"Tali! We have to run! We can't stay here! He's aiming for the Tower!"

"I know! I'm coming!"

"Tali!"

There was more chaos than they were used to, they were running from the only place they'd known as home, it was all a rush, too much too fast.

He was pulling her hand through the doors, of course they exploded the moment they were out.

"Leif, where's Ref?" Tali asked the moment they were back on their feet, covered in dirt, and bruised, but it didn't matter.

"With Dad," Leifr let out a long breath that could have been the start of a sob, he was protective of his baby brother.

"Let's go find them," she said, but they didn't see, the droid-no the suit big bulking and metal behind them.

"LEIFR! TALI! BEHIND YOU!" the shout was the only warning they had, they moved the second the words were out of Tony's mouth, if they had been a second later they would have been crushed.

The both rolled to the side, hoping to their feet in seconds, Tali pulled out her gun and fired several shots that only bounced off of the armor.

"That shit is getting really fucking annoying!" she snapped, pulling the bow off of her back and aiming an arrow in the next second. "Now!" Leifr had his collapsible repulsors on his hands, then he fired, he'd needed a second to charge them, then they hit the suit, a second later the arrow flew and embedded in the half melted metal of the suit, it exploded.

They retreated further, coming across Tony and Loki both decked out in full armor, Refr was held in Tony's arm cling to him as best he could, sniffling, he didn't like all of the fighting and screaming.

"What's going on?" Tali asked, "This isn't like his normal pattern, what changed?"

"We don't know," Branden said from their ear pieces, "He's looking for something-shit! The suit is still active and it's coming right at you!"

"Tali! I want you to take Refr and get out of here! Leifr you need to cover them!" Tony said giving the child to Tali who, along with Leifr, protested.

"But-"

"Dad! Papa!"

"No! You will go, now!" Loki said, his eyes blazing, magic flickered about him in his anger. "I will not have my children in this battle!"

"Come on," Tali said, grabbing Leifr's wrist and pulling him along, Refr was sobbing openly now.

"Daddy! Papaaa!" he whined, crying over Tali's shoulder, both of his fathers turned away, they couldn't stop to comfort him now.

"It's going to be okay, Buddy," Tali whispered in his ear, holding him tightly while Leifr used his repulsors to ward off the other droids now coming at them.

But that didn't stop the suit from coming at them, it landed right in front of them, Tali had to roll to avoid a hit, it was hard when she was holding a wailing four year old.

She gasped a bit as she landed on her wrist wrong, and then there were screams of her name, there was a shadow above her, and then suddenly she was knocked out of the way with a cry.

"NO!"

"LEIFR!"

Tali looked around with horror and could not hold back a cry of her own, "No!"

His body was bent wrong. His legs were bent slightly at the knee, while his waist was bent further, his spine arching back in a way that was painful, his back parallel with the ground, his chest facing the sky. His arms were limp as he gasped in pain but he reached up and clutched at the metal that was stabbing through him and pinning him to the ground.

The metal suddenly broke into pieces all attached to a chord, it retracted.

He screamed.

He was caught before he could drop to the ground by red and gold armor, the helmet retracted.

"Leifr! Leifr come on look at me! It's going to be okay!" Tony was touching his face gently, "It's okay!"

"D-Dad…" the boy choked, his eyes were clouded with pain, he was bleeding, too much there was too much blood! "Dad…I-I'm….s-sorry…" he gasped out, his eyes were already bleeding tears.

"No! No god, you have nothing to apologize for. Oh Leifr, it's going to be okay!" Tony was crying too, there were flashes of green and gold magic bursting around them reflecting on Tony's armor, Loki was lost in his anger, attacking anything that moved, sending droids flying, lashing out at the suit with every ounce of magic he possessed. No one harmed his child.

"D-dad…I…love…you…" he gasped, "And…Papa…I…love…you… I'm…sorry-"

"No! You're going to be okay! Dammit! LOKI!" Tony was sobbing and shaking, "We love you too! So much! But you're going to be okay! LOKI!"

"T…ali…" Leifr's eyes lost their luster and his breath stopped on her name and she sobbed. Tony was sobbing too until finally he set his dead son gently down on the ground, and closed his eyes.

"Tali, take Refr and get out of here," he said, his voice gruff.

"But-"

"GO!" he snapped, "GET OUT! DO NOT LET HARM COME TO MY SON!"

Tali sobbed again and clutched more tightly to Refr who was openly bawling. She was up in seconds and running as fast as she could, crying along with the child.

She looked back to see Tony get hit by a beam that pierced right through his armor and he collapsed like a rag doll, she heard Loki's roar of despair. She didn't see her Uncle Loki again.

She didn't see her Uncle Tony again.

She never saw her boyfriend again.

She collapsed into Branden's arms when she got to him, Refr safely in her mother's arms, she sobbed, she could feel the tears hit her cheek as he cried for his other best friend.

Their trio…was now a duo.