Archive of Our Own

He shouldn't have come back to Midgard. He should've fled to the farthest reaches of the universe and kept going. Right to the edge of the multiverses, if was possible (not that impossibility had ever stopped him before).

Malekith was defeated, he had escaped right under Thor's and the Allfather's noses, and he was hidden from Heimdall's gaze. Unless he made himself too obvious, he was free to go about his business (which was mostly hiding, at the moment). Asgard was too busy picking up the pieces to bother finding him again (except for Thor, but the idiot was still chasing after false leads).

Of course, Asgard's weakness made it a perfect time for Thanos to make his move. Apparently the Soul gem and the gauntlet were moved to an outpost away from Asgard once the elves attacked, and Thanos had slaughtered dozens of guards and bypassed countless security measures to reach it, no doubt aided by his freshly acquired Space gem. And now he needed his recently lost Mind gem. Lost courtesy of Loki, naturally. As if Loki needed any more reason for Thanos and the Other to come after him and – he will make you long for something sweet as pain – wreak whatever vengeance they had planned.

The gem had been in the spear. The one was currently held by the mortals. Although when Loki had held it, the gem only retained some of its power because Thanos wasn't stupid enough send Loki away with an full infinity gem (Not that Loki had been told it was a gem, he'd simply been handed the spear, was informed of its sway over the Chitauri and any who felt its power, then was sent off to conquer Midgard). Most of the gem's energy had been centred in the Chituari battlestation, which the mortals had been so kind to destroy, while the rest of it's powers were dampened and contained by the spear. Only Thanos himself could undo the restraints placed upon the gem.

Which meant Thanos had to go to Midgard, steal the spear from the one-eyed Commander Fury and his S.H.I.E.L.D., then continue on his merry way to search for the last three gems before orchestrating his plans to please his Lady Death.

(Loki didn't like to think about Thanos' plans, lest his conscience appear and force him to find some way to bring Thanos down. Because if he thought about Thanos' plans, he realized he'd have to find people to stop the Titan, and most of those people wanted Loki dead. And as someone with vital knowledge of Thanos and his schemes, Loki would be forced to be an integral part of any attack against the Titan. So Loki didn't think about Thanos' plans. He just figured he'd deal with it eventually, when the time came. But the time wasn't supposed to be now.)

Thanos came to Midgard. His entrance was about as subtle as Loki's. And like Loki's previous (not-so-well-thought-out, he would admit) plan, Thanos decided to continue being quite prominent in his attacks. Which meant the Avengers intervened, including his half-witted not-brother who was currently on Midgard.

Loki had first seen the battle from the mortal's ubiquitous scrying and entertainment devices (or TeeVee, as he was told), the seven beings fighting in the dark in one of the mortal's cities (Loki couldn't tell if it was one he had brought his army to or not. They all looked the same). Using the same foolish sense that had brought him to Midgard in the first place, Loki teleported to the city to watch the battle with his own eyes, atop a high building far away enough from the battle so he could witness it without being a part of it (just to look, he had told himself, trying to the squash all the troublesome emotions that cropped up as he watched Thanos waved his gauntlet about, glowing with power, and Thor darting about like an annoying fly). He could even see the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and the mortal's armies scurrying around, protecting civilians. Occasionally they attempted to engage Thanos, which didn't end well for the humans.

Loki shouldn't have come to Midgard. But he was curious. The last time he'd been to Midgard, mortals wouldn't have a stood snowflake's chance in Muspelheim against an army of Chitauri, let alone the likes of him or Thor. But the humans' short life span allowed them to advance at an accelerated rate. Loki wondered what else he had missed about them.

Loki shouldn't have come to Midgard. Because if he hadn't, he would not have seen Thor fall out of the sky, a chuck of metal embedded in his chest and Mjolnir fallen from limp hands, hurtling on its own path to the ground. Then Loki wouldn't have teleported his side without a second's hesitation, wrapping his arms around Thor in a blood-soaked embrace. Nor would have searched desperately for a fold in space so he could open a path through Yggdrasil, madly trying to ignore the sensation of falling, down down down with no seeming end because he hated falling (letting go), even though there was an end, the street was right below them. He wouldn't have had Thor's body to centre him while he finally ripped through space, landing heavily in Asgard's healing centre with Thor on top of him to prevent more injury to Thor's battered body. The healers wouldn't have gaped open-mouthed and frightened as Loki (carefully) pulled himself from under Thor, further staining his bloody Midgardian clothes, only rushing to his side when Loki screamed “HELP HIM!” He would not have seen Thor's bright blue eyes, barely conscious, settling on his face while a rough and too-weak hand tried to grasp his, mouth working to say something (probably some foolish sentiment (probably something Loki wanted to hear)). He would not have stood, feeling that limp hand slide from his grasp as blue eyes fluttered shut, guards bursting through the healing rooms' door, swords bristling and ready to capture their former prince. He would not have slipped back out of Asgard along Yggdrasil's branches before any guard could lay a hand on him, landing back on Midgard with his dagger drawn and armour replacing his (very expensive and completely ruined) suit. And he most certainly would not have joined in the fight against Thanos, armed with only his aforementioned dagger, a handful of knives, and his magic.

At this rate, if he made any more stupid decisions, he was going to turn into Thor.

The battle had moved to a different building in his absence, and only Banner's monster and Stark were in the fray. Romanova was nowhere to be seen, probably realizing her efforts were better spent elsewhere than throwing herself at the Titan (which sounded like a good idea, considering where Loki's talents lay, if he had a plan in the first place). He could not see Barton nor the Captain, though he knew Barton had a flying craft similar to the ones the Chitauri used. Like Romanova, they probably were better elsewhere anyway.

Grimacing, Loki disappeared from current position, and landed out of Thanos' sight on the rooftop.

However, before he could even attempt to throw himself at the Titan, a metal hand clamped down on his shoulder and spun him around. A red metal palm with a pulsing blue circle was an inch from his head.

“What did you do with Thor,” Stark growled.

Loki wanted to scream, because if he wanted Thor dead he wouldn't have intervened, but instead hissed, “I brought him to Asgard, and no you can't trust me, but if you're going to kill me wait until we take care of Thanos first.” He wrenched himself out of Stark's grasp and turned around, but the hand reappeared on his shoulder.

The Iron-Clad Idiot asked, “So you know him, too? Any idea how to take him down?”

With a snarl, Loki turned and glared at the mortal. “Yes, I know him, you can defeat him by taking off that gauntlet AND FIGHTING HIM!”

Loki twisted out Stark's grip, and rushed towards Thanos just as the Titan threw the Hulk over his hip. While the Hulk was probably stronger than Thanos, the beast had absolutely no idea how to fight. Loki threw a bolt of energy strong enough to take down a giant just as a burst of light from Stark's suit rushed over his head towards Thanos.

When the two attacks impacted on Thanos' unprotected back, the Titan barely flinched. He glanced around, sending an annoyed look in Stark's direction.

Then he caught sight of Loki.

And grinned.

Loki's heart stuttered and he froze, half-way across the rooftop to the Titan.

Thanos turned fully, his smile promising pain beyond imagining, thousands of years of torment for failing again, and Loki couldn't move, couldn't think–

A red and gold streak barrelled overhead into Thanos and the Titan stepped back. The smile melted and eyes returned to Stark. Loki breathed and took another step forward. Perhaps Stark wasn't entirely an useless.

Loki darted forward again, two knives out, as the Hulk tackled Thanos from behind. For a moment (an extremely brief one), Loki thought the two superheroes could overwhelm Thanos. Then the Titan grabbed the Hulk, and threw him over his shoulder, directly in Stark.

Pushing aside of his feelings of hopelessness, Loki launched his knives towards Thanos' eyes.

The Titan laughed, and in a blink of the Space gem's purple light the knives disappeared. A faint pulse of power was the only warning Loki had before two sharp points embed themselves in the back of his right shoulder.

Loki stumbled, though the pain wasn't that great. At least he knew Thanos was only playing with him for the moment, if a shoulder injury was the worst he did.

Yanking the knives from his back, Loki heard a soft chuckle as Thanos ambled towards a corner of the roof where he could face both Loki the now-recovered Hulk. Stark was still struggling to his feet, silver metal peaking out from beneath his suit's garishly bright colours.

