literature

Divided Chapter 92

Deviation Actions

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The night was growing old by the time Colin returned to the bedchamber he'd been given and flopped down upon the bed. He reached beneath the frame, feeling the canvas flap of Simon's backpack. The Uruz was still inside. He could, in all actuality, simply take the Uruz without Brenna knowing though he wanted to talk to her before he left, tell her he was the Protector, reassure her everything was going to be alright but what if she didn't believe him? He rolled over onto his back, laughing. Of course she wasn't going to believe him. He wasn't sure he believed him. He closed his eyes.


“Colin! Colin where have you been?”
He opened his eyes to see Brenna and Chase standing over him.
“We have been all over this palace searching for you this evening. Tony wants to see you!”
Colin sat up, rubbed his eyes. How long had he been asleep? “What time is it, fer fuck sake?”
“Almost midnight,” Chase tapped his wrist, “Come on, Mister Stark has a plan. We're going to try to sneak out of the city, make it to the encampment.”
Colin shook his head, “No, no. Then what are you going to do?  We don't have any weapons. You'd be going to slaughter with the likes of those warriors.”
“Stark said he's got an ace up his sleeve, whatever that is. He claims he's not waiting around for some legendary strong man to show up from the cosmic circus. He's talking about leveling the encampment.”
Colin swung his feet out over the floor, “And what about the agents and technicians still left? There's also the matter of the Bifrost. The Jotunns control that too. You take out the portal and yer liable to find a giant icicle shoved up yer arse from the cavalry. How would you get out of the city anyway. We're surrounded by the remains of Menyir's battalions.”
Brenna wrapped her arms about her waist, “There is a way to leave the palace without using the main gates. In my father's old bedchamber, near his wardrobe is a hidden door. He showed it to me. It leads down a tunnel to the eastern wall of the city. The Jotunn forces are concentrated at the entrances to the city. We may be able to slip away undetected.”
“Wait, what's this “we” shite? Yer not stepping foot out of this palace!” Colin stood up.
“ 'Twas my necklace brought this upon Asgard. I should make things right, would you not do the same?”
Colin shot Chase a look, willing him to protest but he stood there gazing at Brenna in adoration.
“It was more than the necklace, more than the portal, this was no one's fault. Chase, go fetch Stark and bring him here to my room.”
Chase hesitated, glanced at Brenna who nodded and was off like a shot out the bedchamber door. Colin dropped to his knees beside the bed and yanked Simon's backpack from underneath the frame, frantically clawing at the strap.
“Colin, you did not answer me. Would you not try to make things......what are you doing?”
“I've not much time to explain this, Bren. I want to be long gone when Stark gets here. I need to use the Uruz but I didn't want to take it without yer permission,” he pulled the necklace from the depths of the pack and held it up to her.
“To what purpose? You are not returning to Midgard are you? Tony said all options must be exhausted first before we open up our realm to your military forces.”
“Fer feck sake, Brenna. I'm not going to Earth,” he slid the necklace over his neck before she could reach for it, “I'm going to end this conflict. I'm going to Jotunheim, find your Da and the casket and bring them back to Asgard.”
“What?” Brenna swayed on her feet, put a hand to the footrest of the bed to steady herself, “How? Are they not still in this realm?”
Colin walked to the chair in front of the fireplace, lifted his cloak and satchel from the back, fishing out the halogen clip to drop in his pocket, “No, they've already returned home.”
“But how do you know.........Oh, Odin wept!” her hands flew to her mouth, “When you awoke from your dream speaking the tongue of the ancients, how could I have been so blind? But it cannot be! You are a Midgardian agent, a friend, you hail from the Land of Eire....”
Colin stared at the floor, unwilling to meet her eyes, “It doesn't make sense does it? It didn't make sense to me either but there you are.”
He felt her hand at his chin, tipping his face up to hers, “You became a part of our family. You were able to befriend one of the most difficult men of this realm, you are on the cusp of becoming a citizen of Asgard. Mama always claimed you were different, special though I doubt she could have imagined the accuracy of her statement.”
There was the sound of a slamming door somewhere in the corridor and upon impulse, Colin shoved his satchel into Brenna's arms.
“Take care of this until I come back. My journal and a few other things are inside. If you have to tell them where I've gone, don't tell them what I am. I've a ma and da on Earth who don't need to be subject to the agency's brand of questioning. Try to keep them away from the encampment but if you can't, try to slow them down. Tell them to wait for the right time.”
He lifted the Uruz from his chest, fumbled it, lifted it again, “Jotunheim,”
“Colin! Please be careful!”
“Take care of yer Ma,” he closed his eyes, trying to block out the images that flashed through his mind. The footsteps were outside the door now. He stared into the inky blackness of the portal, took a deep breath and stepped through.



