The God's Trickery

The reverberating of each stone as it was placed in its designated location rang through the midnight air. The pounding of stone against stone was almost unbearable as she roused in her chambers, unable to fall into her trans-like sleep. Her heartbeat against the echo of stone, knowing her entire future lay in the hands of such foolishness and trickery.

They should have never agreed to the terms and allowed such trickery to persuade them of the plan’s assured failure, even if, at the time, it seemed impossible. They had believed their lies as foolishly as sheep follow one another over a cliff to their demise, crashing into the rocks below. Yet following despite their brethren's cries.

They all watched with an unnerving tension as the stonemason carted the large bricks to and from the wall with his enormous stallion, surpassing their expectations. The mason would complete the great wall before winter passed and claim her as his wife, taking the moon and sun as additional prizes to boost his ego against the gods. As time continued, she saw the gods growing uneasy, their mannerisms turning from laughter and gull to a frank brashness and increasingly laughable argumentative state toward one another.

It took little to no time for the gods to seek out the trickster and demand that they make the situation right. Their idiocies made not even a slight improvement in the entire situation. The trickster led them here, assuring them the great wall would not be completed in time. When instead, they should have never agreed to such terms.

“They are not the ones to lose their freedom!”

She had walked with them upon meeting with the trickster; angst-fueled movements carried by her rage were evident as she stood with the fury of a thousand warriors ready to break apart anyone who dared claim her freedoms as their own as a consolation prize.

She pleaded to whatever god would listen to allow the trickery to succeed, if for nothing more than her sake.

For a life bound to such a creature would surely bring her misery and misfortune. Something she had no intention of confining herself to. While the other gods had comforted her and ensured her freedom and safety by the trickster’s plan, she was still unnerved by the gods initially agreeing to her potential future imprisonment.

She was angry, although such a singular word was minimal to the fury raging within her body. She had much to provide and offer the other gods, and she would ensure that her fruitful abilities would be utilized in an impervious manner to ensure the downfall of all the gods who opposed her freedom as a fainthearted joke.

“I am not a bargaining chip; I am a god unlike any other.”

Unable to rest into a silent sleep, she rose from her chambers and sought out the trickster, tasked with her future freedom. She had seen it many a time before. However, she realized she must act quickly if she should want to maintain her freedom and usefulness and not rely on the words of other gods to ensure her freedom. She hurried down from her chambers and found the trickster watching idly as the stonemason continued working with haste most foul.

She stood stoic, rage filling her core as she looked down at the crouched trickster. The only sound erupting in the silence around them was the continued brashness of stones slamming down against one another below.

“I know why you’re here, and I assure you I have a plan.”

She stood in silence, her gut twisting in a knot at the mere sound of their voice. She wanted to reach out and claim their freedom, the freedom they so quickly were willing to deceive and snatch away from her without lifting a finger to damn her, themselves. She spun on her heels quickly and turned toward them with a scowl that would have frightened the All-Father.

“You had better. Or know, I will come for you.”

That night, hours later, a slight nuance of noises rose from the darkness and off into the distance. But, shortly afterward, the silence that once was so bountiful now crept into the realm again. The stonemason was no longer slamming stones and constructing the wall.

She had peaked out of her chambers to notice a beautiful mare in the fields, taking chase with the mason's stallion close in toe. Unknowing to her the origins of the mare, she retreated back into her chamber after watching the mason chase after the pair. She made an unnerving attempt at sleeping once more to forget the potential of her future.

However, All construction had ceased.

She sat quietly as time progressed, performing her duties in the typical fashion. Days turned into weeks, and weeks into months. The gods resumed their average duties throughout the lands in the same manner. All was at peace, but with no sign of the stonemason since that fateful night, none could help but think of what had occurred to the man and his stallion.

However, she cared not for his outcome nor his fate. Her freedom was ensured. Winter will soon pass, and the wall was not constructed to completion enough to make good on the deal. Her freedom was guaranteed for now until a time when the lack of sense washed over the other gods once more.

However, this solace would be short-lived as an enormous crash cascaded through the great hall. Walls folding and cracking from the trauma of the projectile. Bickering erupted between the gods, as this could only mean one thing. War had once again happened upon them, and they must react with haste.

She followed the All-Father’s lead and stumbled over the debris to find the stonemason hurling large stones toward them, the ones intended for the great wall. Watching with frustration, all she could think about was the voided deal, and she would not easily lose such freedoms in any future arrangments. The trickster nowhere to be seen.

Without speaking a word, the fighting had ceased as quickly as it began, with the stonemason's death at the All-Father's feet. Tears filled her eyes, and blackness rose around her, engulfing her senses. She saw nothing in the desolate darkness except the outline of the trickster with a unique animal in tow entering the lands once again.

Weeks passed, and no one had heard from the trickster or their whereabouts. She had hoped it was for the best, as their manipulation was one that even the other gods could not have foreseen with such hesitation. But she did. She had seen enough within her premonition to know that one day the trickster would return with something unfavorable, most likely. Just like any and all the times before.

“The trickster will be the death of us. I hope they never return.”

However, her wish went unanswered as the trickster approached the realm again shortly after a few weeks. Her desires had fallen on deaf ears. Only she noticed something from her premonition followed closely behind the trickster. An eight-legged horse. She knew something had occurred but did not want to know how or why. She did not care.

Maybe their manipulative plan succeeded?

Her freedom was secured, even if it would be for a short time. As unnerving as that sentiment was, she would savor the freedoms she retained and continue watching the other gods closely to ensure their liberties were at risk of being stolen and not her own.

“Such foolish sheep to follow the lead of the wolf.”

(If you recognize Norse Folklore and mythology, you may understand who this tale is the narrative of. I wanted to include the narrative of the individual most affected by the gods' agreement with the stonemason! I hope you enjoy this quick story covering the fable of the building of the great wall of Asgard!)