Chapter 47 - The end. (2.544)
Hello my dear readers,
I am sorry to announce that I will not write the final chapters. I have extended this story for so long I cannot stand to write anything else. Don’t get me wrong, I love this story and I love you, my followers and readers, but unfortunately I was not careful and dragged it along for too long, and now I can’t wait to see the end of it. We were close, believe me, we only had something between 3 to 5 chapters left, but I couldn’t do that. I am sorry. I will be posting the story on AO3, under the name of adamcansuckme. Once I'm done posting all the chapters there, I'll delete this blog or redirect it to AO3, I don't know.
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Upon their return to Asgard, Loki took Hyda to the orchard of golden apples his mother once was in charge of. Those apples had magic in them, and although the Asgaridian life spam was already longer then the Midgardian one, it was through the apples that the gods and keepers of Asgard lived such long lives. Loki had always loved Hyda, but time only made her all the more perfect. There was nothing else he wanted right in that moment than to spend the rest of his life with her. But even though he she had Aesir blood running in her veins, she was still mortal. He could not bear the thought of losing her, so he offered her to be one of the privileged few to feed from the orchard. In a golden afternoon, with the smell of sweet apples filling the air, Loki kneeled before his beloved Hyda and asked her to be his wife and queen. She says yes and the marriage happens in a couple of days. In other news, Hyda moves to Loki’s chambers permanently and keeps Ygdra as her chamber maid. Ygdra, with time, grows to love Wilhelm, the man she met at the ball, and overcomes her impossible love for her lady. Meanwhile, Loki and Hyda are trying to have a baby, but apparently it is very unlikely that Hyda will ever be pregnant of him, since they are of different races. Of course, doctors can always be wrong, and after a couple of decades, she finds herself carrying Loki’s child. However, on one night...
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The dream was over and you woke up. It was cold - actually, it was freezing. You were shivering and your teeth were chattering, so you pulled the covers up to your chin in the hope it would warm you up. It didn't take long before you realized that you were cold. Your stomach was spasming with ice colds bolts and you realized the coldness was coming from you - from your womb. You felt your insides turn and you felt sick. Pushing the covers aside you got up and tottered to the bathroom. Grasping tightly at the border of the sink you felt the cold sweat covering your forehead, your upperlip, your nape, your back. You felt sick. You rushed to your chamber pot and kneeled in front it, as rush of vomit expelled itself from your throat. You cleaned your mouth, but you still felt sick. Suddenly, you felt something warm between your thighs. It was wet and it spread quickly. Looking down, you saw blood staining your night gown.
“Oh, no. No, no, no, please no. LOKI!”
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And so Hyda lost her first child. She had been sick for the last week, but they thought it was just a cold. She took some medication and rested, but it only got worse. Loki became worried sick, and then she lost the baby. Loki was devastated and Hyda, depressed. She wanted a child so much. The healers said - well, Madam Pains did, in a private conversation - that it was because of Loki’s Jotun blood. They realized then, they could never have kids of their own.
But Hyda’s depression and the fact that the throne could not be without heir brought Loki the idea of adoption. He was extremely reluctant to that thought at first, specially because of his own story. But as time passed, he realized there might not be another way out. He figured that if Odin and Frigga had been honest with him from the beginning, then things could have been different. A lot different. Still, mostly he was doing this for Hyda and for the throne. So they adopted a little baby boy who’s parents were farmers that had died in an accident and was beign raised by his aunt. They paid the woman good money to buy her silence about it, at least until they decided it was the opportune moment to tell the boy about his real family.
Hyda was radiant. She took care of the child like it was her own. The beautiful smile Loki loved so much was back on her lips. And with time, Loki grew fond of the boy. They named him Sepp, and he grew happy and strong. In time, Hyda and Loki talked to the little prince about his real family. At first he did not understand, but after explaining that the fact he hadn’t come from his mother’s womb did not make him any less loved, he felt better and understood it. Sepp didn’t want to meet his aunt and the rest of the family, though. His real family was his parents, the one who raised him. They also talked to him about the throne of Asgard, telling him that even though he wasn’t royal by birth, because was adopted by the King and Queen of the realm and was a true, pure-blooded Asgardian, there would be nothing standing in his way when the time came for him to becoe King. Sepp, however, made it clear he did not wish to be king - he wanted to be a scholar, and only that. In a way, Loki and Hyda were proud of him, but that made Loki very worried, as for one of the reasons he had adopted Sepp in the first place was because of the succession of the crown.
Decades later, Hyda found herself with child again. At first they thought it was only some illness, as they had discarded the thought of her conceiving a child from Loki. But it was true, and examinations showed this child to be both Jotun and Asgardian, yes, a half-blood. This time, however, the Aesir blood thrived, and the child was born healthy. A girl. A beautiful girl, with hair as black as the night, skin as fair as the moon, and eyes blood red. Loki taught little Sigi, which was short for Sieglinde, how to use the magic she had inherited from him, and ever since child, little Sigi showed a great proclivity to become a fine warrior like her father. In time, they discussed the line of succession with their two children. Sepp, being older, resigned from his fate to be crowned prince of Asgard, and Sigi showed how happy she was to be the next in line. They had finally found a heir for the Asgardian throne, and they had two children they loved much, so all was fine.
