Earth – Rock City Music Hall

Erica was with three other officers when she came upon her husband. He was webbed and his hands were trembling. He was staring at a spot in space just ahead of him. She shook him.

"George? George? Which way did she go? Have you seen Gwen?"

He looked at her and when their eyes met Erica saw a truly broken man.

"George, what happened?"

One of the officers who had accompanied Erica kneeled down and ran his fingers along the rune that had been burned into the cement floor.

"What do you think made this?"

Erica motioned at another officer.

"We need an EMT to take a look at Captain Stacy."

The officer lifted his radio to his mouth and requested EMT to their location. It took them several minutes to get him out of the web. Erica took his service weapon with a gloved hand after verifying it had been discharged, she put it in a plastic bag offered by a crime tech. The EMTs sat him down and checked him for signs of injury.

"He's fine to be moved."

Erica helped George out of the theater. He gave her no resistance.

Earth – Three days later, One Police Plaza, Interrogation Room Three

Detective Erickson pressed record on the digital recorder. He crossed his arms and looked across the table at Captain George Stacy.

"Captain Stacy, you're a decorated cop. All you need to do is tell us what happened, and I can clear you for duty. You discharged your weapon twice. All you had to do was fill out the form. Since you've refused now IA has to get involved. You're a good cop, lets just get this over with."

George folded his hands on the table and just stayed silent. Erickson rubbed his face with his hands.

"Are you refusing to answer the questions Captain Stacy?"

George didn't respond. Erickson sighed and spoke to the recorder.

"For the record, Captain Stacy has refused to answer any questions in regards to the discharge of his firearm and the failure to submit the required paperwork."

He tapped the button to turn off the recorder and left. The deputy chief of police came in several minutes later and held out his hand.

"I need your badge, George. You're suspended pending a formal investigation."

George offered up his badge and walked out. Erica stood up to meet him as they walked out of the police HQ. She looked up at him.

"George, why won't you just tell them what happened? Or tell me?"

Erica sighed as he stonewalled her again. He hadn't spoken a word to anyone. She was the one calling every day to see if they'd found Gwen's remains. They were sure she was dead now. The last person who saw her was her bandmate Lana who said she'd seen her when Spider-Woman pulled her out of the way of falling debris. Erica didn't know what to say or do to help George. She'd never had a child. She couldn't even imagine what he was going through. First his wife, then his daughter.

Earth – Two weeks later, Stacy Apartment.

Erica had watched George spiral into depression. It's like he wasn't even trying to find his daughter's remains. She'd been calling ER's where casualties had been taken for days. He barely ate. The IA investigation was not going well for him. He just didn't care. It was like he'd lost all the will to live. Even Tony Stark, who was basically just Gwen's boss was showing more concern for her whereabouts. SHIELD Agents had been asking around about her. Her father hadn't made a single inquiry. Currently he was staring at the television. The Daily Bugle's morning show was on. J. Jonah Jameson was talking about the terrorist attack on the charity concert. She was getting tired of his zombie-like behavior. She decided on a new tactic.

"George. Look at me!"

His empty eyes looked up at her.

"You need to snap out of this. Your career is on the line. Your daughter is missing, possibly dead, and you haven't lifted a finger to try and find her. Do you even care about her?"

She saw a spark of anger in his eyes. Unfortunately, his reaction was one she hadn't expected. He walked to the apartment door and opened it.

"Get out."

She stood there looking at him and he shouted.

"Get out of my apartment!"

She grabbed her shoes and stormed out. He slammed the door behind her.

Asgard – Bifrost Bridge Chamber

Gwen appeared in front of Heimdall. She collapsed into his arms. He scooped her up and started running across the rainbow bridge. He burst into the throne room. Thor was speaking to Frigga. Odin was nowhere to be seen. All eyes turned to Heimdall and the limp form he was carrying. Frigga rushed over to him. She lifted Gwen's wrist.

"There is still life in her yet. Quickly Heimdall to the soul forge."

They rushed Gwen to a table. Frigga motioned to the healers. Four Asgardian women gathered around the table; A three-dimensional representation of Gwen's body appeared over top of her. They found and removed the bullet with ease. It was lodged in her heart, and she would have died if they'd left it. One of the healers pointed at something on the soul forges display of Gwen's physiology.

"What's that?"

Another looked closely.

"It is a second life form that seems to have merged with her. It has replaced the damaged tissue of her heart. Filled in the wound. Formed blood vessels. It is keeping her alive."

A third inspected the read outs from the soul forge.

"It appears to be similar to the Klyntar, however it is distinct. It appears to be artificial. With no appreciable identity of its own."

The first spoke again.

"She is healing at a rapid pace. It is likely she would have survived her injury without intervention. The synthetic Klyntar was forcing the projectile out of her body."

Frigga looked at the four healers.

"The Klyntar are parasitic. Dominating their hosts. Can hers be removed?"

The healers all looked at each other, the lead healer shook her head.

"Not until such time as she is fully healed. This one seems to be in a symbiotic relationship with the host. It appears to have no intelligence of its own. It seems to be feeding off of radioactive isotopes in her blood. Creating feedback forcing radiation into her. If she were a normal human, she would die quickly. Instead, the radiation seems to enhance her natural abilities. It seems to have merged with Vibranium and nanoscopic bots made of an unknown element. The results of removing the parasite… symbiote would be unpredictable and we recommend against it. We suspect her body has come to depend on it, as it depends on her for survival."

Frigga reached down and brushed Gwen's hair out of her face.

"Keep me informed of her condition. You are not to speak of her physiology or the Klyntar with anyone, save myself and the all-father."

The lead healer looked troubled.

"My Queen, why do you have such concern for this human?"

