Chapter 3
SPACE STATION OUTSIDE THE NINE
The room they would be using was only a dozen or so steps away from the lift. Meythew was there. But it was odd that Jaya was not and her absence was noticed by the other magic users. Healer Eir was present, as well as several healers from Vanaheim and Alfheim. A member of the Volur was also there, the red-haired Völva who had left a thorough impression on Asgard.
Loki entered first with Tony, Sigyn, and Willow; Abyss still on his shoulder. No one else recognized Faurete.
Meythew looked curious, the question having been bugging him for a while. “What is worse to an elf than death?” Loki just bared all of his teeth instead of answering. Sigyn raised an eyebrow at her mate but didn’t ask.
Those in the room stiffened when they noticed Tony who was both mortal and non-magical.
Loki sat with his party. Abyss didn’t move from his perch. Everyone else followed their example.
Eir decided to ask, “Prince Loki? Your guests?”
Loki smirked and glanced over to the woman on the opposite side of Tony. She introduced herself. “Queen Faurete of Jötunheim.”
Eyes widened. Many sucked in a shocked breath.
Tony frowned at the Jötunn queen. “Are you scary?” She had a ruthlessness to her, but he didn’t find it much worse than any of the women who prowled industry parties, stalking to trap a husband.
Faurete shrugged loosely. “No more so than anyone else on Jötunheim trained by Aurekr, Laufey’s former Master of Arms.” A few present paled at the mention of him, confirming Aurekr’s reputation. “Most are unaware I am a shape shifter. Jötunheim’s peace with Asgard is also quite recent. They may be confused why I would associate so easily with an Asgardian.”
From those assembled, a couple of people spoke.
“Why would you?”
“By many reports he is the one that caused the damage.”
Loki tensed a bit. Meythew rolled his eyes. That particular man who said that had no filter. What he thought he said.
Faurete sent the one who made that last little comment a Look before elaborating. “Recently Asgard was made aware that Odin is my half-uncle. His sons are therefore kin. Regarding that last remark, Thor did his own damage and if we forgive one, so shall the other receive the same. I will say no more regarding it.”
Topic closed that firmly, no one seemed tempted to say anything else. Loki started to organize some cards in front of him. He nudged Tony. “Introduce yourself.”
A little wave. “Hi. Tony Stark. Ironman. Genius. Billionaire. Philanthropist.” He paused as a spark of naughtiness lit his dark eyes. “Sex God—”
Without even looking up Loki smacked him lightly on the back of the head.
Tony smiled brightly. “Best buds with the prince next to me.”
Meythew turned his attention to Loki. “This is the reason you would go to war?”
Sigyn pressed her lips together to keep from snickering.
“Hey!” Tony sounded a lot more offended than he looked. In fact, he gave Meythew a wink which could have been interpreted in a couple of different ways.
Loki looked up. “No. I have several reasons.” Giving Tony a pointed glare. “Flirt as you like but break Pepper’s heart and I will rip out yours.”
Jaw dropping. “You like her more than me??”
An eyebrow lifted. “Currently, no. But I cannot stand those that are unfaithful. Do not disappoint me.”
Tony’s jaw actually clicked as it closed, reminded of the reason why Loki didn’t like cheaters. This area would be a hard limit in their friendship. Not that it had been an offer. Just a bit of harmless flirting. He wouldn’t say he was a changed man but he was committed…and Pepper was likely to cut his balls off before Loki even had the chance to hex them off if he was ever stupid enough to stray. “Got it.”
Meythew waved a hand. “I would not have accepted an invitation to his bed.” Loki silently lifted the other eyebrow in disbelief. He was aware of how attractive Tony was. It did not even require a stretch of his imagination to deduce Meythew would notice as well. After a second evaluative glance Tony’s way, the Vanir mage chose to be quiet rather than lie.
Eir sighed heavily. She was not the leader of the guild. Technically it was a committee of ten elected people, two from each of the magical castes to ensure an even representation. If any ties happened, which was rare, a randomly drawn member of the guild would cast the swaying vote. “Is there a reason Jaya could not attend?” She was one of the ten, after all.
