Chapter 4: Unseen Enemy

It had been a long time since sleep had eluded Ciara to such an extent. Between the constant prickling feeling of the Aether that prodded at the back of her mind as a warning, and what they'd learned about the Dark Elves, Ciara couldn't sleep. After tossing and turning for half of the night, Ciara gave up on sleep.

Cursing as she got dressed and pulled her cloak on, Ciara left her room. It was quiet, and the few guards that patrolled overnight didn't see Ciara as she made her way through the massive corridors and down the stairs, eventually making it out of the palace.

As soon as she stepped foot out, Ciara let her instincts kick in, and began to run. She was out of the palace grounds in seconds and running through the silent town. As she got further away from the palace, Ciara couldn't help but laugh as she enjoyed the peace that she found in running, letting the knot of anxiety in her stomach finally unravel.

"Whoa," she stopped as she reached a drop, peering over warily. It was a long drop down into the waters below. Ciara sat down, dangling her legs over the edge, and fell backwards into the grass with a quiet laugh. For the first time in a while, she was breathless. "I'm out of shape. I need to do this more," Ciara declared out loud, before pausing. "I really have started talking to myself more and more, huh?" she wondered, looking up at the dark sky above that was littered with stars.

Sitting up again, Ciara looked out into the distance, watching the massive sky that seemed to threaten to swallow her up. It wasn't as if it was a new view - Ciara had spent a good chunk of time when she'd first arrived on Asgard exploring, and still liked to go out and wander around the old relics to see if she could find anything worth her time - like other ways off Asgard.

She knew that Loki had sensed her lies easily, but she did have another reason she would have liked to find one of the mysterious, ancient portals that were so well hidden that it seemed next to nobody knew where they were. In her own dramatic fashion, part of her wanted to use that way to leave Asgard and return to Earth. She knew it would annoy the Allfather, and baffle Thor and the others, if she vanished without a trace.

Ciara laughed again at the thought. "I guess that's exactly what I did on Earth. I wonder how mad SHIELD are that they still can't find me?" her laughter grew as she thought about it. She'd spent a year evading them, but they always tracked her down thanks to their level of vision over the planet. When she calmed, Ciara sighed lightly. "Maybe that's why I'm happy not to leave Asgard yet," she murmured.

"You'll find that while your cage is bigger than mine, you're as trapped as me," From the day she'd been dragged along by the Tesseract, she'd seen Asgard as a cage. And while she didn't want to admit it, Loki's words had riled her up. Yet now the cage door was propped open and she was more than welcome to just leave, and she was digging her heels in and making excuses to stay.

"When I can jump between worlds...then I'll leave," Ciara said, trying to sound determined in her words. She stood, and kicked a stone by her feet to watch it sail over the edge. She quickly lost sight of it, and the waves that crashed against the side of the cliff made it impossible to tell where it landed. Ciara then turned, looking up at the palace in the distance. She was reluctant to return, but knew that if she was just going to avoid going back because of Jane, then she may as well just go back to Earth.

With that thought in mind, she let her power kick in, and vanished in blue lights. When she blinked, she found herself back in the palace, but not quite where she'd intended to go.

"Shouldn't you be asleep? Preferably far away from here?" Loki sighed, looking over at her. He was sitting across his makeshift bed, having been attempting to read before he'd felt Ciara's presence ripple into being.

"Y-yeah," Ciara murmured, pulling her hood up before anyone else could notice her presence. Most of the other prisoners were asleep, or sulking, having been smacked to shut up so others could sleep.

"I see you're still having trouble with that power of yours," Loki said, and Ciara felt herself go red. She tugged at her hood more, trying to hide it. She had meant to return to her room, not the dungeons.

"I guess this is where I think I should be," she murmured, more to herself than him. "Dammit," Ciara cursed, annoyed at herself for not being as precise as she'd hoped. She then arched an eyebrow, and lifted her head to meet his gaze. "Why are you awake?" Ciara asked.

"Why are you?" Loki countered, and Ciara rolled her eyes.

