Nik's Fiks

“No!” he shouted, slamming his fist against the wall and sending a shock through his system. The voice dissipated, pulling the memories of life aboard that ship with it.

Loki’s long fingers wrapped around the handle of the teapot, tilting it to pour the herbal blend. The cup rattled softly, giving Loki pause. A deep breath brought another attempt to pour that ended with papers and books falling across the room.

“What the Hel?” he mumbled.

The entire palace shook violently. Sirens wailed their alert, drowning out the panicked cries of servants and guards in the halls. Loki entered the corridors, the last bits of his armor shimmering into existence.

“Skurge!” he shouted over the din. The burly man met him near a staircase, dodging people as they moved to the side. “What’s going on?”

“Not sure,” Skurge panted, “but it’s coming from the substructure.”

The woman. If this another escape...

“Gather a squad of Einherjar and have them meet me at the dungeon entrance.” Loki barked, slamming into a column with another tremor. “And ensure that the palace is completely evacuated!” Skurge nodded and began a sprint in the opposite direction of his master.

Guards met Loki’s detachment en route to the dungeons, advising them to make for the vault. The woman’s cell was empty, they’d said, and that a hole into the ventilation system had been created. Loki cursed himself for not securing the Tesseract in another location and led the group to their destination.

Energy came in waves from the vault, nearly knocking them to the floor. Loki could hear the structure groaning around them as the waves passed through the palace, and found himself wondering if he shouldn’t order an evacuation of the surrounding city.

The vault lay open, doors blown wide. Cautiously, he stepped inside and choked when he saw what was happening. One of the vault’s guards lay motionless on the floor, the other on his knees to one side of the massive portal swirling in the center of the room. The woman held his head inches from the edge in one hand, screaming at him in a language Loki couldn’t immediately identify. Her free hand was directed at the Tesseract lying next to her feet, golden Sei∂r passing between them. Summoning all the authority he could find, Loki moved down the staircase.

“And what do we have here?”

Aleksa’s head angled slightly before turning to look over her shoulder, a sinister smirk emerging. She shifted slowly to face him, releasing her grip on the guard just long enough for him to attempt to flee. Sei∂r continued to flow from her body into the Tesseract as she clamped down on the guard’s collar, pulling him back to her side.

“Well, well, well. Look who finally decided to show up.” She leaned down to the struggling man, her voice taking a demonic tone. “Looks like the cavalry’s here, but somehow, I don’t think you’re the one Fury’s picking up, little spay .”

Loki balked.

Fury?

Another energy wave pulsed from the Tesseract, causing everyone in the room to stagger. The woman’s slow return to her feet gave Loki an opportunity to see the location on the other side of the portal. The desert he’d seen before the woman’s first escape blazed behind her, the blinding white sands a stark contrast to the black earth closest to the portal’s edge.

A desert, he thought. Fury reported picking her up in a desert with scorched sand. That she’d...  A plan was already forming in his mind as he signaled the guards to stay behind him while he moved forward.

“What’d you think you’re doing, Colonel?”  

“What does it look like, Nick? I’m interrogating the prisoner.” She growled, squeezing the guard’s neck, eliciting a pained howl.

“We talked about this, Lex.” Loki stepped a bit closer, replaying the conversation he’d read about months ago in his head. “You find the cube, I ask the questions.”

“Problem is, I don’t work for you anymore. But don’t worry. This little bastard is singing like a canary.” She leaned down, kissing the top of the guard’s head before pushing him to the floor.

“If you’re not working for me, who are you working for?”

“Some spy you are.” Mock confusion crossed her face. “I work for the same asshole you do.”

“I don’t answer to him, Lex. Neither do you.”

Aleksa’s laugh bellowed through the vault in time with an energy pulse. Loki could hear power generators begin to shut down above them. “C’mon, Nick. We both know he’s head of the Council. And I know he’s playing both sides.” She ground her heel into the guard’s back. “Isn’t he, spay ?”

Remnants of a burned-out village came into view through the growing portal. It had to be the same decimated village described in Fury’s report. Loki swallowed the brief kernel of doubt, knowing if he didn’t separate her from the Tesseract, the portal would tear the palace apart. Even if it didn’t, she still might.

“Oh, I know. Just like I know these aren’t your run of the mill terrorists,” he gestured to the guards. “And I know this isn’t who you really are.”

