Notes: Oh my stuff is happening!


Chapter 11: The Battle Begins


Getting Loki out of the hospital had not been easy. What he said about not being able to die was evidently true. If it hadn't been, being shoved into the passenger side of Robin's Grand Am probably would have done the job sufficently. Maybe he was still breathing, but man did she and Clint have to admit that he sure looked he wished he weren't. Robin did her best to try and get him reasonably comfortable while Clint dealt with the reporters. Well, as comfortable as he could be considering his condition and that they had dressed him in his Asgardian leathers. As much as Robin had loathed that outfit before, she thought now that it really suited him.

"All right, are we ready to go?" Clint asked impatiently as he came running back over.

"Yes, but you're staying here. Can you call in clearance for us to get in there?" Robin asked.

"I can but - "

"Good, do it. Stay at Stark Tower in case Thor comes back. I gave Jarvis permission to let you in. ...With Tony's phone, so as far as Jarvis can tell the order came from Tony." Robin explained. She didn't have a phone, but Clint didn't need to be reminded. Hastily, she gave him instructions to care for Frigga while they were gone – in case it turned out to be more than a day. Which it probably would.

Most of the drive passed by in Silence aside from raindrops steadily hitting the windshield. It couldn't possibly of been a much drearier day. Loki had lost consciousness from the pain shortly after they left. Robin felt horrible doing this to him, but it had been his idea. Still, it didn't make her feel any better. She checked occasionally to make sure he was still breathing, but aside from how shallow the breaths were, he seemed to be doing all right. When the quiet started driving her nearly insane, she put a CD of Black Sabbath in to play and tried to use the music to distract herself from the irrational fear of Loki dying. Or worse, betraying her when his powers were returned.

Getting into the State Park had been a pain in the ass. Luckily Loki had come to by then. They were stopped at four separate checkpoints and searched for weapons repeatedly. Robin was fuming that they had confiscated her pocket knife, but the agent had at least promised to return it when she left. That was better than nothing, she reasoned. Aside from all the strange equipment everywhere and agents scurrying about like mice, the park looked unchanged. She was grateful for that. Robin would have been furious if they'd ruined it any way. When they reached the monument, it too looked the same as always – except for the huge golden lance wedged into the base of it. She shut the car off, parked at the bottom of the hill and made uneasy eye contact with Loki.

"Are you ready for this?" She asked.

"Yes." He replied without any hesitation.

"Will you betray me?" His eyes widened slightly, as if he'd been offended.

"Never."

"All right, let's do this." Robin said and got out of the car. Loki waited with some degree of patience as she opened his door and undid his seat belt. She wrapped her arms around him to support him. It wasn't enough. With Clint's help they'd been able to walk him to the car, but she wasn't strong enough on her own. Loki's height compared with her lack thereof wasn't much help either. She swore animatedly and Loki grunted in a combination of pain and annoyance. Not that he was angry with Robin, he knew she was doing her best. It was just this whole damned situation. Robin knew if she'd believed in God she'd tell him right where to shove the whole mess.

"Do you need assistance?" Someone asked from behind Robin. Loki was about to open his mouth and state his opinion of being 'assisted' by a SHIELD agent, when he recognized the voice.

"Yes, please." Robin said, ignoring the look of disgust on Loki's face followed by shock. She'd ask him later.

"Phil Coulson." The agent said, introducing himself to Robin and helping her lift Loki from the car. He reminded her immediately of Natasha. Something told her this man could keep that easygoing smile planted on his face while the world blew up around him. Nothing could get under his skin easily, that was obvious. "I believe we have already met, though I hope it is on better terms this time." He added to Loki with a curt nod. He didn't trust himself to speak, not while he was trying to figure how the man was even alive, let alone willing to help him. Between the two of them, Phil and Robin and managed to get Loki to the base of the monument. It probably would have been easier if not for the relentless rain.

"Any word from the Director?" He asked Robin when they stopped to give Loki a minute to breathe.

"No, Agent Barton is back at Stark Tower in case Thor comes back. But everyone else is missing now, too." She explained, and went on to describe Clint's tale of Natasha and Steve vanishing. And how they hadn't be able to track Bruce and Tony anymore either.

"There is an explanation for this. Nothing is without logic, even magic I would assume. Not that I am the type to put much stock in magic." Phil said.

