The Asgardian Outcast {Book I}

Chapter 34

(Diana's PoV)

The pain grew as the darkness crept up my arm. Loki was now kneeled down beside me, holding on to my arm.

"Just give up, you can't win!" the evil voice said again.

"Yes she can win! Diana please, hold on!" Tiana's voice called.

"Diana, listen to your sister!" I heard Loki say. My eyes where closed, but I couldn't open them because I didn't have the strength. The pain was incredible, and I tried to fight it.

"Diana!! I know you are learning about your past, and I want you to know nothing that happened was your fault!" Tiana yelled.

"Don't listen to that idiot, you know it was your fault! If it weren't for you, your father would still be here!" the evil voice said once more. I wanted to break down inside but I still tried to fight it. No mater how bad the pain was, I had to hold on.

(Loki's PoV)

I held on to Diana's arm as I listened to that evil voice inside her head continue. Somehow Tiana was talking to her, but I didn't care as long as it helped. I was using my powers to read her mind, and I heard everything that had been said. I really hoped she knew that the evil voice was lying.

"S-Stop i-it!" Diana barely managed to say.

"You know it won't stop unless you let it win!" the evil voice said.

"Diana, don't let it win! Fight it, and I know you can win, just hold on!" I said to her. I hadn't realized how much I actually cared until I heard myself talk to her. There was that tone in my voice that sounded, almost as if I actually cared. I didn't care about her.....did I?

"You really think Loki wants to help? You know why he's here, to take your power and use it for his own purposes! If you give in, you'll be so strong he won't be able to take your power!" the voice said. I got angry inside when I heard this but what Diana said shocked, and calmed me.

"T-That's....n....n-not t-true!" she yelled. You could tell by the way she talked that even breathing at this point caused her pain. She screamed again as her pain increased, and I wished there was something I could do to ease the pain. I could feel her arm grow hotter as the darkness left more burns.

"DIANA PLEASE HOLD ON!" I heard Tiana yell. But Diana was losing to the darkness. Diana screamed again from the pain being inflicted upon her.

"The burning pain will go away if you give in!" that evil voice said again. Wait burning....maybe there is a way to ease the pain, but if it doesn't work.....will it be worth it?

"Would you just give up, you know they are going to lock you up the first chance they get because your a monster!" that voice said.

"Diana, you are not a monster," I told her as my skin had faded to a blue color. I put my hand where the darkness was, and the screams of pain weren't as bad as before. She actually stopped screaming as the freezing cold from my hand stopped the burning. I removed my hand just in case the cold became to much for her to handle. My skin faded back to its regular color and Diana struggled to open her eyes. Her breathing was heavy and I could tell whatever darkness was there had left....for now.

(Thor's PoV)

We listened to Tiana talk to Diana. We all held our breath when she opened her eyes. She looked up with a look of confusion, but also relief. 

"What is it?" my mother asked.

"Somehow....Diana fought off the darkness, but....she wasn't the one to get rid of it. I could tell she was trying to fight it, but she was losing badly and then...something happened," Tiana said. The Avengers and I all exchanged glances.

"Does that mean...," Mr. Roggers began.

"Loki actually did something good?" Mr. Stark asked. We all exchange glances.

"Either way, Diana will not be able to hold it back forever, even with Loki's help," Tiana said with sadness in her voice.

"Well then what are we going to do? What if this happens again when Diana is alone?" Dr. Banner asked.

"I fear that when I tried to help her, it really did not help at all. We will have to try and help her, but I'm not sure helping her is the best thing to do," Tiana said.

"But if we can't be near her, how are we supposed to help?" Agent Romanoff asked.

"That's just it, the only way I can safely talk to her is through that spell. There's no way we can get close enough to talk to her, without at least one of us getting seriously hurt," Tiana explained.

"How long do we have until Diana can no longer hold back the darkness?" Odin asked.

"Honestly, I don't know. She could barely hold it off now as it is. We only have as much time, as Diana will allow us to have," Tiana said with her voice cracking just a tiny bit.

"We need to find her," Odin said.

"We can't, she could hurt someone!" Tiana said with a hidden hint of agitation in her voice. 

"She will hurt others if we do not go get her!" Odin said back.

"I am not going to sacrifice my sister's safety, anymore than I already have!" Tiana snapped.

"If we do not go after her, the darkness will overtake her and hurt her!" Odin snapped.

"But if we do go after her, she will never forgive herself if one of us got hurt. Then the darkness would have an easier chance of overtaking her!" Tiana yelled.

"Odin, listen to her. You know Diana can fight it, or at least she can fight it with his help," Frigga said. We all fell silent, as we watched Odin.

"Very well, we will not go after her. But what are you prepared to do if the darkness does win?" Odin asked Tiana.

"What I should've done years ago," Tiana said.

(Diana's PoV)

My eyes opened and I could see the relief on Loki's face when I sat up.

"Are you ok?" he quickly asked me.

"Y-Yeah I think so, what happened? The pain, it just stopped," I asked him.

"That was me," he said. He had this look on his face that was happy because I was ok, but also worry and I think it had to do with whatever he had done.

"What did you do?" I asked him. He was hesitant, but he put his hand where my burn had once been, and the burn was gone. I figured he'd stopped the burn sense he was a Frost Giant.

"Well, thank you," I told him. He looked surprised when I thanked him, but the surprised expression quickly vanished. We sat in silence for what felt like a whole day, although it was only about five minutes.

"You know, everything that voice said was a lie, right?" Loki asked me. The question caught me off guard, and he could tell. I went to answer but stopped myself. No matter what anyone said, there was still that doubt in my mind that I was a monster and I was dangerous. Honestly, I wasn't sure what the answer was.

'Maybe it was a lie, but what if it wasn't? What if everything that voice said was true, and I was evil. What if I was a monster, and I still am? What if I hurt someone else? What would happen then? Would I be locked up just like Odin wanted, or would I be forced to be alone living with the heart-crushing guilt? I don't think I can live with myself if I hurt anyone else. What if I lost someone else. What if I lost my sister? What if I hurt her? What if I lost any of the Avengers? Yeah, I'm mad at them but they're still my friends. What if I lost Thor or Loki? I could have killed them. But what if I had? What if I had killed them? Would I be able to forgive myself? Would I be able to forgive myself for actually killing Loki, if I had lost control again? Would I ever be the same if I lost the one person who actually understood the pain I felt? No I can't let that happen,' I thought to myself. The thoughts repeated in my mind and I nearly forgot that Loki wanted that answer. But I wasn't prepared to give him the honest answer, because....I wasn't sure what the answer was.