I LIVE...! ! ! !
...
Enjoy :)
The atmosphere of the land of the Aesir was depressing and miserable. Several families scurried out of their homes and farms on Prince Thor's order. From what they heard, the youngest member of the royal family, Loki, had been kidnapped by the Goddess of Death herself. So one could only imagine the horror they felt as they fled, praying the Queen of Hel would show them mercy. Mothers clung to their children, and the fathers gathered weapons to protect their loved ones...
Ragnarok had begun.
Heimdall hated seeing his people in such sorrowful despair. He wanted to concentrate on nothing more than keeping them safe and finding Loki's location...yet he kept wondering. What was Hela's plan here...? Much like Loki, she always performed schemes and caused trouble in her youth, and that's what worried him.
Oh Hela...what will it take to drain the darkness from your heart? Why must you remain such a hardened soul...?
"Where should we begin searching my friend"? Hogun questioned.
"We spread out, you, Fandral, and Volstagg will go surround the palace walls. Take Banner with you and protect him at any cost. I'll tell our men to watch over our people and scout the villages, once I've done that, Heimdall and I will see if Loki and Hela are somewhere in the palace. If they are not, then we'll all trek through the woods and pursue the mountains," Thor replied without emotion. But everyone around him knew better, they knew he was wracked with guilt. That he was silently begging to the Norns that his brother would be alright.
I'll find you Loki, I swear no harm shall come to you...I promise.
Hela studied the massive room, gazing upon several of Loki's childhood trinkets. Finally, she stopped in front of one of his desks, and almost smirked at all the books stacked up neatly on top of each other.
So, he loves reading and organization. How quaint.
Curiosity struck her when she spotted a wooden snow-globe collecting dust right next to his pile of books. Hela wrapped her soft cool fingers around the object securely, she turned around to check if her son was watching her. But he wasn't. Ever since she asked him if he wanted to know of true power, he had stared at her with a bemused expression before pushing her off. Now he sat on his bed, cross-legged with an arm resting on his knee and his hand on his chin, he appeared to be trapped in a deep trance.
"Are you finished pouting darling? It's been fifteen dull minutes of you just sitting there, do you mind telling me the history of this thing"? She asked, holding the globe up in the air.
"Frigga and Thor gave it to me when I was a boy, as a birthday gift," Loki answered blandly, not moving from his position.
Hela hummed in response, trying to cover her annoyance. He could at least try communicating more openly with her, she didn't think asking him one damn question would make him throw a little tantrum.
Shaking her head, she turned her attention back to the snow-globe in her hand. It was simple, yet gorgeous. Inside the globe were a herd of wild horses standing majestically in an open field during the autumn season. Hela shook it, and thousands of little leaves, painted different shades of bright reds and orange, flew around the beautiful four-legged creatures. Frigga hand-made it specially for him no doubt, with her magic, skill, and art, Frigga probably bathed Thor and Loki with fine gifts.
A twinge of jealousy twisted inside her, she never had the opportunity to celebrate anything with her son, or to present him with own meaningful gifts.
But I could never compare to Frigga...never.
Putting the globe back in its place with an exaggerated cough, she clasped her hands together and attempted to make conversation again.
"Well, I don't suppose you've eaten, you're looking a little thin darling. I could conjure up a hot meal for us if you'd like. In Hel, all I was allowed to eat were rotten fruits and-"
"You need to go," Loki snapped as he stood up with haste.
"I beg your pardon"?
"You heard what I said the first time, you have to leave. Soldiers are going to barge in here at any given moment, and you'll end up banished once again, or worse. I don't think you want that. And I couldn't protect you from that fate. It'd be best if you go".
"Oh, I think you underestimate me darling. Do you know what I'm capable of? I'm called The Goddess of Death for a reason, those fools can't hurt me. And besides, you never answered my question...do you not want to know of true power"? Hela smiled, with a hint of madness that Loki knew all too well.
"I've seen true power Hela, and I want nothing to do with it"! Loki nearly screamed. "This isn't a game, if you stay, then everything will fall into chaos, all of Asgard is against you. You sound so sure of yourself, but the Asgardians are strong, and if they have the chance to kill you they will. Do you understand what I'm telling you...? The prophecy can be avoided. Death, destruction, and the utter ruin of our realm can be avoided. And all you have to tell me is that we could share a hot meal"?!
Hela outstretched her palm, unfazed by Loki's anger. "Take my hand, I want to show you something," she says flatly. Loki was seething at her calmness.
Why isn't she listening?! I thought after reuniting with me after over 1,000 years, she would have the decency to consider what I'm saying. Why can't the Norms knock some sense into this woman?
Fuming, he took her hand and Hela guided him towards his balcony.
Baffled, Loki halted stubbornly. "Are you insane?! We'll be seen and shot at with arrows if we go out there"!
