A/N: Thanks for reading and reviewing!
*mini-spoiler* (don't like, don't read): The account on Norse mythology is just internet-based and of course changed for my purposes insofar I take the freedom to actually change the item in question.
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Steve makes his way down the corridors of the mansion to come to stand in front of Loki's room. He normally knows better than to interrupt the God of Mischief if she withdraws to her own place, but Fury wanted to see her about a problem that he hoped she could help solve. However, the trickster didn't return any of the messages – and Loki still insists to disappear from Jarvis's radar, which means that they often have to go looking for the goddess if they want to have counsel with her. Well, and Steve ended up with the task today to gather her.
He should have taken the other straw, darn.
Not that Steve is afraid of Loki or doesn't like being around her, but all know by now that if she keeps away, the trickster does so for a reason. Actually, once you arranged yourself with Loki's habits, it's pretty easy to live with her in peace.
And who would have guessed after all that's happened until they were saved by a hooded warrior from a guy whose head looks like an egg?
The blond man makes his way inside because the door is apparently unlocked, which only adds to his confusion. Normally, if Loki has one of her moods, she shuts all doors and only comes back out once she is… done… with that mood. Because honestly? No one knows what she is up to during times such as these.
"Loki? Hello?" Steve asks cautiously. He walks further into the room, frowning. "Loki? We didn't see you all day long and we are kinda worried, so… could you give any sign that you are alive?"
"I am," comes her voice from somewhere.
"Okay… where are you?" Steve asks.
"In the bathroom," Loki replies, her voice sounding rather strained.
"Oh, I'm sorry, but… ugh. Well… I come here in Fury's name. We wanted to discuss something in the plenum and he asked if you could join to offer a new perspective perhaps…," Steve explains. "So if you find the time, it'd be great if you could drop by, you know?"
"I fear that I won't be able to attend that meeting," Loki replies.
"Why? Is something wrong? Are you sick?" Steve asks worriedly.
"No," Loki grunts.
"Then what is the matter?" he questions. "You know, if you are sad or something, ugh… you can always talk to us. We are there for you and…"
Suddenly there is a growl audible, making Steve jump, "Loki?!"
"I can't come because I'm about to give birth to this child, as it appears," Loki hisses, and you can hear her gritting her teeth all the way up to where he is standing. "And that even though the schedule says otherwise."
"Oh, that's… that's, ugh…," Steve gapes, his mind still trying to catch up to the apparent news.
"I hoped that I was simply experiencing… premature labor… so I tried some breathing techniques… but… that child means to come out now," Loki snorts. She knows some breathing techniques that can delay 'the moment of truth', but… this child means to come. Right now. Ugh. Bad timing already seems to run in the family… if there is a family at all, that is.
"Okay, uhm, so you just gotta…," Steve tries to soothe her, but the trickster interrupts him before he gets to it, "You may want to get Doctor Banner for me now."
"Yes, yes! I will be… I'm on my way," Steve runs off in a hurry. Loki sighs as she comes to stand in front of the mirror, clutching at her stomach, "You truly are as stubborn as your father, and seemingly just as rash. It's not time yet, my child."
It's not that it's way too early to mean danger to the child's health, but she had a strange dream not long ago – and it foreshadowed such a happening as something very dark. Very bad. An immense pain that roused her from her sleep, to bring her back to reality panting for air, cold fear clutching at her chest.
Loki looks up to the ceiling, "It's not time yet, but I still dare to hope that you will live up to your promise, so don't you deceive my hopes, God of Thunder."
She lets out a guttural cry as the next contraction hits her, "You owe me for this, big time, you dull oaf."
"You wished to see me, Father?" Thor says as he enters the Great Hall, finding Odin seated upon the throne, Frigga standing not far from him. The God of Thunder has the feeling that something bad is in its wake, but he has no clue what Odin has in mind now. He just hopes that he is plainly wrong.
"Indeed," Odin says as Thor motions closer.
"So? What is the matter?" the thunderer questions.
"Well, I do not think that I have to tell you about the current politics of closing the gates to the other realms to ensure Asgard's safety," Odin begins.
"Of course not," Thor grits his teeth. This exclusion is part of the problem. If not the entire problem.
"It is decided that the exclusion shall be completed now," Odin goes on. Thor grits his teeth. That had to come.
"And if you abide the rules, you shall be made King once this is over," Odin tells him. "Then you shall rule Asgard as your heart commands it."
"I told you time and time again that I do not seek the throne at the cost of my friends in Midgard. Midgard is at peace with us. There is no reason to cut down contact to it," Thor argues. "Or any other realms we already established ceasefire if not peace with."
"There is, oh there is, believe me that," Odin shakes his head.
"This is madness!" Thor growls, but Odin is not in the least wavered by this, but instead goes on in a dramatic voice, "Furthermore, to ensure Asgard's peace, we have to finish open business before the gates are finally closed. One of them is apparently your stepbrother's future."
"What does that mean, Odin?" Frigga looks at him with wide eyes.
"With the message that was delivered to Jotunheimr not long ago came a request by me as to how to treat one of their traitors also," Odin goes on, still not wavered only in the slightest.
"You mean that," Frigga looks at him dumbstruck.
"Yes, Loki's brother Helblindi, the current leader of this realm, has keen interest to put the trickster's case to trial. Loki is from this realm, and having him in Midgard only endangers its people. I see that now. In exchange for the prisoner, they will grant us and Midgard peace. And that means that you are no longer needed as Midgard's keeper either, but as the King of Asgard alone," Odin declares, making Thor and Frigga stare at him in sheer shock.
"You make my son the price of some nonsense peace treaty?! Are you out of your mind?!" Frigga cries out.
"He is not your son," Odin snarls.
"Oh, he is, and I am his mother!" Frigga grits her teeth. "Nothing will ever change about that."
"It was my foolish thinking to have him exiled to Midgard, instead of giving him back to his kind. I have to admit that," Odin shakes his head. "Back when I took him with me from Jotunheimr as an infant, I thought he would help overcome the rift that existed between the realms, but in fact things only got worse as a result. However, if Loki returns to his realm, then this rift will be at a manageable level again."
