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The echoes of the battle in the Hall of Eternal Echoes did not take long to reach the ears of the All-Father.
Mere minutes after the confrontation with Thor, the great doors of Asgard's throne room opened with a thunderous boom. The sentinels, clad in silver and gold armor, stepped aside in silence to allow Vidar to pass, his presence now more solemn than ever.
The throne columns rose like pillars that held up the heavens, covered by ancient tapestries depicting the deeds of past kings. At the far end, seated upon the Throne of the Nine Worlds, was Odin, with his spear Gungnir resting at his side, his single eye shining with a mixture of wisdom… and disappointment.
"Come forward, Vidar," he said in a deep voice. "You have been summoned to give account."
Vidar stepped three times toward the center of the hall, keeping his head high. Though he felt no guilt, he understood the weight of his actions.
"Do you truly believe you can raise your power against your own brother without consequence?" Odin bellowed, striking the ground with his spear. His voice rang out like thunder held back by will. "Thor is your elder brother! The heir to the throne of Asgard!"
Vidar looked at him without blinking, his expression calm.
"I did not strike out of envy or anger, Father. I merely responded to imbalance. Thor tried to take what is not his… and the Balance acted."
"You are neither judge nor executioner here!" Odin roared. "That judgment belongs to me!"
He rose from his throne, descending the steps with the authority of a god who has ruled for millennia. His crimson cape billowed like a living storm.
"Thor acted recklessly, yes… but you humiliated him. You judged him as if you were superior!"
Vidar clenched his fists. Odin's voice cut like ice, but he did not flinch.
"I did not act out of pride. The weapons manifested when my divinity awakened. I did not seek them. I did not steal them. They are an extension of what I am."
Odin watched him in silence for a moment.
"Where did those weapons come from, Vidar?" he finally asked, his voice lower but laden with intent. "That sword… that shield… they weren't forged in any Asgardian forge. Not by the elves, nor the dwarves, not even Eitri has made anything like that. Who gave them to you?"
Vidar lowered his gaze briefly.
"It wasn't a who… but a what. The Balance. It presented itself to me as a living force. Called me its Guardian. Said I no longer belong to just one extreme. And then, the weapons activated. I didn't summon them… they simply appeared."
Odin narrowed his eye. He began walking slowly around his son, like an ancient predator sizing up its prey… or a father evaluating a threat.
"Power that ancient doesn't come without cost, my son," he murmured. "If the Balance has chosen you… then its judgment weighs upon you as much as it does on anyone else. And you must prove that you won't become worse than the very thing you aim to correct."
He stopped in front of him, towering.
"Remember this, Vidar Odinson: You are not above your brother. Nor above this family. Nor me. If your power seeks to impose order on Asgard… then Asgard will impose order on you."
Vidar took a deep breath… and bowed.
"Understood, Father."
Odin raised his head and slowly returned to his throne. Before sitting down, he spoke once more, his voice deep:
"I do not oppose your power… but I do oppose how you used it today. Thor is impulsive, yes. But he is also your blood. Next time… temper his fury without making him feel defeated by someone who thinks himself above him."
Silence.
The judgment was over. But the weight of those words would remain with Vidar for a long time.
When the throne room doors closed behind him, Vidar walked in silence through the golden halls of the palace. The enchanted torchlight bathed the walls in warm reflections, but inside his chest, a colder shadow was kindling.
He reached the Balcony of Stars, a secluded place where princes once contemplated the skies. From there, the Nine Realms looked like distant constellations floating in the fabric of the cosmos. Asgard seemed eternal… but to him, for the first time, it also felt small.
He leaned against the rune-carved stone railing and closed his eyes.
"It will always be Thor," he thought bitterly. "No matter how responsible I am… or how much power I awaken… Odin will always see him as the heir. The warrior. The future king."
He recalled the judgment from moments ago. His father's words still echoed in his mind. They weren't just a scolding. They were a reminder: "You are not above your brother."
Vidar looked up to the sky, where the stars twinkled with ancient indifference. The same stars that had seen worlds born… and watched them fall.
"King of Asgard…" he whispered, almost mockingly. "Is that truly the highest I should aspire to?"
He felt the weight of his golden sword on his back, the shield still humming with a dormant yet living energy. They weren't symbols of conquest, nor ornaments for a throne. They were answers to something far greater.
"I wasn't born just to rule a golden kingdom…" he murmured with resolve. "I'm destined to balance galaxies. To walk among gods and titans. To judge what even kings dare not look upon."
He turned to glance at Asgard one last time that night.
"Thor can keep the throne. The Balance has given me a far greater purpose. One even Odin doesn't yet understand."
And with that certainty burning inside him like an eternal flame, Vidar walked away… leaving behind the crown he never desired, to step toward a destiny that only the truly chosen could carry.
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