I was taken to a small hall that seemed to go around in a circle. The floor had grime all over it, but for lack of better seating, I sat against the wall. There were others with me, some were creatures that I had never seen before and some looked humanoid. They all had the discs on their body though. Several of them were lying on the floor, unmoving, which made me wonder if they were dead. So much had happened in just a small space of time. I wondered if Thor had been successful in stopping Malekith. He must have been since the world hadn't been plunged into darkness. Although, I was technically on a different world, so who even knew if it would affect this place. Despite the dirt on my clothes, you could still tell that they were of a fine make I gingerly touched the embedded discs in my neck, giving it a small tug, but there would be no pulling it out.

"If you mess with it too much, it'll zap you." I looked up to see a man seated across the hall from me. He was dressed in battered armor, and his face had both fresh and old wounds visible beneath the dirt and grime. His eyes looked dull, and I wondered how long he had been here to sustain so many injuries. I removed my hands from the discs; I definitely didn't want to set it off. His eyes scanned over me quickly, like he was used to identifying threats.

"You don't look like champion material."

I raised a brow, "What does that mean?"

"Aren't you the one they have set to fight the champion."

I shrugged my shoulders, "I don't know."

"Who brought you in?"

"Scrapper 76?"

He chuckled darkly, "Yeah, it's you then."

I narrowed my eyes, "Are you saying I have no chance against him or something?"

"Everyone who goes up against him dies. Nobody is a challenge to him, least of all a woman", he said with a sneer. "You won't be any different than the rest."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence", I mumbled, rolling my eyes. What he didn't realize was that I had no choice but to win, for my child's sake.

"Where do you sleep?" The man gestured to the floor. Figures. "And food?"

He laughed loudly, "The only one who gets real food around here is the champion." I shook my head, turning away from him. After a few moments, exhaustion overtook me and my eyes fluttered closed.

I woke up to the sound of the doors banging open loudly. My face was on the blood and dirt covered floor from where I had fallen asleep. I sat up as guards came in holding weapons. Everyone that was in the hall, that was alive, was standing and being escorted out. I stood slowly, brushing the grime off my clothes. My hair was a tangled, dirt mess and I wish I had something to tie it back with. Surrounded by soldiers, I followed the line of contenders out of the door. We were led to a large room filled with other contenders, and all manner of weapons. There were red lasers separating the contenders from what I assume were audience members. Overhead, I could hear the sounds of battle.

"I'd choose a weapon if I were you." I looked to see the man I had spoken to in the hall picking up a short sword, testing its weight with a few swings. Looking at the various racks of weapons, I spotted a pair of long, black daggers. Although I didn't have Loki anymore, I would do anything to remind me of him.

"Now what?" I asked as I tucked the daggers into my boots.

"Now you wait to be called. They came and got us last, so we must be nearing the main event."

"What's the main event?"

"You'll be fighting the champion." Fear began to rise up in me like bile, but I pushed it back down. If I won, I could provide better for my child, so that's what I was going to do. No matter what. There was still that lingering doubt though, no matter how much I ignored it. The roar of a muffled crowd sounded and the guards came through, dragging an unconscious contender with them.

"Lady Midnight", one of the guards called. "You're up."

"Good luck", the man said, tossing a helmet my way. "Try not to die out there." I nodded and put the helmet on. At least it kept my hair from getting in my face. I followed the guard up the ramp, where it opened up into a huge arena. The stands were filled with people and even some ships hovered overhead to get a view. As I stepped into the arena, I was showered with a roar of disapproval from the crowd. Obviously, they were not rooting for me to win.

In the center of the arena, a huge holographic projection of the Grandmaster stood. "And now for our champion! Our very own God of War! Ares!" The crowd roared in applause and cheered as the champion came out from the other side of the arena. Even from this far away, I could tell he was much taller than me, and extremely muscular. He wore a helmet with a large red mohawk coming out of the top. My mouth went dry as I saw his black armor, emblazoned with a skull on his chest. The scrapper that had taken me was the champion?

The image of the Grandmaster disappeared and Ares started towards me. I met him in the center of the arena. I had to look up at him to meet his gaze since he towered over me.

"I thought you were a scrapper?"

He smiled, "Sometimes. It pays well. Besides, it seems that the only worthy opponents I've had are ones that I've found myself."

"So you think I'm a worthy opponent?"

His grin widened, baring his teeth wolfishly, "I think you have the potential to be." The crowd quieted down, a noticeable tension settling in the air.

"I guess we'll see then", I said as I pulled my daggers from my boots.