“Then what am I, Director? Hmm? A good soldier? An honorable warrior?” She snarled. “ A healer? ”

“Yes.” Loki was close enough to touch her and began to maneuver himself between her and the Tesseract. “You’re all of those things, Colonel. You’re not a cold-blooded killer. You won’t slaughter innocents...”

“Innocents?” she screamed. “These soulless bastards,” she nodded to the guard on the floor, “aren’t innocent! The men in this camp weren’t innocent. And the villagers? The ones who harbored these animals. Fed them, clothed them, watched them slaughter my team one by one, watched as they slit...Erik...” she faltered, the white light from the portal reflecting in the tears running down her face. “They are. Not. Innocent. No one is. Not even you.”

“You’re right.” Fury’s voice fell evenly under Loki’s guidance. “But you’re better than this. Let us take care of this one.” He reached out one hand while trying to send the Tesseract into a pocket dimension. “Let me take you home.”

Her features softened and, for one brief moment, Loki thought he’d gotten through to her. Her eyes turned dark and the sinister smile returned.

“We both know I’m going to die in this hellhole. Care to join me?”

Aleksa lunged at Fury, falling through the illusion to the floor. She rolled to her feet in time to see the Tesseract vanish above Loki’s hand. She howled and scrambled for the rapidly closing portal. Loki dove for her, knocking her back to the floor. She struggled against him, screaming incoherently between languages, begging to be released. A few moments passed after the portal closed before she stilled.

Loki backed away, cautiously waving the Einherjar in to retrieve their comrades. The remaining guards surrounded Aleksa with weapons at the ready. Loki knelt in front of where she sat on the floor.

“Colonel?”

Aleksa didn’t respond. She just stared at the spot where the portal had been, whispering incoherently. Just as he began to rise, she spoke in a voice that sparked both sorrow and fear in his heart.

He stopped himself mid-thought, refusing to allow the memory to progress. Things had been set right with Odin gone, Thor off-world, perhaps never to return, and Loki firmly ensconced on the throne of Asgard. Regardless of anything else the woman had done, she had cemented his right to rule. And that alone was reason enough for keeping her alive. The other reasons he kept to himself, forgetting them when he finally reached her cell.

The woman sat on the floor with legs folded, her back against the wall. Her hands lay relaxed on her knees, palms turned upward as if to receive something. Loki watched her for some time, focusing on the slightest changes in her expression. He wasn’t sure if she was lost in a vision or simply dreaming, but her brow remained furrowed while her lips moved in silent speech. Just as he decided to leave, her eyes blinked open and bore straight through him.

“What?”

“Hardly a complimentary greeting, Midgardian.”

“If it’s a compliment you’re after, maybe you should visit your harem.”

Loki smirked. “We do not practice such archaic beliefs here.”

“Sounds like a personal problem.”

“I would think,” he said, approaching her cell, “that you would be more appreciative of the one who saved your life.”

“You’d think,” she responded absently, standing in a swift motion. “But technically, you’re not the one who saved me, are you?”

Loki stood silent.

“Figured as much. So the question remains: what?”

“Are you attempting to ask what it is that I desire by visiting you here? Or, perhaps, do you mean to inquire of the time?”

Aleksa rolled her eyes.

“There are so many possible variants of questions beginning with ‘what’, I couldn’t possibly list them all.” He leaned toward her. “You wouldn’t live that long.”

“Except for the part where you told your people to inject me with whatever happy juice it is that makes you immortal-ish. So I appear to have plenty of time. By all means, ramble away.”

Loki’s brow quirked as he wondered just how long she’d been feigning unconsciousness.

“What is your name?”

“Haven’t figured that out already? You’re losing your touch.” she scoffed.

“You proceed from the assumption that I haven’t.”

Aleksa shrugged, her arms folded.

“Regardless, I thought Midgardian soldiers were trained to recite their name and identifying number over and over when questioned. No matter. The data found on your identification tags has proven quite useful.”

Her hand instinctively went to her neck, searching for a chain that wasn’t there.

“Petterson is quite the surname. Perhaps I should just call you ‘pet’.”  

“Only if you have a death wish,” she snarled as she stepped closer to the force field.

“Pet, it is, then.” Her jaw clenched as he grinned. “There will come a time that your little excursions will wear my patience thin.”

“Stop chasing me and it won’t be a problem anymore. Besides, seems to me that your guards need more exercise now and again.”

“Now and again?” he scoffed. “Are you aware that you’ve attempted seventeen escapes in  three months?”

