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"Power," Kenna said, her voice a little breathy. The Sorceress was already performing some of the most complex magic she had ever heard of, she couldn't imagine what she why she would need, or worse, what she would do with more power.

Loki nodded in agreement, pleased she was already following his train of thought. "Power," he confirmed. "Light elves were magic users weren't they?" Loki asked unnecessarily.

It was a well known fact that the Light Elves were some of the most powerful magic users in the universe. They had once been guardians of some of the most ancient wisdom and forbidden magics gathered from all corners of space and time. Other races had often attacked them for their power and knowledge. In the end, it was why the Dark Elves had come.

Kenna swallowed. "Not all of them, but there were power priests and priestesses, yes. Certainly more than here," she allowed and then, because she wanted him to know not everyone was like the Asgardians in their view of magic she pressed on. "Our priests were not just guardians of our religion but also warriors. They were valued for not only their knowledge, but also their strength."

Loki stared down at her, tightening his jaw so she wouldn't see the effect her words had on him. The small elf was more perceptive than he realized. "So where did all of that go?"

"I don't understand."

"When the dark elves attacked and-" he drew off suddenly feeling uncomfortable, he hadn't meant to be insensitive and didn't wish to hurt her with his careless words.

"Everyone died?" She finished for him glibly. There was no anger in her words and that was just as telling had she screamed them at him. There was a strange sense of defeatism to her that made Loki's chest ache.

Loki swallowed. "Yes, and after that where did the magic go?"

Kenna paused. Thinking hard about his question as she worked to remember. Forgotten nights huddled around sad fires with all that remained of her species flickered through her mind. "It was lost," she said with a shrug. "That's what my father always used to say. He lamented the loss of so much power. He often said that without it the Light Elves would never be able to return to Alfheim."

Loki nodded, not surprised some of the surviving military men would begin to develop stories of their own over what had happened. Either way, her father must have been of high rank, the longer he was around the elf the more convinced he was she had been part of the aristocracy. There was something about the way she spoke and her bearing that convinced him she was more than just a common soldier's daughter.

Loki presses his lips together. "But magic doesn't do that." He said. "It can't just be lost, it goes somewhere. It has to. It can never be created or destroyed, its energy."

Kenna tensed at his words as horrific memories surged through her, but she fought to keep her own emotions contained and her face impassive. "Then it must have been taken, by the Dark Elves."

Loki frowned. "Perhaps...But..." he dragged off and he started pacing, his hands clasped behind his back. "The Dark Elves are lost now too."

Ignoring the prince as he was clearly working to think his way through this, Kenna leaned forward and skimmed yet another text. The only sound was the whisper of parchment and the nearly silent tread of the prince's boots as he paced back and forth behind her.

"All of these are about a sorceress," Kenna said after a few minutes. "Do any of them mention her name?" She asked moving yet another aside.

"No, nothing I could find," Loki replied and he slid up next to her. "Does it matter? Her name?"

Kenna didn't look up from the text she was reading. "Seems she is the power behind the sword, and our only chance of defeating Harokin's immortal soldiers...it would be good to know who we are facing," Kenna drug off and glided her fingers over another text. Loki leaned closer to her, his arm brushing hers as he read over her shoulder. "My teachers used to say there is power in names. Especially with magic users."

Loki nodded and the movement had him brushing against her again. Kenna was surprised to find herself far from unaffected by the prince's proximity. She could feel how close he was almost as though he were giving off a faint electrical charge.

"They only ever refer to her as Harokin's Love," Loki continued and it seemed as though he were entirely unconscious of there being anything between them. "She is identified by a small number of the texts as The Dark Elf Sorceress. Which is more than most," Loki sighed and spun away in frustration as he resumed his pacing.

Kenna watched the prince's gliding gait as he moved back and forth across the large room in long strides. She had watched him move and fight in Alfheim, but it never ceased to amaze her how one as tall as he could move so silently. The God of Mischief he was called. It was no wonder, combined with his magic he would be nearly impossible to detect if he wished to remain hidden.