“So, the failure returns,” Thanos grinned at Loki, resonant voice carrying across the rooftop. “Are you hoping to impress your brother dearest before I break you? If he survives, that is.” He cut off when the Hulk roared and dove towards Thanos. The Titan neatly sidestepped, the Hulk's fist missing his head by a hair-breath. Without missing a beat, he then smoothly placed a hand on the Hulk's back and give him a push that sent the beast sprawling.

Now the Titan was really showing off.

He turned back to Loki and continued. “If you join me now, I promise I'll let you die in, oh, about 500 years or so.”

Loki didn't bother answering. Torture and the death of the universe were two things he rather avoid, if he had a choice (though not the only two things. He'd also rather avoid any mention of Thor and Asgard in general, but that could rarely be helped). Switching his dagger to his left hand, he darted towards Thanos, catching sight of Stark rising to his feet out of the corner of his eye.

Thanos back away from Loki's slashes, once again managing to keep the Hulk in sight. He kept ginning as Loki's kept very effectively cutting at the air around Thanos, and seemingly effortlessly dodged all the Hulk's punches when the beast joined in. Even when Stark landed a blow to the back of Thanos' head, the Titan only laughed, grabbing Stark's arm and throwing him into Loki.

The mortal crashed into Loki's chest, sweeping him off his feet, and sending the two if them rolling towards of of the roof's edges. Loki tried to break the fall but Stark's limbs were everywhere, and only the concrete barrier around the roof prevented them from falling.

“These humans' inadequacy is matched only by yours, Loki,” Thanos called, barely sparing Loki a glance as he aimed a punch at the Hulk's ribs. “How pathetic you must be, to have been beaten by such base creatures. To think I wasted my time saving your worthless self.”

Disentangling himself from Stark, Loki heard the mortal splutter, “What the hell? How do you know this guy again?”

Ignoring the mortal (because it was much too long a story, and not one he particularly wished to tell), Loki ran a finger along his dagger, muttering a spell to turn the metal red hot. He ran towards the battling Hulk and Thanos, replacing his body with an illusion half-way across the roof. He teleported behind Thanos, dagger poised, and was immediately backhanded across the face.

He flew to side of the rooftop opposite the one had just crashed into, landing just shy of the concrete barrier. He tasted blood.

“Even my Lady Death vouched for you, your usefulness in the future, and this is how you repay Her kindness?” This time Thanos didn't bother raising his voice as his gauntlet blocked one of Stark's energy beams. “With defeat at every turn? Losing Earth and my army to a few of humans, letting Asgard take my Tesseract and Earth my gem? I would kill you myself, but Death is too good for you. She deserves a more worthy sacrifice.”

Loki knew Thanos didn't care much about the death of the Chitauri. Any death (except for those unworthy) pleased Thanos.

Attempting to ignore the needling of Thanos' words, he focused on the more pressing problem of how Thanos had known where he was. He had been invisible, the illusion was sound, and – ah, the Soul gem.

Scrambling to his feet, he rushed towards Thanos again, this time seemingly splitting off into six Loki's. Each clone deftly wove around the beast and the Titan while Stark fired from above, ready to stab their burning weapon into their enemy. Thanos sent a swift kick to the real Loki's stomach's, and the other five disappeared into golden dust.

Loki doubled over, wishing he had thought of a better way to give credence to his theory. But if Thanos could track the real him with the Soul gem, then illusions were useless.

He leapt back into the fight, aiming his own blasts of magic to join Stark's.

And Thanos kept talking.

“I could send you off to the Other and his remaining Chitauri now, if I wished. I'm sure they'd be happy to welcome you, the failure who caused in the deaths of their brethren with his childish demands. They'd have such fun with you. They've had millions of years to perfect their techniques, you know.”

Loki did know. They'd made him watch a brief demonstration once. He'd vomited afterwards. Above his head, saw Stark wince (either that or the mortal had developed an untimely tic).

“I'm sure they'd appreciate your durability. One of the best part of torturing a god is they're so hard to kill, and they last for thousands of years. You can be broken by generations of Chitauri.” Thanos grinned, casually unleashing a bolt of power from the gauntlet towards the Hulk, sending the beast reeling. Then the Titan's head snapped back, a beam from Stark's chest impacting on Thanos' helm.

“Did you know that you talk to much?” Stark asked, the question almost nonchalant but for the undercurrent of steel in his voice. “And that's coming from someone like me, a certified motor-mouth.”

Loki almost thought the mortal might be concerned for him, but if for the question of why. He was probably just unhappy his beast was hurt.

Dodging Loki's blade, Thanos glanced up at the mortal. “The Chitauri haven't forgotten your contributions either to their demise, Iron Man. They have something special planned for you as well. Though nothing as spectacular for this embarrassment here.” A gauntlet-clad hand knocked Loki's head back. His ears were ringing.

With a roar that Loki barely heard, the Hulk threw himself back at Thanos, and the four resumed dancing around each other. Or in Stark's case, flying.

“Perhaps instead I'll wait to bring you back, until after I reacquire my gem,” Thanos resumed speaking, with a self-assured smile. “We'll break your body first, then your mind, watch you crawl and beg for Death's sweet touch. We'll parade you before our troops, we'll show whole worlds of the blight of a creature who thought it could be king.”

They couldn't touch Thanos. The three of them could not land one blow on Thanos, and the Titan wasn't even breathing hard.

“When you've been taught your place, underneath the boots of your betters, I'll give you a taste of the Mind gem's power. First you'll finish what you started on Jotunheim, then move onto Midgard. You'll save your beautiful Asgard for last. I'll even be kind enough to grant you a touch of the Soul gem's power, so you'll enjoy destroying it. You'll laugh as you slaughter your father, your brother, your mother-”

Loki's breath caught in his throat and he stumbled. It was a break in their smooth, painful dance, and it was time enough for Thanos to kick the legs out from under Loki. He went down, hard, with a boot coming down towards his face.

The boot never made it, however, because there was a rather magnificent roar and the Hulk barrelled into Thanos, knocking the Titan back.

Gaping at the Hulk, who looked like he was trying to wrest Thanos to the ground, Loki wondered if beast had come to his rescue intentionally. He figured the Hulk was only ignoring him because he had more important things to deal with, and would return to his favourite toy once Thanos was defeated.

Heavy feet landed beside his head and two metal arms dragged him to his feet. Loki thought of protesting that he didn't need help (even if his legs felt a touch weak), but Stark saved him from making any objections by muttering in his ear, “Guess you know what it feels like now.”

Before Loki could ask for clarification on Stark's baffling comment, Thanos spoke, deep and damning, “I have had enough of your interference, beast.” Thanos pointed his gauntlet at the Hulk, and as a purple light enveloped the the beast Loki felt a pulse from the Space gem. The light flashed and the Hulk was gone with a twinge of power far above Midgard.

Stark was yelling in his ear, screaming his friend's name, but Loki wasn't paying attention because there was something off about the Space gem's power. As Stark launched himself towards the grinning Titan, Loki realized Soul wasn't acting as he had expected, either.

Though of course he wouldn't have time to dwell on his suspicions, because there was a growling sound drawing steadily closer and Stark was yelling, “What took you so long?”

An arrow embedded itself in a crack in the stone between himself and Thanos. One that he recognized, with a blinking red light in its tip.

Damn.

He leapt backwards, barely escaping the tongues of flame. Thanos wasn't as aware as Barton's proclivity for eclectic arrows, though the force of the explosion barely made him stumble.

However, Captain Rogers jumping from the Hawk's flying craft and landing shield-first on Thanos' head seemed to daze the Titan for a second.

There wasn't much time for Loki to be relieved that something other than the Hulk had fazed the Titan, before another arrow (this time a normal one), nearly planted itself in his foot. Loki sidestepped in time to avoid an injury, grinding his teeth. Yes, the Hawk had good reason to kill him, but couldn't he see that now was not the time?

Stark seemed to agree. “Watch it, Oliver Queen, I said he was with us for now,” the mortal called as he ducked Thanos' swing. Watching for any more arrows coming his directions, Loki ran across the rooftop. While it would be easier to extend his senses towards the gems if he wasn't waving his dagger about, Thanos would be suspicious if he suddenly stopped fighting.

“I heard. You believe his bullshit?” Barton's voice was barely audible, even as he swooped low for a shot at Thanos. Loki didn't hear an answer, but that didn't mean Stark hadn't given one. He knew the team had a form of internal communications, and the less Thanos heard the better (and though Loki wasn't keen on his former minion being told of Loki's poor form in the battle so far, it may cool the man's bloodlust).

