Chapter 14
MUSPELHEIM
Thor didn’t move position, his arms crossed as he stoically watched the forces of Asgard assemble. The bi-frost was not a subtle transport. Surtur was well aware of their arrival, the thousand foot tall fire demon currently half hidden within an oozing volcano but his flickering eyes were watching them. He still wondered why Surtur didn’t attack but chose to wait. The only answer Loki would give had been a half mumbled response about ego. It was unlike Loki to forgo stealth but time was running out so Loki had agreed to a sacrifice of stealth for speed, because there was little doubt that Asgard would be doomed if they waited. Considering the size of the fire demon, he would see them coming anyway.
His friends were gathered together less than a dozen feet away. There was still an air of wariness about them when they interacted, but the anger they held with him seemed to be fading. He only wished Loki was as forgiving. But then Thor felt himself smile. It was a facet of Loki’s nature and as inconvenient as his brother could sometimes be, Thor wouldn’t change him.
The smile faded as he watched Loki reappear from wherever he’d disappeared to. It had just been for a few minutes yet his brother looked lighter, somehow. “Brother?” Loki glanced at him. “Are you well?”
A smirk pulled at the corner of Loki’s lips as he nodded. A familiar smirk that Thor had seen during their adventures over the centuries. A smirk that assured victory. “Of course I am.” Loki rubbed his hands together briskly with a spark of good humor. Hela’s timing couldn’t have been more perfect. He knew what he was going to do. He was inches from his goal. “Now then, how would the mighty Thor act?”
Thor’s brow furrowed. As much as he tried he would never completely grow accustomed to his brother’s ever changing moods. “As you have stated I am not king--…”
Loki just waved a dismissive hand. “Oh, that. That was just to remind you. Now that we’ve established our roles I’m curious as to your response.” When Thor didn’t appear eager to share Loki clarified. “Consider it practice if I never produce an heir and name you as successor.”
A pained expression crossed Thor’s face. “Do not say such things, Loki.”
Loki already had his arms crossed. He impatiently tapped his bicep with a finger. “I’m waiting.”
Thor looked outward to assess the situation. “I would prefer to divide the warriors so that we could attack in multiple directions simultaneously.”
Loki was inclined to agree with him. “Unfortunately we do not have the time and the planet is literally an enemy.”
“It is a shame we cannot utilize the Bi-Frost to bring this to a swift end.” At Loki’s frown he clarified what he meant. “Jotunheim.”
An unchecked grimace crossed Loki’s face. Thor was referring to his previous actions when he had been steward and had attempted to use the Bi-Frost to drill a hole through Jotunheim. “Ah. No, that is not a possibility.”
“Why?”
Loki really didn’t want to answer that question. “Because.” Thor didn’t say anything, he just kept looking at him expectantly. The trickster ground his teeth together before huffing. “The world tree is perfectly balanced by nine realms. Destroy one of those planets and it will lead to imbalance. Yggdrasil could snap and in turn destroy all of us.” Thor blinked at him in horror, his eyebrows hiking up towards his hairline. It hadn’t occurred to him at the time. But as Loki had spent weeks if not longer tumbling between the branches after letting go he’d had nothing but time to think about it. Snarling at him, “I was having a bad day. Shut up.”
Thor gave Loki one of his censoring looks, as if he were the older and wiser brother and Loki was still not within his majority. But instead of chiding him verbally for once Thor moved to more practical talk. “Then we should employ the skiffs. A dual assault by air as well as land could limit casualties.”
“To what end?” Loki had his head tilted slightly before he explained. “You have discovered on Asgard that fire demons cannot be killed by steel.”
Thor nodded slowly. “We need to extinguish the fire.”
Loki glanced up at the skies. Skies that hadn’t seen a storm before. “The storm can cool the planet enough to form a crust, assuming a storm could even be formed here. But not even a flood will extinguish Surtur.”
Now the thunderer glanced at his brother with a frown. “Then what alternative is there, brother?”
Loki bared his teeth. “A spell.”
There were immediate groans all around, the other four listening in. Loki couldn’t keep his smirk from growing at their response. They never asked for an explanation of how the spell worked. For once that would work to his advantage.
The smirk on his face slipped as he watched Tyr and the others from the war council direct all of the warriors towards a series of crates that had been sent from Asgard on floating skiffs. The skiffs he’d ordered them to retrieve, what was on them he hadn’t.
