Chapter 6: A Plan

The morning after the funeral was a solemn one. There was no time for those in the palace to mourn, as the threat of the Dark Elves still loomed, and they would be back.

"We are still unable to restore the palace shields," Fandral sounded exhausted, and Ciara couldn't fault him as she stood behind a pillar, listening in to their plans as she remained hidden in the shadows.

The throne room was in pieces, with pillars smashed through and rubble cast across the room. Most of the blood had been cleaned away by the dutiful servants, but even they hadn't been able to clean all of it up. "Our artillery cannot detect them, even Heimdall cannot see them," Fandral continued, his words grim. Ciara shook her head. It was starting to feel like the only ones who couldn't escape Heimdall's gaze were the Asgardians themselves. Ciara peeked out, watching as Fandral glanced at Volstagg, unsure if he should say his next words. "My king...we are all but defenceless," he warned as Odin stared at the glowing golden hologram of the palace. However, he barely seemed to focus on what was being said.

For a moment too long, he was quiet, and the guards standing with the two warriors exchanged uncertain looks. Odin was never so distracted. Ciara then ducked out of view when heavy footsteps echoed through the destroyed throne room, and Thor strode towards the group with an unhappy expression.

"She's your prisoner now?" he called up, addressing his father. Odin looked around at the loud voice, but didn't speak. "Leave us," Thor ordered the rest of those standing there. They bowed respectfully, before obeying the Prince. Fandral walked through the image of the palace, causing it to vanish, and both he and Volstagg cast concerned looks at Thor before leaving.

"I do not wish to fight with you," Odin's voice was quiet. Quieter than usual. Despite her feelings for the Allfather, Ciara was sympathetic. She doubted he'd slept.

"Nor I with you," Thor allowed as Odin walked past him. "But I intend to pursue Malekith," he warned Odin, who kept walking. Ciara kept out of sight, pulling her hood closer as she willed the magic to hide her. She had no idea if it would work on Odin. After all, Frigga and Loki were able to see through it.

"We possess the Aether. Malekith will come to us," Odin said, and while his voice rose a little with his words, they were still tired.

"Yes, and he will destroy us," Thor's confidence didn't slow the man, who continued to walk away. Ciara had to agree with him. They'd won the battle, yes, but so many had already died.

"You overestimate the power of these creatures," Odin denied, and Ciara rolled her eyes. Her sympathy for him was quickly waning.

"No, I value our peoples' lives," Thor argued. Ciara bit back a chuckle, remembering how he had been when they'd first met. Now he was more cautious and thoughtful. "I'll take Jane to the Dark World, and draw the enemy away from Asgard. When Malekith pulls the Aether from Jane, it will be exposed and vulnerable. And I will destroy it and him," he declared. Ciara's confidence in the man faded a little.

'Can an Infinity Stone even be destroyed?' she wondered to herself, still entirely too uneducated when it came to the Stones. Odin's sigh was deep as he turned to face Thor at last.

"If you fail…" he set Gungnir down with a thump that reverberated through Ciara. "You risk this weapon falling into the hands of our enemies," Odin warned him.

"The risk is far greater if we do nothing," Thor argued, and Ciara shook her head. So much for not wanting to fight with one another. "His ship could be over our heads right now, we'd never even know it!" he pointed out.

"If and when he comes, his men will fall on ten thousand Asgardian blades," Odin's confidence was as clear as Thor's, but it still managed to sound weak.

'Maybe I'm just biased,' Ciara thought, unimpressed with Odin's confidence.

"And how many of our men shall fall on theirs?" Thor wasn't impressed either, looking angrier by the second.

"As many as are needed!" Odin's raised voice made Ciara jump as he stressed each word. Thor's anger faded a little, replaced by disappointment. Odin then groaned, leaning more heavily on his spear. When his son took a step towards him, concerned, Odin straightened up. "We will fight!" he snapped, his voice echoing. He then quietened down. "Till the last Asgardian breath. Till the last drop of Asgardian blood," Thor sighed at the declaration.

