2 | 𝐁𝐔𝐑𝐃𝐄𝐍𝐄𝐃 ▹ LOKI LAUFEYSON

xxxvi. the sacrifice

A M O R A

Frigga ushered Jane and Amora into the inner room of her personal study. "Now stay here," she said, giving Amora a pointed look, "both of you."

The young sorceress furrowed her brow. "I will not let you face Malekith alone, Frigga."

The queen placed a hand on Amira's shoulder. "I will be fine. What matters is that you two are safe."

Amora opened her mouth to protest, but Frigga's grip tightened. "Protect Jane Foster, Amora. That is my order. Protect the Aether."

Begrudgingly, Amora shut her mouth, earning a nod from Frigga before the queen left to the outer room. The doors behind her shut with a firm thud.

A sigh escaped Amora as she stared at the closed doors, her fingers clenching and unclenching. How could she stand by and let her queen fight alone?

"This is all my fault." Jane's voice drew Amira's gaze back. The mortal sat on the sofa with her arms wrapped around herself, shaking her head. "I should never have looked. I didn't know what I was dealing with."

"That is how we learn, Jane Foster," Amora said, sitting down beside her, "If we do not investigate what we don't understand then we will never understand anything."

Jane gave a grateful smile at her words before looking up towards the door, and her eyes clouded with worry. "Will she be alright?"

"Frigga may be queen, but she is not incapable of defending herself." Amora's lips quirked up at a fond memory. "She taught Loki and I how to fight."

The scientist turned to her with a disbelieving look. "You and Loki were close?"

Amora hesitated. "Yes." We are.

"Really? You just don't seem..." Jane trailed off, searching for the right words.

"Like someone who would invade another realm," Amora offered wryly. She glanced down, her eyes growing wistfully distant.

"Loki and I grew up together. We had similar interests that few of our friends shared. But...one day his world crumbled around him. Secrets were revealed and what he found his identity in was stripped from him. So many things changed and he just...broke under it all. It was too much for him, and no one was there to help him bear the load." Amora looked down at her hands. "I was not there."

Jane placed her hand over Amora's as the sorceress grew quiet.

Suddenly, a short, low rumble sounded, followed by another. The room shuddered with each thud as the sound gradually grew louder.

"What is that?" Jane asked, looking around the room.

Amora stood. "The Kursed One," she breathed.

"The what?"

"An elven warrior corrupted into a demonic monster. It's practically unstoppable."

Frigga. Amora's heart started to pound at the though of her queen facing the monster alone.

She moved to the doors and gripped the handles, but they did not budge. With each tug, a faint yellow light shimmered across the surface of the doors.