Disclaimer: I do now own any of the Marvel characters. Nor do I own Thor: The Dark World, screenplay by Christopher Yost, Christopher Markus, and Stephen McFeely; story by Don Payne and Robert Rodat. If you know it, I do not own it.


Like No Place on Earth


I heard the thunder over Canaan / And I heard the angels cry and their voices came revealing / As you live, so you will die

-Roy Orbison, "Coming Home"


The funeral was beautiful. Jane had never witnessed something as melancholy and graceful as the exit of Queen Firgga. No one stood up and said all the wonderful things Queen Frigga had achieved. They simply lit these round globes and let them loose into the air silently as a bunch of casket boats (filled with the fallen Asgardians) that were aflame drifted after the casket boat that was further out on a lake that contained the Queen.

Jane desperatly wished to ask why they were sending the queen to fall out over the edge of Asgard (Asgard was flat, just like people once thought the Earth was flat), but refrained.

"Odin will light the casket on fire and and sent her off to Valhalla before she falls into the void between worlds," Loki intoned emotionlessly.

Loki and Jane were standing near Thor and Odin, both dressed in their best armor by the dock. Jane knew no one could see them, but she got the feeling Thor knew she and Loki were standing with the remaining members of the royal family.

Jane glanced over her shoulder to find a mass of people standing under the lit globes as they slowly rose up in the air. Many had tears glazing their faces, but most wore emotionless expressions, which seemed to be the norm in Asgard. Jane turned back towards the lake and felt Odin bang his big old spear no the ground twice. Instantly the boat holding Frigga's body caught on fire before it toppled over the edge and into nothingness.

Only it didn't topple. It twisted midair and then turned into millions of stars.

Or what appeared to be stars.

"She is on her way to Valhalla now," Odin proclaimed in an official sounding voice.

There were blessings and prayers uttered by the masses behind them. Jane chanced a glance up at Loki, who still wore his emotionless mask, yet she could feel the grief and sorrow flowing off of him in waves. Without thinking, she reached over took his hand and squeezed. If it startled him, he did not show it, but he also did not remove his hand from hers.


It can't be forgotten like old acquaintances / I realize how depressing of a place it is / And when I notice my reflection whose face it is

-The Roots, "I Remember"


"Brother, we're going to have to pretend you are in confinement in the dudgeons," Thor announced the moment he joined Jane and Loki in Loki's chambers.

"I will change," Loki said, leaving Jane and Thor alone in the main room. He made his way to his quarters and into the wardrobe. The outfit he was looking for wasn't in the closet. The outfit he was looking for didn't actually exist any longer as he was sure Odin had it burned upon his incarceration (not that it'd had stood up to the beating the Hulk had dealt out, not to mention Stark's house falling on Loki's head).

Loki didn't want to use his magic to make his princely armor into the outfit he wore when he invaded Mid— Earth. He had limited access to his magic through the cuff his mother had given him and the price he paid to use the magic was so high, he wasn't going to use it to change his clothing. Simple things like cleaning his quarters drained him. Loki was nursing a massive headache from masking Jane and himself during the funeral. He didn't think he could handle conjuring clothing for himself on top of the magic he needed to perform for Thor's plan to work.

He was at a loss on what to change into.

"Loki?"

Loki looked over his shoulder to find Thor standing behind him holding a pile of folded clothing and pieces of metal armor.

"I'm not the best at tailoring clothing, but I did the best I could," Thor apologized, extending the bundle towards Loki.

Reaching out slowly, Loki took the armor of the Mad One. He felt a swirl of various emotions upon holding the armor he'd fashioned in the company of the Other and Thanos. He trailed his fingers over the vambraces and chest plate, unsure how to feel. His warring sides were feeling almost too much.

"You polished the armor well, brother," Loki said evenly, amazed he kept his voice flat and emotionless. "And you were wise to keep this. It is very likely your friends will not react kindly if I wear armor that proclaims I'm a prince of Asgard."

Thor pressed his lips together, but did not jump to defend the Band of Idiots.

Looking over the rest of the outfit once Thor left him alone, Loki found that while Thor wasn't the best at repairing rips in the leather, it didn't take a lot of magic to smooth over the troubled spots or simply cover them up with his repaired coat (which was done quite nicely to the point Loki had a sinking feeling Mother had aided Thor).

Loki wasn't sure why Thor had gone through the trouble of repairing the outfit he was currently holding. Then again, Thor was the only one who had believed there was hope for the Mad One (something Loki was later thankful for after he put himself together). Maybe Thor truly understood what the armor meant?

While Loki hadn't been exactly himself when he fashioned it, it was a statement to his independence from the boy he used to be. It was still in Asgardian fashion, yet there was something to the outfit that was completely unique to Loki.

Upon donning the entire outfit, Loki felt his stomach twist. The Mad aspect of him was pleased, while the other half of him wasn't sure how to feel upon seeing himself in the armor he last wore when he tried his hand at world domination.

His hair was much shorter than it had been when he'd last worn the outfit. Sif and the Warriors Two would expect him to have longer hair from being in confinement. Concentrating on his shapeshifting abilities, he grew his hair out till it flowed around his shoulders. He did not enjoy his hair that long (it'd forever be in his face), but it added to the convicted war criminal facade, which was what Thor's friends expected.

He'd get rid of the hair before he went back home to Steve.

Nodding, Loki turned on his heel and stalked out of the room.