Her feet were numb, painfully so, the discomfort drilling into her head, weakening her concentration as she hurried about the halls of the fortress with its vaulted ceilings and dimly lit recesses. Sulyir would be in his Jotunn form, no doubt, wherever he was in the fortress. What if he wasn't in the fortress at all but somewhere amongst the dwellings she'd spied through the narrow fortress windows but during their trysts, he'd not once mentioned having a family back home, whether deliberately or because he was truly alone, she didn't know.  She only knew she wasn't returning to Asgard without him, not if she could help it. She stopped, backing into a niche in the wall where she could rest and think though she dared not let herself become solid again.
She'd waited for some time, only moving off the fur covered pallet Loki had remanded her to before he retired when she was certain he was deep asleep, at last slipping out of the room to search for Sulyir.
She sat there, rubbing her arms to encourage blood flow. What had he said to her when she'd been made to go with Loki?
“I will not be far from you.”
Had he meant literally or figuratively? No, he was a literal man. She'd lost count of the times she'd had to explain to him something she'd said, not because he was stupid but because he was clueless about metaphors. Nope, when he said he'd not be far, he meant it but what was far to a Jotunn? A few rooms away? Over in the next village? In the same realm?
Two warriors passed her on their way through the hall and she tried to get a good glimpse of their faces, swearing to herself at the horrendous blue lighting present all about the fortress. She was growing tired. If she stayed where she was, they'd find her frozen to death come morning. She longed for the warm robes she'd left on the pallet, cursed herself for not bringing one of them with her. A few more warriors, accompanied by a couple of smaller females appeared, laughing, chattering in that strange language. She looked at their faces, felt like crying as they moved off down the corridor. They were nearly out of earshot when she heard it. One of the warriors had said his name, he'd said Sulyir. She stumbled out of the little niche, hurrying on unsteady feet to follow them. There was little else she could think of to do. Through the cavernous halls she followed the group until her legs ached from the strain of trying to keep up with their long strides. As last, they stopped before a heavy door, one of them banging on it with a fist. Slowly the door creaked open and Sulyir's face appeared from the gloom. She had to cover her mouth with her hands to keep from screaming. The men spoke to Sulyir for a few moments, quite obviously trying to draw him out of his quarters as they tugged on his arm but he shoved them off, waved his hands about in wild gestures. Damnit, what was he saying?
She surveyed the route to his room. She would have to zig zag about the members of the group and try to slip by Sulyir before he closed his door again. She edged forward, keeping close to the wall, freezing in place when one of the women began to dance about as the warriors laughed, pointed to her. At one point, the woman's hand passed inches in front of Eris's face. She kept on sliding toward Sulyir but before she could reach the door, the men waved at Sulyir and started down the hall again. Time was up. Amassing what little strength she had left, she sprinted toward the closing door, slipping inside moments before it slammed shut.
Sulyir had retreated to his bed, sitting down upon it with his head in his hands. Eris looked about the room. It was a spartan affair with a stone table and a carved stone stool. A blue stone lantern glittered atop the table. She stood there wrestling with herself. Would he return her to Loki out of loyalty to his king? Would he refuse to go with her, perhaps send her off on her own? A rush of adrenaline kick started her heart. She could never find her way to the rift alone, she'd die on the frozen tundra. She'd die here too either from the cold or because she couldn't shut her mouth. She drew close to him, ready to step back if he stood up quickly.
“Sulyir?”
His head snapped up, “Eris?”
She let herself grow solid, glad of the great smile on his face even as it faded, “What are you doing here? You should be with the prince!”
“Well I'm not. I'm here with you.”
Sulyir stood up.
“You do not belong with me. You do not belong to me. Why do you want to leave?”
“It didn't work out like I thought it would so I'm heading back home.” she pouted though she felt more like crying.
“And yet you are still here.”
She waited, could see him wrestling with himself.
“Very well. I will bring you to the rift but we must move swiftly before you are discovered missing. Menyir believes you are too valuable to let go.”
“If I wanted out of this stone prison, I could have wandered about all night until I found it. I wasn't looking for you to help me escape,” Eris murmured, “I want you to come with me to Asgard. Hell, maybe even Midgard if we could swing it.”
At any other time, the look on Sulyir's face might have seemed comic but Eris's heart skipped a beat as he shook his head.
“Leave the realm?”
Eris nodded, “Yes, leave the realm with me.”
Sulyir rubbed his mouth with his hand, stared about the room, “And if we were to escape, what then? What if Menyir was to come searching for you?”
“Then we run until we find someone with bigger guns. All I know is that I'm not staying with that megalomaniac. Whether or not you come with me, I'm still leaving,” she turned toward the door, praying with all her might that she'd made the right choice. With each footstep, her heart dropped further and further until it seemed to sit atop her stomach.
“Eris, wait!”
She stopped, glanced over her shoulder to see him hurrying toward her.
“I will go with you, the gods forgive me! I will follow wherever you lead me. I have been wretched ever since I handed you over to Prince Loki.”
“That makes two of us. I'm so happy you changed your mind,” she stole a glance up at the door handle, eye level with her, “Besides I don't think I could have opened this door by myself.”
Sulyir chuckled at her coy smile, “The door poses no problem but we must get out of the fortress without being caught.”
“Leave this to me,” Eris giggled as she faded away.




