I could just see the figure of Geirrod somewhere near the back of the hall; he was carrying a pair of blacksmith’s tongs, and as soon as we entered, he picked something out of one of the furnaces and flung it straight at both of us. It was a massive iron ball, heated to a dull red, and I shifted quickly to avoid it, adopting my Wildfire Aspect. But Thor just caught the iron ball between those massive gauntlets and hurled it back with terrific force. It struck Geirrod midsection, and went on travelling right through him, crushing his ribs and smashing the wall behind him into kindling.

If this was a game, I was pretty sure Team Aesir had already won it, but you know Thor; once he sees red, there really is no stopping him. He smashed Geirrod’s hall to rubble, leaving it littered with body parts. Then he went outside and did it there too, and when the worst was over, I saw him, bloody to the armpits, looking over the scene of carnage with an air of vague confusion, no doubt remembering my account of green meadows, blue skies and a host with two lovely daughters.

I decided not to stay around to compare recollections. Shifting to my hawk Aspect, I winged it back to Asgard, vowing to leave a healthy interval before my next meeting with Thor. He had a fearsome temper when roused, but he seldom bore a grudge. In a week or two he would have forgotten the details of our little adventure, and my skin would be safe once again.

The Ice Folk, however, were another matter. I knew that my part in the day’s events, innocent though they might have been, would ensure that there would be no escape for me in that part of the Middle Worlds. I was quickly running short of places to hide – should I need them. And there was something in the air that told me the time was approaching . . .

Lesson 11 Ransom

LESSON 11

Ransom

Blood is thicker than water.

But gold – gold pays for everything.

Lokabrenna

I TOLD YOU the Worlds had ended before. Of course that isn’t entirely true. The Worlds never really end – just the folk who have made it their own. And Order and Chaos never end, but the balance of power is in constant flux, which is why the General never slept well, and never relaxed his vigilance.

We’d had a pretty good run thus far. Decades of security, with only sporadic attacks from the bands of Ice Folk and Rock Folk who still had an eye on Odin’s throne. Gullveig-Heid had gone underground; Chaos seemed to be sleeping. Order was firmly in command, and there was nothing but blue skies ahead.