"Can't sleep," she said simply, and sat down. The uneasy feeling was stronger than when she'd gone for her run, but it wasn't as strong as when she was in her room.

"Reading," was his vague response, and Ciara wasn't surprised. Of course he wouldn't give a detailed answer if she didn't.

"There's a new guest on Asgard, you know," if this gained his attention, Loki didn't show it. "You missed it. She sent a couple of guards flying. The distance was impressive," Ciara leaned against the pillar behind her.

"Why should I care about who the Allfather welcomes into Asgard?" Loki asked, giving a small sigh like she was boring him.

"Because he didn't welcome her. Thor did," Loki stilled, eyes darting up to meet hers.

"His mortal," he guessed. Ciara nodded.

"I thought you'd appreciate how pissed Odin is as I do," she chuckled. As Loki seemed to process this, Ciara yawned, before telling him about Jane's meeting with the Allfather. As she did, she didn't realise how heavy her eyelids were, and before long, was fast asleep.

"Did you really come here just to fall asleep?" Loki murmured, shaking his head as he went back to his book, letting Ciara sleep.

Ciara woke with a jolt, feeling as if something had struck near where she lay.

Or sat, rather; she realised. Ciara blinked rapidly, realising that she'd fallen asleep in the dungeons.

"As entertaining as it would be to see you caught," she looked up at Loki, who was lifting a book next to her, on the other side of the forcefield. "I am in no mood to answer questions about just why you chose to sleep there," he told her as he tossed it onto the chair, pacing around his cell.

"I…" Ciara started, but stopped and got to her feet instead. She wasn't even sure how long she had been asleep for. She could hear the telltale thudding footsteps of guards on patrol, and looked up at Loki as he stood over her.

"You should stop coming here," before Ciara left, Loki's quiet words made her stop. "I don't know what your intentions are, nor do I care about what happens out there while I'm here," he told her, and Ciara was quiet for a moment longer. Then, a faint smirk flickered across her face. He wasn't even remotely surprised.

"I told you my intentions already. You're the only person on this damn planet that's actually interesting," Loki's brow furrowed, but before he could respond, Ciara vanished in a ripple of blue, right before the guards turned the corner. Immediately he turned, starting to pace again as the men barely even paid him a second glance.

It turned out Ciara had slept through until morning. When she returned to her room, she found it as she'd left it, meaning Astrid hadn't come to interrupt her yet. Ciara slumped, letting out a breath.

"I can't believe I fell asleep there," she mumbled, running a hand through her hair. Immediately she flinched as her fingers caught in knots and pulled. "Ow...oh," Ciara couldn't help but laugh when a small stick and some grass fell out of her hair. "Bathtime I guess," she murmured.

Ciara was still cursing herself after she bathed and changed into fresh clothes, hoping that Astrid wouldn't notice the extra wear on them from her late night run. "Even Asgardians can't make clothes that last, huh?" she grumbled to herself as she pulled the tan boots back on. She could already feel them starting to give. Astrid was definitely going to lecture her when she had to ask about a new pair. At first, Ciara was happy just to not bother with them, but Astrid had given her an even longer lecture when she'd found out.

Judging from the whispered protests in the back of her mind, Jane was outside, and despite those warnings, Ciara decided to go outside as well and see how she was.

As Ciara made her way outside, she was trying and failing to push past the fact that she had not only fallen asleep in the dungeons during the night, but while talking to Loki of all people. "I can't believe nobody caught me...I can't believe he didn't rat me out," she muttered to herself, running a hand through her hair. It was already dry, thanks to Ciara's fast movements, and so nobody would be aware of her midnight run through Asgard. "Of all the places…" she muttered. A year ago, she'd slept very little and it had always been light sleep, constantly wary that SHIELD could break down the door of whatever hideout she was using at any second. "I am getting soft. Need to fix that," Ciara muttered to herself, disgusted.

When she tracked Jane down across the lake near the temple, Ciara stopped, hiding behind a pillar as she saw Thor and Jane talking quietly, her hand in his.

