The Jaws of Jennia

Thor, Sif, and Balder are on a quest to obtain for magical items that are needed to forge an enchanted sword. So far they have gotten a scale from the dragon Hakurei and a feather from the eagle Gnori. After the frozen mountains of Jotunheim, the lush forests and running waters of Jannia are like paradise to the three youths. They are all in better spirits after their ordeals. Sif suggests that they take this opportunity to bathe since they all haven’t done so since leaving. Smelling each other and nearly gagging, Balder and Thor agree. However, Sif refuses to bathe in view of two young boys and tells them to go hunt up some firewood for the evening campfire while she cleans up in private.

Little does she know that Loki is secretly observing them from the trees. He resists the urge to pull some trick on Sif and decides to make his brother Thor look like a buffoon instead. Mimicing Sif’s voice, Loki cries for help, sending Thor running back to the lake to safe Sif, only to find out that she is in no danger at all. Sif immediately dives into the water so Thor can’t stare at her and doesn’t buy his story that he heard her cry out. She bets that Balder wouldn’t try to sneak a peek at her. Deeply embarrassed, Thor looks away while Sif gets dressed. Becoming playful, Sif seductively suggests to Thor take advantage of this moment alone. She then catches him off guard by grabbing him in a headlock, saying they can practice some fighting moves that Hogun has been teaching them. The two tussle in the sand until they are both laying on the ground face-to-face. For a brief moment there is romantic tension between the two before the teens burst out laughing. Moments later, Balder arrives with two fresh rabbits, having come hearing them laughing to see if there was anything wrong. This disproves Sif’s earlier assertion about Balder and they all laugh it off. From the bushes, Loki fumes that he cannot do anything to drive a wedge between the trio’s friendship.

That night, while Thor and his friends start a fire and cook their game, Loki watches alone in the darkness. He’s not the only one watching, as a mysterious woman who seeks to impede their quest observes through her looking glass. It is now that she finally notices that Loki is trying to do the same thing she is and begins plotting to use this to her advantage.

The following afternoon, the trio are on the move to the location of the last item on their list, a jewel from the mines of Jennia. When Thor and Sif joke about what happened the day before, Balder asks for details. When they won’t, it appears that there is a rift growing between the friends. As they enter the desert they see a mountain seemingly close by and head toward it to find the mine. Along the way, Sif suddenly gets swallowed up in the sand. Thor begins frantically digging to try and rescue her. Balder tries to get Thor to calm down and let cooler heads figure out how to save her but he refuses to stop. Soon he too is swallowed up and Balder. Seeing all of this, Loki drops his spell of invisibility and revels over the apparent demise of his hated brother and his friends. However, his boasts are cut short when whatever took Thor and the others takes him as well.

When Thor awakens he finds himself and his companions in some kind of dark cave. They are surrounded by millions of tiny pink skinned humanoid creatures with glowing eyes. Getting into defensive position, Thor is soon swarmed by the creatures. When Sif wakes up and sees what is happening she is able to let out a single scream before being swarmed herself. When Balder calmly wakes up and is left alone, he realizes that the creatures only attack when they are around heightened emotions. When Sif and Thor calm down the creatures stop attacking, although it takes Sif coaxing Thor to calm down. When the two hug afterward, Balder warns them that feelings of love might also cause the creatures to attack and suggests that they get what they came for and retreat. After a quick search, Sif finds the gem they have sought to obtain and they are able to leave the cave without further incident.

Meanwhile, Loki wakes up and finds himself not in the caves but in the study of some sorcerer. As he tries to make sense of his surroundings he is greeted by the woman who saved him, Karnilla the Norn Queen!

Recurring Characters

Thor, Sif, Balder, Loki, Karnilla