Hot Coals - Chapter 6 - Stormlight_94 (2025)

Chapter Text

" My liege! "

A Giant burst breathlessly into the great banquet hall, interrupting the king. He looked distraught and clutched the mighty spear tightly.

" Two spies on the border..." he tried to catch his breath. The scarlet eyes were wide in an expression of pure horror. "...Odin is advancing with his armies! "

Laufey smiled wickedly, laying his hand on the dagger at his side, and finally moved away from the hiding place where both Loki and Sylvie were preparing to attack.

" Old Father All has come this far. " he licked his lips. " I wonder if today is the predicted day when I will finally have his head. "

On the king's lips the smug smile showed no sign of fear or dread at that surprise attack. He was satisfied. To be able to kill Odin in his own kingdom, in his own land, was the greatest form of satisfaction and glory a lord of Jotunheim could wish for.

In contrast to the young guard who had come, transfixed, to warn of the impending invasion, Laufey already looked forward to the moment when he would cut off Father All's head and, triumphant, present it on a pike to his exultant people.

He would not let such an opportunity pass him by.

" Prepare the soldiers. Today will be a glorious day for Jotunheim. "

He was imbued with a sense of omnipotence, of unparalleled pride that in some ways reminded Sylvie of Loki. The amused look, the straight and proud posture were the projection of a proud king. Without knowing it, Loki had inherited the same characteristics that would make him a haughty, proud prince who would never back down in the face of an enemy. The grin on Laufey's lips resembled all too closely the mocking smile that the god of Mischief used to wear to disguise and deceive those in front of him.

The young soldier swallowed in the face of his lord's scarlet gaze, laden with a bloody vengeance he had been longing for too long. " As he wishes. " he said only, addressing him with a brief bow before taking his leave. Laufey followed shortly after, the hilt of his dagger clenched between his strong fingers.

When the hall was finally empty they came out of hiding and breathed a sigh of relief.

" It was a close call for that unclean being to discover us. " said Sylvie. " To think that he is my father disgusts me. "

Sylvie, unlike Loki, had always known she was adopted. She loved her parents, but the idea of getting to know her biological parents was something she had always yearned to be able to do.

Only when the Frost Giants invaded her kingdom and claimed her as their own did she understand why her father would not tell them anything about her true origins. He only wanted to protect her from a brutal, sadistic, and evil people.

" He is not our father. " Loki replied in a tone as flat, apathetic, and icy as the realm they were in.

There was so much he was beginning to understand.

The pain of knowing that his parents and all of Asgard had lied to him for a lifetime was still there, alive and searing, like a brand that burned whenever his mind dwelt on it. Yet he was beginning to realize that perhaps they were only protecting him after all.

He would die in solitude, forgotten by everyone.

He hated Odin, hated him with all of himself for never treating him as his blood son, preferring Thor in everything. The sense of inferiority still haunted him, ranging from disappointment to anger.

But in that moment, as he watched those who had begotten him leave, he began to wonder who he should really hate.

Who had abandoned him or who had taken him in?

They walked out of the banquet hall and down an outer corridor that gave onto the building's inner training ground.

There was a great bustle of people running to get their weapons, those yelling to hurry up and those asking, loudly, what was going on.

Loki and Sylvie had been stopped several times by various soldiers who were partly telling them what to do and partly nudging them to go faster.

Between cleverly invented excuses and quick, stealthy movements with which they could easily sneak away, they finally found themselves in an empty hallway away from the hustle and bustle.

They both took a big breath and started down the street, hoping to find some clue that would lead them to their destination.

" Hey, you two! "

Loki and Sylvie froze. The voice, deep and guttural, came from behind them.

" By the old gods and the new gods, what more is there? " hissed Loki between his teeth in anger. They were testing his already precarious patience.

" Hey I say to you! What are you doing here?"

Loki turned around and reserved a terrible glare for him. " I know, Odin attacked, we understood that. Now, if you'll excuse us, we should go. "

" The battle is on the other side. " the giant said sharply, pointing to the part of the corridor behind his back.

Loki smiled and assumed one of his best attitudes when it came to manipulating someone.

" We were actually sent to defend the inner rooms of the palace. We are to control the dining room and the king and queen's private rooms. " he said using one of the most mellifluous tones he knew how to adopt. The Jotuns were known more for their brute strength than their intelligence, so Loki hoped this would be enough to let them go.

But the soldier thinned his scarlet gaze.

" Who ordered you to go? "

More cunning than expected. Thought the god of Mischief.

