He awoke to darkness, his vision thumping with splotches of red that made his head feel fuzzy. The freezing cold had been replaced by a comfortable warmth that flowed down his chest from his neck, a soft moan escaping his lips. The woman he'd saved was lying on top of him, her face buried in his neck. For a moment he thought she was Alyza, but he still wasn't very disappointed. They were on the ground in a small wooden shack, his coat concealing them. He looked down at her, watching as she lifted her head, blood flowing down her chin. She deviously grinned at him, "Good morning, darling."

From what he could make out, Victus saw that her skin was red, though his blood was darker upon her. She had horns on top of her head and raven blue hair, with round, purple eyes. She leaned down again, biting his neck. He gasped, expecting pain, but instead experienced pleasure like before. This was bad. At this rate, he wouldn't be able to control himself.

"Mmm, your soul tastes delicious. It's so sweet and innocent, with a hint of sour sinfulness. Tell me, have you sinned?" Her lips were so enticing. "You're not a virgin, are you? Yet.." She moved closer, giggling, "..You're not married."

He tried to move, but his arm felt heavier than ever. Still, he persisted, "Lilith.."

"Oh, how cute, you know my name. I know yours too. Victus, right?" She smiled, whispering into his ear, "Your blood is full of information. I know everything about you.."

Victus looked at his ring, "F-Fenrir.."

"Ah-ah-ahh~ I've sealed your power. Wouldn't want you summoning that big puppy of yours while we're getting busy, now would we?" She trailed her hand across his arm, staining it with more blood. With all his will, he managed to finally lift his arm, reaching for her. Lilith quickly pinned his arm back down, "Oh, darling, you're so eager..~"

"Let me go!"

"Stop resisting. You know this is what you really want, don't you..?"

He didn't want to agree with her, as true as it was. His heart belonged to Alyza. Memories of her strengthened him, and he was somehow able to raise his other arm, slugging Lilith off of him. The punch sent her flying through the wooden wall, causing the entire shack to crumble and fall apart. He threw his arms out in front of him, shielding himself from the that wood collapsed onto him.

* * *

Meanwhile, in Asgard, Alyza woke up from a terrible dream. She sat up, holding her stomach as the morning nausea set in. "Damn it all..I should have just stayed in Freyrun.." Someone knocked at her door.

"Miss Sylvain," a guard spoke from beyond the door, his voice faintly muffled. "The New Allfather requests a breakfast with you. You are to report to the dining hall at once. Please do not keep our percipient ruler waiting."

Alyza groaned. The idea of breakfast only made her feel more nauseous. She changed out of her nightgown into her Midgardian clothes, dressed for combat. If she were to speak with him, she had demands to make as well, considering her circumstances. He was sitting at the head of the table when she arrived, reading a book. "You wanted to see me?" Alyza crossed her arms, her rapier hanging from her belt.

"Ah," Loki closed the book, setting it down on the table. "Good morning. Come, sit," he offered the seat nearest to him. Hesitantly, she obliged, sitting on the chair. "Tea?" He poured her a cup.

"I'm not thirsty," Alyza stared down at the table.

"It's high quality peppermint," Loki slid the cup over to her. "Works wonders for morning sickness."

Her eyes widened in dismay, looking at him, "You know?"

"I know everything about you, Alyza. Adopted into a family of royalty. You've one older brother and two younger ones, twins, both of which you love dearly. You despise your mother and, you claim to hate your father, but you've actually a soft spot for him. He raised you, after all. And..He's not doing very well these days, is he?"

"Y-You're a monster!" Alyza stood up suddenly, knocking her chair onto the floor and slamming her hands on the table. The tea spilled over, spreading onto the book he was reading earlier. "If you knew, then..! Then let me go! Release me this instant!"

"..Of course," he placed the Malefistone on the book, like it was a pyramid on an island surrounded by tea. "As soon as you open the artifact."

Angered, she unsheathed her rapier and pointed it at him, "You already know my answer!" The sword was balloon-ified once again, rendering the weapon harmless.

"..You already know that won't work."

She slowly lowered her sword, speaking softly, as if defeated. "Just let me go..Please.."

Loki got up from his chair, taking the artifact. He walked around Alyza, "I can erase your memory, you know. Keep this all between us. It'll be like you never came to Asgard. No one would ever know that it was you who gave me access to the Malefistone, not even my nephews or that star-crossed lover of yours." Alyza slowly lifted her head, tempted by his scheme. She'd be rid of any guilt that would've plagued her until the end of time, and still be able to see her father again. To have Victus beside her, to marry and to raise their child together, was all she found herself wanting during those sleepless nights in her room.

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"How do I know you're not lying?" She glowered.

"I'm a man of my word nowadays, but I suppose you want more proof. Is there a memory you'd like me to erase at the moment?"

