The Beginning of a Hero

Chapter Eight: Suiting Upon Asgard

The feeling of falling hit me at the same time as the feeling of shooting upwards. My body could tell it was moving in this strange rainbow tube, but it wasn't entirely sure in what way it was moving. Nausea once again graced me with its presence, and I briefly wondered if I would get yelled at for hurling mid-travel.

Then, just like that, I hit the ground. Unfortunately, I didn't hit it with my feet.

Instead, I landed on my shoulder and slid about three feet across a circular metal floor of some sort of domed room. Loki- who evidently had more grace than me, as he was on his feet- watched as I pushed myself into a sitting position. I looked at him and muttered, "A warning would've been nice..."

He waved his hand dismissively. "Perhaps you should do more reading on the old gods." Loki then turned to a man, who made him look short and was standing behind a sword slotted inside some sort of mechanism at the center of the room, and spoke again. "Thank you, Heimdall."

This man, Heimdall, merely nodded. "Of course, Prince Loki." He had striking gold eyes that matched his golden armor and were made all the more noticeable by his dark skin, which was the color of rich, wet earth. "I trust you have a good reason for bringing a Midgardian along."

Loki nodded but looked back to me "Get up, Lily. We need to be off to the armory." Then, just like that, he started walking. No explanation of what the hell happened, no proper introduction of who Heimdall was, nothing. I bit back a rude remark and got to my feet, smiling at Heimdall before fast walking to keep up with Loki.

Stepping out of the room we arrived in was breathtaking. We were on a bridge that was colorful in the same way the rainbow tube was, just with more icy blues between the other colors. Below us, there was nothing but an expanse of sky blue until at least fifty feet ahead, where a waterfall gave way to choppy waters. Above us was more blue sky with puffy clouds floating languidly across. Ahead of both Loki and I, beyond the beginning of this rainbow bridge, was what looked like a city. It would've been a fantasy writer or producer's dream to see and create something like what I saw.

It was hard to see details, due to the distance, but buildings sprawled out across the landscape and into the mountains surrounding a giant golden palace. The palace looked like a giant mountain in its own right, given its triangular shape with a great number of what might've been towers forming close-knit peaks. The actual mountains surrounded everything like a protective barrier. Though there were buildings on the sides of the mountains, it was like the entire area was in a crater that formed a safe haven. To say I was stunned by the beauty would be an understatement.

Loki, on the other hand, seemed far less enchanted by the surroundings. Perhaps it was because he grew up on Asgard. He looked straight ahead and straight ahead only, and I noticed one fist was clenched by his side. Something had happened here, though whatever it was, I didn't know and he likely wouldn't tell me.

"So... That rainbow tube thingy, that was the Bifrost?"

He nodded, still staring straight ahead. "Yes, and so is this bridge we're standing on now." Despite his clenched jaw and pained expression, he wasn't answering my question with any sort of disdain or condensation in his voice. "Heimdall is the keeper of it and the watcher. He keeps an eye on everything in the universe, and when Ragnarok begins, he shall blow his horn." There was yet another word that had exactly zero meaning to me, but at least now I knew for certain how we had arrived.

We fell into silence and continued walking for some minutes until we got off the bridge. From there we weaved our way through the town, following the main road. Townsfolk eyed me curiously, my clothing as odd to them as theirs was to me. If they weren't in armor, such as some of the guards we passed, then they were in dresses or tunics much like something you would expect to see in a Lord of the Rings film. It was as if I had taken a step into the past, back to a time when the Norse Pantheon was still widely worshipped.