Chapter 8 — Into the Untamed Realms
Three days had passed since Odin announced the Great Quest.
Three days of hurried preparation maps, rune-scouting scrolls, enchanted rope, rations fortified with Asgardian mana, flasks carved with protective sigils, and blades sharpened to the thickness of moonlight.
Three days of goodbyes.
Frigga had held both Thor and Bor close in a rare moment of open affection, whispering blessings of protection and wisdom. Sif's parents had clasped her shoulders, proud yet fearful. Odin had said little more, simply handing Thor a reinforced shield, Sif a new rune-etched scabbard, and Bor a bracer made of gleaming gold the first hint of the Uru weapon he was destined to bear.
Yet despite all the preparations, despite the way Thor buzzed with excitement and Sif steeled herself with quiet determination, Bor felt the weight of the journey more than them. Not because of danger, though it lurked ahead but because the smell of raw wilderness and the promise of peril tugged at a part of him he had buried long ago.
Jacob Walker would not be forgotten.
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The trio stood at the edge of the Bifrost-anchored path that led toward Asgard's wild frontier. Purple fields stretched ahead, dotted with luminous trees whose leaves shimmered with cosmic dust. Distant mountains glimmered like cut stone.
Thor slapped Bor's shoulder. "Brother! The beginning of glory is upon us! Are you ready?"
"As ready as anyone can be before fighting a dragon," Bor murmured.
Sif chuckled. "He speaks truth."
Just as they stepped forward. A soft cough interrupted them.
Loki appeared from behind a shimmering veil of illusion, his smile sharp and careful. "Going somewhere?"
Thor blinked. "Brother! What are you—?"
"I have been told of your Great Quest," Loki said smoothly, hands folded behind him. "And I believe you require my talents."
Sif frowned. "We were not instructed to bring others."
Thor hesitated. "Aye, but Loki is cunning his magic may aid us."
Bor's jaw tightened.
He remembered the old stories. Loki was sharp-minded, brilliant… but unpredictable. Dangerous. Envious. And Bor had seen that cold gleam in Loki's eyes recently during the spider attack. But Thor clapped Loki on the back affectionately.
"Loki will be useful!"
Bor spoke quietly. "Thor… are you certain?"
Thor's eyes softened with brotherly sentiment. "He is my kin. And yours. A quest is no place to leave a brother behind."
Sif glanced at Bor. "Three blades or four, it hardly matters. If Loki can help, let him."
Bor exhaled through his nose. Jacob's instincts flickered uneasily. In war, the most dangerous soldier was the one you trusted blindly. But Thor looked so hopeful, so proud to include Loki…
So Bor nodded. "Very well."
Loki's smile widened. "Wonderful."
But away from their eyes, his fingers curled with quiet satisfaction. At the slightest opportunity… I will turn this quest to my advantage.
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The four young warriors set off, the realm changing with every mile. Where Asgard was usually safe, gilded, and patrolled, the lands beyond the palace were untamed—brimming with hidden magic, ancient beasts, and forgotten ways.
They passed through:
The Whispering Fields. Tall grasses swayed without wind, whispering old Asgardian dialects warnings, riddles, half-sung laments. One wrong step could trigger quicksand woven from old enchantments.
Bor's X-ray vision flickered to life, mapping faint outlines beneath the earth. "Step where I step," he said. "Avoid the darker patches."
Thor rolled his eyes. "What are we? Children afraid of mud?"
He stepped where Bor did not. The ground swallowed him up to the waist.
Sif doubled over laughing. "Mud, you said?"
Bor helped pull him out, even as Thor sputtered like a drenched deer. Loki smirked.
The Forest of Shifting Paths. Trees rearranged themselves when unobserved—an old magical defense from bygone ages. Paths wound and tied themselves into knots.
Loki, amused, whispered illusions to trick the trees into returning to their original shape. "One must speak their language," he explained cryptically.
Bor, internally, noted how effortlessly Loki manipulated the environment—and how much of that power could as easily break them as save them.
The Moonfang Ravine. Wolves with crescent-shaped markings on their fur prowled the cliffs. Thor roared and waved, frightening them off. Sif muttered something about him being a "walking alarm," and Bor silently agreed.
At last, after hours of travel, the air grew hotter, the ground rumbling faintly underfoot. They neared the volcanic region of Skarthun domain of the ancient dragon, Hakurei.
