AN- Here is the next chapter.

WARNINGS for some minor violence, borderline child abuse (Physical intimidation) and the hunting of innocent animals (Bear in mind this is a civilisation that goes to war for fun…)

I hope you enjoy, please let me know what you thought, didn't understand etc.

I LOVE questions! My favourite!

- x -

Queen Frigga's Suite, The Palace of the Áesir, Asgard

The 2671 Year of Odin's Rule

51 Years Later

Prince Loki walked through the open door into his mother's suite, greeting her with a kiss on the cheek before taking a seat across from her. The clear sun of a new year shone through the open wall that lead onto the balcony, lighting the room up a brilliant gold. After a long morning training with General Tyr, Loki was physically exhausted. He'd had to rush through his bathing to arrive on time, as the General had held him back for far longer than any of the others in the prince's training group.

It was now early afternoon and as he did every second day, Loki would spend an afternoon being schooled in magic by his mother. Queen Frigga had been teaching him the theory of Seidrcraft since he was in his thirties, but he had only been learning how to form his own spells for the past half a century. The queen often told her son that he was a natural, and that he would soon surpass her level.

"My son," his mother greeted him, smiling. "Did the General hold you back once again?" she looked concerned. Loki tried to look neutral so as not to betray his annoyance.

"Yes, he had several comments about my form." This was partially true. Tyr had had more than a few comments on Loki's form, going as far as to say that he'd seen tavern wenches with more skill. Criticizing the younger Odinson was one of the general's favourite pastimes.

Frigga smiled encouragingly. "I'm sure the general will have you trained up in no time. Now onto other matters," the Vanir woman placed her teacup on the table and reached over to pass her son a thick tome. "I've got something a little different that I require some help with for you today. The Allfather has asked for me to help with the designs for the new wall."

He knew all about 'the wall'. Any being who was within a thousand miles of the palace had heard about the wall. As a counsellor to the king, Loki was very much tired of hearing about the damn wall. With the death of King Honir, an Áesir diplomat who had married Lady Freyja, Queen of Vanaheim, there was talk of a war on the horizon. The Vanir were almost as technologically advanced as the Áesir, and would prove to be a real threat to the Realm Eternal.

This resulted in Odin Allfather commissioning a new wall to be built around the palace and inner city that would have the strongest defensive magic woven into its foundations, allowing for a shield to expand up and over the palace if Asgard were ever under attack. The problem was that they had yet to find someone to build the wall who was capable of the feat and fast enough for the defences to be in place in Vanaheim attacked in the near future.

Every council meeting for the last week had been several hours devoted solely to some ten Áesir shouting at each other about the Nornsforsaken wall. Loki would live happily if he never heard mention of it again.

He sighed. "Must we? Is there any point in designing the wall when we've yet to find an adequate builder?" His mother looked stern for a moment before smirking slyly.

"I'd have thought you'd enjoyed helping to design the defences of the palace itself. The new wall will be a great feat of magic and strength combined. The best of Asgard's sorcerers will carve each of the spells we create and adapt today into the runestones, which will be built into the walls foundations and activated once it is complete. It will be a real challenge to weave each of the spells together and plan how we're going to ensure the shield protects evenly throughout each area."

Loki tried valiantly not to let his excitement show. Even with his current feelings of animosity about 'the wall', he couldn't let an opportunity to put his skills to the test in such a complex task pass him by. His mother knew this. She was far craftier than she let on.

"Very well then, I believe I will be able to give you some help. As a favour to my dear mother." He replied, trying for nonchalance. Frigga's raised eyebrow told him she believed none of it, but she nodded as though accepting this was a great hardship for him.

They worked all through the afternoon and into the evening. The task was complex, taking each of the individual spells for protection against specific things and weaving them together, tying them in where repeating runes appeared, and threading them through each other to tighten the weave. Each spell had to be adapted first and then added to the weave in the correct place to pull the spell together.

