I Spy (Open)

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Jormungandr was quite positive that he'd been given the worst tent possible. The thing reeked of humans and blood and bile, and when he'd been so graciously escorted to it, someone else's belongings had been inside. Apparently, tents were recyclable. Jor had forced himself to keep his mouth shut when the commanding officer had indicated he would be sleeping in this tent. He had so desperately wanted to tell the mortal off and demand better quarters, but that would have ruined his careful planning. And he'd worked so hard to get over here.

So he'd kept his mouth shut and he'd dealt with it. Jor now spent as much time away from his tent as possible, occupying his time instead by wandering around the camp and listening. He was fairly certain that nobody knew who or what he was, so it had been all too easy to slip about the camp unhindered. He'd even recruited some help. During his first week here, Jor had stumbled across a tiny garden snake, and after it had recognized him, he'd decided to take the little serpent in. Devon, as he was now calling the tiny snake, was very good at gathering intelligence. Soon, Jor knew practically everything that was going on in the camp. Of course, there wasn't much he could do with this information, but he liked having it.

Today, Jor was enjoying a calm stroll through the camp. Of course, he was doing it the day his sector was scheduled to go fight on the front lines, but it wasn't like he was avoiding the fight or anything.

Well, maybe he was avoiding it. He wasn't keen on meeting Hel on the other side of the veil. He was suddenly reminded of his siblings, and how he'd left without telling them his intentions. He felt a tiny bit of remorse, but he buried it, like he did with everything else. Instead, he focused on avoiding his commanding officer, strolling along like he had somewhere to be.

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There was a man strolling away from one of the command tents with a smirk on his face. Though the face was not familiar, the expression on it probably was, particularly when he caught sight of Jormungandr and the smirk turned delighted. He made a beeline for the boy, ignoring the way he seemed intent on getting somewhere else.

"Well, this is a surprise," he observed in casual amusement, deliberately not bothering to explain himself or give anything away, he wanted to see how good Jor's senses were. He had no doubt that the boy would recognise him instantly, but he wouldn't be who he was without playing a few games.

"Never had you down for a soldier."

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Jormungandr stopped when he heard someone speaking nearby, as if to him. He turned to face the voice, frowning slightly as he didn't recognize the face. Of course, he was more than used to people not being exactly what they seemed, but it wasn't often that random strangers approached him. There was something about this man though... Something that was familiar. The expression on his face was all too familiar to the former snake. And he could have sworn that he tasted magic in the air. That alone gave it away.

Keeping his expression carefully neutral, he shrugged. "Well, not exactly," he replied, glancing away to check that his commanding officer wasn't nearby. "Kinda avoiding that as we speak. Turns out that's not really my style." And that wasn't a lie. While he probably had more than enough physical strength, and he had discovered that he could actually wield a sword quite well, he wasn't too fond of fighting fair. Jor preferred toying with people, and making them kill themselves, without having to dirty his own hands in the process.

Cocking his head to the side, he couldn't help but smirk as he retorted, "So should I be surprised that you're running around here behind Hermes's back? Bet he'd be pissed if he found out, regardless of what you're doing."

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Though Jor didn't give anything away in his expression, the fact that he answered so casually made Loki suspect he'd probably already worked it out, he couldn't imagine Jor would have said that to somebody he didn't know... but then his son liked to play with people just as much as he did, it was entirely possible he'd say that sort of thing just to see how they'd react.

His next words, however, confirmed his initial assessment, Jor had him figured out. There was definitely a hint of pride in his expression as he responded.
"I'm sure he'd be terribly irritated, but since when have I really cared what he thought? Even as headmaster I didn't listen to him, and much as he might like to pretend he's in charge, I am nobody's subordinate."
If there was one thing he hated, it was being told what to do, luckily he'd learnt to deal with people pretending they were above him by nodding, smiling and then immediately turning around and doing whatever the hell he wanted to do anyway.

