Chapter 2: Broken Peace Treaties
In the throne room, the entire kingdom of Asgard was waiting for their future king to arrive. Odin was sitting on his throne with his staff in hand. Down the steps from the throne to his right: his queen, his younger son, and the goddess of war named Sif. To his left stood the Warriors Three - Fandral, Hogun, and Volstagg.
After all the years of waiting, the double doors finally opened. Thor entered the throne room, wearing his winged helmet and wielding his hammer. He took a deep breath, scanning his audience and attire to ensure he was properly dressed for the occasion. The entire kingdom was watching his every move. Thor refused to express fear in front of his people, so he attempted to mask those nerves with a confident, almost cocky attitude. He raised his hammer, cueing the crowd to cheer for him. Feeling the need to show off, Thor flipped his hammer and caught it easily as he walked down the aisle.
His boastful actions earned an eye roll from his lady friend.
"Oh, please," Sif mumbled.
Thor stopped in front of the steps to the throne and kneeled before his father and king. He winked at his mother, Frigga, who widened her eyes, unsure what to think about that gesture. Then, Thor turned to the other side, offering the Warriors Three a small smile. His warrior friends returned the grin while Volstagg gave him the thumbs up.
Odin stood from the chair and banged his staff, silencing the crowd. His glistening eyes rested upon his eldest, beginning his speech, "Thor... Odinson... My heir. My firstborn. So long and trusted with the mighty hammer, Mjolnir, forged in the heart of a dying star. Its power has no equal as a weapon to destroy or a tool to build. It's a fit companion for a king. I defended Asgard at the lives of the innocent across the nine realms..."
...
Meanwhile, below the golden castle, guards performed their daily duty inside the Weapons Vault. They walked down the long hallway towards the Casket of Winters. They didn't realize something was lurking behind one of the weapon artifacts; its powers slowly frosted the pillar without notice.
...
"Do you swear to guard the Nine Realms?" Odin asked.
"I swear," Thor answered.
"Do you swear to preserve the peace?"
"I swear," Thor repeated, raising his voice.
"Do you swear to cast aside all selfish ambition and pledge yourself only to the good of all the Realms?"
"I swear!" Thor cried proudly, lifting his hammer.
"Then, on this day, I, Odin All-Father, proclaim you..." Odin paused. Thor and everyone in the room tensed, expecting him to finish. Instead, Odin looked to the sky, feeling the cool air against his cheek.
"Frost Giants..." the king whispered.
Everyone in the hall whispered amongst themselves except for the royal party. All weren't sure if they had heard him correctly. Odin banged his scepter on the floor, activating a trap for the intruders.
...
Three Frost giants attacked the two guards in the now frost-coated Weapons Vault. They all stood before the weapon, about to steal the Casket of Winters.
However, Odin summoned a secret weapon of his own. The iron gate in the Weapon's Vault disappeared magically. One giant holding the Casket of Winters turned around after hearing footsteps clanging on the tiled floor. A metal beast emerged from its prison and fired an energy blast before the intruder could activate the casket, eliminating every monster in the weapon's vault.
...
Odin and his two sons entered the chilling crime scene to investigate. Instead of examining the number of bodies, Thor and Loki followed their father to the end of the hallway, where the Casket of Winters was safely placed back on the pedestal.
"The Jotuns must pay for what they've done!" Thor declared.
"They had paid," Odin said, without taking his eyes off the casket, "with their lives. The Destroyer did its work. The casket is safe; all is well."
"All is well?" Thor questioned his father's statement. "They broke into the weapon's vault! If the Frost Giants had stolen one of these relics-"
"But they didn't," Odin retorted.
"Well, I want to know why!" Thor demanded.
"I have a truce with Laufey, King of Jotuns," Odin explained.
"He just broke your truce!" Thor cried. "They know you are vulnerable!" Odin finally took his eyes off the casket and turned his attention to his eldest son.
"What action would you take?" he asked Thor curiously.
"March into Jotunheim as you once did!" Thor answered without haste. "Teach them a lesson! Break their spirits, so they'll never dare cross our borders again!"
"You're thinking only as a warrior."
"This was an act of war!" Thor argued.
"It was an act of a few, doomed to fail."
