Chapter 1

Thor's Agony

One month ago…..

Underneath glistening Asgard, stands Odin's treasure vault. Where you would expect sewers and rats, there are the stones of the universe, power sources that could take out planets, and trophies from past wars.

In this room, walks a soldier. Purpose radiates from his being. He looks straight past two other Einherjar soldiers.

This Einherjar looks no different than any other: golden locks, golden armour. What lies behind his icy iris's, however, would melt fire into your skin.

He slows his pace. The Tesseract. It's magic slips through the air, curling and weaving its way into the guard's heart. A trance consumes his form.

His fingers just lightly brush the edges, a mere caress.

Cue the scene change.

Galaxy; a billion pigments. Blue transcends his view.

The guard turns. There, on a rocky throne, is the Mad Titan himself. Purple face, glinting armour, smirk; the most grandiose figure you could imagine

"Ah, Loki," he laughs, the sound malicious and deep. "There is no need to disguise yourself in front of me. I know you from the inside out."

Green mist clouds the guard. When it runs away into oblivion, a wide eyed man appears. One dressed in green and black leather; gold and silver armour.

Loki.

He clears his throat, trying to regain his composure, but the shock is still evident on his face. Loki begins to speak, or stutter. Thanos cuts him off.

"You know why you're here, Loki. The first phase of the plan is complete. You now have in your possession both the Tesseract and my other Gauntlet." Thanos chuckles a bit. "I have to say, I'm impressed. You have all those around you fooled. Although," Loki's face is becoming more and more passive at an alarming rate, "You did fail to bring me back the Infinity stone in the scepter I gave you, although I suppose you had no choice."

Purple swells before Loki, as Thanos rambles slowly up to him in the sea of blue galaxy. This Mad Titan, the white whale of the galaxy, has pinpointed him with his death black pupils. Loki tries not to cower.

"I want my stuff back," Thanos growls, right in Loki's face. "You need to stop delaying and bring me the Tesseract and Gauntlet. And I decided to make a small change to the deal: I want to leave this rock and you're going to help me. If, if, you don't do what I say," He pulls his mass even closer to Loki and his hands mock a choke hold, "I will make you wish you had died in that abyss. I will make you wish you knew something as sweet as pain." Thanos squares back up. "You know what you must do then?"

Loki refocuses. He had been staring into the abyss, slowly losing his soul again, more and more. Until, soon, Loki is sucked away. Now here is a puppet.

"Yes."

Present time…..

"HEIMDALL! HEIMDALL! I KNOW YOU CAN HEAR ME HEIMDALL. OPEN THE BIFROST," yells Thor.

He pounds the rail of his balcony. The vast universe has no respect for the God of Thunder. It simple stares him in the eye, all the realms held in its hand.

Heimdall doesn't speak through the night: even more disrespect.

Dry anger courses through Thor's veins. His dream of the vision of Heimdall and other Asgardians dead still haunts him. It had made Thor feel sick; nauseous. The dead white pupils of the powerful made an oxymoron that will forever plague him.

It has become a regular occurrence: waking up in a cold sweat, then cursing Odin for caging him here on Alfheim. Ever since Thor left Midgard, instead of going to earth, Heimdall had sent him to Alfheim, home of the light elves. Their capital, Ljosalfar, has become his temporary shelter. King Freyr is the usual boisterous Light Elf. Oh so ready to show off his vast wealth: the mermaid lagoons, champagne springs, and orchards the size of oceans, and all surrounded by a magical forest. What a beautiful cage.

Thor needs to go. He has to tell the news: Asgard is in imminent danger. Despite being told this is a diplomatic mission, Thor's gut (and a God's gut is rarely wrong) growls that this is a blockade. Couldn't Odin let Thor up to Asgard for a short time? Instead, Odin has steadfastly refused to let him in. Munin, Odin's raven, was sent with the message to stay for a few more weeks.

After all that happened on earth, the tranquility of this realm is almost priceless. It seems degrading to shout what is vile here. Heimdall is useless. All this yelling is for not. Asgard will not accept it's savior.

The Thunder god dejectedly turns around and walks back into his room. Water drips like tears down his face. They slowly descend back into the bowl on the dresser. Not much of a refreshing cleanse. Oh so very telling, though.

With his long, blond hair tangling on the pillow, Thor tries to fall back asleep. But it's no use. Thor lays awake the entire night. His furiosity at Odin and Heimdall is barely subsided by dawn. The thought of facing another day of meeting and greeting elves doesn't help.

Thor straps his identity onto him. While you could see it as metal and fabric, isn't that what heroes have becomes to the people? Thor's title is now what he must be. He leaves the forsaken room.

The hall he walks is made of stone. Vines slither up the moist walls. The stone is crumbling slightly and patches of sunlight come in through them. It's simply more of the ethereal beauty this cage throws at Thor.

A Light Elf girl comes from an alcove off the side. Thor nods his head to her and she gives him a dazzling smile. He looks not at her again.

Even though the light elves are some of the most beautiful creatures in existence, Thor is not won over by their charms. Ever since Jane called their relationship off, Thor had become numb to other women. It's not that he was surprised. Their love had metamorphosed into a tolerance; strained. Thor had to keep up his title and protect the realms; Jane couldn't share her love of science with him. Their temporary love wilted. A mark was forever left on Thor's heart. Whenever he sees a beautiful woman smile or giggle, or even speak, it reminds him of Jane. Now he blurs their faces; numbs what could stab him again.

