The sun was in visible reach, its head up and out in view. Thor strode through corridors, passing people who avoided eye contact and kept their distance.
Thor stepped briskly toward the training arena, where groups of men huddled together talking amongst themselves. He walked deeper into the sand-filled training arena, noticing the conversations surrounding him finish, and their attention turned to him. Thor ignored the stares as he continued walking, not wanting to lower himself to their level.
Five familiar faces came into view; Fandral, Volstagg, Hogan, Sif and Loki. They made eye contact with him and smiled as he approached, greeting each other. They proudly stood together, staring down to those who challenged them.
Soon everyone settled down and distanced themselves from Thor and his friends. He saw how awkward and unsettled everyone looked. He knew Asgard wasn't like this before. Nothing was as it used to be.
He turned his head toward Lady Sif who barely smiled at him, then nodded her head in respect. He stared at her, his symbol of respect, then looked back to where everyone's attention was focused on as those around him began to shuffle in the same direction.
There was a raised platform in front of them which stood at the edge of the training arena. An old, frail man emerged from behind a pillar and climbed the steps to the platform. He looked powerful and worthy of his rank. He had a golden patch over one eye and leaned against a golden staff in his hand.
Thor watched him intently, eyes focused on every move he made. He saw how he struggled up and down the platform, his lips moving but no words spoken out loud. Eventually he stopped, and turned to everyone before him.
"Asgard is a kingdom worth fighting for."
Thor watched him hesitate as he spoke his rightful words.
"My duty is to protect and serve as your King...We have grown stronger and wiser as one." He frowned slightly, not feeling reassured by what he was saying.
Only Thor could see his uncertainty. He knew his father too well to know when he was lying.
"You are here today to prove your strength and fight for what we all believe in: peace and freedom. Each and every one of you is an example to Asgard. You shall uphold your loyalty and fight!"
A slight murmur of voices arose, men grunting in approval.
"We are invincible, we will conquer, we shall fight 'til the end!" He raised his staff, and everyone began cheering, bellowing their voices to praise Odin.
Thor stood still, observing the naivety in their praises, jumping in triumph at his father's lousy speech. He looked at his friends and Loki, none of whom were reacting to Odin, knowing the same as him.
Thor saw his father hide a sigh of relief, then walk off the platform and out of view. The men continued cheering until Odin left. Their victory cries faded as they began to part ways and head towards different apparatus.
Thor turned his attention away from the platform and headed toward the weapons rail packed with various types of sharp weapons. His eyes passed over two men who grimaced at him and laughed. Thor stared at them, thinking of different ways to make them bleed, but showed no reaction to their idiocy. They began to train alongside each other, threateningly glaring at Thor after every strike.
Thor waited for them to stop so he could focus on his own problems, but they wouldn't. He felt a sudden temper build up inside him, and his walking started to change direction, heading straight towards them. He was suddenly interrupted by Volstagg who stood in his way, giving a look of warning. Thor hesitated, looking back and forth from Volstagg and the men, then decided to follow his group of friends.
They reached the weapons rail. Thor examined what his group had taken hold of. Fandral and Sif took swords and began training together. Hogan and Loki grabbed daggers and knives. Hogan threw the knife toward Loki, who deflected them easily. Lastly, Volstagg snatched an axe with a huge smile on his face and began beating it against a post.
Thor blankly stared at the rail. There was a collection of weapons, from swords to staffs. He looked at what his group had chosen and considered what to start with.
A deep voice behind Thor celebrated his name. He felt a strong pat on his back, making him lose balance. He turned round to see a tall, dark skinned man dressed exactly like Thor. He was strong in the arms and wide in the hips.
"It is an honour you could accompany us again!" He stood next to him, and they both stared at the weapons ahead of them. "Favour one!"
Thor felt irritated after hearing his enthusiastic voice, making him want to punch some sense into him. He rolled his eyes, hoping that he didn't see.
He skimmed over a few armaments, hesitated, then reached out and picked up a handful of throwing knives. He looked down at them in his hand, wondering if he should pursue them.
"Intriguing choice. Let us begin!" Again he patted him on the back, and walked away.
Thor followed behind, aware of the eyes on him.