"Magic is nothing but logic, even more so than science. One does not make a hypothesis with magic. Failure means death or worse. There are incomplete theories, yes, but no guesswork." Loki said, distracting them. "I am ready." Phil and Robin supported most of his weight while they walked over to where Gungnir was still resting. They held him steady as Loki shakily took ahold of the golden shaft. "Stand back. I do not know what will happen." Carefully they let go of him as he shifted his weight to hold himself up with the spear. He watched as Robin and Phil descended the stairs and stood at a safe distance. He was grateful to see Phil gently urge Robin to stand behind him. He didn't want either of them harmed, but Robin least of all. The guilt at seeing at the SHIELD agent alive and well had thrown him. The fact that he had all but literally carried him up here was overwhelming. Who was he kidding? The fact that Coulson was even walking after what Loki had done to him was amazing. You lack conviction. coulson's words rang hollow in Loki's mind as he looked down at his pale, shaking hands gripping Gungnir's staff.

"No longer. I know the path I must walk now." He whispered and steadied himself.

Loki took a deep breath, as deep as he could manage without coughing up blood. He tightened his grip on Gungnir and pulled with everything he had. Oddly enough, it didn't take nearly that much strength and he fell awkwardly with the weight of the spear on top of him. His first thought was the if he wasn't dead already he surely would be. The pain from straining himself was immediate and overwhelming. By the Norns the pain! The next thing he noticed was the brilliant white light that enveloped him. In a rush, he could feel his magic pouring back into him. The agony became a dull tingling as the injured tissue immediately began healing. With a sigh of relief, he let his head fall back against the ground as the magic did its work. Within a few short moments, he was able not only to breathe properly, but had the strength to push himself back up into a sitting position holding Gungnir against his chest. His true strength was far from restored, but it would be with a few hours rest, of that he was certain. He could cry with joy at no longer being in that useless mortal form. But he must not forget his reason for being here. His eyes moved to where Robin was still standing beside Coulson. They were surrounded be a thong of awed looking agents babbling excited amongst themselves. Even Coulson looked a little impressed but was hiding it well. It musthave been quite the light show. Robin, noticing that he was sitting up, ran up the hill so fast she might have flown.

"A-are you all right?" She stuttered, her face white. It still felt strange to him to know she worried about him. …That someone who wasn't Frigga cared about him. It was a good feeling; he didn't feel quite so alone anymore.

"Yes, I am still healing but there should be no trace of the wounds in a few hours." Loki replied, almost unused to being able to speak without an immediate rush of blinding pain. As if to prove his point, he got easily to his feet. He leaned slightly on Gungnir, not exactly for support, but because he felt more than a little dizzy after having his magic returned with such force. Testing it carefully, he caused the raindrops falling around him and Robin to freeze into miniscule hailstones before they hit the ground. Smiling stupidly, he scooped up a small handful of the bits of ice and let them fall through his fingers. He frowned at the sight of his hand that had turned blue from the contact but ignored it. The self-hate was a battle for a different day. Right now, he had a bunch of infuriating mortals to save.

"That's amazing. It's frozen." Robin said and picked up some of the ice curiously. In spite of himself, Loki smiled. When was the last time someone had told him his magic was amazing? Never mind such a ridiculously simply thing. Sometimes, Robin reminded him of a child, even though she was anything but. He liked that about her. She was strong, smart and never took anything for granted. If only he'd been a little more like her, maybe things wouldn't have turned out the way they were for him. But no. The past was gone. He needed to keep walking forward, there could be no more looking back.

"Where did the avengers go when they disappeared?" Loki asked, ignoring Robin's amusement with the already melting ice pellets.

"Everything's at Stark Tower. Agent Barton wouldn't tell me. All I know is that it's upstate somewhere. We'll have to drive back to New York. " Robin explained tiredly.

"No, we won't. Take my hand. Trust me." Loki said, holding his hand out for her. She looked at him curiously.

"Why is your skin blue?" She asked and cocked her head to the side, looking at it. He fought the urge to pull his hand away and explained. She is not judging me, she is only curious. He tried to convince himself.

"Because I touched the ice. The way you see me now is not my true form. Some things, like coming into physical contact with something very cold, will temporarily make a hole of sorts in the illusion. I can explain that another time." He told her, still holding out his hand. Shrugging, she took it. Robin squealed involuntarily when everything around them vanished. It felt like she was falling, but Loki held her tightly. The next thing she knew, she was standing in the their living room in Stark Tower clinging to Loki for dear life and panting like she'd ran a mile.