Loki’s hands clenched for a moment before he smoothed out the wrinkles in the cards.
Sigyn answered, “She was murdered.” Her face was cold. Several cries of denial filled the room. Tempers flared as looks were exchanged.
The redhaired Völva was focused on Loki and observed, “Those cards look familiar.”
Smirking weakly at her. “I spoke with mother.”
“Ah.”
“Prince Loki?”
Loki gave Eir a respectful nod. “As I requested this meeting I will start from the beginning.” He was not currently on the committee. Though with Jaya’s death and Meythew already on the committee, either he or Hetangnan would be voted on it. “A mistake was made by Asgard when Thor was banished for rekindling war with Jötunheim. Instead of choosing one of the other realms, he was sent to Midgard until he learned better.” He turned over a card that had Thor’s name on it.
Eir winced. Unimpressed looks were exchanged.
One of the main purposes of the Inter-realm Council was to ensure that closed realms were not interfered with. That Odin had taken official action and used a closed realm to do it was begging for the IRC to react.
“Then this mistake was compounded when I, through Thanos’ machinations, tried to subjugate Midgard.” This was after the whole Destroyer incident, but he wasn’t going to mention that. No need to have anyone lumping him in the same category as Thor right now. Flinches and winces occurred to hear Thanos’ name, dead or not. A second card with his own name. “I would not say that was directly Asgard’s fault, but it introduced me to humans.” At least in that the humans knew that he wasn’t from their realm. Up to that point, his small interactions occurred with those that remained ignorant of that fact.
“How is this a Guild matter?”
Loki smiled ever so slightly. “The humans later asked for my help.”
Tony raised his hand, grinning. “My group did that.”
The Avengers names were turned over. Loki elaborated on what occurred that led to his involvement. “Among their mortal numbers was a sorcerer whose mind had broken and he was killing people by the dozens, many of them children.” That sobered everyone. “A situation that if one of us were on Midgard, we would have swiftly dealt with it.”
“Midgard is a closed realm.”
Eir emphasized, “For a reason, prince.”
“But this sorcerer is dead.”
Loki nodded once. “He is now, yes.”
Meythew shrugged loosely. “Well then, that is that.”
Holding up a halting finger. “Not quite. Upon my requested arrival I thought to reach out to find him by detecting his seidr potential. A realm like Midgard, I assumed it would be a simple matter. But I was wrong. I have not seen such a saturation of potential since I was last on Vanaheim.”
Meythew jerked in his seat. “What??”
After a slow nod Loki decided to paint a picture with the true concern. “To provide context, humans do not even have to wait 20 years after they are born to reach maturity and have children of their own.” Eyes widened. Everyone present from the Guild were from the long-lived races. Many of them were completely unaware of how mortal maturation worked. “There is no Guild presence on Midgard. No mentors, for an eminent boom in the seidr population in the next two to four decades.” Gesturing towards Tony. “Tell them about the current attitude towards those with magic.”
Tony grimaced. “Yikes. Magic peeps—”
“He means people,” Loki added.
Ignoring him, “…are lumped into a category called mutants. You’ve got some that support them, and a whole lot who don’t. The ones that see them as a problem want to either lock ‘em up, cure them, or kill them.”
“Cure—” Eir looked physically sick. “…as if they were diseased…”
Loki then added. “And the military who wish to weaponize them.”
Tony didn’t disagree. “Ah, yeah. That, too.”
Everyone was staring at Tony in horror.
Loki took over the explanation. “Magical skill appears early in life. Many that are turned on are children rejected by their own families because they were unwilling or unable to suppress their gift.” Dead silence now. No one moved. It wasn’t impossible for any of the Nine to have such a situation. But it was rare, because for most of the long-lived races children were seen as precious. There were exceptions, of course. But the picture being painted didn’t sound like a rare occurrence but a standard practice. “Imagine it. Hundreds, if not more, of our own at stake. There are sorcerers on Midgard right now. Even an enchanter youth I encountered. We cannot dismiss them like some of the others.” There were other mortal races with potential on closed realms. Midgard wasn’t unique. But in those other cases the children produced didn’t even reach the level of dabbler. “If we do not do something, we could be facing a travesty the likes of which not witnessed since Bori’s time.” Everyone sobered. “We all know what I mean by that.”
