Pyrrha wandered among the camp, looking at the warriors and trying to act natural, as if she was always there. She only realized when Frigga mentioned dinner, she was very hungry. But she had no idea where to eat. She saw several people lining up from pleasant smelling tents, but she didn't know if they required money or not. After being teased with rotisserie giant legs of smoked boar, she went to a servant who was washing plates.
"Excuse me." Pyrrha said, gently tapping their shoulder.
The servant girl was about Pyrrha's age, long black hair, grey eyes and had similar servant dress like hers. She smiled at her and paused her works.
"Yes?"
"I'm sorry," Pyrrha spoke. "I'm new and I've forgotten where to get dinner. If you could point me in the right direction, it would be a huge help."
The girl nodded and pointed to a medium sized, modest tent. "You can get food and drink in there," Then she looked at Pyrrha's bandaged arm. "Do you want some company? I'm almost done here."
"Really?" Pyrrha smiled. "That would be great."
She turned back and began to wash plates once again. "I'm Unnr by the way, I started working for the Royal Family only a year ago. And you?"
"I'm Pyrrha, I..." She tried to think of a good lie. "Started a month ago."
"Really? I think you're the newest servant I've met." Unnr turned off the water, and dried her hands on her apron. "What section of the palace do you work in?"
"Oh, uh. The back?" Pyrrha guessed.
"Lucky, I would happily trade my bedroom cleaning duties to work in the garden." Unnr straightened her apron and wiped her face. "Shall we go feast?"
"Yes, I'm famished."
Pyrrha and Unnr walked together into the tent. To Pyrrha's surprise, it wasn't crowded. Many men, women, and children were dressed in plain clothes, sitting at tables, happily taking beef, mashed potatoes and whole breads, stuffing into their mouths as if it were their last meal. A pile of kegs were stacked up in a pyramid, some filled their mugs to the brim, other didn't use mugs at all. They just laid under as the alcohol flowed freely into their waiting mouths.
Pyrrha was a little... Disgusted to say the least, but at the same time refreshed. It was one of the few times she had walked into a hall and wasn't glared or winced at. She and Unnr sat at a space on one table, in front of them laid pork chops, baked potatoes, roasted chicken, and a pile of empty plates. Unnr simply grabbed a plate, and took chunks out of the roasted pig with fistfuls. There were no utensils. Pyrrha sighed and grabbed an empty plate and a baked potato. She slowly bit into the warm, salted potato slowly as she would any meal. Unnr stopped and looked at her.
"Are you feeling ill?"
"No, why?"
"No offense, but you eat as slow as a sloth going up a mountain of mud."
"Um, I'm well. I normally eat like this."
Unnr shrugged, and continued to eat with handfuls. After finishing her potato, Pyrrha took a pork chop, and took a couple bites. She heard a shrill of laughter coming from one corner of the tent. When Pyrrha looked up she saw a handsome man with blond hair, green armor and several beautiful women around him.
"Oh dear," Unnr sighed, wiping her mouth. "Fandral's in the servant's tent again."
"Fandral? Is he that man over there?" Pyrrha pointed.
"You really are a new one." Unnr grinned at her nativity. "Lord Fandral is one of the Warrior's Three, the some of the most powerful warriors in Asgard, along with their friends Lady Sif, Lady Amora, Prince Loki and Prince Thor. But Fandral is one of the trickier ones, a, as you might say, ladies man." She took a big bite of a baked potato. "Don't look at him too long, he'll think you're interested in him and come over."
Pyrrha immediately averted her eyes and continued to eat her second pork chop. After finishing the fat she took a quick glance at Fandral. Another servant, who was better dressed than others, went over to Fandral and began to whisper to him. Fandral shrugged, nodded, then stood up.
"Attention, all, the winners of the Snipe Hunt will be announced shortly. Please make your way to the largest bonfire to view this event." He chuckled a bit. "And we shall see who is the winner."
In a moment everyone downed their food or drink and stood up. A flood of people began to walk out of the tent. Unnr scarfed down the rest of her potato and stood up as well.
"Come Pyrrha, I heard the Valkyries had an excellent hunt."
"Yes, they killed the thing that hunted me." Pyrrha thought.
