The group was now at a considerable distance from the bus stop they hopped off at for their next objective. The air was so cold, that they could see each shuddering breath that left them as they went uphill, through the tall pine tree forest.

“Are you sure this is the right path, Jörmun?” Eloise asked, giving up on trying to track anything on her phone as the battery threatened to die on her. “I should’ve taken a power bank”, she thought to herself.

“It should be right across that hilltop,” he glanced up. He was panting nowhere near as hard as the girls, who periodically stopped for a breather; living in the city, without much hiking escapades surely had a word in it.

“I hope we will also manage to make it back before a pack of wolves or something else decides to have us for dinner,” Maddie moaned. She was pleased that at least on their way back they wouldn’t have to climb anymore. The girl highly hoped that the remainder of the days won’t be bringing similar intense adventures. She feared that her legs would be giving up on her.

About an hour later they found themselves in the place that Jörmun claimed it to be the spot. All things considered, there was really nothing exceptional about the location. There was only a large boulder in the middle of an opening between the tall trees; there was nothing carved into it, nor did it have any particular shape that would’ve betrayed some ancient relic.

“Is this it?” Maddie asked, a bit irritated by the rather disappointing landmark.

“This should be it,” Jörmun said, then made the girls a sign to take a bit of distance as he approached the large rock. He placed his palms on the cold, rough surface covered in dried moss, then started to chant silently.

“Oh my-,” Maddie gasped when the boulder’s surface began to crack and burn in a green fire. A small wooden cabin stood now in its place.

Eloise approached in a heartbeat, heading straight for the door. She grabbed its handle and pushed it open with ease. She was shortly followed by the other two. They had a pleasant surprise as soon as they stepped inside the cabin; it welcomed them with the warmth of a cracking fireplace.

Decorated entirely by carved wood furniture, bearing norse motifs in their designs, the place felt like a lone traveller’s oasis, forgotten by time, and yet so ready to welcome one within its walls. The floor was covered sparsely with rugs and furs, especially around the sitting area such as the table and the bed’s edge.

The girls jumped at the sudden sound of furniture being dragged against the old, wooden floor. They had been so enthralled by the cabin’s welcoming interior that they almost forgot about Jörmun’s presence or their entire purpose there; purpose of which they were still unaware of yet.

“What are you-” Eloise started, but her question was answered before she could finish. She watched her brother reveal a hidden door in the floorboard.

Jörmun lifted the door and conjured a fire in the palm of his hand before starting to descend the stairs. He heard the other two following his footsteps into the depths of the cellar. The place was mainly bundled with large wooden barrels, but a drink was not what he was after. Not at that given moment.

Maddie and Eloise stumbled upon Jörmun’s back as he suddenly stopped. They looked confused by the halt, but immediately understood the reason, as they stared up at the wall-wide worth of shelves filled with books.

“Isn’t it too humid for books down here?” Eloise asked as she reached out to take one off the shelf to examine it; to her pleasant surprise, it didn’t look damaged anyhow.

“We just entered a cabin that materialized out of a giant rock. I don’t think you should question things like this,” Maddie snorted, helping herself with a book as well.

“Are you looking for one in particular?” Eloise glanced at Jörmun who said nothing ever since they stepped inside the cabin. “If you don’t speak, we won’t be able to help you.”

“Do you see anything out of the ordinary?” he asked while not taking his eyes off the shelf.

“Out of the ordinary… How? What should we keep an eye out for?”

“Things that glow,” he clarified as if it was perfectly normal for one to see such on a daily basis. Jörmun began to run his fingers over the binding of the books in the hope that one would react to his enchanted touch.

“Hey, what about this?” Maddie asked as she spotted a wooden crate peeking out from behind of a large barrell.

“That’s what we need the book for,” Jörmun explained, throwing only a quick glance at the chest that the girls were now examining.

“We need a book to open this? It’s some hocus pocus you have to read for it to unlock?”

“No… A-ha!” he exclaimed as he snatched a large book off the shelf. He opened it exactly in the middle and placed his palm with open fingers across its spread pages, whispering yet another small spell which materialized a key under his touch.

With a satisfied smile and the never-ending fascination of his travel companions, he placed the book back in its place and headed for the wooden crate with the key.

“What should we expect to see in there?”

“A ring.”

“We came all the way here for a ring?” Maddie said rather displeased with the news.

“It’s not just a ring,” Jörmun said while taking out a very small box out of the large chest. “Loki left it here,” he added as he opened the lid and revealed a golden ring, decorated with an emerald green stone.

“A bit old fashioned, but looks fine I guess,” Maddie appreciated.

