Chapter 5

Asgard was truly a beautiful sight to behold. A marvel of the galaxy itself, Asgard's golden cities shined so brightly in the light of the cosmos that they could be seen from light years away. A marvel of beauty, Asgard's artificial clouds, grasslands, mountains, and oceans flowed freely in the winds of the realm. After two years of chaos and strife, Asgard was finally at peace.

The courtyard of Odin's palace was filled with numerous Asgardian recruits, all training for right of passage into the Asgardian army. From the balcony of his tower, Odin watched in pride as Fandral and Volstagg took part in the training of these recruits. Volstagg was currently lecturing a group of young warriors, while Fandral was partaking in sparring lessons.

Sensing a familiar yet welcoming presence, Odin turned to face Sif, who was now clad in a silvery white dress. This dress was different in that it symbolized great honor, and given Sif's recent actions, she was well deserving of it.

Bowing respectfully to Odin, Sif greeted him. "AllFather."

"Lady Sif." Odin greeted with a nod. "I take it Vanaheim is secured?"

Sif stood tall and nodded. "We have the Marauders on the run. They no not to harm Vanaheim or it's people anymore."

"Yes, this is good." Odin said. "In time, we will have rounded up whatever remains of their forces, and the Nine Realms can finally enjoy peace."

"Yes." Sif said, walking up alongside Odin and watching over the recruits alongside him. "The battle was quite exhilarating, although it probably would have gone by faster if you had intervened."

Odin gave a chuckle. "You must think I'm a piece of bread that needs to be buttered so heavily."

Sif immediately felt embarrassed with herself. "I'm sorry, AllFather, I didn't mean it like tha..."

"Calm down, Sif." Odin chuckled. "I was only joking."

Sif nodded, still a little flustered, but nonetheless regained her composure. Odin lifted his gaze away from the Asgardians below, instead focusing on the beautiful plethora of stars that lied peacefully above the beautiful realm.

Giving a contented sigh, Odin spoke again. "For the first time since the Bifrost was destroyed, the Nine Realms are at peace. They are well reminded of our strength."

Odin slowly turned to look at Sif. "And you have earned their respect and gratitude, as well as mine."

Sif bowed. "I am honored, AllFather. Truly."

"Now, now, Sif." Odin said, raising his hand. "No need to be so formal. Your actions have earned you a higher form of respect from all of Asgard. You showed great courage even in the darkest of times. And I am hoping that it is that courage that will hopefully give you the position of Asgard's general."

Sif blinked in surprise. "Me? But Tyr..."

"Oh, Tyr is an old boy." Odin said with a wave of his hand. "He has no intention of leading."

"I see." Sif said, and she and Odin returned their gazes to the recruits below, watching in pride as they fought with the greatest of their ability.

"You know, Sif." Odin said, catching Sif's attention. "Standing here, reminds me of the day you and Thor first met. You were both so young then. He was arrogant and boastful, yet at the same time a gentlemen. You were equally as headstrong. When you marched into the grounds, wielding that sword, even I could not take you seriously. I can only imagine how Thor must have felt after you bested him in that duel."

Sif looked down slowly, her heart aching at the mention of the prince. She, too, remembered that day. It was one of the most memorable days of her life. One she would never forget.

Odin's smile fell, and he placed a tender hand on Sif's shoulder. "I understand your sorrow, my dear. Thor will forever be missed by all. When I had lost him, I was a broken man, and it didn't help when Loki betrayed us all. When you returned Loki to me, I was able to breathe. I am a ruined vessel of sorrow and regret over his actions, but he is still my son, and he still lives. And I have you to thank."

Sif gave Odin a smile, but then frowned in thought. "Do you truly think there is hope for him?"

Odin sighed. "I do not know. Frigga seems to think so. I admit, I have my doubts. But I intend to make emends over my past mistakes, so I will wait if I must."