Pyrrha munched down the rest of her pork chop. "Let's go."
Pyrrha got up and followed Unnr into the crowd. Luckily they managed to get a seat on a tall rock so they could see better. There was a large wooden stage, laced with gold and flowing white curtains, in front of a grand tent that had intricate designs of gold on it. Several people separated in about three groups stood on the stage. She recognized Kenna and Fandral, but not anyone else. In the center stood Frigga, next to a very tall, elder muscular man with a glimmering gold eye patch and two very handsome men.
They were different kinds of handsome. One was slightly taller, muscular, rugged with gold hair and deep blue eyes, and wore silver armor with red. The other was a bit shorter, lithe, clean-cut with onyx hair and emerald green eyes, he wore black-leather armor with green highlights.
"They're so handsome." Pyrrha said looking at them both.
"They are." Unnr said with a dreamy sigh. "Who do you think is more handsome, Loki or Thor?"
Pyrrha paused. She honestly thought that the dark-haired one was more handsome. But was he Loki or Thor. She tried desperately to put a name to the face.
"Um... Thor?"
"Me too." Unnr purred. "I just love those golden locks."
"Opps." Pyrrha thought.
"Well, I honestly think that Loki's more handsome in some ways too." Pyrrha spoke.
The elder man held up a large gold spear and everyone quieted, he cleared his throat and parted his lips. "Friends, family, fellow Asgardians, we were all gathered here to celebrate the Hunt of Snipes. For generations this has been a healthy competition between the Asgardian Army-"
One large, armor clad section of the audience cheered.
"The Valkyries."
A roar of women, including Kenna, in shining armor emerged.
"And the Royal Family."
A small group, including the Thor, Loki and Fandral, cheered loudly.
"But, as always, there is a winner. But know that everyone has tried their best." The man said.
A servant ran up to him, handed him a parchment tied with a bright blue silk ribbon. He bowed, and quickly left. The man untied the ribbon, and unrolled the paper.
"And the winner is... The Valkyries."
They cheered and thrilled as they held their weapons and fists in the air.
"Tonight we feast in the Valkyrie's honor!" Kenna shouted.
"Aye!" Everyone resounded.
Before Pyrrha knew it, the crowd was being dispersed around her. She luckily wasn't pushed because she was on the rock. Unnr waved at her and jumped off, then followed the crowd. Past the helmets, the spears and blades of the crowd, she could see Frigga whispering something into the man's ear. He said something back to her and turned towards Thor and Loki and said something to them. They nodded back and receded into the grand tent, the man followed.
Frigga looked in Pyrrha's direction used her pointer finger to roll towards herself. Pyrrha pointed to herself to make sure, to which Frigga nodded. Pyrrha waited for the crowd to make itself scarce before she walked to the stage. Frigga wrapped a comforting arm around her and lead her into the tent.
"Listen Pyrrha, you are about to talk to King Odin." Frigga whispered. "Do not speak unless spoken to, address him as All-father or King, and I have tried and convince him to help you, but for the most part you are on your own." She looked at Pyrrha in the eyes. "Are we clear my child?"
"Yes." Pyrrha nodded. "And thank you."
"Be well, and be safe." She spoke.
She walked into a huge circular room. Odin, Thor and Loki stood before her around a huge table.
"You are Pyrrha?" Odin asked.
Pyrrha curtsied, keeping her head down. "Yes, All-father."
"Stand straight, and look at me." He commanded with a firm, yet low voice.
Pyrrha looked up. He stood in the center of the room. He was tall, stood without slouching even slightly. Pyrrha shook a bit, this man, this King, had such a great presence. She could feel the power come off him. Beside him stood his sons. They both looked at Pyrrha. But, to her relief, they looked at her more curiously than menacingly. Thor whispered something to his brother, he whispered back and nodded.
"I understand that you are not from here." Odin said walking up to her slowly, with a thud in every step. "So, how did you get here?"
"It's a very long story, my King."
His expression changed from blank to slightly angered. "Then tell it. In detail."
Pyrrha's heart pounded. Everything? That she was a murderer? That she became possessed? That she was a monster? With a quickened pulse, he chest became tighter.
"No." Pyrrha thought. "I can't show fear, I can't let them know."
