Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Marvel-characters!

Summary: Thor, Loki and the Warriors Four are hunting when they are attacked by unknown men. When Thor makes an irresponsible, impulsive decision, it is Loki who pays the price. Can Thor save his brother? NO SLASH!

AN: I suppose this is kind of an AU, though not really. I confuse myself sometimes. It could happen before the movie Thor… Yeah, you could see it that way. There are NO pairings here. Please, please just read on and tell me what you think!

~ Fields of Blood ~

Chapter 1

This was getting absolutely ridiculous. Loki still didn't know how his brother had convinced him of this. Ever since Odin had first took his two sons hunting, Loki had hated it. He refused to see the purpose of killing animals for sport. But Thor had loved it of course and he had been very adamant about this as well. He had nagged for weeks for Loki to come along on this hunt and eventually, Loki had caved in.

He wasn't entirely sure why. Mainly, he wanted Thor to stop nagging – he knew that much – but he thought there might be another reason. Perhaps he had just wanted to spend time with his brother? It had been months since they had done something together. Besides, Loki was starting to go crazy inside the golden walls of the palace. Spending some time in the forest had been a nice prospect.

Too bad the Warriors Three and Lady Sif were tagging along as well. They never quit bragging about past glorious adventures. They were in fact not that glorious. Loki could know, he had been there.

"Perhaps we should head south," Thor said. He wore a grumpy and bored expression on his face. "Clearly there aren't any animals around this part of the forest."

"Perhaps you scare them all away with your loud breathing," Sif mocked.

The Warriors Three laughed.

Thor looked insulted and scowled.

Loki couldn't help but role his eyes. He felt like he was babysitting five adults.

They had all left the palace yesterday morning and they had indeed not come across much life. Certainly not in this part of the forest. It was as if all the animals had gone into hiding. Loki couldn't care less. It just meant the animals were smarter than Thor and his merry band of friends. He chuckled at that thought.

But he was hungry and tired and therefor, he was also disgruntled. He'd barely managed to catch any sleep last night since Volstagg's snores had kept him up. He had tried to enjoy the black, star-filled night sky, but not even that had lightened his mood. And now there were marching through the forest. Aimlessly.

Loki was beginning to think he would go insane.

"Perhaps," he said, calling back everyone's attention, "we should head back home."

"With empty hands?" Fandral asked, sounding nothing but shocked.

"I think not," Thor instantly chimed in. He picked up his pace and tightened his grip on his bow. Clearly he was being his old stubborn self again and Loki felt irritated. "We cannot return to our father with empty hands, Loki. How humiliating wouldn't that be?"

"Well, there is nothing here," Loki argued, easily matching Thor's pace. The Warriors Three and Lady Sif walked a few paces behind them. Loki was beginning to despise this part of the forest. It was absolutely dull and he couldn't help but think that there were more productive activities he could undertake at home.

"You give up so easily, brother," Thor smirked. He placed an arm around Loki's shoulders and pulled him closer. They nearly stumbled over low hanging branches and Loki shot Thor a glare. Thor didn't notice – he was always so blind to these kind of signals - and kept up his cheerful mood. "Are we not having fun, brother? Because that is what matters in the end."

Loki narrowed his eyes. "That and killing something apparently."

"Yes," Thor roared with laughter, "that too."

A twig snapped nearby.

Thor instantly let go of Loki and raised his bow into the direction of the sound. The others were on high alert as well – all anxious to finally come across a deer or something – but Loki felt disturbed. He felt his senses peeking and the small hairs in the back of his neck stood up.

"An animal," Hogun whispered.

Everyone turned deathly quiet.

"Yes," Loki replied skeptically though he kept his voice low as well, "an animal that stepped on a twig and then just…stopped."

Thor looked at him, confused, but before he could say anything, another twig snapped. This time, it came from their left and it sounded much louder.

"I think we're surrounded," Sif said ghastly. Her hands reached for her sword. She couldn't have stated something more obvious, but Loki restrained himself from rolling his eyes at her. The situation was much too grave at the moment.

"Bandits?" Fandral asked. "We're not carrying any money or valuables."

"Or outlaws," Hogun suggested.

Loki reached for his daggers. He wished he had more than two. He had always been handy with them, however, so he stood a fine chance of defending himself. Or perhaps they were all overreacting. Perhaps there would not even be a battle. Then they would all find themselves completely ridiculous.

"We should split up," Thor said. His bow was hanging around his shoulders now and he was holding a long, thin sword. It had been a gift from Loki a few years ago. It was a deadly weapon; very light and easy to handle. Loki could tell Thor wished he had his hammer Mjolnir with him though. A brute weapon always fit him better; a brute weapon for a brute man.

"No, we shouldn't," Loki argued, not able to believe his brother's moronic statement, "we should stick together. We don't know what we're facing here."

The noise around them grew louder. Whoever was surrounding them no longer bothered to stay silent…or hidden. Ten men stepped into view. They were all carrying an arsenal of weapons; knives, daggers, short swords, bows, pickaxes, battle axes, quarterstaffs, spears and much, much more. In truth, Loki was rather impressed. These men were clearly not to be messed with and these men were clearly prepared.

