The Wall of Fire

Burnt and dried grass loudly crunched under their feet as they ran and stumbled away from the raging inferno right behind them that just kept getting larger by the second. Tyrkir gasped and accidentally inhaled ash, making him hack and cough violently as he ran. As for Hela, she quickly tore her horror-filled gaze away from the wall of flames and into Ornulf's back. His hold on her wrist was so tight Hela hysterically noted he might actually crush her vambrace as he dragged her and Tyrkir away from the looming threat, viciously swearing the whole time.

"Not even one fucking second into Vanaheim and everything's already trying to kill us!" He protested loudly.

Tyrkir couldn't even reply with his usual gripe back, he was too busy hacking up his lungs. Hela contemplated jumping up on Dagny and pulling Tyrkir and Ornulf up with her, but the flames were simply too fast. Stopping would only cost them greatly.

Cries of horror suddenly resounded around them just as a terrible roar echoed in the battlefield. Hela saw the other trainees scream and scatter moments before she felt the searing heat on their backs suddenly grow. Her eyes widened in alarm, "Get down!"

She tackled them both and Dagny automatically registered the command and got down seconds before a huge fireball crashed on the ground a few feet in front of them, shaking the ground from the impact and instantly setting the surrounding grass on fire. Hela quickly brushed away the ash near her eyes before hauling them both up and picked up speed again, pulling ahead of the panting Ornulf and making use of her godly strength and stamina to lead her friends and the other newly arrived soldiers towards the group of Einjerhar waiting at the other side of the field.

"–of all the places to land, Gatekeeper!" Ornulf went on, his frantic gaze now replaced by extreme annoyance. Hela couldn't even blame him.

What the Hel, Heimdall?!

The sounds of hundreds of wings flapping made Hela look back just in time to witness the Valkyries flying out of the Bifrost in droves, the rainbow bridge closing as soon as the last Valkyrie made it to the other side.

Good. That would at least prevent the other Aesir from being burnt to a crisp.

At Brunnhilde's command, the Valkyries charged and began trying to cross over the flames and into the other side. Unfortunately, another huge fireball forced them to scatter, the riders controlling their horses expertly to evade the flames, before making another attempt to cross the other side.

"They're not going to make it!" Tyrkir shouted hoarsely, and he was right. The horses tried their best, but the flames just grew higher and higher, until it eventually licked at the heels of one horse, making it rear and scream in pain and its rider to almost fall off before catching herself and steering it clear of the blaze. The rest were then ultimately forced to fall back.

"Well, there goes our chances." Ornulf panted and Hela resisted the urge to cuff him upside the head.

A scrawny trainee running several meters to their right suddenly stumbled and fell with a cry, and Hela instantly whistled for Dagny. Her faithful and smart warhorse immediately reared up and bounded ahead, snatching up the edge of the boy's armor by its teeth and dragging him away just as a flaming tree collapsed near the spot they just vacated.

"Oh fantastic! You know, it would be terribly nice if Dagny carried us instead." Ornulf was still going as he stumbled after her, "who cares about scrawny Svend anyway–"

"HELA!" Tyrkir screamed and she immediately risked a glance back and saw another fireball headed right for them. Seeing no way to avoid it, Hela quickly let go of their arms, skidded to a stop, and summoned her seidr with a snarl. A huge shimmering shield immediately formed into existence a few seconds before the fireball audibly slammed into it. Tyrkir and Ornulf both leapt back in shock as it landed and broke down into a shower of embers, sparks, and ash right in front of their eyes.

Ornulf's running tirade died down with an awed squeak.

"Come on!" She growled and they jolted to action, running ahead of her towards safety as she guarded their backs. Their fellow trainees desperately waved them forward as they came nearer the encampment where she could finally see the long defense line the Aesir formed, with infantry soldiers at the forefront, cannons and archers in the rear, and med tents in the distance. As they passed the line, Hela immediately felt her skin tingle as the temperature suddenly became a lot cooler.