Pyrrha regulated her breathe and kept a plain face, but it took all her strength. "I travelled around my... What is it you call your land?"
"Realms." Thor spoke, his voice deep, but smooth.
"Thank you, I travelled around my Realm since I was a child, and on my journey I learned I had a brother, Patroklos." Pyrrha spoke. "I managed to meet up with him. And he had this strange blade. It was magic."
"Magic?" Loki spoke up, his voice a little higher pitch than his brother's. "What attributes did it have?"
"I... I'm not sure." Pyrrha found herself playing with the fabric of her dress. "It looked like it was made of crystal, but it cut through steel. It could change its' shape, and power glowed from it. They called it Soul Calibur."
Loki crossed his arms in wonder. "Interesting."
"Continue you story." Odin instructed.
"Yes sir. After I travelled with him a bit, he got angry at me because he found out I was friends with people that he considered..." Pyrrha looked down and took a deep breathe. "Undesirable. So he left me for awhile."
"He left you?" Thor thundered.
"Thor, silence!" Odin spoke firmly.
"Brother." Loki spoke, putting his shoulder.
Thor looked at him, and his expression softened. "Right. Forgive me, go on Pyrrha."
"I was sad for a long time and I wandered around." Pyrrha's heart protested with a pound against her lie. "Then... I found another magic blade."
"Another? Just like the one your brother had?" Odin asked.
"Not exactly. It was red, had this huge blinking eye on it. It looked like a short blade, made of red rubies. When I took it..." Pyrrha looked at her bandaged arm. "This happened."
She grabbed the end and quickly began to unravel it. Slowly, the spiked red skin of her arm was revealed. Thor's face paled, Loki's eyes widened, and Odin looked at it with sharp eyes. Pyrrha revealed the last of her hand and held it up to show them.
"Is... Is that a disease?" Loki asked.
"Can it be spread?" Thor huffed.
"So far, no." Pyrrha replied, she traced her hand. "I went to go get Patroklos. But as I traveled... The blade began to speak."
Odin stepped forward. "And what did it say to you?"
"It said it's name was Soul Edge. It asked me," Pyrrha breathed. "To kill for it."
"And did you obey?"
Her chest tightened and pounded. "No."
Her stomach flipped. That lie would cost her greatly if they ever found out. Prison, torture, death.
"Did you find your brother?" Odin asked.
"Yes." Pyrrha replied. "And he told me, that his sword was evil as well. We found out the two swords were cursed, and were made to always fight against each other. So we decided to destroy them." Pyrrha held out her arm. "We put Soul Calibur on the ground. Then together, with Soul Edge, I felt them break, and then..."
"Then what?"
"There was this huge tornado or storm, it was so many colors. I remember being pulled up. Then I was here."
"The Bifrost?" Loki spoke suddenly.
"How could a mere mortal open the Bifrost?" Thor asked.
"Perhaps you are not mortal." Odin replied.
He walked closer to Pyrrha, until he was directly in front of her. Pyrrha shook slightly, the weight of his stare taking a toll on her.
"What is it you want Pyrrha?" He said.
"What?"
"If you were to request something from us, what would it be?" He questioned firmly.
Pyrrha sighed, making a soft noise. "I... I want to go home. Back to my Realm. Back to my brother. Please."
"If you are truly not of the Nine Realms, then Heimdall would have to seek out your home for a mere stranger. And you might be a threat."
"I'm not, I promise. Please..." Pyrrha spoke, her voice breaking.
"I have made my decision." Odin spoke, his voice stern. "Pyrrha Alexandra, I decline your request for our aid. You are to be deported to Midguard. Perhaps you will find shelter there."
Pyrrha began to breathe heavily. Tears slowly began to pool in her eyes and stream down her red cheeks.
"No... Please." She collapsed to the ground in front of him, keeping her head to the floor.
"I'll do anything! Please! My brother..."
"Nothing is worth the risk."
Pyrrha huffed and cried. Her head began to hurt, her stomach churned and ached. She slowly turned to Thor and Loki who looked at her pitifully. Panting, she looked at them.
"Hel-help me..." She pleaded. "What if it was you? What if you didn't know what happened to your sibling?"
