CHAPTER EIGHT

[three signs]

***

"There are three signs of a hypocrite: when he speaks he lies, when he makes a promise he breaks it, and when he is trusted he betrays his trust."

- Muhammed

***

Kelda knelt in front of her mother's statue in the garden, desperately trying to plan her next move. She could go to Balder, tell him everything that happened. Yet, she still had no evidence to back up her claims. If Loki truly had framed Karnilla to get her out of the way, he had been smart about it. He went as far as to fabricate evidence, planting it in her room before he turned her in to the Allfather. However, Kelda only had her word. A classic he-said-she-said argument and she doubted the Allfather would believe his ex-future daughter-in-law over his own son. She was stuck and she needed to get concrete evidence against Loki, but how?

Her thoughts were interrupted as a bright, white glow caught her eye in the darkness of the palace gardens. She turned to see the same winter fox as before. However, this time it appeared ethereal; its brilliant white fur glowing in a way that was not noticeable when she saw it before in the daylight. It contrasted greatly in the night, illuminating the Valkyrie monument. Kelda narrowed her eyes at the fox, wondering why it sat there calmly, its head cocked at her curiously.

"What do you want this time?" the goddess said shortly. She was still mad at the creature who caused her to miss saying goodbye to her mother's... ghost, or whatever it was.

The fox approached her and Kelda stiffened. Once again, this animal had no qualms about approaching people, which the blonde found very odd. She noticed how the fox did not raise its hackles or seem threatened, and she did her best to remain calm so it could continue to do the same. The winter fox stopped beside her, grabbed the bottom of her silvery-blue dress in its mouth and tugged harshly.

"What is with you and pulling at my skirts?" Kelda huffed. The fox tugged three times before walking off around the monument and out of sight. "What the Hel is going on?"

When she stayed kneeling on the ground, the fox reappeared as if waiting for her, before disappearing yet again. Does it want me to follow it? Kelda wondered. The blonde goddess stood from her spot and followed the fox behind the monument. She followed the brilliant glow all through the gardens and around the palace until eventually, it stopped at the gaping hole in the wall. It was the same wall that she and Balder used to sneak through as kids, when it had only been cracked. It was the same one that Karnilla escaped to Nornheim through.

Why would it bring me here?

Suddenly, the fox leaped through the hole in the wall. "Hey!" Kelda called out. For some unexplained reason, she felt she should follow it. Maybe this was her answer. Maybe this was a sign telling her what to do. She needed to go to Nornheim. She needed to see Karnilla. With Karnilla's help, they could prove that Loki was, in fact, not the person he appeared to be. Karnilla was never the betrayer. He was.

***

The Asgardian palace had erupted into chaos.

Early the morning following Kelda's revelation about Loki, Balder had spoken to Odin about ending their engagement. He had been insistent this time, saying that he could still be a capable leader without roping Kelda into a marriage she was not ready for. He assured his father that if he were to fall into the Odinsleep, Asgard would continue to prosper, as he would have many advisors to assist him in presiding over the Nine Realms. It took some convincing, but eventually his father agreed with him and praised his son in taking charge.

Balder had been excited to finally grace Kelda with some good news as the last time he and his father had this conversation, it had not gone well. However, when he went to her room to give her the news, she was not there. Nor was she on the training grounds, or in the gardens, or the library, or anywhere.

Panic immediately surged through him when he could not find her and soon everyone had joined the search party. After a few hours, a servant finally came forward stating that he thought he saw her in the gardens the night before but she wandered off toward the back of the palace.

Balder quickly recruited his brothers to go with him to where she had last been seen. They followed the directions that the servant had given them before realizing the path was familiar. In no time, they came across the broken wall that they had chased Karnilla through.

"Do you really believe she went this way?" Thor asked Balder. "Why would she go to Nornheim?"

Balder knew that she had suspicions that Karnilla was innocent. But this was all so sudden and the blonde goddess had not known for sure, so why put herself in danger? Something had to have changed. Kelda could be stubborn, but she was rarely reckless. That was more Thor than anyone else. "I don't know," he answered his brother. "But, we have to go after her." He turned to the rest of their company of guards. "Get your gear ready! We're going to Nornheim sooner than planned."

Off to the side, just out of view of his brothers, Loki seethed silently. Why did she have to escape to Nornheim? He could feel his plan collapsing around him, desperation filling him. Together, he knew that Kelda and Karnilla could shine a light on his misdeeds. He loved her, but he would not allow Kelda to threaten his position. He had to stop this before it went too far.