" It was..." Loki swallowed not knowing what to answer. Promptly Sylvie leapt forward and touched the guard's temple with two fingers. His gaze became astonished for a few seconds then he widened his eyes as if a memory had just come to him.

"Of course, I remember now. You have been ordered to protect the queen. Go, she will need you. "

" Where is she now? " Sylvie asked, touching him again to manipulate him.

" At the end of the corridor turn right. Follow the stairs until you reach the highest part of the palace. There you will find the queen safe in her chambers. "

When he left the corridor both gave a liberating sigh and hurried to follow the directions they had just received.

Loki knew Laufey's palace well because they had studied its details at length in their war councils. The maps that the god of Mischief had managed to obtain through deception and betting-even through outright theft if necessary-were a crucial aid for Odin's army in devising an initial strategy.

Knowing the enemy was the first step in stopping them in case of a future attack. If they had even a suspicion that Laufey wanted to attack them, severing the weak peace treaty they had signed, they would attack the kingdom of the Frost Giants straight to their hearts.

Every secret passage, every weak point was well imprinted in Loki's mind.

That is why it was easy for him to disentangle himself from that maze of bare corridors all alike.

When they reached the highest part of the palace, they saw two guards standing still in front of a large wooden gate. Torches placed on either side of the entrance illuminated the serious faces of the Giants.

No doubt those were the queen's private rooms.

They saw two young handmaids approaching the doors, and the guards defending the entrance let them pass by moving just enough to give them the space they needed. They also tried to do the same, but the two mighty spears immediately closed in front of them, blocking the entrance.

"What do you think you are doing? No one is allowed to enter the queen's chambers without her invitation. "

Loki smiled. " Of course, you are right. I just thought I'd make sure everything was going well."

" Go back to your seat, soldier. You're not allowed in," growled the guard.

" We were sent to check that-"

" Did you hear him? He told you to leave." bellowed the other Giant, moving a step toward them menacingly. He was ready to use the spear without letting it be repeated twice.

Sylvie stepped in before things could get any worse. " We're leaving right now. We were wrong, we were supposed to check the gardens! " she said and grabbed Loki by the arm, dragging him away until he turned the corner.

Loki thinned his gaze. " There are no gardens in Joutunheim. It's all ice! " he scolded her in a low voice. " Why did you take me away? It would take me a second to knock them out! "

Sylvie rolled her eyes. " And then I would be the one acting on impulse. If they see guards on the ground they'll all go on high alert and it will be impossible to get out of here! "

The god of Mischief was surprised that Sylvie was the one who had made him desist from an unplanned attack. She who acted without thinking, who had caused the worst possible and imaginable messes just because she had not stopped to think.

He who, on the other hand, had always been meticulous, careful and studious about everything around him to think about the best thing to do had gotten caught up in the impulse of the moment.

The fact was that he was terribly agitated. He was trying to conceal a fear due to what would be presented to him beyond the door. He didn't care about the guards. He just wanted to get in, to remove every obstacle in his path.

" We have to think of something to get past those two big guys," Sylvie's voice brought him back to reality.

He had to think. Quickly, too.

He saw the two handmaids coming out and immediately an idea crossed his mind. He smiled smugly and gave Sylvie a mischievous look.

" I know how to pass." he said and, with a snap of his fingers, his appearance changed. He transformed from a barbaric warrior into a Frost Giantess. She was tall, slender, with a well-pronounced form, and her long, night-black hair was beautifully braided with strands of gold. The red eyes looked like two rubies.

Sylvie gasped.

What the hell?

Loki smiled at her, and she was captivated by the way she looked at her. She was gorgeous, which left her quite stunned. Never had she thought that Jotuns could be so beautiful. She was convinced they were just terrifying monsters.

" What are you doing? " she whispered, puzzled, not understanding what she was trying to do.

" Wait and see," Loki replied mischievously.

He came out of hiding and walked toward the guards sensually. Sylvie noted that he was wearing clothes that were a little too skimpy and a little too transparent.

The usual exhibitionist, she thought with a snort.

The guards immediately noticed the presence of the Giantess and stared at her open-mouthed.

" What is such a beauty doing here alone? " one of them asked, unable to take his eyes off her form. Loki approached and assumed a sweet, innocent air.

" I think...I'm lost. " she chirped. " Perhaps you can help me find my way? " she said putting a finger to her lips, and the guards smiled.

" Certainly. We will gladly accompany you. " said one of the two, casting a slimy look of understanding at his friend.

" Oh, how kind you are. I'll know how to thank you." She said in a sensual whisper in his ear, and the guard shivered.

Loki flinched and signaled for them to follow him, which they immediately did and led them into a closet a little further on. There were a couple of dull thuds and Loki went out, closing the door behind him, which he promptly sealed.

