SIXTEEN

There's No Place Like Home

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"Well that Nova Prime lady is certainly very nice," Thor said happily. He stripped off the leather and metal gauntlets on his forearms and set them down by the sink. The rest of the rather sparse room looked on, amused by the way the God of Thunder had to stand on a packing crate or two to get anywhere near the water supply made for giants.

"She was until everything that happened started to fade from her memory," Valkyrie said. Standing a way behind him, her arms folded, she simply watched in idle boredom as he started the cold water tap as little as possible, and pooled the resulting torrent in his palms.

"But Xandar is back as it was." He splashed water over his face and the back of his neck. "I think we'll all be better off for some rest and food."

"And drink," she said.

"Where's Angela? Or is that a foolish question?"

"Believe it or not, she's in the pilot's chair just staring at the new Asgard your brother pulled out of his arse earlier today," she said.

Thor reached for a mammoth towel by the sink, drying his face off. "Oh," he said, sounding very disappointed.

"What?"

He turned and shrugged at her. "I don't know. I just thought maybe… Well. Never mind."

Valkyrie smiled sadly. "You can't change him, you know. He's like one of those furry four-legged things that used to sneak in through the open doors of the palace, eat through the stores, sleep by the fire, then piss off before they were found in the morning. You can't make him go anywhere he doesn't want to, and he'll never come when he's called."

"Oh I know," he said sadly. "But… I really hoped Angela might change him, you know? Cause a bit of personal growth."

"The only personal growth he's likely to experience is to his ego," she smiled.

"You may be right." He paused. "So… what will you do now? You have accomplished all you said you would. What next for the last noble valkyrie of Asgard?"

"I don't know," she shrugged. "You could make me an offer, your majesty."

He smiled. "Come back with me. See the new Asgard - help us make a new Asgard. No more gold looting, no more family squabbles, no more secrets that break a kingdom. What do you say?"

"Do I get a title?" she asked airily.

"Hmm. You can be… the head of the royal wine cellar, if you like. Or the first of a new order of valkyrie. And… my advisor. For when I forget myself and try to take over other realms."

"You mean turn into your dad?" she teased.

He pointed at her. "Precisely," he said. "Keep me on the straight and narrow. And I'll need someone to go back to Nidavellir and get us a new sword to engage the bifrost - I'll need my axe myself. Could you do that?"

"I could," she said. "Pay me in alcohol and you have a deal."

"Half alcohol, half food," he said.

"Done."

He grinned, then looked around. "Where is Loki right now?"

"You mean 'what trouble is he causing?'" she grinned. "None. He's asleep, would you believe. I didn't know gods slept."

"We do. At least I do. I've never seen Loki sleep - even when we were children." He put a hand up to open his cybernetic eye wider. "I've only ever seen one of his eyes nap while the other stood on guard."

Valkyrie chuckled. "Well he's out for the count. Well and truly worn out."

He let his hand drop. "How can you be sure?"

"I drew a moustache on him and he didn't even move."

Thor threw his head back and laughed.

.

.

"Well that's what he says," the man urged, "but have you ever seen or heard of any communication from this Loki fella?"

"Nope," the woman said firmly. "I tell you, this Korg isn't running the place for Loki at all - he's just doing whatever he wants and saying it's what Loki told him to do."

"But how can we be sure?" another, shorter man asked.

"We ask him," the woman nodded.

"What, now?"

"Now," she said with a determined smile. "After all, his door is always open to us, right?" She looked at the two men. "Right?"

"She's right," the taller man said. "Let's go."

The three of them rounded the side of the building and wended their way through the streets, still festooned with bunting and the left-overs of streamers and balloons, flags and empty bottles. Although late in the afternoon, some people were only just emerging from their huts and houses, suitably rested after a night of drunken debauchery and relaxation.

Making it to the palace, they talked their way past many guards until they were finally brought to a stop by Balturm.

"Just hold up there," he said, waving a digital clipboard at them.

"We have business with Korg," the woman said.

"Ok - but what is it? I'll tell him and he'll just let you in," he said, clueless.

