AUTHOR'S NOTE: I can't believe I've been gone for six weeks! I've missed you guys! I am so sorry for such a long delay but many things happened in my personal life all at once. I was at the end of my last semester before I applied for my associate credential, which I hope to receive in a month from now after I take the national exam. I also lost a beloved member of my family sometime ago. All of those stresses combined and rendered me completely incapable of sitting down to write. But to make up for my long absence I've returned with not just one, but two chapters! I hope you all enjoy! :)
Born to be a King
Chapter 29
Barbara didn't move a muscle when she heard the doors to the chamber open. Thinking it was Loki, she refused to acknowledge the sounds of someone inside. She continued to focus her attention on the view beyond her balcony. From her seat she could see the vast jungle that stretched as if it were endless. There was something about watching the dense canopy that seemed to soothe her raging mind. It seemed to be beckoning her somewhat, and she felt as if she had been there before.
She frowned when she didn't hear Loki's voice but the voice of various individuals. They were shuffling and moving items around the room, and she turned to the sight of an elderly woman and three servants removing items from the chamber. The first things to go were the food arrangements on the table, they picked up the empty wine and mead bottles that were strewn on the floor, and then to her surprise they began to remove the furniture. They ignored her completely and spoke to one another in a language she didn't understand. Barbara didn't even notice when the elderly woman stood aside, and when the subtle rush of magic left her hand. Soon they exited, and left her in a now empty room.
The only items left were the bed, the divan on which she sat, and a long table. Now alone once more she began to pace, finally focusing her attention on the chamber that was her prison. It was located in the highest tower of the palace. Ample and with a wide open floor plan, it was circular in shape. The only light came from the balcony, and the sunlight hit the crystal walls directly, causing the gigantic prisms to give off their multicolor lights. Not bright enough to be offensive to the eyes, but subtle and beautiful flashes of color rushed through the walls. There was something familiar about it, and for a second she felt that she had seen the same type of crystal before, in the manner of a road or maybe a bridge built of the same rock.
Her stomach rumbled with hunger and her throat was dry from thirst. She also battled against the sleep that fought to overtake her. All night she had tried to ignore looking at the table full of delicacies on the other side of the room, telling herself that she was not going to be easily influenced. But as the night raged on and she spent hours gazing at the magical jungle, her body began to crave sustenance. Finally she rose and tried to reach the table but the chains only allowed her to go so far. With fury she realized that the food was only there to taunt her, and she cursed Loki for being such a black hearted vermin. She picked up the empty wine decanters that littered the floor and she tossed them again angrily upon failing to draw a single drop out of them.
Now as she continued to pace the empty room her mind tried to focus on anything other than the way her body screamed for attention. She recalled the battle inside the cavern at Marr. How had Loki managed to draw Thor to his side? She remembered the only time she had seen his sibling, after she had been rescued from the underground base. He had seemed noble and concerned then, aware of how dangerous and imbalanced Loki was. Now he had helped Loki apprehend her. Maybe he was working with him in secret while pretending to help the Avengers. She remembered the way Loki had taunted her in the cavern. It almost seemed to her that he had been testing her. He had spoken of having created her, recalling conversations that she was supposed to have had with him in the past.
"I remember that night on Midgard when you presented me with your acquisitions" he said, holding her sword up and admiring it "you were so proud. 'The sharpest blade on Earth' is what you said to me. And now, here you are, the deadliest woman in the universe. You are what I made of you. But it seems that you forgot everything I taught you when you left this embedded in Beyard's core. I trained you to be better. I taught you to be disciplined and meticulous, not rash and impulsive"
Had he finally, truly gone mad? Just what exactly happened after he left Earth?
She suddenly grabbed her head and slumped against a column when she felt a searing pain explode in her head. For days she had battled the same aches. They seemed to come and go whenever her emotional state was altered sharply or she focused on a single train of thought. Victor had blamed them on the interstellar travel, explaining that her body was adjusting to being outside of Earth's atmosphere. She staggered to the bed and collapsed upon it. She closed her eyes, emptied her mind and began breathing slowly and deeply, the way Victor had coached her to help ease her headaches. When the throbbing finally receded, she burst into tears. Looking out toward the sky, she watched dawn break over this foreign and strange realm.
"He'll come for me... he'll come for me" she whispered to herself.
