The Goddess Of Death

She was just an ordinary woman – astute and efficient in her job, but sometimes brash in her decisions, according to her peers. In her free time, though, she loved watching her fair share of movies and was oddly fond of the superhero genre. There's just something nice about the fact that the world has someone to rely on whenever there's trouble, and no one else had perfected the superhero genre more than Marvel Studios. But Marvel was only a past time, a fleeting interest to make use of her spare time, and had no overall impact in her life whatsoever.

… All right, she partly lied. It was much more than a fleeting interest, but not really something she considers an obsession. She watched the movies, studied the lore and the theories, hummed the theme on random occasions, but she's not fanatical enough to read the comic books. To conclude, she was just an average fan.

Then came Thor: Ragnarok. She had been so excited, the trailer looked amazing, and she had always loved the Thor series out of all of the MCU movies. This was something she won't pass up, and so she saved money for the tickets and went to the premiere.

The movie was really good. She found herself praising Marvel for making the Thor series even better with this movie. Best of all, Loki was not the only interesting villain anymore (though he'll always remain her favorite), now there's Hela, the evil goddess of death who was also Thor and Loki's older sister (which surprised her when she first found out. After all, wasn't she Loki's daughter in the original myths?) She found it interesting that Loki now had someone he actually looked like in the family, and that someone was actually a legitimate child.

She enjoyed it immensely, and found herself wondering what exactly happened to Hela when Asgard was destroyed. Was she dead, or will she be back?

Turns out, that was the last coherent thought she had before everything went wrong.

At exactly the end of the movie, a hysterical man suddenly burst into the theater, screaming and waving around a gun, and shot her in the c.h.e.s.t before immediately being shoved to the floor by security. But the damage had already been done. She - who had been sitting several seats and aisles away from the man and therefore, should not have been shot any more than the rest of the people in the room - could only conclude that either she's really unlucky or there was some other force at work.

Her adrenaline's still high after watching the movie, which explained why she did not entirely register what had happened until she was already lying on the floor, the impact and excruciating pain in her c.h.e.s.t completely taking her by surprise. She had gasped and curled up, her throat and lungs filled with blood, her whole body trembling in agony.

All around her, people screamed and panicked, with only a few brave people staying to try to help her and call 911. She wished she could have remembered their faces, so that she may thank them for their help after she recovered, but the pain was too much. She soon succ.u.mbed to the darkness that was beckoning to her, the people shouting for her to "hold on!" fading until there is nothing left but blessed silence.

As she had said, Marvel was only a past time – a fleeting interest – and had no overall impact in her life whatsoever.

Why then, did it make an impact in death?

…

Pain.

Burning, raw, mind-numbing  pain .

There was no air in her lungs, and yet she was alive and struggling. She gasped and tried hard to breathe in as much air as possible, but there was nothing. Only darkness and pain.

She must have blacked out at some point, because the next thing she knew, she was gasping and crying as sweet, sweet air started to fill up her deprived lungs, her eyes uncontrollably leaking tears as she finally found relief.

She paid no mind to the voices and murmurs around her as she focused on breathing steadily and trying not to be sick, the black creeping out of the edge of her vision until she could finally see, albeit through tear-filled and blurry eyes.

The first thing she registered was that everything her eyes gazed upon was so bright. It was in fact so bright and blinding that she found her eyes again leaking tears as she squeezed them shut. In doing so, she was then highly aware when she felt her body being cradled by the warmest arms she'd ever felt, and she hesitantly opened her eyes to meet a woman's kind face, her smile the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen.

The woman then murmured something, but the sound that came out of her lips were odd. However her voice, calming and kind that it was, soothed her enough for her to close her tired eyes and give in to the darkness once more.

…

They called her a 'Princess'.

The information she gleaned from listening and observing made it clear that she had been reborn into a royal, wealthy, and powerful family; judging by the titles and names bestowed upon her by the servants, her nursemaid, the guards, and the  whole freaking kingdom  when her new parents presented her to them.

(She tried hard not to think about how she had been scared shitless when she woke from a very long and nice nap to suddenly find herself presented before thousands of people like a piece of meat being dangled in front of hungry wolves. That memory was best left forgotten.)