"I've explained to Jane our plan," Thor announced when Loki entered the room. Loki quirked an eyebrow, unaware the plan belonged to the pair of them. Loki had had no part in coming up with the plan. It'd been all Thor's idea. Which amazed Loki, due to certain aspects of the plan which relied heavily on Loki and his borrowed magic to execute.

Thor went on without bothering to take note of Loki's honest surprise, "We will leave through the secret passage behind your fireplace and emerge from the dungeons."

"It might make sense for Jane to be found in your chambers," Loki suggested thinking over the plan, "Odin proclaimed she needed to be locked up and angered you. It'll be assumed you'd be protecting her. You should let your friends know to retrieve her from there."

"He's right," Jane agreed. "Can I get into his chambers from here?"

"Of course," Loki easily agreed. "There is a passage way to Thor's quarters just behind this bookcase."

Loki eased the bookcase open. Jane peered into the dark passageway, frowning a little. Loki waved his hand and the sconces all lit up.

"Till we meet again," Thor said, bowing to her, kissing her hand, and giving her a rather sappy look.

"Oh, uh, so, uh, good luck," Jane stuttered, blushing before vanishing behind the bookcase.

Loki eased it shut and turned to Thor before striding across the room and pulling down one of the sconces besides the fireplace. Thor quickly joined him on the hearth as the entire thing began to turn till they were on the other side in a dark, dusty hallway.

"Well, onward and upwards," Loki dryly commented, stalking off down the corridor, the torches lighting up as he stalked passed.

"Wait, Loki, I wish to speak to you before we begin this quest," Thor pleaded. "I know I've not informed you on the finer details."

Loki did not wait for Thor to catch up. Thor had longer, stronger legs, and moved faster than Loki when on a mission such as the one Loki assumed he was on.

"I need no finer details," Loki replied, staring forward and not looking at Thor. "I have the important details, do I not?"

"You do."

"Then, I will simply follow your lead till destroy the Aether and Malekith."

"You will?"

"Yes."

Loki glanced over at Thor to find him smiling softly.

"It is rather clever to have Malekith remove the Aether from Jane for us," Loki complimented.

Thor studied Loki for a moment before asking, "How have you been doing? I know you were standing next to me with Jane at Mother's funeral."

Loki nodded, jaw tightening.

"I want vengeance," Loki admitted out load. "I believe I can fulfill Mother's final wish and my own agenda."

Thor frowned, but did not contradict Loki. "Mother's final wish?"

Loki nodded jerkily. "Jane must remain alive."

He left out the bit about Asgard needing changing and trickery. He felt that with Thor's currently plan, trickery was well on its way to being accepted within Asgard. Change would follow.

"Is…the therapy working?"

"Sometimes. Today, though, is not a good day."

"Can I trust you?"

Loki paused at the door that would lead them in to the kitchens where they'd be able to use the shadows to make their way to the dungeons. As children, Thor and Loki often used the passageway to sneak desserts and other foodstuffs till they discovered they could get into the dungeons. To a child, it was exciting prospect till they actually got down there and saw what waited in the dark.

"Trust my rage," Loki said, a deadly tone to his voice that Steve would frown at.

Thor clamped a hand on his shoulder and nodded. "And mine as well."


But as strong as I seem to think I am / My distressing damsel, she comes out at night when the moon's filled up / And your eyes are bright / Then I think I simply ought to

-Ingrid Michaelson, "Overboard"


Jane waited in front room of Thor's chambers. Unlike Loki's front room, Thor's was decorated lavishly and loudly and there was not a book in sight. There were a lot of things in sight, some of which Jane was quite sure she didn't want to know what was what. You'd think Thor was the God of Chaos and not Loki by the state of the room. And this was the room he greeted guests in— Jane didn't really want to see his actual private rooms.

Tapping her fingers impatiently on her leg, Jane waited till there was a knock on the door. She carefully got up and opened a door a crack. A smiling face greeted her.

"Glad tidings, Lady Jane," Fandral greeted, somehow beaming at her even more. "Thor bid me to collect you for our secret quest while he collects his brother."

Jane quirked an eyebrow at how easily he referred to Loki as Thor's brother. While she hadn't had much contact with any of Thor's friends, she got the feeling none of them were fond of Loki, especially after the slights they perceived him doing to Asgard. (He didn't really do that much to Asgard. He did things in the name of Asgard, but really, what did he to do to Asgard except punish some traitors? They did disobey the king, who happened to be Loki. He had every—)

Why the hell was Jane mentally defending Loki again? He was crazy!

"Shall we?"

"Yeah, uh, wait, I need my coat," Jane said. "It's in my room."

Jane exited Thor's room and moved towards her own room's door, stepping over the guards who'd been waiting to take her to the dungeons Fandral had knocked out. After grabbing her coat, she joined Fandral in the hallway. They began to walk in a direction that was familiar to Jane, as she had taken these corridors to the throne room. As they turned a corner to find Sif, Thor, and Loki standing in the center of the long corridor. Sif was glaring at Loki as if he was the devil himself— which he seemed to be playing up judging by the grin on his face. Upon seeing Jane, Thor broke apart from the group and strided towards Jane. Jane watched as Loki began to follow, only to be stopped by Sif, who put her sword to his neck and said something, which only caused Loki to raise an eyebrow at her. She lowered her sword, glowered at him, and stalked off.

"Jane, are you ready?" Thor asked.

"Yeah. Just…"she trailed off as Loki and Sif reached them.

Something told her she should react adversely to Loki just as Sif had. So, just as she had when she'd first met Loki, she marched up to him and socked him in the jaw— only this time it didn't hurt her and she was positive she'd just hurt him.