"It stopped!" Tyrkir gasped out suddenly, and Hela looked back to see that the tall and raging flames had stopped and appeared to be licking invisible edges a few meters away from the defense line. She then recalled the tingle on her skin earlier; very reminiscent of an aura she knows all too well and watched as the air in front of her flickered minutely, until there suddenly stood gigantic golden shields stretching upwards the sky and towards the very edges of the clearing, covering and protecting the entire Aesir army this side of Vanaheim. "Father's work." She informed them.

"A shield that large… the King is incredibly powerful." Tyrkir breathed in awe.

"Hey! What are you two gawking around there for?! Find your commanding officer and receive your orders!" An officer snarled at them before glancing at Hela. "Princess, the General's looking for you. He's over there by the infantry division." He pointed at the line of soldiers guarding the edges of the shield.

"Understood," Hela nodded before glancing at the two, "Be careful." She told them firmly.

"You as well, Your Highness." They nodded in acknowledgment, mindful of the officer's presence, before going their separate ways, the two boys heading further in to search for Commander Herryk, and Hela turning back where they came from, keen eyes scanning the troops for the massive figure of General Tyr.

She marched steadily along the formation, wary of the wall of flames still skittering the edges of Odin's golden shields and at the same time, assessing the conditions of the men; both the veterans and the newly arrived soldiers. It appears most of them are just singed; the more critically wounded are probably already being treated in the tents.

As she walked on, she suddenly saw the clouds part in the southern side away from the flames before the Bifrost once again touched down on the ground, carrying with it the Einherjar that weren't able to land in the chaos earlier. She noted the way it landed outside of the shields, which meant either Heimdall cannot enter through it, or the risk of penetrating it will cause the shields to collapse. Likely the latter.

At last, she caught sight of the familiar full body armor and the golden ornamental right hand standing in the middle of his officers. Unlike their first meeting with his well-maintained armor, it was now covered with soot and has multiple grazes and scratches, likely from near misses during battle. That war meeting seemed like ages ago now…

She approached carefully and saluted just as the General finished relaying instructions to his lieutenants. "General Tyr, sir. You called me?"

He turned and regarded her for a moment, "I did." Just then, another fireball appeared through the flames and crashed against the shield, shaking the ground and throwing many of the soldiers off balance. Hela quickly planted her feet solidly, bent her knees, and rode the tremors out. At the corner of her eye, she distinctly saw the General do the same.

When the shaking finally subsided, he straightened, gaze now intent on the golden shields surrounding them. "The King made the barrier the moment the flames appeared." He informed her evenly.

She knew, but the consequences of that… Hela frowned, remembering Heimdall's words. "He's injured though, is he not? A shield this size will sap his strength. Can he maintain it?"

At those words, the full weight of the General's gaze suddenly turned to her, and she went rigid. He was quiet for a moment as he searched her face before nodding to himself. "He summons you, Princess. He's in the command tent." He said simply before looking behind her. "You as well, Brunnhilde."

Hela tried not to jump as the Valkyrie seemingly materialized out of nowhere, steps silent and mild soot and ash dusting her armor. She nodded, "Understood."

"I will be along shortly." He said before turning and barking orders without a glance back at them. Brunnhilde did the same and Hela followed, matching her steps to the Valkyrie's confident ones as she expertly navigated the battlefield the only way a veteran knows how, heading straight for the command tent in the middle of the encampment.

Brunnhilde swept back the curtains as she strode into the tent before saluting with her fist over her heart and bowing, "My King."

Hela approached more sedately, saluting as well before gazing up at a face she hasn't seen in two years. "Father…"

Odin looked like he had seen better days. His golden armor was now blackened and covered in soot, likely because of Muspelheim and Alfheim's initial combined attack of fire and light. His skin and hair were caked with dried blood and terrible burns covered his entire left side, which she noted was healing slower than usual. His face looked like it was permanently set into a frown as he concentrated. Nevertheless, his hands remained firm and steady on Gungnir with its tip pointed up. From the spear, waves and waves of golden seidr were being produced to form the gigantic shields outside.

