Long time no see.
* * * * *
Three weeks ago
Heimdall's POV
"IT'S UH- IT'S A PLEASURE TO meet you," I slowly started, "I'm Heimdall." I reached forward to shake his hand and he broke out of his theatrical bow. He grabbed my hand and shook it vigorously. Phelan then broke into a smile.
"Would you care to return to my home and we could maybe talk there? I was just out grabbing some early dinner," he said, lifting up two dead rabbits attached to his belt.
My eyes travelled to his belt and I couldn't help but notice his clothing was a little peculiar, even for whatever world this is. His shirt and pants were a dark grey and looked to be made of wolf fur. He wore very large, thick black snow boots and his belt was a deep brown and looked to be leather, with many hoops and holes for items. The two rabbits he had caught were tied to the belt behind his back and he had a knife and ax tied to the sides.
"I suppose so. Thank you for your hospitality, that's very kind of you," I told him. He scoffed and waved a hand at me before quickly making his way back to his hut.
"Come on in, I don't bite," Phelan laughed loudly to himself, clearly proud of his inside joke. I was secretly hoping he wouldn't notice the large slit in his wall, but all he did was give it a glance and wave his hand at it. The slit mended itself as I gave him a weary look.
"What?" He asked, untying the rabbits from his belt.
"Where am I?"
He chuckled. "You've got to be messing with me, Heimdall. No one just ends up here, you either sneak in or you're summoned. Everyone knows that."
"What world is this?!" I demanded.
"Woah, woah. If you're going to talk to me like that then you can kick rocks. I'm simply here to help." Phelan raised his hands in surrender again.
"Is it Natenheim?" I whispered, my eyes drifting to the floor. The Allfather couldn't have banished me here.. he couldn't have...
"Yes," was all he said.
I sighed heavily. "The BiFrost has to be connected to this planet. That's how I got here. I was banished by the Allfather and-"
Phelan stopped skinning the first rabbit to interrupt me, "Wait, you were banished by... Odin? Isn't that, like, pretty bad?"
I shrugged, deep in thought, and started to pace. "Considering that he's more known for sending people who break his trust to Hel, I am lucky."
Phelan hummed in response, too busy with preparing dinner.
I continued pacing around the room, thinking back to when the Allfather first approached me.
"You are a good-for-nothing gatekeeper!"
"You have absolutely no worth to me anymore."
I cannot believe my only excuse was that there are secret passages. I cannot believe I had an excuse at all. Although it is true. I did not see Azeli's mother enter into Asgard. When the Allfather came to blame me I was completely astonished.
I wasn't thinking straight at the time, I mustn've have. Something did not feel right... like something was missing...
"Are you on her side?"
I must admit that I was not surprised when he accused me of treason. After helping Thor, Loki, and Azeli escape Asgard in Malekith's enemy ship, he held a trial against me, Fandral, Volstagg, and Sif with some high ranking members in the council. We were sentenced to the dungeons forever unless Thor returned to Asgard, proving our plan to be successful and not in vain. It was then that Odin had released us but given us fair warning that if we so much as committed theft, we would rot in Asgard's dungeons.
So I was, again, not surprised when he accused me of treason, because it would've been the second time in a matter of a few weeks. But the Allfather never said he would banish us.
I took a seat on one of Phelan's many couches that decorated his hut and leaned my head back in thought, wincing when it stretched my almost healed knife wound. Phelan looked up from cutting the salvageable meat off the rabbits to me and raised an eyebrow. I waved him off and he shrugged.
I have been his gatekeeper for thousands of years. He must have a lot of faith in me. He has to; I could see it in his eyes during my trial. The Allfather was very disappointed in me, and I know that he knew I would never break his trust again.
So why would he banish me? He has no proof of the matter. And if he did, why didn't he have a hoard of guards come to escort me to the throne room for another trial? Why did he personally come to the dome to accuse me? No guards, no trial, no witnesses?
The Allfather would never...
I have known him for thousands of years. We have been acquaintances and I would even daresay friends. I know that the loss of the Queen and Loki have probably made a very large impact on Odin, but he acted rationally during our trials?
What set him off this time?
It can't just be Azeli's mother appearing in the throne room. Besides, the Allfather is more powerful than most beings in the universe. Even if she somehow materialized next to him, it couldn't have taken more than a swish of his scepter to get rid of her.
