The thing was, Sigyn had realized the Avengers, or at least Tony had learned the truth about her months ago, when Tony had come to Tonsberg. She had deceived him with an illusion and made him think her house was abandoned to avoid him back then, because she had figured if he had found out about Sigyn, he must have found out about Thanos as well, and the sight of Bucky would be just too much for him to handle. Now, she could see that she had done the right thing. Even after all this time, he still didn't seem to be in his right mind. Still, today could have gone a lot worse.
"So," Captain Rogers said with a wry smile on his face when Sigyn returned to the living room after seeing Tony and his girlfriend off. "Helga Tiersen, huh?"
Sigyn shrugged apologetically.
Everyone else shot them questioning looks, but Steve had apparently decided not to embarrass her any further. "Thank you. For what you did for Bucky."
"I wish I could do more."
"You know, if you decided to share your story with the world, it could help us prove his innocence…"
"My story? Do you honestly believe anyone would trust Loki's wife?"
He thought for a moment. "Fair point."
"Besides, I can't return to civilization," Bucky himself added. "I'm still too dangerous."
"What are you talking about, Buck?"
"The Winter Soldier is just dormant, not gone," Sigyn explained. "All one had to do is to say the right words in the correct order, and we'll lose Bucky again. We have the book, but…"
"What words? Is this some kind of conditioning?"
"Yes. I tried to heal him, but, here, I don't have the technology I need."
"What about Wakanda?"
"Do you want to take him to Wakanda?" she asked, surprised.
"They're the most technologically advanced nation in the world. If they can't help him, no one can."
"This is actually a good idea."
"Well, I'll speak with—"
"It should be me. I'll take him to Wakanda. King T'Challa once said I'd be always welcome, so it shouldn't be a problem. You're Captain America, and Bucky's best friend, so you going there might be a bit too obvious." Besides, Sigyn wanted to apologize to Princess Shuri in person for kicking her out of her house and threatening to kill her.
He looked at Bucky. Bucky shrugged.
Sam Wilson rubbed his stomach. "Now that it's settled, can we order a pizza or something? I'm starving here."
…
Steve and Sam returned to New York, and Sif to Tonsberg while Sigyn took Bucky to Wakanda. By the time she joined her sister, there were two visitors waiting for her. Thor and Loki. Right. Fury had said Thor had returned to Asgard right away after T'Challa had told the Avengers about Thanos. Odin seemed to be happy to see them, but Sigyn had never seen her sister so mortified before.
"Hello, Sigyn," Thor greeted her bitterly. "I see you've been rather busy…"
"Thor, you have every right to be upset. But we did what we did to protect you."
"From Thanos?"
"From yourself. We knew you'd try to take the fight to Thanos, and that would be suicide."
"You don't have to worry about that. My father and I discussed our options."
"And?"
"And, he thinks the wisest thing to do at this point is to locate the remaining Infinity Stones and warn their protectors. I agree. So, I'm going on a quest to find the Power and the Soul Stones."
"Wow. I wasn't expecting you to be so… mature about the whole thing."
"Make no mistake, Sigyn. I am upset. With you, Sif, Loki, Heimdall, Ana, even my parents… You all lied to me."
"I told you, we were—"
"Trying to protect me, yes. That's how little you think of me. You said it yourself, you weren't expecting me to be so mature about this." He rose to his feet. "Father, brother, Ladies Sif and Sigyn… Farewell."
As everyone watched him in confusion, he grabbed Mjolnir, walked out of the house, and took off.
"He is hurt," Sif observed, and she was absolutely right. Thor was hurt that his friends and family hadn't trusted him enough. What was more, instead of throwing a tantrum, he had expressed his frustration in a very civilized manner. He had changed, perhaps more than any of them.
"Well, I better get going," Loki said. "Asgard still needs a king."
"Loki, you can't summon the Bifrost here. Come, I'll take you somewhere away from the town."
"I'd like to come with you as well," Odin suddenly said. "If you don't mind…"
So, the three of them went out of the house and into Sigyn's car, leaving only Sif behind. Perhaps the Allfather had something important to tell them, or he had simply wanted to give Sif some time alone to pull herself together. It was no secret that she fancied Thor, and they all had dragged her into this mess. Or maybe, Odin just needed some fresh air. It couldn't be easy for him to be trapped inside a small house after living in the palace for thousands of years.
"So, are you going to keep pretending to be the Allfather, or reveal the truth to the Nine Realms?" she asked Loki, who was sitting in the passenger seat, as she pulled the car out of the driveway.
"If I reveal the truth, the Nine Realms will be plunged into chaos in no time. We can't afford that."
"I agree."
"Heimdall isn't very happy about this arrangement, though. He says he can't keep doing this anymore."
