(Author's Note: To be brutally honest, I'm not sure how well I did writing this chapter. It's shorter than usual, but a whole lot of stuff happens. So much stuff, that I don't know if I wrote it as well as I could. I was kind of blocked, and with Loki's complicated personality, writing from his POV was rather difficult. So please let me know if I did okay, and enjoy!)

Chapter 15

Loki kissed Emmeline softly and slowly as she sat in his lap, him leaning on the wall of the glass cage. He moved one hand slowly up and down her back, and the other was on her face, gently caressing her soft skin with affection. Sitting and staring in the S.H.I.E.L.D. prison was growing tiresome and boring, so the two of them made an effort to enjoy one another's physical company. Loki did not kiss her with aggression as he usually did, for the sake of their location; they did not want to get too excited. Emmeline let out a soft moan as Loki slipped his tongue in between her lips, lightly sweeping against her teeth. She ran her hands through his hair and around his shoulders and back, sending a subtle shudder down his spine. He held her against his chest; even through his armor he could feel her heartbeat racing with his. It was during moments like these in which Loki was most unsure of himself. But it was no great effort for him to push that aside. All he was focused on was Emmeline; feeling her, breathing her, tasting her. He slowly lifted his head as Emmeline moved to kiss his neck as she often liked to do and he let out a sigh. He brought his head back down to meet her lips again, both synchronizing perfectly as they merged together. It was like a dance; both partners coordinating with each other in every step, every beautiful movement. Loki finally lifted his lips from Emmeline's in order to steady his breath, pressing her body gently against his and bringing his mouth to her ear. He whispered slowly to her.

"Your existence makes every miserable action in this life worth it. No matter how confused or frustrated it makes me, you are the only thing I truly want. I need you. It is a great privilege just to look at you. You make happiness possible for me. You are mine, and mine forever. And I am yours. All this is what I mean when I tell you I love you."

Emmeline started to say something, but Loki gently put his finger up to her mouth. He touched his forehead to hers and closed his eyes. He soon felt her lips on his again, her hands on the sides of his neck.

Loki and Emmeline didn't even realize they had been interrupted until Nick Fury raised his voice.

"Can I PLEASE have your attention?" he said with a dull expression. Loki opened his eyes and Emmeline turned around, both of them with looks of disinterest. "I understand you're busy, but there is someone here to see you." Loki's attention was diverted to the doorway, as his brother entered.

"Thor," said Loki with a sarcastic smile. "It took you long enough." Thor looked at his brother with equal sarcasm.

"As much as I'm enjoying my banishment brother, we are needed in Asgard at this time. You as well, Emmeline."

"What has happened?" asked Loki.

"In your absence, the Chitauri commander known as 'the Other' denounced your name to his people and has taken the Asgardian throne. He plans to rule all nine realms in efforts of overthrowing Thanos' power over him. He wants the power for himself." Thanos. Loki remembered that name. He shuddered at the thought of it. Thanos was the most powerful dark being in the nine realms; he gave the Other orders of leading the Chitauri. His dark realm was where Loki had landed when he had fallen off the bifrost. It was there that Loki underwent unbearable torture of the body and mind, by Thanos' hand. When he had learned of Loki's desires for power, he was the one who offered his Chitauri army in return for the Tesseract. But his intention had only been to use and deceive him, as it was now. They had agreed that once Loki took the Asgardian throne, they would share in the power. Loki had thought them fools at the time, knowing that he would be the one, true king. But they had deceived him once more, this time without Thanos.

"Those mongrels," he growled. "I will no longer make any alliances with them. I prefer to slay them all."

"That is my intention once we reach Asgard," Thor replied. "The fate of all nine realms rests in our hands."

"And what of Odin?" asked Loki.

"The Chitauri keep him contained in the prison; they plan to publicly execute him, so we must hurry."

"How do you know all this?"

"Heimdall called me with the bifrost and sent me back down to gather the both of you."

"Why brother? After all, this is my fault. I betrayed you and Asgard and stole the throne from under Odin's feet the last time you called on me. What makes you think you can trust me?"

