Half an hour had passed since Sefaera had stopped the first fire and the ward of Ginnungagap's energy around the council hall faded. The Fel had burned itself out and it was now safe to enter. One of the first to gain entry was a Star Guard dressed in the white and crimson of the Blood Wolves. It was Svanr, the young wolf who was even now carrying out Lorelei's orders.
He had not been present for the fire, having been with Lorelei at the time, but had now returned to the capital. Lorelei thought Svanr might find something of value in the burned-out hall, and he was inclined to believe her. It wasn't just because her thrall would have him agree with anything she said, although that was one factor, it was also because it made sense. There had been powerful people killed and when people died all of their powerful trinkets were left on their bodies just asking to be taken. Normally he would never sink so low as to scavenge bodies like a Marauder but he would forbear for his mistress.
As he wove through the mess inside the hall, he stumbled across melted armor and fell flat in the dust. He sat back up and looked at the body. There were bones within the armor, but the Fel fire had eaten away all traces of flesh. Svanr wasn't sure, but the armor looked like it belonged to the Captain of the Red Rain. Red Rain was an ally of the Raven Blades and many Raven Blade initiates that didn't make the cut to join Angborn's squad were drafted into Red Rain.
Svanr didn't find anything of interest on the body and moved on to the body of another captain, unable to identify which squad they belonged to. Then he saw the gilding on the armor and realized this was no mere captain. He knelt to get a closer look and felt a strike of sorrow course through him. This body didn't have his right hand.
"Tyr," he whispered as he bowed over the body.
Asgard's general, Odin's second in command, was dead.
He bowed his head and whispered a prayer to Hela for him, hoping Tyr would find a place in Valhalla. When he finished his prayer, he opened his eyes and that something was sparkling amid the debris near him.
He reached over and gently dusted off the area to reveal a dirtied ring. Carefully, Svanr picked it up and looked at it. He thought he saw something green beneath the dusty surface, but it was too heavily stained to see clearly.
Svanr looked down at Tyr's body, seeing that the former general's left hand had been reaching towards the ring when he had died. It must be important if Tyr was reaching for it. After a moment's hesitation, he put it in his pocket, thinking his mistress might be interested.
After that he stood and resumed scouring through debris and searching bodies. Tyr probably would have fought against Lorelei anyway, Svanr told himself in consolation, so he would have needed to be killed. Despite losing his right hand to Loki's wolf Fenrir, the general had been trusted by Asgard and respected by his enemies. Fighting the Celestials would be much harder now, but Svanr assumed that his Lady Lorelei would help. Celestials were enemies to all.
He found nothing else of interest and decided to report to his mistress before Jaro found him, having no inclination to explain himself to his former captain. Before he left, he wiped his footprints clean to hide his presence and walked back along the stone so he would leave no trace. No one challenged him as he left Gladsheimr and began to head back to the burned-out bookstore where his mistress was.
People were too busy running around panicking to notice him, especially since the fire in the Healer's Ward was still burning. Thick, grey black clouds had formed overhead, promising rain. It usually rained after a large fire, the heat from the blaze warming the atmosphere overhead, so the realization didn't bother him. He made it to his mistress before the rain began and tapped on the doorframe of the store, requesting entrance. His mistress's beautiful voice called out for him to do so and he happily approached and knelt before her.
"My lady, glory of Asgard," Svanr greeted flatteringly. "I return so I may bask in thy beauty, Lady Lorelei."
Lorelei gave him a seductive smile as she reclined on a table layered with pillows. "Do you have a report to make?"
"The Fel fire," Svanr started.
"I am well aware of that," Lorelei interrupted. Her voice was laced with irritation. "If you're wasting my time…"
"N-no," Svanr stuttered, "never."
He clumsily withdrew the ring he had taken from the debris and held it out to her.
"A ring?" Lorelei sneered, "You come to me with some dirty ring?"
"I found this with Tyr's body after the Fel fire was extinguished," Svanr tried to say again. "I think he was reaching for it when he died."
"That means nothing!" Lorelei snapped.
She slapped Svanr's hand and knocked the ring from it. What she expected to hear was the clatter of metal, but when it hit the floor the ring chimed as only enchanted crystal could. Lorelei breathed in sharply at the noise.
