Author's note: the letter ð (eth) is pronounced like the "th" in the word "them"
Ada skidded around a corner at speed, now following a new path: that of the absence of magic caused by the serpent Jormungandr. Above a certain height, magical fragments still glittered, but at eye level, the air looked disturbingly barren. Only Bragi's thick cords of white magic were venturing down into the void, giving Ada confirmation that she was going the right way. She almost wished she had time to admire the sight- running down the quiet corridor was like passing through a soft rainfall of glowing confetti.
She passed quickly through yet another golden hall, only sparing a moment to be annoyed at the fact that it was the fourth identical room like this in a row. What was even the point of all of these gloriously empty rooms?
The only reason Ada knew the trail wasn't leading her in circles was the growing frequency and volume of explosions and clanging metal. She thought she could even hear some shouting now.
She had come to somewhat of a concourse, full of startlingly large pillars of dark stone. Enormous windows lined the first half of the room, allowing the patchy moonlight into the space. Ada noted that it was no longer snowing, though the night sky was slightly cloudy; at least it wasn't on fire.
She ducked into a side door and ran smack into a large rope of Bragi's magic- the largest she had seen yet. She sputtered in surprise for a moment as the rope recoiled from her impact, arching slowly into the air. She cautiously reached out a hand to touch it- she was rather shocked to find that it had what seemed to be material form, albeit a very light one. Sensing her touch, the rope began to snake itself across her hand and around her wrist. Ada fought a strong urge to shake it off- it was a bit too similar to an eel for her liking.
Thankfully, the rope simply passed its length around her arm and drifted off lazily in no particular direction. She was simultaneously very glad she couldn't always see magic and rather creeped out by the thought of how many magic ropes had wound around her in the past without her knowledge.
Ada walked down the hallway ahead of her a bit more slowly, actively avoiding Bragi's swirling magic. As the ropes dipped in and out of the emptiness left by Jormungandr, they dragged smaller magic fragments with them, and soon the serpent's path was all but lost.
As she continued, Bragi's trail was also suddenly lost; she spun with a start to try to figure out where his magic had stopped. Thankfully, it had just taken a sharp curve toward a pair of closed doors.
She pressed an ear to them and was disheartened to find that the sounds of conflict seemed to be coming from within whatever room was on the other side of the doorway.
Ada gingerly tugged one door open, unsure how many einherjar or fire jotuns might tumble out. However, instead of the raging battle she was expecting, she got a tremendous elevated view of the galaxy-laden branches of Yggdrasil… and a lot of feathers.
Two Valkyries stood with their backs to her, grey wings slightly extended. Bragi's magic had apparently led Ada to some sort of observation deck, from which the Valkyries watched the clash of armies around the base of the world tree, magic spewing forth to the ceiling from the heat of the battle. A tower of white magic suddenly bloomed, its bright light visible even through the Valkyries' wings. But the Valkyries weren't just there to watch the battle and block Ada's view, they were holding something- someone.
Ada quietly stepped to the side to get a better look at the restrained figure. The broad profile and blond hair immediately gave away the captive's identity: Thor, more enraged than Ada had ever seen anyone, twisted in their clawed grip. His hands were bound into fists with thick chains that glowed with Loki's distinctive green magic, the combination of enchantment and confinement preventing him from calling Mjolnir. She desperately wanted to do something to help, but what could she possibly do against a pair of armed Valkyries? She had no weapons, no real magic of her own-
But she did have other peoples' magic. She snatched a stray length of Bragi's magical rope from above her, crumpling it into a ball in her hands as she crept close behind one Valkyrie. The shape stuck, and she clenched the ball tight in one fist, seriously doubting the feasibility of her plan. She hoped she would still be able to feel the magic when she completed the even less feasible aspect of her plan…
Ada removed her headband with her free hand, stretching it wide with her fingers. Her eyes would take a while to adjust to the lack of bright magic illuminating her surroundings, but all she needed to see at the moment was the Valkyrie's head in front of her. She slowly raised her arm until it was positioned above the Valkyrie- not an easy task, as the thing was easily taller than Loki- and released the headband, snapping it behind the Valkyrie's ears.
