Disclaimer: I do not own Marvel, Thor or anything contained therein.

Taking Hold

Chapter Three

The journey across the water was silent until they came upon a small range of mountains. Loki's grin was maniacal as he urged the air ship faster. It was Thor's turn to panic as he thought Loki was going to crash into the mountainside.

"Have you all gone mental?" Jane cried, turning to look at whoever was flying the ship. "You're gonna get us killed!"

"Well, if getting to the portal was easy, everyone would be doing it," Loki replied simply, urging the ship a bit faster and aiming for a small cave. Jane hunkered down in the front of the ship and Thor instinctively moved to shield her from harm. It was Loki's insane laughter that told them they had passed through the portal a few moments later. Jane peered over the edge of the air ship, noting a dark and barren landscape, nothing like the beautiful and gilded Asgard they had just left. Then she realized that Thor was practically on top of her, pressing her down into the seat.

With a grunt, she wiggled herself free of his pressing weight and sat up, brushing her hair back from her face.

"Ta-da. Was that not fun?" Loki asked, grinning as the ship slowed to a more gentle pace.

"You're lucky you're the pilot," Jane snarled. Thor noticed her dark brown eyes had turned icy blue while she spoke. "Otherwise, I might have punched you again." He reached out to touch her arm gently but she shrugged him off. The action hurt him more than it should have. But he supposed it had a positive note: he did not want to find out what the Aether's retaliation felt like.

"Jane, do you care not for me?" Thor asked, unable to stop himself. Loki rolled his eyes from the back of the ship. But she didn't answer him, only staring at him intently before dropping back into her seat. With a heavy sigh, Thor sat down somewhere in the middle of the ship.

"I don't know what I feel anymore," Jane said. Her voice was quiet and he almost missed her words, even with his sensitive hearing.

"Jane, I thought there was something between us when I was on Earth. You mean to tell me that it was nothing?" he asked in astonishment, turning to face her. When she looked at him, he noted in the back of his mind that her eyes were still blue and her skin pale.

"Maybe it was," she said simply, turning away once more. Loki saw his brother's face fall before becoming impassive.

"Perhaps that's for the best," Loki said softly. Thor rounded on him instantly.

"You think this to be a game?" he shouted. He no longer cared that Jane was there and listening. "You think it 'for the best' that my love is dying? And spurning me to boot? Loki, you do not know what my exile was like or how she has helped me. She changed me and I will not stand idly by while this happens to her."

"Then you have misinterpreted my words," Loki replied. "I meant only that it's for the best if you do not cling so tightly. It will hurt less should things go wrong."

"And you expect this to happen?" Thor demanded. Loki was silent for a time and Thor let the conversation drop.

"What I could do with the power that flows through those veins," he mused, watching Jane at the fore of the ship. There was a dazed look in her eyes and she appeared not to hear them.

"It would consume you," Thor replied, not bothering to look up.

"She's holding up quite well, for now," Loki implied.

"She's strong in ways you couldn't imagine," he maintained, refusing to give Loki his game.

"Say goodbye," Loki sneered, leaning towards his brother with a gleeful look on his face.

"Not this day," Thor snapped, eyes landing on the Jotun harshly. But Loki already had his game; he had resurrected the painful and unavoidable conversation from earlier. Thor looked away, hiding the impending heartbreak in his eyes.

"This day, the next, a hundred years – it's nothing, a heartbeat. You'll never be ready," he said. Surely Thor could see this; could see that he was only setting himself up for pain in the future.

"And will that satisfy you?" he asked glumly.

"Satisfactions not in my nature," Loki said calmly, shrugging his shoulders a bit.

"And surrenders not in mine," he snapped.

"We were both hurt by the loss of Mother," he said quietly. "You saw me in my anguish, Son of Odin, while you seemed so composed." His tone was almost insulting.

"No, not just Odin; of Frigga as well. You think you alone were loved of Mother? And that her loss was nothing to me?" Thor boomed. "You may have had her tricks but I had her trust."

"Trust?" Loki sneered. "Was that her last expression, when you let her die?"

"And what help were you, in your cell," Thor snarled, rising from his seat in anger.

"Who put me there?" he demanded. "Who put me there?!"