Perhaps the Captain had heard Stark as well, for the man didn't so much as flinch when Loki joined him, trusting Loki not to stab him in the back. So much like another noble fool, one who would be safe with Asgard's healers, who had to survive, – but no, that wasn't important right now. Because while Loki had felt the power of the Space gem when it sent the Hulk to some place above Midgard's, it had just been a small surge from a source already in use.

The power he could feel coming off the gems on waves, as he tried to help the Captain flank Thanos, was not directed towards the battle. It was directed outward towards the city, and beyond to the rest of Midgard. Probably – Loki ducked as an arrow soared over his head and barely scratched Thanos' shoulder – searching for the Mind gem, though Soul and Space were not best suited to that particular task. It would explain why none of Avengers (and Loki) were dead yet (even if Thor – no, not now, he would worry later), while Thanos used the gems in battle sparingly. Not only was Thanos playing with them, he was distracted, half of his attention elsewhere.

And if Thanos couldn't find the staff, it didn't someone of Loki's towering intellect to figure out who was hiding it. Or had a hand in it, at least.

Now he just needed to find the one Avenger missing from the battle, without garnering Thanos' suspicion.

This was not going to be his best plan (though probably better than the last one he made on Midgard).

Drawing back slightly, Loki concentrated one of the more amusing mortals he'd met. Stark was flitting above the battle as he alternated between energy beams and aerial combat. It wasn't overly difficult to concentrate on the suit, focusing on the helmet and the information streaming in and out of it. It was slightly harder to avoid Thanos' fists at the same time, but the blow to his stomach was glancing at best. Ignoring the pain, Loki let a tendril of magic slip in the helmet's sensors, the strange taste of the mortal's primitive version of magic flooding his senses.

There were bright lights and panels in every direction, the voice of Stark's mechanical servant, information about Stark's heart rate and injuries and other details Loki didn't care about echoing through his mind. The sensation of the being in the suit, part of the suit, overlay the battle. As Loki dodged Thanos blows, he watched himself from above, strange symbols and numbers floating above his head in Stark's screens.

Loki was used to being in two or more places at once when he cast his illusions, but his doubles didn't have nearly the same input of information as Stark's invention. Loki was almost impressed. Perhaps he would be more so, if he were farther away from Thanos. Preferably on another world altogether.

There wasn't time to lament his life choices at the moment, however. Following the mechanical servant's voice input to the suit's internal speakers, Loki spoke through his tendril of magic, “Stark. Where is Romanova?”

Above his head and in his head, Stark jerked around. Loki could see the shocked look on the mortal's face, and he had to swallow a laugh (though if he lived through this, Loki would look back on that face fondly). He watched as Stark looked at him through the suit, Loki's dagger slicing towards and completely missing Thanos' stomach. “Jarvis? This isn't a good time for a joke.” The mortal's voice was shaken and uncertain.

Loki could feel the mechanical servant about to speak, but Loki cut him off. “This is not a joke. If you want to defeat Thanos, I have to find Roma-”

A sharp pain split through his skull as Thanos' fist knocked into his face, a hand he should have seen coming because he could see it from two points of view. His eyes were closed as he felt and saw himself crash backwards, Thanos was laughing as he blinked and Stark's servant was saying, “I was not speaking sir. There is an anomaly in my system.” Loki scrambled to his feet, world tilting in his head and body swaying in the view from above. “I am attempting to remove it,” the servant continued and he felt little points of primitive magic dig into his as Loki dived away from Thanos' next blow, Stark watching the Captain's shield flying at Thanos from behind.

“Stop, Jarvis” Stark commanded and the pinpricks disappeared while Loki ineffectually jabbed his dagger in Thanos' direction. Loki felt the suit charge and saw the targeting circle on Stark's screen as an energy beam (repulsor beam, the suit told him) hit Thanos' chest. “Loki, I don't know you're doing this, and I'd really like to ask you how someday, but Natasha is where Hulk smashed you.” The words moved at the speed of a charging bilgesnipe, as was Stark's wont. “And if hurt her, or anyone other than Thanos, I'll let Thanos take you,” and there was same edge in Stark's voice as the mortal had used last year in his tower.

Perhaps Stark would, perhaps not. Best to push Stark into the 'not' category.“Yes, I'm sure you'll want thousands of years of torture on your conscience.” Loki spoke as soothingly as possible through his magic. “Thor would be pleased.”

He had time to see Stark's face blanch before he retreated from the suit, just in time to dive away from another of the Hawk's explosive arrows (aimed only at Thanos this time, thankfully). Loki wasn't planning on hurting anyone but Thanos at the moment (it would be rather counterproductive), but it had been fun to play with Stark anyway. And he could use the amusement.

This next part was going to hurt.

While Captain Rogers attacked Thanos from the front, vainly trying to damage the Titan with his shield, Loki moved in from behind. When Thanos blocked the knife headed for his back, Loki moved a touch too slowly to avoid the hand that came up under his chin and knocked his head back. Stepping back, stars in his eyes and pain lancing through his jaw, Loki added a slight stumble to his retreat.

Thanos noticed. “Flagging already,” he tsked, kicking towards the Captain. The mortal blocked it with his shield, but the force knocked him backwards. Dodging Stark's repulsor beam, Thanos closed in on Loki. “I thought we built you up stronger than this, that between the void and my soldiers you could be shaped into something useful.” Thanos aimed a blow towards Loki's stomach. Loki let it connect, and immediately doubled over, gasping, not entirely acting this time. He hoped Thanos didn't cripple him before he could enact the next part of his plan. “Something worth my time. Worth Death, if you had asked.” There was a knee coming up to his face, and Loki had just enough time to bring up his hands in some semblance of protection before it felt like one of Thor's lightening bolts had penetrated his skull.

As he fell backwards, he saw Captain Rogers's shield flying towards Thanos with Stark coming in behind. Then Thanos turned and the Captain was thrown, over Loki's head and over the lip of the building, the Hawk's flying machine diving down after him. Lifting himself to his elbows, Loki could see Stark's repulsors lighting up before a bolt of power from Thanos' gauntlet knocked him back. Loki heard the mortal crash into stone as Thanos turned back to him. He had managed to get his feet underneath him when Thanos grabbed the front of his collar and hoisted him into the air.

“But it seems my best efforts have gone to waste, with failure written into your very soul.” Thanos grinned, as if an idea had occurred to him, and Loki felt a terrible chill down his spine, a tendril of fear twisting his stomach and freezing his breath in his throat. This wasn't supposed to happen, it couldn't. “Though a soul can be changed, of course.” The gauntlet was brandished before him, green gem blazing. “I'll just give you a taste for now,” Thanos crooned, and no no no, he didn't want this, his hands scrabbled uselessly at the one holding him and then green washed over him, over his heart and soul.

And it was glorious.

His soul was singing, alive with the idea of pleasing Death, sending Her whole universes. Of doing just as Thanos had suggested, burning Asgard to the ground. He would not only watch the warriors be slaughtered, but the women, the children. The thousand-year-old beings would be a veritable feast for Lady Death.

He would save the royal family for last, so he could savour their demise. Thor would be tortured until he gave up hope, and when he begged for Death, Loki would let Her have the thunder god. Odin would be swifter, eviscerated with Gungnir upon the steps of his throne while his kingdom burned. Loki giggled at the thought of the Allfather laid low, painting the throne room red with his blood. Frigga, he would lay beside her husband, after he cut the heart from her chest –

The green vanished. Thanos released his grip, and as Loki fell he felt a smile on his face, so wide it hurt, and there was wild, breathless laughter his ears that Loki realized was coming from him. He saw Stark struggling to feet across the rooftop, Barton and the Captain rising on their flying machine. It had only been a few seconds under the gem's power.

By the time he landed on the ground, the laughter had turned into sharp gasps, verging on sobs. He could feel the joy and wanting, could see Asgard laid low, Thor's empty eyes staring out of his beaten face (empty eyes that were still possible, if Loki had been too late, if the wound was too grievous, if the healers were not skilled enough), Odin limp on the steps with his guts spilling out –

“So, pathetic waste of god,” Thanos said, face looming above, “did you enjoy that?”

Loki's limbs wanted to shake. So he let them. He let his fear, the panic he had tried to quell ever since he had glimpsed Thanos on that infernal mortal device, overwhelm his soul (because it wasn't enough to just act, while Thanos had the gem). His heart beat wildly, his eyes widened, and his face lost the little colour it had.

