Chapter 51

"Stop." Shiva demanded entering the room. Cephera was relieved and yet not.

Cephera stumbled grabbing her belly and gasping. Her legs grew wet and she knew instantly her water had just broken while Shiva tempted to talk down Mako. "Stay out if this." Mako was growling at her daughter.

"No. Don't do this. I still have time to conceive." Shiva insisted keeping Mako's attention off of Cephera. Mako sneered down at her daughter as Shiva approached her.

"Fool. You were never meant to have children," Mako said. Shiva glared and took her last step before Mako turned back to Cephera with the intention of coming for her. Shiva grabbed her mother's arm and violently wretched her back away from Cephera while Cephera leaned again the chair unable to do much of anything. Mako howled aggressively at Shiva and pulled from her waist a long blade. Shiva's training with Diana was coming in handy. She spun past the first swipe of the blade.

Cephera attempted to move toward the door while the two continued to fight. It was easy to see Mako's larger size and combat skills were winning out quickly. Before Cephera got too far, Mako whirled and shoved the sharp edge up and into Shiva impaling her just above where he belly button would be.

Cephera yelled out Shiva's name while the Jotun fell to the floor holding her wound. The knife was still within her and Mako ignored her. She came at Cephera and pulled a strange item from her pocket. Cephera grabbed at Mako in an attempt to use her dark magic, but her frantic state of being on the edge of labour and the fact she feared harming the child made her attempt feeble. Mako lost some of her energy, but not enough to stop her. Breaking the item on the floor it shattered into a silver dust and Cephera suddenly felt chilled. She was no longer standing in her room, but instead she was in the frozen wastes of Jotunheim with Mako picking her up and taking her off to some unknown place.

(Loki)

Loki was concerned when Cephera didn't show up for supper. Even more so as Shiva was missing as well. A sense of dread inside him, Loki and Devian left the rest of their family behind to fetch the women. Devian went one way to his room and Loki another. Reaching his room the door was partially ajar. His heart began to thump inside his chest as he burst inside.

The scene before him didn't bode well for wherever Cephera was. Shiva was lying on the floor stretched out and blood smeared across the floor. She was, however, alive. When she heard the door open she turned her head to look at him. Loki rushed to her and knelt to one knee and helped her roll. He saw the knife protruding from her and her cringe as she was moved. "Cephera?" He asked wanting to know.

"Gone. Mako vanished with her." Shiva's voice was a shiver.

"To Jotunheim?" He pressed.

"Most likely. They want your baby." Shiva was drawing unconscious quickly. Her words growing quiet near the end. Cursing Loki plucked her off the floor and began to rush her to the healing room. He ran into Devian along the way who was a mess of questions the moment he saw them. Loki waved off all questions and passed Shiva's over.

"Get her to the healing room now and come to the throne room directly after. War has begun." Devian bit back any more questions he had and rushed off.

XxX

"I don't understand where the guards were, or are?!" Devian said when he reached the group gathered in the throne room. "They weren't anywhere near the rooms when I got there. Both Shiva and Mako were gone I thought they would be with them."

"I haven't seen them either. I assume they have perished," Loki said. They had been talking about what they had to do. "They've taken your mother. They grew impatient and have decided to take her unborn child instead while also creating a war." Loki was trying his best to hold back his rage. He needed a clear head. It was also what he told Diana when she had begun to panic and freak out when he told her.

She now stood with her hands clenched into fists biting back her rage as well. "So, we have time. They will have to wait for or induce labour first," Devian said with relief. Loki glanced at Odin, but it was Diana who dashed her brother's hopes.

"They don't care about our mother. They'll cut her open it they have to," She said as she began an impatient pacing.

"We need to go to Jotunheim now." Loki insisted looked to Odin. He had advised against it. He felt there could be a trap set in place. "If we wait she will die."

"We have no idea where they took her. Jotunheim is a large place." Odin reminded him. Loki growled and Thor put a firm hand on his shoulder.

"We must think this through brother. We are no good to anyone if we die before we take two steps across Jotunheim." Loki knew they were right, but all this talking made him feel helpless. He feared every passing second could be Cephera's demise. Tonight was suppose to have been a happy one. He had hoped to see her face grow bright with her smile as he asked her to marry him as he should have from the beginning.

"You need to get to Jotunheim as soon a possible," Shiva said stumbling into the room uncaring for the wound that had not yet healed completely. Her dress dampening with stains of blood. Devian ran to her and stopped her from moving another step.

"What do you know?" Loki demanded not in the mood to play nice.

"Cephera was taken for her baby," Shiva said, but she had told Loki this already. Loki felt irritated, but she continued. "Mako admitted that they wanted the child." She coughed as she spoke and Devian forced her to the floor to lie against his arms.

"Why not wait until she had the child. She is only days away from birthing?" Odin spoke up stepping next to Loki. Loki had thought this. Why not just steal the baby?

"Because Cephera is Loki's punishment. It's the Jotuns revenge for him killing their king. Once the child is born they'll kill Cephera." Loki felt his stomach clench. He knew they would kill her, but to know it was over his mistakes only deepened his guilt.

