Loki's cool fingertips leave behind streaks of fire on your cheek. You find yourself unable to speak, so you squeeze your eyes shut - afraid that you're misunderstanding.
Until you hear him speak once more.
"Elskede?"
Letting out a sob, you open your eyes to look down into Loki's emerald gaze.
His name leaves your lips, barely a whisper, when suddenly you feel his fingers in your hair, and he pulls your lips to his in beautiful desperation. You laugh and sob at the same time against his kiss as every fear and worry you have been holding for the past weeks melts away.
"My Valkyrie," he sighs, pulling his lips from yours as he strains to sit up, clearly still dizzy and in pain.
"Pater!" screams Anthony from Herkja's arms.
You watch Loki's eyes widen as the color drains from his face. Scrambling to his feet, Loki leaves you kneeling in the dirt only for a moment as he races to Herkja, taking Anthony from her arms before coming back to you, and pulling you both in tightly to his chest.
"Vennen mín. Ástin mín," he says, his voice breaking as you feel his lips pressed firmly against your forehead. After a moment, Loki pulls his lips away and places his forehead on yours as he cradles Anthony to his chest.
"You fought for me," he says in a tone of disbelief.
"Every day," you answer through silent tears.
Loki lets out a shuddering sob and wraps his free arm around your waist, pulling you tightly to his side as he buries his face in your neck, allowing several shaky sobs to escape while tears run down his face.
"I'm so sorry, kærasta," he cries quietly into your ear, placing kisses on your neck.
Suddenly a bright flash from the cave and Thor's terrorized screams cause you and Loki to look at each other in fear.
Loki stands and rushes back to Herkja, handing Anthony to her and kissing her cheek in thanks. In a flash, Loki is back at your side.
"Go. Hide. I'll find you when this is done," he says determinedly.
"Absolutely not," you hiss, taking his hand and lacing your fingers through his. "We're partners, remember? We do this together."
"Your son needs you," Loki says, glancing once more to the cave as another agonizing scream from Thor rings out from the entrance.
Loki begins to stand, but you tighten your grip on his hand and pull him back down.
"I'm not leaving you," you say firmly as you look to Herkja and nod. In a haze of purple she disappears with Anthony, leaving you and Loki outside the cave.
"My stubborn woman," Loki says, grabbing hold of your chin and crashing his lips to yours for a moment before pulling away and gazing at you.
You reach out and grab the Tablet that you had dropped nearby. "Now," you say, looking back at Loki. "Let's go save your brother."
Side by side, you and Loki approach the mouth of the cave and peer inside. You gasp in horror as you see Sif, Fandral, Volstagg, and Hogun all on the ground, bloodied and beaten. Amora now holds Thor in her seidr, levitating him above the ground as she sends dark shockwaves through his body, causing him to contort and painful and unnatural ways.
She sends another blast of dark magic through his body as he releases an ear-splitting howl of pain and your body tenses. You prepare to lunge for Amora but Loki pulls you back, taking the Tablet from your hands.
"Wait, darling, we need a plan of attack."
"I have a plan," you hiss. "Attack!"
"No, my love," Loki says, tightening his grip on your arm as Thor cries out once more, his body convulsing in the air as Amora smiles sadistically. "She uses dark magic. She's too powerful."
"Then what do we do?" you ask, panicked.
"My father was right," Loki says quietly. "The only way to fight magic, is with magic."
Your eyes grow in horror as you watch Loki's green seidr loose its color, fading to a sinister grey as he conjures two black orbs in his palms - the same dark magic flowing through Amora's hands.
"No, Loki," you whisper urgently. "You can't. It's too dangerous. It'll kill you if you're not careful," you say.
"I am undaunted, elskede," he answers. "There is no other way. This is our only chance. Wait for me to lead her away, then go save that witless oaf," Loki says, choking back a tearful laugh as he leans forward, and rubs his nose on yours.
"Loki please," you beg. "There has to be an alternative. You can't fight her alone. Not by these means," you say, gesturing to the black orbs.
"The end may justify these means, my Valkyrie. But only if there is something out there that justifies the end itself. That something is you. That something is our son. And I will give my life before I let her take that away again."
"No, Loki," you plead.
Loki slowly reaches forward and takes his lovelock between his fingers, lowering his lips and pressing a kiss to it before moving his lips to yours, leaving them lingering. After a moment, he breaks away only far enough to whisper.
"Forgive me, my promised one, for not keeping the only one that ever mattered."
Without warning, Loki tears from your grasp and steps into the cave, Tablet in hand. You desperately grasp at his robes, but they slide through your fingers as he lunges towards Amora.
"I have what you seek, witch! Leave your toy and make a deal with me," Loki cries, using his dark magic to blow out the side of the cave, shooting several bolts of deadly seidr at Amora as she drops Thor's body with a loud *thud* to the ground.
You watch in horror as Loki and Amora trade blows, that dark and sinister seidr flying about the cavern until Loki strikes her once, and disappears through the gaping hole in the cavern. Amora rushes after him, leaving behind the bodies in the dirt.
You watch Amora teleport up the side of the mountain, giving chase to Loki. Once gone, you run to Thor who remains barely conscious.
