Chapter 2
[1-2]
The Coast
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.
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The height of cliff, lined up on their flank, got lower; they could hear the sound of waves. Thor, who had expected to see beautiful white sandy beach covered with form that the breaking waves had left. But when they passed through the gorge, there was nowhere that he remembered.
The bodies lied along the coast and blood stained white sand.
"Sif, send a messenger to Hogun and Volstagg." said Thor. Sif jerked at once.
"Fandral! We search for survival."
Fandral nodded with a serious look as he had never laughed.
The search was not hard for them. The coast spread evenly that there was nothing to interrupt their sight without some rocks rose up sporadically.
"It was not a battle. Obviously slaughter." said Fandral, checking a dead soldier facing down on the ground. "See? All of these bodies are Asgard warriors."
As Fandral said, they couldn't find a single corpse of enemy.
"How could it happen?" murmured Thor.
Fandral said something but Thor could not hear that; a blood stained blade swung at his neck. Thor moved his arm instinctively and fended it off barely.
There was a clang of metal sound. A man who tried to assassinate Thor started to brandish his sword violently when he recognized that his assailment got failed.
Yet the man's blade poorly aimed Thor, he could put him down without effort.
The man did not hold an impulse that his blade hit by Mjolnir and missed the hilt. Thor raised Mjolnir up to strike the man's head, looking into his face, Thor startled. However, it was not because of a long gash above a scar on his face which made him look more hideous.
While Thor hesitated to move, the man whipped out an arrowhead hidden in his sleeve and wielded it at Thor's neck.
"Hodur!" blurted Thor.
The arrowhead stopped just before it thrust his neck and Fandral's blade which was pointing at the man also stopped.
"Thor?" A hoarse voice said.
The man, who called Hodur, was wearing a damaged armor that seemed not to protect him from a blade anymore and carrying an empty quiver on his shoulder which told he was an archer.
The arrowhead slid off his hand. When it fell upon the ground, mistletoe grew up from its point.
"Your highness, Please forgive me" Hodur bowed to Thor hurriedly.
"Up." Thor ordered. When Hodur stood up, he could see his face. His left eye socket was vacant and a cracked glass beads was only left in his right one,
"Your false eyes were broken. Can you see me?" asked Thor.
"Only your silhouette." said Hodur still in hoarse voice.
"That's why you didn't recognize him." said Fandral, sheathing his sword.
"What happened here?" asked Thor.
"As you see, we have lost." said Hodur heavily. "After receiving the asking for reinforcement from Vanaheim Army, we arrived in the coast but no one was here. Clean. Just like nobody had been here before."
"Then?" said Thor.
"Balder commanded us to search the shore. At that time we were raided." continued Hodur.
"Raided? In here?" said Fandral, looking around.
The shore was plane that had no place to hide a force. Hodur nodded quietly.
"And the enemy seemed to be-" Hodur stopped and hesitate for a minute. He appeared very confusing. "-seemed to be Vanaheim's soldiers."
"What?" said Thor.
"That is impossible. Vanaheim is the staunchest ally of Asgard." said Fandral, looking a bit furious.
"You mean Vanaheim betray us?" asked Thor impatiently.
"No, it doesn't." said Hodur urgently but his voice had no confidence.
"So then you mean Asgard Army was attacked by Vanaheim's but Vanaheim did not betray us." said Fandral. "Do you think it make sense?"
"I only report on what I saw." Hodur said briefly.
"Fandral!"
At that moment, Sif's sharp voice was heard from behind Thor.
As they reach the source of sound, they could Sif leaning over a bleeding man. The man who was tall and had fair hair was groaning in a low.
"Balder!" shouted Fandral in astonished.
"Fandral, will you heave his upper body then I can bandage his chest?" said Sif, pressing his breast with her hands to stop the bleeding.
Before Fandral walked up to them, Hodur strode and pull his sword on Balder.
"Hodur!" said Sif, looking embarrassed. "What are you doing?"
"Stand back, Sif." Hodur said sharply. "Balder was dead. Who are you? Reveal yourself."
"You are absolutely sane." Fandral said angrily. "You've said the troop of Vanaheim attacked our army and now you say our force still being alive is dead?"
"I saw Balder was dying."
"You saw? With that eyes?" scoffed Fandral, looking into Hodur's blurred glass eye suspiciously.
"Yes." said Hodur. His blade was still pointing at Balder's chest.
There was a moment silence between them.
"Hodur, were you in combat when you saw his death?" Thor heaved a shallow sigh and asked.
"Yes, I was" said Hodur unwillingly.
"Then you might be seeing a wrong person to die." said Fandral briefly.
Hodur opened his mouth again but nothing was spoken out.
"Fandral, give your arm to him." said Thor, diverting his eyes from Hodur.
"We go back to the Asgard."
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Before Fandral could say something, a clang of metal beating was heard. He, Fandral, was fended barely off a blade with his half drawn sword from a sheath.
A man who fell upon Fandral brandished his sword violently. But
On his face, a large scar appeared and
A long gash just above a scar on his face made him look more hideous.
Fandral stroke his hands with the back of his sword and snatched the man's blade. As though he was waiting that moment, however, he whipped out a knife hidden in his sleeve and wielded it at Fandral's neck.
"Hodur, Stop!" Thor shouted.
His blade stopped just before Fandral's neck.
"Thor?" A hoarse voice said. The man who called Hodur withdrew his knife and hurriedly bowed to Thor. "Your highness, Please forgive me"
"Then can you explain to me how Asgard warriors could be subdued unilaterally?"
"I have no idea, sir." His voice became more quiet.
"Anyway you are the only survival?"
"Ashamedly, I think I am."