Decades passed again, and much to everyone’s surprise, Hyda was again with child. A baby boy was born and they named him Jan. One night, while Hyda and Loki were asleep, Sepp and Sigi in their chambers across the hall and little Jan in the craddle by his parents’ bed, a man sneaks into their room. It was Calem, king and former ally of Loki. Loki had broken the alliance with Averdeim for difference of interests, and their king was not happy - they weren’t strong enough to conquer wihout Loki, but they he was stupid enought to think he could face Loki. So, to entice Loki into a war, for Calem thought that only war could bring glory and riches to his land. Greedy and stupid, he kidnaps Jan. When Hyda wakes up in the morning and goes check on her newborn son, the craddle is empty. Desperate, she looks everywhere for him while Loki sends guards to find the boy. They find in the front courtyard, dead and impaled.
The following scene happens on a large balcony in the castle of Averdeim. Below, all the people had been summoned to watch.
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The sweat made his skin glisten, drops running down his face falling from his jaw and the tip of his nose. His chin trembled lightly, betraying him as he, a proud man, still tried to hide his fear. He squinted his eyes and spoke, his voice finally a little shaky.
“Who are you?”
You raised your chin, looking down on him.
“You ask me who I am? You stole my child from his craddle, my newborn, and killed him. You drove a spear across my baby boy’s body and left his corpse dripping blood for all to see in the front courtyard of my castle. All the tears shed in the realm for the loss of their prince do not compare to the rivers I have cried for the loss of my son, my flesh and blood. You wanted war, but destruction is not within me. Yet your soulless deed awakened in me a thirst for revenge, and although you won’t have much time to do so, you will regret that you did. You want to know who I am?”
Glancing quickly at he corner you knew Loki was, you nodded ever so slightly and in the next second a golden glow emanated from you, your clothes changing from Averdeim servant rags to Asgardian royal apparel. A smile full of pride and disdain curled your lips and cocked your head as you spoke, enunciating every word.
“I am Hyda Frankeldóttir, the Queen of Asgard. I am your death.”
At the last word you thrusted your arm foward, the sword moving upwards and it pierced him in the hollow under the jaw, between his chin and throat, the tip of the sword peeking out at the top of his head. At first, his eyes widened with surprise and pain, but then they were dead. Wide open and dead. Blood gushed, dripping and streaming down his throat and chest, staining the fabric of this clothes. It poured down your hand and wrist, a small, shiny red pool forming at your feet and tainting the rims of your dress. The rest of the world stood still for a moment, at least to you, as you could not hear a sound while you felt the frenzy and the bliss of your deed. You felt satisfaction and pleasure rise up your chest, your heart feeling as if it was about to explode with relish at the sight of his dead body, now only standing because you were supporting it with the sword you refused to pull out. You bit your lower lip and one side of your lips curled. The warmth of his blood running down your arm and tainting the sleeve of your dress made you feel very much alive and it was done. Vengeance was yours.
But there was still one last thing that needed to be done. You slowly pulled out the sword, enjoying every moment of it. His body swayed and fell to the side with a thud, spilling blood everywhere. You turned around and faced the crowd, now hearing again as they actually cried out hurrays and all sorts of merryful shouts, as if you had avenged them as well. You raised both arms to your side, one still covered in blood and holding the sword, and the shouting died as they became silent, eager to hear your words. You spoke very loud and as clear as you could, wanting every man, woman and child to hear you.
“People of Averdeim, I have killed your opressor. The King is dead, and the throne is empty. Will you...” You pointed the sword at them “... accept me...” You touched the side of the blade on your stomach, tainting the dress with the blood on the sword. “... as your Queen?”
The crowd exploded in a very cheerful sound, fists up in the air and smiled on their faces. Letting the sword go, you went on.
“This man was not worthy of the crown.” You pointed the sword at the dead body behind you as the crowd silenced again. “Craving war, he murdered my child and made it clear he was the one to blame.” You lowered your arms, placing them on the balustrade. “Blinded by his thirst for battle, he allowed himself this one mistake, and unaware of my appearance, he did not know he had let me in his castle and placed me as his chamber maid - proud men are always too fool too see the truth. Now I have had my revenge, his blood pays the blood of my child, my blood, the same he let pool on the floors of my castle as my boy was left impaled in the courtyard. But revenge is not enough, for it does not bring my son back to me. So wrong must be made right, and I here ask you, humbly, will you kneel before me? Will you live under my ruling? I promise you, I give you my word as a mother, I will bring peace upon this realm. Prosperity - which men are fool enough to believe it can only be achieved with war. No more unnecessary deaths. No more mothers crying for the loss of their sons and fathers whimpering at the graves of their daughters. No more untimely widows and abandoned orphans. War is never the answer, so I ask you this, will you let me show the path to peace and glory? I, Hyda Frankeldóttir Queen of Asgard, very much desire to rule by your side.” You bent your body over the balustrade, staring blankly at the thousands of faces below you. “I bow to you, people of Averdeim, and ask you to accept me as your monarch. Will you let me rule you?”
There was a moment of silence in which you felt your heart race. The wind blowing made you feel the blood cooling on the sleeve of your dress, making it stick wet to your arm. You closed your eyes and felt everything around you. Suddenly, a shout.
“LONG LIVE QUEEN HYDA!”
You smiled widely and raised your head, slowly opening your eyes and you heard the reast of the crowd chant.
“Long live the Queen! Long live the Queen! Long live the Queen!”
They repeated it non-stop, thrusting their fists up in the air as the chorus grew louder and louder with every voice that joined in. You had done it. You had made it. Your work was done.
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And from the throne of Asgard, along with Loki, Hyda ruled.
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“All that is noble is in itself of a quiet nature, and appears to sleep until it is aroused and summoned forth by contrast.”
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe