Trickery in Asgard

Characters:

Odin- King of the Norse Gods

Frigga- Main Goddess

Loki- Trickster of the Norse Gods

Eir- Goddess of Healing

Heimdall- Watchman of the Norse Gods

Narvi- Son of Loki

Abernathy- A woman from Midgard

Hank- Abernathy’s father

Mythological Realms of the Norse Gods:

Asgard- Land of the Aesir

Alfheim- Land of the light elves in Asgard

Bifrost- The bridge between Asgard and Midgard

Midgard- Realm of mankind

Franang’s Falls- A waterfall in Midgard

Jotunheim- Land of the giants

Loki, always envious of Odin’s power, fantasized about ruling the realms and having people grovel at his feet. As he sat near Franang’s Falls, making plans to take over, he saw Abernathy. She was a beautiful woman, with hair the color of fire and eyes the color of emeralds. He knew that she was worthy of Odin himself. However, Odin promised Frigga, his goddess, that he would never take another lover. Loki knew this but figured out a way to set his plan into action. He told Abernathy, "Come with me, and I will shower you with gold and our Gods will protect you." Abernathy was unsure about Loki's mysterious appearance but she was a poor farm girl, whose father was ill. She willingly went with Loki through his secret passageway to Asgard. The passageway was full of vibrant colors that she never could have imagined. It seemed as if she was inside a small galaxy.

Abernathy was amazed by the beauty of Asgard. Lush waterfalls, green mountains, and tall buildings, unlike anything she had ever seen. Loki led her to Odin’s golden chambers and told her to wait. He found Frigga and told her he saw Odin leave his chambers and a woman was there. Although Loki hoped Frigga would be filled with rage and attack Odin, she did the opposite. Frigga turned her anger toward Abernathy and used her magic to turn her into a horse. The transformation was painful for Abernathy. Her bones broke and fused back together as they grew. She could feel her muscles tearing and her skin itched as she grew fur. She now stood seven feet tall, had four legs, fur as black as night but her eyes still shone like emeralds.

Loki, upset that his plan did not work, took Abernathy to Alfheim to have his son, Narvi, guard her. Narvi placed a saddle and reins upon Abernathy and led her to a stream where she could graze and drink. While Abernathy was drinking, she caught a glimpse of her appearance. She tried to scream but could only make a ‘blub blub blub’ sound. She turned to Narvi and the sadness in her eyes made his heart weep. Narvi decided to take Abernathy through one of his father’s secret passageways to get her home.

Abernathy went to her family's farm but they did not recognize her. Her sisters said, “We don’t have a horse like this. Where did it come from?” Abernathy tried to speak to them but was unable to. They tried to lead her to the pasture where the rest of the horses stood grazing but Abernathy fought. She kicked and shook her head loose from her sister's grip. As their father Hank came to help, he saw Abernathy’s eyes. Hank exclaimed, “This horse, her eyes shine just like Abernathy’s! Sweet girl, is it really you?” Abernathy was relieved and nodded. With her mouth, she grabbed her father’s walking stick and drew her story in the dirt. Her family was relieved that she was home but had to keep her with the other horses.

Loki went back to Alfheim to check on Narvi and Abernathy. Narvi explained that he was saddened by what happened to Abernathy and took her to be with her family. Loki, furious with his son, forced him to go to the farm on Midgard to take Abernathy’s life. Loki, being the deceitful person he is, told Odin that Narvi discovered a secret passageway to Midgard and had been plotting with men to take over Asgard. Odin, blind to Loki’s schemes, was filled with rage. He gathered up his trusted and fierce warriors to kill Narvi and his followers. Upon arriving at the gate to the Bifrost, Heimdall who saw everything, explained to Odin Loki’s trickery.

Odin, disappointed and ashamed, sent Eir, the Goddess of healing, through the Bifrost to find Narvi and fix Abernathy. When Eir arrived at the farm, Narvi was there brushing Abernathy’s mane caring for her as he was unable to fulfill his father’s wishes. Eir wrapped her arms around Abernathy’s long neck and began to heal her. Abernathy started to shed her fur. Her body began to shrink. Her arms and legs returned, along with her voice. Abernathy cried out to Eir with joyful thanks and to Narvi for helping her escape. Narvi noticed there was still sadness in Abernathy’s eyes. She told them, " I went with Loki because my father is sick, and we don't have the means to help him get better." Narvi asked Eir one more favor, to heal Hank. Eir agreed as long as he stayed on Midgard since he was the son of a traitor. He agreed to her terms and Eir healed Abernathy’s father. Narvi remained on Midgard, and fell in love with Abernathy. The two wed and lived their lives happily. Loki was banished to live among the giants in Jotunheim.

Author's note: This story is a retelling from Ovid's Metamorphoses, the Story of lo. I wanted to have a little fun and change things up but keep the plot similar to the original story. In the original story, Jupiter rapes lo. He knew his wife, Juno, was looking for him. In order to avoid being caught, he turned lo into a cow. Juno took lo as a gift, not knowing the truth. lo eventually returns home and back into her human form.

I changed the characters from Roman to Norse mythology. Some readers are probably familiar with Norse mythology from previous classes or Marvel. I provided a list of Norse characters and realms at the top so readers can know some of the unfamiliar names and places of Asgard. Changing the story to Norse mythology was fun to do because I learned a lot from researching it.

I did not change anything from my story for the project. I corrected a few grammatical errors but I am overall happy with this story. I will be happy to read what changes I can make in order to make this story more fun and readable.

Bibliography : Ovid's Metamorphoses, lo. Translated by Tony Kline. Source : lo

Image source : Mythology