Chapter 1
When Odin had first heard that Thor had returned to Asgard he didn’t know whether to be relieved or angry. However, as he listened to his son speak it was becoming much easier for him to decide how to feel now.
“What is this I’m hearing? You disappoint me, Thor. I entrust you with the greatest honor and you want to forfeit it all for a mere mortal woman,” the weary king proclaimed, his good eye trained on the kneeling prince. The All-Father had been fully prepared to overlook the fact that his son had gone against his decree and chose to chase after Malekith and his army. Thor had, after all, returned victorious. But that victory was slowly tainted by his wishes to abdicate the throne and return to Midgard. Odin was no longer feeling in such a charitable mood.
“Jane is not any mere mortal woman,” Thor declared, posture steady and firm with certainty. “She is the one I love. She does not know what I came here to say. Now, forbid me to see her or say she can rule at my side. It changes nothing.”
“It changes everything!” The All-Father stood at those words, slamming the blunt end of the Gungnir down against the floor. “I forbid it. You are my son and my heir. A crowned prince cannot walk away from Asgard because he is lured by the sweetness of a Midgardian!”
But Thor did not waver. He stood.
“I will still protect Asgard and all the realms with my last and every breath, but I cannot do so from that chair!” he protested, pausing to will his rising temper back down. “I’d rather be a good man than a great king.”
Odin swore he could feel his blood boiling over. His fingers tightened around his weapon. “Foolish boy! You commit treason and yet still claim to be a good man? What nonsense am I hearing? Is this my legacy?”
He knew his words were harsh and biting but there was no malice behind them. Thor's request had hurt him more than it actually angered him. His son was the only family he had left. He knew that visage of a perfect household had long ago shattered into pieces, but it took the death of his queen to realize how unsalvageable his family had become. He was done with grieving and mourning. He refused to lose another person he cared for.
Thor’s eyes steeled over, jaw clenched tightly as he swallowed the lump at the back of his throat. “Nonsense? What nonsense is, is that Loki for all his grave imbalances understood rule as I know I never will. He died with honor and I shall try to live the same—is that not legacy enough?”
Odin scoffed. Had no one informed Thor of what Loki had done? While his eldest son had been running around on Midgard, his other son had decided to pay him a visit.
Odin had been shocked to hear Thor had broken Loki out of prison, but he had made quick and quiet work to remedy that problem. He could not risk bringing further panic and terror to his shaken citizens. The situation had to be dealt delicately, and so he had ordered Tyr to send out his best soldiers to apprehend them.
It had only taken them a few hours to return empty-handed, but it was not for naught. They had returned with dire news and informed him that they had located Loki—and that he had been found dead.
The unforeseen outcome made his head spin with grief. Odin knew he may not have had the best relationship with his youngest son, but he had still cared for Loki nonetheless. Yet, he had his part to play too. He could not afford to show such sentiment to his people unless he wished to show his fallacies as a king. The moment Loki had become a public criminal was the moment he no longer swept things under a rug. Family or not, a king’s civic duty was to deliver justice and maintain the peace.
While he knew they more than likely relished in the death of a criminal, he did not feel the same. He wanted to know whathad exactly happened. How had this come to be? Loki may not have been the warrior Thor was, but his cleverness had always saved him from a situation. It didn’t make any sense.
Something seemed off and Odin eyed the guard who had delivered the news with a calculative eye. Everything seemed to have clicked into place the moment the soldier looked back at him with mirth in his eyes.
Odin inhaled sharply.
It took only a split second for the entire room to change and the illusion to finally crumble. The accompanying guards vanished like smoke and a bitter laugh filled the chamber as reality shifted into focus. And while Odin had sensed the trickster’s presence just before, it did not stop the blood from draining from his face.
“Loki,” he muttered aghast. He gripped the Gungnir tightly. “What game are you playing?”
The trickster chuckled, before flashing his teeth. “No games here, old man.”
But Odin was no fool. The king knew better than to take the word of the infamous lie-smith and he instinctively pointed his weapon at his disowned son. “Are you mad? Have you returned to provoke me?”