“Run, little failure, before I give you more,” Thanos murmured. Loki whimpered. It was embarrassingly easy (especially since he was sure Stark could hear it). Thanos' smile widened. “Run, and hope I can't find you.”

Suppressing the spark of triumph that tried to squirm it's way through the fear, Loki did as he was told.

With a glitter of gold and a spark of magic, Loki was gone from the rooftop.

He had a spider to find.

And perhaps an apology – Guess you know what it feels like now – or three to make (actually, he figured there were more apologies he could make, but these were only ones pricking annoyingly at the remaining scraps of his conscience).

But not quite yet. He had to assuage some suspicions first.

His body coalesced just above Midgard, where he had felt the Space Gem pulse. And sure enough, roaring soundlessly and thrashing his fist about uselessly above the planet was the Hulk. Interesting, that the beast could survive in space. And an asset for later, one Loki could plan for once he had solid ground under his feet, because his stomach was churning, the stars above and below and all around, he was falling helplessly into the dark with pangs of fear still shooting through his chest and he could remember tearing Mother's heart from her chest, the weight of it, and how wonderful it felt as it beat it's last.

Tearing through space, he emerged in Stark's tower, barely catching a glimpse of the Spider's red hair whipping around and a young mortal with frightened eyes, before he leaned over and retched.

As his stomach convulsed, spewing more bile than anything else (he couldn't remember the last time ate), he saw Romanova approach out of the corner of his vision. This was nearly as humiliating as the whimper. Though not quite as much as the time the Avengers found him after Hulk had his fun.

The vomiting session didn't last long, and once stomach stopped trying to claw it's way up his throat, he vanished the sick before he straightened and face Romanova.

On her chest was a light plate of armour, with a blue, glowing device akin to the one on Stark's chest, and on her left hand was one of Stark's metal glove, its repulsor beam pointed at Loki's head. Against the wall opposite Loki was the mortal he had glimpsed. The human male was young, perhaps on the cusp of manhood, with dusky skin and black hair. A quick sweep of his eyes around the room revealed that little had changed before he returned his gaze to the Spider.

“You look like shit,” she said. Then, “Stark told me what happened.”

“All of it?” His voice was rough from throwing up. It probably matched his appearance.

Romanova shrugged lightly, not enough to disturb her aim. “Between his ramblings and Jarvis, I got most of it. Did you learn that trick from me?”

Loki knew she was referred to the way he left, the same fake fear (maybe not so fake) she shown him in the flying fortress. He snorted. “I've been doing those kinds of tricks since your ancestors were crawling in the mud.”

“So how'd I fool you then, if you're so good?” There was tilt to her head, a tug at the edge of her lips that said she already knew the answer. She was just waiting for him to see it too.

Through it grated on him, he knew. “I made a...mistake.” One of many. “Like Thanos, I underestimated how devious my opponent could be.”

She smile, sharp as the knives he was sure she carried. “How human of you. But flattery won't convince me of your sudden defection.”

“Most wouldn't consider devious to be a compliment.” She didn't answer, waiting. The boy in the corner shuffled his feet, drawing Loki's attention for a moment, but Romanova didn't twitch. Loki cleared his throat. “How about an apology?” he offered.

Romanova's eyebrows shot up. “Really?” She said, voice dripping with disbelief.

“It took some prompting,” having similar words thrown in his face, a gem flooding his soul, “but I recognize that my words to you from my cage were cruel,” as he had meant them to be, but it was unsettling to have his scare tactics turned against him, and he hated that annoying nagging of guilt in the back of his mind. “And my methods in persuading Barton and Selvig to come to my aide were were, ah, unenjoyable.” Sickening, would be a better word. “But if I took my apology to them, they would attempt to kill me.”

Romanova stared at him, her face unreadable (which Loki found odd, a challenge), before replying, “I think you have more apologies to make than that.”

It was Loki's turn to shrug. “They would not be sincere.”

The Spider pursed her lips, and seemed to understand. As far as Loki knew, she had not felt guilt for her crimes until she joined S.H.E.I.L.D. But she did not drop her hand. “Even if I believed it, it's still not enough,” she countered. “You allied with Thanos before. You tried to rule us. Why not help him, or use us and then betray us.”

“Helping Thanos is not an option,” he snapped. “It never has been.”

Something in Romanova's eyes changed, and Loki regretted his tone of voice. “Then why do it in the first place?” She asked, calm and curious. “Stark told me Thanos alluded to your help with the Tesseract.”

Loki grimaced. “I was desperate. Midgard for the Tesserast, that was the deal. Not the best deal on my end, for a variety of reasons, though the most obvious would be that he would have killed us all eventually. I was hoping I would have thought of a solution to that problem by the time Thanos went back on his word.”

Romanova looked skeptical. “So you were planning on taking Thanos down eventually?”

Loki's brow furrowed. “Did not Thor tell you of Thanos' plans?”

“He told us he only wants to kill,” she said hesitantly, “and he worships death.”

“No, no, no,” Loki growled. “He not only worships Death, he loves Her, and he will kill everyone to please Her. Whether She wishes it or not. And I cannot rule if everyone is dead,” he finished as an afterthought, in case Romanova believed the death of the universe would not move him to action.

“I...see.” Romanova frowned. “And Death is a person?”

Oh humans, with their limited perspectives. It was rather cute. “She is not a person, but She exists. She simply Is.”

“...Right,” Romanova said, unsure. She steadied her hand and said in more confident voice, “And how about not betraying us?”

Loki grinned. Considering the beating his face had gone through, he suspected it did not look particularly pleasant. “You cannot trust me. No one ever has, and it would be unwise to discontinue that tradition.” Loki stood up as straight as he could, towering over Romanova. “But you have no choice.”

The Spider's eyes glinted, then she lowered her arm and took a few steps back. Her stance immediately changed from aggressive to business-like. “Thor told us Thanos was after the staff, which has one of the infinity gems. He also told us which gems Thanos has, and the basic of what they can do.” Loki had to suppress a snort. No doubt Thor's information was rather lacking. Loki would have to correct that when (if) Thor was better. “So we hid the sceptre.” She gestured to the boy, who took a couple of steps forward, but kept behind Romanova.

“On Midgard?” Loki asked, carefully, reaching out his magic to the boy, probing for the gem. He found no trace of its power, but there was something strange about the boy.

Romanova shook her head. “No. It's in the Negative Zone.”

Loki started, looking between Romanova and the boy. He knew of the Negative Zone, an old, decaying universe next to theirs, but it was dangerous and difficult to enter. And get out of. Which he supposed made it a perfect location for the gem, if Thanos didn't know where it was hidden. “How?” he demanded.

With a sharp tilt of her head, Romanova indicated the boy without taking her eyes off Loki. “This is Rick Jones.”

“Hi,” the boy said, raising one hand and wiggling his fingers. Loki supposed it must be some form of greeting.

“Last year, he bonded with a Kree soldier named Captain Marvel, who found herself lost in Negative Zone,” Romanova continued as if she hadn't been interrupted. “She can see and hear everything Rick can, and communicate with him from the Negative Zone.”

“So how did you get the staff there?” Loki asked, looking between the two of them.

“Captain Marvel has on her a device which allows her switch places with Rick, but only for a limited period of time.”

“How limited?” He had to know all the variables, he needed a plan.

“Three hours or so. When Thor informed us of Thanos' intent, I had Shield contact Rick.” Of course, this would be all the Spider's plan. “Captain Marvel switched places, took the staff, and retreated to the Negative Zone.”

“And what is– ”

“Um, excuse me?” The boy, Rick, coughed. Loki and Romanova looked at him. He was blushing. “Um, Captain Mar-Vell says that if you can't pronounce her name right, just call her Captain Danvers. Or Carol. Well, um,” he pointed at Loki, “you can't, but Natasha and the Avengers can. Sorry.” He put his hands behind his back, nervously rocking on his heels as if he expected one of them to vaporize him on the spot.

Loki turned back to Romanova. “So what is your plan?” She had to have at least one..

“Stall.” Romanova's face soured. She wasn't fond of that desicion. “Before she took the staff, Carol contacted someone named the Star Lord. He has group of people who've dealt with Thanos before.”

“When will they get here?” Loki didn't bother trying to hide his hope.

“An hour at the soonest.”