Everywhere she turned –  or been carried, if you want to be more specific  – people would bow and murmur, "Your Grace", "Your Highness", or even, "Princess." If nothing else,  that  cemented the fact that she was reborn not just as an ordinary girl, but as royalty, and even a princess to boot! It was frankly very difficult to believe, and she first spent the next few days in shock.

And speaking of that, it didn't really take her long to realize that she had been reincarnated. After all, it  was  a bit hard to ignore when one's body had obviously reduced to an infant's, and that it looked like she ended up in a place where servants, warriors, and guards are still considered the norm.

However, this was just not something that should be possible. Reincarnation was just a thing used in stories or old myths. Unless there was a semblance of truth to those old myths. Was this what happened every time a person dies? He or she gets reincarnated into another life? Because she refused to believe she was the only exception to that rule.

Now, she would have been glad and even proud to say that she accepted this realization easily and with no fuss, but that would be lying. What really happened was that she experienced a full-blown panic attack; the kind that left her breathing hysterically and crying like no tomorrow as everyone around her panicked as well. All she could think of was that she was  dead . Worst of all, she was killed while watching a movie, of all things. She had unwillingly left her family behind when they needed her the most, her whole life…  everything  was gone the moment that bullet pierced through her c.h.e.s.t. There was no act of heroism, no last stand, she didn't even get a say in. She was just…  dead .

It frankly was difficult to believe, and it was a good thing when she finally managed to fall unconscious. It meant that she could escape thinking about it for a while longer.

The next time she woke, she found her hair being stroked by gentle fingers, and she looked up to see the same woman with the kind smile that she now realized was her new mother. She was singing softly, the sound sweet and calming. Her blue eyes gazed down at hers lovingly, and she then found that she was quickly growing fond of her, even though this woman could never replace her first mother.

Her soft singing slowly lulled her to sleep, and that was when she realized that it's going to be okay. Reincarnation can't be so bad when she has this kind and loving woman to guide and help her back to her feet. Stories she read involving it usually presented challenges and hardsh.i.p.s, sometimes even tragedies, but she felt that everything's going to be alright as long as she has this woman –  her mother  – by her side.

Growing up yet again, she realized that reincarnation was truly an extraordinary phenomenon, and one she did not expect to experience at all. It was something she only ever heard of in stories and movies. It wasn't  real . However, she still has her highly curious and inquisitive mind, a thing that had gotten her into trouble countless times before, and she found that her curiosity couldn't resist exploring and trying to find out all she could about the new life she now led.

The realization  was  shocking, but also something that she's extremely excited and curious about. Being reincarnated as a princess is  incredible , and it looked like the place was even medieval when it came to their looks and ways, so there was no denying that she was thrilled and  very  interested to learn more about this world and time she had been fortunate enough to have a second chance in.

Her old life was gone the moment the bullet embedded itself into her c.h.e.s.t. She dearly misses her family, her friends, her life, even her boring job. But she knew it's time to move on. It's no use to dwell on the things that could not be. For one, she doesn't know how to go back. Besides, it probably wasn't wise to start telling people that she reincarnated. Knowing medieval times, she wouldn't be surprised if people started accusing her of being a witch.

She doesn't know why she was reincarnated, but it's best to make the most of it. And the fact that she was born a  royal  just made this so much better.

Every girl had dreamt of being a princess in her childhood. Especially when those Disney princess movies came out, and the fact that she had a chance to live that dream now was amazing. She would be the best princess there ever was, and would not be the type to wait for a man to rescue her. She could even be a warrior, mainly because being a typical princess could be boring.

She will live this second life to the fullest, and the prospect both excited and terrified her.

With that decided, it didn't take long for her to try to learn and adapt to their ways.

The first thing she did was establish that while she's a child, she's m.a.t.u.r.e. She had no d.e.s.i.r.e to be coddled, or babied, or even, god forbid,  b.r.e.a.s.tfed . It was not hard; she already had the mind of a person in her twenties. But it took a lot of convincing before they finally accepted it. She was  not  an ordinary child.

After that, it didn't take long before she began trying to teach herself to walk and move properly again. Being unable to control your own limbs was a frightening experience, and one she did not wish to endure any longer than she had to. The first few attempts made her look like a dying eel, however, with constant practice and with age; she soon regained control of her motor skills. The look on her new mother and father's faces the first time they saw her walk towards them unsupported had been  brilliant , to say the least.