Loki had crafted a runic spell like to place on each of his throwing knives to make sure they returned to him, never dulled or stained, and could never be used against him. It had taken him a week to fashion the weave and another two to etch it onto each of his knives and activate it. The spell weave for the shield was a thousand times more complex. The dark haired prince had never had so much fun.

"We may have to add a further two rune stones on either side of the gates to ensure the spell holds tight across the gateways." Frigga mused. The area at each gate would have no rune stones and so the spell could grow weak over time without anything to hold the Seidr.

"Perhaps," Loki wondered, thinking.

"Yes?"

"Perhaps if we had archways over each of the gates? Then we could have a rune stone at the centre of each gateway, and we can tie in the spell twice as strong at those points?" he suggested.

Frigga laughed. "I sometimes forget how clever you are, my bright boy!" she said.

Loki looked away bashfully. He didn't often get praised by anyone. Usually it was his mother, though occasionally his uncle Freyr, or Thor. But father never found any of Loki's actions praiseworthy, apart from a few ideas he had had as a counsellor.

After another hour of so they put their work aside and separated to prepare for the evening meal. The runic work for the wall would take several months, and then the runestones themselves would have to be carved. Loki wondered if he would be allowed to help with that. He hoped so. The chance to actually put his work into practice would be a real gift.

The Throne Room, The Palace of the Áesir, Asgard

The 2672 Year of Odin's Rule

One Year Later

Most of the morning session of the Odinsday Court had passed by without issue, when the man stepped forward. He was huge. Taller than even Lord Mani, and thicker muscled than General Tyr. He had the weathered face and calloused palms of someone who had laboured hard in the sun for a great many years. Clever dark eyes peered around the throne room from beneath a heavy brow.

King Odin had just asked if there were any more petitioners to the court this day, a question that was almost always followed by compete silence, for petitioners were expected to be announced by the lord of their district earlier on. This man, however, must be one of the few that were neither noble, nor a citizen of Asgard. Odin stared down at the man, before gesturing with his hand for the man to speak.

"I have come to offer my services, and those of my horse, to build the new palace wall." He spoke in a slow, even tone that suggested extreme patience or perhaps a very low intelligence. Odin leant forward fractionally on the seat of Hlidskjálf. Tensions with Vanaheim were growing by the day and with no real options in Asgard to build the wall, the king of all was becoming desperate.

"Speak your terms, builder." The King said.

"I will complete the wall in one year, and it will be stronger than any other built before it. For payment, I ask only for the Moon and Sun shields kept in the vaults of Asgard, and the hand of the beautiful, now widowed Lady Freyja, Queen of Vanaheim." The labourer responded.

Somewhere in the great room there was a gasp of shock. It was not without reason. If word reached Queen Freyja that Odin was once again negotiating a marriage for her there would be war all the sooner. Odin scowled at the builder.

"Your terms are unacceptable. What else can Asgard offer you in payment for your service?" he said.

The builder looked stony faced. "There is nothing Asgard can offer me but the hand of the most beautiful of all the goddesses. I will return in two seasons to offer my services again if you have need of them."

Odin looked furious. "Very well." He said, though he looked as though he might rather take the man captive.

With a nod, the builder walked calmly out of the throne room.

The Kings Counsel-room, The Palace of the Áesir, Asgard

The 2672 Year of Odin's Rule

6 months later

Loki sighed - continuing his work on designing a runic spell to keep the treads of his favourite leather boots from wearing down - while he pretended to pay attention to the argument. He let the words of the other counsellors pass over him. This very argument had repeated at every meeting for the past six months. If the matter with 'the wall' did not resolve itself soon, Loki would start work building the damn thing himself.

"Perhaps we should consider accepting the builder's terms?" That was surely Lord Bragi, the idiot.

"We cannot accept! The Sun and Moon shields are dangerous in any hands but our own, and Queen Freyja will go to war all the sooner if she hears a whisper of her being sold like livestock!" Lord Forseti had said slave last time, but otherwise the comment was no different.

