

“What’s going on?” Hela said with gravel in her voice, groggily descending the stairs to our blubbering scene.

Mum reached for her and sniffled. She pulled Hela down to the main level and did the hard part. “Your brother’s been offered an incredible opportunity, my love.”

“Did you get the promotion?” Hela asked with a brow raised. “We all knew he would, didn’t we?”

I patted her shoulder. “Yes, Hel. But things are a bit more complicated now. I’m—"

“Staying in Asgard, aren’t you?” Hela soured in an instant, overreacting as she tended to of late. She left me no opportunity to defend. “I knew it. You’re not coming home again. All in the name of being a good soldier.”

“No, I’m not...that’s not it.” I shook my head, though now the ale made even small movements somewhat risky, and my mind was left floating. “It’s just...Asgard will need me more than here. If you give me a minute—”

Mum grumbled. “Hela, please don’t ruin this for him.”

“I’m not ruining anything,” she barked. “He’s the one who’s abandoned all of us. He’s the one who—”

“Enough,” Father said sharply, startling all of us. The gelatinous silence in the wake helped steady me. He left Mum’s side and stood before me, standing as straight as possible. His expression was a mix of pride and sadness that I couldn’t quite define and was afraid to clarify. “Vali, you will always have a home here. You know that.”

Speaking made my teary, so I said as little as possible. “Yes.”

Hela huffed from lack of attention, but I knew how the snark was her version of protection. If she was angry with me, it wouldn’t hurt so much when I reported again. It reminded me of the same tactic Mum used years ago when I first left home. A little pain now would mean less pain later; at least, in theory.

“We need a prayer. Come on.” Mum ushered us into the front room to stand in a circle—a rare but familiar routine. With our hands clasped, we took a breath in unison, opening ourselves to the universe. She said it was a good way to find peace and seek guidance.

The other reason was really for Mum’s benefit alone. I’d dreaded it all day.

“Go ahead, Gin,” Father said. He never initiated the ritual, but he didn’t ever speak ill of it, either.

Mum blustered and shook her arms out while still attached to Father and myself on either side. “Alright. To Frigga, to Valhalla, to my parents and those lost before. We’re grateful for all that we have. For our home here in Narvlheim, the safe travels of Loki and Vali today, for all of our health. We’re thankful that Hela has grown into a fine young woman. Please help guide her in understanding the power of duty.”

Hela squeezed my hand hard, and I returned the gesture.

I know, you’re mad at her. Don’t argue now.

“We’re so honored to know Vali has risen to Captain. He’s earned every accolade to this point, and as a family, we couldn’t be more proud.” Mum sniffled a bit and squeezed my other side, like she and Hela were in competition for my finger circulation. “Narvi, we thank you. Celebrate with us. We know your love has influenced Vali’s destiny.”

The mention of his name sent a pang through my chest. He wasn’t a troublemaker. He would surpass me if he were here. Whose destiny is this?

Mum sighed openly and choked on the inhale. “There he is. That warmth...do you feel it?”

“Yes, Gin,” Father said flatly. “Narvi’s always with us.”

“Mmhmm,” I agreed quietly, and Hela did the same.

“Whether our home is in Vanaheim, here in Narvlheim, or on the throne of New Asgard, we’ll always be a family.” Mum let go of me to wipe her face with a tissue.

“Aye, Mum,” I said. “Nothing can change that.”

“Why is being Captain such a big deal anyway?” Hela asked quietly, though her muttering had plenty of defiance.

“It isn’t.” Father cleared his throat for Hela’s firm attention. “Today he confirmed a new oath for his future. When the time comes—perhaps after marriage, further education, or when Thor sees fit to leave his post—Vali will become the next King of Asgard.”

“What?” Hela frowned, shaking her head in the disbelief I had when I heard the news. “Why would Vali become King of Asgard when he’s not from Asgard?”

“Because he’s worthy.” Father looked at me again and simpered. “More worthy than I have ever been or ever will be.”

“And you would do well to see what kind of example he sets for you now, Hela,” Mum said, drying her tears for good. “Your father won’t be Steward of Narvlheim forever, and who would make a better protégé than his daughter...and the sister of a king?”

The longer Mum spoke, the darker the room became. My armor’s heft overwhelmed me for the first time in ages. I shrank, and the walls came closer.

“Vali, is that true?” Hela tugged my hand.

“Are we finished yet?” I asked, desperate to move but unwilling to break the circle before we were ready. “It’s been such a long day.”

“Oh, of course, sweetheart.” Mum kissed my cheek. “Say your private prayers of course. We can talk more in the morning.”

Hela scoffed. “Wait—"

“Tomorrow I’m going to Dagheim to see Riggs.” I raked my hands through my hair one at a time to cover up my shaking. “We’ll talk another time.”

“You’re seriously going to tell us something like that and then leave?” Hela stood in a huff. “Doesn’t that concern all of us?”

I wished she could read my thoughts and see how panicked I was, too. Save me the embarrassment of breaking down in front of our parents. Take my invitation and be the confidant I needed. “You can come to Dagheim if you want.”

“I...no.” She scowled and barely shook her head. “I can’t. I...um...have places to be.”

“What? Where are you heading off to?” Mum asked with her arms tightly folded.

Hela didn’t blink in the same way she didn’t trip on her words. “I’m going to Nanny’s for the week, starting tomorrow. Didn’t bother asking since you always say yes.” Something about her excuse felt empty, though on the surface, it made enough sense to leave be.

“Get some rest,” Father said, looking me in the eye.

“G’day, everyone,” I said out of sheer habit and bowed before heading up the stairs. The simpleness of our home didn’t match the formal nature of my armor or the cape that seemed to weigh three times as much since coming home. The metal suffocated me. I needed to get out. Needed to escape. Needed to breathe. Needed it off me.

By the time I reached my bedroom, I’d detached the cape and frantically clawed at the side clasps. “Come on...come on,” I muttered, suddenly aware how fast I was breathing and how little sensation remained in my hands and feet. They’d been overtaken with tingles. My heart thumped at the base of my throat, adding more chaos to my body’s downward spiral; another minute without control, and I’ll fall over.

The breastplate miraculously opened just in time. I only grasped it before it fell on the floor to keep Mum and Father from coming upstairs to investigate. I stood with my hands on the dresser top and panted, sucking in every breath with my eyes closed. Keep breathing. One, two...one, two. I inhaled through my nose and out through my mouth, trying to count as long as possible with each pass. Three seconds became five, then seven, then more until I made it solidly to ten a few times. The dusty scent of the house was familiar and cozy and so far from Asgard. Even the sound of night birds beyond my window brought me back down. The grooves on the wood of my dresser were smooth and made a satisfying pattern to trace over. I hummed through my exhales, rumbling my chest. I couldn’t gauge how long it took to re-regulate, but I was grateful to be left alone enough to relax.

When I opened my eyes again, my left vambrace glared at me. My heart jumped again, forcing me to swallow hard and put it back where it was meant to be, deep in my chest. The name was charged and served as a reminder of every last insecurity that plagued my life.

“I’m sorry, Narvi,” I whispered, unbuckling my vambrace and putting it face down on the dresser. “I know I should thank you or something, but it should’ve been you.” I stood as straight as possible and examined myself in the mirror, trying to look past the silver sheath covering my chest to see if my pulse was as visible as it felt. All I saw was a man—incomplete and unsure. Far from the king I’d agreed to become. Competing with ghosts despite Mum’s wishes years ago, bound to fill shoes that threatened to trip me. How could I lead all of Asgard—no—all of Yggdrasil into the new era?

Before that could happen, I had one soul to sway. Just one to impress and prove my worth. If I had the courage to, anyway.

“Shit.”

Chapter Text

Tiwaz woke me with his big, fluffy paws and his big, fluffy tail in my face. Just as well—I wanted to get out of the house before anyone else could stop me.

I stuffed two black frocks in my rucksack and tiptoed down the stairs. My heart nearly left my chest when I saw Mum’s shadow bleeding into the living room from the kitchen. What was she doing up so early? Chores? I rolled my eyes and managed to open the front door just enough to escape without letting the hinges squeak. My spell of silence didn’t hurt, but she was the last person I wanted to question me alone.

Once outside, I cut through the trees and avoided the main road to be safe. My shoeless feet were swift and quiet. I let my hair fly behind me, tangling in the wind, free to do whatever it wanted—like I did from that moment forward.

I couldn’t reconcile my confusion, sadness, irritation...all of it blended to a hum of discontent. Father hardly paid me any mind these days, because he wanted to stay out of my quarrels with Mum. She wriggled her way under my skin with how unsatisfied she was with my future, my friendships, my...everything. We were constantly battling one another and she didn’t understand me in the slightest. Nanny and Uncle Freyr were preoccupied with the city folk, so even if I did escape to their home, they wouldn’t have much comfort to offer me. Only Vali seemed to care enough about what I wanted out of life to ask, but now he was so fixated on his new position...on his bloody friend...that he had no room for me. How could he, now that Future King was his title?

I boiled inside. Yet another success. Yet another new calling. Yet another thing that let him leave and live and find himself while I was left to clean the rest.

My encounter with Modi two days ago replayed in my mind and got sweeter each time. He sought me out on purpose. Defied Vali’s overprotection to do so. And he was right—we weren’t family. Not really. I’d hardly even spoken to him before, and our fathers weren’t related by blood. It wasn’t inappropriate to fancy him. In fact, it was poetic enough to be fate.

I headed for the Bifrost site, hoping there would be a gatekeeper willing to open it for me on Asgard’s side. I could disguise myself if I had to. Modi couldn’t be terribly difficult to find on the other side...

A whistle caught my ears. Cheerful and light. An unfamiliar tune, yet it repeated more than once. A quiet bird chittered to answer the refrain, almost joining in the same song.

I paused and tipped my head to find the source. Due east through the wood. Oh, no. Someone’s on the road. My heart rushed. I peered through the leaves cautiously. The view of the stranger wasn’t clear, yet I felt pulled forward, eager to see their face.

A deep voice whispered, “Really? Just there? Through the forest?”

I gasped. Whether it was real recognition or just hope, I pulled back a branch to confirm my suspicions.

Modi charmingly conversed with a creature so small, it was hardly visible on his knuckles from my position. He smiled at the bird with his toothsome grin and softened eyes. No helmet today. His stance was tall, controlled, and the wave of his cape gave a lovely balance to his shadow on the ground; if I’d had my sketchbook, I would’ve asked him to hold still as a model.

His gaze flitted my way, and he took a visible breath which straightened his spine. “My...Hela. You are here.”

I swallowed quickly and tugged at my hair, suddenly regretful for letting it become tangled. “I live here. What are you doing here?”

“I know it’s foolish to return after all I said. But I wagered the benefits against the risks. Enlisting extra pairs of eyes can keep our meetings private.” He tipped his face before the bird on his hand again. “Do you know this fellow?”

