I finished picking some fruit for breakfast, and then I headed back over to the fire pit and found Asta brewing tea while Kas looked through her spell book. The little dragons were awake, but not quite up for the day.
Inger sat in Asta’s lap with her head laid on the elf girl’s knee, and Blar laid at Asta’s feet, or rather, on her feet near the fire. The elf girl didn’t seem to mind, though, and she seemed to make sure not to make any sudden movements so as not to disturb the two of them.
Uffe had chosen to lay on the ground by the fire, but he seemed the most awake out of all the little reptiles. His purple eyes surveyed the area, and he seemed to be smiling. He appeared perfectly content to be awake and outside in the morning sun. He truly was one with the earth, and I could tell he enjoyed mornings like this just as much as I did.
I started on breakfast and appreciated the quiet morning with my crew. I made us some oatmeal with peaches, apples, and cinnamon. It paired wonderfully with Asta’s floral tea, and it didn’t take long for everyone to devour their bowls.
Blar and Inger ate savagely as usual, while Uffe savored each bite. Kas held her bowl over her spell book and ate as she studied, and her violet eyes scanned the pages with focus and determination. Asta ate quickly, and then she sat with both hands around her mug as she sipped her tea slowly.
After breakfast, I had Kas pull out the map for us all to look at. She laid it in the grass by the fire pit, and we all gathered around.
“It’s right there,” the strawberry-blonde said with a point.
“Okay.” I nodded and turned to Blar. “I know you can’t see what’s around the well except for on paper, but do you think you can visualize it enough to get us close?”
The little blue dragon looked down at the map and then back up at me, and he nodded his head three times.
“Thanks, buddy.” I smiled.
Blar had managed to get us fairly close to the castle in Helheim, so I had faith he could get us decently close to Nidhug’s well. Also, in Niflheim we didn’t have a time limit and the threat of losing our joy forever hanging over our heads. I wanted to try and get to the well early since I was eager to finish the quest, but an extra hour or two of walking wouldn’t make too much of a difference.
After we looked over the map, we all got dressed and ready to head out.
I put on my old blue warband tunic, as well as my chest plate and forearm guards. My sword was attached to my belt at my hip, and I pulled my hair back into a braid on top of my head, shaved the sides so they were clean, and gave my face a good shave as well.
I also grabbed Blar’s chest plate and put it on him, but as I did so, I realized he’d gotten bigger, and the armor would soon not fit him at all. I’d have to commission another one to be made.
I didn’t anticipate we would need our armor since we were going to see Nidhug, but I also didn’t know where the portal would let us out in Niflheim. There was always the possibility we could run into some sort of creature that inhabited the realm, and I’d encountered enough of them by this point to know most of them weren’t exactly friendly.
I refused to get caught without my armor. It was better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it.
The little dragons played in the yard while we waited for the girls, but it didn’t take long for them to come out of the cottage.
Kas wore her long purple tunic that matched her eyes with her steel armor on over it, and her satchel was over her shoulder and hung next to her sword on her hip. The sorceress’ makeup from the night before had washed off, but she was as beautiful as ever, and her long curly hair was pulled back into a high ponytail that hung down her back. A few flyaway curls framed her face, and she looked at me with violet eyes eager for adventure.
Asta had on the yellow tunic she’d picked out that also matched her eyes. Her nearly black armor complimented the color well, and her long white hair added even more contrast to the look. Her hair was braided down the middle, and the long thick braid hung down her back. Her elven ears were clearly visible, and I couldn’t help but smile at how beautiful she was.
“Alright,” I said as they walked over to me. “Are we ready to go?”
“I think so.” Kas nodded.
“Blar!” I called out, and the little dragons all ran over to us.
Blar flew up to land on my shoulders while Inger landed on Asta’s shoulder, and Uffe ran up to Kas’ feet to be picked up. The little earth dragon still preferred to walk or run instead of fly, but I thought that was another reason he liked Kas do much. The Valkyrie woman didn't seem to mind having to pick him up, and I thought it was probably because she was a grounded person herself.
Unlike her giddy elf counterpart, Kas was a realist, and she relied on logic and fact versus feeling.
Once they were all settled in, I turned to Blar on my shoulder and gave him an encouraging smile.
“It’s up to you now,” I told the little reptile.
The little blue dragon nodded and closed his eyes. A second later, a small portal appeared, and it grew larger as I watched, until it was big enough where I could fit through easily.
Blar opened his eyes and smiled so hard they closed again. He was clearly proud of what he’d accomplished, and I couldn’t blame him. The portal had appeared quickly, and it had grown larger at a faster rate than they had before.
He was getting more and more proficient with his teleportation, and I was curious to see what else he’d be able to do soon.
“Good job,” I told him, and I reached up to scratch under his chin before I held my hands out for the girls to take.
We all stepped through the portal at once, and the familiar rush of wind hit me for a second. The air was gone as quickly as it came, though, and I opened my eyes to a whole other realm.