And here was Lady Fulla, stating the obvious as always. "But we need a wall. Whatever shall we do?"

"Mayhaps we set out own to work on the wall? Surely there are many young men in the barracks that require being humbled sufficiently?" Lord Aegir once again proved he did not value his life.

General Tyr jumped up from his seat in outrage. "How many times must I tell you, fool, there is not a man in our forces who has a minute free from training? We have a war near upon us, and you want to waste the time of our recruits on a wall!"

"If we don't have a wall around the palace it won't matter how well your soldiers are trained, the Vanir will be able to walk into the palace and sit Freyja on the throne if they wish!" Lady Rán sneered back, uncaring on the issue personally but always ready to defend her husband's point of view with a snide comment.

"Is there no other candidate to build the wall?" asked Lord Mani. Loki wondered how many times he'd ask that before he remembered the answer himself. Not that it mattered, Lady Sóla was always there to remind the moon god.

"In a year we have had no other come forward." She replied.

Lady Idunn finished with; "Perhaps of we wait there will be another builder with more agreeable terms." She wondered.

Odin Allfather slammed Gungnir into the ground, a shockwave reverberating around the room to silence them. "I need not remind you all that the labourer will return in two days' time. Is there but one of you with an idea that has not been suggested more times than can be counted?" he sounded angry. There was no reply. "Out! All of you." He demanded, and the counsellors leapt into action.

"Not you," he said, as Loki rose much more calmly from his own chair. The prince looked over at his father, before settling back down, pushing his papers to the side. His father looked weary, the lines his face much deeper set than usual, though he had only a few years ago awoken from his latest Odinsleep he looked no more refreshed for it.

"What have you been working on, my son?" Odin asked.

Loki blinked. He'd hoped he was more subtle than that. "I was practicing spell weaving. Mother allowed me to help with the crafting of the wall's runestones and I've been incorporating all I've learned into my private studies." The god of mischief tried to keep the explanation brief. Mother said he often spoke too much on subjects he was passionate about.

"I should have you flogged for such impudence." Odin told him, looking sternly at his son. "A place on this council is a privilege, not something you should ignore to practice a few magic tricks." His face softened slightly, "Though I daresay you could quote the discussion word for word either way?"

Loki smirked, "It has been a little repetitive recently."

Odin snorted. "Useless, all of them. Even Tyr, though I cannot fault his distraction. It has been centuries since the last war and that was against the Jotun – no real threat. War with Vanaheim will be far worse." He looked grim, but there was a layer of fury beneath. Odin Allfather did not like the other realms daring to rebel. "I wonder, my son. You have been silent throughout many arguments between my counsellors, I wonder if you have an idea of your own?"

Loki paused, considering. "It would not be honourable. The Áesir would frown upon such trickery." He hedged.

Odin focused on him, a spark of something in his eye. "I did not give you a seat on my council because I needed you to be honourable. I was not unaware that Freyr was schooling you. It is often necessary in ruling to be underhanded."

Loki was not surprised. For all that his father rarely seemed proud of him, and did not seem to take the time to encourage his passions as he did with Thor, the god of deceit felt that Odin watched him a great deal. The King seemed very interested in everything Loki did, though he never seemed to make comment.

"I thought perhaps we accept the builder's offer, but demand he complete his work in half the time. A year would be a stretch for how rapidly one man and his horse could build the greatest fortifications Yggdrasil has ever seen, and half that would be an impossibility. After two seasons, we will have most of the wall built and will be no worse off. I'm sure Tyr can spare a few recruits to finish the wall, most of the difficult work will have been completed first."

The moment Loki mentioned that they would have nothing to pay, there was a flicker of definite greed in the Kings eyes. The prince registered at the back of his mind that this was not the first time he'd seen such a look in Odin's eyes. Loki's plan with the Light Elves had resulted in Asgard being even better off, now that they controlled the market for elvish wares, and Loki was perceptive enough to know that Odin's pleasure at his son solving that problem had been for the profit it brought to his realm.