He was led to a small area with circular aiming boards. He walked further in and stepped a few yards away from the target post. The man stood to the side, clapping his hands and congratulating one of the other men. He then focused his attention on Thor, who stared at him unenthusiastically.
"Try your first triumph." He gave a huge smile. Thor was unsettled by his extreme enthusiasm.
He took a deep breath and blanked out the noise of swords clashing and shouting of men. His eyes focused on the target. Standing side on, he held the end of the throwing knife. He lifted his arm back, and with all his strength, threw the knife toward the target. Not long had passed, and the knife was buried in the ground a few steps away. He stared at it, wanting it to magically go into the middle of the target.
"At least it endured greater than your last attempts!" He laughed. Thor made eye contact with him, glaring him down in frustration. The man cleared his throat, the smile torn off his face. "Again." His voice broke slightly after laughing, and pointed to the target.
Thor held his anger and turned side on to retry his throwing technique. Thor threw all of the knives simultaneously, anger and annoyance taking over as he threw them. One by one they flew at a dramatic speed past the target, and disappeared through the bushes. A faint shriek was heard a few seconds later. Thor awkwardly raised an eyebrow. Reluctantly he turned to the man beside him who had his head in his hands, eyes closed and shaking his head. He took a deep sigh and lifted his head, looking at him in exasperation.
Thor looked in the opposite direction to avoid eye contact. Gritting his teeth, Thor hid his embarrassment and watched as the man walked to pick up the knives.
Thor paced himself, jumping slightly to loosen up.
"You need to balance your body. Be the knife!"
Thor blankly stared at him, annoyed by the pathetic advice coming from a man who was supposed to be his instructor. He rolled his eyes and continued pacing.
"As your instructor, my duty is to expand your combat knowledge. You have to listen to what I say!"
Thor heard a faint murmur as he spoke, but didn't pay attention.
His attention was focused on a nearby group of friends making their way toward him. They made eye contact and brushed by his side, walking toward the other targets. Thor followed their movements as he turned his head.
One of the men walked toward the circular target to unpick his throwing knives, grimacing at Thor as he did so.
Loki split from the others and walked to a separate target. Thor saw Loki's hand clench tighter to something he was holding. He stopped and stood sideways, slowly lifting his arm and aimed toward the target he was looking at. Instantly, he threw a knife. It was headed straight towards the man, and narrowly skimmed past his head and onto the target board.
The man instinctively jolted backward, eyes alarmed and frantically looking around in bewilderment.
Thor's eyes changed direction to look at Lady Sif and Fandral. They bumped shoulders with the other man and started swinging their swords amongst themselves, eyeing the soldier. He reversed and called over his friend. The pair of them headed away from the target area, looking back over at Lady Sif who threateningly swung her sword.
Thor felt comforted with their presence next to him. Wherever Thor was during training, his friends and Loki followed close behind. It allowed him to focus on training, and not the mockery from others.
He bowed his head gratefully at his companions who returned the gesture. Then he turned his head to see the other training warriors keep a fair distance from them, like they usually did.
His mind drifted as he stared at his instructor muttering to himself while picking up the knives. Thor watched him disapprovingly, feeling irritated by not being able to throw a knife, and bored because he was making little progress.
He looked to Hogan, who was previously trying to draw his attention. Thor saw him stand side on and shift his stance.
He did the same, mimicking his movements. He saw Hogan pull up his right arm and made a pincer shape with his fingers, placing the knife in that position. Thor watched him lean back on his leg, indicating the vital point of it, then held his arm back and threw it forward into a straight position ahead of him, but still held onto the knife. Thor watched him repeat this action, then on the third time of demonstrating, he let go of the knife and it hit bang on in the centre of the target.
Thor nodded his head, attempting to imitate what he had to do.
The instructor returned back towards Thor, handing him a handful of throwing knives.
"Try again, but this time, focus on your target." His enthusiasm matched his body language, as he threw his arms around and pretended to be the knife, moving forward.
For a split second, Thor didn't think he himself was the dumb one for a change.
Picturing it in his head, Thor re-enacted what Hogan had shown him. He held in his breath, balanced and focused on his target. His body was steadied and relaxed, but tense enough to control his throw. He fiddled with the knife under his fingers, moving it around his fingertips. His other hand flexed then clenched, bones clicking as he loosened himself up.
