The Gift of Loki

A flash of light, then nothing. There’s something different about this nothingness; it's palpable, almost tangible, even. I stick my hand out in front of me only to see nothing but to feel a coldness surrounding my hand. It begins to creep up through my arm, to my neck, and to my chest. Soon, the rest of my body will feel cold. What is this? Where am I? My consciousness begins to drift away from me. It leaves in waves for what feels like an eternity; each time I regain it, I only see that now familiar darkness.

There is a sudden flash of green. It travels through, lighting a path as though it were burning the darkness away. At the end of the path is a glowing... something. I can’t quite tell what it is. A rock? Maybe. A person? Unlikely. I try to take a step, but I feel as though the fabric of time itself is wrapped around me, keeping me where I am. The object grows closer, and with a flash of blue, I am unconscious again.

*****

When I wake up, I am in an ornate room. The filigree throughout the room is gold and is perfectly adorned with gray and green marble. I am sitting against a pillar on one side of the room. I look around, realizing I am not the only one brought here. On either side of me are people who I’ve never met. Not all of them are humans, though some do look like they could be. There are also guards lining the walls. I panic and try to stand up, only to find I have been chained to these other people. I try to bang the chains against the pillar behind me.

"I already tried that," said a man sitting next to me. He had peculiarly long ears and stark blond hair. "They are magically bound, nothing can break them." He stared off into the distance, a look of defeat on his face.

"Do you know where we are? Why are we here?" I ask him. I study his clothing; it is a fairly simple white tunic with a blue sash tied off at the waist. It looks well worn.

"We are in Asgard. It seems Odin is out of town, and his son," the man scoffs, "has taken the kingdom for himself. For the moment, that is. Thor and Odin will come back, and it will all be sorted out soon."

"Asgard? You mean like the Myths-"

"Yes, like the myths," he says over me. "Believe me when I say this isn’t our first rodeo with the God of Mischief." The man looks exhausted. How many times has this happened?

"The god of mischief?" I stare at him. If I wasn’t currently tied down with dozens of other people in the most beautiful building I think I have ever seen, I wouldn't have believed a word he was saying. The man laughs and turns to look at me.

"You must be from Midgard. Or, as you call it, Earth." I nodded in response. "Welcome to Asgard, little one. You’re certainly in for a treat." The man looks down the line to a golden throne; for a second, I could have sworn his eyes flashed an emerald green hue. I turn my gaze down the line as well, and when I do, a cloud of green appears, and from it walks a man with golden horns adorned on his head.

"I am Loki of Asgard, God of Mischief, and you will kneel before me!" The man yells, his voice reverberating throughout the room. It is met with a few laughs and a few uneasy breaths. "I said kneel!" The guards come up to us and manhandle us on our knees. Their eyes glowed the same green as the mist the horned man walked out of. I keep my eyes on the ground as he begins to walk down the center aisle. "You are probably wondering why I brought you here today." The man’s shoes made a distinct noise on the floor below him. He walked with purpose. "I brought you here because one of you will be awarded a gift; however, I will only give this gift if you offer me something as well." I look at the man beside me. His eyes are fixated on Loki, almost as though he were in some kind of trance. I look up at Loki as he paces the floor in front of me. In addition to the horns on his head, his outfit is black with lavish accents of green and gold. He is carrying a scepter that glows a faint blue. He stops in front of me, his blue eyes meeting mine. "You look like you have something to offer." He flicks his fingers, and the chains on me disappear. "Tell me. What would you wish for?" He looks down at me, his gaze cold and calculating. I think for a moment. What would I wish for? Or maybe the better question is: what could a god of mischief offer me? I begin to stand.

"No, no. Keep kneeling. But do tell me what’s on your mind, little one." I look up at the man. He was tall and almost menacing, but there was still something about him that I couldn’t quite shake. "Well, spit it out before I choose a more interesting subject."

"Adventure," I think for another moment, "one with... a sense of danger maybe. Does that interest you enough?" I hold my gaze on his face for a moment longer and bow my head again.

The god stares at me for a moment, then says "It does, though be careful what you wish for from a trickster. Stand." I stand and look up at him; he is a bit taller than me, and my head barely peaks over his shoulder. "I offer you, mortal, a travel companion and an adventure of a lifetime. One that will be told in the legends of Asgard for millennia to come. Do you accept Midgardian?" He smirks. There is a hint of mischief in his eyes as he speaks.

