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MCU :: MARVEL UNIVERSE :: MCU
MCU :: MARVEL UNIVERSE :: MCU
Odin's gaze flickered across the table towards Hela when the meeting with Asgard's council ended. It was a standard meeting about the residents of Asgard and such. Nothing pressing that needed his immediate attention but of course, Hela challenged his authority the entire time.
Now it was just them inside of the council room, and neither seemed to be in much of a hurry to leave.
“Must you always challenge me authority?”
“Must you be so revolting?” she shot back, pushing a strand of dark hair out of her face, “That entire meeting was a disaster, I do hope you realize that.”
“You have much to learn, like Thor.” Odin shook his head.
“Doubtful. It doesn't take two eyes to know that the council did not approve of your suggestion, Odin. The villages have lost an acre of crops and your grand response was to tax them and tell them to do better? With no investigation to follow?”
“I've been King of Asgard for a very long time, I know what I am doing, Hela.”
“You've been taxing these people for years.” she rebuked, “If you ask me, or...really anyone really if they have two eyes and half a mind—those villages lost an acre of crops because they're too busy paying your ridiculous taxes instead of paying for the labor to harvest.”
Odin stared at her for a beat before laughing, “I suppose now you think that you will be a better ruler than I, hm?”
Hela raised an eyebrow, “Will be? Oh dear father, I already am. Unlike you, I don't cover up every problem that lands at my feet.”
Odin bristled at the comment but quickly brushed it aside, “These people respect and fear me, their loyalties will always be to me no matter who sits on the throne. You will do well by remembering that, my eldest.”
Hela shrugged lightly, crossing her legs at the knee, “They don't respect and fear you like they respect and fear me, Odin.”
The Asgardian King smiled, eye narrowing dangerously, “Oh, this shall be good.”
Hela ignored him, “You see, they only respect you because they're scared of the power you use and abuse, father. Me? Well, I have the knowledge behind my power, and I'm brave enough to confront my problems. Not cover them up. It's quite sad when they'd rather follow the Goddess of Death than you.”
Odin chuckled, taking no stock in her word, after all, he was the one sitting on the throne, not her. Odin picked up his goblet, not noticing how his oldest daughter watched him take a hearty sip with keen interest.
“Why are we never enough for you?” Hela suddenly asked, carefully shifting around in the chair and making sure that her arms did not touch the arm rests, “Will we ever be enough?”
Odin regarded her dismissively, “There is nothing worth being proud of.”
Hela was silent for a while, letting his words sink in—they all were, Hela exhaled deeply, mildly expressing her disappointment, “I don't believe that.”
Odin cleared his itchy throat and drank more of his brew to help soothe the persistent itch, “Deisi is a pirate Queen, an embarrassment to the throne. Loki...is not even worth mentioning,” he shook his head in disgust, clearing his throat louder this time, “And Thor—”
“No.” Hela interrupted him before he could one, feeling Thor's anger and trepidation through their temporary mind link and she felt Deisi and Loki's combined anger. It was hard for Hela to sort through their emotions to maintain her own, “Deisi is not an embarrassment. In fact, her ties here with Asgard should be considered an honor. All of her conquests have been hard earned through blood, sweat and tears—not all of them entirely her own, I'm quite proud of that myself.”
“You think her ruling a rock gives her merit?” Odin scoffed, his face flushed but not with annoyance towards his irritating older daughter but the room was feeling suddenly a little too warm for his liking.
“Yes,” Hela replied honestly, not understanding how he could possibly be so...blind to what he truly had in his ranks, “Omega is more than just a rock, Odin. It is the home to many species. It has sought after resources, and need I remind you that it houses one of the infinity stones and that your daughter single handily defended it against the Mad Titan and his crones? Deisi has also brokered an alliance with Xandar and The Kree?”
“That has nothing to do with the Nine Realms,” Odin argued, coughing into his sleeve, beads of sweat forming on his forehead.
“Exactly. She's the perfect liaison between us and them.” Hela grinned, seeing her lovely father struggle for air as he grew redder in the face and around the neck. She rose from her chair as he reached for the goblet again but in his haste, he knocked it over and it's contents spilled everywhere.
“And Thor, he's young but the entirety of Midgard worship him. He represents Asgard in all the best ways, don't you see that Allfather?” Hela sauntered closer until she was just a few feet away, just out of arms reach, she slicked her hair back, transforming it into her headdress. Odin's eyes widened with realization but he found that he couldn't summon his powers, they had been stripped without his knowledge and he didn't understand how, “In fact when I am Queen, I will be taking on Thor as another liaison since he knows the humans so well. It would make good practice when he is to eventually take my place. And Loki, well, I believe he is the rightful King of the Frost Giants after you've slayed his father.”
“Hela—” Odin choked, struggling to catch his breath but his now mortal body's immune system was shutting down, he could feel it.
“Can you imagine it, father?” Hela continued as if her own father wasn't dying in front her, slowly, “Of course you can't, if you did—well, we wouldn't be here would we?” Hela laughed shortly, “The Mad Titan can't fight a united universe. I will rule all of the cosmos. I was the weapon in the conquest that built your precious empire. And I will not let you ruin it because you have no ambition to be great!” she growled at him, and she felt Thor's calm and resignation wash over her and backed off immediately. "I will not stand by the abuse any longer."
“You...you will all fail—you...you'll never get away...” Odin rasped as he picked up the goblet and threw it at her weakly, and he nearly died right then when the trinket phased through her and landed on the floor pathetically.
Hela smiled down at him sadly, feeling Thor remove himself from the mind link as well as Deisi and Loki—but it was alright. Hela could finish this show on her own. It was nearing the end. “I was never here, Allfather. I am currently with the villagers and two other council members dutifully solving the problems of Asgard.” Hela turned away from him, her smile falling as she walked towards the wall, speaking over his choked wails and empty threats, “I truly wish it didn't have to be this way—” Hela held her head high and left the room.
MCU :: MARVEL UNIVERSE :: MCU
Hela was talking to a few commoners, attempting to work through the main issue before tackling the others that Odin had chosen to ignore—when a few of the royal guards approached, appearing to be shaken.
And to her credit, Hela was the perfect image of annoyed over being interrupted, “What?” she demanded, “This had better be damn good, I am busy trying to feed these starving souls.”
Hogun regarded her seriously, before kneeling and the other guards immediately following as well as the villagers that were around to witness the act, “Your highness...”
Hela blinked rapidly, “What the Hel are you doing? I demand to know what is going on, now!”
Hogun slowly stood, taking off his helm, “I am sorry, Your Majesty...” he paused letting the words sink in because he wasn't sure how the normally volatile woman would take his next words, “But Odin, he...he is dead.”
MCU :: MARVEL UNIVERSE :: MCU
MCU :: MARVEL UNIVERSE :: MCU