“And made it outside the walls of... whatever-this-is... fourteen of those seventeen times.” Her voice grew distant. “I still need to step up my game.”

“Your game? Quite the shame to waste such extraordinary talents on a... game.”

“But you’d have me play yours.”

“This is no game, pet.”

“Then what is it, Jotunn?” Aleksa growled.

Loki ignored the insult and grinned, satisfied that he was wearing her down. “Opportunity.”

“For what?”

“Well, that remains to be seen, doesn’t it? You are obviously a warrior of considerable expertise, and I admit to being quite intrigued by your,” he paused, “handling of the Tesseract. Certainly, there are other talents that remain hidden.”

“All in service of Asgard, no doubt.” Her voice soft, she added, “Or did you have something more personal in mind?”

Loki was suddenly aware of the difference in height between them as he looked down at her, trying to ignore the sightline straight to her cleavage. “I’m sure we could come to some sort of an arrangement.”

“Fuck off.” An admonition that sounded both sultry and threatening.

“An insult, the typical human response.” he balked. “Why unleash your hatred on me? Was it not your beloved SHIELD that sent you here to fetch those poor, lost academics? And was it not your decision alone to challenge me to duel in exchange for their lives?”

“Just like it’s your decision to keep coming after me every time I escape.” She returned to the back wall, sliding down to the floor. “Maybe you should find a hobby.”

“Oh, I’ve already found one. And it’s proving most entertaining.”

“I repeat,” she said with a sigh, “fuck off. Especially if you’re offended by typical human insults.” Aleksa glared at the sarcastic smile creeping across his face, then decided to disengage. He wanted her attention and she was going to withhold it.

“You can’t ignore me forever, pet.” Loki stared at her, noting the timing of the rise and fall of her chest. His mind wandered to the flesh beneath the tunic, what it might feel like against his own skin.

“It pains me,” he said with a shake of his head to return himself to the moment, “to see a creature of your considerable abilities left down here to rot, but, if that is what you wish...”

With no response, Loki sighed, turned, and made his way to the corridor.

“Oh,” he paused, speaking over his shoulder, “thank you for not instigating another riot during your last escape. It made finding you so much easier.”

He heard the slightest change in the hum of the force fields surrounding the cell before something hard hit him in the back of the head. He spun to find her still seated. The cup that had been in the cell with her now lay on the floor next to his feet. He picked it up, then looked back at her.  She was watching him, her facial features relaxed, almost inviting him to react. He only grinned and resumed his journey out of the prison.

Aleksa sat motionless for some time after Loki’s departure. Her mind raced with new plans for escape mixed with memories that felt more like dreams. She tried to think of simple things like the places or people she knew to settle her mind, but even that failed. Her childhood home in Charleston morphed into an even smaller hut near a cliff. Stifling hot summers spent in band camp became much cooler days walking shorelines with her mother.

Except it wasn’t her mother. Her mother died in an accident. Or was it a raid?

Blue skin.

Red eyes.

So much ice. And fire.

Fire.

“C’mon, Colonel. All you have to do is light the fire. Then you and your friends can go home.”

Aleksa’s eye squeezed shut, trying to block out the vision. They were nightmares, illusions. None of it was real.

Was it?

The desert heat was real. The smell of spice and gunpowder and whatever chemicals she’d been exposed to were real.

“Just light it. You can do that, can’t you?”

She began a breathing exercise, a deep inhale followed by a slow, steady exhale while summoning a white candle in her mind. All she had to do was light it and keep the flame steady.

“The flame will cease to flicker when your mind is calm.” A soft voice, neither male nor female.

“Light the pyre. ” Another voice, definitely male and definitely malicious.

Breathe in.

“You can control matter, control the energy that binds it together.”

Breathe out.

“Just a spark. That’s all. I’d hate for you to have the deaths of anyone else on your hands.”

Breathe.

“What d’ya say?”

“No,” she growled. “Better a few soldiers than thousands of innocents.”

“Never let your gifts be abused.”

How many are dead because of me?

“Poor Rose. Her death will excruciatingly slow without anyone to ensure she receives the proper treatments.”

Rose?

Her mind wandered to a baby, small with bright blue eyes. A child become woman become old, the blue never fading in her eyes, regardless of how distant they became.

Sweet little Rose.

She saw Erik’s face, smiling as he cradled the babe. The smile turned evil as his face morphed into Malick’s.