To no one's surprise, even when covered with burns, soot, and blood, Odin still managed to look powerful and dangerous.

"Report." He barked, not even sparing her a look of acknowledgment. Typical, but understandable in this situation.

Brunnhilde stepped forward and spoke first, her tone curt and sharp. "Eldjötnar2, Your Majesty. About eleven Fire Giants are repeatedly breathing fire to make that wall bigger while a battalion of Fire Demons and Vanir are organizing their forces behind them. They seem to be protecting the Vanir's palace and Freyr within. The Light Elves are nowhere to be seen though." She shrugged, "Which is understandable. If they are smart, they wouldn't put all their men in one place."

Hela stared as she finished her report. She managed to discern all of that with the short advance they did while dodging fireballs?

On the other hand, Odin's frown went deeper, if that was even possible. "I'll send Huginn and Muninn to scout for them. Anything else?"

Hela took a deep breath and stepped forward, "All trainees and Valkyries have made it past the defense line and in your shields. Only a few burns were sustained. Everyone is ready to march as soon as you give the word."

At last, he glanced at her, and just like with Frigga, Hela glimpsed weariness and pain in his eyes that only those close to him can truly see. "No longer trainees, my daughter, but Einherjar." He spoke steadily even as beads of sweat formed on his forehead at the strain of the shields. And was it Hela's imagination, or was there a hint of pride in his voice?

There should be an Odin dictionary somewhere; his moods and double entendre were getting harder to read. "Father, you are hurt. Maintaining the shields will only sap your strength further." Hela reminded him gently.

"Which is why we need to form a plan. And quickly." He said, gripping Gungnir tighter. Just then, the tent flap opened and General Tyr and Commander Herryk stepped inside. To her mild amusement, the Commander did a double take when he saw Hela before releasing a long-suffering sigh. It also didn't escape her notice how much he eyed the pulses of seidr Gungnir was releasing as they all gathered around the table with a map depicting Vanaheim and its capital city. For someone like Herryk, Hela wouldn't be surprised if it was a look of distaste.

General Tyr stepped forward and pointed at a space on the map in the western side of the palace, and a few ways away on the right of the stone figures she recognizes as their own troops. "The Eldjötnar are here, guarding the palace and Freyr. Now, previous reports have stated that their ability to manipulate cosmic energy to breathe fire is not sustainable. Therefore, they will tire out eventually, though with your current state, my King, they are more likely to last."

Hela waited for Odin to take offense on that blatant doubt of the King of Asgard's abilities, but there was no anger forthcoming.

Huh, curious. They must be closer than she thought. 

She was beginning to question her presence in this meeting though. After all, she hadn't been summoned to any war meetings prior to their leaving for Vanaheim, so why start now?

To her surprise, Odin seemed to sense her thoughts. "Indeed Tyr. However, with my daughter's skills, I believe it will extend the length of time I can sustain the shields; enough to last until the Eldjötnar exhaust themselves."

"By a significant amount, if her abilities are as powerful as the Queen's." The General agreed.

With a plan like that, her presence makes sense. She is stronger now; sustaining the shields will be a piece of cake.

"Then the King and the Princess combine their skills, make stronger shields, wait for the Fire Giants to tire, and that's when we attack?" Herryk summarized, crossing his arms. "With that amount of time, who's to say we aren't giving those bastarður 1," He practically spat, "and the Light Elves more time to think up plans and strengthen their defenses? Perhaps even summon more reinforcements?" Herryk shook his head, "No, no, we need to act now."

