Darcy, as the girl turned out to be named, led them all the way to the other end of the castle where Bruce and a few of his friends had set themselves up to do what they could with Asgard's science and magic, to try and marry the two in order to better help their healers and their technological advances. There they found a young woman, arms extended out in front of her, playing with the projections the soulforge displayed above her. She was grinning and babbling, completely . . . well, fine looking, if Natasha was honest. She couldn't see what was wrong with her.

"What happened, what is it?" She asked one of the healers as Loki took a couple of tentative steps closer, his brow furrowing as he stared at the woman. With a rush Natasha realized that they'd seen her before, working with Banner and Stark as they'd worked with the healers to take care of the wounded from Midgard.

"We don't quite know. Not yet. We're trying to find the source of energy, but there's something just below the skin," Eir, the head healer, said, turning a few of the knobs of the machine to make it whir, the image spinning slightly so that she could get a better look at it.

"So what happened?" Thor asked, his blue eyes focusing in on Jane's, which had gone wide at the realization of who she was speaking to.

"You got them?!" She hissed to Darcy. "Like, the king and his brother and his wife of the damn realm we're not even supposed to be on?" She reached out, as though to throttle the dark haired girl, who leapt out of range.

"What else was I supposed to do? You went all cold and collapsed and I freaked out-I can't be expected to make all the right decisions all the time!"

"Darcy I just asked you to get help not to get the damn royal family!"

"Hush," Loki bit out, moving to put a hand to her shoulder. "Don't get so worked up-." He'd hardly pressed finger to the wool of her coat before a red wave of pure energy shot out at all nearby. Thor pulled Natasha behind him, shielding her with his body, and there was a soft moan of discomfort from the woman on the table as the others worked to pick themselves back up from where they'd been thrown either onto the floor or against the wall. No one said a thing, the only sound being Jane's labored breathing, until Loki had gotten back to his feet and took a wary step towards the relaxed woman. She looked as though she could hardly keep her eyes open, though her head turned to face Loki as he advanced.

"Don't touch me-I don't want to hurt you," she croaked, blinking blearily. "I don't know what's happening to me."

"You won't hurt me," he assured her, though Natasha's heart leapt into her throat at the sight of him reaching out to try and touch her again. He better be damn sure of it. "Just keep calm, Jane. Just keep breathing."

"M'kay," she hummed, exaggerating her breaths as he pressed his palm to her shoulder. Only then did Natasha breathe a sigh of relief, taking Thor's hand in her own and squeezing it, before she headed towards the others. Eir and Darcy were getting to their feet, Thor moving to make sure they were both alright, while Natasha stepped closer to press a tentative hand to Jane's forehead, smoothing the hair that had plastered itself there. The woman was drenched in sweat, as though she'd been exerting herself for hours, and as though Loki sensed that, his skin turned a light blue as he took her wrist in his and turned it over for his inspection. She shivered at the change in temperature, and Natasha felt something roll through the woman's body, a strange wave of the same energy. Whatever magic was inside of her was protecting itself, not just her, and Loki's brow furrowing told her that he was coming to the same conclusion. Strange. Natasha could all but feel the tug at her own magic, as though whatever the red wave had been was trying to get her own magic to manifest itself, to feed off of her own energy. That was ridiculous, though. Loki's never did that, nor had Frigga's. So what was it, then, that coursed through Jane's body? Natasha looked to Loki, hoping to find that he had the answers. But no, it didn't look like it. If anything the crease in his brow and the pursing of his lips told her that even if there was an answer to be found it wouldn't be to any of their liking.

"The infection is protecting her, isn't it?" Eir asked, her voice soft and contemplative as she came to stand beside Loki, nudging at another of the dials of the forge. The image of Jane's wrist magnified, and just beneath what ought to have been the surface something red flowed, far more mercurial and not quite as solid as blood, as though it was magic made visual. Natasha felt her mouth drop open as there came a hiss of recognition from behind her, Thor's attention having zeroed in on it.

"That cannot be-." He muttered.

"It has to be," Loki said, voice grave enough to make Jane begin to tremble beneath him. Hardly conscious as it was, she barely managed to lift herself up onto one of her arms, staring from one to the other.

"That doesn't sound good," she said, clearing her throat to raise the volume of her voice. "What's wrong with me?"