He was back to his former appearance, and Sylvie noticed in Silver Tongue's smug look that he did not mind his acting at all.

" Problem solved. " he said with a mocking smile.

" That's the sleaziest thing I've ever seen. " she muttered, crossing her arms over her chest.

" It worked, though, " he replied placidly. " Years of practice at taking Lady Sif's appearance paid off. "

With a snap of his fingers he took on the guise of the handmaiden who had left just before and invited Sylvie to do the same.

The room did not reflect the rest of the building at all. It could almost be called pretty.

The Jotuns cared little about aesthetics; all that mattered to them was functionality.

Instead, the room even featured decorations. The four-poster bed had carvings that embellished its appearance. The draperies were a scarlet red to match the curtains.

"There you are. Did you get everything? "

Behind the door of a large closet terminated a female figure. And it did not take long to realize that she was the queen.

She was tall and slender and her skin color was an almost grayish blue, but what was most striking of all was her face. The features were beautiful, sweet, nothing like the square, sharp face typical of the race.

She wore a blue velvet dress that perfectly wrapped her feminine form, and her long silvery hair was decorated with pearls and precious stones. An ice crown completed her regal appearance.

Loki held back a gasp. This was the first time he had seen his mother, his real mother.

He had not been allowed to know anything about her, not even what she looked like. Only the name had once escaped Frigga's lips, in an almost inaudible whisper, after Loki's numerous insistence that he at least had the right to know who his biological parents were.

Fàrbauti.

Her name had come out as if it had been held in his gut for too long. And perhaps it had. Revealing his biological mother's name would have made Frigga a little less his mother.

" Majesty, we have everything," said Loki.

" Excellent. Soon darkness will fall and it will be the right time to leave."

Loki took a step forward. " Leave for where? I regret to tell you that I may have forgotten some details about what we need to do."

Loki was very good at acting, Sylvie had to admit. He really looked like the graceful, fearful handmaiden he was impersonating.

" I don't blame you, Kari. I came up with this plan too quickly."

The queen reached out to Loki and took his hands between hers. They looked warm.

" King Laufey rejected our son because he does not reflect the appearance of a Jotun. He was born too small and puny and brought shame and disgrace on the royal lineage."

Loki swallowed with difficulty.

" A message was delivered warning me that Odin would attack this very night and that I should flee to the north. "

" A message from whom?" asked Sylvie.

" The letter has no sender. " said the queen as she approached the cabinet drawer on which a large mirror was lying and pulled out a letter, which she handed to the handmaiden whose appearance Sylvie had copied.

Loki took the letter and looked at it carefully. The handwriting was elegant and precise, with no smudges on the parchment that could only belong to someone who had been highly educated. He reread and reread those lines again, dwelling on the style of writing that reminded him terribly of his own.

" Do you trust even though you do not know to whom this message belongs? " the deceiver asked without looking away from the letter.

Fàrbauti intertwined his fingers and assumed a straight, regal posture. In the red eyes flashed a determination that Sylvie immediately recognized as the same as Loki's.

" I want to save my son, and if I have to trust a stranger to do it, I will do it," she sentenced with a firmness that left the two pretend handmaids speechless.

Loki could not take his eyes off his birth mother as he reached the cradle. He wondered if it was all an illusion, a pretense created on purpose by someone to make him believe that everything he had always been convinced of had never existed.

The Norns were weaving and plotting in his web of fate, altering, cutting and adding what they liked to see happen in an individual's life. The time had come for Loki of Asgard to face what he had long sought to escape from.

He had hated her from the first moment he learned of her true origins. A hatred even more intense and visceral than the one he felt for Laufey.

How could a mother abandon her child? How could she get rid of her own blood like that? Questions that would remain only within herself without ever having a chance to be answered.

Until now.

" She is trusting a perfect stranger, someone she has never seen. " whispered the god of Mischief in Sylvie's ear.

" She is trying to save you. She is desperate. " she replied, feeling a knot in her throat and watching as the queen took care of her son.

Loki took Sylvie by the arm and forced her to look at him. " If I am not abandoned Odin will never find me. And if he does not find me none of the things that lead me to be here at this exact moment will happen. My timeline will be irreparably compromised."

They both turned toward the queen as the latter cradled the infant.

" We must prevent this from happening."

Sylvie reduced the distance between them and lowered her voice. " And what do you want to do? Take the infant away from her and leave? She will never let you do that."

She sensed Fàrbauti's love for her son. She could see it in the way she cradled him and smiled at him. How could they take that away from her? That would have been cruel.

