Chapter 14 – Asgardian Women in the Mood

Loki's eyes widened as he and Sif raced towards the Earth. As the ground drew nearer, Sif held her shield out like a parachute and their descent slowed. But only very little.

The Asgardians landed with a thud on a rocky hill, and while Sif hit the ground without faltering, Loki was sent skidding a few meters before smashing head first into a rock. Groaning in slight pain, Loki slowly pulled himself up, rubbing his head. Looking up, he saw Sif glaring down at him.

"Where is the Tesseract?" She demanded.

"It's good to see you, too." Loki spat, pulling himself up.

"Do I look to be in the mood for any of your infuriating quips?" Sif snapped, driving her sword into the ground, leaving it imbedded in the stone surface. Loki studied the sword, an eyebrow raised.

"Impressive weapon." He said, changing the subject, and he eyed Sif with a smirk. "A symbol of honor if I recall. What have you been doing, Sif?"

Still glaring daggers at Loki, Sif huffed. "The AllFather saw it fit to promote me for my recent accomplishments. I am now considered to be the mightiest warrior in Asgard, now that Thor is gone…" Sif's glare seemed to intensify. "Thanks in no small part to you."

Loki sighed and sat up, resting his arm on a rock and giving Sif a look of displeasure. "Have you come to kill me, Sif? Was seeing me lose my home, my title, and my honor not enough for you?"

"I did not come here to kill you, you fool!" Sif hissed. "No matter how tempting it may be."

"Then why have you come?" Loki growled.

Sif sighed, and walked away from the prince of lies, staring out into the night sky. "The AllFather suffers. The loss of both you and Thor had taken its toll on his faith, as well as that of every other person in Asgard. He has barely been seen since the few weeks after your fall from the Bifrost. But when he discovered that you were here on Midgard, I volunteered to come here and bring you back."

Loki smirked wickedly. "I'm flattered, Sif. You must have really missed me."

The Asgardian maiden turned around glaring daggers at Loki, and she quickly grabbed Loki by the hair, getting a hiss from the mischief god in the process, and pulled him up to his feet.

"I did not do this for you." She said coldly. "If anything I would have preferred to let those mortals flay you alive."

Loki sneered in her face. "Then tell me, Lady Sif, that out of all the people the AllFather could have conjured here on this miserable planet, why you?"

"Because there has been enough suffering in these realms. Nobody needs you adding to it. It's what the AllFather wants." Sif said, and her expression softened slightly at the next part. "It's what Thor would want."

"And there it is." Loki said, smiling evilly. "This isn't about the mortals, or the AllFather. It's about honoring Thor."

Sif's face grew red with anger. "It is not…"

"Oh, but it is." Loki interrupted, and his eyes narrowed. "Did you have feelings for him, Sif?"

Sif said nothing, and just continued to glare.

"Did you touch him? Did you look upon him with love?" Loki continued, and then scoffed. "There was no love in that one. There was only pride and arrogance. He was blind to such a feeling. And my only regret is that he had to die before he could know such emotions."

Sif looked absolutely furious, and barely restrained the urge to punch the god of lies.

"Whatever feelings I may have had," Sif said dangerously, "are none of your concern."

"If that is what you wish, then so be it." Loki said, facing away from Sif. But Sif grabbed him by the shoulders and forced him to look at her straight in the eye.

"Now, tell me, Laufeyson," Sif hissed, and gave a satisfied smirk when she saw the look of anger on Loki's face, "and, yes, the AllFather informed me of your true heritage. Tell me why out of all the realms you could have chosen to conquer, you choose this realm of mortals?"

Loki pushed Sif away from him, and she stumbled back slightly. "Because for years, I lived in my brother's shadow. While the AllFather paraded him with honor and the throne, I remained in the shade of his greatness. I who was and should be king!"

Sif looked shocked for a moment, and then she gave him an incredulous look. "So you take this world of mortals as recompense for imagined slights? You truly are lost, Loki. The mortals will never take you as their king."

"Won't they?" Loki sneered. "Day by day, the humans slaughter each other in droves, lacking the guidance needed to prosper. I mean to rule them. That's why I should not…"

"You think yourself above them." Sif declared, giving Loki a pitiful gaze.

Loki scoffed. "And you don't? I seem to recall you never thought to highly of them yourself."

"That's not the point, Loki." Sif said, shaking her head. "You speak of ruling, yet your ideals are like that of a warlord. Like that of Laufey's."

"You dare…" Loki hissed dangerously.

"Yes I dare." Sif hissed back. "The throne would suit you ill, Loki, just as it did in Asgard. You were a fool then, and you're a fool now."

Loki pushed past Sif, standing on the edge of the cliff and gazing out into the starry sky. "I have seen worlds you've never known about. I have grown, Lady Sif, in my exile. I have seen the true power of the Tesseract. And when I wield it..."

"Power?" Sif asked, confused. "What power? When did you come across this?"