"Suppose one good thing came out of the whole thing," Ciara murmured to herself, turning to walk off. She stopped when she found herself face-to-face with Frigga, who was raising an eyebrow with an amused smile.

"Spying?" she asked, and Ciara flashed an innocent smile.

"Just seeing how Jane was doing," she said, trying to look innocent. "It can be jarring waking up on another planet," Ciara said seriously. Frigga rolled her eyes, but kept her smile as she walked past to approach the two.

"Your father said there was…"

"My father doesn't know everything," Thor told Jane seriously, determined to help free her from the Aether.

"Don't let him hear you say that," Frigga warned as she stepped into view, indicating for Ciara to follow her. Thor smiled as he straightened up, and Jane looked curious.

"Jane Foster, please meet Frigga," Thor introduced, still holding her hands. "Queen of Asgard, and my mother," his words made her eyes widen. Jane quickly pulled her hands free of his, looking embarrassed.

"H-hi," she greeted, nervous.

"You look more nervous meeting her than you did Odin," Ciara whispered, suddenly standing beside Jane. "At least you didn't try picking a fight with her," she whispered. Jane immediately swatted at her, but Ciara darted away.

"Ciara," Thor's voice was warning as Jane went red.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you," Frigga smiled warmly at Jane, completely unfazed by Ciara's behaviour. Jane mumbled back, even more nervous now. The four walked through the temples, with Jane slowly relaxing around the Queen as she admired the beautiful buildings.

"Have you thought of anything that may help Jane?" Thor asked Ciara, hoping that was why she had shown up. Ciara's smile faded, and she shook her head.

"Like I said, this is all new to me. I still don't know much about the Tesseract, and the knowledge here on these things is limited, at least, for me to see," she sighed, flashing Jane an apologetic look. She did like the woman, and didn't exactly want her to die.

"You've been reading about it?" Frigga's casual question made Ciara pause. She hadn't even considered what she was saying.

"I...yeah," she muttered, going red. Before they could question her on it, a buzzing alarm rang in the distance, and some guards ran by. "What's that?" Ciara asked, confused. She'd never heard such a thing, nor had she seen the guards move so quickly.

"The prison," Frigga realised, her smile falling to give way for concern.

"Loki…" Thor frowned, and Ciara tilted her head.

"Go," Frigga urged quietly. "I will look after her," she said as Jane looked from Frigga to Thor. The Prince nodded, and without hesitation he ran up the steps and leapt over the balcony, catching Mjolnir as it flew by to bring him back to the palace. "Come with me," Frigga put a gentle arm on Jane's arm. "Ciara?" she turned to the woman standing nearby, looking in the direction that Thor had gone with a conflicted expression. After a moment, she turned back to the two and offered a weak smile.

"Sorry...I gotta go," without waiting for either to say a word, Ciara vanished in a ripple of blue.

Reappearing inside the Relic Room, Ciara immediately turned to the Tesseract, which glowed ominously. She glared at it.

"For the record, I don't appreciate these 'instincts' you're giving me," she told it, and cursed. "Great, now I'm talking to it like it's alive," Ciara shook her head, before touching it. The power in her grew, and she glared at the Tesseract as if it would stop making her feel like she had to protect it. "Alright, dungeon," Ciara declared, her voice echoing as she planted her hands on her hips.

Stepping through space, Ciara arrived to utter chaos.

"Wow," she couldn't help but laugh as Thor threw someone to the side. Most of the cells had been opened, and their very unhappy residents were fighting off the guards, as well as Fandral and Volstagg.

"Why am I not surprised?" he sighed when he spotted her.

"Well, you know. Chaos and I are good friends," Ciara winked, before Thor gave a shout of a warning, seeing the man launching at her much smaller form. She moved easily around him, suddenly on his back. "Congrats, you're my first test subject!" Ciara smirked, and vanished in a ripple of blue. She reappeared with the man in one of the cells. He stumbled forwards as she shoved him, and he fell to his knees, disorientated.