"You know damn well!" Thor shouted, his rage getting the better of him. He slammed Loki back against the helm and prepared to strike him. His brother didn't even flinch, just stared impassively back. It took all of Thor's restraint to only rustle him as he lowered his fists. "She wouldn't want us to fight," he spat, shoving Loki away from him.

"Well, she wouldn't exactly be shocked," Loki replied, raising an eyebrow. His hands, though still in the cuffs, were raised a bit to protect him. Thor chuckled to himself; no, their Mother would not be shocked that they were fighting. Oft times, it was the only way they interacted and there had been a few occasions where they had actually behaved nicely and Frigga had worried that something was amiss between them.

"They should be here soon," Thor said, staring out over the landscape. His hands were tightly gripping the side of the ship, probably the only way he was resisting a fight with Loki. "We should park the ship. Over on that ledge should work," he said, pointing to a spot ahead of them. Loki nodded, though no one saw it, and changed the direction they were heading. Everyone was silent as they climbed out and looked across the landscape.

Jane inhaled sharply, lifting her face to the dry wind and listening to the quiet sounds of Svartalfheim. There was bliss on her face and Thor suspected that it was something he would not find joy in himself.

"They're already here," she said, pointing across the cracked land. Thor saw it a second later; the massive ship was landing, becoming visible as the bottom point hovered inches off the ground. Jane moved eagerly to the cliff's edge, watching the ship intently. Thor moved to follow her a bit more solemnly, but Loki caught his arm awkwardly.

"I do hope you have a plan," he implied, glancing towards Jane, excitement rolling off her in waves.

"Of course I do," he replied. Before Loki could say another word, Thor followed after Jane. Loki watched as he instinctively reached out to grasp Jane's hand but caught himself partway there. His shoulders appeared to slump a bit but he straightened a moment later. Loki knew what he had to do now but that didn't make it any easier. Sighing softly, he stepped beside Thor.

"Was that to be my only purpose?" he asked. "Taking you to Svartalfheim?" Thor cast a sidelong glance at him.

"Loki, you should know better than that," he quipped, unlocking the handcuffs. Loki twirled his wrists and worked his shoulders. A day in handcuffs was still agitating after his many experiences with defying the All-father.

"Perhaps Odin knocked me on the head when he was bringing me back to Asgard," Loki said thoughtfully. They both smirked despite themselves.

"I wish I could trust you, brother," Thor said, watching as Malekith and his Dark Elves exited the ship.

"Why don't you trust me?" he asked.

"Would you?" Thor glanced at him briefly, before turning back to watch Malekith and crossing his arms.

"No, I wouldn't," Loki said, stealthily slipping out a dagger. In a blinding flash, he reached over and buried the blade into Thor's stomach before pushing him off the cliff unceremoniously. He turned to see Jane but she was merely striding towards the cliff and making her way down the slope, skidding as she went. With a joyous grin, Loki hurried after his brother as he struggled to rise. A well-placed kick sent Thor rolling across the barren landscape.

Loki skipped after him again. After a second to recover, Thor reached out his hand, silently calling for Mjolnir. But Loki would have none of that, quickly sliding his dagger across Thor's wrist and halting the hammer's journey.

Thor cried out, cradling his wrist against his chest and knocking Loki's feet from under him as he swept to his own feet. He sought out Jane, hoping to see that she was alright but his heart plummeted when he laid eyes on her.

Jane was standing beside Malekith, head held high as she watched Thor struggle with Loki. He had jumped to his feet, searching for Jane as well. As much as he claimed not to care for Thor, his brother's broken expression hurt him enough that his magic faltered. The illusion of their fight faded and all damage thought to have been done with it.

"Jane, do not do this," Thor pleaded, dropping his hands to his side when he noticed the illusion was gone. "Please, this is not you," he urged, stepping towards her.

"I do not think that wise, Asgardian," Malekith said, dark voice echoing across the plain.

"You will stay out of this, Elf," Thor growled back. This was not how the plan was supposed to go. Malekith was supposed to draw the Aether out of Jane when he was thought to be weakened. Why was Jane standing by his side? He did not understand. He gave a sidelong glance to Loki for help.

"How can I stay out of this when she has clearly chosen my side," Malekith replied. "Face the truth, God of Thunder, she no longer wishes to be yours."