So, Heimdall had openly admitted that he knew…
"Then banish him," the Allfather suggested.
"What?" they both asked, taken aback. True, Loki had considered banishing Heimdall, but they hadn't expected the Allfather himself to encourage the idea.
"Banish him. Release him from his oath. He is an honorable man. He doesn't want to be a part of this lie, but he understands why it is necessary. As King, you're the only one who can put an end to his struggle."
"And then what?"
"Then, he will forge his own path to serve Asgard. But your concern is touching, my son. You are going to be a good king."
Loki made no reply, but Sigyn could see the hint of pride in his eyes. All his life, this was what he had wanted to hear from Odin.
After almost half an hour of driving, she brought them to a seaside cliff. They climbed out of the car. Loki hugged his father, and then gave Sigyn a kiss. "Take good care of him."
Sigyn nodded.
"Heimdall, open the Bifrost!"
The rainbow bridge opened, and pulled Loki away. Now it was just Sigyn and Odin.
"Allfather? Shall we?" she asked, gesturing at the car with her head.
He looked around him. "This is a nice place. Peaceful. Can you bring me here again one day?"
"Anytime."
Seemingly pleased, Odin nodded, and got into the car.
…
After that day, she started taking Odin to that cliff twice a week. He would enjoy the peaceful silence for a few hours, then they would return home. His condition was deteriorating, and Sigyn didn't know how much progress the Starks and the Wakandan royal family had made on the Nexus. But Tony had called her once, and asked Sigyn about a magic book she suspected to be the Darkhold. If the time-traveler's plan was based on the Darkhold, that was quite a disturbing plan, and it needed to be stopped at once. Sigyn didn't care how desperate they were to stop Thanos. There were greater evils in this universe than him. She had tried to warn Tony against the book, hoping he would take her warning seriously and stop his daughter before she did anything stupid.
"I'm staying here," Odin said all of a sudden, during one of their outings. He sat down on a rock and started watching the calm sea below. Sigyn was hesitant at first, but then, decided to join him.
They sat in companionable silence for at least ten minutes, until Odin said, "I lied."
"I—I'm sorry?"
"I lied to Thor. About the Power and Soul Stones. I told him that I didn't know where they were."
"But you do…"
"The Power Stone is in the possession of the Nova Empire. And the Soul Stone is on Vormir."
"Vormir?" As far as she knew, Vormir was nothing but a dark and desolate realm.
"Yes."
"Why did you lie to Thor?"
"Because I want you and your sister go to Vormir and retrieve the Soul Stone."
"But if we leave, who is going to take care of you?"
"You have done everything in your power to keep me alive, child. But I don't have much time left. Even now, I can hear Frigga calling to me. Finding the stones before the Mad Titan does is more important than keeping me alive."
"If you say so…"
"I think I will stay here. You go back to your sister and prepare for the journey at once."
"As you wish." She got on her feet.
"And Sigyn?"
"Yes?"
"I hope you can forgive me. For everything I did to you."
Sigyn should probably tell him that there was nothing to forgive, and leave, but she couldn't. There was something. Something she had been trying so hard to push to the back of her mind, but it was still there, nagging at her.
"Allfather?"
"Yes, child?"
"I've been thinking about it, about how you adopted Loki and the lengths you went to keep his true parentage a secret… It was essential that he would never have any children, wasn't it? To maintain the lie? And then he fell in love with me, the only half-mortal in Asgard. A bit too convenient, if you ask me."
"It is, indeed." The look of remorse on his face confirmed her suspicions.
"Peggy was right. All my life, I've been pretending to be someone I'm not… Did Queen Frigga know?"
"She never approved. But she understood why it was necessary. Loki had always been an ambitious prince. We both knew as soon as he came of age, he would take a suitable bride and produce heirs to earn my favor. We couldn't have let him do that. He had to fall in love with someone who couldn't bear him children."
Odin had made them fall in love with magic. Perhaps this explained why Loki's love had never been enough for her, like Sigyn's love had never been enough for him. It wasn't her choice. Neither of them had had a choice. Still, Odin was a frail man now, and she decided not to have this quarrel with him.
"Once we get the Soul Stone, what do you want us to do with it?"
"Destroy it if you can. If you can't, hide it. Hide it well."
"Farewell, Odin Allfather. I hope we'll never see each other again."
"We will not."
…
Sigyn didn't tell her sister anything about what Odin had done to her and Loki. All her life, Sif had served Asgard with pride, as had their father. There was no need to turn their world over. Especially now that they were preparing for the fight of their lives. What was done was done. So, Sigyn simply told her that Odin had ordered them to go to Vormir to get the Soul Stone, and left it at that. Sigyn's ship wasn't strong enough for such a long and perilous journey, so they returned it to Asgard first. Loki didn't seem pleased with this plan, but gave them the fastest ship in Asgard nevertheless. Sigyn still wasn't sure if he should know the truth. The truth was going to destroy him, she knew. But if she lied to him, she would be no better than Odin. In the end, she decided to wait until Thanos was dealt with first. The victory required everyone's undivided dedication.