“Leave her out of this.”

Just kill me instead.

“Then bring me what I want.”

Aleksa’s eyes flew open and she stood, pulling energy from the floor into her body. The lights in her cell flickered, followed by the lights in surrounding cells. The block fell dark for a split second then returned to normal lighting.

None of the other prisoners noticed that the cell at the end of the row was suddenly unoccupied.

The larger patrol moved away, dividing themselves down different corridors as they traveled. 

Longer I’m here, the more complicated this gets, she thought, slinking down the shaft. No one said Malik needed to know if or when I got... 

There.

Just beneath her lay the inner vault. The hum of power was nearly deafening. All of Aleksa’s concentration became focused on suppressing the noise until she determined where her target was. Once located, she recalled an old mantra to drown out all sound and dropped into the room. Drawing a deep breath, she concentrated on the energy patterns of floor and walls, noting the changes in color and intensity until she was confident of where everything was: the doors, the guards on the other side, additional ventilation shafts and hidden rooms. 

A lack of distinguishable security measures concerned her as she snuck along the floor, passing artifact after artifact. The concern was short-lived as the doors to the vault swung wide, admitting Loki and a pack of guards hot on his heels. 

Aleksa swore under her breath, breaking into a full run to her destination. The glowing blue cube sat on its pedestal, mesmerizing her as she reached out to take it.  

“Stop!” Loki shouted, Aleksa’s hand hovering over the cube. He approached slowly, followed by the guards, their weapons leveled on her. “You won’t survive if you touch that. You've no idea the power it holds.”

“Oh, really?” Aleksa smirked, looking at the cube and back at Loki, daring him to continue moving forward while she scanned the room again. None of the possible exits were going to be accessible from where she stood. The only option was behind her but there was no guarantee that there was an exit on the other side of the grating.  

“Better to burn out than to fade away,” she muttered and reached for the cube. 

Before Loki could respond, the soldiers behind him opened fire. An explosion of blinding blue light knocked them all to the floor. He rose slowly, trying to shake off the effects of the blast. Taking a cautious step forward in the rubble, he saw the woman laying on the floor, staring at the ceiling, the Tesseract glowing in her hand. He stopped as she climbed to her feet, watching in awe while her eyes shifted from the same blue glow of the cube to gold to the hazel he’d seen when they met. 

“Give me the Tesseract,” he cooed, “and no harm will come to you.” 

Aleksa just stood there, her brain racing to keep up with the volumes of information being fed into it. She thought she heard Loki’s voice, but wasn’t sure she understood the words. The sound of rushing water caught her attention, spurring her to the newly formed opening in the vault wall. A river flowed below her, awakening memories of distant lands.  

Loki stepped back when new strands of light began swirling between them. Aleksa’s eyes went wide, a sly grin crossing her face as the room disappeared behind a widening circle of blue and white. She watched in awe as greens and browns came into focus. While the homes she’d known were gone, she was certain she was looking at her birthplace. 

A portal without a sling ring. Wait...what? W-why do I know that?

Aleksa blinked and the portal started shrinking. When the circle closed, Loki was almost directly in front of her, his hand outstretched. 

“You can’t hope to control it. Give me the Tesseract and I’ll send you home.”

“Already got a ride, thanks.” She spun around and kicked him in the chest, sending him flying backward. “That’s twice,” she laughed.

Loki scrambled to his feet, watching her move to the other side of the hall only to launch herself through the open wall. When he saw her again, she was emerging on the bank opposite the palace, flipping the cube in her hand before taking off in a sprint across the plain. 

“I want her brought back alive,” he growled. He turned back to the guards, all staring in shock. “NOW!”

-----

Aleksa was able to hide easily enough from the ships patrolling above her and the two ravens sent out from the palace now and again, but her progress was slowed by the sheer amount of energy she had to expend to shield the surges of power the Tesseract would give off. She felt sure that if she could sense it from a distance, so could Loki. She was hopeful that the proximity of the Rainbow Bridge and observatory housing the Bifrost was helping to mask it, but couldn’t risk being discovered. The more she felt her own energy draining, the more she concentrated on her memories of the rescue plan and made for the fields between her and the Earth-bound portal. 

The portal. There was no guarantee that it still functioned, that the intervals were still stable, or how long she’d have to wait for it to open. Even if it was operating as normal, she had no way to know who would be waiting on the other side, if anyone. There were just too many question marks for this escape route to work. 

