I was already moving up the ice and we had a two on one going. O’Brien was just about to pass it to me when one of the Penguins came up beside him and slashed his stick right into O’Brien’s knee. He crumpled to the ice in a heap screaming out in pain.
“What the hell do you think you are doing? That’s bush league you moron!” While the Stansky had gone over to check on O’Brien, I decided this guy needed to be taken down a notch. He was a bit bigger than I, but the younger guys weren’t nearly as tough as they thought they were.
“What are you going to do about it old man?” He dropped his gloves and I didn’t even have to respond.
The arena was building with noise; everyone loves a good hockey fight. I dropped mine and we circled each other a few times. The big guy (whose name I don’t even remember) tried to throw a few fakes, but it wasn’t that convincing. He eventually was able to grab my jersey, but I also was able to get his. We both threw a few punches but nothing really landed.
As the big guy kept trying to inch closer, I saw an opening. He bobbed his head to the left every time he tried to punch. I saw the bob and instead of ducking, I shifted to my right. He lost his balance and I was able to hit him with a right cross on the way down.
Once on the ice, I got a couple of cheap shots in before the refs pulled us apart. The crowd loved it, everyone was on their feet. Both coaches were screaming at each other and other players were pushing and shoving. I skated over to the penalty box while the refs sorted everything out. Eventually, one came over to give me the news.
“You’re out of the game Skelton. Five minutes for fighting, ten minutes for game misconduct, and a match penalty.”
I argued the penalties for a few more minutes to no avail. However on my way back to the locker room, the crowd did its best to let me know that my hard work for such a short night was appreciated. Maybe I wasn’t ready to walk away from all this, not yet anyways.
****
Dad and Garm had returned with a few rabbits and dad was busy cooking them while I finished my story. I was even surprised to find Garm had curled up by the fire and was listening. For a moment, he actually looked like a big puppy with his ears perked up and panting in that silly way dogs do.
Actually everything seemed pretty normal right now, like we were a family camping and enjoying the fire together. All that was needed to complete the picture was s’mores and the loss of exotic weaponry. Still, it was a nice moment and I think we all needed it. I had no idea what tomorrow would bring, but tonight was worth savoring.
Chapter 45 – Trouble
The next morning, we were all up early and ready to head out. We didn’t get as much sleep as we probably needed but both Rumil and Garm had many questions for me and I can’t help it, I love talking about hockey.
Finally deep into the night, I could barely stay awake anymore and just nodded off in the middle of an explanation. I promised both of them next time we could talk I would answer as many questions as I could. Before we left our camp, dad went over the route we would take to get to where Loki and Sigyn lived.
“The Fields of Idavoll are at the southwest edge of the Great Forest. The forest itself only has sparse activity in it during the day as trolls and their ilk are more nocturnal. However, the closer we get to The Fields, the more I expect to see Asgardian activity. They do not trust Loki at all and I’m sure they send people to ‘check in’ on him from time to time. It’s at that point I feel traveling at night will be our best advantage.”
“How long do you think it’ll take us to get there dad?”
“The next two days if we travel quickly will get us to the point where we will switch over to night travel. From there, it will only take a few hours to reach their home. This of course is assuming we don’t encounter any trouble.”
Rumil and Garm both agreed with dad’s assessment and before I knew it, we were off to the races. Dad took point with Rumil and I in the middle and Garm as our rear guard. He was right, the forest was very quiet and that made travel pretty easy.
At around midday, he gave the word to stop for lunch, which was good because I was getting hungry. I also had thought of some more questions I wondered if anyone could answer.
“So team, I’ve been thinking. What’s the real reason that my realm of Midgard was closed off to the rest of them? I get that us humans could be at a disadvantage physically, but isn’t that for us to find out on our own?”
Both dad and Rumil didn’t know, but I was surprised by the fact Garm barked up pretty quickly. What did the dog know?
“The light elves convinced Odin that the human race was much like those evil dark elves. They portrayed your race as violent, greedy, and invasive. They said it would be best to wipe you clean from Midgard but Odin, who has visited your realm a few times, did not think something so drastic was needed. He closed the Bifrost to all races and Heimdall has been its guardian ever since.”
“I understand how dad snuck into Midgard, but if it was closed off to all races, how did Thor get there?”
Garm let out some sort of weird dog bark/laugh. I’m pretty sure he thought I was being funny here. “Young Jack, the Aesir have never followed their own rules. Thor ran away to Midgard to avoid having to marry the less than fair Lady Sif.”
Well that explained quite a bit and why Sif was not all that happy to see him when we crossed over. Now I wonder if anyone knew he had a girlfriend there with a kid. If he’s still alive I am guessing no one knows. “Sif was certainly pretty scary when I first met her. She just seemed like an angry person.”
“Lady Sif is a monster.” Rumil I knew held no love for her. “One day, I swear on my clan’s name, I will make her pay for the pain and death she has caused. It was her doing that the Aesir and dark elves are now on the brink of a war.”
Dad looked up at the sun, “We can talk more tonight, but we have been here too long already. Let’s move out and make sure we get cover before nightfall.”
