Hi!

Sorry this took so long!!! I got back home late last night. 

It's a little shorter, I know, and I really hope I didn't screw it up... :) 

Thanks for reading and have a fantastic summer!

~Sierra~

Chapter Forty- Until the End

~Nobody's POV~

"Thea?"

Footsteps pad across the darkened room. The shadows lengthen to reveal the figure of Kyle as he walks towards Thea, who is still lying desolately on the ground. She doesn't move. 

He frowns. "Hey Th-"

"What do you want?" 

Her voice is hoarse and harsh.

"You okay?" he asks quietly. 

She raises her forehead slightly so that he can see only her green eyes. When she glares at him, she looks almost demonic.

He holds up his hands defensively. "Yeah, stupid question, huh?"

She doesn't answer, but continues to glare at him. 

"Look Thea," says Kyle, "You know we're doing this because we care about you, right?"

"I don't care."

He tries to contain the fact that he's surprised she actually spoke. Covering his curiosity, he replies, "You should."

"Don't tell me what to do. There are enough people who do that."

"That's probably a good point." Kyle stretches his arms up, but when he sees Thea looking at him wistfully, he puts them down. "Yeah, if I were you, I'd be pretty pissed off too."

"What's your point?" she whispers. Her arms are now in pain, but she doesn't say anything about it. 

However, she doesn't need to for Kyle to see that she is. He crouches down next to her and pulls the chain shackling her left arm slacker, from the metal ring attached to the wall, loosening it a little. She lets out a slight breath, her head sinking downward.  Kyle looks down."By the way, this crap wasn't my idea, I just want you to know that."

"I already know whose idea it was."

"So I could tell by how loudly you were screaming at Loki," he says genially. 

She glares at him even harder. "So if this wasn't your idea and you hate what they did to me, then why aren't you doing anything about it?"

In response, he moves over to the other side and snaps the other chain off the ring, loosens it, then reattaches it. Thea can't conceal her tense breathing as she is relieved of the iron shackles. 

"I am." says Kyle.

"Why aren't you out there with the others?" Thea demands. "You know, getting ready?" 

Kyle is fully aware that Thea is covering up her gratitude with her short temper, but he pretends not to notice. "I am. My job is to take care of -"

"Of me." says Thea, disgruntled.

"The original idea was for either Loki or Tony to stay with you until we left, but then," Kyle grins at Thea's expression. "I didn't think that was such a great idea." 

"I don't want you here either. And who is Jack with, then?"

"Clint. Now Thea listen, I'm supposed to warn you to try and not get out and this is for your own good, blah, blah, blah. But honestly, I don't think you want or need to hear any more of that crap, so I'm going to cut it short."

"I appreciate it." she says sarcastically.

Kyle opens his arms. "This is for your own good and don't get out, although looking at these bad boys, I don't think you're going anywhere."

"Thanks a lot." Sarcasm is dripping. "Now would you get out? I want to be alone."

"You'll get to be alone for the next twenty-four plus hours. Consider it an honor to be in my company at least for a little while?"

"Kyle, I don't feel like this," says Thea, evidently trying to control her temper but also evidently failing. "Get out before I make you get out."

He smirks his famous half-moon smirk. "Yeah. I don't think so, sweetie. Try as you might, you are just not getting out of this one."

Thea lunges at him, and even though the chains are looser, she still cannot break free from them. She glares at him, her breathing ragged.

Kyle holds up his hand, "I didn't come here to-"

"Get out..." she sobs. "Just...please..."

He looks down at her, all crying and scared and angry. Sighing, he leans down to softly kiss the top of Thea's head. "All right. I'll see you tomorrow."

Thea doesn't respond. 

She doesn't know it yet, but she twelve hours for now, she will be begging for Kyle's company in any form or shape.

*

~Thea's POV~ (flashforward)

I would go back later and think back to why Jack and I were so perfect for each other, as friends at least. He's funny, I'm not really, I'm logical, he's not really, but we're both too damn clever for our own good. He made me happy, at a time when I thought it was impossible to be happy. He was my friend. But then it shattered, my heart. When I saw him get stabbed, my heart broke. 

I would also remember how Loki told me that I was immortal, right before. He's a trickster god, and he tricked me until the end. His intentions were good, but what is the use of mischief if it only hurts? I'm not sure what to consider Loki. Half brother-half father, at this point, but it didn't matter. I hated Loki. I hated him until the end. 

Until the end.

~Thea's POV~ (present)

When I hear a bang, I look up lazily. I assume it's Tony. The chains holding me fast are strong; too strong for me to break through. Believe me. I've tried. 

But then I hear yelling; it's Kyle, I think. Maybe Loki. Maybe both. I stand up. It's dark in here, with the incoming storm, with no windows. The rain is pelting faster, drumming on the iron roofing. 

The door crashes open, and Kyle runs in. 

"Ky-"

"Just shut up and stay quiet," he growls, producing a key from his pocket. He uses this to unshackle me, throwing the chains to the ground with a ferocious and final clang.

"What's going on?" I ask, trying to keep the trembling out of my voice.

"We have company. Let's go."

