[FIC] The Thousandth Man, Part VI
Title: The Thousandth Man
Pairing: Thor/Loki
Warnings/Ratings: See Part I.
Summary: Thor and Loki get by with a little help from their friends. Also, they discover an unexpected new 'tagalong'.
Asgard
Golden light poured through a high arched window, illuminating the four warriors. Sif and Hogun sat back-to-back, Sif's brows furrowed and lips set in a hard line, Hogun's expression more peaceful but still tense. Fandral whittled arrows, busy work to keep his hands occupied. And Volstagg stared gloomily at his tankard, finding even ale had lost its flavor.
"Do you think the All-Father will ever awaken?" Sif asked aloud.
"The Odinsleep has never lasted so long before," said Fandral. "The queen fears he may never wake."
"If only Thor were here--" moaned Volstagg, wiping at the corner of his eye.
Hogun sighed deeply. "The All-Father himself banished Thor and Loki. Now he is unable to recall them, and it would seem they have yet to prove themselves worthy to return on their own."
Life in Asgard had been dreary since Thor and Loki's banishment. Sif missed the roar of Thor's laughter, his encouraging words, his bravery. She even found herself missing Loki a little, for although he had been a troublemaker she suspected he was filled with not so much malice as mischief. And now with Odin so far gone, and like to never see his son again...
"It's not right!" Sif shouted, slamming a fist down in frustration. "We have stood beside Thor in battle! We have shared his pain and we have shared his victories. We should be with him now, when he suffers most."
"Banishing Thor 'twas the All-Father's last deed," said Fandral, setting aside his arrows. "We cannot undo what Odin has done, and besides, Heimdall would never allow Thor back into Asgard without Odin's permission..."
The door swung open, and two tremendously tall and grim guards glowered at them. "Heimdall requests your presence," they said in unison.
Sif and the Warriors Three turned to look at one another nervously. "Heimdall heard us," said Volstagg in what he thought was a much softer whisper than it was.
Hogun made a swift gesture for silence, then stood, nodded to the guards, then began following them to the Bifrost. After a moment's hesitation, his companions fell into step with him.
When they stood before Heimdall, his strange golden eyes fixed them to the spot, making even Sif, who was his own half-sister, hang her head. "Would you stand beside Thor even now, in the time of his exile?" Heimdall asked.
Volstagg swallowed hard, but said, "Yes," followed by three more affirmative replies.
Heimdall crossed his arms. "As guardian of Asgard, I am sworn to defend it against all foes. By my oath to Odin, our king, none may pass without his permission. Never has an enemy escaped my sight. However, I need no permission to send others from Asgard."
Sif's face lit up. "You would send us to Midgard?!"
"Thor and Loki's lives are in grave danger," said Heimdall sternly. "Thor is but a mortal, and Loki's magick is weakening. If you will go and defend them, I would send you."
"Of course we'll go--" cried a chorus of voices, but Heimdall raised a hand for silence.
"If your return threatens Asgard, you will not be permitted to cross the Bifrost," he told them. "You will be stranded on Midgard, as Thor and Loki are. What say you?"
Sif held herself very straight. "We will go, Heimdall."
Heimdall hefted his sword. "Then go," he said, and activated the rainbow bridge.
Jotunheim
Helblindi growled low in his throat. He had not expected Thor and Loki to kill Byleistr so easily; well, mayhap he should be thankful they had done away with the fool and saved him the trouble.
Loki had to die. All Jotunheim was in mourning for its fallen king, and if Loki died as well, that would be the spark Helblindi needed to light the tinder of their discontent with Asgard. Warsongs begged to be sung. There was history to be written. And who was one troublesome runty sibling to stand in his way?
"If you want something done right," Helblindi grumbled, and began to work another enchantment.
Midgard
Loki jerked awake, and finding himself subsumed in white -- white sheets, white walls, white ceiling -- thrashed until the sheets fell off him and he could sit up on the narrow bed. His neck throbbed. Byleistr had nearly strangled him after all.
"Ah, you're up." A human in a white coat sat across from him, pouring over a thick stack of papers. "That's very good, I have a lot of questions for you."
"Where am I?" Loki hissed.
"The county hospital." The human peered at him from under an impressive set of bushy eyebrows. "It's just past 3 in the afternoon. You and your friend have been unconscious for about five hours now."
"Five hours!"