“What, the bird?” I came out of the brush and peered each way down the road to be sure we were alone before coming closer.

The animal rubbed its head against Modi’s knuckle. It made me jealous to see him so effortlessly command affection from something so small and carefree. Its yellow and blue feathers were impressive in the sunlight, though I knew within the leaves, it would blend perfectly in shadow.

“That one’s called a passkin,” I said. “Do you have them on Asgard?”

“No. Nothing quite like this. I don’t believe I’ve ever seen a bird so small. Looks like a hatchling to me.”

“Actually, I’d bet that one is almost as old as I am.” I snickered. “See how the tail feathers are so short? They lose them as they age. Young ones have long tails like ribbons.”

“So that’s what those are. I saw a few gliding on my way. Narvlheim really is an enchanting place.”

I deflated and shook my head. “That’s what everyone tells me. Pity I have no comparison.”

Modi lifted his hand into the air and the passkin flew back to the trees. “Would you like to walk with me? Tell me what you’re thinking?”

“Yes. Please. And quickly, if it’s all the same to you. Back to the Bifrost.” I huffed and marched past him.

“Whoa, wait a moment.” He jogged to catch up with my pace. “Did something happen?”

“Yes. No. Everything.” I folded my arms and stared straight ahead because looking at Modi made me nervous. My body tingled. I felt safe and unsafe all at once around him. Electric. “It’s as you said the last time we met—my family has expectations of me. I thought I could convince them to let me have a little freedom or make decisions on my own about the future, but that was wrong. It’s all been written for me.”

“I see.” He kept up well, but his silence only proved he didn’t know quite how to comfort me.

“Anyway, I’m leaving. I wish to go to Asgard and find my own way, with or without my family’s blessing.”

Modi took my hand and forced me to stop. “Hela, wait a moment.”

His touch amplified my pounding heart. Warmth coursed through my body. The adrenaline thrilled me. I glanced at him through my lashes, not sure if I wanted to appear meek to impress him or if it was to protect myself.

He furrowed his brow and rubbed my knuckle gently. “If I take you back to Asgard, what do you think will happen?”

“I don’t care what happens anymore.”

“See, I think you do.”

I searched his face for flaws and found none. He could easily tell me anything, and I’d believe him—a fact that made me desperate for him to be my hero, as he said. The longer I looked into his probing eyes, the more I felt the need to weep and give up my strong façade. “Why don’t they see me like you do?”

“Oh, shh.” Modi lifted my chin. “This kind of upset won’t do. Come on.” He tugged my hand forward again and let me fall into his side as we walked. For the first time, I cried with a man, and unlike when Mum upset me, he didn’t once tell me I had no reason to do so.

***

Modi had the power to call forth the Bifrost without a word. He held me close while we traveled through the light, making me feel as safe as I had ever been. The golden room that greeted us was empty but constantly in motion, fascinating me like I’d never seen it before. I had, of course, but only with my family, and there was never any time to admire how it worked.

He grinned down at me. “Like the view?”

“Sorry,” I said, shaking my head and wiping the last of the tears from my cheeks. “You’d think after being surrounded by magic all my life that I would be used to things like this.”

“The palace isn’t far. I have a place for us to be alone, if you want.” Modi arched his brows pressed his large hand against the small of my back.

I shuddered privately. He still made me nervous. Against him, I was small—barely up to his shoulder despite being tall for a girl myself. The jitters of anxious excitement weren’t much different from the warning intuition of a predator around the bend. If not for his overall pink warmth, I might’ve thought the latter.

“Yes. Privacy’s what I want. How should I dress to stay hidden?”

“Hidden?” He chuckled. “Hela, with me, it would be nearly impossible to stay hidden. I’m noticed everywhere.”

I grumbled. “That...won’t work. I don’t want anyone telling my parents I’m here. Does Vali get noticed the same way you do?”

He cleared this throat and avoided my eyes. “Not sure.”

“Better to draw attention to him than to me. I know he isn’t here, so no chance we’d run into him. I want to see what he prefers about this place anyway.” I didn’t wait for Modi’s approval any longer and clapped.

Instantly, we were cloaked in a bright sheen of neon, more yellow than Father’s signature spells. Modi’s armor peeled back from bronze to black, as did his wavy hair. He was the same height as Vali—at least, negligibly different since he didn’t seem to grow or shrink much next to me. I shook out the now-gray hair over my shoulders and investigated my hands.

Mum’s hands. Complete with her snaking ring. Mother and son could do as they pleased here.

“Oh, Hela,” Modi said in Vali’s voice, laughing as he flexed his hands and took a deep breath. “You and I will make a great team after all.”

I simpered at him and did a small curtsey. “Shall we?”

He offered me his elbow—the only proper way to appear together given the circumstances—and escorted me through the Bifrost’s doors and into the bright Asgardian sunlight.

Almost immediately, we were surrounded by waving hands. Faces I’d never seen. Modi nodded gently at all of them, but he didn’t dare try to stop and speak with anyone. That was for the best, I figured, because I wouldn’t know what Mum would say in such cases and couldn’t risk running into someone she knew and I didn’t.

The palace guards smiled as we passed. Modi hummed under his breath.

“Everything alright?” I asked.

He nodded, but his energy had soured. Every new person’s greeting made him draw his arm closer, squeezing mine.

The palace was more intricate than I remembered; or perhaps I simply had never been so deep inside it. Past the great auditorium and up the stairs, the halls grew quiet. I preferred how everything was lit with flame instead of the lights we had at home which were so finicky; there was something charming about how old-fashioned Asgard was as a whole.

“My chambers are just ahead,” Modi whispered, peering over my shoulder. “Looks like we avoided being stopped.”

“Thank the gods for that,” I returned. “I can dress as one of the common folk after this.”

“Vali!” Thor’s voice boomed off the marble around us. “What a surprise to see you this morning.”

My stomach dropped to my feet. Oh, no.

Modi turned with me to face him, lightly bowing his head. “Good morning.” He could hide his nerves from Thor, but his pulse hummed against me even through the armor.

“And Lady Sigyn. It’s been too long.” Thor took my hand and pecked it softly without asking. “Is Loki here with you today?”

Cornered. I have to speak. I prayed my father’s talent for lies wouldn’t fail me now. “No, actually. Vali was just—”

“I’m showing her the new overlook above the training fields. She wanted to see where I’d be spending days in my new position.”

“Oh.” Thor blinked a few times. “Right. As a captain.”

I prayed for him to walk away. Please pretend you didn’t see us...

“Well, I know Loki well enough to be sure he couldn’t keep that secret for long,” Thor whispered, leaning too close for comfort. “What do you think of Vali’s other position? I’m betting Loki stayed behind because he couldn’t stop celebrating last night.”

Modi squeezed my arm again, but this time felt involuntary. He lost some of his control. “What are—”

“Yes,” I blurted, wanting to keep our ruse intact. “I’m thrilled of course. We all are. Hard to believe it, really. But we’re focusing on the here and now. Let’s not worry him over something so far in the future, hmm?” I smiled and patted Modi’s hand, hoping he could read me well enough not to speak.

“Oh, he’s not worried, is he?” Thor laughed and shook Modi’s far shoulder.

“I don’t have too much time to burn this morning...chores at home and all.” I patted Modi’s hand once more, out of ideas for how Mum might get Thor to move on. “Excuse us.”

“Right, right. Of course. Enjoy the view, Lady Sigyn. Tell Loki to save his best celebrations when the deed is done.” He winked at me and lightly bowed at Modi this time before lumbering out of the hall the way we came.

Modi froze. Once Thor was out of view, he spoke with a clenched jaw. “Father’s never looked at me like that.”

I looked up at him, though he didn’t meet my eyes. “I...we need to—”

“What’s this about a different position?” He finally looked down, though he had a pain I’d never seen on Vali’s face. The dissonance to see Modi’s confusion with my brother’s eyes made the room spin. “What celebration?”

“Come on. To your chamber.” I kicked my chin forward. The sooner we could bond and make our own stand, the better.

Chapter Text

The soldiers...they’d never greeted me with smiles like they did when I was disguised. Servants did the same. They looked at me casually, congenially, instead of with a thirst to join me in my bed. Their voices weren’t stoic and flatly obedient as they were normally. One could say they were downright jovial.

How pathetic. So, they saw Vali as their friend...that cemented my position as their leader. Their relaxation and the fact they didn’t avert their eyes before Lokison meant I commanded respect at all times. In all my days at the palace, I’d never once welcomed such open disregard for my authority. Peasants, all of them.

Father’s expression surprised me, however; while I would’ve found the exchange deceitfully cordial from anyone else, he struck me as annoyingly unguarded and genuine. He wasn’t the same man around me at all. His overexcited, animated welcome highlighted the severity I normally saw in private. His whispered mention of a secret job plucked me from the palace altogether. I was second in command of Asgard...all Yggdrasil, for that matter...so whatever Vali’s “other position” was, it was kept from me purposely.

And Hela knew.

I rushed to my chamber and practically dragged her, momentarily forgetting to play the part of prince charming.

“Ah—wait, slow down.”

“Almost there.” I shoved through the tall, oaken doors and whipped the cape behind me, snapping the air with fury. Hela hurried in so I could close us in as quickly as we entered.

“That was too close for me.” She panted in the background. “We’re safe now, yes?”

“Yes. Safe. No one is welcome here without my say-so.” I snapped the heavy lock in place and remained where I was by the door, not interested in seeing the false reflection of my enemy. A quiet clap from Hela, and I was suddenly covered in light again that dissipated to my actual self.

Her surprise at my privilege distracted us both from why I rushed in the first place. She spoke softly, like she was afraid of hearing her own echo. “This room...it’s almost the same size as my family’s whole home.” Hela folded her arms closely against her chest and looked up to the ceiling. “The art is lovely.”

She’s not yours yet. Be wise. I took a few deep breaths and turned toward her with renewed resolve to charm my way in. “Thank you. I suppose my affection for flying things is evident.” I pointed to the mural above and sighed.

“It would be odd to me if there weren’t these kinds of decorations, honestly.” Hela trailed her fingers down one of the four bedposts. “Feathers embossed in the gold is a delicate touch. Are you gifted with other animals, or just birds?”

“If I can commune with others, I haven’t tried. Birds have always fascinated me. From above, they see everything. Are prepared for everything. They always have the advantageous position. They can be great protectors, predators, scavengers...they care more for the worlds they live in than people realize.”

Hela took a step to be firmly at my side. She nudged my hand in the quiet.

I resisted the urge to bristle at her temperature. “What?”

“Are you a bird in this scenario?” She tapped at my breastplate and traced one of the feathers on my shoulder the same way she did with the bedpost. “Underestimated and unappreciated despite all you do?”

