A/N The battle is finally here! Yay! Let the show begin!

Also, please keep in mind, if Thanos doesn't seem anything like the character from the comics, that's because I only know what the movies have shown us about him (meaning almost nothing). So I've kind of just made Thanos my own character. If you're a stickler for the comics, please don't get mad a me. If you just view Thanos as sort of OC-ish, I think you'll like the way I portray him.

Your reviews are like that awesome moment when you're sitting in a movie theater, waiting for a movie to start, and the preview for Age of Ultron comes on and you weren't expecting it and even though you've seen it a million times on YouTube you still nearly freak out because you haven't seen it on the big screen before and your movie buddy whispers at you to calm down because they're afraid you're going to freak out and embarrass them in front of a theater full of strangers. Yeah, your reviews make me feel that awesome. BTW, that exact scenario actually happened to me this week and no one in my family will ever understand, but I know you guys do. :)

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The Battle Begins

It was just after dawn when the portal appeared, just as Loki had predicted.

He, Thor, the other Avengers, and the army of Asgard were spread out along one side of a vast field just outside the city. Far across the field, near the edge that dropped off into the limitless expanse of space, a huge portal appeared. The portal was barely open before the Chitauri began to pour through it. This time, however, they did not come on their flyers. It was simply the armed creatures on foot, running through the portal and into the field.

"Well, at least they don't have flight capabilities this time," Tony said.

Four leviathans came flying through the portal and lumbered through the air above the Chitauri foot soldiers.

"You just had to say it," Loki said, shaking his head with a smirk.

"Oops," Tony said with an unrepentant shrug.

"All right," Loki said, turning to address the six Avengers standing around him. "The six of you are the most familiar with fighting the Chitauri. So we need to utilize all of your experience and have the other warriors follow your lead."

"Just tell us where you want us," Steve agreed.

"Tony, you and Thor are our air support. Take care of the leviathans. You two know how," Loki said.

"Perhaps we could have the Hulk help," Thor suggested. "He was very good at smashing those creatures on Earth."

"That's a good idea," Loki said, turning to Bruce, the others doing the same until all eyes were on him.

Bruce took a deep breath and nodded.

"You might want to step back," he warned, suddenly glad he had thought to leave his glasses in his room in the palace. He hated having to replace his glasses after a hulk-out.

The others backed up several steps, the warriors around them doing the same even though they weren't sure why they were backing away from the small, unimposing man. The answer soon became obvious as Bruce began to grow and turn green as he let the Hulk out. The warriors around them involuntarily took a few more steps back and the Avengers couldn't help the slight smirks that crossed their faces.

In seconds, Bruce had transformed into the Hulk and he let out a loud roar that caused even the bravest warriors around them to startle slightly and stare at the beast warily. Hulk ignored them, though, and focused his attention on Loki who suddenly remembered the last time he had encountered the rage beast. Despite his unease, Loki held his ground as Hulk took a step toward him and leaned down to stare him in the face. For a long moment, no one moved. Then Hulk spoke.

"Puny god friend now."

It wasn't a question and Loki couldn't help but smile. Hulk straightened up and grinned in return.

"Hulk," Loki said, pointing at the leviathans over his shoulder. "See the whales?"

Hulk looked to where Loki was pointing and his grin turned to a snarl.

"Smash," Loki said.

Hulk looked back to him and his snarl turned into a dangerous, toothy smile. Then he leaped into the air and happily (for the Hulk anyway) went after the whales.

Tony turned to Steve and they shared a long look. After a moment, Tony forced himself to look away and turned to Thor.

"Come on, Sparky," he said, his faceplate dropping closed. "We'd better get going before he takes them all for himself."

Then Tony was rocketing away. Thor turned to Loki and gripped his shoulder. They shared a look similar to the one Tony and Steve had shared, then Thor turned and swung his hammer, taking off after Tony.

"Natasha, Clint, Steve," Loki said, turning to his friends. "I believe you know what to do." The three Avengers nodded. "The rest of you," Loki addressed the warriors around them, "follow their lead."

"What about you?" Steve asked.

"I'm going to take care of the portal," Loki said.

"You can close it?" Natasha asked.

"No," Loki said. "It was opened from the other side so I can't close it from here. However, I do have a spell that can turn the portal into a one-way door. They can go back through it to their side but nothing else can come through to us."

"You just happen to know a spell that can do that?" Clint asked with a raised eyebrow.

