Thor by Keith R.A. DeCandido

Author:Keith R.A. DeCandido [DeCandido, Keith R.A.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins Canada
Published: 2015-11-24T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter Six

The first thing Odin did when Thor returned to the throne room to announce that Hrungnir’s forces were routed was to send his son to the Vale of Crystal to tell Frigga, Gudrun, and the children that they could return home.

“Perhaps I acted in haste to send them from the city,” Odin said, “but I feared the wrath of Hrungnir might lead to the endangering of the innocents of Asgard. It is my sworn duty to protect them.”

Thor smiled. “You need not explain, Father. Evil’s strength is its lack of caring for the fate of those not involved in the conflict. While Hrungnir’s animus is toward you, not the children, it would still be very much in his character to harm them to get to you. It was right that you sent them away.” He knelt respectfully before the All-Father. “I will hie myself to the Vale of Crystal at once!”

After exiting the throne room, Thor whirled his hammer over his head, and then it shot into the air, pulling him along through the skies. He watched as the soldiers of Asgard brought the giants to the dungeon, joining Baugi the troll, who also dared to menace the great city. Then he flew leisurely toward the mountains.

Something caught his eye, and he cut short his flying to alight on a large plateau. The snow was heavily disturbed, and there were many scattered foot- and hoofprints, the former of two different sizes.

There had been a great battle on that spot, and it was recent. And this plateau was on the route Gudrun and Frigga would have taken to the Vale. It was unclear which of the two people walked away from the fight—the only prints that continued onward were those of the horse.

Again Thor twirled his hammer, but now he felt the need for haste. Urging Mjolnir to move at top speed, he flew to the Vale of Crystal. Located in the heart of the Asgard Mountains, the Vale was a dodecahedron made entirely of crystals. Mined millennia ago by the dwarves, the crystals were useful for the channeling of spells. The mages of Vanaheim traded the dwarves for the crystals and constructed this place. It had not had much use in a while, though Thor knew that his mother used to come here quite a bit, and also that she was capable of warding it against attack. No doubt, that was why the All-Father chose it as the place to hide the children of Asgard from the frost giants.

He alighted at the Vale’s entrance—or, rather, where he was fairly certain the entrance was. Frigga had shown him the location of the hidden entrance once, and he recalled that all he needed to do was walk through.

Sure enough, he approached what appeared to be a solid wall of crystal and walked right through it to a large sitting room filled with chairs and tables and cushions.

The first words he heard upon entering were, “Frigga, you finally made it!”

Even as Gudrun said those words, Thor felt the impact of several small bodies on his legs.

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