After a long journey, they reached Vormir. The planet was uninhabited; there was actually no particular reason for them to be so wary. Nevertheless, they both were far from feeling safe. Perhaps it was due to that neverending eclipse.
"Do you think it's up there?" Sif asked, pointing at the only mountain in the distance.
"Probably. Let's go."
They set off to the mountain, their hands instinctively resting on the hilt of their swords despite the fact that there was no one else here. But once they started on the uneven stony path that seemingly led to the top of the mountain, they heard a voice.
"Welcome, Sif and Sigyn… Daughters of Tyr…"
Sif unsheathed her sword. "Show yourself!"
And he did. It was a ghostly figure in a black cloak, floating in the air. "Do you know us?" Sigyn asked him.
"It is my curse to know all who journey here."
"Who are you?"
"A lifetime ago, I was the reason you were sent to Earth in the first place, stonekeeper." With these words, he landed on the ground and revealed his face. It was a red, withered, hideous face. One Sigyn had seen in the SSR files.
"You're Johann Schmidt," she gasped. "The Red Skull."
"I was, once."
"And what are you now?"
"Now, I am the one who will guide you to the Soul Stone. Isn't that why you are here?"
"I should kill you…" This man was the reason Captain America had spent 70 years frozen in the ocean. He was the one who had destroyed Peggy's and Howard's lives.
"I have no doubt you would, if you could. Even if it cost you your life. You blame me for your friends' misery. The Goddess of Fidelity, indeed…"
"Sister?" Sif asked, as if she was waiting for her permission to charge.
"Wait… You can't die, can you? That's your curse?"
"Yes. I can only die once the Soul Stone is taken from here."
"Has no one else come for it?"
"Many have. They all failed. The stone extracts a terrible price. A price you are not ready to pay."
"We'll be the judge of that. Take us to the stone."
"Very well. Follow me."
As they followed him to the top of the mountain, Sif whispered, "What if this is a trap?"
"What other choice do we have?" she asked, but to be honest, Sigyn didn't think the Red Skull was a threat to anyone anymore. It appeared the only death he craved was his own now.
Once they reached the top, Sigyn looked around, but the stone was nowhere to be seen.
"Well?" Sif asked impatiently. Her sword was still unsheathed.
"What you seek lies in front of you. As does what you fear. The Soul holds a special place among the Infinity Stones. One might say it has a certain wisdom. To ensure whoever possesses it understands its power, the stone demands a sacrifice."
"A sacrifice of a loved one?" Sigyn had heard of such spells before, of course. She just hadn't thought she was going to have to break one of them.
"Exactly," he confirmed.
"Does he speak the truth?" Sif asked.
"I'm afraid he does."
Sif sheathed her sword. "Sister. Do what you have to do. I'm ready."
"What? Do you honestly think I'll trade your life for the stone?"
"You have to. It's the only way."
"If it's the only way, then you make the sacrifice."
"I can't."
"Neither can I."
Odin must really have thought this through, she realized angrily. He could have sent Sigyn and Loki, but even if they agreed to make the sacrifice, it wouldn't be accepted, because their love wasn't real. So, he had hoped Sigyn would sacrifice her sister instead. Perhaps he had even hoped that seeing Schmidt here would be an additional motivation. Even when he had apologized to Sigyn for using her like a chess piece, he had one last sick plan in mind for her. A plan to use everything she held so dear against her all at once.
"No," she said firmly. "I'm done playing Odin's games! The stone remains where it is!"
"Perhaps it's better this way," Sif agreed immediately. "Does Thanos have anyone he can sacrifice?"
"Not that I know of."
"Then it's definitely better this way."
The Red Skull sighed in disappointment.
"I'm glad the Tesseract banished you here," Sigyn scorned him. "You deserve a fate worse than death."
…
"So, what now?" Sif asked as they left Vormir behind.
"I don't know, sister."
"Since we've already come so far, perhaps we can find new allies."
"Which realm do you have in mind?"
"The Nova Empire. They have a formidable army. Besides, Odin said they have the Power Stone. They need to be warned against Thanos."
"Xandar it is, then," Sigyn said, and set the course to Xandar instead of Asgard.
But once they reached Xandar, it was too late. Thanos had killed half of the realm, and the other half was trying to survive the massacre. The Power Stone had been taken as well.