Ignoring the hurt look in Svanr's eyes she held out a hand with her palm up. The ring levitated up to her fingers. Careful not to directly touch it, Lorelei swept her feet off the table she had been lounging on and walked to a pitcher filled with water. She dropped the ring inside and spiked the water with her magic.
Condensation appeared on the wood as the water's temperature lowered. The ring glowed dark green beneath the stain of dust and blood as it cleaned itself. What was left was a copper ring, the outside of which was covered in shards of emerald that were shaped like rose leaves and overlapped like viper scales. Each shard glowed from within from magic stored in it.
"Svanr," Lorelei started with breathless excitement.
Svanr cringed. He did not want his mistress upset with him.
"You are wonderful," Lorelei said with a melodious laugh. "Do you know what this is? No, a fool like you could not know. This is Loki's ring! To have this ring's power in my hands…! Loki has stored his magic in it for centuries. If I can tap into it I can fool the barriers into thinking I am royal and echo my magic off it. I could bring every man under my control at once."
"I did good then Milady?" Svanr asked cautiously.
Lorelei gave him a beaming smile. "You did very good."
She reached into the water and took out the clean ring, still beaming. The ring would make it so much easier for her to take over Asgard. Instead of having to sway every man individually, she could them all to heel within seconds as the barriers encircled Asgard.
The ring began to glow, a sort of shimmer that passed over the scale like emeralds. Lorelei frowned. What was it doing?
Then it zapped her. Lorelei jerked her hand back with a cry and the ring clattered against the edge of the table and onto the ground. Ice spread across the floor where the ring touched and Lorelei cradled her hand to her chest. Svanr ran over and touched her arm, trying to see what was wrong.
Lorelei shoved him away, not liking the idea of being manhandled. Svanr stumbled over the debris and fell to the ground in a heap, looking up her with a truly hurt expression. She ignored him and slowly uncurled her fingers from her injured hand. The palm was stained blue by frostburn, but the physical pain was nothing compared to the distress Lorelei felt.
"Bastard," Lorelei swore, her voice jumping an octave. "Bastard! You hexed your ring!"
"Mistress?" Svanr asked worriedly as he slowly stood, looking from her hand to the ring.
No, Lorelei thought in despair. All of that power and she couldn't touch his ring. If anyone but Loki handled it, it was cursed to defend itself. She was hardly surprised that it gave the victim frostburn as Loki was Jötunn, but the very fact that it had a way to protect itself!
Lorelei pooled her magic to the injured hand, watching the frostburn recede as the cells warmed and returned to their rightful color. Her mission had just become more difficult. Until she could figure out how to get past the defenses Loki had implemented on his ring she'd have to manually sway Asgard's men. It was just like last time she had tried her takeover, only this time, she would win. All she had to do was get control of the ring and echo her magic. First step, get an army to keep her safe while she worked.
"Svanr," Lorelei ordered with a coo. "Please, can you bring your squadron to me?"
Her pleading enhanced her charm, and Svnar's will slipped away even further. "That would be wonderful. They should know of your beauty as well."
"Do not mention that you are taking them to see me," Lorelei implored. "Let it be a pleasant surprise."
"Whatever you wish," Svanr bowed.
"Bring them in as large of numbers as possible," Lorelei ordered thoughtfully. "And bring some real warriors. The Blood Wolves look classy but they're useless."
That wounded Svanr, as he was a Blood Wolf, but he nodded again anyway. His ego didn't matter. All that mattered was Lorelei.
Lorelei wondered who, besides himself, Loki would allow to access his ring. There had to be someone. He was too smart not to allow anyone access. What if something happened to him in battle and he fell? Someone had to be able to use his ring in his place, at least to get him to safety.
"Bring me a Raven Blade as well," she told Svanr as she got an idea, "but no females. They would only be jealous of my beauty."
"A beauty to which there are no bounds," Svanr assured her before he left.
Her manmagic was still imperfect. Females were immune to the charm that altered her targets' will. The female warriors and mages would be the greatest threat and there were nearly a dozen shieldmaidens among the Raven Blades. They, along with Amora, Lorelei's twin, had been key to her defeat last time.