Loki was already shaking his head. “No, that's too late. Thanos will get tired of playing, and start killing.”

“Then how do we stop him before that?” Romanova was all focus, the edge of a knife. “Thor said the gauntlet was his main source of power.”

“He is powerful even without it,” Loki cautioned. “And it would difficult to remove while he is conscious.”

“Can we cut it off?”

He liked the way her mind worked. “Yes, but it would be difficult.” He mulled it over for a second. “Though it may be our only option, if we wish to defeat him. He knows the Mind gem is here, and he will not stop until has it.”

Romanova nodded thoughtfully. “Then we need a distraction, if we want to get close enough.”

“Or a trap,” Loki agreed, possibilities running through his mind. “When Rick and Captain Marv-Vell switch places, it could open a doorway long enough for Thanos to sense the gem.”

“And Carol is powerful enough to fight Thanos, with the others' help, especially if we get Shield's heavier weapons involved.” She pulled out a small, rectangular device and moved her fingers across it.

“Only if you have them available now. Your heroes will not last much longer.” As he talked, he felt...good. Drawing up plans, with someone who listened and contributed made their own, ones that were not solely rush in and smash it (well, most of it was in this case, but there were few other options). He liked it, the collaboration. “And he will not expect me, nor the Hulk–”

“Banner?” Romanova looked up. “You know where he is?” There was hope in her voice.

“Yes, Thanos simply left him in space. I can fetch the beast.”

For some reason, Rick scowled at him, but Romanova put a firm hand on his shoulder then glanced back at the device in her hand. “We have a location. Loki, can you take the us there?”

“Show it to me.”

“Jarvis” Romanova called, and to Loki's left an illusion appeared of a street with a blockade of cars at either end, each car with long, cylindrical shapes Loki recognized as weapons. The humans would probably get themselves killed, but as long as they stopped Thanos it wasn't Loki's problem (and if they didn't stop Thanos, dead humans would be the least of their problems).

Taking another few moments to study the scene, Loki turned back to Romanova. “Yes, I can take you.”

Romanova nodded then called, “Stark, have you three got that?”

“Loud and clear,” came Stark's voice from the ceiling. Loki frowned. He did not like the idea of all the Avengers hearing his discussion. “Better than getting ourselves killed up here.”

Romanova smirked at his expression, then took a deep breath and removed all emotion from her face. “Does your teleportation work on contact?” she asked, moving closer to Loki as Rick followed.

It was Loki's turn to smirk, though the expression pulled unpleasantly at the multitude of injuries Thanos had dealt his face. “Yes, but don't worry. Hurting you would not be in my best interests at the moment.”

But Romanova held up a hand, the one with the metal glove. “One question first. What did Thanos mean when he said he saved you?”

Loki's jerked back, barely keeping his feet from moving back as well.

The Chitauri weren't the first being he had met after being spat out of the void. But none of the others were quite so willing to let him live. Loki ran and fought and killed to survive, until there was one blessed moment when the fear was no longer pumping through his veins, nor a blind, animal panic in his head, when his mind could think again...and he remembered he didn't want to survive.

The Chitauri found him before he could die.

Loki was sure Romanova saw everything, his wide eyes, the blood draining from his face, his quickened breath, before he carefully put on an air of disinterest and gave a polite smile. “He gave me purpose.”

It was a facet of the truth.

He reached out his hands to the mortals before they could ask anymore dull questions. In a swirl a golden light, the three of them disappeared from Stark's tower and landed in the centre of the street he had been shown.

Immediately, the weapons on the mortals' vehicles swivelled towards him, but Romanova held up a hand and shouted, “All clear!” Then she turned to Rick, who looked rather pale. “Ready for the switch?”

“Yep, we both are,” the boy said quickly. “Just don't leave me in there for long, 'k? It gives me the creeps.”

“Because there are creatures in there who would eat you alive,” Loki spoke as he set himself in position, just in front of Rick. Loki ignored the mortal's fear as he continued, “I will conceal the two of you for a short time, so Thanos will focus on me. It will not confuse him for long, but between myself and the Hulk, Captain Mar-Vell may have enough time to strike.” He held out his dagger to Rick, carefully avoiding the still cooling red metal. The boy took it hesitantly, holding it between two fingertips as if it were a snake, then lay it on the ground beside him.

“If I hold it, I'll take it with me,” he mumbled.

Romanova stared at them for a long moment, probably judging if Loki would murder Rick the moment she turned her back, then moved off to one side of the street, where she would less likely to be caught in a crossfire. “Switch after one.” She called, just loud enough to be heard by Loki and the boy. “Three.”

Loki cast a concealing spell over Romanova and the area in which Rick was standing, then a less powerful version over the mortals. With the Soul gem in Thanos' possession it would not take long for him to figure out the truth, but even a second could mean the difference between victory and utter decimation.

“Two.”

Concentrating on his previous journey to the stars, Loki sent half his mind, carried with an illusion, to the Hulk. The beast was still snarling angrily at nothing. Carefully, Loki positioned his illusion behind the beast, close enough to reach out and touch him. This next bit would be tricky, and as well as draining. He was not used to transporting such vast distances repeatedly, especially with more than one person.

“One.”

The air shifted behind his body, and for one bright, blazing second he could feel the Mind gem's power, bleeding into this universe through whatever Kree technology Captain Mar-Vell had acquired, and he remembered the weight of the staff in his hand, the feeling that he could have something, somewhere of his own – childish need – if he just followed the gem and the Tesseract to victory. Then the power was disappearing as the Midgardian and Kree completed their switch, and he knew Thanos must have felt the power too.

Loki returned his mind to the Hulk, who had taken notice of the illusion. The beast was turning around as a purple flash lit the street only a few feet away from Loki's body.

Before the light dissipated Thanos' eyes were already trained upon the spot where the Mind gem's power had leaked into this universe. Surprise flickered across his face when he found Loki in place of his prize.

There was the feeling of wind at his back, the same type he felt every time Thor would take to the skies with Mjolnir, as Captain Mar-Vell leapt into the air at the same he heard a boom from the mortal weapons.

Loki made his move.

For a moment there was an illusion standing in street, watching Thanos' surprise turn to anger as Captain Mar-Vell flew over Loki's head, and Loki's body took the place of his illusion in the stars. He reached his hand out to the green beast's back as the human's projectiles hit Thanos. The Titan stumble, and both Loki and the Hulk were no longer in space. The moment the Hulk's feet touched Midgard, just to the right of Thanos, Loki dropped to the ground and could see through the illusion's eyes the still-concealed Captain Marvel swinging the dagger down on Thanos' hand.

The dagger never made it.

Captain Mar-Vell froze in mid-air, a purple glow outlining her shape. Thanos let out a short bark of laughter and Loki felt his knees weaken, something wet and warm dripping onto his upper lip. Teleporting had strained his mind. His illusion vanished into golden light as Captain Mar-Vell and the humans burst into full view.

The Kree woman's eyes were wide, her red gloved hands still locked around the dagger's hilt, as she was thrown backwards into one of the blockades of humans. Loki was sure Thanos would have done more to the Kree, but a large green fist rammed into Thanos' face.

Loki struggled to stay on his feet, vaguely noticing a spot of blood land on the ground beneath his face. He could see Romanova running towards the fallen Captain Mar-Vell, the humans in the vehicles yelling and firing as the Hulk continued his assault.

A strange buzzing noise filled the air. Carefully titling his head up, without giving into the light-headed feeling, Loki spotted an ostentatious metal suit, closely followed by two figures on a flying craft closing in on Thanos.

Loki took a step forward, and the vehicles, along with the mortals in them, disappeared in a flash of purple light. In the back of his mind, he felt the corresponding pulse of energy somewhere to the east. Somewhere over water, he thought. He took another step forward, blood still sluggishly dripping down his face, then the Hulk went crashing to the ground, arms flailing as the beast's legs were swept from underneath him. Taking a third step, Loki straightened and readied a burst of magic, and Captain Mar-Vell was back air, short blonde hair streaked back as she converged on Thanos.

Before he could take the next step, Thanos turned and looked at him, eyes full of rage, and promises of pain beyond imagining.

With a speed rivalling Loki's own, Thanos darted towards Loki, then reached down and grabbed him by the throat.