"That was Fucking... Awesome!" She gasped and looked around as Loki managed to extricate himself from her. He tried to attribute the way his heart was racing to the rush from teleporting, and not to the way Robin had wrapped herself around him. He knew better. Or he thought he did, but the only thing in his mind was that her hair had smelled faintly of lavender and with that - he just stopped thinking. No, not now. If I am going to be a fool like Thor and fall in love with a mortal, it will be after I've sorted out this mess. He told himself. He wasn't falling in love with her, though. Not at all. That would just be stupid. Though, thinking of stupid...

"Come here, Robin." He said to her. She'd bolted to the window to see if they had, indeed, just freaking teleported to New York City. Frowning while she tried to figure out how it was scientifically possible, she walked back over to Loki. "Hold still for a moment." He said and slipped his hand under the collar of her shirt to rest on her shoulder. Robin was about to open her mouth and yell at him for going back to his attempts to seduce her when she realized the near-constant pain in her wounded shoulder completely vanished as an oddly pleasant cool tingling sensation replaced it. She looked up at him with a mixture of awe and confusion.

"Is there anything you can't do?" Robin asked, her eyes wide. She lifted her arm carefully. There was no pain at all.

"Of course there are things I cannot do." Loki said with a hint of a smile as she pulled off the bandaging to see that the wound had completely vanished without so much as a scar. There was no indication that she even had been shot at except for the slightly pink tint of new skin over where the bullet hole had been. She didn't reply she just stared at him for a tense moment, he stared back, but there was no venom in it. If she saw anything, she would have to say it was a sort of quiet acceptance of something, but of what she had no idea.

"Welcome home Miss Sheffield and Mr. Laufeyson." Came the voice of Jarvis, breaking the awkward silence. "Mr. Stark, Dr. Banner and Mr. Barton are downstairs in the workshop."

"Tony and Bruce are here!" Robin exclaimed. "Come on, Loki. Let's go see what they know." Loki agreed and allowed himself to half dragged into the elevator. 'Welcome home´ The AI had said. And Loki thought he could cry like a little a girl when he admitted to himself that yes, this was home. More so than Asgard had ever been. …And he would defend it with his life if it should come to that.

"I'm telling you I don't know why - " Clint began to say to a very irritable looking Tony, but fell silent as the elevator dinged. Tony, Bruce and Clint all stared as Robin and Loki stepped into the workshop.

"Well, you're looking a lot better than I thought you would be, Reindeer Games." Tony observed. He was sitting on the edge of his work table. Bruce was occupying Tony's chair and Clint was leaning against the table beside Tony. "So, I see you have the epic lance of salvation or whatever. Can you find your brother by any chance?" He asked, cutting to the chase.

"Thor? No. Not without going to Asgard and I can't guarantee being allowed to return if I do that." Loki said almost immediately.

"Well, we need to find him." Clint said. "According to Bruce's gamma readings, the Tesseract is involved."

"Well... shit." Loki swore. Robin giggled and Tony nearly slipped off the table laughing. Clint just shook his head and even Bruce let out a short bark of laughter. "What? This is not funny! Do you realize the danger we could be in right this minute! ...I suppose not, none of actually know how to use the Tesseract like I do." Loki continued, irritably.

"This situation isn't funny, fuck no. But hearing you use our dirty mortal slang is pretty hilarious." Tony said to unanimous agreement. "Right, so. We're not going to risk losing you to getting stuck in Asgard if you're on our side. We need to go back to where this happened, maybe you'll have better luck finding something than we did. That and, well, we need all the help we can get. You in, Bambi?"

"Yes, I will help." Loki affirmed. "Where do I need to go?"

"We need to go back to a small town upsate. There's a patch of woods there behind a farm that's where Fury and Natasha disappeared. We don't know where Steve was." Bruce explained.

"How did you get back, though? And where were you?" Loki inquired.

"We drove back." Bruce told them. "I lost my phone in a cave, that uh, collapsed in an earthquake after we got out and I realized I didn't have it. We didn't wind up with the others."

"A... cave?" Robin said, biting her lip. All eyes were on her. No, that wasn't possible. No, it couldn't be. But they said the cave collapsed. Good, no more loose ends. She thought to herself. …Even if she had felt guilty for hurting her mother, and gone back a month later to leave a small note apologizing to her. She would never see it, of course. But it could have been anywhere. …Any patch of woods behind a farm in upstate New York that happened to have a cave. There wasn't any reason to panic. Her eyes darted to the hologram screen Behind tony where a map was displayed with the coordinates overlaying it. Well, damn it.