Another skiff roared over her head and she dropped to the ground. Perhaps commandeering one of those ships would prove a better option. Find a transport off Asgard and vanish into the universe. Surely, someone else would want Loki’s magic cube as badly as he did. 

Or...

She looked around and saw no signs of pursuers, then gently slid the Tesseract out of its pouch. It glowed brighter in her hand, sending a sensation of warmth through her body. 

Mesmerized by the changing light floating in front of her, she stared into the cube, imagining all of the places she could go. Her eyes fluttered closed as she relaxed, focusing on where in the universe she wanted to be. 

“Keeper of the Stone, master of space,” a soft voice whispered in her head. A voice that she’d heard a million times before but just couldn’t align with a face. “Come home.”

She held the Tesseract out in front of her and allowed the energy to surge through her, willing the portal into existence. White light began to arc around the cube, sending sparks into the air. 

Aleka’s eyes opened as the portal widened, giving the faintest glimpse of the ocean stretching into the distance. Sand appeared next, then the familiar beach grass and fencing. She stood, stepping toward the portal while watching her home materialize in front of her. The shouts of soldiers distracted her, sending the portal to another location. When she turned back, Aleksa saw sands scorched black and structures smoldering in the distance.

“No! Nononononono!” she screamed, falling to the ground. The portal hissed shut when the Tesseract dropped from her hands and rolled into a boot. Aleksa looked up to see a large, heavily armored man towering above her.

Unsteady steps took her into the main area of the little home. Modir stood before the fire, humming as she stirred the brew in a large cauldron. Aleksa smiled at the sight of her, forgetting her footing and bumping into a table.

“Lítit minn, you’re as wobbly as a babe,” Modir scolded. “You should not be about!”

“I’m sorry, Modir. I overslept again.”

“Shhh, sit before you fall.” Modir pulled a chair from the table and led Aleksa to it. “I don’t mind you sleeping to heal, but I shall be most cross if you reopen that wound.” She began to fuss with the wrappings, checking the herbs packed beneath it. “You must learn not to draw your blade first, Aleksa. You are a healer, not a warrior.”

“But Fiske,” Aleksa bit her lip to mute her cry of pain.

“Yes, Vidar told me of the child you saved. As did the child’s parents. You must visit them when you’re recovered.”

Aleksa sat silently for a moment, hovering between consciousness and sleep. It didn’t make sense. This woman wasn’t her mother, but she felt a love and trust that had long been missing in her life. This home wasn’t her own, not the one she remembered. Or was the house she remembered the dream?

Her mind swirled with images she both knew and didn’t, faces she both recognized and yet couldn’t place. Smells, tastes, sensations were muted in one world and enhanced in another. The harder she tried to sort it all out, the more blurred everything became.

Loki was manipulating her mind.

He had to be.

“It’s not safe here,” she whimpered, sending a bolt of pain through her body when she jerked awake.

Modir balked. “Not safe? You mean from Horgsholt? Childe, your imagination is running away with you.”

“Asgard,” Aleksa grabbed the woman’s wrist, “I’m not safe here.”

“Asgard?” Modir’s brow furrowed as she touched her hand to Aleksa’s temple. “You’re burning with fever again. Come on, back to bed.”

Aleksa tried to struggle as Modir led her back into the bedroom but found her strength gone.

“I have to escape,” she whispered as Modir pulled the furs back over her body while darkness descended. “Get back...to...home...”

Two guards opened the doors to Loki’s study, nodding to Eir as she entered. Loki rose to her bow and strode around the table.

“After nearly three weeks, I was beginning to think you were not going to honor my request.”

“This has been my earliest opportunity, your Majesty.” Eir’s voice stood firm to his implications. Loki considered her for a moment, then smiled.

“Sit, please, and tell me of our not Midgardian.”

Eir placed a small device on the table and waved a hand over it. A holographic strand of genetic code appeared, rotating and highlighting certain sections as it moved. Loki’s gaze moved between it and the healer several times, the confusion on Eir’s face far more concerning than the strands floating above the table.

“Eir?”

The woman seemed to snap awake. “Apologies, your Majesty. This is...a truly unique case.”

“So you continue to mention. Now, if you don’t mind, explain why.”

“This woman is, for all intents and purposes, Asgardian. Much of her DNA has transformed because of the Idunnian extract.” Eir sighed.

