The saying ‘No plan survived the enemy’ was a universal constant for a reason. It survived translation, culture, and, unfortunately, Pantheon.

The ward disrupter worked well, allowing me to sneak in without problems while diverting runic formation and energies. It left a small opening in the home’s defense for me to go when I was ready. The blend of technology and magic I had at my disposal, coming from another Universe, gave me an advantage. That advantage was even more remarkable when you considered that I was using futuristic technology.

Ag met me, showering my face with sloppy kisses before I could get her to take the moment seriously enough to stop. Thankfully, she was conscious enough of the surroundings not to make any noise when she greeted me.

Her tail still wagging, she chuffed in pleasure as she entered [Shadow], tugging on our connection to get me to follow. I didn’t have her intuitive ability to move through [Shadow] that she had, but it was part of my skills now, so I was able to follow. That part of the plan worked well enough, and we arrived in Mothi’s room quickly and without any signs of detection.

Things began to spiral out of control at that point.

We weren’t spotted or captured, but the seemingly peaceful night was broken by an oppressive aura almost the instant we arrived. One powerful enough that Mothi noticed, and his plan to rest for the night was derailed.

It wasn’t long after that a knock at his bedroom door grabbed his attention. “Lady Sif has asked that you attend her at the hearth room. Lord Loki has arrived with news of Jotunns’ activity,” Thialfi, the male servant, announced once Mothi had answered his knock.

The Azi-Fey had scouted out the entire home, so I knew where the hearth room was and what it was. I realized my actions might be idiotic even as I prodded Ag to head back to the ward opening while I remained in [Shadow] and moved to follow Mothi.

The hearth room would have been the center of any home. A giant fireplace blazing with burning logs gave ambiance and heat to a room that had been furnished as a place of study and contemplation. A place dug out of the earth to allow Sif, an Earth Goddess, a place to rest.

I followed Mothi in [Shadow], escaping into the dancing fire almost as soon as we entered the room. The fire blazed brightly, and as it flickered and moved, it created shadows I could travel through. I extended my awareness, impervious to the flames or heat, the byproduct of the legacy gifted to me through my blood and my connection to Beleros to hide.

It was dangerous extending my sight and hearing so I could spy on the coming conversation, but if Thrym or Krampus had betrayed me, I wanted to know. Utgard-Loki wasn’t the only Jotunn I could trap with [Sleep] with Elfshot.

Sif was waiting patiently. Neither she nor Loki noticed as I took up residence in the hearth’s fire, furiously glaring at the other. I hadn’t encountered Sif in my Universe, and my first response upon seeing her was one of greed.

Her hair was spun gold. Not an embellishment some might make in describing the sight, not the liberty of words that men had used to describe blond hair. No, Sif’s hair was actually spun gold, the metal locks lustrous and full of vitality.

Her eyes were the deepest black, faceted opals that may have been plucked from the depths of Urt to give her light and vision. Her skin was a mixture of earth tones, a spectrum of colors that gave definition and symmetry to a body that might as well have been sculpted from clay.

There was a curvaceousness to her, a lustiness that seemed to imply carnal delights- sexuality rooted in fertility and animalistic passions. She rivaled Aphrodite for beauty, but where one was cold perfection, Sif was warm acceptance.

“Where is Thor?” Loki demanded once Mothi had arrived.

His anger was palpable, his [Aura] oppressive. With each word of his question, the [Aura] expanded and deepened. He had not become so lost in his anger that he would attack Sif or Thor’s children. Nor was he willing to release his [Domain] to search the house for Thor, but it was a close thing.

So close that Sif was quick to react. Where Loki’s [Aura] was a willful chaotic maelstrom, Sif’s was solid, inevitable. Hers was the unyielding patience of earth, slow to anger but once angered catastrophic to any in her path.

“You come close to crossing a line that should not be crossed, Loki. You come into my home by making demands of us, and now you would try to force an answer to a question that we would have answered without coercion.

“Thor isn’t here. He is on a mission for Odin All-father. If that answer isn’t good enough for you, then I suggest you take it up with the All-father,” Sif hissed, her fury now a match for Loki’s.

Mothi, Trud, Magni, and Urll watched what was unfolding without speaking, but I noticed small tells, small actions that each of them was making. They would back up Sif if a battle broke out, and not even the trickster God could contend against that united front.

“Thor was seen attacking Utgard and capturing Utgard-Loki days ago. My son has not been seen since his capture, and I would ask my brother to explain his actions,” Loki replied, focused and intractable in his fury. He contained his anger. I doubted he would or could if Thor had been present. He would not have been diverted from his rage.

He would find his son.

His words were enough for me to understand the situation. Thrym or Krampus had poked a sprocket into the wheel of my plan. I had placed Utgard-Loki back in [Sleep] as a guarantee, a precaution that they used to their advantage. I doubt they had acted themselves. They probably had a Jotunn that had witnessed my kidnapping of Utgard-Loki leak the details of that kidnapping. Someone had informed Loki and informed him of his son’s missing status.

That Loki approached Thor’s home today, the day that I had planned to capture Mothi, the day only Thrym and Krampus knew I was planning to act, spoke to what had occurred. They had Loki informed for a purpose. Either to see me captured and any plans I might have derailed or to test my reactions when events forced me to adapt and overcome new obstacles.

I didn’t consider Loki an obstacle, a hiccup to get around. He was a disaster waiting to happen. It didn’t matter what reason Thrym or Krampus had for poking the hornet’s nest and angering him. I couldn’t afford to have his interest in me this early in my scheming.

“Why would father kidnap Utgard-Loki,” Urll whispered to his brother. He needn’t have bothered. Loki and Sif easily heard him. Still, both refused to turn at his words, each glaring daggers at the other.

“That is a good question,” Sif said. “Why would Thor want or need to kidnap your son?”

“Perhaps it is as you claimed,” Loki replied after seconds turned into minutes without either blinking. Eventually, Loki sighed, turning to look at the fire burning merrily in the hearth, his gaze seeming to suggest defeat.

“I will visit Odin and find out if he is behind Thor’s actions.”

His capitulation was too easy. It was an obvious feint. It was so obvious I thought it might not be an act or misdirection.

I had only met the Loki of my Universe a handful of times, but his personality was well-known. He was a trickster God, adept at acting and magic. He could use [Illusion], and because [Illusion] was my [Domain], I saw the trickster revealed.

There was no sadness in the countenance hiding behind the [Illusion]. Loki’s eyes still blazed with fury, and his nostrils still flared with contempt as he fought to maintain control. The Loki behind the [Illusion] was more fiend than God. He had embraced his Jotunn heritage. His horns, blue skin, and cloven feet gave him the appearance of a demon from Hel.

If I hadn’t pierced the [Illusion] he had woven, I might have missed the almost dismissive glance he gave the fire I was hidden in. But I didn’t, and I reacted just the slightest millisecond before he did.

“You should inform your servants that you have a vermin infestation,” Loki said as he stretched out his hand towards the fire I had vacated to try and trap whatever it was he had sensed.

I was not foolish enough to tempt fate twice and traveled through [Shadow] to leave the room and the building. The device I’d planted to divert the ward was still working perfectly, and I signaled Ag and the Azi-Fey to retreat.

It would be too dangerous to leave the Azi-Fey inside to spy now that they had been alerted. I would have to devise another plan to trap Mothi, one that I would keep secret from Krampus and Thrym.

I hadn’t yet decided if I would confront them about my suspicions. They were sure to deny any wrongdoing or betrayal. But one thing was certain; if their actions got one of my people captured or killed, I would see both dosed with enough Elfshot to trap them in [Sleep] for a thousand years.