Loki clicked his tongue with admonishment before diving at the king. While Odin had been prepared to strike him down, he had been too slow to react. The spear tumbled down the stairs with a loud clamor as Loki forced Odin back into his seat. The prince hovered above him, eyes ablaze, clasping onto the back of the throne with one hand while he held a dagger in the other.
The dagger pressed against the king’s neck. “Provoke? Most certainly.”
But Odin stared back at him, his face calm for a man who was being held at knifepoint. He may not be as quick as he used to be, but he was not about to let that fallacy make him a victim. “No, Loki.”
Those simple words seemed to have struck a chord. Loki stiffened in reaction and exhaled sharply through his nose. Angrily, he pressed the dagger in more. “What has happened to the proud king of Asgard? Can you only provide a show when you have an audience to appease? Hmm?”
The king felt something warm slither down his throat. “Will it satisfy you to kill me?”
“Satisfaction is not in my nature,” Loki spat back, his knuckles turning white.
Odin scowled. “Is there ever a point to this madness? If you are here to end me, then end me.”
“And there is that arrogance,” Loki hissed in annoyance before he pulled back to watch a line of blood slither down his neck.
Odin knew he could have done much more than have given him a flesh wound, but something did not seem right. He could feel that something was amiss and that Loki’s resolve was not entirely there. Whatever had compelled him to return to Asgard, was no longer driving him to take any further action.
The All-Father winced and grasped at his throat. Loki may have stopped what he was doing, but it did not stop the fact that he had shed his blood. Odin found his calm demeanor was quickly evaporating. “Do not speak to me about arrogance when you dare appear in front of me. Do you forget the crimes you have committed? Do not play me a fool!”
“Fool?” Loki snarled, “You have had me playing the fool my entire life!”
“You have done that to yourself!” Odin objected, rising to his feet, “You cannot blame me for the crimes you have committed.”
“My crimes are no different than yours,” Loki jeered, his dagger pointed, “Do not pretend to be as humble as you believe to be, Odin.”
The king’s face twisted, the last bit of his resolve snapping. “The only crime I am guilty of is taking in a monster like you!”
Those words were out of his mouth before Odin had realized the gravity behind them. Loki’s expression fell almost immediately—all the madness and contempt was briefly replaced with a look of despair. And that was the moment Odin knew that he had finally shattered what little hope that had remained. Loki had always feared hearing those exact words, and now the cries of accusations from years ago came into fruition.
It was a mistake.
Odin reached a hand out to him, but recoiled when Loki let out an anguished scream. The trickster flung himself forth, dagger swinging madly in the air as the large gilded doors flung open and the real Einherjar rushed in with his ravens in tow loudly behind them.
But Loki cared not, as both father and son stumbled forward. The trickster grasped at Odin’s cape and the king struggled to pull away from his hold. Loki slammed the dagger down onto the armrest as he loomed overhead like a predator. His green eyes burned with rage, but instead of spitting fire he gave a feral smile—something sinister and unhinged that sent a chill down Odin’s spine.
“Finally, the truth,” Loki bit out, just before the guards finally pulled him away.
But the truth was, that Odin had screwed up and he knew no matter what he said now, it would be meaningless. He had made too many mistakes to atone for. The All-Father’s chest tightened as his expression turned somber. He could do nothing to mask the hurt in his voice.
“Loki’s alive,” Odin murmured, “I believe his intention was to kill me.”
“What…?” Thor muttered, his face dropping at the news. He stared incredulously at the All-Father, shaking his head in denial. “You must be mistaken. I watched him die in my arms!”
Odin frowned. Heimdall had confessed that he had aided Thor and that Thor had been the one to release Loki. It had been foolish of his eldest son to do so, but the need to save the mortal was much more important to him than keeping a criminal detained. While he may have planned to return Loki to serve for his crimes, the trickster had drawn up his own agenda the moment that he was free. He was now beginning to understand just how Loki had slipped away from Thor’s radar.
“Loki saved me from Kurse and suffered for it. How could he still be alive when I witnessed him die with my very own eyes?” Thor questioned, as he let the news wash over him.