"Then how are you different from Malekith?" if Ciara hadn't been hiding, she would have whistled at his bold words. Odin gave a mocking laugh in reply.

"The difference, my son, is that I will win," Odin said, arrogant in his words as he thumped Gungnir again and turned, walking away. Thor watched him leave, silent, and took a few steps forwards.

"Ciara, I know you're there," the speedster jumped again and his quiet words. She didn't move, closing her eyes in hopes that he would think himself wrong. "We need to talk. Follow me," he turned, and his heavy footsteps faded shortly after. Curiosity prickled at her, and Ciara groaned.

"I could just not follow him. Pretend I wasn't here at all," she muttered to herself. She then snorted. "Hell, where's the fun in that?" Ciara asked. She turned, vanishing as if she'd never been there.

Heimdall was imposing as ever, even as he walked through the pub that Thor had led Ciara to. The pair were sitting at a table in the back, and while it was empty other than the barkeeper, Thor still insisted they keep to a shadowed part of the place.

"You were not at Odin's war council," Thor commented, not having missed the absence of the gatekeeper.

"The Bifrost is closed, by your father's orders," Heimdall spoke, his voice deep as Ciara watched him remove his helmet. She was still fascinated by the man, who, from what she'd learned, could see and hear almost everything in the universe. "No-one is to come or to go," he set his helmet on the table with a dull thud.

"So much for not being a prisoner here," Ciara couldn't resist saying, and was rewarded with a faint smile from the man. "He's done this because of what you said," she commented to Thor, who nodded, having thought the same thing.

"We face an enemy that is invisible even to me," Heimdall took a seat between the two. "What use is a guardian such as that?" he wondered aloud, looking out at the bright sky outside.

"Malekith will return, you know this," Thor said, and Heimdall nodded wordlessly. "I need your help. Both of you," he requested, looking from one to the other.

"I cannot overrule my king's wishes. Not even for you," Heimdall reminded him. Ciara bit back a snort, remembering a time when he'd gone around the 'king's wishes'.

"I'm not asking you to," Thor soothed, raising his hands to placate the man. He knew that Heimdall was loyal to a fault. "The realms need their Allfather strong and unchallenged - whether he is or not," he added, seeing the wary look cross Ciara's face. "But he is blinded, Heimdall, by hatred and grief," Thor sighed.

"As are we all," Heimdall gave a knowing smile back. Ciara stayed quiet, choosing instead to take a long drink.

"I see clearly enough," Thor insisted.

"The risks are too great," Heimdall warned, having heard Odin and Thor's discussion from before.

"Everything we do from here on is a risk," Thor pointed out.

"But we don't even know if the Aether can be destroyed," Ciara spoke up. She'd set her drink down, and was poking Heimdall's helmet. "I'm not saying you're too weak. It's just...it's an Infinity Stone for a reason," she looked up, and offered a weak smile.

"I appreciate your concern, but there's no other way," Thor nodded back at her. Ciara sighed, and leaned back in her seat. She then grinned.

"I'm in. Like I'd say anything different," she said. Thor watched her for a moment. He wasn't surprised that she'd agree immediately, but he could see it in her eyes, even if she was keeping her mask up. She was angry too. Ciara looked at Heimdall, who lowered his head. He was quiet for a moment longer, before he lifted his bright orange gaze to meet Thor's eyes.

"What do you require of me?" he asked quietly.

Tearing through yet another plate of food, Volstagg tried not to think about the events of the previous day, or the looming threat of the Dark Elves with their hopeless lack of defence.

As he started on another hefty leg of meat, he heard a quiet laugh.

"Talk about eating your feelings," Volstagg jumped, and whirled around to see Ciara emerging from the shadows, pulling down the hood of her cloak.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, startled as Ciara lifted a grape and popped it into her mouth.

"Ah, you know. Looking for you. Don't know why I didn't think to check here first," she laughed, sitting on the edge of the table. Volstagg's thick brow furrowed even further. Ciara never openly sought him out.

