Chapter Nine/ Kapittel Ni:

The blizzard pounded mercilessly at his face and he had no idea where he was or which direction he was heading. He could barely see a foot in front of him and the wind tore at every spare scrap of clothing he wore. Thor was hopelessly lost. The cold was biting and he'd already been shivering for longer than he could remember.

"Loki!?" He roared out into the empty space, his voice breaking as he choked back tears that hotly streamed down his face leaving a burning sensation down his freezing cheeks. Loki was still nowhere to be found. Neither of them was likely to survive this and Thor's thoughts turned dark as he continued, stumbling forward even as he was brutally battered by the winds. This wasn't how it was supposed to end for him… for either of them. Thor always thought his death would be brought about by either battle or old age. Sif would laugh when she discovered that he'd merely frozen to death! What a stupid way to die, any warrior would have known better than to follow someone outside into a blizzard. Hel, a small child would have known it was a stupid thing to do! Mind, Thor had never been the one to plan things out. That responsibility had always fallen to Loki…

"Loki!" He yelled again, still stumbling backwards and forwards as he fought against the winds. It was no use. He wasn't getting anywhere!

It was then that Thor suddenly noticed a flickering light up ahead. Surprised but still hopeful, Thor pushed against the ferocious winds once more and slowly, through the snowstorm, he could eventually make out a small cottage in the distance. As fast as the winds would allow, Thor hurried over to the structure and rapidly hammered on the door with his fist as loud as he could. It wasn't long before the creaky door swung open and he was dragged quickly inside by a wrinkly, old hand.

The door was slammed shut and Thor spun around, coming face to face with an old, blue, bearded, angry looking man.

"What in the name of the icy queen Ymir were you doin' out there!" The Jötun – or at least that's what Thor assumed he was – rounded on him, clearly irritated.

"I was looking for my brother!" Thor exclaimed, already disliking this bearded, blue man who looked like he wanted to rap Thor around the head with a stick. With the way he was shooting glances at a wooden cane in the corner, Thor wasn't sure that the man wouldn't beat him with a stick.

"In a snow storm?! By the damnable gods, I've heard the Æsir don't use their heads but surely you must take the cake. Always causin' trouble you Æsir, especially that King of yours… ah… what's 'is name… Odin? Startin' wars with people, cuttin' 'em down like they're that grass you're so fond of."

The old man slowly hobbled away from Thor and made his way over to a comfortable, wolf-skin armchair by the hearth which was raging with a blue and purple fire that cast an odd, creepy shadow throughout the small, one-room cottage. Thor decided to follow the man and he settled himself in the chair opposite.

"You're right. It was a stupid idea to look for him in a snow storm." Thor admitted quietly as he felt the chill being taken from his bones by the warmth of the fire. "But he's probably still out there… and he needs my help."

The old man snorted and rose to throw some more wood onto the fire.

"Ya, it was dumb. Don't you worry though, your little brother will be fine, he's a Jötun – their kind is built for this kinda weather."

"Their kind?" Thor almost squeaked with surprise. "Don't you mean, your kind?"

The old man's face fell flat and he looked at Thor as though he was an idiot. Rolling his eyes, he then plastered a dull expression onto his face. "Are all Æsir this stupid or is it just you?"

Thor instantly became defensive again. He could bash through a boulder and bring down an entire army with Mjölnir alone, but he wasn't quick with a quip and revelations didn't come easy to him. These were things he lacked but Loki easily understood; it was probably why they were such a great team together…

The old man sighed and shifted his weight with a groan, snapping Thor out of his thoughts about his missing brother.

"Listen," the old man grunted. "Do you really think I would have just let you in here were I a Jötun? If even I can recognise you, then how many Jötun do you think know your face – especially after you and your group of brats came and attacked the castle and King of Jötunheimr? If I were a Jötun, I would have left you out there for dead. Fortunately for you, I am not one of those frost things—"

"—then why do you have blue skin?" Thor inquired suspiciously, tapping his forefinger on the arm of his chair.

"Really…?" The old man replied, looking completely dumbfounded. "If your brother could live on Ásgard for so many years – a Jötun in the midst of its natural enemy – how do you think I remain here on Jötunheimr?"

"You… you have seiðr, like my brother?" Thor asked, his eyebrows rising in surprise. The old man suddenly cackled but the laughter made Thor uneasy. There was something distinctly off about this man, but Thor could not seem to place what it was.

"Oh my dear Æsir, no one has seiðr like your brother. Even your King knew that. It was evident for all to see as soon as the child was born. Why do you think he was taken from this icy realm? He was the only prophecy that had been foretold by every seer in your realm and this one."

"What…?" Thor was astounded, too confused and stupefied to fully comprehend everything this old man was imparting to him. "Loki was… taken because… he was…?"

The old man, seeing the look upon Thor's face and sensing his utter speechlessness cackled again and it was even scarier than the first time.

"My dear boy," he growled with evil mirth in his eyes. "Did you think your father picked up Loki out of the kindness of his heart? You truly are a stupid child. That Jötun child will bring about Ragnarök. Nothing you do or say can stop the end of these realms."

"Ragnarök… no… not Loki. You speak filthy lies and poison seeps from your words!" Thor cried out angrily, jumping from his chair into a standing position. "Besides, Ragnarök is just a myth, something to keep young children at bay when they become too unruly.

"Heimdall shall raise the Gjallarhorn into the air as Odin converses with Mím's severed head. The world tree Yggdrasil shall shudder and groan and the Jötun Laufey Þrymrjarson will come from the east, his shield raised before him and an army shall follow. The Midgard serpent shall writhe furiously, the eagle will shriek, pale-beaked as he tears at the corpses of the fallen. The firejötnarinhabitants ofMuspelheim will come forth and the völva continues thatJötunheimr, the land of the Jötnar, is aroar, and that the Æsir are in council. Thedwarvesgroan by their stone doors. Surtradvances from the south, his sword brighter than the sun. Rocky cliffs open and the jötnar women sink. People walk the road to Hel and the heavens split apart. All this shall be brought about by the stolen son of whom will be raised by the side that will, inevitably, win."

Thor stood silent, his mouth agape as he listen to the fierce telling of the story about Ragnarök – the end of the worlds. Never before had he thought it would actually come true. He'd never before thought that the beginning of the end would start with his own little brother… He never would have thought Loki capable of even harming a fly.

Finally, his brain seemed to reengage and he managed to utter out a few, broken words. "S… so why… why did my father take Loki from here… if he was only going to bring about… the end of all realms…?"

"You fool!" The old man barked, snapping Thor to attention. "Do you not listen? 'All this shall be brought about by the stolen son of whom will be raised by the side that will, inevitably, win.' Your father is not one for losing, neither are you. He fathomed that if he took Loki from this place and raised him as his own, the weapon that Loki is and always has been will be his and Ásgard will be saved from the destruction of Ragnarök."

Thor stood silent and held his breath. This couldn't be true. He would find a way to stop this. He would find a way to stop all of this. He would save Ásgard from Ragnarök, he would save Jötunheimr from Ragnarök, but most of all, he would save Loki from himself.


Sorry it's been so long TT_TT I am an awful person...

However, moving on. I hope you can forgive me for taking so long. The only real excuse I have is/was exams which I finished about a week or so ago. If you can forgive me and you liked this chapter, please leave me a review if you can. Okay, and thank you :)

Much Love,
Soulhearts