“You know very well that Loki has always had a talent for deceit,” Odin chimed with an unpleasant tone, slowly sinking down onto his throne. “It seems he faked his death so he could carry out his own plans freely. I’m certain it involves the throne.”
His finger scratched at the armrest where the dagger had left its mark. There seemed to be no other explanation why Loki would even dare show himself in his presence. He had been free, but instead, he had wandered back to Asgard. Odin knew his return had to do with him, but he couldn’t quite understand the logic behind Loki’s tact. He wasn’t one to do things blindly.
And now, he surely didn’t think there was anything he could do to salvage any hope his son may have had. Everything had been recklessly tossed out the window when his anger had spiked. And Loki had seemed quite keen about killing him.
He sighed, his heart heavy with strain. All that has happened in the last few hours have taken a toll on him and he was beginning to feel the ache.
“I do hope you plan to execute him.”
The anger and pain behind those words gripped heavily at Odin’s heart. Thor had always put his neck out for his younger brother. The two had gone through thick and thin and regardless of the trouble between then, Thor always stood by Loki—even after the trickster began spiraling down a darker path. The thunder god held out hope, but it was evident that it had finally become the last straw. It pained him to see Thor surrender the last bit of faith he had been so dearly holding onto.
But unfortunately, Odin was incapable of doing the same. He may have cast his son aside numerous times, but he could not find it in him to do so again. While his betrayal stung him, he knew he had partaken in this demise. Frigga had warned him.
He had played favorites from the beginning—after all, Thor was his own flesh and blood. There was no way to look past that, but he knew he could have still been a better parent to Loki. Instead, he criticized him every step of the way and all the while kept the truth hidden from him. He kept him at arm length, while Frigga took him under her wing. She had insisted that he tell Loki the truth, but he had not listened.
Would things have gone differently if he had? Would that have stopped him from becoming the destructive being he was now? The fates were never wrong and it seemed that Loki had been destined to become the villain he is now. It was in his nature.
Odin closed his eye with a deep sigh. “The axe is not for him. He will pay for his crimes but with time, but I can no longer call him my son.”
“Where is he now?”
Odin slowly peeled his eye open and gazed at his son. “Where he belongs—in his cell.”
Thor’s jaw tightened momentarily, before he bowed his head. “Forgive me father, but I will return to discuss matters with you shortly. I must first see Loki with my own eyes.”
And he turned away before anything can change his mind, but Odin had nothing more to say to him. His words would only fall on deaf ears once more. The All-Father peered at his retreating son, before averting his attention to the forgotten hammer resting on the floor.
Thor had left it behind. He had set it down as a show of respect to him, but it seemed it had been overlooked. It was unlike him to leave behind Mjölnir, but perhaps his mind was not in the right place with everything going on. Maybe he would call for it?
But the seconds turned to minutes and the hammer didn’t budge. Odin stared, expression darkening as the cogs in his head began to turn. He knew his conversation with Thor was far from over, but he would be a fool to allow his son to abandon Asgard for a meager human. He knew his words alone were not enough to stop the prince of thunder.
And so, Odin came to a decision.
He bellowed for a guard and one curtly appeared from outside the chamber. The king stood from his seat and motioned for him to come forth. The soldier sank into a low bow in front of his liege, as Odin descended down from his throne.
His hand grasped the guard’s shoulder tightly as he muttered something to him in a hushed voice. The soldier stiffened, but nodded his head in affirmation before hurrying out of the throne room leaving him completely alone. The moment Odin heard the gilded doors shut was the moment he chose to gingerly pick Mjölnir off the floor and return to his seat.
The king closed his eye, letting his fingers fondly trace over the dwarven runes engraved on the stone. The hammer was more than just a weapon. It was a symbol of worthiness—and right now, in his eyes, Thor was no longer worthy. His son was being rash and reckless once more and during such a crucial time of need. Asgard needed their king and Midgard did not need another hero.
He swallowed back a lump. But was he really doing the right thing?
The All-Father sighed, sinking deeply into his throne once again. He cradled his face with one hand as he mumbled gravely.
“Frigga, forgive me.”