"Very well, Prince Loki. I will take your counsel into consideration." Odin said, before bidding his son leave.

Three days later, on the Midgardians celebration of Samhain, the builder and his great steed started work.

Norway, Midgard

The 2672 Year of Odin's Rule

Yule

The great hunt was well under way. It was the first year that Loki had been allowed to ride at the head, a spot reserved for the royals and the nobles and the greatest of Asgard's warriors, for he had slain a great-wolf on a hunt last season. Thor rode beside him, astride a white mare. Loki's own mount was a sure-footed gelding. The yule hunt was a difficult ride for even the most experienced and so even though Loki was an adept rider, he had chosen a steed that could look after itself.

Every year, on the longest day in the mortal's year, the Áesir gods would come down to Midgard and hunt long through the dark night. The humans were terrified by the spectacle, they urged their children to stay indoors and out of sight as the god-king and his subjects rode through the skies.

This was a slight exaggeration. A beast from another realm would be released onto Midgard several days before the hunt, and the god who slayed the beast would take its head as a trophy, be given a boon by the Allfather and would ride at Odin's side the next year. This year, a golden stag from Álfheim had been gifted to the Allfather by King Freyr, in apology for missing the hunt himself.

"This way!" Thor shouted, over the sounds of a hundred-thousand pounding hooves. Loki saw his brother turning his steed and riding through the press of horses out into the woods on their left. He followed, his own mount being buffeted this way and that by the scores of riders whose paths they crossed. Thor had set off at a gallop after a single hound who had changed course. A flash of understanding ran through Loki and he spurred his own mount into a gallop after his brother.

They had spent all of the last week taking the moulted golden hairs from the floor of the corral the stag had been kept in and attempting to train one of the hounds to recognise them. It was almost certainly futile, the chances of one dog having a better chance than the others very slim, but the idea of coming across the stag before their father was enthralling.

The two brothers raced each other through the woods, trying to push the other from his mount when they came within reach and laughing uproariously. They burst out into a clearing sometime later, both they and their horses dripping in sweat and mist rising around them from their heat in the cold winters night. Pulling up beside Thor, panting, Loki asked. "Where is the hound?"

Thor looked around in confusion, noticing for the first time that the dog had wandered off. "The tracks lead north." He said, looking thoughtful.

"Well done, Thor. You are indeed a mighty hunter."

"Shut up, Loki."

The younger prince sighed. "Shall we head back and find the rest?"

"But the tracks…"

"Brother, I'm fairly certain the hound we followed wasn't even the one we trained. Ours had black on its muzzle. We just raced off after a lazy hound who'd gotten bored of the hunt."

"It was our hound!" Thor declared, certain. "It had the white guard hairs on its flanks!" Loki froze, listening hard. It couldn't be… "Do you think me a fool…"

There was a deep rumbling sound coming from their right. It sounded like the ground were shaking.

"Thor."

"…that I would chase the wrong hound?"

The rumbling grew louder. Distantly, Loki heard the baying of dogs.

"Thor!"

"The stag must be around here somewhere…"

The noise of the dogs rose.

"THOR!" Loki shouted, wheeling his gelding around and dragging Thor's mare to face the same way.

There was a burst of bright gold that shot past them faster than an arrow. The stag leapt over the ditch at the far side of the clearing and disappeared into the trees. Thor gave a mighty laugh and urged his horse on, just as the hunt came crashing into the clearing, slamming into the princes horses and launching them forwards.

Stumbling into a gallop, Loki's horse threw itself messily over the ditch. He lost a stride when he stumbled on landing but as the swifter of the two he was soon neck and neck with Thor's mare again. The boys managed one grin of elation at each other for taking the very front of the hunt before the far larger horses of the adults overtook their own and they were split up as warriors and lords surged between them.

Ahead of them, it was Lord Tytos, the father of General Tyr who loosed the arrow that took the stag behind the foreleg and brought it down. There were great cheers of victory as the hunt circled around in chaos as several thousand horses and riders slowed to a stop. Some of the young warriors continued on, the hounds soon finding something else to chase.