Loki stopped suddenly, spinning back to face her. "When we were in Alfheim, you identified the ruins of the palace," he said pointing at her.

Kenna stilled as Loki uttered words she had hoped he wouldn't. She nodded however, pressing her lips together in an uncertain line. There were so many questions, questions she wasn't ready to answer.

"Did you notice anything else standing? Any other significant structures in the area? There had to be a reason for Harokin's army to camp there. What was around the palace before?" He asked his questions hurriedly as though the answers would allude him if any additional time passed.

Kenna shook her head. "No, there was nothing else, and there wouldn't be. The palace was the only thing in that part of the forest for miles. It wasn't like Asgard with a city around the palace. The palace was the city. All the people, the court, artisans and priests lived within it's walls," she explained.

Loki cocked his head curiosity slowing him for a moment. "So you lived there?" he asked.

Kenna nodded and hoped he wouldn't ask more about her personal past. She didn't want him to know, and couldn't lie to him. 

Loki stilled as another thought occurred to him. "You said the priests lived there?"

"Yes," she replied quickly, thankful the prince's quick mind had already moved on to another point. 

"And that was where they practiced?" He clarified.

Kenna stilled as she followed Loki's line of thought. "Yes. The temple was at the very heart of the palace."

"In the very heart of Alfheim," Loki's voice was grave.

Kenna bit her lip. "If there is any power to be had, it would be there," she confirmed.

Loki nodded running a hand through his short dark hair. "And if there is any power left, then there is a chance that all the power is left."

Kenna blinked at Loki, trying to understand. She had never studied magic. She had been considered too young and hadn't shown an affinity for it. "If magic can never be created or destroyed, and it returned there..."

"Then when the Dark Elves died every ounce of Light Elf magic returned home," Loki finished for her. He pressed his lips together grimly. "But that's just a theory."

Kenna sifted through the parchment on the princes desk, skimming over it with the tips of her fingers. "It would explain why they are there..." Kenna said distractedly. She drew in a deep breath and lifted her gaze to meet Loki's her next words weighing heavily on her. "So...how are we going to stop it?"

Loki looked up at her and she could see the uncertainty swimming in his eyes.

"We are going to have to go there. Stop the sorceress before she is able to gain access to the power...if she hasn't already," Loki ran a hand over his face, his eyes a little wide around the edges. He was completely out of his depth on this one. "The magic could be the answer to how she is able to sustain so many at a time."

"So many?" Kenna asked, not quite following Loki's train of thought.

"Talismans," Loki explained quickly. He shifted his hands in a very deliberate way and a necklace appeared in his palm. He showed it to her. "I was curious. I modeled this one off of her design. It took, tremendous power to create this and it lacks the link to prevent death..."

Loki moved his hand again and it disappeared. "I have never studied necromancy and have no desire," he said feeling as though he needed to explain himself. 

Kenna cocked her head. She bit her lip as she resisted the urge to ask the question pressing on her mind. There were other, far more pressing matters at hand than her curiosity.

"What?" Loki asked, immediately noticing her hesitation.

"It's nothing." Loki leveled a look at her that had her swallowing. He was the god of lies he had told her. He had warned her not to lie to him, and no matter how small, it was a lie.

She huffed in annoyance and he smirked at her. "Fine," she snapped aggitatedly. "Where does it go?"

Loki couldn't help the small flash of pleasure at shaking Kenna's seeming endless control. Her midnight eyes sparkled with annoyance and a smirk tugged the corner of his lips which only seemed to frustrate her more. 

"Is that just a flashy way of putting it in your pocket?" she snapped. 

Loki snorted. "No, it's safely encased in my power. No one can access it without my consent. The necklace is tied to my magic so it would be a very dangerous thing for an enemy to find."

Kenna nodded and bobbed in a sarcastic curtsy. "Thank you for answering my question my Prince."