"It has begun," Sigyn said, looking around. The scene broke her heart. Some Xandarians were still trying to find their loved ones in the piles of dead bodies. Those who had found what they had been looking for were digging graves. A couple of surviving Nova Corps members were desperately trying to restore some order, though none of them had approached the Asgardians to ask what they were doing here yet. Everyone had the same question on their faces: "Why? Why did this happen to us? What did we do to deserve it?"
And if they failed, this was what would happen to the rest of the universe, too.
"Well, well… Look who's here," a familiar voice Sigyn hadn't heard in years said.
Carol Danvers.
"Carol… It's so good to see you here!"
"The feeling isn't mutual."
"Sister, who's this?"
"She's an ally, Sif. A very formidable one."
Carol snorted. "What makes you think I'll help you?"
"Carol, listen to me. What happened here, it's Thanos' doing."
"So I've heard."
"He's collecting all the six Infinity Stones. Two of them are on Earth. Are you willing to let him do this to your home?"
"Last time I checked, you had one of them."
"The Tesseract is back in Asgard. I'm no longer its guardian. I'm talking about the Time and Mind Stones."
Carol looked at them, then the Xandarian victims, and then rubbed her forehead as if the dilemma was giving her a headache. "Damn it…"
"Carol, please," Sigyn begged. "We need all hands on deck for this. We need you."
"If that's true, why haven't I heard from Fury yet?"
"Come with us, and you can ask Fury yourself. He's been preparing for Thanos quite some time now. He's going to be very happy to see you. And no more secrets, I give you my word."
"Very well," Carol relented at last. "Let's not waste any time."
Sigyn properly introduced her to Sif, and then they took her to their ship.
"Thanos will attack Asgard first," Sigyn said as she ignited the ship.
"How do you know?" Carol asked.
"Years ago, I received a vision about Thanos. That future has changed now, but his strategy makes sense. With the Space Stone, he can collect the remaining ones in no time."
"How exactly is he going to use them all?"
"He's going to need an Infinity Gauntlet."
"Let me guess, Odin has one in his vault?" she scoffed.
"Yes, but it's a fake."
"Where can he find a real one?"
"I'm not sure. Maybe Nidavellir."
"The Dwarves would never forge him a gauntlet," Sif said. "They would rather die."
"Well, he certainly had a gauntlet in my vision. One way or the other, he's going to get it."
"And then what? What's his endgame?" Carol asked.
"To kill the half of the universe. He's insane. They call him the Mad Titan for a reason."
"Bastard…"
As their ship made its way among the stars, Sigyn told herself that Thanos would never get the Soul Stone. Because if he somehow did, neither she nor her sister would ever be able to live with the guilt.
…
If what had happened to Xandar had broken Sigyn's heart, whatever had happened to Asgard had ripped it out of her chest. It was gone. It was as if it had never existed.
Sigyn remembered how she had once joked about her curse being surviving Ragnarok itself. It was no longer a joke. Asgard was gone, and here she was, looking at the void where Asgard was supposed to be. She had never liked Asgard, never considered it her home, but that didn't mean she wanted it to be wiped out. It was the Realm Eternal, a shining beacon of hope. The planet itself wasn't responsible for the misdeeds of its inhabitants. Not even of Odin's.
"Well?" Carol asked impatiently.
"It's gone."
"What?"
"This is where Asgard was supposed to be."
"Planets doesn't just disappear."
"Ragnarok," Sif gasped. "It must have been Ragnarok. It's the only explanation."
Ragnarok was an ancient prophecy, but it had never occurred to Sigyn that it might be related to Thanos. He wouldn't destroy an entire planet. He hadn't destroyed Xandar, for example. Even in that other future, it wasn't him who had destroyed Midgard.
"Look, I'm sorry. I never liked you Asgardians, but that doesn't mean you deserve this. This is… beyond my comprehension. I'm not going to pretend to understand."
"Thank you."
"Still, I have to ask… Do you think the Tesseract was destroyed in Ragnarok?"
"I hope so."
"You hope so?" she questioned, obviously disappointed.
Sigyn's first vision was now starting to make more sense. What if those people she saw were the ones who had escaped Ragnarok? And the Space Stone was in Thanos' gauntlet, which meant that it hadn't been destroyed in Ragnarok.
Sif was still looking out the window. "Sister?" Sigyn asked warily.
"How could this happen? Father, Heimdall, Fandral, Volstagg, Hogun, even Thor and Loki… Everyone we know is gone."
"Do you remember my first vision? Maybe the ones on that ship were the survivors. Maybe they escaped."
A look of hope crossed her face. "Do you really believe that?"
"I do. But there's no time to look for survivors. Midgard is in grave danger."
"Are we going to those Avengers you were talking about?" Carol asked. On their way here, Sigyn had told her about the Avengers, about Wakanda and the time-traveling Stark. Sigyn felt a terrible disheartenment. They had been preparing for Thanos for years, and they still weren't ready.