***

Kelda had been following the fox for almost a full day. She pushed through her exhaustion, continuing to scour the mountains through sheer force of will alone. To be honest, she was did not know how long this journey would take and she was beginning to feel the effects of gravity pulling at her.

Finally, the fox stopped at the edge of a canyon. The only landmarks around her being the large river that ran before her and the cliff-side around her. The sun began to set behind the towering peaks and shadows were cast everywhere. She had never been afraid of the dark, but something about the ambiance set the golden goddess on edge.

The shadows seemed to move, creeping along, watching her. Kelda now understood the fear of Nornheim. The magic was palpable. She could feel it all around her, but it did not empower her as it did those who came from Nornheim. Instead, the lands overwhelmed her as if leeching magic from her to take for itself and disperse accordingly.

Soon the only light in the darkened woods came from the ethereal, glowing fox in front of her. Until, suddenly, it did not.

The light went out and Kelda turned to where the fox once sat only to see it had once again disappeared. She was not an idiot. If the glowing had not been an indication, the constant trickery and disappearing acts were enough to tell her that it was no normal fox. However, now with her bright companion gone, the darkness enveloped her entirely.

There was no discerning the shadows from the rest of the darkness and Kelda felt the hair on the back of her neck prickle in anticipation. Her eyes took time to adjust to the overwhelming darkness. In fact, they took too much time.

Clawed fingers wrapped around her wrist, digging into her pale skin. She tried to pull her hand away with no luck. Glancing to her wrist, she saw the pitch-black fingers unmoving against her skin. The shadows had come to life.

She tried to pry herself free of the fingers that appeared to be made up of a void. Before she could free her wrist, another shadowy hand clamped onto her other wrist, yanking hard. She stumbled where she stood, more hands grasping at her ankles and shoulders and hair. The darkness around her lit up as yellow, snake-like eyes peered out from the shadowy figures around her.

She wanted to scream but she could not. She wanted to blast them away from her with her magic but she failed to do anything. She was powerless.

This was a bad idea! This was a horrible idea! She repeated over and over to herself. The demonic figures tripped her and she collapsed to the ground. A hole, black as the rest of the abyss she was surrounded by opened beside her and just as a scream finally erupted from her throat, she was swallowed by it.

For a long while, her world was filled with nothingness. She could almost believe that she had been knocked out, or she was asleep and this was all some sort of terrible nightmare. However, she never remembered closing her eyes or hitting her head. No, she was still awake, conscious and aware... there was just nothing.

As if the lights were turned on, the nothingness gave way to a throne room. Not the Asgardian throne room that she was used to, but a different one, a darker one. It was mostly earth tones, shades of green and brown with hints of bronze here and there. The throne before her was made of vines and roots, intertwining intricately to create a magnificent centerpiece for the room. The demons vanished and the only other figures that stood in the room with her were three women. The first was barely visible to Kelda, her face hidden behind a cowl. The second was a middle-aged woman with graying-brown hair and earnest eyes. And the third was a young woman with dark hair, her features without wrinkles and untouched from the stresses of life.

Kelda skittered away from the three nervously, hurriedly standing in case they tried to attack her as the demons did. "Who are you?" the blonde asked sternly. "Why was I brought here?"

"I am Urd," the middle-aged woman said. "These are my sisters, Skuld," she gestured to the covered woman, "and Verdandi," she motioned to the young woman. "You, Kelda Freyjadottir, were brought here because your destiny demanded it. That is why your flygja led you here after all."

"My what?"

"Your flygja. The physical manifestation of your soul. It guided you here because you needed to be here," Urd continued vaguely.

Kelda shook her head in confusion. "You mean the fox."

This time Verdandi spoke, "Yes. Flygja guide you in times of great need or decision. They keep you on the path of your destiny."

"So why did it bring me here? Where is here?"

"This is Nornheim. Your fylgja brought you here because this is where you need to be. She brought you to Karnilla, our queen. She brought you to where you could find the help that you are seeking."

Urd stepped forward, "We know of the struggles you've faced recently. The anguish and betrayal, but there is more to come. You need to be strong like your mother Freyja, for if you are strong then you will be rewarded with everything you've ever wanted. Freedom, a family, and love."

"You say that like you know for certain. Like you've seen it," Kelda stated, her eyes narrowed at the mysterious and cryptic women in front of her.