Loki grit his teeth. She had reverted once more to the formal and it drove him insane when she did even when it was laced with sarcasm and wit. He narrowed his eyes at her in mock annoyance and she smirked back at him with an unrepentant impish glimmer shinning in her pitch black eyes.  

Kenna froze, her smile stilling on her face as she realized how familiar she had been with the Asgardian prince. She snapped around, turning her attention back to the texts. She was a slave here. She remembered the Queen's words when she had so meekly submitted to the monarch that morning. She gritted her teeth at the memory. There could never be anything between them. Soon the slave collar would have to be replaced and with it would go her memories, her self and in so many ways her choice. 

"So," she said clearing her throat and getting back to business. "Harokin's army has been rumored to be immortal for thousands of years," Kenna pointed out.

Loki nodded. He was confused by Kenna's sudden turn. 

Kenna pressed her lips together, a gesture Loki had come to recognize concealing nerves, and she forced her eyes to stay glued on the papers spread out before them. "So what if that's true. What if they are immortal based off her personal power, which has nothing to do with the power she may gain from the Light Elves. What if she hasn't accessed the power yet? What could she possibly need or do with so much?"

Loki sighed, feeling as though a wall had been built between the two of them. "We will need to operate under the assumption she has..." Loki stilled and swung back around to face Kenna his eyes widening as an idea struck him. "Can you go to the door please?" he asked politely. 

Kenna frowned and suspicion crossed her face.

Loki sighed impatiently. "Just go touch the door and tell me if you feel anything. I swear to you my power will do nothing to harm you."

Kenna relented. She lifted her hand and frowned at the tingling in the space an inch beyond the door. It didn't hurt, but it wasn't exactly pleasant either. It felt as though there were insects crawling over her palm. "What's that?" she asked pulling her hand back and shaking away the unpleasant tingling that persisted.  

"It's my wards," Loki said striding towards her excitement lighting his emerald eyes. "They were in place when you arrived. You should have felt it when you knocked."

Kenna shook her head and turned back towards the door lifting her hand once more. "I felt nothing like this," she said lowering her hand and scrubbing it against the fabric of her dress as though that would rid her skin of the feeling of a thousand beetles crawling over her. 

Loki frowned and swung back to the desk, moving about the room so quickly it gave Kenna a headache to follow his movements. He reached forward picking up the collar. "So it blocks magic as well..." he mused. He swung back around to look at Kenna. "We may be able to use you to disrupt the sorceress's tie to the Light Elf magic."

Kenna shook her head. "I am no magic user. My elder sister yes, but they tried to teach me when I was young to no avail. They found I was far better with a sword or bow," She bit her lip. She hadn't intended to keep talking, but the very ability to remember was so freeing. It was like she was stretching muscles she hadn't used in years. 

Loki flashed her a pleased smile "if that were true you wouldn't have been able to feel the ward on the door."

"What?"

"A non-magic user would have felt nothing but a dislike of this place or an inclination to leave. Nothing as tangible as you felt," he explained, his mind spinning over the possibilities. 

Kenna frowned at the prince who was considered aloof and different by so many people in the palace. "Is that why you do it? To keep people away?" she couldn't help asking. 

Loki turned to look at Kenna and she was struck by how boyish he looked. Though he had seen the passing of a millennia he was still considered young for an Asgardian and sometimes he looked it. 

"Yes," he replied simply and he looked away uncertainly, fidgeting with his fingers. 

Then he seemed to snap out of it, his confidence and focus returning. "You have a greater claim over that power than she does. I should be able to draw it from her or keep it from her..." he drew off as he darted back to his desk so fast he might as well have teleported. He started frantically flipping through texts. "I'll have to form a magical connection with you," he said and he lifted his eyes to meet hers, the question hanging between them. 

Kenna swallowed. She didn't know what that would entail, but she understood the prince was asking. She licked her lips nervously. The Prince hadn't done anything to hurt her and this seemed to be their only chance for defeating Harokin and his sorceress. "Whatever it takes," she agreed. 