"Well then," after a moment, he cleared his throat and finally set down the large leg of meat he was still holding. Ciara looked at it, thinking to herself that she wouldn't have even been able to lift it. "How can I be of service?" he asked, smiling faintly. Ciara looked around, double-checking that he was alone.

"Thor has a message for you," she whispered, and he leaned closer, suddenly looking much more serious.

For once, Fandral sat alone, with no intention of chatting up the next pretty lady to catch his eye. Instead, his mind was on the events of the war council. He hadn't lied, he couldn't lie about it. Asgard was more or less defenceless, against a ruthless enemy that had managed to break in, cause a prison riot, and tear down their defences.

As he leaned back in his seat, looking up at the blue sky, he couldn't help but consider it deceptive. How could it be so bright and clear after what had happened? With what still loomed? He shook his head and tapped his fingers to his knee, trying to figure out some way to bolster their defences before the Dark Elves returned.

A gust of wind blew past, sharp and unexpected as it blew his hair out of place. Fandral huffed, starting to fix it, before looking at Ciara as she took a seat beside him.

"Glad to see that you still fuss over your appearance even when you look so miserable," she commented, reaching up to fix his hair for him. He raised an eyebrow, before managing his usual smile.

"Perhaps it was a way to lure in a bleeding heart intent on cheering me up," he suggested, and Ciara laughed, dropping her hand.

"Too bad you've got me instead," she shrugged.

"How are you feeling?" Fandral asked her, remembering the state she'd been in all too clearly. He was glad that she'd snapped out of the shock, but he knew she wasn't back to normal, even if she pretended to be. He'd spent too much time around her, and he was far sharper than she seemed to give him credit for.

"How are you feeling?" Ciara countered, meeting his gaze easily. His eyebrow rose again, and he poked her side, making her curse. "Hey, watch it," she warned, a hand going to where the slowly healing burn stung with pain.

"Surely you shouldn't be running around in your state," Fandral commented, and she waved a dismissive hand.

"If I wanted a mother, I'd have stuck with the idiots I know on Earth," she told him, refusing to admit that it was causing some pain to move around so much. Of course, she was definitely not going to admit out loud that she was used to far worse. "Anyway," Ciara clapped her hands together as if to get off the topic. "I have a message for you," she told him, leaning close to whisper in his ear.

Sif gave a yell, slicing through each training dummy in her way as she practised hard. Her entire body was burning from the exertion, but she refused to stop, embracing it. With a roar, she grabbed a handaxe that had been stuck in one of the dummies, and hurled it. It embedded itself in the head of another dummy with such force that it tipped over, hitting the ground with a loud crash.

The fearsome warrior didn't stop there, continuing to cut through all the targets around her with well-practiced moves, spinning her spear to lop the head off another. It clattered to the ground, and as it bounced, Sif caught it and threw it at another, stabbing through both it and the dummy.

Hearing movement nearby, Sif immediately turned, swinging her spear. Ciara squeaked, and vanished in a flash of blue before the spear could get close.

"Foolish girl," Sif spat as Ciara reappeared nearby. "Surely you learned on Earth not to sneak up on someone training," she scolded. Ciara shrugged, crouching beside the fallen dummy.

"I called your name like, three times," Ciara defended lightly, poking the dummy. "Yeah, it's dead. What did it ever do to you?" she asked. Sif rolled her eyes and stormed over, yanking the axe out of it with ease. Her lungs burned and her shoulders heaved as she worked to try and catch her breath, worn out from non-stop training.

"What do you want, Ciara?" Sif shot her an irritated look as she reached for her water and gulped it down. Ciara stood up, her easy attitude fading.

"I did tell Thor that he was better off talking to you himself. But no, I'm faster and can step through space," she rolled her eyes. Sif straightened, losing some of her distaste.

"What does Thor want?" she asked, and Ciara resisted rolling her eyes again. She glanced around, and Sif did the same, quickly realising that if he'd sent the message with Ciara, it wasn't to be overheard. Ciara was then over beside her in a swift movement, knocking Sif's hair out of her face and creating a pleasant cooling breeze.

