A Song Named Alice

Chapter 2

Chapter 2

 As Heimdall leaves, Forseti resumes his pursuit, noticing Loki's apartment a few blocks ahead of him. While Loki enters the apartment complex, he checks behind him. Yet, like every time before, there's no one around except him.

 The apartment building stands near the abandoned outskirts of town. Forseti makes his way to a nearby empty house, and squeezes in between two planks bolted against the jagged door frame.

 All around the forbidding and dark house, Forseti tests each of his steps for loose boards. Spider webs creep from all the upper corners, rats scurry away from him, but the silverfish stay where they are. Everything about the place yells that it's evil enough to be haunted.

 When he gets to the stairs, they creak loudly and moan throughout the house. The railing breaks every now and then, deadly splinters sticking out, a rat's corpse stuck on one of the breaks. Worse yet, on the second floor, the next stair cracks and breaks apart, falling to the floor below as his leg goes with it. He yanks his leg free while loosening the nearby boards, threatening to fall as well.

 "This stupid old house!" Forseti loudly whispers.

 Behind him, the loosened boards fall. He rolls his eyes while moving on, watching his every step. Around the corner in the nearest room, he finds a window in the right direction. It's not as bad as some of the rooms, but there's still cobwebs everywhere, the occasional rat, and rotting wood. Before taking out his binoculars, he pulls the tiny shreds of splinters from his pants. Forseti then zooms in on Loki's room. Loki's asleep in his bed, good.

 The bed looks fairly small, a twin sized bed, but it's hard to see through the window from this far away. On the other hand, the dresser is near the window, making it easy access if he ever wanted to open the window and get in. The tree near the window, though bare, is tall and sturdy enough to climb.

 From this far, Forseti can't hear Loki, but he has a plan in case he should need to hear from within the apartment. Inside the pocket watch he planted two bugs that would let him hear just what he needed to; he'd put them there a few days earlier when Loki was away from it. At the beginning of the mission, Odin told everyone in Asgard to get the pocket watch, but not before the second phase in the plan starts. However, Forseti knew of a better use for the pocket watch.

 The night fades away slowly, letting the sunrise of a new day come. The clouds from a few hours ago are nowhere to be seen, floating off to cover the next town, and now a big empty sky blankly stares at the world with a few streams of mare's tails here and there.

 A feather falls on Forseti's head as he hears a sudden burst of flapping wings. Two ravens perch on the plank sticking out on top of the open window. The tattered and moth eaten curtains brush away in the wind. The ravens glide to the bottom of the window, resting on either side of Forseti's elbows. Attached to one of the raven's legs is a note in a small, black carrying case. Gently grabbing the tube, Forseti opens the clasp on the case, reading the note in minuscule writing inscribed on the piece of paper. When he finishes, he puts the note back in the case and closes the clasp with a click.

 Taking out an equally small piece of paper and a pen from his pocket, Forseti replies to the message. While he puts the note in the case on the other raven's leg, he whispers softly to the birds. "Hugin and Munin, you may go now. I have received the message." The two ravens fly away due south to report back to Odin.

 Forseti takes one last look at the room to see if Loki has woken up yet. As Loki continues his deep slumber, Forseti tip-toes out of the condemned building. He strolls down the empty street that leads to the apartment, only partially obeying the note that Odin sent him.