CASTLE ↝ Loki Laufeyson | 2

↳ PROLOGUE

           A LOW WHISTLE, chilling and eerie enough to send chills down anyone in the vicinity, echoed throughout the home of the Allfather as Nova Amodei was being walked through the grand hallways of the castle, decorated to every last detail and leaving her eyes wandering from wall to wall. "Damn", she muttered to herself, admiration audible in her husky tone, mixed with disbelief that she was truly inside the large, lavish castle — albeit not exactly in the way she had hoped. "The gold everywhere is a bit much, but phew, wouldn't mind living in a place like this", Nova continued casually, like she hadn't tried to achieve just that for years on, and with half a smile, she threw a glance over her shoulder simply to find the two guards surrounding her utterly unamused.

          Without remorse, they shoved her forward, causing the brunette to stumble on the heavy chains around her ankles, and when she tried to regain her footing, the same uncomfortable metal gripping her wrists earned a groan from her. Gritting her teeth together, she huffed but held back her tongue, focus shifting from the handcuffs to the tall walls of the castle, completed with wide windows that allowed the warm sunlight to seep in — sunlight, which she was minutes away from denied, and she guessed as much when they halted at the front of two grim doors that slowly opened before the guards could lead her into the bottom level of the castle, to the prison where she was doomed to spend the rest of her days in.

          For as long as she could remember, her sole purpose had been to make it to the castle, to climb on the throne and rule Asgard as its queen — to prove everyone who had ever doubted her wrong. Then again, anyone who had ever crossed her had suffered a bloody fate, and she supposed that the trail of bodies in her wake had been what had led to being caught. Of course, she had tried to fight it, run rather than take responsibility, but thanks to the Asgardian warrior she had purposefully avoided after finding out just how capable she was, Nova had been cuffed, knocked out and dragged to the castle with lady Sif in the lead. It was a stab at her pride, a hit on her confidence, but instead of letting it show, she was full of sass and flirtatious smiles, and that was how she intended on staying until the bitter end.

          The restrains rubbing painfully against her flesh created an annoying sound that repeated with each slow step that Nova took on her way to her very own cell, irritating her ear and further spinning the temptation of complaining. Though in the position of a prisoner it would have been only inappropriate and inconsiderate — and perhaps that was precisely why she didn't hesitate to roll her eyes and let out a dramatic sigh.

          "Are the goddamn chains really necessary? I mean, all you have to do is ask and I'd go with you, handsome", Nova taunted, dropping her head against the guard on her left side, even though he was masked with a helmet, leaving most of his features to her imagination. When she was pushed ahead harshly, she concealed the throb of pain in her back with a belittling laugh, before turning to the second guard with a pout. "I had no idea Asgardian guards were into being rough. I've been approaching this whole thing all wrong", she thought out loud, hoping that each, sing-songy word would carve into their nerves as she rambled to seemingly deaf ears.

          With one last jab into her shoulder that would undoubtedly blossom into a dark bruise, Nova was guided to one of the cells, miserable with the lack of furniture but aimed to make less depressing with the walls painted white and the idea of metal bars replaced with golden, see-through windows that sparkled like treasure but burned like a bitch when touched. It was, evidently, designed to keep the prisoners in check, but Nova guessed that once or twice someone dwindling between hope and idiocy gave it their best shot — she was neither optimistic or stupid, however, so she cut her losses and accepted that there was no way to escape. This was her fate, one that she had drawn out for herself and there was no other option but to submit to it.

          Frankly, it was something she had submitted to years ago when she had been hardly a young girl. Always up to mischief, always in trouble, the complete opposite of her goody-two-shoes sister. The two hadn't talked in forever, though, and in all honesty, Nova was never expecting to — after only some years by one another's sides, their mother had grabbed the oldest of the two and abandoned her in their escape from Asgard. She didn't miss her, nor wonder about her whereabouts, she didn't concern herself with whether or not she was happy or even alive.

          She was too preoccupied with seeking the throne, even if her attempts went unappreciated. Much like the infamous black sheep of the Odinson family, Nova was the last choice for the crown, if even that — she had been born in the wrong family, at the wrong time, and that had only given her a lifetime of misery and loneliness. It wasn't like she had anyone left now, though, as she had fled home as soon as possible, found a weapon that had felt just right in the palm of her hand and then calculatedly crossed names off of a list in her merciless slaughter. Sometimes she had liked to think that she had been given no other choice, but other times, it felt better to know that she did have a choice and she didn't regret the one she had made.

          Not even now.

          "Get in", the gruff voice of one of the guards commanded, and with limited options, Nova made a careful entrance into the cell where her chains were finally removed, granting her the opportunity to massage her aching wrists even after claiming herself she wouldn't need to. Still, she flashed a wicked smile, even when the guards stepped out and the golden windows flickered back into place, locking her in the box with only a mere bed resembling more a bench than a resting place in the corner.

          "Comfy", she retorted with a bitter edge, making a dramatic twirl in the cell before glaring at the guards, both of which responded with scoffs and then stalked away. With no attention, no one to irritate, Nova exhaled heavily and like a wild animal, circled the cell with tedious footfalls before slumping onto the white floor and resting her back against the wall. So far, her brunette curls kept their gloss and bounce, and the lipstick on her lips was yet to fade away, as was the pride gleaming in her dark eyes, but she knew that eventually, the time she was destined to spend there would wear her out, chew her to shreds.

         And as realization finally dawned on her, like a punch in the gut to remind that her life-long dreams of being a queen were melting down the drain, she could only seal her eyes and let her head fall back.

         "Damn it."

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So begins the rewriting of my Loki fic (: I did miss writing my dysfunctional daughter, tbh. So far, this is the only chapter I have ready but I'll try to work on this book more. Thank you for reading, I hope you guys liked it! x