"Look how far they got!" Thor yelled, gesturing to the icy vault. Meanwhile, Loki silently observed the heated debate between the father and son. Loki knew stepping in wouldn't be wise. It wasn't his fight, anyway.
"We will find the breach in our defenses, and it will be sealed," Odin promised.
"As King of Asgard-" Thor began.
"But you're not king!" Odin stated angrily. Thor was taken aback by his statement, merely blinking in disbelief.
"Not yet," Odin added gently, exiting the vault.
~000~000~000~
Still infuriated by the Frost Giants ruining his day, Thor expressed his rage by flipping the dining room table over. He sat down on the steps, taking deep, cleansing breaths. His younger brother emerged from the pillar, walking down the steps closer to Thor. The thunder prince noticed his presence but continued seething.
"It is unwise to be in my company, brother," Thor warned. Loki ignored him by proceeding to sit next to him. "This-This was supposed to be my day of triumph!"
"It will come," Loki assured him softly, "in time."
Sif and the Warriors Three entered the room. The goddess was the first to notice the table had been flipped over.
"Redecorating, are we?" she raised a brow at him.
"What's this?!" Volstagg also noticed the table flipped along with the ruined pastries on the ground.
"I told you, they canceled it," Hogun whispered to Fandral.
"We thought you were just your normal cheery self," Fandral told Thor.
Volstagg stared at the spilled goblets in agony, "All this food... I-It just comes to the ground... It breaks the heart."
Loki ignored them, quietly expressing his thoughts to the soon-to-be king, "If it's any consolation, I think you're right about the Frost Giants, about Laufey, about everything. If they found a way to penetrate Asgard's defenses once, who's to say they won't try again? Next time with an army."
"Exactly!" Thor was thankful that somebody here agreed with him.
"Although, there is nothing you could do without defying Father," Loki cautioned. Thor glared at him. Loki's face fell, watching the fire in his brother's eyes lit up like a torch. He instantly knew what Thor was planning, and it wasn't good.
"No," Loki scolded, shaking his head and wagging his finger at Thor, who abandoned his spot on the steps, "No. No. No. No. I know that look! Stop right there!"
"It's the only way to ensure the safety of our borders!" Thor declared.
"Thor, it's madness!"
Volstagg was about to cut up a loaf of bread until his ears perked curiously at the brothers' conversation, "Madness? What sort of madness?"
Loki masked his nerves to assure Volstagg, "Eh - Oh, it's nothing. Thor was just making a jest."
"The safety of our realm is no jest," Thor argued. "My friends," he addressed them with determination, "we're going to Jotunheim." His brother sighed in defeat, massaging his temples. Thor's speechless friends were looking at him as if he was insane, which he was.
"What?" Fandral was the first to ask, laughing in disbelief.
"Thor, out of all the laws in Asgard," Sif warned in a motherly tone, "this is the one you must not break."
"This isn't like a journey to Earth," Fandral reminded Thor, "where you summon a little lightning and thunder, and the mortals worship you as a god... This is Jotunheim."
"If the Frost Giants don't kill you," Volstagg sliced an apple in half, "your father will."
"My father fought his way into Jotunheim," Thor pointed out, "defeated their armies and took their casket. We will be just looking for answers."
"It is forbidden!" Sif cried, hoping to talk sense into him. Although, she should learn by now that nothing can change the god's mind.
Thor chuckled as he approached them, "My friends, have you forgotten all we have done together?" He pointed at Fandral, placing a hand on his shoulder, "Who brought you into a sweet embrace with exotic maidens of all in Yggdrasill?"
Fandral grinned at that memory, "You helped a little."
Thor laughed heartedly and turned to Hogun, "Who led you into the most glorious battles?"
"You did," his friend answered with a half-smile.
"And the delicacies so succulent, you thought you died and gone to Valhalla?" Thor reminded Volstagg.
"My life flashed before my very eyes, all thanks to you," Volstagg acknowledged heartedly.
"Yes!" Thor faced Sif, "And who proved wrong all who scoffed at the idea of a young maiden could be one of the fiercest warriors this realm has ever known?"
"I did," Sif answered proudly.
"True," Thor paused, wagging a finger at her, "but I supported you." He walked past her, climbing the steps and standing proudly on top behind his brother, "My friends, trust me now! We must do this! You're not going to let my brother-" Loki perked at his mention "-and I take all the glory, are you?"