He stood up straight, shifting to focus himself, then tightened his grip on the knife, closing it into his fist. Thor felt a scratch peel within his hand from the knife. Ignoring the sharp pain, Thor kept an eye on his target and loosened his fingers into a pincer position.
Preparing himself, he bent his back knee and outstretched his arm. He took a deep breath in, blanking out the interruptions. His body threw itself forward as he exhaled, and his arm lurched forward and his hand released. The knife stroked itself through his fingers and travelled through the air.
Thor watched the knife in agony, waiting for a result which he would be proud of. He watched in slow motion, feeling agitated, not wanting to get his hopes up. He noticed his friends watch intently as the knife flew toward the target.
Finally the knife made its way through the air, and skimmed past the target. Thor felt surprised, and proud of himself. He turned toward his friends who nodded in approval, and continued training, making sure the instructor didn't see their input.
Thor felt a bit more enlightened, knowing he had started to get to grips with throwing knives. He turned around to see his instructor's reaction, but it wasn't as he hoped.
His face looked frustrated and disappointed. He looked to Thor and stared at him blankly, then patted him on the back and headed in the opposite direction toward another group of men, shaking his head. "Keep trying. You clearly have a long way to go."
Thor watched him walk away to focus on a more practical training group who was in no need of assistance.
He heard footsteps from behind and felt a strong hand grasp his shoulder. He turned and saw Loki staring at the instructor as he walked away.
"Pathetic. You did better now than you have in ages!" Loki said as he shook his head.
"No need to bother. I wager he cannot throw a knife to save his life!" Volstagg walked up beside Thor and chuckled, intently watching and waiting for the instructor to trip up.
Hogan walked over, spinning his dagger up in the air and catching it. "I taught you how to throw a knife in two minutes and you nearly hit the target. He took no interest to demonstrate, let alone help you!" Thor noticed a temper in Hogan's voice as he leaned his elbow on Volstagg's shoulder.
Fandral strode over, interrupting Thor's view. He smiled boldly and turned around, facing where the others were looking. Thor saw him tighten his grip on his sword, and strode over toward the instructor and the group of warriors he was helping.
Thor frowned as he watched his beloved friend creep up behind one of the men, and swing his sword behind him. He moved further away, whistling and pretending to do some sword practice. He smiled over at Thor and the others, and waited.
A soldier's trousers had slid down, making him shriek and pull them back up. Thor heard the instructor tell him to wear better clothes for this next training session, making the soldier run away.
"That imbecile! He must have sliced the top of his trousers to make them fall down." Lady Sif walked up to Loki, her arms folded, and laughed.
Thor continued watching Fandral wander around the arena, disturbing people's training by accidentally blunting the weapons, collapsing the weapon rail, releasing the horses, and carving inappropriate words on the inside of shields. The Warriors were confused and concerned, blaming the instructor for making ridiculous jokes.
He finally walked back toward Thor, and bowed dramatically in front of them as he finished his show of entertainment. Volstagg laughed hysterically and wrapped his arm around his shoulders, walking with him toward the target area naming more disastrous things he could have done.
"He is nothing but a bad influence, Fandral," Loki joked as Lady Sif laughed, and walked away toward the others.
Thor kept his eyes on his instructor, annoyed that he was making little progress thanks to him. He saw his instructor walk toward the weapons rail and pick something up, only to discover that the whole rack fell to the floor.
"See, useless! A waste of our time, your time!" Loki protested.
Thor smiled inside, feeling thankful and reassured for what his brother and friends had done for him. He turned away from his instructor and walked over to pick up the knife he threw. Hogan and Loki kindly offered to help him as they continued training.
After what seemed like a thousand attempts, Thor slowly began to feel irritated and tired from repeatedly throwing knives.
"Just try again! One more time!" Thor stared at Loki, and he backed off playfully, knowing how easily frustrated he could get. He turned around and froze. Thor looked ahead of him and saw his instructor slowly make his way back. Loki quickly turned to Thor and shouted at him to try again.
Unexpectedly, Thor darted the knife toward the target, just as an excuse to prove he was practicing. To his surprise, he hit the outside corner of the target.
Hogan, Loki and Thor stared at it, all of them speechless. Thor wasn't sure how he managed to hit the target without concentrating compared to all his other failed attempts. His confusion was distracted by clapping coming from behind.
