"Do you understand your task?"

"Yes, your majesty." The assassin assured the Queen.

"Good. You will ride to the Bifrost site and be transported to Asgard within the hour. If you are a second late, the peace agreements will be cancelled and our war will resume. Go, serve my last command well."

The assassin bowed to the Queen and left the throne room. She felt her stomach start to turn with anticipation. She had taken on many hard assignments the queen had given her, but this… this was strange. None of it made sense. It was all so sudden. She found her escort and they rode their Ice Wolves to the Bifrost site. The ride seemed to last forever as her thoughts spun around in her head like a storm. When they finally reached their destination, she separated from the guards that had escorted her and left her borrowed Ice Wolf with them. She stood on the exact spot, and waited.

Loki had been waiting for almost an hour when finally Heimdall had said the elf was ready. When the figure appeared, he couldn't help but stare in awe at her small feminine form. She had shoulder length silver hair and ash colored skin. Unlike the light elves, whose ears curved into a majestic little point, dark elves had ears that curved into a long sharp point. The top of her head barely came up to the middle of his chest. She had strange golden eyes that seemed to glow, but was currently squinting at the sudden change in brightness. She had a glint of danger in her eyes which made Loki cautious. She was dressed in black skin-tight clothes, and a black cloak with daggers strapped around her arms, legs, and thighs and a bag and bow slung over her shoulder. He had read about dark elves in books, and seen illustrations of them, but he had never seen a dark elf in person.

After an awkward silence, with the dark elf glaring at them in annoyance, Loki heard Thor speak up beside him. "What is your name, elf?"

"Terezah." She stated.

"I am Prince Thor, of Asgard. And this is my younger brother, Loki. We will take you to the Palace to meet the Allfather. Do you know how to ride a horse?"

Loki, Thor, the guards, and Terezah rode back to the palace on horses. They had brought an extra horse for her, assuming she knew how to ride it, but she didn't. Apparently, she had never seen a horse in her life. She rode with one of the guards, and Loki noticed when she gracefully twisted onto the saddle behind the appointed guard, the guard winced. Loki remembered all the rumors that circulated throughout Asgard about the dark elves. They were outrageous, but most people believed them.

Terezah walked up the steps to the palace of Asgard. Two guards walked at her sides. Another guard was in front of her and another behind her. Whatever makes them feel safe. These guards are clumsy. She thought to herself as one of the guards next to her nearly tripped. She admired the golden buildings all around her. This is Asgard. Everything was so peaceful. A breeze blew past her, carrying the scent of something sweet. The morning sun shone overhead, and a few wispy clouds filled the sky.

As they entered the palace, she studied every corridor, every room, and every hall as they made their way to the throne room. Stone columns lined the sides of the halls leading up to gigantic golden doors, intricately carved. Two guards stood at either side of the doors, and as they approached, the guards pulled the doors open.

There was a huge throne in the middle of the room and many seats to the sides where fancily dressed men and women stared at her, then whispered to the people next to them. They stared at her with scrutinizing eyes, some with disgust, and others with awe. She felt a pang of nervousness enter her. She had never been around so many Asgardians before. Suddenly there was a loud bang and the room fell silent. The guards had lead her up to the base of the throne and departed to the sides of the room. The princes went and stood on either side of the enormous throne where an old but wise looking man sat. Odin. He held a staff in his hand, and she assumed that's where the noise had come from.

"Do you understand why you have come here?" Odin asked

"Yes."

"Part of the agreement with your queen was that you would still be permitted to use your fighting abilities, but you will use them for the cause of Asgard. If you cause any harm or do any bad deed, you will be banished from Asgard and sent back to Svartalfheim. The peace treaty will be broken and the war will resume. Do you understand the weight of your situation?"

"Yes."

Odin paused to see if she was sincere. "After much consideration, I have decided the role you will assume. You will be the personal guard to my youngest son, Loki." Odin didn't bother looking at his son, but Terezah did. Loki had snapped his gaze towards his father in anger and protest. Odin paid no heed to his son and continued. "You first must swear that you will not cause any harm while you are here, and that you will remain in the service of the House of Odin." She said her agreements and Odin continued. "Now you will be shown to your chambers and begin your new duties by noon. Loki will accompany you." Odin then dismissed her and she started following Loki down the hallway.

