The Hammer of Thor

After leaving Randolph’s, Magnus and Alex meet up with Sam, Blitz, Hearth, and Stanley, an eight-legged horse they previously met while infiltrating a giant’s home for Thor. While Sam takes Hearth and flies to Jotunheim, Blitz, Alex, and Magnus ride Stanley to the realm of the giants, Magnus sitting at the back in the place he refers to as “the seat from which you will fall off and die in case of rapid ascent” (280). Without anyone falling off, Stanley runs, leaps, and rolls to move between Midgard and Jotunheim, only for all three passengers to get knocked off by a low-hanging branch in the forest.

Upon closer inspection, Magnus realizes the branch is a cable, which is actually the shoelace of a giant who goes by the name Tiny. Tiny is on his way to Utgard-Loki’s bowling alley for a tournament. Magnus asks if he can give them a lift, to which Tiny says the alley isn’t safe for such small people who haven’t proven their friendly guests. Instead, if the group carries Tiny’s bowling bag, he’ll make sure everyone knows they’re friends. The group agrees, and Tiny takes two steps over the horizon and away, leaving the group with his bag, which resembles “a sheer dark cliff that rose five hundred feet to a wide plateau at the summit” (286).