Chapter 7: Meanwhile, Back on Jotunheim
In which we stop in to check on Farbauti, and see how things are going on Jotunheim.
Farbauti was alone in the chapel. It was the one place he could be truly alone and undisturbed. Short of an invasion, there was no cause which would permit anyone to intrude on his time here. He came here daily to find quiet, if not peace.
He remembered entering it the day of Laufey's death, searching in vain for their son. There was no trace of the child anywhere. Sirel recounted the story of Vonir's naming, finishing just as the Asgardian army breached the gates of the Temple. Sirel had escorted the Queen and Prince, attempting to get them to the safety of the hidden room behind the chapel. Laufey had fallen in the passageway before the army came through, Sirel had been enchanted by Odin, and Vonir had been taken. Though the child's body had not been found, the Jotuns had no hope that their prince had survived the brutal attack.
Farbauti had remained calm despite his anger at the defeat suffered by his army. Farbauti had remained quiet despite his rage at the Asgardian's theft of the Casket of Winters. But there, in the Temple where his beloved wife had died, where his dearest child had been lost, Farbauti's will broke, and he had wept. His grief at the loss of his wife and his son had cracked his heart and rent his soul, and he let himself weep for the loss of love and life. He had walked out of the chapel and back to his palace with a shattered heart and an empty soul.
He shook himself, and took a deep breath. That had been many years ago. The Asgardians had left them with little, but the Asgardians had also left them alone. Without the powers of the Casket of Ancient Winters to build and to heal, the Jotuns had to rely solely on their own abilities, and the limited resources of the realm. They were rebuilding as they could, but having lost so much in the war, his realm was suffering longer and reconstruction was painfully slow.
He gazed at the painting of Laufey, smiling peacefully from the wall. In honor of the lost prince, the painter had depicted her holding the newborn child. The panel simply read, "Queen Laufey and the Eldest Prince, Vonir". He and Laufey had not been able to agree on a name before the birth. When telling the story of what happened in the Temple, Sirel had reported the child's name as chosen by Laufey. That she had chosen to name the child "Hopes" in such a desperate time reminded Farbauti of what a perfect queen and wife she had been for him.
On the day they sent her to rest with her ancestors, Farbauti had never expected to feel joy again. He had lost his wife, his son, and his realm's magic. All that he had worked to build in his life, all that he had striven to build for his people, was gone in one hour, and all the result of his rash desire to contest the Asgardians for rulership of Midgard.
In the years since that terrible day, Farbauti had worked to make amends to his people. He could not restore Laufey or Vonir to life, but he could make every effort to improve the lot of those he had misled. He knew it would take years to regain their trust, and was grateful for the councillors and subjects who had remained loyal and who did their part to carry out his plans for rebuilding.
He walked out with the gatherers to learn more about conditions that created the scarce vegetation, and to find ways to create those conditions to grow more food. He rode out with the hunters to learn more about the migration patterns of the herds, and to explore methods of domestication to increase the livestock. He reviewed each law with his councillors, taking it apart word by word, to see if it could be made more fair, or if it could be done away with entirely. He rose early each morning, and stayed late in his study each night, trying to find ways to restore his realm and care for his people.
Slowly, it had been working. Each year, there was more food and less hunger. Each year, more babies were born, and fewer children succumbed to illness and cold. Each year, more subjects greeted their King with true respect instead of perfunctory duty. Things were still difficult, and scarcity still haunted the realm, but each year, things were a bit better.
Except that each year he was still without a wife, a child, a queen, an heir.
Some things, time could never heal.