"I think we need to have a talk in private with you, Jane," Loki said, not answering her question. Eir had the decency to keep from looking scandalized by the hint that she wasn't privy to the conversation, but Darcy wasn't nearly as tactful.

"No way in hell are you leaving me out of this." She moved closer and took one of Jane's hands in her own, squeezed it. Nat paused to see the sheer amount of affection pass between the two in one glance, though Jane attempted to bat the woman playfully away with her other hand.

"You're too protective of me."

"Bullshit I am. If I had been you wouldn't be in this mess right now," Darcy grumbled, before her eyes raised to meet Natasha's, Thor's, and Loki's in turn. "Whatever you've got to say to her I want to hear it, too." She swallowed thickly. "Uh, please."

Nat shared a quick smile with Loki, who gave a one-shouldered shrug. "Very well. Eir, healers, if we could."

Eir gave a quick dip of her head before she and the other women scuttled out of the room, closing the heavy doors of the private chamber behind them. It would have to be good enough. Darcy shifted Jane over on her place on the forge and took a seat just behind her, Jane's upper torso pressing up against her girlfriend's as they watched Loki alter the projections from the forge to hover above them in six separate circles.

"If you've been working with Stark and his lot then you know that we mean to go up against the mad titan, Thanos," Loki started, each of the pockets of his hologram filling with new images: a bright, ice blue cube, a purple stone encased in a silver ball, a red, not quite liquid not quite solid form that flowed within its designated area, another, deeper blue stone that seemed to almost flash yellow every so often, an orange gem the size of Natasha's fist, and one final, deep green one that formed a crescent shape. They took her breath away, and she stared at them in disbelief and curiosity as Loki explained their origin and the creation of what he called Infinity Stones. Not that all of them were strictly stone, it turned out.

"It makes the most sense that Thanos would begin to collect these infinity stones in order to conquer the nine realms, and eventually the rest of the universe. Heimdall reported that when he attended Natasha and my wedding he came under the guise of looking for the Space gem, which we have in our possession, but because he was unable to get it he will eventually launch an attack in order to get it. Only the next time we anticipate he'll have collected as many of the others as possible." Loki hardly took a breath as he explained it. "And the more stones that one collects, the stronger their power grows. I believe what you have inside you, Jane, is known as the Aether, but there's another name that it goes by."

"An infinity stone? But it's not-."

"Strictly a stone, yes. I believe it's the reality stone." Loki murmured, offering to take her hand once more. She placed it in his grasp, and Darcy gave a muffled curse as they watched Jane's skin turn bright red just beneath the surface of her wrist, as though whatever was inside of her was pressed right up against her skin. Jane let out a hiss of breath, screwing up her face and biting her bottom lip.

"Can you get it out?" She finally asked, looking from Loki, to Thor, and back.

Loki sighed and shook his head. "I cannot. The knowledge of how to was lost with the Dark Elves, though if rumors are true then we may be able to anticipate them coming back for the Aether. If they have sided with Thanos he would have promised them the Aether, which they believe to be their birthright. I'm not even going to ask how it is you got it," he murmured. "Only stress the importance of you keeping it as long as you are able."

"You're shitting me, right?" Darcy exclaimed form just behind Jane. Jane turned around, shaking her head, as though to tell her to stop talking, but Darcy pushed on either way. "You just told us that there's this psychotic titan coming for this Aether thing and you want Jane to just hold onto it for you? Are you insane? Do you want her to die for you because you might as well just come out and say it, that's what you're asking for. God, you don't even realize it, do you?" She seethed, her eyes narrowed behind her glasses. Natasha stepped closer and shut Loki up with a look before he could say anything. For being a brilliant tactician and a wordsmith, he sure fell short when it came to tact.

"The alternative is we let Thanos get it. Immediately," Natasha said, her voice quiet but demanding Darcy and Jane's full attention. Both pairs of eyes zeroed in on her. "Look, I know this is hard to grasp, but this is a difficult time for all of us. And as we don't know how to get it out of her, I can't see much of another option. We'll keep you as safe as we can-."