"That's for Malibu," she proclaimed, injecting as much venom in her voice as she could.

Loki snapped his head back. His jaw worked a bit, then raised a hand to the spot where Jane's fist had met his pale skin before a smirk appeared his face.

"I like her."

Thor sighed.

Loki looked around till he found the last member of the group and stared over Jane's head at Fandral.

"Good day, Loki," Fandral greeted cheerily.

Loki gave the blond man a funny look, but did not respond other than by looking confused.

"Shall we begin?" Fandral asked. "Oh, and where is this door to the Dark World?"

Loki glanced at Thor who shrugged before he closed his eyes for a moment, before nodding. "There is a door that leads to the Dark World in the mountains by the lake."

Siff frowned deeply.

"Oh? Well, a boat will be greatly needed, then," Fandral mused, smiling fondly at Loki. Loki frowned deeply.

"Are you right in the head?" Loki inquired as Sif snorted.

"Rightto! I'll be seeing you!" Fandral chirped, turned on his heel and vanished down the hall.

"Why is he so cheery?" Loki demanded. "What is wrong with him?"

"Nothing. There is nothing wrong with him," Thor insisted. "Sif, if you distract the guards who are by now alert and looking for Jane?"

Sif nodded, stalking off in the direction Fandral and Jane had come.


I wear this crown of thorns upon my liar's chair / Full of broken thoughts I cannot repair

-Nine Inch Nails, "Hurt"


Thor led Jane and Loki through the palace and into the throne room where Volgstaff was waiting with a crashed Elvian ship. It was badly damaged, yet would suffice to make the trip into the mountains beyond Asgard where the portal Loki had accidentally discovered eons ago was located. Svartalfheim, a planet Loki never wanted to visit after his first time, was desolate and dead. It was amply nicknamed the Dark World and the stench of the dead infused into its very being.

"Can you undo these cuffs?" Loki inquired when Thor and he were alone on the bridge of the ship. Outside Volgstaff was battling with the guards who'd tried to stop Thor and company from getting on the ship. "We both know Jane knows I'll hurt her. Not that she's currently awake to be aware if I did."

(Jane had succumb to the Aether's drain on her life energy as soon as they were on the ship. She was quietly sleeping on the floor, her life force slowly recovering now that her brain was in sleep mode.)

Thor frowned, so Loki let out a loud sigh and slumped against the console.

"Fine. We'll keep the act up till Fandral goes away. He is not coming with us, correct? He's off getting a boat for some reason. Why does he think we need a boat?"

"He will distract the guards that will likely follow when we steal the ship. In a boat."

"How did you know we needed a ship to escape?" Loki inquired. "You knew before I told you were the portal was located."

"The portal the Dark Elves used to sneak into Asgard was beyond the city," Thor explained. "And several of them were wet. There is only one lake large enough for an army to enter and that is the lake in the mountains."

Loki nodded. "Really, brother, could we undo these? Fandral seems pleased to see me. And if he's just in the boat, he'll never see me."

"You are technically banished," Thor quietly said. "Father doesn't wish for you to…"

"Roam free. I know," Loki sighed, remembering the yelling match Thor and Odin had had after Loki had taken his mother's body to her chambers to be prepared for burial. "He is, though, stricken with grief."

Thor nodded, studying the controls in front of him.

"You should let me fly," Loki said, straightening up and changing the subject.

"I know how to fly," Thor insisted.

"With a hammer."

"And what, pray tell, have you flown, Brother?"

"Gliders," Loki replied.

Thor snorted. "Anyone can fly those."

"Not true. Only I and Romanov flew the gliders. We're not going to count the Chitari. They have no brain of their own."

Thor grunted and began to push buttons.

"Don't beat the buttons. Press them lightly," Loki suggested.

"I am pushing them lightly," Thor insisted. He finally did something that caused the ship to raise up off the ground. Thor began to turn the ship, breaking the columns in the throne room where the ship had originally crash landed.

"I think you missed one," Loki commented dryly as Thor struggled to control the ship and get it out of the palace.

"Shut up," Thor ground out, concentrating hard.

Just to continue to be a pest, Loki moved to the other side of Thor as he got the ship out of the room, leveling a few more columns and other things on his way out.

"Look, I'm clearly the better pilot, let me fly," Loki tried again.

"Is that right? Remind me again, Brother, which one of us can actually fly?" Thor asked, speeding the ship up as they finally cleared the building and took off into the city.

Only to take out a building.

"Not a word," Thor warned.

Loki lifted his chained together hands in defeat.

Thor continued on his way till a beeping alerted them they were being followed.

"Oh, look, now they're following us," Loki said, pointing at the screen that popped up showing there was a fleet of Asgardian ships on their tail. A new sound began and the ship rocked. "Now they are firing at us."

"Thank you for the commentary, Loki," Thor snapped, making the ship fly sideways to fit through a narrow passage way. He did not move quick enough, as he decapitated a statue before he managed to get the ship through the passage way.

"Congratulations. You've decapitated your grandfather."

"Loki," Thor growled.

Loki glanced down at the screen and noticed the Asgardian ships following them were no longer following as closely. Thor managed to get them over the mountains outside the city without causing the ship to crash.

"Good job. Now, can I fly? You do not know where the portal is," Loki pointed out, then frowned. "And why did you think it was such a great idea—"

Loki did not finish his question before Thor pushed him out an open door that appeared out of nowhere behind Loki. Loki sighed deeply as he went flying downwards.

"Got you!"