I try to stand, to follow him out of my prison, but my legs buckle and I collapse. My body is shaking, not used to not being restricted by chains. 

Kyle curses loudly, then mutters, "Of all the damn times." Two seconds later, he has scooped me up and stalked out of the shack. 

My eyes widen as I see the base in chaos. Tony's here, circling above us. There are three Imeldi sneaking in from the rear, near the forest's edge. Peter is swinging up through the tops of the palm trees; I see his silhouette against the lightning-painted sky. 

"Where's Jack!?" I exclaim. 

"Loki's getting him." says Kyle, squinting against the pelting rain. "Now shush."

Suddenly, there is a terrific bang, and the other shack explodes into splinters. I scream, and Kyle sets me on the ground, covering me so that none of the wood shambles hits me. They don't come close. 

"JA-" I'm cut off by Kyle, who covers my mouth.

"I said to shut up." he says between his teeth. 

But it's really too late. Jack is dragged out of the shelter's ruins by a tall man with  shoulder-lengh dirty peppered hair, a hooked nose, and eyes solid black. He's being controlled by the Imeldi.

"MMPH-NNN!" I try to scream, but Kyle's hand is prohibiting much. 

"Oh God," says Kyle as the man hauls Jack to his feet. They are grappling with each other, trying to overpower the other one, but as far as I can tell, there is going to be a clear winner here. They are no more than ten feet away.

"NO!" yells Kyle as the man raises a knife behind Jack, pointed at his back. 

Kyle lets go of me, probably from shock. 

"NO! NO!" I shriek, trying to run for Jack, but Kyle's arms wrap around me from behind and yank me back, "NO! NO, PLEASE!"

And then the knife goes down, and Jack screams so loudly that my ears ring and the tears run down my cheeks so fast, my eyes are blurry.

"JACK!" I howl as Kyle devastatingly tries to keep me back, yanking me when I try to run back to Jack. The man, not apparently looking at us, pulls the knife out from it's target. I begin to wail, my throat caught, my emotions gone, my heart broken. 

Jack falls to the ground with a horrific thump. The rain trickles over his face, over his closed, anguished eyes. 

"Thea, run," whispers Kyle. "RUN!" 

"No-o-o-o-," I cry, trying to get to Jack. 

"Thea," says Kyle as the man walks towards us, his knife glinting in the rain. "Go now!" He pushes me roughly away from him, towards the back end of the base.

But I can't leave. I can't leave Jack. I refuse to accept what has happened. I never got to say good-bye, I never got to say how much he has saved me. 

He can't be gone. 

"THEA GO!" roars Kyle, bringing me back to reality. He has a gun in his hands, pointed at the man. Sobbing, I turn away and begin to run. 

There is nowhere for me to go.

I scream as two of the monsters surround me from both sides, their teeth sharp and shining. I hear someone yell my name. It's Loki.

I can't do anything. Another man, this one with dark hair, a rough patch of facial hair, and solid eyes grabs me. I don't try anything. He ties my hands up even tighter and even more painful than those manacles, and I cry out into the wind. I keep screaming. I scream for Loki, but he doesn't appear. I scream for Kyle, for Jack, for anyone. 

Nobody comes.

The man drags me behind him, the two Imeldi slinking on either side of me. I hear a gunshot and then sense movement to the right of me. And then I see something I never thought I'd see.

Loki is shackled, bleeding, and fighting as three Imeldi push him forward. 

"Loki..." I whisper. "Wh-"

"Thea, listen to me," says Loki breathlessly as we are both dragged forward. "You must listen. You cannot die. You-"

"What?" I gape, my head spinning. I can't believe this is happening. 

"Listen! You are immortal. Do not try to die. Do not." he says, his green eyes evidently in pain. I realize that the shackles holding his wrists are steaming. They're burning him. 

"Okay." I say, because that's all I can say.

*

We are pushed into adjacent cells, neither which is not very large. I immediately cower in a corner as an Imeldi snarls at me locking the gate behind him.

I try to stop crying, but Jack's body keeps swimming in my head, in my vision. A few feet from me, separated by the bars,  Loki is breathing heavily. He is still in pain, his hair plastered against his sweating skin. 

"Please..." I whisper to anyone. "Please..." 

"Just...remember what I said..." Loki says hoarsely. 

I just cry harder.

His hand slips through the iron bars and he takes mine. "You're going to have to be brave, kitten." he says, his voice a little stronger, trying to put up a show. "It will be all right."

I yank away from him because I know that he knows it won't. 

And so do I.  

I got really sad writing this... no death threats... ;( 

:/       Just as a heads up, I reserve the right to... eliminate any character I want, even if they're not technically mine... 

BUT on a lighter note...

I think I might have another fantastic lokidottir edit coming up soon.

Plus I have another video coming out soon...sort of like a featurette sort of thing. It's almost done, but I won't be puting it up until another few chapters.

So... READ and COMMENT please! :) THANKS FOR EVERYTHING I LOVE YA'LL.

Oh and if you ever need to talk, then feel free to message me. I'm here! :) And I meant that truly. 

Ok, talking too much... I tend to do that.

LOVE YOU