So...it's been a long time since I've written anything. I'm having trouble getting motivation for my original story, so I'm writing a bit of fanfiction, just to get myself in the habit of writing. Don't know if this'll be any good, but I woke up one morning with Celine Dion's song "It's all coming back to me" stuck in my head, so here you have it. ;) If you want the full experience, listen to her song while reading this story. I was going to do this all as a one-shot, but I'm running into arguments with myself on how I want to write some of the other parts of this story. Since I wanted to put something up tonight, I'm going to do this in a few chapters. I hope you enjoy! If you'd be so kind, please leave a review! This chapter is the saddest one, I promise.
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Loki stares up at Thor and Odin one last time, he feels, as his mind tries to reconcile its opposing views of what he should do. In the end, he feels too rejected; too hurt; too much a monster to continue holding on to Gungnir. I've become the monster I've feared, he thinks, blinking away the tears threatening to fall from his eyes. I'm an embarrassment, he continues, berating himself. If I'm gone, I can't bring any more shame to my family, he concludes, letting go of his grip on Gungnir. As he falls into space, it feels like a door is being shut in his mind. Not only to forget the painful memories here, but to accept that he can never return. Loki blacks out once he's fallen past the realm eternal, not expecting to wake again.
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Loki's eyes open to a familiar site, but he is instantly confused, his mind wanting to reject what he sees. It's not possible… He stared in front of him, chilled to the bone, but seeing his home. How am I still in Asgard? Loki blinked, drawing his tattered cape about his body. His helmet had gotten lost in the fall, and his clothes were in shreds, including his boots. Asgard is never this cold, he thinks, feeling like he is caught in an illusion. A sharp pain claws up his spine and Loki's vision falters. He stares out into the blackness of space for a second before his eyes are shoved back to Asgard's public square. He is bound to a pillar in the middle of the square, the people staring at their dark prince. Loki struggles with the chains that hold him in place, trying to find a way to escape. Why am I here? How is this happening? "Thor!" he shouts, finding himself tiring of his confusion. "Allfather!" he shouts, getting louder. The crowd begins to part to the right of Loki and he turns his gaze in the direction of their movement. Thor appears walking through the crowds, holding Mjolnir. He has a dark look upon his face, a look Loki had never seen before directed towards him. He blinks in confusion, wondering again how he ended up here. "Thor," Loki says, when he is standing in front of him. "What is going on?" he implores.
"Loki Laufeyson," Thor says. Loki shudders, glaring angrily at Thor for using his birth father's name. He may not have been Odin's blood son, but he would rather be no man's son than called Laufeyson. "For your crimes against the royal house of Odin and upon the land of the Frost Giants, you have been sentenced to remain chained to this pillar for punishment and public humiliation until the Allfather deems you worthy to walk free," he said. Loki's eyes widened as he stared up at Thor. This could not possibly be his brother. His kind-hearted, albeit occasionally arrogant and easily angered brother.
Surely this is a trick, Loki thought. Loki looked about. "Show yourself, sorcerer," Loki growled. Thor's eyes darkened as he placed a hand on Loki's neck.
"You will accept this sentence, Loki, or you will never know a moment's peace," Thor said. The sun was beating mercilessly upon Loki within the sky, his eyes feeling very dry. Yet he was still so cold, even with his Frost Giant tolerance.
Loki ignored Thor's words. "This is madness!" he shouted to the sky. "You cannot trick the god of lies and mischief, illusionist. Show yourself and I will show you mercy," he growled.
"Loki," Thor said to him, his mouth turning down into a frown, "You have brought this upon yourself, brother." Thor lifted his hand with Mjolnir up to the sky, calling down the lightening. Loki stared up at Thor in disbelief. I know this cannot be real, he told himself as Thor brought Mjolnir down upon his chest. Loki screamed in pain as his entire body lit up with lightening and pain. It felt like there was a gaping hole in his chest and his vision flittered between the golden city of Asgard and the raw emptiness of space. Barely able to draw breath, he looked once again upon Thor's face. A face he thought he'd known all his life.
