The Bifrost was not what Maxime expected.
He'd imagined something out of Marvel movies—a rainbow bridge of solid light stretching across space. Instead, it was more like being torn apart at the molecular level and reassembled somewhere else, all while experiencing every color that had ever existed simultaneously.
He materialized on frozen ground and immediately vomited.
[DIMENSIONAL TRAVEL SICKNESS: MODERATE]
[PENALTY: -10% to all stats for 10 minutes]
"Fucking hell," he gasped, wiping his mouth.
Nyx appeared beside him, perfectly composed. Of course she was—Primordials didn't suffer from mortal inconveniences like dimensional nausea.
"First time is always rough." She helped him stand. "Breathe. Let your divine constitution adjust."
Xochiquetzal and Chang'e materialized next, both looking slightly green but upright.
"I hate Bifrost travel," Xochiquetzal muttered. "Give me a simple portal any day."
Chang'e said nothing, just plucked a calming melody on her pipa. The music seemed to ease the nausea somewhat.
Maxime straightened, taking in their surroundings.
They stood in a forest of trees that shouldn't exist. Each trunk was wider than a house, bark shimmering with frost and ancient runes. The sky above was twilight—not dawn or dusk, just eternal half-light. Snow fell upward in some places, defying gravity.
"Welcome to Asgard," Nyx said quietly. "Land of the Aesir. Home of Odin the All-Father."
She pointed through the trees, where distant mountains rose like jagged teeth. Atop the highest peak, barely visible through the snow, was a structure of gold and steel.
"Valhalla. Odin's fortress. And somewhere inside..."
"Freyja's prison," Maxime finished.
[LOCATION: ASGARD - EDGE OF IRONWOOD FOREST]
[DESTINATION: SESSRUMNIR (FREYJA'S HALL) - 47 KILOMETERS NORTHEAST]
[WARNING: HIGH DIVINE ACTIVITY DETECTED. STEALTH RECOMMENDED.]
"Forty-seven kilometers." Maxime checked his stats. The dimensional sickness penalty was wearing off. "How long will that take?"
"On foot? Eight hours through this terrain." Nyx gestured at the twisted forest. "But we're not walking."
She raised her hands, and darkness pooled at their feet. It spread like spilled ink, solidifying into a flat disc large enough for all four of them.
"Shadow travel. Faster and less detectable than flying."
They stepped onto the disc, and it lifted smoothly off the ground. Trees blurred past as they accelerated, weaving between trunks with impossible precision.
Maxime watched the landscape scroll by—impossible forests giving way to frozen lakes, then mountains, then valleys filled with structures that looked half-Viking longhouse, half-Gothic cathedral.
"How many Aesir live here?" he asked.
"Hundreds," Chang'e answered. "Asgard is a realm, not just a city. Gods, einherjar, valkyries, all manner of divine beings."
"And they all serve Odin?"
"Most." Xochiquetzal's hand rested on her sword. "But not all love him. The All-Father rules through strength and knowledge, but also fear and manipulation. There are factions. Resentments. Old grudges."
"Could we exploit that?"
Nyx glanced at him sharply.
"You want to start a civil war in Asgard?"
"I want to survive. If that means finding allies among Odin's enemies..." He shrugged. "Bastet said there are gods who hate the Council. That must include some Aesir."
"Loki," Chang'e said softly.
Everyone turned to stare at her.
She continued, her voice barely audible over the wind.
"Loki hates Odin more than anyone. They're bound by blood-brotherhood, but it's a hateful binding. Loki would betray Odin in a heartbeat if the opportunity arose."
"Loki is also insane," Nyx countered. "Unpredictable. Chaotic. He'd just as likely betray us for amusement."
"Maybe," Maxime said thoughtfully. "But if he hates Odin enough..."
"No." Nyx's voice was firm. "We're here for Freyja and nothing else. No side quests. No risky alliances. Get the fragment and leave."
Maxime wanted to argue, but the shadow disc suddenly lurched.
Nyx's eyes widened.
"DOWN!"
They dropped like a stone just as something massive flew overhead—a bird the size of a small plane, midnight black, with eyes that glowed like embers.
[HUGINN - LEVEL 35]
[ODIN'S RAVEN - SCOUT/SPY]
[STATUS: HOSTILE]
The raven circled, its gaze sweeping the forest below.
"Don't move," Nyx whispered. "Don't even breathe if you can help it."
They stood frozen on the shadow disc, which had gone perfectly still, blending with the darkness beneath the trees.
The raven circled once more, then twice. Its ember eyes seemed to pause on their location.
Then it cawed—a sound like bones breaking—and flew north.
Nobody moved for a full minute.
Finally, Nyx exhaled.
"Huginn. One of Odin's ravens. If it saw us..."
"Did it?" Maxime's heart hammered.