"The tesseract showed me much. Not all of it pertained to Thanos' plans," Loki said vaguely.

"Can you do it from this distance?" Steve asked.

Loki shook his head. "I have to be closer."

Steve started to open his mouth to ask if Loki needed help but then stopped himself. Loki could handle himself. He wasn't a child or some weak, helpless person. It was that kind of thinking that Loki had had to deal with from people his whole life. He didn't need it from his friends too. So instead Steve reached out and gripped his shoulder.

"Be careful," he said simply.

Loki nodded and Steve, Natasha, and Clint did the same. Then the three of them took off to engage the Chitauri. The nearby warriors followed them. Loki watched them go for a moment before turning toward the portal. With a deep breath, he took off toward the massive doorway in space.

He would have to wade through many of the Chitauri to get close enough to use his spell. It wouldn't be an issue, except the spell required a good deal of concentration and could not be interrupted or he would have to begin again.

Unfortunately, that was not especially easy to achieve in the middle of a battlefield. Loki made it within range easily enough but after that, he kept having to divide his attention between the spell and his surroundings, and every time he was forced to break off the spell to defend himself from Chitauri soldiers, he had to start over. It was quickly becoming frustrating and was beginning to look impossible.

For what had to be the tenth time, Loki was forced to break off the spell as the Chitauri rushed him. He turned to face his enemy when a brunette female stepped in front of him and took on the Chitauri.

"You take care of the hard part, My Prince. We'll watch your back," Sif said over her shoulder.

Sif and the Warriors Three were surrounding him and keeping any Chitauri at bay. Loki stared at them in surprise for a moment before a smile spread across his face and he gave Sif a quick nod. He turned his focus back the portal and started his spell again, this time focusing entirely on it, trusting the four warriors around him to keep him safe.

Only later would Loki realize how easy it had been to trust them, to put his life and safety in their hands and not even think twice about it. Perhaps they could become friends after all, maybe not as close as Thor was to them or as close as Loki was becoming to the Avengers, but friends all the same.

Loki finished the spell without interruption and the portal was sealed off on the other side. Unfortunately, it wasn't quick enough to prevent both Thanos and Red Skull from making it through the portal.

From across the battlefield full of fighting Chitauri and Asgardians, Loki's eyes locked with Thanos' for a long moment. Neither one of them had any illusions about how this would ultimately end. Before the battle was over, they would face each other and only one of them would win.

Thanos broke eye contact first as he turned to strike down an Asgardian who had been coming at him. It took only one blow and almost no effort to strike the man down. Another soon came and Thanos dispatched him just as easily. None of the warriors who tried to attack Thanos lasted long. Most being cut down before a fight even started. The few who were able to even get Thanos to move more than an inch, only lasted for a few swipes before Thanos' speed and strength easily struck them down.

That was, if Thanos even deemed to use brute strength to strike down his opponents. More than once, he simply sent a blast of angry red lightning-like energy shooting from his hand or the point of his broadsword. Every person who was hit by one of the blasts was killed instantly, often with their chests burned and smoking. None could withstand the blasts and very few could last hand to hand with Thanos for long.

However, other than striking down the men who attacked him, Thanos didn't move, instead standing in one spot and surveying the battle. The other warriors soon learned to leave him alone, knowing they would only get cut down. As long as he wasn't actively attacking anyone, then the warriors would focus on his Chitauri infantry and hopefully find some way to take Thanos down after.

Thanos turned and looked at Loki again. It wasn't hard for Loki to figure out why Thanos wasn't bothering to actively attack. Thanos was waiting for Loki. He was the one Thanos cared about. He was the one Thanos wanted to fight and destroy. The titan didn't care about the other Asgardians. They were little more than pesky mosquitoes to him.

Well, if it was him Thanos wanted, then Loki would oblige. The sooner he finished Thanos, the sooner all of this would be over. However, Thanos wasn't just going to come to him. He was content to wait until the battle was won or lost one way or the other before taking on Loki.

Loki wasn't willing to wait that long, though. If Thanos wouldn't come to him. He would go to Thanos. He just had to get through throngs of Chitauri first. That would be the easy part. Loki stared at Thanos for another moment before fairly leaping forward into the melee around him.

The Chitauri were soulless creatures and Loki had no regrets or remorse about ending them. He held nothing back, no hesitation. He killed them quickly and ruthlessly, cutting throats, breaking necks, lashing out with his magic. He ran through the masses of them, spinning, hitting, and slashing, taking as many of them down as fast as he could. They had caused him and many others nothing but pain and he was paying them back for it one-hundred percent.