Loki found his brother after a moment, laughing wildly and telling the story of their adventure to a red-haired warrior in his own training group. Thor was several levels ahead his peers, training with a group of men a century his senior. Thor introduced Loki to Volstagg and the younger prince began telling the warrior how Thor had been looking in the wrong direction when the stag ran past them. Volstagg was laughing uproariously, drawing several others into the tale.

It was nearly daybreak by the time the boys found their father. A stray arrow from a young green boy who had no aim had taken down his great steed Balius, and he had had to wait with a few others who's horses had stumbled until the younger group had ridden up. Loki dropped to the ground, giving his own mount to his father and being dragged up behind Thor for the ride back to the Bifrost site.

On the ride back to the palace, they passed the half completed wall. The builder had surprised them all at his speed, and had most of the foundations and the lower half of the wall completed already. There was tension building as the Áesir noted how far along the labourer was in one season. There was nothing to fear, of course. The stacking of the higher sections would take far longer, surely.

Even now the man was working, his horse dragging a huge pallet of bricks around to the western gate. The pallet was stacked thrice as high as a team of two would drag, and seemed to have no trouble moving it. The stallion was so massive he made the builder seem small. Pure white and at least 18 hands, the steed was nothing but rippling muscle and strength.

Loki saw Odin staring at the horse in greed. Balius had been a great horse, the pride of the royal stables but Svadilfari was in a different class. This was surely the god of horses. Loki wondered whether his father would try to buy the horse, now that his own mount was dead.

The Library, The Palace of the Áesir, Asgard

The 2673 Year of Odin's Rule

Beltane

Loki could admit he was nervous. The deadline for the wall was in three days and unless something drastic changed, it would be complete tomorrow. There had been another council meeting that morning. As usual when there was a real problem, the other counsellors had argued amongst themselves, none coming up with a solution. As before, Odin had demanded they all leave, but he had not asked Loki to stay back.

The King had stared hard at his youngest son for a moment, and then turned away. Loki was no fool, he knew what his father expected. It was Loki's plan that had made him agree to the builders' terms, terms that they could not possibly keep, and so Loki must be the one to solve the problem.

He'd spent hours in the library, combing it for any spell or working of magic that could help him. Short of knocking down half of the work already completed, the prince could find no way to ensure the labourer could not finish the work that would not clearly be an attack. There were footsteps approaching the dark corner Loki had been hidden in. He looked up.

His father stood in front of him, between the great bookcases on either side of the desk Loki had chosen. Odin was taller than his young son by some margin, and with Gungnir gripped in a hand and his golden armour glinting in the candlelight, there was no doubt he was intimidating. Loki stood up, bowing at the waist in greeting. "My King," he said, reverting to a formal address as a frisson of fear ran down his spine.

"Loki." Odin said, stepping closer. Loki unconsciously stepped back, feeling the hard desk and heavy stack of books behind him. "You have disappointed me, my son. I expected you to have fixed the problem you have caused. Asgard faces a war that we are not yet ready for-"

"I'll find an answer! I swear, I'm nearly there, I just need-"

Odin let out a growling roar of anger and lashed out with a hand. Loki flinched back, knocking over the books behind him and landing sprawled over the desk behind him with his father gripping the cloth of his tunic at his throat. "DO NOT interrupt me, boy!" he said, rage flashing in his eyes. "You will fix this, today, of your will be sorry."

With that the gallows-god released him and strode away, without looking back. Loki stayed where he was for a moment, shaking in shock and fear. Then he stood up, straightening his tunic and turned back to his work. He would find the answer. He would.

The Golden Gates, Asgard

The 2673 Year of Odin's Rule

Some hours later

Thor stood with Volstagg and Gerion, watching as the builder worked away. The people of Asgard had begun gathering at the gates once it became clear that the builder was nearly finished, taking bets on how long was left. Thor had finished training earlier that day and after spending an hour futily looking for his brother, had decided to join his friends in watching. Loki had been quiet at breakfast that morning, looking positively shaken when Thor invited him to come and watch the wall building.