Loki nodded briskly and turned back to the texts surprised to find there was a fine tremble to his hands. She had been through so much. Her mind attacked and enslaved repeatedly by someone else's magic and yet she was willingly trusting him. 

"We'll have to get you into the palace somehow without anyone seeing you. If she sees you coming..." Loki dragged off and sifted through the papers. "If anyone sees you really."

Kenna listened to the prince as he planned, but her focus was drawn to the circle of bronze that glinted in the lamps. It was the symbol of everything she was here. She stepped up to the table and reached towards the collar, her hand stilling just before she would have touched it. "I'll have to wear it again," she said, fighting to keep her voice steady.

Loki froze and swung back around to face her confusion etched on his face. He followed her gaze and scowled. "We don't know what this does to you."

"I know what it does," Kenna said firmly. "Just not why," she smiled weakly at the prince. "I may be safe behind your wards but I can't stay in here forever and out there someone will notice."

She reached for the collar again, but Loki plucked it up before she could touch it. He turned the metal over in his hands speculatively.

"This is a mystery," Kenna agreed, "but for another day. Asgard is at risk, we need a plan and even you will need to sleep some day. I don't forget you, or this..." she said gesturing around them. "Not completely. We think it blocks magic and you can remove it before we leave as you did the last time."

She closed her hands over his where they were gripping the collar. Loki looked down where their hands touched. It felt like there was electricity humming between them. He wondered if it had to do with the collar or if it was something else. It was pleasant, it felt like her very essence thrummed with life and light. He wanted to get closer to it, to feel more. 

Kenna reached out and touched the collar with her bare skin but nothing happened. Loki frowned. "So the circle must be complete," he mused clinically.

Kenna nodded and lifted her hair out of the way, baring the long smooth line of her throat of her throat to him. She looked up at him with wide, trusting eyes. 

Loki swallowed and lifted the collar towards her. "I'm going to hold on once it connects," he told her. "I should be able to figure out what it does. Are you sure about this?"

She nodded and Loki guided the two pieces together. They snapped towards one another like a magnet. There was click, a brief second of quiet, and then Kenna pitched forward her mouth open in a silent scream. Her hands wrapped around the collar as though she could rip it from her skin. She dropped to her knees as tears started to flow down her cheeks. The power hit Loki like a blast of Thor's lightning. The collar blocked magic, but that wasn't all it did. The curse was so elegantly constructed it took him less than a moment to recognize her handy work. He had only ever met one witch capable of something so intricately delicate and yet so wholly vicious.

Kenna's body folded in on itself as though it could somehow fight what was being done to it. Kenna had said it burned. And their was no other word for what it was doing to her. The magic in the collar was literally searing away all memories before Asgard. Loki wasn't a telepath so he couldn't see them specifically, but he did know they would be the only memories she had of her family, her home world and her life before servitude. It explained so much. Blocking those memories essentially destroyed who she was before being a slave.

Kenna let out a sob as she fought against the fire raging through her. Unable to stand seeing her in pain for another second Loki summoned every ounce of his magic and ripped the collar from her. As though the magic in it had been the only thing holding her up she collapsed into him and he caught her before she would have hit the floor. With a wave of his hand he used his magic to store the collar away, silently vowing to never make her use it again.

Kenna lay in the circle of the prince's arms. She was shaking and as much as she wanted to, she still wasn't strong enough to pull away. He ran a slightly awkward but soothing hand up and down her back. 

"I'm sorry," he whispered into her hair, "I never should have..." he just shook his head and held her. 

Kenna pinched her eyes shut as the barrage of memories hit her. Never had she had them come so close to one another, the fire and the return of the memories. It was disorienting and her body didn't know how to react. She allowed herself to sag into Loki. She was so tired. And try as she might to convince herself she should feel otherwise he felt safe and strong. She closed her eyes as lights flashed behind her lids. Memory after memory carving its way through her mind and molding her body.

When it was done she was left panting on the floor, half in Loki's lap. He held her in gentle hands. When she moved to sit up he gently helped her. When she saw his face she could read the lines of worry that made him look older than he was.

