Escape to Svartalfheim

I own Vielae. Everything else belongs to its respective owners.

Vielae had just finished her meditation as Thor entered the dungeon. Loki had put up an illusion of himself and his cell. The fake him was well-groomed, and his cell was in perfect condition. Vielae watched the exchange with interest.

"Thor. After all this time, and now you come to visit me," Loki spat, still cold towards his brother. "Why? Have you come to gloat? To mock?" Thor, however, was having none of it.

"Loki, enough. No more illusions," he said. He sounded tired. The fake Loki closed his eyes and the illusion wavered from sight. It still pained Vielae to see him like this. While she was aware that he was staging it, it still seemed like he was in pain.

"Now you see me, brother," Loki croaked. Thor got closer to him, clearly distraught at the sight of his brother – as Loki had predicted. "Did she suffer?" When that question left his lips, both Thor and Vielae were surprised. Despite his cold facade, the news of Frigga's death was still weighing heavily upon him. Thor, however, recovered much faster than Vielae or Loki expected.

"I did not come here to share our grief. Instead, I offer you the chance of a far richer sacrament," Thor said. Is he really this predictable? Vielae wondered as she listened on. "I know you seek vengeance as much as I do. You help me escape Asgard and I will grant it to you; vengeance. And afterward, this cell," Thor finished. Vielae couldn't believe it. He was really offering the deal, just like Loki said he would. He is either extremely righteous, or extremely thick, she thought to herself. Loki chuckled.

"You must be truly desperate to come to me for help," he said through the laughter. "What makes you think you can trust me?"

"I don't," Thor said simply. Okay, he's smarter than I've given him credit for, Vielae thought. "Mother did," he continued. "But you should know that when we fought each other in the past, I did so with the glimmer of hope that my brother was still in there somewhere. That hope no longer exists to protect you. You betray me, and I will kill you." Not if I have anything to say about it, Vielae thought. Loki smiled and leaned forward.

"When do we start?" Vielae realized that this was her cue. She stood up and walked to the edge of the glass.

"Take me with you," she said. Thor looked over at her, as if surprised that she was there.

"They did not release you?" Thor asked as he approached her cell.

"No. I would not allow them to," Vielae replied. Taking a deep breath, Vielae began the speech she had practiced over and over in her head.

"I want vengeance just as badly as you and Loki do. Frigga may not have been my mother, but she was kind to me. Besides, Malekith is the reason that I have been imprisoned for so long, cut off from my home. I want to kill him for giving me up like he did."

"How did him giving you up mean more than him killing his own people?" Thor asked. Vielae knew what was coming, but she braced herself and spoke.

"Malekith is my father." Thor's eyes grew wide. "I know what you would say, or perhaps what you would do, but he allowed me to be captured. He made my life a living Hel, and I would return the favor a hundred times over. You're going to need a way out of here. I assume a ship of ours has crashed nearby, yes? You need a pilot. When you get to Svartalfheim, you will need a guide." Vielae watched as Thor processed everything she said.

"And how can I be sure that you will not betray me?" he asked.

"You cannot," Vielae replied. "However, I give you my solemn oath as a warrior that I shall not try to run. Allow me to prove myself, and hold judgment until Malekith is dead. Then, if I have not done enough, you may return me to this cell for the rest of my days." If Loki is here, at least I can be with him in this regard. Vielae kept eye contact with Thor as he thought. With a small sigh, he lowered her cell walls, and Loki's as well.

"My promise to Loki goes for you as well. Betray me, and I will kill you," he warned her.

"I would expect nothing less," she replied. As Loki's cell walls dissolved, he and Vielae met in the corridor. They both smiled, and Loki – ever the gentleman – took Vielae's right hand and kissed it.

"It is a pleasure to finally meet you, Lady Vielae," he said. His lips felt warm on her hand.

"The pleasure is all mine, my Prince," Vielae replied.

"We must hurry," Thor called from the door. The two looked at him, looked back at each other, nodded, and walked off with Thor at a brisk pace.

As they made their way through a deserted hallway with large columns, Loki seemed to be making up for lost time with Thor...by goading him.

"This is so unlike you, brother. So clandestine. Are you sure you wouldn't rather just punch your way out?" he said, smirking.

"If you keep speaking, I just might," Thor replied. Going by the tone of his voice, Vielae didn't doubt it.

"Fine, as you wish. I'm not even here," Loki said. With a shimmer, Loki shapeshifted into an Einherjar guard. "I think it would be easier for you too, my Lady." Vielae saw another shimmer, and when she looked at her hands, they were not hers. Loki had given her a similar shape to his. "Is this better?" he asked Thor, his voice still the same. Thor gave him and Vielae a once over, still focusing on the task at hand.