"What?!" the man grunted, but Ciara was already gone, grabbing someone else.

"Well I must say, that is a help," Fandral laughed as he noticed, kicking another. Ciara caught him as he stumbled backwards, dropping him into a cell. As she reappeared, a blow across her face stunned her and she staggered, barely staying on her feet as pain exploded through her head and her vision spun, blacking out temporarily.

"Pathetic little girl," her attacker laughed, barely audible over the chaos of the shouting. Ciara's temper boiled, and she swung a punch that almost knocked him off his feet. He staggered, and she kicked him, reacting with muscle memory of what she'd been taught. She grabbed him as he fell, but her head was too fuzzy to focus on her power.

"Great…" Ciara sighed, and shook her head. She could feel the spot by her temple aching, definitely bruising. "Well then," she began to zip around the room, tripping up the prisoners. Despite the pain, she started to laugh, enjoying the chaos of the fight that she had missed a lot.

"I see your training has not gone to waste," Volstagg said as Ciara tripped another to the ground, kicking him across the head.

"As much as I wish it had…" Ciara then darted backwards, and two men collided with each other. She smirked. "Sadly not," she finished. She continued to whirl around, still laughing as she caught each person by surprise.

"Are you this terrifying on Midgard?" Fandral asked as Ciara slammed into someone about to hit him from behind. The man crashed against the wall, and sank to the ground unconscious.

"Eh, it depended on the fight," she answered honestly, and dodged another grabbing for her.

"It's rude to grab a lady," Fandral caught the attacker, punching him and tossing him aside.

"I hope you don't expect me to swoon for that," Ciara told him, and he grinned back.

"A man can hope," he retorted, and Ciara laughed. Seeing the bruise already forming by her eye, his smile fell. "Are you-" before he could ask, Ciara was already moving again at speeds that the prisoners weren't prepared for.

Despite the pain in the side of her face, Ciara was still enjoying herself. She hadn't been in a good brawl in a long time and it was working out frustrations well for her. By the time the numbers of the prisoners had started to dwindle, Ciara realised that she still felt uneasy, despite the thrill of a fight.

"Something's wrong," she muttered as Thor tossed another aside.

"Ciara?" he called as he reached her side. He opened his mouth to ask about the bruise that was quickly darkening and swelling by her eye.

"Something's wrong," Ciara repeated, running a hand through her hair. "How did the prisoners even escape?" she asked. She didn't let on that she'd been able to escape them easily enough, thanks to her powers, but most people wouldn't have the same ability.

Before Thor could respond, the entirety of the dungeons seemed to rumble. Dust and loose rocks dropped from the ceiling, showering those standing around in dirt. "That didn't sound good," Ciara felt she had to speak, her nerves making the words slip free. Immediately Thor rushed off, murmuring something about Jane, and Ciara followed, ignoring the part of her that whispered that she needed to guard the Tesseract. Volstagg and Fandral exchanged looks, and then looked back at the unconscious or dead prisoners around them.

Ciara raced through the palace, but stopped just as quickly as she heard yells echoing. The sound of steel and smaller explosions followed, growing louder by the second. She darted towards the tell-tale signs of fighting, and peered around a corner. She cursed and immediately ducked out of the way as a red blast of lethal energy narrowly missed her, hitting the wall and causing it to explode. "Rude," she complained, looking out again.

Ciara cursed again, eyes wide as she saw the palace guards locked in combat with strange, tall creatures that all wore masks to hide their faces. Their masks were plain and identical, making each soldier look the same, and they fought with a ruthlessness that told Ciara that they were experienced fighters and ready to die for whatever it was that they'd come for. "What have they come for?" Ciara wondered, seeing the small ship that had crash-landed in the middle of the throne room. Even Odin was out fighting, using Gungnir with deadly precision.

One of the creatures fell, and the mask fell, skittering away. Ciara swore as she saw the pointed ears. They were Elves, or at least as close to Elves as she would have imagined. They were nothing like the creatures she'd seen on TV or in movies. Their skin was a sickly colour, and their pale blue eyes were even lighter than hers as they stared blankly.