"Do you like seasoning?" Phelan's words broke into my thoughts. I realized I had slightly zoned out and was staring at the top of the ceiling but broke my concentration to answer him.
"Oh, yes, whatever is fine. Thank you."
He nodded and continued cooking, grabbing a few spice bowls from a small cupboard. I watched as he added a little bit of everything and placed the meat in a large black cauldron. Phelan then added a few different kinds of vegetables and started to stir the soup.
Odin would never attack me. The Allfather has never been one for violence when it comes to arresting and convicting someone of their crimes. At least, he's never been one to do it himself.
My fingers reached under my shirt to feel what was left of the knife wound.
Of course. He would never stab me. He may accuse me, he may use magic to restrain me, but he would never stab one of his best and most loyal soldiers.
That was not the Allfather.
I have no proof, but I do have my suspicions. My senses may have not been as sharp as of late, but I know my master. I know his mind, I know his ways, I know how he rules the universe.
But I need proof.
Think, Heimdall, think.
What set him off?!
And then it hit me.
Azeli.
She left for Midgard earlier this morning. Ever since Thor returned a few weeks ago from Midgard after defeating Malekith, him and Azeli beaten and bloody, the Allfather hasn't been the same. Thor told me after she departed that she had spoken with the Allfather to leave on good terms. And then a few hours later her mother just appears in the throne room looking for her.
Of course.
I can't believe I missed it.
I can't believe I goddamn missed it.
I should've known better.
Suddenly, I jumped to my feet, my body clearly ahead of my mind. Phelan flinched, clearly taken aback.
"It's not ready yet," he said.
I have to get back. I can't let Loki rule Asgard. He is not mentally fit to rule the Ten Realms. If he had no problem killing his own father then he'll have no problem killing his brother. I can't let Loki be the only heir to the throne.
"I have to get back to Asgard. Help me, Phelan, please-"
His eyes widened and quickly said, "Wait, what? Why? What's going on?"
"I just realized something awful. If I don't return soon then the Ten Realms will be damned! I have to kill him-"
"Who? Can I help?"
Even in my current state of shock, that caught my attention.
"What?"
"Well, clearly it seems that whatever you just figured out is really bad and you're most likely going to need some help. I am totally down for whatever." Phelan smiled, still stirring the soup.
"You don't even know who I'm talking about." I crossed my arms.
"Does it matter?"
"Yes. At least it should."
"Oh, well in that case, who are you talking about? Who needs to die?" He asked, setting the spoon down.
I couldn't help but notice that his eyes were the exact same color as mine. They looked wild, like the type of eyes an animal would. It would make sense considering he can shapeshift into a wolf. It was unnerving to stare into a pair of bright yellow eyes so I stared at the pictures hanging from the walls instead.
"I just now realized that the Allfather's presumed dead son never really died at all and killed him to take over the throne, and is currently disguised as the Allfather ruling the universe." I told him.
"Oh, shit!" Phelan laughed loudly, slamming his fist on the kitchen table. "Wow. That does sound pretty bad. So you're saying that it wasn't really Odin who banished you here? It was his dead son?"
"Yes, exactly. I have to get back and stop him. Maybe not kill him, but at least... do something." I said, taking a seat across from him at the table. My elbows found their way to the table and my face fell into my hands. "I just have no idea how to get back. I'm powerless without my sword."
"Hm," was all he said. Phelan grabbed two bowls and spoons and scooped some soup into both of them.
I thanked him as I started to eat, but he just sat across from me with his hands crossed, deep in thought.
After a few moments I looked up to see he was staring at me, but before I could ask why he said, "You look so familiar, I swear."
I thought for a moment. "Well, my brother was said to have been sent to Hel millennia ago, but after Azeli told me that I looked just like him, I suppose he was banished here instead-"
"Wait, did you just say Azeli?" Phelan interrupted me loudly.
"Y-yes. I guess you know her...?"
"Know her?" He scoffed. "Of course I know the Princess. I was her caretaker when she was a baby."
"If you don't mind me asking, why do you no longer live in the castle then?"
