When Darkness Falls - LOKI - Book One (Editing)

25. Revelations ✓

     Thor slammed through the doors of the dungeon in a hurry. Freya wasted no time hunting down the prince and though he was watching Jane from the Bifrost, the news of Athelia startled him in ways he couldn't explain.

     "What has happened?" He demanded, taking a spot next to his mother, who stood alone between the cells that held two of whom she cared deeply about.

     Thor glanced over his shoulder for a brief moment, locking eyes with his brother who stood against the glass watching them. He couldn't help but notice the lack of his signature smirk when things got hectic, but he couldn't dwell on that now. Right now, the woman he was marrying was battling a darkness that no one could even fathom.

     Athelia sat cross-legged in the middle of the cell. Her eyes closed as she hovered just above the ground, far too still for someone who had a storm raging in their body. She was gone. Far deep into the depths of the darkness, desperately fighting the demons that tempted her. Though in the eyes of those around her, she was still and as calm as ever.

     "Is she okay?"

     "Clearly," Loki retorted from behind them, a tone in his voice that Thor did not appreciate.

     "Mother?" He pressed, ignoring his brother completely. "Is she ill?"

      Frigga shook her head, her hand resting under her chin as she tried desperately to think of a way she could help. No one had anticipated that her binds would break and time was running out before she gave into darkness completely.

     "Somebody tell me what is going on!"

     "Something that could have been prevented." A voice echoed from the doorway and Thor spun, his hammer tight in his hand.

      Thor stood ready to take down the shadow, but he was rendered still as Bronen stepped into the corridor in his true form. His long white locks fell well past his plum-colored cloak and his thick brows furrowed as Thor pulled Mjolnir, ready to strike.

      "Who are you?" Thor demanded, though already knew he was of some relation to Athelia. Their striking blue eyes and their long snowy hair were nearly identical and even though he towered, he still had the same elegant stance that Athelia possessed.

      "What took so long?" Frigga asked him, ignoring her son's inquisition.

     Bronen pulled a small velvet bag from behind his cloak and held it gently by the strings. "Many apologies. Odin thought it best to use a peaceful approach. It seems as though he has never attempted to bargain with a dragon before."

      "Dragons?" Thor snapped. "By Odin's beard, someone explain!"

      Thor was growing agitated and he plucked the bag from Bronen's hand, dumping the seemingly plain metal cuffs into his hands. Frigga's eyes widened as she watched Thor's eyes dart back and forth between the trinkets and the Goddess.

     He nearly dropped his hammer as the bracelets began to quake in his hand, glowing brightly as the palm of his skin began to darken. He couldn't drop them, he couldn't do much of anything as his breath caught in his throat, and watched the skin rot.

     Frigga stepped forward to snatch them out of his hands, but Bronen stopped her and picked the velvet bag from the floor. He carefully folded the bag and used to pick the bracelets making sure not to touch them.

     "What just happened?" Thor choked out, shaking his hand as he watched the color return to his palm. He squeezed his hand open and closed as Bronen handed Frigga the bag.

      "You do not possess magic. These binds are meant to absorb magical energy and without it, it will drain your life force." Bronen snubbed his nose at the prince and stepped towards the flickering wall that kept Athelia contained for now. "These shields will not keep her when she wakes. The bracelets must be put back on before it reaches her heart."