Loki landed on his feet, stumbling till he pitched forward. He tired to brace himself with his hands, but the cuffs hindered him from doing a very good job at preventing a face plant on deck. A thump told him Thor had followed him off the Elf ship to the boat piloted by Fandral.

"I see you've not lost your grace, Loki," Fandral jested as Loki stood up.

"Thor, you lied to me," Loki realized, eyeing his brother. "I'm impressed."

Thor gave Loki a grave look as he set Jane down at the bow of the ship. "I allowed you to believe what you wished. I never said we'd be taking the big ship to the Dark World."

"Trickery," Loki said in a sing-song voice, allowing a bit of the Mad One to surface just to freak Fandral out.

It didn't. Fandral laughed.

"Well, I believe you know where you're going, my prince?" Fandral asked, stepping away from the steering bar. He indicated Loki was to help himself.

"Yes," Loki said, taking the lever in his still cuffed together hands and taking control of the boat. He stared at Fandral for a few seconds before shaking is head.

Fandral was being…strange.


And there's nothing wrong with me / This is how I'm supposed to be / In a land of make believe that don't believe in me

-Green Day, "Jesus of Suburbia"


"It was his idea."

"It was his idea to jump ship and shout 'For Asgard?'" Jane asked, watching as Fandral landed below them on one of the boat chasing after them. She'd spent most of the trip to the boat ship thing passed out from lack of energy. Or something. She hadn't asked and no one had thought to clue her in due to the fact they were careening across the lake in a different ship than the one she'd passed out on while being shot at by another flying boat ship.

"Well, it worked," Thor pointed out, seeing Fandral has subdued all the guards on the other boat.

"That was suicide," Jane muttered as Fandral slowed the boat down, then saluted them before turning the boat back towards shore.

"Oh, he's so dashing," Loki grumbled, pulling at a lever on the boat deck.

"More like suicidal," Jane offered. "And why is the boat in the air again?"

"Because the portal is in the air," Loki replied. "Also, it made Fandral's part of the plan oh so dashing. And swash buckling."

"Pardon?" Thor asked, looking baffled.

"Oh, Brother dear, you need to watch more movies," Loki said, getting the lever fully back and the boat shot forward with a burst of speed. Jane turned around stared forward.

They were flying straight at a mountain. Jane tightened her grip on the railing and held her breath.

"Are you mad?" Thor demanded.

"Likely. And here we go," Loki said in a sing song voice.

They rocketed into the portal.

And suddenly, they were crashing downwards.

Jane screeched.

Thor bellowed.

Loki laughed.

Jane tumbled backward, rear landing hard on the floor of the boat. The boat rocked, jostled, and finally came to a halt rather suddenly before smoothly going forward. Jane picked herself up to find Thor hadn't managed to remain upright. Only Loki was still on his feet. And he was manically grinning.

"You are mad!" Thor shouted, getting to his feet.

"Yes, I believe I am," Loki agreed pleasantly, still creepily grinning.

"Oh, he's a bag of cats," Jane muttered.

Thor huffed.

"So, now what? We just wait for Malekith to show up?" Jane asked, crawling onto the bench in the bow.

"Yes."

Loki eyed his brother, yet did not contradict him. Jane could feel Loki did not agree with this plan. He flicked the gold cuff around his wrist a few time before he shrugged, seemingly not caring. He went back to steering the boat through the dead city the portal had dumped them.

"Well, fearless leader, lead us to our doom," Loki dryly mocked.

Thor sighed.

"You do not need to play a role any longer, Brother," Thor reminded Loki.

"Oh, dear Brother, I'm not. This is who I am," Loki insisted. "Now, do you have any idea where you'd like to stage your battle with Malekith? The city? The countryside? The lakeside? If there is a lake here."

Loki turned his attention from Thor, who clearly did not know, to Jane. Jane wracked her brain.

"That way."

Loki turned in the direction Jane pointed. "Ah, the mountains to the south of the city. Never ventured over there. I came, I saw, I left quickly. The place reeks of extinction."

Loki was right. The place smelled of death.

Loki pressed his lips together and went back to guiding the boat through the dead city, heading towards the looming mountain range to their left. Thor sighed, rubbing his face.

"Is this how he usually is?" Jane asked. "He's not lying, but I can't figure out if he's…"

"Yes and no," Thor said. "He's always been…sarcastic. He has a very odd sense of humor, one most Asgardians do not understand. Tony Stark shares a similar sense of humor, only more crude."

"Yeah, but…he's kind of…"

"Jane, he never disowned Mother," Thor said quietly, bending his head closer to her so maybe Loki couldn't overhear. "He told Father and myself we were not his family, but he never told that to Mother. Even after the lie of his origins, he could not feel any rage, hatred, or anything bad towards her. He loved her more than anyone else and she…"

Jane put her hand on Thor's arm and nodded, understanding.

"Okay. I get it. Sarcasm is his security blanket."

Thor looked baffled.

"His way of coping at the moment."

"Correct."


Stuck in this hole, I'm on my way / Yeah, when you begun to think like a gun, the days of the year have already gone

-John Cale, "Gun"


Loki ignored the his two companions as they spoke about him. Instead he steered the boat forward, taping into his magic to see if he could feel any similar dark energy to the energy put off by Jane. It was liberating to have his magic back (even in its limited state), yet he could feel the barrier enacted Odin. It fought against the cuff at every turn.

The headache he was suffering went up a notch.

Huffing in frustration, Loki turned ninety degrees and headed towards the slight pull he felt. Jane had pointed him in the right direction, but didn't give him a precise location to land the boat. That was left up to Loki. After he reached the top of a cliff that overlooked a valley of dust where the scent of death was as strong as the dark energy, he landed the boat.

