A Prince And His Demigoddess

Chapter 29 History Lesson

Hephaestus gave Thor a refresher course on how to work a forge then left him to it. He gave Thor access to all the material that he would need to make the sword for his wedding. Thor first planned out what kind of sword he was going to forge. It would have to be sturdy yet lightweight enough to give Alina to hold it during the ceremony. Since the blade was more of a symbol than an actual sword for combat, Thor decided to make it more feminine to suit his bride-to-be.

After he drew out exactly how he wanted the sword to be, Thor got to work. It would take a mortal man several weeks to complete a sword; Thor would probably finish it in a day or two if he took his time a week at most. Thor started heating the steel that Thor was going to use to make Alina's sword. He used the billows to make the flame white-hot and place the piece of iron in the fire in it until it was glowing red and more pliable. Then Thor began to hammer out and shape the steel how Thor wanted it to look. Hephaestus came in a few times to give Thor a few pointers on how to shape the steel so that he did not crack it and have to start all over. Thor nodded and continued, taking into consideration the words of his brother in law.

Eventually, Thor had to strip off his shirt as he was getting hot and sweaty and went back to work. While this was going on, Bruce had left to get a book from Athena's library then came back with some food and water for him and Thor. Bruce sat under a tree that was close by and read while every so often looking up to see how Thor was progressing.

“How's it going, Thor?”

Thor looked up from his work and smiled, “It is going very well, Banner. I should be finished with my love's sword by nightfall.”

“That fast, huh?”

“Yes, if I were human, it would have taken several weeks to accomplish.”

“Well, why don't you take a break and have something to eat and drink?” Bruce suggested.

Thor smiled at Bruce and laid the sword carefully aside in the fire, and joined Bruce under the tree to eat.

Thor took a long drink of water, then tore off a piece of bread, dipped it in olive oil with roasted garlic, and took a bite. He ate some grapes and figs. Bruce had also brought a jug of wine, salted fish, olives, and cheese. It was a light lunch, but it was enough to replenish Thor and give him time to rest.

While they ate, Thor noticed that Bruce had several books with him, “What are you reading, Banner?”

“Oh, these? They're the history of Ancient Greece and the gods. I thought that you'd be interested in learning a little bit about the history of Alina's people. I also have here how the Olympian gods came into existence and how Zeus became king.”

Thor raised his eyebrows, “That sounds very interesting. I would very much like to read about them. Perhaps we can take them back with us?”

“Oh, no, Athena said that I could read anything in her library, but I can't take them from here. So, if you want, after you finish, we can stay a while longer, and you can read for a while.”

Thor thought for a moment, then agreed. It would be nice to know more about his love's family. Something suddenly occurred to Thor, “Banner, do you know anything about Alina's mother?”

“No, only that she was from Scotland and held Zeus's interest for a while before she got pregnant. Once she escaped him and left Alina with Xavier, she pretty much disappeared and has never tried to contact Alina.”

Thor frowned, but Bruce patted Thor on the shoulder, “Don't worry, Big Guy. Alina never lacked in maternal influence. Athena was always there for her baby sister as she grew up as well as Ororo. There were a lot of strong women in her life.”

“But she seems more attached to Logan and her father and Ares,” Thor observed.

“True, they worried about her the most. And Logan was more attentive towards her since she was the youngest orphan at the school, and she immediately gravitated towards him.”

Thor nodded in understanding. After eating and having a bit of wine, Thor and Bruce sat under the tree and talked for a while longer until it was time for Thor to get back to work. And as he worked, Bruce stood by and told Thor little tidbits about Zeus, like that he was the youngest of all his Olympian siblings, though he is the most powerful. Thor was fascinated by the information that Bruce was telling him, and when Bruce told Thor about Zeus's roving eye, Thor finally understood why his future father-in-law thought the same of him.

While this was going on on Olympus, back on Earth, Tony was in his lab working on his suit drinking his twelfth cup of coffee, grumbling to himself about not being allowed to go to Olympus, “It's not fair.”

“No, it isn't, but whoever said the gods were fair, Mr. Stark?” A voice said behind him.

Tony's head whipped around and saw a ‘man’ leaning against the wall. The man was beautiful and had blonde hair, bare-chested, and had a pair of wings, “Who are you?”

“Me? Oh, I'm Alina's cousin, Morpheus.”

Tony took a step back, “And what are you doing here?”

“Well, a while back, my cousin and I had a conversation about you, Tony. And she noticed that you don't sleep very well. So I decided to keep an eye on you. And you know what? It would help if you had a good night's sleep. That's your twelfth cup of coffee, right. Well, that won't do.”

“But I'm not tired,” Tony whined.

“Of course you are. Look, I know why you don't want to go to sleep, Tony.”

“How do you know?”

“I'm the god of sleep and dreams, and I would like to apologize to you. I should have noticed a while ago, especially since you've been so kind to my cousin. So, I think it's time you went beddy-bye.”

“But, I don't want to,” Tony said nervously.

Morpheus sighed and pushed off the wall, “I promise Tony, this will be the best sleep you've ever had in your life. And I can assure you; you'll never have those dreams again,” Morpheus said as he walked closer to Tony, and Tony kept backing up, “Now sleep.”

The minute those words were out of Morpheus's mouth, Tony fainted into a dead sleep. Morpheus quickly caught Tony and lifted him into his arms. He flapped his wings and flew up towards the ceiling, phasing through the walls and taking Tony to his bedroom. When he reached the man's bedroom, Morpheus laid Tony down on his bed, then snapped his fingers, changing Tony into his sleep clothes. He covered Tony with a blanket then left the penthouse, but not before assuring his cousin that Tony was now resting. Alina sent a prayer of thanks to Morpheus for his help, and she continued with her day of shopping with the girls.

SORRY, IT'S SO SHORT, BUT I'M STILL TRYING TO GET BACK INTO THE GROOVE OF WRITING, AND I FIGURED SOMETHING IS BETTER THAN NOTHING.