"That's just it - we want to know where he's getting all these idea from," she said. "The union, the food aid, all of it."

"Well… Loki," Balturm shrugged.

"How do you know that?" she demanded.

"Have you seen it yourself?" the short man asked. "When was the last time this Loki spoke to him? By comms message, ship-to-ship, anything?"

"Uh - I don't recall," Balturm said. "I mean… he says Loki tells him what to do for us, but… now you mention it…" He blinked, then scratched his head. "Well… I don't think I've seen Loki since he left with the others."

"See?" the woman said. "And when was the last time you saw a message come in from him?"

"Uh - well - never," Balturm said, dismayed.

"Right. Excuse us - we want to talk to Korg," she said, putting a hand out. She brushed him to one side and he watched dumbly - before collecting himself.

"Wait for me," he said. "I want to hear what he has to say."

They hurried through the lobby area to hear Korg's voice from around the corner. They slowed, the woman pushed to the front by Balturm. She flapped her hands to stop them shoving her, then peeked carefully around the stone wall.

Korg was standing side-on to her in the large room, his hands on his hips, talking. As she cautiously edged further round, she realised all his attention was on someone about ten feet away - someone dressed in dark green, wearing a large, golden-horned helmet and holding a tall Asgardian-looking spear in his right hand.

"You know," the man in green was saying, "you've done much better here than I expected. I think this is going to work out fine."

Korg smiled. "Well I try, man. I mean I couldn't be as good as you, but so far things are ok. How's it going where you are?"

"If all goes to plan I should be back with you shortly," he said. "I hope you're ready for your actual leader to return - after all you're doing such a marvellous job in my place."

"Oh psssh, Loki," Korg said, embarrassed. "I'm just doing my best, you know? We're all waiting for you to get back though - someone mentioned trade deals and I know you'd be better at those than me."

"Trading what?"

"Uh - spices, I think. For trash - you know, the stuff that falls out of the wormholes around here," Korg said.

The woman drew back. She shooed the three men, forcing them to retreat to the corridor again. "He's talking to Loki right now!" she hissed. "He probably has been all along!"

"But Loki's not here," Balturm reasoned.

"No but he's a god, right?"

"Is he?" he asked, confused.

"That's what the Asgardian refugees say," she said. "Maybe it's like a long distance communication thing - you've heard the stories - he sees everything. He hears everything."

"Rubbish," Balturm scoffed.

The others turned to look at him, then froze. Their faces began to turn white.

"What?" he asked. Realisation set in. "Oh no." He whipped around.

Loki was standing not three feet behind Balturm, his horned helmet shining despite the lack of direct light, his head pointed down toward them, his eyes dark with fierce disapproval. "You must be Dave," he said with politeness so well polished it sounded like a warning.

Balturm froze. "Uh—"

"From now on you will serve Korg much better than you pretend to do now, do you understand?"

"Uh - yes?" Balturm hazarded.

"Good," Loki said. He took a step forward. "Because I would hate my first deed upon returning here to be making an example of you, Dave."

"Wh-what?"

"So far Korg has been very good at keeping you all safe and happy. If you want life to continue in such a cavalier, care-free fashion, then you will do as he says and you will obey his leader's every word."

"Or what?" the woman dared.

"I beg your pardon?" Loki demanded. He turned his angry eyes on her.

She stepped back. "I mean, uh—"

"Did you actually just challenge me?" Loki asked, incredulous. He took a step toward her. His right hand went out and the very top spike of Gungnir waved close to her nose. "Have a care, Sakaarian," he said. "There are hundreds of planets out there - people like Thanos out there - who would gladly descend upon this tiny world and make it theirs. And all that stands between your slavery and freedom is me. How I keep everyone under my protection is part of a master strategy so grand you could not comprehend it." Gungnir dipped forward very gently. It did not touch her - but she felt something pass over her.

Abruptly she found herself on the floor looking up. Everyone, everything, was suddenly huge and overwhelming, towering over her. Material fell over her head, covered her eyes. "What's happened?" she demanded - but her voice came out strange, foreign.