"I suppose we will", he said, brandishing the large double-sided battleaxe that he carried. I don't know how I didn't notice it before, it was almost the same size as me. His entire demeanor seemed to shift right before my eyes, a volatile energy radiating from him. I felt the flare of my energy within me and blue crackled faintly on my fingertips.

Without warning, he suddenly swung the axe at me. I dropped to the ground, rolling backwards out of his reach. He swung again at me, downwards this time, and I lunged to the side, jumping to my feet as I did so. I summoned up my energy in full force and felt a strength radiate through me as it engulfed my body like a blue flame. Even the daggers I held seemed to blaze with the energy. I sent a sharp kick to his hip, but he acted as if I didn't even touch him. He didn't even move. He turned in my direction, an amused expression on his face. I could hardly hear anything over the roar of the crowd, but I tried to tune them out. I needed to focus if I wanted to win.

He swung the axe at my head, but I summoned up a wall of energy in front of me, stopping the axe mid-swing. I dispelled the barrier, and with a flick of my wrist, sent one of my daggers flying towards his face. With an inhuman-like speed, he caught the blade in his hands. His eyes seemed a bit crazed as he admired the blood dripping from his hand. He dropped both the dagger and his axe, and lunged at me, faster than I could hardly see.

I felt the air leave my lungs and I was sent flying roughly onto the ground. Sharp gasps left me unwillingly as I tried to regain my breath. Just as I had crawled up onto all fours, he sent a kick flying at my face. Stars flashed in my eyes as I fell flat on the dirt beneath me. The taste of copper filled my mouth and I felt blood on my lips. If I just let him kill me now then all of this would be over. I wouldn't be alone anymore, and I wouldn't have to fight anymore. The thought quickly left my mind as I thought of my child. I wasn't alone, not anymore. There was someone counting on me and I had the chance to give them a decent life. All that stood between me and that, was Ares.

I was pulled out of my thoughts by Ares laughing loudly. "I thought you'd be a challenge. I guess I was wrong this time." He picked up the battleaxe from the ground, the crowd roaring in response, "Time to finish this." I gritted my teeth, summoning up every bit of power that I felt within me. Energy flared brightly, sending a blue glow throughout the arena. I dropped my dagger, using both of my hands to send a blast of energy at Ares. The blast hit him squarely in the chest, sending him stumbling backwards away from me.

I stood up from the ground, the power around me only growing in its intensity. He covered his eyes as the light coming off me became blindingly bright. I felt myself lift off of the ground. It was a strange feeling, being weightless, like I was no longer bound by gravity. Power surged around me in a strength that I had never felt before; I felt powerful. My hair moved around me, as if by an ethereal wind. This was the most power I had ever conjured in my entire lifetime, and also the most in control I had ever felt. A large pulse of energy shot out from me, mowing Ares down like he weighed nothing at all. I hovered over his form, blue energy crackling wildly all across me.

Around us, the crowd had gone completely silent. I lowered myself to the ground, but the intensity of my power didn't waver. He reached an arm out for his axe, and faster than I could even realize, I snatched it from the ground. Either it wasn't as heavy as it looked, or I was stronger than I realized. I placed my foot on his chest, pressing down firmly to hold him in place.

"What the hell are you?" he asked, a strained expression on his face as he tried to move from beneath my foot. His fingers clawed at my boots, but I didn't let up. At this moment, my power felt endless, like nothing could stop me.

"I already told you", I said as I lifted the axe above my head, "I'm just a mortal from Earth." I brought the blade of the axe down and a sickening crunch sound filled the arena as I sliced through his neck. I dropped the axe to the ground, drawing all my power back within myself. The crowd suddenly erupted into applause, even the Grandmaster looked thrilled in his private box. I was now the champion of Sakaar.

Thankfully, I only fought a few more battles after that one, just to maintain my champion status. When I was too large to fight anymore, the Grandmaster named a new champion, with the promise of an eventual champion show-down. My daughter was born about 7 months after I had come to Sakaar. The older she got, the more like her father she looked, so much that it made my chest ache. After she was born, I started fighting in the contest again, defeating the other champion. More champions came, and I beat them as well, becoming known as the grand-champion. When my daughter turned sixteen the Grandmaster showed interest in having her fight as a contender as well, but I wasn't going to allow that. As much as it pained me, I used my power to send her to Earth, knowing that she would be safer there.

To my surprise, not long after I sent her away, Bruce Banner showed up on the planet in his Hulk form. The Grandmaster was obsessed with him; he loved anything that had any power. He didn't remember, which didn't really surprise me since I never interacted much with him anyways, especially as the Hulk. He became another of the Grandmaster's champions, and as I knew, a temporary favorite. They were all temporary. I had become comfortable in my existence on Sakaar. That is, until someone showed up that I hadn't expected to see again.