TALES FROM FALLEN WARRIORS ─ marvel

III. The Ancient Light Elf

Chapter Three
Liam

When we arrived in New Asgard, Valkyrie was waiting there for us. I don't interact with the queen of New Asgard very much, but she's always very kind and welcoming whenever we do cross paths. This time is no exception. After exchanging some pleasantries, she wishes us luck in our coming fight and gives us the address of Eira; who lives near the cliffside with her wife Flanna.

We are able to find their house easily-it's the only one on the cliffside-and I'm taken aback from how simplistic it looks. It's more like a cottage than a real house; one floor, thick stone walls, a smoking chimney, a cobblestone path towards a Shire-like wooden door. The best word to describe it is cozy. I sort of expected something more extravagant for an ancient Light Knight.

The door to the cabin opens before we even make it onto the path, and a woman steps out of the house that is no doubt Eira. For someone who is at least ten thousand years old, she appears to be only in her fifties. She's beautiful, ethereally so; she has black skin, curly black hair, angular features, a muscular build, and golden eyes that seem to be made out of light itself. In fact, her whole being has a slight shimmer around it, like light is stuck to the surface of her skin. When she walks towards us she glides across the cobblestone, and when she speaks...it's the most beautiful sound I've ever heard.

"So you are the boy who bears my blood." Her voice sounds soft yet firm, filled with wisdom yet filled with wonder.

"Y-yes," I reply, glancing at Stevie and Bucky and finding them as awestruck as I am. "My name is Liam Barnes. Behind me are my husband Steve and my father in law Bucky."

Eira inclines her head, then gestures to behind her, where a woman I'm assuming is Flanna, arrives a few seconds later. "This is my wife Flanna."

Flanna is an Asgardian. She has bright red hair that's braided down her back, bottle green eyes, a round face and short stature, and a liveliness that kinda reminds me of Stevie.

"It's so nice to meet you all," Flanna says with a smile. "I was just about to head into town to pick up some food for dinner, we would love it if you would stay and join us."

"That would be lovely, thank you." Bucky says with a courteous smile.

"I'll leave you all to it then." She kisses Eira gently on the lips, flashes us another smile, then walks towards the car parked by the side of the cabin.

"Do you-"

"Yes, I was told all about your current dilemma," A flicker of emotion crosses Eira's features-maybe anger-but it vanishes as fast as it appeared. "If you hope to defeat Erebos, we have much work to do."

Without another word she walks past us, and after a couple seconds of confusion, we follow after her. I have no idea where she's taking us, but I know better than to question her about it. She could be leading me into a volcano for all I care, as long as she helps me prepare for Erebos.

I jog up to her side and then match my pace to hers, my curiosity getting the best of me. "Do you know how the scientists apart of PROJECT ENHANCED got a hold of your blood?"

Without looking at me, she replies, "You'll recall that during the tyrannical reign of Secretary Ross and the United Nations, all citizens of Asgard were injected with tracking chips that imbedded into our skin. I refused to live with such a device inside my body, so I cut it out and threw it at Ross when he came for his annual inspection. I suspect his scientists took the blood sample from my chip and put it in the serum they gave you."

"Am I really as powerful as Queen Verena said?"

Now Eira looks at me. "You are human, so there are limitations to what you can do. You will never reach the level of power I wield, but you could reach a level relatively close. Right now, you have just scratched the surface of what you can accomplish."

"The queen had told me the same thing, but I don't get how."

Eira stops walking altogether now, and I stumble slightly as I stop and turn to face her. "Tell me, boy, how would you describe your powers?"

Seems like an odd question but I'll humor her. "I can control nature."

"No. You can manipulate and conjure light, and because of those abilities you can control nature. You limit yourself by thinking of your powers in such a narrow capacity," Eira steps away from me, gesturing for Stevie and Bucky to do the same. "Show me what you can do, boy. Show me your light."

I do as she asks; conjuring light like I've done dozens of times now. It comes to me easily; radiating all throughout my body, making me glow so brightly Stevie and Bucky have to shield their eyes and turn away.

Eira doesn't though, she simply nods. "Good, we aren't working from scratch."

"I wasn't able to conjure light at all until I visited Alfheim for the first time, and ever since then I glow whenever I control nature. Do you know why that is?" I ask her, dimming my light to allow the others to turn back.

Eira's golden eyes assess me, and I feel as if she's peering straight into my soul. "You have grown up on Earth; a place where until very recently, all enhanced people were shunned and outcasted. A flower cannot grow in shadow. It needs sunlight, and Alfheim was your first real bit of sunlight."

"How does what was going on on Earth have anything to do with my powers?"

Instead of answering my question, she asks me one herself. "Tell me, did you use your powers at home when you were a child?"

"I didn't even know I had powers until I was twelve."

"That is common for Light Elves. Answer the question."

I shake my head, breaking my eye contact with her and instead focusing on Stevie. "No I didn't. I knew it wasn't safe to be enhanced, so I hid my powers from everyone and tried to stop using them, but it made me feel sick. I would buy potted plants and it helped a little, but it...it was hard."

"The mind and body are connected, boy. They affect one another in profound ways. Your mind trained your body to tether your powers because you feared judgement and persecution. It is not your fault of course, but that is why your powers have not been fully realized until recently."

I refocus my gaze back on Eira, who now stands a couple feet in front of me. "If you are to access your full potential, you must let go of your fear."

"I'm not afraid of my powers."

"No but you fear other's opinions of you because of your powers; you fear ridicule from those around you. Am I wrong?"

I hesitate for a moment, then I nod. "I ran away from home because my parents were afraid of my powers."

Eira nods in sympathy. "And it's your parents you are trying to save, yes?"

I nod again.

"Do you fear showing your powers in front of them?"

"No." I lie.

She sees right through me. "Fear is your biggest enemy. There is nothing that kills potential more."

I have to refrain from rolling my eyes. "It's not like I can turn my fear off with a switch."

"No, but you can use your fear to guide you, not inhibit you. You want to save your parents, yes?"

What kind of question is that? "Of course I do."

"Are you willing to die trying?"

I see Stevie grow rigid out of my peripheral, and as much as I want to ease his worry, I have to be honest. "Yes."

Eira gives me a slight dip of her head, not giving away any of her thoughts or feelings. "Then let's get to work."