Lorelei waited until Svanr's footsteps faded before she knelt by the ring. She quickly scooped it up and set it on the table without incident. It seemed it would burn her only if she tried to access its power. Perhaps one of the Raven Blades could safely use it. Unless she could sway Loki or another member of the royal family she figured it would be her best chance.
"Well, well, well," a voice chimed in amusement. "The Siren is up to her old tricks, is she?"
Lorelei turned sharply in the direction of the voice that was obviously not Svanr's, breath hissing between her teeth. She recognized it was a man's voice and thought it should be easy to thrall him, though any possibility of that vanished when she saw the intruder leaning against the doorway watching her. It was Freyr Njördson, a fellow inmate of the black cells that had escaped with her. A scowl flittered across her face before she forced a smile.
"Freyr," Lorelei greeted him lightly. "I'm surprised to see you. I thought for certain you would be shadowing your dear sister Freyja and trying to kill her again."
"I'll track down Freyja," Freyr smiled back at her, "never you fear. You might as well stop grinning at me in the meantime. I'm immune to your manmagic."
Lorelei sighed and raised her hands to accent her shrug. "Oh well, can't blame a girl for trying."
She leaned against the table to hide the ring from sight. Freyr didn't seem to have realized it was there and she did not want him to see it. It was hers. If he saw it he'd take it from her and she wouldn't be able to stop him. Why, of all the men on Asgard, was the only man immune to her manmagic the one to greet her?
"So," Lorelei smiled instead, "what are you up to? I find it unlikely that this would be a social call."
"Has Chthon contacted you telepathically?" Freyr asked, confirming that it was no social call.
"No," Lorelei frowned. "I find it odd."
Chthon was one of the only Elder Gods that had survived the Fallen War brought on by the discovery of Fel. He went by many names within and outside of the Nine Realms, and he had taken notice of the inmates of the black cells, Asgard's highest-level security lock up. He had trained and enhanced the inmates without Asgard's notice. The Elder God had told them one day they would be free of their cells to carry out his orders and they would obey him as compensation for the enhancements. Once they were done they were free to do as they pleased.
It was strange then that Chthon had not given them orders now that the inmates were free. Lorelei found it as unlikely Freyr did that Chthon, also known as the Other – Thanos's right hand man, would forget about them. Now was the perfect time for Chthon to take advantage of the chaos and eliminate Asgard's government, opening the way to the Chitauri fleet. Their first attempt to "annex" the Nine Realms had failed at New York. Surely, they'd be eager to correct that failure.
"Has there been any sign of Dalkr or Ullr?" Freyr traced his lower lip with his thumb as he thought about it.
"Dalkr's gone realm-hopping," Lorelei rolled her eyes skyward. "For some reason he thinks he's going to find Loki on Midgard. He wants a rematch."
Freyr made a distasteful face, disliking the fact that Chthon had given that lunatic all the training and upgrades had given Freyr and the others.
"Ullr is likely sulking because his bow was taken from the Weapon's Vault along with your sword," Lorelei pointed the comment at Freyr.
Freyr narrowed his eyes at her, but Lorelei continued.
"Knowing Dain, I'm certain he's back on Vanaheim searching for his dear Nira," Lorelei said with a coo. "Rune mages… It might be wise to catch him before he finds Nira. Double the rune mages means double the trouble."
"We've spread out," Freyr observed. "Why would Chthon wait for us to scatter? We can't form a fighting force separated."
Lorelei had wondered the same thing.
"Unless," Freyr said softly, lowering his hand to his side. "That's his plan. He wants us on every realm so we can hit them all simultaneously. He doesn't want to bring down Asgard first. He wants to hit them all at once."
"Ambitious," Lorelei said with a laugh, thinking Freyr was probably right. As an Elder God, Chthon didn't think small scale. "With the Nine Realms focused on the Celestials, our attack would blindside them. It might work. I can't believe Asgard never found out about Chthon's influence. What a fool Odin is."
"What makes you think he didn't know?" Freyr asked softly.
Lorelei's laugh petered off, and she looked at Freyr curiously. "Hmm? Does Chthon's favorite pet have something to say?"