"Yeah, by the way, we found it." Tony said. Robin suddenly felt cold, like a leaden weight had crushed down on her throat. She would have fallen over if Loki hadn't noticed her knees give out. He caught her easily and didn't let go. Her reaction meant one of two things. That was where Robin had killed her stepfather and they'd either found the body or something else to do with it. Sometimes, she wondered if she hadn't really murdered Jack and that the trauma she suffered at seeing his body had altered her memories. But this, well... There could be no more lying to herself about it anymore.

"Found what?" Loki and Clint said in unison. Her eyes met Loki's, pleadingly. Don't ask, please. He could almost hear her say.

"It does not matter if it doesn't have to do with the Tesseract." Loki quipped and changed the subject. I will protect her, he thought to himself, Just as she has protected me. The others must have realized that they were getting nowhere, and Loki wouldn't allow them to press. So, they let it drop. In a few moments, they all got a demonstration of Loki's 'fucking awesome' teleportation ability that left them all standing in the same field as before. Robin looked around nervously. This place never changed. Her gaze shifted to the farmhouse on the other side of the field. That was where the man she'd framed for the murder had lived. He been an old friend of Jack's, apparently. She swallowed nervously. Of all the things she thought would come of working for Stark, facing her past had not been one of them.

"You all right, Little Bird?" Tony asked, noticing that her face was whiter than a sheet.

"Yeah." She said vacantly. "Let's get this over with." The five of them entered the woods, guided by Robin who knew the layout perfectly. She took them to the meadow that was roughly located in the very center where Bruce and Tony had been earlier. Even if Loki hadn't known a murder had been committed in these woods, he would have sensed it. Anger filled this place like a smothering haze. The man's spirit was very much restless, and filled with a bitter rage. He told them to keep silent and seated himself comfortably at the base of the large tree. An image fluttered to his mind of a younger version Robin sitting there in the snow waiting for something with a grim smile on her face and a cellphone in her hands. This was new - seeing flashes of past events. Perhaps he'd gotten some new abilities out of this mess. He closed his eyes and allowed his magic flow through him freely. He gave it free reign to take over him completely. This way, he could feel anything and everything surrounding him. The most radiant presence, surprisingly enough, was Robin. Her aura was a brilliant, blinding white. If she were an Aesir, she would have magic to rival my own. He thought, extending his reach beyond the others surrounding him. He could hear, see and feel every living thing in the woods. Animals went about their routines and life behaved as normal, but, there - He pulled his magic back into himself with ease.

"I know where we need to go." Loki said. "Robin, do you know of a place with a small ledge overlooking another meadow smaller than this one?" She paled and nodded.

"I can't go there." She whispered.

"You killed your stepfather there?" Bruce said. She nodded.

"You have to take me there, at least." Loki pressed, but touched her arm in a gesture of consolation.

"He is still here." She mumbled.

"I know." Loki replied. It didn't surprise him that she could sense his spirit – not after he'd seen her aura. She had to have some kind of extrasensory ability if she didn't know it herself. He realized it wasn't facing the crime that upset her, but that she was genuinely afraid that the man's spirit would harm her. It was a far more legitimate fear than she could possibly know.

"Will you protect me?"

"Of course."

A thousand questions swam through Tony's mind as he watched the little exchange. But, he decided to just let it be and go along with it. If Robin wanted to go batshit and fall in love with an evil space Viking, it was all on her. But if Loki meant that he'd protect her, Tony assumed it would at least keep him loyal their cause. Bruce and Clint didn't really have an opinion on the matter. Either way, Robin led them in silence. When they reached the place, she pulled herself up onto the small ledge that was really just a boulder sticking out of the ground on an odd angle. She stood up as the wind rustled through her hair.

"I'll see you in hell one of these days." She said, glaring down at a spot about thirty feet in front of her. There was nothing there but some shrubs and a fallen log. But Loki saw something else. Again, an image came to his mind unbidden. The younger version of Robin was kneeling on the boulder, hiding in sparse, snow covered remains of the undergrowth with a rifle on her shoulder. Her breath formed little clouds of mist in the cold that felt as real as it looked. He saw a man in the spot that she had stared at just now. He seemed to be preparing his rifle to shoot a buck nearby. But, just as he turned his head, a shot rang out and he fell to ground – the side of his skull shattered. Beside him, Robin lowered her rifle and was grinning like a maniac. It looked like she was... aroused. He should know that look on her well enough after his relentless teasing. Suddenly it faded and everyone was watching him oddly. He looked at Robin. She was still staring ahead defiantly.

