I was vaguely aware that we had washed up on the rocky shores of Jotunheim, the land of the giants. The landscape was bleak and barren, like a mountainous desert. The only interesting features were the craggy mountaintops towering over the horizon. Jotunheim was definitely not a place you would visit for a vacation.
I was drained from my earlier rune magic, and all I wanted to do was sleep, but I owed Magnus an explanation.
"Sorry," I signed, but it came out as more of a 'Please.'
"Just rest." Magnus evidently wasn't getting it.
I was frustrated by his lack of understanding. I needed to explain. With some considerable effort, I reached into my bag of runes, and pulled out perthro, the rune that symbolizes an empty cup. I pointed to the rune, and then to myself, hoping that Magnus would understand that the rune represented my soul.
"What does it mean?" he asked.
Sam looked at me. "Are you trying to explain what happened to you?"
I took a deep breath. This was going to be difficult. "Magnus felt pain," I signed. I pointed to the stone and looked at Sam.
"Do you want me to tell him?" she asked.
Slowly, I nodded. Magnus needed to know. Confident that Sam understood, I rested my head on the goat's back, and closed my eyes.
Dreams of wolves haunted my sleep. I hadn't slept peacefully since I drank from Mimir's well. Maybe I had made the wrong choice. Maybe being able to hear and speak would be more desirable than magic. Either way, I knew I would have to deal with this pain on my own.
I felt hands pushing me up, and helping me stand. I opened my eyes, only to see a dead giantess lying across a huge river, and the god Thor standing in front of us grinning wildly.
"That," Thor exclaimed, "was awesome!"
I realized that Magnus must have used the Sword of Summer, to kill the giantess. Thor invited us to join him for dinner. As we followed Thor to his camp, I couldn't help thinking that this evening was going to be an especially long one.
When we reached the camp, Thor roasted two goats for dinner. I sat by the fire, nibbling a piece of goat, and thinking about my past.
I had had a relatively traumatizing childhood. My parents had never accepted me because I was deaf, but worse than that, they blamed me for my brother's death. Before I was born, they had a son, Andiron, who had died young. To them, I was a disappointment, a punishment from the gods. They always told me that the wrong brother had died, and that hurt me. I tried my hardest to be what they expected, but it was never enough.
Mimir, the god of wisdom, had offered me a way out. I had two choices. I could drink from his well of knowledge, and gain the power of rune magic, or be granted the ability to hear and speak. Either way, I would have to serve him for a year.
Magic had always appealed to me. I liked the idea of being able to to change the world, to make it a better place. If I had chosen the latter option, I would have been accepted into Elvish society, and by my parents. But I chose magic, and so, though I wasn't accepted by my parents, I gained a new unique ability which would stay with me for the rest of my life.
After a tedious hour of listening to Thor discussing TV shows, Blitzen fell out of a pine tree. He had traveled to Jotunheim using Yggdrasil, the world tree, and the pine he fell out of was connected to one of the branches of Yggdrasil.
Thor told us that if we investigated a nearby giant's house to try and locate his missing hammer, he would tell us the location of Fenris wolf's island, so that we could bind him and delay Ragnarok.
The next morning, we woke up early and headed across the river to the giant's house. When we arrived, we found two rather drunk giantesses. We introduced ourselves, and attempted to find out if they had stolen Thor's hammer.
After a few minutes of bargaining, we realized that we weren't getting anywhere. Magnus decided to try a new tactic.
"We killed your sister. The giantess by the river? She's dead now."
The giantesses were enraged.
"What have you done?" they shouted, and started to throw utensils at us.
"Kill them!" Magnus shouted to the magic sword, which moved on its own as he launched it into the air. It flew up the giantesses noses and scrambled their brains, the same way it had killed their sister. They fell on the floor with a dull thud.
"I'm home!" cried a loud voice from the hallway. The giantesses father had arrived. It took awhile, but eventually we outsmarted the giant, and he lay dead on the floor like his daughters. We poked around, and found Thor's staff. It wasn't what he was looking for, but we figured he would be happy to have it back all the same.
