Ed POV
I was in the cafeteria with Lorelei. I'd just finished fixing her some food, she needed it, and yeah, her collar was still on. Last thing I needed was her trying to mind-control someone on the walk here. Especially Ted. I could already picture him flirting, getting charmed, shooting panda, and then getting absolutely folded for it.
I kept it simple: macaroni, pork chops, broccoli. Nothing fancy. I set the plate in front of her and unclipped the restraints from her wrists along with the collar.
The second the collar clicked free, she tried it.
"Take me to my sister. Now."Her voice had that command layered into it, the one that usually melts men's brains.
"Sorry, sweetheart. That mind-control thing doesn't work on me," I said, sitting down across from her.
Her shock was almost funny, wide eyes, stiff posture. Of course she was surprised. Her power always works on men. I'm probably the first guy besides Odin who just… shrugs it off.
"Alright," I said, leaning back a little. "I'm gonna give you the same rules I gave your sister when I took her under my protection. Four rules. Easy to follow. And she'll help make sure you don't break them."
I held up a finger.
"Rule one: don't call anyone 'mortals.' Just use their names."
"Rule two: don't attack anyone on the island or in the base."
"Rule three: don't try to mind-control anyone on the island or in the base."
"Rule four: there are restricted areas in the base. Your sister knows them, she'll tell you what's off limits. Don't go there."
I lowered my hand and met her eyes.
"Follow those rules, and you're under my protection. Break them… and I might have to either kill you myself or send you back to Odin. Whichever comes first."
She looked a little scared at the last part, which was fair.
"Don't worry," I said, softening my tone just a bit. "I'm not gonna kill you or send you back to Odin as long as you follow those four simple rules. I mean, your sister managed it, and she's arguably worse than you."
"Don't say that," Lorelei snapped. "You should be honored to even be in her presence."
"Wow, you still love your sister that much," I said. "Even though she's the whole reason you ended up in that prison? I mean, she technically abandoned you to escape."
"I wanted her to run," Lorelei said immediately. "The All-Father was going to kill us both. Better for at least one of us to survive. I knew he wouldn't kill me, he wanted us to die together. I trusted she'd come back for me… hopefully with an army. I just never expected her to send an mortal."
"I'm a demigod," I corrected lightly. "And she really didn't have another option. Honestly, I was your best chance of getting out of that cell."
She looked like she was about to argue, but then Amora finally arrived. I'd sent her a message through magic, since all the AIs were getting transferred into new bodies, we didn't have digital communication right now.
The moment Amora spotted her sister, she rushed across the cafeteria and wrapped her arms around Lorelei from behind. Lorelei didn't even hear her coming. She jolted, spun, and then hugged her sister back tightly.
After a long moment, they pulled apart and Amora sat beside her.
"Thank you, Ed," Amora said. "I know there was technically no deal, but every bit of magic knowledge I have is yours now. I'll write everything I know and give the books to you as soon as possible."
"I appreciate that," I said. "But take your time. Just focus on attack and defensive spells for now. I'm gonna have to fight a dark sorcerer soon."
Lorelei blinked in confusion. "Sister… are you well? Why are you talking to this demigod like he's your friend?"
I shrugged. "Technically I'd say we're acquaintances. Honestly, the only friend Amora has on this island is Ruby."
"Who?" Lorelei asked.
"She'll explain everything," I said, standing up. "I've got work to do. I'll let you two catch up."
I started walking away, but turned back for one more thing.
"Oh, and make sure she understands the rules perfectly. I don't want to throw her in a cell… or send her back to Odin."
"I will," Amora promised.
"Good," I said, my voice flat and serious. "Because if she does something unforgivable, then I will kill her."
Lorelei swallowed, fear flickering across her face.
"Whatever she does," Amora said quietly, "I will take full responsibility. If she takes someone's life, you may take mine. But I promise you, she will not cause trouble on this island."
"Really hope you're right," I said. "I'd rather not kill Ruby's friend."
And with that, I walked out of the cafeteria.
Amora POV
I keep forgetting that part of him. I've only seen it once before, the moment when the cheerful, teasing Ed drops away and that cold, absolute seriousness comes out. Seeing it again honestly surprised me. And he meant every word.If Lorelei ever took the life of one of his friends, he wouldn't hesitate to kill her… or me.
"Sister, who is that demigod?" Lorelei asked.
I looked at her. "His name is Edward, everyone calls him Ed. And he is quite possibly the strongest person on Midgard."
He keeps insisting he's the second strongest because he thinks he can't beat this 'Superman.' I doubt that. I've only heard stories of Superman's strength, but Ed… Ed has multiple powers, abilities I never seen before, and now he knows magic. I honestly don't think Superman could defeat him.
"My power didn't work on him at all?" Lorelei asked.
"I expected it not to," I said. "He's immune to mind control in all forms, magical or otherwise."