We broke camp and got into the same formation we were before. Once we got into the groove of our jog, I decided to talk to Rumil. “Hey,” in as low a whisper as I could manage, “what do you mean Sif started this whole conflict with you guys?”
“The dark elves and Aesir had long lived together without the threat of violence. We kept to ourselves and they kept to themselves. Very recently, while a group of us were in the woods hunting, Sif came out of the shadows and ambushed us. As we were only hunting, we were not prepared for such and she was able to kill one of us and capture another. A few daylights later we found our companion’s body. He had been brutalized to no end before they slit his throat. The foolish Aesir believed all of lies the light elves fed them.”
“Rumil, I’m so sorry. I thought the elves had died in battle, not like that.”
Tears were coming from her eyes now; this was not an easy subject. “The kidnappings continued. King Oor finally had enough and we started our own raids on their weaker targets. Now the situation is at the boiling point. Father’s delegation to Valhalla may be the last chance to stop war from happening.”
I didn’t say anything more, but I reached over and took her hand. For her sake and all the dark elves, I hoped war could be avoided.
We kept up our pace for awhile, but eventually the sun began to set and the cold wind started to pick up. Dad decided we had gone for enough for one day and we all went about the task of finding shelter. We looked for a little while, but Rumil was able to spot a tight cluster of trees that would work.
Like last time, we immediately all went to work getting the camp set. I cleared an area of snow off the ground and Rumil was able to find enough wood to start a fire. Dad and Garm did some quick hunting and in no time we had food and warmth.
“I’m afraid tonight we will have to take turns keeping watch. Jack, we are in both forest troll and dire wolf territory. We’ll do shifts in pairs with Jack and I being pair one and Rumil and Garm in pair two. Anyone have any questions?”
No one did and with a sense of d
read, Rumil and Garm both laid down to try and sleep. Dad explained to me that the fire may attract attention, but without it we would freeze. Fortunately our watch produced no significant moments and when it was time to switch, I was ready. I gently woke Rumil up, who was asleep beside me, to take over. She gave me a quick kiss and motioned for me to lie down in her lap while she took over. I was pretty comfortable and fell asleep quickly.
“Jack!” The urgent whisper in my ear woke me up pretty quickly. “I need you to stay calm for me.”
“Rumil? What’s going on?” I was still half asleep but I looked over and dad was already awake and Hrotti was in his right hand.
“Garm has picked up the scent of a troll. It is getting close to camp and we may need to make a quick escape.”
I nodded that I understood. Then I heard the inhuman roar of the troll and the sound alone made me say a quick prayer. “Rumil, if we have to try and fight this thing, do we even stand much of a chance?”
She didn’t even have to answer. Hey eyes told the story and it was not a pleasant one. “Trolls are not to be trifled with.” She looked over at dad and something was passed between the two of them without words even being said. “Like the time with the ice giant, if there comes a time when I tell you to run then I want you to run.”
I started to object but was immediately cut off. “No Jack, the best that any of us can do is stall it. You must run, for me.”
Another loud roar broke our conversation off. It was a whole lot closer this time. “A word of advice,” Garm said very quietly, “I think the time for our departure is here.”
We got into positions as quietly as we could and started moving. Our only lucky break was that the troll was coming from the opposite direction we needed to go, so we were able to keep on path to the Fields of Idavoll. Unfortunately, the troll must have heard us and now he was going in the same direction.
“Everyone, move now, as fast as they can!” Dad quickly switched into full wolf mode. “Jack, up top now, we can go faster that way.”
Not wasting anytime and, with an assist from Rumil, I was riding on top of dad and we were moving. It dawned on me just how much the three of them had to slow down to let me keep up with them. The troll didn’t have such limitations and was still in hot pursuit.
“Master Fenrir, I am afraid that at some point the troll will catch up to us.”
“I know Rumil. We need to find a place to slow this thing down.”
I guess the troll had gotten even closer. Its roar was deafening, like the sound of being right by an airplane getting ready to take off. Turning around, I saw the massive outline of the monster closing in.
“Jack, soon I am going to need you to go with Garm. Rumil and I are the only ones who may have a chance at slowing him down. Do you understand?”
I did but I didn’t like it. “Dad, I don’t need you two…”
I didn’t even get to finish my rebuttal. The troll had ripped a tree out of the ground and threw it at us. Dad dodged it the best he could but it caught me off guard. I went tumbling off dad’s back and landed awkwardly on the back of my head.
“Jack!”
I heard Rumil’s scream but it didn’t register. I was pretty dazed and all I saw in my eyes were stars. I felt something powerful grab onto my coat and pull me away. I looked up and it was Garm. We were doing well enough but the troll had closed in and with a swipe of his hand sent Garm and I flying back further into the woods.
Garm had taken the brunt of the blow and he appeared out cold. It took me a few moments to come to my senses and when I did I saw dad and Rumil engaging the troll. Being able to see it clearly for the first time made my blood run cold. Its dark green skin was covered in boils and the beast was pure muscle.