No, she was not going to let that conniving, odious Asgardian blackguard get the best of her. He would not break her, not a second time. She was no longer the naïve, helpless, and impressionable little human she had once been. He could starve her, he could torture her, he could attempt to swindle information from her, but he would fail. He might as well make true of his threat and drag her to the underground dungeons. All she needed to do was to hold out.
"He'll come for me" she reassured herself once more before she finally succumbed to sleep.
"My king, we have emptied the chamber of anything she could use to escape or bring harm to herself" the elderly woman informed Loki.
He looked up from the heavy book and nodded at her.
"What is her condition?" he inquired.
"She said nothing, and we did not acknowledge her, as per your order. She seemed to be restless and affected. It will not be long before the spell takes its hold"
"Return to her at every hour and keep me informed" he instructed.
The elderly woman bowed in acknowledgement and retreated. He returned to the tome containing the secrets to Diarmaid's sorcery but could concentrate no longer. Closing the book he placed it on the table next to him and walked to the edge of the veranda that opened up to a large, beautiful courtyard. The vast and lush terrace had once been King Beyard's private gardens. He ignored the beautiful sight before him as he recalled the fateful events that had occurred within that garden on the day when he and Barbara were torn asunder. He imagined Barbara in the highest tower of the palace now, perhaps slumped in a corner, battling with herself after the priestess visited her, placing upon her a spell of truth concocted using Diarmaid's magic. He hated doing this to her, depriving her and treating her as though she were but a common prisoner, unworthy of even the most meager of scraps. She was queen of the most magnificent realm in the universe and she didn't even know it.
He laughed to himself as he recalled the time when he brought her to Asgard. He had spoiled her then. He had kept her imprisoned in the palace but showered her with gifts and riches. She had been a mere human then, fragile and gullible, and he the powerful, awe-inspiring captor. She had been terrified yet mesmerized by him then, and he had fed off of it like a drunkard. He could elicit any reaction he desired from her, he could bend her to his will. But not anymore.
She was no longer a caged songbird, but a dragon on a chain. She was a savage beast, wishing for nothing more than to sink her claws into him and tear him apart. He had felt the heat of her hatred when her eyes burned into his in a way he never thought he would see. It had cut him to the very core even though he knew that her hatred had only been implanted into her mind. And yet, he wished for nothing more than to return to those days in Asgard when she was just a human, and see once again the wonder and adoration in her eyes whenever he was near.
With a sigh, he returned to the plush chair and took the book once more. He had read it over and over again, trying to work out variables of the spell that had been placed upon him and Barbara. But there was nothing indicative of restoring twisted perceptions of reality. Diarmaid's sorcery was one of destruction and distortion, not healing and restoration, but there was something he had found. A small secret, a seemingly harmless spell of truth that would serve him in the days to come.
More hours passed and the night ticked on. The elderly woman returned as requested, but the news were all the same: Barbara slept while the spell took its hold. Stingadr also came often with news from Mehmet. Doom's ships were still on the move and set to reach Dwyvendale by sundown on the following day. It all seemed peaceful for that night as though the Five Kingdoms were not plunged into an intergalactic war. The suns rose at dawn, the people of the city came and went, the kingdoms lived another day. The palace was quiet, no alarm was given from the tallest tower. Loki spent his day in the Strategy Hall with the realm leaders, preparing for the upcoming final battle at Neffarim. When the sun reached its zenith, Durrgo returned to the capital city and delivered the Power Gem into Loki's hands. It had been housed in a temple that Beyard had secretly built into the rock wall behind a waterfall that was the home of water nymphs. Realizing that he had been close to one of the items he coveted, Loki had been astonished. He and Barbara had been there only days ago. The memory of that magical night spent on that glistening lagoon made the obtainment of the stone rather bittersweet. A somber Loki watched as the three gems he now possessed were placed in their compressed chambers inside a vault beneath the palace.
Finally, as the afternoon shadow began its descent toward the weaning of the day, the elderly woman came with the news he had been waiting for. She found Loki on the same veranda as the day prior, looking out toward what once were King Beyard's gardens, and delivered the news that Barbara had begun calling out for him in her sleep. It would not be long now before she awakened. He sighed and gave the order without even looking at the old woman for fear of the priestess seeing the despair and anguish that consumed him. It was time to put his plan into action.