"It was not Loki who created the rift among the realms, but our politics and way of treatment of each other. The only thing one could blame Loki for is that he already opened the gates we tried to keep shut long before we ever considered the mere possibility of opening them again. That this escalated was because we could not properly handle it, me included foremost," Thor argues vehemently. Is that really happening right now? Till last Thor thought that Odin was merely concerned with Asgard's politics and a private feeling of hatred for Loki's scheme. Not in his wildest nightmares did Thor believe that his father would go that far. He thought that this was a boundary even he wouldn't cross.
"And perhaps you are right. We are not ready. And I think we won't ever be," Odin shakes his head.
"I am," Thor declares, his voice booming with resolution. He is ready, he was long since.
"Loki will be left in the hands of the Jotuns – and they will decide on proper punishment for the crimes committed to them. You could say that the trickster paid his duties to Midgard and Asgard by serving his prison sentence in banishment – and doing redemption on Midgard, as far as you told me. Now it's time he answers the call from Jotunheimr, of his home, while we shall answer the calls of our home," Odin goes on.
"They will kill him," Frigga argues vehemently. "They will have Loki executed. The Jotuns will show no mercy after he killed Laufey."
"That is not out yet – and it is not up to us to say. I see that now. We had actually… no right to judge over Loki's fate. He killed their King," Odin replies. "That is a crime he has to yet redeem himself for, in the fashion the Jotuns find appropriate."
"You can't do that. Loki is one of us, grew up here, lived here," Thor insists. That man used to be his father, bore him paternal affection. And all that is dead now? How can it be dead? How can such an eternal flame die?
"But he is and will always be… not of our blood," Odin sighs.
"You are out of your mind," Frigga stares at him.
"I couldn't be any clearer. If he were one of our blood… it'd be different, already by the old laws. For as long as he has no ties to this realm that are by blood, there is nothing I can do, even if I wanted to," Odin shrugs.
"Lies!" Thor yells. Odin took Loki in before, and back then blood played no role whatsoever. Where does this obsession with the blood come from? Odin never was… or was he? Why is blood suddenly so important that it once again stands between Thor's and Loki's bit of happiness?
"I have already made arrangements to have Loki moved to Jotunheimr," Odin then says.
"That's why you called me back," Thor gapes. He suspected a trap, but not that Odin would call him back just so that he could keep Thor from intercepting this madness. If at all, he suspected that Odin would do anything to prevent him from going back to Midgard.
"I called you back to prepare you for your duties of the throne," Odin insists.
"Lies! All of it! And you know it!" Thor growls.
"It does not matter. This is long since decided on," Odin tells him calmly.
"It is not," Thor snarls.
"It actually was decided the day Loki was born. Because that tied him to his blood, his kin. You always say I aim for exclusion, Thor, but I aim towards coming home," Odin argues. "For the both of you."
"Home is not Jotunheimr for Loki! Loki grew up here, lived here! And in Midgard! That's home! Not the land of the Jotuns! Loki has barely been there! His own caste cast him out! On cold stone! How can you say that this is home in any possible way?!" Thor breaks out.
"It does not matter. Those are some of the last orders I give as the Allfather. After that, the throne shall be yours, but for Asgard and Asgard alone. We close the gates and make sure nothing comes inside anymore," Odin declares, still not wavered, not moved, static, sitting in that chair that seems to devour him completely. "That is my last word."
"Odin! No, you cannot do that," Frigga shakes her head.
"It's all done. It's over," Odin shrugs.
"It's not," Thor tells him, making the King look at him. Thor has no other chance but this. This is the last resort. He has to make Odin change his mind. He has to. And his determination only finds confirmation as he feels the alarm going off that he waited for all this time.
It's time.
It's time for truth.
He has to force this man's eyes open again.
"It is," the Allfather insists.
"No, Loki is tied to Asgard – by blood," Thor declares.
"Now don't be ridiculous. I know who his parents are. That blood does not have ties to Asgard," Odin replies sternly.
"But mine has," Thor looks at him with determination sparking out of his blue eyes.
"What?" Odin frowns.
"You heard me. She and I are together," Thor goes on.
"She?" Frigga grimaces.
"Yes. She," Thor agrees, but then turns back to Odin. "Like it was that night, as you can probably remember, Father, can't you? After which Loki mysteriously disappeared, though seemingly just to a place within the palace no one knew about."
"What does that mean, Odin?" Frigga demands. But the Allfather just stares at the God of Thunder with wide eyes.
"Odin, what does he mean?" she asks again, more forcefully this time.
"Already back then he imprisoned Loki, in this palace, while claiming that he ran off to escape punishment. To keep us two apart," Thor snarls. "He was afraid of our love, already back then."
"You… you held Loki captive? Behind my back?" Frigga gapes at the Allfather.
"It was none of your concerns," Odin hisses.
"Oh, I think it is of my concern if you decide to imprison one of my children," Frigga growls.
"You couldn't stand it that we wanted to be together, so you tried to stop us, but, Father, I tell you what? You may have prevented us from such action for a while, but in the end… you didn't manage," Thor tells him. "You didn't cut the ties we established. You didn't break that bond. If anything, you helped make it stronger."
"By the Gods…," Odin mutters, eyes wide in shock.
"The Gods had no say, and they still don't. We are together, no matter if the Gods approve… or not. We linked souls," Thor declares with a swell of pride in his chest.
"You mean… did Loki…," Frigga looks at Thor in shock. The thunderer nods slowly, approving her suspicion, "She cast this forbidden spell to save me from sure death, yes."
Frigga just looks at him in shock. Her son almost died. And her other son… or is it daughter now? Loki saved Thor at the cost of her own life. Casting the spell no sorcerer should ever cast. How did all that happen behind her back? How did she not know? How did she not see? Is she just as blind as her husband?
