Chapter Text
Days had passed since Hela’s rule had begun, a darkness sweeping out across Asgard. Thor had been no match for her, falling swiftly at her hand, Mjolnir in pieces at his side.
He had been dragged to the dungeons and thrown into the cell with his mother who he swiftly embraced, checking her for injury before finally lifting his head and looking around.
“Mother?” he asked, peering around the empty dungeon. “Where is Loki?”
“I do not know,” Frigga replied. “He’s not here.”
“You don’t think-” Thor hesitated, too afraid to speak the words but knowing he could never sleep without knowing the answer. “That she killed him?”
“No,” Frigga replied. “I can still sense his seidr, he’s still in the palace, alive.”
“What do you think she has done to him?”
Frigga reached over to place a hand on Thor’s wrist. “We’re going to find out, Thor,” she promised. “We will find him and we will bring an end to Hela’s rule.”
“Let us only hope Loki can hold on for that long.”
…………………………..
Loki woke in chambers that were not his own, his magic drained and restraints keeping his wrist secured to the headboard of a bed that he had once, so long ago, run into when nightmares drove him from his own.
“Hela,” he mumbled, not bothering to lift his head and closing his eyes when he heard his sister’s heels clicking against the floor.
“I was worried I had overestimated a Frost Giant’s tolerance for Asgardian poisons,” she remarked as she took a seat on the edge of the bed, Loki peeling an eye open to scowl at her.
“And yet you poisoned me anyway,” he remarked.
“You would not stand down, little brother,” Hela purred, reaching out to brush her fingers through Loki’s own black locks, her brother jerking away from the touch with a growl. She pulled her hand back, unaffected, and clasped her hands together in her lap. “You brought this pain upon yourself.”
“And your reasons for taking my magic?”
“I need to ensure that you are complacent,” Hela replied. “Rule with me, little brother.”
Her sudden switch stumbled Loki and he took a few moments to get his thoughts back in order once more.
“What?”
“You and I both know that Thor’s skill lies in battle, not in ruling,” Hela explained. “But I saw you, brother, ruling Asgard in mother’s stead. And we both know I was born to rule.”
“Are we certain?” Loki asked, a mischievous smile twitching his lips upwards. “I believe father disagreed.”
Hela slapped him. Loki grunted, squeezing his eyes closed, and letting out a hard breath,
“Struck a nerve, did I?” he teased.
Hela growled but collected herself quickly, standing abruptly and taking a few steps away.
“I do not want to treat you as a prisoner, brother,” she murmured. “That is why you are here, in my chambers, rather than in the dungeons with mother and Thor.”
Loki’s eyes went wide and he jerked upright, the restraints securing his wrists to the headboard preventing him from getting very far without pulling his shoulders.
“What have you done to them?!” he demanded. “If you’ve hurt them, I swear-”
“Thor needed to be hurt to ensure he did not fight,” Hela told him. “But Frigga came willingly.”
“I want to see them.”
“Not yet,” Hela told him. “You are still recovering, little brother. And besides,” she smiled gently as she moved to stand at the foot of the bed. “You must prove your loyalty to me, first, before I let you anywhere outside of these walls.”
………………………
“Thor,” Frigga soothed gently, reaching out to him as he continued to pace the length of their cell, back and forth and back again. “It will be alright.”
“It won’t,” Thor insisted, turning swiftly on her, hands curled into fists at his side. “You can no longer sense Loki’s magic-”
“That does not mean Hela has killed him.”
“But that doesn't mean she’s let him live!” Thor thundered, eyes flashing. His shoulders slumped afterwards, immediately, and he sighed, slumping down on the floor. “I’m sorry, mother, I’m just-”
“You’re worried for your brother.”
Thor nodded. A moment of silence passed between the two of them before Thor aksed,
“What of father?”
“What if him?” Frigga asked.
“You have not asked once after him, since we have been imprisoned here,” Thor replied, looking up at her. “Are you not worried for him?”
“I have little doubt in my mind that Hela has killed your father in her first act of becoming a self-appointed queen,” Frigga replied.
“And this does not sadden you?”
“At the moment, my son, I have bigger concerns than that of the safety of your father,” Frigga admitted. “Perhaps when this is over, and we have once more taken Asgard from your sister’s twisted hold, then I will have proper time to mourn. But for now, you and Loki must take my concern.”
Thor nodded, standing and moving to take a seat on the small settee with his mother, clasping her hands together in his own.
“We will save Loki, mother,” Thor insisted, giving her hands a squeeze. “We will save him and we will stop Hela.”
Frigga smiled. “Of this, my son, I have no doubt.”
Thor’s smile fell. “The only question is, how?”
…………………………….
Weeks passed and Loki grew stronger. With the restraints still around his wrists, he could not access his magic, but Hela at least permitted him free reign of her chambers. Her blades had, of course, been removed long ago from all their hidden places and Loki had no doubt that she had cleared out the few that no one but her and Loki knew of.
