Chương 76

Everyone turned. Frigga stood there. And beside her was Odin. The All-Father looked tired from the Odin Sleep, but there was no mistaking who he was. His presence alone seemed to make the entire observatory feel smaller. And judging by the look on Odin's face, Loki was about to have a very unpleasant conversation.

"Loki." Odin's voice echoed through the observatory. For a brief moment the God of Mischief looked tired. The evening time in Asgard casted a very long shadow from the sinking sunlight that came from the distant sun and ethereal lights of Asgard seemed to dance on his woes of falling to show his worth to his own parents. His face looked dejected.

One couldn't tell if it was because of his failure to destroy Jotunheim or was it because he seemed to have failed his own parents, his mother in particular, who was now standing with a look of disappointment. Odin meanwhile seemed like he had failed massively. Loki seeing everyone's expressions, he himself felt his stomach twist at the end and spoke out loud.

"What do you want me to say?" Loki laughed bitterly.

"That I am sorry? That I regret it? I spent my entire life believing I was your son. Believing I was a prince."

"Loki." Frigga's voice quivered as she said that. And this voice made Loki more angry.

"No." His gaze shifted toward Odin, who had arrived moments later. The All-Father stood silently, leaning upon Gungnir, which Thor had forwarded it to him.

"I was never your son."

"You are my son." Frigga immediately replied.

"I was never your prince." Loki continued as if he hadn't heard her.

"I was a stolen Frost Giant you picked up from a battlefield."

"Loki." Odin's voice remained calm. But Loki wasn't listening anymore.

"I wanted to prove myself. I wanted to show all of you that I was worthy. That I could protect Asgard better than him." He pointed toward Thor.

"Instead you praised weakness. Mercy. Compassion. Now I see that in Thor too. Maybe I should do down and pay the new girl of Thor a visit." In response, Thor almost threw his Mjolnir at his face but knew that Loki wouldn't be able to move now as from the corner of his eyes he saw soldiers approaching. Coming to put Loki in handcuffs. Odin meanwhile didn't reply to him and just waited for him to be put into handcuffs. After it was done, Odin spoke with a sense of uttering a decree.

"Loki Odinson." The title alone made Loki freeze. He didn't expect his father to still use the surname Odinson.

"For your crimes against Asgard, against Jotunheim and against the peace of the Nine Realms, you are stripped of your title as Prince of Asgard." Silence filled the observatory.

"You will be imprisoned until such time as your actions have been judged." Loki wanted to give a snarky remark but the use of the surname Odinson made him speechless. He didn't know what to make of this. For years he had convinced himself that Odin never truly saw him as family. That he was merely a trophy taken from a battlefield. A reminder of victory.

Yet even now, after everything he had done, after attempting to destroy Jotunheim, after betraying Asgard and trying to kill Thor multiple times, Odin still called him Odinson. The soldiers slowly led him away and Loki didn't resist. The moment Loki disappeared into the distance, silence settled over the observatory. It was only now that Odin's gaze slowly shifted away from the retreating figure of his son. If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

And landed on Rei. Rei felt his eyes and he too looked back at Odin and met his gaze. For some reason, Rei felt all his secrets were out in the open. It was a very brief experience but it was there nonetheless.

"So." Odin spoke calmly.

"I believe there is a guest in Asgard whom I have not yet met." Thor suddenly remembered.

"Oh! Father, this is the small warrior, Rei."

"The one who helped us against the Destroyer." Lady Sif added.

"Heimdall would still be frozen if not for him." Hogun spoke.

"And he punched Loki several times." Volstagg added proudly. They had seen from far of how Rei was cooking Loki so they had to give good compliments, because they were under the impression that Rei was an outsider and thus might be sent back.

"I see." Frigga meanwhile looked curious.

"You are the young Midgardian?"

"That depends on how you define Midgardian." Rei replied honestly. That response immediately caught Odin's attention. Thor looked confused.

"What does that mean?"

