Kingdom Come

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"Come on then. Let's go." Annoyance was laced through Loki's voice as he waited for Rivenna to finish tying her cloak around her. She pulled the thin ropes through one another into a secure bow trying to still her shaking hands. Loki hadn't told her much about her master, but he had told her enough. She was a slave, to a vampire of all things. How could this be? What did it mean for her? She didn't know, but it would not be good.

Once she had finished, Loki took her by her arm and led her outside to his horse. She stopped at the horse's side, unsure of what Loki wanted. When he noticed her hesitation, he stepped in front of her. "Here," he placed his hands on either side of her waste and lifted her onto the horse. Rivenna couldn't quite comprehend the sudden shift in his attitude toward her. He had been so violent and pushy since the moment her threw her into that... that... stupid... pit.

Her thoughts were cut off by the sudden feeling of him behind her on the horse. She stiffened when he put his arms around her to grab the reins and the slight jolt of the horse's movement caused her back to press into Loki's chest while she swayed back and forth between his arms. Rivenna tried her best to hold herself up and counter the movement of the horse in order to avoid touching Loki as much as possible. However, the sun had set and the world around her became dark and the stiffness in her back along with the heaviness of her eyes forced her to relax against the chest of the man who would soon hand her over to a monster. She had to stay awake. She had to stay conscious. The moment they arrived at her new master's home may be the only chance she would have to escape, so she needed to be alert.

Loki struggled within himself. Was he truly about to hand this young woman over to a vampire? He was questioning whether or not he could live with himself if he did this. He had already hurt her so much. Yes, it was in an attempt to save his wife; something he wasn't even sure he could do. But, could he justify hurting an innocent girl for a result he only hoped for? He wasn't sure anymore. Nikolas had been so sure that her blood would lift his curse, but it had failed; this made him question the experimental medication that he was trying to buy for his wife.

One life for another. An innocent child for a dying woman. A woman he loved. A girl he didn't know.

He felt Rivenna lean back against him and looked down and found her eyes closed. Her breathing told him that she was still awake, but barely. It was slowing and becoming steady.

"The moon is very bright tonight." Rivenna's eyes shot open and she straightened once again, but she did not pull away from him as much.

"Yes. Ahem, it is." She said clearing her throat. "How much longer?"

"Only a few minutes. Maybe ten." Loki said in a hushed tone. A moment passed between them in silence before Rivenna finally had the courage to ask a question that had been on her mind since the moment she had first woke up in that shack and learned his plan.

"How did you get my blood from the well?" Loki held his breath for a moment. He had not expected her to ask a question like that, but it made sense that she would be curious.

"The plant. It's called Euphorbia Milli, many call it the Crown of Thorns. It is a plant with mystical powers. It is alive, as all plants are, but it has a mind of it's own. It is a hellish beast, as you discovered for yourself. When it catches its victim, it wraps around it like a snake suffocating its prey, and like quicksand, it sucks you in deeper the more you struggle against it. The thorns cut into the victim and the plant begins to soak up the victim's blood."

"Sanguisuge... Like a vampire."

"Exactly like a vampire. It thrives on the blood of it's prey, but because it is a plant, it does not have it's own blood system. Therefore, the blood of its prey is all that flows through it. A cut can be made near the root of the plant and the blood can be... harvested..."