And with that, she finally decided that it's time to learn more about this new world and time she resided in, and what better way to do it than by reading about it?

Decision made, she toddled her way to find the library, all the while dodging and hiding from servants who would attempt to get her back to her room. It took her a long time, but she finally found it when she decided to trail behind a man with his nose stuck in a book. Following him in, she padded into the gigantic chamber full of towering bookshelves that looked even taller with her current size and gaped in disbelief.

Simply put, the room was  huge . So huge, in fact, that it shouldn't even be called a room. It has three floors, with each the size and length of half a football field, and every inch and corner having bookshelves as tall as trees. The first floor was clearly a reading area where all the tables, chairs, and sofas were positioned and occupied by a few people (she found herself eyeing what looks like the fluffiest couch she's ever seen that offered a view outside a tall and equally as elegant window.) The second and third floors consisted of the massive bookshelves and the occasional sitting areas. 

Staring at her surroundings, she almost forgot the reason she went here in the first place, and quickly hid as people walked past her position. If they found her here, she's  sure  she would be carried back to her rooms. Why else would a child sneak into a library unless she was lost?

Sneaking wasn't hard. The library was huge enough that even chairs could hide her whole body. All she had to do was sneak past everyone and hide behind one of the massive bookshelves. Grinning widely at her success, she proceeded to reach for the nearest book and opened it to a random page, where she quickly found a massive problem in her plans.

The books are written in another language.

Eyes wide, she began pulling every book out of the shelf and opening them, with her eyes greeted by the same strange symbols written in the first book.

Of course. She's living in a medieval world located who knows where, it's bound to have a different language. Unfortunately, the symbols looked like  runes . You know, the kind of things you find when it's the middle of the night and you ran out of things to search and somehow end up in websites about protection spells, incantations, and tarot cards? (Look, she had weird nights, okay?) 

She barely suppressed a groan. Learning another language would be difficult and tedious, but it looks like it's necessary so she could live properly in this world. The last thing she wants is to become an illiterate. She had been planning to read books about this world by herself, but now she just had to ask her new parents to tutor her or something. It wasn't a big deal.

Nodding to herself, she grinned determinedly.

…

"Father, Mother, I want to learn how to read."

Both her parents' eyebrows shot up in surprise at her sudden declaration over breakfast. She had been waiting for the right moment to ask as she pushed her food around (thin and tender slices of meat from a boar so she could chew it easily, freshly baked bread, and fruit. You can't get any more medieval than that) and saw her chance when there was finally silence around the table. Her mother glanced at her husband, before smiling at her daughter kindly, "Are you sure you already want to do that? You're still quite young."

And she knew it's true. Judging by her body, she's probably about three to four years old. But she can't wait that long! She nodded firmly, face determined. "I'm sure."

Her father sent a rare smile her way and her eyes widened. In all the time she had been here, her new father never sent anything her way but a passing glance. That made it clear that her new father was someone that's very hard to please. It frankly made her giddy just seeing him smile at her and chided herself for behaving like an attention-seeking puppy. She's too old for those things, geez.

"If she wants to learn, let her." Her father brought his attention back to his food and the papers covering his side of the table, her mother slowly following suit.

And that's that.

…

It took a few days before they finally found an instructor.

Her teacher, an old woman called Vor, was stern, no-nonsense, but very wise. The moment they met, there was no delay, they just dived into the lessons without preamble, which was just the way she liked it. She never did liked wasting time. And the sooner she learned how to read, the better.

"Before we start, you must know that runes are not simply a language; it is an art. Every rune has meaning, importance – and when used in seidr – it has power."

She raised a hand automatically, even though it's just the two of them. "Excuse me, but did you just say ' power '?" 

Vor immediately frowned, "We do not usually say 'excuse me,' it is informal. You say either 'pardon me' or 'I beg your pardon.'"

She blushed, forgetting that it's the medieval period, and responded appropriately. "I beg your pardon, but did you mean  magic  power or  metaphorical  power? And what is a seidr?"

