Saint Seiya: The Legend of Seiya

91 - Asgard, Kingdom of the North

Asgard was a lost realm and perhaps abandoned by time and men. Isolated in the extreme northern Europe, it was not visited by anyone, as its routes were not described on the main maps and even its inhabitants rarely or almost never left the region to venture into neighboring countries. Just as the Sanctuary was protected from men by the Cosmos of Athena, so was Asgard, so that knowledge of its location was restricted to the oldest Civilizations. Figured as a fictional kingdom in the main Norse stories, its neighboring descendants had no idea that the place actually existed.

From a large population for such an abandoned place, Asgard was divided between those who lived inside and outside the castle, a fortified complex on top of the highest mountain. Misery, however, was an epidemic that spread to either side of the castle, for years ago the terrible weather of Asgard had claimed victims not only among newborns and older men, but also swept through crops or even the few animal farms.

And it was in a crowded tavern in the lower part of the Kingdom that a girl on a table shouted cries for peace.

"You need to hear me out!" she was desperately trying to get the attention of the commons.

But those who gathered there fled the scorching cold of Asgard in the fireplace and the flaming torches above their heads, as well as fleeing hunger in cheap bread and alcohol that cut them off from reality. It was a difficult audience and she found herself, in fact, hit on the head by a devoured apple. But she didn't shut up.

"We can't stand still. This path ahead of Asgard is one of tragedy. We need to stand up and make Valhalla hear our voices! We'll be damned if it goes on like this."

"We are already lost!" said one in the back.

"Get out of here, princess, go back to the palace!" said another.

"You won't tell us what to do!" a third joined.

"What is bad now, will get even worse! Don't you see it!?" she was trying, when she was hit again by something that opened a wound on her temple.

The tavern burst into laughter at the girl, but then when some palace guards opened the door, the place went completely silent. The guards entered letting the cold invade that place; among them was a young man who stood out for his simple robes, but much cleaner than anyone else there. No one dared to say any other insults as he walked calmly to the table where the girl was trying to talk to all those people.

"I'm not coming down, Hagen, forget it." she said.

"Please, Princess Freia." he tried. "You know it doesn't give me any pleasure to have to do this."

"Did my sister send you?"

"You know that. Please come with us." he said, reaching for her.

Freia then got down from the table, resigned, without giving Hagen a hand; she simply jumped in front of the boy and fixed her hair before walking out the tavern door alone. Hagen went after her while they were escorted by that palace guard, but the boy intervened and asked them to stay and make the rounds in that region, as they didn't need the escort.

"Princess Freia, please listen to me." tried Hagen. "You need to stop doing these things. Turning the people against your sister in that way."

"I don't want to turn the people against her, but they need to know the truth. This cannot go on, Hagen."

"Your sister is getting more and more impatient with you."

"She is more and more impatient with anyone who challenges her. And she wasn't like that."

"It's different now. You know it. And causing riots like you've been doing, you're going to make people even more confused."

"One is not forbidden to get on a table and say what one thinks." she said.