"Yes, well, you took quite a beating, I'm told." The human stood up and offered his hand. "Dr. Raymond Taylor."
Loki regarded the offered hand coolly.
"Okay," sighed Dr. Taylor. "All right, if you don't mind, before I have to turn you over to those G-Men outside, I'd like to ask you some questions. Just where do you come from, son?"
Loki turned to face the wall sullenly. How dare this mortal pry into his origins? Loki had just barely survived a battle with his own brother, a brother who was now dead, and whose body was probably in the hands of those, those 'G-Men' persons he'd encountered at the Mjolnir site. Loki felt too weak to fight, but was in no mood to cooperate.
The doctor droned on despite Loki's determined silence. "I gotta say, your results are amazing. And I don't use that word often, pal. We ran blood work, an ultrasound, a few x-rays, got a couple of tissue samples to test for the G-Men, and you're not even remotely human. Now I've had a few mutants come into this hospital. Underneath the skin, they're still human, no matter what they look like. But you, you are something else entirely. My colleague Dr. Ramirez says your blond friend is the same way, he's got some interesting results back on him, too."
"Where is Thor," Loki said from between gritted teeth.
"Your friend, Thor, he's still unconscious right now. He took a good blow to the head, you know. Don't worry, he's in Dr. Ramirez's capable hands."
Someone rapped loudly on the door. Dr. Taylor grunted to himself. "All right then, our time is up. Someone a lot scarier than me wants to talk to you." He tossed a folder to Loki as he turned to leave. "Oh, and congratulations, you're pregnant."
"I'm what," gasped Loki as he stared at the odd pieces of paper the doctor had handed him. It took him a moment to recognize one of the images at his abdomen, presumably taken to ascertain the extent of his injuries, and the small shape tucked in amongst his internal organs.
"I could be wrong," mused Dr. Taylor as he reached for the door handle. "But if I am, then I'd love to know where that fetal heartbeat is coming from. Craziest thing I've seen in my life. We took one ultrasound right after you arrived, and then another about an hour ago. It's grown in that span of time. I say by this rate you'll be full-term in about..."
"Six of your weeks," whispered Loki.
Dr. Taylor scratched at his beard thoughtfully. "That about normal for whatever you are?"
"About normal," admitted Loki. He pressed the ultrasound to his chest, too overcome to even speak further. His mind whirled in so many directions at once that he couldn't even tell how he felt about this. How would he tell Thor -- how could he fight Helblindi like this -- how could he fight Helblindi at all -- a baby --
The rapping at the door returned, louder and more insistent. Dr. Taylor smiled at him and said, "Good luck with the men in black. And I'll get the nurses to send some flowers up for you." Then he opened the door, and Agent Coulson stepped in as the doctor stepped out.
***
Today was the longest day Phil Coulson had experienced in a long while.
He had dealt with a lot of strange things in his day, but hideous monster corpses were a new one. The police officer who had turned the body over to SHIELD had held up a shotgun shell and calmly told Coulson, "This shell could blow your arm off. That thing took nine of them to the face before it stopped moving."
As soon as he'd gotten a look at the two 'rogues' Coulson had groaned. There was no mistaking the dark-haired fellow who'd somehow hypnotized the entire SHIELD base into letting him and his tall, blond, and built friend waltz through the front gate. Since they were clearly too powerful to control, Coulson decided to handle this an entirely different way. He needed answers, and he needed help, and in all likelihood these 'rogues' were the only ones who could provide either, so it was time to deal with them a little more gently.
While waiting for them to come to, Coulson had debriefed their civilian companions.
"Their names are Thor and Loki," said Miss Lewis. "And you still have my iPod. I'd appreciate having it back."
"Where are they from?" Miss Foster repeated his question. "I'd know by now if you hadn't stolen my research!"
"I don't know if he's really a god of thunder," admitted Dr. Selvig. "But he ought to be."
At 1516 hours, Coulson got word that the rogue known as 'Loki' had awoken and was being seen by his physician. As he approached Loki's hospital room, Agent Barton fell into step behind him.
"Where are the civilians?" Coulson asked him.
"In the waiting room. Dr. Ramirez says he's gonna try waking Sleeping Beauty here in a few minutes. I figured it'd be good to have them on hand."