"I accept. On one term: That companion is you." I stared at him, trying not to let the fear show on my face. Why did I say that? I suppose I said it because I found something intriguing about this giant of a man. He stares back, and I see curiosity flash over his face for half a second. Then intrigue.

"Alright, you’re a curious one, you know that?" His eyes narrowed.

"I do now. So Loki of Asgard, God of Mischief, what do you ask of me in return?" I harden my gaze. The man smiled at me.

"I already have what I want. I give you adventure, and in return, you help me with my latest scheme. Killing two birds with one stone" He smirks and turns away. He waves his hand, and everyone in the room disappears. Only he and I are left in the large throne room. Loki begins walking back up towards the throne.

"Wait, where did they all go?" I ask hesitantly.

"Oh, they were never real in the first place." He turns again to look at me and says, "I am sure you have a million questions and I have a million answers, but first, my dear companion, I must ask: What should I call you?"

"Y/N… My name is Y/N." I stare at him. "Loki, why am I-?"

"Great! We can now get to work." He smiles devilishly as he begins walking to the throne again. "Tell me, Y/N was it? What sort of training do you have? Any battle training? Or perhaps some kind of magic? I know some people in Midgard possess powers or magic."

"No… I don’t have any. I am just someone from Earth; why am I here?" I trail behind him, moving with purpose. Loki reaches the throne and turns back to me with the same devilish smile.

He stretches out his arms and almost proudly says, "Glorious purpose, my friend!" He stands there, expecting me to respond. I cross my arms and stop walking toward him. "Oh, come on now; surely you have some sort of reason you can make up for yourself," he says, dropping his pose.

"No, I don't. Loki, I don’t even know how I got here. One moment I was," I trail off, realizing I have no idea where I was before this.

"There. Glorious purpose. Now, Y/N, I have a few ideas for our adventure. If you cannot fight, I can teach you to fight. Trust me, you will need it. You’re lucky to have been caught in such a realm as this. Follow me." He walks off down a hallway, and I hesitate but end up following.

The castle is very grand. Ornate fixtures hang from the ceilings, and everything is covered in gold. We head off down a section of the castle, and the temperature begins to rise. Loki opens up a large door to reveal weaponry and a forge. "The best in all of Asgard. Pick your weapon of choice." Along the sides of the walls are many kinds of weapons. From bows and arrows to swords, hand axes, javelins, and great axes There are great swords and Morningstars—any kind of weapon I could ever imagine is now at my fingertips.

"Are you sure?" I ask, holding onto the hilt of a short sword.

"I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life." He says it mischievously. He watches me as I pick up various weapons and give them a few swings. I come to rest on a rapier. The hilt is made of solid gold, the pommel looks like twisted ivy vines, and the blade is glowing in the firelight from the forge. "Find one you like?" He asks as he comes to stand beside me. He takes off his horns to show his slicked-back, greasy black hair.

"Yes, this is gorgeous, is it not?"

"It is magnificent." He looks at the sword before picking up one of his own. "Now, we need to assess your skills with such a weapon. Take a few swings at me, and you don't need to worry about hurting me." He smiles as he sets his helmet on the ground. I hold the hilt of the sword with both of my hands and take a few steps back. It feels heavy but not so much that it is hard to handle. I assume a wide stance and take a few swings at Loki. He blocks every single one of them with ease.

"Not bad, though there are a few things you need to improve on. Firstly, you need to make sure you’re not getting power from your wrist. You’ll hurt yourself doing that. It comes from your back more than anything." He demonstrates and gives me another chance to fix my mistake. "Good, you're learning. This will take some time, but I think you will get the hang of it fairly quickly." He puts his sword away and grabs a green leather sheath from the wall. "You’ll want this. Keep you from stabbing when you’re not supposed to." He offers me the sheath.

"That's probably a good idea," I chuckled, and I put my rapier in the sheath before fastening it to my hip. "What next?"

Loki thinks for a moment. He picks his helmet back up, puts it back on, and says, "I have the perfect idea for a training mission. It involves a great snake. Are you in?" He looks at me, his eyes gleaming with trouble.

"A snake can’t be all that bad. I’m in." He offers me his hand as a mysterious portal opens up behind him.

"Let’s go have an adventure."