Prepared.

For what exactly? For them? That thought frightened Loki. If they had walked into a trap – if these men had been waiting for them – then surely the outcome would not be positive for Loki, Thor and their friends?

But ten men wasn't so bad, right? After all, they were with six. Six against ten. It should be feasible.

Another ten men stepped into view. They looked as haggard, beaten down and tough as the first ten. Loki couldn't help but swallow heavily. He only had two daggers and a sword. Could he fight them all and win? Twenty Asgardians?

It sounded beyond the bounds of possibility.

Thor tensed besides Loki and said, "I'll try and lead away half of these bastards. Do you think you can handle them with Sif?"

"What?" Loki shrieked. He wished he could keep his voice under control. "No, Thor, you're not running off. We have to stick together!"

"We've got to split them up," Thor hissed at his brother, his eyes trained on the gathered men around them, "otherwise we stand no chance."

"Thor, no, please," Loki begged, not daring to look away from the bandits either. He could only think he had to knock some sense into his brother's thick skull. How could Thor ever think that splitting up would be a good idea? "Don't run off, don't leave me and-"

It was too late. Thor suddenly made a run for it while Fandral, Volstagg and Hogun joined him. It was almost a miracle that they managed to slip past the men. They disappeared into the thick forest while six men chased after them.

Loki stumbled back until he stood back to back with Sif. He gripped his daggers tighter and pressed his lips into a hard line. He had never enjoyed hand-to-hand combat, though he wasn't afraid to kill someone. He just preferred the kill to happen from a distance. That way he never got any blood on his hands. Literally.

"Thank you for staying, Odinson," one of the men said. He had a deep, coarse voice.

Loki swallowed heavily. The men knew who he was… Was that a good or a bad thing?

"This doesn't have to get messy," another man said. He raised a knife and pointed it at Sif. "You can go if you want, Milady, we have no need of you."

Sif's gaze shifted between all the men surrounding her. She raised favorite, double-edged sword and pointed it at their enemies. "I think I am going to stay," she said angrily. She shot them all a wicked smirk. "Or are you afraid I will beat you in battle?"

The fourteen remaining bandits grew agitated. Loki enjoyed seeing them on edge because of Sif and he was momentarily reminded of why he liked her so much. She had courage and stealth.

"As you please, Milady," a third man spoke.

They all charged forwards with their weapons lifted high. Loki had no choice but to counterattack. Without hesitation, he planted a dagger deep inside a man's chest. He could feel the warmth of blood on his hand, but he ignored it. Now was not the time to be vain. He spun around and slashed another man's face.

There was no denying it. Loki and Sif were hopelessly outnumbered. Loki cursed Thor's name. His brother should have listened to him! They should never have split up. He was pulled from his thoughts when he felt a sharp pain erupt from his shoulder. Someone had hit him hard with a blunt object.

Loki turned to his left and saw how Sif was being tackled. She fell down and was forced to release her weapon. He wanted to call out her name, but before he realized what was happening, he felt more pain erupt from the back of his head.

A thousand stars exploded before his eyes.

Another blow landed on his head and he fell into darkness.

~ 0 ~

Thor ran for about half a mile before finally coming to a halt. He knew Fandral, Hogun and Volstagg had no trouble keeping up, but he didn't want to be separated from them. He turned around and found his three friends standing before him. Other than that, there was not a soul around. Thor had expected to find at least a dozen bandits coming their way.

"Wait," he breathed hard, "where are the bandits?"

Fandral raised his eyebrows. "I thought they were right behind us."

"I have a bad feeling about this," Volstagg admitted.

Thor's mind was racing. This attack made no sense and Thor felt anxious about the situation. He felt he had no grip on it. Slowly, he let his gaze wander around. Perhaps those savages were hiding somewhere again? No, somehow he doubted that. His mind wandered to Loki and Sif.

"We've got to get back," he whispered, realizing that he had been an idiot. He should have listened to his brother! He should never have left him and Sif alone.

Without hesitating, he began to run again. He could hear the Warriors Four's following footsteps. They didn't bother to stay quiet this time. This was no longer a hunt after all.

Thor felt his heart beat ferociously within his chest and his mouth had gone absolutely dry. After a few minutes, they reached the original spot again. Everything was eerily quiet.

"Loki?" Thor called out. Clearly the bandits had left. He feared to think what had happened to Loki and Sif. What if they were dead? Murdered? Thor quickly shook those thoughts away. "Sif? Brother?"

"Over here!" Fandral yelled.

Thor quickly darted towards Fandral. He found his friend kneeling in the moist ground while holding Sif's unconscious body. She had bruises covering her arms and a few drops of blood dotted her face, but she was definitely alive. Thor felt relief flood his body. His eyes searched the rest of their surroundings, fully expecting to find Loki laying somewhere unconscious as well.

He found nothing, but two dead men.

"Thor," Volstagg said regretfully, "I think Loki has been kidnapped."

AN: So what do you think?