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A mischievous grin spread across Jor's face at his father's words, and he couldn't help the snicker of agreement. It was typical for Loki to do as he pleased, so he honestly shouldn't have been surprised at the god's presence here. He probably should have expected it, to be frank. But no matter. He was more excited with the fact that Loki was sneaking around behind Hermes's back. "Well, naturally," he snorted, rolling his eyes as if that was the most obvious thing in the world. "I was just pointing that fact out. That, and I'm always game for anything that means messing with another god." Especially Hermes. Jor was not fond of Hermes. One encounter had been enough for the snake.

And speaking of authority figures, one was storming along in his general direction. Jor took a slight step back, blending into the shadows of a tent. The officer walked right by, like he hadn't even noticed that anyone was there. Watching him go, Jor idly commented, "The whole fighting thing might not be as much fun as it's cracked up to be, but getting free reign of the camp sure is. People just love to talk, especially when they think no one is listening."

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Loki watched with a certain amount of pride when Jor let the officer pass by, completely unnoticed. He very much enjoyed being noticed, being the centre of attention, but given his preference for trickery, he also knew how to keep himself hidden from prying eyes when required, seeing that his son had picked up the talent made him very happy. While he didn't play favourites with his children, he was definitely very pleased at just how much Jor was following in his footsteps.

"Ah, mortal stupidity is a joy to behold and utilise," Loki agreed. He was here to help the invading army for the fun of it, but that didn't mean he had any particular loyalty to them, no matter what the king may think. He had no intention of telling his son to stop spying, or suggest whatever use he may have for what he'd learnt. No, he'd leave that entirely up to Jor, it was more fun that way.

"Have you heard many terribly interesting things?"

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Jor snorted at his father's statement. "Ha. That's an understatement," he replied dryly. The soldiers seemed especially stupid, for that matter. He wasn't sure if it was just that all the intelligent people were officers, or that they had all left, but no matter where he went in this camp, it seemed that he was surrounded only by idiots. Of course, it was useful for him, but it was annoying sometimes.

He couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at his father's questioning. Surely Loki knew more than he did, as he seemed closer to the source of information. But Jor figured he'd humor him. He might glean a thing or two from this whole interaction. "Just that a certain god is siding with Wayron, which I can only assume is you, since I've not seen any other deities wandering around here." he shrugged. "That, and that the high-ups are planning something big. Don't quite know what it is yet, but I figure it won't be long till I figure out what."

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"Of course it's me, all the rest are either staying out of it or being sickeningly noble and playing hero in the resistance," Loki rolled his eyes mockingly. Nobody else wanted to have a little fun and make things interesting, they just wanted the invading army gone. Nobody else saw the beauty in the chaos this war was causing.

"Let me know if you hear anything interesting, the officers might know all the plans, but you can't underestimate the knowledge to be gained from the foot soldiers, they gossip worse than old women," he smirked "and there may be something I can use to make things more interesting." Whether it would be to feed information to the other side - false or accurate, he'd decide later - or use it in other ways, the more he knew, the more he could do with it.

"Oh, but do tell me if you get bored with the soldier's life, you could be an officer if I gave the word."

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Jor snorted, sharing his father's distaste in the other gods. Maybe it was just the ones he'd seen, but they all seemed so stuck up and pretentious. Always convinced that their way was the right way. It annoyed Jor to no end, and was most likely the reason he hated authority figures.

He couldn't help but smirk as Loki insisted he share his information. Oh, he may be inclined to share now, but that wouldn't always be the case. He had to keep some things to himself, after all.

Jor cocked his head to the side at the idea of being an officer. A slow grin spread across his face. Ooh, that certainly sounded interesting. The officers had quite a bit of power among the camps, and he would just love to see the look on the other officer's faces when he got a promotion. But there were also downsides to that as well. He would have responsibilities, and most likely wouldn't be able to roam about as he pleased. He'd also miss out on the gossip, and that just wouldn't do. Shrugging, he finally said, "Maybe later. I'm having fun at the moment."