Sif nodded, still unsure. But Odin continued to look at her. He frowned, sensing something else troubling her. He knew very well what it was. Heimdall told him everything regarding Sif's experiences on Midgard. The things she heard...

"Sif." Odin spoke suddenly, a hardness to his voice. Sif looked at him in surprise, having heard his tone. "Whatever things the Prothean told you, it would be best to keep them to yourself."

Sif's mouth fell open, and she turned to face Odin. "So you know? Was he telling the truth? Please, tell me..."

"Please, Sif." Odin pressed, causing Sif to shut up. Odin looked at her with an expression that Sif did not understand. "There are things that must be kept quiet, for the sake of the younger generation. Now, I ask you, please. Whatever you've been told, let it go. It will only cause trouble."

Sif was clearly distraught by the AllFather's statement, but nonetheless sighed, and bowed. "Yes, AllFather."

ooooo

Jane nervously clenched at the leathered menu, slowly gazing over the top to see if her date was still looking at her. When she saw that he was, she immediately fell back behind the menu again, sinking further into the chair.

She had not been on a real date in years!

She pulled the menu closer to her face, the silence in the restaurant not helping ease the awkwardness. The hushed small talk and chiming of glass only made Jane even more anxious.

Looking over the menu for what seemed like the billionth time, Jane pretended to read the fancy written words written across the paper. Suddenly, a small napkin was slid across the table, sliding underneath the menu right in front of her.

Looking at the napkin, Jane saw the word 'Hi' written on it. Carefully, she peered over the menu again, and saw her date, Richard, smiling kindly at her.

"Hi." He said awkwardly.

"Hi..." Jane replied nervously, finally lowering the menu.

"So, what's the story with you?" Richard asked, hoping to make small talk.

"Well, er..." Jane said, fumbling her hands nervously. "I'm an astrophycisist. I study stars."

"Uh, huh." Richard said, nodding.

"I have a laboratory in New Mexico." Jane said quickly. "I've been working hard on interstellar transit for some time."

Richard cocked an eyebrow, and Jane blushed. "Er, space stuff..."

Letting off a laugh, Richard looked at Jane with a smile. "You don't date much, do you."

"You can tell?" Jane said, sinking low into her chair.

"Well, it's just that, you've spent the first ten minutes of our date hiding behind a menu that has three choices on it." Richard pointed out, gesturing to the menu that Jane's hands were currently resting on. "It's either chicken, vegetarian, or fish."

"Right." Jane said, laughing nervously. "Yeah, I've been a little caught up in my research, among other things. I've never really had time to just, you know, take a break."

"I totally understand." Richard said. "To be honest, this is actually my first date in like two months."

"Two years for me." Jane said, but then immediately blushed when Richard looked at her surprised.

"Really? This research of yours must have been really important if it's been that long." Richard said, raising his hands up. "I mean, don't get me wrong. Your a really pretty young woman."

"Thanks." Jane said, smiling. "And it wasn't just the research. There were other things."

"Yeah?" Richard said. "Like what?"

Jane paused for a moment, glancing around to make sure nobody was listening. Taking a deep breath, she leaned in close to Richard, who leaned in as well to hear what she was going to say.

"Well, my assistant is..."

Before she could finish her sentence, a young woman suddenly walked up and stood right in front of the table. Automatically thinking she was a waitress, Richard spoke to her.

"Uh, hi. Could we get some wine please?"

"Sure I'd love some!" The girl said.

The moment those words were spoken, Jane's eyes went wide. Oh, no...

Afraid to look up, Jane nearly growled when she saw her beanie wearing assistant standing there, giving a goofy smile and a thumbs up. When Richard wasn't looking, Darcy pointed at him and mouthed the word 'Cute!', causing Jane to do a facepalm.

"Richard, this is Darcy. My assistant." Jane said, gesturing to her friend. She then gestured to Richard. "Darcy, this is Richard. My date."

"Oh." Richard said, surprised. "Hello."