"It is better company at least," he said, pressing onward. "No offense meant, Lady Vielae," he added quickly.

"None taken," Vielae said, understanding his need for urgency.

"Still, we could be less conspicuous," Loki said. There was another shimmer. Loki and Vielae had become themselves again, but Thor looked like Lady Sif. "Brother, you look ravishing," Loki joked, a smirk plastered on his face. Thor looked down at himself, and continued on, no less angry.

"It will hurt no less when I kill you in this form," he spat at Loki. Vielae had to keep from laughing at the fact that Thor's voice was coming from Sif's muscular-but-ladylike form. Loki sighed, giving her a small smile as he noticed that she was containing laughter.

"Very well. Perhaps you prefer one of your new companions, given that you like them so much," he suggested, and shimmered into the form of a young man with dark blonde hair, a very muscular form, dressed in a blue uniform with a single star on the his chest and stripes down the torso. In his right hand was a circular shield of red and white with another star in the middle. Vielae raised an eyebrow at him. She didn't like this form too much, but she was curious as to who it was. She made a mental note to ask him later. "Oh, this is much better," Loki was saying. There was a certain spring to his step now. "Woah! Costume's a bit much, it's so tight!" Vielae had noticed that as well. "But the confidence! I can feel the righteousness surging! Hey, wanna have a rousing discussion about truth, honor, patriotism? God Bless America..." Thor suddenly grabbed Vielae and Loki, threw her behind a pillar, and slammed Loki onto the same pillar, covering his mouth with his hand. Loki, who had instantly become himself again, looked confused. "What?" he whispered when Thor removed his hand. Thor nodded over Loki's shoulder, and they saw two guards patrolling the hallway. Vielae realized that this was going to be much harder than anticipated, and she could see the same anxious look in Thor's eyes. "You could at least furnish me with a weapon. My dagger, something!" Loki said. I at least want to be able to protect her, he thought. Thor faced Loki, and the sound of sliding metal was heard. Loki grinned. "At last, a little common sense," he said. Then, he looked down, and saw that Thor had shackled his hands. Loki looked back at his brother, dumbfounded.

"I thought you liked tricks," Thor laughed, and continued on. Vielae looked down at the shackles, and then back at Loki. He was still a little dumbfounded, which made her smile. He looked at her, and frowned slightly at her smile. She shrugged, and the two of them followed after Thor.

Further down the corridor, they met with Sif and Jane. Jane saw Loki, and walked quickly toward him.

"You're," she began, and Loki took a step forward, standing tall and proud.

"I am Loki. Perhaps you've heard of me," he said. Apparently, Jane had, because she gave him a mighty smack across his face.

"That was for New York," she spat. Vielae looked confused, but Loki just laughed.

"I like her," he said to Thor, smiling. Jane then saw Vielae, and smiled.

"Vielae! They let you out?" she said, giving Vielae a quick hug.

"Thor did. I want vengeance against Malekith just as much as everyone else here...perhaps more so, but I'll explain later. Right now?" As she said that, she nodded toward a group of guards who had just found them and were shouting and running towards them.

"I'll hold them off. Take her," said Sif, drawing her sword. Thor nodded and escorted Jane away. As Vielae and Loki went to follow, Sif raised her sword to their throats.

"Betray him, and I'll kill you both," she snarled. Vielae merely nodded, but Loki laughed.

"It's good to see you too, Sif," he said, and they ran after Thor and Jane.

They reached the plaza, and Vielae was relieved to see a Harrow Ship crashed there. As far as she could tell, it would fly just fine. Standing outside was Volstagg, a gruff looking warrior with red hair and a red beard, and carrying a two handed greataxe.

"I will give you as much time as I can," he told Thor.

"Thank you, my friend," Thor said, clapping him on the shoulder, and entering the ship. Jane followed, nodding her thanks to Volstagg. As Loki and Vielae went to follow, he stopped them.

"If you even think about betraying him," Volstagg began.

"You'll kill me? Evidently, there will be a line," Loki quipped, and entered the ship.

"The same goes for you, Elf," Volstagg warned Vielae.

"Dark Elf," Vielae replied. "I'll not be confused for my forest-dancing cousins." Loki gave an involuntary snort of laughter. Volstagg looked at Vielae, who still offered a nod of thanks. "Fight well," she said, offering her hand. Volstagg grasped it after a moment, his hand grasping her forearm, and her hand grasping his. At that moment, they understood each other as warriors. Vielae than boarded the ship, honestly hoping for the best for Volstagg.

