CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR —
( Welcome to Asgard. )

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Evelyn, Thor and Jane suddenly stumbled out of a portal and into a large circular room made entirely of gold. Evelyn looked around in awe before noticing a man in the middle.

"Heimdall," she nodded, recognising him from the mythology books she had read.

"Lady Evelyn," he nodded back.

"We have to do that again." Jane looked around with a bright smile, and then her gaze landed on Heimdall. "Hi."

He smiled at them. "Welcome to Asgard."

Evelyn and Jane accompanied Thor to a medical bay to take Jane. It turned out that some kind of protective red magic inside her activated whenever someone made physical contact with her. As she lay on the examination table, a woman performed a thorough scan on her.

"This is not of Earth. What is it?" Thor commented as he and Evelyn looked at her scan.

"We do not know," a lady said. "But she will not survive the energy surging within her."

The lady walked away, and Evelyn moved to stand next to Thor. "She will be fine, you know. She'll get through this," she told him softly, patting his arm. They both knew that Evelyn was lying.

"That's a quantum field generator, isn't it?" Jane asked.

"It's a soul forge," one of the nurse ladies corrected.

"Does a soul forge transfer molecular energy from one place to another?"

The lady paused and looked down at Jane. "Yes."

"Quantum field generator," Jane whispered to Thor, and Evelyn chuckled.

"My words are mere noises to you that you ignore them completely?" Evelyn turned around and watched as a royal-looking man walked into the room.

"She's ill," Thor told him.

"She is mortal. Illness is their defining trait," Odin replied.

"I brought her here because we can help her," Thor said.

"And your reason for bringing his daughter here? A Frost Giant," he gestured towards Evelyn. Everyone in the room stopped what they were doing and looked at her in fright.

"Evelyn helped save the earth from Loki," Thor told Odin.

"And I didn't get to choose who my father is," she said with her hands up in surrender. "Plus, I'm only half Frost Giant."

"Would you like to spend the rest of your visit in a cell with your father?" Odin questioned back.

Evelyn clicked her tongue. "I think I'll pass."

"Evelyn is not like Loki," Thor tried.

"But she shares his blue skin, does she not?" Thor didn't say anything in reply. "They do not belong here in Asgard anymore than a goat belongs at a banquet table."

Jane sat up and looked at Thor and Evelyn. "Did he just...?" She then looked at the man. "Who do you think you are?"

"I'm Odin. King of Asgard. Protector of the Nine Realms."

"Oh," Jane blushed. "Well, I'm..."

"I know very well who you are, Jane Foster," Odin says, then turns to Evelyn. "Evelina Lokidottir."

"I prefer Evelyn Parrish," Evelyn replied.

Jane turned to look at Thor. "You told your Dad about me?"

Thor ignored her. "Something is within her, father, something I have not seen before."

"Her world has its healers; they're called doctors; let them deal with it," Odin told him. "Guards, take them back to Midgard." Odin turned to leave as two guards approached Jane and Evelyn. They went to grab Jane when suddenly the red energy force within her set off and threw the two guards aside.

"Don't touch her!" Thor went to Jane's side, leant down and tenderly touched her cheek. "Jane, are you alright?" Jane nodded her head as Odin inspected the energy force running through her body, a look of realisation flashing on his face.

"That's impossible," he mumbled.

"The infection, it's defending her," the nurse said.

"No, it's defending itself," Evelyn said.

"Come with me," Odin spoke.

They got up, and Odin led them out of the room. "There are relics that predate the universe itself. What lies within her appears to be one of them. The Nine Realms are not eternal. They had a dawn as they will have a dusk." They walked into a room that had what looked to be black holes all over the roof, but each one was a different colour. Evelyn guessed that they were the Nine Realms.

Odin got a book out and showed it to Thor, Jane and Evelyn. "But before that dawn, the dark forces, the Dark Elves, reigned absolute and unchallenged."

"'Born of eternal night, the Dark Elves come to steal away your light.'" Thor read from the book. "They were these stories mother told Loki and I as children."

"Their leader, Malekith, made a weapon out of that darkness; it was called the Aether," Odin told them. "While the other relics often appeared as stones, the Aether is fluid and ever-changing. It changes matter into dark matter and seeks out to host bodies, drawing strength from their life force. Malekith sought to use the Aether's power to return the universe to one of darkness. But after eternities of bloodshed, my father, Bor, finally triumphed, ushering in the peace that lasted thousands of years."

"What happened?" Evelyn asked.

"He killed them all," Odin told her.

"Are you certain?" Thor asked. "The Aether was said to have been destroyed with them, yet here it is."

"The Dark Elves are dead," Odin replied.

"Does your book happen to mention how to get it out of me?" Jane asked.

"No, it does not." Jane, Thor and Evelyn all shared a glance. As Odin closed the book, he spoke gravely to his assembled guards. "If we are to handle another Infinity Stone, I would rather the Frost Giant be kept far from its influence," he declared. "Take Loki's child to the dungeons."

Thor started to protest, but Evelyn shrugged off his concern. "Perhaps it will be beneficial to spend some time with my father," she remarked to Thor before the guards escorted her away, their firm grip on her arms leaving no room for resistance.

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Loki remained unfazed as the doors of his cell opened, revealing his daughter being unceremoniously flung into the room. He had half-expected this turn of events, knowing all too well the risks that came with her visits to Asgard.

"Evelyn, what a wonderful surprise," Loki greeted sarcastically as Evelyn got off the floor.

"Can't say the same," she replied.

"Did Odin not trust the daughter of me to walk freely among Asgard?" Loki asked with a smirk.

"He threatened me, of course. And I'm okay with that," she said. She then sat on Loki's bed. "Um...Would we have to share a bed? Because I would rather sleep on the floor."