“The extract doesn't cause that level of mutation,” Loki spoke softly, critically eyeing the woman across from him.

“Not in the first administration. Any subsequent uses, however, tend to have a far stronger impact on the subject’s physiology.” The image shifted into two strands of code. “Original evaluations indicated that the mix of Asgardian and Midgardian blood was closer to an equal balance with some traces of other races known to have inhabited Midgard at some point. I suspect, however,” she paused as she pointed to blue-green sections of the original code, “that the Kree markers were forcibly increased by these.”

Two small vials clinked on the table.

“Odium?” Loki pondered as he picked up a vial and examined it in the light. “I wasn’t aware that Midgard was still in possession of this.”

Eir nodded. “Neither was I. It seems they warrant closer monitoring in that respect. Though, in her case, the alterations were made easier by her inborn mutative abilities, among other things.”

“What other things?”

“Beyond the gifts of self-repair, increased metabolism, strength, and so on that come with her mixed Asgardian blood, I’m not sure.”

“Mixed with what?” he questioned, sensing the hesitation in the healer’s posture. “Eir, What other blood does she carry?”

“Again, your Majesty, I’m not sure...”

Loki leaned closer and growled, “Guess.”

Eir sighed, pressing the bridge of her nose between her fingers.

“I’ve been doing considerable research into the history of the Nine Realms during the time period I suspect she was born into. Most of it is available, however, significant portions of Asgard’s history are missing or damaged. This is why my report has taken so long, Majesty, and I fear I may not yet have all of the answers.”

“If I wanted a history lesson, healer, I’d visit the librarians,” Loki growled.

“And if I wanted to debate the significance of history’s impact on medicine, I’d be teaching novices.” She answered flatly. “Shall I continue delivering my report, or do you wish only to receive the details that matter to you only in this moment?”

“Continue,” he paused to release a slow breath, gesturing to the papers strewn across the table. “But know that I have very little patience for riddles this day.”

“There have always been stories of what the Allfather was like prior to Frigga’s arrival on Asgard. Legends that Odin was a warmonger, violent, Hel bent on not just ruling the Nine Realms, but conquering them.”

“Following in Bor’s glorious footsteps or some such nonsense. I've heard these tales,” Loki paused, looking back at the hologram, “but that doesn’t answer the question of this woman’s bloodline.”

“Actually, it does. A tribe of Asgardians was banished to Midgard after openly dissenting against Odin and his conquest. It was his wedding gift to Frigga to not execute the traitors. While he’d ordered no contact or assistance to them from any of the Nine Realms, some Vanir and Light Elves joined the tribe in order to help it thrive.

“I’ve heard this story, too. The tribe fell in the last Jotunn raid on Midgard with no survivors.”

“As far as the Allfather was concerned, that is an accurate assessment. However, Vanir history tells a different story. That tribe survived for at least another century, possibly two before it was lost to time. There are also accounts that the Jotunn raids started much earlier than Odin believed, and that there were children born as a result.”

“Which is why Odin put a stop to it, and to the Jotunns.” Loki paused, lost in thought. “If I recall correctly, that tribe was supposed to have been of an ancient line that pre-dated the Völva?”

“Precisely. The Allfather knew that if the Jotunns had access to the magics of the Völva and the Vanir, they could, over time, become more powerful...”

“And therefore more difficult to control.” Loki cut her off. “So what does this all mean for our guest?”

“Given her age and the abilities she’s shown thus far, I suspect she’s a descendant of that tribe, if not born into it before the last raid on Midgard.” Eir waved a hand over the floating image, transforming it into a few tables of data. “This is a breakdown of the genomes we found: Midgardian, Asgardian, Vanir, Alfheir, and,” she paused to look at the man now standing beside her, “Jotunn.”

“Jotunn,” he whispered. He moved silently to the window, staring out over the city as he considered the implications. She was a half breed. A monster, just like him. Would she understand what it was like? Would she understand herself? Would she understand him?

“My king,” Eir hesitated, “there is another matter.”

“And that would be?” he growled.

“She may not be aware of what, or who, she truly is.” Eir open and closed her mouth several times before she sighed, waving a hand over the projector. Loki returned to the table as the golden strands of data morphed into a model of a brain, and Eir pointed to an area glowing more than the rest. “This is what concerns me. Cellular damage too specific in location to have been caused by a traumatic injury. I believe that she’d had some portion, if not all, of her memory, wiped away.”