"Sup!" Darcy said in all her greatness and glory. Grabbing a piece of bread right off of Jane's plate, Darcy reached back for an empty chair and dragged it up towards the table, surprising Richard and further aggravating Jane. Jane briefly caught glimpse of a silver hammer glinting in the light, before dissapearing beneath Darcy's jacket.

"So." Darcy said, sitting comfortably on the chair. "I wake up this morning, expecting to find you sitting alone in the kitchen, obsessively trying to reach Erik, S.H.I.E.L.D., or whatever superdoof we're forced to be in contact with..."

Jane's eye twitched, while Richard looked at Jane with a frown. "Who's Erik?"

Before Jane could respond, Darcy opened her mouth again. "But your not! So I'm like freaking out for two hours, trying to call you, waiting for Hikesh, so eventually I get bored and find you here! Wearing lady clothes, perfume, you even showered didn't you! You smell really good."

Jane unconsciously reached for her fork, but then grabbed her wrist with her other hand and took a deep breath. She gave Darcy a tight smile.

"Did you need something, Darcy?"

"Hm?" Darcy said, confused. But upon seeing the look Jane gave her, Darcy said, "Oh yeah!"

Darcy reached into her pocket, and pulled out Jane's device. She handed it to Jane. "This started acting up after you left. Any idea what it means?"

Frowning, Jane grabbed the device, studying it. "It's malfunctioning..."

"That's what I said." Darcy responded.

Jane started banging the device against the table.

"That's what I did!" Darcy said. "But I thought you'd have done something a little more scientific. Hikesh said they were the same readings that Erik forwarded to S.H.I.E.L.D."

"S.H.I.E.L.D.?" Richard said, the conversation between the two girls greatly puzzling him.

"It's nothing." Jane assured her date.

"Yeah." Darcy said, nodding. "Our friend, Erik kind of went... well, bananaballs."

Jane peered over at Richard, who just looked totally lost. Giving a sigh, Jane looked at Darcy. "Look, Darcy, can't this wait for a bit? I'm kind of in the middle of something..."

"Right, right." Darcy said, sitting back in her chair. Taking the menu and ignoring Jane's protests, Darcy started reading it over. "So, what have we got? Chicken... salad... seabass? Don't think I've ever had seabass before. Hm... Intersting word. Seabass. Kind of just roles off your tongue, you know? Ssss-eeeeaa-BAS!"

"Okay!" Jane said, snatching the menu away from Darcy, who just smiled innocently. "Maybe you should stop saying seabass, and just..."

"Jane." Richard suddenly said, giving her a smile. "Maybe you should go with your friend. I'm sure this is important to you."

Jane blinked, and then glanced back at Darcy, who just shrugged. Sighing, Jane looked at Richard apologetically. "I'm really sorry."

"No, it's alright." Richard said, smiling. "This was fun."

"So much fun." Jane said, getting up and grabbing her coat. She followed Darcy out the door, and glanced back at Richard. "I'll call you!"

"I'll be waiting." Richard said back. When they left, Richard looked back at the menu, and frowned. "Seabass... hm. Guess it does kind of role off your tongue."

ooooo

Darcy happily skipped to their red station wagon, with Jane stomping grumpily behind her. When they reached the vehicle, they entered, Darcy hopping into the driver's side and Jane the passenger's."

"Okay, it's official." Jane said. "I hate you."

"What?" Darcy said innocently. "I said he was cute."

"You were clearly messing with me back there." Jane retorted. "I mean seriously. Seabass?"

"What? It's a funny word."

Jane sighed. "Just... shut up and drive."

"Yepperoonie." Darcy said, and then glanced at the rear-view mirror. "Hikesh, buckle up!"

"I can't!"