Urd smiled slightly, as if she was keeping a secret that she was not privy to share. "I cannot speak for myself, but I can for my sister Skuld. The future is rarely hidden for her. You have a great journey ahead of you."

Just as the blonde goddess was about to question what that meant, another voice rang out through the vast throne room. "Kelda?" a familiar voice gasped.

The blonde turned to the left to see Karnilla entering the throne room, an old woman trailing behind holding her skirts. The sorceress looked different from the last time Kelda had seen her, which was not all that long ago. Her ebony hair billowed around her shoulders in a flurry of curls, accented by a towering headpiece. The gown she worn was adorned with crystals and gemstones, trailing far behind her to where the old woman graciously lifted the train. She truly looked like royalty, which Kelda supposed made sense as the other women referred to her as their queen.

"I know you didn't do it," Kelda blurted out unceremoniously. "Loki had everyone convinced, but I knew you would never try to hurt me." At the blonde's words, Karnilla dismissed her servant, Haag, from her spot where she held her dress and started forward.

The two friends embraced each other tightly, no more words needed. "Why have you come here?" Karnilla asked, pulling away but keeping her friend within reach.

"Apparently, my flygja showed me the way. It's a spirit guide or something..."

Karnilla let out a light laugh and nodded. "It is. They're extremely rare and show themselves when you are in need of help. Curious beings, they are." She paused their conversation and acknowledged the other four women in the room. "Leave us. I wish to speak to my friend alone."

The other four women bowed their heads respectively and left the two to speak privately. "Who were those women?" Kelda questioned.

"The Norns," Karnilla answered. "They created this place at the roots of Yggdrasil and preside over the fates and destinies of everyone in the realms. They knew that I would return eventually and made sure that this place was waiting when I did."

"And you're a queen now?" Kelda asked again with the hint of a smile.

Karnilla returned the smile. "It appears so."

Kelda nodded. "Well then, it appears we have a lot to catch up on."

The dark beauty's expression turned solemn, "That we do."

The two women talked for hours. Karnilla detailed the actual plan that she had hatched with Loki, assuring over and over again that she never planned on causing physical harm to Kelda. The blonde was hurt that her friend had not just been honest with her about her feelings for Balder, that instead she felt that being underhanded in breaking off the engagement was the only way to go about things. However, as the ebony-haired woman explained further, Kelda realized that she too had been manipulated by Loki's silver tongue. Loki had taken Karnilla's feeling and twisted them into bitterness until he knew he could use her as an ally. That was until Karnilla's loyalty to hers and Kelda's friendship overpowered her own selfish desires.

After they finished their heart-to-heart, they agreed to begin planning to out Loki as the true betrayer. However, that could wait until the following day, as Kelda was about to collapse from exhaustion. The next morning, they would begin to take back Karnilla's life that had been stolen from her by Loki's lies.

***

"Kelda," the blonde heard and she was roughly shaken awake. "Kelda, we have to go! Balder and Thor have arrived at the Gates of Nornheim with a small force of warriors backing them," Karnilla stated urgently. "Loki is with them too."

At the mention of the trickster god, Kelda's eyes snapped open and she sat up just as quickly. "They're all here?" she asked, startled by the news. "How do you know?"

"My demons that you had the misfortune of meeting have spotted them near the cliff-side that they retrieved you from. We have no time to plan. With Loki there, there's only a matter of time before they discover the gateway. We have to meet with them. They can't discover this place."

Kelda hesitantly agreed, but at the end of the day, it was not up to her. This was Karnilla's home and the blonde would agree with whatever the dark beauty said if it would protect her home.

Quickly getting ready, Karnilla teleported the two of them into the forest near the Asgardian force. Karnilla turned to Kelda as they spotted Balder, Thor, Loki and company searching the woods. "You have to get Balder's attention," Karnilla said. "If you can get his attention, and his only, you can isolate him so that we can plead my case. If Loki's around, he'll just persuade them not to listen, to doubt us."

Kelda nodded, "All right. I'll lure him away. Just help me to distract the others."

The blonde wandered closer to the group just as Karnilla astral projected herself to the group. "There!" a soldier shouted, pointing to the figure. The group took off toward the projection while Kelda stepped forward. Before Balder could follow the rest of the party, she called out to him, "Balder!"