"And so much as to how Loki is a threat to Asgard – if not for her, I'd be dead by now, and you wouldn't have me as a successor anymore. She brought me back from the very edge of life and death, at the risk of her own life. She preserved the throne, and that without your notice," Thor snarls. In a strange kind of way, Loki actually grew to be not only Midgard's but also Asgard's keeper, while in the shadows however. She saved Thor, from sure death, and by granting him her love.
"Thor," Odin tries to interrupt him, but the thunderer does not care, "She is my soulmate – and bearing my child. That means, yes, Loki is tied to this our realm, to us, to me, because her blood and mine run together in that child. She belongs with me, and so she does with Asgard. And there is nothing you can change about that anymore."
The last chance.
The last token.
"Odin, please, listen to him," Frigga begs her husband, realizing the cold tremble of anger rising within him.
"You know that you committed crime to Asgard, don't you?" Odin looks at Thor.
"Odin!" his wife shrieks, but he doesn't listen, "Don't you?"
"Perhaps rules have to be broken again, to bring about change," Thor huffs.
"You lay with a criminal, banished – and even produced an offspring! You stained the throne, you…," Odin growls, but Frigga interrupts him harshly, "Odin! Stop it! Are you out of your mind?!"
"You tried to separate us before, but… we still found our way," Thor narrows his eyes at him.
"And so I find mine," Odin declares. Suddenly the portals rattle.
"You did not," Thor snarls.
"I did," Odin retorts.
"You cannot stop this from happening. This child is coming into the world as we speak," Thor says.
"She's…," Frigga looks at him.
"In labor as we speak, yes. So please, let me go. Father, let me. Stop this madness. You don't want harm done to your own grandchild," Thor looks at the Allfather, hoping that this will do the trick, will open his eyes again.
"The warriors already moved out to gather Loki to bring the trickster to Jotunheimr," Odin declares icily. "And I will not call them back."
"She is in labor. Do you seriously want to rip her over to Jotunheimr as she is giving birth?!" Frigga shrieks, not believing it. The man she loves, the man who always made her smile, who always made her proud, became the villain in this mad game? How? Why?
"The soldiers will handle it," Odin replies coolly. Frigga grasps his hand, getting into eye contact with him, "Odin, listen to me. You will not do that. You will stop. That is the line you mustn't cross."
"Silence," Odin hisses, but Frigga only holds on tighter, both with her wrist and her eyes, "No, no more silence! I swallowed most of my comments, I swallowed my own voice because I thought that you'd overcome your madness, because I believed in you and your kind heart, but if you do Loki or that child any harm, then yes, we return to the old rules, but I will kick you right back into the past to witness their wake!"
"I have spoken," Odin declares. "And my word is rule."
"You will not hold me," Thor argues.
"I did and I will continue to, for as long as it takes," Odin retorts. Thor starts to run towards the door. He has to get out of here. He has to stop this. He has to get to Loki. To his child. He has to catch up to the future. Now or never.
"It is locked, and you won't be able to open those doors until I give them free again. Not even Mjölnir can break them," Odin warns him, but Thor carries on towards the door. In the same movement he takes something out of his cloak, which turns out to be one of the cubes. He tosses it ahead of him, a hasty smile tugging at his lips, remembering how Loki insisted that he took some of the cubes along with him to spread in Asgard to allow him to escape if needed. Thor spread out the bases to allow travel since he came back to Asgard, in secret of course. And by the Gods, is he glad that they planned so. He really starts to understand why Loki insists on plans so much. They mean security.
A way of escape.
Of home.
He can hear the familiar sound of his father's spear being taken up. Thor already intends to turn around and dodge whatever the Allfather may want to fire his way, but the beam of light hits to his left, missing Thor. The God of Thunder glances over his shoulder to see Frigga, who used her magic to send the Allfather's arm the other way.
"Save them, my son!" Frigga cries out. Thor allows the white light to swallow him.
"How dare you…," Odin growls, but Frigga interrupts him harshly, "How dare you?!"
"He will not succeed," the King warns her.
"We shall see about that," Frigga hisses. "And believe me, you should hope that he succeeds, for his loss will be your loss the same way."
She looks at him more sternly, "And if you ever dare shoot at your own son again, then…"
"It is not up to you to say," Odin intercepts. "I do this for his own good. For that of Asgard."
"As I said, hope that he succeeds, or tears will stain your eyes sooner than you think," Frigga warns him, simply hoping that even the Father of All can be proven wrong. That he will not succeed with his plan, but will only succeed in losing this battle, to win that of his own humanity.
Bruce and Loki are now in the specially prepared sickbay for her (upon Tony's insistence, which was very, very irritating, though Loki sees the necessity now).
"Okay, Loki? You know that you'll have to guide me through that, so… ugh, what do you want me to do?" Bruce grimaces nervously, observing the screens to check her vitals. He is familiar with human physiology, but Loki's is still a mystery to him most of the time. He knows by now where to draw blood or what her usual heartbeat rate is, but… well, the mystery and miracle of birth is not part of his field of expertise, and the way he figures, neither is it that of any physician on this very planet. So… he will have to do for now, if only to coach her through the contractions shaking her body.
"Right now, you don't have to do anything," she grunts, closing her eyes against the pain.
"Can we give you any medication?" he asks.
"It would have no effect, very likely. I'm mostly immune, as you might remember," Loki says, licking her lips. "And I wouldn't want it either."
"Why?" the doctor grimaces. He gets it that she is immune, but why would she refuse if it had any soothing effect if she had the chance to?
"I have my reasons, argh!" she grits her teeth. Pain clears one's mind by clouding it. And she needs clarity. Clarity to keep the child safe. No clouds must obscure her vision.
"Loki…," Bruce means to say, but that is when suddenly the beepers start to make noises.
"Well, that's probably Thor," he offers hopefully. Bruce knows that the only one Loki really wants and needs right now is the God of Thunder.
"Let's hope so for him, or else I will kick his arse all the way to Valhalla," Loki snarls. Bruce picks up the beeper to have a quick glance at it, "Oh, he even transports to here directly."
"That's uncommon. He knows that he is not supposed to," Loki looks at him, suddenly feeling cold running up and down her spine again. That is not good. Not good at all. In her dream, it was similar, though it was not Thor or her or anyone else, no persons, no fixed bodies, just the obscure feelings of something going wrong, that something is corrupted to the core, all the way up to the point that she could smell sweet decay lingering in the air.
