Chapter 2.3 A Test of Time Part 3

Loki was quite startled when Thor reached out to take his hands in his, and widened his eyes in shock, inhaling sharply.

Staring at Loki with a steely determination, Thor squeezed the niouvi's hands, not wanting Loki to fear that he would be abandoned. "I am making this promise to you. I will not leave you in Muspelheim."

The pair held each other's gaze for a moment before Loki looked away and nodded, terrified to trust Thor. He'd brought himself into this though, and if he put all his eggs in the wrong basket, that was his fault. He would have no one to blame but himself. Nodding again, Loki drew back and climbed under the blanket of his bed, his sore joints rejoicing.

He didn't sleep well that night and tossed and turned, nightmares about his fate in Muspelheim if Thor abandoned him running rampant through his mind. He couldn't stop berating himself for being an idiot and not accepting his life in Jotunheim, unable to utter even a word the morning that they were set to head to the capital of Muspelheim.

For appearance's sake, Thor tied Loki up and gagged him again once they exited the inn - he didn't want King Surtr to grow suspicious about his betrayal - and rode with his men until they reached the capital city. Everyone was pointing and gasping at Loki as they rode through the city, but Thor ignored them, analyzing everything about his surroundings as they made their way to the palace in the center of the city.

The buildings of Muspelheim seemed to have arched and broad ceilings, which meant it would be easy to fly around at night, concealed by the shadows. When they got closer to the castle of Muspelheim's king, Thor noticed that there were guards everywhere and that it would be quite hard to use the cover of night to get to Loki. Because it was the middle of the day, he would have to sneak through the palace as the sun began to set in order to find Loki.

If he'd had days to plan this, he would've figured out how to map out the palace, but he didn't have time. Every second counted, so he needed to determine the safest way to get to Loki and then get them both out of the kingdom.

Loki grew more and more fearful once they entered the palace, and felt like he was being served on a silver platter once they entered the throne room. He was currently over Thor's shoulder now, and when Thor stopped moving and set him on his feet, he almost fainted, disgust rising in him when he made eye contact with the king.

King Surtr was a large man, both in height and roundness, and he had the most dastardly grin on his face, a dark, covetous aura pouring from him as he stood from his throne. "It pleases me to see that you were successful, Aesir."

Thor nodded, taking a step away from Loki. The last thing he needed was the king growing suspicious. "Where is my payment?"

"I'll need to verify that he is unharmed in every way, Aesir." Answered the king, making his way over to Loki. He reached down and took hold of Loki's face, looking at it from every angle. "Norns. He is even more beautiful than I imagined."

Loki almost vomited when the rotund king brushed a large thumb over his lip, and he grimaced, turning away from his touch.

This only made the king's disgusting smirk grow, and he laughed, a dangerous glint in his eyes. "Wash and dress him for dinner."

Servants of the king immediately rushed towards Loki and picked him up, holding him tightly as he struggled, and whisking him away.

Thor took notice of the direction they took Loki in, and made a mental note to explore this side of the palace when it grew darker outside. Firstly though, he needed to make sure he received payment and got his men out of there. "Where's my payment?"

The king tossed his hand dismissively, gesturing for the guards in the room to bring out the cart containing Thor's money. "Here. Get out of my kingdom, you mongrel." He jutted his jaw out then, catching the attention of his other guards. "Make sure they leave the city."

Thor cursed silently, as this would make it harder to get back to Loki. He'd most likely have to wait at a nearby town, then fly into the city when it got darker. He just didn't know how he was going to fly into the city without being noticed by the guards that were everywhere. If he flew higher than the city walls though, it might be possible for him to bypass the guards.

He thought of the best way to accomplish this as he and his men were escorted out of the city, and once they were far enough away that the guards couldn't see them, Thor turned, knowing that he needed to return to the city. "I need all of you to ride faster than you've ever ridden before. Don't stop until your horses can't go any further. I will meet back up with all of you."

