Chapter One:

Loki had always been good at pretending.

It came naturally to him, and he had only become more adept at deceit as time went on. It had served him well throughout the years. He hated showing weakness, especially in front of his 'father,' Odin. So, he had simply hidden it.

But as he was escorted into the throne room of Asgard, bound in chains and flanked by numerous guards, Loki had a hard time even keeping himself upright. Each step was a task, each breath a heavy burden.

He couldn't get her face out of his mind.

Every time he blinked, he would see Riley in his arms as she took her last breaths. His love, his wife. His entire life.

Gone.

He had never truly realized just how much she'd actually meant to him, not until she had been ripped away from him. He felt so empty, so cold. He knew this wasn't something he could ever hope to recover from. Without her, life was pointless.

Thankfully, he had a feeling his would be ending soon, anyways.

After all Loki had done, Odin would be a fool not to execute him. And not even Odin could be that brainless. Nevertheless, Loki knew he would have to put on a show, to further push the king towards the right decision.

As he came into view of Odin, he summoned his strength and squared his shoulders, holding his head high. He sauntered towards the Allfather, and arrogant expression on his face.

"Loki," he heard a voice to his left, and felt a stab of regret as his eyes fell upon his mother. He remembered their last encounter, when she had helped him obtain a Jotunn book. Though he didn't want to, he knew distancing himself further from his mother would make Odin even angrier.

"Hello, mother," he said with a smirk. "Have I made you proud?"

"Please, don't make this worse," she said, clearly hurt.

"Define worse?"

"Enough!" Odin proclaimed, his voice echoing throughout the room. "I will speak to the prisoner alone."

With one last worried glance at Loki, Frigga turned and left. Perfect. Loki took a couple of steps forward, clicking his feet together mockingly. Then, he forced a laugh. "I really don't see what all the fuss is about."

"Do you truly not feel the gravity of your crimes?" Odin asked. "Wherever you go there is war, ruin...and death."

Loki flinched slightly at the last part, as the image of lifeless brown eyes flashed before him. Hoping Odin hadn't notice, he continued his facade with a slight shrug of his shoulders. "I went down to Midgard to rule the people of Earth as a benevolent God. Just like you."

"We are not Gods," the Allfather said, shaking his head. "We are born, we live, we die. Just as humans do."

Loki's jaw tightened, but he played it off as a look of mock contemplation. "Give or take 5,000 years," he said with a tight smile.

"All this because Loki desired...a throne."

"It is my birthright," Loki protested, a hint of anger in his voice.

"Your birthrighT," Odin suddenly yelled, putting emphasis on the 'T' for some odd reason. "Was to die! As a child. Cast out onto a frozen rock. If I had not taken you in, you would not be here now to hate me."

Loki had had enough of this pointless chat. He took another step forward. "If I am for the axe, then for mercy's sake, just swing it. It's not that I don't love our talks, it's just...I don't love them."

"Frigga is the only reason you're still alive, and you will never see her again. You'll spend the rest of your days in the dungeon."

No! Panic swept over Loki as the guards began to pull him away. Desperate, Loki took one last jab. "And what of Thor? You'll make that witless oaf King while I rot in chains?"

"Thor must strive to undo the damage you have done," Odin replied, seeming almost smug. "He'll bring order to the nine realms and then, yes, he will be king."

As the guards dragged Loki away, he resisted the urge to scream. This wasn't how it was supposed to be! Thousands of years, rotting away in a cell with nothing but his regrets and pain to keep him company.

They stuck him in a solitary cell. Loki stood, shaking with all his pent up emotions. Then, he put up an illusion, so it would seem to all that he was angrily pacing his cell. With it in place, Loki fell to his knees and began to cry.

Why? Why couldn't he just die? Why did all of this have to happen?

He should be with Riley right now. He should have just listened to her, simply gone and disappeared with her. The Midgardian throne hadn't been worth it. If he only listened to her, she would still be alive. Or even if he had just stayed with her, and talked things over, instead of storming out and leaving her unprotected.

It was all his fault.

He had failed her. He remembered the black arrow, with the silver and red fletching, and the flash of silver cape. He hadn't even succeeded in avenging his wife's death. He had let the killer escape.

Something about the arrow had seemed so familiar, and a part of his mind screamed for him to remember. But he just couldn't place it.

It came to him, then; why he couldn't die yet. He still had one thing left to do. Right then, he made a vow. He would escape this prison, and before giving into the sweet release of death, he would find Riley's murderer, and he would avenge her.