Thanks everyone for being patient! Here's the next installment. Hope you enjoy.

Loki escorted Ellie to Frigga's chambers. Thor and Jane were already there holding onto each other as Odin and Frigga talked quietly in the corner. Ellie could not believe the sight of the three men dressed in their battle gear. Jane obviously had the same feeling. Frigga took it all in stride having been through many similar situations.

"We would like the three of you to stay here together. There will be guards posted outside," Odin said as he stood in front of the three women. "Watch out for one another and this will hopefully all be over soon."

The women nodded in understanding. They all looked amongst each other, but nobody seemed to want to say anything more. Loki grabbed Ellie's hand and pulled her out onto the balcony.

"We must go now, my love. I wanted to say….." Loki began, but Ellie brought her fingers to his lips.

"No words," she whispered and kissed Loki with all she had.

…..

Ellie's heart ached as they sat and waited. Would they hear the battle? All she could do was sit and worry. Jane paced around the room while Frigga made sure they were comfortable. After a bit Jane finally sat down, but then it all seemed too quiet and Ellie had to get up to pace. Her robe kept loosening so she had to keep tightening the belt, pull up the sleeves and move the bottom so she wouldn't trip over it.

"I may have something for you to wear my dear." Frigga walked over to a chest and opened the top. Pulling something out she walked back over to the bed. "These should fit you."

Ellie moved to her side and picked up the articles of clothing. The first was a small pair of leather pants and then a long sleeved shirt. Frigga picked up the last piece and showed her a green and brown leather coat.

"This was Loki's first battle outfit from when he was eight. Thor and Loki wanted to be just like their father, so we had battle outfits made for them." Frigga looked at the clothes with a wistful smile. "I believe it should fit you, dear, and be more comfortable than the robe."

Ellie pulled on the leather pants. They were long and a bit tight on her curvy hips, but they would work. Pulling the shirt over her head, she thought of Loki out on that battlefield fighting alongside his brother and father to protect their home. She took a deep breath and rolled up the sleeves. Frigga held up the coat to help Ellie put it on and then turned her to face the big gilded mirror. Ellie could not believe how she looked. Then a picture of a little Loki flashed in her mind causing a small smile to play across her lips.

Ellie walked out onto the balcony and looked out over the city. The city was so quiet with all the women and children in hiding while the men went out to fight. She leaned up against the railing and started to wring her hands together. That's when she heard it. There was a definite rumble off in the distance.

They were so high up in the palace that Ellie could see out past the city to the surrounding area. Ellie followed the sound of the rumble and noticed movement off in the distance. The rumbled turned into a roar as the movement got closer to the city.

Odin organized the men quickly. The scouts reported back that the Frost Giant army was on the move and almost to the city. There was no time to intercept them further away. Now that they had their casket back, they would be at full strength, meaning this fight would be bloody. Thor and Loki stood on either side of their father and were at the ready to protect their home and the ones they love.

They could hear the rumble of the massive army as it moved through the trees. Odin had chosen to gather his men in a large clearing about a mile out of the city. As the giants drew closer, the men readied themselves. They did not have to wait long. The rumble changed into a roar as the giants burst out of the forest.

Thor held up his hammer and Odin gripped his staff while Loki took his stance with a knife gripped in both hands. The giants rushed out of the trees and crossed the clearing without stopping. Odin led his men straight on to meet the Frost Giant army clashing into a sea of bodies.

Loki saw men crashing into giants. Giants throwing men. Men slaying giants. Loki had been in battle before, but this was different. This one was in his home and now he had a woman he loved to protect. Fighting every giant that came his way, Loki used magic and weapons to dispatch them any way he could. Thor fought right by his side and Odin his other.

The battle raged on and on as more Giants seemed to appear. They kept pouring out of the forest as if there was no end. Odin had ordered for men to stay in the city to protect the women and children if the army should be overrun and it seemed that was exactly what was going to happen. A particularly large Giant stepped out of the forest carrying the casket and turned it upon the battlefield, taking down one Asgardian after another.

"Father!" Thor yelled while dispatching a giant. "You make sure the giants do not get into the city. I am going after the casket."