We’d been to the world of fog and mist before, but it seemed different than the last time we’d come. Today, it lived up to its name. The air was humid and cool, and the fog was so thick I could barely make out a tree a few feet away. Everything was cast in an eerie white translucent sheet that overpowered the entire realm.
“Whoa,” Kas breathed as she looked around.
“It is quite foggier than the last time we were here,” Asta added.
“I was thinking the same thing.” I nodded.
“I looked up a spell for just this type of thing this morning.” Kas smiled. “I thought we might run into this problem.”
“What do you mean?” I asked. “A spell for fog?”
“A spell to counteract fog,” she corrected, and she reached into her satchel and pulled out a small mirror and a piece of twine.
“What do we need to do?” Asta asked.
“Just hold onto me and focus your power on the mirror,” Kas instructed.
“Okay.” The elf girl nodded and placed her hand on Kas’ shoulder while Uffe laid on her other one. The little dragon didn’t seem concerned whatsoever, he just laid on Kas’ shoulder and looked around curiously, and I wondered if he could see better than the girls and I could.
The beautiful strawberry-blonde sorceress held the mirror in one hand and the twine in the other. Then she closed her eyes and began to murmur a spell of some sort.
Asta closed her eyes, too, and I could see her chest rise and fall evenly as she focused her power on whatever spell Kas was casting.
Blar and I watched as the mirror illuminated with a silver color and then went back to normal again.
“Done.” Kas smiled and opened her eyes.
“What does it do?” I asked as my eyebrows furrowed together. Nothing seemed different.
The sorceress held the mirror up and pointed it in front of us, and the fog dissipated enough for me to see about fifty feet or so ahead. It wasn’t completely clear, but I could make out the scenery, and that was all I needed.
“Wow.” My eyes widened with disbelief as I took in the sight before me.
“Now,” Kas said, and she pulled the map out of her satchel and opened it up. “The well
is that way.”
Kas pointed to our right, and I looked at the map and nodded. We were at least an hour’s journey away it seemed, but that was to be expected. Blar was getting more proficient at creating portals, but it seemed like an impossible task to create a portal that led directly to somewhere he’d only been to once.
He’d done a good job, and an hour’s walk wasn’t so bad, especially considering we’d walked for two or three hours in Jotunheim. Here it was foggy, but at least I didn’t think there were any giant snow leopards waiting for us. I couldn’t be sure about other creatures, though, and I was once again happy I’d made the girls put their armor on. The fog that surrounded us was eerie, and it put me on edge to not be able to see all around me. As a fighter, my instincts were to keep an eye on my opponent, but I wasn’t sure I’d be able to see one if they tried to sneak up on me.
I’d just have to keep my ears focused since my eyes were limited.
Kas held the mirror out and led us through the trees in the direction of the well, and I took in the sights and smells around us as we walked.
Niflheim was a damp and cool place, and something about it made me feel as though I were under a rock. It seemed like the kind of place a salamander or snake would live back in Asgard, and it suddenly made sense why Nidhug had made it his home.
Dragons were fire creatures, but they were reptiles, too, and Blar and the twins didn’t seem to mind the place at all. Perhaps something with the muggy air felt comforting to them.
Blar and Inger flew just ahead of us, but they made sure to keep within the visible area the mirror created. I didn’t want either of them to get lost, especially not in a world with fog in the name. It would be difficult enough to find them with how small they were, but to not be able to see them even a few feet away was scary to me.
Uffe was content to ride on Kas’ shoulders, though, and he perched next to her head and looked from side to side as we trekked through the trees.
The forest we were in seemed to go on for miles. The deep black-colored trees had very few branches, but they extended upward as far as the eye could see. The ground had no grass, and, in fact, the only green thing I saw was some moss attached to one of the trees.
“I was thinking,” Asta said as we walked. “If Nidhug is the guardian of this well, and he’s going to give us the water, then why would the other guardians not give it to you?”
“The fates gave it to him,” Kas pointed out.
“True.” The elf girl nodded. “But why did he have to kill the leopard? I just don’t understand why only one well would have a guardian you’d have to fight. It would seem all or none would make more sense. What’s so special about the well in Jotunheim?”
“Well, that’s the well Odin traded an eye to.” Kas shrugged. “It’s supposed to give whoever drinks of it incredible knowledge. Maybe that’s why it’s so special.”
“That was the only well I’d heard of before.” I nodded. “I hadn’t known about the other two before this.”
“So, that is the one with the most special abilities, then?” Asta asked.
“It would seem so.” Kas pursed her lips. “But perhaps the water from the other wells becomes more powerful when combined with each other.”
“They were glowing last night when they were near each other,” Asta agreed.
“We’ll find out soon enough,” I said, and I pointed up ahead to the familiar large black stone wall that hid Nidhug’s well.
The black obsidian stretched up to the sky, and I smiled to myself. We were nearly there. It was almost time for the quest to be completed.
Kas turned to smile at me, and then she held the mirror up again and led us toward the giant stone wall.
The girls made a point, it did seem odd the snow leopard was the only well guardian we had to fight. The fates warned me about taking the water, but they hadn’t tried to stop me. The leopard had been ready to attack, though, and I wondered if the water from the Jotunheim well was really so magical it needed protection more than the other wells.