"You'll be gone by tomorrow," Loki told her.

A beautiful woman appeared in the room, catching Loki's attention. He couldn't help but roll his eyes as she flashed him a sly smile. At that moment, Evelyn makes the connection and realises that this woman must be Frigga, Thor's mother, and Loki's adoptive mother.

"Loki, dear," she smiled.

"Mother," he nodded.

"Hello," Evelyn smiled and she snapped her head towards her. Frigga looked at Evelyn weirdly for a few seconds, before her face lit up.

"You look so much like Loki," she smiled. "You must be Evelina."

"She prefers Evelyn," Loki told her.

"Why were you put in here?" Frigga asked.

"Odin doesn't trust me," Evelyn told her.

"I'll go have a word with him when I leave."

Evelyn smiled. "Thank you."

Prisoners were escorted past their cell and towards another one. "Odin continues to bring me new friends. How thoughtful." Loki stood in front of the glass with his hands behind his back.

"The books I sent, do they not interest you?" Frigga asked.

Loki turned around to her. "Is that how I'm to wile away eternity, reading?"

"I've done everything in my power to make you comfortable, Loki," Frigga spoke.

"Have you? Does Odin share your concern? Does Thor?" Loki asked. "It must be so inconvenient them asking after me day and night."

"You know full well that your actions have brought you here," Frigga said.

"My actions," he chuckled darkly. "I was merely giving truth to the lie that I've been fed my entire life, that I was born to be a king."

"A king? A true king admits his faults. What of the lives you took on Earth?" Frigga asked.

"A mere handful compared to the numbers Odin has taken himself," Loki told her.

"Your father..." Frigga started.

"He's not my father!" Loki suddenly shouted, not even surprising Frigga in the slightest.

"Then am I not your mother?" She asked him quietly.

Loki hesitated for a moment. "You're not."

Frigga smiled at him with tears in her eyes. "Always so perceptive about everyone but yourself." Frigga took a step towards Loki and extended her hands. Loki went to touch her hand but his went straight through hers. He looked at Frigga with sadness as her hologram disappeared.

"Nice going, idiot," Evelyn huffed as she rolled her eyes. "You've hurt your mother's feelings,"

"She's not my mother," he whispered back with a frown.

"You know that's a lie," Evelyn told him as Loki looked up with tears. "Does that mean that my mother, Elizabeth, the person who looked after me for years, is, in fact, not my mother?" He didn't reply. "Frigga has looked after you for over a thousand years, been your mother."

"I know," Loki sighed.

Evelyn grabbed a random book from off the floor. "Now, you better not disturb me as I read."

"Evelyn?" He asked.

"Nope. Not taking any of your bullshit." Evelyn opened the book. "Shit," she mumbled, closing it. "It's in a different language."

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Evelyn spent the last few hours seated beside Loki, engrossed as he narrated a book to her. He took the time to translate the tale of Valhalla from Asgardian to English. Evelyn found the story captivating, particularly the parts that described how fallen warriors would journey to Valhalla, a heavenly realm, in the afterlife. The idea of a glorious afterlife for those who fell in battle, including Thor, Loki, and even herself one day, filled her with a sense of wonder and beauty.

"I can't believe I'm back in a cell," Evelyn said as she threw a ball of ice at Loki, who caught it in his hands. The two embraced their Frost Giant side as they threw the ball between each other, their blue patterned skin and bright red eyes on show.

"I'm not surprised; you are my daughter, after all," Loki replied as he threw the ice ball back at her.

"HYDRA wasn't my greatest experience. They would lock me up in a cell for a week before my missions until I escaped," Evelyn admitted.

The lights suddenly flickered, and the prisoners from other cells began to yell. Evelyn got up off the floor and looked out of the screen. A monster killed everyone in his cell and then grabbed onto one of their heads and pushed it against the hologram, causing it to break.

"We are not trying that," Evelyn said when she noticed the mischievous look on Loki's face.

"Try what?" He asked, and Evelyn rolled her eyes before looking back.

The guards began to try to attack it, but it was too strong and killed them all. It started going to everyone's cells and letting them free. It walked up to Loki and Evelyn, looked between them, then shrugged and turned around.

"You might want to take the stairs to the left," Loki told him. The thing turned around and looked at them before walking towards the left.

Evelyn sighed, sat down, and leaned against the pillar next to the screen. Loki grabbed a book and sat on the one opposite hers. There was a loud thud, and everyone went silent. Evelyn looked through the screen and saw Thor standing there.

"You do realise he's not your uncle, right?" Loki asked Evelyn, not looking up from his book.

"You do realise I don't care, right?" Evelyn snapped back.

Thor and some of the warriors were fighting the prisoners that were trying to leave. They knocked them all out, and when they were done, looked around at their bodies. The room suddenly shook and they left.

"I'm never getting out," Evelyn deeply sighed as she threw an ice ball against the wall.

"Correction, I am never getting out. You will be out by tomorrow," Loki said. Evelyn narrowed her eyes and threw an ice ball straight at his face.

After some time had passed, following the recent events, a guard approached the cell. He positioned himself in front of Loki.

"I regret to inform you that Frigga has passed away," he solemnly conveyed to Loki. Loki silently nodded in response as the guard departed.

Loki's expression tightened as he rose to his feet and strode to the centre of the room. Frigga, his mother, was the focus of his troubled thoughts. Evelyn empathised with the pain of losing a loved one. She usually maintained a composed facade but allowed her emotions to pour out in private. As Loki stood there, surrounded by solitude, he let his tension build until it manifested in the room, causing the furniture to collide with the walls.

This was going to be a long night.

AUTHORS NOTE

My love for Loki is just so big. He's honestly one of my favourite Marvel characters 🥹
Pheebs/-rosepetal