Okay, I've wrestled with this chapter for a long time and I finally figured out why. I've wanted to do a 20+ chapter fic since I began posting here but have yet to do that. I thought this would be my chance but the story just wasn't that long lol. I'm sorry it took me so long to figure that out but I hope this chapter makes up for it. I know it isn't as long as some of my others in this story but I made sure to pack it as full as possible, it seemed only fitting as it is also the last one. I will be posting a small epilogue in the next couple of days to tie up a couple of things, but this is the last true chapter. I hope you have enjoyed reading this fic as much as I have enjoyed writing it and thanks to all you guys who stuck with me through the whole thing. It's been a roller coaster getting to this point but it paid off and I hope you guys enjoy!

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Final Battles and Tragedy

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The feeling of impact shook Riley to wakefulness. Her body ached all over, more so than it had at the cabin. She gasped in a breath, promptly choking on the dust that was swirling all around her. She curled in on herself as she coughed, the motion jarring every muscle in her body, causing them to scream out simultaneously in protest. She groaned softly, struggling into a sitting position, the world spinning behind her closed eyes.

It took a moment for everything to feel still again, for the spinning feeling to leave her. She waited a moment more before opening her eyes. She wished she hadn't. The view that met her was bleak, to say the least. Everything was gray and barren as far as the eye could see. The ground, the sky, the mountains rising in the distance, everything was simply gray. The earth below her felt dead. There was no variation in the texture, just sandy and hard, no dips, no rises, just a flat dead thing under her hand.

She let out a slow breath, feeling despair and hopelessness rising up inside her. She had no idea where she was, if the others were alive, if they could get to her, even if they were alive. For all she knew, this could be Earth. She could be sitting in the exact same spot where she'd lost consciousness. What if they'd failed? What if this was what the whole universe was like now?

She felt the beginning of hysteria coming on and shook herself. Now was not the time to be falling apart. She had no facts whatsoever and it would do her no good to spend her time on suppositions and histrionics. She needed to get up, get moving, find out at least where she was and if she was relatively safe. There would be time for panic and fear later. She nodded softly to herself, ignoring the pounding headache, and got slowly to her feet. Things didn't look any better from this perspective, but she pushed herself to start moving all the same.

She walked for what felt like forever, her eyes constantly scanning the horizon for any signs of life or change. The sameness of her surroundings made her feel as if she was merely walking in place and she began to find it harder and harder to keep moving. Maybe she wasn't really moving. Maybe she was trapped in some kind of illusion. Maybe she was dead and this was hell. She laughed at that thought. She'd never believed in hell, but if it had existed, this would be hers. The laugh shook her shoulder, reminding her of the last battle she'd engaged in with her little hodge podge family. It had been her finest moment. The stabbing had really hurt, but she'd protected those she loved, and that had been enough for her.

She trudged on, the pain in her body slowly building, fogging her mind, turning her sure footed steps into a zombie like plodding that had her tripping over every small clod of sandy dirt that made its way under her feet. And then, finally, she saw something that woke her from her stupor, a ledge. It was like a shining jewel to her pain fogged mind. Something different! She all but ran to the edge, hoping to see more differences, maybe even people, but she was unprepared for the sight that met her.

Thor and Loki were engaged in all out combat with a large squad of dark elves. Malekith was boarding his ship, leaving all but a few of his followers behind in the barren waste to die at the hands of the brothers. She felt her chest tighten as his power hit her. It was massive! How she hadn't sensed it before was a mystery to her, but there was no denying that he'd gotten everything he'd been after. But then, why had he been pursuing her all this time? She stood at the top of the ledge, lost in thought, unaware of the figure at the mouth of the ship, turning, fixing his eyes on her.

Malekith couldn't help but smile. He had finally become one with his true power. The Aether flowed swiftly in his veins, charging every cell with its power. But there was a nagging sensation at the back of his mind. Something he'd forgotten. It was then that the scent hit him. It was so familiar somehow but he couldn't quite place it. It was something he desperately needed, he knew that much. He turned, his eyes scanning the surface of his home planet, trying to find the source of the scent.

His eyes trailed over his soldiers, bravely fighting the enemy to allow him time to escape. He didn't understand where this sensation was coming from. He knew it was not from his men and neither of the Asgardian filth had anything he would ever want. The human woman had been divested of all the power she'd stolen and there was no one else on this world. He allowed his eyes to move mindlessly over the surrounding land, perhaps there was something he was missing, something that would assure his victory even more so than it already was.