Bori, grandfather of Odin, as King had swept through the Nine like a plague and used the warriors to do it. Anyone who used magic that crossed paths with Aesir died in those days. It was a practice that continued until Bori’s death. Thousands of years later and the magical community was still recovering.
There were shudders through the room.
Meythew frowned lightly. “You plan to go to war over humans you do not know?” That didn’t sound like Loki.
Eir perked up in concern. “War?”
Loki smirked grimly. “I shall clarify. While on Midgard dealing with the sorcerer, I made friends with this man.”
“Best friends,” Tony corrected.
Some might have expected Loki to refute such a claim. They were shocked when that didn’t happen.
“Indeed. I found my apprentice there. Her sister, a girl of some extraordinary mutant talents, is also magically bound to me. I have blood adopted them. In other words, I left Midgard with 2 human daughters. A Vanir priestess on Asgard, who will one day be Thor’s Queen, blood adopted another human girl who is a budding priestess.” More looks of surprise. More cards were turned over, before he looked up and slowly pulled ten cards close. “I requested this meeting because the Inter-realm Council in its entirety arrived on Asgard. Based on what occurred, it is not difficult to surmise why.”
Words were a lovely thing…but they were just that. He needed more than sway and arguments. He needed the backing of the Guild to deflect the Inter-realm Council. It was the only way to avoid a bloody fight. It also wouldn’t do, to be cut off from Midgard completely. He would not lose his friend. The Guild would not wish for a family to be separated, but a cause like this with so many lives at stake would guarantee that support. So, if that meant he had to take on the role of being a champion for the budding mortal casters of Midgard to continue Asgard’s access to Earth then so be it.
“I will not allow the Inter-realm Council to take my daughters or fracture my family. Neither will my mate, Sigyn. She will order Alfheim to war for them, that is a promise.” Emerald flashed in his eyes. “And I know just where to focus those numbers.”
Sigyn’s nod was sharp, her eyes like flint.
Meythew swallowed. He knew it wasn’t a threat against him on a personal level. But he was part of the IRC. Loki was promising to obliterate that institution to protect his children. And he couldn’t blame him or Sigyn for that position. “I will talk with them.”
Tony leaned his head against Loki’s shoulder and fluttered his eyelashes. “You’d go to war for me, Locks?” He’d noticed his name had been on one of the cards that Loki had pulled close. He was more than slightly smug about it.
Loki slanted a mild glare at him, but chose not to answer.
Eir took charge as the voice of the Guild. “What do you propose the Guild do?”
The Prince tilted his head a bit. “I have some ideas. Tony has been kind enough to invite my help on behalf of his people. I believe that is all that is needed to satisfy the Guild.”
Another nod.
“Alfheim has the ability to teach an influx of this nature, but elven tolerance for mortals could put them at physical risk. Vanaheim would have the numbers. But the University is for adults, as children are taught at home by individual masters. Asgard now has a school for those with magical abilities. A good start but not nearly enough for the kinds of numbers that may appear in the next generation or two. I have open communication with a faction of humans who look after mutant children.”
Tony asked, “Xavier?”
A nod from Loki in confirmation, “Yes. They provide a haven, but they are not trained to teach those with seidr. But they might be able to send those that need help my way. Or a teacher could be sent there. I have yet to speak with him.”
From the attendees the blunt man asserted, “This is conjecture. Maybe nothing will happen.”
Loki corrected, “Amora happened. On Midgard she murdered a budding mage not even old enough for a proving ground for a power boost.” Meythew felt that like a punch to the gut. Tears filled the eyes of a few others. There were so few mages as it was. A mage died, then another would be born. That was how it worked. Yet for the last several years no one knew where this fifth mage had been born. Some had speculated Jötunheim. It wouldn’t have occurred to anyone to look Midgard’s way. “Yggdrasil deemed the humans worthy to have a mage in their midst. Can it still be an argument that the Guild should choose not to act?”
