Eta
[Pandora – Northern Mountains]
“I’m tired,” Spider murmured as he got off his ikram. He had spent all his morning exploring the mountains with his newly found friend, the ikram. He might not have a queue, but he could now appreciate the riches and wonders that Na’vi had when flying in the skies.
“Eavesdropping on another’s conversation instead of sleeping does that,” Loki answered as he placed a woven wooden plate with succulent fish in Spider’s arms. “Eat.”
“You knew?” Spider said with a grin as he took a bite of his fish. “Of course, you did… you know everything.”
“That is one way of looking at things,” Loki answered with a chuckle. “I was expecting you to make your presence known or at the very least to question me this morning, but you didn’t,” he continued with a shrug of his shoulders.
“Nah… it didn’t feel right butting in… Guessing your brother noticed that I was awake then,” Spider murmured while chewing.
“First of all, he’s not my brother… and second of all, don’t speak while chewing,” Loki growled.
It was weird when Spider thought about it. He hadn’t known Loki for long, but he could tell that Loki had a hardened demeanour. He would use his aggression as a defensive mechanism. “I’m just saying… you got a brother calling you brother,” he murmured as he continued chewing. “I would hear him out.”
“Of course, you would,” Loki hummed silently as he turned away.
“And you’re a Prince!” Spider said excitedly.
“Adopted Prince,” Loki answered with a shrug of his shoulders.
“Still a Prince,” Spider continued excitedly. “So, am I going to see it?” Spider asked hurriedly as he threw the wooden plate onto the whitened ground as he walked towards Loki.
“See what?” Loki hummed as he watched Spider circling him.
“That Frost Giant thing,” Spider said with a gleaming smile.
“No,” Loki responded venomously as he took a few steps back. “You are turning into a pest!”
“We are friends,” Spider murmured as he walked towards him.
“Friends? No, acquaintances… maybe,” Loki answered with a short chuckle.
“Friends,” Spider murmured with a beaming smile as he grabbed Loki’s arm. “Come on… you know everything about me… and maybe more, now I think about it.”
Loki turned his head to the side as his cheeks turned a charred shade of pink. “If I show you, will you cease this childish behaviour?”
“Maybe?” Spider murmured with a shrug of his shoulders while smirking. “You know you want to show it as well. Haven’t you ever been curious?”
Shaking his head, Loki found himself mulling silently. He had grown to accept his Jotun heritage, but that was it. Acceptance that it was a part of him, hidden in a place in the far corners of his mind shrouded in nothing but dust and pitch darkness.
But a part of him did want to explore. A part of him wanted to know more about his heritage because, against all odds, it was a part of him.
With his palms raised, he watched as a cascade of serene blue flourished into existence. It was weird when he thought about it. The first time he changed, he was fuelled by anger and rage, and he didn’t consider the transition.
Blue crept from the edges of his nails while slowly creeping up his arm and body before engulfing him. His piercing green eyes changed to darkened red that somewhat reminisced the devil itself.
And then there were his markings. It was different. The last time he had changed, he remembered them being grey and dull. Yet, as his gaze churned from arm to legs, he realised that they were gold.
“Wow,” Spider murmured.
“Monstrous, right?” Loki murmured as he let a cackle loose.
“Beautiful dude,” Spider murmured as he stepped forward.
“Don’t touch me,” Loki replied ghastly as he took a step back.
“What – why?” Spider asked as he hurriedly continued to step forward to grab Loki.
“You’ll freeze,” Loki replied as he flailed his arms aside. Yet he wasn’t quick enough. One moment, everything was okay. Then his world stilled as he expected a shard of blue to creep and crinkle up Spider’s arm.
Yet, as seconds turned to minutes, Loki realised that Spider stayed the same. There was no frostbite or burn.
“I’m good,” Spider replied with a smile as he waved his hand. “See… nothing.”
Impossible, Loki silently mused.
To be a monster, means you are not in control… you are not a monster, because you chose not to be, mused Eywa.
“Don’t change back,” Spider said. “I prefer you like this… taller, bigger and really cool,” he continued in his childlike manner.
Keh, Loki silently mused. Maybe there is something more to this… monster.
And then suddenly, the Bifrost was alive as a beam of rainbow colours descended onto the ground. Time slowed as Loki grabbed Spider by the arm. The flurry of snow around them was being pressed and pushed by the raw energy being dispelled from the Bifrost.
“Not again,” he murmured as he held onto Spider tightly while looking ahead.
And just when things couldn’t get worse, the colours had dispersed.
He couldn’t help but gulp.
Of all the people, he did not expect to see her.
He expected her eyes to widen in rage.
He expected her hands to find her sword in a fit of anger.
He was the enemy after all.
Yet, to his utter surprise, he watched as she stepped forward into a kneeling position with her hand going across her chest.
“My Prince,” she said.
Her voice was firm and rich. There was no hatred, bitterness, or anguish. Instead, it reminded him of his youth when compassion and caring were the norm. “Sif,” Loki mumbled quietly.