"I told you I would come in handy! You finally listened!" The instructor laughed and patted him on the back. Thor annoyingly stared at him, trying to state that he did that by himself with the help of his friends, not him.
"Gentleman, you should be training, not standing around!" He gave them a stern look, until they parted ways. Hogan walked to the target and grabbed the knife Thor threw, throwing it back to him. Thor quickly used his reflexes and caught it.
Feeling proud and accomplished, he waited for his instructors further instructions.
"Now try this!" Ahead of him, Thor could see a bow and arrow. "I thought knives were too sharp for your liking." He pushed the bow into him.
Thor looked at it, not sure how to react. He dropped the knives at his feet and grabbed the bow, determined to master the weapon. Realisation kicked in as he held the bow in front of him. Uncertainty crossed over him as he looked down at it. He took the arrow and fixed it into place. Barely holding the bow string, he lifted his arm and aimed toward the target. The arrow started moving sideward. Thor brought it back in. Unsure, he looked around for his confidence to be boosted by his friends, but they deliberately avoided eye contact.
Avoiding the uncertainty, he focused as hard as he could and pulled the bow string back. Not noticing his strength, he snapped the bow in half, breaking both the bow and string simultaneously. Feeling guilty, he handed the pieces to his instructor, who stared at it in shock. Thor hid his hands behind his back, taking a few steps back. His instructor looked up at him as if he'd given up.
Thor heard an antagonising laughter which irritated him. He looked behind the instructor and saw the same man who had mocked him earlier in the day, encouraging his friends to laugh along with him. Soon after, more and more men began to laugh at Thor. Anger started to build up inside of him. Emotion began to surface on his face. He was just about to move forward to end his laughter when he saw Loki in the corner of his eye.
Thor looked over to him. He held one of Thor's knives in his hand and launched it. In a matter of seconds, a shriek of pain was heard. Thor instantly turned to the sudden noise to see the man on the floor, blood pooling from a knife wound in his leg. He stood there watching, not knowing if he should laugh or be worried.
A clatter was heard behind as the instructor ran to the injured man.
"Loki, what have I said? Stop throwing knives at fellow soldiers!"
Thor heard a burst of laughter from Lady Sif and the others. Loki opened out his arms and bowed, giving a huge, deadly smile in return while Thor tried to hide his. Seeing the man lying on the floor, screaming in pain, with a knife stuck in his leg and blood on the floor, did put a slight smile on Thor's face.
Thor's eyes widened as he felt his heart drop. He stammered a few steps back and tripped up on the broken bow on the floor. He landed on his back, his breath caught off. He felt two hands slowly lift him up from behind into a sitting position. He felt faint and swayed. He looked back over to the man who was screaming and felt a sudden pain inside him. The sight of blood and pain, screams and loss reflected on him, thinking of Jane.
"Take him away!" Thor heard the instructor yell. He looked ahead and saw the man being pulled away and out of sight.
He made a sigh of relief and forced his eyes away from the blood, his heart easing to its usual pace.
The instructor returned, striding toward him, holding an intact bow and arrow.
"Get up! Try again!" Thor looked at him, seeing him with an uncertain facial expression. He stood up, fighting the others off, and used up his whole body strength to loom over his instructor. Feeling lightheaded, he snatched the bow from his hands and balanced himself.
He aimed toward the target, being more careful with his strength, and gently pulled back on the bowstring. He cleared his mind, pushing the thought of Jane to the back of his head, and focused on his target.
Gently releasing his fingers away from the string, the arrow dropped dead to his feet. Thor followed the arrow with his eyes, and sighed as he looked down at it.
"First you apply too much strength, then none at all! Another!" He pushed a second arrow against Thor's chest.
Annoyance crossed his mind as he attempted again, strategising how much force would be needed. Pulling back the bowstring, he relaxed his shoulders and rested his fingers on his lips, angling the arrow and calculating the weather differences and height needed. He released his fingers, feeling the string brush against his skin and push the arrow forward. Thor watched as its distance increased and shot past the target through a lantern, which caught alight.
A distinctive smell of smoke started to arise. A group of soldiers ran toward it with a bucket of water to stop the flames from expanding. Thor guiltily looked away, reaching his arm out for another arrow.