"Well, I bet he just can't wait to get to you, and thus forgot about the rules," Bruce tries to assure her, but Loki is not in the least convinced, "I don't have a good feeling about this."
She actually has a very bad feeling, the feeling that her dreams will become reality once again. That darkness still has her, and will loom over to her child the very same way.
Cursed blood.
"Everything's going to be fine," he says, tapping her forearm to offer a bit of comfort.
"Just make sure Stark doesn't get in here. That wimp will just faint like a girl, and I can't have that right now," Loki huffs. That helps, a bit.
"Guys! Guys!" Tony's voice shrieks over the loudspeakers.
"Speaking of the devil…," Loki exhales wearily, a loose strand falling into her face.
"It's seemingly not Thor who is coming. Video footage shows us these guys," Tony says, now on the screen, but then quickly shows the footage from outside.
"Warriors of Asgard? What are they doing here?" Loki gapes. And again, a familiar fear from her dreams floods back into her mind, in giant waves. The faint sound of a million steps, stomping in unison, chasing her into darkness and further. It feels just like this.
"Stay calm. We will clarify this," Bruce tells her, noting her hitched breathing.
"Why are they here?" Loki insists, her voice rising uncontrollably.
"Loki, keep calm," the doctor tries again. "Already for the sake of the child."
"I'm no longer calm ever since that dull oaf took off, ah!" Loki shrieks as the next wave of pain washes over her.
"We will send the welcoming party and see what they want," Tony says.
"Be careful. Those are… the Special Forces, if you will. They are… stronger and… simply follow their master's command, blindly," Loki warns him.
"We'll just do the welcoming party. They are not like the Chitauri, right?" Tony huffs.
"I don't know, perhaps they picked up some tricks by now," Loki replies. Suddenly the walls start to shake. And again, Loki can feel her dream looming above her head, when the footsteps danced away and made place for earthquakes, shaking the darkness all around her, until she fell down a cliff she couldn't see in all that darkness, but this time… the fall was no soothing absolution, but dread pulling her down, into a monster's snout whose face she never saw. And won't ever.
"So much to proper conversation," Bruce sighs.
"Perhaps we should try to get you some other place, I mean… if they come for you?" Tony suggests.
"I would, but at this moment, I am a bit… busy, argh!" Loki bites her lower lip.
"Point taken. We are heading out," Tony agrees.
"Be careful," she says.
Very careful.
Please, please, let that be just reality, and not a reality interwoven with her dark nightmares.
Let that monster not be real.
Don't let it loom into reality.
Please.
Please.
Thor steps out of the light right in front of the dome leading to the portals – to Loki.
Perhaps if he is fast enough, he can intervene and stop the men from going there, but as he comes inside, he has to realize that they are already gone.
Yet another chance gone to waste.
"My Prince," the gatekeeper greets him. Thor looks at the soldier in golden armor with alarm.
"Heimdall, you have to let me pass," Thor says in a loud voice. He has to get to Loki, now. Now. Now!
"I have my orders," the warrior replies. Thor already feared for such a reaction, but he still hopes that at least Heimdall can be convinced, "I know, but so do I. Please, my friend."
"You ask me to betray my King? Not to abide his rules?" the other man questions.
"I ask you to help save a life, two, actually," Thor replies.
"That of the man who almost killed me?" Heimdall huffs. Thor knows that they have a "strained" relationship, to put it very nicely, but… life and death depend on it.
"Of the woman I love and the child she bears me," Thor corrects him.
"So the same man who killed me is now in a woman's body," Heimdall grimaces.
"… Yes," Thor nods.
"And a child, you say?" Heimdall looks at him.
"Yes, both our child," Thor nods frantically. "So I beg you, my friend, let me pass. I don't have the time to discuss this, for I have to hurry. I don't want to fight you, but I will. Loki is about to give birth to our child – and the warriors mean to bring her to Jotunheimr nevertheless. If she doesn't die on the way there already, the child will very likely, too. I have to save them, please."
Heimdall looks at him, contemplating. Thor can feel the perspiration gathering on his forehead. He doesn't want to fight Heimdall, but by the Gods, he will for his loved ones.
"My order was not to let anyone interfere with the surrender of the former prince of Asgard, the God of Mischief. It never said anything about a child. However, since I am Asgard's gate keeper, I'm also the royal family's keeper. So if a successor to the throne is in danger… I have to let you pass and save it," Heimdall then says, making Thor's heart jump, "Thank you, my friend."
Thor runs forward and is soon swallowed by light.
Hopefully it's not too late yet.
Hopefully his future is not lost already.
"Okay, hello, Warriors of Asgard! We are your Prince's friends, and would rather talk to you before this escalates," Steve says as they make their way over to the Aesir basically in their front yard. "We don't want to fight you - unless you leave us no choice."
"We demand the surrender of Loki of Jotunheimr," seemingly the leader of the troop says in a dramatic voice.
"Why? Loki is in banishment, as far as we are concerned," Steve grimaces. Why would they want to remove Loki? That they want to keep Thor from earth, fine, but… why Loki?
"The God of Mischief is to be moved to Jotunheimr to face trial. We are here to escort the prisoner to there," the leader replies.
"Trial?" Clint frowns.
"Yes, the order comes from the Allfather. Loki of Jotunheimr is to go to trial for the crimes committed to realm of ice and snow. And now you shall show us where the prisoner is. If you surrender now, no further harm will be done to you or your city," the leader explains. The Avengers look aghast. That is definitely not what it was supposed to be. At all.
"Yeah, no, that's not happening. Loki is part of our team, and pretty much a citizen, so that means you have no say," Natasha huffs. The leader nods at one of the soldiers, who makes his way over to the mansion.
"Yeah, no to that, too. I didn't send you an invitation as far as I can remember," Tony grunts, already following the soldier to take him out. While the warrior does indeed dodge, he makes no attempt to fight back. The same is true for the others.
