[A/N]: The Second GOAL of the week is to achieve 500 Power Stones and unlock TWO more bonus chapters. Comment, share, and you know the drill 😎✨
You guys will get the second bonus chapter by tonight!
Jay let it settle, watching recognition dawn on face after face. Good! Fear bred caution, and caution meant fewer stupid attempts to hinder his plans.
"Now then," Jay continued, his voice more businesslike. "I just can't understand how the son of the Allfather himself turned out to be this..." He paused, as if searching for the right word. "What was it? Ah, right. Conniving, craven, pathetic worm."
Every guard in the room looked ready to commit murder. Hands gripped spear shafts white-knuckled, and eyes blazed with barely restrained violence.
Jay's smile took on a cruel edge. "Well, you can't help it. Once a bastard, always a bastard."
The words hung in the air for exactly one heartbeat.
Then Frigga's magic erupted.
Power cascaded from her in waves, golden and ancient and absolutely furious. The old magic, the kind that predated Earth's civilization itself. It lashed toward Jay like a living thing, ready to punish the mortal who'd dared sully her family with his tongue.
Jay's hand moved with liquid grace. He pulled a card from his breast pocket, holding it up between two fingers. Loki's terrified face was clearly visible, his mouth still open silently screaming.
His other hand positioned to tear the card in half.
Frigga's magic stopped instantly. The golden energy dissipated, leaving only the tang of ozone and feelings of maternal terror.
Odin was on his feet, Gungnir raised. "Wait!"
"Easy there, Mama Bear." Jay's voice remained conversational, but his fingers stayed positioned to destroy the card. "You wouldn't like what would happen to your son if this tears. Paper's such a delicate thing. It doesn't take much to come apart."
The entire court had gone statue-still. Even the warriors who'd been ready to charge moments before were frozen, watching the standoff.
Frigga's face was pale, one hand extended toward Jay in a pleading gesture. "Please. Don't."
Jay held the position for three more seconds, making sure everyone understood the stakes. Then, slowly, deliberately, he lowered the card and tucked it back into his pocket.
His entire demeanor shifted. The cheerful edge vanished, replaced by something almost predatory. Like a loan shark who'd just finished threatening someone's kneecaps and was now ready to discuss payment terms.
"Now then, let's get to payment, shall we?" Jay pulled out the video he'd recorded earlier. "Your son, Prince Thor, heir to the throne, promised me in your name, in the presence of the Ancient One herself, that I could have my pick of any treasure beyond mortal comprehension. So, can we get this rolling? I'd like a detailed catalog of, well, everything."
Odin's single eye blazed with fury. His voice boomed through the throne room, divine power making the words physically felt.
"THOR! What in the Nine Realms did you do? You promised him anything in my name?"
Thor stepped forward, his shoulders squared. Despite the situation, there was no guile in his expression, only earnest conviction. "Father, I can explain. The situation was desperate. Mother was weeping for Loki, and the Power Broker here had already imprisoned him. I made the only choice available that would guarantee Loki's eventual return."
"The only choice?" Odin's voice dripped with disbelief. "You gave a blank check to an unknown power? Have you learned nothing about negotiation?"
Meanwhile, a servant in pristine white robes approached Jay with a tome bound in dragon hide. It was the catalogue of Asgard's treasury. Jay accepted it with a gracious nod and began leafing through pages that shimmered with preservation enchantments.
The argument between son and father raged on.
"I ensured Loki would face justice on both worlds, and that we would have the means to retrieve him!" Thor's voice rose defensively. "What would you have had me do? Leave him imprisoned forever? Declare war on Midgard?"
"I would have had you negotiate specific terms! Set clear boundaries! Not promise 'anything beyond mortal comprehension' like some fool in a fairy tale!"
Frigga's voice cut through the argument, and for the first time since Jay arrived, she sounded exhausted. "Enough! Both of you." Her hand pressed to her temple, fingers trembling slightly. "What's done is done. At least my son will be returned to me. That's worth more than any treasure in this vault."
Her eyes were red-rimmed, and Jay noticed. How long had she been crying before they arrived?
Jay cleared his throat quietly to suppress his laugh. He really did try to keep his expression neutral.
Lady Sif stepped forward, her hand resting on her sword hilt. Not drawing it. Not yet. "You find something amusing, Power Broker?"
Jay looked up from the catalogue. "Not at all, Lady Sif. I have great respect for a mother's love. But I should clarify something. Prince Thor agreed that since Loki attacked Earth and its inhabitants, he needs to complete Earth's punishment first. Only then can he return to Asgard to face your sentence."
The temperature in the room dropped.
Frigga's face went completely still. That terrible, dangerous stillness that comes before a storm.
Odin's voice came out dangerously quiet. "Mortal. Explain yourself."
"Your son negotiated in good faith," Jay said, gesturing at Thor. "He understood that by the treaties you yourself signed, Loki must face justice where his crimes were committed. Once all victims' families are compensated and all damaged buildings are rebuilt, Loki returns to you. A matter of months, surely."
Thor nodded, his expression earnest. "He speaks the truth, Father. Loki committed crimes against Midgard. By our own laws, he must face justice there. The Power Broker was entirely reasonable. It will be months at most."
Jay's lips twitched. Just a fraction, barely noticeable.
But Heimdall saw it. The all-seeing gatekeeper's voice carried renewed fury. "My prince, you truly need more time to mature. Even on Asgard, with our magic and our king's supreme authority, bureaucracy takes months. Now imagine the divided world of Earth with its inferior technology and fractured governments. We would be fortunate if Loki's sentence was completed within decades, if not centuries, not to mention establishing proper oversight!"
The realization hit the court like a physical blow as warriors exchanged glances and ministers' faces paled.
"Centuries?" Frigga's voice came out small, broken. She rose from her throne, one hand pressed to her chest. "My son will be imprisoned for centuries?"
She turned to Thor, and the disappointment in her eyes was devastating. "You trusting fool. You're too pure-hearted for this world of politics and manipulation." Her voice cracked. "We need to assign you advisors in legal matters. Immediately."
Thor's face crumbled. He looked between his mother and Jay, the pieces finally clicking together. "I... I didn't..."
"No," Frigga whispered. "You didn't."
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