The girl was almost too easy to exploit in her want to impress me. I teased her hand with mine. “Now that you ask, I have to say yes. The mural’s been here as long as the palace has. Father requested the artists choose a small species in this formation so the flock would watch as I sleep.”

“That’s a tad charming, isn’t it?”

“It would be, except that meant he never had to do it himself.” I pinched the bridge of my nose and turned away.

“Oh...how awful.” She tugged at my hair, likely trying to comb through it and ignorant for how my curls snagged on her fingers. “I know you’ve been without a mother.”

I scoffed. “Right. She abandoned me so long ago, I don’t even recall what she looked like.”

“Modi, I’m so sorry.”

“I wish he was sorry.” I spoke over my shoulder as if Father could hear me. “I wish he could understand how abandoned I’ve been even under the same roof.”

Hela moved from my hair to the top of my cape, playing right into my false vulnerability. “Is this heavy? Vali doesn’t like to keep his armor on at home.” She focused on my shoulder clasps. “May I?”

“You may.”

In an unhurried ritual, Hela unfastened my cape and caught it to fold neatly before it fell to the floor. She treated each piece—my breastplate, my vambraces, arm guards and boots—with appropriate reverence. The girl knew her place was beneath me, as she should, confirmed by how willingly she worshiped me. Her trick with the illusion was impressive, but if I had her allegiance, all her power might as well belong to me.

I tucked my hair behind my ears when only the underarmor remained. “Are you disappointed to learn I don’t have real wings underneath?”

“That makes no difference to me. You opened my eyes and let me fly far from the cage I’ve known all of my life.” She glanced around the chamber again. “My father says his life was once like living in a cage, too. I suppose everyone can feel that way if they’re alone.”

I turned away to roll my eyes. “You’re probably right.”

“You know my family has made me feel like my life is already sorted out. Before we left Narvlheim, I said you saw me differently. But what about you?” She couldn’t seem to stop touching me and ran her hand up and down my spine. “There has to be more to why you sought me out. What are you hoping I will see?”

“I only wish to have a worthy companion, that’s all.” I pulled the top of my underarmor off and tossed it onto the rest of my armor.

Hela gasped. “Wow, Modi...”

Foolish girl, so easily distracted. I glanced over my shoulder. “Does the tattoo bother you?”

“Bother me?” She scoffed. “It’s gorgeous. Covers your whole back. How long did this take?”

“Several days. Father unhappy with my choice to do so.”

“Jealousy over your courage, I’d say. An eagle is much more fitting for you than the small birds on the ceiling. I’ve never seen anything quite like this. It’s...it’s almost vulture-like, too, isn’t it?”

“Vultures are silent. Eagles are powerful. Both are beautiful. Blending them makes for something all the more formidable, fit for a man who is to be king.”

She didn’t answer me this time. Stayed quiet. Too quiet.

“Hela?” I faced her again and furrowed my brow. “What is it?”

“I’m...I’m afraid I’ll hurt you if I tell you.”

I chuckled. “Do you think I am afraid of words?”

“You might be.” She lowered her face and looked up at my through her lashes. Meek. No, more than that—fear of her own.

“You’re afraid I will be angry with you.” My heart, normally steady and low, raced painfully. “This is about Vali, isn’t it? The new position Father mentioned. Tell me.”

 “He came home last night, drunk with Father, celebrating the future. He was promoted to Captain, as we expected—”

“Yes, I know about that. What else?” I took her shoulders, cautious enough not to squeeze too hard. “Hela, please.”

She blinked back shine in her eyes. “His new plans ensured my staying in Narvlheim. He can’t come home and take over for my father if he’s the new King of Asgard.”

“What?” I moved closer to her face out of pure habit to intimidate her and guarantee the truth. “Asgard’s throne, going to a Jotun?”

“You really had no idea? None at all?”

I released her and walked away to keep from killing her on the spot. No, it’s too soon. Too soon. I’m not through yet. “No, I knew nothing. Father...he’s betrayed me.”

“I couldn’t ask Vali last night what else they told him. I’m so sorry.”

“Sorry for this, for my mother, for my circumstance.” I slammed my fist on the wall. “How can this even happen? My birthright, my bloodline...it’s nothing?”

She was wise to stay back for at least a few minutes. Out of words, the only thing she added to the room were tears.

Think. Think. I shook out my hair and raked through it one hand at a time. “There has to be a way to undo it. It’s not set in stone. It’s not guaranteed.”

“Right. Perhaps if you spoke with Thor—”

“No, he’s a lost cause. Thinks it’s settled. His reign needs to end.” I swiftly turned to take Hela’s hands. “If Vali has another destiny, he cannot steal mine. If he stays where he belongs, things don’t have to be disrupted. I can become King, you’ll be my queen, and both of us will get what we desire.”

“Another destiny?”

“Yes, one that keeps him on Narvlheim with the rest of your family, or one where he pays for the wrongs he has done. Please, Hela. I’ll need you for this. I need you to help me prove to Asgard that I am the true future king. Together, we’ll surprise them all.”

Her eyes shook and she swallowed hard. “I...”

“We don’t have time to lose. Will you help me?”

She stared and she wavered. If she thought too hard, the foundations would crack, and my plan would fail.

I had no other choice. Before she could pick apart all the fact, I crashed my lips into hers, stealing her breath and her words. My hands found hers and encouraged her to touch me. Unsurprisingly, she did, hungrily taking my shoulders and answering my advance with her own.

The girl was predictable as I thought before. Once she knew my bed, there wouldn’t be many things she would refuse.

Chapter Text

I restlessly tossed in my bed all night, unable to get comfortable no matter what I did. So many things made my thoughts race. It felt near impossible to focus on one idea at a time, making everything hodge-podge into a mess of uncertainty. Even Mum’s old trick of putting a pencil between my teeth didn’t help. By morning, I was no more rested than when I went to sleep.

The only consistent burn in my soul was the one that reminded me time was running out. Ragfrieda was too impressive, too skilled and far too wonderful all around to stay unnoticed for long. Astrid was right—I couldn’t waste this opportunity, for it might be my last.

I dressed in a comfortable brown tunic and trousers like any other Narvir man. Armor couldn’t protect my heart, so it made no difference if visited her casually. It might even force me to be more brave than I had been. Just so long as she didn’t reject me too harshly, anyway.

But she wouldn’t, would she? Surely I hadn’t misread all the signals of her flirtation inappropriately...

“Vali, are you up there?” Mum called from the kitchen. “I have breakfast for you.”

“Aye, on my way,” I shouted.

“Wake Hela too, please.”

Before leaving the bedroom, I practiced forming an illusion of Riggs’ favorite flower. The small orange blooms reminded me of friendly animal faces, so cheerful and innocent, much like her. And, like her, the real flower was quite dangerous, a potent poison on her home realm. Fitting, when I thought about it.

I knocked on Hela’s bedroom door in a purposely obnoxious pattern. “Up, up, up, Hela. The day will leave without you.”

Any other time, her acidic morning voice would’ve chastised me for waking her. Today—nothing.

“Sis?” I opened her room a slit to peek inside. Her bed was unmade and empty, but everything else appeared to be in place.

“Hey, Mum?” I called down. “You sure Hela’s not down there?”

“Not here,” Father answered with an annoyed tenor.

“She’s not up here, either,” I said.

Mum sighed loud enough for me to hear upstairs. “She must’ve left early this morning for Nanny’s. Couldn’t wait to get away from me. Best to let her fuse reform. Come down!”

Hmm. My instincts were sharp, but it wasn’t enough to act on. I glanced over Hela’s room again and shook away my uneasiness.

***

I avoided stalling on Asgard and didn’t take the Bifrost. Instead, I strolled well past the landing site and through a thick grove of familiar trees. Father once said the portal fields of Vanaheim collected all the soft points of Yggdrasil to keep the people together; I found this largely true of Narvlheim now. It was ripe with strange magic. My collection of gateways was incomplete, though; it was beyond dangerous to attempt mapping every curiosity on my own. I clearly marked a few and shared a handful more with Hela, keeping the rest to myself until such time that I could recruit a proper team.

The passageway to Riggs’s home was prominently featured in the center of a clear patch of grass. When the sun was directly overhead, one could step into the light and emerge in the dry heat of Dagheim. A lucky discovery if there ever was one.

Straightening my tunic and hair, I stepped forward to the spot and planted myself firmly with my feet shoulder-width apart. Nothing to do but wait for the right moment. With my eyes closed, I sensed the portal’s power before it became fully active. Heat crept over my legs and moved upward even though the sun was bearing down from above. The light became brighter, more yellow. The familiar chirps of birds faded to wind alone that rustled dry leaves in the distance.

I took a deep breath and told my heart to stop racing. Nearly there, now.

My shoulders sank with strong gravity when the journey was complete. I opened my eyes to the beige world of Dagheim—dry, hot, and teeming with sorcery wholly different from that of my home.

The landing spot was isolated, thankfully, leaving me enough room and time to gather my wits before arriving at her door. With light footsteps in my casual sandals, I relaxed my posture and tousled my hair, hoping to avoid being recognized and pulled aside. It wouldn’t be an easy feat considering my pale complexion, but I supposed the seers of this world could see through me no matter how I dressed, anyway; my lack of armor might just send a message that I wished to be left alone.

I cleared my throat often, not sure if the anticipation was choking me or the air. Seeing dear Riggs as a comrade was not enough. We had to be more, or we had to be nothing. It was too painful to pretend otherwise, yet the pressure of losing her put an unfamiliar expectation on my visit. The normally brief stroll to the edge of the main road to her family’s home dragged on like it moved farther away with every step.

Finally at my destination, I whistled a long exhale and raised my hand to knock—a moment too late, though, as she opened the door before I could make contact.

“Lokison,” she said with a chime and a smile, “What brings you here?” Like me, she wasn’t in her armor, and her casual frock accentuated her every lush curve in ways that sent a shock through me. She’d wrapped her hundreds of tiny plaits into an ornate scarf high on her head, deceptively matching my height.

Shit. I’m not ready yet. I straightened my spine as a result, now sapped of eloquence and nerve. “I-I...forgive me, Riggs. You know I can’t stay home for long without getting bored. Hela’s fighting with Mum was enough to push me out, too. I hope I’m not intruding—”

“Oh, nonsense! You’re always welcome here.” She hardly invited me in before embracing me strongly.

I was already in a state, and her touch sent me over the edge. Her soft skin against my bare arms was like taking a warm bath, only it made every hair on my body erect. The subtle fruit scent in her hair that followed her everywhere wafted over me, imprinting itself even stronger in my memory. I had to consciously avoid humming with satisfaction at her closeness and how many times I’d dreamt of jumping into something more right from this point.

She didn’t linger too close and pulled back in an excited hop. “You just caught me leaving for the grand hall in the city. My mother wishes to announce my new promotion in the Valkyrie. It’s fitting that you should come, too.”