"It means," Odin interrupted calmly, "that this young man is not entirely what he appears to be." Rei sighed internally. Trying to fool Odin was probably one of the dumbest ideas possible. The old man had likely noticed something wrong the moment he arrived. Odin turned around.

"We shall continue this discussion in the palace." A short while later they arrived within the royal palace itself. Even after seeing Asgard from afar, Rei couldn't help but stare. Massive golden halls stretched endlessly. Ancient murals covered entire walls. Pillars large enough to support mountains rose toward impossibly high ceilings. Everything radiated age. The golden age that never have deemed over time and continued to shine brightly ever after. Eventually everyone gathered inside one of the royal halls.

Odin sat upon his throne while Frigga remained beside him. Thor stood nearby along with Lady Sif and the Warriors Three. And Rei stood alone in the center.

"So." Odin began.

"Who are you?" Rei thought for a moment. Then decided there was absolutely no point lying.

"My name is Rei Amagi."

"And?" Rei exhaled slowly.

"I am not from this universe." What followed was a complete silence. Thankfully there were no one else in the royal hall or else there would have been silence followed by either chaos or strong murmur. Only Frigga and Odin didn't seem to fazed like Thor and his friends were just dumfounded.

"What?" Thor asked.

"I come from an entirely different reality." Rei continued. There was another brief silence with Thor looking at his father expecting a laugh. But there was none, not even on his mother. So the words of Rei were probably true.

"You knew?" Thor asked his father.

"I suspected." Odin replied.

"The Bifrost travels between realms. Yet the energies surrounding him are unlike anything native to Yggdrasil." Rei suddenly felt very small. For the first time since arriving in Asgard, Rei truly understood why Odin was called the All-Father. This old man, even on his twilight knew and saw things that other would take ages. Maybe, the Ancient One was like him. Maybe it was time for him to visit her too and get a proper perspective of what was going on with him, and some answers.

"This universe of yours... What is it like?" The old king's single eye remained fixed on Rei. Thor immediately became interested. He didn't understand deeply how universes worked but from what he could gather, it was a totally different place and that made him all the more curious.

"Yes. Is it another realm? Does it have warriors? Kingdoms?" Thor asked. Lady Sif and the Warriors Three were equally curious. The idea of another universe was already difficult enough to comprehend. Another universe with entirely different civilizations was something else altogether. Rei thought for a moment before speaking.

"It is still Earth."

"Earth?" Thor frowned.

"Midgard?"

"Yes and no." Rei replied.

"The geography is mostly similar. The oceans, mountains and continents are there. But history developed differently." Odin remained silent, allowing him to continue.

"My world is divided into hidden villages. Military nations built around shinobi. People who use chakra."

"Chakra?" Frigga asked with genuine interest.

"It is a form of energy present within all living beings. We use it for combat, healing, construction and countless other things."

"You were using this chakra when healing Heimdall."

"Yes." Frigga nodded thoughtfully. Meanwhile Thor looked interested for an entirely different reason.

"So these shinobi are warriors?"

"Mostly."

"How strong?" Rei looked at him.

"Strong enough to level mountains if you reach the top." Fandral immediately looked impressed.

"I like this place already." Odin meanwhile wasn't interested in the power. He was interested in the structure.

"From your descriptions, your people appear technologically primitive."

"Compared to Midgard? Mostly yes. Compared to Asgard? Extremely." That answer seemed to confirm something for Odin.

"A feudal military civilization."

"More or less." The All-Father slowly leaned back against his throne. He could already see the outline of such a society. Powerful individuals, warrior clans and Limited technology. Nations relying on exceptional fighters rather than machinery. To him it sounded almost medieval. And yet those same warriors could apparently perform feats rivaling lesser gods. That contradiction fascinated him.

"And how exactly did a child from such a universe arrive in another?" Odin finally asked. This made Rei sunk into deep thoughts as he would have to choose his words very carefully now. He had woven such a deep manipulation, only for one moment and thus it was time to close the net.