Chapter 306: Final Preparations

13th May 2013, Royal Palace Asgard

(Jasmine Sayre POV)

Today was the day that everything came together. Thousands of years of planning from Thor, months on my part planning the final assault. It all came down to this day, to this battle. Asgard's freedom was so close, and the Shadows' tyranny was coming to an end.

Everything was done, the plan was in place, and everyone knew their roles perfectly. The Asgardian army was ready to be deployed, although there was some confusion about the matter. They had no idea who they were fighting, nor what was at stake, only that Asgard was threatened, and time was of the essence.

As for now, we were all assembled in the Royal Palace in Asgard to plan where to do the assault. While Thor, Loki and I waited for the All-Father and All-Mother to appear, we stood in silence, apprehensive yet excited for the battle soon to be upon us.

The tension in the room was palpable as we waited for Odin and Frigga to arrive. Loki was fidgeting, probably apprehensive to meet with Odin after what he has done, Thor, on the other hand, looked oddly determined. He would make a good king after some training. Politics and cunning could be taught, but the willingness to give anything, to do anything, for the good of his people was what made a truly great leader and king.

As for me, I couldn't help but feel a mix of nerves and determination as I thought about the task ahead. My emotions were still muted, but my newly enhanced intellect calculated that there was still a great deal of incertitude in the coming conflict. Mine and Thor's plans helped balance the scales in Asgard's favor, but the Shadows were cunning, and they were now desperate. This conflict will not only secure Asgard's freedom, but it will also give me an army to deal with the conflict with Entropy. Asgard's army could be the key to preventing the snap from happening, an extra force to defend against Thanos' army, which would be what Entropy is planning to use to spread his essence into every single universe out there.

A part of me was still disgusted by the fact that I was the one dealing with it. It shouldn't be me, and I now recognize that the cosmic entities, the beings that Loki aptly called the Endless, chose not to intervene. For all their justifications of laws and responsibilities, they didn't seem to care about making me deal with their mess. I was being played; I recognize that now. Someone had a hand in preventing the Living Tribunal and the rest of the Endless from acting.

For all I wanted to demonize them, they were not living beings, not really. They were concepts given form. They were not good or evil, and even if they were laws, a multiversal threat should warrant their involvement. The fact that it's one of them going off the rails makes it doubly their job to deal with it, not mine.

Unfortunately, cosmic entities did not need to explain their choices, and I was stuck dealing with Entropy because I was not prepared to let the entire multiverse get destroyed just to spite some beings that just wouldn't give a shit about it.

As the minutes ticked by, the anticipation in the room grew. Thor, Loki, and I stood in silence, each lost in our own thoughts as we waited for Odin and Frigga to arrive. My mind raced as I tried to predict what the Shadows could be planning. There were many scenarios, each more disturbing than the next.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the doors to the throne room opened and Odin and Frigga entered. Odin was dressed in his armor with a big ass sword on his back, his face stern and determined. Frigga, on the other hand, looked worried and concerned, but I could see the strength in her eyes as she stood by her husband's side.

The sword was new, and I could feel the power within. Odin was a shade of the mighty warrior that he was in his previous lifetimes, but right now, he looked every inch the warrior king that the songs portray him to be.

From a preliminary analysis, I could tell that there was some sort of amplification and enhancement properties on the sword, that's not even mentioning the Space Stone in the pommel. I had recommended Odin to forge an artifact capable of channeling the power of the Space Stone, but I didn't expect something like this. That man really knows how to craft a weapon of mass destruction. We'll need to talk about it after this mess is dealt with.

"The time has come," Odin said, his voice grave. "Asgard is under threat, and it is up to us to defend it. Are we ready with the preparations?"

I nodded, "Yes, we are. The trap is in place as are our safeguards. The weapons are ready and secured. We only need to decide on a location to deploy the troops. Jean and Wanda are in Greenwich in Midgard, in case something spills out there. They'll have it handled."

Odin nodded, "We cannot allow them to attack Asgard, especially with the Dark Elves joining the enemies."

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And wasn't that an unpleasant surprise? Honestly, I thought they were more likely to ask only Loki to spearhead the attack, hoping for some Frost Giants, but they woke the remaining hibernating Dark Elves to deal with the army. It was a good move politically, and they even gave Malekith the Aether, the Reality Stone itself, as some additional fire power. We're lucky that Malekith barely knew how to use the damn thing without killing himself and didn't understand the full potential of the artifact.

It was a shame because I had been looking for the artifact ever since the Convergence began, but I had no idea where Bor had sealed it, and the chances of finding it without either knowing where it is or somehow getting Fate's help, were very slim. Jane Foster must have either been very lucky to find it in the alternate timeline, or someone manipulated the portal so that all infinity stones would be accessible soon after. Fate really was a bitch.