Loki sighed and barely brushed her cheek with his thumb. He lowered his gaze for a brief moment, just enough to think.

He turned away and approached the queen at a slow pace.

Sylvie felt her heart speed up sensing from his eyes that he was up to something.

" My queen. Why don't you give the child to me? I will take care of it, protect it."

Farbauti placed the infant in the cradle now that he had fallen asleep.

" I cannot, dear my little Kari. I must protect him personally." with a finger she stroked the little one's hand. " We will escape this very night and go away, far away. So far away that Laufey will not be able to harm us."

Loki looked into the cradle and seeing himself so small and helpless had a strange effect on him.

" Majesty, do you love him? " he asked, not taking his eyes off the infant.

" More than anything else. I would give my life if necessary."

Loki closed his eyes as the dagger penetrated Farbauti's abdomen. Blood began to flow copiously and wet his hand.

" I'm sorry." he barely whispered.

Sylvie stifled a cry with her hands as she watched in horror as the dagger plunged into the queen's body.

Fàrbauti's eyes filled with tears and she opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out.

She slumped to the floor and did not move again.

Loki took the infant from the cradle and wrapped him in a blanket.

" Sylvie, come on there is no time to lose. Odin is about to attack!"

A roar suddenly burst through the window.

Loki looked out and saw the Asgardian army attacking the main entrance.

They heard echoing in the hallway the footsteps and shouts of soldiers running in every direction.

Sylvie was petrified, her eyes fixed on the queen lying in a pool of blood.

"Gods, will you move! Run!" Loki took her by the arm and roused her from the catatonic state she had fallen into.

There was no longer any guard around the palace; everyone had poured outside where a bloody battle had begun. They resumed their original appearance; it was now useless to disguise themselves.

They had to reach the temple located just outside the palace walls, there where the final battle between Odin and Laufey would come and where Loki would be found.

They had to run between the soldiers of both armies, avoid arrows and sword blows until they could hide behind the imposing columns of the temple.

They were both panting, exhausted from the long run. They made sure the child was all right and had not suffered any wounds.

They passed through the entrance to the huge sacred place, and their footsteps echoed, giving the place an even more mournful appearance. There was nothing to illuminate it, only the moonlight filtering through the windows.

Apart from the candelabras and statues of ancient deities placed on the sides, there was nothing but an altar placed at the top of a flight of steps.

Loki laid the child on the bare stone and covered him. At least a minimal gesture of comfort for what he was suffering.

" You killed her."

Sylvie said those words dismissively, angrily. Loki could feel her gaze piercing him in the back.

" I had to. She would never leave him."

He did not turn to look at her. To do so was to see yet another look of hatred directed at him. But Sylvie's would never be able to bear it.

" You haven't changed at all. You always tell me that you no longer want to be called a god of Mischief, yet you are always ready to drive a blade into the hearts of those who trust you."

Loki felt himself quivering with anger. He could not accept those words. With a couple of strides he reduced the distance between them. He stared at her with his piercing eyes, and Sylvie struggled not to flinch.

" Am I wrong or did I tell you not to get involved in this? " the grave tone made it even more threatening. " You wanted to follow me and do it my way and now you're complaining? What did you expect Jotunheim to be, a playground for little princesses like you?"

Sylvie widened her eyes in amazement. He had never addressed her in such a dismissive tone. He wanted to deliberately hurt her.

Sylvie confronted him and to do so reduced the distance between their faces by a few inches.

" And what will you do when I get in your way? Will you stick a blade in my back when I least expect it? "

Would he really be able to do that? Now she had doubt. He had killed his mother with a sharp, decisive blow without hesitation. Who was going to assure her that it would not happen with her as well?

Mobius was damn right. She had to see that damn file, read his file because now she had no idea who the man in front of her was.

Loki lowered his voice. " If you think I can do that to you, then go away. Go home and leave me alone. "

" Why do you and I always have a different view of things? " she said with a sigh.

" Because you are incapable of trusting anyone, and I cannot be trusted. "

Sylvie shook her head.

" I just want to...why?"

" She was going to die anyway! " he shouted and his voice echoed throughout the temple. The flapping of wings of frightened crows sounded like a gloomy omen.

" Odin's soldiers would have slaughtered her without any mercy. At least I spared her the shame of dying at the hands of the Æsir. " he said in a tone so icy as to leave her speechless.

" Aren't you tired of living like this? " she asked bitterly. She felt that she was losing control of the situation, that she no longer knew what to do. " Because I am. I am tired of death, suffering and blood."

" Suffering will always be a part of us. We were born for it, it's in our nature. " he said apathetically.