His men seemed uncertain, as even they understood how risky it was to go back into the city. "Drott… is that witch really worth it?"

"He is," Answered Thor, beginning to frown. "Do not worry about me. I will return to all of you."

"And if you don't?" Asked another one of his men. "What then?"

"That won't happen." Assured Thor, his gaze softening. "Now go. I will catch up to all of you."

Although hesitant, his men listened to him and urged their horses to run, the cart full of their money hitched to two of them. When he could no longer see his men, Thor turned around and began to rise in the air, flying back to the city. He could fly quite fast, and a trek that would've normally taken an hour only took him 30 minutes to make.

Once he got close to the walls of the capital city, Thor rose even higher in the air, hiding himself amongst the clouds. Of course, it was terribly cold up here, so once he was past the city walls, he lowered himself significantly, using the broad, arched ceilings of the city to his advantage. He didn't settle on the ground until he landed in what seemed to be a secret garden of the king, and quickly looked around, ducking down to cover himself behind a bush when he heard the laughter of women approaching him.

Getting to Loki would undoubtedly be one of the hardest things he'd ever done in his life, but he wasn't leaving him here. He'd made a promise to the niouvi, and he was a man who always went by his word.

He never broke promises.

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After Loki was whisked away by the king's servants, he was taken to the king's bedroom and washed. The servants scrubbed his skin quite harshly, but he remained silent, knowing that they were only treating him like this because he was a frost giant.

After cleansing him, the servants moisturized his skin and hair, combing through it until all of the tangles were out. They then dressed him in a traditional Muspelheim outfit next, and Loki found that he hated being covered up like this. His shirt was skin tight and covered every part of his torso, while his pants flowed in a way that seemed ethereal. He had many gemstones woven into his hair as well, and his lips were painted with deep black paint.

He supposed that he would look beautiful to the king, and found himself growing more and more nauseous as he was led to the king's personal dining hall. It was almost nightfall now, and he felt his heart sink when he realized that he might be stuck here.

His heart began to race when he realized this, and he stopped suddenly, hands coming to cover his mouth as he gagged.

He needed to get out of here.

Before he could run away, one of the king's servants roughly grabbed at his arm, stopping him. "You're not getting away, Jotun."

Loki struggled in the servant's hold as he was forced to walk to the king's dining hall, and when he arrived, he was relieved to see that he and the king wouldn't be alone. It seemed that the king was throwing a great feast to celebrate his arrival, and he was promptly walked over to the king's side, the servants that delivered him bowing low before leaving.

Now that he was standing before the gluttonous king, Loki felt as if he truly might vomit, and he turned his head when King Surtr reached out to caress him, visibly recoiling.

This only made the king laugh, and he reached out to sling an arm around Loki's waist then, pulling the niouvi onto his lap. "You'll learn to not turn away from my touch soon enough, pet."

Loki shuddered when the king's large, meaty hands rested on his inner thigh, and he almost cried, hating that he put himself in this situation.

Throughout the entirety of the meal, Loki was forced to sit on the king's lap, unable to swat at him when he grabbed at him lecherously in between him inhaling his food. Of course, Loki wasn't offered anything throughout this entire feast, and by the end of it, he was ready to die. He knew that the king would ravage him tonight, and cursed himself again and again for putting himself here in this situation.

When the king finally finished his 18th plate, he sat back in his chair and called out to the servants present, his voice jarring Loki. "Take him to my room, please."

Bowing low, the servants then rose and helped Loki off of the king's lap, yanking him along when he protested. The king reached out and slapped his ass then, causing him to jump and yelp. He quickly turned to face the king, fear evident in his eyes.

"Things will be easier for you if you go willingly, pet."

Being called this infuriated Loki more than anything, and he told himself that he wouldn't let the king ravage him tonight. He would find a way to escape, and although he didn't know how he would survive, he would do his best to make some sort of life for himself. He just couldn't stay here and remain a slave, forced to breed like an animal and do whatever the king demanded he do for the rest of his life.

He would escape.