"No." Jane said, her voice strong even though Natasha could see her shaking. "No. I want to help. I don't just want to stay safe-Darcy, that's why we're here. That's why we came to SHIELD, to figure out what the hell was happening and to help. Right?" She asked, looking up at the black haired girl, whose face had twisted in displeasure. "If you can't get it out of me is there any way that I can use it to at least be useful?"

"If you can keep it safe that'd be very helpful," Thor said, diplomatic as ever.

"She has a point," Natasha said, and her eyes met Loki's as he came to the same conclusion. "If Thanos can weaponize it, why can't we?"

"No. You're not putting my girlfriend's life on the line and throwing her out into the middle of some friggin fight!" Darcy countered. Natasha watched as the arm wrapped around Jane tightened and felt her heart ache. Jane looked up at Darcy and shook her head.

"I want to."

"I don't want you getting hurt."

"Darcy, we're all going to die if we don't do something. C'mon." Jane insisted. She leaned up to press a kiss to Darcy's cheek, and the woman shivered as though Jane had burned her. "Uhh, can you guys train me, or do I have to try and do this all by myself?"

There wasn't enough time for Loki to train her as they would've liked, and so Frigga was tasked with helping the young woman learn how to control the newfound power, Loki and Natasha stepping in whenever they'd get a chance to. Loki was kept quite busy between traveling back and forth to Jotunheim and Asgard, wanting to provide a strong front for his people and ensuring that their needs were cared for, while Thor took off for Nidavellir to treat with the dwarves. Natasha was still waiting to hear back from Lord Katrik of Muspelheim, so training with Jane was a welcome relief from the nervousness that came with waiting. As if it wasn't all nerve wracking enough, she'd still not heard anything back from Fenrir and the seeds of doubt had taken heart in her gut, much as she tried to keep them away. She couldn't help it. Without the assurance that he was still alive, and able to try and pin the deed on Thanos or Jerome, there was no way she could hope for Vanaheim or Alfheim's assistance, which they so desperately needed. The inclusion of the Disir into their ranks was useful, but not near enough. The warriors were fickle at the best of times, from what she'd come to understand from talking to Loki and Thor, so something more stable was far preferred.

As if things would ever be that easy.

But at least Jane was getting better at controlling the Aether. A quick learner, once she'd mastered the basics of it she'd taken to training with the other mutants and soldiers of Asgard, working to project her new powers and pushing herself to near collapse. Which, given how much energy the Aether took out of her, never took too long. With Darcy at her side, and Natasha eager to help whenever she could (to feel helpful she couldn't help but think), they'd always make sure that she got enough rest and time to recharge. After the first time she'd collapsed, Loki had explained that the Aether would draw what energy it could from her to feed itself, the entity pulling from her to best keep itself protected. That would come in handy, Loki had explained, as it would also keep Jane as protected as it could so long as her body hosted it. Natasha had to admit, the power did become her, and apart from the occasional black-and-red eyed moment, Jane seemed to rather, well, enjoy it. Not that Natasha could blame her, remembering just how empowering it could be to be able to stand up for oneself, to have a force to pull at when things got rough.

Still, there were whispered, new rumors that Thanos and the remnants of the Chitauri wouldn't be the only one they'd be fighting against. Frigga had an informant, a woman who'd come to visit with the queen in the dead of night. Had Natasha not been up talking with Charles and Erik about the training she wanted the rest of the mutants to go through, to be exposed to magic of all sorts while they still had the option, she might've missed the woman's presence on Asgard. As it was her green skin, shining pale in the moonlight that dripped from the open arch ways, was difficult to miss. Even more so when Natasha caught the words "Thanos" and "infinity stones." She hurried to catch up with them, ignoring the screaming of her aching muscles as she pushed herself just a little further than she'd intended. Frigga's blue eyes caught her first, and she motioned for the woman to stop so that Nat could catch up and listen in as well. Gamora, as she was introduced, eyed Nat with hardly veiled distrust. Not that Natasha could blame her.

"She's my daughter-in-law, and she fights alongside Thor and Loki. You can trust her," Frigga promised, resting a hand on Gamora's shoulder. The woman flinched at the touch, and Frigga pulled away immediately.

