Loki and Ingrid 43

Maybe you’re wrong

Loki is ready for Calder, being wary, and setting up his shielding charm, as Calder doubles back. “Curse your Jotun magic!” screams Calder, backing up.

          “That’s what you get!” snaps Sif. Loki’s charm is wavering. He’s still worn out from the teleportation magic, and Calder isn’t giving up.

          “I don’t think so,” says Sif, stepping forward.

          “You are a traitor, Lady Sif!” screams Calder, “A traitor to the throne!”

          Lyd is silently watching, probably preparing an escape if he comes for her.

          “So, what?” asks Sif, “You want anarchy?”

          “No,” says Calder, “We want Odin or Thor, that’s all we ask for.”

          “They’re not here, are they?”

          “That’s because you banished them, Loki!”

          “Thor left of his own accord, Calder. You wanted to see Ingrid?”

          “Hi, Calder,” I falter, not knowing what to say, “I’m okay, but as Queen, I tell you to stop, and I—”

          “TRAITOR!”

          “No, you’re a traitor! I’m Queen!”

          “A false king and a false queen. I’m sorry, sister, but he has to go.”

          “I demand you to stop, or I’ll banish you!”

          “You think you can do that? I’d just kill you.”

          “You can’t mean that. It’s all talk,” I tell him, “And besides, Thor wouldn’t want you to kill me so that’s—”

          “Thor doesn’t care as long as he gets his throne back!”

          “That’s not true! You know it’s not!”

          “Can we just settle this, peacefully?” asks Sif, “Since your probably don’t want to be punched in the—”

          “Stop it, okay?” Lyd sounds tired, and also high as she blows smoke in our direction.

          “Eww,” says Calder, “It’s the Frost Giant’s sister, ugh.”

          “Don’t talk about my sister that way!”

          “Since when were you soft?”

          “Calder you said it yourself,” I add, “You said they didn’t have emotions.”

          “Hatred and anger, maybe those but not soft.”

          “I want you to stop,” I say, “Please. I’m not Queen, I’m your sister. And he’s my friend. Stop this, for me.”

          “You’re a traitor!” he screams, “I’ll ask Thor what to do when he gets back…I would never hurt you, Ingrid, but I make no promises about him.”

          “I won’t accept it,” I tell him. “I won’t.”

          “Shut up, stupid girl,” says Calder, “You said you wanted to kill them, remember?”

          “I was five. People change.”

          “No,” says Calder, “Not in that way.” His spear is out again, quickly, and Loki’s charm is stronger now, pushing him backwards onto the ground. “Stand back!”

          “No!” I shout. There’s a silence. “Do you have a spell to kill people, Loki?”

          “What you want me to kill him? Because I will.”

          “No, I just wanted to know if you could.”

          “There is a spell,” he says, “But I’ve never used it, unless I used it on Midgard when I was under Thanos’ trance. But I had my scepter, so even then—”

          “It’s not your scepter, it’s an infinity stone, you—”

          “Stop saying nonsense!” squeaks Calder, “Don’t hurt me, please!”

          “You just tried to kill me what do you—”

          “Loki, don’t do it, please.”

          “Ingrid, he wants to kill me, he’s no good! He only cares about himself and getting good girls in bed with him, he wants to kill my entire race, not that I’m particularly angry, but he wants to kill me and Lyd and banish you—he wants to become king, don’t you—” he looks at me for a minute, then he says, “I’m going to kill him right now!”

          “No, stop!” I scream, as Sif grabs his hands and has him away from my brother, but it’s not over yet. Calder is on his feet again with his spear.

          “Drop him or I’ll kill you,” says Calder.

          Sif falters. “I said drop him! I’ll kill Ingrid too!”

          Sif drops Loki as he stands up, trying to regain orientation, but it’s too late, Calder has him pinned to the wall. “I’ll end this once and for all,” he raises his spear to strike…

          I don’t know what hit me, why I’m going crazy, but I jump. I jump like a crazed maniac. I don’t care anymore, he won’t hurt him. I feel the spear pierce through me, and I can barely breath as I fall to my knees trying to keep consciousness.

          Calder screams as he drops the spear and backs up, “Why? Why, Ingrid!”

          “That’s what you get for trying to hurt him!”

          I can’t breathe, can’t think, but I somehow keep consciousness as I feel someone scoop me up off the ground, it feels like a girl, probably Sif, since Lyd…nevermind, I don’t know anymore. I try to look up, and sure enough it’s Sif, and she’s running. I hear bickering between Lyd and Calder behind, and I hear he left his weapon. I hear Sif shouting, way too close to my ear I can barely think…then I black out.

*****

          I wake up, my side screaming in agony. Of course, I’ve felt worse, but that was something I was almost numb to as it was a constant, full-body pain. This is a sharp, stabbing pain, and it’s never going to end…

          “She’s bleeding out, idiot, she’s gonna die,” Lyd sounds as cynical as ever, which is mildly amusing, considering everything. I hear Sif now, talking to Lyd and Calder but my brain can’t process what they’re saying…

          I can see Loki and Sif out of the corner of my eye, but I keep them closed for now. It’s easier on the brain.

          “What’s happening?” I whisper.

          “Lyd says you’re bleeding to death,” explains Sif. Nice. After all the times I thought I would die at the hands of Nova or Aura or Gadalia, this is new. I never thought Calder would be the one to kill me…

          “What does she know?” It’s Loki.

          “Well it’s pretty obvious, you need to do something quick like the time you saved me…”

          “Some thanks.”

          “Loki, we don’t have time for this.”

          “You think I can do more magic after all this?”

          “You have to, you just shielded Calder!”

          “You don’t understand, Sif, there’s a hierarchy of magic, some is harder than others, healing magic is one of the hardest charms I’ve ever learned at this level, not to mention extremely risky.”

          “You’ve done it a million times before!”

          “That was different, I had time to think, I wasn’t weak from the chips and overuse of magic, and the patient wasn’t bleeding out…”

          “You have to try! You have to try…You have to try…You have to try…You have to…You have…You…you………………………………………………………..

*****

“Are you crazy, Calder?” The pain is gone, it must have worked.

          “I’m sorry, I’m so, sorry—she’s awake!”

          “Hi,” my head is throbbing.

          “Hi? That’s all I get? Why not a giant slap in the face?” asks Calder.  

          “Just stop.” I tell them. Then I realize I’m in a bathtub with Sif, who is scrubbing me off, and I feel so…naked…even though I have a towel, and he’s just my brother…my brother. What an odd feeling.

          “You can’t do that again!”

          “What? Almost kill you?” asks Calder, “I wasn’t trying.”

          “That’s what you get for trying to hurt him,” I snap back.”

          “Really, that wasn’t necessary,” says Loki, “Also, what were you thinking, Ingrid?”

          “Nothing,” I mutter, “Sif, can you hurry up?”

          “No, what were you thinking, Ingrid.”

          “I promised to protect you—I honestly have no idea…”

          “I see you’re good at keeping promises. Remember to run if…”

          “Not now, Loki. But thank you.”

          Sif throws me a shirt, thankfully as Calder starts, “Well maybe I was wrong. That doesn’t change the thirty years of bias I built up. But you seem to care for her, Loki…wish you didn’t, but I suppose I can’t hurt you as long as you’re tied to my sister.

          “You’ve been lied to your entire life, I understand.”

          “No, you—”

          “Yes, I do, Calder, and if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to get a drink. And I might just dump a liter of beer on your head. Hate that stuff.”

          I hear an alarm going off in the distance, and I tense up. Lyd looks up quickly and looks at Sif. “Oh, no.”