When Darkness Falls - LOKI - Book One (Editing)

22. Observation ✓

Days had passed and they were no closer to finding a way to help Freya. It seemed as though everybody, aside from Athelia and Dolcia who had finally returned after receiving the news, had given up on the girl and moved on as if Freya's fate was less important than the upcoming nuptials affairs.

Athelia had returned to her reclusive ways. She didn't leave her room for anything and had even adopted an Asgardian maiden and guard to keep it that way. No one entered other than Dolcia and it was only to update her or bring her messages from Freya or Tria.

Athelia hadn't been able to sleep since Odin had shown them the truth of Freya's situation. It was more than just an infection of the blood and mind, it was a hostile takeover. He called it the Aether, something she had only heard of when her uncle was on another historic rampage about the convergence and the beginning of life on Dorian.

No one seemed to be concerned other than Athelia. She had to listen to every word Odin had told her, but by the end, she had no idea which stories to believe. His father, Bor, had indeed been the hero he claimed him to be, but there were pieces of the story that differed on Dorian and she had a feeling he had known that.

The legends were similar in ways. Asgardians had wiped out the dark elves and destroyed the Aether, but the presence of it now made her regret ever dismissing her Uncle Bronen as a man of many disturbances. She tried her hardest to recall the tales he had spewed over djen, but the only one she could remember was that of Malekith. However, Odin was not in the mood for fiction of the Elven King or the stories that put him in a slumber, rather than a grave.

Everything in her mind had become a jumbled mess since Freya had touched her. She could barely comprehend her emotions, let alone her thoughts. Not when the only thought that kept bouncing back to her was that of Freya, sleeping rooms away and unable to be near the one person she needed the most.

Athelia sat at her desk as her body hovered over Freya's sleeping form. She watched not allowed to see her or talk to her in fear that something would go terribly wrong, so all she could do was watch from the astral field as Freya tossed about in her sleep. She couldn't stand it. Not only did she come to care greatly for this young girl, but watching her in such a state brought back far too many memories of her childhood.

The days she spent chained to the walls of the dungeons as a father tried to save the girl the darkness had stolen. She had always claimed she never remembered that part of her life, but she remembered every bit. Every stab. Every wound. Every kill. Every praise from her father. Every toast to victory of the planet she had laid waste to. It was all too real to her and the more she watched Freya suffer, the deeper her binds dug and the hotter they burned.

A knock on the door had brought Athelia back to conscienceness. There were only two people allowed past her guards, so instead of rushing to answer, she pulled her feet off the desk and straightened up as she called for the visitor to enter.

"Frigga," Athelia said, glaring over her shoulder at the guard. Of course, the Queen would use her status to override her wishes, but it didn't mean she was going to stand in her presence. "Have you come to release us back to Dorian?"

Frigga gave her a sympathetic smile and perched herself on the corner of her desk. Athelia was surprised by her lack of formality, but it seemed as though the Queen had accepted Athelia's refusal to honor them further.

"Is it off to the dungeon then?" She quipped, but Frigga shook her head. "If you want an update on Loki, I have not seen him in some time and I highly doubt you want me to in this state."

Frigga chuckled lightly as she ran her slender fingers across the desk. "You remind me so much of my son."

"Is that an insult or a praise? You have to be more specific seeing as how one of them is imprisoned."

"Neither," she said. "Just an observation."

Athelia raised a brow, before standing.

"You are witty and smart-mouthed like Loki, but also fierce and intimidating like Thor." She explained. "I don't want you to lose your fire Athelia. I understand you no longer feel welcome in our kingdom, but I want you to know that I want nothing more than to see you on the throne where you belong. Our people need a queen like you."

"They're not my people."

"Only because you refuse them."

"I refuse their King." Athelia corrected her. "I refuse to bow to a man that would let a child die instead of doing what he can to help her."

Frigga stood, her hands rubbing together in front of her as she tried to find the words to speak. She knew she was walking on eggshells and that her status as a queen meant nothing, but it broke her heart to see Athelia straying so far so quickly.

"He's not refusing to save her Athelia," she said, her voice nearly cracking. "There is just simply no way to do it. The Aether was made to be handled by only one, there is no other being strong enough to manipulate it."

"I can't accept that." She seemed. "I can't. I felt that part Frigga. She s practically burning alive from the inside out as we watch. I know what is  to be alone in the darkness and that's where she and that's why someone needs to get her out of it."

"I wish we knew how to, but you are the only one here that understands what she is going through."

"I know," Athelia whispered, her head hanging low as her mind wandered. There had to be a way to help her and the longer she sat, the more one particular idea played at her. "I can take it from her."

"What do you mean?"

"Siphoning. If anyone is going to be able to handle the aether, it would be me. I know how to wield and manipulate dark magic, I do it every day. I can take it, I've done it before."

"Athelia, no." Frigga jumped forward wrapping her hands around hers, but Athelia pulled back. "This isn't your everyday magic Athelia, this is dark. It's more than conjuring or shape-shifting."

"I have to try." She insisted, knowing very well just how risky it would be. Athelia knew she was powerful and without her bracelets even more so, but she had felt the power that raged through Freya and she was certain that if she could harness it correctly, she could remove it.

"Athelia."

She shook her. "I am more than just the goddess of truth, Frigga. I wear these chains for a reason and if I could finally do one good thing in my life, it will be saving hers."

"Yes, and you are good to nobody dead."

"It is my fault that she is in that much pain right now. My selfishness. My desire for a damned crown. She is not going to be another etch on my soul."

"She is a neophyte, born to die for her queen." Frigga's voice strained as Athelia shook her head.

"And I was born to be nothing more than a weapon. She is more than a neophyte, I was wrong to think she was." Athelia ran her hands over her face in frustration. "Frigga I can't let her die. I don't know what would happen to me if she did."

Frigga froze in her step, her hand coming to her mouth as a tear fell on her blushed cheeks. The Daughter of War had learned to love and Frigga was more fearful now than she had ever been before, because now, Athelia had something more to fight for than a crown.

"And if it kills you?"

"Then your son is free to marry the woman he loves." Athelia held Frigga's blurred gaze.

"And what of Dorian or the people here that are relying on you to keep them safe against your army? If you're not here to keep the peace between the world then it's all for nothing."

"Frigga, I'm not a pawn or play in Odin's game. I told him when I arrived what would what happen if he interfered with business he knows nothing about and instead of coming to me he did it anyway." She told her. "I am not the Queen. I am not the one in charge and I will not be held accountable or used to clean up the mess he created. I love my people and I love my kingdom, and I love that girl. If he is as great of a king as he claims to be, then he doesn't me to fix his mistake."

"Athelia, please."