Or made an attempt.

Neither Odinson very good at flying. Or landing, rather. Thor often crash landed whilst flying with his hammer. There'd be many Thor shaped holes in the walls of the place when Thor was learning to wield Mjolnir.

"This way," Loki called out after they'd recovered from his landing.

Loki got to his feet and headed for the edge of the cliff, with Jane and Thor following closely behind.

"Wow," Jane breathed, staring at the desolate landscape. "So glad we came. This will be a great vacation destination."

"Oh, definitely. Weather's lovely," Loki agreed, glancing up at the yellow sky littered with smog grey clouds. "Great place to get a tan."

There was no sun.

Thor appeared to be lost as Jane let out a belt of a laugh.

"This looks somewhat familiar," Jane muttered as she got control of her laughter. "Why does this look familiar?"

"That is the area the final battle was fought and Bor hid the Aether," Loki offered. "At least I believe that is what I am seeing. You likely came through somewhere over there when you traveled from Mid—Earth."

"Are you sure, Brother?" Thor inquired, gripping his hammer tightly.

"No, but this is the location Jane directed us and the familiar energy is present," Loki said, allowing some more magic to escape his fingers and feeling there were multiple portals and almost portals forming all over the valley.

"Why are you smiling?" Jane asked.

"I've missed my magic," Loki replied, holding up the cuffed wrist. "While I do not have full access, it is better than naught."

Jane looked troubled. She opened her mouth, but closed it quickly.

Loki stopped pressing his face into a grin and allowed himself to grimace. Truth was, he did miss his magic, but the headache was getting worst and he wanted Malekith to show up ASAP so he could be done with the cuff.

"Let us go. No doubt, Malekith will be on his way," Thor said, jumping down the cliff face and sliding down. "Are you ready, Loki?"

"After you," Loki said, indicating to Jane to go first. Jane frowned deeply in his direction, but jumped.

She was less graceful than Thor.

Loki followed suit, landing on his feet while Thor helped Jane to hers.

"He comes," Loki said, tensing up as he felt a magical being getting closer.

Thor put Jane behind him.

Malekith's ship appeared out of thin air and landed with a thud in the valley before them. Loki watched as a door opened at the bottom and out walked the Dark Elf and his Kursed helper, followed by a few minions. Malekith stalked towards them, stopping midway between the ship and the spot where Loki, Thor and Jane stood. He was soon flanked by his minions, who all wore masks. Malekith, though, wore no mask.

Loki struggled to keep his rage in check at the sight of the Dark Elf who was the downfall of his mother.

"It is time," Thor said, glancing at Loki out of the corner of his eye. "Remember what I said about if you betray me."

Loki nodded, even though Thor had never mentioned what he'd do if Loki betrayed him— as Thor did not believe Loki would. While the rest of Asgard thought Loki was a lost cause, Thor knew better.

Jane looked massively confused.

Loki raised his hands and Thor undid the cuffs, meeting his eyes. There was a question in those blue eyes that Loki hadn't expected to see. Loki rolled his eyes.

"Oops, I don't care what you'd do," Loki announced and promptly whacked Thor upside the head with the knife he'd found hidden in the folds of his jacket. (Placed there by Thor himself.)

Thor, not expecting Loki to whack him in the head, fell sideways. Jane screeched and tried to go to Thor's aid, but Loki grabbed her and held her hostage. Knowing Thor wouldn't be down for the count by a simple blow to the head, Loki conjured a few knives and launched them at Thor as he attempted to stand. Several knives cut off Thor's hand as he reached for his hammer. Jane screeched, howled, and struggled against Loki.

"Loki!" Thor bellowed, outrage pouring out of his tone as he clutched his stump of an arm.

Loki tried not to be impressed.

Malekith watched the entire exchange with a blank expression on his face. He began to walk forward. He came to a stop about five feet from where Loki and Jane were standing (struggling) and put his hands behind his back, a blasé expression on his half charred face.

Well, at least someone had gotten in a injury.

"And who might you be? I do not remember seeing you when I invaded Asgard, magic wielder," he calmly said, his dead looking eyes taking in Loki from head to toe.

Loki suppressed a shudder.

"I am Loki of Jotunhiem," Loki replied, voice steady and flippant.

Malekith's head cocked to the side as he said, "Is that so?"

"If you say I'm too short for a Frost Giant, I'll not let you have your prize," Loki taunted, holding Jane out in front of him like a prize.


Cause this is a battle and it's your final, last call / It was a trail, you made a mistake, we know / But why aren't you sorry?

-Colbie Caillat, "Battle"


Jane was outraged, scared, and had no clue what was going on in Loki's head. It did not surprise her in the least Loki had stabbed them in the back, but there was something itching in her mind.

The Aether had also not blasted Loki off of her, so she knew there was something more than she understood going on at the moment.

Loki loved his mother and the being standing before them had killed his mother. His mother's death had shaken Loki to the core— if his utter detachment when he had first appeared in Asgard was any indicator. The spark of mischief had gone out in his odd green eyes and while he was sarcastic and seemingly filled with humor during their escape, there was definitely something missing from the Loki Jane had on her hands now than the one she'd met over the summer in a run-down cottage in the English countryside.

"I've brought you the Aether."

Jane jerked forward as Loki offered her to the Dark Elf with bottomless eyes and deathly white and black skin. Jane hoped it was Frigga who'd blackened half his face.

Malekith's eyes flicked from Loki to Jane and back again.

