Delivering

Erik and Mia felt an unsettling sensation as they passed through the portal. It was not like what they had experienced before, not like the Bifrost. This felt cold, they also felt as if their bodies were being left behind and their soul was the one flew away.

When the light faded they found themselves standing before what looked like the front gate of Asgard.

The towering structures gleamed faintly in the distance. There was an odd and distant quality to everything as if they were not fully there.

The sky above Asgard looked gloomy and clody as always. Between them and the gate was a swirling mist, an invisible barrier that made it clear they couldn't just walk in.

Their guide, the Dreadshade Coven member who had accompanied them, stood beside them with cold and unreadable expression. He gestured toward the gate but made no move to approach it himself.

"You cannot enter Asgard," he said flatly. "You're not truly here. It's only your souls that have crossed over. Your bodies remain in the stronghold."

Erik and Mia exchanged a glance, feeling the weight of his words.

Their souls were here, but their bodies... they had been really left behind just like what they had thought.

But something else caught Erik's attention. He looked down at his hand where the bottle of swirling black liquid was still clutched tightly. It was real, solid. Unlike the rest of him the cure had made the journey here.

"You can hand over the cure, though," the Coven member continued. "That is all that is required."

Erik's jaw tightened. He glanced at Mia, who was also looking at him. They both realized the truth in that moment. The Coven wasn't taking any chances with them.

"They really don't trust us," Mia muttered.

"Yeah. They're making sure we can't do anything else while we're here," Erik said.

He took a step forward while holding the bottle of black liquid out in front of him. His eyes flickered to the massive statues guarding the entrance to Asgard.

"Let's just get this over with," he muttered under his breath to Mia. Then he asked to the Coven member, "Alright, how do we hand it over?"

The Coven member raised his hand, and a faint shimmer appeared in front of Erik—a portal, small and precise, hovering in the air between him and the gate.

"This will deliver the cure directly to them," the guide said. His voice was flat.

Erik feel his heart pounding, feeling the weight of the bottle in his hand. He knew that this was it, this cure will safe Liam. He glanced at Mia who also seem to be waiting in tense silence for him to deliver the cure.

Erik carefully placed the bottle into the shimmering portal. As soon as it left his hand the portal flickered and then sealed shut, the cure vanishing from sight.

The air around them grew still for a moment, as if the entire realm was holding its breath.

"Your task is done. You will return shortly," The Coven member suddenly said.

Hearing the Coven member's dismissive words, Erik and Mia turned their gazes on him, glaring with feeling full of annoyance.

Their frustration simmered just beneath the surface and their eyes locked onto him with unforgiving anger. The once confident guide felt a chill run down his spine, the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end.

For the first time a flicker of fear crept into the Coven member's eyes when they look at him after he heard what they have done, what they are capable of.

He gulped involuntarily, his posture stiffening under their piercing stares. But he said nothing. His lips pressed into a thin line as he tried to maintain his composure. He can't appear weak in front of them.

Erik sighed. "Alright, damnit," he muttered under his breath. "We got it."

He stepped back, returning to stand beside the Coven member. Mia who was standing beside him, crossed her arms with a look of pure annoyance on her face. Her jaw was clenched, and she gave the Coven member a withering glance oncce again, but she too, said nothing.

Without further ceremony, the same cold, unsettling sensation from before began to take hold of them.

The runes beneath them hummed to live again. Erik and Mia felt the strange pull again.

As the environtment around them flickered, the icy coldness seeped into their bones once more. For a brief and disorienting moment it felt as if they were floating in darkness. Then with a sudden jolt they were back.

Their senses returned sharply, the familiar weight of their bodies grounding them once more. Erik and Mia blinked, feeling his feet planted firmly on the stone platform of the stronghold.

Mia let out a quiet breath, subtly rolling her shoulders as if shaking off the lingering sensation of the soul-journey.

They were standing in the same chamber they had left moments ago. The Dreadshade Coven member stood beside them, still silent, his expression stiff. But Erik and Mia barely gave him a second glance. Their minds were already racing ahead, thinking of Liam, with that now in the hand of Asgard, he will be alright. Hopefully.

"You're sure the cure was delivered to Asgard, right?" Erik asked to the Coven member. His voice low and cold, laced with an unmistakable threat. The killing intent in his aura pressing down like a heavy weight on the Coven member shoulder.

The Coven member visibly flinched, his throat tightening under Erik's intense gaze.

"O-Of course," he stammered, the words stumbling out as he tried to maintain his composure. But the tremble in his voice betrayed him.

Erik's eyes narrowed. His silence lingered, thick with menace.

"You better be," Mia added with sharp tone and the same cold eyes as she fixed the man with her own penetrating stare.

The Coven member could only nod silently, his mouth dry. His body trembled slightly and beads of cold sweat began to form on his brow. He couldn't explain why but their presence felt different now, more powerful, more oppressive, as if their aura had suddenly darkened, become more dangerous.

Without another word, Erik and Mia turned and strode out of the chamber, leaving the Coven member standing there in silence.

He watched them leave, his heart pounding in his chest. A cold sweat dripped down his neck as he tried to steady his breathing.

Why had their presence felt so overwhelming? He couldn't explain it, but one thing was certain, he didn't want to face them again.

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