"Brother," he choked, finding it difficult to even draw breath into his lungs. "Please," he pleaded. "Do not do this," he said, tears falling from his eyes.
"You are not my brother, Loki," Thor said, drawing Mjolnir back once again before lighting his body up with pain.
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Loki woke again to the sounds of the city of Asgard. Sometimes they laughed at him or threw rotten food upon his tormented body. Some days he felt so feverish he could barely stand. On those days, he fell to his knees, only being held up by his arms chained to the stone pillar behind him. After a while, his skin would break open from the rough ground and unrelenting pressure on the tight skin across his knees. Other days, he was so cold he could hear the chains rattle from the shaking his body did. He didn't know how long it had been since his punishment started, but he no longer fought against the notion that he wasn't in Asgard. That Thor wasn't really there, hurting him day in and day out. Some days his mother appeared in the crowd. At first, she cried. The more he saw her, though, her features had turned cold and indifferent. Once she had actually come up to him and slapped his face, telling him what a disgrace he had made of himself and the family. And he just stared into her face, unable to say anything. Most days he could barely breathe or speak in his defense. His vocal cords were ripped apart by his screams on a daily basis, no matter how hard he fought to choke them down. His mother's reactions were the most hurtful of all, though. He wished for death whenever he saw her disappointed or indifferent looks from the crowd. His punishments were starting to take on a different form, though. The past few times, Odin had arrived to carry out his sentence. The first couple of cuts from Gungnir stung, but not nearly as much as the thousandth one that struck his back a few days later. And when Odin was there, the crowd was grand and energized, feeding off of Loki's pain, cheering with each cut and laughing with each cry of pain.
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Loki screamed out and fought against his chains when he felt Gungnir pierce his chest moments before lightening from Mjolnir coursed through his body. His mother was standing at the front of the crowd this time, with her arms crossed and her face in a scowl. He cried as he watched her turn away and walk back towards the palace. So, I'm not even worthy of her time, now, he thought. Loki started to laugh, despite the blood blocking his airways. He coughed up the red liquid and spat it at Odin and Thor, laughing maniacally. "Is that all?" he screamed. "Is this the worst from the house of Odin?" Loki cackled, his mind fracturing from the continued stress and pain.
"How dare you insult the Allfather and me," Thor ground out. Loki felt the bile rising in his throat as another blast of lightening crashed into him, but he couldn't stop laughing.
"I finally see your true faces," he said, sneering.
"Enough," said Odin. "I see we aren't making any more progress today," he said, turning around. "One day, I hope you will make yourself worthy of your freedom, Frost Giant," he said, turning away from Loki and walking the way Frigga had. Loki felt the pain of his words deep in his heart, but he continued to laugh through it all, refusing to let any of them see how they affected him. Thor gave him one last glare before storming after Odin. The crowd started to disperse, as well, finding the laughing prince too strange to look upon with his punishers gone. A cloaked figure caught Loki's attention to his left, however.
His laughing increased as he spoke to the figure, "So I have finally caught your attention, illusionist," he cried, almost hysterical in his disbelief now. He could no longer think of his home, his family, without associating everything with pain and humiliation, and now someone was finally here to stop this madness.
"What they're doing is wrong, my prince," the man said. "If you would align with me, I would stop this torture and grant you revenge upon the whole of Asgard, who delighted in your punishment and relished in your humiliation." The man stepped closer to Loki, the square almost empty now. He smirked, sensing his victory with each step he took.
"I notice you do not offer freedom, illusionist," Loki quipped in return, hanging his head.
"Freedom!" the man laughed. "Freedom is life's great lie. Once you accept that in your heart, you will know peace," he said. "What say you, fallen prince. Son of no man?" Thanos smiled wickedly.
"End this torture and I am yours, illusionist. If you grant me the means to burn Asgard to the ground, you shall have my allegiance," he replied. Thanos put his hand on Loki's shoulder and suddenly he was no longer chained up, and no longer saw Asgard in his mind. He stared out at the blank canvas of space and fell to ground in relief.