How could things be different now if all along what had permeated his life was the same script long since written? A script that repeated itself endlessly, playing, cruelly, with his life and the lives of those around him.

Loki of Asgard had tried to trust, in ways so rare and sporadic that they soon ended in oblivion. He had tried to give something of himself, a fragment of his trust to those he thought deserved it, but he had always been disappointed, crushed, trampled.

And his fragments soon became invisible dust of which no one would ever ascertain the form, much less the essence.

Then came Sylvie who, so painfully like him, took that essence and transformed it into something new. The only one to whom he was able to give something more of his being and not just the crumbs of a life of deception and chaos.

He had told her he trusted her one night when he smiled sincerely, dipping his tapered fingers into her blond hair. " I want to at least try. " he said in a low voice.

Although Sylvie did not respond, Loki did not care. He wanted to let her know. He would then wait patiently when Sylvie would also trust him completely.

" You can choose to be someone other than what you have always been made out to be."

Loki was struck by those words as if they were blades sticking straight to his chest. He had wanted to be something different, something better. Instead, he ended up always being the same. A selfish man ready to ruthlessly eliminate those who stood in his way.

" She means nothing to me. " he continued in a low voice. He clenched his fists until his knuckles whitened.

" She was your mother, Loki. She loved you. " she murmured weakly, disappointed.

" She is not my mother, get that straight in your head. The only mother I had is in Asgard. " he hissed. " Do you see me as a real monster? Because that's the same look everyone had when they looked at me. "

Sylvie listened to those harshly spoken words, but her eyes said something else entirely. They were veiled with a sadness that she could not hide.

Sylvie did not know what to say. One thing, however, she understood: the god of Mischief had failed to fool her this time.

He was becoming an open book for her, and this Loki knew. He was becoming predictable and vulnerable.

Did it bother him? Terribly, but maybe he was realizing that if you loved someone then your most fragile part would be irretrievably exposed.

Loki passed her, and Sylvie simply stared at his back.

Behind her was the newborn, innocent, guileless Loki pawing at her to receive some warmth. In front was the cynical and cruel Loki, capable of killing someone in cold blood just because they got in the way of his plans.

She understood why Asgard had disowned him, but she was also convinced that the same Asgard that so detested him was also the one that had made him that way.

" Are you going to stay there much longer? The child will not die if that is what you are worried about. " Loki said, turning just barely, just to see the girl out of the corner of his eye.

" I..."

Suddenly the immense temple gate opened with a thud. They wasted no time and hid behind the statue of the giant Ymir, founder of Jotunheim.

Odin advanced with all the pride that only the invincible father of the gods could have. His armor still shone despite the bruises and blood of his enemies.

Beside him was the trusted chief of the guards Björnúlfr and his son.

" Father of the gods, what are we doing here?" asked Björnúlfr. " There is no one here. Jotunheim has surrendered. Let us return to Asgard. "

Odin did not listen and advanced at a brisk pace.

He knew someone was there. He could feel it.

And indeed, wrapped in a white blanket, a blue-skinned infant was desperately calling for someone's attention.

Odin took him in his hands and...smiled.

Loki, hiding behind the statue, gasped.

Why was he smiling? Why was he seeing in the gaze of the man he hated most of all, that of a father? And not the father of all gods, but his father.

" Majesty, what is an infant doing here?" asked the son of the chief of the guards.


" This is Laufey's son. He has been abandoned. "

Björnúlfr drew a dagger from his belt. " It would be an act of mercy to kill him with a sharp blow, without letting him die of hardship. "

Loki observed the man with the dagger in his hand and a haughty look. He was still the same, proud and proud, dedicated to war and to making Asgard a glorious kingdom. He wore the long blond beard gathered into a braid that, as a child, he pulled out of spite.

Odin's second son used to get into trouble, escaping from the palace using secret passages that only he knew. Björnúlfr always ended up with the thankless task of looking for him and bringing him back. So Loki had learned to hide and to watch amusedly as the man huffed and cursed him. When he found him hiding in some narrow place, he never failed to rebuke him and load him on his shoulder, amid his kicks and punches and futile attempts to escape his firm grip.

Unable to break free from his grip, Loki always ended up trying to undo his braid, the warrior's personal pride.

Despite his many reprimands and long talks about discipline, Björnúlfr had grown fond of the little pest that made him huff and curse every day. He remembered the first time he took him to the battlefield, his helmet too big and sword too heavy, stumbling to keep up with the others. It reminded him more and more of his younger self as he watched him grow up, as proud and invincible as any young Æsir before facing real life. He had never had children, Björnúlfr. He was loyal to war and his vow to the kings to protect his land.