She thought back to the time she was a child, overhearing her parents arguing in their room. They'd been fighting over her behavior, revealing she was adopted. The pain she felt that night was unbearable. From that day forward, her whole view of the world changed. She became colder, harsher towards them, especially her mother. Neither of them tolerated this behavior, and that's what led her to leaving Freyrun once she was old enough. If she got rid of these memories, then maybe she could love them as parents once again.

"It's your choice," Loki insisted.

"Fine. I want to erase one of my memories."

"As you wish," he put his cane to her head, and with a flash of light, she was transported into her own mind. The past was wavey and distorted. It seemed that everything beyond her view at the time was devoid of color, becoming more saturated as she walked up the stairs. Her child self was sitting in the hall, crying, listening to her parents argue in the other room.

"You're the one who said we should keep her!" Her mother shouted. "You should have just left that baby to rot!"

"Alsteria, do you hear yourself?! I made a promise to keep her safe!" Her father shouted back.

"Why should it be your responsibility to raise her? If her parents knew they were going to die, they shouldm't have had a child in the first place!"

"We are not having this conversation!" Her father stormed towards the door, causing the young Alyza to get up and run towards the stairs, where an older Alyza stood, blocking the path. The little girl bumped into her, looking up at her with puffy eyes. As her father opened the door, time stood still. A dagger formed in Alyza's hand, similar in design to the one Victus gave away. Her child self continued staring at her, unmoving.

She gripped the dagger, realizing what she had to do. With a deep breath, she raised the knife, trembling. Her face tightened, breathing heavier and heavier until she finally plunged the blade into her younger self. With a swift motion, she ripped it out, red dripping down her hand. The little girl didn't flinch, didn't utter a word, nor a cry of pain, only continuing to stare into Alyza's eyes. "St-Stop..Stop staring at me..!" She pushed her down onto the carpeted floor, stabbing her again and again until her hands and face were stained with splatters of blood.

The house became more and more desaturated as she went on, dissolving into ashes. With one final stab, she broke through the floor, falling into an abyss of black nothingness. Her eyes opened suddenly, sent back to reality.

"There we are. Feel any different?" Loki asked.

"..What did you do?" She looked at her hands, unaware of why she felt like she'd done something wrong.

"I did as you asked."

"I know you've erased one of my memories, but..I can't remember which one I chose.."

"It'd be problematic if you could."

"I suppose you're right.."

"Now," he held out the artifact. "Let us resume business."

She looked at the pyramid, hesitant. The guilt she felt was there, but it was quickly wearing off. The spell would work. Still, she wasn't sure if this was the right thing to do. In fact, she was positive that it was selfish. "I need some more time to think."

Loki scowled, "..Of course. Take all the time you need. It's not as if time moves slower in Helheim, where my sister is trapped."

"I know, I'm sorry, just..Give me a day to think it over, okay?"

"Fine."

* * *

Vick's arm emerged from the pile of debris, and he pulled himself out onto the snow, crawling. He looked at his bloody neck and shoulder, watching as they quickly healed, leaving behind only a faint tint of red. Standing up, he felt that his senses were dialed all the way up. He could smell distant creatures from miles away, hear the sounds of snowflakes falling on the snow, and see much clearer than he ever did. It just now occured to him that he may have needed glasses his whole life, and that he was shirtless (but still wearing pants).

"You!" He turned to Lilith, who was trying to innocently crawl away. "What did you do to me?!"

She turned and smiled, still wearing his coat, "Darling, you're so cruel. You really don't remember?"

"Answer me, demon!" He stormed towards her, feeling angrier than he ever has. "Before I rip you apart!"

"Well, I sort of linked our souls by mixing my demon blood with yours. Remember how I was all ugly before? Well, I put all the ugly stuff into you, and kept all the good parts. I was trying to make you my eternal sex slave too, but you wouldn't budge."

"You put demon blood into me?"

"No, that wouldn't do anything. I put half of my demonic essence into you, and stole your human essence. Now you're like, half demon, half elf, and all sexy, hehe~!"

"That's not funny! Reverse it!"

"No can do, darling. It's impossible. I'll always have a part of you from now on, and you'll always have a part of me."

Once close enough, he grabbed her by the neck, lifting her off of the ground, "Maybe I'll tear it out of you, then! See if that works!"

"Darling!" She grinned, "I love it when you play rough!"

He immediately threw her to the ground, panting heavily. He wanted to kill her, to defile her, to do everything he could to make her suffer. Instead, he turned and punched a nearby boulder, cracking it. He punched it again and again, bloodying his fist as the boulder crumbled into smaller rocks. He looked at his fist, watching as it quickly healed, "This..Regeneration. Do demons usually heal this quickly?"

Lilith shrugged, "No, not really. We heal a little faster than mortals, but not that much faster. You seem special."

Victus thought that maybe this was tied to his lineage as an Umbran Elf. Still, for now, his newfound abilities would continue to remain a mystery. He picked up a familiar scent, "..The group's not far from here."

"You really wanna go back?"

"We don't have a choice. I'll see if Vack or Morelli know anything about removing this demonic curse."

"Okay!" She sprouted wings from her back, hovering above the ground while following him.