"I don't. But I know that the Other ruling the nine realms was not in your plans," said Thor. "And most of all, I know the influence of Emmeline on you. You will not make the mistake of betraying us again. However, if you do…I will kill you."

"No you won't. But I will help you for Emmeline's sake." Loki had told his brother the truth. He knew his betrayal would result in losing his brother's and Emmeline's trust, in addition of the fact that he had no reason to betray them. He did not want to see the Other ruling the nine realms any more than Thor.

"But we're in prison," Emmeline finally spoke up. "We can't go." Fury stepped up and addressed Loki and Emmeline.

"In the event of this emergency, also because it's a direct threat to our world as well, I will allow your leave. But don't screw it up." Emmeline smiled as Fury pressed the button on the control panel that opened their cell. Loki took her hand and they approached Thor.

"Let's go," said Loki.


As soon as Heimdall beamed Thor, Loki, and Emmeline into Asgard, he told them to follow him with a worried look on his face.

"Heimdall, what is it?" asked Thor.

"The public execution of your father," he replied. Emmeline gasped and looked at Loki. She could see different emotions flood his face. Fear, anger, determination, worry. But he hid quickly hid these emotions with a mask of indifference and bravery. "They took him to the gallows outside the back of the palace."

Thor bolted through the observatory in desperation to reach his father, and Loki took Emmeline's hand and followed.

"Wait!" yelled Heimdall. "Not that way!" But Thor wasn't stopping, and Loki wasn't listening. Emmeline looked back and saw Heimdall running after them, realizing he was too late when he caught up. Emmeline turned. They had been stopped by a fleet of Chitauri soldiers. The disgusting creatures hissed at the four and began attacking, Thor swinging Mjolnir on contact. Loki took out his daggers and Emmeline began freezing soldiers.

The fight was loud and blinding. All Emmeline could see were soldiers coming at her and all she could feel was the desperation to protect herself with her powers. She worried for the Allfather; what if they didn't get there in time? She fought alongside Heimdall, once setting his staff on fire for him. She didn't want to use her fire on the soldiers, in fear of setting the palace ablaze. So she tried freezing them. But her power was growing weaker as more and more soldiers attacked her. There were too many, and when she tried to freeze one, another would strike her and her power would falter. Eventually she got so weak that she couldn't do more than create a thin film of ice over a soldier and it was easy for them to break out of it. Heimdall began to notice.

"Go," he said to her. "We can hold them off. Go to the Allfather."

Emmeline nodded and realizing that there was no way around the soldiers, started pushing through them. But that was hard when they kept trying to attack her. She resorted to using her brute strength to hit them, which wasn't ideal, but it brought her to Thor's area of battle.

"Throw me past them!" she said, trying to be heard over the sound of clanging metal and battle cries. "I'll go to save Odin!" Thor couldn't pick her up before a soldier clocked her in the head and she fell on the floor, unconscious.

She hadn't even noticed Loki slip out of the fight.


Loki walked through the empty halls of the ravaged palace, illusioned as a Chitauri soldier. Odin was in trouble. Odin, the man who had lied to Loki his entire life. The man who merely pretended to love him, so he could unite opposing forces. The coward. But Loki kept walking, until he reached the back of the palace, where the gallows were located. He stopped when he had just exited the back entrance; he was standing behind a large throne-like chair.

He saw the Other walk from his chair to address the people that were gathered around the gallows. He saw Odin, standing in front of the people, tied up in thick ropes with his head down. Weak. He saw the Asgardian people, women and children crying, men with solemn expressions to hide their despair. There were Chitauri soldiers around the people, creating a barrier so no one could escape. They were being forced to watch the death of their beloved king.

Loki expected a noose somewhere above, but there was none. Instead, to the right, there was a guillotine. With a sharpened blade that would slice the Allfather's head clean off. Just then, the Other addressed Loki—having almost forgotten he was disguised as a Chitauri soldier.

"Operate the guillotine," he commanded, his icy glare daring Loki to disobey him. "Do it on my word." Loki walked up to the guillotine and grabbed the string, pulling up the blade. Two other soldiers brought Odin over to the guillotine and forced him to lay on the ground and stick his head under the blade. Loki heard the Asgardian king mutter "For Asgard" under his breath as he kneeled to the weapon of execution. Loki stared at the old man, defeat in his eyes and sorrow in his heart.