It was then that his gaze lit upon the lone figure standing at the top of the bluff. A small figure, trembling and pale. She looked to be damaged, bruised and bleeding from a shoulder wound. Her face was set in an expression of grim determination, the edges of her lips and eyes rimmed with a frosty blue. Those eyes, such fierce power was in them. It was those eyes that made him remember. The memories of his time in the other realm rushed to the forefront of his mind. How could he have forgotten about her, and that delicious power she had.

He turned to the men that had followed him and barked an order, sending them around the fray and up the hill. They would bring her to him and he would have the ability to not only control the darkness, but to become one with it, he would be a god!

Riley looked down at the rocky hill below her. It was steep and sharp with boulders jutting out every few feet or so. If she tried to climb down, she would mostly likely end up dead, but Loki and Thor were outnumbered and she knew that she could help if she could only reach them. Her eyes moved over the outline of the bluff she was on, looking for an easier way down. She saw a smooth slope off to her right, just as steep but free of crags and spires that might impale her if she slipped. But there was another problem. Another squad of dark elves, the ones that had been with Malekith, were making their way over to it.

She let out a sharp breath, suppressing the fear and blatant irritation that was rising up inside her. If she was going to survive this, she needed to remain calm and collected. She had the power, at least, she hoped she still did, and she knew that if she could just focus, she could at least clear a path for herself. She didn't wait for them to come to her. She silenced her mind, reaching down into that place where her energy had always been and found the bitter cold reaching back up to her. She couldn't help the smile that spread across her face as she readied herself. These guys were going down.

Loki had never felt so elated before. He was free of Odin's ridiculous prison, soon he would be free of his brother's suffocating presence and from there it was simply a matter of playing a few tricks and he would finally have the throne he'd always longed for. All that was left was for him to have a little accident.

He rounded on yet another dark elf, his daggers dancing in the wan light that seemed near constant on this wasted rock. He had to make it look convincing or Thor would never believe it. His brother may be an idiot when compared to his massive intellect, but he was by no means a fool. A surprise attack seemed most likely to be believed, it was hard for even one so skilled as himself to keep an eye on every opponent in a melee of this size. Yes, that would do nicely.

He grinned, preparing the illusions that would gain him his freedom, when a sharp spike of icy power pulled his attention upward. There was a woman there, battered and bleeding, her skin faintly blue, though she appeared to be a simple mortal. She was facing off against at least six dark elf soldiers and while it couldn't be said that she was doing well, she was certainly giving them a hard fight. Something about her was so familiar, he knew her, though he was sure they'd never met. He knew that she would be laughing right now, facing down death with a smile so as to hide the terror she was truly feeling. She knew that even though she was in pain, she wouldn't stop until she died. He knew that she would expend every ounce of power she had to protect those she cared about, even though it hurt her even to use his power.

At that thought, his whole mind froze. His power, she was using his power. How had she gained his power? How had he known that the power she was using was his own? He saw rune stones, glowing faintly in moonlight against snow. The memory of a small mortal female yelling at him, her hands bandaged, pinpricks of blood seeping through where shards of ice had cut their way out of her skin. Riley. Her name was Riley. The battle sped up again, the memories rushing back to him as he dodged the attack that had been meant to "kill" him. He had to help her. But just as he moved to advance on the ledge, a sled of ice raced downward, carrying a laughing Riley away from the six confused soldiers.

She slid to a halt barely three feet from him, her honest grin turning to a grimace as her body bowed inward. Her strength was failing her. She looked up, her eyes already beginning to mist over, and smiled as his face swam into her vision. She took a step forward, the ice melting instantly, only to stumble and fall against him.

"Found you." She laughed, her whole body trembling.

"I was unaware I was lost." His voice was soft as he spoke, lacking its usual snark. She laughed softly, gasping audibly as the action brought intense pain.

"Malekith still wants what you gave me. He won't leave without it. We can use that." Her voice was soft, barely above a whisper, but her mind was still clear enough to formulate a plan. Malekith needed to be on Earth to unleash the Aether to it's full extent, and he was running out of time to get there. He wouldn't leave without claiming the power that Riley had taken from Loki, which meant he would never make it to Earth, if they could stall him long enough.

"No, absolutely not. We will find another way." Loki held her tightly, feeling the sum of all their shared affection crash over him in one wave. He felt a hand on his cheek, it was cold, too cold. He looked down at her, the blue was creeping further across her skin.