"Come to the usual place tonight. At nightfall," she whispered. Before Sif could question it, Ciara stepped backwards, vanishing. Sif didn't move, her brow furrowed as she mulled Ciara's words over, not too sure what to make of it. She then moved suddenly, flicking her spear into its folded up shape. Sif then took another look around to make sure nobody was watching, and walked away.

Night had fallen in Asgard when Ciara returned to the bar, appearing in a gust of wind at the table where Thor and Heimdall sat.

"It's done?" Thor asked as he pushed a drink towards her.

"Yep," she confirmed. "All three. Yes, even Sif," Ciara confirmed as Thor went to ask. He wasn't sure she'd bother speaking with the powerful woman, aware that the two had a mutual dislike of one another. "She nearly took my head off with her spear. You owe me," she told the God of Thunder, taking a deep drink. As she did, Thor couldn't help but look at Heimdall, who was trying to hide his smile.

"Thank you, Ciara," Thor said as Ciara set the tankard down and took a breath.

"I had to stop off and recharge. They should be here soon," Ciara said quietly, and he nodded.

It wasn't long after Ciara returned, that Volstagg, Fandral and Sif arrived as well, cloaked to disguise themselves as they slipped into the quiet bar. The place was still almost empty, with most people in no mood to gather around and drink.

"What I'm about to ask of you is treason of the highest order," Thor began with a warning as they sat down. "Success will bring us exile, and failure shall mean our death," he warned as all of them remained serious. Even now, none of them could bring themselves to banter. "Malekith knew the Aether was here. He can sense its power. If we do nothing, he will come for it again but this time, lay waste to all of Asgard," he warned. Ciara looked through the open window nearby, seeing the destruction that had already happened. It would be nothing compared to the second strike. "We must move Jane off-world," Thor decided.

"The Bifrost has been shut down and the Tesseract locked away in the Vault," Sif pointed out.

"Unless you can get the Tesseract?" Fandral asked Ciara, who shook her head.

"I can get in there to recharge my power, but taking it out? No way. Odin told me himself that he put some heavy-ass wards on it. It'd kill me on the spot. I think he took pleasure in telling me that," Ciara considered the last part to herself.

"There are other paths of Asgard," Heimdall spoke up. He'd been standing quietly behind Thor, leaning against the wall. Thor had already assured them that while he wasn't able to truly help them, he also wouldn't turn them in. "Ways known only a few," he said.

"One, actually," Thor cracked a smile as he corrected the gatekeeper. Immediately Fandral winced as Sif's eyes widened. Ciara smirked.

"No," Volstagg breathed, knowing exactly who Thor was thinking of.

"He will betray you," Fandral pointed out.

"He will try," Thor shook his head.

"Well, what then? Your lovely mortal is being guarded by a legion of Einherjar who will see you coming from miles away," Fandral tried another angle, unsure of how much thought Thor had put into it.

"I won't be the one who comes for her," Thor looked up at Sif, who didn't look happy, to say the least. "Sif," he addressed her quietly.

"I'll get her out," she confirmed, still not happy, but ready to do as Thor asked. He continued to explain his plan to the others, and Ciara leaned back, impressed by how much he'd thought it all out. When he finally turned to her, Ciara's eyebrows raised. She'd expected to be charged with grabbing Jane, and honestly she was glad she wasn't. She wasn't sure how well the Aether would take to her space travel.

"Ciara," Thor leaned forwards, deadly serious. "How much chaos can you create?" His question had a visible effect on the woman. Her blue eyes lit up, and her smile became real.

"How much chaos do you want?" she asked, trying to smother how eager she was. The corner of Thor's mouth quirked up at her question.

"As much as you can give," Ciara's smile turned into a full blown grin. Volstagg shook his head and Sif closed her eyes, while Fandral chuckled in disbelief.

"Oh man, it's about to be my birthday and Christmas wrapped up in one," Ciara declared as loudly as she dared. Sif put her hand to her face.

"This is a suicide mission," she decided.

This was a real fun chapter to write! Even if Ciara's interactions with Fandral get away from me every goddamn time.

I hope you liked it!

Please review!