For the third time, Thor steadied himself as he did before and shot the arrow. To his surprise, a soldier walked up behind the target holding his previous arrow, only to be stunned when another skimmed over the top of his helmet. He ducked and ran to prevent decapitation.
Thor looked over to Loki and his friends who gave him a toothy grin. He turned his gaze to the instructor who hid behind his hands, hoping he didn't witness a murder.
"Let me take that away from you." He smiled politely and slowly reached for the bow. Thor watched him walk away toward the broken weapon rail. He stood still with a sword in his hands, gesturing for him to walk over.
Thor made his way toward his instructor, eyeing the other training warriors. Loki and the others followed behind him and made a clearing in the main training arena.
Fandral strode up to one of the warriors and trained with him. It lasted a matter of seconds, making Fandral's sparring partner scramble away in the opposite direction.
"This, is a sword," he said, throwing it toward Thor. He caught it perfectly and swung it in his grip. Unfortunately, the sword slipped and flew up in the air toward a group of men. His mouth dropped open as it landed point-down onto one of the men's feet. Another scream.
The instructor rolled his eyes and gave him another. "It is a sword! How did you manage to do that!?" He sighed and stood in a fencing position, nodding his head to Thor for him to do the same. He followed his actions, then stepped forward to attack. Their swords smashed against each other. Thor felt enlightened as he tackled his way across the arena, forcing his instructor back, until a sudden instinct came over him as he swung his sword in a downward motion.
"What was that?"
Thor felt confused. He attempted to continue his attacks, but started throwing it at him and swinging dramatically, spraining his wrist.
"It's not a hammer, Thor. It's a sword!" He noticed impatience creeping up on his instructor as he threw his sword down and walked back over to what had once been a weapon rail.
Thor looked over to his friends who shrugged in confusion, then continued training next to him.
He watched his friends train together, feeling a pinch of envy at their success: effortlessly swinging their swords, throwing knives perfectly, being able to train properly. He looked down at his feet and shuffled against the rough grainy sand. He sighed, then looked up to pay attention to his instructor who held out an axe in front of him. Thor stared at it, and heard a grunt of approval from his side. Looking round, he saw Volstagg with a huge smile on his face, longingly staring at the axe.
Thor looked at what was held ahead of him and took hold of it, feeling the weight against him. He dropped his weight while holding the axe, and tightened his grip onto it.
"I thought that because you are an expert in hammers, an axe would be best suited!" He picked up a target shaped as a human figure with scratch marks and dents all over it. "Have a go!"
Thor questioned his instructor's ability to encourage, then took a huge swing at the target. The axe flew around in the air, taking control of Thor rather than him manoeuvring it. The pure weight of the axe made Thor lose his grip as it plummeted to the floor, sitting headfirst in the ground.
Volstagg chuckled and picked up his axe, showing Thor how to hold it properly. Thor intently watched as he observed his friend demonstrate.
Without hesitation, Thor lifted the axe and faced his instructor, who urged him to try again. Thor balanced his weight from his body and stood in front of the target. He swung to the side, but his hands loosened and the axe flew across the arena, men jumping out the way. Thor turned to see a corridor of men standing on two sides, seeing the axe planted into a barrel of ale they were hoping to drink afterward.
Thor walked over to the barrels and yanked the axe out. The whole barrel split in two, ale pouring and splashing onto his feet. He watched other warriors as he walked back to the arena. Eyes of hatred looked at him, but still distanced themselves as he walked past.
Ignoring the eyes fixed on him, Thor made his way back toward his instructor. His teeth began to grind as he approached him. He threw the axe to the floor in front of his instructor and stared down at it.
"I am losing my patience!" He stormed off back toward the rail and threw him a stick with a spike on top. "Try it, just please try!"
Patience wasn't in his vocabulary anymore as he stabbed the staff by his feet and threw it at the figured target directly ahead of him.
"Hit it!"
Thor grew tired and frustratingly lunged the staff at the target. It struck directly through the target, came out the other side, and snapped in half. Thor held the end of the staff in his hand, looking at the second half stuck in the target. Unsure of what to do, he handed it back to his instructor who screamed in agony and lobbed it in the opposite direction, yelling for Thor to follow.