Just then, Thor landed in front of the house in his flying chariot. He thanked us for getting the staff, and transported us all to a wharf where we could get a ride to Lyngvi, the island on which Fenris wolf was bound. We were going to postpone doomsday.
We appeared outside the New England Aquarium, in Boston. There were lots of tall buildings, similar to the ones in New York. The air was chilly, and smelled slightly of smoke. I was now holding a staff made of white oak, which branched out at the tip, like a slingshot. I didn't know how I had gotten it, but I had a feeling that it would be play an important part in tonight's battle.
"I think I know what might help." Magnus gestured towards my staff. "It looks like there's something missing."
"What?" I signed, confused.
Magnus reached into his pocket, and pulled out the runestone perthro.
"I've been thinking about my life before I found you guys. When my mom died, I felt empty inside. I know what it's like to have everything taken away from you. But you're not alone. We'll always be with you. We're your family."
My eyes watered. I was happy that I had found friends who would support me. I realized that I didn't have to do this alone. Sam, Magnus, and Blitz, would always support me.
"I love you," I signed, and I meant it.
We walked down to the end of the pier, where we found two dwarves sitting at a booth, on which there was a sign proclaiming, 'Wolf Watching Cruise! Tonight only! One red gold per person!'
One of the dwarves introduced himself. "I'm Fjalar, and this is my brother Gjalar. Can we get you lovely people four tickets for tonight's Wolf Watching Cruise? Wonderful weather for wolf watching today!"
"We'll take them," Magnus replied.
"Are you sure about this?" Blitz whispered urgently, "These dwarves are notorious robbers."
"It's our only option," Sam replied, "I know it's not ideal, but it's all we've got."
After a long, cold boat ride, we finally arrived.
"Lyngvi," Fjalar announced, "The Isle Heather, prison of the wolf."
The island looked like a volcano. It was a flattened cone, drifting in the water, eerily surrounded by mist. The slopes of this rocky prison were covered with ghostly white flowers, the heather from which the island got its nickname.
We hopped of the boat, onto the shores of the island.
"Have fun!" the dwarves shouted, as they drifted away from the island. Our only hope of ever getting back was gone.
We stood at the top of the ledge, looking down into the abyss where Fenris was imprisoned. I must admit, it was pretty anticlimactic. I had pictured the wolf as some giant monster, when in reality he was hardly larger than an average labrador retriever.
The most worrying part was that the rope that bound him had evidently worn down over the centuries. It no longer bound his muzzle, and it was loose enough around his ankles to allow him to shuffle around.
I banged my staff against the rocks, causing the heather to glow brighter. I knew how persuasive Fenris could be, and as the only one unable to hear, I needed to protect the others from his charm.
"The flowers make the prison," I signed, "Stay within."
Magnus unsheathed his sword. It seemed to struggle against him, wanting to go towards the wolf. Just then, the Valkyries who had been pursuing us appeared. They tried to take us as prisoners, but the fire demon, Surt, who was working for Fenris arrived. They saw Surt and his army of demons, and charged. Meanwhile, I was forming a plan.
I pointed to the wolf, "I have an idea. Follow me."
I raised my staff. Algiz, the rune of protection spread beneath our feet. We walked down the valley, towards Fenris. When we got close, he lunged, bringing his paws over the sword to cut the rope.
Blitzen jumped forward, the rope in his hands, to try and bind Fenris. The wolf knocked him aside, and he fell facedown, and stopped moving. I slashed my staff across the wolf's skull. Tiwaz, the rune of sacrifice blazed on his forehead. I had sacrificed my strength to save Blitz.
Magnus appeared to have a sudden flash of insight. While Sam distracted the wolf, he tied the rope firmly around the sword's hilt. He launched it in the air, and it looped around the wolf's legs, under his belly, and secured the rope around his muzzle with a tight knot. The wolf was bound, but there was still a battle to win.
Magnus approached Surt.
"Go back to Muspelheim." Magnus's voice rang loud and clear throughout the whole island, like a bell. "The battle is over. I consecrate this ground in the name of Frey."
The fire demons were sucked into a portal back to the worlds from which they came. The island glowed with a golden aura. It was over. The battle was won.