AFTER CHECKING THEIR TRAJECTORY one last time, Thor releases the controls to the ship and moves swiftly toward Anna and Jane on the floor. Anna stares up at him incredulously, tears welling in the corner of her eyes.

"What did you do?" She demands as he bends down to scoop Jane into his arms. "Where is he?"

Thor smirks, "Loki is perfectly well, I assure you. Now, come with me."

"What?" Anna stands warily. "Tell me what's happening, Thor. Now. I want to be clued in to your plan."

"The plan, Lady Anna," Thor says impatiently, "is to jump."

He pushes her out of the door of the ship, a startled cry escaping her lips as she hurtles in a free fall toward the water below. Her heartbeat races in her ears for the few seconds that she remains airborne until she thuds safely against a warm body.

Fandral.

Thor soon follows, cradling Jane in his arms, and Anna scrambles out of Fandral's arms while struggling to catch her breath. Her pulse is still racing, furious at Thor for what he did to both her and Loki, and she stumbles forward to where Loki landed on the deck of the Asgardian craft as it hovers above the water.

"Are you alright?" She breathes, wrapping her arms around his neck and leaning into his chest. He stands silently, lifting her with him, while Fandral laughs behind them.

"I see your time in the dungeons has made you no less graceful, Loki," Fandral chuckles merrily.

Loki nods at Anna, and she unravels from her grasp around his neck. His hand trails down her bare arm, fingers intertwining, as he turns to face his brother and the Asgardian warrior. Anna glares at both of them, livid for what Thor has done, and resists the urge to punch one - or both - of them in the nose. Thor, however, still holds Jane in his arms, and he moves past them to settle her down near the front of the small open ship.

"You lied to me," Loki tells Thor, hesitating for a moment, "I'm impressed."

Thor stands, "I'm glad you're pleased. Now do as you promised. Take us to your secret pathway."

A wild grin erupts on Loki's face, his green eyes sparkling with pleasure as he nods and shifts toward the control of the aircraft. Fandral moves out of his way, and Anna reluctantly allows his fingers to slip out from hers. Moving slowly, Loki gingerly wraps his hands around the aircraft's steering and increases its speed as he cuts away from the Bifrost - the spray of the water dousing all of them in a light mist - and heads toward the mountains.

He smiles, joy and mischief etched on his features, and Anna can't help but smile with him. This is the man she fell in love with, the man with good intentions - albeit with somewhat flawed execution at times - and she's happy to see him working together with Thor. It's a glimpse into Loki's past, and, perhaps, a look into their future. Should all go well, maybe Odin will pardon him. Maybe the shattered familial bonds can be brought together. Maybe they can be together again.

Biting her lip, she refrains from allowing her hopes from getting too high. A jolt forces her to stumble forward, grasping the side of the ship for balance, and she turns. Once again, another Asgardian ship is pursuing them. Of course, their good luck was too good to last.

Loki maneuvers away from the gunfire with deft hands, watching carefully both the oncoming mountains and the ship gaining on them.

"Fandral," Thor says, nodding to his friend.

"Right," Fandral says, grabbing a rope and climbing to the edge of the craft. "For Asgard."

He drops off the side, rope in hand, and promptly uses the tension of the rope to gain enough momentum to swing up on the ship pursuing them. He lands gracefully on the deck before swiftly knocking the guards unconscious.

"Nothing personal, boys!" He cries, delivering the few quick blows to take the three guards down.

Straightening, he nods at Thor and gives him a two-fingered salute. Thor, satisfied that they have shaken off the last of their pursuers, nods gratefully before turning his attention to Loki's flying. They've gained altitude, speeding over water and small mountains, before the craft makes a tight turn and begins rushing straight toward a rocky mountain. Anna's eyes grow wide, and she glances back at Loki who gives her a quick wink.

"Loki..." Thor warns, alarm etched over his features.

"If it were easy," Loki says with a mischievous twinkle in his emerald eyes, "everyone would do it."

They fly closer and closer to the mountainside at an alarming speed, and Thor looks back at his brother in desperation. It's hard to see anything in the rock ahead, just a massive sheet of lethal mountain certain to dash them all to pieces. Anna's grip on the side of the ship tightens, bracing herself for whatever may happen next, and forcing the fear back down her throat. Panic grips her, but she reminds herself to trust Loki.

"Are you mad?" Thor roars over the sound of the ship's engine.

Loki grins, clearly enjoying himself, as he shouts back, "Possibly!"

Thor crouches down over Jane, his hand resting on her shoulder, and Anna gives Loki one last look. His eyes meet hers, blue and green, and - for a blissful moment - the fear disappears entirely. He turns his gaze back to the mountain, navigating carefully as they speed closer to a specific spot in the rock, before it becomes apparently that he is aiming for a tiny sliver of an opening in the mountain. His smile disappears as he concentrates on the infinitesimal target in front of them.

The ship barely squeezes through, scraping against the walls of the passage, and Anna is thrown to the deck as sparks fly off the metal. Her brown hair whips around her face, the noise deafening, as bright white light begins to envelop the ship. A final burst of energy, along with a colossal explosion of sound, and they soar out of the passage and crash heavily into the barren landscape below. Alive.

The fallen Asgardian prince smiles, "Ta-da!"

Now playing: "Somewhere to Run" by Krewella.

*****
AUTHOR'S NOTE

See that? A triple! 3 chapters in 1 day!

Remember: All Hail The King will NOT end where Thor 2 ends. I speeding through the rest of the film because, I gotta be honest, I've been sitting on what happens next for a while now and y'all are going to FREAK. OUT.

Vote + comment! Maybe I'll send more chapters your way. ;)

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