"Why?"

"I wish to see what you desire. Darkness," Loki stated. "My world is dark, my life cold and lacking in light. Why else should others live in the light of day when I am forced to live in darkness thanks to Asgard?"

Jane felt a strange hum. Loki's words were a mix of lies and truth. Jane jerked, trying to get Loki's hand off her arm, but his iron clad grip didn't budge an inch.

"You came here with the prince of Asgard."

"I was taken prisoner. Their dungeons are filled. Your servant failed to free me whilst he was busy breaking out and wreaking havok."

Truth. But, Loki hadn't been there when the Dark Elves had attacked. Oh, there was likely an illusion of Loki in his prison cell so no one knew he was actually out and about on Midgard.

"And you came to be here?"

"I know how to use the secret walkways of Yggdrasil," Loki said as if it explained everything. "They do not believe in magic, those Asgardian brutes. Weakness."

That was truth. Jane shivered.

"And yet, their king wields it so flippantly," Malekith commented rather absently. "I will reward you greatly for your service, Loki of Jotunheim."

Lie.

Loki bowed his head. "All I wish for is to be able to watch as you burn Asgard to the ground."

"So be it," Malekith said.

Loki shoved Jane hard enough he caused her to topple to her hands and knees on the dusty ground. Before she could even think about getting up on her own, a cold hand with long nails gripped her front and lifted her clear off her ground.

"Do you have a good view, Asgard?" Malekith asked, turning his head in the direction where Thor was located.

Thor let out a howl of outrage as he tried to move, but the Dark Elf guards kicked him in the side.

Jane turned her attention to Malekith, seeing nothing in his eyes except lust. The Aether living inside her stirred, sensing the power of the being before her and the connection he likely had set up with the substance all those thousands of years ago.

"Come back to me," the Dark Elf breathed, throwing Jane away from him.

She didn't fall to the ground, instead floating in the air before Malekith. She was utterly petrified as she felt the Aether inside her rip itself from her being. It hurt, but that was the least of Jane's worries. Images flashed before her eyes: horrible images of what was to come now that Malekith had the Aether.

Behind her she felt something and heard Thor bellow, "NOW LOKI!"


The clock that never stops ticking (change of luck) / I never seem to catch a break (change of luck) / Came into this world kicking and screaming / I leave with nothing at stake

-Ministry, "Change of Luck"


Jane fell to the ground with a thud at the same time Thor shouted at Loki to end the illusion they'd set up before they'd left Asgard.

Yes, Loki had been shocked when Thor had suggested this as part of his plan to trick Malekith into ridding Jane of the Aether.

It was, however, the first bit of magic he'd performed since he'd put the cuff on that hadn't drained him nor caused his head to thump in pain. Clearly, this was the trickery his mother had mentioned and desired.

Loki raised his hands and ended the illusion on Thor, revealing his full armor and the fact he had both hands. Mjlinor flew into Thor's hand and he surged upwards and towards the now released Aether.

Loki did not believe the substance could be destroyed by whacking it with lighting and a magical hammer.

It needed to be contained.

But, Loki would bring that up after Malekith was despatched.

Thor roared and launched himself across the empty expanse between himself and the Aether, hammer raised. Loki, meanwhile, realized Jane was in the middle of where Thor was planning to hammer the blood red substance into submission. Moving swiftly while Malekith was distracted by Thor's roaring, Loki rocketed himself towards Jane, scooping her up into his arms, and protecting her with his own body as Thor's hammer made contact with the Aether. Loki rolled them away from the outbreak of fighting, shouting, and exploding dirt and Aether. Jane came to with a gasp.

"Are you alright?"

"What…?"

"The Aether is out of you now," Loki replied, turning to find the Aether wasn't destroyed. It was in fact in a million little bulbs of blood red blots suspended in midair.

"He's going absorb it soon," Jane mumbled.

"Correct," Loki agreed. "Stay down. I must aid Thor."

Now that the Aether was out of Jane, Loki did not believe any of the Dark Elves would pay her any heed. All their attention was upon Thor and killing him.

"Come!" Malekith bellowed, holding out his hand for the Aether.

Loki charged without thinking.


But we all take a unique fall in the final scene / To a violin strong, or a crashing train in the pounding rain / And the thunder rolls in and the vertigo comes and goes

-KT Tunstall, "Carried"


Jane's head was cloudy, muddy, and ached. There was a battle before her eyes. Loki launched himself into battle with Malekith, but not soon enough. The Aether entered Malekith before Loki had even reached the Dark Elf. Granted, this had not deterred Loki in the least. He still tried to stab Malekith with a knife. (How many did he have hidden on his person?)

Jane glanced at Thor, who was battling with the guards. The huge hulking Elf thing Jane was pretty sure Loki had called Kursed was heading towards Loki.

Seeing Thor had two hands, she made a hypothesis Loki had used magic to make it look like he was betraying Thor and chopping off his hand. (Also, Thor was wearing different armor suddenly. Had to be that mystical magic mumbo jumbo.)

Jane felt helpless and hated it. She wasn't helpless. She was a strong woman, just not a fighter. This was not her field of expertise and she was way out of her depth. However, instead of lying on a lump on the ground, she scurried off towards the pile of rumble Thor had created when he'd hit the ground with his hammer in his attempt to destroy the Aether. She reached it as she heard Thor bellow and go flying into another rock face, smashing it to bits. Gripping a rock hard, she threw it with all her might at the head of one of the guards.

Shockingly, it hit its mark.