"Every rune possesses power. While it is part of our language, it is also considered as a tool for seidmadr and seidkona to channel their seidr. And as for your other question, seidr is an ability few Aesir possess that has the capability to alter destiny and reality itself. The King and Queen are known practitioners of it."

Her eyes grew wide at that information. "My Mother and Father have  magic ?!"

Just what kind of medieval world did she get reborn into, King Arthur and Merlin's time? Was magic seriously a thing in this world? And if her new mother and father have magic, does she have it too?

So many questions, and it just made her glad she decided to learn about this so early; at least the revelations are out of the way.

Vor only sighed at her ignorance, "You have much to learn, Your Highness."

She could only smile sheepishly in agreement.

…

She learned nonstop under Vor's tutelage for a year. She quickly grew fond of the old woman. Vor was strict and no-nonsense, yes, but whenever she displayed her curiosity and determination to learn, she could just  see  a soft smile flashing underneath the harsh demeanor. She learned that Vor highly values those truly interested to learn which, according to her, was few and far between this kingdom, who was comprised mostly of warriors and 'stubborn oafs'. Her words exactly. Though she's beginning to agree with the wise tutor.

This kingdom's full of warriors,  literally . It seems all they want to do here is to go on adventures, spars, fights, and feasts. It's very monotonous, and she quickly found herself bored to tears. Only the lessons with Vor served as the highlight of her day.

According to her teacher, there were twenty-five runes in all, and learning about them and their different meanings and symbolism had been difficult, but at last she repeated them enough that she could probably recite them all in her sleep without fail.

Along with that, she also learned how to speak like a true royal. Speaking mostly comprises of formal words with almost no contractions. Vulgar words or expletives were also not spoken freely here, which caused her many problems in the early days. She even started speaking formally even in her own thoughts! It was all very strict and proper, but at the same time, learning it was interesting.

Though everything she learned weren't all positives, as she later found out.

Vor had been in the middle of one of her lectures, mentioning one or two words that made her twitch in her seat, when she finally couldn't stop her curiosity. She had slowly been growing very confused and suspicious every time those words were mentioned, not to mention there's a niggling bad feeling at the back of her mind. It seemed the right time to address these concerns. "Please excuse my ignorance, Vor, but if I may ask, why do you keep including names and words like Odin, Heimdall, Yggdrasil, and Vanaheim as if they are all real? Are they not just myths?"

She immediately knew she said the wrong thing when Vor didn't answer immediately as she always does and only stared at her in bewilderment.

She shifted nervously.

It took a few more minutes of silent staring before Vor finally spoke again, "Norns, you  are  serious."

"What?" She could only stare wide-eyed in confusion.

"Child, do you not know the identities of your own mother and father?"

"I know they are the King and Queen of this kingdom."

"Yes, but their names?" Vor prompted impatiently.

She opened her mouth to reply before immediately shutting it.  Huh . Why  did  she never ask them their names? She only ever called them Mother and Father and it probably seemed embarrassing to ask for the names of her own parents. Though it didn't really help that all the servants just called them either 'My King/Queen' or 'Your Highness.'

Come to think of it, she doesn't even know her own name in this life. Everyone just calls her 'Princess' and other titles.

Feeling a sudden sense of foreboding, she reluctantly answered, "I suppose I never really asked."

"And no one informed you? Though I  do  suppose you are too young for a history lesson." Vor murmured that last part to herself, and she pretended not to hear. "Child, you are not simply the daughter of a King and Queen, you are the daughter of King Odin Borson and Queen Frigga Freyrdottir. Tell me you do not know who they are and we  will  have words."

Her jaw only dropped open in response.

Vor rolled her eyes and continued, "The words and phrases I tell you during our lessons are real; I do not even know why you think they are just myths. Vanaheim is one of the Nine Realms of Yggdrasil, the World Tree, and Heimdall is our kingdom's Gatekeeper and guardian of the Bifrost."

"A-And what…" She forced herself to swallow, the words almost lodging in her dry throat. "And what is our k-kingdom called…?"

Vor could only gaze at her in confusion and slight exasperation, "Our kingdom is called Asgard, and you are her Princess. Though I am beginning to doubt that, especially with your lack of knowledge about these things."

And just like that, her whole world came crashing down.

…