"Remind me never to make you angry again." Loki said to her. "They will never find my body." To his surprise, Robin laughed. As did tony and Clint. Bruce, as usual, made no comment. He closed his eyes, letting the energy of the immediate area speak to him. There was the spirit of the man she killed. Wandering in confusion and rage. Somehow, he knew she killed him. Strange, considering he hadn't see her. Then, he saw what he was actually looking for. A faint trace of a familiar power. The Tesseract. The place where Rogers was taken was very near to here, if they headed straight through the woods. And the widow, she had been near the field, just at the edge. But that didn't matter, he knew what he needed to now.

"The Tesseract can act as a gateway – a portal. Though, I would image you know that by now after what I did to allow to Chitauri to pass through to New York." Loki explained to the others. "If my estimations are correct, which they always are, the energy flow leads to - No. It can't be." He opened his eyes and looked skyward. But that just made no sense.

"Loki?" Bruce asked, adjusting his glasses. "Leads to where?" When he didn't answer, the group exchanged nervous glances. Robin slipped her hand into his, sensing his distress even if she couldn't understand it.

"Heimdall!" Loki shouted at the heavens. "Send Thor here. Immediately!" There was no response. Loki swore in a language none of them understood. Robin did, however recognize it as old Norse from what she'd learned to be able to read the original Prose Edda. She fought back an amused smirk. Before any of them could question Loki, a blinding white light engulfed them. Robin shrieked as the ground vanished beneath her and she felt herself being sucked through space. And that was what it was. Space. She could see stars rushing past her and stared with interest, until she felt something grab her and she realized she was held tightly against Loki's chest. It wasn't nearly as pleasant as his teleportation spell. It was strange, it felt like falling, but not. The weirdest thing, was that she didn't really want Loki to let go of her. Somehow, he felt safe. She didn't want to think about how a month ago she wouldn't have trusted him as far as she could throw him. Even now, trusting him was not easy. But it was the fact that she could that made the difference.

Loki set her on her feet once he'd gracefully strode through a golden gateway. Robin was awestruck as she took in her surroundings. This building, whatever it was, appeared to made of solid gold. It looked almost like some kind of enormous machine. Was this Asgard? She heard more than saw Tony and Bruce follow. Tony landed face-first with a thump and fell in awkward heap. Bruce flopped down hard on top of him. Mostly due to his acrobatic reflexes, Clint managed to do a sort of flip and land on his feet like a cat.

"This is... Not what I asked for." Loki said. Tony and Bruce got to their feet and had a similar reaction to Robin's. Bruce actually took off his glasses and polished them on his shirt as if he weren't sure if what he was seeing was real. It was only then that they noticed Loki was actually talking to someone and not himself. A large man with ebony skin, holding a sword nearly as huge as he was, scrutinized them. Something about that gaze seemed to pierce their very souls. He seemed to relax and sealed the wormhole they'd traveled through. The Bifrost, Robin thought to herself, That must have been how Loki was sent to Midgard.

"Welcome to Asgard." The gatekeeper said, ignoring Loki entirely. "Your missing comrades are here, as you have already surmised."

"Where?" Loki demanded. "And why?" Heimdall regarded him with a mixture of pity and anger.

"The dungeons." He said simply. "Thanos is in command now. Odin is in the dungeons as well. Thanos believes he has dominion over my mind. I let him believe for that now. You are our last hope now, Loki. As much as it pains me to say that. Thor, however, did not have the power to fight it."

"Where is he?" Loki snapped.

"I cannot see him. Thanos does not entirely trust me with good reason." Heimdall replied. Loki narrowed his eyes.