The three men and Loki looked down at the pile of apparently empty clothes on the floor. "What did you do?" Balturm asked.

Loki unleashed an evil grin. "She will need water and some food. I'd recommend flies."

He turned to go - and a green wave made him disappear.

Balturm gasped. He crouched and moved the wraps of clothing until he found a particularly confused frog sitting on the material. "Whoa."

"Uh… I think we should get out of here," the short man said. "Just… quietly. Like no-one ever saw us. And… let's never speak of this."

"Agreed," said the taller man. He turned and ran.

The shorter man followed.

Balturm picked up the frog. He turned it this way and that, fascinated. "Magic," he breathed. His eyes still on the amphibian, he raced back out of the palace and into the street. "Magic!" he cried. "Loki can do magic! And he promised to protect us from all the evils of the universe! I spoke to him! I spoke to Loki! Look!"

People squinted; they pointed; they began to crowd around. "Tell us!" someone asked.

"Where do I start?" Balturm spluttered. "He's really tall - and handsome! Such eyes! And he can do magic - look what he did to Harjolan!" he said, raising the frog.

It gave a startled ribbit and attempted to jump. He grasped it carefully and guided it back down.

"Why did he turn her into a frog?" someone called. "Seems a bit harsh."

"She didn't understand," Balturm said. "He was explaining how he was coming back to look after us, and she didn't understand that sometimes you have to just do as you're told and the bigger plan that you can't see will work."

"Whoa," someone breathed, next to him. "He certainly talks like a god."

"Doesn't he though?" Balturm grinned, bursting with pride. "And I met him! He spoke to me!"

Voices began to rise; questions began to float up from the ever-widening crowd.

"What was he like?"

"Tell us more about his eyes!"

"When will he come back?"

"Is he married?"

"Can he do other animals?"

"Stop! Everyone!" Balturm cried. "That's all I know! But he was talking to Korg - all this time, he's been telling him what to do!"

"I told you," someone snapped at the front. "And you thought poor Korg was winging it all this time."

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.

Loki waved a hand at Korg. "It's fine. Look, I'll be back soon and we'll talk more then. I only wish I'd had time to speak to you before now, but it seems you've done fine without me."

"Aw, you flatter me, man," Korg managed.

"Well then. Until I return, you have one job - tell the refugees - all of the refugees, of any description - that we have a new Asgard. And they're welcome to go and build on it. Any house they build, they get to keep."

"A new Asgard? How?" Korg gasped.

"I promised, and I have delivered," he said, his voice weighed down by three fluid tonnes of honey.

"Wow, man. You're like a real god or something."

"Quite. And I shall return soon."

"Yep. Have a safe trip. Don't bump into any more ghosts."

Loki eyed him with slight bemusement. "Right." Then he waved a hand - and the image of Korg and his palace disappeared.

His eyes snapped open. He found himself still lying out on a bed - a giant bed, at least ten feet from the floor, the pillow the size of a human bed by itself. He considered the ceiling for a long moment, then lifted his right hand and the blue Infinity Stone in it. He stretched and forced himself to sit up.

Aches and pains ran through him and he sighed, about to get up. The memory of the pull of two Infinity Stones, the brain-stabbing agony of forcing them to comply, came flooding back. His hands went to his head and pressed as hard as they could, hoping to stave off some of the memory. But they clouded his eyes, fogged everything outside and now inside with two Infinity Stones warring for dominance. Sensing a way in, they wormed their way deeper, calling for him, crying out for his direction, his attention, his affection.

Without his command his body curled into a ball and his hands clutched at his head.

The stones whispered and pulled, pleading desperately for his affection - just a touch, they said. Just a little act to make them feel used, they said.

A crystal-clear vision came back to him, a perfect face loomed over a tiny version of himself, so small, so young - "people will twist your sentiment to their affections, Loki. Take care to recognise when this is manipulation and when this is genuine affection."

"How will I tell, Mother?"

