Horrible Terrible Things

Chapter One

It wasn't pleasant, standing there in the full sun, salty air on my skin, footsteps behind me echoed off of the cobblestone path which winded toward the palace - that small island off the shore of New Asgard. Unique, breathtaking, beautiful. Otherworldly. Those were the words which described the palace sitting upon that small island; gold iridescent spires shooting into the sky, it's surface reflecting the clear blue sky and ocean beyond.

'Don't be so overwhelmed.' a deep voice said behind me making me swallow anxiously.

Beside me, Thor stopped to admire the palace in all its glory. I peered up at him, his blue eyes narrowed and arms crossed over his chest. Though there was a small smile on his face, he was resigned, in another place. No doubt remembering his original home - my stomach flipped at the thought. All of his stories he had shared with me these past few weeks, his adventures and memories - all of it seemed fictional, like stories to tell a child before they went to sleep.

In my mind that was true, in his mind he was the hero, he was the God the stories were told about. It still didin't settle - the truth, the abruptness of how quickly the world around me had changed and how fast I had had to become accustomed to it.

Thor turned back to me with a small shake of his head, a hand clasped my shoulder firmly,
'I'm truly happy to have you here. I'm hoping you find yourself a home here, Evageline, a place to grow your own memories.'

I stared back at him and only nodded once, still not sure what words were right. My stomach was anxious but my head pounded with angry words, my heart however felt like it had sunken into the black depths of my body - like I was a walking ghost.

Thor's eyes narrowed slightly and I swore I saw tears well and because I didn't want him crying on my first day and because I didn't want to make a bad impression on the people of New Asgard I spoke quickly, offering him something,
'I hope I can too.' And it's all I could offer. I willed myself to speak some more but my mouth wouldn't open.

Thor dropped his hand and smiled broadly before stalking off and I followed him across the bridge, to where the palace only grew larger and my hands nervously smoothed down the skirt on my sundress.

The gates to the palace opened and Thor still continued onward. The grounds were filled with lush gardens and reflection pools. Families picnicked, small groups of tourists clicked their cameras and young couples strolled together on the grounds. The sight settled my stomach slightly, at seeing this place filled with life, where people - humans - were welcome to come and go.

People stared as we passed, at Thor not me, though I could sense their curiosity of who I might be. The stares ranged from adoration to respect and some even fear. Perhaps seeing me following the God of Thunder into his palace they might assume we were meeting to discuss the fate of the world, or some other important business.

There was a bittersweet ambience surrounding the fate of our world, regaining those we lost - though at the same time we waited, holding our breath for the next attack, the next big bad. Wasn't it in our lore, our myths and fairytales? Though the 'good guys' had won, they had dissipated like the Gods of old. Who would save us now?

The path continued through another gateway - this one closed to the public, guards dressed in traditional Asgardian armour flanked the entrance. Inside the hall stretched forward, the floors polished marble, columns flocked either side of the hall holding up the ceiling which only wove into intricate moving pictures on the ceiling of the familiar stories Thor had told me of recently. More guards stood in position, still as statues as we passed through wordlessly, only our footsteps echoed in the vast space.

To the left and right two long hallways stretched on to show closed doors, living quarters and bedrooms. Thor skipped down several stairs and the room opened, no walls or windows beyond us. Only a single throne before a group of columns and beyond, the sea - cerulean and glittering with the shine of the sun on its surface.