"I'm so sorry," he said again, "I didn't know."

She shook her head. "Neither did I, did you figure out what it does?" She asked hoping they wouldn't have to repeat the experiment any time soon.

Loki straightened and smoothed a hand over his face reining in his emotions so he could focus on the business at hand. "It blocks both internal and external magic, and memories beyond a point in your history and all memories formed in relation to the collar itself."

"So...the reason I wake up-" Kenna bit her lip and looked away in shame.

"Wake up?" Loki prompted lifting a brow encouragingly. 

Kenna presses her lips together. They were already this far in. She had already shared so much with the prince and he was looking at her with such concern she couldn't deny him. "Crying. I wake up crying and never know why."

Loki went very still as his mind clinically filled in the information that seemed too horrible to contemplate. "I wonder if you dream of it...your past..."

She looked away as though this were somehow her fault. 

He tightened his fists as rage burned through him. The collar was an abomination of magic, it was a violation of another sentient being in the worst way imaginable. It sickened him to think of the mind it would have taken to construct such a thing. It took not just her memories, her self, but also her dreams. It burned away her dreams. He took a step towards her wanting to comfort her somehow, but stopped himself. His people had done this to her. Not just his people but his family. Something like this, though ugly in what it was capable of was nearly priceless. Only Odin would have the resources to get a hold of such an artifact. What could this small slave have done to deserve this? 

She drew in a breath and straightened her shoulders, lifting her chin as she drew her composure around herself like a mantle. "I can't leave this room without that collar."

"I will not put that back on you," he snarled. 

Kenna took a step back from the prince shocked at the anger blazing in the prince's eyes. 

Loki sighed, hating that he had scared her. He moved his hands in a circle one over the other and the necklace reappeared in them.

Kenna stared at the necklace clenched in the Prince's long, graceful fingers. The chain and diamond shaped amulet itself were gold. At the center of the amulet was a large forest green stone lined in smaller black stones. The green matched Loki's eyes almost perfectly and she found it reminded her of the prince. 

He held the amulet out to her. She hesitated. He had said it was linked to his power, that it was dangerous for an enemy to gain control of it. She wouldn't take it if it had the potential to make the prince vulnerable. 

"It's perfectly safe," he assured her. "It will serve us two fold." He moved his hands again and the necklace changed so it resembled the collar. "Now no one will know." 

"But whoever made it...won't they know?" 

Loki shrugged. "It's a chance we will have to take. If it was made by the creature I believe she is not welcome in the palace. This will also help us in Alfheim. I believe our only option is for you to sneak into the palace while I go with the troops," he shifted his weight, not liking the idea of sending her alone. "When you are at the palaces heart I will teleport to you." 

Kenna frowned and shook her head. "You said you couldn't teleport anywhere you hadn't been." 

"When you are in position simply wrap your hand around it and say my name. I will be able to find you."

Loki watched her stare at the necklace for long moments. He swallowed and stepped towards her, holding the necklace out, asking for permission. 

She tore her gaze away from the necklace to meet the prince's eyes. 

He closed his fist around the necklace bringing his closed fist to his heart. "I swear to you Kenna of the Light Elves, last of her kind, guardian of their memory, my power will do nothing do cause you harm. This necklace is a piece of my magic. It brings you within the protection of that magic such as it is. With this, I am vulnerable to only you." 

Kenna's mouth was suddenly dry and she nodded slowly. There had to be another way to achieve their goal, she couldn't imagine what would have possessed the prince to bind her so closely to him and his magic. 

Loki stepped forward and secured it around her neck. He lifted her hair out of the way, adjusting it. That thrumming of light flowed between them where their skin touched and he forced himself to step back out of reach. 

His magic moved and swirled around them before it seemed to snap into place, securing the bond between them. He drew in a shuddering breath. He had never allowed another within the circle of his magic before. It felt odd, and intimate and yet strangely comforting. Feeling Kenna through his magic alone was nearly overwhelming. She was a creature of such natural warmth he felt like her light would consume him and burn him up. 