"We are here solely to bring the God of Mischief to Jotunheimr. You are not of our concern," the solider speaks. "So if you act peacefully, we will be gone at an instant, with the trickster."
"Let's see about that. I bet I can piss you off enough to make you change your mind," Tony snarls before going on to guard the mansion, as do the others.
They definitely picked the wrong people to fight – because they will fight for it no matter the costs.
"You should let me go with them," Loki breathes, her eyes fixed on the screen where she can see her friends fighting a fight that is definitely not theirs. A fight they shouldn't fight. A fight she also saw, felt beneath her fingertips, heard in her ears as a faint echo inside her dream. War cries. Swords crossing. Lightning striking in the distance. An intense heat. And then… fire. Hot. Blazing. So hot that it burned cold again.
"What? Are you out of your mind?" Bruce retorts. He knows that Loki cares about them a great deal. Bruce also knows, like any other of the Avengers, that she is willing to risk her life for each of them, but does Loki seriously think that they will just sell her out?
"They might change their mind and decide to seriously attack you after all," Loki insists, now focusing on the doctor instead. "And do you harm. A lot of it."
"Loki, that's no option. They will bring you to the guys who want your head," Bruce argues. "You are in way more danger than our friends out there right now."
"That might change, though," Loki insists. "In an instant."
"It didn't yet. You just focus on yourself and the baby, alright?" Bruce tries to calm her.
"Argh, now I actually wished the child were already in the world," Loki grits her teeth. And yet another part of her dream, of her sense of foreboding. That time was running out, that she could run as fast as she wanted, but still stood in the same spot. Came too late. Always too late. And time mockingly laughing into her back.
"Why?" Bruce frowns. Not long ago she said that it was too early.
"Maybe they don't know about our child's existence yet. Then the child wouldn't be in real danger, but for as long as he is tied to my body… he is in a lot of danger," Loki says, closing her eyes. Even in the most natural sense she cannot protect her child from harm. Her body, which should be a refuge, a safe haven… is now no more than a threat as well.
Perhaps creatures of darkness are simply incapable of protecting their loved ones.
"Loki, we got you covered, okay?" Bruce assures her. "We have your back."
Maybe they can? If she can't?
The Avengers still try anything within their powers to keep the soldiers away from the mansion, but it gets increasingly difficult. They were seemingly prepared in advance so that they know how to counter their attacks, which doesn't help them in their enterprise of protecting Loki and the baby.
"Okay, guys, we have to stop them from getting too close to the building somehow! We also end up firing at it. I don't know how long it will hold," Natasha grunts, looking around at the damage already done to the building and part of the street.
"Well, aiming gets hard when they don't allow a clear shot!" Clint snarls, firing another arrow at one of the soldiers to make sure he doesn't get inside.
"Careful!" Steve cries out as Tony fires at one of the soldiers, only to get attacked by another, which sends Tony's own attack crashing against the building, making some walls collapse.
"That was not on purpose!" Tony cries out.
"Oh oh!" Natasha exhales nervously.
This won't hold for long.
Bruce shields Loki from some of the debris, "Well, the welcoming party is seemingly failing in its purpose."
"We should get out of here," Loki breathes shallowly.
"I agree. I don't know how long those walls will hold," Bruce grimaces.
"Given the laws of physics… no more than four minutes," Loki puckers her lips.
"Yeah, no, that means we gotta move you… right now. Do you think you can stand?" Bruce asks. Loki looks at him.
"Or we use one of the cubes," he suggests instead.
"Fabulous idea," she snorts.
"Okay, where to?" Bruce questions.
"Sector 4b," Loki says with determination.
"That's just outside," Bruce frowns. He was thinking about… Milwaukee, Hawaii or so? Something far, far away from here.
"Well removed from the battle-site, but within reach for Thor… if that dull oaf makes it here any time soon," Loki explains.
"And you are sure about that?" Bruce asks. Loki looks at him.
"Alright, you are the boss," Bruce exhales, then speaks over the comm. "Guys? We will relocate to sector 4b."
"Got it," Clint approves. Bruce tosses the cube ahead and both disappear into the light.
"This has to be a joke. We kick the Chitauri in the ass, but not these guys?!" Tony cries out.
"Well, we are down by one Hulk and two Norse Gods," Steve shrugs, throwing his shield at one of the soldiers.
"Bruce? I think you'd do better heading to battle than… holding my hand here," Loki hisses, now that they are behind a building away from the mansion, though still within periphery to the point that the earth shakes beneath her fingertips. All too familiar. All too real, all too real like her nightmare.
"I can't leave you here," the doctor argues.
"The Hulk might have actual chances to make them retreat, or at least until I…," Loki means to say, but Bruce interrupts her, "Loki, we won't let you go with them. That's not happening."
"It might be that this is a circumstance we cannot move around," Loki argues.
"We will. They don't know how you look like," Bruce retorts.
"Do you sincerely believe that it is about outer appearance?" she huffs.
"Well, that's your signature move," the scientist shrugs.
"A signature move my enemies are well-aware of by now," she argues. "And look at how the Warriors are moving."
Bruce looks around the corner, "Closer to our location…"
They are actually coming closer and closer. If not for the others keeping them away from them, they'd be there already.
"It is the casket," Loki breathes as another wave of pain rushes through her body. "Or rather, what's in it."
She should have known. Why didn't she foresee this? Why didn't she think of that option? And why is her magic not enough to keep the metal from chinking in her ears?
"Casket?" Bruce blinks.
"That box they keep within their very center," Loki explains.
"Then we should tell the others to attack it," Bruce argues.
"That'd be pointless," she sighs.
"Why?" Bruce frowns.
"It's something, I fear, they cannot destroy," Loki grits her teeth. "Something no one can destroy, not even Thor or I."
"What?" Bruce blinks. Loki lets out a growl as the pain overtakes her senses and all she hears is the scratching of metal.
"My King! The Prince of Asgard is on the way to Midgard," one of the soldiers yells as he runs up to him.
"What?" Odin blinks at him. "What about Heimdall?"