"We are going after the casket, brother," Loki yelled while taking down his own giant. "I think in this case, both of us are required."

Loki and Thor fought their way to the giant with the casket. He was taking down one after another of their men and even small groups at a time. The bodies began piling up. Thor threw his hammer, but the giant ducked out of the way and released a burst from the casket that hit Thor straight on and threw him twenty feet. Shaking it off, Thor stood and called his hammer back to him. Loki fought off the other giants that were trying to protect the leader. The scene was absolute chaos as Thor and Loki fought, neither one gaining any advantage.

Then the leader unleashed the full force of the casket. Thor held up his hammer to shield himself as the giant was relentless and did not let up. Thor was pushed to his knees as the giant advanced on him. The full force slowly pushed Thor back.

Loki could not believe what he was seeing. The fury started to rise in him. He could not let the giants win. Loki threw bursts of magic from his hands at the giant, but they had no effect. This angered him even more. Then, warmth began to tingle over his heart and then spread throughout his body. It made his whole body ripple with energy. Loki balled up his fists and threw a huge burst of purple energy directly at the Frost Giant. It hit him so hard that it threw him off his feet. Thor regained his footing and looked at Loki with surprise. Loki shrugged his shoulders and they both turned to the giant. He stood slowly and stared the brothers down.

As Loki and Thor charged, the giant yelled, "This is not over!"

With a flash of blue, the leader disappeared along with the giants directly around him. Thor and Loki stopped short and looked at one another. Hearing the battle continuing on behind them, they turned to see that the few men left were greatly outnumbered.

Ellie stood on the balcony listening to the distant sounds of the battle while wringing her hands together. She could see flashes of blue and then felt a twinge in her chest. Rage. Loki. She could feel him. Purple sparks fell from her twisting hands as she saw a huge flash of purple overpower the blue. Trembling from the new found magic, Ellie shook out her hands. What was going on? She leaned onto the railing for support and hung her head. What was happening to her?

When she opened her eyes and looked down into the city streets, she saw a large group of Frost Giants making their way into the palace.

"Oh shit!" Ellie quickly ran inside. "Giants are coming into the palace!"

"What do we do?" Jane asked.

"Over here." Frigga said as she moved to a large hanging tapestry. Pulling it aside she revealed a rather large supply of weapons.

"I don't know how to use any of this stuff," Ellie said looking at the different items.

"It does not matter now. I would rather you have something to protect yourself with, than nothing at all," Frigga said ushering them over.

Jane looked at the weapons and decided on a short sword. Ellie grabbed a large knife and a spear. She had luck the last time she used one, maybe her luck would hold. Frigga armed herself with a sword and a large knife. Grabbing the two women, she had them line up in the middle of the room.

"When they come, do what you can to protect yourself."

The three women stood, just waiting. At first it was quiet. Too quiet. Then they could hear them. The giants were coming up the stairs and down the hall. The guards outside sounded as though they put up a good fight, but as the doors burst open, it was obvious there were too many of them. The hallway was full of Frost Giants. A small group slowly walked into the room.

"Ah. Just the woman we were looking for," Byleistr said as he approached them.

Frigga stepped in front of Ellie, "You will not touch her."

"You do not have a choice. We came here for her and we will take her. An eye for an eye." Byleistr said advancing on them.

Frigga held up her sword and swung at the giant. Byleistr deflected the blow and hit her across the face. Frigga's body hit the floor and slid to the side. Jane ran and knelt down beside her. Ellie moved to stand in front of them, never taking her eyes off of the giants. There were too many for them to fight alone.

"I will not let you hurt them!" Ellie yelled.

Loki and Thor hurried back to help the men that were left. Odin was still in the fray, but the Frost Giants had the upper hand. Thor flew in with his hammer, Loki flung his knives and Odin sent blasts of energy out of his staff. Frost Giants fell, but they kept coming.

Loki turned just as Odin swung his staff at one giant and three came up from behind. Odin fell.

"Father!" Loki roared.