"What?" Loki asked in a whisper.
Thor looked down at his brother with a glint of hope, "But you are coming with me, aren't you, Brother?" Thor desired his brother to be his number one ally for this conquest of all his friends in Asgard. Loki turned around with a grin - assurance that he shall stand by his brother's side.
"Yes, of course," Loki promised, standing up to pat his brother's back, "I will not let my brother march into Jotunheim alone."
"And I!" Another volunteered. Everyone looked at Volstagg, whose mouth was stuffed with bread.
A moment of silence later, Fandral nodded, "And I." Thor and Loki smiled with approval.
"And I," Hogun joined in. "The Warriors Three fight together." Now there lay the only person who hadn't joined their quest. Everyone waited for Sif to answer.
Sif sighed in dread, "I fear we live to regret this." She crossed her chest with one arm and respectfully bowed her head to Thor before exiting the dining room with the Warriors Three.
"If we're lucky," Thor laughed merrily as he and his brother left to prep for the mission.
~000~000~000~
Thor, Loki, Sif, and the Warriors Three rode their horses across the multi-color bridge, heading straight for the Bi-Frost. At the end of the rainbow stood Asgard's golden-eyed gatekeeper - Heimdall - with the power to see and hear everything. It wouldn't be a surprise if he knew what Thor and his friends were up to. Though, it wouldn't hurt to ask nicely.
The warriors dismounted their horses and approached Heimdall, who expected them to come, keeping his keyblade close.
Loki sped ahead of the group with a prideful smirk, "Leave this to me." The trickster was ready to use his power of deceit on Heimdall, greeting the gatekeeper, "Good-"
"You're not dressed warmly enough," Heimdall cut him off bluntly.
Loki's face fell in confusion, "I'm sorry?"
"You think you can deceive me?"
Loki chuckled, keeping the friendly facade intact, "You must be mistaken. We-"
"Enough!" Thor commanded Loki, who clenched his jaw, obeying his soon-to-be king. It was Thor's turn to persuade the gatekeeper by being direct. "Heimdall, may we pass?"
"Never has an enemy slipped my watch until this day..." Heimdall paused before continuing, more to himself than Thor, "I wished to know how that happened."
"Then tell no one where we have gone until we return," Thor commanded. "Understand?" He walked past Heimdall, not bothering to hear his answer. The group followed behind him, except Loki, who stood there to contemplate.
Fandral laughed at Loki's defeated face, "What happened, Loki? Silver Tongue turn to lead?" Volstagg joined the laughter as they walked inside the starry-view observatory.
"Be warned," Heimdall addressed the group. "It is my sworn oath to protect this realm as a gatekeeper. If your return should threaten the safety of Asgard, the Bi-Frost shall remain close, and you will be left to die in the cold waste of Jotunheim."
"Couldn't you just leave the bridge open for us?" Volstagg asked with unease, not wishing to die in the cold.
"Leaving the bridge open would unleash the full power of the Bi-Frost, destroying the realm of Jotunheim and you upon it."
"I have no plans to die today!" Thor declared pridefully. Heimdall inserted his sword, activating the Bi-Frost's power to suck the travelers outside towards the coldest of the nine realms - Jotunheim.
~000~000~000~
It was quiet in the lab except for the TV and the typing keyboard. Jane and Erik were theorizing and calculating near the worktable. Darcy and Garrett were observing them while supervising the snacks from the pantry. AJ returned from summer school to attempt homework. He did try to climb the counter for his toy gun, only to get caught by Kelsey, who set him back on the floor before the boy could risk injuring himself. She stepped outside for her daily walk around the perimeter, carrying a phone and earbuds. Sometimes the crew notices her lips moving through the glass window and wonders if she is singing tunes or communicating with someone to escape this provincial town. The second hypothesis was unlikely due to the spotty phone service here.
The team ceased their tasks to hear the eerie, monotonous beeping.
"Um... You cooking something in the microwave?" Garrett asked Darcy, pointing at the kitchen with his number two pencil. Nobody replied as they all searched for the source of the racket.
"Found it," Darcy lifted a folder from the worktable to find a hand-made device underneath. She set the papers aside to analyze the contraption, until Jane snatched it from her to get a better look at the readings. Darcy rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest.