"He said there was no power in the Nine Realms to hold him," the warrior reports. "What do we do now, my King?"
"Nothing. It changes nothing at all," Odin says.
"You think so?" Frigga huffs. "Thor will tear the Warriors to shreds. Love will make him."
"Even if he makes it there in time, there is nothing he can do," Odin tells her.
"Why so? I still ask myself how you will catch Loki, for we both know if there was someone to escape each time, it was the God of Mischief," she sneers darkly.
"And that is what I prepared for," Odin explains. "I mended a broken bond and made it stronger than ever."
"What do you mean?" Frigga looks at him.
"Do you remember when we tried to bind Fenrir?" Odin asks.
"Yes, yet another child's child whose life you destroyed because you were too afraid of his powers. Till today I hear the howling of that wolf in my ears," Frigga snarls.
"Only once we had the dwarves make Gleipnir did we manage to keep him in his spot," Odin exhales. "Leyding and Dromi broke under little effort."
"Indeed," Frigga nods slowly.
"I kept them, you see?" Odin goes on. "These chains. I gave them to the dwarves to have them fixed, just in case."
"Why did you?" Frigga looks at him, her voice starting to shake as she feels cold spreading throughout her.
"For when they'd come in useful again. And they do now. Like son… so father, or mother," Odin mutters.
"What did you do, Odin?" Frigga questions.
"I had them specially prepared to find the God of Mischief. These chains are now no longer to hold a wolf, but to find this very Jotun," her husband replies, not looking at her. "There is no escape for Loki. Those are chains neither Thor, their friends, nor Loki can break. The only power that can… is death."
Frigga grits her teeth, biting back the tears meaning to run down her cheeks. She just prays that Odin, once again, underestimates their children.
She just hopes that these chains will budge after all.
"I can tell the magical aura all the way up to here," Loki breathes, screwing her eyes shut. "In that casket are chains I already saw before – and dread the same way. They were meant for my son Fenrir years ago. He broke them easily, but the Allfather had them repaired, or so it appears… and seemingly enhanced, too… I can hear them practically calling out to me. These chains want to get to me. And I can feel the strength radiating - it is too strong."
And that means there really is no escape. She can hear them howling at her.
"Damn," the doctor mutters. "Guys? You heard that?"
"Well, even if Loki thinks we can't break them, we should give it at least a try," Clint grimaces.
"They have to be careful," the trickster hisses.
"She's right. If those are the chains Loki talks about – we don't know what Odin's done to them to enhance them," Bruce warns them.
"It is me they want," Loki argues.
"And it is you they won't get. So now, you focus on breathing. We figure out a plan," Bruce replies, not in the least wavered.
"Such a mess," she sighs. That is the moment thunder starts to roll. Loki opens her eyes, glancing up, "Took you long enough."
Thor appears in a flash of light, knocking a few of the soldiers over at an instant.
"Always up for a dramatic entrance, aren't we?" Tony huffs.
"Where is Loki?" Thor demands.
"Safe, for now," Natasha tells him. They don't know if the soldiers can hear them, so to give away Loki's location is no smart move. Thor seemingly understands and turns to the soldiers instead, "Soldiers, desist from your activities. I ask you as your Prince."
"We have our orders from the King himself," the leader argues.
"And as your Commander-in-chief, I give you another order," Thor retorts.
"We have orders to have the God of Mischief moved to Jotunheimr presently," the soldier insists.
"Loki is in no condition to be moved," Thor tells him.
"The orders were clear," the other Aesir replies, not in the least wavered. "No exceptions are to be made."
"Bruce?" Loki turns to the doctor, who looks at her nervously, "Yes?"
"You have to do me a favor," she goes on.
"Anything but handing you over to them, yes," he replies, making Loki smile for a brief moment before adding, "Get Thor and Natasha for me, so that you can join the Avengers."
"Loki," he exhales, but she holds up one hand to interrupt him, "I… I have an idea, but for that… I need you at the front. That I want Natasha here is already to satisfy your apparent wish to have someone by my side. She is good at sneaking in and out. She has best chances of not being caught. I will send out replicas in both Thor's and Natasha's place. That will hopefully do for the moment."
"Okay, fine," Bruce approves. "That sounds like… some kind of plan."
"Natasha? You have to take my place here. We got you covered. I will Hulk out and serve as distraction. You grab Thor and bring him to Loki," Bruce tells her.
"Gotcha," the SHIELD agent agrees.
"And you don't do anything stupid," Bruce turns to the trickster one last time. She rolls her eyes at him, but then Bruce leaves the cover to switch into Hulk-mode, directly attacking the soldiers. A cloud of dust erupts, shielding the Avengers from the warriors' view. Natasha uses the momentum to get to Thor, tearing him away and over to where Loki is currently hiding, two replicas taking their place so that it looks like they are still standing in their spot.
"Are you okay?" the agent asks as she makes her way to the trickster. Loki glares at the redhead, beads of sweat standing on her forehead, her nostrils flaring. So Natasha adds quickly, "Nevermind."
That is when Loki's eyes focus on the blue orbs she dreaded to return to her for felt eternities, and the same kind of desire is sent right back to her. And yet another aspect of her dream, the faint pull of hope, away from the darkness into the blue, into the light, but then there came the cliff. Thor kneels down next to his loved one, pressing his forehead against hers once. The God of Thunder repeats his mantra again and again: It's not too late. It's not too late. It's not too late. Not yet. Not yet…
"Well, that was not how we had it planned," she puffs.
"I didn't foresee this," Thor breathes.
"Me neither, trust me. Or else I would have told you to just kill the Allfather before he gets to kill me," Loki grits her teeth.
"Yeah…," Thor sighs. Perhaps he should have just… done it. Then they wouldn't be in such a trouble right now, but… well, hope is still one of Thor's features. And he hoped that his father would come to his senses after all.
"Does the Allfather know… about my status?" Loki asks. She has to know the details. No fog. Clarity. She needs clarity. Now. To make up a plan. Something. Anything.
"Yes, but that didn't change his mind," Thor replies solemnly.
"Obviously," Loki snorts.