Fandral’s brow furrowed and he wasn’t the only one to look confused. AEsir carried their own weapons onto the battlefield. “What are they doing?”
Loki glanced down at the medium sized cylinders that were being passed out in distaste. They were effective in stopping forest fires, an invention crafted by the dwarves tens of millennium ago when fire broke out on Vanaheim and the Vanir turned to Asgard for aid. The coolant was an unlimited supply. Instead of dowsing the flame with water it froze it.
Tyr was already ordering the warriors to fan out, laying down a suppressive layer of coolant that froze the fire demons in their tracks. Loki sighed through his nose, mumbling under his breath as he started walking towards them. “Saving me the trouble…” He spoke louder as he asked a seemingly obtuse question, “General Tyr, what are you doing?”
Tyr turned to Loki and bowed appropriately before responding. “We need to cut through these smaller demons to smite Surtur…these weapons--…”
Loki brushed his explanation away impatiently. “I am well aware of what they are. What is your strategy?”
The men stuttered in their steps, watching the exchange between the two men. Before Tyr could respond, Ing took a step forward. He was a revered hero of the battlefield. The man was even taller than Thor, wearing silver armor that shimmered and his jaw set in a hard line. There was rage in his blue eyes but Loki wasn’t surprised. He didn’t regret for an instant turning his son into a horse but he wasn’t foolish enough not to think that this man wasn’t going to be a pain in his ass. Ing spoke louder so they could hear as well and know what was expected. “Create a path directly to our objective. The front line will lay suppression while the warriors prepare to charge.”
Loki slowly narrowed his eyes. A perfect tactic for a basic fire if there were living, breathing targets on the other side. The circumstances were slightly different since this fire was sentient and was, in fact, an extension of the enemy. “You do realize you are not dealing with mere fire.”
“Of course, sire.”
Tilting his head slightly, Loki offered a more thorough hint. “There is nothing on this realm that doesn’t burn.” Ing just continued to stare at him, not seeing Loki’s point. Or perhaps he did see the point and just refused to listen to a man and a king he didn’t respect. Talking just a little slower, irritated he had to spell it out. “The warriors are just as flammable as a plank of wood. A frontal assault is suicide.”
“That is why the front line will be armed with these.”
Odin had once accused him of talking in circles. Loki felt like he was in that sort of discussion right now and the AEsir in front of him either was simply this thick or was pretending not to understand. Loki tilted his head in the other direction, a line of frustration creasing between his eyebrows. “Firstly, as every enemy here is wreathed and born by fire, what is the point in half of your warriors not armed thusly since you put so much stock into it?”
“The first line will freeze our enemies and the secondary line will use sword and axe to smite them. They will work in concert to cut those frozen enemies down.” Ing stood a little taller in his response, conviction in his tone. The remainder of the war council were also nodding.
“Secondly, Surtur will see you coming. Do not believe him an imbecile for he is not.”
Tyr waited a moment before responding evenly, “My lord it is not a matter of questioning his intellect. He shall not have the fortitude to withstand our might.” A cry of pride filled the air, a thousand voices lifting into the air to bolster their fellow warriors.
Loki didn’t glance at them, trying a different tactic. “You would be better served with a dual assault.”
“We will face our enemies as AEsir, not as cowards.” Ing was careful in his tone but Loki still felt as if the insult had been aimed in his direction. For years he had spent being named a coward because of his sly style of fighting.
Loki was not one for wasting his breath when much more effective lessons were available. He could order them returned to their crates, but these men would continue to hesitate following commands every step of the way and the remaining warriors would follow by example.
Ing looked to press further and Loki waved a dismissive hand. “Do as you wish. Their defeat will be on your head. Though they will journey gloriously to Valhalla on this day so that should please you.” His voice was dripping with sarcasm at this point as he pivoted on his heels. He moved to a central location before closing his eyes and whispering softly as his hands moved in an intricate manner. He gestured outward and a small magical shell grew around him. Not enough to encompass the entire camp, but enough to provide a temporary shelter.
Thor’s brow furrowed ever so slightly in question but Loki just jerked his head slightly in the negative as he took up his previous position. Thor planted his feet and commanded his friends with a glance to do the same. Loki looked straight ahead, watching Surtur in the distance as he spoke, “Hunther, you will remain at my side.”
Thor glanced silently at his brother. The name wasn’t important to him but he took the extra time to memorize it. If anyone of Asgard held Loki’s loyalty, they were worth remembering.