But that did not matter to Loki, for his goal was not to hurt his sister. HIs goal was to free his mother and brother, perhaps his father if Odin still lived, and together they would defeat Hela.
The first step, however, was to gain himself access to more than just his sister’s chambers. And to do that, Loki would need to convince Hela that he was not a threat.
An easy enough job, for the God of Lies himself.
And so he asked no more of Frigga or Thor, prevented himself from struggling and allowed her to care for him as she seemed so desperate to do. That was what had gained him freedom from the bed and permission to move about her chambers.
Now all he needed was to convince her to let him out .
-------------------------
“Hello little brother,” Hela greeted as she entered her chambers with a plate of Loki’s meal that she, despite being Queen, had taken to delivering herself. Fair, Loki supposed, as a servant would have been far easier to defeat or convince to allow him out.
“Hela,” Loki returned, slowly closing his book where he was seated in one of the plush armchairs in front of the closed (and magically locked) balcony doors. He shifted, turning to face her as she joined his side and took a seat, passing him his meal once he had set his book aside.
“How has your day been so far?” Hela asked sweetly as Loki began eating, Hela lifting his book to see what he was reading.
“Dull,” Loki replied honestly between bites. “And yours? How goes running the Kingdom?”
“Far more difficult than father made it seem,” Hela replied, mentioning Odin for the first time since she had forcefully taken the throne. “But I manage.” She looked over at him. “If only I could trust you, little silvertongue.”
“You can,” Loki assured, spying an opportunity and seizing it with both hands. “I know of ruling a kingdom, Hela. I have ruled it twice now.”
“And you have done an excellent job, little brother,” Helea cooed.
“Then allow me to help,” Loki requested. “I have no magic or knives, no way to turn on you. I am completely at your mercy. Allow me at your side as your advisor, Hela. Sister. ”
She had seemed unsure, uneasy, but it seemed that Loki’s well placed use of the title ‘sister’ had done well to relax her, as she sighed and reached over to cup his cheek.
“I could never say no to you, my little liar,” she purred before summoning a blade and placing it mere centimeters from his throat. “But know that if you lie to me, little brother or not, I will kill you.”
“I understand,” Loki assured, showing no outward sign of fear at the threat. “I am loyal to you and you alone, Queen Hela of Asgard.”
Hela’s responding smile was dangerous.
………………………..
Months had passed and Thor had begun to lose hope that Loki was alive. To lose hope that his father was alive.
Four weeks after Hela’s rule had begun, Frigga and Thor had been given better accommodations. More furniture, better food, clean clothing, but Thor had merely chalked that up to Hela.
He never could have imagined it was due to-
A guard stormed into the dungeon, Thor and Frigga slowly getting to their feet when he approached and came to a stop before their cell.
“The queen and her advisor have requested your presence.”
Thor and Frigga shared a confused look. “Advisor?” Thor questioned.
They got no reply.
……………………..
If there was anyone Thor was expecting to be standing at his sister’s side, serving as her advisor and right hand man, he had not been expecting-
“Loki!” Thor shouted, jerking forward, though the chains on his wrists, held by Hela’s soldiers of the dead, drew him back before he could reach the steps to the throne.
“Loki,” Frigga murmured, far calmer than her eldest son. “Are you well?”
Loki - dressed in his royal armor and garments, golden horned helmet atop his head - merely stared down at them with a cold, empty expression. Gungnir was held tight in his hand, no doubt his job to hold it until Hela requested it.
“What have you done to him?” Thor snarled, turning his furious gaze to Hela when his brother did not react. “What have you done to Loki?”
“Nothing at all,” Hela replied, a smile on her face as she reached over to place her hand atop Loki’s, wrapping around Gungnir. “My little silvertongue has proven his loyalty to me. As it should be, certainly.”
“You are inhibiting his seidr,” Thor declared. “You’re hurting him.”
Hela smiled. “If he wants his seidr back, all he has to do is one final thing for me, here and now, to prove his loyalty.”
“And what is that?”
“Kill you.”
………………………
Loki had suspected that his sister would give him a test. A final requirement to prove his loyalty. He had not expected her to order him to kill Thor.
Still, he kept his outward appearance calm and empty as he handed her Gungnir in exchange for one of her more dangerous blades, adjusting it in his hand and considering, only for a moment, stabbing here where she sat before he turned and slowly descended the stairs, pausing after the first set to turn to Hela and remark,
“I will not kill our mother.”
“I did not ask you to,” Hela replied easily. “Only Thor.”
Loki gave a slight nod and returned to making his way down the stairs, Frigga pulled to the side and Thor forced down on his knees, looking up at his cold and cruel little brother.
“Loki,” he whispered as the youngest prince came to a stop in front of him. “Don’t do this.”