"Oh gods," you murmur in panic, bringing your violently shaking hands over his chest. It takes you a moment to focus as your blue seidr begins scanning his body, finding broken bones.
So many broken bones.
You begin mending the serious ones piece by piece until Thor's ragged, shallow breathing eases, and his eyes flutter open.
"Oh thank the Norns, Thor - you're alive!" you cry out tearfully.
You watch as his mouth moves, but no sounds comes from it. You lower your ear to his lips, and catch a single, faint word.
"Sif."
Glancing about the cavern, you see a mess of dark hair attached to a deformed body - limbs splayed and blood pooling around her side.
"I-I-I need to heal you first," you say, your voice shaking. But Thor reaches up with what little strength he has remining, and grabs your wrist.
"Sif."
"O-okay," you say, standing from Thor's side as he continues to fight to breathe and making your way to Sif.
As you draw nearer, your stomach tightens as you see a massive burn down her leg, and blood pooling beneath her.
"Oh no...Sif," you whisper. Quickly, you get to work, your healing hands above her body. You let out a sigh of relief when you find her heartbeat. Incredibly faint, but still there.
Moving your hands above her, you feel where the blood pools inside her abdomen, and you focus on diverting the blood flow with one hand while you try to repair the damaged organs within - something you've never done before. But you focus on the organ the same way you would a torn ligament, and finally you start to feel the threads coming back together piece by piece.
Sweat trickles down your brow as you focus, and in a matter of minutes you feel her body reacting. The organs coming back together, the blood returning to the veins. You find a few broken bones and heal them as quickly as you can.
Relief courses through you as Sif's belabored breathing slows, and you feel her body beginning to function once more.
Still in bad shape, you're at least satisfied Sif has a chance to live before dashing over to Hogun, and letting out a sigh seeing that he's simply knocked unconscious. You wake him, and he blinks a few times.
"Be slow getting up," you warn him as he nods.
You then move to Volstagg, who it seems has received a blow identical to Hogun. You waken him as well, giving him the same warning before moving to the last of the bodies on the ground.
Fandral.
You can tell he's in bad shape. And immediately you notice he's not breathing.
"Hogun!" you shout. In a flash, Hogun is at your side. "He's not breathing," you say, flustered and frightened. "I-I need oxygen to get into his body while I try and figure out what's wrong."
Hogun nods and pinches Fandral's nose, blowing into his mouth every few seconds as you raise your hands above Fandral and search for the most grievous of injuries.
You find it in his side, towards his back, where a large blade has been buried to the hilt, nearly impaling him completely as the blade is only inches from coming out the other side of his body.
"Shit, shit, shit," you say, starting to panic.
Suddenly a loud explosion from outside the cave up the mountain reminds you that you don't have a lot of time.
You need to get to Loki.
But you can't let Fandral die.
Re-focusing on the task at hand, you take a risk.
Using your seidr, you hold Fandral's organs in place in an icy blue light as with your other hand you slowly slide the blade from his side, ignoring the sickening feeling of flesh on metal.
Once extracted, you can feel that his body is being held together by your seidr alone.
If you drop it, he'll die immediately.
Sweat dripping down your forehead, you concentrate on the feeling of Fandral's blood and tissues, beginning the work of piecing them back together the best you can. After several long minutes of intense focus, you finally feel his insides patched together enough to let them go.
Using your seidr to close the wound at his side, you notice he has started breathing on his own again, though he is not conscious.
"Hogun, he needs healers. Now," you say.
Hogun nods and takes off out of the mouth of the cave running through the forests towards the palace.
Once out of sight, you return to Thor, whose strength is returning slowly.
"Thor," you say. "I...I did what I could. Are you okay? Gods I though I lost you," you cry.
Thor lets out a small wheeze that you assume is his attempt at a laugh. He pushes himself up slightly, and brings a hand to your face.
"I have no plans to die today, little sister," he says in a low and raspy voice, wheezing between each word.
"Jesus, Thor," you say, inspecting him once more. "Your ribs are smashed to bits."
"Fortunately, I am mighty."
You can't help the laugh that escapes you as you roll your teary eyes, glancing back at Sif. Thor takes notice of her as well, and you watch the panic that spreads across his face.
"I stabilized her, Thor. But she's hurt. Badly. Fandral too - he's even worse. I sent Hogun to the palace for help but I-I...I can't do anything else. I don't know how," you say quietly, angrily as a tear falls.
Thor looks to Sif, and with a strength he shouldn't have in his condition he pushes himself to his knees, and crawls over to where she lay in the dirt.
Slowly, gently, he pulls Sif into his lap, cradling her broken body as her breaths come in short, pained gasps.
"My Prince," Sif rasps, reaching a weak hand up to Thor's face.
Thor simply lets out a shuddering breath and takes her fragile hand in his, lowering his lips slowly to hers as tears begin to fall from his cheeks.
You give them a moment, but you still need Thor's help.
"Thor," you interrupt, placing a hand on his shoulder.
He breaks his kiss with Sif and looks up at you, red faced. "Thor, I'm sorry, but Fandral needs help," you say, squeezing his shoulder once more before returning to Fandral, who still has yet to open his eyes.