-
[Pandora - Awa’atlu]
The thumping sounds of his feet lightened with every step. Ronal was not happy, but she had accepted his way of thinking and for now, that was enough as he stepped into Jake Sully’s mauri pod.
“Tonowari,” Jake Sully noted hurriedly. “zola’u niprrte.”
“Irayo,” Tonowari answered with a short smile. He noticed that they were not alone. It seemed, that the whole family was readily present. “Kaltxi,” he added softly as his gaze turned to the children before he turned his gaze back to Jake Sully. “Neytiri has told me… that you seek the venture out for what is lost?”
Tonowari had a way with words, and Jake found it awkward at times. He might have the body of a Na’vi, but he was still learning. “Yes,” Jake said frantically while nodding. “I’m going to bring him home.”
“And why do you want him home?” Tonowari murmured. “Why do any of you want him home?” Tonowari continued as his gaze turned to Jake Sully’s family. “He wasn’t of any concern when he was left behind with the demons… but now he is?”
“He is ours,” Neteyam charred aggressively as he stepped past his mother’s yearning attempts to hold him back. “He is ours.”
“Maybe… maybe not,” Tonowari murmured. “His place is… where he chooses to be. Have you thought of that?”
“His place is here,” Kiri shrieked defensively. “To be with us.”
“Considering – that he was saved by the same man that saved Neteyam, it is only logical to assume that Spider is well and alive. If he wanted to, I see no reason why he wouldn’t come here. The man in question can clearly travel… freely, might I add,” Tonowari answered.
“What are you saying?” Lo’ak asked. His voice was a little meek as fear and shock flickered into existence. “You are saying – that he refuses to come here… why, why would he do that?”
Tonowari sighed. “The man that saved you is no ordinary man… he is ancient. Bestowed with wisdom that cannot be fathomed nor matched.”
“You make him sound old,” Lo’ak mulled with a short chuckle while ignoring his father’s absconding glare.
“That’s because he is… he came here years ago… my ancestors spoke of him in great detail… detail that would scar a Na’vi for life.”
“That’s impossible,” Jake answered.
“When the boy appeared all those years ago… he was just that, a boy. His father sought to claim Pandora –.”
“Like the demons?” Neytiri murmured. Her eyes widened in surprise.
“Yes and no,” Tonowari answered. “His father is a king in his own might… conquered many worlds. He sought peace through destruction and blood and from what we have learned, the notion has transpired well amongst the other worlds… but not here.”
“Loki’s father tried conquering our home?” Neteyam asked while visibly hurt and shaken by the idea that the man who saved him would be related to someone that bad.
“It was for his son… for the boy,” Tonowari murmured. “But something transpired… and Eywa and the boy’s father… the king had reached an understanding, and in that understanding, this boy was taught of our ways.”
“So, it was an exchange of skills but with the enemy,” Jake murmured silently as memories of wars flourished into existence. He could still taste the bitter bile that would croak on the back of his tongue as he recalled the number of times that he would work with the enemy to achieve his goals.
“Yet the boy is not his… he was adopted,” Tonowari continued as he ignored Jake’s gasp. “A father that went above and beyond for someone that was not his. Eywa took pity – at least, that is the understanding.”
“You knew all this?” Neytiri murmured silently. “You said nothing.”
“Till recently, I thought nothing about it… till recently, I believed it was merely coincidence,” Tonowari answered as he eyed Tuk’s small frame being embraced by Neytiri. “Till your youngest mentioned that she saw the man turning blue.”
“Blue?” Lo’ak pressed. “He wasn’t blue.”
“He was,” Tuk chimed with her tongue out. “When you and Tsireya were looking at the skies moving, he turned blue.”
“Shapeshifter… magic… the arts we do not understand or comprehend,” Tonowari murmured. “You see… the man you know as Loki is no mere man. He is a Frost Giant… when he changes forms, he can reach our heights, and he can surpass our strength.”
“Is he dangerous?” Jake asked.
“He saved my life,” Neteyam responded angrily as he cautiously eyed his father.
“It does not change the fact that he is the most dangerous being in our home,” Tonowari answered.
“But-,” Neteyam started.
“He knows of the oldest traditions… and he uses it as common practice,” answered Tonowari. “That is how he saved you.”
“Because he could see things that we are incapable of… because of evolution?” Jake murmured. His science was scrappy at best, but he remembered the theory behind survival of the fittest. “Along the way… it became prudent, that the skill would be unnecessary.”
“But Eywa,” started Kiri.
“What Eywa does… is what Eywa does. We do not question, we do not argue, we pray and we ask – that is all. She is our queen… she brings us together. You must remember that daughter of Sully clan,” Tonowari hummed grimly. “But yes… you are right, Jake Sully.”
“But this won’t stop us from finding Spider, will it?” Lo’ak murmured.
“It shouldn’t,” Neteyam murmured darkly and quickly.
“It won’t,” Jake answered as he cautiously eyed Neytiri and Kiri. “It won’t,” he added more determinedly as he turned his gaze to Tonowari. “My mind has been made.”