There was a long silence as the two walked together. Finally, Loki broke the silence. "I don't need a babysitter. Especially from a dark elf." He spat.

"I have come here to serve the House of Odin and he has appointed me to protect you. That is what I will do."

They stopped at the end of a hallway and Loki opened the door. Inside it was rather dark, and looked as if it hadn't been touched for ages. The first thing Terezah noticed was the stale smell and the worn out appearance of the room. There was a small bed in the corner of the room with grey blankets and pillows. There was an empty trunk by the side of the bed to put her stuff in, as well as a dresser to put her clothes in. On the floor by her bed was a tattered grey rug to match her bed. "This is nice." Terezah commented sarcastically while going over to sit on the bed. She put her bag on the bed and started unpacking it. Loki's eyes widened as she pulled out more and more daggers.

"More daggers?" Loki asked standing next to her dresser on the opposite wall of her bed.

"Yeah… I might as well bring them with me seeing as I'm never going back home." She picked up her bow to study it and make sure it wasn't damaged on the way here.

"Where are your arrows? Do you expect us to give you more weapons?" Loki sneered. He jumped when a sleek black arrow shot past him and hit the wall a mere inch from his head.

"Quivers are too much of a distraction and too loud with all the arrows moving around in it. I prefer to conjure them with magic. It lessens the time it takes to shoot and you never run out." She said with a smirk.

"You could have killed me!" Loki shouted angrily.

"Listen… I was the best of the best. That's why I was the Queen's personal guard. I know my trade." She said defiantly. Loki noticed how her true arrogant self was starting to show through her previous refrained nature.

She set her bow on her dresser and put her daggers in the empty trunk. She then placed her extra clothes in the dresser and pulled on a black cloak. She was dressed in all black, including black weapons. Finally she got her bow and swung it over her shoulder. Loki left the room, and she trailed behind him silently. Loki almost wondered if she was there after a while because he couldn't hear her. When he looked back at her, her golden eyes were darting everywhere. He was a little surprised at how quiet she could be. Terezah met his gaze and lifted an eyebrow. He quickly looked back ahead of him.

"These are my chambers." Loki said as he passed his room's intricate golden doors.

"Intriguing…" He heard the dark elf say as she studied his door.

"Lokitty!" He heard a giddy female voice call out. He turned to see Freya rushing towards him. When she finally reached him, she wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging him, she then kissed him lightly on the cheek.

"Lady Freya," Loki said with a smile, "How are you this pleasant day?"

"I am well Loki." She said finally noticing the dark elf staring at her, golden eyes darting between the two. "Who's the freaky lady? She's creeping me out! Send her away or something!" Freya said angrily.

"I'm sorry, but this is my new personal body guard. She will be following me around everywhere from now on."

"And who's this?" Terezah asked.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Freya, Goddess of Love and Beauty. And you are?"

"Terezah."

"No title? Not that accomplished, are we?" Freya said with a sneer.

"Oh please. I can think of over a hundred ways to kill you where you stand. It's called years of training and experience. Something a fine lady of your… stature… has yet to even see." Terezah shot back.

"Lokitty, I have more important things to do than quarrel with this rat. Tell me she's not going to accompany us on our special outing tomorrow!" Freya whined.

Loki thought this over, ready to work his silver tongue, when Thor came barreling down the hall followed by Lady Sif and The Warriors Three. "Brother!" Thor shouted. "How is your new guard doing?! I was so excited to hear it was you who would receive such a fine lady as a guard!" Loki couldn't help but sigh as Thor said this. He turned slowly to Thor. "Yes. I am overjoyed. Father has assigned me a babysitter."

Thor barely noticed Lady Freya slipping away from the group and down another hall. Terezah glared at her with each step she took. "She does not look happy brother. You must have done something to make her upset already." Thor said this with a playful grin as he took a step towards Terezah.

"Lady Terezah, forgive my brother of whatever he has done to upset you. He does not know how to woo a lady." Loki looked at Thor irritably. Thor had always been the first one to point out his flaws with being around women.

"Who are your friends?" Terezah asked, changing the subject.

"This is Lady Sif, Fandral, Hogun, and Volstagg. I would introduce you to Loki's friends, but I'm afraid I can't remember the titles of his books." After Thor said this he started laughing hysterically, not noticing Loki's disapproving scowl.

"Brother, what is it that you need?" Loki asked impatiently.

