Sacrifice - Hela Odinson

#7 - A Goddamn Palace

When Hela said "palace", the fact that it's a goddamn palace and I'll live there didn't really settle in my brain. Not until we arrived at the gates.

It stood out in every way possible. The rest of the city was full of bright colors, especially shining gold, but Hela's residence was all emerald green with a sprinkle of black. It reminded me of a villain's badass secret hideout, the one "nobody can find".

She's the Goddess of Death, why did I even expect her to live in one of those marble houses with a heavenly aesthetic?

"This place looks like it has more torture chambers than bedrooms." Pat whispered to me.

"It's Hela we're talking about. Of course there will be torture chambers in her house." I replied in a lighthearted tone, trying not to freak out. The place looked haunted.

The doors were guarded by undead soldiers (just the usual), and they all greeted Hela with a salute. She didn't even bother looking at them.

We crossed the giant garden. Between the poisonous-looking berries and black roses I spotted some sunflowers, cherry trees and lilies. Seeing that the residence has some life on it almost put my mind at ease.

We entered the palace through large gates. It looked even bigger on the inside. The ceiling was so high I could barely see it and was held by richly decorated pillars, which were all black of course. I felt tiny and meaningless, lost in a forest of marble trees, with emerald green heavens above my head.

Hela didn't give me time to take this all in. She led me and Pat straight to the west wing of the giant building complex. We both got a bedroom larger than an average apartment in our city and with separate bathrooms that were only ours.

There was a door between our rooms, and we agreed to keep it open at all times to feel less alone.

Hela gave me a quick peck on the mouth then she said she had business to attend to and left us alone.

Even minutes after she was gone, I could still feel the phantom touch of her lips on mine. They were as cold as her hands, but not in a bad way -- like ice cream. Everyone likes ice cream cold.

"Earth to Mel!" Pat waved her hand in front of my face. "You're as red as that hideous dress the classmistress wears all the time."

That was a way to snap me out of it. Only now did I notice that I was still staring at the door Hela left the room through.

"Me? Red? You're kidding me." I scoffed, even though I could feel the heat rising in my cheeks.

"Mama is in love~" Pat teased in a sing-song voice.

"Of course I am, just look at Hela." I rolled my eyes.

Pat only laughed at me and she jumped on the queen sized bed in my room.

"Man, this is so soft! And bouncy! Look how high I can jump!" she demonstrated and her head almost hit the ceiling, only missing it by a few inches.

"That's enough!" I climbed on the bed as well, grabbed her by the waist and pulled her down in a sitting position." You're going to break your skull on our first day!"

"You're the one talking? In grade 11, you pulled a muscle in your leg on the first day after summer break!" she snorted.

"But this is not grade 11, this is Asgard, and we're about to become part of the royal family." I blushed again when she mentioned my little shenanigan, this time from embarrassment. "I don't give a damn about the school's opinion, but if we disappoint the gods... that might not end well for us."

"Okay, okay, just stop being so serious, you sound like my mom." she grimaced.

"I am your mom!" I grimaced back.

"I meant my real mom..." she chuckled.

I stood up on the bed dramatically with a blanket draped over my shoulder as a cape, grabbed a lamp from the bedside table, switched it on and held it like a lightsaber. I mimicked Darth Vader's heavy breathing, then looked down at Pat dramatically.

"Patricia... I am your real mother." I said in a deep voice.

We broke out in laughter at the same time.

Pat and I talked, joked and fooled around for the next few hours. We became more and more tired as time went on. At first we walked around, explored our bedrooms, packed our stuff into the closets, and had a pillow fight, then we sat down on my bed, panting, and we stayed still as the conversation went on. In the end, we laid on the giant bed, too tired to even laugh. Eventually we both fell asleep.

We woke up to a screech. At first I thought it was a bald eagle gasping in shock, but when I opened my eyes, I saw it was actually a person.

An unknown, tall woman with a ridiculously big shiny necklace was standing right next to my bed, staring down at Pat and me like she saw something extremely scandalous, both her eyes and mouth in a perfect O-shape, as if she were posing for a painter even when she was shocked. She had the kind of clear, wrinkle-less skin they show in ads for skincare products, but I couldn't say she looked young. She was ageless, and her emerald eyes had that specific shine that proves they have seen millennia. She was a goddess, no doubt.

"Is Asgard under attack or something?" Pat mumbled sleepily.

"My, how disrespectful! You dare spite a god?" the strange woman gasped.

"Wha-" I didn't even have time to utter a word, because she interrupted me immediately.

"You're already cheating on Hela, and you are not even wed yet!"

Oh, so that's what she thought was happening. I see why she screeched like that, then.

"No, no, she's my daughter!" I explained.

"That just makes it even worse!" the goddess gasped. "Prepare for your execution, frost giant!"

Before I could have corrected her, she stormed off, pulling her mile-long braids behind herself in the air, like some two-tailed fox.

"Giant? She called you a giant? She's like a foot taller." Pat snorted.

"I'm more focused on the part where she said she wants me dead." I responded.

"Come on, I'm sure Hela will stop her." my friend laid back down. "I don't know about you, but I think I'll go back to sleep."

"Yeah, me too." I tried to sound calm, but my stomach was in knots.

I made some attempts to find a comfortable position, but sinking the soft mattress suddenly felt like I was drowning. Despite my constant tossing and turning, Pat was able to fall asleep, and when she did, I got out of bed, grabbed a book and went to the other room to read. I even closed the door to make sure I don't wake my friend.

I sat down in the other room and tried to focus on the book, but my mind was elsewhere. I imagined guards storming into Hela's palace, grabbing me, not giving me a chance to explain myself, and taking me straight to execution. Would I be beheaded? Hanged? Shot? Or are there other methods I don't know of in Asgard?

Would Hela do it herself?

I felt dizzy. My hands left sweaty fingerprints on the book pages, so I put it down and decided to take a bath, hoping it would calm my nerves and stop the sweating.

I went to Pat's bathroom (I couldn't go to mine since it was attached to my bedroom where Pat was sleeping) and filled the bathtub with warm water. I found some scented liquid soaps and picked a lavender one. Once I read it relieves stress.

I spent the next thirty minutes in the bubbliest bath I've ever taken. Eventually the water cooled down and I had to get out.

I was naked, drying my wet hair with a towel when I heard footsteps. Pat probably woke up.

"I occupied the bathroom!" I said to prevent her from entering, but to my surprise the footsteps approached the door instead. Is she fucking kidding me?

I quickly threw a bathrobe on. Just in time, because in the next moment, the door opened. It wasn't Pat, it was Hela, and she looked furious.