Chapter Fourteen #3
Loki disappeared and reappeared behind Surtr. He drove both blades into Surtr's back, but they melted, and the hilts clattered to the ground at Loki's feet.
"Was that meant to hurt?" Surtr swung around and struck Loki, knocking him across the room.
Val took to the air, her white wings spreading wide, and grabbed Loki before he crashed into the fireplace. Together they tumbled across a table of her father's men, sending them scattering.
Fenrir roared and raced forward. Hermodr went to grab Fenrir but missed, and Fenrir got several yards closer.
"Brother!"
Fenrir stopped moving. "I can take him."
"Sorry, I'm afraid not. But I can," said the woman in black.
The woman wore a skin-tight black dress that shimmered with some type of armor Elle had never seen before. Her ebony hair, slicked back into intricate braids, and she held a shiny, blackened trident, trailing swirling smoke behind her.
A shiver raced through Elle at the sight of the ominous, formidable woman.
For the first time, true fear crossed her father’s features.
"You... you can't be here," said Surtr. "You aren't allowed."
The woman shrugged and slithered forward, her movements both provocative and terrifying in their grace.
"I spoke to my boss and got special permission to leave my realm.
I've never seen him excited about the prospect of someone coming into his realm. He’s never met a fire giant before.
And you… Well, your reputation precedes you.
You've eluded me for too long, Surtr. Your reign is over. "
"Go with her," said Thor. "Or we will make you go."
Surtr licked his lips. "Thadren, ready your men."
Thadren looked at Elle, then at Thor's family.
If Thadren decided to fight, Thor and his family might be injured, and someone could be killed permanently. Someone she cared about.
“Wait," Elle blurted.
All eyes turned to her. She licked her lips and looked straight at Thadren. "As heir to the throne, I will give you Muspelheim, all of it, if you do nothing."
"You have no right to offer that," said Surtr.
"I do. When you leave for Helheim, I will be in charge. And as your successor, I have the right to abdicate the throne and to give it to whomever I deem the strongest and best to lead your people. And I choose Thadren."
Thadren looked as if he were weighing his options. “You do not want the throne?”
“No,” said Elle.
He studied her for a moment and then looked at Thor. “You choose him?”
She nodded.
Thadren’s expression fell for a fraction of a moment, and Elle felt a pang of sadness for him.
“I would have been good to you, Princess,” he said low enough for only her ears. “I would have loved you.”
“I know you would have,” she said. “But, he’s mine. And I am already his.”
Thadren ran a gentle finger down her cheek before pulling his hand away. His expression hardened, and he looked at Surtr. "We will not fight."
Surtr bellowed a guttural roar that reverberated through the cavernous hall.
His fiery eyes blazed with unrelenting fury.
With a deafening crash, he launched himself at Thadren, the massive blade in his hand gleaming like liquid fire.
The ground quaked beneath his weight as he closed the distance in two thunderous strides.
"Thadren! No!" Elle's voice rang out, hands trembling as she summoned her magic.
Her chest heaved with exertion, her fingers tingling with raw energy that begged to be unleashed.
Her power coursed through her veins, hot and wild.
She raised her hands and thrust them forward, releasing a crackling surge of violent energy that illuminated the hall in an otherworldly glow.
But her aim faltered.
The magic seared through the air, missing Surtr by mere inches, and instead collided with her mother’s throne behind him.
Surtr froze. His lips curled back into a snarl as he turned to Elle, his eyes locking onto hers with a predatory intensity.
Her jaw tightened as she focused again. The air around her shimmered as she called forth another spell. But this time, she forced herself to breathe and steady her trembling hands. She envisioned what she needed: something strong enough to bind him, to hold him down.
A rope. No. A dozen ropes.
Elle dragged her arms back, then, with every ounce of strength and precision, she flung them forward.
The magic responded instantly.
Strands of glowing energy shot forth from Elle’s outstretched palms like serpents unleashed from their lair.
They twisted and coiled before converging on their target- Surtr’s massive torso.
The glowing ropes wrapped around him. First his arms, pinning them to his sides, then his chest, and his legs, until he was entangled in their luminous grip.
Surtr roared as he struggled against the magical bindings. His movements violent but futile. Each attempt to break free only tightened the ropes further. He stumbled under their weight before collapsing onto the cold floor with a crash.
Thadren staggered back, wide-eyed as he stared at Surtr's restrained form. He turned to Elle. "How did you-"
Sweat trickled down her temple as she fought to keep the ropes intact. Her legs trembled, threatening to give out at any moment.