"Much as I hate to admit it, the Commander is right." Brunnhilde said, ignoring Herryk's offended glare. "If we wait them out, and they indeed called for reinforcements, both the King and the Princess would be too drained to fight. We can defeat them, but the losses will be great. No, waiting them out will only give them an advantage." She tapped her chin thoughtfully, "However, as I remember it, the rumors also say she is gifted with eldr3. A fire seidkona, if there ever was one. How about we utilize her skills to instead, part the wall of flames?"

They all stared at Brunnhilde in surprise, and she gazed back at them impassively. "If she can part the flames long enough, I can mobilize the Valkyries to enter in the gap she creates and kill the Eldjötnar producing them. Our horses are faster than yours, so if she does falter, we will likely be on the other side by then." She shrugged, "We kill them, the wall comes down, and the Einherjar can charge in, wipe out the battalion and retrieve Freyr."

There was silence as they all mulled over her words and Hela stared at her in surprise. It's true she's unnaturally strong with fire, but enough to part a huge wall of it?

…Well, if that's what they decide on, she'll make it work.

After a moment, Herryk shook his head. "I don't like it. We're relying too much on supposition." He pointed out sternly. "Are we absolutely certain we could rely on her and her seidr? The girl is young, what if she fails and costs us the battle? Besides, I doubt she trains as much as the rumors say. I haven't seen her do it, and she's one of mine!"

Hela felt anger burn through her at those words. Herryk knew fully well that they had an agreement for her to never use seidr in front of him so he could stop complaining about them every second of the day. To rehash their old argument at a time like this…

They all turned to look at her, doubt now clear on their faces. Hela steeled herself.

"A matter in which I obeyed your specific orders to, as you put it, 'never use seidr anywhere near you.'" She stated coldly, "That doesn't mean I didn't train. The Queen can verify my skill."

"Well, the Queen isn't here now, is she?" Herryk countered.

"Silence!" A wave of compulsion made both Hela and Herryk's mouths snap forcefully shut, and she turned to see Odin stumble a bit before catching himself, his hold on Gungnir the only thing keeping him upright. None moved to assist him, likely because of that Asgardian belief of strength and faith. All subjects must trust their King not to be weak, and helping him up now would only mean that he was.

A load of crap, in her honest opinion.

Odin stayed silent himself for a moment, his gaze on the map and their troops' position in it and likely contemplating both plans put forth. They waited patiently as well, Hela knowing that whatever the decision was, she was a key element and as such, couldn't afford any mistakes.

"Herryk is right in that waiting too long will probably give time for the Eldjötnar to make a counterattack, in which case, Brunnhilde's plan works well. However, we should factor in Hela's experience." He dug Gungnir harder on the ground, and a particularly large pulse of seidr was released just as a rumble in the distance indicated another fireball crashed into the shields, making the ground shake again.

They all braced themselves for the tremors but the King only looked up calmly and locked gazes with her, not even bothering to adjust his stance. "Can you do it?" He asked simply, holding her gaze and clearly warning her not to lie and blurt out the wrong answer.

Could she do it? Honestly, she never tried to manipulate flames that big or that high, but fire seidr had always come naturally to her, and she always found it easier to control than the other elements, except maybe earth. Besides, Frigga and Vor both said she was powerful, and with Odin injured and probably at half-strength, she's the only seidmadr they got.

It wasn't really a question if she could. She needed to succeed in this.

"Yes, I can." She answered coolly. No hint of arrogance or nervousness. Not if she wanted to convince them.

After a moment, Odin nodded. "Then it's settled. Tyr, Herryk, inform the men. Brunnhilde, the Valkyries will be in the vanguard. The moment the flames part, attack."

"Understood!" Everyone saluted before marching back out the tent, their assigned tasks already at the forefront of their minds. Hela was left standing in front of her father, who to her surprise, slowly allowed himself to kneel within her sight.

"Better to conserve my energy." He answered her unspoken question, before settling his gaze on the war hammer at her hip. "Use Mjolnir as a conduit, as I have with Gungnir. It will help you control your seidr even more. I will also have to drop the shields first or your seidr won't have any effect, so you must act quickly." His gaze narrowed, "Do not disappoint me. Lives are not the only things at stake here, daughter."

"I understand," And she does. In spite of his harsh words, she could see the unease deep within his gaze. He made a huge gamble by placing such a responsibility on her shoulders. Should she fail, people will lose their faith. Not just to her, but to her father as well.

However, if she does well, this would show everyone how strong the royal family really is.

Odin held her gaze for a moment, before nodding. Recognizing the dismissal, Hela saluted and left the tent.

…

Tyrkir heard Ornulf grumble under his breath and the others whisper amongst themselves as the Commander relayed the plan to their unit. The Commander looked disgruntled while he talked, which clearly means he doesn't exactly approve of the plan. In spite of that though, he communicated it with great detail, describing how it was going to go and what every unit will do. As a result, he also described in great detail just what the Princess's part in this was going to be.

"…The lieutenants will tell you your assignments. Dismissed!" He shouted, before turning and striding away to the direction of said lieutenants. They all watched him go, and Tyrkir clenched his fists anxiously, worried at the upcoming battle ahead.

His first, and against Eldjötnar, of all things.

"Sounds to me like they're relying too much on the Princess." He heard someone mutter behind him, and he stiffened.

Not to pass up a good insult, Gudrik snorted in cue. "I bet her father's influence is the only reason they approved her involvement." Tyrkir felt the air behind him shift like someone waved subtly and his chest tightened in anger. "See, even the Commander disapproves!"

He couldn't help himself. Before Ornulf could stop him, Tyrkir turned and glared, "I have seen the Princess's skills firsthand, and she's powerful. She could definitely control those flames." He ignored Ornulf sighing at the corner of his eye, "If the King, the General, and the Valkyrie approved this plan, that means they trust her to do her part. The opinion of the Commander doesn't hold much weight in the face of that."

Gudrik sniggered and elbowed scrawny Svend, who nearly toppled over. "As expected of the Princess's  kærastinn4." He mocked. "Always ready to defend your dear heart."

Tyrkir flushed and bristled in anger, but Ornulf quickly planted himself solidly at his side, bringing the attention to him. "Sounds to me like you're just scared, Gudrik." Ornulf smirked. Tyrkir felt himself relax; he could always rely on the blond-haired boy to have his back. "Your insults are sloppier than usual. Not to mention, your voice sounds high pitched." Ornulf schooled his face in faux concern, "You're not about to piss your trousers, are you? Though I bet you'll help a lot if you did. It would probably douse that huge wall of flames."

Gudrik reddened as everyone sniggered before stepping forward, sneer fixed on his face. "Ahh, about time the Princess's guard dog barked. Where's your owner, sipill5? Hiding behind her dear father because she can't in fact do it?"

Ornulf scowled at the insult and Tyrkir quickly put out an arm to stop him. "You asshole–!"

"ATTEN-TION!" Herryk ordered and everyone stood on alert and went quiet just as a familiar figure exited the command tent and strode calmly in the middle of the troops. Tyrkir glanced at a sneering Gudrik before leaning forward, "You'll eat your words." He promised, before turning away and unsheathing his sword. Ornulf followed with his bow, his face still set in a deep scowl. Gudrik only scoffed.

The General then ordered them to fall back a few paces so as not to get burnt when the shields eventually come down and they all backed away, leaving the Princess to continue marching to the front of their lines until she finally came to a stop near the edges of the shield, her stance solid and unwavering.

He watched her distinct figure as she summoned Mjolnir from her hip, and remarked absentmindedly, "I wonder what she's thinking about right now..."

"From the looks of it, probably about how little faith everyone really has on her." Ornulf muttered, and Tyrkir glanced at him. "Don't worry though, she can do it."

Tyrkir only clenched the hilt of his sword tightly; anticipation running through his veins as Hela slowly raised the war hammer, and her figure began crackling with energy. "Of course she can." He grinned, watching intently as the hammer hummed with her distinct green seidr. "She's Hela."

And with those words, the shield directly in front of her went down with a resounding boom! and the flames rushed in before immediately halting in their assault as Hela swiftly slammed the war hammer down.

…

Mjolnir hummed almost enthusiastically the moment she brought it down to the ground and she simultaneously called upon all her seidr and her reserves to reach out to the flames and bend it to her will.

Heat coursed through her veins as her green seidr responded eagerly through Mjolnir before rushing towards the raging flames. In her mind's eye, the flames resemble individual threads endlessly coalescing and repelling each other to create sparks. Concentrating, she proceeded to catch every individual thread from which they formed from and spread with one by one. As soon as they caught onto them, Hela felt her skin burn up from the sheer ferocity and wildness the inferno brought to Vanaheim, and if it were any other ordinary seidmadr, they would've staggered at the pure rage and weight a mere touch of it could bring.

Fortunately for her, her seidr thrives on chaos and destruction.

Rage and fury filled her and her body felt like it was on fire, and she was half-tempted to check if she really was as she clenched her hands tighter around Mjolnir's hilt. Hela growled as she forced the wild flames to obey her. 'Part!' She commanded it.

Kill… burn… raze…

'Part!'

Raze… ruin… destroy…

'PART!'

With a crackle, she drove back the gigantic flames, slowly revealing the razed ground beneath, until slowly but surely, the fiery walls parted like the Red Sea and remained divided.

"ADVANCE!" Brunnhilde shouted and the Valkyries launched into the air, their winged horses charging full speed through the gap in the flames and into the other side. The Einherjar's cheers thundered across the battlefield as they watched their Princess hold back a literal wall of inferno, with the Valkyries launching the first assault against the beings from the Realm of Fire.

Hela could only watch their attack silently; sweat trickling down her brow as she held the flames apart with trembling arms and extremely heated skin. Her insides felt like it was burning up and as if that wasn't enough, her armor felt like it was melting yet again from the heat. She gritted her teeth, 'if she could only spare some of her seidr to cool off…'

Unfortunately, it was already taking everything in her just to hold the inferno back. Hela could only observe as the Valkyries' attack caught the enemy completely by surprise. The Eldjötnar – massive, monstrous creatures with dark magma-like skin and fire for hair, had roared in shock at their sudden appearance, and raised their weapons to defend themselves. The Valkyries were fast though, and within moments, all fifty of them had divided and are weaving in between the Eldjötnar's bodies, successfully wounding and cleaving them with their extremely sharp blades and divine magic.

All of a sudden, the Fire Giant nearest to Hela caught sight of her and roared before tearing straight towards her, its huge steps causing the ground to shake violently and the Einherjar to realize the danger. "PRINCESS!"

Another roar of rage, this time from a human voice, and a brilliant white light seared in the air right behind the Fire Giant's neck. Its own roar caught in its severed throat and it let out a gurgling noise before quickly tipping forward with its momentum and collapsing with an earth-shattering quake. Within Hela's grasp, the flames grew weaker at the loss of one of its Breathers, lightening her burden. She breathed deeply to center herself before looking up.

The tall figure of Brunnhilde greeted her, her long blue cape fluttering in the wind and her gleaming sword Dragonfang held at her side. She glanced at her for a moment before nodding and running off.

"FORWARD!" General Tyr's voice rose above the noise and they immediately heeded the call, charging through the significantly large gap in the weakening flames as the Fire Giants were gradually killed by the victorious Valkyries. Soon enough, the last Fire Giant was killed and with it, the last of the flames.

Relieved of her burden, Hela sighed before rising to her feet and briefly examining her condition. Her skin was heated like she had a fever, but otherwise fine. Seeing that there were no lasting damages, she proceeded to unsheathe her sword and, with Mjolnir humming eagerly in her left hand, the one who would be referred to as the future Goddess of Fire, amongst many other titles, fearlessly ran and leapt straight into battle.