It was loud enough for only him to hear as he turned, leaving everyone else to run off. "Kelda, thank the heavens you're all right!" He ran forward and embraced her. "Why did you run off like that? What are you doing in Nornheim?"

Before she could answer him, the real Karnilla appeared behind her. Balder grabbed Kelda and pushed her behind him as he raised his sword, "Stay away from her, you traitor! How could you—"

Kelda pulled herself away from him. "Stop! She didn't try to do anything! It was all a lie. Loki lied!"

Karnilla stepped forward cautiously, her hands raised in surrender. "Kelda's telling the truth. I never wished any harm on her. She's my best friend. I was—am in love with you, but I couldn't ruin Kelda's life just to help myself." Balder continued to watch her every move suspiciously. "Please believe me."

At her pleading eyes, he began to lower his sword. "If what you say is true, Loki..."

"He framed her," Kelda interjected. "He planted the papers and spell and said that she planned to kill me. All because he was plotting to stop the wedding, because he's in love with me. When Karnilla threatened his plans, he got rid of her. I know this because I caught him in his lie. It's why I came after Karnilla."

Balder paused, considering this information. "It is unfortunate—," he started.

"I know you don't want to believe that Loki is capable of this, but it's the truth," Karnilla said solemnly.

The golden god nodded. "I believe you. I do. If you both agree to come back to Asgard, I believe we can convince my father too."

Kelda glanced at Karnilla, gauging her reaction. Hesitantly, the new Queen of Nornheim agreed. "All right. We should meet back up with the rest of the party." The two women followed Balder until they reached the boundary of Nornheim.

Kelda felt the strength of her power return to her and knew that while she grew stronger, Karnilla was no longer the ruler of their domain. As they continued to follow Balder, anxiety prickled at the back of the winter goddess's mind. Why had they not run into the others yet?

She was pulled from her thoughts as a familiar white glow caught her attention. Her fylgja. It ran up to her and circled her legs in a panic. The goddess stopped in her tracks, afraid to step on the white fox. No one else noticed it. She was the only one who could see it.

The other two had noticed she stopped though. They turned to see her starring at her feet. "Kelda," Balder started, trying to pull her back into the world with the rest of them.

The fox stopped circling her and tugged on her skirt again. This time pulling her back in the direction they had come from, pulling her back to the Nornheim boundary.

"She says I should go back," Kelda whispered to herself. Karnilla's eyes widened as she realized to what Kelda was referring. Fylgja were not just guides, they were protectors. If the fox was telling her to go back, they needed to go back.

The temperature dropped suddenly. Kelda's hand clenched angrily, her spear forming as the winds picked up around the three.

The blonde looked up, her gaze meeting Balder's. "Where's everyone else?" she growled, lifting her spear to be in line with his neck.

"What are you doing?!" he exclaimed as Karnilla move to stand closer to the winter goddess.

"You're a liar. You're always pretending to be someone that you're not. Balder rarely calls me by my full name. He's called me Kel since we were children. But, you Loki, were always one for formalities." The confused expression on Balder's face faded as a smirk took its place.

"You're more observant than I expected you to be," he laughed, the illusion dissolving away leaving Loki standing where Balder just was. "Of course, after you displayed how willing you were to turn me in, I couldn't just hand you over to my brothers. So, I planned on disposing of you in other ways. Kelda, you would disappear off world as I framed Karnilla for your murder."

"You're a monster," Kelda seethed at him, frost covering the ground at her feet, killing all signs of life.

She missed Loki's slight flinch at her words. He never wanted it to end up like this. But, he was at his last resort, forced to do damage control.

Kelda blasted him backward with a powerful, frigid gust of wind. The God of Mischief tumbled down the hillside away from them. She turned to Karnilla, "Get back to Nornkeep, now!"

Karnilla hesitated, wanting to help her friend but she knew that she would be no help if she were caught. Instead, she listened, running back across the boundary.

Loki stood back up, two daggers materializing in his hands. Kelda swung her spear at him, but he caught it between the two blades. She froze his feet in place but he simply disappeared from the trap and reappeared behind her. She was used to this though. They were all the same tricks he used during training. Oh, how the tables have turned. The once enjoyable spars turned into serious battles; friends turned to enemies.

"Kel, STOP!" she heard Balder yell. She turned toward his voice, a winter storm raging around her. Balder ran toward her, trying to make her stop. In the back of her mind, she knew this did not look good. She had run from the palace to find her friend, who was the most wanted fugitive in the realm, and now she was battling one of Asgard's princes.