He was unaware of the eyes on him and glances sent his way as others caught glimpses of his fast, unyielding rampage through the hoard. He was too focused on his task of wiping out every last one of the filthy creatures between himself and Thanos.

A slit throat here, a broken neck there, three more brought down from a blast of green magic even as two more fell to daggers thrown with perfect precision into their hearts.

He never saw the impressed expressions and appraising looks he was receiving for his rarely shown straightforward hand-to-hand and hand-to-magic fighting style. His magic was so often seen as a crutch, now it was seen as a serious weapon as it cut down rows upon rows of enemies.

)()()(

Steve's eyes locked with those of Johann Schmidt as soon as he stepped through the portal.

They both stood still, just staring at each other across the distance for a long moment. Steve was standing in his red, white, and blue uniform, sans helmet, holding his shield. Red Skull was standing next to Thanos with his fully revealed red face. In his right hand was the golden spear that Loki had used on Earth. How they had gotten a hold of it when it was supposed to still be on Earth, Steve didn't know. But it didn't matter. Red Skull was there, he had the spear, and an old, unfinished battle was about to resume, and this time, it would be resolved one way or another.

)()()(

Loki downed yet another Chitauri and turned to face another when his gaze caught on Thor just as a Chitauri tackled the older prince to the ground. Thor and the creature grappled for a moment before the Chitauri got the upper hand and managed to get on top of Thor. The Chitauri brandished a jagged knife and drove it toward Thor's face. Thor grabbed the creature's wrists, trying to push the knife away but only managed to halt its progress where it was.

Loki's eyes widened. Thor was pinned down with the knife just inches from his neck. He couldn't reach out a hand to call Mjolnir as all of his strength was going into holding the knife at bay.

If Loki didn't do something quickly, Thor would die.

Loki was too far away and would never get there in time if he tried to run. He was out of throwing knives, and he couldn't use his magic without hitting Thor as well.

Loki desperately looked around for anything that could help. His eyes landed on Mjolnir, no more than ten feet away. He knew it was a long shot but it was the only option he had.

He took off running, covering the distance in a few strides, and skidded to a stop beside the hammer.

"Please, please, please," Loki whispered. "Just this once. For him."

He didn't give himself any more time to think about it. He didn't think about whether he could pick it up or not, he didn't think about the implications of whether he could do it or not, he didn't even look at the hammer, his eyes locked back onto his brother instead. The only thought in his mind was keeping his brother safe. In that moment, it was all he cared about.

And that was, perhaps, the reason why, when he wrapped his hand around the hilt of Mjolnir and lifted, there was no resistance or weight to it at all. He didn't even have time to properly register it or wonder if that was the way it always felt for Thor. In one fluid motion, Loki picked up Mjolnir and swung it toward the creature on top of his brother, releasing the hammer only mere seconds after his fingers had touched it.

Loki's aim was true as Mjolnir flew forward and smashed into the Chitauri, knocking it off Thor and killing it instantly. For a long moment, everything seemed to come to a stop around Loki as all eyes locked onto where, or rather who, the hammer had come from. The full weight of what he had just done, finally hit Loki and he was left to marvel at the fact that he had finally, for the first time in his life, been worthy to lift Mjolnir. And not only that, but it wasn't just luck or some trivial moment. It had meant something. When it had counted, when it really mattered, he had been able to use the hammer to save his brother's life.

Loki finally became aware of the shocked and stunned expressions on the faces around him. Loki Odinson, liar, trickster, and mischief maker, had proven himself worthy of wielding Mjolnir. Even if only for a moment.

The only face not stunned beyond words was Thor's. The expression on the blond prince's face as he looked at his brother, could only be described as proud.

Unfortunately, that one moment was as long as the pause lasted. An enemy leaped at Loki, forcing him to begin the fight once more, and breaking everyone else out of their trances as the battle resumed. Any further thought of what had just occurred would have to wait until after the fight was won.

)()()(

The last leviathan let out a dying roar as it slowly fell from the sky. It hit the ground with a resounding crash, both Thor and Hulk still on its back as Tony rocketed overhead.

The dying whale went largely unnoticed by Steve and Red Skull as they continued to punch, kick, and slash at each other.

Steve threw his shield at Red Skull, but the Nazi managed to knock it away with the spear.

