Fire and Ice

Niflheim was colder than Amora realised. She could actually feel the chill in this primordial world, which was saying a lot. She had never needed a coat in Jotunheim, but hear, she rather liked the idea of a nice warm fire to curl up to. Just as long as it wasn't Sif's fire, which seemed to be dying down at the moment. Good. Now she could get a proper look at her, although the look Amora got in return was far from friendly.

"Rub it in your face? Sif, you were on fire and likely would have burned Asgard to cinders had you stayed there." This was what she got in return for doing a good deed? And people wondered why she wasn't always the friendliest. "Loki was the one who ruined your hair, not me!" she spat back, taking in the other woman's new appearance, including the glowing necklace. "You were the fool that decided to get closer to Thor by being his little warrior friend! You're letting your damn anger control you, Sif! Take that necklace off and you'll think clearly!" Amora barely had time to finish that sentance before those fire things flew at her, intent on burning through her chest.

Thankfully, Karnilla had taught her well and the blonde sorceress disappeared into the surrounding mists, allowing a few doubles to run around in her stead. Her magic and tricks wouldn't last long here as Sif was all too familiar with them, and who knew what powers that damned necklace had given her. Niflheim was where half of her family had come from, perhaps she could use that to her advantage.

Where the mists and the air had been still and quiet, winds suddenly and violently tore into the area, bringing with them snow and sleet, hail the size of small boulders, and shards of ice sharp enough to lacerate even the strongest of armors. Poisonous vapor rose from the mists and they all swirled around the warrior woman, concentrating entirely on her frame as the temperature plunged into a bone-shattering cold. While the darkness was not her domain, the cold and the ice seemed almost eager to listen, eager to bring forth the destruction of one of the Aesir. Amora likewise seemed to enjoy the sensation, the cold no longer having as much a chilling effect on her as it collected on her body, forming a slick coating of icy armor over her skin. "You're out of your element here, little Asgardian! You are not the better one of us!"

Amora cursed her own stupidity. Yes, goading Sif was never a smart idea, but she had at least expected the cold of Niflheim to do something in regards to the heat. Was the necklace from Surtr? Was he powering her change? So engrossed in her thoughts was she that it nearly cost Amora. The flames were too much. The madder she became the hotter things grew. Too much more heat and the sorceress feared someone would come and investigate the sudden temperature change. This all had to end now, and there was only one way to do it.

Amora caused the blizzard to end suddenly, but rather than flinging the snow and ice away, she dropped it all around Sif in close proximity, allowing her heat to create billowing clouds of steam. It was just the cover she needed. Wasting no time, Amora let the cold sink into her, features once more turning blue, though her size remained unchanged. Saying a small prayer, she then teleported in front of Sif and pulled her into a sharp, icy, kiss. Perhaps she would be shocked out of her current state of mind. But just to be sure...

Amora gestured and incanted the knockout spell as a one-two punch; the first directly through the mouth via words and a kiss, and the second through the hand on Sif's core. She used the strongest spell she knew, and though it could easily topple an enraged giant, she wasn't sure if it would work on the warrior woman.

Evil blueberry? That was the best she could come up with? On the plus side, at least she was out cold, and not a moment too soon from what Amora could sense. Being one of the domains of Hela, Niflheim was home to the dishonored dead, the lowest of the low, and they didn't take kindly to the living being in their home. Obviously, their little fight had attracted some attention, since she could now see forms approaching in the mist. Well, it hadn't been the smartest of ideas to bring her here, but now that Sif was somewhat under control, they could move on. And not a moment too soon. By the time the dead approached, the pair were long gone.

Jotunheim was a welcomed relief, particularly because Amora knew her way around the realm. And she had a home there. Not many people knew about it and she preferred it that way. Sif would.... well, she could make up a story or something, depending on how much she would remember from the fight.

The home was hidden by nature and by magic, set far back in one of the remote parts of Jotunheim. It was not an expansive palace, but instead it was more like a luxury ski chalet from Midgard. Normally there was only one bedroom.... one large bedroom... but, due to her new guest, Amora created a second, slightly smaller bedroom. One that was hopefully fireproof. Laying Sif down on the bed, she made sure food and drink was available, and found she could do nothing more than wait for her to wake up. Because she certainly wasn't about to be standing over the little fire demon, waking her up, and risk getting a face full of flame. From what she could tell, the necklace was imbedded in Sif's chest and was not likely to be easily removed. So it was with a sigh that Amora pulled up a chair and played nursemaid to a woman she usually hated.

"It wasn't Tony that did this to you," Amora answered while filing her nails. "Nor was it Hela, and it certainly wasn't me. You, my dear, are the proud owner of a very nasty, and very powerful, artifact that has decided to make you its host." She raised her hand, showing the scorch marks on it. All Amora did was touch the damn rock to see if she could understand its components. In return, she learned nothing except that it hurt like hell.

"I assume one of the Midgardians gave it to you either by accident or on purpose. Either way, you burst into flames and all of Asgard was about to be turned to ash until someone took you to Niflheim to.... douse your flames." Amora paused, her silence hopefully emphasizing that it was her who did the deed. "You didn't much like that. I'd be careful with your emotions, by the way. That stone stuck in your chest seems to make you and and do things that you normally wouldn't."