Rumil had jumped up into a tree and was firing arrows in the direction of the trolls face. Dad was snapping and slashing at the trolls legs, trying to get him off balance. The problem was the troll didn’t seem fazed by any of it. Rumil’s arrows just bounced off his hide, which didn’t help dad at all. Big and ugly was focused solely on removing his wolf problem. There had to be something I could do. I started looking around to see if I could create a distraction of some sort, but I was too panicked.
Then it hit me; the smell of ozone filled the air. Even though it had been what seemed like a lifetime ago, the memory of that smell stayed with me. Hitting the ground, I saw the eruption of lightning flash through the sky followed by the sound of a sonic boom that shook the ground.
And then there was nothing, just complete silence. I looked up and the troll was fried to a crisp and falling apart into ashes. A few feet from where the troll had been standing was Thor, his hammer raised and still crackling with electricity.
Chapter 46 - Thor
I didn’t move just yet. Part of me wanted to run over to my friend and thank him for saving our lives, but another part of me was suspicious. As much at it pained me, I wasn’t sure if I could trust him.
Assessing the situation, I saw that dad and Rumil were in tough shape. Right before Thor blasted the troll, he apparently had gotten off a few swings. One knocked Rumil out of the tree and another seemed to have punched dad right in the face. Hoping I was doing the right thing for everyone, I raised my hands and shouted.
“Thor, it’s me Jack! No reason to keeping attacking!” Once I had his attention, I started walking over. That must have caught him off guard at first because of the surprise on his face, but then he smiled. The closer I got, I could now see just how exhausted using such power caused him to be.
“Jack my friend,” he paused to catch his breath, “I thought I would never see you again.”
“I’m glad to see you too, but my friends need help right now. I’ll explain everything as soon as we’re all okay.”
Thor nodded and got back to his feet. We walked over to dad and Rumil. Dad had shifted back into his human form, but was covered in bruises and was sporting a black eye. Rumil wasn’t much better off but that didn’t stop her from pointing an arrow at Thor as he approached.
“Rumil, it’s okay I promise. He’s here to help and to listen.”
I could tell she didn’t like it or trust him, but as beaten as we all were, accepted my judgment and lowered the arrow. By this time, Garm had come to and walked back over to us. It was close to morning, but no one was in a condition to travel so we went about setting our camp up to rest. We worked in silence and finally had everything set up.
“So I guess you have some questions huh?”
“Yes, I have a great many questions, but those can wait. The first thing of concern is making sure you are okay.”
“Yeah big guy, I’m good.” Knowing he cared more for my well being than the collection of Asgardian outcasts that I had collected meant a lot. “Let me re-introduce you to my dad Fred Skelton.”
Thor sat there and listened to everything I said. I recounted my entire journey from the time we were separated up until now. The parts I couldn’t fill in one of the others jumped in and told their parts. The look on his face never changed from that intense look I recognized from our playing days.
Finally, after quite some time, I finished up. “And you know the last part; we were chased by a troll until you came along and fried it. Thanks for saving our hides back there too.” I reached out with a closed fist to him.
After hearing everything, would he still consider me a friend? He did, as he bumped mine and smiled.
“It seems you have received the full nine realms experience. Part of me is saddened by the fact you have had many hardships but the other part is happy that you have also found your family.”
“So you are cool with my dad being Fenrir and having a dark elf for a fiancé?”
“The Norns often work in ways we do not understand. Master Fenrir, please know I never held any ill will towards you. You were always very kind to me as Mr. Skelton and you have protected my friend.” Thor stuck his hand out this time towards dad. Dad took it and they shook hands. “And lady elf, as one who him
self has fallen in love with someone not of my own people, I understand. I know we might be on opposite sides of a conflict right now, but we both are on the same side when it comes to our friend here.”
Rumil didn’t say anything but at least her face softened a bit after Thor made his feelings known.
“The part of your account that bothers me the most is Baldr and everything at play there. The Allfather’s decision to use such magic is disturbing news. In regards Baldr’s death, even though we did not always see eye to eye, he was my brother. Please, can you go over everything again for me?”
Rumil took the lead this time and retold everything from her first chance encounter up until the end where I shot Baldr with an arrow to save her and dad. Whenever Thor had a question, she took the time to answer it completely. Once she finished, there was an uneasy feeling over the camp. Thor himself looked both in pain and angry.
“This situation raises more questions than it answers. There is definitely something going on in the halls of Valhalla that most of us are not privy too. Forbidden magic and covert missions are not the way of the Aesir.”
Now it was dad’s turn for some questions. “What were you doing out this way anyways?”
“Lady Sif has been acting strange as of late.”
“In what ways? From my understanding, she is not the most friendly of people anyways.” Just from the time I met her, she gave me the chills.
Thor chuckled at this. “When we returned to Valhalla after our encounter with the lady elf here, the Allfather charged the two of us with finding Jack. He said it was of the utmost importance for his safety to bring him back. ”
“I don’t think anywhere in this realm is safe for me, but I appreciate the thought.”
“Lady Sif took the search lightly and eventually disappeared one night. I was actually trying to find her when I came across your group here. I do not know if that was a coincidence or not.”
Power Play: Act 1 Svartalfheim (Ragnarok on Ice) Page 20