Jane gave a yelp when she heard the voice speak, and turned to see Hikesh sitting in the backseat. However, his bulk made him look very uncomfortable back there, his legs squeezed tight in between the front seats and the backseat. But what really caught Jane's attention was Hikesh's garb. He was clad in a pair of baggy khakis and a grey hoodie. The hoodie looked tight on him, and the hood was draped uncomfortably over his head.

Seeing Jane's expression, Darcy smiled. "Oh, yeah. Hikesh is here."

Looking at Jane, Hikesh nodded. "Dr. Foster. Nice to see you again."

"Uh, hey, Hikesh." Jane said, trying best not to laugh at his appearance. She looked back at Darcy. "Uh, why is he..."

"Oh, well, he was worried about people pointing at him in public, so I got some of Erik's old clothes and had him wear them." Darcy explained. "No shoes though. Hikesh has clodhoppers for feet."

"I'll try not to take that as an insult." Hikesh growled.

While they had been talking, Darcy started the car and drove off. While they were riding down the road, Jane glanced at Darcy.

"So, any word from Erik yet?"

"Not a peep." Darcy said. "Worried?"

"A little." Jane said. "It was his information that got Fury to send us out here. You think he's in trouble?"

"Who knows?" Darcy said, shrugging, losing focus on the road. "Last I saw him, he was mumbling about Loki worming around in his head and..."

"Darcy, take a right!" Jane suddenly yelled, and the car screeched loudly as it made a sharp turn to the right, causing Hikesh to accidentally hit his head against the window. When the car turned, it barely missed a silver car that stopped abruptly when Darcy passed it. The driver immediately started yelling profanities at the group.

"Well, that was close." Darcy said.

"Yeah well-LEFT!" Jane yelled, and Darcy looked to see that they had been driving on the wrong side of the road, and a large van was now racing towards them.

Instantly, Darcy swerved to the next lane, causing Hikesh to hit his head against the other window. Glancing back at the van they nearly hit, Darcy took a deep breath and continued driving.

"I have totally mastered driving in London." Darcy said, smiling. Jane was clenching the arm rests of her seat, her face white and scared after the near-collision, while Hikesh was grumbling in the back, rubbing his head.

After driving for twenty minutes, the trio finally pulled up the source of the problem: a large abandoned factory. Parking near the building, Darcy exited the car, followed shortly by Jane, and then Hikesh, who struggled to pull himself out of the cramped vehicle.

Jane was staring at the device, then up at the factory, her face puzzled. As she walked towards the building, Darcy looked at her.

"You want the phase meter?"

"No." Jane said, walking toward the factory.

When she was gone, Darcy glanced back at Hikesh. "Bring the phase meter."

"That's not what it's called." Hikesh said.

"I don't know what it's called!" Darcy said defensively. "Just grab it."

"Whatever." Hikesh said, reaching into the back and grabbing the item Darcy was referring to.

Up ahead, Jane entered the factory grounds, finding herself surrounded by large shipping containers. She stared at them in shock, seeing that they were all seated in weird, abnormal positions, like building blocks. It looked as though something had lifted them up and rearranged them.

But what?

Suddenly, the sound of Jane's ringtone was heard, and Jane blinked as she reached in. Cautiously, she answered it, and the moment she did, an unwelcome message was played.

"There is no escape. They will come. Death will follow. No escape..."

"For Christ's sake." Jane said, flipping off her phone. To her surprise, that failed to stop it.

"No escape. The shadows of the past will emerge, slaughtering all. But there is a way. A way to escape the shadows, and embrace the light."

"Good, god!" Jane said.

"You're hearing it too?" Darcy said, having caught up with Jane. Jane nodded, and Darcy frowned. "I thought we fixed that problem?"

"We did!" Jane said. "But it's different. It's like the broadcast is stronger here."

"Perhaps we are nearing it's source." Hikesh suggested, looking around. Jane frowned at the Prothean. Something about the alien's behavior was off. He was looking around, with a worried expression on his face. He seemed oddly apprehensive.

