And so I crossed the Rainbow Bridge in the Aspect of Loki, the Trickster, just as the last shining filaments that held it all together dissolved like a soap bubble in the sun. I was unarmed, except for my glam; I’d never had much interest in weapons, and besides, this time I wasn’t looking for a fight. There was one enemy left in Asgard who hadn’t joined the fray, and for an excellent reason. He was – at least, technically – already dead, but that wouldn’t stop me, I promised myself, from making him even deader.

The Oracle. That thrice-damned Head. Mimir’s Head was to blame for all this. That damned Head and its prophecies. Why had we ever listened to them?

Well, if I had my way, I told myself, no one would ever listen again. I would bury the thing so deep that even the dragon at Ygg’s root would have to strain to hear it. And so, with that intention in mind, I jumped lightly from the vanishing Bridge; shielded myself with a cantrip of Bjarkán; skated past a phalanx of ephemera; jumped onto the battlements; dodged a few little skirmishes and found myself in Asgard again, this time facing Odin’s hall; its roof collapsing and blackened.

I went inside. It was empty. Odin’s high seat was toppled and smashed. But Mimir’s well was still untouched; the intruders had not yet understood the true nature of the enemy. So harmless, so apparently dead, so tranquil in its darkened pool, the Oracle lay in wait for me; glowing a little, as if in satisfaction, its calcified features shining.

I stood there, naked and covered in soot, looking into Mimir’s well. Then I reached in and recovered the Head. Held it up at arm’s length.

‘You bastard,’ I said. ‘You disembodied stone bastard. So much for your prophecy.’

The Oracle looked smugger than ever. ‘Hey, don’t shoot the messenger,’ it said. ‘All I do is say what I must. The rest is up to you.’

I glared into the calcified face. ‘Don’t give me that. I worked it out. I know Heidi set this up. You were in it together.’

The Oracle glowed. ‘You’re a smart boy. I knew you’d figure it out in the end.’

I snarled: ‘Let’s see if you figure this.’ And I tucked the Head under my arm and made for the battlements again.

‘What are you doing?’ the Oracle said.

‘I’m going to bury you so deep that not even the Maggots will hear you.’

‘Why?’ I thought its tone wavered a little.

I laughed. ‘Don’t give me that,’ I said. ‘I’m pretty sure I’m going to die, but at least if I do, I’ll go out knowing that you’re where you deserve to be.’