Thor finally stopped laughing and turned to Lady Sif and the Warriors Three. "We were wondering if you would spar with us at the training grounds."

"I can't. I'm busy." Loki said and started to turn away. Thor placed a hand on Loki's shoulder and said, "Brother, you have to! Come on! It will be fun!"

Loki rolled his eyes, knowing he wasn't going to get out of it this time. "Fine. I will come and watch, but I will not join you." Thor beamed at his victory and they started walking in the direction of the training grounds.

"What was that all about with 'Lady Freya'?" Terezah asked.

"Nothing that is important enough to talk about. If you so much as tell a soul, you will be gone before tomorrow. You've only been here an hour. Don't think you have permission to intrude on my life more than you already have!" Loki hissed. This surprised her slightly. The prince had gone from formal to angry in seconds. As they step out from the shade of the palace, the sun's heat hit them both.

"Fine. Just asking in case she was a threat." She said trying to cover it up.

"Freya?! A threat!? She doesn't even know how to lift a sword properly! How do I know you aren't the threat? You might have been sent here to kill me. You already tried."

"I did not try to kill you!"

"Just stay out of my way, elf! I don't need protection." Loki snapped.

"How am I supposed to stay out of your way? I'm your 'personal body guard'."

"Dark elves are known for stealth, correct? Guard me from afar! I don't want to hear you, see you, or even sense your presence. I don't want to be seen as 'The Asgardian prince who's so weak he needs a bodyguard'!"

Terezah was about to respond when they reached the grounds and Lady Sif interrupted. "Getting along wonderfully I see."

Terezah glared at Loki, and Loki glared back. "We were just talking." Thor was in the middle of a duel with an unfortunate guard. Loki, Terezah, and Sif went and sat down on a bench by Volstagg to watch. Terezah studied Thor's fighting technique. She wondered how Asgardians could be so jovial. Back home, most everyone was serious in what they did. She looked around at the training grounds. There was a building in the middle of a field, with at least ten training rings around it. The ground inside the circle was dirt, with green grass growing just outside the ring. There were stone benches where guards sat waiting to spar with the prince. In other rings, guards were sparring, sweating heavily under the heat of the noon sun. When the match was over, Thor went over to where the four were sitting. "Brother! You must spar with me!" He pleaded.

"Sorry brother, but I am out of practice as of late. Maybe my new 'guard' would take my place." Loki said glaring at Terezah.

Terezah glared back but decided to accept the challenge so she stood and entered the ring with Thor. She unsheathed her black sword and he raised his own sword. "I will take it easy on you, seeing as you are both small and a lady." She waited for Thor to make the first move. He charged at her, but she quickly dodged and slid behind him as he passed her. As he turned to find her, she quickly slid between his legs and was behind him yet again. In a flash, she kicked the back of his knee and he stumbled. He swung his sword at her, but she blocked it with her black sword, and twisted his sword out of his grasp. He charged at her again, more aware of her agility, with another sword in hand. Their swords met and Thor used his strength to knock her to the ground. He pointed his sword at her head, but she rolled away from the sharp point of his sword and quickly stood back up. She leaped into the air and flipped over him using his shoulders as leverage, and she landed behind him. She kicked the back of his knee as hard as she could and he fell. As he struggled to get back up a sharp point of a black dagger rested on his throat.

"Lady Terezah… you are very talented…" He said as he stood up and retrieved his sword. Terezah sheathed her dagger and brushed the dust off her clothes. She went back to the bench and sat next to Loki, but not too close. All three on the bench watched her in shock as she sat next to them. Nobody had defeated Thor that quick in a long time. "It seems my new guard has humbled Thor." Loki said with a grin. Terezah scowled at him and stood up.

"Where are you going?" Loki asked.

"Not a sound." She said, forcing him to remember what he had said earlier. She blew him a taunting kiss and disappeared, but Loki could still feel those golden eyes watching him. Seeing her defeat his brother that quickly made him realize why the queen had requested she be allowed to remain a guard. The skill she had shown, could only have been achieved after centuries of practice and experience. She was trained to be a killer.

Loki continued looking for a book on dark elves. He came across a dark red book with silver jewels encrusted into the front of it, ancient runes scattered around the cover. The book was titled "Dark Elven Language and Culture". He looked for more books but only found the one. He retreated to his favorite spot in the library and sat down. Opening the book he started to read. He tried to focus on the text but couldn't concentrate knowing she was still watching him from somewhere. Maybe he should have just told her to be quiet. It was unnerving to have a killer hiding in the shadows watching every step you made. He sighed. "Are you still there Terezah? Come out!"