Surtr glared up at her from where he lay bound on the floor, his molten eyes still burning with hatred, but something else too. A flicker of respect... or perhaps fear? He bared his teeth in a grimace that might have been a smile if it weren’t so filled with malice.
"You think this will hold me forever?" he sneered, his deep voice laced with venom and defiance.
"They may not burn you, but they cannot be broken." Elle wasn't certain that was true, but she prayed it was.
"Let me out of these, or I'll kill you," Surtr yelled.
Elle closed her hand and turned her wrist. The ropes tightened against Surtr, and he struggled to breathe.
Without warning, Tanngnjóstr reared back and head-butted Surtr, sending him flying into the stone wall. Surtr crumpled, and Tanngrisnir kicked him in the stomach.
Surtr groaned and rolled on his back. "I'll eat both of you and break all your bones, so you can't come back," he roared.
The dangerous-looking woman pushed the giant goats aside with ease.
"All right, you giant walking sweaters, I can handle things from here." She stopped, directly over Surtr, and lowered her trident to his chest.
He flexed against the ropes, and one of them snapped. "I will kill you, daughter."
Hel pressed her trident into his chest as another rope snapped.
Surtr yelled out, and Elle threw more fiery ropes at him. The new ropes sprouted clawed hooks at the ends, which bit into Surtr's skin, drawing blood.
"Don't worry," said the woman. "I got this." She turned to Surtr. "Surtr, king of the fire giants. Murderer of Asgardians. I, Hel, daughter of Loki and Goddess of Death, do hereby commit you to the depths of Helheim, as a prisoner. Never again to hurt anyone."
Before Surtr protested, Hel pressed the trident into his chest. It passed through him and hit the floor below. Surtr screamed in agony as the black smoke encircled him. It started at his chest and swirled outward until he was cocooned. Elle's ropes disappeared under their inky depths.
A giant pit opened in the floor, and he dropped through.
Long after her father disappeared, Elle still made out the curses he spewed at her and Hel about how he would kill them.
Hel lifted her trident, and the floor stones rolled back into place. The black smoke sucked into Hel's trident and snaked up her arm before disappearing into her dress.
That was unsettling.
Hel turned to Thor. "I believe that concludes my reason for being here, yes?"
Thor inclined his head. "Thank you, cousin."
Hel smiled. "No. Thank you. I haven't had this much fun since.
.. forever. And now I go to make sure Surtr is completely uncomfortable in his new abode.
" She winked at Elle. "Be sure to come visit me when you have time.
I'd love to pick your brain about the best ways to torture him.
" Hel backed through a shadowy portal and disappeared before Elle answered.
No one moved for several seconds as they stared at the spot where Surtr had lain.
Thor rushed to Elle. "Are you all right?"
She nodded.
He inspected her, and the lighting in his eyes vanished. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
"No," she said. "I am sorry. I should have told you."
He shook his head and kissed her. "It doesn't matter. I don't care who your father was, I only care who you are."
"And who am I?" she asked.
"The woman I love and whom I hope will consent to marrying a lowly mechanic who lives in Helheim fixing bikes and trying to be worthy of you for the rest of my existence."
Elle’s body exploded with warmth as she encircled Thor's neck with her arms. "I wouldn't dream of being anyone else."
Thor pulled her closer, his lips finding hers in an electrifying kiss that sent shivers racing down her spine like tiny currents of lightning. The world seemed to fall away. She lost all sense of time as he kissed her over and over, his strong hands crushing her against him.
"Is that it?" Baldur finally asked.
"No fighting?" Vidarr moaned.
"Man, I got all dressed up and have nowhere to go," said Hermodr. "This armor isn't easy to put on."
"Perhaps the new fire giant king will allow us to spar with some of his men, so it isn't a total waste," said Hodr.
Elle chuckled and broke her kiss with Thor.
The group looked at Thadren.
"Of course," said Thadren. "Anything we can do to heal relations with the Asgardians."
Elle smiled. She made the right decision with Thadren.
"Can we kill them?" Fenrir growled.
"No!" everyone said together.
"You lot have gone soft." Fenrir stalked to the door and raced out.
Tanngrisnir and Tanngnjóstr bleated at Elle and pressed their heads into her.
She chuckled and scratched their noses. "All right. Who are my great big protectors? Did you save me? Yes, you did. Yes, you did.”
“They saved you?” Thor questioned.
She turned and winked at him. “You all saved me.”
Thor looked at the goats, then at her. “You know they are going to be unbearable to live with now, thinking they are the heroes.”
She smiled and kissed him. “I’m pretty sure all three of you will."