The throne room unfolds before him in magnificent spirals and columns of marble. The dining room is right past. Thor's loud footsteps alert the people in the room to his presence. Elf's robes float in the wind, full of rich colors, and swarm the room with vibrancy. Harsh gold metal stands apart from the fluttering. The man turns. Fandral calls out brightly, "Thor!"

"Fandral!" Thor clasps his friend on the back. "What are you doing here?"

"Odin sent me down to calm you, my dear fellow! Heimdall reported you shouting obscenities at him, and I knew that was unlike the Thor I know, so I volunteered. This beautiful lady right here," Fandral wraps his arm around the waist of a young, beautiful elf, "Was telling me there is a lovely trail that goes through the forest to a champagne spring, which I just have to see. I thought we could talk of news of Asgard as we ride. How does that sound?"

Thor is obviously enthused with the idea of getting away from the palace. Perhaps Fandral will know more of Odin's workings in Asgard. So the dynamic duo heads out.

The horses breaths are gentle, adding more warm air to the atmosphere. Pebbles smack beneath their hooves. The path is like a tail, waving from the back of the palace to the forest behind. Small white puffs sprinkle the sky. The terrain is more welcome than parts of Alfheim that contain ice and snow, a large part of why the capital is so populated.

"Fandral, what news of Asgard?" Thor cannot even wait until the trail creeps into the forest.

"Nothing big, my dear chap. No new wars or rebellions. Everything is peaceful in the golden city, as well as the nine realms. Although…."

"What Fandral?" Thor's forehead becomes crinkled in concern.

"I do not mean to alarm you Thor," He shifts slightly in his saddle. "But the Allfather is, I don't know quite how to put this, acting queer. Ever since Loki's death, he hasn't been the same. It's possibly the overwhelming grief of losing both Frigga and Loki, but he is very unusual. The Allfather disappears for an hour, only eats breakfast in his room, unlike his normal breakfast with his generals, and he pounces at the slightest offence."

Thor's face is descending into confusion. He has no ascendancy over this situation. His father is being engrossed in an abnormal grief. He is helpless is rescue him.

Fandral is staring piercing pressure to deliver this news to Thor has weighed upon him. Now, it is like a dull ache is slowly pressing his back into a hunch beyond his years. Fandral must carry on.

"For any crime committed, Odin immediately sends them to the prison underneath the palace. And, this is most strange: Odin has built a separate prison." Confusion washes over Fandral's handsome features. "Only a few guards are there, probably two, and it is quite a ways from the palace. Odin sends only a few prisoners there, mostly magic users or creatures that have magical properties, claiming that the prisons under the palace are not strong enough. You know, after what happened with Kurse." Fandral tries to skimp over the touchy subject.

The trees whisper. The trickle and soft cascade of a waterfall tickles Thor's ears. Vines cuddle the trees. Shafts of sun dance through the air. Thor takes a deep inhale.

"Again, Thor, I don't want to worry you but I felt you should know," Fandral says after seeing Thor's attempts at calm.

"No, thank you Fandral. It is better me knowing, although this is indeed troubling. Even more so, for my father will not let me comfort him. Odin has always been a prideful man. I suppose this is why he has left me on Alfheim. He doesn't want for me to see him grieving." Thor tries to use this explanation to make sense of his father's behaviour, but something just doesn't fit; a missing piece.

"I think you are right Thor. We must help him! The Allfather needs you." Fandral's teeth seem to shine as his face breaks out into a grin. Gesticulating around him, Fandral proclaims exuberantly, "I will go straight to Asgard and convince Heimdall to open the Bifrost. We have convinced him to go against the Allfathers command before, surely we can do it again!"

Worlds turn and pivot before Thor's eyes. Nightmares pass his eyelids. His soul feels sick. Something about this situation is wrong. Thor must get back to Asgard, but he can't trust anyone there. Heimdall has been a faithful servant of Asgard since Thor was a child. If Odin could be overtaken, though, anyone could be. Thor can't look past Heimdall's dead eyes in his vision...

He says deeply and quietly, "Perhaps it would not be wise."

"Why ever not?!"

"The Infinity stones."

Fandral raises an eyebrow.

The wind dances over Thor's face. A long strand of hair flows across his face. It reflects his restless spirit.

"When I was down on Midgard, The Avengers and I faced a formidable foe: a metal man named Ultron. One of his old allies, now ours, used her powers to distract us; she gave us visions. I saw all Asgardians dead. Heimdall's eyes," Thor lowers his voice even more, "Were blank; he couldn't see. I needed to know what doom had befallen him. I went to the Water of Sight on Midgard. The spirits accepted me and I was allowed to reenter my dream. Extinction was Asgard's fate.

"It was all caused by the greatest powers in the universe: Infinity stones. Capable of destroying whole planets, and someone is planning to unleash them. They are playing a game right behind our heads." Thor's eyes are cold.

He meets Fandral's gaze. This is cataclysmic. The condemnation of Asgard is intimate.

"I believe we might want to skip the champagne springs, then," says Fandral.

Ardous breathing and the palpitating hooves of the horses fill their ears. Thor and Fandral cannot save the realms in a matter of minutes. The speed of the horses will change nothing. Nonetheless, every second is shrouded with urgency. One minute wasted is de trop.

Fandral and Thor emerge from the forest. Hysteria. Panic is pummeled into their brains in feral yells. The two kick their horses, urging them to go as fast as possible. The palace nears. Then they are in front of the stable.

An elf man calls out to the stable boys, frantically, "The Dark Elves have returned!"