"He is obsessed with the purity of blood and that you had to go back to Jotun because you were not of ours. So I thought that maybe if I told him that you are tied to me by blood indeed, he'd stop, but…," Thor lets his head sink low. He is surprised to feel her fingertips against the outline of his jaw, however, "It is not your fault. You did the right thing, to your knowledge. I would have tried that also."
"What do we do now? We could try to transport you away from here," Thor suggests.
"No matter where you send me, they'll find me. You feel it, too, don't you?" Loki tells him.
"Some aura I once knew," Thor grimaces. He can't put his finger on it, but it's an aura that sends shivers down his spine.
"Fenrir's chains, Dromi, as far as I'm concerned. Odin had them fixed and… improved, that much I can tell. Like a bloodhound, searching for its prey… which happens to be me," Loki mutters.
"But how can that thing tell where you are? You said you can hide from their view," Natasha tilts her head.
"And that is why they are not here yet. I spent years and years refining that skill, and especially since I am here on Midgard. That is the only reason why they don't know exactly where I am. One could say their fine-tuning is not perfect because I keep refining my skill," Loki grimaces.
"Then we should definitely bring you somewhere else – with the cubes," Natasha argues. "We will fight off the warriors and you stay hidden until it's safe again."
"You don't seem to understand – it's not the warriors I am concerned about, it's the chains, it's the spell I feel radiating from them. Odin managed to link these chains to me. For all I know, it's an old binding spell. I could hide anywhere on Midgard, and still, Dromi would find me," Loki objects.
"How do you tell?" the female agent questions.
"You should never underestimate my… powers," Loki breathes, blinking against the pain. "Even if they are seemingly not enough to prevent these chains from locking me in… And I may add that we are apparently… running out of time, too."
"Why?" Thor asks, licking his lips.
"At this moment, I can disguise my exact location because I use all of my magical energy on this task… plus, the illusions of you and Natasha. However, I won't have the energy anymore after I bring out this child. And I have any intention to move it up a gear and bring our child out all at once. I now have… enough energy to do it, but after that they will know exactly where I am," Loki explains. She used the time to focus. Gain clarity. And gather as much of that clarity to offer protection.
She just has to protect that child, she has to.
Has to.
"You can actually do that?" Natasha can't help but blurt out. "Like… instant birth?"
"Yeah, yet another reason why women are always jealous of me," Loki shrugs. "It's the best option. If they get to me – then at least… we can protect our son, perhaps."
"Are you sure?" the female agent grimaces.
"It's the only option I see to offer a little protection for our son. In this my body, this child we be chained along with me," Loki explains. Her eyes fall back on Thor, who nods solemnly, "It is the only chance we have."
"Okay," Natasha nods, gulping.
"So you see, I will bring the child out by magic. You just have to take a hold of it once it comes," Loki warns her. Thor tightens his grip on the trickster's shoulder, his breath hot and wet against her forehead.
Natasha nods, if a little irritated, because that is definitely not her department, "Gotcha."
Thor takes Loki's left hand into both of his to offer some kind of comfort, some warmth to warm up her ice-cold fingertips. Loki lets out a guttural growl, her fingers hovering over her pregnant stomach. Suddenly there is the familiar green light again, spreading from her midsection over to her entire body. She lets out a deep breath and as the light fades away, Natasha has the newborn in her arms. Loki lets her head fall back as black dots dance before her eyes.
"C'mon, little one, cry out, cry out," Natasha mutters nervously, but as if on cue, the child starts to weep in her arms.
"A healthy baby boy," Natasha manages a feeble smirk as she quickly wraps the child in the cloak Thor readily holds out to her. The agent means to hand the baby over to Loki, but once her hands make contact with the God of Mischief, she guides Natasha's hands over to Thor wordlessly. The God of Thunder takes the child with shaking hands, tears running down his dust-smeared face. He holds the child up to his head to press a kiss on the baby's forehead, cradling him against his chest.
"Thor? I'm sorry, but… you have to go. And protect our child," she tells him. "They now know where we are."
Thor hesitantly hands the child over to Loki, who cradles the babe to her chest protectively. He knows that she would rather not ask him for it at this moment, but it has to be, which is why Loki granted Thor at least that first moment with his child. It might be the last after all. And the baby should not die, if it is to die, without having been held by his father once. And the father should have held it once also, so Loki thinks.
"You are right," he agrees, pressing a kiss on her forehead as well before standing up again.
"I leave them into your care," he tells Natasha, who nods.
"I'll be right back," Thor winks at Loki, even though it comes out strained. The God of Thunder then goes ahead to fight the soldiers again. Natasha looks around, her weapons at gunpoint, "Don't worry. You are safe with us. The both of you."
"So okay… let's think this through. What are our options? I could give you the child so you could hide him, but even if we beat this resistance, the Allfather will send for us again, now that he knows of our son… so… that I go with them to buy his freedom is actually… no longer an option… What's next…? We know I can't hide from the chains. We didn't manage to break them, and we won't ever. Those chains mean to grasp my neck and so they will… The Allfather won't hesitate to go through you or Midgard's people to lure me out… so that's no option either… what else… what else? What else?" Loki mutters rapidly. Her mind is reeling. Where are the million options that meant to drown her before? Why is there suddenly no longer an option? Where are they? Where did they go?
"Loki, calm down, we're gonna…," Natasha means to calm the upset mother, but Loki doesn't listen, "There's nothing you can do. Nothing. The only way that the Allfather would leave us in peace would be… that we are both dead."
"Hey!" Natasha grasps her by the arm.
"That's the only option. We have to die," Loki says, looking around nervously.
"Loki, now you listen to me," Natasha tries, but Loki goes on relentlessly, "That's what it comes down to. We have to die."
The child weeps in her arms. Loki readjust her grip on the infant, pressing her mouth upon its head, "Shh, shh, it's alright, it's alright. Shhht. I am here."
"The God of Mischief is over there," one of the soldiers says, confirming their fears that they can now locate the trickster.
"Damn!" Clint mutters. "That's faster than we hoped."
