Chapter 2 : Let the Game Begin.
The pain spreads in his arm and shouts the Voice down. Loki crushed his hand on the floor, dislocating the bones by the way, to come back to the reality. He growls and whines when he removes his fist from the hole he created on the stone in his rage. In his madness.
He doesn't remember when he heard the Voice for the first time. But it's here now, loyal companion he'd love to get rid of. He cannot even decide upon the gender of that stupid Voice. It always speaks in feeble whispers. But it's here. It rings in his skull like thunder. It's more and more urging, more and more sarcastic. It taunts him, scoffs at him, points out every flaw of his body and mind. He hates this Voice that never lies and shatters his hopes ceaselessly. He hates it just as much as he hates himself.
His eyes fall upon his wounded hand and he winces as he assesses the damages. The stones ruptured the skin and the phalanxes are twisted in an odd angle. And, oh Norns, it hurts like Hel. He sighs. He'll have to waste so much energy to heal it… In his youth, he could tear one of his limbs from the rest of his body, and then reweld it in no time at all, without even spilling one drop of blood. But now that the torrent of his magic is reduced to pathetic rivulets, the merest injury forces him to sacrifice all the energy he has left. He sighs again. He is tired. So tired…
"Loki."
Loki starts violently. All absorbed by the morbid contemplation of his twisted fingers, he hadn't heard his visitor's heavy footsteps resonate in the corridor that leads to his cell. He quickly raises his eyes and growls under his muzzle when he sees the very person he dreams of dissecting first.
Thor.
The First Born. The Golden Child. Odinson. That little arrogant rat that always had had all the privileges. His never-was-brother. Always decorated with his shiny armor and draped with crimson red. Mjölnir always hung up at his belt. Reassuring. Threatening. Silent witness of Loki's powerlessness.
Thor stares at Loki, with the surly look of a kicked puppy that comes see his master. Thor has that look since he dragged him back in Asgard. And it sickens him. Loki wants to tears them off the skull, just to see Thor's face. He would hear him scream from the pain and he would delight himself in them, knowing that it was him who caused Thor's agony.
The azure eyes of the God of Thunder fall on Loki's hand, and they widen.
"What happened to your hand ?" he asks, suddenly distraught.
That question makes Loki's blood boil. He growls again and looks straight at Thor, concentrating all his hatred on his eyes. He hopes it will be enough to make that oaf drop dead. Oh, how Loki would like to spit in Thor's face to throw him back his false pity !
But in the end, a strangled laugh rattles in his throat and makes his body shake. Prize idiot. He is muzzled but Thor still expects him to give an answer ? That's too funny.
He is a fool. Simply beyond help. And he is supposed to be King. When he'll take the throne, it will be the beginning of the end for Asgard. And for the rest of the Realms, by the way.
That only increase Loki's laughter and forces him to bend to ease the pain that spread in his thorax (his ribs still hurt, courtesy of the Rabid Green Beast). For the first time, Loki and the Voice agree. Thor is an idiot.
Thor looks at Loki without understanding the cause of his brother's hysterical laughter. For one second, it freezes his blood and send a shiver run through his spine. But then, Thor sighs and shakes his head. It's been a long time since he last tried to understand Loki.
Thor steps forward until he reaches the railings. The sound of the boots on the crude stone brutally stops Loki's laughter and makes him recoil. The noise comes to him like tides: distant first, then deafening. Loki whines and crouches a little more. His senses throw into panic. His heart beats faster.
Loki doesn't fear Thor. Thor cannot enter in the cell or hurt him with words. But that noise… Thor is loud (he's always been). Each sound emitted in the accursed place reverberates in Loki's skull with dull violence. How Thor did manage to take him by surprise anyway ? The sound of hobnailed treads on the humid stone cannot be missed that easily in a place where silence reigns over everything. So how… ?
You are weak. And you don't even try to make things better. You hadn't slept in months, yet you wonder why your senses get blunt? Pitiful.
Loki's teeth grate. That's not true ! He is not weak ! It's voice that distracted him ! Its never-ending whispers disturb him and don't let him think properly. It's its fault if he cannot find a plan to get out of here ! Wretched Voice ! Just shut up already!
Tsk. Silvertongue indeed. You're really talented. You even manage to fool yourself.
