Above all the other sounds - the rush of space, the burst of starlight, the death of suns - Loki thought he heard the faint sound of cracking as he slammed into something hard. Tasting copper, he groaned as he rolled onto his back. His body throbbed. His eyes hurt. They were wet and they stung as he opened them, blinking rapidly to clear them. His vision moved like the rolling waves of an open ocean, a rainbow of colors and light waltzed in his vision. The urge to be sick came suddenly and he rolled again, to his side this time, and retched, spitting the bile and blood from his mouth when he was finished. He lay there on his back for a time, wishing for the world to slow its spin.
After the nausea had passed he worked on slowing the racing beat of his heart. But the sudden torrent of emotions - anger, fear, betrayal, despair - crowded inside his head and began pushing their way out. Again, he felt the warm sting of tears and he clamped his eyes shut, squeezing them tight. He would not cry. His jaw ached as he fought himself, his mouth struggling to keep contained within his sobs of heartache and agony.
His heart continued its staccato beat, thundering in his ears as he laid a hand on his chest in an attempt to calm the excited organ, pressing hard. Slowly, exhaustion began to creep in and he felt the weight of his body pulling him toward sleep as that steady drumming still echoed in his head. Dully, he noticed the beat of his heart changing under his palm, but….no. His heart's rhythm was steady and strong, so what was different from the sound he heard in his ears? Where was this new beat coming from?
It grew louder, nearer to where he lay, still too weary and hurt, down to his soul, to move and see what marched steadily toward him. He looked above at the stars that lit the dark sky. Their unfamiliarity frightened him and for the first time since the tangy flavor of the magpie's blood rushed into his mouth, Loki wasn't so sure he wanted to fight anymore.
His head, his heart, his ears pounded. His body thrummed with each beat, the ground beneath him shaking. Tremors shook his vision, blurring the white pinpricks in the sky. Loki blinked away what was left of his tears, sniffed and swallowed before letting out a sharp, bitter laugh. And then the pounding stopped. Loki rolled to his side, crying out in pain as his body protested the movement, as he looked for what had made such a horrible racket and not let him die in peace.
A dozen golden spears, their infinite points all trained on him, sparkled in the starlight. Craning his head up, Loki recognized the horned helmet of the Einherjar, warriors of Asgard, their stern and hardened faces looking down at him. His arms and legs shook with the effort of holding his battered body up. Loki gave a lopsided, bloody smile before he collapsed and the rainbow beneath him shuddered.
A/N: Inspired by The Killers' "Be Still" from their album, Battle Born. Not sure if and when I'll get back to this...it was just an idea I had and while there's more to the story, there's only snippets for now. Reviews are greatly appreciated.