Of course she wouldn’t know my aim—how could she, unless she truly did inherit some of Heimdall’s gifts? I chose to take the opportunity as a way to gain my bearings again before making confessions. “Absolutely. Thank you for the invitation. Shall we?”

***

Dagheim’s main city had no real name—in fact, like Asgard, the people simply called it Dagheim. It wasn’t a terribly large realm, smaller than Narvlheim. Riggs’ mother was the Stewardess of Dagheim and frequently hosted large banquets for all the realm’s families. Everything was everyone’s business here, unlike Narvlheim where the people were largely very private.

On our way, Riggs chirped with stories of what she and Astrid did the night before to celebrate their promotions and plan when they’d return to Asgard before the new season. I kept my lips sealed outside of my smiling so I could fully absorb her enthusiasm. Her golden eyes glowed, speckled with black that only made the amber tone shine even more. While she walked, she swept her skirt back and forth, sweeping the light dust on the road and not caring much for soiling the garment. In Riggs’s eyes, clothing was meant to be worn, and keeping clean was only proof of life not lived.

I glanced over my nearly-pristine black tunic, slowly plucking a long blond hair from Tiwaz from the fabric. Does she think I’m boring? Do I appear sterile compared to her fertile independence?

In my daydreaming, I tripped over a small boulder and nearly hit the ground, just barely catching myself. She laughed at my clumsiness and averted her eyes.

“I swear, that came out of nowhere,” I said, all but starting over with grounding myself to the moment since the shock of my near-miss made my heart race even more.

“You’re distracted with something,” she said with a seductive, impish grin on the side of her face. “You don’t have to hide it.”

Oh, how I wish it were that easy. I chuckled and pocketed my hands to keep from fidgeting obviously. “No, I’m not.”

“I see right through you, Lokison. You’re absent your usual bad habit.”

I scrunched my face. “What bad habit?”

She lowered her eyes. “I haven’t heard a single curse from you today.”

“Ah.” I tapped my temple. “It’s far from absent, but I’m trying to do better with that. It’s unbecoming of my new station.”

“Is that so?” Riggs waved her open hand over my outfit. “Even though you’re far from Captain today?”

How could I express how it was unbecoming of me as a suitor to be crass around her, when all our lives, I’d never attempted to be anything other than my unapologetic self? Or how my real station was so overwhelming that my eyes seemed to pierce the world more strongly than before, which made cursing my last opportunity of rebellion against the heavy expectations of the dead—so it now had to be savored?

Evidently, I’d been quiet for too long while trying to decide what to say. “Ahem—Vali, are you alright?”

Any mention of my first name from her lips was a treat, but this was especially intense due to my anxious heart. I fought not to trip again. “Yes. Yes, sorry. Are we nearly there?”

“Straight ahead,” she said, raising her brow at my change of subject.

“Good. I’m beginning to regret my choice to wear black.” I tugged at my collar to feel a small breeze. It barely helped at all, even though I could easily cool myself with a mere thought. This was beyond temperature alone. She could see right through me, as she claimed. My only hope would be to grow the gumption before it was too late.

 Fortunately for me, Riggs stopped her small interrogation once her presence was noticed by others on the street. Here, she was treated much the same way I was on Asgard; everyone knew her name, her parents, her siblings, and she was equally familiar with all of them. I swelled with pride watching her smoothly work through the crowd, so regal and confident, well-suited to the public eye and deserving of anyone’s admiration.

“Lokison.”

I jumped, as did my pulse. Reflexively, I spun to meet his eyes. “Yes, Sir?”

Heimdall approached from behind, making me wonder if he’d watched us walk partly through the city while waiting for the right opportunity to startle me. His expression was decidedly stern.

I gulped. Didn’t you say I was welcome? Was I mistaken?

“Father,” Riggs said cheerfully. She stood on her toes to kiss his cheek as he knelt down to her. “I wasn’t certain you’d make it today.”

“Wouldn’t miss it,” he said, softly smiling at her before flattening his affect again while looking through me. “I take it you’re here to celebrate the occasion as well?”

“Yes. Of course.” I choked out a light cough and falsely grinned to keep from shaking.

“Not sharing any of your own developments, are you?”

I shook my head like a child trapped in a lie, even though I spoke the truth. “No, Sir. Nothing of mine. Only hers.”

“Very good.”

Riggs twisted between the two of us and sheepishly tiptoed toward the court entrance. “Right, well, we better be going...”

“You go ahead,” Heimdall said while taking another step closer. “I have business to discuss with young Lokison, here.”

She raised her thin brow at me briefly before someone called her name inside, pulling her from our presence and removing my last line of defense against my own cowardice.

Breathe. Just breathe...

“We do have something to discuss, don’t we?” Heimdall hardly moved, yet he was in my space, and I didn’t dare retreat. “Anything on your mind?”

Again I gulped. “I...I-I-...”

“Tell me, Lokison, do you plan to ever speak with me regarding Ragfrieda, or are you resolved to remain silent until the next Ragnarok greets us?”

He’d stolen the words right from my mind, leaving me with little more to say than, “Of course not, Lord Heimdall. No. I mean, no, I don’t wish to stay silent.” My whole body itched again, making me scratch my arms absently for goodness knows how long before I stopped and commanded my arms to my sides again. “I...umm...planned to discuss my intentions yesterday. Perhaps—”

Heimdall burst with laughter and shook my shoulder, dropping his severe expression. “Take a breath, Vali.”

I choked with my eyes wide open, grateful for his hands on me if only because I couldn’t as readily fall over.

“You certainly have a priceless look on your face.” His smile outshone the light in the sky, but it was a genuine, cheery confirmation.

“Thank you,” I exhaled, gulping in a few deep breaths before attempting to continue.

Heimdall shook his head the same way Father would after a jibe. “So, what are those intentions, hmm?”

“Right.” I lifted my head, pretending to recite my soldier’s decree, privately wishing I were in my armor so I wouldn’t have a choice but be straight in my stance. “It is my intent to...to court her properly. I haven’t forgotten my charge when we first met. I would never harm her. My wish is only to bring her as much joy as she brings me.”

He closed his lips and smiled gently. “I’m glad to hear you aren’t asking for my permission. Only Ragfrieda can give you license to her heart, not me.”

I nodded quickly. “Aye.”

“It would be my pleasure to share a son, and call him King, with that which is most precious to me.”

Goosebumps sprung up all over my body. “Thank you again, sir. I will uphold my honor as well as hers. That is, if she will have me.”

“Well, that’s the next step, isn’t it?” He laughed heartily again, slapping my back this time.

I chuckled with him, but it embarrassed me to know how obvious it was that I hadn’t yet made my confession to the one who mattered. If even her father saw straight through me, did she have suspicions? Did she avoid bringing it up because she hoped I’d never speak?

“Now, it is not my place to share this with your father.” Heimdall raised his brow the same way Riggs had a few minutes before. “I’m afraid the son of Loki must make his own family aware of his intentions.”

My heart sank. The only person whose response I feared wasn’t Riggs herself, but Father, who would surely disapprove to hear of any interest not related to my new ascension. “I appreciate that,” I said quietly.

“Best to go in now.” He tipped his head before leaving, which left me to privately marinate in our short conversation.

I was without any real protection, but now I was armed with his blessing to pursue. Now, I needed to find the courage to do so.

Chapter Text

What had I agreed to again? Oh, yes. A crown. A new destiny.

“Hela,” Modi whispered, pulling away from our kiss to put our foreheads together. “I’m not...I don’t...”

“What is it?” I found myself lightly brushing his cheeks on both sides. “You can tell me.”

He gulped. “Would you believe me if I said I had no real carnal knowledge?”

My blood rushed all over. “Truly?”

“I’ve been waiting. Wanting to preserve myself for my real queen.” He hissed through an inhale and tickled the tops of my shoulders. “With you, even so soon, I’ve never wanted something so badly.”

I couldn’t quiet Mum’s voice at the back of my mind when she assured me inexperience wasn’t a virtue, yet right now, it was intriguing to think I might be the first skin he’d get to taste. The first vessel he might fill. I’d long since learned my own body’s partialities and wasn’t shy, but how much better would life be with the opportunity to give a proper education?

Being coy was a safe bet to start with. “If you’ve viewed it as precious, I wouldn’t want you to feel any regret,” I said.

“Is it really precious?” he asked, tickling my belly with the back of his hand. “Or is it something I’ve denied myself and built too much of?”

“There is no shame in pleasure.”

“That is a gift to hear, for being with you is bound to be more pleasure than I can imagine.” Modi kissed me again while tugging at the hair on the back of my neck and pulling my hip to make me melt into him.

I moaned softly. Yes. Want me. Take me away. His strength and resolve to change my life fulfilled my every fantasy. I hungered for adventure, danger, touch...all three at once filled my veins with sugar.  If logic was at odds with what I wanted, so be it.

He took a deep breath and stepped back. “I have an idea.” Without any further explanation, he retreated to a cabinet by the wall.

My nerves ran over me again in the unintelligible crux between excitement and danger again. Delicious. “Anything I can help with?”

He chuckled and turned back to me with two small glasses. “Only a toast. It will help us both relax.”

“I can agree to that.” An ache deep inside me called for attention. He’d fulfill it without doubt. Thanks to the herbs I prepped myself with months ago to stay my bleeds, there was no fear for unintended consequences of what I planned to do with him. I took my glass and raised it. “To us, our destinies, and the true future king.”

“To my rule,” he said, tapping our glasses and taking a swift gulp to finish his share.

I threw mine back equally, unable to place the flavor. It was bitter, sour, and made the back of my mouth feel swollen with tingles.

“Gods,” I muttered, putting my hand over my throat reflexively. “What is this?”

“Just a tincture to help you relax,” Modi said, virtually studying my face. “What are you feeling?”

“Nothing. It’s fine.” I shook my head. “Now, where were we?”

He rested our glasses on the small table by his bed and sat, directing me to his side. “Are you certain I shouldn’t consult your father—”

“Shh.” Still standing before him, I covered his lips and dove into the blue of his eyes. “My father doesn’t own my body. I do. It’s my decision to share it. Now, trust when I say you’ll want to remember this.”

Modi blinked a few times before nodding, giving no protest.

I kissed him again on my terms this time, tangling my mouth with his and pushing him backward. My hands traveled over his chest and downward to the prize that fought hard against my undulations. He’d help me claim my sense of self by bucking the traditions I’d been thus far tied down by.

Every now and then, he’d pull away to meet my eyes, like he was searching for doubt. I gave him none and charged ahead with my plan to seduce him. It felt like a dream that got cloudy at the edges; my actions were less forceful and more automatic with each breath.

Through the mire of growing passion, he said my name. He was far away, yet below me. Underwater and hypnotic.

My heart pounded so hard, I thought it skipped. The light faded, then returned. “Hmm?”