Loki shakes his head to end that discussion that drains him. His eyes go back on Thor. The latter stares at him, with that disgusting glare full of a mix of resentment and pity. Loki holds the stare, half hoping that it will be enough to make Thor turn around and just go away (or set those hatred golden hairs aflame). But Thor doesn't leave. Quite the contrary. The God of Thunder lets himself fall ungraciously on the ground and settles down, cross-legged, near the railings, just out of Loki's reach.
Oh ? Did he finally learn something ?
Leisurely, as if everything was absolutely normal, Thor unfold on the stone a little bag of leather. That Loki could grab and turn into a weapon if he wanted to. But for now, Loki is just too taken aback to try anything. He just watches the Golden Prince align on the tanned skin roughly-carved pieces of wood. There is something drawn on the leather. Is that… ?
"I remember that you owed me a return match in the chess." Thor declares without even raising his eyes, still arranging the pieces on the makeshift board, with so much application that it's almost comical.
Loki arches one brow. Is he serious? He doesn't even remember having played chess with Thor in the first place…
Hum… Truth to be told, you don't remember much before the episode with Jötunheim…
… And that oaf wants to play chess with him ? Right here ? Right now ? On the foulest underground of Asgard's Palace ?
Maybe he has lost his mind ? Maybe he is as insane as you now ? It appears that insanity is hereditary.
Thor and Loki don't share the same blood. Heredity doesn't apply for them.
That was a joke.
Thor finally raises his eyes and resumes his staring. He blinks one, two, three times.
"You remember how to play, right ?"
And do you remember how to use that little thing we call 'brain' ? From what we can see, the answer is not that obvious…
Loki sighs and rolls his eyes. To whom does Thor think he's speaking with ? There is no existing game of strategy that escapes Loki's mastery. And that condescending tone… that is new. Who Thor thinks he is ?
"Let's play, brother".
Loki's teeth cringe on the metal when he hears the word. He puts all his hatred on his eyes, but it's quite useless. Thor doesn't care anymore. It's far so easier to escape the poison when the snake is gagged. Rat.
See ? Heredity. You, too, don't care about others' feelings.
Loki doesn't even bother to try and shut the Voice up. The Voice doesn't exist after all. And, there is something on Thor's tone that intrigues him. It's not the usual supplicant one. That… that is not a request. That is… an order ? Did he just… gave him an order ?!
Oh oh ! Our dear Thor finally decided himself to use his Crown Prince's authority on you ? How touching. Odin must be so proud ! That being said, he is the Futur Ruler of Asgard. And you, you're not even Asgardian anymore. Forced to admit that it would be a shame if he denied himself that little pleasure…
So Thor gave him an order, huh ? How dare he !? Does he truly believe that Loki will just obey ? What a fool ! He quite never obey the King of Asgard. Why would he obey the Prince ?
Rebellion then, huh ? But Thor is quite… stubborn, to say the least. And he's a spoiled brat. He won't go until you give him what he wants.
Good for him. Loki is not the one wasting his time.
White and black pieces are now standing on the board, ready to battle. Thor still glares at Loki, silently, intently. The God of Thunder observes his brother for a time, and then, smiles. That sneering smile from their time in the training field, when Thor wanted to provoke Loki and force him to battle against him.
"What's wrong little brother ? Afraid to lose against me ?"
Loki growls. Oh. But. How. Dare. He ?! He and his intellect that barely surpasses the one of a stuffed batrachians ?!
But even if Loki's blood is boiling with rage and outrage, Thor, him, remains impassive. And Loki understands. There is a trick here. All that… It's too strange, too out of place, even for him. What Thor is hiding ?
Getting paranoid now ? It's just a game of chess ! What is that you fear ? You said it yourself: Thor is not smart enough to win. Not in this game. So why the hesitation ? Just play and humiliate him already !
Loki sighs. He doesn't like this. All this. But the Voice has a point here. The temptation to defeat Thor is… appalling. So, grudgingly, Loki comes near the railings and sits, too, in front of his not-brother.
He he he… See ? He got you.
Loki's answer to the Voice (it's a hypocrite) is a muffled grumble. On the other side of the railings, Thor's smile widen on his face. And it's so bright that it could hurt Loki's eyes.
"Black or white, brother ?"