Noticing it as well, Darcy tapped his shoulder. "Yo. You okay?"

Taking a deep breath, Hikesh nodded. "Yes, yes. Just, leave them here. I don't think I can listen to any more of that message."

"Nor can any of us." Jane said. Taking Darcy's phone, she walked over to one of the containers, and tossed both phones into the opening. The message was now drowned out some.

"There's the entrance." Darcy said, pointing to the building ahead. The three entered slowly, and were met with absolute silence. The building was dimly lit, making them feel uncomfortable.

"Creepy..." Darcy muttered, subconsciously reaching for Mjolnir.

The three continued walking thorugh, and were met with some strange sights. Several windows were shattered, and the glass from it was pressed against the ceiling as if they were glued there. Leaves were just hovering in midair, the air blowing them, but never reached the ground. Curiously, Jane rached out and grabbed one, feeling it for any abormalities, and then letting it go. To her surprise, it just remained floating in midair.

"Okay." Jane said. "That's not normal."

"Indeed." Hikesh said, observing the floating leaves. "Seems like the work of a telekinetic."

"Carrie White, anyone?" Darcy suggested.

Suddenly, there was movement in the shadows, followed by a flock of scared pigeons soaring out from the darkness and out an open window. Everyone jumped in panic, and Darcy immediatly pulled out Mjolnir, getting into a defensive position. Hikesh's dark aura flared around his body.

"What are you guys doing?" Jane hissed.

"What?" Darcy said. "I'm not getting stabbed in the name of science."

Cautiously, the two human girls and the Prothean edges toward the corner that the birds flew from.

"Who's there?" Hikesh said, glaring. "Show yourselves!"

"Yeah, you don't have to be scared!" Darcy said. "We're Americans!"

"Is that supposed to make them like us?" Jane said, glaring.

Carefully, the two crept forward, when a small terrified voice spoke up. "Make it go away."

"Shhh!" A second voice hissed.

Confused, the three edged closer, and relaxed when they saw three children, hiding behind the corner.

"They're just kids." Jane said, visibly relieved. Hikesh immediately pulled the hood over his head and stuffed his hands into the pockets. They barely fit inside.

The kids crept out into the open, and stared at the three in confusion. The youngest of the trio, a little girl, pointed at Darcy's hammer.

"What's that?"

Blinking, Darcy tucked the hammer back into her jacket. "Uh, nothing. Just a family heirloom is all..."

"And who's that?" A boy said, pointing at Hikesh, noting his bizarre stature and form.

Darcy and Jane glanced at Hikesh, then at each other. Jane just shrugged, while Darcy looked back at the kids.

"Uh... that's... my uncle!" Darcy said, smiling. "Yeah. Uncle... eh... Uncle Fudge!"

Jane pinched the bridge of her nose, while Hikesh's head cocked in puzzlement.

"He has three toes..." The boy said, looking at Hikesh's feet.

Darcy shrugged. "He has leprosy."

"But he has three eyes and..."

"So!" Jane suddenly said, catching the kids' attention. "What are you all doing here?"

The children looked at each other, looking scared, when the little girl spoke up. "We just found it."

"Found what?" Darcy asked.

"We'll show you." The oldest boy said, and the children walked into a nearby room, beckoning the other three to follow.

Following the kids into a large room, the group saw an enormous cement truck. The youngest boy stepped forward, slowly and carefully approaching the truck. When the three did a double take, they were shocked to see that the truck was floating at least twenty inches above the ground.

The group all watched in awe as the boy placed his hand underneath the truck and lifted it. With zero effort, he turned the entire truck around, and it spun around gently in midair.

"Oh my god." Jane said dumbly.

"Fascinating." Hikesh said, stepping forward and studying the bizarre phenomenon.

"That's not all." One of the boys said. "Come over here."