"Don't argue with me Silver Tongue, we don't have the time." She smiled softly, pulling herself away from him and moving off toward the fray. He moved to follow her, intent of keeping her from this idiocy, only to be faced with the six soldiers that had finally managed their way down. Perhaps there was a way to combine his goals and keep the girl all at once. He felt a smile pull across his face as he squared his shoulders.

Riley stumbled around the edge of the battle, her body becoming increasingly difficult to move. She knew she didn't have long left. She had pushed her body too far and now that power that had supported and protected her was turning on her, devouring her energy and with it, her life. She didn't mind this fate. She knew there was no way she could ever return to anything close to a normal life now. The portal was closed, her world in ruins, her friends and family gone. All she had left was the family she'd made for herself, and so long as they were safe, she could die happy.

Malekith's ship came into view, the monster himself standing at the base of the landing ramp, looking smug and self assured, just as he'd always appeared in her visions of him. Riley felt anger suffuse her being. This was the bastard that had ravaged her world, made her a victim several times over, taken her family from her and doomed her to die on a barren, god forsaken rock in a dimension that wasn't even supposed to be real. This was the bastard that had started it all and ruined any chance she'd ever have and being happy and normal.

The blast of icy wind that came rolling off of her was enough to reach the battle site, sending a few of the soldiers to heir knees. Malekith barely moved, the smug expression remaining firmly in place. He knew she was no match for him. He knew that she would expend herself in a futile gesture of revenge and then he would have all he could ever want. But the one thing he didn't know, the one thing that would prove to be too much even for him, was about to happen on the battlefield.

Riley felt the blow before she heard it. It was like someone had suddenly taken her heart away. It hadn't been ripped out or stabbed or anything so dramatic as all that, it was simply suddenly missing. She turned, her mind screaming at her not to look, not to make it real, even though she already knew what it was. She saw him fall. She saw the sword pulled free from his back. Everything seemed to slow down, the whole universe ground to a halt as she watched his body land, a small cloud of dust moving to momentarily obscure him from her view. She watched as the remaining elves moved in on both brothers, intent on finishing the task they'd been set. It was too much. It was just too much. It was one loss too many for her mind to handle.

She felt the scream building in her chest, it was a physical weight against her battered ribs. She knew she was going to die, but her one solace had been that he would live. He would go on to accomplish other things. Love other women. Perhaps even find happiness with someone else. But that was all gone now and with it went the last shred of sanity she had. She fell to her knees, the scream ripping its way out of her throat, bringing a explosion of ice with it. The moment her knees hit the ground, the ice began to spread, racing over the ground, sharp spires erupting from it to skewer any careless enough to be nearby. With the spires came blast waves powerful enough to knock even Malekith from his feet.

The storm continued to build, the wind whipping the soldiers up off their feet and onto the spires. It was as if the very spirit of all that Loki's power had been was unleashed in full on this one little spot of Svartalfheim. What little amount of light there ever was on the planet was obscured, sleet fell in stinging sheets from the blackened sky and the ice continued to spread, felling all in its path. And then, just as suddenly as it had come, it was over. The screaming had stopped, Riley lay motionless in the middle of the blasted icy landscape, her power utterly spent.

Malekith approached her slowly, unsure of what to expect after the outburst but she was simply a mortal now. The power that had been humming within her was gone, replaced with the same quietness all mortals shared. She had spent it all in one last attack, one last attempt to end the lives of those who had taken the one she loved. He snarled, kicking her over to the defeated Asgardians before boarding his ship. He had to be quick if he was to achieve his ultimate goal.

Riley lay still, her mind a blank sheet of white pain. He was gone. Loki was gone and she was left alone, again, in a world she didn't understand and to which she didn't belong. She had never felt so empty as she did in that moment. Her life seemed to shrink away to a single point of pure white agony and it was only the shaking of her body that roused her from her stupor. It was Thor, shaking her to wakefulness and urging her to move. Jane was there as well, trying to pull her away from the body she had subconsciously curled against.

"We can't just leave him here." Her voice sounded small even to her, small and weak and she knew that they weren't going to listen, even before the words had left her mouth. Neither spoke, simply looking between her and her fallen lover. Thor put a hand to her uninjured shoulder and shook his head, scooping her into his arms and carrying her away when it looked as if she might continue to argue.

SO there you have it, the final chapter. I will be posting a short Epilogue within the next few days so don't worry, the story isn't quite over yet. Thanks for sticking with me through the ups and downs of this fic, you guys are the best, really *mass hugs*