The creature let out a desperate screech at the shock of its vision suddenly being filled by what was probably painfully bright magic. It lost its grip on Thor, pawing at its head frantically, spinning to the far edge of the viewing platform.
Ada darted through the gap it left, the feeling of the magic ball in her hand encouraging her despite the fact that she could no longer see it. Before Thor knew what was going on, Ada had seized part of the chain that was wrapped around his hands and slammed the invisible ball of magic into it. The chain shattered in her hand, much to her delight.
Her jubilation didn't even last a second; the feeling was swiftly replaced by fear as she caught sight of a clawed hand coming at her face. Before she could shield herself, however, she was draped in Thor's crimson cape, unable to see her surroundings any longer. It was apparently an accidental action, as Thor quickly swept it off of her, revealing the prone figure of his Valkyrie captor. Wow, he's good, Ada thought. Maybe I should stick with him instead of finding Bragi.
Over the sound of the battle below, Ada thought she could hear a distant and strangely metallic whine, which was rapidly growing louder. She spun to face the door just as Mjolnir crashed through the wood into Thor's outstretched hand. It did not stay there for long, however; the other Valkyrie, who had freed itself of the enchanted headband and was on the attack, suddenly had a face full of hammer.
The immediate threat gone, Thor cast his gaze to Ada, who was searching the ground for her headband. "You have my gratitude, Aðalrun," he said gruffly, obviously more concerned about the battle raging below. "However, if you will excuse me-"
"No, wait!" Ada said, abandoning her search and jumping to her feet. "You have to find Jane! She's in danger, they took her after they knocked you out-"
"Where?!" Thor yelled. He tried to compose himself when he saw the look of fear his demand brought to Ada's face. "What in the Nine Realms is going on, do you know?! Where is my brother?"
She held her hands up defensively. "Don't ask me, I just woke up!" Well, that wasn't a complete lie. She coughed. "When I last saw him, he told me to find Bragi, and that the fire jotuns were planning to kill Jane, like Geðr said when she first attacked us." Not lies, just… omissions of details.
Thor growled and looked away to face the fight, taking a wide stance. "I can take you to Bragi, though I am unsure what good it will do for either of you. He is rather busy at the moment." He gestured offhandedly to the unconscious Valkeryies. "You may want to arm yourself."
"I, er…" Ada knelt down cautiously next to one. "Do you think they have any daggers? Or long knives? Their swords are a bit heavy for me…" she trailed off, thinking of the floundering (but ultimately successful) defense she had given last time she had handled a Valkyrie blade.
Shockingly, this drew a chuckle from Thor. "You truly are my brother's woman!" His warm smile seemed out of place amongst the clashing metal and the shouts of soldiers. "Check their boots, they tend to keep their cutlery there."
"I'm not your brother's anything," Ada grumbled, drawing a knife from its hiding place. She checked to make sure Thor hadn't heard her remark- she didn't want to give him any hint of the fact that all was not as straightforward as she was making it out to be. Luckily, Thor's attention had been captured by a particularly large commotion below.
A towering, flaming figure was now present alongside the already tall fire jotuns. Unlike the others, he sported a pair of curved, twisting black horns, both capped with gold. He let out a battle roar that sounded like a horrible combination of a grizzly bear and a furnace as he swung a great flaming sword, mowing down dozens of einherjar at once.
"Surt," Thor said quietly through clenched teeth. "Come, Aðalrun," he commanded, extending one hand and spinning Mjolnir increasingly quickly in the other, "The situation is even more grim than I anticipated."
You have no idea, Ada thought as she stood and made her way quickly to Thor's outstretched hand. She tucked her knife into her metal belt and held onto Thor's shoulder, casting one more glance behind her at the fallen Valkyries. Her face paled as she saw a soot red rooster struggle out from beneath one of their wings. "Oh shit…" she gasped, pushing away.
"Aðalrun!" Thor shouted impatiently as she broke from his grasp.