"Asgardians!" yelled the Other. "Look at your so-called king! Defenseless and weak! Let this be known as the day I, your new king, brought Asgard and all Nine Realms to justice!" His voice rang out among the people, with no one saying a word. No one cheered, no one objected. They all stood captive, crying at the sight of their leader brought down by an enemy.

"Bring out the prisoners!" sneered the Other to another Chitauri soldier. The soldier bowed and came back a few minutes later with Sif and the Warriors Three tied in chains. They all had metal masks over their mouths to keep them quiet, but Loki could see Sif yelling through her glare at the Other. "Now all of you behold, the death of the powerful Odin!" The Other addressed Loki in his disguise, "Off with his head!" He gave an evil sneer. Loki hesitated.

Why shouldn't I? He told himself. Odin has never done any good for me. I should let this sharpened blade slide right through his neck.

But he didn't. Before the Other had time to reprimand him for not doing as he said, Loki shut off his illusion, turning back into himself. The people gasped and Loki used one hand to take out his daggers and cut the ropes off of Odin.

Foolish creature, thought Loki of the Other. I wouldn't have been able to cut through chains. Odin took his neck out of the wooden crevice and got to his feet.

"Loki," he said, as if he was surprised.

"No time to thank me," Loki replied coldly. Chitauri soldiers suddenly started toward Loki and the Allfather, and Loki tossed Odin one of his daggers. When the first soldier came to Loki, he grabbed its neck and threw it under the guillotine, finally letting the string go as the creature's head fell onto the ground. Loki smirked and turned to fight the rest of the soldiers.

Just then, Thor and Heimdall arrived. Loki didn't see Emmeline, and he was a bit worried. However, they wouldn't leave her. He assumed they had given her a task, and continued fighting the soldiers around engaged himself into battle, his natural instinct when danger arose. Heimdall made his way to the Allfather and sneaked him out of the fight.

After Loki had killed all the soldiers within his area, he saw the Other walking toward him with a sinister expression. Loki wasn't afraid. The Other was a fool.

"You will pay, Loki of Asgard," he growled.

"You took what was mine," Loki replied.

"The Asgardian throne was never yours!" That made Loki angry.

"It was! I am a king, you pathetic creature! You are nothing but Thanos' dog, that wishes it could be the master!" Loki sneered at the Other and he picked Loki up by his neck.

"You will never be a king," said the Other through gritted teeth. "It is not in your nature. You will live the rest of your miserable life wishing!" The Other slammed Loki into the ground and scratched his face with his long claws. Loki held back a gasp of pain. He felt blood run down his face. The Other stood up straight and looked at him condescendingly.

"She has weakened you," he said. The Other walked out of Loki's sights and Loki lied there. He did not try to get up. Everything hurt, and his vision was starting to fail. He knew he would fall unconscious any moment.


When Loki awakened, he was in a bed with gold satin sheets, wearing no shirt. He tried to sit up, and groaned when he did; every part of his body hurt. He put his hand up to his face, feeling the scratches made by the Other. They went across his cheek and the blood had dried. Loki looked around, wondering where he was. He had never been in this place before. It was very small, in fact Loki had to duck a little so his head wouldn't hit the ceiling.

Loki soon realized that he was in a dwarf house. Judging by the size and style of things, he was in a dwarf village. But how did he get here and why? Where was everyone? Just as Loki wondered, Thor entered the small room, ducking under the door.

"Thor," said Loki. "How did we get here?"

"The Other searched for father, determined to kill him, so we fled here. Father and I are discussing what we shall do in terms of war. The people of Asgard are rising against the Other. We intend to bring them to justice. Are you with us?"

"Of course," said Loki. "Where—"

"—Thank you," Thor interrupted. "For saving Father."

"I didn't want the Other to get the satisfaction," Loki replied. "Where is Emmeline? Is she safe? I didn't see her in battle." Thor hesitated and looked at the floor, which frightened Loki. "What happened to her?" Thor sighed, and looked at Loki with a worried expression on his face.

"...We can't find her."