Getting up from her chair, she walked over to Sif, making sure not to get too close. "Right now, you're in Jotunheim. Safe. No one knows you're here, and no one here will hurt you. This is a little place Loki left me when he tried to woo me into agreeing to one of his many schemes." A lie, but she wouldn't know that. "Loki got his ass handed to him by Thor, but I was able to keep this little hideaway. Now.... how do you feel?"

"I was just throwing out that nail as an option. Would you prefer that I said Surtr instead? The fire thing is more his style." She could be nice to Sif, but she could not keep from being snarky. "As for why I touched it? I don't know, I thought it would be inert while you were unconscious. I didn't realize it was sentient until I was practically touching it." The thing was a sneaky and intelligent bit of magic. "It's old. Very old and very powerful. It defied the cold in Niflheim which is something... I never expected that."

Amora frowned a little at Sif not remembering much. Not that she blamed her. Magic that powerful, brought on that quickly usually meant a gap in the person's memories. It could return over time, she assumed. "You'd rather I just sit back and watch Asgard burn? Or let Aldrif try and kill you? I saved you..... I don't know why I saved you. I saved you because I did. Asgard's in a delicate place right now, Sif. I didn't know how they would react to being 'attacked' by a fire demon so soon after Odin's death," she sighed. "Besides, I swore allegiance to Aldrif. Had I not acted when I did, she likely would have ordered me to so something. Or, upon your death, I would have had to deal with that rock."

At Sif's little accusation, Amora picked up her nail file once more. "This is not my birthplace. No one has ever been to my birthplace. And do I look like a twenty foot tall, blue barbarian? You're spewing accusations that you know nothing about, Sif. I am fair skin, I am blonde, and, unlike those female frost giants, my nude body does not make men cringe in terror. This home is a little trinket from Loki. That's all. But if you want to leave, there's the door." With that Amora returned to filing her nails.

"Lovely. Old, sentient, and somewhat evil. This should be incredibly fun to deal with," Amora commented a bit sarcastically. "If it's as old as you think it is, those items tend to be very one track minded when it comes to things. The older the element, the more resolute its mindset. All things burn, all things freeze. Its what it knows. I assume it wants you to burn me as well?"

At the mentioning of Tony drugging Sif, Amora raised an eyebrow. What could he possibly have in his possession that could drug an Asgardian? Better yet, could she get some for herself in case Sif needed it? As for whoever this woman was that gave Sif the necklace, Amora would make certain to take care of it herself. Mentioning it to Aldrif might be a good idea, but knowing her, the justice would be swift and permanent. "Aldrif is Thor's older sister. She's the child of Odin and Freyja who was thought to be dead a long time ago when the tenth realm, Heaven, was separated from the other nine realms." Amora went on the explain the war between Asgard and the angels, or at least as best as she could. "I convinced her to confront Odin, make him tell the truth about everything, and... in the end, she killed him in the main square, took his power, and now rules Asgard. I honestly did not expect such a fast coup."

"We were the only two living people in that area of Niflheim, Sif. You think Jotuns don't have disgraced dead?" Upon seeing the flare up, Amora sighed and resigned herself, letting the illusion drop as she once more grew in size and changed in color. "There? Happy? You made me admit to you what I am. But I swear if you call me a damn runt or Jotun half breed again I will rip your damn head from your shoulders, necklace or no necklace," she growled before remembering to control her anger. "See? You're not the only one who has to ignore the tendencies and influences of certain things. I hate being a Jotun. I hate being a thing that you and Thor and anyone else killed for sport. You think I would be received well if I just revealed what I was with Odin on the throne? At least with Aldrif I might retained some degree of respect. Odin would have banished me if a little, half-Jotun girl asked for a home in Asgard. But, as a beautiful woman, I was well received."

"We have one on Asgard? Another fire stone or something worse? Or does that thing not give you any indication?" This would not be good if there were more exceedingly dangerous items on Asgard waiting to burn or freeze or do worse. Amora needed to get a hold of Aldrif, but she didn't trust Sif enough to leave her alone for the time being.

"I know that anger can be a powerful force. It's one of the easiest things to both master and manipulate." Amora would know since she had been doing that for a very long time. "Do you think you'll be able to master that rock? I don't think Aldrif would want you back on Asgard until you can. Especially if there is a second power there already." They could go outside later and see what this fire stone could do. Hopefully they wouldn't burn the realm down.

"Is it my fault to assume things when all you do is hang around with Thor, Fandral, Hogun, and Volstagg? All right, yes, of that group you are the most intelligent and civil. I would think that you would be the last to just kill things for fun, but, unless I mistake myself, you did not persuade Thor from his activities. As a child, you actually did things to attract his attention and further his need for stupid boyhood activities. Like when Brunnhilde first came to Asgard." Granted, Amora had used that opportunity to briefly enchant Thor into being her boyfriend, but those two quickly put an end to their differences and returned Thor to normal, much to Amora's dismay.

"I think.... perhaps under different circumstances, we could have been rather close friends, Sif. Now... do you want to see what you and your stone can do?"