Eloise stretched her hand for it, but Jörmun withdrew it from within her reach immediately. She looked up at him with a soft frown. “I think we both deserve a better look at it,” she demanded, referring to herself and her friend.

“Only after it’s on my finger. It binds to whoever touches it,” he said as he took the jewellery out and slid it down his middle finger. He felt its cold touch adjusting to fit him just right. “Let’s head back upstairs, and I can tell you what is so special about it,” Jörmun smiled pleased with the finding and after throwing the key inside the chest, he locked it back with a slam of its heavy lid. Nobody would ever need to make use of it again.

“Right before Odin took us away from our mother, Loki made sure that we won’t be completely lost, forever on. He disguised himself as one of our escorts and after ensuring that he was alone with us, he entrusted us with the location of this place, along with few other details, that will come in play at some point,” he explained to the other two as they sat around the fireplace.

“How come that you remember all of this but I have no memory of anything?” Eloise frowned thoughtfully. She still questioned at times whether she was there because of an error that Jörmun made, or because there was truly something hidden in the depths of her mind, beyond her current reach.

“Nobody charmed me, unlike yourself,” he shrugged. “They threw me into one of Midgard’s seas while I was shapeshifted as a snake; they were probably very sure that I will be eaten before I had the chance to do anything else, worthwhile.”

“But you miraculously lived for longer than anyone expected,” Maddie concluded, feeling that Jörmun was leaving out some details. She needed a private chat with Eloise to check if she shared the thought.

“As you can see yourself,” he showed himself off with a gracious motion of his hands and a smug smile.

“Okay, but what’s up with the ring?” Eloise pressed on, still curious what was so special about the jewellery piece.

“Oh, yes. The ring,” he said, as if he had forgotten about it. He brought it forth into the dancing light of the fire, having the other two lean in for a closer look. “Thanks to the stone it’s bearing, this ring is able to give the wearer the ability to not only travel but alter the course of time.”

Silence fell inside the room, with nothing else audible except for the wood cracking in the fire. While Jörmun was too busy admiring his freshly decorated finger, he missed the mixed feelings that crossed both Maddie and Eloise’s faces.

“Then you should be able to go back in time, reverse all the memory charms and Fenrir’s fate? Also stop your father from being imprisoned?” Maddie asked, her mind darting between what Jörmun told them and the books she had been reading in the past weeks. Her thoughts were also shared by Eloise, who seemed equally interested in his response.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” he scoffed. “That would be far too dangerous and might as well annihilate our current existence if something goes wrong. However, I am sure it will be handy if Thor decides to show up.”

“But you weren’t aware that Thor would come after you until Maddie showed us the news article. This unless you lied,” Eloise arched an eyebrow, growing ever-more suspicious of her brother’s words.

“If you would’ve documented yourself, as you claim you did, then you will know that Heimdal is able to see everyone and their doings.”

“And your point is?” Maddie asked, sharing the scepticism of her friend.

Jörmun clicked his tongue and rolled his eyes as he stood up with a slap of his thighs. He made a few steps then turned on his heels to stare back at the girls, who still expected clarification.

“Can’t you even attempt at connecting the dots?! It was obvious that they would eventually send someone to stop this from happening.”

“What? Your marvelous family reunion?”

“Ragnarok, Maddie. THE END OF ALL THINGS AS YOU KNOW THEM,” he spoke his mind out loud before thinking it through. He saw the confusion and eventual shock starting to settle on the others’ faces, moment in which he realized his hasty confession.

It happened through the blink of an eye; as the simple thought of reconsidering his words crossed his mind, Jörmun found himself standing in place, at a shoulder distance from his former self at the moment before Maddie asked her last question. He stared in fascination at how even the flames looked frozen in time; he ran a hand through them and suffered no damage. It was quite an interesting sight to behold.

“This is brilliant,” he whispered to himself while a wide grin spread across his lips. “This can change everything,” he stopped before his past self; a translucent silhouette. “Let’s try this again, shall we?” he added as he stepped into his own shape, embracing it like a perfectly fit veil, before the time resumed its passing.

“What? Your marvelous family reunion?” Maddie asked her question, as Jörmun anticipated.

“Precisely. They just don’t want to see us together,” he nodded at his own words. “I told you how proud they are. They would be fuming if they’d let their doings to be undone.”

“I think you should be careful on how you decide to use that ring,” Eloise warned him. She caught glimpse of his eyes narrowing briefly at the sound of her words.

“Did she figure out his doing? But how?” Jörmun wondered to self as he claimed back his spot next to the fireplace. He eventually decided that it must’ve been just a coincidence; however, he would remain vigilant. He couldn’t risk the plan’s success with her potentially deciding to just leave.