"Just… a second…" Ada choked out, creeping up to the bird. There were three roosters in the Ragnarok prophecy, maybe if she could prevent one from crowing-
She closed her hands around it, holding its wings to its sides. It stared up at her, shocked, and made a quiet squawk as it began to struggle in her grip. She picked it up, its legs kicking in the air wildly, and tucked it under her arm like a football, pinching its beak shut with two fingers. She gave it a pleading look as she returned to Thor's side. It blinked several times in response; Ada was unsure if that was an acknowledgement or not.
Thor raised an eyebrow at the bird before grabbing Ada, flinging them into the air without any further interruption. Despite Thor's strength, Ada instinctively removed her fingers from the rooster's beak to cling to his arm for more stability as they soared over the battle. She squeezed her eyes shut, expecting an explosive crow like the one that had emanated from the golden rooster, but the animal remained silent in her grasp. She was relieved for a moment. And allowed herself to take in the bird's-eye view of Yggdrasil Thor's flight path was giving her.
"Bragi!" Thor boomed suddenly. Ada looked around and found that they were approaching the familiar god, who was surrounded by enemies, at a high rate of speed. "I believe I have something of yours!"
Bragi whacked the fire jotun he was currently tussling with on the back of the neck with the hilt of his sword, then spun around and grinned at Thor.
Disarmed by Bragi's fatherly smile for only a millisecond, Ada immediately became incensed at Thor's choice of words. "Goddamnit, what is it with you Asgardians?! I'm not your anythiiiiiiiNG OH GOD!" Her rant was cut short by Thor releasing her in midair, causing her to let go of the rooster and flail wildly.
Ada flailed right into Bragi's arms, landing more gently than she thought she would as Thor flew off in a direction unknown. He set her down and caught the rooster deftly as well, smiling as he handed it to her. In the same motion, he spun in a broad circle, blowing several attackers back with the force of his magic. As a final flourish, he continued the spin until he faced her again, sweeping one of her hands into his and kissing it.
Ada stared at him in pure shock, her amazement effectively tuning out the violence that was going on around them. The rooster burrowed back under her arm just in time for Bragi to tug Ada out of the way of a sword swing.
"I believe I know you, young one, or perhaps your mother," Bragi said in a rich, warm voice. "However, I doubt that you know me! I am-"
"Bragi, god of poetry, my several-times-great-grandfather," Ada cut him off. "Loki told me to find you."
"Ah, that wily trickster!" Bragi said with a laugh, apparently completely at ease despite the chaos around them. "He sends me my kin in the midst of battle! What must he be up to now?"
Ada jumped as an einherjar fell next to her, adjusting her grip on the rooster. "He just said that you'd protect me," she said uncertainly. "But I'm not sure you're really in a position to-"
"Of course that is what he wants my dear, the question was rhetorical!" Bragi chuckled, beginning to guide her forward, all the while dancing about deflecting attacks with his sword. "I can see his magic on you. It is well known that he will add an extra element to a situation just to see how it causes others to react; he believes he is much more deceptive than he actually is. But in this case, I am more than equipped to protect one of my own blood!" As if to demonstrate, he swept Ada up with one arm, tossing her into the air as he cleared a group of fire jotuns out of the way with a magic blast.
She squeaked as she landed back in the crook of his arm, and he set her down again, placing his hand behind her to continue to guide her forward. She was shaking from all the recent events, though whether it was from fear or excitement (or both) she wasn't sure. "Where are we going?" she shouted over the clang of metal on metal and a variety of explosions.
"Yggdrasil!" Bragi said cheerfully. Oddly, he didn't seem to need to raise his voice to be heard- must be magic, Ada thought. She was suddenly glad she no longer had her headband; this conversation might've been a bit awkward had she been squinting at him the entire time, trying not to be blinded by his exuberant power. But wait, Yggdrasil?
"Isn't Surt trying to burn that down?" Ada asked incredulously, checking the status of the rooster in her arms. Its head bobbed along in time with her steps.