"Return to her and prepare her for my arrival"
She opened her eyes to the faint glow of the torches. She groaned, irritated. It had been almost a month since her arrival and her body still did not become accustomed to Asgard's longer cycles of time. She was often awakened through the night by Loki's desire and her own body's biological clock. She rubbed her wrists as she looked at the red marks surrounding them, product of the straps that had kept her bound to the headboard earlier in the night. Her captor's desire for dominance was strongly evident even in his most intimate moments. Miraculously, the marks were always gone by morning, just like the man who bound her wrists and subjected her to his demanding passions. She rolled onto her other side and smiled at the sight before her.
He looked almost childlike in sleep. None would believe upon seeing him lost in slumber that he was a dangerous god who did not hesitate to kill and destroy in order to satisfy his lust for power. She reached out and brushed back a lock of black hair that covered his pale forehead. As she gazed at his serene expression, she recalled the first time she had laid eyes on him many months ago. She chuckled at the fact that the handsome stranger who had given her a fake name later turned out to be none other than the ancient Norse God of Mischief. She ran her fingers over his perfectly chiseled cheek and sharp jaw line. Then she bent down and gently kissed his lips.
The arm draped around her waist suddenly tightened as the man next to her stirred, signaling his return to consciousness. His eyelids fluttered open and his jade eyes soon met her brown gaze. He gave her a teasing smile.
"Ravenous girl" he half-chastised as he flipped her over and positioned himself above her...
Barbara's eyes slowly opened. Her vision was blurry and she squinted at the bright lights. When her vision cleared somewhat she was met with the sight of two inquisitive eyes looking down at her. Recognizing the same elderly woman from before, she shrank back to the opposite edge of the bed. The woman simply tilted her head and studied her, then nodded as if pleased.
"Who are you?" Barbara asked. She felt as if submerged underwater, her mind was hazy and her head was spinning.
"I am Onessa, head of the royal household. How do you feel?" the elderly woman replied warmly, then rushed over to Barbara and caught her when she nearly fell backwards "well, that answers it" she laughed as she helped her sit back against the pillows "there, there. You will feel dizzy and disoriented at first, but your head will clear in time"
"What did you do to me?" Barbara groaned.
"I placed you under a spell" Onessa answered as if it were but a trifle.
"Ah, of course. Mind control. Loki sent you, didn't he?"
"The king has placed you under my care, yes, but the enchantment is not what you think. You are simply kept in a state that will prevent you from bringing harm to yourself and the king. It will also help you see and speak the truth"
"The truth is I'm a prisoner and Loki wishes to draw information from me. He might as well just make true of his threats and send me to the underground dungeons. You can go tell him I said that" Barbara spat with vehemence.
"The Underground" Onessa scoffed "it is not place for a queen"
Barbara's brow furrowed at the old woman's words.
"Well, come now. The king shall arrive momentarily. He cannot be kept waiting!" Onessa was now scolding the servants as they carried in all sorts of items. Two plush chairs were placed at the table that was quickly being filled with all sorts of delicacies. One chair was placed at the head of the table and the other directly to its right. Two servant girls aided Onessa in helping Barbara rise from the bed. When the covers were drawn back, she was astonished to see that she was clothed in a magnificent blue gown. She instantly looked up at the old woman.
"I had you bathed and dressed while you slept. Can't have supper with the king wrapped in a white sheet and smelling like a stable boy, can you?" Onessa jested.
"Might as well" Barbara said with sarcasm. The three women helped her stand and kept her from keeling over when her feet touched the ground. The room spun and every muscle in her body felt numb. For a second she thought of striking the women dead and making a dash for the balcony, but she knew she would collapse if she so much as tried to take a step. The elderly woman unclasped the chains connected to Barbara's manacles and guided her toward the table. They deposited her on the chair to the right side, and just as she sat, Barbara's blood froze. The servants stopped suddenly and stood back with heads lowered. The elderly woman smiled delighted and squeezed Barbara's shoulder before walking toward the figure that stood at the doors.
"My king" Onessa curtsied "she is ready"
End of Chapter 29
AUTHOR'S NOTE #2: Click 'next' to read Chapter 30! I've also posted my responses to reviews at the end of the next chapter!