"When their attempt to use your sentiment is for their own advantage, not yours. When you manipulate to help someone without thought for yourself - that is true affection. In some people, love."

"And in me?"

"You have yet to manipulate for someone else's advantage, my favourite cheeky monkey. You'll know when you do."

The words speared through the stones' needs, shattered their hold over him. He opened his eyes, gasping through the pain, working his way back to clear sight and a clear conscience.

Minutes went by as he re-ordered his thoughts, adjusted to the words still echoing in his head.

Eventually he sat up and ran his hands through his hair. He scrubbed his hands over his face and pushed himself to the edge of the giant bed. Checking how far it actually was, he slipped off the side and landed square on his feet.

He pulled all his leathers straight and turned to check his own reflection in the shiny leg of a chair. He adjusted his clothes, then scraped his hair back to make it lie much more neatly. He peered at his face suddenly in confusion - then put a hand to his upper lip. He rubbed at it and a long, thin black mark started to rub away. He glared at the mark he had now transferred to his finger tips. And then the penny dropped.

"Valkyriiiiee!" he raged. "You little—"

He left the room remarkably quickly.

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.

Angela held her hands out, a metal ball supported in each one. Loki dropped one Infinity Stone into each, sealing it up and then placing his hand on each in turn. They flamed cold green under his touch before fading back into dull metal. When he removed his hands Angela saw the balls were covered in tiny Asgardian script, mostly something about the wielder being cursed. It made her smile slightly.

"There," he said cheerfully. He pulled a third silver ball from his pocket, opening it up to reveal the Infinity Stone and raising it to eye height. "And Amora makes three." He shook it slightly. "You alright in there? What are you up to?" He peered closer, then pulled a face and looked away abruptly.

"Is she ok?" Angela asked, concerned.

"She is enjoying being one with ultimate power waaaay too much," he said, as if to himself. Then he brought his other hand up to snap the ball shut and encase it, sealing it and labelling it before looking at Angela. "Well? All yours." He handed her the last one.

She pushed all three into a bag at her hip. "When we get down to the surface I shall talk to Thor about where to hide these for the next millennium."

"Good."

"And then… perhaps I shall take a trip back to Nidavellir. To get some armour made."

He smiled. "Whatever suits you."

"You know… you relish all of this. But if you did it for different reasons… you could be more."

His smile faded. "My brother once said the same thing."

"Ah. Then is it possible we're both correct?"

"There's possible, and then there's likely," he winked.

She nodded. "Wherever you are headed next… think of me."

"I will not," he said dismissively. He watched her almost flinch at his words; something made him instantly regret them. He cleared his throat. "But… I think… there will be a part of what you and I were… that will be hard to forget," he added quietly.

She swallowed. She took a step forward.

He backed up, lifting his chin. "Safe travels, Angela of Asgard."

"Safe travels, Loki Laufeyjarson," she managed.

"Look after those," he said, his voice just above a whisper.

She looked down at the bag at her hip, considering the three stones weighing heavily within.

A distinct feeling of loss made her look up.

He was gone.

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.

The ship touched down ever so gently and Thor jumped from the ramp to land on the brand new grass of a brand new field. "Look at it!" he laughed, his impressive arms out wide. "It's perfect!"

Loki ambled down the ramp at a much more cautious pace, watching everything with wary eyes. "It certainly seems that way."

Thor shook his head. "A new Asgard. Just… breathe that in. It's just like it was, but… new."

Loki frowned. Then he shielded his eyes and looked into the distance, across the field. "What's that?"

Thor snapped-to as if expecting a fight. He reached over his back for his new axe, but paused as he thought he recognised something in the movement of the blob coming toward them.

"Is that…?" Loki muttered.

"Oh my god…" Thor breathed. "Loki, what did you do?"

"Me?" Loki snapped defensively. "You helped me build this place!"

"I didn't know you were going to bring back Asgard," he argued. "You said Xandar, so that's what I was thinking of as you wielded both stones!"

"Well—." Loki stopped short. "Odin on a trike," he cursed under his breath. "That's Heimdall."