Before Loki could question his chief healer any further, an apprentice burst through the doors.

“Teacher!” she shouted, before stopping short. “Forgive me, your Majesty.”

“What is it? What’s happened?” Eir stood.

“If she’s not Midgaridan, then...” Loki’s eyebrow quirked as another healer arrived, curtsied, and whispered something to Eir. 

“That doesn’t make sense. Go back to the original dosage and see what happens.” She turned to Loki. “With respect, my liege, my patient’s evaluation, and treatment have been challenging enough without having to consider her heritage. Her body is adapting and becomes resistant to our efforts.”

Curious. 

“And if you stop treatment?”

“I honestly do not know.” Eir sensed Loki’s smirk and pinched the bridge of her nose. The last thing she needed was to be forced to justify her position because of whatever his newest obsession was. But, she had to admit, her patient had her flummoxed. 

“In all my centuries as a healer,” she continued, “I have never seen the likes of this woman. There are odd genetic sequences that suggest forced mutations, which may or may not explain the way her body reacts to the treatment. She has most assuredly been experimented on, and that in itself is likely causing some of our problems.” Eir sighed. “The bottom line is that the more we do, the more she fights us. It’s as if she wants to be left alone to heal. Or die.”

Loki studied the woman at his side staring at her patient in confusion. He stepped closer to the window, watching as the team of healers worked frantically. The soul forge hovering over the woman’s body told him that her condition was still critical, vital signs spiking and plummeting. A glimpse of her face showed him a portrait of calm, relaxed slumber as if she was happy to see her life’s end. He wondered if she stood before the gates of Valhalla, negotiating entrance. Curiosity pushed for more information. Pride demanded answers. 

“You don’t get to leave, not yet,” he whispered before turning to Eir. “Give her the extract of an Idunnian Apple. If that fails,” he looked back through the window, “cease your efforts.”

“Your Majesty, you know I can not give the extract without consent. It could undo whatever the mutations were designed to create. Or suppress. It could be fatal.” Loki’s glare silenced her protests. “Yes, my king.” 

Eir returned to the treatment room, speaking with one of the apprentices. Loki watched intently when the apprentice returned with a vial. The glowing golden fluid was carefully withdrawn and injected into an intravenous line dangling from their patient’s arm. 

Aleksa’s body began to shake violently. Healers attempted to hold her down until a strange cloud began filling the treatment area, sending the team running out. People scrambled around, trying to seal the room while Loki simply stood, watching. Air purifiers whirred to life, sucking the smoke out of the room. Others gasped as Loki stepped even closer to the glass. 

Grey stone enveloped the entire top of the examination table and crawled down the sides. A few loose pebbles fell to the floor as the soul forge flickered back to life, slowly registering the vitals of the woman encased within. Eir and a few brave healers re-entered the chamber, verifying that Aleksa was, in fact, still alive within the shell.  

Loki smiled. He turned to leave until an explosion shook the room. Looking back, he saw Aleksa sit up, the cocoon shattered around her. The wound on her chest closed before she toppled back over as Eir and the others ran back to her side. Loki gestured to one of the apprentices. 

“Tell your mistress that I want a detailed report on our guest at her earliest opportunity. The,” he looked back to the room, “woman is to receive any and all attentions necessary. When she is ready, she is to be brought to me.” The apprentice nodded as Loki strode out of the suites, grinning wide.

“We don’t cower before our leaders, your Highness.” Aleksa noticed a flick of his fingers before their guards were suddenly upon her, forcing her to her knees.

Loki walked towards the group, studying each of them. He found them unremarkable, except for their leader. He was struck by the range of colors in the woman’s fearless eyes. She was attractive, even for a human, but he sensed something different about her, lurking just below the surface. With his curiosity peaked, the sadistic smile appeared.

“In the end, you will always kneel,” he whispered.

Aleksa suppressed a shiver. The man definitely had the charisma to be a god, and the ego to boot.

“Why are you here?”

“Cultural and anthropological archaeology. These researchers were trying to better understand the worlds around Earth and the races that inhabit them.”

“By sneaking onto Asgard and gathering intelligence about the strength of my armies?”

“The camp’s proximity to a training facility had no bearing on the work these people were doing...”

“But you know where they are,” he snapped. “You intended to launch a quiet strike against us. Why else would *you* be here?”

Aleksa shook off her guards and stood, eliciting gasps from the court members around them as she forced Loki back. “*I* am here to ensure that these innocent people are safely returned to their families by any means necessary.”

