~ Chapter 24 ~

Once they found the path leading to the surface, they wasted no time in wasting more time. The pair ran as fast as they could up the single tunnel and stopped only when there were an obstacle to dodge.

Surprisingly, or maybe not so much anymore, Loki took the lead and no matter how hard Thor used his legs, he couldn't seem to catch up with the blue giant. His shoes which were made for secured walking on ice were used to their limits.

Even when he thought he would slip, the boots kept a strong grip on the slippery ice and allowed him to glide only when he miss stepped and put too much force on the side of his foot. The hammer which he had secured at his belt was hitting his thigh, and while it wasn't hard, it was becoming annoying.

Whatever use he could have with it was beyond him. Although he had to admit that it was a good weapon to break things with.

But at the time it was completely useless. All he saw was an endless path of ice and while they had run for what seemed like hours, he held no doubt that they had hours left before they reached the surface.

There were no rules nor orders as Jotunheim broke out in a desperate struggle with itself. The gate opened and masses of Frost Giants poured out, forcing the army of Asgard to fall back. But the giants didn't go after them, instead they ran along the their wall and the ice started to crack as the creatures and monsters that lay dormant in the ice were awakened.

Beasts broke through and shook of junks of ice from their bodies before they were reined in with leashes.

Other giants started to mold their walls into a thicker ice. They carved out symbols for protection. Ice rose from the ground and piled up on each other. Other Jotuns sank into the ice and disappeared as roars of despair rose from the icy halls.

Despite the belief of Laufey, Odin was not a fool. Held his army back as he watched the defenses rise higher than he had ever seen. Even during the first war hadn't Jotunheim had this much power.

With a flash of icy dust, Laufey existed his stronghold on the back of a beast many times his own size. The beast roared at the tiny army before it.

Laufey wasn't even paying them attention.

"Take every child to safety. Set out, scouts. Ready your weapons. Awake every beast or creature in Jotunheim, bring them to the front line. Ready the crystals. Carve those symbols larger. Extend them to all over the wall. Set up traps. Deep and so deadly that not even the undead could escape."

In a swift motions, Laufey turned to the Aesirs. His eyes bleeding red.

"I will give you a final warning Allfather. Leave my realm and save your people before you send them to certain death. Once your people are safe, cut off all paths to Jotunheim. You must not let the Heklas have any chance to reach any other realm."

"I don't know what these Heklas are but they are nothing against the might of Asgard." Odin said confidently, not willing to follow the orders of another King. The enemy at that.

"YOU FOOL." roared Laufey. "You don't know Jotunheim's history. We don't live above ground because we want to. We are only the survivors from the Heklas attack on us long before you were even a spark in the eyes of the Norns. You didn't defeat and bring us down from our glory. You swept up the remains from a struggle of survival, and you stole our hope when you took the Casket if Eternal Winters." Laufey reined the beast back a few steps as he tried to gather his anger. "You can have your fake glory and stories but there will soon not be anything to brag about at your heath. Just don't let your people pay for your foolishness."

And with those words, he kicked the beast into a run and took off across the ice along with the other beasts with riders and warriors. Some bearing crystals of pale blue light while others held on for dear life.

Left behind was Odin and his army that had been totally ignored.

"What's your orders?" asked the Captain uncertainly. He didn't want to question his King, but he needed orders to follow. Would they attack or would they retreat?

For the first time in a long time, Odin didn't know for sure what he should do.

They began to notice when they came closer to the surface. The ice started to grow lighter despite the less number of light crystals.

In a way Thor felt joy over finally breaking free from the ice prison he had been lost in for so long. Another part of him felt sad that he had to leave the dream he shared with Loki. Now he had to face others and the notion of what these meetings would lead to scared him a little. Especially the one about his father.

As strongly he felt about Loki, and the fact that he wouldn't leave him, not willingly at least, made his world spin dangerously on its axis. He loved Loki, but was he prepared to leave Asgard and everything he ever knew if they didn't accept Loki as his husband?

Or would Loki be able to leave Jotunheim for a world so far different from his own to be with him?

What would his father say when he confessed that a Jotun had stolen his heart and soul? His mother? His friends?

It was a fearful notion, but he couldn't stop to wallow in it now. No matter how his feelings may conflict with his duty to Asgard, he needed to focus on what was happening now. And that was to help Loki.

It was like running uphill on a one color slope. While it got lighter and he could see the exist up high, it felt so far away, and he hated to admit it but his legs were growing weak from all the running.

"We're almost there." said Loki in badly suppressed joy. He let out a long howl that echoed against the walls and out the opening.

Thor laughed at the sound and pushed himself harder to keep up with his beloved. The lightness his other half were running with almost made him jealous. It looked like the other were dancing up the ice.

With each giant step they took they came closer to the open light and fresh air hit them before they even reached the mouth of the tunnel.

"Race you to the top." Thor said as he squeezed out the last of his strength and ran past Loki.

"You're on." Loki increased his pace as much as his legs could take without slipping. They were running on ice after all.

He slowly closed in on the short distance between them as the exist came racing toward them.

Together they broke through into the light and the open world before them.

All above them were a clear open sky with not a single cloud in sight. An open, free world. Different from the frozen wonders under the ice.

For the first time they both realized the big difference between the underworld and above ground of Jotunheim. Thor sank down in the soft snow as he tried to control his breathing. It was like two different worlds.

Loki put his hands on his hips as he straightened his back and took deep breaths. He felt lactic in his legs as they ached from running for hours. Even for him it had been idiotic to attempt to reach the surface without stop. But it had paid off.

The Jotun raised his hand toward the looming castle not too far away. They could both see that there were an army standing outside the gates of Jotunheim. "Over there. We're almost there." his throat felt raw from the crisp air.

"I won, you know." breathed Thor in glee at his companion.

Loki cast a look at Thor and shrugged his shoulders. "You did." he admitted easily. "But only because you were sticking out your tongue at the end. I saw you." he said with a haughty air.

Thor looked up at the blue Jotun prince and realized that he wouldn't be able to get out of it. Just because it was the truth.

"Damn." he muttered as Loki gave a shallow chuckle.

TBC