They watched, open-mouthed, as first Heimdall closed on them - and then people began to fan out from their single file behind him.

"Asgardians," Thor breathed. "They're all here!"

Loki just stood, rooted to the spot, watching Heimdall draw nearer. The larger man grabbed Loki by the shoulders. Too stunned to do much else, Loki just blinked at him with large eyes made of shock.

"You," Heimdall accused.

"Uh - I can explain—"

Heimdall wrapped huge arms round him and lifted him clear off the grass, squeezing harder and harder.

"It was Thor's idea!" Loki rasped with the last of his breath.

Heimdall put him down again. "I saw you," he said. "I saw you bring back all these people - and Asgard. I don't think you get to be the 'bad guy' any more, Loki."

"Uh - what?" he asked faintly.

"Remember, I see everything," he intoned.

Loki just looked confused.

"You should have greeted your brother," Heimdall added.

Loki's face cleared. "Oh."

"And knives aren't kinky, they're dangerous," he said.

"Right. Shut up now," Loki said hastily. "We have a new Asgard to build."

People swarmed around them. Asgardians, back from the dead, shook at Loki's hands, at his arm, clapped hands to his back. They greeted Thor, and then Angela and Valkyrie as they came down the ramp from the ship.

Thor waved his hands over the crowds. "Ok! Let's all take a breath - and start planning how we're going to rebuild!"

"We need another Loki statue," someone joked. Laughter was heard all round - Thor turned to find his brother but he was nowhere to be seen.

.

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Loki heard the sound of boots on the rock behind him but didn't turn.

"Coward," Thor said.

"I think you mean saviour."

Thor snorted in amusement. "Maybe I do. Why did you run when everyone wanted to thank you?"

"It's not really in my nature to be thanked. I'd feel more comfortable if they threw vegetables at me."

Thor grinned. "I can arrange that if you'd like." He came up and stood next to him, looking out over the drop-off in front of them, revealing a valley below. It was full of happy, relieved Asgardians. "But I think that, in time, you'd come to enjoy being liked instead of feared."

"How has that worked out for you?"

"Better than you think."

Loki glanced at him, then gazed out at the view. "Well, look at that. A shiny new Asgard - without all the baggage looted from the other realms over the years." He looked to his right, but his eyes only made it as far as Thor's feet. "What about Frigga? Odin? You know we could bring them back too."

Thor's head went back and he appraised the perfect blue sky. "No. Mother's earned a rest after the millennia she put up with us, and Hela before us. And Odin's with her now. Let them enjoy their retirement."

"So… you get Asgard and the throne. And I get…?"

Thor looked at him. "Well Sakaar is unruled and vulnerable. I thought you would return there."

"You want me off Asgard?"

Thor put a hand on his shoulder. "Oh, Loki. We all do," he sighed. Loki raised his eyebrows. Thor bit his lip. "—Because… Sakaar needs help. Your help."

Loki smiled. "At least you're honest."

"Well I'll have enough to worry about, now we have Amora trapped in an Infinity Stone - and three of them to hide." He paused. "At least we have Angela back. I was hoping she'd be general of our armies."

"She deserves nothing less - and she won't let you argue her out of what's right."

"That's why I need her," Thor allowed. "It's going to be hard, building a new Asgard."

Loki waved a slow hand out across the view of a pristine world beneath them. "And you're very welcome, All-Father."

Thor grinned. He patted his hand down on Loki's shoulder and gripped, giving it a tiny shake.

Loki nodded, Thor let him go, and Loki turned to walk away.

"Wait," Thor called.

"More sentiment?" he asked, pausing to look back at him.

"How are you getting to Sakaar now that the stones are locked away?"

Loki shrugged. "I'll find a way. I always do."

"Be good on Sakaar. Make us proud."

Loki grinned. "Till next time, brother."

Loki walked away, unhurried, unburdened, unfettered.

And as he lifted his right palm to check the bright blue Infinity Stone was still there, he grinned.

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FIN

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Well that was a blast. There's something about Loki that makes him irresistible to write. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Thanks for making it to the end!