" Go to Hel, accursed one. And may you suffer the worst. " he told him with fierce contempt when he returned to Asgard after his crimes on Midgard.

" After you. " Loki answered him with a mocking, swaggering smile.

They had to hold Björnúlfr in threes to prevent him from pouncing on him and his fist smashing his cheekbone.

That was the last time he saw him.

" No. The child will come with me. Put that dagger away. "

Odin extended a hand toward Björnúlfr to dissuade him from using the weapon against the infant.

" Majesty, you are joking, aren't you? We cannot bring this monster to Asgard. " The soldier's gaze was full of contempt.

" Wouldn't we be equal to Laufey if we killed him? Is it not to stop the cruelty of this ice people that we intervened? " Odin gave him a weary look, but still as proud and proud as any Æsir in battle. " If you are capable of staining your hands with the blood of a child then do it, I will not stop you. But you will live with such guilt that you will not be able to bear it for long. "

Björnúlfr could not contradict what his king had said. He would never have been able to kill an infant in cold blood, even if it was the child of his most bitter enemy. It would have been something vile, shameful, and would have worn down his honor as a valiant warrior. He had taken an oath to help the weakest, not to slaughter them. Hesitantly, he lowered his gaze to the little one and asked him what they should do now.

" No one is to know of his true identity. This is an order from the ruler himself. " he said, taking him and clutching him to his chest to give him just enough warmth so that he would not die from the frost outside.

The soldiers exchanged looks full of concern, but no one dared to contradict him. This was a truly terrible idea, they thought. To bring a Jotun to Asgard was something abominable to even think about.

Loki could not help but notice how Odin was holding him. It was a gesture of love mixed with compassion and pity, a gesture he did not think he could reserve for him.

He, his father, who barely gave him a few sporadic looks of approval, so sweaty and never fully appreciated.

He, who gave Thor Mjollnir while Loki nothing at all.

Always he, who took him to the trophy room to remind him that he was born to be king, but who on the Bifrost, before letting go, assured him that never would a Frost Giant take the throne of Asgard.

AllFather smiled at the infant he clutched to his leather armor and with his free hand adjusted the blanket as best he could. Then he led the way out of the temple first, followed by his loyal soldiers.

" Odin doesn't seem so terrible. " whispered Sylvie as she saw them move away. She just could not see in it the rot that Loki kept instead, undaunted, emphasizing and remarking. She saw nothing in it but a man, strong warrior and mighty king, moved to pity for a helpless being. She could find no trace of the resentment that the god of Mischief loudly promoted.

Loki thinned his gaze. " Don't you dare. "

" Well, if it weren't for him those soldiers would have plunged the dagger right into your heart. "

" He was good at lying. " he said cuttingly. " I learned from the best after all. "

Once outside, the ground was no longer covered by a soft blanket of snow, but by a multitude of corpses.

In the distance Odin's remaining army was leaving the realm using the Bifröst.

Loki did not look away until the last of the warriors also disappeared.

Now only the two of them were left in the desolate land of ice.

The darkness of the night made it difficult to see beyond a certain distance, and the strong icy wind complicated matters even more.

The tempad was constantly spinning in Loki's hands, as if it had been boiling. He was thoughtful, hesitant, and Sylvie immediately noticed that something was wrong. She looked in the same direction as him, too, but saw nothing.

The god of Mischief was rigid. His alert senses, as well as his every fiber, were ready to snap.

He had a strange feeling.

He sensed with seidr that something was wrong.

But what?

When he had finished turning over the tempad he opened a new portal.

A new destination and a new date had been selected.

The moment he was about to step through the portal, he felt a chill down his spine.

Not a chill, but a shiver of anguish.

He turned around sharply.

There, in the midst of the storm, he swore he saw someone watching him.

" What's the matter with you? " asked Sylvie, observing the spot Loki was staring at.

The god of Mischief tried to focus.

Someone was watching him, he was certain.

The more he tried to find someone, the more he realized that someone did not exist.

Could it be that he had been mistaken?

" Nothing. " he said hastily, barely turning toward the woman.

Sylvie was worried, her beautiful green eyes wondering what was so bad that he was keeping it from her.

" I thought I saw something. I was wrong. " he said, thus answering her question.

Sylvie barely nodded, not entirely convinced by his words. She headed toward the orange portal as Loki told her that he had changed the place and date.

The woman waited for him to approach and go through the portal first. She already imagined where he would take her.

Loki sighed and wondered if he was doing the right thing.

There was one more thing he had to do.

For himself.

