The Dark Within Us || Loki Laufeyson

11 ~ Tales

"Like what?"

"Mjølnir."
He immediately said.
"Or things such as Heimdall's abilities."

I smiled at the thought of the tall man. I didn't forget his gentle gestures towards me.
"What kind of abilities does he have? And why are they unexplainable? Does that also apply to your mind reading thing?"
I curiously asked. And to my surprise, he didn't seem to mind my questions whatsoever; he actually looked like he enjoyed answering them.

"He is all-seeing and all-hearing. It is why he is the gatekeeper of Asgard and guardian of the bifrost bridge."

I wondered what it would feel like to be able to see or hear anything. Would it be overwhelming? Pressuring? Or merely beautiful and mesmerising? It looked like Heimdall was the kind of person who would both be incredibly serious about it, but who would also enjoy the endless possibilities.

"A fair amount of the inhabitants of Asgard are gods, or descendants of them."
Loki continued.
"Many believe that's the only cause for strange abilities; I, however, feel there is much more to it. Powers can be influenced, both negatively and positively. That's why I study. To increase the abilities I have and become stronger, more intelligent, than others."

Something about the way he held up his book, with that mischievous grin on his face, revolted and interested me more than I could explain. I found it refreshing how he wanted to prove others wrong by increasing his knowledge and working on himself. But that also made him scary and selfish; he clearly felt he was becoming better than the people around him.

"Are you a god, too?"
I asked him. His brother, Thor, was one.

"People do call me that, yes."
He simply said. I didn't go into it.

"Can I borrow one of your books?"
That made him look up from the pages again. He studied me for a second, his eyes searching for something.

Was he looking into my mind again?

I looked away, to my lap. I felt exposed and uncomfortable to his bright blue eyes, in a way that frightened me. I knew he could look through my brain, study me from the inside and find things I didn't even know. Whenever and whatever I thought, he would see, and he would be able to read it before I could decide wether to say it out loud or not.

"I'll ask Frigga to bring some basic Norse mythology down from the library."

I never heard him say her name before. It sounded out of place; like he shouldn't be calling her by her first name. Just like I didn't call my father 'Will' or 'William'. It didn't feel right.
Or maybe I just didn't want to hear Frigga's name, since it reminded me too much of the way her warm, crimson blood had felt as it poured through my fingers.

"Really?"
I furrowed my brows in disbelief and met his eyes again.

"Why not."
Was his short explanation before he turned back to his reading, flipping over a page.

~

The single man had finally left. While I was sure there were still stains on the floor, there were no bodies left and I was quite sure there weren't as many deaths as I had initially thought. That somewhat relieved me.

But while my view no longer consisted out of empty cells and cracked bones, the uneasiness hadn't left me whatsoever. Actually, it had become worse than it was. My skin felt itchy, my clothes suffocating and I swore I felt something—or someone—drag it's fingers across my spine every now and then.

Loki didn't seem to notice my discomfort, or maybe he just didn't say anything about it. He probably knew what was going on inside my head, anyway. Did he know I saw Frigga die?

I shook my head resolutely. That vision thing was just another part of the weird glitch inside me; it wasn't real, it wasn't something that I needed to worry about.

Footsteps came closer, walking down the stairs. I had a slight hope that it would be someone I knew.

A guard's uniform appeared, followed by an unfamiliar face. He headed straight for Loki's cell. When the man stopped, his features serious, neither of them said a word. Then Loki curtly nodded, sending the guard away.

I opened my mouth to ask what was going on.
To ask what he came to tell.

But Loki just spread out his arms, and sent everything around him flying to the side with a strong, magnetic-like pulse. Including me.
Chairs, tables, books and even some rubbish that had fallen from the ceiling before lay silently on it's side. While I had only been lifted up slightly, my body had been smashed against the wall, my spine slightly aching from the collision. A few books had been thrown past what used to be a barrier between our cells.

His eyes were cast down, his fingers trembling.

What happened?
I tried to ask him.
Are you alright?

Then he rapidly turned his head to meet my eyes. His face looked empty and ice cold, without any emotion. Then, with his lips moving but his voice only audible in my head, he told me:
"Stay out of my way, or I will watch you die the way you watched her."

~

I flipped through the pages of the book. Its' cover had a dark brown, leather colour, with black letters engraved in it. I didn't know what it said, but when I let my finger slide over the title, I felt an odd connection to this ancient language.

   Kunnandi ir einn óhœgr koncept. Þat mega munu meiri inn mang lunds, men munu lágr réttr samr. Fordǽða ir samr. Inn þing, kunnandi ir magr hugr ór þat, ok mega munu leggja skilja inn í tveir separata vili.
   Kunna hyggja hvárrtvegja 'til vita, til skilja, til vita með hjarta' sem vel sem 'til eiga insit inn gamall rekyrs'.
   Flestr kommon orð fyrir fordǽða ir fjölkyngi, sem ir koma fran kunna ok hyggja 'ríkr skyn'.
   Megin, hvárrtvegja fordǽða- ok kunnandi-leið mega munu baka. Eigi einga með source kyn ór fordǽða, men enn með einn kontrolling þat.

My eyes scanned the pages, unsure of what I was reading. I recognised a few words, but it wasn't enough for me to fully understand the text.

I almost wanted to ask Loki about it.

Almost.

I glanced his way, surprised by what I saw. Apparently I had been caught up in reading for a while, because the man had cleaned up his cell and was now neatly sitting on his bed, hands folded on his lap and eyes focused on the barrier in front of him. I could barely see the blue pair, but they worried me in a way I couldn't explain.

For once, I wished I could look into his mind.

Magic was a concept I didn't understand whatsoever. It was probably something I shouldn't believe in, nor be interested in, but what else can you do when you're stuck in a prison in a different realm? My point exactly.

I only knew magic from the movies, the books, the crazy stories about mermaids and fairies and gnomes and talking birds.
But this magic... The one Loki spoke about, the one this strange book seemed to describe... It was different. Real. Scary, but real.

He calmly flipped the page again, the sound of the edge scraping over the paper.

I watched him. Watched his eyes scan the sentences, perceptive and alert. His movements were so simple and calm; he was completely in control of his appearance, of his actions... Probably of his magic too.

I lingered on the features of his face. What would his magic look like? Would it be anything like my 'abilities'?

And for a single second, I thought he glanced my way. Maybe he'd show me one day.