Loki stopped suddenly, and slowly turned his head towards Sif, grinning. "He showed me."

"Who?"

"A death dealer. An avatar of chaos and destruction." Loki said. "His name pales in importance than to that of his power."

Sif huffed. "So than he controls you. It is as I thought. The would-be-king is nothing more than a puppet."

"I am a king!" Loki snapped, but Sif shoved him.

"Not here!" She yelled back. "You give up the Tesseract and this pointless dream, and come back to Asgard."

Loki glared distastefully as Sif grabbed the neck of his robes and pulled him close to her. "If you don't I will drag you back there myself!"

Loki glared at Sif for a few moments, and then chuckled. "I don't have it."

Sif pushed him back, and quickly grabbed the hilt of her sword and yanked it out of the ground. For a moment, it appeared as though she was going to strike him, but Loki spoke before she could try.

"You need the cube to bring me home, but I've sent it off. I know not where." He said, smiling. "Quite the predicament isn't it."

Sif pointed at Loki, glowering dangerously. "You listen well, Loki. I…"

Suddenly, a metal red and gold figure zoomed by and slammed right into Sif. Loki glanced casually in their direction, watching as the figure, Iron Man, carried Sif off into the forest.

Shrugging, Loki muttered. "I'm listening."

Suddenly, Loki heard something hit the ground behind him, and before he could turn to see what it was, something grabbed his robe and spun him around.

Loki was now face to face with Thordis, who was looking at him with a remorseful expression.

"I'm really sorry about this."

"Wha…?"

Loki wasn't even able to finish the sentence as Darcy pulled her fist back and drove it at his face. Loki felt a brief flash of pain before everything went dark.

ooooo

Iron Man continued to carry Sif off a great distance until the Asgardian maiden, after realizing where she was, snarled in fury and beat her fist against Iron Man's chest plating. The amazing force behind the strike was enough to both dent the armor and force Iron Man to falter and release Sif, who fell from the sky and landed in the wooded terrain below. Landing perfectly on her feet, Sif readied her sword and shield as the armored avenger landed a few meters away from her. Once he did, his helmet opened up to reveal his face.

"Never touch me again." Sif growled.

"Then don't take my stuff." Tony retorted.

Sif scoffed. "You have no idea what you are dealing with, mortal."

"Err… Xena: Warrior Princess?" Tony guessed, and Sif gave a confused expression.

Getting no response, Tony shrugged. "No? Hm… Kesha? No, not enough glitter. Hey, what about…"

"Enough!" Sif snapped, and Tony reared back in surprise as the maiden quickly rushed towards him. He didn't have time to charge a repulsor blast as the woman slammed into him shield first, and the amazing force behind the strike sent Iron Man flying into a tree. The tree snapped in half upon collision, and Sif smirked in satisfaction. Iron Man grunted as he pulled himself up. From beneath his helmet, Tony glared at the Asgardian.

"Okay…"

Sif readied her weapon when she saw Iron Man start to get up, but she was blown back when he fired repulsor blasts from his hands and chest. She crashed into a tree as well, but was able to slow down the impact by driving her heals into the dirt. As a result, the tree wasn't as damaged as when Iron Man hit the other one. But Iron Man zoomed towards Sif and delivered a kick that sent her flying through the tree and into a nearby clearing.

Pulling herself up, Sif snarled at the metal clad superhero. She lifted her shield up to block the incoming repulsor blast, which rikochead off of the alien metal and scathed a nearby tree. As she blocked each blast, Sif slowly drew nearer. As she was only a few feet away from him, he put all his power into one blast, and Sif clenched her teeth as she continued to push forward.

Then, when the blast finally ended, Sif delivered a punch to Iron Man's head, denting the metal and driving his head back. She drove her knee into the suit's abdomen, actually shattering the armor. As Iron Man doubled over, Sif brought the sword back and drove into Iron Man's side, actually breaching the armor. Tony hissed as he felt the blade scathe his side but not actually impale him.

"Sir," The voice of JARVIS, Stark's AI assistant, spoke, "the breach has damaged the Mark VI's power supply. Power is now plummeting at dangerous levels."

"Damnit…" Tony muttered. "Then we'll just have to make the best of it."

Sif looked down in surprise as the suit's chest piece started glowing and a powerful repulsor blast sent her flying away. She was able to regain her composure and landed perfectly on her feet, and the ground shook the moment she landed. Glaring down each other down, Iron Man and Sif prepared to charge, and both flew at each other.

Activating his flight boosters, Iron Man grabbed hold of Sif and flew upwards with her in hand. The two flew through several branches, many of which snagged onto Sif's hair or snapped across her face. The two flew some distance before Iron Man slammed Sif into the side of a rocky mountain. Sif grunted as her face was dragged along the rocky surface, and delivered a right hook to Iron Man's helmet, but he shook it off and continued to drive her further into the mountainside. Sif folded her legs into a squatting position and pushed herself off of the mountainside, and she and Iron Man were driven from the mountainside and sent flying back into the wooded terrain.

