Choices

Chapter 58
Being a Prince had its advantages at times, like ordering the staff that anymore letters to Cephera had to come to Loki first. Loki had exerted patience over the situation regarding Krystoff. Cephera was right, the man was too far away to cause trouble but still Loki was dying to find a reason to see him.
Finally, after months of waiting, he got his chance. The letter arrived to him while he was in magic lessons with Cephera. The servant politely called him away to recieve it. Hiding it beneath his robes Loki rejoined his paramour. "What was that about?" Cephera asked with that cute tilt of her head.
"They are looking for Thor," Loki said. Thor was finally back in the arena training with the warriors three. There had been no breakthrough on his relationship with Sif, but really Loki couldn't have cared less. The two of them seemed happier without each other anyhow.
"Oh." Cephera replied. "Then come on." She teased as if he were some lazy ass teacher.
"Be careful what you wish for woman." He warned her. Today they were dabbling in arcane magic and the lash of it was like a shock of ice cold water in the face and down the spine. A temporary stunning spell. Cephera laughed and took her place once more.
***
The morning gave way to evening and finally Cephera left to meet with Loki's mother and then later her sister, giving Loki plenty of time to set in motion his little side expedition. He kissed her goodbye and watched her leave before he dared to even open the letter.
Reading it only made him scowl. Krystoff had the nerve to speak about Loki as though her were a maniac. Clearly, Krystoff was desperate to have Cephera run to him. The same loving words spouting on the paper that only made Loki's blood boil. The man was either delusional or very hopeful.
Letter in hand, Loki arrived at the Byfrost. "I have business in Mechanova." Loki announced to Heimdall.
"Do you now?" Heimdall asked.
"I wish to speak to someone, it's important." Weary of this journey to be ventured alone, Heimdall surveyed the prince a moment. Loki had been learning to tell a certain amount of truth to cover for any lies. To allow people to fill in the blanks on their own. He was trying to perfect avoiding the topic.
"Take care what you do there young prince. Treaties are easily severed when trouble brews it's head." Heimdall warned but thankfully he opened the Byfrost and Loki was sucked in.
The realm was just as he remembered it. The road from the Byfrost waypoint to the palace was a small walk and when he was close to the palace, Loki took the long way around the outskirts. He had a very good memory and he found the entrance that would lead him to the Fevour's chambers.
He'd been invisible since he'd touched down in Mechanova and so entering the large double doors took great care. He eased one side open and peered in. No one was home, was there ever?
Loki easily found his way back to the room he assumed was Krystoff's. The one he's seen him and his sister in night of the celebration. "I can't believe you sent her another letter," Katarina said, lounging on the bed her hair in messy white-blond tangles.
"What was I suppose to do, he was furious at me for being too 'impatient'. I have to win back her trust." Krystoff scowled. He was sitting nearby sharpening a long curved dagger. Loki moved in further and looked at them both, but was more interested in Katarina. Along her back were small lines of scars, and other scars resembling bite marks. Had Krystoff done that?
"You're an idiot." Katarina scoffed rolling onto her back.
"Had you successfully seduced the king all those years ago I wouldn't need to chase after that silly Princess." Krystoff growled. "It's why father had you trained perfectly for transforming yourself into others."
"How was I suppose to know the woman I was masquerading as was a dead woman and the king knew it. That was fathers fault, not mine. Her face and body were his idea." Katarina reminded him.
"Maybe, you should try a new body." Krystoff got a look of plotting on his face.
"I can't. The King has his hound with him. He'll see right through my spell. We made him suspicious with the last effort and now with your screw up he's on his guard more."
"I can kill his hound," Krystoff said licking along the sharpened blade and drawing blood. He didn't seem to mind.
"Absolutely not, you want father to freak out completely? We stick with the plan, Cephera is the goal. We've waited this long for the throne, we can wait longer." Getting up, Katarina picked up her discarded clothes and inspected them. "Ugh, I hate you. Why do you have to ruin everything." She glared and dropped the torn rags.