“You want me,” he said, sternly enough it echoed in my mind.

“Yes,” I said, finding him in the fog again. “I do.”

“You’ll do whatever I ask.”

His large hands kneaded my body, though that sensation vacillated, too. One moment, I was on top of him, trying to gauge what to do next to make him taste my skin the way I craved. The next, I was flat on my back while his weight pinned me in place. Through it all, a blanket of his voice surrounded me, guided me. I became like a passkin bird mesmerized by his animal speak, unable to separate his influence from my own will.

“Say it,” he commanded, making me repeat the words I barely heard through all of it.

“You...I want you.”

“To what? Say it,” he growled.

I wasn’t really talking, was I? Where did such words come from? They left my lips and granted him access in ways I’d never welcomed before.

“Say it.”

“Violate me.”

He flipped me over so fast, I only knew because his pillow pressed my nose flat. Ripping fabric narrated his actions.

“Make it last,” I said, not sure if I made sense, still grasping for reality.

“Last?” He laughed and muttered something I couldn’t make out.

I was conscious and willing, yet increasingly confused. Where am I? Something—sweat—dripped onto my back and each splatter played in my mind as a slow-motion dive into the tepid pools of home, where I swam naked with abandon and communed with the stars. When I resurfaced for air, I gasped through the mouthful of his bedsheets. The waves weren’t below me—they came from behind me—matching Modi’s grunting metronome.

“Are you listening?” he asked, more distant by the second.

I could only answer with a moan of affirmation before all went dark and I ceased to exist.

***

The birds painted on his ceiling greeted me when I opened my eyes. Without a sense of direction, I tried to ground myself by gauging where the light came from, but the many gold adornments from his bedposts to his sheets reflected the same tone, making it impossible to find the source.

A door creaked open from the other side of the room, and heavy footsteps followed.

My limbs were almost magnetized to the mattress, keeping me still despite how I itched to move. Only my eyelids seemed to work.

“You’re awake,” Modi said, grinning at me from above. He sat at my side, making the bed sink in his direction. “I’m surprised you didn’t need to rest for an age after all that.”

“Hmm?” I slowly regained full consciousness of my body and managed to bring my hand to my face. “What do you mean?”

“You changed my life.” He leaned down to me for a gentle kiss.

As he did, I tried to remember how I ended up in his bed in the first place. We walked through the palace. Came to his chambers. What happened next?

“I left to council with my men. You’re to meet them with me tomorrow.” Modi went to the large set of curtains to my left and swept them open noisily. “We’ll have to work faster than I thought, but they’re ready.”

The stars in Asgard’s sky flickered brightly, not competing with the several moons of home. “It’s night?” My heart rushed and I forced myself to sit up against his headboard, only then realizing I was nude under the top sheet. “Gods, I must be falling ill.”

“Ill?” He tipped his head. “With what?”

“I don’t know, really.” I rubbed the back of my neck and groaned. “Everything aches. I’ve lost time. Is there a washroom in here somewhere?”

“Of course.” He offered me his hands to help me rise. “I’ll guide you.”

His polished armor cleanly showed my reflection—my hair made a nest of black that unevenly bent across my forehead. The same half of my face was red compared to the rest. It was me, but I certainly looked as poor as I felt.

Doing my best to keep the sheet around me for pure modesty, I shuffled with Modi to the small door at the back of the room. “Please forgive me for this. I’m sure I’ll feel well soon.”

“I certainly hope so.” He chuckled and rubbed my knuckles of the hand he still held. “You’re an easy addiction.”

I furrowed my brow. “Addiction?”

“Perhaps I should say you became addicted to me, though. That might explain why you were so insatiable.”

He didn’t make sense, and I didn’t want to waste time asking  him for explanations. “Right.”

“There’s a basin inside. Take your time. I’ll fetch some clothes for you when you are done since...well, that’s what we’ll have.” Modi pecked my temple and released me after opening the washroom door, leaving me alone and locking his main chamber with a loud snap.

Privacy. I welcomed it. The basin inside—gilded like everything else—called to me. It was the only thing I really shared with Mum: a love for bathing. Water was a real universal magic.

I dropped the sheet and reached for the faucet. Never reached it, since I gasped at the sight of my forearms. On each side, light purple shadows mimicked the shape of a hand around my wrists. Light pressure proved they were bruises that would surely darken overnight and be obvious. I rushed to the wall mirror and investigated more, horrified to see the same shape on my neck.

So, we made love. That much was obvious. And he was so strong...surely he hadn’t meant to hurt me?

I looked down at my breasts, which were largely untouched, yet my belly was sore. Like sickness and a bruise far within. It couldn’t be seen. What could were the stains against my inner thighs. Swipes of dark brown that were dry.

For a moment, I worried my herbs had failed me and Modi had to witness my cycle’s arrival, yet the longer I searched, the more I felt the crushing weight of reality. The blood was my own, but it came from elsewhere—a consequence of allowing him to break new ground and my skin, too. I knew it by the other pain that I’d not known and the dripping remnants of his emissions that hadn’t yet been cleaned.

Gods...why don’t I recall this? I quickly turned the spigot on the basin, intent on not embarrassing myself further. Anxiety I’d never known made me rake through my own hair with my fingertips to make myself more presentable. While I was groggy before, now I was wide awake, panicked that a prince had seen a side of me I couldn’t control and didn’t know about. My last memory was a vague recollection of Modi claiming to have saved himself, and here I was, potentially soiling his princely bed with my appetite for rebellion. Being so forward was far from acceptable of a woman with my potential, or so I’d been told; what about his expectations of a lover? What did he think of me now?

I immersed myself quickly, ignoring how the water was too hot for me. I dunked my head and emerged like a rebirth, hoping the shock would help me remember anything else.

As if on cue, when I opened my eyes, Modi peered around the corner with a long gray robe in his hand. “Would you like me to keep this in here for you, or drape it on the bed?”

“I, umm.” I brought my knees to my chest and cleared my throat. “On the bed is fine, if that suits you.”

His wide blue eyes were hopelessly innocent. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. Really, it’s nothing. I’m just trying to piece together what happened today.”

“What happened?” He entered to sit on the edge of the tub. “Do you regret coming to Asgard with me? You want to go home?”

“No. No, of course not. I need to leave Narvlheim, and I want to be here.” I shook my head, which gave grief to my neck, forcing me to stop with a whimper. “Please don’t think I regret choosing to be with you.”

“Alright. I won’t. Now tell me what you’re thinking.”

I sighed and looked up at him with my face turned low. “I know we made love, but I’ve never felt like this.”

“I’ve never felt like this either,” he said, raising a brow and moving closer.

I held my hand up. “No. I’m in pain. Look at my wrists, my neck...I’ve been bleeding. How did it—”

“You asked me to,” he said, startling me with his tone. The kindness in his eyes a moment ago became cloudy. “What exactly are you accusing me of?”

“Nothing. Modi, I’m not accusing—”

“Think I would take advantage of you somehow? Do you really think that’s what I wanted?” He flapped his cape behind him when he stood, whipping the air. “Every time I thought it was enough, and you kept pushing, kept asking me to go harder. Asked me to choke you. Asked me to...Gods, the vile things you said were almost beyond comprehension, yet I complied. Now you suggest I harmed you on purpose?”

“That’s just it—of course not. Not on purpose.” I reached for him and prayed I hadn’t ruined everything. “Please, I only want to talk.”

“Talk. Right.” He looked up to the ceiling with his arms folded tightly. “We talked before, and I told you I’d been preserving such a thing for when I knew my queen was present. You insisted. It was your idea.”

I couldn’t recall the conversation exactly, but he couldn’t be wrong—I had dreamt of seducing him, so it made sense on the surface. “I’m sure it was. I know it was, actually.”

“You said there wasn’t shame in pleasure. Now I worry that was wrong, and you’ve defiled me.” He shut his eyes as tight as his fists. A quiver in his chin suggested tears were imminent. “I trusted your direction, even when you asked me to...to violate you.”

I choked out a breath. “No, don’t feel shame. I’m sorry. Truly, I am. Sex is beautiful, wonderful, meant to be celebrated. I swear, I simply don’t remember...did I truly use that word?”

Modi sniffed when he met my eyes again, stepping forward enough to rub his thumb against my lower lip. “It came straight from your mouth. The same one you asked me to come within.”

I gasped again, feeling the shock in my face and all over my skin. When had I become so crass? What came over me?

“I suppose now, you don’t want anything to do with me.” He dropped his hand and wiped his eyes one at a time. The shudder in his voice broke my heart. “How could you love me in return if you can’t trust me?”

I fought against crying myself but failed. Without warning, I blubbered and begged, clasping my hands together over the basin’s edge. “No. Please, no. I do trust you. It’s myself I don’t trust. I want to stay here. Please don’t judge me on this...whatever came over me, I only ask that you resist in the future if my appetite blinds all my reason.”

He sighed and sat close to me again, taking my hands gently as our crying tapered. “Thank you. I will try to keep our contact less intense. There was no way for me to know you’d become, I don’t know, lucid later on?”

“Me either. I don’t believe this has ever happened to me before. I don’t know of any magic that I might’ve stumbled into that can wipe my memory, do you?”

“No, I don’t believe—” He cut himself off and wrinkled his face. “Hmm.”

“What is it?”

“It’s you. You’re part Jotun.” Modi shifted his eyes my way. “I don’t know how a Jotun might respond to my animal speak.”

The implication felt wrong, but what other explanation was there? “You think that’s really possible?”

“It certainly isn’t impossible.” He trailed the back of his hand down my cheek. “Oh, Hela. I wonder if in the heat of the moment, I happened to tap into something primal within you.”

“Maybe you did.” I kissed his hand and kept it close to me. “If we know it’s a risk, we can look out for it. Keep one another in check.”

“Agreed.” He smiled—the first I’d seen since I opened my eyes on his bed. It calmed me. “Do you want me to bring the robe to your side before you get out?”

“Actually, now I’m hoping to find out as much as I can about your body while I’m present.” I blinked slowly and sat up to expose my chest above the water. “If you agree to control my enthusiasm and make sure I don’t get carried away again.”

Modi’s grin went from bright and toothsome to pulled halfway up his face with mischief. “So I shall.”

“Did you say you love me?” I asked, tiptoeing my fingertips up his arm. “So soon, truly?”

“I love anything that gives me control.” He plucked me from the water so I’d wrap my legs around his waist while he kissed me forcefully. It was familiar, yet foreign, like my body knew what to expect though my mind was blurry.

“Take me to the bed,” I whispered.

“Let’s have a quick drink first,” he replied, carrying me out of the washroom and stopping at a small display of glasses in a cabinet. “Something to loosen you up so you don’t hurt yourself again.”

Chapter Text

So easy, it nearly bored me. Nearly.

Hela submitted to my every whim and naively believed my power over her was natural. Pitiful. Once I planted guilt in her mind, she did everything she could to snuff it out. The girl became little more than an object—a treasure trove of information for Lokison’s fall—and she rarely resisted my tinctures to spin time. Keeping her in my chambers was the wisest choice since I couldn’t very well have her following me and drawing attention to my erratic schedule, so I sedated her for hours at a time over the first week.

Only once did she refuse to take her poison willingly, insistent that she couldn’t wait another moment to have me. Such a nasty thing, she was, begging for my cock to prove how worthy she was to receive it. Her eager wish was almost admirable, except she couldn’t guess that what I offered was the only reason she was still alive. It was too sweet to know that once this was over, I could tell Vali what I’d done with glee.

Instead of granting her wish, I smiled and yanked her hair too hard, forcing her face to the ceiling so I could pour the liquid down her open throat. She coughed and choked and swatted me away from her nose and mouth to breathe, but I was stronger. As soon as her body went limp with the effect, I fucked her through pained screams, smearing the cum and blood that resulted from my force all over her face so she would have to clean it up and feel shame.

Those Dagheim mystics were nearly evil with the power in their potions. Once Hela woke again and saw my false tears of regret for “submitting to her despicable commands”, she fell over herself to apologize for being so repulsively vulgar in her trance. I would forgive her, she would divulge Narvlheim secrets, and we would start all over again. Clockwork.

***

Gunnar and Tyr met in my chamber a few times while Hela was too drugged to notice, but both of them were jealous with how I kept her to myself. Gunnar only averted his eyes from her naked body sprawled across my bed when I openly watched him, and Tyr tugged at his trousers after glancing at her. She would’ve been an easy conquest to them in her current state; neither of them had much prowess with the servant girls who normally begged for my attention.

“Attracted to women who can’t object, Tyr?” I asked, then tapped the table below. We reviewed a hand-drawn map of Narvlheim which Hela decorated with secret portal sites—a perfect way to plan our upcoming invasion. “I appreciate your distraction, but this is the priority.”

He glared since I embarrassed him. “Doesn’t matter if she’s awake or not. She certainly doesn’t look gross to me.”

“That’s only because she has voids to fill. You’d get off in a rodent if it bent over far enough.” I raised my brow.

Gunnar tried to de-escalate by pretending we weren’t talking about anything but the plan. “I’m still confused why Tyr gets to be with you when you bring Rasvelg here. Where am I supposed to be when this all starts, again?”

I groaned. “At the Bifrost. You’re going to head Lokison off at the Bifrost. I’m certain he’ll come through it. Tyr will stay with Hela to round up the other soldiers when we challenge my father first. You’re my best man with a sword.”

He threw one of the portal pins across the table in annoyance. “Come on. You know I can’t fight him.”

“That’s the point. You’ll confuse him.”

Tyr kicked back in his chair with his arms folded. “Yeah, because he’ll think you’re on his side.”

“No. Because he’ll know you’re not.” I stood and circled our table with slow steps. “Vali thinks all soldiers in Asgard fight for the same cause by default. When he sees you, he’ll know by then that I’m at the center of this. He’s not stupid—he’s soft-hearted. There’s a huge difference. He’ll know you’re the enemy, but he won’t try very hard to really defeat you. That will be your chance to take him out.”

“Take out Vali Lokison. Sure.” Gunnar rolled his eyes.

“Do you remember the first time I brought you out of Asgard and to the outer lands?” I stopped behind him and rubbed his shoulders to give him exaggerated attention. “That time we destroyed a few smoky demons from Muspelheim?”

He chuckled. “Yeah, I remember.”

“You remember your first kill? That fire inside that made you feel ten feet tall?”

“That’s such a high,” Tyr said with a sideways smile.

“Uh-huh,” said Gunnar. “It was good.”

“Well, Vali hasn’t killed anyone yet.” I patted his shoulders with both hands together. “You really think he has what it takes to kill one of his own?”

Both of them hushed a bit. While I couldn’t see Gunnar straight on, there was tacit fear in Tyr’s expression as they watched one another.

I leaned over Gunnar’s shoulder to look into his face. “Is there a problem?”

“What if he does?” Gunnar whispered. His voice skipped over its own anxiety.

“Then you have to act faster than him. In return, I’ll give you a prize.”

Tyr narrowed his eyes. “A prize? Why would he get a prize and I don’t?”

“Relax. You’ll get it, too.” I slunk back to the bed and stroked Hela’s bare thigh as she slept. “Kill Lokison, and I’ll give this one to you. Both of you. It’ll be your decision to use and abuse her however you wish, for however long you want. I only need her to force the hands of the other soldiers in Asgard. Once they’re blindly subject to my command, she won’t be necessary anymore. Consider her body my consolation for being outcasts to this point alongside me.”

Gunnar shifted in his seat with the change in our conversation. “Isn’t she a witch?”

“Are you frightened?” I asked, lifting her hand and dropping it to prove how lifeless she was. “How many times must I tell you not to be a coward? Her mind is moldable, like I said it would be. If you want her like this, that’s no trouble. Personally, I prefer when she has a bit of fire in her. Gives me a challenge. Makes me feel like I win.”

Tyr shook his head through a sigh.

“What’s that, hmm? You disapprove?” I asked, stroking Hela’s hair sweetly. “Wish no ill on the monster with a pretty face?”

“Stop it,” Gunnar said. “Even you have limits, right, Modi?”

“Sire,” I corrected, calmly rising to loom across the table from him. “I need no formal ceremony to be your king. Go on. Address me properly.”

He put his hands in his lap and dropped his chubby face. “Yes, Sire.”

“And you?” I asked Tyr, barely moving except for the sideways tilt of my eyes in his direction.

He was a bit more prone to challenge me, though Tyr chose wisely. Tucked a bit of his dark hair behind an ear and complied. “Yes, Sire.”

“That’s better.” I crossed the room to the balcony with my hands behind my back, stoic and certain of the next steps. “Oh, how the fires of war will light the sky. Rasvelg has been patient enough, but he longs to feed. The carnage we’ll leave behind will be plenty for him to feast on before we retreat to the outer lands and recruit again.”

“How much longer are you going to wait, Sire?” Tyr asked, either learning quickly or patronizing me. Soon, it wouldn’t really matter.

“Three days. Most soldiers will be gathered then to start a new season of training.” I looked over my shoulder at them. “Three days, and Yggdrasil will be one step closer to perfection.”

Chapter Text

My heart was resolute. I had one more day to open my mouth. A last chance to stop being a coward before we would both return to busy responsibilities. It had taken me too long already. While I visited her at home every day of our leave from duty, there was always some task, celebration, family gathering or...some other thin excuse to keep my mouth shut.

Not today. Today, it was just us, Dagheim’s forest, and whatever surprise Riggs wanted to show me.

She greeted me mid-morning at the portal site and led me away from the city through the scraggly trees. Branches shrouded us in curious tangles instead of leaves cloaking the pathway. Shadows spattered us both, camouflaging us, making us look equal even though I was quite pale against her in normal light. It was a treat to be alone, no less so in such a quixotic place.

“Where are you taking me?” I quipped with a sarcastic frown.

“Nowhere boring.” Riggs smiled, and her apple cheeks pitched in with dimples that rarely appeared. Her plaits hung loose and long around her face, not wrapped in a scarf the way she normally wore them. It made me less self-conscious of my own relaxed appearance.

She resisted the quiet and kept busy with our conversation. “Anyway, Lokison, it’s your turn to ask me something.”

“Aye. Hmm...” I tapped my chin and mulled over the options, grateful her game of revealing truths was well suited for what I had planned. It was a familiar tactic to waste time in training, especially in front of Astrid, who reveled in embarrassing confessions. Riggs, thankfully, seemed more genuinely interested in the answers and gave honest ones of her own.

“So hard to choose? Think you already know everything there is to know about me?” She bumped my arm playfully with her shoulder.

I love it when you do that. Hundreds of questions filled my mind that all revolved around some version of, “Do you feel the same way I do?” but none seemed like good enough ways to guide her into asking me the same thing.

“Hmm?” she prodded again.

I abandoned the concept of perfection and settled on something that might pique her curiosity. “Can’t rush me in a strange place. You know I might trip if I don’t pay attention.” I lowered my eyes as if I caught her teasing me. “Anyway, I’ve got one. Do you still remember how to waltz?”

“Oh, how could I forget?” She giggled with a chime in her voice that never left and rang in my mind when I dreamt. Holding up her arms as if in starting position, Riggs performed the steps the same way we did as late teenagers. “I’ll never forget how that teacher slapped your hand for not standing up straight. And how you mocked her when she walked away. One-two-three, one-two-three...” She repeated the count while making exaggerated steps, rising and falling in a circle around me, absent a partner but no less elegant. “I loved this dance. It was fun dressing in old Midgardian fashions with flowing skirts. Goodness, could you imagine trying to do something like that in your cape?”

I laughed, resisting my pockets just because I couldn’t decide what to do with my hands. “I think you’re right; it would have to go. Perhaps I could get away with a shorter version if the occasion arose.”

She twirled under the trees with a joyful shine all over her face. How could anyone see her and not want her close? Before the moment’s expiration, I caught her right hand in my left and joined her dance, surprising both of us with the ease at which I could still keep up.

“I didn’t forget, either,” I said while bouncing my brows cheekily.

“It seems not.” She relaxed her grip and let me lead. “Maybe you can surprise me, Lokison.”

“Maybe I can.” I spun her out into the clearing once and resumed the basic steps along the perimeter of our private outdoor ballroom. My heartbeat kept time better than any music, and she followed me without deviating. With her so close to me, I was both lost and found. My past and my future tipped in the balance.

“Why did your father command that of us anyway?” Riggs adjusted her hand on my shoulder and moved up toward my neck. “Dancing seems at odds with what I know about him.”

“Close combat is all about rhythm. Father says grace on the battlefield is much like grace with a partner. One wrong step, and everyone knows you are faulty; it shows your weaknesses, and enemies aren’t quick to forget. But perfection is entrancing. If engaged well with an opponent, much like this very waltz, others will leave a private battle alone.”

“Because it’s impossible not to stare?”

I chuckled. “Partly. More like they’re not worth interrupting. The soldier with the best skills is undoubtedly good at...”—immediately, I dipped her backward over my knee, making her clutch me tightly in fear—“...improvising.”

Riggs laughed openly once she caught her breath. “Don’t you dare drop me.”

“Never.” I stood her up again and kept moving, too addicted to her warmth to let go.

“I’m grateful to have learned this, then. Even though archery isn’t helped much by it.”

“Oh, I’m sure it is.” Spinning her on her foot again, I put my chest to her back and looked forward, rocking her side to side with me as if we studied a target in the distance. “When you nock your arrow, don’t you keep count with your pulse? Time your breath to be in tandem? Trust that your arms and eyes and body know the way?”