He wanted to touch her again. To glide his fingers over her smooth caramel skin and feel the connection between them. To stop himself he clasped his hands behind his back. She was a slave and she had no capacity to say no.

His fingers still burned from where he had touched her skin. He fought to swallow down the possessive surge when he saw his amulet resting against her chest. He had told her the amulet would give him her location when she used it, but he hadn't been entirely truthful. Even from a distance he would be able to feel her connected to him, like a small, warm presence in the back of his mind. If he turned his focus to it, he could feel her, and if he desired, find her at any time. It would serve it's purpose for their present goals, but his mind was already racing, to come up with a reason for her to keep it, a reason for him to be able to keep her. 

As he stretched his power, testing their connection it surprised him to realize he could feel her emotions. She was curious but also worried, uncertainty tangled with a surprising warmth of trust. He blinked and pulled back before he was overwhelmed. He was not an empath. Perhaps he had changed something in the construction of the amulet that had given him access to her emotions. It was not intentional and he vowed to himself he would respect her privacy as much as he was able. 

Loki cleared his throat and fought to keep his face clear of any expression so she wouldn't know all he felt. "You'll also need weapons."

Kenna was looking down at the necklace where it hung against her throat. Though it looked like the collar she could feel the shape of the amulet even if she couldn't see it. "Slaves aren't permitted weapons," she responded automatically. 

Loki made a noise of disgust, drawing her gaze and he shot her a droll look. "I'll not send you into the middle of a battle without the ability to protect yourself."

She nodded slowly. She was surprised to find it was almost difficult to take her attention off of the necklace and focus on what he was saying. It tingled pleasantly in her hand and when she let the invisible necklace rest against her chest, just over her heart she felt warmth spreading through her. 

Loki's hands moved and daggers appeared in each palm. He twirled them through his fingers so the blades were facing him and he held them out to her. She looked down at them uncertainly. 

Loki pressed the slim, well balanced daggers into her hands and led the way towards the center of the room. With a gesture of his hand he used his magic to push the furniture back and clear a large space for them. "From what I've read of Light Elves you are fast and agile...how much training have you had?" he asked.

Kenna lifted a brow sardonically. "Enough to know a dress is hardly proper training attire." 

Loki tilted his head, relief spreading through him as she smirked up at him. He wanted to stretch out and touch their connection with his power to know what she was feeling behind the impish smirk. Stopping himself he waved his hand in her direction. A tingling enveloped her body and when she looked down she was wearing leather leggings that resembled the prince's and her dress had shrunk up into a top so she would be able to move freely. The soft soled sandals she normally wore were replaced with knee high lace-up boots. 

She frowned down at the clothes. She reached down and touched them, half expecting them to just be an illusion. But the leather was soft and supple beneath her hand. She looked back up at him in surprise. 

"You're tied into my magic," Loki said by way of explanation. Then he gestured to her, "Go ahead, attack me." 

Kenna scowled at the prince, not liking that he was standing there unarmed. It felt like he was mocking her and her potential abilities somehow. It had been a long time since she trained, but she was determined to show him she wasn't as fragile and helpless as he seemed to think.  

"I'm harder to hit than you would think," Loki said flashing her a teasing smile, trying to goad her into attacking him. He pressed lightly against their connection and felt a fresh flare of ire from her, but also a quiet confidence. A smirk stretched across his face. Confidence would have only come from experience. From what he read the Light Elves were renown warriors who trained from a young age. He wanted to see her in action. 

"I believe you," she replied conversationally. She forced her shoulders to remain relaxed and still as she coiled all her other muscles. 

The prince was so sure of his superiority. He was smirking and laughing at her. "Don't worry," he promised. "I'll go easy on you." 

She temper flared and when he opened his mouth to say something else she launched herself at the prince. 

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Ah! So much happening! What did you think? I hope you guys liked it! Thank you so much for your continued support! I can't tell you what it means it me! Your votes and comments keep the chapters flowing!