The guard, now at the rank of soldier, bowed and immediately moved, ignoring the objections forming on Tyr’s lips. A dark look flickered in Loki’s green eyes and for just a moment Tyr forgot how to breathe. He was not a coward. If nothing else, he knew that about himself. But he knew with clarity he didn’t want Loki’s response should he press the need for Hunther amongst the ranks. The warrior decided to cut his losses, ordering the rest into position.
HELHEIM
Odin made a disgruntled sound. “I taught him better than that.” No one was really paying attention to the old monarch at this point. Hela barely even spared him a glance. “That boy knows how to give commands.”
Farbauti rolled her eyes dramatically. “And how would you respond? Roar at them until they did as they were told?”
“Yes, if necessary.”
The Jotunn snorted. “Such a wonderful example for they to follow.” Now she glanced at him and asked snidely, “And how effective do you believe Loki would be in doing the same?”
“All the more reason--…”
Farbauti didn’t wait for him to finish, snarling at him, “The deaf, dumb, and blind leading more of the same.”
“How dare--…”
Hela studied Loki’s now impassive face carefully. Yes, Loki knew how to give commands. He wasn’t the best at inspiring loyalty but he knew how to win arguments. But she supposed that was the point. Loki was now king. He shouldn’t have to win an argument to have the men follow his commands. The war council wasn’t ready to trust the judgement of a young king. Tyr had his own reasons but was letting others sway him and for Ing it was entirely personal. “Children.” She snapped this at the pair of them and they both subsided. “It was my impression you taught Thor better than that, not Loki.” Farbauti immediately sneered at him silently.
“Taking a step back from Tyr makes him look weak.” He bared his teeth slightly as he said this.
Still watching, Hela raised a single eyebrow as she asked, “And are you afraid that is a reflection on him…or you?”
Odin brushed off her question, lamenting on the past. “He should never have allowed Thor to abdicate the throne.”
“Why?”
“Thor is the king Asgard will follow.” Now Hela turned to look at him and he clarified. “A king commands respect. A man who cannot inspire obedience has no business being king.”
“Of that we are agreed.” A look down her nose at him told him he would never inspire her loyalty. Hela glanced back at the image, leaning back comfortably in her throne for several long moment before shrugging. “Loki merely uses the resources available to him.” She smirked privately to herself. “When those resources are men like these…he must inspire them differently.”
MUSPELHEIM
Soon the men were posed three layers deep and weapons in hand. Ing was at the front, his sword unsheathed and raised defiantly. The formation reminded Loki of a battering ram and he knew it was going to be about as effective. Tyr raised his fist in the air. “For Asgard.”
Loki raised his own fist ever so slightly, mumbling under his breath. “Odin would be so proud.” He fought the urge to roll his eyes.
Thor’s brow was furrowed. “I should call in the storm.” He glanced quickly at Loki who paused for a moment before giving a tiny nod of permission.
The thunderer hefted Mjolnir into the air. The air around them thickened, but so did the oppressive feeling of the heat and fumes. Thor’s eyes widened and he was quick to banish it, glancing at Loki again who lightly quirked an eyebrow. “This is a realm without water. What kind of storm could be generated?”
Thor sputtered an objections, “You motioned--…”
“Thor.” Loki was about to waste his time convincing Thor it wasn’t going to work when letting him try and fail would be all that was required. He cut Thor off with one word, his name. Instead the trickster pointed. “Watch.”
War cries filled the air before a wave of cool met the heat of this planet. Little fire demons were crawling out of the fiery cracks within the ground, freezing in mid motion as waves of coolant washed over them. The men walked forward, their gait even and rhythmic. Gauntlets struck breast plates as the thousands upon thousands that remained formed ranks and followed.
Thor and the others stood up straighter but Loki just slowly shook his head. They truly did resemble a battering ram now. Always a frontal assault. How disappointing.
“Brother, why do we not join them?”
Loki didn’t even spare Thor a glance. “You may if you like but I shall now.”
Thor blinked at him in surprise. “Why?” He knew his brother wasn’t a coward. He may not enjoy a frontal assault but Loki had never shied away from battle.
Loki just shrugged casually. “Because this is going to fail spectacularly and I would prefer not to be trampled.”
Sif frowned, realizing Loki was more than just arrogantly confident. He was absolutely certain. “Sire, then order the men back.”
