Infinity stone
[Year 1370]
There stood an enormous and lengthy magical mountain range on one side of the realm, which formed a natural barrier. If a being with extraordinary senses paid a visit to the mountain that was present in the deepest regions, they would find a completely enchanted 'rune' mountain.
This is was the very same mountain, Vali had used to meditate and now he had made it his permanent base, for his research. There might be some unsavoury things, that might go down during his research, and he didn't want his mother or the other citizens catching wind of it
The mountain, aside from the cave entrance, was completely hollowed out on the inside. The space inside amounted to about the size of two football fields side by side. The inner walls were completely covered with runes, without missing a single spot.
The extra precautions and reinforcements to the mountain, might have seemed overdone if not for the threat level of the things that were being experimented on.
Vali could be seen standing before an enchanted table, with runes that flickered all the way from its surface and to the ground it stood on. Unstable fluctuations of magic could be seen spreading from the object he was currently analysing.
On the top of the table, carefully secured and held in place with simple enchanted mechanisms, was a palm-sized blue cube. He had spent quite a few months analyzing and configuring runes that suited the cube, also known as the Tesseract or the space stone.
It had been half a century, since he had inherited the runic legacy from his father and he had almost entirely digested it. He spent the years practically using his knowledge on runes, by manually engraving the entire mountain he was currently in.
He was pretty talented with runes, and who wouldn't with 'eyes' like his, which essentially prevented most errors and identified all loopholes. He could be considered as an expert in the field of barriers and reinforcement runes now.
Other scholars in the field would question the need for their existence, if they knew how far he had advanced. Though, he was pretty much a beginner in most of the other fields of runes.
He had also started enchanting the rest of the mountain range, with other types of runes in his free time. The entire region was essentially a canvas, for him to practice and review his knowledge of runes. Several millenia in the future, this place might even become a landmark of Asgard if he did things right.
And right now, Vali was analysing the space stone that he had borrowed from his father. After all, preparing a general template of runes right now, would make it easier when he obtained the rest of the stones in the future.
When he carefully observed the tesseract with his scrunched brows and stoic face, he carefully logged everything he had discovered, in his head. Over the years, he had come to understand that he wasn't what 'people' would consider a genius in the field of research.
He barely made it possible, thanks to his enhanced intelligence and his over the top mindscape. He didn't have the 'innovation or creativity' that most notable beings that stood out in the field had.
Thankfully, the magic he focused on was pretty simple and straightforward. Even the magical pathway he was going to create, was extremely simple and suited for his battle style and journey.
That was also why he was extra impatient to start the creation of his own path, over the years. He simply couldn't wait, and he was anticipating his trip to earth which was coming soon, to pick up the most vital component.
As he spent time on his final evaluation of his work regarding the tesseract, he turned towards Skarf and Frodi who stood silently in the corner observing him.
"I'm about to take a break, get me something to eat along with some fine drinks. Get something for yourselves as well, we've got a lot of work to do." said Vali after casually waving his arm around.
He had significantly mellowed down in the presence of his guards, and he had come to deeply trust them after the centuries spent together. That, and he had seen through their minds and their supposed motivations, so he was chill with them.
'The feeling of sharing a few of your thoughts with people close to you, is a weird feeling.' he thought.
Frodi simply bowed silently in acquiescence whereas, Skarf showed an ecstatic expression before speaking, "Fret not my prince, we'll be back very soon." They then proceeded to leave hastily to complete their duties.
Left alone with his thoughts, he remembered the conversation he had with his father and internally sighed, at the revelations he had received sometime back.
[Few years ago]
The family had just completed their scrumptuous dinner, with Loki and Thor departing instantly after, followed by Frigga, only leaving behind Vali and the Allfather.
'Thor had started to take things slightly more seriously, as he attempted to learn a few simple forms of magic from his mother. Loki on the other hand, had completely delved into the field of theivery and the only place he hadn't broken into was the main vault, and even that wouldn't stop him for long.' thought Vali with an intrigued expression on his face.
After ruminating for a while, he returned to the present and looked towards his father who was waiting for him to speak up, seeing that he had stayed behind. Not wanting to waste any time, Vali got straight to the point.
"Father, I heard from mother that you'd be visiting Midgard in a few years along with my brothers. I'd like accompany you all, as there seems to be an item fated with me down there."
Odin wasn't surprised with Vali knowing about their trip, but he was a little intrigued by the fact that the his youngest was leaving the realm for once, not including his missions. As for the fated item, he couldn't be bothered, as he would know soon if it was something he'd have to pay special attention to.
Something that was fated to his son, wouldn't be anything ordinary. But, before he could reply, he heard his son interrupt him something that made him tense up, making the atmosphere in the chamber a tad bit chilly.
"I'd also like to borrow the tesseract from you, Father! Not for long, just enough for me to get an understanding of the stones. Before you deny my request, please do understand that what I'm about to do, would strengthen the realm immensely." Vali had a serious look in his face, as stared at Odin unwaveringly.
