The Dark Assassin | Thor: The Dark World [2]

Chapter 8

3rd Person's POV

Tanya felt weak. Weak to the point she could barely stand. And yet, she continued pacing. It had been two months since she had eaten.

Personally, Loki was starting to get anxious. Granted, Aesirs were more durable than people and could live longer without food, but that didn't mean their bodies didn't deteriorate without it. He had no idea what had caused this sudden self-imposed starvation, and could only guess the reasons as to why.

Tanya's head was spinning, her abdomen felt like it was on fire, she felt cold one second then boiling the next, and she was parched. And yet, she continued pacing. To her, she was punishing herself. Punishing herself for her stupidity, for her empathy, for everything she had done wrong. Guilt washed over her in waves, guilt about the people she had killed, guilt for burdening Loki with her problems, guilt over her empathy.

And so, she was going to suffer the way they did.

Her footsteps echoed throughout the dungeon, echoing from the walls as a few of the prisoners watched as the young faceless girl attempted to wear a hole into the floor. The sound never ceased, keeping some up at night. Tanya had gotten more than a few threats upon her life, but ignored them all.

She had heard worse. She had made worse.

Even Loki, who was always cool-headed and never let anything bother him, was on the end of his wire with the sound. "Would you stop that?!" He spat one day. Tanya paused, briefly, her head tilting up so she could peer at him under the curtain of hair over her face, then continued pacing.

All of a sudden, Tanya's mind swelled in pain before everything settled, and it was almost as if her soul had left her body as it slumped to the floor. Two Einherjar had seen everything, rushing over and flipping the young Half-Breed over. "Go fetch a healer, get them down here," one of them ordered, the other taking off to the Healer's Wing. The first Einherjar pressed a pair of fingers to Tanya's neck, a faint and slow pulse pushing against his fingers.

The other Einherjar soon appeared, Eir the healer in tow along with a stretcher. "Get her on, quickly. Quickly," Eir urged, the two lifting her onto the stretcher before taking off. Thor, who was heading to the combat yard to spar with Sif, saw the healer and Einherjar rushing towards the Wing. Informing a guard to tell Sif he would not be able to make it, he followed after the small group.

"What's going on here?" He demanded, coming into the room. "The prisoner--she just collapsed. Her heart's very weak. She's slipping away," Eir explained. Thor's faced softened, and he went over to the girl, examing her face. "That face--she looks familiar," he muttered. "What is the meaning of this?! She is a prisoner! Why is she not in the dungeon?!" Odin snarled, storming into the room.

"She is dying, father," Thor countered. "She attempted to kill me!" Odin snapped. "But she didn't! She gave herself in, knowing the consequences. If it weren't for her empathy, you might not be standing here now, letting her die on the table!" Thor shouted. "So you believe her lies?" Odin spat. "They aren't lies, your highness," the Einherjar, Gustav Boson, said, withdrawing a small band from her pocket.

"What is that?" Odin asked. "A hospital band--from Migard, sir. There's a name on it. Tanya Boston," Gustav said. "So that's the girl's name--Tanya?" Thor asked, and Gustav nodded. "How does that prove anything?" Odin demanded. Gustav crossed over, lifting up the young girl's shirt to reveal her stomach, which was covered in harsh white lines.

"Knife wounds," Thor murmured. "Why does she have weapons on her?" The two warriors' eyes caught the glint of a blade, and Gustav pulled open the jacket to reveal two knives strapped to the inside. "My--My guards swore they searched her!" Gustav exclaimed. "Clearly not. When we is stable, remove any and all weapons," Odin ordered, before leaving the room in a foul room.

-

"Alright, kiddo, let's see what you're hiding," A female Einherjar muttered, running her hands along her arms and finding knives strapped to each of her biceps, two strapped to her thighs, the ones in her jacket, and one in her boot along with a bow and a dozen arrows strapped to her back. "Mm," Tanya groaned, waking up and her head snapped up when she realized her hands were cuffed abover her. She thrashed against the bindings, the woman backing up. "Calm down," she urged. "No! Stop! I'm tired of this! Please, please don't hurt me! I swear I killed him! I swear! He's dead! He's dead! I did as you asked! Please, just don't hurt me!" Tears poured down her face as she went still, her head slumping.

To Tanya, she was chained up in her cell to the walls and floor by her hands and feet, her trainer circling her with a knife. Her body bucked as she whimpered and cried, begging for someone to help her. Frigga heard the commotion, rushing into the room and seeing Tanya strung up by her wrists. She ordered the Einherjar to release her, and Tanya slumped to the floor, thrashing and shaking. Frigga pulled the young girl into her lap, softly singing an old Aseir poem that used to calm Loki down when he was young and had a nightmare.

Silently, the Einherjar left the room, feeling slightly awkward and because her task was already over. Frigga gently stroked Tanya's hair out of her face, revealing her sunken eyes and cheeks, dark circles forming under her eyes and her skull shape being horribly obvious.

She pitied the girl. She looked so tired and hungry, making Frigga's motherly instinct kick in. She wanted to take Tanya under her wing, to bring her back to health and to see her face glow with happiness.

Gently, the queen brought Tanya back to the healer's wing, where they hooked her up to golden tubes that provided her with fluids and nutrients. When Frigga overheard the healers talking about Odin's reaction to the state of the prisoner, she resolved to give him a thorough scolding when they were alone. "Will she be alright?" She asked. "We're..not sure, your highness. It appears she's been without food for a substantial amount of time, and that's taken a toll on her physically and mentally," one of the healers admitted. "Will she wake up?" Frigga asked, her hands wringing slightly.

"Only time can tell,"

a/n I know, a bit of a sad chapter. This was basically how it was originally, with Tanya almost dying of starvation, but her weapons getting removed and Frigga calming her down is new.