"Wouldn't be a problem if you didn't insist on leaving."
"I'm not your sex toy." Katarina huffed and earned herself a slap across her face. The crack startled even Loki.
"You're what ever I need you to be!" Krystoff shouted. Katarina hadn't even put her hand to her now red and swollen cheek, she simply looked back at him and glared.
"And you wonder why you can't keep a woman. If you ever get Cephera, you'll have to chain her up to keep her."
"That's the plan." Krystoff grinned. With a growl, Katarina grabbed her things and left. Loki watched Krystoff think for a bit, giving Katarina lots of time to be gone completely. After a while, Loki allowed his spell to drop. Startled, Krystoff stepped back, before he recognized him and then narrowed his eyes.
"Krystoff," Loki greeted
"Loki," Krystoff said in return, caressing the handle of his blade. "I suppose you've been there a while, I would be had I been in your place." Loki scowled. He didn't like being compared to this boy.
"I was, but we are not alike." Loki replied. "These letters stop today, Cephera is not yours and never will be." Krystoff glared at the letter squished in Loki's fist.
"And how do you plan to stop them? Intercepting every last one?"
"If I have too." Loki smirked.
"Then perhaps I'll just kill you, I mean I could always use the jealous lover excuse. You came here with my letter and attacked me. I killed you in self-defence, the treaty of course would be broken and both Princess's would be forced to come home." Krystoff grinned wide. "Maybe I'd get a chance to put a baby in both of them."
"Why is it so important that you become a father?" Loki asked. It had been bugging him for so long. All the information Cephera and her sister have about the Fevour family was all hear say and speculation. Nothing provable.
"You know what's great about the position my family holds, even if I told you, no one would believe you. It's a he said he said thing against a very important family, not to mention jealous lover adds to denounce your claim should you tell anyone else. However, I do like the idea of killing you. Sounds like a wonderful plan, so I'll grant you that information." Loki narrowed his eyes and readied himself for an attack.
"Do you know what Lycise is?" Loki heard of it. A herb with dark magical properties that could enhance a persons anatomy.
"You'd be a fool to use it," Loki said and already he knew he was a fool.
"Not a fool, smart. All my life I've been bred to take this herb and yes it has made me stronger. Stronger than any of you. My magic, my strength, even my seed is more versatile. We want the throne and the only way to get it is to have someone in our family have a child with the royal family. I've been bred to not just successfully impregnate one of the girls, or both, but to then kill the rest and take the throne raising my child as the heir."
"You're insane. Any child born of black magic has a 90% or higher chance of dying during birth, or being born a monster or countless other things." Loki knew Cephera, even if Krystoff managed to get her pregnant Cephera would love that child. But black magic would destroy it. It was illegal to use magic for those sorts of things even in Asgard.
"One, two, ten children can die, Cephera is still young and she will produce as many as needed to secure that throne." Loki glared at Krystoff with such hate he wished looks could kill.
"She's not a breeding mule." Loki snapped.
"She's worthless for anything else." Krystoff laughed and Loki attacked. He wouldn't have Cephera subjected to Krystoff, not like that. Even Seraphina, Loki would protect her to from this mad man. No woman deserved to put up with him. Krystoff only laughed harder as he caught Loki by the throat.
He hadn't been kidding about the Lycise making him stronger. Loki gasped for air before vanishing from his grasp. He appeared halfway across the room only to be kicked off onto his back. Krystoff sat atop him, softly smoothing the dagger across Loki's cheek. "Does she scream in bed?" Krystoff asked. "I want to hear her scream." He added, a maniacal look crossing his face and the dagger slowly cutting into his skin. A slow torture.
Loki tried to ignore the slow sneering pain and instead summoned up the arcane magic him and Cephera had been playing with earlier that day. Krystoff cried out and his body began to shake. Loki jumped to his feet, threw on his spell of invisibility and fled.
He hated to run, but he wasn't strong enough to kill him, not yet. Loki needed to get back to training for combat, one day he would meet Krystoff again and when he did he would kill him.

Notes