Vespera

[Asgard]

[Year 1306]

*Nom*

*Nom*

*Nom*

Sounds of someone chewing could be heard throughout Vali's chambers, and if a visitor came by, they would see an interesting scenario.

[Skarf's POV]

It has been less than a year since the Prince returned from god-knows-where, and I can say with certainty that the last decade has been chaotic. I weep as I think of everything that has gone down in the last decade,

'I, along with Frodi were dismissed by the Prince, when we got back from our missions. I knew for a fact, that our 'slave-driving' Prince wouldn't give us a rest all of a sudden. And I was right, even winning a bet with my partner Frodi.'

'We barely got to rest, before we were summoned by the Queen's guards for our incompetence. We were in shock when we came to know of the bed-ridden prince, and expected to be thrown into the dungeons. Thankfully, the queen seemed to have sensed our guilt back then, and let us off.'

'We found our Prince folded like an omelet, thrown into a giant tube filled with green liquid. We only knew of one person who could've done this to this monster in the entire realm, and our suspicions were confirmed, when the healers mentioned the King bringing Vali here himself.'

'After this 'failure' on our part; even though we could've done nothing really, we guarded him like a hawk and even after he was healed, we didn't let him out of our sights.'

'It all went well for a while, only for the Prince to pay a visit to the Allfather again. We would never tell this to anyone even If we were tortured, but we knew deep down that our Prince was a masochist. We figured he was going for another round, but this time we would stay beside him and protec--'

'Ahem, No... This time we decided that we would stay beside him, and bring back whatever was left of his body. Yes, we were extremely dedicated, only for the Allfather to send us away, as soon as we got there.'

'I figured that the King wanted to keep the 'belting' private, after all no one wanted to be seen as an abusive father. We waited for outside for a long while, as I fantasized about getting an actual vacation.'

'Days went by, followed by weeks, and by then I was almost sure that the Allfather had killed the Prince accidentally, and disposed of his body. We were told later on, that our Prince had gone on a solo mission. But I hadn't believed it, and when we later met with the Queen, we saw a mournful expression on her face.'

'I knew that I was right about what happened, and I spent a lot of time trying to convince my partner in vain. I decided that I would get stronger, and take revenge against the Allfather. By that point in time, we were already devoted to the Prince, and I decided that I would have my Vengeance.'

'But that thought process didn't last long, for the Prince actually returned in like 5 years. And the worst part? He brought along with him a mini-version of himself.'

[POV ends]

As Skarf roused from his thoughts, he was holding onto a plate, filled with tiny strips of meat. In front of him, on top of Vali's bed sat a tiny fairy, with her feet hanging off the side of the bed.

He had to serve this little demon, that didn't hesitate to put him under an illusion that showed him his greatest fears, slowly breaking his will. This was apparently the punishment for getting caught sleeping on the job.

*Nom*

*Nom*

He held the plate, as the 5cm-tall fairy ate the strips of jerky not unlike a rabbit, with her two little hands. She might've looked cute, if not for the deadly glare she directed at him.

'Just you wait, you little demon' he thought, gnashing his teeth inwardly. Sadly, he didn't know that she could sense his emotions. But before she could teach him a lesson, she looked towards the entrance of the chambers, before she stood up and flew towards it.

Vali could be seen walking down the passageway, with Frodi trailing behind him. He looked up, and saw his soul-bound companion fly towards him at an extremely nimble speed. She was soon perched on his left shoulder, enjoying the view, completely unconcerned of her surroundings.

Vali who had just arrived, noticed Skarf struggling to stand straight, and could feel his aggrieved emotions. He then turned his head towards the fairy on his shoulder,

"Vespera, Don't overdo it. He might be lazy, but he's still one of us." said Vali in a stern tone. The fairy in turn just nodded her head rigorously, before she went back to eating the jerky in her hand quietly.

Skarf who had just heard him speak, had slight tears in his eyes. He used to think that no one could make him work as hard as his Prince, but he came to understand that he was a true saint compared to the little demon.

When Vali had returned from the 'trial', he had analyzed his little fairy meticulously, even going as far as to borrow Odin's help to check for any problems or backhands. After making sure that there were no problems, he decided to make her his companion.

He named her 'Vespera', a name with Latin origin, meaning the 'Evening star' or the 'Judge of the evening', representing the fairy's vengeful judgement that would descend upon her victims.

Norse names didn't suit her, and she liked the name so, he figured he might as well go with it.

She was no longer corrupted or unstable, as the overflowing magic from his 'inner world', and his passive aura filled with vengeance, helped her stabilize, completing her mutation. She was a lot stronger than she was meant to be, but it also came with merits and a few demerits.

She was already an intelligent fairy, with an insane talent for casting magic, and after her mutation she was more well rounded. Her magical talent became unfathomable, and her physique become more well rounded.