Both combatants slammed through a tree, breaking it in half, and Sif's sword and shield fell from her grasp. Both combatants picked themselves up, and Sif delivered a strong punch that drove Iron Man's head to the side. He looked back at her and tried to deliver a punch of his own, but Sif grabbed his wrist. He attempted to punch her with his other fist, but she caught that one as well.

As he tried to free himself from her grip, Tony felt the suit's right hand breaking around his wrist as Sif slowly crushed it in her hand. Sif didn't even feel the sparks coming from the metal, and smirked as she heard Tony grunting in slight pain. However, his hand opened up, and Sif grunted as a repulsor blast struck her right in the face. Temporarily blinded, Sif released Iron Man, who grabbed her by the shoulders and delivered a headbut. Sif grunted, and shook her head. Glaring back at Iron Man, she delivered a headbutt of her own, and Iron Man was actually sent flying a few meters away from her.

Rolling back to his feet, Iron Man rocketed back towards Sif and grabbed her. Swinging her around, Iron Man threw her into the tree that the two of them broke earlier, and she hit the ground with a oomf.

Sif pulled herself up, glaring, and noticed her sword lying nearby. Picking it up, she jumped at Iron Man, who ducked to avoid being cut by the alien blade. He tried to deliver an uppercut, but Sif backed away from it and drove her fist right into his metal face. He stumbled back slightly, and grunted as Sif beat her feast down on his head, driving him to his knees. Sif then drove two of her fingers into the eyes of Tony's helmet, breaking through them. Tony felt the digits poke against his eyes, and then felt himself being picked up by the head. Holding onto his helmet like a bowling ball, Sif flipped Iron Man over her shoulder and felt the helmet break off of the suit. Now helmetless, Iron Man fell on his back, and looked up to see Sif raising her sword to impale him.

Thinking fast, Iron Man rocketed away from her and Sif drove her sword into the ground. She looked up to see Iron Man coming back at her and he delivered a punch to her head. Grunting in anger, Sif pulled her sword out of the ground and prepared to strike him.

"Hey!" A voice suddenly said, and a spangled shield suddenly struck Sif in the head and bounced into Iron Man's chest plate. The shield returned back to its thrower, and Sif and Iron Man looked up to see Captain America standing up on the broken tree, glaring down at the both of them.

"That's enough!"

He jumped down from his perch, and looked at Sif warily. "Now I don't know what you plan on doing here…"

"I've come here to put an end to Loki's madness!" Sif barked at him, clearly angry at the fight being interrupted.

"Then prove it." The captain said, and he approached her cautiously. "Put the sword down."

Sif glared, and then glanced over at Iron Man as he started to speak. "Uh… yep! No! Bad call! She loves her sw… OOMF!"

Sif swung her sword at Iron Man, leaving a large cut in his armor's chest plate and sending him flying back on his back. Looking up angrily at Captain America, Sif hissed.

"You want me to put the sword down?"

Captain America's eyes widened as the Asgardian maiden leapt at him, preparing to strike him with her sword. Everything seemed to go in slow motion as the captain quickly raised his shield and the sword struck the side. The vibranium shield made a loud clanging noise as the blade made contact, and the resulting shockwave sent Sif flying back and left a huge crater in the surrounding forest.

Sif grunted as she pulled herself up, and looked at Captain America in shock. Her sword was made of the most powerful metal in all of Asgard. Nothing had ever been strong enough to protect itself from the blade. She watched as the captain slowly picked himself up, and she heard a grown behind her and looked to see Iron Man pulling himself up as well. He picked up his discarded helmet, and walked over to the two.

The three looked at each other for a few moments, when a voice suddenly spoke up.

"Are you guys done yet?"

The three looked up to see Thordis sitting on the top of a tree with an unconscious Loki thrown over her shoulder. She looked at Sif with a frown.

"Seriously, you can't even stay out of Asgard for five minutes without getting into a fight." Darcy said, and then muttered. "And Jane says I'm crazy…"

Sif glared at the young thunder goddess, and then turned to Captain America as he started to speak. "Listen, your intentions may be good, but if we're gonna accomplish anything here you're gonna have to work with us. We need to take Loki back to base so he can tell us where the Tesseract is. You can either help us, or leave."

Sif thought for a moment, and then surveyed the damage. Upon seeing the chaos she created, Sif immediately felt guilty. Earlier when she was speaking with Loki, the forest actually looked peaceful and serene. Now it looked like a battle-torn wasteland.

Looking back at the captain, Sif lowered her sword. "Very well."

Sif can be a real hothead, can't she. Hopefully she can work alongside mortals without losing her cool. Especially Darcy…

Also, I know some of you want a Hikesh/Soladat romance, and after thinking it over, I thought, what the hell. So you can expect to see a little chemistry between the two. Next chapter, the group meets at the Helicarrier to discuss their current predicaments. Review pleaz.