Odin who was about to explode, quickly calmed down and said, "I'm not going to ask you about how you knew it was with me. But, does anyone else know?!"
The seriousness with which he held this matter was clearly in display, if the palpable tension around him was an indicator.
Vali knew that Odin had planned to hide the tesseract on Earth, to prevent other perceptive beings from finding it, based on what he knew. Earth is an inconspicuous and relatively backward civilization right now, that no one would bother sparing a glance at.
So, it was somewhat justified when he hid it there, not knowing about what the future held. He had other things to worry about concerning the realm, like ragnarok.
"No one else knows, Father. You need to understand that I wouldn't have had this conversation here with you, otherwise." Vali replied with a stoic look in his face, as he pointed towards the sealed chambers.
"NO! YOU DON'T SEEM TO UNDERSTAND THE THINGS YOU'RE PLAYING WITH, BOY!" Odin bellowed after sealing the chamber further with stronger runes, by waving his hand. He took a deep breath as he held back from screaming any further, before he calmed down and continued,
"You might know bits and pieces about the infinity stones, but I can tell you this, as these very hands of mine have held a few of them. Any association with them has to be with extreme caution." he said with a look in his eyes, that seemed to recall a dangerous past.
"I can see that you don't take my words seriously, maybe because your source of information says otherwise. Listen well, for I shall impart my knowledge."
"Starting from the time of my father, Asgard has come into contact with a few of the infinity stones. A stone remained on Asgard during my father's time, and just like any other treasure, it brought along the attention of all sorts of hostile beings and ofcourse, started several wars. The stones and their convergence at the same place, is something that should never happen."
"So, the first thought I had when I got my hands on them was to send them to different parts of the universe, unbothered by where they ended up and that's exactly what I did. The only reason I haven't done the same with the space stone, is because of it's close relationship with Asgard and the Bifrost."
"Midgard is under my protection, and the tesseract will be a part of it too, even though there already exists another stone in the same realm." Odin paused at the mention of the other stone, but didn't explain further.
"There will always be ambitious beings, that seek to gather the stones and you should make sure that it never comes to be. A being that gathers them all, would have enough power to pose a threat to most of our existences." Odin concluded in a cold tone.
Vali who was on the other end of Odin's grim preaching, decided to simply nod without a retort. He wanted to ask about the Time stone, but Odin's expression when he passively mentioned it, indicated that he wasn't ready.
Vali could understand that he wasn't strong enough, after all if he went against the wielder of the time stone right now, death was certainty. He didn't have a way to evade it's foresight, but he was sure that he would in the future. Anyway, from what he could tell, Odin didn't seem to fear the current wielder of the time stone.
"So, could the wielder of all the stones compete with you? Wait, could he go even further and defeat you?" Vali asked with a curious look in his face, as he deliberately steered the direction of the conversation.
Odin who easily saw through what Vali did, happily played along with a smile in his face. He had observed Vali throughout the years, and he knew that his son had grown to become a being with slight positive emotions. He atleast spoke freely to a few beings, other than his mother now.
Even though he remained the same deep down, Odin could see it was only a matter of time till he mellowed out. So he indulged him by replying,
"I am a being that is at the very peak of the universe, my son! The wielder of all the stones could indeed compete with me, but at the end of the day tis' but an external power. They can exhibit strength that amounts to a being at the top of the universe, but the wielder who gains such power through external means wouldn't have a body or mind strong enough to wield said power."
"If he was as strong as you right now, I could see him collapsing after an attack or two, with his body half destroyed. And beings at my level, see no need to gather one or two stones as it's simply not worth it for them, with no significant increase in their strength." Odin said with fleeting disdain in his eyes.
"So, beings at my level would simply have to hold on till the wielder destroys himself. BUT just because he can't remove me from existence, doesn't mean he can't do the same to the rest of Asgard. So, you should understand why I implore you to exercise caution." Odin then proceeded to stand up and walk out of the chamber, as he paused and spoke to Vali with his back towards him.
"I'll let you examine the tesseract under my supervision, otherwise there is a chance that you'd end up on the other side of the universe if you accidentally trigger a portal. I'll pass what I know about the stone as well, but you only get a decade as we leave for Midgard after that." He didn't wait for Vali's response as he left.
He could see that his son was probing knowledge from him, in one way or the other. But he wasn't ready for the big leagues yet, so he was better off ending the conversation.
'The path to victory is fraught with challenges, but fear not little boy, for together we shall overcome every trial.' Odin thought inwardly, as he looked forward to what the future held.
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[A.N]: Sorry for the delays, but I'm pretty busy IRL.
I'll try and spare time to write more, cheers!
Hand over the power stones! NOW!
[ P@ treon.com/7rox ] or [ buymeacoffee.com/7rox ]
Won't be posting any advanced chapters there, though you can donate 3$ and buy me a cup of coffee for the time I've spent writing, if you're interested. Peace.