Bloodlines of the Ancient Pantheons

"Revenge? I don't think that's possible..." 

"I too believed impossible things that happened to me. I didn't think I'd meet and defeat a God, or develop dark, mysterious powers... or to have Xis' blood inside my veins. And yet, all these things have happened and this has made me realize that my life is worth living and I intend to squeeze it to the last drop. When I'll have the support of the other Clans, you will help me meet the Alfather" Dag continued.

"Boy, I think it's not a good idea. If Odin decides to take you out, he can do it without any problems, your powers are not as strong as those of the Frostsinners who imprisoned us here, on this planet" Weland replied, as he put aside the fragments of his sword, which could have come in handy in some other way.

"You'll see, Weland. In a little while, Odin will have a variety of reasons to listen to me. If that doesn't happen, I will be forced to fight against him".

The blacksmith looked into Dag's eyes and smiled: "Give me your belt, it needs a little change for the new axe".

Dag handed him the belt and within minutes, Weland added another leather noose on the other side of the hammer so he could carry the weapons at the same time without slowing him down.

"Oooh yes! Without that huge axe behind my back it's much better!" he exclaimed, wearing his belt with his two weapons tied to it.

"If you don't have any other requests, I'll take you upstairs, I need to rest" the blacksmith said.

"Yes, we can go" Dag replied.

"It's amazing... he's a God and he's asking me for permission to do something! Right now I feel like a God too!" he thought, after earning Weland's admiration for defeating him in battle.

After Dag's response, the blacksmith looked down and closed his eyes: a white smoke came out of his back and head. Slowly, the volume of his muscles and bones diminished as he returned to his 'human' size.

"Let's go" he said when the transformation was complete.

Vegard, actually Weland, made his way up the stairway, holding a torch.

"To unlock the true power of your new weapon, the method is identical to that of the Red Executioner. You will notice that as soon as blood touches its blades, its inner power will increase considerably and its blades will become hotter than magma. This is a power that Brann's axe didn't have... it's all thanks to Mimungr" Vegard said, explaining to Dag how the axe worked as he listened smugly.

"How long are you not receiving visitors?" asked Karl, to break the silence and pass the time.

"I told you... the last time anyone besides me entered the Great Forge was when Brann and his brother arrived" the blacksmith replied.

"Why are you, unlike the other Gods, known as a normal person? I mean... meeting Thor or Freya is not so simple... or am I wrong?" asked Reidar, who had withheld all his questions so far, not to interrupt the process of creating Dag's axe.

"Well... unlike the most important and famous Aesir, I am just a simple blacksmith. Odin gave me the choice of living in Asgard or Skjold. And I made my choice. The magma and the rocks are my kind elements, I feel perfectly comfortable here. There was a time when I lived in a house in Tyven... you know, I've always found humans more interesting than Gods" Vegard said.

"How? In Tyven? I guess no one knew your true identity" Reidar continued, surprised.

"Hahaha, of course not! You're the first ones I ever show my real form to. I never needed to use my full power to face someone".

"Why were you kicked out of Tyven? What happened?" asked Dag, continuing to look ahead.

"They accused me of killing a little boy" Vegard said, sending everyone into a silence that lasted a few seconds.

"And is it true? Did you really kill an innocent kid?" continued Dag, curious about the answer.

"No, Dag. It was a way like any other to kick me out of the village. I wasn't very nice to many of its inhabitants, because most of them couldn't afford to buy my weapons, and when they tried to steal them from me, I gave them a lesson" Vegard said, chuckling melancholy as he recalled the old days.

After hours of climbing the stairs, the three adventurers and Vegard finally found themselves in the entrance cave, whose door had been completely destroyed under the blows of Dag's hammer.

"I think I deserved it. At least I have something to do to pass the time" smiled the old blacksmith, looking at Dag.

"I feel sorry for Aqueous, but he tried to kill us" he said, turning his eyes back.

"Water elementals are great guardians. He was created just to stop anyone from approaching the door, if you hadn't knocked him out, you'd never be able to pass through. I think it only takes a few minutes to create an identical one, don't worry" Vegard said, sighing.

When the three companions breathed fresh air from outside the cave, they felt relieved and safe.

"I ask you one last favor, Vegard. Let us spend the night here, darkness is fallen outside and we need some rest. We're leaving at dawn in the morning" Dag said, as Reidar and Karl nodded their heads, in a sign of approval.

"It's not a problem for me, you can stay. I'm not very used to having guests" Vegard said, approaching the rubble of the great rocky door.

Dag and his friends settled down for the night, lying on the ground next to the anvil in the middle of the cave. 

The temperature inside the cave was now perfect, the right combination between the excessive heat of the Great Forge and the cold of the outer mountains. 

Without even lighting the fire, Dag, Reidar, and Karl lay down on the ground, looking at Vegard out of the corner of their eye.