And with a feeling not quite like his own teleportation, Loki and Thanos were no longer on the street surrounded by Avengers and one Kree. Loki wasn't quite sure where he was, except it was still in the city and quite a bit higher than street-level. There was little time to look around, however, because as the grey buildings swam into focus Thanos drove Loki into the ground head-first before flinging him off to the side.

Loki rolled, gasping for breath. He had barely stopped moving when a foot slammed into his side.

“Were you planning to trick me, you pathetic worm?” Thanos snarled, dragging Loki upright enough to punch Loki in the stomach. “Clever that you thought of a use for your cowardice, but not enough to overcome your failure.” A fist crunched into his nose, and Loki felt more blood pour down his lips. “You have not the worth to look upon my Lady's face.” Another hand smashed into his skull, driving spikes of pain through his head. He fell to the ground. “My Lady Death, who favoured you out of all the other refuse we discovered on our travels.” A boot crushed Loki's chest. Loki was sure he felt several ribs cracks.

Death, whom Loki had seen in fading vision as his body lay broken, whom Loki would have begged to let Her to take him, had he been able to speak. And Death had told Thanos to spare him.

“I should blind you to spare Her the shame,” Thanos spat, kicking his chin and driving his head back into the concrete, before hauling Loki up by his lapels. “But first, I wish you to see the mortals fail and Asgard fall, how all your pitiful attempts to stop me have come to naught.”

And though every movement brought a new spike of pain through his face, Loki smiled. “Then why don't you have the gem yet?” he rasped.

(For all he was called Silvertongue, Loki rarely knew when to put that tongue to rest.)

A look of pure rage crossed Thanos' face.

The arm that held him was moving, and suddenly there no hand attached to his tunic. Then there was no roof under his feet. Air was beneath him and above him all he could see were the mortal's buildings, reaching for their smog-choked skies. He was falling, and he could not see the ground beneath him, how could he know the ground was really there, that he wouldn't keep falling alone and helpless until the void spat him out–

But of course there was ground beneath him, because he landed on it. Pain shot through his body, waves of blackness threatening to drown him in unconsciousness. But he couldn't sleep, not now, even through he couldn't breathe, couldn't move, by the Norns this hurt worse than the time the Hulk thrown him about like a rag doll.

He stared up, black encroaching on the edge of his vision, as he tried to reorder his thoughts. He had think, he had to do something, before Thanos decided to send him to the Chitauri, or return to the Avengers and force the gem from their hands.

Choking on a breath that rattled horribly in his chest, Loki flicked his eyes from side to side, past the dust and rubble that had been thrown up from his impact. If there were any mortals under Fury's command, he could reach the Kree captain and tell her to run, find the warrior she called Star Lord.

There were no mortals to be seen. They had all fled the Titan's wrath.

However, to his right, thrumming with power and in a crater as deep as Loki's, lay Mjolnir.

Thor must have dropped it there, when he fell. And if Loki moved only a few inches, reached out his hand, he could wrap his fingers around the hilt.

Loki forced his limbs to move, bright, white-hot pain searing through his bones as he dragged himself out the crater.

If the hammer (if Odin, Odin's inscription and magic) accepted him, his body would mend some of its ills, and he could fend off Thanos, join the Avengers in defeating him, use the storm and Mjolnir's strength to rid Midgard of the Titan.

He reached out his hand, leather hilt brushing against his fingers and the power of the storm humming in his mind.

If the hammer found him worthy.

But Loki was not a warrior. He was not one to pound his enemies into the dust with his might.

And Loki was not like Thor. He wasn't noble and valiant and oh so foolish.

Loki withdrew his hand.

He was not Thor, and would not beg Odin's favour to be Thor's replacement.

However, the hammer would respond to someone like Thor. If Loki could find him.

Except there was a purple flash and Thanos was on the ground, only feet away from the crater.

Loki fell back, weakly scrambling away from Thanos, and the hammer.

“You've been an annoyance for too long,” Thanos rumbled, bearing down on Loki. The Titan did not seem to notice the hammer, hopefully because Loki's spell to hide it from sight had worked. “Once I force the gem's location out of you, or one of the humans, I'll send you off to the Chitauri.”

Dragging himself backwards, Loki noticed movement in the sky past Thanos. The bright streak of the Iron Man suit, a strange red and black blob that looked suspiciously like Captain Mar-Vell carrying Romanova, and the silver glint of a flying machine with two bodies atop it.

But they would not arrive soon enough.

“They can have their way with you, while I recover what you lost.” Thanos loomed over him, nearly obscuring Loki's view of the sky.

“Who said I lost it?” Loki taunted and tore a hole in space. He landed on the back of the Hawk's flying craft and wrapped his arms around a very alarmed blue-suited mortal while on the ground Thanos was jerking back in surprise.

“Take Mjolnir,” the whispered into the noble Captain's ear, then they were no longer flying towards Thanos but beside him, kneeling before a now-visible Mjolnir.

With as much strength as his body could muster, Loki threw himself away from the mortal as Captain Rogers's hand closed around the hilt of the hammer of the gods.

There was a crack of thunder and a flash of light so bright Loki was nearly blinded, accompanied by a shockwave that knocked Thanos off his feet. Even Loki was buffeted by the power of Mjolnir, gritting his teeth as the storm rolled across him.

When the light had cleared from his eyes, Captain Rogers stood with the hammer aloft, staring at it as if he'd never seen it before in his life. Then Thanos got to his feet, and the Captain launched himself at the Titan.

It was fascinating to watch Thanos so taken off guard as the Captain used both hammer and shield to attack. Thanos could barely dodge the weapons, especially once Captain Mar-Vell and Stark joined the battle. Romanova had joined Barton on the flying machine, repulsor blast after repulsor blast shooting from the glove on her hand as Barton launched his arrows. There was the sound of breaking stone with a shockwave nearly equal to that of Mjolnir's, and with a snarl the Hulk joined the fight.

But it would not be enough. Thanos still had the gems, and soon there would be break in the attack, a second of respite, and the heroes would be sent to the furthest corners of the universe. Or have their souls ensnared, Thanos using them in his mad quest until he presented them to his lover.

Loki's mind spun, running through options and everything he had left to give, and knew he still had something left. He had forgotten about it (or rather pushed it to the very back of his mind so he never had to think about it again, except everything it represented still managed to haunt his every waking thought), but now he had little choice.

It was struggle to push himself to his hands and knees, and when he staggered to his feet his vision blurred, and the exhaustion that followed overexertion of magic made it self known with a horrible nauseous feeling. But he remained on standing, and brought his hands about shoulder-width apart in front of chest.

From his own personal pocket of space, he withdrew the Casket of Ancient Winters, where he had placed it after freezing Heimdall's sword into the Bifrost more than two years ago. Immediately the blue crept over his hands, staining his nails black and raising the hidden markings on his skin. Loki tried not to look down at them as he limped forward, and nearly pitching face-first to the ground after the first step. Snarling, Loki steadied himself, and took another step towards the battle in front of him. His legs were weak, but he didn't stumble.

As he drew closer, he saw the Hulk smashing for all he was worth, the Captain using Mjolnir with little finesse but sufficient power, the Kree absorbing a blast from the gauntlet and sending it right back towards Thanos.

Mortals certainly were more interesting than he'd originally thought.

Thanos reached out one arm to knock Stark into Captain Mar-Vell, and Loki could see him bringing up one foot to deliver a kick to the Hulk's abdomen. The other foot remained planted on the ground, and Loki saw his opening.

Reaching into the power of the Casket, Loki sent a flood of ice barrelling between Captain Rogers and the Hulk, freezing the Titan's foot to the ground.

Thanos' kick towards the Hulk didn't quite connect the way Thanos probably expected it to. Enraged, the Titan looked for the source of the ice, and when his eyes alighted on Loki, he felt a shiver of fear run down his spine.

Luckily, Thanos could neither send Loki off to the Chitauri nor wrench his leg free of the ice because Captain Rogers slammed into with Mjolnir. As the Titan struggled for balance with only one leg still mobile, Loki called upon more ice to freeze the remaining foot.

Loki was sure Thanos would have used the Space gem to rid himself of the ice, but he was rather distracted by six superheroes converging on him. That Thanos still managed to knock Stark to the ground before Captain Rogers delivered a blow that sent the Titan crashing onto his back was a testament to his skill.

But Loki thought fighting prowess hardly mattered, if he could freeze Thanos' gauntlet to the ground while the Titan was still reeling.