"We have to go immediately." Loki demanded. Odin stopped him from walking off to the Byfrost.

"We still have some time before the child is born, we must plan ..."

"The stress of the fight in the bedroom sent Cephera into Labour. You have very little time." Shiva told him. Loki looked to Odin fearful he might deny him the chance to save Cephera and doing as he had always done, take everything from Loki.

"Prepare my troops for a raid to Jotunheim," Odin said. "It's about time we settled this once and for all." He gave Loki one look before leaving to get himself ready.

"Do you know where they would have taken her?" Loki asked Shiva.

"I don't, but I could find out. I have an idea of where she could be, but the area is large." She answered.

"Bring her to the healing room and have the best healer see to her. I will come get her when we are ready to leave." Loki ordered Devian. Devian frowned. He didn't seem to want his wife involved, however, he didn't argue that point.

"I'm going too," He said.

"No. You cannot fight and you will only slow us down. It's bad enough I will have to bring your injured wife. I will not lose you. I will not lose any of you." Loki insisted.

"Take Diana. She's a skilled fighter," Devian said relenting his previous need to join the fray.

"You're right. She is." Loki nodded. Diana could be of use for when they found Cephera. She could teleport them both home and away from Jotunheim. Loki stood as Devian picked his wife off the floor and hurried away with her.

XxX

The plan changed slightly. Diana was part of a new plan created with Odin. With Odin's help of channeled power he would add to Diana's natural ability to teleport. Half of his army would go through the Byfrost with Thor and attack while Diana would teleport the rest to a different area. Shiva helped Diana visualize the place she would need to go. It would bring them closer to the main city than Thor. As for Loki he was on his own with Shiva who was as recovered as she could get.

They would teleport with Diana and several guards would help them disconnect from the crowd to enter the underground prisons in hopes that Cephera was being held there. Frigga gave Shiva a stone that had only one use. Once Cephera was found Shiva would use the stone to teleport them both back to Asgard. It was a one way trip and would bring both girls to safety. Loki clasped his armour together in haste as they all readied themselves for a war the likes of which the realms had not seen in a very long time.

As they got ready King Yorin arrived with his troops. The word of Cephera's kidnapping had them jumping into action. King Yorin would stay behind in Asgard to oversee the protection of its people while their king and both princes left for the frozen wastes of Jotunheim.

(Cephera)

"If I am to die anyway, then please give me peace of knowing if this had always been your plan?" Cephera said between heavy breathing. She was trying not to push, but it was the bodies natural reaction to her situation. She had been smuggled down into some darkened tunnels. It was freezing, but it was clear they held no concern for her comfort. The moment she was brought into the room she was put on her back and Mako had moved her dress and forced Cephera to bend her legs. Mako was desperate to deliver this baby.

Mako looked up at her that same irritated look on her face. "No. It wasn't. I suppose this might take time as you're being stubborn," Mako said. "Our plan was to claim the lack of an heir as a chance to have our revenge, to have our war." She told Cephera.

"How could you possibly be sure my son would produce no children?" Cephera asked her nails raking the cold stone below her as she attempted to hold back her baby.

"We couldn't be sure of anything in Asgard and so we sealed off Shiva's womb with a spell. She is perfectly capable of having children, but without seed meeting egg it makes such a feat impossible and also no healer would have looked for such an enchantment." Cephera yelled as a large contraction vibrated down her spine forcing her to push. She gritted her teeth in both frustration and pain. Trying to hold back a birth was much harder than giving it.

"Why?! Your own daughter!" Cephera was stunned and disgusted. Poor Shiva.

"My little abomination. We chose her because we thought she would be easily contained and manipulated. We didn't expect her to become so disobedient in Asgard. She had no idea of our plans, she wasn't worthy of them, she was just a pawn." Cephera was panting lying on her back.

"Why me?" She asked when she was able.

"When I noticed you to be heavy with Loki's new child, Razil decided that war would be declared and for our future this baby would be ours." Cephera gasped as more contractions coursed over her. "Someone would need to care for it as you all will perish."

"You won't get away with this," Cephera said before screaming again in pain. She bared down without truly wanting to and could feel the child breach her every so slightly. She couldn't hold out. Any more and she could harm her baby. She had to trust that Loki or someone would come and safe her and her baby. She had to trust that she had bought herself enough time.

As her baby's final moments in her body were done Mako cut the cord and without so much as letting Cephera see the child, she bundled them up and left the room followed by her guards and the door was sealed shut behind her. Cephera was left wondering if she had bought enough time, left to wonder if her child was a boy or a girl, left to deliver the afterbirth herself or risk infection and left wondering if she would be saved or left to die.

Thank You's

I'm gonna just say this for everyone as you all seem on the same wavelength ... Your hatred for cliffhangers and need to read more only fuels my evil mind! I'm glad you all have been enjoying this fic so much that you are sitting at the edges of your chairs as you awaited this chapter. *maniacal laughter*!