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"Where is he now?" I asked, curious about the fate of the mysterious Mimir.
"Long missing," she replied solemnly. "Maybe long dead and gone with the other legends of his time."
"Alright, so what am I supposed to do?" I asked, staring at the well in front of me. It seemed so ordinary, nothing like the legendary artifact it was supposed to be.
"Drink from it," the woman's voice came through the vines. "That's the only way."
"Really? Drinking something a person I barely know tells me to drink? That seems like a terrible idea," I retorted, feeling more than a little skeptical and not at all eager to repeat my previous mistake.
"Fine, then stay there," she snapped back. "I may be able to get out myself if I leave you far enough behind."
"Wait!" I called, not wanting her to abandon me.
She laughed, and then suddenly yelled, "More draugrs are here!"
I could hear the commotion outside, the sound of the titan woman fighting whatever creatures she'd encountered. Panic gripped me as I realized I had no choice but to follow herinstructions. Reluctantly, I grabbed a nearby cup that glowed when I touched it and dripped water into the well, which also began to glow with life.
Hesitating for a moment, I brought the cup to my nose and sniffed. Nothing. No scent at all. With one last glance at the glowing well, I scooped some water into the cup and drank it down.
Immediately, I felt myself being pulled away, as if the very fabric of reality was trying to spit me out. The sensation grew stronger until I couldn't hold onto anything, even my thoughts.
"Wait!" her voice cried out just before I disappeared entirely. "My name is Skadi! I'm being held prisoner to the west of Belgir! Look for a hidden fortress in the red marshes!"
Her voice faded into darkness, and the next thing I knew, I jolted awake in bed. A titan servant stared at me in shock, her eyes wide as she dropped the vase she'd been cleaning near my bed. She rushed off, calling for a doctor, leaving me to wonder just what the hell had happened and how I was going to fulfill my promise to Skadi.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
KAL
"Dammit," I groaned, holding my head as I woke up yet again. It felt like someone had taken a sledgehammer to my skull. Thorsten had told me during one of my brief moments of consciousness that I'd been sleeping off and on for days. Honestly, every time I woke up, I almost wished I hadn't.
But at least I was back in the real world.
I remembered waking up for the first time outside of Innangard, a servant had nearly shit herself when she saw me conscious. She'd run off to get Thorsten, who had marched into the room like an angry parent ready to scold an unruly child. At the time, Icould barely register where I was, and my headache had felt like someone was squeezing my brain.
I'd braced myself for Thorsten's yelling, but instead, he'd held me in his arms and cried. I'd never seen him so shaken, and I never wanted to see it again. All I could do was mutter apologies for making him worry so much. Since then, he would visit me from time to time, sometimes bringing our kids along, but he couldn't stay long. Being King kept him busier than ever. The last time I was awake, he'd informed me that we were nearing the docks to Hrungnir Keep.
Now that I was awake again, I lay in bed, my mind drifting to my trip to Innangard and what I had learned there. Asgard, Midgard, Utangard and who knows how many other worlds, were all connected by Yggdrasil's branches, just like the Norse legends said, until Ragnarok tore them apart. The human world had to be Midgard. It was the only thing that made sense. I was still confused about the titan world, was Innangard once called Jötunheimr then? I guess there was no point in mulling over it for too long, maybe when this war was over and we perhaps can settle down, I can study more about the history of this world, which honestly confused me at times. While they had many technological advancements that surpassed the human world, they still had many aspects that seemed almost medieval.
But I guess I should focus on what’s most important, I hadn’t had time to speak to Thorsten about what I had learned in Innangard or what I may have brought back with me. Like those ravens that Skadi called Huginn and Muninn. Since waking up from Innangard, I'd occasionally see them flying about or perched on my bedposts, though they were much smaller than when they were in Innangard. I thought I was dreaming when Ifirst spotted them. How would they be able to cross over into the real world? Was it magic?
Then there was Skadi, the mysterious titan woman who helped me escape Innangard. I felt like I needed to return the favor by helping her escape that prison in the red marshes where she said she was being held.
The only problem was, I didn't know where that was, and Thorsten had enough on his plate dealing with a war. He wouldn't want to divert resources to save some random woman he didn't know. I decided that when the war ended, I'd bring it up to him and hopefully help Skadi out. For now, I just had to focus on getting better.
I pushed myself up in bed, my muscles protesting but finally feeling strong enough to do it. A servant in the room gasped, clearly shocked to see me moving around. She had her hair up in a scruffy red ponytail and wore thick glasses. Her teal and gold uniform had an intricate pattern that I could barely make out. I'd almost forgotten that Thorsten had charged someone to watch over me while he was away tending to his kingly duties.
"Signe" - I tried to remember the titan servant's name. I believed Thorsten said her name was Signe.
"You shouldn't be moving around like this," Signe scolded, her voice wavering with concern. "You still need plenty of rest and hydration to get the last remnants of the poison out of your system."
"I hear voices outside. Are we near the docks of the Keep?" I asked, trying to change the subject.
"We are," she replied. "We'll be docking soon. Please, lay back down and get more rest."
"Difficult to get any rest when it feels like I've been sleeping for a hundred years," I muttered under my breath.
"Believe me, you've earned it," Signe insisted, her expression softening. "I can't believe I'm standing in the presence of someone who actually survived Innangard - and a dwarf at that!" Despite her awe, she seemed genuinely curious about my time there. “It’s not every day you meet someone who traveled to our old home world and return.”