"Right." Gamora said, though her eyes never left Natasha's, sizing her up for the next half a minute. Nat didn't dare break her gaze, swallowing thickly and folding her arms behind her back. The less defiant she looked the better off it would be. "As I said, the Dark Elves are awake, and Thanos promised them the Aether if they helped him conquer Asgard. You know that's not going to be a hardship for them. But if you have the Aether, then there's a chance that they'll come here first. Seek it out to keep from owing Thanos anything. Then there's nothing that they'll stop at to destroy all the realms."

Frigga let out a soft hiss of air, her eyes narrowing. "So we have to enemies to worry about."

"Malekith is weak, still, from waking up. Vulnerable. If you would lend me some of your warriors-."

"How many do you need?" Natasha asked, keeping her voice respectful as she could. She had nothing against Frigga, but if the Dark Elves were to come at them then they needed to make sure that they were as well fortified as possible. Besides, there was Jane, who was growing so much stronger the more time she spent working with the Aether, making leaps and bounds in her fighting prowess and her abilities to work the magic. "And is there any chance that they'll surrender if the Aether was not theirs to claim?"

"How do you mean?" Gamora asked, her brow furrowed, while Frigga shook her head.

"Malekith is fueled by his desire for revenge, revenge on the Aesir people. He'll stop at nothing, whether or not Jane has the Aether."

"But if it's found a new host-."

"He alone will know how to draw it out." Frigga insisted. Gamora stared at the two of them, watching them go back and forth with a puzzled expression on her face. "It's not safe to even let him know that someone else has it, or he'll target them rather than the whole realm. She can't withstand an attack, not from him."

Somehow Natasha doubted that. Frigga was underestimating the woman's strength and her fortitude of will. Jane, she was willing to bet, would give this Malekith a run for his money. Still, she looked to Gamora. "How many do you need, then, to take them out now?"

"Half a dozen of your best."

"You'll have them." Natasha said with a nod, already running a list through her head. "But I think Jane ought to go. Give them a taste of their own medicine."

Frigga's face hardened. "And if Malekith draws out the Aether and we lose an infinity stone? The Dark Elves are unforgiving, and that is to say nothing of Thanos and what he'll do to them once he finds out that they have it. If he's collecting them, then we need to keep her as close as possible."

"You can't lock her up," Natasha insisted. She reached out to take Frigga by the elbow, her brow pulled tight with seriousness. "It won't help anyone to keep her away from the fight, not when she's so capable and able to help."

"The Aether can't help, it can only destroy." Gamora murmured, looking as though she was struggling to keep from rolling her eyes at Natasha's insistence. "You're a fool to think that you can control it."

"She can," Nat snarled, turning her frustration onto the woman. What the hell did she know? "I've seen her work at it, you haven't. Jane is stronger than you can imagine."

Gamora said nothing, pursing her lips. Silence reigned between the three of them before Natasha broke it with a heavy sigh.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have attacked you like that. It's a trying time for all of us," Nat forced herself to say. She had to play the diplomat, whether or not she liked it. It was her life now. "I will arrange for our six best fighters to accompany you to take on Malekith and his warriors, but I would warn you to pull back if things begin to go awry. We need as many fighters as we can, and I cannot lose any more men or women."

Gamora nodded her head. "Understood. And if it comes to the very worst perhaps bringing in an unknown fighter would throw him off. Hopefully." Her shoulders lowered at that, one of her arms coming up to run a hand through her two-toned hair. Natasha knew that pose, that exhaustion that ran deeper than just an aching of the muscles, that sank through bone until it fused with every strand of one's being. She'd felt it one too many times, and a strong desire came over her to offer Gamora a place to stay for the evening, to rest for what few hours she could grab. It passed as the woman shook off what exhaustion she'd allowed herself to succumb to for the moment and instead turned to Frigga.

"Thank you for listening to me, queen Frigga," she said, then turned to Natasha. "And for your help my lady."

"Natasha," Nat stuck her arm out. "And it's not a problem. Thank you for everything you've done. I'm guessing this is hardly the first time you two have met."

Frigga bobbed her head.

"Right. Well, no time like the present. Did you want those warriors now, or do you need more time?"