"I am not Chthon's pet," Freyr told her defensively. "He simply trusts me more then you."
Lorelei crossed her arms and huffed.
"Chthon hinted that Asgard knew of our allegiance with him." Freyr admitted as he looked down the empty street, knowing Lorelei wouldn't drop it.
"The House of Odin is full of traitors," Lorelei mused, unaware she was quoting King Laufey.
She was more on point with that statement then she would ever know.
"Will you wait for reinforcements before you attempt to kill Freyja?" Lorelei asked with a taunting edge. "Sumarbrander was taken from the Weapons Vault by the Celestials."
"I know they took my sword," Freyr told him flatly. "If I still had her I would have already killed Freyja."
"That's right," Lorelei sighed. "You consider your sword a living being."
"Sumarbrander isn't sentient," Freyr agreed, "but Annalayana, the Wraith sealed inside it, is. My bond with her is the reason you can't enthrall me with your manmagic. You never could."
Irritation made it too hard for Lorelei to keep smiling and she scowled at him. She hated his Wraith.
"Anna's more loyal to me than your tin army is to you," Freyr continued with a level look at her. "I imagine she's waiting patiently for me to get her back from the Celestials. Once you're muzzled your spell will break and your soldiers will be loyal Æsir again."
Lorelei moved forward, image blurring as she ran so fast her shadow was left behind from her body for a moment. Freyr didn't flinch as Lorelei stopped in front of him, the dagger she had up her sleeve on one of his carotid arteries. The air tugged his clothes back.
Instead of flinching or even blinking, Freyr actually smiled at the position he was in and chuckled. Lorelei tilted her poison ivy green eyes up at him.
"What is so funny?" She demanded as she applied pressure to the blade.
A trickle of blood ran down Freyr's neck.
"You," Freyr laughed again. "You call me Chthon's pet and yet you have learned his shadowspeed – his trick of moving fast enough that your shadow can't keep up with you."
Lorelei pulled her lips back in disgust at Freyr's humor. Was it truly impossible to scare him?
Freyr reached up and calmly pushed Lorelei's wrist and the blade away from his throat. "You take things too seriously Lorelei. You implied a threat in my wording where there was none. I have no intention of muzzling you. If you want to watch someone then I suggest Loki. Given how far he went to keep the Celestials away from Asgard I'm certain he'll kill you."
"Unlike you, I can enthrall him," Lorelei smiled.
"I wonder," Freyr said in a lilting voice akin to a purr.
Lorelei lowered the blade, but did not remove her eyes from Freyr's. He was too good at getting under her skin.
"Stop glaring," Freyr scolded her. "Go play with your magic, Lorelei. I'll kill my sister. Freyja's immune to your manmagic. One would think you'd be happy that I'm eliminating one of your enemies. Her death would make you crowning yourself Queen of Asgard much easier."
"How do I know you won't target me after you finish with Freyja?" Lorelei asked. "Don't you want Asgard's throne?"
"The game of thrones doesn't interest me," Freyr disagreed. "All I want is my birthright, the birthright Freyja stole from me. Once I kill her, I will have my magic back."
"All this drama over a little magic," Lorelei shook her head and slipped her dagger back up her sleeve as she turned away. "Most males want nothing to do with a woman's art."
"Most men are fools," Freyr snorted. "Odin got the Odinforce from his older brothers' lifeforce after they were killed. Freyja stripped me of my magic so she could become more powerful, nearly killed me. She has all of the magic she was born with plus mine. I will rectify that."
Freyr's onyx eyes became serious, more serious then Lorelei was used to them being. They lightened again after a few seconds and he smiled at her, evidently confident he would defeat Freyja this time. He had failed last time, and that had led to his incarceration. Without so much as a bow in her direction, he turned and calmly walked from Lorelei.
Lorelei made a face in his direction. Freyr might not be a mage anymore, but he was one of the best swordsmen the realm had. She did not look forward to what might happen if he got his magic on top of that, but even without his magic or his favored sword, Lorelei still wasn't strong enough to beat him.
She watched Freyr walk away, the scabbard of the sword he had likely stolen from a Star Guard tapping against his leg. He was going to be trouble later. Lorelei would bet on it.