He was answered by silence. Maybe she hadn't been following him. He started reading again when a voice suddenly spoke into his ear. "What are you reading about, lover boy?" Loki almost jumped out of his seat. He hadn't even heard her right next to him! "Don't do that!" He said angrily.

"What…? SCARE you?" Terezah asked with a smirk on her face.

"You didn't scare me… just surprised me."

"Aww… you're reading about my culture... Sudden interest in dark elves?"

Loki looked at her annoyed. "This book says nothing about conjuring weapons. Are you sure you weren't sent here to kill me?" Loki asked to try and make her mad.

When he looked to where she had been, all there was left was a small black dagger. "Well… seeing as its dinner time and I haven't eaten at all since yesterday, I'm going to take Thor up on his offer and join him and the Warriors Three and Lady Sif for supper. Shout if you need me." She then turned on her heel and left the library. Loki waited until he was sure she was gone to pick up the dagger.

It had a jet black blade about as long as his hand and a hilt a shade lighter. The craftsmanship was magnificent. The hilt was sleek and fit perfectly in his hand. He held the dagger and studied it some more. He remembered the black arrow she had shot at him earlier and decided to go and get it. He picked up the book on dark elves and the dagger and started walking towards the direction of her room. He turned down hall after hall and finally found her door. It was locked, but he muttered a spell and the door clicked. He opened it and stepped into the room. The black arrow was still stuck in the wall, as she had probably forgotten to take it out.

He yanked it from the wall and hurriedly left the dark room and locked the door behind him. Her room was fairly close to his chambers. He opened the golden door and walked into his room. Books lay everywhere. On his chairs, desk, and all over the floor. He sat on his emerald green bed and studied the arrow. Just like the dagger, it was sleek and black with a crude tip. As he looked closer he noticed a rune on the arrow head. He looked at the dagger and found the same rune on the hilt. Opening his book on dark elves, he looked for a section on their language. He found the rune and looked at the translation under it: Shadow Warrior.

"Shadow Warrior…" He muttered out loud. He put the arrow and dagger on a desk by his bed. He thumbed through the book to try and find anything on a Shadow Warrior. He found nothing. Frustrated, he let the book drop to the floor. He left his room and was on his way to the library when he heard the loud voice of Thor shout, "That is most amazing!" Loki turned and went into the dinner hall. He stopped short and almost gawked at what he saw.

Thor, the Warriors Three and Lady Sif were all sitting at their table. Terezah was doing a handstand on the table, balancing a plate of food on each foot while Volstagg was trying to reach them. "Brother! This is most amazing! She has been like this for over ten minutes now!" Thor said with a huge grin. When He saw Terezah meet his gaze, she kicked the plates of food up into the air and did a flip off the table landing on her feet. She quickly caught the plates which still had the food on them perfectly balanced. She set the plates on the table and Volstagg quickly claimed them. "Where have you been brother?" Thor asked.

"I was reading an intriguing book."

"You must join us!"

Loki sat down next to Thor and Terezah quickly vanished. "Your guard is very talented!" Volstagg beamed. Loki just looked down at his plate of food. He had insulted her earlier without need and felt slightly guilty about it, though he would never admit it. He couldn't stop thinking about the Shadow Warrior. He had never heard of it. The book had the rune, but not an explanation.

Terezah was watching the room on top of a large marble column. She had taken Fandral's challenge and succeeded at balancing Volstagg's food on her feet. She wasn't missing home at all. Asgard was much more fun. There was one thing she would always miss though. Her mother's grave. On her mother's birthday each year she would take a bouquet of her favorite flowers. Her mother had died while protecting her from her father's drunken rage. Ever since then, she had vowed she would become strong enough so that she wouldn't suffer the same fate as her mother. Her mother had been her hero. She felt her eyes sting as tears threatened to flow. She touched the scar on her shoulder her father had given her that fateful day.

She snapped out of thought and back to Loki. It was a weird feeling to be protective of someone so soon. He was a jerk and had basically told her to go away. She would play his little charade. Thor and his friends were very accepting. She had expected to be treated the way Freya was treating her by everyone. Asgardians aren't all that bad…

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