It finally sank in. "Dark Elves," Ciara breathed. "So much for them all being dead," she muttered, wanting to direct her comment at Odin, who'd been so convinced only the day before that his father had wiped them out of existence. "Shit. They're after the Aether," she realised, and immediately darted off in the direction that she'd last felt the presence of the Aether.

She was able to move around the chaos of the main fight with ease, but when the speedster turned down a corridor, she stopped, skidding along with a loud squeak of her shoes on the marble flooring, when she came face to face with five more of them. "Uh oh," Ciara gulped, and gave a cry when they immediately attacked her. However, she quickly found that even they weren't able to keep up with her speed, and she lashed out with her knife, cutting the arm of one and making it drop its gun.

A loud curse echoed through the corridor as one shot grazed her arm, burning through her long sleeve and through her skin, leaving a nasty, bleeding wound. "Okay, good shot," Ciara smirked, now forced to try and ignore the pain in both her arm and the side of her head. They spoke back in their own language, and Ciara moved again, kicking one in the stomach and dodging out of the way of the retaliating shots. She then jammed her knife into the shoulder of another, and tried not to flinch when it screeched.

"You cannot be soft in battle. Show them no mercy, for they will show you none in return," Volstagg's words rang in Ciara's head, and she grimaced, yanking her blade free. It wasn't as if her hands weren't already soaked in blood. She'd killed Chitauri in New York. Despite her denials, she'd had a hand in Coulson's death, even if the Sceptre had been the one in control, bringing her to Loki.

"Dammit!" Ciara yelled, and when the barrel of the gun landed on her, she was moving under it, dragging the sharp blade under the skin of the Elf and praying that they had similar weak spots to the beings that Hogun had trained her to fight. It went down, thrashing as blood that looked black to Ciara sprayed out. It hit the young woman, but she didn't stop, moving at a speed they couldn't keep up with, and sliced through another.

By the time she'd slid under the legs of the fourth, cutting through the arteries in their inner legs, Ciara was breathing heavily. She flinched as another lucky shot caught her side, and with a yell she leapt at the Elf, burying her knife in its throat. When it went down, gurgling before falling quiet, Ciara stayed on her knees beside it, shaking and barely able to hold her knife. Tears stung at Ciara's eyes, but as she tried to catch her breath, she heard a cry echo nearby.

"Witch!" the angry voice echoed.

"Frigga…" she realised, pushing herself up. Her legs shook too, and it took a moment for Ciara to be sure that she could stay on her feet, before she ran towards the sound of the voice.

"I'll never tell you," she heard Frigga's confident words.

"I believe you," another voice spoke back in a thick accent, and Ciara entered the room just in time to see a sword impale the Queen through her back. The Asgardian woman gasped, eyes going wide as she couldn't even scream, restrained by the hulkling of a creature who'd stabbed her. Ciara stood frozen, unsure how to react.

"No!" the roar came before Ciara was shoved aside. She hit the ground hard, and pain sang in her knees as she looked up. Thor's eyes were lit up in a pale blue light, and his face was scrunched up in fury. The lightning seemed to come more from him than Mjolnir, firing across the room and hitting the Dark Elf in the face. The beast he was with immediately dropped Frigga, who hit the ground like a ragdoll as the Elf staggered over to the balcony with his help. Mjolnir collided with the Kursed's back, but did little to deter him as they smashed through the balcony and fell. As Thor sprinted over, a massive ship flew by, catching them and flying them to safety. Thor followed, hurling his hammer at them, but they vanished before it could hit.

"Frigga…" Odin's whisper was barely audible to Ciara, whose blood was roaring in her ears as the Allfather made his way to his fallen wife. Thor stared down, pain in his expression as Jane walked in, and froze at the sight. Ciara managed to look up at Jane, who looked as scared as she felt.

This wasn't over, not by a long shot.

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