"Nor do I. Never have you lied before, but here you stand doing just that. You are his thrall." The trickster observed. "RUN!" He shouted to the others and pointed at the crystalline rainbow bridge visible through the open gateway. Robin was the first to react and she vaulted through the gateway at a speed that actually kind of impressed Clint who was close on her heels followed by Tony and Bruce who brought up the rear. Robin would have been astounded by the beauty of the rainbow bridge if she weren't so busy running for her life. Thank mercy she wasn't afraid of heights or this would just suck. Tony was wishing to God he had had one of his suits. Bruce was just trying not to have a heart attack. This was bad. Very bad. They arrived at the other end before the city gates, panting. Just as Clint was about to ask how they could get in, an enormous explosion drew their attention back to gatehouse. As they stared in horror, they were grabbed by impossibly strong hands and dragged through the gates. Einjerjar, Robin thought as her hands were bound and she was pushed roughly along. This is not good. She could hear Tony and the other two men trying to fight, but they were easily subdued and bound. But why did they bother with the Tesseract if they could just use the Bifrost? Robin wondered as she was hustled along beside Tony and Bruce.


Loki summoned Gungnir's power and fired a blast of magic straight at Heimdall with the intention of disarming or incapacitating him. The last thing he wanted to do was kill him. The resulting impact shook the gatehouse and blew part of the golden roof clean off into the void below it.

"Indeed I do, and indeed I am." Heimdall said calmly and drew his sword, unphased by the mortals "escaping" or Loki's attack. Loki held Gungnir before him, ready for anything. He had no idea what he was up against, but he doubted it was going to be easy. I have to protect Robin. He reminded himself, surprised by the strength that simple thought gave him.

"What do you have to protect?" He asked Heimdall, dodging the gigantic sword with ease as he brought it down in a heavy swing in Loki's direction. It cracked the floor. Loki tried not to think about what that would look like it if were him. "Surely there is something." He continued dodging as he spoke. He couldn't run forever. But he could buy time for Robin and the others. If they got into the city they could blend in easily enough if they got ahold of some Asgardian clothing. For now, he had to find a way to break Thanos control over Heimdall. It might have worked to hit Barton in the head with something, but Heimdall was one of the Aesir. It wouldn't be that easy. No, he had to put that silver tongue to good use and find something that Heimdall cared enough about to get through to him. Then, he would be able to fight it himself.

"What about Asgard? How could you let it fall into their hands?" Loki shouted, barely dodging a fierce blow that tore through his coat sleeve and drew blood. He didn't waste what little valuable energy he had recovered on healing it. "What about Odin? The king is rotting in the dungeons and you failed to protect him!" Loki continued, this time drawing up a glowing green shield that repelled the immense blade. Quickly, he magically created seven clones of himself and teleported to the other side of the gatehouse.

"Enough with the illusions! Fight like a man instead of running like the womanish coward that you are!" Heimdall's voice boomed through the gatehouse. Loki sneered and projected his voice through one of the clones near Heimdall.

"I am the coward? Says the man than let Asgard fall to filth like the Chitauri!" The clone said jeeringly and hurled a completely harmless ball of magic in Heimdall's direction. He avoided it with ease and brought the sword down through the clone. It shimmered and vanished. This wasn't working, he had to think of something fast.

"You told me not to disappoint my brother!" Loki cried as a last resort, not through one of the remaining clones, but himself. Heimdall turned to glare at him. If this didn't get through to him, he didn't know the gate guard well enough to know what would. "But I find it rather ironic, that you are the one who is now a disappointment to both of us!" He continued and ran straight for Heimdall, strafing to the side to avoid his blade. Loki's speed was really the only advantage he had. If Heimdall were in control of his mind, he would have been able to see through the illusions immediately. He vanished and reappeared a short distance away just as he created more clones. Heimdall's sword bit only thin air.

"Damn you! You are like an insect!" Heimdall roared and bore down on the nearest clone. Thinking quickly, Loki considered his options. He couldn't run. Heimdall had sealed the gate after the mortals fled, and only he could open it. Loki also had very little hope of actually defeating Heimdall. He couldn't keep making illusions either. It was draining what little of his magic that he recovered to nothing, and fast. Unless...

Loki made a few of the clones distract Heimdall while he used his power to hide Gungnir away to be conjured when needed, like he had done with the casket of ancient winters. He grabbed a piece of broken scrap metal from the floor near him and used the last ounce of his magic to transform it into an identical copy of Gungnir, which he leaned on heavily. Instantly, with his reserves drained, the copies disappeared. When Heimdall turned to him, Sword raised, Loki threw the copy of Gungnir at his feet and held his hands up in clear surrender.

"The Loki I know would not surrender." Heimdall observed. Loki held his ground and met his eyes.

"You may win this battle, but the war is not yet over." The trickster said ominously.