The Darkness Cometh // Loki - Book 3 ✓

Chapter 5

Anna stifles a gag as she lifts the concoction Sigyn made, the smell hitting her like a ton of extremely foul-smelling bricks. She's spent enough time with the blonde woman to trust her, especially knowing her history with Loki, so she's fairly certain that Sigyn isn't trying to kill her.

Hopefully.

"What am I supposed to do in Niflheim?" Anna asks again, a mixture of nerves and anticipation eating away at her. They've been discussing the plan for the last fifteen minutes, but there's too much weighing on this to screw it up. "What will I say to Hela?"

Sigyn smiles reassuringly, "We need her help. You told me once before that Loki bound himself to you, which means your souls are inextricably tied together. If he is dead, Hela will know it."

"So if he's alive, she'll be able to find him?" Anna questions hopefully.

The blonde shakes her head, "I doubt even Hela's power can stretch that far, but she might be able to give us more direction. At the very least, she can explain the bond between the two of you. I've heard of such oaths, but they are very rare indeed. In fact, I'm not sure one has taken place in many centuries."

Anna bites her lip, reflecting on the promise Loki made her when they were trapped in the cell together. The knotted silver ring still rests on her ring finger, signifying the commitment she'd made to him within her heart regardless of the betrayal he'd made. So many days she'd considered taking it off and throwing it from the balcony, but every time it felt like something was keeping her from doing so. Whatever reason Loki had for trapping her in his chambers and abandoning her here, she is determined to find out, but she needs to know the truth before she gives up on him. On them.

"And you're going to get my body out of here," Anna confirms, earning a nod from Sigyn. "Okay. I can do this. Right? It's easy."

She glances at Sigyn, who smiles. What they are attempting is dangerous, both women know, because there is a massive element of risk to both sides. Not only is Anna risking death, separating her soul from her body as she travels to speak with Hela, but Sigyn must disguise her body and prevent the Asgardians from discarding it until Anna wakes.

And when she does wake up? That will only be the beginning of their challenges.

"I just have to swallow this," Anna repeats, more to herself than to her friend. "Easy. Right. I can do this."

She puts the glass against her lips and tips the liquid back, the putrid-smelling draught sliding across her tongue like a smooth piece of ice. It's surprisingly sweet, especially considering the stench, and it feels like heavy cream as it slides down her throat. Her tongue feels weighted within seconds, laying heavy in her mouth as she tries and fails to find words to describe what is happening to her body.

Dropping the cup, she stumbles backward a step as Sigyn rushes forward to grab her shoulders. Everything feels slow, the colors blurring together like a watercolor painting around her, as her heartbeat slams heavily against her ribcage. The seconds pass one by one, each one dragging on longer than the previous, as she glances up to take in the concerned look on her friend's face.

Sigyn lowers her carefully to the ground, grabbing the cushion from her chair to place it beneath Anna's head, as her limbs continue to fill with what seems like pure lead. It's as if weights have been tied to her wrists and ankles, each one of them pulling her through the floor like she might sink straight through the earth.

In a moment of clarity, Anna manages to grip Sigyn's wrist in what seems like a monumental effort. Her fingers ache from the motion, every fiber of her being screaming to return to inertia, but she forces her eyelids to stay open for one more fleeting moment.

"Back," Anna croaks, the words heavy in her throat. "How do I get back?"

Her voice is barely a whisper as oxygen whooshes from her lungs, clinging to consciousness as darkness begins to swirl around the edges of her vision. Sigyn's mouth moves in response, almost as if in slow motion, but Anna can hardly make out the words.

"...something she wants," Sigyn says, reminding Anna of their earlier discussion of the plan. "Give her something she wants."

The darkness engulfs her completely, a thick velvet blanket weighing down upon her, as the sensation in her body disappears entirely. Unlike falling asleep, which happens slowly and - often times - without realizing it, she is completely cognizant of what is happening. Every second, every moment, she can feel less and less of her body. There is a slow pounding in her ears, once every few seconds, and it hammers loudly like a drum scattering her thoughts each time it sounds. The seconds between each drum beat increase, the sound lingering with every breath, until she realizes it isn't a drum.

It's her heartbeat.

At the last sounding, fear surges through her. Fear that this is it. That she might not wake up. That she is dying without seeing Loki again, without touching his skin, without pressing her lips against his.

I, Loki Laufeyson, the words float in and out of her consciousness, each one sweeter than the last. Confirm by oath upon this ring - a lawful oath in the eyes of the Almighty All-Father, Odin himself - that I shall deliver you from this place, protecting you from death and danger, with the strength of my magic, my body, and my rage.

She can almost see him in her mind, his emerald eyes filled with mischief as they stare down at her.

I shall lay down my own life to see no further harm comes to you. By Frigga, by Thor, and by the Almighty Odin, may my soul be bound to yours, to be destroyed forevermore should I fail to keep this oath.

Can he see her now? Can he feel what she is feeling? Does he know that she is dying?

The darkness wraps around her, its long fingers creeping through the corners of her mind, as it suffocates her. She tries to gasp for a breath, attempting to suck in another molecule of oxygen, but it proves useless.

There is no oxygen.

No heartbeat.

No life.

Nothing.

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