"NO!" Thor shouted, calling out for Mjolnir as he ran towards Malekith. The hammer reached him just as he swung at the Elf, catching him full in the face with the Uru weapon. Malekith flew to the side, skidding to a halt some distance away. With the Elf out of his way, Thor approached Jane.

"Jane, come with me. Surely there is someone on Asgard who can remove the Aether," he said, reaching out to touch her arm. But the Aether retaliated, knocking him on his ass a few feet away before he could even feel her skin. Malekith chuckled darkly, striding back towards his ship.

"And what if I don't need help?" Jane asked, glaring down at Thor. The words were like a bucket of ice water on his head.

"Jane Foster, listen to yourself. You know not what you speak," Thor urged, pushing himself to his feet. "The Aether is an evil force and it is killing you. You heard my Father say this with your own ears." A flicker of doubt flashed across her face, lingering a bit in her eyes. It seemed he was finally getting somewhere.

"She has told you that she does not require your help," Malekith interrupted. "Are all Asgardians this thick-skulled?" he asked. He smiled, placing one hand protectively on Jane's shoulder. Thor was enraged to see no retaliation – so much so that he began to swing the hammer and loosed it at the Dark Elf. His laugh ended on a whoosh as the air left his lungs. Mjolnir carried him until he collided with the wall of his ship. With a motion of his hand, the hammer returned to Thor.

"Do you dare insult me again?" he snarled. "Me, the God of Thunder, the prince of Asgard? You dare insult me?" By now, Mjolnir was swinging rapidly from Thor's hand. The resulting wind was strong enough to even whip Jane's hair around and he noticed that her eyes were bright with excitement. There was a faint smile on her face, as if she enjoyed watching the men fight over something this petty. He wasn't quite sure what to make of it. There wasn't any time to dwell on it, however, as Loki stepped beside him.

"Yes, because now there are two of us you have mindlessly insulted," Loki said, glaring at Malekith.

"Is that supposed to scare me?" Malekith asked, grunting as he pushed himself off of the ship's outer wall.

"Do you know who we are?" he asked. "That in itself should scare you."

"The Gods of Thunder and Mischief are supposed to scare me?" Malekith laughed heartily, almost bent double from his merriment. "One wields a hammer and the other magic. Honestly, that's not a very frightening pair."

"But you've not seen us in action," Loki quipped. "Not truly, anyways. And certainly not yet."

"Still easy enough for my men," Malekith said, grinning as he motioned with his hand.

"Do you have your scepter, Loki?" Thor asked, never taking his eyes off of Malekith.

"No, you wouldn't let me grab it from the weapons vault before we left Asgard," he hissed, brandishing his dagger.

"Hmm, I hope you are skilled in hand to hand combat then," Thor replied.

"Wouldn't you believe it?" he said, settling into a crouch. As Malekith strode towards them, he raised Mjolnir to the sky. Thunder echoed around them as lightning struck the hammer. After a minute, he pointed the hammer at Malekith and the lightning collided with him. But he somehow managed to manipulate a bit of the Aether from Jane into forming a shield around him at the last second for he still stood when the storm cleared away. He grinned when he saw the shocked look on Thor's face and charged at him. Despite being of a different race, Malekith was still strong enough to knock Thor down when he bullrushed. Thor dropped the hammer on reflex and struggled to dislodge the Elf.

"Give up, Asgardian," Malekith said, striking Thor across the jaw. "You can never win now that I have the Aether. Eternal darkness shall fall upon this universe, as it was meant to be."

"Then you have thought wrong, Elf," Thor said, bashing his head against Malekith's. "I will never let you leave here; not with Jane by your side nor to unleash darkness upon all. Your kind no longer belong here."

"And a tiny human belongs with yours?" he remarked, laughing through the dark blood streaming from his nose.

"She belongs to no one," Thor growled. "But she is under my protection, as is the Earth and the other Realms." A cruel smirk appeared on Malekith's pale lips.