"I don't know. Maybe. Maybe not." She resumed their flight, but faster now. "Either way, we need to move quickly. If Odin knows we're here, he'll send valkyries. Or worse."
"What's worse than valkyries?"
"Thor," Xochiquetzal said grimly. "Level 42. God of Thunder. Odin's enforcer. If he comes for us, we're fucked."
The disc accelerated, trees blurring into green-white streaks.
Twenty minutes later, they emerged from the forest into an open plain. And there, rising from the snow-covered ground like a fairy tale castle, was Sessrumnir.
Freyja's hall.
It was beautiful in a tragic way. Golden walls etched with runes. Towers topped with banners that hung limp in the still air. Gardens that might have been magnificent once, now frozen and dead.
And surrounding it all, a wall. Not stone or wood, but pure shimmering energy—a barrier that pulsed with power.
"Odin's cage," Nyx said quietly. "Three thousand years, she's been trapped inside."
Maxime could feel it even from a distance—the barrier's strength, its complexity. Breaking through would require immense power.
Or the right key.
"Can we get through?"
"Probably." Nyx studied the barrier. "But not quietly. The moment we breach it, every god within a hundred kilometers will know."
"Then we need a distraction."
Chang'e stepped forward.
"I can provide one."
She raised her pipa and began to play.
The music was strange—discordant at first, then building into something almost hypnotic. And with each note, something happened.
The snow began to glow.
Softly at first, then brighter, until the entire plain was illuminated by ghostly blue-white light. And in that light, shapes began to form.
Wolves made of moonlight. Ravens of shadow. Bears of crystallized frost.
An army of spectral beasts, conjured from nothing.
[CHANG'E'S SKILL: MOON'S MENAGERIE]
[SUMMONS: 30 Spectral Beasts (Level 15-20)]
[DURATION: 1 HOUR]
"They'll draw attention," Chang'e said, lowering her pipa. "The Aesir will think we're a raiding party. They'll send forces to intercept. That's your window."
Maxime stared at the spectral army.
"You can create thirty summons and control them all?"
"I'm the Moon Goddess. The moon has many faces." She smiled faintly. "Go. I'll hold their attention as long as I can."
Xochiquetzal drew her swords.
"I'll stay with her. Two of us will make a more convincing threat."
Nyx looked like she wanted to protest, but Maxime grabbed her hand.
"They're buying us time. Let's not waste it."
She nodded reluctantly.
The spectral beasts charged toward Sessrumnir's outer perimeter, howling and roaring. Within seconds, horns sounded from distant towers. Shouts echoed across the plain.
And from the direction of Valhalla, shapes took flight—valkyries on winged horses, weapons drawn.
"Now," Nyx said.
She grabbed Maxime and they melted into shadows, reappearing at the base of the energy barrier.
Up close, it was even more intimidating. Layers upon layers of interwoven magic, each strand pulsing with Odin's power.
"This is going to hurt," Nyx warned. "The barrier is designed to repel divine beings. I can force through it, but it'll drain me."
"How much?"
"Half my essence. Maybe more."
Maxime's stomach dropped.
"That's—"
"Necessary." She placed both hands against the barrier. "For Freyja. For the fragment. For you."
Darkness erupted from her palms, eating into the barrier like acid. The energy fought back, lightning crackling, fire blooming. Nyx screamed but didn't stop.
"Nyx, stop! You're killing yourself!"
"ALMOST... THROUGH..."
The barrier shrieked—a sound like reality tearing—and then shattered.
A hole appeared, barely wide enough for a person.
Nyx collapsed. Maxime caught her, feeling her weight—she'd never felt heavy before, but now she was barely conscious.
[NYX: SEVERELY WEAKENED]
[DIVINE ESSENCE: 43%]
[RECOVERY TIME: 48 HOURS MINIMUM]
"Idiot," Maxime whispered, cradling her. "You beautiful, self-sacrificing idiot."
"Go," she managed. "Get... fragment. I'll... guard the exit."
"I'm not leaving you—"
"GO!"
Through their Link, he felt her desperation. Not for herself—for him. She needed him to succeed, to get stronger, to survive.
He laid her gently in the shadow of the barrier's remains, then ran for the hall.
The gardens were a maze of frozen fountains and dead trees. He navigated by instinct, following some pull he couldn't name—the fragment calling to him, maybe, or just the Eros memories guiding his feet.
The hall's doors were massive—carved oak bound with gold. They should have been locked.
They weren't.
They swung open at his touch, revealing a great hall lit by eternal torches.
And at the far end, sitting on a throne of antlers and silk, was Freyja.
She was breathtaking.
Golden hair that fell like water to her waist. Eyes the color of summer sky. Skin like cream. She wore armor—Valkyrie plate etched with runes—but somehow made it look like an evening gown.