"He is, indeed, trying," Bragi laughed. Does nothing phase him?! Ada wondered with an annoyed glare. She was beginning to slightly understand Loki's feelings about him. Bragi went on, ignoring her increasingly grumpy face. "He will never succeed, given the amount of thought Loki has put into his defense plan- thanks to the efforts of the einherjar, Lady Sif, and the Warriors Three, we are driving the enemy back easily! And now that Thor has joined the fray, the fire jotuns haven't a hope of triumph! And, as if all of these glorious fighters doing battle together weren't enough to inspire volumes of wondrous poetry, there is one more element that Loki apparently failed to account for-" He placed a hand to his ear expectantly.
A horn sounded loudly somewhere in the room, its tone amplifying itself by resonating with the metal armor of the einerjar. "Heimdall!" Bragi exclaimed. "The ballads I shall write of this day will have no equal!"
"Oh god, Heimdall's horn…" Ada said with dread. Events were following the Ragnarok story she was familiar with almost word for word, and she didn't like it. She felt the rooster swell under her arm and she swiftly clamped its beak shut again, much to the bird's chagrin. "Please, just wait a bit longer…" she whispered to it.
"We have nearly reached the tree, my sweet daughter, worry not!" Bragi almost sang, gracefully felling a fire jotun with a swish of his sword.
"That's not what I'm worried about!" Ada shouted over another explosion.
"Ah, see! We have arrived already!" Bragi said triumphantly.
The area before them was unexpectedly clear of both einherjar and fire jotuns, and seemed to lie just beyond a shimmering, translucent curtain. After the border created by the curtain, the ground bubbled with the roots of Yggdrasil, creating a labyrinthine path to the great tree's trunk itself.
"Go on through, little one, no harm shall befall you beneath these sacred branches," Bragi said warmly, sensing Ada's hesitance to pass through the sparkling barrier.
Ada turned to him with fear in her eyes, just as a fire jotun appeared behind him, sword raised to strike. "Dad!" she screamed before she could stop herself- the likeness was too much for her to bear.
Bragi cocked his head curiously, his bushy beard shaking from the gesture. Almost as an afterthought, he thrust his sword behind him, impaling his assailant. "I thought you said we were further generationally removed than that? Tell me, who is your mother? On second thought-" he smoothly pulled his sword from the fire jotun and stuck it in the ground, placing a hand on Ada's back to give her a final push under the tree. He followed her in. "Let us discuss this in a more peaceful setting."
Ada raised an eyebrow so high she thought it might've disappeared into her hairline. "More peaceful…? Don't you have stuff to do?!"
"War is no place for poets," he said, gazing into the distance wistfully. "My comrades seem to have the situation under control."
Ada slowly set her rooster down, making eye contact with it as she released its beak. She pressed a finger to her lips, and the bird stared back blankly. As its feet touched the ground, it began to peck at the roots of the tree contentedly.
Ada straightened, took a deep breath, and whirled on Bragi, her eyes full of rage. "People are DYING and you want to talk about your one night stand with my great-great-grandmother?! Who the hell are you?!"
Bragi suddenly grinned and snapped his fingers. "Brynja! Oh my, she was lovely! You are very like her you know, she was quite a little spark."
Ada was momentarily shocked into silence. "Yes, she…" A sudden explosion brought her back to reality, and she frowned, advancing on Bragi. She grabbed his shoulders and spun him around, facing him towards the battle and pushing him out through Yggdrasil's magical barrier. "Fight now, geneology later!" she shouted.
Bragi laughed loudly and retrieved his sword. "If I must!" he said with a grin, diving back into the melee.
As his form disappeared in the crush of fighting bodies, Ada took several steps back and sat down heavily on a root. She glanced wearily at the rooster, still pecking away, and sighed. She watched it for a while, trying to not worry herself sick over Jane's whereabouts, Loki's intentions, and the fate of the universe.
All of a sudden, the rooster's head jerked up to stare straight ahead. Ada followed its gaze to see the grand figure of Heimdall standing just beyond Yggdrasil's border. A small smile came to her lips as she rose to greet him.
"Where is the traitor, girl?!" Heimdall boomed, his golden eyes flashing dangerously. He pointed his sword at her to further emphasize his threatening intentions, despite the fact he probably knew that Yggdrasil would drive away any weapons that came too close to it- a fact that didn't seem to apply to the knife Ada suddenly remembered was tucked into her belt. But she had more pressing matters to worry about.