"Give up, Captain," Red Skull said, raising the spear to point it at Steve. "You don't have what it takes to defeat me. Especially now I have this."

Steve dove to the ground, avoiding a blue blast from the spear. He tucked and rolled, grabbing his shield and bringing it up just in time to block an overhanded blow from Red Skull.

"Well, that's one person's opinion," Steve said.

He kicked a foot out, tripping Red Skull and making him stumble back several steps. Steve leaped back to his feet. Red Skull recovered quickly and spun, sending a blast of blue energy firing from the spear. Steve raised his shield just in time to catch the blast on it. It deflected right back at Red Skull. Red Skull brought up the spear to block the blast. He kept it from hitting him but the force of the blow knocked him back a few steps.

Steve lunged forward and slammed his shield into Red Skull's face, catching him off balance. The German growled angrily and stabbed toward Steve. The super soldier easily sidestepped the rash attack. Red Skull didn't think the action through and his thrust left him overextended and off balance.

Now was Steve's chance to end this. He spun around, slamming his shield into the spear and wrenching it from Red Skull's grasp. It spiraled through the air and landed on the ground over twenty feet away from them.

Before Red Skull could recover, Steve reared back, and sent his shield flying as hard as he could, right at the former Hydra leader's neck. By the time Steve had his shield back on his arm, Red Skull was on the ground, well and truly dead.

"Apparently two more don't take its place," Steve said sarcastically.

"You have been spending way too much time around your dad," Natasha said with a smirk as she moved past Steve to take on more Chitauri.

"Why thank you for the compliment, Natashalie," Tony said, landing near her and blasting a few Chitauri. He raised his faceplate and turned to look at Steve for a moment, his eyes shining with so much pride before a teasing grin crossed his face. "Well, Son? You going to help or just stand there for the rest of the battle?"

Steve shook his head and grinned fondly before running forward to begin fighting the Chitauri alongside his father.

)()()(

Loki hit the ground hard as a Chitauri slammed into him from behind. The creature landed on top of him and grabbed his neck. Claw-like hands pressed down on Loki's throat, cutting off his air. Loki struggled against the creature but the Chitauri's superior weight and Loki's lack of air, made it impossible for him to pull the hands from his throat. Loki was nothing if not creative, though. If plan A didn't work then he always had a plan B.

To his right, one of his previously used throwing knives was sticking out of a Chitauri corpse. His vision swam as his brain cried out for oxygen. He extended his arm, straining, fingertips fumbling. If he could just reach...

His hand closed around cool metal and he yanked the blade free, driving it upward and into the creature's throat. The Chitauri roared in pain and let go of Loki. He shoved the dying creature off of him and desperately tried to catch his breath.

He knew he couldn't stay down long. A downed fighter in a battle was a dead fighter. Unfortunately, he had to wait for his vision to clear before he could get up. He sucked in several breaths and his surroundings swam back into view. He was only down for a few seconds. Unfortunately, that was too long. As his vision cleared, he looked up to see Thanos some distance away looking at him with an evil sneer.

Thanos had no qualms about striking an opponent while he was down and Loki knew the titan wouldn't hesitate to kill him then and there. Sure enough, Thanos raised his sword, red energy gathering at the point. Loki scrambled to his feet but knew he would never make it out of the way in time. Red energy shot from Thanos' blade.

Loki was going to die without ever having a chance to fight back. For all his pain, for all the things he'd endured and survived, he was going to lose his life just when he'd finally gotten it back. He just hoped his family would survive. He hoped he hadn't failed them. Loki braced himself for the killing blow but it never came as someone moved between him and the approaching blast.

"Father!" Loki screamed as the energy slammed into Odin's chest.

Odin collapsed backward. Loki reached out and caught him, easing him to the ground and holding him in his arms. Odin's chest was a burned, bloody mess and Loki felt helpless. His father had saved his life, taking an attack meant for Loki. Loki hadn't been able to prevent it and he couldn't do anything to save his dying father. It was a testament to Odin's strength that he was still alive. No other warrior struck with one of Thanos' blasts had survived, and yet, not only was Odin still alive, but he was even conscious. Loki knew it wouldn't last. The wound was too severe.

All the fighting around them had ground to a halt at Loki's scream and all eyes were glued on the wounded king. A moment later, Thor fell to his knees next to Loki.

"Father," Thor whispered, his face full of fear as he took in the grievous wound, knowing it was too late but not wanting to accept it.