"Then how are we supposed to use him?" she asked.
"We're not going to use him," I said firmly. "We're going to work for him."
"What? Sister, you can't be serious! Us working for a mere demigod? I thought you still wanted revenge on Asgard!"
"Lorelei," I said gently, "I want you to forget about Asgard. Midgard will be our new home, and we're going to help make it better."
"What!? And what about the throne? And Thor? You always wanted those!"
"I did want those things," I admitted. "But not anymore. My eyes have been opened to the truth. And… I never loved Thor."
"I… don't understand," she said, completely confused.
Of course she was. Her whole life, I told her I wanted a crown, that I was in love with Thor, that power and royalty were everything. And now suddenly I don't want any of it.
"I know," I said softly. "And I'm sorry for everything I put you through. Truly. There's someone I want you to meet, someone who helped me see things clearly. But first, you need to eat. Rest. We'll talk more after."
"But?"
"Eat, Lorelei." I said in a more demanding tone.
She shut up immediately and started eating. The look on her face changed quick, she was really enjoying it. And since Ice Bear wasn't in the kitchen, that meant Ed made her food himself. Lucky her. Everyone knows his cooking is probably the best on the whole island.
Firecracker POV
I was sitting on the couch eating some Chinese food while watching a telenovela. The whole thing was in Spanish, of course, but thanks to the books Ed gave me, I can actually understand it now.It's literally the only thing I can watch, there's only two channels in here: the news, and whatever language-learning show Ed decides is on rotation this week.Apparently it's Spanish week.Next week is Chinese.
I hated it at first, learning new languages instead of speaking the best language in the world, English. But I wanted at least some freedom out of this stupid apartment, so I begrudgingly read the books. And honestly… they didn't just teach me the language. They taught me history too.
And yeah… it surprised me.
My world and this world ain't that different. Mexicans and other immigrants really did build a huge chunk of this country with almost no pay. It was kinda insane how much they did for America. And I used to think Mexicans were lazy.
Turns out they built a lot of things with practically nothing, brought culture, food, traditions, all while getting treated like dirt. Same with Africans. They built so many things white people took credit for. I knew that in my old world, but I always thought it was exaggerated or just fake news.
Then I got bored one day and actually researched it online, checked multiple sources… and it was all true.
Ed was right.My racist mindset was completely stupid and something that was taught to me. I could blame my parents, they raised me that way, but at the end of the day, I'm the one who held onto it.
I only have myself to blame.
I looked down at my empty cup, thinking back on all the times I hurt people just because they had a different skin color or spoke a different language. I used to think I was a hero in my old world. Now I see I was nothing but a joke… a stupid, racist joke.
Ed teleported right in front of me, and I jumped a little. Of course I did.
"Hey, loca, ¿me extrañas?"( Hey, crazy girl, do you miss me?) he said in Spanish.He always does that, speaks a different language every time he shows up, just to test me.
Claro, puedes decir eso, sabes que puedes, toca la puerta," ( Sure, you can say that, you know you can, knock on the door) I said.
"Bueno, lo siento… a menos que pagues por este apartamento, voy a teletransportarme cuando quiera. Y tu español está mejorando mucho."( Well, I'm sorry… unless you pay for this apartment, I'm going to teleport whenever I want. And your Spanish is improving a lot) Then he switched to English. "Meaning you kept up with the books I gave you."
That threw me off. He doesn't usually speak English when he's here.It's always another language. Always another test.
"Well, since you basically put me on child-lock on the internet and gave me two channels every week, reading the books was the only entertainment option I had. And… I do wanna be free again," I said.
"You'll get your freedom sooner rather than later," Ed said. "The Black Ops team is almost done. We just need two more members and the team will be complete. And I already have a mission lined up for all of you."
I couldn't help getting a little excited. Only two more members.Sure, the only time I'll be outside this apartment is for missions… but that's better than nothing.
"That's great," I said.
"I know," he replied, "but that's not why I came here."He snapped his fingers, and a black portal opened right in front of us. Out stepped a woman, glasses, blonde hair, lab coat, blue eyes. Looked like she walked straight out of a psychology textbook.
"This is Harleen Quinzel," Ed said. "She's a therapist. She'll be having weekly sessions with you to help you understand why you like kids… and hopefully help you stop. Maybe even get you into a healthy relationship with an adult."
I looked away from both of them, ashamed.Yeah… that was another part of my past I hated. I wish I could erase the fact that I ever slept with that kid. It's one of my biggest regrets.
Harleen studied me for a moment. "She regrets that action. That's a good sign."
"Good to hear," Ed said. "I've got business to take care of. I'll check up in an hour."Then, he teleported away.
Harleen sat down next to me like this was the most normal thing in the world.
"Um… do you want some Chinese?" I asked, giving her an awkward smile.