Thor walked briskly towards Odin, who sat comfortably on his throne.
"Oh my boy Thor! Have you returned from Midgard so soon? What a pleasure it is to have you back at court."
Thor stopped at the foot of the stairs that lead up to the throne. He took a deep breath, as if he had been running for the past three days. "Father, there has been a disturbance. I can feel it," he said worriedly.
"Where? In Midgard?" Odin chuckled, "did those humans finally ruffle your feathers enough to send you back?"
Thor smiled slightly and shook his head. "No father, in Muspelheim. I felt some sort of shift."
"Well maybe you ought to go and speak with Heimdall, at the bifrost," Odin said, "I'm sure he would know."
Thor eyed Odin cautiously, "Father, have you nothing to say of the matter? Did you not also feel the disturbance?"
Loki shifted in Odin's skin uncomfortably, "Of course I did," he lied, "but sometimes it's best to keep what you know to yourself until you are sure."
"Yes, of course," Thor said, "well, I'll go visit with Heimdall now."
Loki watched Thor leave. He was nervous. Nervous of the future. He sat on the thrown now, regardless of wether people knew or now. Even though he was finally satisfied with his kingship, he was unsure of how to deal with these disturbances between realms, the way Odin once had. He thought of Odin and where he was now.
Valhalla, the holy hall was where Odin had been trapped. Valhalla was the hall of the good who had been slain in battle. There, those souls resided and prepared for Ragnarok, the great battle, where they would be lead by Odin.
How ironic was it that their leader is trapped amongst them, unaware of how to get out, Loki thought.
Thor spun Mjolnir and allowed himself to fly through the air over towards the bifrost. He descended and landed near the entrance. He walked briskly inside, calling out for Heimdall.
Heimdall was staring with great focus out the window into the vastness of space.
Thor stopped next to him and tried to see what he was seeing. Stars, planets, galaxies all shifted in front of Thor, but he only saw the uncertainty in the night sky. "Heimdall, I'm sorry to disturb you but you must listen. Something has happened and I fear what it could be."
Heimdall's eyes clouded and he turned to Thor. "From what I've seen Jane still misses you, so clearly nothing has changed."
"No, not in Midgard. There has been a disturbance in Muspelheim. I fear that the Fire Demons are up to something," Thor said.
"Ah, the Fire Demons. They are a strong race, I would be worried to if they had bad intentions, not that they ever don't." Heimdall gazed out the window into the starry sky.
Thor marveled as he saw reflected in Heimdall's eyes visions of distant worlds take shape and change.
"You are right. They are certainly up to something but they have protected themselves so that I can not see." His eyes shifted spasmodically, and his mouth fell slightly agape.
"What do you see?" Thor demanded.
Heimdall's golden eyes glazed over and reflected deep red. "Aghh!" he shouted. He fell away from the window, to his hands and knees. He put his hands over his eyes, but pulled them away immediately, for his eyes were so hot they welted his palms.
"What did you see?" Thor screamed, "how did your eyes burn?"
Heimdall stood to his feet.
Thor gasped, "Your eyes... they..."
"I can't see," Heimdall groaned, "I'm blind."
"How?" Thor demanded.
"It burned my eyes. I saw something, like fire. There was something, something alive and it blazed. It was moving so quickly. Thor, will I ever see again?"
Thor dismissed his question and asked, "How can there be fire in space if there is no oxygen?"
"This fire was pure, everlasting, it required no oxygen. This was some relic like the Tesseract.
"Where was it going?" Thor questioned.
"It was heading down from Midgard towards Muspelheim," replied Heimdall.
"What could it have been doing in Midgard? Are Jane and her people okay?
"So it seems."
"And this living creature? Did you not see what is was? Was it human? A lesser animal? Or something entirely different?"
"If I knew I would tell you. It moved so fast and it looked like nothing I had seen before."
"I'll go to Odin then. He will know what to do," Thor said confidently, "you on the other hand ought to go see a doctor to fix your eye. I'm sure we will be needing your help again soon."
Odin was in his study. He had a stack of books on his desk and was deep into Muspelheim myths and history.
Thor entered without waiting for the guards. "Father, I have seen Heimdall and something is amiss. He saw a flaming creature and it burned his eyes. He is blind now. Something is on it's way now to Muspelheim. Heimdall knows the Fire Demons are up to something and they have shielded themselves against his gaze. We must act."
This was all news to Loki and he realized Thor wanted his direction. "We shall investigate. We must go to Muspelheim and see for ourselves what has gone awry."
"But if we went alone they would surely overpower us. Why must we go? Wouldn't it be best to wait for them to act? Then we can react properly."
"Oh, Thor, you are growing to smart for your old father. Maybe we should just go to find out what's gone wrong, and try not to be seen."
"Do you suggest we send Asgardian spies? Thor asked.
"No, you must go yourself. You know what you are searching for the best, after all."
"But I know nothing of the realm of Muspelheim. It is foreign to me and I would have a tough time navigating its terrain," Thor argued.
"You are Thor Odinson! You shall let nothing deter you. The world is your battlefield, and you shall win all your battles. Now go son! Go!" Loki shouted in his best Odin impression.