"You're welcome," she grumbled.
"What's it doing, Jane?" AJ stood on his tippy-toes to attempt a peek, unsuccessfully.
"Oh my gosh," Jane whispered in astonishment. "It's happening again."
Kelsey entered the lab just in time to cover her ears from the familiar piercing racket, "Jane, that better be someone's phone with good reception! If not, could you please shut it off!"
AJ shushed his sister, not caring that he sprayed saliva. She shushed back, mimicking his scrunchy face. He stuck his tongue at her, cueing Kelsey to raise her hand as if she was about to hit him. He flinched and crossed his arms over his face defensively. Garrett grabbed her arm before she could make a move.
"Stop it," Erik commanded, refusing to hear another argument. For once, the children obeyed Erik, apologizing to him, not to each other. He breathed out with relief, turning his attention back to the device.
"Erik, this is happening again!" Jane couldn't help but grin.
"You don't know that, Jane," Erik warned, refusing to become optimistic.
"He's right," Kelsey agreed, only to quickly suck her lips inside her mouth to hold back any more words.
"Kelsey, shut up!" AJ whined.
The teen didn't intend to let it slip out, knowing Jane wouldn't appreciate her input. Unfortunately, AJ called her out despite not saying it bluntly loud (at least Kelsey thought she wasn't). Meanwhile, Jane gave Kelsey a warning glare to be quiet. Kelsey raised her hands defensively, attempting to rectify her mistake and shift the spotlight away from her. "I'm just saying that the last time that thing was beeping..." she pointed at the device in Jane's hand, cringing from its volume, "nothing happened. Now I'm not saying no one believes you."
"I know what I saw!" Jane insisted.
"Yes. You mentioned a subtle" Kelsey air-quoted "aurora. I know, but Jane, we both know that the Northern Lights don't appear in New Mexico! They only appear in cold climates like Greenland, Antarctica, um... Siberia, and..."
"Alaska," Darcy added, licking chocolate pudding off her spoon.
"Yes, Alaska. Thank you, Darcy."
"Mm-hm," Darcy hummed. It was about time somebody thanked her for something. She smirked at Garrett, who rolled his eyes at her.
"Are you blind?! Look at this!" Jane lifted the device to show off the readings. "This is proof that something's out there - more than just stars in the sky!"
"She's gotta point, Kels," Garrett joined Jane's side as expected. Jane thanked him for becoming her backup.
"No problem," the neighbor was calm on the outside, but he was jumping for joy on the inside. Now he turned the tables on Darcy, who returned the favor by rolling her eyes.
"Did you capture it on video?" Kelsey challenged, extending her hand for the evidence. "If you saw it and snapped a photo, let's see it!"
"I... It disappeared before I could take one. Darcy, you were there," Jane turned to her intern for assistance. "I told you!"
"Yeah," Darcy reluctantly agreed, feeling awkward that she was being dragged into the middle of a debate, even though she had put herself there in the first place. "It's true. We were out there at two in the morning. You told me about it right after I fetched you another Monster drink to stay awake - three Monsters total, I think - or maybe five, I can't remember." Jane huffed, averting Erik's stunned expression.
"Damn, girl! Five?!" Garrett couldn't believe the caffeine intake. He now wondered how well can Jane hold her liquor.
"Did I forget to mention that we were up past two?" Darcy asked, earning a snappy 'shut up' from Garrett before Jane could do that.
"Have you been taking care of yourself, Jane?" Kelsey asked in concern. Jane scoffed, rolling her eyes and shaking her head. Somehow their roles reversed - Kelsey became the responsible adult while Jane was the cranky teenager. "I know I'm guilty of staying up late, but drinking five Monsters isn't healthy. That would explain some stuff."
"Like what, forgetting your birthday?" Jane raised her voice. "I already apologized for that! Get over it!"
"Jane," Erik scolded. AJ widened his eyes in fright, stepping behind Erik to use him as a shield. Jane huffed, running her fingers through her greasy scalp, noting that she required a shower. Kelsey opened her arms only to slap her sides, dropping the invisible mic on the ground without another word.