"If that is the case, then I shall have no quarrels with treating her like the rest of Earth once the darkness has fallen," he said. Malekith lashed out, aiming to strike Thor in the jaw. But Thor blocked it with his forearms, before slamming a fist into the Dark Elf's stomach. Malekith growled as he stumbled back, leveling a hard glare at the Asgardian before him. He charged, and though Thor braced himself, the force knocked him over and they rolled in the black dirt for a few moments. When Thor finally landed on his back, he snarled and threw Malekith off with a simple kick. The Dark Elf landed with a grunt.

"Then you will only be damning yourself," Thor growled.

"I do not see how," he replied simply, wiping at the blood on his nose.

"You will be inducing my wrath," he said.

"I think I can handle that," Malekith sneered. Before Thor could speak again, Malekith reared back and caught him full in the jaw with his fist. And then for good measure, he bashed his head against Thor's hard enough to daze. Malekith chuckled as he strode back to his ship. Thor glanced up blearily to see the Elf grasp Jane's hand and lead her aboard.

"NO!" he shouted, calling out for Mjolnir. But the ship was already leaving when the hammer hit his hand. Enraged, he threw it at the ship blindly. It missed, flying across the land aimlessly instead. By now, the ship had left Svartalfheim and was disappearing into the cosmos. Thor lashed out in anger, Mjolnir returning to him and he crumbled several large rocks nearby with a single strike to the ground. A hand grasped his shoulder and he struck out blindly, uncaring of who it was.

But it was only Loki and he calmly grasped Thor's wrist, stopping his attack before harm could be done. His face was impassive as he held his brother's arm until he lowered Mjolnir. When the hammer was safely on the ground, he released a breath and gave a weak smile meant more for comfort and apologies than anything.

"What good were you?" Thor growled, slinging the hammer away from him. Loki was taken aback by the comment and turned towards him. Thor noticed a weeping gash upon his brow and a split lip as well.

"What good was I?" he asked calmly. "While you were fighting Malekith, I was stopping your Midgardian from unleashing the Aether and killing you." Silence fell between them as Thor realized just how much of an effect the Aether was having on Jane.

"Was she hurt?" he asked after a moment.

"Brother, I came away looking like this. Do you honestly think I was able to hurt her? A feat like this is quite impressive," Loki replied, motioning towards his face. The silence stretched between them once more as they contemplated what to do with their failed plan. But Thor's shoulders were still tense from the many things that had happened today and Loki could not hold his tongue.

"No, she was not hurt," he said quietly. "I dared not strike her for as much as she could terrify on her own, it was your wrath I feared more."

"Is that so?" Thor asked.

"You have shown me your wrath once before, brother. It is not an experience I wish to repeat right away," he replied. Thor smiled weakly, kicking at the ground mindlessly. "You have the look of a man who would gladly tear apart worlds to bring her back," he said quietly, watching the horizon for a moment before looking to Asgard's Golden Prince. His brother's deep blue eyes were heavy with his grief and worry. They even looked a little bit guilty. "Would that not terrify anyone into avoiding it?"

"I suppose it might," he said with a small shrug.

"And even if your wrath did not terrify me, then surely her strength does," Loki murmured. Thor glanced at him, brows furrowing with the comment.

"Brother, she has grown stronger than you?" he asked.

"If you define 'stronger than me' as being able to knock me on my back with nothing to aid her, then I would say yes," Loki replied. He ran his hands roughly over his face, a tired sigh escaping him.

"She was impassive," Thor said simply after a time. "When you attacked, Loki, she cared not."

"Don't start with that," Loki warned. It was bad enough they both had wounded pride from a battle that had ended too soon; he didn't want to start consoling his brother on the loss of Jane.

"But she was!" Thor insisted. "She was not bothered by my assumed injury and that hurts me more than losing her. I fear for her."

"Well, you haven't lost her yet," Loki replied. "All we have to do is figure out where Malekith's going next. We can beat him there and stop him before he can unleash this darkness."

"Why do you care so much?" he asked, staring at Loki curiously. "Ever since we have taken the throne from you, you have been against everything Father and I have done. And yet, you willingly stood by my side today. I do not understand."

"Because if anybody should rule the universe, brother," Loki said, "it should be me."

Sorry for a minimal fight scene here. I wanted to save all the best fighting for the end. So, Thor's plan has been ruined and Loki is still standing by his side... What could those two possibly get up to next?

I wonder if destroying a city will be on that list... Anyways, R&R as always to let me know how I've done.

~LE