Thor looked up and met Loki's agonized eyes, fairly begging Loki for some answer, some way to fix it. Loki had none. He broke eye contact with Thor, unable to stand seeing his brother's pain. The younger prince looked past Thor and his gaze landed on Thanos still standing some distance away. As the youngest prince's eyes met those of the titan, the purple man smiled in satisfaction.

You will watch them all die, then you will know pain.

Loki didn't hear the words in his mind but he didn't have to. They were plain in Thanos' hateful eyes. Thor followed Loki's gaze and turned to see Thanos smirking at them. Fury filled Thor's eyes and his grip on Mjolnir's handle tightened.

He was a second away from standing up and rushing to face Thanos when he was stopped by a hand on his arm. He turned back to see Loki holding onto his arm tightly and looking at him with a hard, serious expression. Loki shook his head at him and Thor was about to yank his arm from Loki's hand when the younger prince nodded toward their father, his request clear.

Thor hesitated a moment before setting Mjolnir down and moving to take Loki's place. Loki moved out of the way as Thor gently took Odin into his arms. Loki shifted so he was crouched next to Odin, locking eyes with him for a long moment and gripping Odin's hand tightly.

He leaned over and whispered into his father's ear so only Odin could hear him. Then Loki let go of Odin's hand and stood, his face going dark as he turned to face Thanos.

This ended now.

Loki stepped forward, his eyes landing on the spear that had been left abandoned after Red Skull's death. Loki came to a stop next to it and stared down at the golden weapon. The last time he had touched it, he had been trying to kill his brother and take over Earth. Now he was going to use it to save Asgard. The irony was not lost on him.

He bent down and picked it up, feeling the power running through it, but no longer controlled by that power. When the tesseract's power had been connected to Loki's mind, it had allowed him to wield the power of the jewel in the end of the spear. Even though the control it had over Loki was broken, the tesseract's presence didn't just disappear all at once. Its presence was fading a little more every day, but there were still enough traces left to allow Loki to connect to and use the staff's power. This time, though, the tesseract powered spear would do Loki's will, not the other way around.

Loki had known before the battle even began that Thanos was his fight. It had been his fight ever since the titan had singled Loki out before Thor's coronation, so long ago. The younger prince had always known that if they ever met again, only one of them would walk away.

Now he stood facing Thanos, and for a long moment, the two of them shared a hard, unyielding stare. Deafening silence reigned all around them as if the air itself was holding its breath in anticipation. Then, on some unknown signal, they both sprang forward and the fight began.

)()()(

It had been centuries since any significant battle had taken place on Asgardian soil. However, just because most of Asgard's wars had taken place on other worlds didn't mean that Asgardian soil hadn't seen its fair share of battle in the past.

As King of Asgard, it was within Odin's power to be aware of every aspect of the battle. He watched as Loki fought his way through droves of Chitauri, working his way closer to Thanos. Odin watched as his youngest son saved his brother by lifting Mjolnir and Odin's heart filled with pride for Loki.

However, when he saw Loki get tackled to the ground and pinned down by a Chitauri that began to strangle him, Odin stopped watching and did something he hardly ever did. He used magic. The All-Father had magic, but he so rarely used it that most forgot he possessed such abilities. One moment, Odin was overlooking the battle, the next, he was in the midst of it.

Loki managed to get the Chitauri off of him before Odin got there but then Thanos leveled his blade at Loki, seconds from firing a blast to kill the helpless prince.

Odin didn't hesitate to step between the deadly attack and his youngest son. The pain was excruciating, but he didn't regret it. It didn't kill him instantly, but he knew it would soon. The wound was far too grievous. Already he didn't have the strength to move or speak, so all he could do was lay there as Loki knelt next to him and softly spoke into his ear.

As he listened to Loki's whispered words, Odin wanted to reach out to him or try to speak but the king's arms refused to obey and he could not find his voice.

So Odin was forced to simply watch as Loki stood and walked away to face Thanos, the words, I love you, Father, still ringing in the king's ears.

A/N I know. Cruel cliffhanger. You're probably all really mad at me right now for leaving it that way but I'll never now how mad you are unless you hit that button below that says 'Review.' *Hint, hint.* :P Anyway, let me know what you thought about the chapter and I'll see you (metaphorically of course) next week. :)

P.S. Tomorrow is my birthday and reviews would be the most awesome birthday presents. *Hint. Hint.* :P

Next chapter, the battle you've all been waiting for. Loki and Thanos have it out and it's going to be awesome! If I do say so myself. :)