Loki and Ingrid 11

Ooof, this is a heavy one. Thanos tortures people and we find out why Loki did his thing in Avengers. Not canon.

On the Forest Floor—by Sarah B. Priest

Shaking, I dust myself off and follow my brother back to the palace in silence.

          “I CAN’T BELIEBE YOU SOMETIMES INGRID!” Calder is yelling, “JUST THINK OF HOW FURIOUS CANUTE WILL BE! WHY WERE YOU GONE SO LONG? WHAT ARE YOU DOING?”

          I keep my head down as I match his stride, and he pulls me into the room where Canute is waiting.

          “Look. We need to talk.”

          “I told you not to tell a soul!” I fight Calder’s grip to no avail, kicking and twisting around at every turn.

          “Well, I sent him after you, since I was busy. We need to talk about this L. Laufeyson. Or as we all know him, Loki Odinson of Asgard.”

          “What?” Asks Calder, as I drop to the ground, “Who?”

          “Loki! You know Loki!”

          “What’s going on?” asks Calder, frisking a handful of grapes from the table, “I thought he was dead—”

          “Shut it!” Canute stops quickly. “Ingrid do you know anything?”

          “Um—if I did, he’d be in trouble. Don’t mention it to the King, you swear?”

          “Well, since I’m not exactly a palace messenger or a family member, or a royal guard, at least not yet, I don’t think I shall be speaking with him unless—”

          “Being a guard is cool,” says Calder through a mouthful of grapes, “I wanna do that.”

          “You can, when you’ve had more training. Anyway—”

          “Anyway, what?” I can feel my face burning as both pairs of eyes turn towards me, demanding an explanation.

          “Is Prince Loki alive?” asks Canute, “That’s all we want to know. Is he hiding in the forest? Making games?”

          “No,” I sigh, “He is not on Asgard.”

          “Then we must bring him home at once; for he must face punishment.”

          “THOR? He’s been through a lot, OKAY?”

          “Kingdom policy—ow, Sif!”

          “Sorry,” she says, casually waving her hand, “Hey guys! We’re hearing rumors! About Loki? He survived falling like six million feet?”

          “Please, Sif, this is not a laughing matter.”

          “Guys. I need to talk to my brothers—I’m being punished.”

          “What for?”

          “It’s—it’s a long story.”

          “I like long stories! As long as I can have something to eat first,” says Sif, swiping some of Calder’s grapes. Tell away—

---

“So, if I heard you correctly, my brother left you a note in a book? And a riddle at the back of the same book? And then you solved it and found my mother’s ancient locket buried in the library, with a warning that you’ll die if you use it—just like him really,” says Thor, shaking his head, “And then you took it into the forest and fell into some enchanted lake and talked to a pretty girl at a spinning wheel and told her the truth? And then you out-played Loki in a game of truth or dare?”

          “Something like that, yeah,” I mutter, out of breath.

          “So where is he now? Did you get to use the locket? Did you speak with him?”

          With a sad smile, I turn to my friend and whisper, “Come, Thor.”

---

Out of breath from running, Thor and I collapse on the forest floor as I frantically reach for the locket and whisper the key.

          “COVER YOUR EYES!” I shout, as the blinding flash knocks us both back.

          “What do you wish to see? You brought another? Is he worthy? Is he—”

          “I have lifted Mjolnir, locket. I am Thor, son of Odin. Frigga is my mother—this locket.”

          “I sense a bloodline,” whispers the voice, “But I still fear—”

          “No.” I grab the locket in my hands and whisper, “I want to see Loki Laufeyson!” Everything begins to spin. “HOLD ON!”  I scream, reaching my hand to Thor. Then he’s there again, we can see him.

          “Loki? Loki, can you hear me?” I whisper, “Did it work? Can you see me to—how?”

          “I have my ways,” says Loki, groping for something attached to his neck, “But if I were to disclose them it would be—AGHH! The stupid chip won’t come off!”

          “What chip, Loki?”

          “That’s keeping me restrained here. That’s stopping me from fighting—”
          “DON’T SAY IT, LOKI!”

          “Thanos! As long as I live—”

          “NO! LOKI!” I can hear my voice screaming as I turn away; I won’t look, I can’t. Instead, I hold onto Thor, helpless, as the torture goes on, Loki screaming in pain…

---

          “Ingrid,” Thor is shaking me, “Ingrid. It’s over.”

          “Nice try, brother. But the wool never lies.”

          “It’s—a long story,” I whisper, “I’m not in love with him, Loki. But I am putting you in danger—I’ll go—”

          “No, please.” “They’re leaving me alone, at least for now. It’s over. They do it every day I defy them which is most. I refuse to serve him—he—with the gauntlet he can—I can’t enable that, I just—”

          “NO!” I shout as he screams in pain again, “This is my fault! If I weren’t here you wouldn’t have to—”

          “No, Ingrid—you’ll never see me again!”

          “Get out of there. Do what it takes. Give him the tesseract. Protect yourself, promise?”

          “I said no!”