Looks were silently exchanged. That changed things. Humanity had enough presence for Yggdrasil to grant them the higher magical castes including a mage. And they were the first known non-Vanir species to produce a priestess. These mortals were something special.
Meythew cleared his throat. “The IRC would need something a bit more persuasive for the scope you are hinting about.”
“Such as?”
A gesture in Tony’s direction. “How influential is your friend?”
Loki and Tony shared a glance.
A beat before Tony admitted, “I’d never do it but I’ve got the money and the popularity to run for president.”
Blank faces so Loki elaborated, “He has the influence to be King of one of Midgard’s continents if he had the ambition to do it.”
Tony started to open his mouth and Loki stepped on his foot. He knew to be King wasn’t the same as President. But such a position was not to be found on any other realm of the Nine.
Meythew considered how the rules of the IRC were worded. “If you can gain the cooperation of this mutant faction you spoke of, and one more person of influence, it will be enough to sway the IRC to censure Odin without adding sanctions.”
“How long can you stall them?”
Meythew grimaced.
Loki shared a look with Sigyn and they both sighed. So much for relaxing before the wedding.
Eir asked, “What does the Guild need to do?”
“It depends on how we wish to proceed. The children with this faction have no where to go. Many that go there are traumatized, kicked out and shunned by their own families. Plus there will be children that have loving homes on Midgard and just need an education. It would not be right to uproot them.”
One of the seidkona frowned, “There are no human casters that teach?”
“There is one group of human casters that I am aware of, but they teach adults that have the determination to find them.” Then Loki grimaced. “Most believe the place I speak of is a myth.”
“Kamar-Taj?” Tony was curious more than anything.
Loki nodded. “The Ancient One is the name of the current leader. An interesting woman, with ties to a Hell dimension to support a longevity that rivals my own.”
Gasps.
“You let her live?”
Blinking innocently at the blunt man who asked. “I was not supposed to interfere.”
A few dirty looks were thrown in his direction. Tony snickered since they walked right into that response.
Eir spoke for the Guild and the members of the committee. “We will discuss this further. I am certain we will find some sort of solution.”
The Völva decided it was time to speak. Not of just the rules of the Guild but of the laws of magic. “The laws are quite clear, Meythew. Ensure the Inter-realm Council is aware of Loki’s status concerning his daughters. As well as Priestess Veilya’s status with her daughter. I do not believe they wish for Yggdrasil to respond should they attempt to separate an apprentice from her master.”
Meythew nodded in agreement. “It could be argued that due to blood adoption laws we would still respond.”
Eir’s mouth thinned. “True enough. These children are daughters of members of the Guild. The Guild takes care of their own.”
In unison they all said, “To our own.”
Before everyone scattered, Loki approached the Völva. “May I ask a question?”
She said in amusement, “You may ask.”
The corner of Loki’s mouth twitched since she wasn’t promising an answer. “What happens now? Mages. There are only three of us left. I assume another will be born on Alfheim but what of the fifth?” Perhaps Jotunheim? Perhaps another on Midgard?
She pulled in a slow breath and glanced to the right before freezing. “Amora.”
“What about her?”
Another slow breath as Yggdrasil whispered in her ear. “No new mages will come into existence as long as the blasphemy survives.” She blinked and her body relaxed.
Loki huffed. “Well then, that makes matters simple.” He wasn’t disappointed, exactly. Her death would be an end result, regardless. He had hoped to let her linger for a bit to learn regret.
The Völva put a light hand on his forearm. “Do not deviate from your intended course with her. What you originally intend satisfies the Fates.”
Loki nodded in understanding.
***
ASGARD
Melody and Talia were sitting next to one another on the floor of their shared room. It had been silent for a long enough time that Melody nudged her sister. “What’s wrong?”
She might be little and Talia was her new sister, but the small elf was unusually quiet. Even for her. She knew something was wrong. Talia hadn’t even picked up a paint brush today.
Talia shrugged a bit, something she’d picked up from the other kids. There were a lot of human and even Aesir things that she’d been observing and then trying out, to see what she liked. She couldn’t even say what was wrong. She just…didn’t feel like saying anything.