The three followed the children up a flight of stairs, stopping halfway up. Gathering around the railings, the kids peered over the edge toward the ground. Standing several meters above the ground level, the group watched as one of the kids picked up an empty beer bottle that had been laying nearby, and dropped it over the edge.

Darcy, Jane, and Hikesh all gawked when instead of smashing against the ground below, the bottle was briefly caught in a ripple of distortion, before vanishing from sight.

"Where did it go?" Jane asked urgently.

Instead of answering, the children looked up, and the trio followed their gaze, and watched as a second dimensional distortion appeared and dropped the bottle out of thin air. The bottle fell down below, disappearing again, only to reappear again from above.

"Woah." Darcy said in awe.

"That's incredible!" Jane said, amazed that she was witnessing such an event.

Hikesh looked at the children. "How long has this been happening?"

"We don't know." One boy said, shrugging helplessly. "It was like this when we got here."

"Here, let me try something." Darcy said. Walking down a few steps, she grabbed a crushed Red Bull can that someone must have discarded at some point, and tossed it over the edge. It disappeared as expected, but when everyone looked up expecting it to reappear, it didn't.

Looking puzzled, Jane looked at the kids. "What happened?"

"Sometimes they come back, sometimes they don't." The girl answered.

"This is so cool!" Darcy said, and looked at Jane. "Quick, give me your shoe!"

"No!" Jane said, glaring. She reached into her pocket, and looked at the device. The readings were now skyrocketing.

"I haven't seen readings like this since..."

"Since New Mexico." Darcy finished. Jane glanced up at Darcy, and the two women shared a brief glance before Jane looked at the device, just to make sure she wasn't imagining things.

"Do you think another portal has opened?" Hikesh queried.

"Maybe." Darcy shrugged. "If there is, we won't have to build one of our own."

"This must be what Erik had found." Jane said. "I wish he was here right now. Then maybe this would make more sense."

Hikesh nodded in agreement, but then frowned when Darcy took off her shoe and tossed it over the side. When it reappered above, Darcy laughed. "That's awesome!"

"You shouldn't play with it." Hikesh said. "It could be dangerous."

"Dangerously cool." Darcy retorted. "Come on kids, try it!"

The kids all took off a shoe and tossed it over, smiling when they reappeared. Shaking her head at their antics, Jane looked back down at the device, frowning when she saw that the coordinates were changing. Following an arrow on the device, Jane slowly wondered away from the group unnoticed.

Hikesh glared in annoyance as Darcy and the kids tossed whatever they could find over the edge. A rubix cube, shoes, socks, whatever. But soon, Darcy took something out of her pocket that caused Hikesh's eyes to grow wide.

"Wait, Darcy, not the car keys!"

To late. Darcy tossed them over the side, and Hikesh rushed over to the railing and watched as the keysct fell and disappeared into the rift. The group looked up, and nothing came back down.

Slowly, Hikesh turned to glare at Darcy, who just smiled back sheepishly. "Eh... oops?"

ooooo

Jane followed the directions given to her by the device, moving through a dark hallway where the only source of light was that which was creeping through the fogged up windows. A cold wind swept up piles of leaves that covered the floor and blew through Jane's hair.

Eventually, Jane stopped in the middle of the hallway, frowning when she saw that she had arrived at the location. Looking around, she saw nothing. Just a dark, empty hall.

"The hell?" She muttered.

Suddenly, the wind picked up, and Jane gasped when she felt a strange tugging at her stomach. Then, without warning, Jane felt herself being yanked off her feet and towards a set of closed doors that lay at the end of the hallway. Jane started pressing her feet against the ground in an effort to stop herself, but was unsuccessful.

As she neered the doors, Jane put her hands up over her face, expecting to impact against the doors.

But it never happened, for just like the bottles, shoes, and car keys, Jane vanished in the fabric of reality, before everything was silent once more.

Phew. That took a while. Well, chapter five is done. Although this was actually supposed to be the rest of chapter four. But I guess it doesn't really matter. Review please.