Becoming Strangers

A GRAND ONE

Inside a dark, large trophy room, a petite little girl with silver-blonde hair hid behind one of the room's pillars. The delicate blue fabric of her dress cascaded around her; silvery grey eyes watchful as she strained her ears to listen to the story being told.

Ahead of the girl walked her father. Odin was the king of Asgard with silvery white hair and a golden eye patch covering his left eye. He was enthralled, telling the story of how he had once defeated the Frost Giants and brought peace back to the nine realms to his sons, her brothers.

"Once, mankind accepted a simple truth: that they were not alone in this universe. Some world's man believed home to their Gods."

The little girl was known for her grand imagination and as her father spoke, his words painted a picture in her mind until it was like she was there herself. She saw mortal men, women and children staring wondered up at a light filled sky. Fire burned on the top of a small wooden torches, hanging in holds in the front of their wooden homes. The stars had been a means of wonder to the mortals for generations. Their eyes would always drift upwards when night fell upon them, the orbs reflected the glorious shine of the stars.

"Others they knew to fear."

There was a flash of bright blue light distorting the picture in her mind, Frost Giants appeared out of nowhere. Laufey, the King of the Frost Giants, stood in the centre of them all at the front, a dangerous, glowing ice blue casket held within his dark blue hands.

"From around the cold and darkness came the Frost Giants, threatening to plunge the mortal world into a new ice age."

The girl almost shivered as she saw Midgard became covered with ice and snow, their wooden boats smashing to pieces as the water beneath froze solid. She heard the screams and terrified shouts of the Midgardians as their fire was extinguished and they all froze into blue statues trying to flee. She saw a frightened and desperate mother pulling her daughter close and with only a second to live, she let out a horror filled cry before they were frozen solid. The little girl closed her eyes in fright, pulling away from the vision as a Frost Giant viciously smashed the statues to shards.

"But humanity would not face this threat alone."

At his words, she allowed herself to imagine the great golden light of the Bifrost rain down on Midgard, likes the heroes of old smashing into battle. The snow tarnishing the lands of Midgard was forced to swirl harmlessly into their air at the force of their arrival, the scene hidden in a cloud of white. As it cleared, she saw a younger version of her father proud and strong in his golden armour. He stood in front of the Asgardian army facing the frost Giants fearlessly.

With thunderous battle cries erupting from both sides, the warriors clashed. The sounds of swords rang throughout the battlefield along with the sound of ice shards shattering to pieces.

"Our armies drove the Frost Giants back into the heart of their own world."

She imagined a cold planet covered in ice, creating a blue haze around the outer edges. The kingdom within was a frozen solid building, created out of frozen boulders and stones. Joutenheim was as cold and cruel as their king.

"The cost was great. In the end, their king fell."

She saw her father with a bloodied eye point his spear at Laufey, who merely looked up at the god with a cruel sneer, his red eyes grimaced with pain. An Asgardian warrior walked up and removed the casket Laufey had held in his hands.

"The source of their power was taken from them. With the last great war ended, we withdrew from the other worlds and returned home at the Realm Eternal, Asgard."