          Too late. A blinding light surrounds us as I smash the locket to pieces. First gold, then green, surrounding us.

          “INGRID?” shouts Thor, “WHAT DID YOU DO?” but his question is lost in the whirlwind.

---

I jolt upright, trying to make out my clammy surroundings. Where am I? Another trap? Another dimension? Perhaps the locket didn’t like to be destroyed…”

          “I said no, Ingrid.” I hear the voice, weakly coming from the corner of the room. “If the locket is destroyed it will use the last magic to transport the users to the last place they saw—I didn’t make the spell; but I tried to warn you. You have to leave, now!”

          “Loki?” I wish someone would cast a light.

          “LEAVE NOW!”

          Somehow, in the darkness, I trace the voice screaming at me to leave. And I run towards it. “Loki! It’s really you!”

          “No!” he tries to use a shield charm, but his hands are still tied. “I can’t do spells anymore, Ingrid. Please.”

          “What?”

          “Don’t touch me. This tracer—well it detects unusual activity. And it latches onto the first culprit. Ingrid, no!”

          “Shh, shh,” I whisper, through clenched teeth, “It’s going to be okay…I’m here now.” I try to fight the pain that came from our resistance.

          “No,” whispers Loki, “No. Now he’s got you, too. I—”

          “Shh. It’s not that bad.” It’s excruciating.

          “Loki?” I hear a voice behind us, and freeze.

          “Who’s there? Come for me, Thanos! Come for me, but you can’t hurt her!”

          “Loki, it’s me. It’s Thor.”

          “Brother? It was one thing in the vision—”

          “She took me to the forest—we thought you were dead!”

          “Well, you did. Ingrid—”

          “I don’t know what I thought,” I say, “I’m just glad you’re alive—”

          “Well, I’m not. And besides, you have to leave, both of you.”

          “We aren’t going anywhere! We just got here!”

          “Any way out. I can try. I can try to make a passage—I don’t know.”

          “No. You need to rest.”

          “Thor, I’m sorry I ruined your coronation—I—”

          “Whatever I did to wrong you all these years.”

          “Did Father tell you—?”

          “It doesn’t matter, Loki. You will always be my brother.”

          “No. You never—” We hear noise now, and footsteps.

          “THANOS!” hollers Thor throughout the hall, come for me instead!”

          “No! I won’t let you, Thor. Leave now, please. I can try to use magic. They’re coming. Ready?”

          “No,” I whisper, “That’s not how it works. I’m not going anywhere. This is going to hurt—” I beckon to Thor.

          “I can’t,” whispers Loki, “Not even an illusion. Now they will see me as I am—what they have done to me. If they wanted to break me. I can’t do it again. I can’t…”

          “I said, do whatever you can. Do what he says if it will save you. We’ll figure something else out later about Thanos—NO!”

          “I can’t say it now,” I whisper to Thor, in pain. “Please. And be careful. You’re strong and he’s weak—”

          “Like always,” says Loki, the ghost of a smile appearing on his face.

          “So? Echoes an eerie female voice, “Have you changed your mind?”

          “She can turn them on and off—one of his—”

          “THOR!” I scream, “NOW!” I see a flash of lightening as I grab Loki’s hand, now free of bonds, but still raw from the restraints. “Loki. Here,” I reach my arm out, still caught in my robes, but there to steady him when the first wave comes. I flinch but face up for the next blow. If Loki has dealt with this for many weeks, then surely, I can, now.

          “Thor! If we spread it—” He extends his arm to both of us, dropping Mjolnir on the ground. But we know that none of them are worthy.

          “No, we can’t share it,” whispers Loki, “It’s too much for you two to suffer.”

          “I can handle it, brother. Sif did slap me—”

          I brace myself for the pain, but it never comes. Just a dull ache of everything that’s happened.

          “So? Who is this?”

          “I am—”

          “No, brother.”

          “THOR, SON OF ODIN, AND I—”

          “And I am Ingrid, daughter of the Great Lady Ileana of Asgard—”

          “Who died fighting my people, Ingrid.”

          “Shhh. Where’s is he?”

          “He sits in a chair all day. He sends them. I’m only brought to his chambers for special discussion.”

          “So, I will ask you one last time, Loki. Which is it? More of these days in this state? More pain? Or your life, and a great fortune. The chance to rule the entire realm of Midgard?”

          “That does sound fun, but I’m afraid there is too much at risk.”

          The pain is excruciating as we are thrown back against the wall warning, as I hold onto Loki and Thor.

          “Stop. STOP NOW!” Loki is breathless, but clearly furious. I promise. “I will do what you ask if you promise not to lay a hand on the girl. My brother is somewhat disposable,” he says with a tight grin, “But if any harm comes to the girl.”

          The woman serving Thanos bows quickly, and then says, in a silky voice, “He agrees.”

          “Then I, Loki of Asgard pledge my undying loyalty to Thanos and your new order. And I accept.”

          With a flash of green and gold light, Thor and I are thrown on the forest floor for one last time, the shards of the locket lying on the ground, golden and lifeless. Its purpose is over. But mine is just beginning.