Odin had gone into a full rage when Loki told him about it. He was disturbed by their survival of his father's genocide. I'm guessing that they were very troublesome for one of his past incarnations for them to worry him so much, and I have to say that their weaponry and spaceships, enhanced by the Aether, were very dangerous, capable of stealth that could hide from any scrying attempt, even Heimdall's. With this kind of weaponry at their disposal, it would be foolish to start the attacks on Asgard or Midgard.

Loki answered this question, "We need a place that's almost deserted where we could deal with any surprise attacks and avoid collateral damage. The Shadows don't know when the attack will take place. They have the entire Dark Elven forces ready to be deployed at once in the realm of shadows and are planning on leaving one of their numbers to protect the realm itself if someone tries to sneak in. They think it's enough to deal with us, while the others try to contain Nidhogg if it attacks their realm as planned. If I had to choose a place, I would propose using Nifleheim as our battlefield."

Immediately, Odin and I shook our heads, "It's not practical. We would be drained in minutes."

Frigga nodded, "We also need as much of their forces to be outside the realm of shadows for the plan to work."

An idea popped into my head, "What about Svartalfheim?"

Thor looked shocked, "The home of the Dark Elves?"

Odin agreed, "It could work. Their forces are mostly made of Dark Elves, attacking their home could make them act rashly and leave the realm of shadows to defend their own. It would be a very fitting way to deal with them. The realm is also almost entirely abandoned and has practically no living organisms there."

Loki interjected, "But won't they be stronger this close to their realm?"

Frigga shook her head, "No, Malekith removed his connection to the World Tree in his foolish ambitions, choosing to connect his people entirely to the Aether. It's why Bor Burison was able to defeat them so easily once it was sealed. They sacrificed their dark sorceries to have the power of the Aether. It's a crude choice and a foolish one, but with it in their hands, they are far more powerful than they used to be. Even with their lower numbers, they could still stand against Asgard's armies."

That was very problematic. It all hinges on my frankly mad plan to deal with them. But it was the only plan we have, "So, we've all agreed on Svartalfheim?"

Loki shrugged, "This plan is already mad, a little more will not change anything."

I had to admit that he had a point. This triple bluff thing was mad, but it was the only way I could think of to trick them. If I just bluffed once, they might expect an attack elsewhere, expect a distraction. But if I made them believe that they knew what the trap would be, they wouldn't think further about it, believing that they had the upper hand. I needed a way to distract them, and the Dragon of the End is a very good distraction.

Truthfully, this entire plan pretty much hinges on Loki, and he knew it. Odin didn't like it at all, his vision tainted by the countless betrayals that his adopted son performed in his previous lifetimes, but no one could protest the fact that the Shadows expect the same from him, especially since they kept trying to manipulate the boy all his life to turn him into Asgard's ultimate traitor.

As Odin made sure that everyone knew what their parts to play were, I looked at the young Jotun in front of me. The poor boy was looking at the King with a mixture of hope and fear. Perhaps he hoped that should the plan work, his father would finally acknowledge him.

While everyone nodded and proceeded to start moving. I slowly walked towards the God of Mischief, "Are you alright, Loki?"

He shook his head in a small voice, "I'm scared."

I gave him a sad smile, "It's alright to be scared. Don't you know? Fear is a superpower. Fear can make you faster, cleverer, and stronger. You're always gonna be afraid even if you learn to hide it. It's alright to be scared because if you're wise enough and strong enough, fear doesn't have to make you cruel or cowardly, it can make you kind. Fear is like a companion. A constant companion, always there. But that's okay. Because fear can bring us together. Fear makes companions of us all. What you're going to do is very hard, and very scary. You're right to be afraid, but don't let it rule over you, remember why you're doing this, why you're prepared to risk everything for this, and you'll pull through."

Loki gave Thor and his mother a longing look, "Glorious purpose indeed."

I chuckled, but stayed silent to Loki, "Good luck, God of Mischief."

I waved my hand and opened a portal, and Loki stepped through it, "Morrigan!" he spoke up. I turned and looked at him, "If anything happens, if I don't make it. I just wanted to say thank you. You have helped me more than you realize, and for that, I will forever be grateful."

I nodded, "It was a pleasure, Loki."

"Yes, it was."

He turned around and left through the portal. It felt oddly final, but I guess he knew the risks of his gambit. As for me, I had an army to lead, and parasites to slay. I slowly walked towards my allies, and prepared myself for one of the most important conflicts in my life, hoping that everything would be alright.

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