"Look, Kelsey," Jane forced a sweet smile, though the words came out condescending. "I get that this is a difficult time for you and that you don't want to be here, and you want to be right all the time-"
"You said that, not me." It took all of Jane's might not to scream or slap her niece. Kelsey almost sounded like her mother whenever the sisters argued - good times.
"But just because you're miserable here doesn't mean you have to make everybody's time here miserable." Her niece's mouth opened, obviously appalled and offended by that claim. Jane ignored Kelsey's reaction by finishing her argument, "AJ is suffering already with summer school."
"Ain't my fault, I'm diss-Lexis," AJ grumbled, earning Erik's sympathetic pat on the shoulder.
"Do what?!" Garrett pinched his brows and wrinkled his nose in confusion.
The doctor leaned in to whisper the correct term in his ear, "He has dyslexia."
"Oh," The teen acknowledged. Erik pried the device from Jane's grip to analyze the readings carefully.
"Before we jump to conclusions, we need to be sure this device isn't malfunctioning. It might be why you're not finding anything," the professor shook the device back and forth, not alternating the constant beeping.
"Try hitting it against the table," Garrett suggested. Erik debated whether to test the hypothesis before he decided to bang the device hard on the work table. Jane's jaw dropped, horrified at what Erik was doing to her handiwork.
"Give me that!" Jane snatched it from Erik, inspecting the damages. Fortunately, Erik hit it without consequence. "Don't do that! I jammed my hand making this!"
"And your jammed hands are still lovely," Garrett complimented her. His cheeks heated up from many eyes staring straight at him.
"Kiss-ass!" Darcy coughed the words. Garrett glared at her with narrowed eyes as she continued to fake the tickle in her throat.
"We need to go out there now," Jane declared, putting on her coat, "before it's too late!"
AJ jogged after Jane and asked, "Really? We're all going?"
Jane hunched her posture to hold her nephew's hand as they walked towards the van, "Of course, we're all going."
"What?!" her niece exclaimed. Jane straightened herself and turned to look at Kelsey properly. "You mean... You, and Erik, and Darcy, and AJ are going?"
"What about me?" Garrett asked with his arms wide open.
Jane released her nephew's hand and approached her niece, returning the same cold look Kelsey gave her today, "When I say that we're all going, I mean that we're all going."
Garrett pumped a fist, cheering quietly to himself, "Yes."
"And why do I have to go?" Kelsey challenged. "Why can't you just leave me here like last time?"
"You gotta date or something, Kelse?" Jane questioned with amusement in her voice. "I mean, what could you possibly be doing here that's so important than spending time with your family? Huh?"
"Oh! I see! So this - um - so this is your idea of family bonding?" the niece brayed a bitter laugh, instantly turning Jane's smug upside-down. "Oh!" she placed a hand against her chest. "Thank God! What a relief! For a second there, I thought you were tagging me along just to prove a point. My bad."
"Kelsey," her aunt warned.
"When was our last get-together, Jane? I mean, the last time we were having fun and not mourning in a - at a funeral. Do you remember, AJ? The last time before that last time you've seen her?" Kelsey challenged her brother, who blinked, caught off guard by the question.
"Uh... what is the difference between before and after again?"
"That's okay," she assured, not giving the boy any time to respond. "I'm sure you can't remember the day we all celebrated Christmas at Papaw's house... two years ago."
"Kelsey, enough," Erik silenced the teen, placing his hands on her shoulder to enforce eye contact, conjuring up a speech for her. Garrett and Darcy couldn't help but oohed at the nasty comeback. Jane's occupation might appear tedious, but at least they're entertained with free dinner and a show. They didn't need to look at Jane to see she wasn't amused. It pushed the woman to say what she shouldn't have said next.
"Oh, you think you're funny, huh? You know, I used to think your father was a comedian, too, until he turned out to be an asshole - a rotten apple that didn't fall far from the freakin' tree!"
"Jane!" Erik whirled in her direction, horrified. This roast was turning ugly - far darker than anyone had anticipated. Emotions were running high. Both women shouldn't be talking this way to each other. AJ shouldn't be listening to this; he's only eight.