The story went Odin sacrificed his eye to Mirmir in order to gain knowledge of things hidden from him. But if that was the case, then how had our invisibility spell worked on him? Had he actually seen us, and just acted like he hadn’t? Or did the effects of the well only last for so long before they wore off?
I’d have to ask Ramir about that when we got back, or maybe I could ask Nidhug. Either way, once I got all the vials full, I’d be able to figure out what the water was for, and that might help me understand its powers a little better.
The girls and I walked up to the stone wall, and I quickly found the entrance. We stepped through and into the courtyard, only it wasn’t the courtyard we’d been to before. The well in the center wasn’t the black well Nidhug had come out of the last time we’d been there. This seemed like a new place entirely.
The black stone walls were the same, though, and aside from the color of the well, it was the same, too. Everything was just barely different, but it was enough to cause the hair on the back of my neck to stand on end.
Something didn’t feel right here.
“This feels different than the last time we were here,” Asta said, and she looked at me with worried yellow eyes.
“It does.” I nodded.
“The map says we’re in the right place.” Kas frowned as she looked around.
“Then this has to be Nidhug’s well, right?” Asta asked, and her eyebrows pinched together with confusion. “But I thought his well was black.”
“It was black,” I agreed.
The well in front of us wasn’t black at all, though. It was a sort of gray color, and it looked just a touch larger than the well Nidhug had gone into, which was saying something, considering Nidhug was a massive creature.
“Should we call out to him?” Kas whispered.
I didn’t blame her for trying to be quiet. Now that we’d realized this wasn’t the same place we’d been to before, it felt as though we weren’t safe any longer. The idea to call out to Nidhug would have been appealing had the place looked the same, but as it was, I didn’t think that was a good idea.
Nidhug knew we were coming last time, and if he was here, then I had to assume he would have shown himself as he did before.
Something was seriously wrong.
The hair on the back of my neck stood up even more, and I sensed something move behind me.
I turned around and saw the entrance I’d come through was now blocked by a large green scaly body. The thing slithered against the wall, and I followed the line of its body to see a massive diamond-shaped head on the other side of the well from me.
The beast had raised scaly eyebrows on top of huge yellow slitted eyes, and its forked tongue slowly poked out of its mouth as it hissed.
So much for this being easy.
Chapter 14
Were we at the wrong well? Was this just this creature’s home, and not a magic well at all? And if so, why did it show up as the well we were looking for on the map?
This had to be the place, but it didn’t make sense. Instead of Nidhug, there was a giant snake staring at us, and the look in his eyes told me we weren’t exactly welcome guests in his home.
The snake hissed again, and its tongue made another appearance as it eyed us curiously.
Even if this was the wrong well, which I didn’t figure it was since Ramir’s spell wouldn’t lie, we still wouldn’t be able to leave freely. The giant snake had made that much clear when he blocked the entrance with his long body.
Nidhug’s well must not be the one that led to Yggdrasil. This had to be the correct well, and it seemed we’d just found another guardian.
I knew going to Nidhug for the final vial would have been too easy. I’d sensed something was off earlier in the day, but I had no reason to think that way, so I’d ignored the feeling.
“Rath,” Kas said, and her voice shook slightly with panic. “What’s going on?”
“I don’t think this is Nidh
ug’s well,” I said, but my eyes never left the snake in front of me.
The beast’s giant yellow eyes were locked onto mine.
“Can you speak to this creature?” Asta inquired.
The nature elf was always the optimist, and I was sure she hoped we wouldn’t have to kill another creature, but I didn’t like the way this beast was eyeing us, and I knew there was going to be a fight regardless of if I could speak to him or not.
I focused on the snake and tried to reach out mentally, but nothing happened, so I figured, once again, I couldn’t speak to the well guardian.
“No,” I told Asta.
“He is not going to let us take the water freely, is he?” she asked, and I could hear the frown in her voice.
“I don’t think so.” I licked my lips as I watched the snake inch slightly closer to us.
My hand was on my blade, so I could pull it out and attack at a second’s notice, and Blar’s little body was tensed on my shoulder. I knew the little dragon could feel my nerves, and he understood this snake was no friend of ours. As soon as I made a move to attack, Blar would follow, and I felt it wouldn’t be long until that became a reality.
The snake was huge, as large as Nidhug, and even larger than the leopard I’d fought against at the Jotunheim well. I couldn’t be sure since it was from another realm, but I also thought it might be venomous. The shape of its head suggested it wasn’t a snake to be messed with.
Back home, when a snake had a triangular or pointed head, that meant it was venomous, whereas a rounded head meant it was generally safe. This snake’s head was definitely the former, and if it did have venom hiding in its mouth somewhere, then I knew I didn’t want to find it. With how large the creature was, I had no doubt one bite could secrete enough venom to kill me on the spot.
“Stay back,” I whispered to the girls as I gripped my sword tighter.
“Let us help,” Kas urged.
“Yes,” Asta added in hushed tones. “You can attack its head while we attack its body.”
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