By now he had stumbled close enough to the battle that he nearly stood beside the downed Stark. Thanos struggled, his one free hand lashing out towards them and ice-blue eyes filled with a rage that could rival the Hulk's.

Loki could see the purple and green glow through the ice, feel the power thrumming as even the Hulk landed a blow on the Titan's chest. Then Capatin Rogers yelled, “Ready, Carol!” and as Captain Mar-Vell hovered above Thanos, her hands lighting with power, Captain Rogers brought Mjolnir down next to Thanos.

There was a thunderclap, more powerful than the one where Captain Rogers had first claimed the hammer, and lightning struck Thanos' prone form as Captain Mar-Vell unleashed the force gathering at her fingertips. It lit up the deserted street, and Loki had to turn his head away from the brightness.

When the light dissipated, Thanos' remaining free hand fell limply to the side. The Titan's eyes were rolled back into his head.

The street was silent.

Loki wanted to laugh, or maybe cry. Or keel over and sleep until his head no longer pounded and his body didn't feel like it would fall apart with the slightest blow.

But it wasn't over yet.

Thanos would not be out for long. And he still had the gauntlet.

He limped forward and fell to his knees beside Thanos' body in front of the gauntlet frozen to the ground, setting the Casket to the side.

He had no idea where his dagger was, nor if he could melt the ice around the gauntlet, but those weren't his only options. Closing his (blood-red) eyes, Loki concentrated on his left hand and thought of ice, with an edge so sharp it could through the Titan's skin.

When he opened his eyes his hand was still blue and not encased in ice.

A hand landed roughly on his shoulder, with much more strength than the owner probably realized. “Hey, what are you–” Captain Rogers started to say, then stopped when a black suited form strolled up to them.

“We need that gauntlet off.” Romanova said, with little room for argument in her voice. “And if he can take it off with all that ice, then we need him.”

They stared at Loki, probably waiting for him cleanly remove the gauntlet. Ignoring them, Loki pointed the Casket at his left hand and called on the ice. Again, he closed his eyes and thought of a blade, and this time he could feel the ice growing, being shaped to his will. He opened his eyes to a perfectly formed hatchet encompassing his hand.

When he brought the edge of the blade down on Thanos arm, just past the edge of the ice, he was sure the only one who didn't gasp was Romanova. And the Hulk, of course.

The hatchet didn't quite make it all the way through. Loki was almost unhappy Thanos remained unconscious.

“Ok, ew, are you gonna keep doing that? Shouldn't we, y'know, do something more humane?” Stark asked, and his voice was clearer, as if he'd taken his helm off.

“We don't have the time,” Romanova answered, and Loki sliced down again. This time he felt the hand separate from the body at the same time he felt the gems free themselves from their owner.

Loki leaned back, one hand still resting on the Casket. There was a hysterical bubble of laughter working its way up his throat, and Loki was doing his best to choke it down. Thanos no longer had the power of the gems. He was still dangerous, but not unbeatable, and it was freeing, it was–

“Gross,” Stark said, his metal boots clomping as he went to stand beside Romanova. “Hey, is anyone gonna bring up the fact that Loki's blue? And grows ice?”

“Quiet, Stark,” a pair of red boots came into his sight. Loki looked up to see the Kree standing above him. “Loki of Asgard, we need to have a chat later, but right now I need to know if you can use that blue box of yours to freeze the rest of the Titan.”

In response, Loki let out a torrent of blue ice onto Thanos. If the ice hadn't held Heimdall, it wouldn't hold Thanos, but it would still provide something of a deterrent when the Titan woke up. Captain Mar-Vell pursed her lips, giving him a look like she was evaluating him.

She probably would have said more, but Stark sauntered in her way and crouched down beside Loki, careful to avoid Thanos' frozen hand. He shoved his face, the only part of his body uncovered by his armour, dangerously close to Loki's own. “Seriously, why are you blue? Is this an Asgard thing, or are you just secretly a Smurf?” Stark eyes roved over Loki's face, curious, but not frightened, not even when he noticed the colour of Loki's eyes. “Or maybe a Na'Vi, with those markings and eyes. You don't have a tail, do you?” The man glanced behind Loki, as if he expected the prehensile limb to spontaneously appear. “Nope, no tail, unless you're hiding it really well.”

Loki wasn't sure how to answer, since he was sure the mortal was partly speaking gibberish. Instead, he let go of the Casket, feeling the hatchet melt from his hand, and stood up, albeit slowly, because the world seemed to be tilting to one side. Only when metal hands clamped down in his arms did he realize his body was the one doing the tipping. “Woah there, Frosty, and oh–” Stark looked at Loki's hands, which were quickly fading from blue to pink, “ok, not so frosty.”

There was a large sigh, and Captain Mar-Vell moved back into view. “Stark, we have more important things to deal with at the moment.” She gestured to Thanos and his severed hand. “We need to keep Thanos and the Infinity Gems contained. The Star Lord and his guardians are still on their way, and I don't know if we can subdue Thanos when he wakes up again.”

Before Loki's mind had a chance to think things through, his mouth was moving. “Asgard. We could get help from Asgard.” The words came out with a rasp. “Their warriors could be here in seconds.” Loki wondered why he was still talking. He shouldn't be offering for any Æsir to come here, he had just escaped from them.

Captain Mar-Vell studied him, and out of the corner of his eye he could see Romanova doing the same. “Are you offering to get some for us? Because last I heard you and Asgard weren't on good terms.” She put her hands on her hips. “And I'm pretty sure it's Asgard's fault Thanos has one of those gems.”

Loki bristled. Did the whole universe know of his fall from Asgard, or was Thor just very free with his knowledge? “Asgard was weak, and they were unprepared. And unless the Bifrost sends its warriors down now,” and no no no, why was he still talking, “there is little choice but to send me.”

By now, he was sure all the Avengers were watching him, then there was an angry sound somewhere behind him. “Are we really gonna trust him? After what he did?” Barton snarled. Loki didn't expect anything less from him.

“No, but it's best we've got, Clint,” Romanova said, coolly walking towards the Hawk. “Either he leaves and gets Asgard's help, or he runs and we're in the same place as before.”

Stark glanced off to the side. “Steve? What do you think?”

Sidling next to Captain Mar-Vell, Captain Rogers looked him over. “How did you know I could lift Mjolnir?”

Loki rolled his eyes, then immediately regretted it because his vision swam for a second. “Isn't it obvious? Apart from what Barton told me of your past,” and there was a from hiss behind him, “you fight with the same cursed nobility and honour that Thor has. Or at least discovered a few years ago,” Loki added bitterly, because from what he knew of the Captain, he would have been worthy all his life to hold the hammer. Unlike Thor. “You fulfil Odin's idea of worthiness to the letter.”

“And what, we don't?” Stark asked, closer than excepted to Loki's head, and with a start Loki realized the mortal was still holding his arm with one hand. Loki would've have torn his arm out of the mortal's grasp, if he didn't think it would result in an undignified tumble.

Instead, he gave a derisive snort. “No, you're too dishonest, or selfish, or ruthless, or manipulative.” Too much like Loki. “Hardly the mark of heroes,” he added, just to see how they'd react.

No one moved for a second, then Stark laughed. “And yet here we are, saving the earth.” He gestured around, managing to encompass the whole street.

Captain Rogers gently dropped Molnir at Loki's feet. “If you're going to Asgard you better take this to Thor.” As he relinquished the dwarf-forged weapon, Loki could see the strength drain out of the Captain. Of course, the man was humble enough to surrender the power of a god when the need for it was over. The man was more perfect than Thor. “He's gonna need it when he recovers,” he said with confidence. As if he could assure Thor's survival with enough hope (and if hope was all it took, then Loki would start praying to the Norns).

Captain Mar-Vell cleared her throat. “In case you do plan on running, I suggest you stay away from Kree space. We are the sworn enemies of the Chitauri, and are not on the best terms with Thanos, nor their allies. We also do approve of planetary annihilation nor hostile takeovers, unless it is commanded by the Superior Intelligence first. However, while certain details concerning your alliance with the Chitauri have come to light that your cooperative may not have been entirely your own prerogative, it'd be better to avoid a trial-by-Kree altogerther.” She looked him over once, then a slight smirk grew on her face. “Although you could probably get some sort of insanity plea.”

Loki didn't bother glaring at her. Everyone seemed to think he was mad these days.

“Other than that, thank you for your help against the Mad Titan.” She tilted her head in his direction, an acknowledgement of his services.