Distracted, she almost did not stop Loki's next swing. With the blunt end of her spear, she knocked the dagger out of his left hand and it flew off into the brush. Kelda swung the crystal edge of her spear at Loki once again, making him stumble back to escape the reach of the blade.

"Balder, you don't understand! He did this! He framed Karnilla," she shouted at the real Balder this time.

"I believe you, Kel. Just come back to Asgard with us and we'll get this all sorted," Balder said, placing his sword back into its scabbard. "I followed Karnilla's projection here. She said that you were in trouble. Now, please, calm your storm so we can go home." As she listened to him, the winds settled. The frost melted from the ground and her spear dematerialized. Balder closed the distance between them and comfortingly wrapped his arms around her. "We'll deal with Loki when we get home. We'll clear Karnilla's name."

"Thank you," she whispered, the anger fading from her body. Everything was going to be all right.

Suddenly, she was thrown to the side. "NO!" Balder yelled, and her body hit the cold forest floor.

Kelda caught herself as she looked up to her long-time friend. A dagger pierced his chest. If he had not shoved her to the side, it would've pierced her instead. "Balder," she whispered, not believing the sight before her. The crowned prince dropped to his knees and the blonde goddess rushed to his side. She pulled the dagger from his chest, knowing that the sooner she took it out the sooner he could begin to heal. For any mere mortal, the wound would be fatal, but Asgardians were more durable than that. Kelda packed the wound and waited for it to begin healing, but as the minutes passed, nothing happened.

The blonde turned to Loki, "What did you do?!"

"It was supposed to hit you, not him!" he seethed.

"Well, that doesn't matter now, does it? What did you do?!" she shouted once more.

Loki glanced beside him at the brush. In the brush was a familiar plant with long, oval-shaped leaves and bulbous, white berries. "Mistletoe," she muttered to herself. Asgardian mistletoe was just as poisonous and toxic to them as normal mistletoe was to Midgardians, if not more so. "You poisoned the blade with mistletoe. You tried to kill me!"

The trickster god froze. What she was saying was true; he would rather her die than take the fall for all the misfortunes that had befallen Asgard lately. He had to think fast, as his brother's life was fading faster. He did this. He killed his own brother. Unless, of course, he did not. Lying was in his nature.

"Kelda, how could you do this?" he asked her, feigning shock and disgust. "We were just trying to bring you home. Why did you kill Balder?"

Kelda features twisted in confusion. "Loki! What are you saying? You did this!"

"THOR!" he yelled for his brother. "Kelda, you let Karnilla manipulate you. You let her turn you against your friends and family. Or, perhaps this was your plan all along. You were afraid that Balder would go back on his word yet again, to pressure you into a marriage that you did not want. So you fled, and when we came to find you, to take you back to Asgard, you snapped. You wouldn't lose your freedom again, even though you had it the whole time. All Balder wanted to tell you was that the wedding was off."

Kelda looked at him in awe, awe and disgust. Who was this man standing before her? Certainly not her friend. Was he ever her friend? Maybe she did have shit judgment.

She let out a strangled cry, an icy force similar to the one she unleashed in her bedroom shot out in a circle around her throwing Loki back. The blonde goddess looked to Balder and his breathing grew heavier, the poison spreading through his bloodstream quickly. His eyes fluttered and his pulse grew weak. "I'm so sorry," she said to him softly. "It should've been me."

"Go," he said, although it came out as a strangled gasp. "You need to go. Find Karnilla."

"I can't just leave you here," she cried, a frozen tear falling down her cheek and landing on his chest.

Balder brushed her hair behind her ear, "You have to."

Kelda could hear rustling not far off as Loki began to stand again as well as the calls of the search party growing closer. "Loki, will have their ear," Balder pushed. "You need to leave."

She hesitated a moment longer as Balder's eyes fluttered shut. Pressing a gentle kiss on his forehead, she stood quickly and saw her flygja sitting a few feet away. As the vixen met her eyes, it darted back the direction Karnilla ran and she followed.

***

So, I went to write a new chapter for this only to realize I had two already typed that just needed editing. That means there should be another update between tomorrow and Saturday! Yay!

We're almost caught up with the prologue and then we be on The First Avenger.

Very excited to wrap up this original storyline and get to Bucky soon!

Let me know what you think! Vote and comment! Thanks for the support everyone!