Queen of Asgard (NaNoWriMo2018, Completed!)

53: The Third Trial

The Starlight Caverns felt more ominous now than when I'd visited them the first time. The mouth of the cave were manned by Valkyries. Each deadly woman was armed to the teeth and their stoic expressions didn't vanish as Thor and I approached.

"Brunhild," Thor greeted as we neared and she didn't take her eyes off the horizon but nodded in acknowledgement.

"Commander Sif is inside. Heart of the caves." Thor nodded and I went weightless as the outside of the cave vanished and when we reappeared I found myself in a familiar setting. The tall, arched stone covered in moss loomed over head, the massive pool of starlight a brillaint sliver-white and it cast a ghostly glow around the grey-brown walls. The shadows of the Valkiyre's lining the edge of the pool were ominous as was Sif's severe expression as she approached us.

"Congrats," she whispered, a brief smile flickering on her face "Suzume, are you ready?"

I eyed the liquid starlight with apprehension, it's color shifting from blinding white to a ruddy orange. Like the fires of Hell.  "Almost." I turned to Thor, heart heavy. "You need to leave."

"Leave?" he exclaimed, his voice echoing around the cavern walls. The volume made me flinch but the same couldn't be said for Sif and her fellow warriors.

"You said it yourself," I reminded, pressing my hands against his chest. "Before we left you told me our intelligence said the Bridage was likely to attack again. Your father is already in a compromising position and I will be too."

"All the more reason for me to stay!" Thor said fiercely though his voice broke. "I can protect you!"

"You have to go," I said, my heart breaking at his pained expression but I couldn't relent. "If we're both here, Asgard is vulnerable." I sighed and touched his face a moment before continuing. I needed to say this without being interrupted. "Sif and the Valkyrie's will keep me safe and they'll bring me back to you. I promise."

"That's not the only thing we have to worry about," Thor reminded me, real tears dripping down his face now. "You know what this stuff can do to you. I told you, other Asgardians have been driven mad from the pain of this stuff!"

I nodded. "I know that." I'd never forgotten that conversation we'd had the first time we'd been here on our second date. The knowledge that something so beautiful could be so dangerous, even to the most powerful beings I'd ever met was a scary thought.

"Then how can you ask me to leave you?"

"Because that's what has to happen. Asgard needs it." I took the chance to kiss him before he could speak. My began to hammer in my chest as I tasted the salt of his tears as I realized this might be the last kiss we shared, one way or another. It was either our last kiss while I was mortal or our last kiss while I was still sane.

"Go," I ordered him, my throat thick as we broke apart. His arms still around me and reluctant to let go. "Go to the palace and stay there. Sif will bring me back and I will still be me. I promise."

"Suzume-."

"Go," I ordered again. "I'll see you soon."

Thor grit his teeth, but wiped away his tears. Looking at him, I swore to myself I'd never put him through something like this again as long as we lived. "I love you," he whispered and I laughed to swallow a sob.

"I know, now go."

Thor vanished, the weight of his arms no longer around me and I felt the loss like a physical blow. I didn't turn towards Sif right away, pausing a moment to wipe my eyes on the hem of my t-shirt. "Let's do this." I said, trying to sound braver than I felt but my voice still shook.

Sif smiled at me but I saw the nervous twitch of it. "You don't have to do this now you know. We can wait. I don't care if I have to sleep on your bedroom floor, I'll keep you safe until you feel like you can-."

"Sif," I held up a hand to stop her nervous blabbering. "There will never be a good time for this. We have to do this now while we have the advantage."

"I know but...." She began rocking back and forth on her heels. The clang of her armored boots on the stone floor echoed around the rock and put my teeth on edge. "I don't want to lose you and I don't want Thor to lose you either." She said softly even as she held out a vial of familiar gold liquid.

"Neither of you will," I said with false confidence. I drained the vial in one gulp and once again, the spicy taste of cinnamon filled my mouth before the pain started. My muscles seized up violently, screaming in protest. I felt Sif's catch me before I could collapse as I was held like that for several more seconds as the pain receded.

"Wasn't as bad this time," I remarked as I stood up, legs shaking but not from the potion. "So what's next?"

"You climb in that," Sif said, her grip like iron vices around my arms. If I'd been human, she'd have broken my bones by now. "And wait."

"How long?"

"We'll know when it's over." That wasn't the answer I wanted to hear but I should've guessed the caverns wouldn't just let me get away with a few seconds.

"And then we pull you out!" Sif said with false brightness. "That's it!"

"And hope I didn't try my brain in the process," I finished and Sif gave me a forced smile.

"Exactly! But that won't happen, you're way too tough! Anyone who can get both Thor and Loki to listen to them isn't one who goes down easy. Right?" She said the last word like she was looking for reassurance and I nodded.

"I'll see you soon," I promised as I hugged her. "Hold onto this for me?" I asked as I slipped off the ring I'd just been gifted. "Don't want to see how starlight might melt it down. I did just get it after all."  Sif laughed but I could feel the drops of water falling onto my shoulder before she let go and took my ring.

I turned my gaze to the pool of menacing magic which had shifted from it's rust-orange to a deep red almost like blood. Like it knew what it was about to receive. "Sif?"

"Yes."

"If things don't go well..." I swallowed hard as I stared into the starlight. "Go back to Midgard. Tell my mom and uncle I love them."

"I will."

Now that I had her promise, there was nothing more to delay the inevitable. I lifted my arms over my head, every sensible part of my brain screaming not to do this as I jumped down and gravity took hold. I had a single moment of realizing the starlight had the same consistency as honey. Then the pain hit.

The starlight grabbed at me, burning away everything. My skin was melting off, my muscles, tendons and bones. Eaten up by the greedy, merciless magic that wouldn't stop until it consumed me. My screams were magnified by the stone walls, like a chorus of souls were being tortured in the depths of Hell.

Black spots danced before my eyes but the magic wouldn't let me go. Wouldn't let me pass out and escape it's hungry maw. It continued to consume. Stop, I wanted to say. Get me out of this! I wanted to scream to the warriors nearby who were tasked with my protection. But I couldn't speak. I couldn't remember how to form words. The skill was beyond me now. More and more the magic consumed, pressure building inside me along with the inferno.

The weight became intense, building behind my eyes and beating like a bass drum. The fire reached it's peak as I felt it invade my mind. It consumed. It was everywhere and I was nothing. Was I alive? Was I dead? Who even was I? The agony didn't offer any answers and my voice was lost as a blinding white light overwhelmed my world.

It was all I could see. The light. All I could feel was the frantic slamming of my heart. No more pain, I was nothing. There was nothing but blackness and and silence as my heart slammed to a stop.

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