“Tell me you're lying!”
Brenna winced at Tony's sharp tone, “I cannot. He told me everything was going to be alright and that he would bring back my father and the casket.”
“So you let him take your necklace and whisk himself away to Jotunheim?” Chase cried, “That's suicide! What if the Jotunns get hold of that necklace? They won't need the portal or the bridge!”
“How could you believe him?” Tony had started to pace the floor, “Damnit, Brenna. He's a field agent, a diplomat. What did he expect to do, negotiate them to death?”
Angry tears stung Brenna's eyes and she bit her lip. She'd promised not to say anything to them, “And how do you know he will not do what he says?”
Tony strode through the room, throwing aside the heavy balcony drapes, stopping at the railing to point at the glow from bonfires which had been set up in the fields outside the city walls, “Because he's from northern Ireland and he will freeze to death just like those soldiers out there, just like any one of us when Menyir uses that casket on him. He's lost his mind. He's been here in Asgard too long.”
Brenna put her hands to her mouth, “I am sorry. What could I say to him?”
“How about no?” Tony slapped his hands on the marble railing, breath ghosting in the frigid
air, “Okay, alright. We can't call his cell and tell him to come home. He's on his own and we have to get to the encampment. You said you have a way out of the palace?”
“Yes,” Brenna hurried to the bedchamber door, “Follow me.”


“This was my father's old room,” Brenna whispered, “He showed me a hidden door near the wardrobe which leads to the passages below the city to the outer walls.”
“Your mother is on the other side of that door, Bren,” Chase nudged her, “Along with Helgi. What are we going to do, excuse our way on through?”
“They will be asleep by now and nothing short of a miracle will wake Helgi.”
“Okay, door beside the wardrobe. Out the passage through to the city walls. Got it,” Tony took her by the shoulders, moving her to the side, “Wish us luck.”
“Indeed I shall,” Brenna muttered, “For you do not know where to push upon the wall for the door to open, nor do you know which passageway to take for the outer wall. You could be lost for days.”
“And if I lose you,” Tony squeezed her shoulders, “What do I tell your mother?”
“Tell her I went with you for the good of Asgard. It is no lie,” Brenna bent down to peer through the keyhole and blanched. Where was her mother? She eased the door open ever so slowly. Helgi was slumped in the chair before the fireplace, her slack features cast in an unearthly red glow.
Chase pointed to the empty bed but Brenna shrugged, waved them forward. On foot they'd be lucky to reach the encampment by dawn but they had to try. If Colin was worried about them making forward progress with any speed, he had nothing to worry about. Brenna slunk up to the bedside and lifted the lantern from the side table, lighting it with trembling hands. When they reached the wardrobe, Brenna panicked for a brief moment, wracking her brains for the spot her father had showed her a hundred times before. She looked down, saw the worn spot on the wall where it met the floor and pushed it gently with the toe of her boot. There was a muffled click as the door swung open to reveal a black, damp passageway. She ushered the men inside and shut the door behind her. In the bedchamber, Helgi snorted, adjusting her position as her knitting slipped to the floor and at last all was quiet again.
An escape and a hero emerges
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Comments2
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Is it bad for me to say that I hope Eris doesn't get away? None of this would have happened if it wasn't for her selfishness and her obsession with Loki. She broke his family apart and now she sees how he doesn't give a damn about her and now she's trying to escape asking Sulyir to go with her and risking his life as well. What an evil bitch! LOL. Sorry, I really don't like her. I'm liking Brenna though, sassy and proud just like her dad! Great story!