She snickered under her breath and didn’t answer. She didn’t need to.

I glanced down to see her face and tried to breathe silently. Her hair wafted over me in the standard fruit notes that I considered might not even be artificial. Surely her skin was as equally unctuous as her touch and her attitude.

Almost there. Almost there.

“So, dancing serves a mighty purpose. Any other bits of wisdom, Lokison?” Riggs turned in my arms and looked up at me. We weren’t moving, but the world didn’t stop. Her golden eyes read me raw—no questions required.

“Some say the casualties of war equal the pain of private heartache.”

She raised a brow. “You think so?”

“I don’t know, really.” I shrugged and softened my tone. “Truth be told, I likely rolled my eyes the first hundred times Father said it. But now, as a man, I believe that is likely true.”

“A broken heart is a casualty.” She tipped her head slightly to the right, flirting with me through her long lashes. “What about the comparison of victory?”

My heart leapt to my throat. I couldn’t catch my breath enough and inhaled quickly. Everything surrounding her grew hazy and thick, wrapping me in cotton and drawing me in. This is it. It’s the moment.

“Victory?” I whispered, angling my face opposite to hers. “I imagine it’s—”

She snorted just as a tickle on my forehead made me jump backward.

“Shit. What was that?” I muttered, swatting at my face.

Riggs could hardly talk through her laughter. “Should’ve warned you, Lokison. This part of the forest is ripe with striped catching beetles. Seems one liked your hair.”

I turned away from her to hide my face, commanding my temper to cool in waves. My only sense of pride came from resisting the urge to transform and sprint through the trees to escape. At least I wasn’t that much of a coward.

“It’s gone now. I think you scared off any other pests for a while.” She tapped my shoulder as the aura between us returned to platonic neutral. “We’re nearly there anyway.”

I scratched my temple to clear away the phantom sensation of bugs in my skin. “If you say so. Lead on.”

Her tapering humor said she appreciated my change of mood. She didn’t pester me with another pointless question on our way; the mission was to find whatever we came for. I made a mental pathway of where we’d been so I might find it again in the future if the outing ultimately turned out to be a trial run of my attempt to charm her heart.

At a bend in the road, Riggs traipsed over the edge and kept going. The grit beneath us was largely undisturbed; an animal path, not one made for travel. The branches on either side of us snagged my clothes at the shoulder, conveniently avoiding Riggs because she couldn’t reach them. If I hadn’t been so disappointed with myself, I might’ve been annoyed.

A clearing through the last bunch of trees caught my eye ahead and the landmark at its center was evidently our destination. It was unlike any pond I’d ever seen. Wind swept dust our direction, yet the water didn’t move, like glass on the ground that reflected the sky. The only way to identify what was before us as water at all was the presence of small creatures drinking from its edge, which curiously didn’t disturb the surface, either.

“What is this?” I asked, speaking quietly to stay reverent in case it represented some culture I wasn’t familiar with.

Riggs knelt to pick up an orange stone and primed her throwing arm. “Watch this. Don’t look away.” She pitched it forward with ease.

It splashed silently, absent the typical thunk one would expect from something that size. A spike of water erupted from where the stone had displaced it, shooting high above us like a geyser. Instead of relaxing into a series of waves to the edge, the tower froze instantly, making an icy monument of Riggs’s trick and wholly disobeying the laws of Dagheim’s oppressive heat.

I scoffed with wonder. “Wow. Just...wow.”

“Impressive, isn’t it?” She folded her arms smugly. “It’ll melt before too long. Then you can give it a try.”

“How did you ever find this place?”

“My father did ages ago. I come here to think.” She knelt at the edge and scooped up a handful of water, which quickly froze to slush that she squeezed between her fingers. “You can see why the animals like it; on hot days, this is probably their best reprieve. I think it’s a remnant of a former realm, living on because it cannot disappear.”

With that suggestion, the origin was obvious. I sat beside her and took a handful of the peculiar magic myself. “Of course. It has to be from Jotunheim.”

“How familiar are you?” she asked, relaxing on her rump the same way I was.

“A fair amount. My father’s Jotun, you know.” I swirled a nonsense pattern in the slurry on my palm.

“I remember you saying something about that. Wouldn’t know only by looking at you.” She bumped my arm again the way she did when we started walking, jumpstarting my heart once more. “You’ve certainly never shown me anything quite like this magic here.”

“I haven’t?” I couldn’t waste another opportunity to reset my intent; the small window she offered by suggesting I might impress her was perfect. Improvising a trick like I did with our dance, I took a bare twig from the ground and held it up for her. “Would you like to see what I can do?”

She grinned. “Go on.”

I chuckled under my breath and snapped my fingers, lighting the top of the twig with a small flame. “The fire has a life of its own. See how it dances? Beautiful, but dangerous. Not unlike you.”

“You’re flattering me. I like it.” She shined, widening her smile. “What else?”

“Well, let us say the flicker is you. Then I come in.” Focusing on the fire, I welcomed the tickle in my chest that I’d long since mastered, letting it creep down my arm to my hand. “The power of cold puts it to sleep.” The moment I stopped speaking, a wisp of light smoke wrapped the top of the twig, snuffing the flame.

“It’s—”

“No, no. Not through yet.” I let the cold grow from my hand, covering the twig in what started with light frost. “You see, like fire, ice has a mind of its own. But with a bit of intent...” I twisted my creation with both hands. What started as a long spiral shifted to a familiar shape I once spent hours practicing. Clear leaves branched from the sides, and a simple flower blossomed at the top. “It can be anything. Just as beautiful, and just as dangerous. Ice can burn as hard as fire. Together, they’re unstoppable.”

“May I?” she whispered, nodding at my creation.

“It’s all yours.”

Riggs brought the creation to her nose, though it obviously bore no scent. Pure instinct. She snickered more quietly than she had before—a nervous laugh. “I had no idea. This is so lovely. Pity it won’t last long.”

“I can fix that.” I squinted, instantly transforming my gift to a realistic stem of her favorite orange floret. “Now you can keep it as long as you like.”

“That’s incredible.” She brought it to her nose again and inhaled deeply, closing her eyes with a sigh. “Thank you.”

A bit of the hazy glow returned. “You’re welcome, Riggs.”

She hummed before opening her eyes again. “Did you ever go to Jotunheim if that’s where your father is from?”

“Go there? Oh, no.” I tossed a stone into the pond, making a second, shorter spike of ice near the center. “I didn’t even know Jotunheim existed until we came to Asgard. Probably don’t know any more about it than you do, truth be told. If we hadn’t stumbled over cold magic, I wonder when Father would’ve finally said something.”

“What does that mean? How did you stumble onto this?”

“I didn’t, actually. Narvi did.” I brought my knees up and rested my chin on my hands. Lingering soreness in my heart made even saying his name difficult.

We were quiet for an uncomfortable minute. She twirled her flower and gently rocked, either debating what she wanted to say or waiting for me to change the subject. Nothing felt quite appropriate now.

Whether she could sense something in me that I couldn’t say aloud, it wasn’t clear, but Riggs knew better than to pretend I hadn’t invoked his spirit. She cleared her throat. “Will you tell me about him?”

“Hmm?” I shot my face to her.

“I never met Narvi. What was he like?” She relaxed, settling in to listen.

“Gods, I wish I could remember.” Scruffing my own hair helped keep me from diving too deep and embarrassing myself. “Let’s see...he wasn’t much like me at all. Looked more like Mum. Was endlessly gifted with everything.”

“So are you.”

I rolled my eyes. “You only say that because you never knew him.”

We were quiet again, marinating in the itch of uncomfortable truths. What else can I say?

She leaned forward to catch my eyes again. “I’m sorry if I upset you.”

“Oh. No, you didn’t upset me. I’m sorry. It’s just difficult to talk about him, that’s all.”

“I can imagine that. We can talk about something else if you want to.”

I sensed a pause at the end. “Do you mean that?”

“Of course.” She swiped at my hair lightly, undoubtedly shooing another pest. “But I’m happy to listen if you have something you want to say.”

I did. I had a million things I wanted to say and never could. Not about him, all about her, yet here she was, asking me to open the vault shut tight ages ago, bursting with the things that no one would forgive me for.

“It’s okay to let me in, Vali,” she whispered.

Her voice knocked in my mind. Let me in. Let me in. Was this a power she had over me that I couldn’t define? The vault crept open, answering her invitation with a trickle of confessions.

The words felt pulled from my lips. “All my life, I’ve been compared to a person that no one knew like I did. It worsened when he left us; instead of living up to him, I’ve been tasked with living up with the mere concept of him...this incredible kind soul, so gifted, so perfect, even if their projections didn’t represent his reality. A person so incredibly grand, a whole realm and a race were named after him.”

Riggs nodded. Her silence left more room to speak.

“We were nearly inseparable, you know.”

“Siblings usually are when they’re young.”

“Not like us,” I said with a cocked brow. “We had our own language. Too many secrets. Games and tricks and a perfect understanding of what the other needed. He wasn’t just my brother—as my twin, Narvi completed me. Tell me, Riggs, do you remember the day we met?”

“Of course I do,” she returned with a halfway-there smile. “Tousling on the field in Asgard.”

“Right. That day was the very last day my family was complete...and the very first day I did something without him.” I knocked my chin against my hands again, turning forward to stop myself from staring at her face awkwardly. “I wish I could remember him better. Wish I could tell you more details about what he sounded like or some of the things he said. Those memories are a blur now. The things that stand out feel like dreams and not reality. I’m not certain they actually happened, or if I invented them.”

“You’ve made me curious.” She put her hand on my elbow this time, touching me with a gentle force that said she truly wanted more. “What sorts of things?”

“Promise you won’t call me mad if I tell you.”

“Cross my heart,” she said, drawing a line over her chest the way Midgardians did when reciting the same cliché. “Please.”

With a sigh, I reflexively rubbed my right eyebrow. “Narvi was more skilled at everything. He read before I did, took up magic with ease, and everyone adored him while those same people said I was little more than a troublemaker who took after my father. But he never saw me as anything other than his twin, and he loved me. Loved me so much that...that he showed me things no other soul knew about.” It was easier to remember with my eyes closed, so I took a long breath and did so. “I remember hurting myself one day. Scratched my knee or my shin...something minor. Mum’s patented way to comfort us was to kiss our foreheads with a standard platitude.”

“Mmhmm. My mum did the same.”

“Yes. That day, I was alone with Narvi, and we weren’t close to home. I cried in pain, but it was too far to walk home easily, and Narvi couldn’t carry me. So, he did what any other young child would do—he kissed my forehead like Mum would. In that instant, my injury felt better. Like he sapped my pain away.” I shrugged. “We stayed out to play a bit longer after that, but when we got home, I saw a scrape on his leg while we were cleaning up. I felt silly for being so upset over my injury while he actually got hurt but hadn’t said a word. There wasn’t so much as a scuff on my skin beneath my trousers.”