“Are you worried about living here?”
She shook her head. But then frowned at Melody.
The little girl picked up the silent question. “Me neither. Maybe making friends will be hard but…I never had those except for Martina so…”
Talia looked thoughtful. She’s never really had friends on Alfheim either. Not until she and her brother moved villages. Rognin and Thelon were her first friends there. Sometimes having parents who were known was worse than being new and unknown. Her brow furrowed and her heart twinged, thinking of them.
“Do you…”
Talia’s light blue eyes moved in her direction.
Melody looked hesitant. But then she decided to be brave and ask, “…you miss them? Your old parents?”
The older girl frowned and slowly shook her head after thinking. She wouldn’t trade Sigyn or Loki for anything. It was strange being in Asgard, but it was also better. The trees here were younger. They didn’t carry the same memories. They weren’t a reminder of her elven family. But the question allowed her to find her voice. “Not really. I miss my brother but…not them.”
“Were they mean like mine were?” To Melody, that was a reason that made sense. It’s why El didn’t miss the parentals. She didn’t say that word out loud, but she’d started to mentally assign them that word.
Slowly Talia shook her head. “No, they were not like the…parentals.” She could barely remember them. At 4 she’d lost her father, and her mother by 5. It had been 171 years ago. In dreams she might see a flash of a face but that was about all she had.
Melody frowned. “So why don’t you miss them?”
“They were…” Her voice hushed. “…thieves.”
Melody could think of a lot worse things. “Is that so bad? I mean, it’s…least they weren’t mean to you.”
“On Alfheim it is very bad. It…” Talia swallowed hard before she abruptly tore out of the room, ignoring Melody calling after her.
***
Rognin walked quietly through one of the public gardens. Melody had approached him looking worried, unable to find Talia. All the children knew Rognin had a knack for finding people. When asked she’d said what they’d been talking about. He’d promised her he would find Talia.
There weren’t many people here. A few adults wandering the surrounding paths. He stopped at a tree at the center next to a small pond and leaned against the bark. He didn’t look up, he just started talking, “Father always says that you cannot judge anyone by their family. That each person has their own merit. When you and your brother moved to the village people talked. My friends told me of your parents. I asked them why that mattered? Their answers were stupid.” He rolled his eyes to himself. They acted as if her parents being thieves meant she was just as morally corrupt. “Father ignored the rumors and introduced us.”
Talia slipped to the ground and stood next to him, huddled against his side. “I hate them sometimes.”
“Your birth parents?”
Silently Talia nodded. How hard was it not to steal? They were dead because of it. Alfheim didn’t have imprisonment, but they had a series of punishments based on the offense. But come before the Senate too often for the same crime…prove that the Senate that the crime was a true moral corruption that would not be stopped and that could escalate to harming others…
Talia had heard a suspicion once that the reason her mother died so soon after her father wasn’t because she didn’t want to stop stealing. It was because she wanted to join her mate in death. If it was true, it just made Talia angry and hurt that she and her brother weren’t enough of a reason for their mother to live. “Is that horrible?”
“No.”
But then she said, “El understands. But Melody…she does not.”
Rognin expressed his opinion quietly, “She is the youngest.”
“But her birth parents were—” Talia cut herself off. They were horrible people. “They were hateful, but she still loves them.”
He agreed with her. But then he confessed, “I love my mother. But sometimes…I hate her, too.” She left without a backwards glance. He’d never be able to forgive her for that. Although, he had noticed the quiet times that his father and Willow had been sharing. She was a strong woman. It might be nice to have a new mother like her.
“They were so selfish.”
Rognin didn’t disagree. “I know.” After a few moments of quiet he advised, “You should talk with your mother or father. They would understand.”
Talia nibbled on her lower lip. “Sometimes talking is…hard…”
“Perhaps…”
She nudged him. “What?”
He shrugged, not sure if the idea was better or not. “Would asking questions and listening to the answers be easier?”
Her expression turned thoughtful.
Someone taller than them suddenly loomed over them. They both looked up, eyeing her blankly. A sneer in her voice, “You are one of his children.”