Tonowari sighed while subtly nodding. “I understand… but you do not see what I see… for the story is not finished. I know where the boy and your Spider are, but you will not reach them because it is impossible.”
“How?” Jake asked abruptly. “How is it impossible?”
“They are at the one place where everything points to south… far far into the north where the water we know, see and drink is nothing but frozen but ice… a barren mountain where even the bravest only meet death,” Tonowari answered.
The silence was nerving, but Jake couldn’t help but step forward. “Such a place exists?”
“A place… gifted to him,” Tonowari nodded. “The northern mountains had been untouched for as long as I can remember… and even longer when I think of my father and his father.”
“So, nothing can be done?” Jake murmured quietly. He was crestfallen as guilt surfaced. He thought he had a chance to redeem himself, but it was not to be.
“You will carry on living your life… If Spider is to come by, he will be accepted by Metkayina… but till then, you must live, prosper, and learn,” Tonowari murmured silently.
-
[Pandora – Northern Mountains]
“So, you’re friends with Loki,” Spider murmured as he approached Sif.
Hours had gone by and Loki refused to conversate with Sif and Spider didn’t know why. She seemed like a delight, like the warrior Neytiri was but kinder.
“Yes, child,” Sif answered with a bemused smile. “And I still am,” she cautiously answered while eying Loki who was verily close by listening to every word being muttered. “I hear he has been teaching you.”
“Yes,” Spider said happily. “Wait… how do you know?”
Sif laughed. “We have someone in Asgard-.”
“Asgard is where you are from?” Spider cut in.
“Yes,” Sif chimed with a smile while shaking her head. A swell of guilt swarmed within her guts as she looked at the boy and Loki. She was sure that Loki hadn’t realised, but the child known as Spider somewhat resembled Loki’s youthful antics. “We have a gatekeeper… he can see everything. He’s keeping an eye on Loki while he’s helping you here.”
“Wow,” Spider answered. “That’s so cool… and you can breathe the air here as well. Guessing that’s an Asgard thing?”
“Asgardian, but yes,” Sif answered with a bemused smile. “You must come visit one day,” she added gently.
“Why are you here Sif?” Loki’s voice cut in.
Turning her head, she could see Loki’s overwhelming presence seeping into the wilderness with every step. He was seidr master, and he felt very threatened. Sif verily knew this as she attempted to maintain a relaxed composure.
“To see you, Prince Loki,” Sif answered with a slight nod.
“Am I?” Loki sneered as he let a bellowing cackle loose. “I was never your Prince,” he seethed.
Immediately, she could feel a frown being dispelled as her lips curled and shrivelled. “I made a mistake Loki… a mistake I regretted.”
“Regret… First Thor, and now you… what the hell happened on Asgard?” Loki asked.
“We changed,” Sif answered honestly.
“Nei… you lie. I know your hatred for Jotuns… it runs as deep as your sword,” Loki answered.
“Then… but not now,” Sif responded.
Immediately, his skin turned blue. “Do you not see the enemy Sif? The son of Laufey… the son of the mass murderer walking and breathing? Do you not seek penance? Glory and justice for what Asgard believes in?”
Truthfully, when Sif thought about the whole ordeal, her main concern was that she wouldn’t be able to recognise Loki. Yet, that was not the case and she was grateful that she could still see her Prince in his Jotun form.
“I see our Prince,” Sif murmured with a smile.
“Blasphemy,” Loki sneered as he stepped forward menacingly.
Sif’s smile lingered. “Even as a child… you were a wild storm,” she continued. “You do not scare me Loki.”
“I should,” Loki taunted. “I could touch you… I could burn you.”
“I know you can,” Sif replied with a short chuckle while winking at Spider. “We both know… that when it’s a fight of Seidr versus weapon… you will always beat me.”
“And yet, you continue to stand and tell me that I do not scare you,” Loki roared.
“I do not fear you, Loki Odinson,” Sif murmured as she placed her hand on Loki’s chest. “I fear the darkness weeping through the crevices and cracks of your hardened skin. I fear the struggles you had to go through because of our actions… I do not fear you, I fear what you may become.”
His snarl turned venomous as he raised his hand into the sky. He wanted to strike but found that he couldn’t bring himself. Huffing and puffing, he turned away and began walking into the woods.
“Leave him,” Sif murmured as she eyed Spider. “There is a lot of anger in the Prince… he needs time to adjust his emotions and feelings.”
“But-,” Spider started.
“I know,” Sif murmured with a smile. “He saved you, and he took care of you. You feel indebted… I know that feeling.”
“You do?” Spider asked. “He seemed really angry… and upset.”
Sif nodded. “You know,” she murmured as she eyed Spider. “There was a time when Loki knew no such thing as anger… he was a carefree child with the most absolute freedom. Just curious about knowledge.”
“Really… what changed?” Spider asked.
“Asgard,” Sif answered softly with a saddened smile. “Asgard and its people,” she added in a quieter tone.