The brothers looked at each other. Their distressed expressions matched. Then they looked at Odin. He stood firm, unmoving as a mountain.
"Patroklos..." She cried.
"Odin!" A voice shouted. "There's been a breakthrough."
Pyrrha turned slightly to the tent entryway. Frigga ran in, her face a little red from running, in high-heels no less! A familiar face, Kenna, ran in after her, some sort of draped object in her arms.
"Odin, Pyrrha came wi-" She stopped.
She saw Pyrrha, sniffling, sobbing mess laying on the ground.
"For the love of Yggdrasil!" She exclaimed.
Frigga went swiftly to Pyrrha. She knelt down next to her, helping her sit up. With a golden shimmer in her palm, a handkerchief appeared. She gently began to wipe Pyrrha's tears away.
"What did you all say to her?" Frigga demanded, fixing her tangled hair. "Hush child..."
"Father said it!" Thor pointed.
Odin gave him a short glare. "Frigga, we cannot risk the safety of Asgard for a stranger."
"Unless she has something to give in return."
Kenna walked forward, presenting the object in her arms. She took off the cloth that covered it. A red gleam shined in the light of the tent. Soul Edge lay in her arms. Broken, dangerous, beautiful.
"It's unlike any sword I've ever seen, Allfather. When I took it away from her, I tried my hand with it. I tested it against wood, rock, steel, then Uru. It cut through all."
Loki walked to Kenna, then slowly took the sword out of her palms. He eyed it thoroughly, then hovered his hand above it. A blue glow emitted from his fingers. After scanning his hand above it, his face became puzzled. He then walked over to Pyrrha and knelt down to her too.
"Let me see your arm." He spoke.
Pyrrha held her malfested arm towards him. He did the same spell and movement he did with the sword.
"Father, Soul Edge and Pyrrha's arm both have the same magic signature as the Bifrost." He stated, standing up. "If Soul Calibur was similar to Soul Edge, the two colliding could have caused the Bifrost to open."
"Sending her here." Thor added. "But why not her brother?"
"Pyrrha's arm has the same magic, when the swords broke and released their magic..."
"Her arm pulled her into the Bifrost." Frigga finished.
"I'm sorry..." Pyrrha spoke up. "But I have almost no idea what anyone is talking about."
Kenna cleared her throat. "Looking at the evidence, it's likely it might just be an accident you're here, Pyrrha."
Loki walked over to Odin, holding Soul Edge before him. "I want to study this, father. Think of the potential. We might find other worlds that we didn't even know existed."
"It's my sword."
They looked at Pyrrha. With help from Frigga, she slowly stood up. Her eyes were red and her cheeks irritated, but she stopped crying.
With a light sniffle, she spoke. "I'll give Loki the sword, and anything else you want me to do or pay. Please, help me get back home."
Odin looked at the eyes staring around him. Pyrrha clutched her hands together and looked at him with large, pleading eyes. Odin looked at Frigga and Kenna, both were determined and serious. Then he turned to his sons, Thor's eyes glimmered with pity, Loki's with hope.
He sighed. "Very well. Pyrrha Alexandra, in exchange for finding your home, you will give us your blade and your service."
She sighed in relief, then bowed deeply. "Thank you, All-father."
"Thank those who are responsible." He replied.
Pyrrha looked at Frigga and bowed to her as well. "Thank you, my Queen."
She smiled and nodded back. "Of course my child."
"And you Kenna."
She chuckled. "If I dishonored a fellow Sister, then why would I be a Valkyrie?"
"I don't know what that means." Pyrrha looked at the Princes, then bowed at them. "And thank you two."
"Of course." Thor spoke, his voice a little more robust. "I don't know what I would do if I lost my brother."
"I do," Loki said in a sharper tone. "Flip every table in the marketplace to look for me."
Thor wagged his finger in protest. "That only happened once! We were children! And I was worried!"
"What made you think I was under a table?!"
"You were very short!"
Their argument was interrupted by Pyrrha's giggling.
"Do they do this a lot?" She asked Frigga.
"You don't know the half of it." Frigga replied.
Author's Note: Sorry for the over maternal Frigga. That's just how I picture her. Also, forgive me for posting so late! I got caught up in school, work and my other fanfic. I'll try and update this one more often!