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The Dragon of Skarthun. The mouth of the cavern was enormous large enough for a frost giant to walk through without ducking. Heat shimmered from within, creating waves that rippled like illusions.
Thor grinned. "At last! A foe worthy of song!"
Sif elbowed him. "We're not here to fight it."
Bor felt sweat bead on his brow. Kryptonian physiology loved sunlight but volcanic heat was a different creature. It pressed hard, draining, confusing.
Thor marched in first.
Sif followed, blades ready.
Bor walked slowly, every instinct screaming danger.
Loki trailed at the back, hands buried in his cloak.
Inside, the cavern opened wide into a chamber of molten rivers and jagged stone. The air shimmered with heat. Bor's eyes sharpened.
Movement.
The dragon was enormous coils of emerald scales the size of shields, wings folded like stone slabs, eyes glowing with intelligence older than Asgard itself. It lay in the center of the cavern like a serpent of living jade.
Hakurei opened one massive eye.
"WHO TRESPASSES IN MY DOMAIN?"
Thor stepped forward. "We are—"
Bor slapped a hand across his mouth.
Sif hissed, "Thor stop."
The dragon's head rose fully, molten light illuminating the spikes along its spine.
"I KNOW WHO YOU ARE. OLL-FATHER'S WHELPS. DAUGHTER OF THE SHIELD-MAIDENS. AND… SOMETHING ELSE."
Its gaze fixed on Bor and Loki for awhile.
He swallowed.
"WHY DO YOU ENTER MY LAIR?"
Bor bowed lightly. "We seek a scale, mighty Hakurei. A single one. Odin sent us—"
"I DO NOT CARE FOR ODIN'S WHIMS."
Hakurei's voice thundered like a breaking mountain.
"YOU MAY LEAVE. OR BURN."
Thor's grip tightened on his shield. Sif's breath caught. Loki smirked. Bor's mind raced. A dragon's scales were shed naturally… but only during the shedding cycle.
He examined the cavern. Piles of old scales were nowhere to be seen. Hakurei kept his cast-offs hidden. Think, Jacob's instincts whispered. Talk it down. Or trick it.
Hakurei reared its head.
"ANSWER ME, LITTLE SUN-TOUCHED ONE. WHY SHOULD I NOT INCINERATE YOU?"
Bor felt Sunshine flicker inside him faint, because they were underground, but enough to give him courage.
"Because you're shedding."
The dragon froze. Loki's eyebrows shot up. Sif's eyes widened.
Thor blinked. "He's shedding? How do you know—?"
Bor pointed to a small pile of cracked emerald fragments half-hidden behind a rock. "You've been scratching against the stone. The marks along the wall are fresh. You're about to drop scales. You don't want us near you because shedding makes you vulnerable."
Hakurei hissed softly, smoke pouring from its nostrils.
"CLEVER LITTLE CREATURE."
Bor swallowed.
"If we promise not to look upon you during your shedding—if we give you privacy will you gift us a scale?"
The dragon leaned closer.
"AND WHAT DO I RECEIVE IN RETURN?"
Thor stepped forward, fist clenched. "A blessing from the Prince of—"
Bor stepped in front of him. Never escalate a hostage situation, Jacob whispered inside him. Bor bowed, placing a hand over his heart.
"We offer respect. And a promise to spread your name throughout the realm. So all will know Hakurei is not merely ancient but wise."
Silence. Then the dragon laughed a deep, rumbling sound that shook molten rivers.
"FLATTERY FROM A CHILD. BUT WELL-WORDED."
Hakurei lifted a claw, plucked a scale from its neck, and placed it gently on the ground.
"TAKE IT. AND LEAVE."
Thor grabbed the scale.
But the dragon's tail blocked their route.
"I GIVE YOU THE SCALE," Hakurei rumbled. "BUT YOU LEAVE ONE THING BEHIND."
Sif tensed. "What… thing?"
Hakurei's eyes glinted.
"A TEST."
The cavern trembled. And the stone beneath them cracked, opening into a spiraling pit.
Bor grabbed Sif's arm. Thor grabbed Bor's shoulder. Loki stepped back with a faint smile.
"GOOD LUCK," the dragon purred.
And the four young warriors fell into darkness.
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