Loki stepped closer to her.

“Are you threatening me?”

“Not at all,” she responded. He was surprised at the calm in her voice. “We have no quarrel with you or Asgard.”

“Then why send a military outfit to lead these so-called innocents home?”

“Would you not send warriors to a potentially hostile world to recover civilians?”

“*I* would not allow unarmed civilians to enter a potentially hostile situation.” Loki stared at her for a moment, again caught up in her eyes, watching the slightest shift in their color. As he fought his body’s reaction to her scent, he wondered if he'd touched a nerve.

Aleksa found herself examining his face, noting that the gold helmet was reflected in the emerald green eyes boring into her. The harder he tried to intimidate her with his posture, the more she could see something hiding behind the malice. Something she recognized within herself.

“With all due respect, your Highness, what are your intentions with us?”

“I’m taking your research and adding it to the vast collection of our own. Outside of that, there is nothing you have that interests me.”

“Then you will release us?”

Loki shook his head. “Hmm, no. You were caught committing acts of treason against Asgard. The punishment is death.” He waved them off, striding back to the dais.

“Based on what charges?”

“The slaughter of two of my Einherjar. Take them.”

“How in the hells is that...” Aleksa struggled against the guards now holding her. Loki ignored her and the cries of the people behind her. She fought off one of the guards before being tackled by two others that pinned her to the ground. Out of options, she screamed.

“I challenge your claim to the throne of Asgard!”

Loki whirled around, laughing. “You what?”

“You heard me.” The guards holding her down released her, scrambling to get out of Loki’s way. Before she could even blink, Loki was in front of her, fuming. “Your claim to the throne is unjust. You are, at best, a regent in Thor’s absence. I challenge the legitimacy of your absolute rule!”

“How dare you! I am Loki, son of Odin, king of Asgard as named by...”

“You are Loki, son of Laufey, adopted by Odin.” The gasps of everyone gathered in the hall didn’t go unnoticed. Somewhere in the crowd, D’Varst allowed himself a small smile. “And as long Odin’s firstborn still lives, you have no authority.”

Loki’s rage filled the room.

“Neither do you, Midgardian.”

“Any soul of the Nine Realms may make a claim against the king of Asgard. That is your law.”

“Name your terms,” he sneered.

“My party are returned to Earth regardless, along with all of their materials, intact and unharmed.”

“And if I win?”

“You may do with me what you will.”

“There is no advantage to me in this.” He snorted, walking away as he continued. “You will die last, watching them suffer for what you have dared attempt.”

“Then you legitimize my claim against you.”

“How? When I win, I will do with them...”

“Me. You may do with ME what you will.” Loki began to scoff, then realized that he’d neglected to amend her terms. She’d outmaneuvered him into releasing his captives regardless of how their duel ended. And she’d done it in front of his court and half of Asgard. He wondered if she was valuable to him after all.

“Choose your weapons,” he growled.

“Daggers. No armor. And no tricks. The first illusion you cast, I win.”

“To the death, then?” Loki smirked when she nodded. “Too easy. You may have your challenge.”

Aleksa nodded and moved back to her group, shedding her flak vest and weapons belt. Reece approached her.

“Are you out of your mind? He’ll kill you before you even get close.”

“Probably.”

“You’re betting our lives on a promise from the god of deceit? You actually trust him?”

“Nope.” She smiled. “He’s arrogant, but not ignorant. Something tells me that he knows his seat on the throne is precarious. He won’t dare defy an agreement made in front of the entire court. Half of the people here are likely looking for a reason to get rid of him. He’s not stupid enough to give them one. Either way, I win and you go home. Get them off-world before the fight ends.” She took the daggers offered by one of the guards.

“Lex, I am not leaving you to die again.”

“Didn’t die the last time.” Aleksa met Reece’s fearful gaze. “Plan C. That’s an order, Captain. Tell Coulson we’re doing a full renegotiation of my contract when I get back.” She turned just in time to see Loki charging for her. She pushed Reece in one direction and dodged to the other, dropping into a roll. “GO!”

The group, led by Reece and Nessis, turned and hurried out of the hall, followed by two guards.

Loki watched the crowd close in around him before turning back to his opponent.

“I do hope you enjoy pain,” he grinned.

Aleksa lowered her stance. “Oh, for fuck’s sake. Shut up and fight.”

“As you wish.”