On the ship, Thor had begun to press random buttons.

"I thought you said you knew how to fly this thing," Loki said, now feeling a sense of urgency.

"I said, 'How hard could it be?'" Thor replied, still mashing buttons.

"Move," Vielae ordered Thor, and sat down. She immediately started the ignition sequence.

"How did you do that?" Thor asked. Vielae and Loki both froze, and slowly looked at Thor, disbelief written all over their faces. Vielae shook her head and returned to what she was doing. The display screen flickered to life. Outside, they could hear the sounds of fighting. Volstagg was holding his own pretty well. As smoothly as possible, Vielae raised the ramp, and started steering the ship out of the plaza. Due to the size, she couldn't avoid taking out a few columns.

"I think you missed a column," Loki said, unable to resist the witty remark.

"Shut up," Vielae replied, focusing on what she was doing. She was a bit rusty, so reacquainting herself with the displays was taking a bit longer. Finally, she maneuvered out of the palace through the city. While dodging anti-aircraft fire and the like, she took off the top of a building. Vielae heard Loki take a breath, and she shot him an icy stare. "Not a word," she said. Loki was about to retort when Jane collapsed in the back.

"Jane!" Thor cried, and ran to her.

"Oh dear. Is she dead?" Loki said mildly.

"Loki," Vielae chided him, still concentrating.

"I'm alright," Jane said, though everyone could see that she wasn't.

"The Aether is consuming her. We have no time to waste," Vielae said, and accelerated. An alarm started beeping, and Vielae saw that they were pursued by skiffs.

"They're following us," Loki said. When they began shooting, he said, "Now they're shooting at us!"

"Loki, please!" Vielae said. "Commentary isn't needed." In a dodge, Vielae accidentally decapitated a statue of King Bor.

"You just decapitated his grandfather," Loki commented, a tinge of joy in his face.

"He was the one who captured me," Vielae replied lightly. Once they were out of the city and over the water, Loki started to panic.

"You know, this is wonderful. This is a tremendous idea. Let's steal the biggest, most obvious ship in the universe and escape in that," he began. Vielae turned and looked to Thor, or nodded at her display. Vielae looked, and noticed that there was a skiff flying beneath them, just on the edge of the sensor's range. Suddenly, she understood his plan. "Flying around the city, smashing into everything in sight so everyone can see us. It's brilliant, Thor! It's truly brilliant!" Thor simply sighed, and pushed Loki out of a door that Vielae had opened seconds before. Vielae then set the controls to autopilot as Thor grabbed Jane and followed Loki, who was screaming as he fell. Just before she jumped, she went to a wall and grabbed a leftover sword hanging there, as well as a small artillery belt. Then, she leaped from the ship after Thor.

The four of them landed on a skiff that was piloted by Fandral, the third of the legendary Warriors Three. When Vielae landed, Fandral was laughing at Loki.

"I see your time in the dungeons has made you no less graceful, Loki," he was saying. He then noticed Vielae, and the fact that she was armed. "I hope you trust this one, Thor," he commented, nodding towards her. "She looks as dangerous as she is pretty."

"I am, and thank you," Vielae replied, strapping the sword to her belt. Loki stood up, and faced Thor.

"You lied to me...I'm impressed," he said, sounding genuinely so.

"I'm glad you're pleased. Now, do as you promised. Take us to your secret pathway," Thor replied. Grinning with glee, Loki took hold of the tiller, and started steering the skiff. They were quickly spotted, and pursued by guards. Loki maneuvered with ease, bringing the skiff higher above the water. Thor looked to Fandral, who picked up a rope.

"Right. For Asgard," he said, somewhat ironically. He then jumped from the skiff and swung to the pursuing one. After knocking the guards out quickly, he gave Thor a salute and turned the skiff home. Everyone, except for Loki, then turned their attention to their destination. Loki was steering the skiff towards a small group of rocks, where a small cave could be seen.

"Loki," Thor warned, nervously.

"If it were easy, everyone would do it," Loki said, not deviating from his course.

"Are you mad?" Thor asked his brother. Loki looked at him, and grinned.

"Possibly." The edges of the skiff smashed against the walls as they hurtled through the cave. There were crystals on the cave that began to generate the same energy as the Bifrost, and soon enough, the skiff was skipping on the dark sands of Svartalfheim.

"Ta-da," Loki sang as they arrived.