“Is that terribly strange?” Riggs asked, squeezing my elbow again when I didn’t answer quickly.

“Well, I...Gods, this is where it gets strange.” I shook my head and put my legs flat out before me, and she did the same. “There was another time. This one, I recall a bit better. It wasn’t long before I met you. It was after we met Modi for the first time. We were running home from Asgard, and I fell. Hurt my face badly enough to make a cut across my brow.”

“Really?” She squinted, examining my face closely.

“There’s no scar. But that’s just it...there should be. It wasn’t an innocent scratch; it opened my skin enough to need stitches from Mum. Narvi thought it was his fault that I became injured, and a few days later, he asked if he could heal me.” I touched my right eyebrow again. “What harm would it do? He kissed my temple as he did before. But that time, when he pulled away, his face was bleeding.”

She gasped. “What?”

I shook my head, not focusing my eyes on anything, lost in grasping memories from the beyond. “That isn’t possible, though, right? Yet that’s what I recall...my cut vanished and reappeared on him. Same place I’d gotten hurt. I panicked, told him he had to stop and not do that again. Not until we understood what it was and how he was doing it. We never spoke about it again, and...and I never told anyone about it until now.”

Her warm hand found mine. “Thank you for trusting me. Whether it was real or not, I know he was extraordinary. And I know that because you are extraordinary. He’s looking upon you from Valhalla, wishing you well, I’m sure.”

I squeezed my face into a grimace. “Oh, Riggs.” My confession hurt with an equal sting as saying Narvi’s name. The lives of my kin were wrapped in the faith of our fathers, yet mine was shaken to the very core. “I’m...I’m not sure Valhalla actually exists.”

Despite what I said being enough to shock anyone close to me, Riggs didn’t budge. “Why would you ever say that?”

“Because I know what I can see, and I know what I can feel. I’m not a master sorcerer, a seer, a king...I’m just a man. Life’s shown me many things, but since the Ragnarok, so much of what I thought I knew revolved around the idea of Valhalla and Narvi’s status as our family guardian. Every time anything important happens at home, my mother makes us hold hands and pray...we pray to my grandmother, to the souls of people we know who are gone, and we pray to Narvi.” I pinched the bridge of my nose while keeping my other hand in hers, unwilling to let her go even if I wept. “Mum says her prayer, hopes with her heart...and she says she can feel him.”

Riggs gripped my hand tighter. “And?”

“I never do.” I dissolved into tears, keeping my face turned away from her, embarrassed at myself beyond words. “I knew exactly what Narvi felt like, but he isn’t there. He’s not in Valhalla. He’s not in Yggdrasil. He’s nowhere and everywhere—his name rules my life, the Narvir, my home, but he’s gone. How can I tell my mother that what she prays for isn’t possible? And if I’m wrong, that would be worse.”

“Come now. Why would that be worse?”

“Maybe she can feel him. Maybe he is there, but he doesn’t visit me because...because he looks upon all I have done and thinks I stole the life he should’ve lived.” Finally pulling my hand from hers, I wiped my eyes vigorously and raked through my hair over and over. “Maybe he knows that...that his death was my fault.”

“No. Don’t say that.” Riggs dropped her pitch and strongly turned my chin. “That isn’t true.”

“It is.” I sniffed back hard and choked over my words. “My last thought when he was alive was how jealous I was over everything he could do. It pushed me to change. My first time as a wolf was when I escaped the palace...and I promised I wouldn’t leave him behind.” I squeezed my eyes shut again and shook my head. “I left him behind, and he never came out.”

“That doesn’t make it your fault. Here. Please.” She wrapped her arms around my shoulders and sat on her knees to be closer to my height. Her embrace was a balm to my every tear.

I clutched her in return. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, Riggs. I know this wasn’t what you wanted to know. I just needed to say it.”

“Shh. It’s alright to say. It’s alright to lean on me.” She sighed alongside me and encouraged me to match her slow breathing. Her scent brought me back to the moment at hand and left Narvi in the past where he belonged. If his healing wasn’t a false memory, it still couldn’t compare to how sweet and how perfect her presence was against the unnamed pain I’d carried all my life. “Thank you again for telling me. It feels good to have your trust.”

“And it feels good to give it.” I slowly unwound, deflating against her enough to appreciate how delicious it was to have her close, if only for a few minutes.

Chapter Text

Hela submitted fully to my control, no more a threat to me than Tyr or Gunnar. Her sense of self was lost within the confines of my chambers, drowned beneath the bottomless supply of potions that made her my puppet. Whenever she had a few moments of true clarity, they were spent spilling secrets of Narvlheim portals and her brother’s weaknesses, cementing our supposed love affair, or reaffirming her devotion to me and insubordination from everything else. I charmed her in daylight and ravaged her otherwise. Her confusion over mysterious injuries and lack of memory quickly faded into blind tolerance.

Precisely where I wanted her.

There had been no whisperings amongst the soldiers about Lokison’s whereabouts in the interim period, and he surely would’ve enlisted the army’s help if he thought she was missing, so her family must have forgotten her, too. Oh, well. Vali would be caught in my trap soon enough. I needed only to set it.

We began by putting Gunnar at the Bifrost shortly after sunset, ready to challenge the enemy. New and recently promoted soldiers met in the palace’s great hall for a welcome feast to start the new season of training. Their commotion was audible at the edge of Asgard’s city, completely oblivious to how soon they’d be silenced.

“Are you ready?” I asked Hela before opening my chambers to let her outside for the first time. “You look anxious.”

“I...no. I’m fine. Just fine.” She trembled anyway. “You sure it isn’t too soon to tell Thor about us?”

“Nonsense. If anything, we’ve waited too long already. I want every realm to know my intent with you.” Kissing her nauseated me, so I didn’t try to comfort her with anything other than words. She’d need at least that. My plan had few steps remaining, but her obedience was by far the most important one. Fortunately, for all our sakes, she was already of a mind to do what she was told. I produced a small flask from my armor’s side and presented it in my open right palm. “Drink this for me. It’ll keep you calm.”

She nodded in silence and took the flask. A crack of thunder welcomed us with its perfect timing. “Here’s to hoping I don’t say the wrong thing.” With a hefty swig, she shook her head and stuck her tongue out from the flavor. “Here.”

“So well trained,” I said, pocketing the flask again.

“Hmm?” She squinted as an answer.

“No matter.” The countdown to the drug’s effects had already begun; we’d proceed when her mind clouded over. A few minutes at most.

“What are we waiting for?” she asked, softly rubbing her temple on one side. Fading quickly.

I whistled my usual tune of five notes into the wind. “Rasvelg comes. Won’t be long now. He’s been hovering in the abandoned southlands.”

“I’ve heard that name before.” Already, she spoke as if she was lost and trying to pick out her words from a box. “Who is he?”

“My familiar. By far the most powerful minion in my control. Even greater than you.” I tipped her chin up to look into her eyes. A reddish mist filled them and her shivering stopped. “I found him in the outer reaches of old Yggdrasil, waiting for me to be his master. His wings will beat back my father’s lightning. His claws will scoop and drop anyone who dares get in my way. And he’ll feast on the sinewy corpses left behind by the soldiers. Do you remember what their charge is?”

Hela didn’t really exist any longer; weeks of conditioned answers were now solid commandments. “Yes, Sire.”

“Tell me. Quickly.”

“They will only serve you. They will fight alongside you. They will die without question. Hail Modi, their king.”

“Yes. My army of fury. Berserkers, I’ll call them. Unyielding. And what of those who resist your spells?”

She blinked a few times, leaving the last of her free will behind. “I will mark them as targets. I’ll show them destruction.”

“Very good.” I caught Rasvelg’s shadow on the horizon, only visible between flashes of faraway lightning. “When it’s over, you will come to me. Surrender to all I ask of you.”

“When it’s over, I will come to you.” Hela’s robotic answers had more severity than usual; my careful dosages thus far were abandoned. She’d nearly spent all her usefulness. If the poison changed her permanently, so be it.

***

I threaded Hela’s arm through my elbow to lead her to the great hall. Tyr stood watch at the doors and opened them for us with an apprehensive—yet obedient—nod.

“Young soldiers,” I yelled to take the attention of all. “Give your captain your attention.”

While a few errant conversations at the edges weren’t instantly silent, most were. The room of eyes shifted focus to me. Anticipation buzzed all around.

“Surely, you all know my name. Declare your allegiance to my leadership.”

Good soldiers, they were, and soon to be better. “Captain Modi, to the end,” most declared, only absent the voices of those who weren’t familiar with tradition yet. Wouldn’t matter in a minute.

“I have with me a maid of Narvlheim. She is here to speak her piece.” I stepped aside so Hela could move forward and be the focal point. Her empty, distant eyes proved how much of a shell she was, all but incapable of feeling empathy.

She stared straight ahead and brought a false wind with her, which blew her hair forward as she raised her arms. Unlike my animal speak, she made no sound at all, hypnotizing all who looked in her direction. The crowd changed form—instantly, the soldiers straightened their backs. Their eyes became equally empty as hers. A few here and there amongst the affected waved their hands before their friends and received no response.

A barely detectable aura of deep green fell over Hela’s body, highlighting her. She lowered her arms but never dropped her focus. Tears streamed down her cheeks from lack of blinking.

I chuckled and lifted my head to address the crowd again. “Tell me, who do you serve?”

“Hail Modi, our king,” they yelled, more forcefully than they had before. It made the silent, confused minority stand out; those ones trembled and slowly backed away from the rest, immune for an unknown reason.

“Choose a target,” I said to Hela, extending my arm over our audience. “Prove your power.”

She lowered her face—concentrating, scheming—twitching with plans only she could decode.

A guttural scream from the crowd drew my attention. While my personal army hadn’t budged, another Hela—a projection, no doubt, like the famed gifts of her father—was pressed against a clear-eyed soldier from behind. She yanked a blade from his vulnerable side and raised the bloody blade above his head to show me her handiwork as he fainted.

“Does that suffice, Sire?” she asked next to me, monotone and unaffected.

“Quite.” I cleared my throat and nodded at Tyr to prop the doors open wide for our exit. “We have a city to claim and a god to overthrow. If you survive, I will honor you with opportunity. If you are killed, you will be so remembered. If you’re a traitor, your position has been marked. Heed my warning and welcome the new age!”

“To the end!” they chanted every third lock-step, neither missing a beat nor hesitating with fear. Any other time and their inexperience would’ve been deadly to me; under my ultimate control, they were dangerous simply because they felt nothing at all.

Rasvelg descended on the palace and screeched. His voice, nearly deafening compared to the standard eagles of New Asgard, was strained with pain for the world he’d lost in Ragnarok as much as it was signaling demand for my end of the bargain to be fulfilled.

Come find me, Lokison. Only four more to go.