The thunder god had found Loki to be a boring companion of late, he never seemed to want to go hunting or ride out to the hot springs, instead spending all of his time in the library. Thor shuddered. After sitting through five rounds of history lessons with Frode in the Nornsforsaken place he never wanted to step foot in there again.

There was a murmuring growing louder on the far right of the crowd, as though something were happening. The sound grew louder, punctuated by some screams and the civilians tried to dive out of the way. Through the gap burst a black horse, without rider or rope, it galloped past the lines of people. Thor pushed Gerion to the side, intending to throw an arm around its nose and pull it around before it trampled someone, when there was a great piercing cry from the builders' horse.

Thor leapt back as the stallion thrashed wildly, snapping the ropes that bound it to the pallet and crashing its hooves down its masters arm as he tried to pull it down. The builder swore loudly, and Svadilfari spun around, snorting great clouds of hot breath as it made for the other horse. The mare, for it had to be a mare, squealed as it came near, striking out with a foreleg and whirling around to race off into the distance, the stallion following closely. Within a minute, both were out of sight.

The builder roared in anger, punching the pallet stacked high with bricks and sending the heavy stone crashing away, further than any man could hope to launch it. "Treachery!" he cried. "Cheats, liars and thieves!" The crowd started to back away, terrified of this raging man where the quiet, patient, calm builder had once stood.

Thor stepped forward, putting his hands out placating. "I'm sure it was an accident, I did not even recognise the mare, she was far too small and swift to be an Asgardian steed."

"Lies!" the builder roared. "The Áesir are cheats!" he cried. With a rush of Seidr the man transformed, growing taller still until he towered over them all, his skin turning cobalt blue and his eyes a vicious bloody red. The Jotun made for a young woman at the edge of the crowd and Thor gave a roar of his own, reaching for a heavy mallet resting against the half-finished wall.

With a great swing, the thunder god smashed the mallet into the giant's chest, sending his flying backwards into a pile of half cut stone. The Jotun struggled to stand and it was all the advantage the Áesir prince needed to smash the mallet down on the beast chest, breaking his sternum and crushing his heart.

There was a moment of silence before Volstagg started the chant "First Blood! First Blood! First Blood! First Blood…" Thor looked around at the crowd surrounding him now, half in shock. The Jotun had been alive a minute ago, and now he was not. He did that. The thunder god had spoken with the man, drank with him once in the local tavern, and now he had slain him.

But it was not a man. Frode had taught him one thing, at least, that the Frost Giants were beasts, which had dared to threaten an innocent realm. Thor reached down with his free hand, painting his fingertips in the giant's black tar-like blood. He daubed four lines of blood down his face, as was tradition, and turned to the crowd.

His father and mother were pushing through the gathered people, looking proud. Father stepped forward, touching the floor with Gungnir for silence. "Prince Thor stands before you now, as a man of Asgard. He slew a Jotun that dared to trick Asgard in the guise of a god. A great feast will be held tonight in his honour. Never has there been a prouder father than I!" he declared.

Later, after a great many toasts to his name, Thor asked his father from where he sat beside him at the head table, in the seat of honour, "Where is Loki?"

Odin frowned. "Loki fled the city when it became clear you had completed the task I had set for him. I believe he is sulking in his failure. Heimdall will inform me if he is any danger."

Thor frowned, wondering why Loki would not be here for his brother's celebration. Loki was always near, it was a constant in Thor's life.

It would be a year before Thor saw his brother again.

- x -

AN- End of Chapter 2. Leave me a comment please to let me know what you thought. Did you like the interval for the yule hunt? What about Thor and Odin's POV?

I did plan on having a Sigyn scene in here, but it got so long and Im only half way through what I wanted for this 'chapter' so I had to split it. The next one will have Sigyn and Freyja and even bay Sleipnir!

Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it, ChrysosArgentum xx