Phelan sighed, sipping a spoonful of soup before answering. His gaze lingered over to a picture on the wall, I could probably have seen it just fine if it wasn't getting darker outside by the minute. The only light throughout the hut was a candle on the kitchen table and the dying fire under the cauldron.
"You won't be able to understand my job if you don't know my history. Care to listen?" He smirked.
I shrugged but nodded my head, finishing my bowl of soup. I guess he noticed because he immediately stood up to refill my bowl. Thanking him once again, I focused my attention on him.
"I come from a family of shapeshifters. That's easily said, obviously, but we can only morph into animals. You don't usually get to pick unless you have very good concentration and control over your mind. Unfortunately, that cannot be said for me, I am still working on it to this day, but I have the ability to shift whenever I please, which is good enough for me. I had a mother, father, and eleven siblings; six girls and six boys, including me." I could tell it was going to be a rough subject because the knuckles on his hand gripping the spoon were bone white.
"That's a lot of children," I tried to say casually, "How did your mother and father keep up with you all?" I chuckled.
But Phelan didn't. He looked away, "They didn't."
"Oh," I muttered.
"It's alright. That was thousands of years ago. I almost can't remember what they all look like anymore, I've been alone for such a long time..."
"I thought you said you worked at the castle?" I asked.
Phelan stuck a finger up and smirked. "Yes. Good job. But it's also been thousands of years since then."
What?
"Go on," I told him.
"I am a lot older than I look, Heimdall," he gestured to himself. I guess he has a point, if he's telling the truth. He looks barely thirty.
"My family and I were alive when Mother Nature was banished here," I gawked. I wasn't. That must have been millennia ago. "Only, it turns out that with the fall of Edna, everyone decided that they would go to the Allfather, Bor, to express their complaints. Bor decided that he didn't want to be seen as a fierce and merciless leader by his people, and he also didn't want the possibility of being overthrown, so he decided to send everyone that was considered 'too powerful' here," Phelan waved his hands around to indicate Natenheim.
I nodded, soaking in his story.
"Everyone in Alfheim was terrified of us animal shifters and our family, but I don't blame them considering my brothers could be absolutely outrageous sometimes. They used to shift and walk through the market, stealing and eating everyone's fruit and vegetables..." Phelan softly smiled at the memory. "But one day the villagers had enough. They didn't think that it was fair that they had to share their planet with people who have special abilities when they didn't...
"It took a couple hundred years, but they called upon the gatekeeper at the time and were brought to Asgard before Bor, and they complained. They must have done a great job, because Bor came to Alfheim to see for himself. Apparently being an animal-only shifter is very rare, especially ones that don't age whatsoever, so Bor did not want to send us to Hel. Instead he banished us here to Natenheim, and the Queen was still very... upset about her banishment. She ended up making us her servants. She gave us all separate jobs." Phelan explained.
"Like what?" I asked. "I know that you said you were Azeli's caretaker."
He smiled again, "Yes, but she wasn't born for a long time. My father was the main hunter and meat provider, my mother was the main kitchen chef, my brothers and sisters were given small jobs, such as mending the Queen's dresses or making her shoes and hats. Edna didn't have Azeli for a few hundred years, so my job was to help my father with hunting. But then when the Queen became with child, it didn't have to be said that my mother was going to be the child's main caretaker. My other brothers were helping my father with hunting, and I couldn't just do nothing, so I decided I would take over my mother's spot as head chef. Edna changed her mind when she tried the first and only meal I ever made her," a big smile creeped onto his face.
"So, even though I was a man, Edna decided that I was good enough to take care of and watch over her only daughter. I never understood why she had a child just to ask for everyone else to take care of her, though. Once the Queen had Azeli, she didn't want anything to do with her. I couldn't see how; she was an adorable baby. Nyota and I couldn't keep our hands off of her. But I guess I could understand why Edna didn't want to look at Azeli, Azeli looks just like her father-"
I jumped at that word and smacked my knee under the table.
"You know Azeli's father?!" I yelled.
Phelan's eyes widened. "Shh! Calm down! Of course I do! Well, at least I know of him. No one ever saw what he looked like, and we sure as hell don't know his name."
I huffed. "Do you know if he has any powers?"
Phelan raised an eyebrow, "Why do you want to know?"