[FREYJA — LEVEL 36]
[GODDESS OF LOVE, BEAUTY, WAR, AND DEATH (NORSE)]
[RELATIONSHIP: FORMER LOVER OF EROS]
She stood slowly, and her expression was unreadable.
"Eros."
"I'm—"
"I know who you are." She descended from the throne, each step measured. "You're the reincarnation. The second chance. The one who carries his fragments but not his memories."
She stopped three meters away, studying him like he was a puzzle.
"You look like him. Sound like him. Even smell like him—roses and lightning and something darker."
"I need the fragment."
She laughed—bitter and beautiful.
"Of course you do. That's why you came. Not to see me. Not to apologize for dying and leaving me in this cage for three millennia. Just... the fragment."
Her hand moved to her belt, where a small crystal hung—pink and pulsing with energy.
"This fragment. The one he gave me before the Council murdered him. The one I've guarded faithfully while the world forgot him."
She lifted it, holding it up to the light.
"Tell me why I should give it to you."
Maxime met her eyes.
"Because if I don't get stronger, the Council will kill me just like they killed him. And then everything he was—everything you loved—will be truly gone."
Freyja's jaw clenched.
"You think I loved him? You arrogant, presumptuous—"
"Yes," Maxime interrupted. "I think you loved him. And I think losing him broke something in you. And I think you've spent three thousand years in this cage because you refused to betray his memory by giving Odin the fragment."
Her hand trembled.
"You don't know anything about—"
"I saw his execution. In a memory. He died apologizing to Nyx." Maxime took a step forward. "But I bet he thought of you too. Thought of everyone he was leaving behind. Everyone who'd suffer for his choices."
Tears welled in Freyja's eyes.
"Shut up."
"He wasn't perfect. He was arrogant and reckless and probably broke your heart a dozen times. But he cared. In his way. And I'm betting he would have wanted you to give that fragment to me. Not because I deserve it, but because it's the only way to make his death mean something."
Freyja's hand closed around the crystal.
For a long, terrible moment, Maxime thought she'd refuse.
Then she threw it.
He caught it reflexively, and the moment his fingers touched the crystal, it began to glow.
"Take it," Freyja said, voice breaking. "Take it and get out. Before I change my mind."
The crystal was dissolving in his hand, flowing into his skin like liquid light.
[FRAGMENT DETECTED: DIVINE RADIANCE (3/8)]
[INTEGRATION BEGINNING...]
Pain. Searing, white-hot pain that made the Passion fragment feel like a gentle warmth.
Maxime screamed.
His body convulsed. Light erupted from his skin, from his eyes, from every pore. He felt himself changing—bones restructuring, muscles rebuilding, divine essence flooding every cell.
[LEVEL 10 → LEVEL 15]
[DIVINTY: 28% → 42%]
[ATTRIBUTES UPDATED:]
Force: 35 → 52
Agility: 34 → 50
Endurance: 40 → 58
Mana: 312 → 475
Charisma: 76 → 94
[NEW SKILL UNLOCKED: DIVINE RADIANCE (RANK A)]
[DESCRIPTION: Manifest pure divine light. Can illuminate, blind, purify, or destroy depending on intent. Passive effect: Your presence naturally draws attention and admiration.]
[TRANSFORMATION COMPLETE]
Maxime collapsed to his knees, gasping.
When he looked up, his vision was different. Sharper. Colors were more vivid. He could see the individual threads of magic in the air, the flow of divine energy through the hall.
And Freyja was staring at him with something like awe.
"You really are him," she whispered. "Not just wearing his skin. You're... becoming him."
Maxime stood on shaky legs.
"I'm sorry. For what he did. For leaving you here."
Freyja smiled sadly.
"He didn't leave me. Odin imprisoned me. There's a difference." She turned away, walking back to her throne. "Now go. Before the valkyries realize you're here."
"Come with me."
She froze.
"What?"
"Come with me," Maxime repeated. "The barrier's broken. You're free. Come with me and—"
"And what?" She spun around, eyes blazing. "Join your little rebellion? Fight against Odin and the Council? Get myself killed for real this time?"
"Yes."
She stared at him.
"You're insane."
"Maybe. But you've been in this cage for three thousand years. Don't you want revenge?"
Something flickered in her expression. Hunger. Rage barely contained.
"Odin will hunt me."
"Let him. We'll fight him together."
"He's level 47. You're level 15."
"Then I'll get stronger. And you'll help me."
Freyja laughed—a wild, slightly unhinged sound.
"You really are him. Same reckless confidence. Same stupid bravery."
She picked up a sword leaning against her throne—a blade that shimmered with rainbow light.
"Fine. I'm coming. But when Odin kills us both, I'm blaming you."
Maxime grinned.
"Fair enough."
They ran.
Out of the hall, through the gardens, toward the shattered barrier where Nyx waited.
Behind them, horns sounded. Valkyries shouted. And somewhere in the distance, thunder rumbled.
Thor was coming.