looked tenderly at her with his single,
brilliant eye. "True, I have promised Freia to the Giants when they
should have finished the palace, but I do not mean to keep that
promise."

"How wilt thou evade it?" Fricka asked scornfully.

"Loge, the Spirit of Flame, shall prepare the way. He agreed to help
me satisfy them in some other way and he will do it."

"Loge?" Fricka cried, still more scornfully. "That trickster! He is a
fine one to look to. It was a sad day for us when thou didst rescue
him from the underworld, where even his own did not trust him."

"He will keep his word," Wotan answered, confidently.

"Then it is time he appeared," the Goddess cried, "since here comes
Freia, the giants after her, to demand the reward." At that moment,
Freia, their Goddess sister, ran crying to Wotan to save her from
Fasolt and Fafner, the Giants, who followed her with great strides.

"Save me, save me, brother," Freia cried.

"I shall save thee," Wotan answered, reassuringly. "Did not Loge
promise to ransom thee? He will be here presently. Have no fear."
Nevertheless Wotan, himself, was not too confident, and he looked
anxiously for the Spirit of Flame. Meantime the Giants were striding
over the mountain.

"Come now," they shouted, "while we wrought, ye slept. Give us our
reward as promised and we shall be off."

"Well, what do ye want? Name a suitable reward and I shall give it to
ye." Wotan answered, trying to pacify them.

"We want only what is promised, and we shall have it. We shall take
the Goddess Freia." They struck the earth with their staves and roared
loudly.

"Donner! Froh!" Freia shrieked to her brothers, and immediately they
rushed upon the scene. Donner, the God of Thunder, carried a great
hammer with which he woke the thunders. "Save me from Fasolt and
Fafner," Freia cried.

"We'll save thee, sister," Froh answered, facing the Giants, while
Donner menaced them with his thunders.

"You know the weight of my hammer's blow," he threatened, while the
Giants laughed a horrible, rumbling laugh and Donner swung his
hammer. Wotan feared the strife that would surely follow, and being a
god of war, understood the value of diplomacy, as well as of force, so
he interposed his spear between the Giants and Donner.

"Thy thunder is powerless against my spear, Donner. The whole world is
shattered if only I interpose thus; so hold thy peace."

"Even Wotan abandons us," Fricka cried in despair. "Where is now th