"It's a shame he's not around to hear it. I mean, I'm sure he would've been proud to see how bitchy you've become." Everyone reacted in shock to Jane's colorful vocabulary. Kelsey never thought she would be on the receiving end of insults, not from Jane, of all people. "Though, I can't say the same about Wendy." Now for the icing on the cake - the waterworks guarantee. "If your mother were here right now - boy - she would've wondered where her sweet little girl has gone. Seriously, Kelsey. Where did she go? Huh?"
Kelsey breathed deeply and averted her eyes to the floor. The waves of her hair became a curtain that draped over her face, which was fine for Kelsey. She didn't want anyone to see her breakdown, feeling more embarrassed than before. Jane was right. Her comeback did bring out the waterworks, silencing her niece once and for all. Neither paid mind to Erik's bark to be quiet. He took up the leadership role and suggested that if either one can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all.
Jane should feel satisfied, but instead, she was ready to dig a grave for her insensitivity. She crossed a line that she shouldn't have crossed. To think that forgetting her niece's birthday was terrible enough. She didn't miss AJ's current mixed expression of confusion and sadness. Great start as the kids' guardian.
"Kelsey, I - I'm sorry that was..." Jane momentarily closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose, struggling with her words. What could she say to rectify this? "I didn't know what came over me. That was -"
"You know exactly where she has gone," Kelsey whispered harshly. "You just don't care." Nobody missed the watery eyes that narrowed angrily in Jane's direction and the ugly quivering scowl that came with it - a sad, hungry beast determined to exact vengeance - to have the last word. Jane didn't remember being on the end of such a look, not since her last fight with...
"Kelsey, wait! I'm sorry. Please, don't..." Jane planned to stop her niece from stomping away; however, Erik's extended arm blocked her path. He advised Jane to let Kelsey be; they both require time apart to reflect on their wrongs. They all watched Kelsey hop inside the backseat of the van. They all cringed at the harsh slam from the sliding door and the colorful vocabulary after.
"Jane, Kelsey said the S-word," AJ tattled, pointing the finger toward his sister.
"Thank you, AJ, but you said the S-word, too, during homework," Jane clarified. "Which reminds me, make sure you bring it with you."
"Do I have to?" he complained.
"Yes," Jane hissed. "You have to." She refused to look at his puppy pout, knowing what would happen after. "Please, don't fight me on this one, AJ. I'm already dealing with your sister's mood swings."
"Does that mean I'm your favorite godchild?"
"Yeah, sure. Why not?" Jane agreed in a dismissing tone; she was desperate for respect and obedience up to this point. "Now, take your workbooks and get in the van."
The boy huffed in defeat, "Fine, but Jane?"
"Yeah?"
"Why's my Dad an asshole?" he wondered. Jane closed her eyes as she mentally cursed herself.
"He's not. I'm sorry. Don't say that word - don't even repeat it. I shouldn't have said that. I don't normally say shit like that," she was oblivious to mixed reactions around her, "especially not about your dad in front of..." Jane cringed, realizing that she had dropped the S-bomb herself. "I'm sorry. Please, ignore what I said, okay? This has been a stressful day for everyone. And sometimes people say shit - crap - I mean, stuff - stuff, they don't mean. You understand, right?"
"I guess," the boy shrugged.
"Okay. Okay," Jane breathed, motioning AJ to gather his paperwork; he obeyed.
Despite the drama, Garrett insisted on tagging along.
"Are your parents gonna be okay with this?" she asked. "I don't want to-"
Garrett scoffed, "Please. My parents would be happy to let me go. They could have another date night with me out of the house."
"Well, just to be safe, you might wanna call them first," Jane suggested.
"Call them?" Darcy questioned. "Did you forget? The reception here sucks; we're lucky to have wifi and limited cable... barely."
Erik suggested dropping Garrett off at his place for his parents' permission.
"Got it, chief," Garrett saluted before opening and shutting the passenger door for Jane. He and Darcy made eye contact, slackening the smile Garrett once had. One look at the van was enough for them to run and fight over the driver's side. Unfortunately for the intern, Garrett proved much faster with his basketball background. Darcy banged on the door in frustration. She thought sitting in the driver's seat for hours with nothing to do was terrible, but now that Garrett was coming along...
"This is gonna be one hell of a road trip," she grumbled.
Kelsey was sitting next to her with foggy shades over her eyes. Even when she was wearing earphones, the music was off. Darcy's words were loud and clear for the girl to agree.