My Little Hela

Why do I still live?

Down deep under the Kingdom of Asgard and in the abandoned hidden tunnels and cells, an old man was imprisoned. He was alone. It was dark and the stench was horrible; It smelled of rotting flesh and old blood, this was the torture cells of Asgard. Not many prisoners were sent into these cells and if they did, they either gave the information required within a few hours or they killed themselves.

Suddenly, the sound of light footfalls echoed through the bars of the locked cell.

"Let me out..."

Gargled a small and weak voice from the mouth of the old man. The tall figure that was the source of the footfalls stopped at the front of the cell and looked inside. He reached into his garment and pulled out a single rustic key. He held it up into the light.

"Shall I?" He asked. "Shall I release you? After all that you have done? To me? To everyone?" The prisoner stared up at the youthful man.

"I have... Done nothing wrong Loki..."

The old man weakly stood up to face the other.

"I beg to differ, Odin! You could have told me the truth of my true parentidge! You could have told me you never wanted to give me the throne! ... You could have saved my Mother."

Loki growled at him. Odin supported himself against the cell wall and looked at Loki with his one good eye. He was not wearing his golden patch which showed his scared eye, it was milky white and the surrounding skin and lost it color from the shade of the patch. His clothes were that of a beggar, he was dirty and his pale hair stuck to the sweat on his frail face. He was unrecognizable.

"Why do I still live?"

Odin quietly asked, almost too low and rough for Loki to hear.

"You know why!" He yelled at him as he remembered Odin on the ground, begging for life and then he said,

"What would Hela think...if she saw you now...killing her Grandfather?"

"Why did you tell me Hela died with Sigyn at birth?" But Odin could not answer for he fell unconscious. Loki had no other choice but to keep him alive. Odin has been in his cell for 7 days, drinking the dirty water Loki fetched for him at the muddy, nearby stream and ate the left overs from the table every evening. It was very unpleasant.

Loki did it all himself because he could not risk anyone knowing about Odin, no matter how long it took to get the location of his daughter out of that old man.

"Where is she?" The god growled again.

Odin sat down onto the bloodstained floor. "I will not... This is the reason... Why we took her from your possession... You cannot care for her."

"I can and I shall! I am the rightful King of Asgard and I am more than capable of raising my own daughter!" He yelled, growing impatient.

"Are you?" Odin weakly asked as he looked up at Loki.

Then Loki started to think about all the destruction and pain he caused, the war, the hate, the inhumanity; was he worthy to raise a child?

"Yes." He hissed.