Thor turned to see Odin on the ground. He threw his hammer and took out two of the giants. Loki's rage grew and the warmth in his chest returned. He began to recognize that feeling. Loki concentrated and focused all his energy into that feeling. The energy turned into a tingle across his skin. A giant came at him, Loki turned to fight and when he made contact the giant froze and then burst into ash.

"Excellent," Loki whispered to himself as he looked at his hands in surprise.

He felt the power coursing through his body and began to smile. Slowly looking up at the battle, he knew he could end this. Now.

Loki advanced on the unsuspecting giants, cutting them down one by one. The power coursed through him with ease. Frost Giants came at him and Loki turned them all into ash. Some even ran from him when they realized what he could do. Stalking through the battlefield, Loki cleared it of the remaining giants in a matter of minutes.

Odin lay on the ground and watched as Loki took down the Frost Giants. The rage on Loki's face was intimidating. He moved through the giants and took them down, without hesitation, until there were none left. When the final giant disappeared, Loki stood and his eyes scanned the clearing. He breathed deeply and held his arms stiffly at his sides.

Odin raised himself off the ground and slowly approached Loki. "My son," he said tentatively. "It is over. They are all gone."

Loki remained as he was. Like a predator waiting to pounce on its prey.

Thor stepped up beside Odin. "Brother. You did it."

There was still no change. Odin and Thor remained silent. They could not tell what frame of mind he was truly in.

"Sire!" a guard yelled as he ran up.

Odin turned towards the guard as Thor took a step towards Loki to make sure he did not turn on them.

"Sire! A group of Giants got past us and moved into the city."

"How many?" Odin asked.

"I am not sure, Sire. I could not tell during the battle. I am sorry." The guard managed to get out.

"Jane," Thor said. "We have to get back to the palace."

"I believe they are going back for Ellie," Odin said turning to look at Loki.

"Loki! We have to get back to the palace!" Thor yelled at his brother.

Loki could hear Thor yelling at him, but did not register what he was saying. The energy flowing through his body felt exhilarating. His senses were so high.

"Brother!" Thor yelled at Loki again. "The Frost Giants have gone after Ellie in the palace!"

Ellie? The Frost Giants were going after Ellie. Loki sobered from his high. The giants were after the woman he loved. Finally blinking, Loki turned to Thor and his father.

"How do you know?" Loki asked. "Did we not get them all?"

"A group got past us and are heading to the palace," replied Thor.

Without a word, Loki began to run back to the city. Thor swung his hammer and flew towards Loki, grabbing him as he passed.

Byleistr stared Ellie down. He could not believe the courage this woman had. She was laughingly outnumbered, but still stood against them. Hellbindi had tasked him to collect Ellie and bring her back while he took out the army on the battlefield. The group had easily entered the palace, so he could not possibly fail his brother.

Ellie stared back at the giant in front of her. His size intimidated her, but she was not going to let them hurt Frigga and Jane.

"Your weapons are useless little one," Byleistr said. "There is no point in fighting me. Put them down and come quietly, or they will be hurt."

Ellie didn't think she could believe him. They wanted to hurt her. They wanted to use her to hurt Loki. She would rather die fighting than be taken.

"You will not take me and you sure as hell are not going to touch them." Ellie glared up at Byleistr. "I don't care who you are or what you want with me, but it ain't gonna happen."

"You have no choice, human. You cannot fight me."

Byleistr advanced on Ellie and she thrust the spear up towards his chest as he reached for her. Ellie made contact, but it only got him in the shoulder. Byleistr reached with his other arm and Ellie ducked, spun around behind him and swung the knife across his back. He roared as he felt the knife slice into his skin. Ellie knew she could not stop now. She took as many swings at him as she possibly could before he landed a blow across her back and sent her sliding along the floor on her belly. Ellie tried to push herself up on her arms, but the blow knocked her senseless.

"Enough of this nonsense! Now they will die and you will come with us," Byleistr said moving towards Jane and Frigga.

Shaking her head, Ellie tried to remove the fog out of her mind. Ellie saw as the giant reached down and grabbed Jane by the waist and pulled her away from Frigga. Jane started to scream as the giant picked her up and brought her up to face level.

Turning to look at Ellie, he said, "Remember, this is your doing."