"Guys? I think we should now start to fire with everything we have," Steve suggests. However, that is when suddenly Natasha shrieks, "Loki!"
The Avengers look in horror as the God of Mischief, with the child in her arms, appears in front of the soldiers, seemingly having transported away before Natasha could hold her back.
"Shit! What's she doing?!" Tony cries out.
"Get out of the way!" Clint yells.
"I am Loki of Jotunheimr," she declares, moving closer to the soldiers. Her walk, even among all the craters and ruins piling up in the streets, is still as dignified as it was at the masquerade ball. The walk of a queen. "It is me you are seeking, so it is me you should be talking to, Warriors of Asgard."
"That woman…," Tony grunts.
"She must be out of her mind," Steve gapes.
"Loki, run, for God's sake!" Natasha hisses.
"We have orders to have you moved to…," the soldier means to say, but Loki interrupts him before he gets to finish, "I know. You wrecked enough earth to make your purpose known."
"We have our orders," the soldier replies stiffly.
"I demand that you leave Midgard at peace," Loki snarls, her features grim.
"If you follow the orders, this fight is over," the leader tells her.
"You guarantee their safety?" Loki asks again.
"We shall not do them any harm if you follow us peacefully," the man nods.
"Good," Loki replies. Suddenly, it is as though a snake reached out of the troop of Aesir, and for a moment, Loki thinks back to the day she almost lost Thor on the battlefield, back when Gorr used that vicious whip to get between them, if only to bring them back together. She can feel the metal soon around her neck, taking her breath away for a moment.
"Hey!" Tony yells. "She's surrendered, you dickheads!"
However, Loki as well as the warriors take no notice of him – or anyone in general. It's as though an invisible capsule surrounded them at this moment. It is the trickster who speaks up again, "I reckon you were ordered to have me in these chains no matter what."
"Indeed," the warrior says. "To make sure you do not escape."
Loki can see from the corner of her eye her significant other moving forward. Thor already means to wield Mjölnir and crash into the warriors, but suddenly his movements still. He can't move. He is trapped. Why? His eyes fall back on Loki, who still won't look at him, but he can see the back of her hand glowing green, a small beam, not visible from the front.
She is holding him back.
"Loki," he grits his teeth. Why is she doing this?
"So, will you come with us peacefully, God of Mischief?" the troop's leader asks, sounding rather formal.
"I find it funny that you even ask me that question, now that you have me in chains," Loki sneers.
"We can either take you… or drag you," the man says. "So? What will it be, God of Mischief? Though I may warn you that these chains cannot be broken by you. Only death can part them from this your body now. So, what is your answer?"
Loki looks at him for a moment, narrowing her emerald eyes at him.
"What do you think?" she asks him calmly. "My name is not God of Peace, is it?"
The trickster grabs the chain with her one free hand, sending a green light all the way up to the warriors holding the chain. However, before it can take any effect on the Aesir, the light reaches back and instead engulfs her in a bright green light, throwing the raven off her feet. She crashes to the ground, leaving a long trail of debris behind, the child still cradled in her arms. The chain falls off her throat, holding her no longer.
"Loki!" Thor cries out, feeling dizzy in the head as the pull of her fades away, allowing him to move again. The world tilts sideways and back again. He clasps his chest, it feels so tight, it hurts, burns. He can't seem to breathe. What is this? What is happening here? Thor staggers, his mind drifting away, feeling as though a part is ripped out of him, right by his heart.
Natasha runs up to her, the warriors, even though shocked at the sight, move closer as well. Bruce gets in their path, however, "You don't move. Or else. Smash."
"Loki?" Natasha kneels down, checking for a pulse, but finds… none. She leans down to listen for a heartbeat. "She's not breathing. And there's no heartbeat!"
The female agent looks at the child… which doesn't move either, "And the child… too…"
Thor stares on in sheer shock, the pain becoming more and more, coldness spreading throughout him like a flame of ice.
"Do CPR, something! Anything! Dammit!" Tony curses. Clint rushes over to her to help. The two try their best to help the child and Loki, but… nothing happens. Minutes pass. And nothing. Simply nothing. The whole world seems to come to an end, collapsing upon itself.
Again and again and again.
One of the warriors moves past the Hulk to get to where the agents are.
"You make one more step and I shoot you between the eyes," Natasha snarls, her pistol at gunpoint, ready to shoot.
"Sam here," Clint adds coolly, the arrow already aimed at the Aesir. The warrior, however, unimpressed, simply looks at Loki's still form, seemingly checking her status. After a moment, he looks up again and declares, "The God of Mischief has passed away. We have to report to the King."
"NOOOOOO!" Thor cries out. He rushes over to them, knocking the soldier aside, falling on his knees next to Loki's still form, taps her cheek, tries to make her wake up, but… nothing. Nothing at all. Her skin feels like ice, and the same cold draws the warmth out of him, the gaping hole he feels in his chest tearing more and more of his flesh away, to make place for more of that dark coldness consuming him.
"My Prince, we have orders to bring you back to Asgard…," the leader speaks. Thor whips his head around, snarling at him in a feral manner, "Do not test me."
"Thor?" Natasha says in a soft voice. The God of Thunder looks at her confused, but she goes on nevertheless, "Maybe you should… actually go with them."
"What? Why?" Thor asks gruffly. Why would he leave now? It's all over, isn't it? His future is lost. Right there on the ground, just that he is not Loki. He can't bring her back from the dead. As much as he wished, he doesn't know the spell, can't cast it. Can't bring her smile back, her eyes. Her light. Or their child. Their future.
"If you wanna do what we all wanna do right now… then you have to go to the guy who gave the order," Natasha tells him darkly. "We can't take revenge… but you can."
"You are right," Thor agrees eventually, and rage makes place for sadness, fire makes place for ice. The tears can wait until later. There is a fire now. And it means to catch more.
"I will go with you, for now," Thor tells the soldier, who gives a nod. Thor gets up, his eyes drifting back to Loki and the child. He bites the inside of his cheek, but then tears away. The blue light soon swallows him and the soldiers.
Darkness remains.