Loki’s expression was empty. “What was it that I remarked to you, during our battle upon Midgard?” he asked calmly, stalling for time as he lifted the blade over Thor’s head. “Ah, yes.” His eyes narrowed. “ Sentiment .”
With no way left to stall, not without bringing Hela’s attention to what he was doing, Loki thrust his blade downward.
………………………
Hela jerked upright in her seat and then to her feet. “ No !” she shouted as Heimdall tackled Loki to the ground, Odin storming into the throne room with the remains of the Einherjar at his back.
“Loki!” Thor shouted as Loki stumbled to his feet, Heimdall ready for a fight until Loki held his hands up in surrender.
“It’s over, Hela,” Odin declared as Hela’s army and the Einherjar began battle, Loki and Heimdall rushing to free Frigga and Thor, the eldest prince embracing Loki tightly as soon as his chains were removed.
Hela snarled. “It’s over when I say it’s over!” she screamed as she shifted Gungnir in her hold and took aim, Odin only a second too slow to move as the blast raced towards him.
Loki saw it happening and rushed over, shoving Odin out of the way of the strike and barely avoiding it himself, gasping heavily when the two of them landed on the ground.
“The bifrost,” he told Odin breathlessly. “We must get to the bifrost, her army cannot follow us there. They are undead but they can only remain within the center of the realm.”
“Good,” Odin agreed, nodding. “Go!”
The royals ran, Hela letting out a scream of rage as she stood and tore after them.
………………………..
It was fitting, Loki felt, that the final battle would take place upon the bifrost. The very place where it all began.
He swallowed back nausea and fear at the sight of the edge of the bridge, of the void, so very close and so very easy to fall into.
The battle had been hard and long and too many Einherjar had fallen to his sister’s rage, but now it was only them remaining.
No soldiers, just family.
“I trusted you!” Hela snarled at Loki.
“Your mistake,” Loki calmly replied. “I am the God of Lies, after all.”
Hela’s eyes flashed but she turned her rage on Thor. “This is your fault!” she screamed, hands shaking but thankfully empty, Gungnir having been foolishly left behind in the throne room. “If you had never been born, none of this would have happened!”
“You’re wrong,” Loki declared loudly. “Thor does not bear responsibility for this, Hela. You do. It was your actions, your own anger, that drove you to hatred. That twisted your mind and your seidr. Thor has been innocent in all of this, but you and I were too blinded in our jealousy to see that!”
“Loki,” Thor murmured quietly.
Hela’s eyes flashed. “Father cannot have a Frost Giant on the throne of ASgard,” she mumbled as she withdrew a knife, turning her fury to Thor. “So let us see what choice he makes when I slaughter his only son!”
The world seemed to slow for Loki, in that moment. He felt still, frozen, as Hela threw the knife with all her might at Thor, his stupid brother unable to move fast enough. Loki, however, moved without thought, stepping between Thor and Hela just in time, the blade piercing his abdomen through a weak point in his armor and sending agony through his body.
“Loki!” Thor shouted, Loki stumbling without thought, lifting his head to face his brother as he lost his footing-
-and fell off of the bifrost once more.
-------------------
Something hotter than rage filled Thor and he let out a roar , lighting crackling around him as he reached out with his power and struck Hela down, the Princess letting out a scream as her body was riddled with electricity.
“Thor!” Odin’s voice barely made it through the blood pumping through Thor’s ears. “Enough! You’ve done enough, she’s dead!”
Thor gasped through his rage and too many minutes passed before he was finally able to call back his strength, collapsing to his knees and turning his gaze to his sister’s fried, charred body.
Her corpse. Thor had killed her.
“Mother,” Thor mumbled weakly. “I didn’t-” he sucked in a weak breath as Frigga rushed to his side. “I didn’t mean to.”
“It’s alright, Thor,” Frigga assured softly, wrapping a slender arm around his shoulders. “I fear that...that death was the only way to stop her.”
The word ‘death’ had Thor squeeze his eyes closed tightly. “I couldn’t protect him,” he whispered. “Loki, I couldn’t protect him, I’m sorry mother.”
Frigga nodded, holding him close as Odin moved to examine Hela’s body, to ensure the threat was truly gone.
“I know,” Frigga whispered, casting a gaze towards the blood on the bifrost, leading to where Loki had ultimately fallen once more. “I know.”
Thor bowed his head. “I’m so sorry.”
……………………….
Loki groaned softly, agony radiating throughout every inch of his body.
“Well uh, hey there. Thought you were dead but uh, hm maybe not.”
Loki’s eyes fluttered open but remained stubbornly unfocused, barely allowing him to see the figure above him.
“Who-” he coughed, hands fluttering around the source of pain in his abdomen, head throbbing and preventing him from remembering what had happened. “Where am I? Who are you?”
“Oh, ha, silly me. I’m The grandmaster!” The man finally came into focus, white hair with blue accent marks and sparkling, golden robes. “And uh, welcome to Sakaar!”