She sent out Sif, Wanda, Fandral, and a handful of other fighters, not wanting to stretch their best out too thin but determined that Gamora should have their strongest and most mindful. Since Loki and Thor were both gone the decision fell solely to Natasha, and her gut twisted as she watched the six of them disappear off the bifrost, taking one of Asgard's stealthiest ships. She could only pray it would be enough. Until they heard back, she asked that Jane double her training. Darcy protested, as she'd done whenever she felt like Jane was being pushed too far too fast, but Jane nodded in understanding.

"There's something coming, isn't there?" She asked Nat, the three of them isolated on the practice fields that Natasha had been so intimately familiar with not a couple of months ago. Had time really moved that fast? She could barely believe it. "I can feel it."

"What do you feel?" Nat asked, expression keen as she watched Darcy take Jane's hand in her own. Their fingers threaded, and Jane squeezed her girlfriend's hand tight.

"Something strange. It's like it's tugging at the edge of the Aether, and so it keeps tugging me with it. And I'm getting visions. Stronger than ever this time around." She swallowed, the movement painful looking as she winced. "It's been waking me up and everything."

Darcy made a noise of frustration. "You told me that you just had a bad dream."

"Well, it kind of was," Jane murmured. "But it was the Aether and it showed me what it was meant for. It's like it's trying to pull me to wipe out this world, to alter the reality of it and blot out-well it wants to reduce the nine realms to shades, husks of their former selves by wiping out the sun. Suns," she corrected. "Every single one until there's nothing left but ashes and darkness. I keep feeling it tug at me, like it thinks I can do that."

"You could," Natasha said, not about to sugar coat it. Jane's eyes blew wide at her words, and Darcy pursed her lips. "That's the point. That's what power is, isn't it? Knowing what you could do, what you are able to, and choosing against it, right?" She sighed. "I'm not going to lie to you. There's a dark elf called Malekith that will try to take it from you if he can. He'll kill you, and everyone that stands in his way, until he gets the Aether." She watched as both women tensed, Darcy's face far too transparent for her own good as she set her jaw and tightened her hold on Jane's hand. The shorter woman just looked wary, as though she had a good inkling as to why Natasha would be telling her that when they hadn't heard about it before.

"It's why you ordered my training to increase. He's coming, isn't he?"

"We sent out a small force to make sure that doesn't happen." Natasha said.

"But if they fail-."

"Then I want you to be prepared."

"I will be." Jane said, and for half a second Natasha swore she saw the woman's eyes flash red, the Aether tugging at Nat's own power, until it quieted and went still inside Jane once more. Good, then she was gaining some semblance of control over it. They didn't have time for her to be unprepared.

Lord Kartik returned Natasha's request for a summons by sending three of his own men at the end of the week. Jane had been making remarkable progress now that she knew the ramifications of her failure, and though she wasn't near as well equipped as her girlfriend even Darcy was pitching in, learning to fight when she could. It was small, hand to hand stuff, but it would serve her well if the moment ever came. Natasha was watching her train with Clint when the fire demons came up to her, led by Volstagg who looked less than thrilled at their presence.

"My lady," he called, catching her attention as she stared over at the oncoming group. Her body went taut with confusion and worry, palms itching to grab hold of the knife grip just above her left hip, but instead forced herself to smile as the four men came closer. "May I introduce Lord Oded Katrikson of Muspelheim, heir to the throne, and his two personal escort . . . ah, I'm sorry I don't know your names."

The two demons shook it off. For all that Natasha had been warned against trusting their kind, that they were likely to filet her as soon as look at her, they didn't look all that intimidating. In fact, they looked damn near mortal, each of them tanned skin. Oded stepped closer and extended a hand, flashing a sharp-toothed grin that set her on edge as she offered her own hand and he pressed his thin lips to the back of it.

"A pleasure to meet you, Lady Natasha. I've heard much of you, but it pales in comparison to meeting you." He said, holding onto her hand perhaps a little longer than strictly necessary. She tugged it back to her side, her smile as polite as ever.

"The pleasure is mine my lord. It's good to finally meet you. I've been looking to meet with you and your father."

His chuckle sent shivers up her spine, an echo of something far more dangerous she was certain laid just beneath the calm brown-black eyes and the ever present grin that was beginning to make her uneasy. "My dear, that's why I'm here. My father wishes to speak with you. Are you available to leave now?"

Well then, why didn't he just say so?

A/N: Yay another long update! Hope you're enjoying the story so far, and thank you so much for reading!