She also received a talent that puts the targets she considers 'evil', under inescapable illusions which constantly eroded their wills, by showing them their deepest fears. She always had a stoic expression and was taciturn, only listening to Vali.

As for the demerits, well, she was slightly bloodthirsty, but that could be controlled.

Vali had seen Odin's crows once before, Hugin and Munin. They were his messengers, and his way of keeping an eye on the world. So, Vali decided to make Vespera his backup healer, scout and most importantly his messenger.

Vali might not know this, but far in the future, the vengeful fairy's very presence and mention would become a taboo, but that was a story for later.

Vespera brought him a lot of surprises, but she also needed some training as she felt the need to punish everyone around her. That was also why Vali left her behind in his chambers, letting her punish his lazy guard who slept on the job.

Of course, he gave her stern instructions to never go in for the kill without his permission, which she approved, and followed religiously without a question. And he figured that Skarf might as well train his will with her, since he had nothing to do anyway.

His mind churned as he thought of everything, that had happened since he was exiting Yggdrasil's space.

[Flashback]

As he had just collected the silent fairy in his hands, and was prepared about to leave, he heard Yggdrasil speak,

"It seems you don't plan on binding her soul with yours yet. No matter, I'll send you out now. You've stayed longer than I expected you to."

His departure had called for a gathering of the fairies, and they had mixed expressions on their faces as they watched the 'little devils' departure with the guest.

Without waiting for Vali's response, the tree sent him out of the space, with the entire forest waving at him.

'Now that I've done all I can, the rest will have to depend on this little god himself. I might've made a loss this time, but I guess it's worth it if he reaches his full potential.' thought Yggdrasil as she returned to her duties, as this trivial encounter was of little significance to a being of her level, if it wasn't for the loss of a seed.

Vali on the other hand who was thrown out of the space, appeared in his father's throne room, right behind his throne. Odin who was seated on it, immediately noticed his presence as soon as he arrived.

"Vali! You made it my boy! I knew that you would return with glory as expected, proving worthy of your name. Hahahahaha!" Odin was instantly upon him with a hug. He took his time to notice the changes in Vali, as he distanced himself.

He could see the excessive magic in his son's body, and he was glad to say the least. He was at peace, knowing that his sacrifice wasn't in vain.

Ever since he had deduced the reason for Vali's urge for power, he knew that his son would have to conquer various trials in his journey, but now he was relieved since this trial had clearly done something for his magical talent.

He processed all this in a split second, and before Vali could give a reply, Frigga magically appeared in front of him. She proceeded to hug him as well, before she carefully observed his body for any injuries. Only after she was done with her check-up did she proceed to rage at him,

"It seems you don't take me seriously at all, Vali? Very well then." Without waiting for him to reply, she turned around and disappeared into thin air.

Vali could only glare in Odin's direction, only for him to exclaim, "What? Did you actually believe that I'd hide anything from her, when it concerned your potential death? You should've known my state after we finished our spar."

Vali sighed as he thought of his haggard mother, and figured that she must have been waiting all this while completely worried about his life. He would've even left the space earlier, and delayed the fusion of the seed by a decade If he knew this was going to happen.

"I haven't let your expectations down, father. Let's just say that I've been blessed with all the talent I need, to start my journey." said Vali as he meaningfully looked at Odin.

Some things and their specifics were better left unsaid, because you never know who was listening and Odin seemed to have picked up on that. He was a man with a lot more experience than Vali after all.

Vali didn't want to talk about the 'seed', and was just being cautious as its very mention might bring trouble. He also left his little fairy hidden in the sleeves of his cloak, as she remained immobile as always, simply sensing the new environment. It wasn't that Odin couldn't spot it, but since Vali didn't bring it up, he left that for later.

Odin seemed to have picked up on Vali's impatience as well, "Go on then. Pay a visit to the healing chambers to unwind, and visit your mother. We'll talk about your experiences in the trial after all that."

"I'll take my leave then, father." Vali nodded as he left hastily.

[Flashback ends]

Well, Vali had used Vespera to calm his mother and it kind of worked, but she still refused to talk to him. Vespera on the other hand, was happy to spend time with his mother as she was like a doll, both in size and personality.

He spent most of his time with his mother by staying in her library, without restrictions this time. He only had the basics down for magic all this while, and now he had books for divination and whatnot.

But after going through all the books on Asgardian magic, he came to a simple conclusion. Asgardian magic simply didn't suit him, and as he already had an idea about the path he was going to take, he knew that his pathway was better suited with 'Dark Magic'.

Well, it seemed Vali's time on Asgard was coming to an end, for he had already figured that he'd have to leave the realm in a few decades to get what he was after.

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[A.N]: Finally decided to keep Skarf, his personal guard around for slight comedic relief. Two more chapters for the end of the Volume XD

Hand over the power stones! NOW!

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