Frigga smiled and said nothing. She left them and went to the dungeons. Loki was lounging on a couch watching something on the phone provided by Gwen. He tapped the pause button, stood up and moved to greet his mother.

"Mother. To what do I owe this visit?"

Frigga frowned slightly.

"Does a mother need a reason to visit her son?"

Loki looked down seeming to be admonished by Frigga's response.

"No, I suppose not. Still, we just spoke, something must bring you down here if you are here twice in one day."

Frigga nodded.

"Your human friend, Gwen Stacy, is hovering between life and death. I thought I should let you know."

Loki moved closer to the barrier that stood between the mother and son.

"Who has done this to her? Mother, release me so I may seek vengeance for her."

Frigga held up her hand.

"Do not be so eager to alienate her from you, son. Her father is the one who injured her. She chose to let him rather than risk hurting him. If you were to harm him, I suspect she would seek vengeance against you. I've seen the smile you have when you are together. You rarely show your true self, with her you do."

Loki began to pace.

"Why would she choose to protect her father if he would attempt to kill her? Is she mad?"

A sad smile graced Frigga's lips.

"Her relationship with her father is not the same as the one with yours."

Loki yelled at her.

"He's not my father!"

Frigga shook her head.

"Then am I not your mother?"

Loki lifted his hands. He clenched his fists and looked away from her.

"Will she live?"

"Yes. There is something else you should know."

Loki turned back to her.

"You sound worried, what is wrong with her?"

"Are you aware of the Klyntar?"

Loki shook his head. Frigga nodded.

"They are a species of parasite that take over hosts and slowly kill them. Evil creatures of the Realm of Midgard. She has one inside her. Or at least something similar. The healers assure me it lacks any malignant intelligence, or any intelligence whatsoever. Still, the stories I have heard, its presence concerns me."

Loki's eyes went wide.

"That is what I sensed when we met for the second time. Is there any way to get it out of her? I will do whatever is necessary, pay any cost."

Frigga frowned.

"The healers tell me it is keeping her alive while she heals. Taking the place of her heart, artery and skin. Even once her body has healed it has grown dependent on it. She may not appreciate its removal. It is enhancing her abilities."

"But mother, you said they slowly kill their hosts."

"Yes. However, the healers assure me this one is not killing her. It may be benevolent. Or merely has some self-preservation instinct. I will keep you informed of her status."

"What does father think of you healing a human?"

Frigga had been walking away. She turned back to him.

"He is unaware currently. Though he has declared her a Champion of the Nine Realms for her part in defeating you and your army. He also said she was welcome in Asgard. So, I suspect he will be more concerned that she was hurt in the first place."

"And how has she wormed her way into his affections so?"

Frigga laughed softly.

"She called him out on his treatment of you. It takes a strong woman to stand her ground against your father. I will see you tomorrow."

Gwen woke up. She was fairly surprised she was still alive. She was in a beautiful blue silk dress that had an ethereal quality to it and she was laying on a bed that overlooked the ocean. A soft breeze blew the wispy silk drapes. She touched her chest. Then she looked down and pulled her dress's neck out. There were no signs of the injury. She stood up and leaned over the balcony and took a deep breath. The air on Asgard was fresh, no hint of the stench of humanity. She could see the bifrost bridge where Heimdall kept his watch from her room. She realized she could see Loki whenever she wanted to, and she smiled. She still did not understand why she was so infatuated with him, but the reason didn't matter at the moment. Just that she could see him again. Two weeks seemed like it was too lengthy to not see him.

It was easy for her to forget the mess she left back on Earth. Her father was aware of her identity. He had shot her. Did he know she was alive? How long did she sleep? Time seemed to move differently on the realm of Asgard. There were no cell phones. No job to go to. No band practices. She looked at a table which had already been stocked with fruits. She picked up an apple and took a bite. The thing about the food on Asgard was it was better than Earth. Apples tasted more like apples. It was the same with their food and drink. Also, there was no drinking age on Asgard, so wine was always on hand. She heard footsteps and turned to see who was approaching. It was Frigga who smiled warmly when she saw Gwen was awake and approached for a hug.

"I am glad to see you are awake."

Gwen broke the embrace.

"How long was I asleep for?"

"A week and a few hours. You were hurt very badly. You should have died but there is another entity that exists within you that acted as your heart and lung to keep you alive."

Gwen sighed at the mention of the symbiote.

"I am trying to figure out how to get it out. I suppose that is on hold until I go home."

Frigga sat down on the bed and patted the spot beside her.

"Could I speak with you candidly about your situation?"

Gwen sat beside her. Frigga took her hand.

"Our healers believe that separating it from you would result in you losing the abilities that make you Spider-Woman. There is further concern that it might kill you slowly. Your body is becoming dependent on it, as it is becoming dependent on you. In their opinion that dependency has reached a stage that separating you would kill both organisms."

Gwen's shoulders slumped.

"It makes me dangerous. Unpredictable. I did not want to admit it to myself, but I killed a lot of people, and I don't remember."

Frigga patted Gwen's thigh.

"As you so eloquently stated in my son's defense. If you were not in your right mind, then your culpability in the matter is mitigated."

"It doesn't feel like it."

Frigga nodded.

"Do not dwell on the past, you have no control over it, instead look forward and decide how you can do better."

Gwen looked at her.

"I cannot control it. I will always be a threat. At least here I will never be in danger and then I will never have to defend myself. I felt it wanting to hurt my dad. Its like this rage once I get going… its like a runaway train…"

"Yet you did not let it."

"Because Heimdall pulled me away before I could. I knew if those police… if they showed up and had their guns out…"

Frigga placed her hand on Gwen's thigh again.

"You will not solve this today. Come, let us eat, then you can go see Loki."

Gwen nodded and followed Frigga out of what would be her new room.