Bloodlines of the Ancient Pantheons

Frigg merely listened, already knowing everything, being the only one who could sit on the Hlidskàlòf to see what was happening to her husband.

Odin walked back to his throne and grabbed something that was on it, hidden from Dag's sight. 

His two weapons, the Giantbane and Magni's hammer were now in the hands of the strongest God of the Norse Pantheon, who held them high to show them to everyone.

"Dag's dark power derives directly from that of the Frostsinners, but it is more powerful, although it is still in the early stage of its growth. But this, this axe..." 

"What is it?" Freyr interrupted, who had never heard of the Giantbane and looked at it curiously.

"I don't know why, but this axe has the power to kill the Frostsinners!" exclaimed the Alfather, leaving his listeners speechless.

Freya approached Odin, extending an arm towards him and asking him to see the weapon in his hands.

He agreed and handed over the Giantbane into the hands of the beautiful Vanir, who later became Aesir.

"I don't understand, Alfather... how can this axe be more powerful than Gungnir, the infallible spear?" 

"Wise Odin, I was convinced that it was the dark powers of the Midgardian who defeated the Frostsinner! This changes everything!" Freyr added once again, approaching his sister and looking at the Giantbane up close.

Odin grabbed the axe, looking at it once more. 

"I know what you're thinking. You think that, with such a weapon, any of us could defeat our enemies and claim our place in the skies of planet Earth, but that's not how things will turn out" he said, walking toward Dag, who had not said a word.

Frigg followed her husband with her eyes, already knowing what he was going to say.

"The Giantbane, the divine weapon capable of killing the Frostsinners, can only be used by the best of Midgard's warriors. Dag's dark power, combined with the fiery power of his weapon, is the most dangerous weapon our enemies have ever known" Odin said with conviction, handing the axe handle to Dag, who gasped, not believing he was praised by Odin despite having evidence of his weakness.

Trying not to tremble, Dag's hand grabbed the handle of the axe, squeezing it hard: at that moment, it was as if a piece of his body returned to its place.

Freyr and Freya continued to look at the weapon in its owner's hands, imagining whether things would be different if they used it against enemies, having their divine powers at their disposal and failing to surrender to the idea of being weaker than Dag.

"Thank you for having so much confidence in me, Alfather. I will give my best to fulfill the prophecy and save you all from your exile. But what about the comrades I left on Skjold?" Dag asked, thanking Odin for his gesture of confidence.

The Alfather took a long breath and after a silence that lasted a few seconds, he spoke again.

"The girl who tried to save you from the Frostsinner... she's your woman, right?" she asked.

"Yes, Alfather!" Dag replied, with a sad expression painted on his face.

"Going back to Skjold wouldn't be wise, boy. Not now. I have the task of preserving your power, no one in this world can protect you as I will" Odin continued, looking the young warrior straight in the eye.

"I know that. Freydis and I are used to not seeing each other for long periods. If I come back to her, I'm sure she'll wait for me, but... I need to stay on Skjold to know the details of the prophecy. It comes from an ancient manuscript, of which you Gods also do not know the existence, right?" 

Freya, after realizing that Dag's woman's name was very similar to her own, looked at him fondly, thinking that despite him being a mortal, his spirit and virtues had led him to achieve the greatest goal of all: to meet the Gods.

"What prophecy are you talking about, Alfather?" the heavenly-eyed woman and long blonde hair asked.

"I think it's best if you tell them, Dag!" Odin replied, leaving the floor to his terrestrial host.

Dag, within minutes, summarized the history of the Crystals of the elements and planets that contained them, explaining to everyone present, including Frigg, who was not so up-to-date on every detail of the prophecy.

"... it is precisely in the red gem of the Giantbane, the Crystal of Fire, that the power of the primordial Sun is, the one that illuminated the Earth when you could still live in its heavens" Dag exclaimed, concluding the story that was able to amaze even the Gods with whom he was talking, who in their lives had seen almost everything.

"And how are you going to travel between the planets?" Freya asked, who became trapped in that ancient story, trying to catch the highlights.

"Apparently, the Crystal I have can activate the teleportation mechanism that is located in Jernhest. With it, I could reach one of the planets of my choice without being traced by the Xis... hmm... I mean the Frostsinners" Dag replied, who had already thought about what his next move would be after the Battle of Klorr.

The silence enveloped the throne room and the Gods and Goddesses looked at each other.

"Even if any of us wanted to take the form human and follow you in your journey, this would not be possible" Odin announced, sure of his words.

Dag remained motionless.

"What do you mean with 'it wouldn't be possible'? So can none of you help me fulfill the prophecy? Why did I come here then?" he asked, almost as if he was losing patience, hating to waste time on useless chatter.

"We Gods cannot get so far away from Asgard. The Frostsinners didn't just exile us to this planet... a curse envelops us and our people, and if a God tries to travel from planet to planet, he will die instantly" the Alfather continued, while his only blue eye expressed the sadness of which his soul was imbued.

"Would you die? How can you die? You are not..." 

"Immortals? No. No being in the cosmos is truly immortal. We can't be killed by mere Midgardians, that's true, but... the most powerful Frostsinners would be able to do so. And you're capable of killing them, who think they're immortal. As you can see, the life circle closes once again, young boy" the Alfather explained, from the top of his wisdom.

Frigg, the Queen of Asgard, stepped forward, ready to speak in her husband's place, having waited until the end of his speech to talk.

"As you said a moment ago, the machine that will allow you to travel from one planet to another has been created by our enemies. As a result, anyone traveling with you will be identified and killed instantly. Also, even if you were able to travel in two or three people, they would be tracked and monitored constantly and would put you in danger for all the duration of the mission. This is a risk we cannot take. You will travel alone, Dag, this is your destiny" Frigg exclaimed, opening her arms and trying to instill courage in Dag, who, on the contrary, felt a strong fear explode in his chest.

"Alone?! And how am I going to do that?! How will I find the other 5 crystals without anyone's help on unknown planets? It will take a long time, I'll risk never seeing my companions and my family again!" Dag exclaimed, who had not imagined having to leave for his true mission counting only on his strength. 

"That's exactly why you're here, boy. We will train you so that you can defeat every enemy. We will make you the strongest warrior of all, you will be even stronger than me" Odin said with confidence, resting his hand on the head of Geri, his white wolf, while Freki was sleeping lying near the Hlidskjàlf. 

Dag stepped back, looking at the faces of everyone in front of him at the time and trying to guess from their expressions whether Odin was telling the truth. 

The faces of Freyr, Freya, Frigg, and the Alfather were incredibly serious, as if that decision stemmed from their long and careful reasoning, premeditated before deciding to lead him to Asgard.

The Midgard's young warrior looked at his hands as he used to do every time he had to take such an important decision, but this time, it was not a real choice.

"I... I don't..." 

Odin's hand rose towards Dag with his palm open, nipping in the bud his next words.

"You don't have to say anything else. You're a warrior worthy of inheriting the divine powers of Asgard's Gods, so stop underestimating yourself. Freyr and Freya will be your mentors, your trainers and now they will explain to you what will happen in the immediate future" Odin continued, without giving Dag even time to answer.