Granted it didn't knock him out or injury the Dark Elf Guard in any sense, but it did distract him from pounding on Thor for a moment so the blond god could get to his feet. Jane quickly grabbed up a few more rocks and threw them in the general direction of the guard till Thor was able to whack the Elf Guard off his feet and into the side of a rather large rock, which the EG shattered into a million pieces.

Jane glanced over towards Loki to find him trading blows with the Aether amped Malekith. Malekith whacked Loki upside the head, sending the gangly man sideways, where he landed in a heap of leather and armor. Malekith turned and walked off towards his ship. Thor quickly dispatched the two EGs and began to run while screaming at Malekith. Loki struggled to his feet as the Dark Elf strode into the ship and it began to take off.

"Noooooo!" Thor roared, throwing his hammer at the ship, but it vanished before the hammer reached it.

"Thor!" Jane yelled, as she noted the monster Kursed Elf guy was advancing on Thor.

Jane was gathering up more rocks to throw just in case when she heard someone who wasn't Thor roar in outrage. Looking up, she found a smug looking Loki standing behind Kursed Monster Elf and the thing sporting a spear through his middle. Said thing glanced at the spear, yanked it out and rounded on Loki.

"LOKI!" Thor bellowed as the monster thrust the spear through Loki's middle.

Loki stumbled backwards, raising his hands up to spear and yanking it out. Shimmering green light began to engulf Loki's middle, but not quick enough.

Jane saw it at the same time the Kursed Monster Elf saw it: the cuff Loki wore on his right wrist. He only had one on and from the way it gleamed in the non-light of the so called Dark World (which wasn't exactly dark, but it wasn't exactly light either), gave away the artifact was magical.

So, of course, the Kursed Monster Elf's next attack was against the cuff.

"NO!" Thor raged, flying up behind thing

He wasn't fast enough.

Before Thor rammed into the back of Kursed Monster Dark Elf, the cuff was severed from Loki's wrist. Jane was sure the only reason the God of Mischief kept his hand was due to his quick if slightly sluggish reflexes. The cuff let out a burst of green light, blasting Loki backwards and the clump that was KMDE and the God of Thunder towards Jane. She scrambled out of the protected area she'd taken shelter in behind the crumbled rocks and quickly made a beeline for the heap of green and black that was Loki.

He didn't get to his feet.

Ignoring the battle between KMDE and Thor, Jane fell to her knees at Loki's side. She didn't know much about wounds or being speared or magic, but she wasn't a total moron. It was easy to tell from Loki's ashen appearance, gasping breaths, and the fact he wasn't moving much he wasn't in the best shape.

"Loki, Loki, Loki," Jane chanted over and over. "Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god."

"Not your god," Loki choked out, collapsing further sideways somehow.

Jane managed to roll him onto his back. He kept a grip on his middle, no matter how many time she tried to remove the bloody hands.

"Loki, I've got to stop the bleeding!"

"W-w-w-with w-w-what?" Loki stuttered, teeth chattering. "I'm not long for this world."

Thor roared behind them.

"No. You're wrong," Jane insisted, then remembered. "Oh! I've got healing stones!"

"Y-y-y-ou w-w-what?"

"Healing stones!" Jane exclaimed, shoving her hands into the pockets of the dress she still wore. "I put them in there when I was in the healing rooms with Eir! She showed me how to use them!"

"I am s-s-s-ure she t-t-t-told you—"

"Stop trying to talk. Yes, she said they will not heal a major injury, but they'll slow it down," Jane said, trying to smash the stone in her hands.

She couldn't crumble it as she could before.

"Damn it," she cursed, thumping the stone on the ground next to Loki, which was steadily being soaked in blood.

"ARRRRRRRRRG!" Thor bellowed.

Jane snapped her head up to find Thor standing on the plain alone. KMDE was in a dead heap at Thor's feet. Thor whirled around and charged across the plain and fell to his knees at Loki's side. Not paying attention to Jane's protests, Thor gathered Loki into his arms and said, "You're a fool."

Loki attempted to chuckle, but it failed to work. Instead he gurgled and spit up some blood.

"A f-f-f-fool I a-a-am," Loki agreed.

"I will tell Father what you did here today," Thor promised.

"He's not DYING!" Jane shouted at the same Loki said, "I didn't do it for him."

Thor looked at Jane for the first time since Loki had been stabbed.

"He is mortal, Jane."

"So?! That means these might work better!" Jane shouted, waving the stones around and putting the information that Loki was mortal for some reason in the back of her mind for later. Like when he wasn't slowly bleeding to death on a dark planet where the sky was yellow and the clouds were always grey. "I just can't crush them."

Letting out a frustrated noise, Jane tried again to crumble the formerly easy to crush stone.

"S-s-she l-l-l-lost…" Loki tried to say, but Thor shhhed him.

"Give them to me, Jane."

Jane handed the stones to Thor who easily crushed the entire pile in his hand.

"Remove your hands, Brother."

Loki gave Thor an unfathomable look, opened his mouth, but gave up and allowed his hands to flop down to his sides. It was clear his remaining strength was quickly fading. Thor quickly allowed the dust to come in contact with the wound on Loki's stomach. Jane watched the bleeding slow, but the skin didn't knit back together.

Thor looked as if his world was crushed.

"The bleeding has slowed. Who knows what those stones are doing to his insides," Jane said, quickly beginning to tear the bottom of her dress. "All we need to do is bind up his middle and get him back to, uh, Earth."

"Asgard—"

"We can't get to Asgard without Loki. Also, remember the boat is totaled and the portal to Asgard we know of is in the sky," Jane quickly reminded Thor. "There has to be a portal to Earth somewhere on this planet. Bor kept the Aether here, so I came here."