***

Frigga jumped up from her chair when she heard the door open. She had waited all night for the fate of her beloved king and prayed to the gods that once again they would be merciful and let him return to her.

The imposing figure of her valiant husband made his entrance wearily. The weight of a long battle and the responsibilities of ruler weighed more and more heavily on his ancient shoulders.

He welcomed with a sigh the embrace of his faithful wife, life companion and supporting part of his heavy burden. Usually Frigga would follow him to war, as any valiant Æsir wife would by her husband's side, but with his newly born firstborn son it was safer for him to remain safe within the palace walls.

" I feared for your life, dear husband. " she said after loosening the long embrace. " I have long prayed that the Norns would be merciful in weaving the plot of this war. "

Frigga was always looking for a way to stay close to him. If she could not physically at least she tried with her heart and mind.

Odin mentally thanked his young wife for her thoughtfulness. Without her he would not have been able to bear all that weight on his own without collapsing.

Theirs had been an arranged marriage, intended to unite two noble and powerful lineages. But despite the fact that they had not chosen each other they had learned to respect, trust and love each other.

A faint, barely audible moan emerged from the bundle under the tunic.

Frigga's eyes went wide and she brought a hand to her mouth when he showed her what he held close to his heart.

The tiny infant had just woken up and, squinting, stretched out his tiny hands for a handhold.

The queen's heart lost a beat as a first thought made its way into her mind. Could her beloved husband have been unfaithful to her?

After all, numerous wars had taken him far from home, from her.

She imagined the woman who had comforted her king's strong limbs in the night and felt the urge to flee.

Odin, however, farsighted as he was, immediately noticed the veil of sadness that shrouded Frigga's blue eyes.

He caressed the warm cheek in a comforting gesture.

" It is not what you think, my lady. I have not been unfaithful to you. " he said quietly.

Frigga shifted her gaze away from him so as not to give him a chance to see her pain.

" If it is not the result of your unfaithfulness, then what is it? " The queen's always loving and gentle tone gave way to anger and contempt.

" A child abandoned to die in the ice. "

Frigga widened her eyes in surprise. She turned back to look at her husband and read in his eyes a certain concern.

" Laufey has no mercy for anyone, not even his own blood. "

The baby began a series of grimaces that would surely have turned into desperate crying if the queen had not taken him gently into her arms, He was cold, tiny. She held him as if at any moment he would break into a thousand pieces,

" To bring a Jotun here is foolish, reckless. " said the woman without stopping cradling him.

" A foolish opportunity. "

Odin finally put down the mighty spear and removed his helmet, dented in places.

The truth was that before the possible opportunity to end a war that had lasted too long, he had seen in that child only a helpless being to be saved.

"He will be my protégé. He will grow up here, in the palace, cared for by the nurses and taught by the best teachers. One day he will be the instrument that will unite our kingdoms. "

Frigga looked at the sleeping child in her arms.

" No, he will not be just your protégé," she said without stopping to look at the little one. " If you want him to stay here he will grow up with me. He will have a mother and a brother. "

Odin remained firm. " Are you saying to raise him as your own child? Beware my queen, you may be carrying a burden you will not be able to bear. "

" You have already given me too great a burden the moment you brought him here." Frigga was determined, as she always was when she was stuck on something. Her blue eyes, sweet and warm, emitted a different light than usual, a mixture of compassion, pity and affection.

She had always been like this, Frigga Queen of the Æsir. Loving and compassionate toward anyone in need, making her a beloved ruler of her people.

" He will not grow like a trophy taken from one of your battles. "

The queen's gentle eyes passed from Odin's tense face to the serene, sleeping face of the infant.

She had to protect him.

At this point the valiant king, Father of the gods and protector of the Nine Kingdoms, could do nothing before that gaze that was sweet and determined at the same time. After all, he also loved her for this.

" If this is what you desire, I will not oppose it. " he said after a long sigh. " Simulate a pregnancy and then we will present him to the kingdom as our second son. "

Frigga did not miss the king's unconvinced tone. She carried the baby to the cradle and tucked the blanket over him. "Welcoming him into our home will be a new beginning."

" Or our end. " replied Odin.

" You will learn to love him as your own child. "

The king approached the cradle and, for a moment, a small flame crept into the warrior's hard heart at the sight of the little one sleeping peacefully with his fists clenched close to his head.