"Well, as soon as Azeli woke up from her coma-" Phelan hissed, "she said that a girl she had met in Asgard was taking care of her in the infirmary and asked her if they could speak privately. Apparently she had asked Azeli if she'd take her to Midgard, but when Azeli said no she went crazy and..." I trailed off.
Phelan was staring at me, his eyes shining crazily in the candlelight. "And...?"
"Azeli said that time essentially stopped. It happened to me too, only he was able to take my eyesight away from me. Both my gifted and natural sight. She also said that he can either take all five senses or it's all lost when time freezes." I explained.
Phelan was silent. After a few moments he sprung from his chair and said, "Would you care for some tea?"
"That would be nice, thanks," I replied.
He grabbed a jug of water from the floor and filled a pot with water and tea leaves before setting it in a holder over the fire. I watched as he plucked a spoon from a cup before he sighed sadly. "What was the girl's name?"
"Azeli said her name was Clio."
Phelan shook his head. "That doesn't ring any bells."
It was silent for a few moments while he stirred until I spoke up. "You still didn't tell me how you were relieved of your caretaker position."
"Isn't it obvious?" He deadpanned.
I shrugged.
"Azeli was kidnapped. Under everyone's noses. By the time we all noticed, Nyota and Azeli were five realms away, completely out of our reach. Edna blamed me the most, said I was in on it with Nyota and helped them escape." Phelan paused for a moment before deciding to continue. "I will say that if Nyota would have asked for my help, I would've given it to her. Azeli deserved, and still does, everything. She especially deserved a mother who would care for her instead of ordering others to."
I nodded. I knew that Azeli was kidnapped as a child. That knowledge was passed onto me when I became gatekeeper; that Odin was aware that someone broke through Natenheim's barrier. He had me watch them travel through many different realms for many years before, who I now know as Nyota, decided upon Midgard. I watched uncomfortably as I watched her brainwash a man into thinking they were siblings. Although the Allfather had his suspicions about the woman, he decided not to act and to leave it as Midgard's problem. He never even gave thought to who the small child could be until a prophecy seemed to appear to him many years later. It was then that Odin realized what this child is and what they're capable of. He sent Thor to Midgard to inform her of her powers and everything has flourished from there.
Phelan interrupted my thoughts with his rambling, "None of this makes any sense, though. Edna must have lied to us..."
"What are you talking about?"
Phelan continued to shake his head and stir the now boiling tea.
"Tell me." I demanded.
Instead he muttered incoherently to himself, "That can't be right... she said he was just a villager... a mortal..."
"Speak up!"
Phelan's head shot up, but didn't look at me. Instead his eyes wildly jumped over his many bookshelves and his feet followed not long after. He tripped his way over to them and shuffled through dozens of books before landing on, I suppose, what he was looking for.
He flipped through the book while walking back to the table and pushed it towards me, saying, "Either Edna didn't know that Azeli's father was immortal, or she's lying about it. But either way this is bad. Not just because he is back and out to get Azeli, but because this ruins the entire prophecy."
"What?!" I exclaimed, pulling the book closer.
"Yes. But it talks about the child of Mother Nature and a mortal man. This changes everything if he turns out to be a god!" Phelan cried, rubbing his face with his hand.
I was stunned. If Tessa's mother is Mother Nature, and her father is actually immortal and has these never-before-seen powers, what is she capable of?
"Do you have any information here?" I whispered. "Any books, resources, anything?!"
Phelan shook his head. "Not about Azeli or her father, just Edna."
"Do you know any secret passages? Loopholes? Any ways out of here?" I fired at him, my voice raising.
He never stopped shaking his head.
"Heimdall, you were banished. Regardless if Odin's son is the new Allfather or not, he holds the position and he's the one who commanded it. You are stuck here; just as I am, just as the villagers are, just as Edna is."
* * * * *
QOTC: what was the last movie you watched?
Donnie Darko. I cried like a baby when I realized what was happening. It was an awesome movie.
There is a big clue hidden in this chapter. I wonder if anyone will catch it. It's mentioned about twice. Let me know if you do, and also I'd love to hear your guys theories of where this story will go.
I hope you all have been doing well. I've missed you.
371k on Loki
30k on The Dark World
See you soon :)
WRITTEN: 12/09/21 and 12/10/21
UNEDITED
-gray x