Thor looked at Odin with confusion. You are not the great Odin I remember, he thought to himself.
Thor entered the battle yard, where Fandral, Hogun and Volstagg wielded there weapons in practice and sport. "Friends, it has been long since I have seen you last," Thor boomed, "I come in a time of need, for there is a task I must do."
Volstagg glared at Thor. "Is it really you? The elusive Thor? How's the woman?"
"Oh hush," Hogun yelled at Volstagg, "He's just been a little grumpy lately. He doesn't handle well when he doesn't see his good friend Thor for five or six years. But, it is sure good to see you."
Volstagg shrugged and rolled his eyes, "How is Midgard, I hope you have some stories to tell us," Volstagg said with a genuine smile.
"I'm sure you have kept Jane pacified," said Fandral with a devious grin.
"Yes all is well in Midgard, currently. It's Muspelheim that I wish to talk with you about.
They all went to a more private gathering room in the palace. There they sat and drank and spoke of merriments and old times. Finally, Thor brought up his task of traveling to Muspelheim.
"This all sounds quite serious," Hogun said.
"Thor, have you ever even been to this... realm of demons?" Volstagg asked.
"Well no, but as long as we are all together and unseen nothing will stop us," Thor argued, "If we could just figure out what those Muspelheimians are up to, we could report back to Odin and.."
"And what?" Fandral asked, "You know, while you have been away in Midgard your father has changed in his ways." Volstagg and Hogun gave him menacing glances but he continued, "Since you left, there has been a change in the court system. The people of Asgard question your father's guidance. While you have been away on the most insignificant Earth, the line of command has changed.
"What do you mean?" Thor asked with a frown, "Who is in control now?"
"No one in particular. That is the issue," Fandral warned, "I fear that when the time comes people may no longer look to your father for his opinion, or even command. In fact, they will have no one to look to."
Thor sat silently for a moment with his head in his hands. "If a dire situation ever did occur, the responsibility of the throne would fall to me. Recently I haven't thought myself fit to rule, but I could manage if not for an indefinite amount of time."
The four nodded solemnly.
"How soon do we leave?" a familiar voice called out.
The party turned to face the doorway, half ajar.
Sif leaned against the doorframe fully suited in her heavy armor, weapon in hand. "So you all decided to have your little get together without me? Thor," she breathed as she began to walk over to him, "How long has it been? Six years? What ever happened with that demonic she-serpent you had to attend to? Did you finally slit her throat? Or were her powers simply to much for you? You just ended up giving yourself and your hammer to her instead! Are you so strong that only the soft hands of a temptress can overcome you?
"Enough!" Thor shouted.
"Oh you think I should be done? Just finish and leave?" Sif teased, "you know this isn't how things are supposed to be. You're weak. Weak and foolish. You'll outlast that poor girl thousands of years. She's just a fling. Do you have any idea what you have compromised?"
"Yes I know exactly what I have done," Thor said heavily, "It seems as though I ruined our non existent relationship!"
Sif's amber eyes began to water. Then she slapped the only man she had ever felt feelings for and ran out.
"Well that was quite eventful," Volstagg said with a laugh.
"I hope I didn't just obliterate my friendship with Sif. I do not like her in that manor, but she is just as much of a friend as ever," Thor said, feeling miserable.
Loki was alone. He had sent his guards out and allowed himself time to just be his normal self. He rubbed the fabric of his thick, leather cloak in his hand. He much preferred the powerful touch of leather to the cool touch of the metal armor that Odin was known for. He stared at himself in the mirror and smoothed a hand over his hair. I look so different, how could I have been so naïve? I was never Odin's son, but what a crafty lie. Clearly I inherited something good from him, Loki thought. He sighed and thought to himself what he was doing. He had all he had ever wanted. Why isn't this enough? He thought about Thor who must be on his way to death by now. He would be going to the bifrost. Loki remembered when he went on an expedition much like this. Odin had been so angry that they had been let out. How come no one ever ran things like that by me? Am I not still Odin? Still the Allfather?Loki thought. He remembered when he was young, when he tried to enslave the helpless humans. He remembered their fearful faces and how they kneeled at his command. They all knew him. They all feared him. Maybe that's what I'm missing. No one fears me anymore. That must change.
Heimdall's seared eyes had faded to a peachy salmon color. He squinted when the party entered the bifrost. "Is it finally time to travel to the land of fire and brimstone?" he joked, "your party of courageous comrades has shrunk since your last travel."
"Yes," Thor replied, "neither Loki nor Sif are with us today."
"What a sad reunion," Heimdall said sarcastically in response to Loki's absence.
Thor shrugged with indifference and him and his friends moved into position.
Heimdall pierced the floor with his sword, jilting the bifrost into motion. The entire room spun at speeds beyond measure, until the bifrost extended into the room. Every color of the rainbow spun and twisted with bursts of light. Thor, Fandral, Hogun and Volstagg were sucked into the rainbow like vortex. For a brief moment there bodies felt weightless and non existent. At last, they materialized on the other side. Barren. Desolate. Dark.