Jane looked around as she handed the strips of her skirt to Thor.

"Are you sure the portal, if we ever find it, will still be operational?"

"It'll be even more stable now as we're getting closer to the main event," Jane theorized. She glanced down at Loki. He'd either passed out or was pretending. She couldn't tell, as he was still as death as Thor manhandled the strips of cloth around his middle. Once Thor was pleased with the binding, he put his arms under his smaller, thinner brother and hoisted him into a bridal carry. Loki's head flopped backwards, his long hair gone.

"Where'd his hair go?"

"He used magic to grow it out," Thor said sadly.

Jane nodded, remembering that Loki did in fact have shorter hair when she'd last seen him on Earth before Thor had taken her to Asgard.

"That cuff…what was it exactly?" Jane asked. Jane looked around, then picked a direction at random. Thor followed behind her.

"It allowed Loki to access his magic around Father's barrier," Thor explained to Jane. "Mother gave it to Loki. I do not know where she got it from, but if I understand correctly, if Loki preformed magic the cuff thought was wrong or evil, it'd consume all his magic. The same goes if the cuff is removed by force."

"So, how does that make him mortal?" Jane asked, indicating a cliff they ought to climb to get out of the dust storm that was beginning.

"He lost all his powers. It was the price of removing the cuff by force or performing unsanctioned magic," Thor said, climbing up the rocks easily even though he was bearing Loki. Jane scrambled to keep up with him. "Father was shocked Mother had given it to Loki when he appeared in Asgard with her body. It made Father angry and a little confused. He couldn't figure out why Loki would be a slave to the cuff. I admit, it is a little out of character."

"It makes perfect sense," Jane whispered, ignoring the pain in her hands as she cut them on the rocks as she climbed after Thor.

"Also, any magic he did perform came at a high cost," Thor replied. "It is amazing he was able to keep the illusion on me as long as he did. It was a very complicated illusion. I could tell it was costing him."

They had reached the mouth of a cave. Seeing the dust storm was getting worst, they ducked into the cave without debate. Jane walked in front of Thor, picking her way back till she suddenly tripped over some trash.

Trash?

Bending over, Jane picked up a discarded McDonalds paper bag. Looking further in front of her, she saw the cave's floor was littered with trash and various other items from Earth.

"Oh," Jane breathed, picking up bits and bobs till she snooped down and found the car keys Ian the Intern must have tossed through the portal in the stairwell.

It seemed like a lifetime ago Darcy had brought her to that abandoned warehouse to watch drunk physics.

"Eureka," Jane whispered, clutching the car keys.

A few more things fell out of the cave's ceiling and Jane's phone began to ring.

"What is that?" Thor asked, clutching Loki tightly to his chest.

"My phone."

Jane dug around in the pocket of her jacket and pulled her phone out. She didn't know the number, but answered it.

"Jane?" asked a male voice she didn't know.

"Yeah?"

"Oh, good. Are you back?"

"No?"

"No?"

"No. I'm on…the Dark Elf world. I think a portal is helping us talk. Keep talking."

"Uh…how's Loki? Is he with you?"

Jane froze, realizing who'd called her: Steve Rogers.

Crap.

"Door," whispered a horse voice from Thor's arms. "They…put…d-d-d-doors up."

"Loki, what do you mean?"

"He's…" Jane's mind worked quickly. "Oh! Thor, he means that SHIELD figured out a way to put up something to block passage! They knew about this portal, so it's likely one of the first ones they blocked."

"We stopped doing that, as we ran out of those…thingies," Steve helpuflly offered. "Is Loki with you? Can I talk to him?"

Jane ignored Steve's questions and dug in her jacket pocket again and produced her scanner. It beeped telling her the portal above their head was the same one she'd scanned back on Earth and wasn't stable enough to always transport someone. However, the phone signal allowed Jane to discover another portal in the cave that was stable enough for her and Thor to walk through.

"Jane," Loki whispered hoarsly.

"Jane?" barked Steve at the same time.

Jane turned her attention to Loki. He was unable to lift his head from where he was nestled on Thor's chest, but his eyes were aflame. In the extremely dim light available in the cave, the green was intense, so Jane took a few steps closer to Loki.

"Steve, shhh. Loki, what?"

"Aether. Sta-a-a-ark's Arc R-r-r-reactor," he whispered.

"What?" Jane asked, confused.

"Need one. D-d-d-doesn't have to w-w-w-work. Containment."

Jane frowned, trying to work out what Loki meant exactly.

"Aa-a-and throw s-s-s-something."

Loki made a weak movement towards the portal with his hand.

That Jane understood easily enough. "Oh! It'll bounce back if the portal is closed?"

A slight nod was her only answer before Loki gave up his quest to remain with the living world. Quickly Jane threw a rock through the area she knew the portal to be. It quaked and swirled for a moment before going silent once more.

"Jane?" asked the voice over the phone.

"What does that mean?" Thor asked. "And what did he mean about Stark's Arc Reactor?"

"I dunno about that last one, but the portal is safe. Let's go," Jane said, striding through the portal before Thor could say another word. "Steve, I need directions from the warehouse where Darcy discovered the…portals to the nearest hospital. Loki's hurt. Oh, and have someone call Stark and see if we can borrow an Arc Reactor. Doesn't have to work. Tell him it'll save the world."


And if the world should fall apart, hold onto what you know / Take your chances, turn around and go.

-Lifehouse, "Chapter One"