She shook her head wildly. "No, he's not a traitor! Well, I mean… He has a plan to fix this, to stop Ragnarok!"
Heimdall gave a harsh laugh. "Ragnarok will not be caused this day! The elements are not in place-"
Ada scooped up the red rooster and held him aloft. The bird gave Heimdall a look that was decidedly un-bird-like- it was very similar to a tired scowl.
Recognition and dread showed in Heimdall's eyes. "It isn't possible… That madman has brought the end upon us!"
"Not yet!" Ada gasped desperately. "He's going to fix it, he told me-"
"The only way to fix this is through his death!" Heimdall cut her off, raising his sword above his head. It began to glow.
"No, that'll make it worse- have you even read the damn prophecy?!" Ada shouted, setting the rooster back down. "You guys kill each other, and-"
"Do you threaten my woman, guardian?" a silky voice asked from behind Heimdall. He spun, sword at the ready, and was faced with with three Lokis, still in their jotun form and each holding a Gungnir.
"I will not fall prey to your manipulations this time, usurper!" Heimdall barked, swinging his gleaming sword through all three figures. They faded like smoke as the blade passed through them.
"Ah, very clever, you've enchanted your portal sword!" Loki chuckled. His voice seemed to come from nowhere in particular; Heimdall and Ada both looked around desperately, trying to locate its source.
An inconspicuous einerjar suddenly grew several inches and turned blue, revealing the true Loki. He released Gungnir and waved his hands to conjure the Casket of Ancient winters.
"Too slow!" Heimdall cried, stabbing the only just-formed weapon. To Loki's dismay, the Casket seemed to be absorbed into Heimdall's blade. With another swipe, he absorbed Gungnir as well.
"Portal sword indeed!" Loki laughed bitterly, narrowly escaping the continued thrust of the blade. "I suppose I'll have to do this the old fashioned way…"
"STOP!" Ada shrieked. To her surprise, Loki and Heimdall both froze. She had no time to think about why. "Loki, I thought you would fix this! If you kill each other-"
"I am fixing this," Loki growled, drawing a dagger. Whatever spell Ada had accidentally cast to immobilize him and Heimdall had already worn off. "Heimdall's testimony against me would take precedence over anyone else's! And here I thought he would simply remain in his observatory, preoccupied with the battalion of fire jotuns Geðr sent his way…" He lunged for Heimdall, whose counterattack only barely missed Loki's chest.
A piercing female scream abruptly directed everyone's attention upward. On a viewing platform just like the one that Ada had stumbled upon, Geðr was holding a burning knife to Jane's throat. Jane cried out again in pain as Thor alighted on the railing of the balcony, roaring in rage.
Loki took this distraction as an opportunity to have another go at Heimdall. Heimdall was unexpectedly prepared for his underhanded attack- he cut a gash into Loki's arm with his sword, and swung it about to aim at the center of Loki's chest.
Loki spun out of the way of the strike, a frightening grin plastered on his face. He flicked the dagger at Heimdall. The guardian was forced to bend to dodge the projectile, and Loki, drawing a second blade, was quickly at his throat.
However, Heimdall's sword was just as quickly at Loki's stomach.
"LOKI!" Ada cried, reaching out. In her peripheral vision, she saw the red rooster puff up.
The deafening sound of the resulting crow caused Ada's vision to blur; she was forced to crouch down to the ground to cover her ears. When the sound subsided, she lept to her feet, only to find that nothing had changed... Neither man had made the killing strike.
Only when the ringing in her ears subsided did she realize the whole room was deathly quiet- the dancing flames of the fire jotuns were still, and far above the battle, Thor was frozen in mid-leap for Jane.
Ada turned to face the red rooster in confusion, just in time for it to shatter into a million glowing fragments as its golden brother had done. However, instead of plastering themselves upon any surface they could find, the fragments swirled around once, twice, and gathered themselves into a stream, curving back to the roots of Yggdrasil. The fragments began to take on a form, that of a person, a woman-
Skuld blinked several times as her golden eyes took shape in her face. "Aðalrun Paulsen, Bragisdottir of Midgard, we have much to discuss," she said smoothly.