Slowly, Loki nodded as if the Kree's position on his actions mattered, then carefully reached down and grabbed the Casket. The mortals tensed at the movement, but luckily Stark still kept his grip because Loki still felt his head spin as he lifted up the Casket. Avoiding the sight of his blue hands, Loki positioned his feet so one was touching the hammer, and muttered, “You need to let go of me now.” Stark stepped away.

Taking a deep breath, Loki searched for a path amongst Yggdrasil's branches. He found one, one that could take him from Midgard to Asgard. And there were others, ones that could take him elsewhere.

He could run. Take Mjolnir (not that he could use it) and the Casket (not that he really wanted it) and run.

Run and risk Thanos escaping.

Run and not see if he was too late for Thor.

He slipped into Yggdrasil's branches, and landed in Asgard's vault, beside the pedestal that used to hold the Casket. Then Loki stumbled, and leaned against the pedestal in an effort to stay on his feet. He nearly didn't hear the doors open, but he heard the shuffled of footsteps and looked up.

Odin was making his way down the stairs, in his armour while the torchlight made flickering shadows across his face.

At first Loki's mind went to that day in vault, when everything fell apart and he found out the lie that was woven into his very skin. Then his mind was filled sharply with the bright green glow, Asgard burning around them while Loki stood over Odin's broken, bleeding form.

A wave of nausea hit, and Loki doubled over, trying very hard not to vomit all over Asgard's vault.

Distantly he could hear the footsteps quicken, then a hand tentatively grasped his shoulder. Loki took several shuddering breaths, then let the hand gently guide him upright. He met Odin's single eye, and if Loki hadn't already been repeatedly proven otherwise, he would have said there was concern in that gaze.

Once Loki was standing straight the hand let go. Almost awkwardly, Odin let the hand fall by his side and took a few steps back. Loki tried very hard not to feel the loss, at the space between them, but he couldn't help the pangs in his chest.

Odin cleared his throat. “Help is on its way to Midgard.” His voice held the same calm and command that Loki remembered Odin used as his default voice. It was also very distant. “As soon as we were able to gather the troops, and once the Midgardians acknowledged they desired our aid, we sent a contingent of warriors to the Bifrost. They should arrive on Midgard to guard the Titan within minutes.” There was a pause where Odin seemed to gather himself. “Asgard thanks you for your services. You helped overcome the Titan, and if were not for your immediate intervention, Thor would likely have perished.”

Loki couldn't help the way his head perked up. He wanted to ask more, but quickly bit back the words. Thor was alive, that was enough.

Odin caught Loki's slip-up, though. “Thor is healing,” he continued, “and he will be well in a few days time.”

“Oh,” was all Loki said, a sigh of relief and an acknowledgement in one breath.

They stood there for a few moments. Loki hadn't planned past asking Asgard for help. He hoped Odin would either dismiss him or sent for the guards, so Loki would have a reason to run again.

Odin did neither. Instead, he gestured towards Loki's feet. “Why did you not try to lift Mjolnir?”

“What?” Loki asked. The word came out somewhat startled and defensive. He wasn't sure if Odin was trying to accuse him of something. He wondered if he should start running now.

But Odin didn't look angry. “You would have been worthy, in those moments. You would have lifted her,” he said with the same calm as before.

Loki gaped.

Worthy. He would have been worthy. Worthy of Odin, and of Thor's place as the golden son.

And then he closed his mouth with a snap and glared at Odin, because even now Odin couldn't see what Loki wanted, he was still blind as if he'd had two eyes carved out instead of one. “Because I am not like Thor, nor you,” he hissed, his weak legs moving into a defensive stance. “I don't fit your idea of worth, I can do things Thor can't, or won't.” And now Stark's words made sense, and yet here we are, such desperate and broken creatures who could defeat a Titan, ruthless mortals who were saviours of Midgard. “I won't be your noble Æsir warrior who rushes into battle without a second thought, worthy of your regard only when it suits you. Or when I start pretending I'm something I'm not, and never could be,” he spat, his blue fingers tightening on the Casket, but he refused to look down and see if the knuckles were a paler shade of blue. “I don't want Mjolnir, if it means I have to become like Thor just to be worthy. ”

Loki was panting, lungs burning and ribs aching with every breath, and he waited for the Allfather to throw him out, banish him from Asgard for his scorn. But Odin just looked him over, then said, “I see. I had hoped it was for...a reason akin to that.”

“What?” Loki said for a second time, caught off guard. “What other reason could I have?”

Odin didn't answer at first. He walked forward, and Loki tensed. Odin reached out his hands, took the Casket from Loki, and set it back on the floor beside Mjolnir. Then he reached out and put a hand on Loki's shoulder, the hand whose warmth and strength Loki had missed.

There was sadness in Odin's eye, and the Allfather didn't bother concealing it, didn't bother looking emotionless and distant. “I thought you did not grab Mjolnir, because I thought you had given up. As you had...on the Bifrost.”

Loki couldn't breathe. His legs stopped supporting him and he sunk to the floor, a fall controlled by the pedestal and Odin's hands gently helping him.

“I was afraid for you,” Odin continued, crouched in front of Loki, “that you would rather let Thanos take you than continue fighting. Or that you considered yourself so unworthy in my gaze, that you would not even attempt to lift Mjolnir, even if it would save you.”

“If you cared...if you care, then why did you say no? On the bridge?” Loki's voice broke on the last word (No, Loki. No, Loki. those words haunted his nightmares, one of the many memories that prevented him sleeping night after night). He couldn't look at Odin, so he stared past him, at the glowing centre of the Casket. “You must have known what I would do. That I wouldn't hold on once you said no. That I wouldn't want to.” His voice sounded small and childish, but Loki did not the the energy to control it.

“I had hope–”

“THEN YOU DON'T KNOW ME WELL ENOUGH,” he screamed, something tearing in his throat as he looked Odin in the face. “You should have known that even in my last moments, I would disappoint you.”

Odin seemed shocked, and Loki thought he would draw back, keep his distance as he always had. But he stayed where he was, not withdrawing his hand from Loki's shaking shoulder.

“I...am disappointed, and angry, with what you did to Jotunheim, and what you did after you fell.” Odin's face was stern, but not cross. “The death and destruction you wrought has to be answered for. But,” and he hesitated, then the confidence Loki was used to seeing covered his features, “I am proud of your ability to weave words until you can win a battle without having to fight. I am proud of your prodigious skill with magic. I am proud of what you did today. And I am proud to have you as my son.”

Loki stared, breath heaving in and out of his lungs in painful gasps. He was sure his eyes were wet. He waited for Odin to say something else, say that he was more proud to have Thor as a son, or call in the guards to take him away from the crimes to had to pay for.

“Right now, you must rest, and heal from the injuries Thanos inflicted,” was all he said, still holding onto Loki. “I know your mother wishes to see you well. And tomorrow, if you are able, there are several discussions you must have with myself, Captain Mar-Vell, and the Star Lord. You have vital knowledge of Thanos and the Infinity Gems, which would be beneficial to us all if we are to contain Thanos, and find him again if he were to escape. If you agree to stay.” And finally, Odin withdrew his hand, backing away. Giving Loki a choice.

Loki could run, now, and pass out on whatever unknown rock he found himself on. He would heal, eventually; he'd recovered from worse injuries on his own before. In Asgard, he might be thrown in prison again, or killed by some thick-skulled warriors who thought they were doing Asgard a favour (which may be true).

Although if Odin (was proud of his second son) allowed Loki a chance to speak of his knowledge, with no chains yet thrown around his wrists, then perhaps he was allowing Loki a chance to prove himself, rather than let him rot in prison for all eternity.

He thought of Thor, whom he tried to kill again and again only to save his life, as he had done countless times over their childhood and shared adventures. He'd be waiting for him, in the healing rooms, with whatever sentimental thought had been on his lips before Loki left for the healers to save.

And Mother, who had wept to see him behind bars, and still greeting him with a smile despite all he had done.

On Midgard, where the Avengers had fought by his side, or in Barton's case at least decided not to kill him. Making plans with Romanova, an adequate enough trickster and liar, for a mortal. And Stark's nearly impressive suit, his lack of fear when face-to-face with a monster whose eyes where as red as it the blood it had spilled. Banner's own monster, who had gone from throwing Loki around to protecting him, for Norns know what reason.

And yet here we are saving the earth. Heroes.

Loki agreed.