After a moment, Thor joins you, clutching his side in pain.
"He's still bleeding through this wound," you say. "It needs pressure. I'll have to-"
A series of screams from up the mountain causes your heart to leap.
Loki.
"Go," says Thor, his hands replacing yours on Fandral's side. "I'll keep him steady. Go!" he shouts.
Standing, you run to the gaping whole in the side of the cave and begin teleporting in the direction you heard the scream - up the mountain.
Your feet land not far from where you had heard Loki.
"You're just in time!" a crazed, maniacal voice calls to you from behind.
Whirling around, you see Loki pinned on the ground, trapped and motionless within a grey haze. Amora stands above him, a massive sword raised above her head.
"NO!" you scream.
But you're too far away.
You can do nothing but watch as she brings her arms down, plunging the weapon straight through Loki's abdomen.
As you watch the blade pierce his body, you drop to your knees and scream.
And the world fades away.
Silence.
The icy blue light in your fingertips turns black as you begin unleashing a torrent of magical strikes against Amora, pushing her backwards as she stumbles once or twice.
Screaming, you throw bolt after bolt of dark seidr at the witch, who takes a moment to calibrate to your strength and regain her footing.
Once she does, Amora begins to counter attack, using spells and enchantments you've never experienced before. You dodge as she tries to trap you beneath a similar sheet of grey, but you stumble when you land, giving Amora the perfect opportunity to teleport in front of you, conjuring those familiar yellow cords around your wrists.
You scream and hiss in pain as you feel that burning sensation once more course through your body. You try to fight but the moment you reach for your seidr your body spasms as it feels like fire consumes your insides.
You drop to your knees, tears of pain in your eyes.
"DO NOT FIGHT ME, MORTAL," Amora screams, grabbing the tablet from beside Loki's still and bleeding body as she advances on you. "You are weak. Pathetic," she sneers.
"Fuck you!" you spit as Amora draws closer.
Slowly, you move your bound hands to your waist.
Wrapping your fingers around the hilt of Loki's dagger you pull it quickly, flinging it at Amora with both hands.
But she senses your action, and the moment you toss the dagger she teleports out of its way, reappearing directly in front of you as she grabs your throat, pulling you to your feet.
"I've won, child!" she shouts over the fierce mountain winds, her finger wrapped tightly around your throat. "I have what I seek and your prince lays dying on this mountain. You have lost," she cackles, tightening her group around your throat as she sends a pulse of dark magic through your body, causing you to let out a scream.
The moment the burning stops, you let out a crazed laugh as Amora snarls.
"You...say you won. And yet...you linger here...to torture me," you wheeze through Amora's tight grip as she uses her magic to send more rivets of fiery pain up your body through the cords she has conjured on your wrist.
"I may have the Tablet," Amora sneers, baring her teeth as she lifts you from the ground by your throat. "But I want more. I want to see you suffer knowing that I will destroy everything you hold dear."
You let out a choked, rasping laugh. "No...Amora," you wheeze as you gasp for air. "You've lost...you've...been blinded."
"By what?" she snarls.
"Sentiment."
With the last of your strength as your vision fades from lack of air, your fingers curl around Loki's dagger that has reappeared in its sheath, and you drive it up into Amora's midriff, twisting and yanking it as violently as you can, tearing it savagely through her flesh.
"See you in Hel, monster," you gasp as you feel her hand loosen from around your throat.
Amora howls in pain as she drops you, and you fall to the ground, sputtering and coughing, gasping for air as the witch in her panic pulls the blade from her chest, blood spilling in thick waves from the massive gash you've left behind.
Amora sinks to her knees as you rise. The yellow cords around your wrist disappearing as she falls. Her hands go weak and she drops the Tablet, which shatters upon hitting the ground. You watch as Amora looks up at you one final time, confusion and anger on her face, before she falls completely still on the ground.
Fixated on Amora's body, it takes a moment for you to hear the wet, rasping breaths coming from Loki.
Your eyes land on him as he has turned his face to you, reaching out a weak hand.
Dashing to his side, you fall to your knees and take his hand in yours.
He tries to take several gurgling breaths, attempting to speak as blood truckles from his mouth.
"Shhh," you hush him, your entire body shaking as tears begin welling in your eyes, blurring your vision. "Loki don't speak, save your breath, okay? You're going to be okay I-I...I'll get help. You're going to be okay."
You raise your trembling hands and reconnect with your seidr. But you let out a devastated sob as you feel the absolute destruction inside his body.
The wound is too severe. The blade too wide. Your knowledge insufficient.
You can't fix it this time.
"Kærasta..." Loki rasps as his skin begins to grey and his eyes begin to glaze over, his lids fluttering shut.
"No, no, no!" you scream. "Stay awake, Lo...please sweetheart I-I need you to stay awake for me. I...I need you," you sob, doing everything within your power to stop the blood that leaks from his body while trying to hold together the fraying organs with your seidr.
Loki raises his hand to your face, resting it gently on your cheek.
"I...remember," he says as his eyes flutter closed, and his hand falls.