"Nonsense, they won't see us, they're too busy panicking," Hela said with disdain. Not waiting for Loki to answer, she opened the glass doors and led him out onto the terrance. Loki was barely able to appreciate the fresh air (that he didn't realize he needed) before Hela aggressively forced him to lean against the stone railing. Loki flinched at her roughness but relented. He also thanked the Norns that there wasn't anyone outside of his room...yet.
Hela dug her black nails into her hands as she spoke.
"Look, look at this. Asgard's empire. Look at it's beauty, it's gold, it's independence, how do you suppose Odin got it? Through subjugation. The man murdered a great many without remorse.That's our history. Apparently no one's been taught properly about it. I grew up with war and blood. Everyone around me constantly telling me that my destiny was to be Odin's Executioner. And that we, the Aesir, were the superior and deserved to rule over all others. I always stood faithfully by my father's side like the stupid girl I was, always trying to live up to his expectations. Always trying to please him. I took blows for him, I worshiped him, if he was in danger, it would be my personal mission to get him out of it...
...and for what? To be cast out? Forgotten? I'll never forget the day he decided to become a benevolent king, to foster peace, to protect life. And thereafter, he became ashamed to call me his daughter, simply because I didn't want to change. I wanted to continue holding absolute power in the cosmos, to own more than just nine realms. So he got rid of me, like I never meant anything. But my story can have a happy ending, Loki? Now that Odin's finally dead, and I have the rightful claim to the throne, do you know what that means"?
Loki looked at her with clear pain and discomfort, but he gestured for her to continue.
"It means I can restore what was lost. And you are my eldest and only son, you have more privileges than Thor. We'd be unstoppable and feared. You said if I stay then mayhem would ensue, but I thought you loved chaos. Oh, by the way, have you ever heard of Fenris"? Hela asked causally.
"The Lord of the Wolves? I remember I've read a few legends about him," Loki said, trying to distract himself by picking at his left hand, it didn't work.
"Yes well, Fenris belonged to me, he was such a good loyal pet, he loved playing with my opponents by sinking his blood-stained teeth into their limbs. He was killed by Odin right before my banishment. His corpse, and all the bodies of Asgard's true warriors happen to lie right here beneath this very palace. If my memory serves me correctly, The Eternal Flame should be in the Weapons Vault right above them...," she says in a chilling voice. "Loki, they don't stand a chance. They never did. What have I to fear..."?
Loki trembled, his nerves finally getting the better of him. He had hoped that the horror he felt didn't show before, now he was positive his eyes shone with it.
"Nothing...absolutely nothing...you'll bring your army back from the dead...Asgard will be yours...but at what cost? Hela, innocent blood will be spilled if you go through with this...I understand why you're angry. What Odin did is unforgivable, but-"
"But nothing," Hela said, her eyes flaring, she was livid. "I am the Queen of Asgard and Hel, and I will gladly take what is mine. Whether they like it, or not".
Loki couldn't comprehend what happened next, Hela gripped his arm, and in an instant, they went from standing right outside his chambers, to standing right in the center of the Weapons Vault.
Thor, brother, where the hell are you when I need you?
I AM SO SO SORRY FOR TAKING FOREVER WITH UPDATING AGAIN MY AMAZING READERS! :(
I've been so busy bc I've been working on some of my other projects and my life is just nuts!
Just in case anyone's confused, Hela has both fire powers and teleportation powers in this story ;)
So again, I sincerely apologize! And God Bless :)
(Response to Guest Reviews)
Martha: TYSM DARLING! I'm so happy you liked the last chapter! ! ! ! Haha, I know right? Disney and Marvel are my life ;) oh yeah! So the fan art (which I take NO CREDIT for) is basically supposed to represent Jotunheim, I figured that that place was beautiful before the war and everything Lol. Thanks for reviewing!
liesmith: Your words mean so much to me darling, TYSM! ! ! I really just want Marvel to confirm that Hela is Loki's mother, so I can die in peace ;) thanks for reviewing!
Natasha: Don't apologize! And OMG DARLING TYSM! I'm sorry about the cliffhangers! I know I suck! Yes, Thor is still older than Loki in this story (I love him as the big brother too!) Basically Thor didn't exist when Hela was banished, but she was in Hel for quite awhile before she was able to escape. By that time, I'm gonna say Frigga was pregnant with Thor when Hela got captured by Laufey. So then Hela got pregnant with Loki, and the war happened, blah blah blah. So when Odin found Loki, Loki was a newborn, and Thor was like a toddler...? Hope this made sense haha, thanks for reviewing!
Guest Number 1: Loki does believe that Hela is his birth mother, mostly because of the pendant, as for your other questions, wwwwweeeellllllll...youll see ;) Tysm for reviewing darling!
Guest Number 2: Your review cracked me up! :D That sounds like an accurate reaction from Thor! ;) Thanks for reviewing darling! !
Guest Number 3: AWWW YOUR REVIEW MADE ME WANNA GIVE YOU A HUG! I'M SO SORRY IT'S BEEN FOREVER! :( TYSM FOR THE SUPPORT/REVIEWING DARLING!