" What do you wish to call him? "

Frigga took a moment to think about it then smiled. " Loki. "

The god of Mischief was sitting with his back against the wall outside the large terrace overlooking the magnificent gardens of the royal court. The window kept open for the summer heat allowed Loki to hear the entire conversation. He needed to know how his mother had reacted to the sight of him, and he was happy to know that it was only because of her that he could grow up as an Odinson and not as the bastard son brought to the palace as the king's protégé. It was a detail he reflected on for the first time only at that moment. The opportunity he had been given was far more than he ever deserved, and he, like a good idiot, had managed to screw it up. In the end he had the exact same rights and privileges as his brother, a legitimate son by blood. Not only for servants in his service or free access to any wing of the palace. Loki was allowed to sit beside the king and queen when guests from other kingdoms came to offer gifts, received bows and flattery as he passed, and the opportunity to represent Odin himself on the diplomatic missions to which he fulfilled, diligently.

He recalled the first time Odin took him along to deal with some sensitive issues with Vanheim. Loki felt an indescribable pride pervade him when his father chose to bring him and not Thor.

" Strength has always been a boast of us Asgardians, but what has really made us strong is diplomacy. " he told him as they walked down the long tree-lined avenue that would lead them through the gates of that friendly and sometimes enemy kingdom. " It is time for you to learn to deal with political issues with words as well, not just with weapons. You got a big mouth, you will do a good job. "

For Loki it was the first and perhaps last compliment, if one could call it that, that he received from his proud father.

He smiled and was the first to enter the king's presence, charged with a new pride.

The Vanir king, Njord, looked first at Odin and then at his young son a little amused, a little offended.

" Do you find arguing with me so uncharitable as to bring you the second of your brats? "

Loki cashed the blow without flinching, accustomed to being seen as Thor's replacement. All the kings and nobles expected to see Odin accompanied by the firstborn, not the strange little boy who nothing seemed to have anything to do with the Æsir.

Odin rested his hand on his son's lean shoulder, as if trying to convince his interlocutor that who he had chosen to bring was the best he could offer.

" King Njord, do not underestimate Loki just because he is very young. He is with me to learn and, tomorrow, take my place. "

The young prince widened his eyes, surprised by that admission. To take his father's place? He had never told him so openly and was overjoyed to learn that he was instructing him in the very role of future king. He had been waiting for years for these words and they had finally come.

What Odin actually meant, and he would find out much later, was the fact that he wanted to make both his sons kings. Thor would yes get the throne and Gungnir, but Loki would be his right-hand man, his advisor, his strategist. They would reign together, united and strong, making Asgard even more glorious than Bor the Great did. This was what he would always envision for his children, and yet fate is sometimes cruel and weaves plots too difficult for us to understand.

AllFather would realize too late that he had ignored the signs that his son, as beloved as he was misunderstood, had given him over time. The deep sense of dissatisfaction, the growing jealousy, the emptiness into which he fell whenever he sought a modicum of his approval.

Signs went unnoticed for too much, too long, and that guilt devoured and consumed him until the end of days.

With a couple of agile moves he went down to the garden where he found Sylvie waiting for him with crossed arms, leaning against a tree

" Did you find what you wanted to know? " she asked, going to meet the man whom he found paler than usual. She could not fully understand his feelings, but she knew that, although he did not give it away, he was wearing himself out inside. She laid a hand on his face, the only weak gesture she could let go of to let him know that, whatever happened, she was there.

For a moment what happened just before seemed as if it had never been there, erased as soon as he laid his gaze in those green eyes that he found as beautiful as they were sad and melancholy. Now, however, they were tired, exasperated, charged with a wearisome despair.

It was hard to understand, the god of Mischief, but not so hard to understand of why he addressed her in that tone in the temple. The hard armor was crumbling and she had to be there to pick up the pieces, one by one, wounding herself with the sharp shards and dressing the cuts herself.

" I think all this is too much for even you to bear. " she barely murmured.

Loki sighed and gladly accepted the woman's closeness. What would he have done if she had not been there?

He was about to say something when his sixth sense warned him that something was wrong. He saw something in the shadows and this time he made sure he understood if the presence was real and not a figment of his imagination.

He started running in its direction with Sylvie yelling at him to stop. When he reached the large tree placed in the center of the Royal Garden he saw the figure disappear into thin air.

He threw a fist against the trunk and hissed an expletive between his teeth.

" Someone is following us. " he said as soon as Sylvie stood at his side.

" Who could it be? " she asked as she caught his breath.

" I don't know, but I have a bad feeling. "

Suddenly, in the wind, he heard something.

A voice entered his mind and spoke to him using a magic that only he and his mother knew and used between them so no one would know what they wanted to say to each other.

An unfamiliar voice, but strangely familiar.

I have found you, Loki Laufeyson.

Hot Coals - Chapter 6 - Stormlight_94 (2025)
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