Now why would I do that when there was so much education in defeat? Some people had to learn the hard way and he knew the war council were those people. Loki slowly lifted one eyebrow. “I will bow to the wisdom of seasoned veterans who has fought for Asgard’s glory longer than I have been alive.”
Attention moved back outward as the ground started to crack and move. Loki raised an intrigued eyebrow, the battering ram of warriors halted as something started to crawl out of the ground. Similar in build to the other demons, this one had a lizard-like build with a body filled with flamed, sharp angles. Dissimilar was the fact that this creature was nearly as long as the ranks of warriors were wide and well over thirty feet tall. The heat forced the men at the front back several steps but none of them ran.
Loki muttered softly, shaking his head as he glanced at Ing. “He isn’t truly…”
Hogun was frowning himself but none of them spoke as Ing bellowed his order to destroy the obstacle in their way. Coolant tanks in hand, the creature was covered from end to end and froze in his tracks. With a roar Ing thrust his sword forward and the creature shattered. The great beast in their path did more than just shatter. Frozen bits and pieces of it tumbled down into the ranks.
A cheer rose through the air, Thor beaming with pride. Loki didn’t react, he just watched. Even as the men celebrated victory the heat from the distant mountains continued to spew forth fire and ash. The celebration trailed off as Surtur started to laugh. Deep and resonating, it filled the valley until it was the only sound heard.
The ice along the ground formed cracks, red heat showing within them. As heat and ice collided, pockets of steam shot into the air. Loki felt his jaw tighten and gave into the desire to make one last effort to spare the AEsir from the inevitable. “General Tyr, recall your men.”
Tyr glanced back at him, frowning ever so slightly. “Why, sire? We are victorious. We will be able to defeat Surtur just as easily.” Loki’s expression went blank, just staring at Tyr. Odin wouldn’t have been questioned. But then that level of respect Loki wasn’t foolish enough to believe he would be offered.
“Such weapons have been available since before Surtur was imprisoned the last time. Do you truly believe this approach wasn’t attempted?”
Thor had turned as well but as he studied Loki he could see no hint of amusement. It was no bluff or trick. He didn’t know the why but he trusted his brother had a good reason. Putting authority into his tone. “You heard your king. Recall them.”
Loki glanced at him in surprise. He didn’t even attempt to hide it, staring at the thunderer as if he’d never seen him before. Thor never listened to him in the heat of battle. On rare occasion Thor had bowed to the wisdom of a seasoned veteran but most of Loki’s suggestions were ignored and the rest he was chided for offering them.
All of them jerked around as cries and bellows of pain filled the air. The chunks of the great beast caught on fire as the ice melted, the fire burning everything it came in contact with. The chunks shuddered and started to grow but eyes were riveted to pain and heat and death. One of those chunks grew teeth and sank them into Ing’s abdomen. The man bellowed in agony as he was engulfed in flames.
A left hand formed a fist and shook a second before Loki bellowed a snarl, using magic to amplify his voice so the order carried. “RETREAT!”
Thor was only a second behind, glancing at Loki before roaring. “By order of your king, fall back!” The warriors 4 broke rank after a quick glance to Loki before wading into the thick of things to help the injured towards the small haven Loki had quickly constructed with his magic.
Tyr jumped slightly as if poked before setting his jaw and running forward to assist those he could. Those that could move unassisted didn’t have to be told twice, dragging with them those that couldn’t. Surtur’s laughter only grew.
HELHEIM
Odin stood silently, his face wiped clean of all emotion. Even his eye was little more than a hard glint reflecting light as he stared. Hela approached silently, the fingers of her left hand gliding over the surface and a strange little smile on her face.
She knew the way Odin thought. He didn’t see that he was culpable in this result. He had worked so hard to boost Thor up in the eyes of his men that no other king could compare. Unconscious or not, Odin had used Loki as the example of what not to aspire to be.
Loki throwing his weight around would be ineffective. He would be perceived as little more than a bully with power. A spoiled child trying to get his way…or the lacking second son trying to pretend to be a mighty king.
This was the most efficient way as well as the most effective and Loki was smart enough to know it. “Through pain and death he has proven the war council’s tactics to lack the necessary finesse for this particular foe.” She turned her head enough to whisper in his ear as she passed and returned to her throne. “Now, he will inspire obedience.”
Author's Notes:
Sorry, my muse ran away, the bitch. I had to wait for a replacement to come in the mail.
Next:
The battle continues