It bothered Coulson to bring civilian scientists into this, but they badly needed Thor and Loki to cooperate, and so far the only people they had proved cooperative with were astrophysicists Selvig and Foster, and Miss Lewis. He rapped on the door to Loki's hospital room before turning to face Barton. "You aren't watching them?"
"Agent Peters has 'em covered." Barton gave him a cocky sideways grin. "I wouldn't miss this for the world, sir."
After knocking a second time, the door finally opened and Dr. Taylor gave Coulson a friendly smile and a mock salute. "Best of luck," he said as he took off down the hall. "You'll need it."
Loki still crouched on the rumpled hospital bed, clutching a folder to his chest, wearing hospital-issued sweats and a t-shirt. When he saw Coulson, he climbed to his feet, and Coulson balked a little when he realized the man was almost a head taller than him in his bare feet. "You will take me to Thor at once," Loki said imperiously. "And where are the mortals we have befriended? Are they injured?"
Coulson smiled at him. "Darcy, Erik, and Jane are all fine. They're here, in fact, waiting to see you. Thor will see you too, as soon as he awakens."
"I will see him now." Loki pushed past Coulson and walked out into the hall. Seeing Barton, he looked down at him with all the disdain of a true aristocrat and said, "You! You will take me to Thor. I will awaken him myself."
"Whoa, whoa," Barton chanted, but Loki stormed past him, striding with great purpose in the general direction of wherever he thought Thor might be. Coulson and Barton jogged after him, determined to keep the situation as low-key as possible.
"Thor!" Loki called. "Thor! I'm here! I'll find you!"
***
Thor!
The darkness roiled in front of his eyes, and in his dreamless sleep Thor Odinsson struggled. His arms and legs were as stone, his eyesight a blur, and his hearing dim. Loki... Loki was calling to him... Loki needed him...
Thor! I'm here!
"Loki..." he moaned.
"Thor!"
His hand flew up, blocking the glare of the overhead light. Thor rolled to his side, feeling sensation return to his limbs. A stranger in a white coat cautiously approached him.
"Now, now," said the stranger. "I'm your doctor. Just be still."
"Loki," Thor gasped out, and he could hear Loki's voice now, faint and far away, but undeniably Loki, calling out to him. Setting his feet on the floor, he moved for the door. A hospital orderly ran up and tried to hold him down, only for Thor to send him flying against the wall. "How dare you lay hands on the Odinsson!" Thor roared.
Even as two more orderlies prepared to pounce, the door flew open and there stood Loki, flanked on either side by two men in dark suits, one of whom Thor belatedly recognized as Son of Coul from the other day.
"There you are!" said Loki.
"Stand back," Son of Coul told the hospital staff. "Keep calm, let them talk. I'll handle everything."
Thor slid to his knees and clasped his arms around Loki's waist, burying his face against Loki's abdomen. "You're alive," he said, and tears pricked at his eyes. "You're alive and unharmed." He looked up at Loki anxiously. "Our friends, are they--?"
"Jane, Darcy, and Erik are alive and well," Loki assured him, stroking his hands through Thor's hair. "Or so these men have told me." He glared at Son of Coul and his companion.
Son of Coul stepped forward. "Agent Phil Coulson," he said, as though Thor might've forgotten him. "This is my associate, Agent Barton. We work for SHIELD. We're the good guys."
"You will release us at once," Thor told him, standing up but staying close to Loki.
"You're not being held captive," said Son of Coul. "If we can, we'd like to help you."
"You could begin by restoring our friends' belongings," Loki snapped at him. "The ones you so rudely stole from them!"
"That will be done, I'll see to it," Son of Coul vowed solemnly. "Please, just let us talk to you, help us understand what happened here earlier today. Where are you from? Is it the same place that dead monster came from?"
"That monster," Loki said, his upper lip curling, "was my baby brother."
"Your... brother," said Son of Coul slowly. After taking a moment to contemplate that, he asked, "Are there more of your kind? Are they coming here?"
"You're wasting time," Loki told him. He grasped Thor by the upper arm, staring at him imploringly. "Helblindi must know by now that Byleistr has failed. He will surely come to finish the deed himself."
"Will he bring other Frost Giants?" asked Thor.
Loki shook his head. "I think not. It must look as though it's Odin's fault for banishing us from Asgard, else he has little pretext for war. Helblindi has been a warmonger since he was a suckling."
"Frost Giants," said Son of Coul, "is that what you are? Are all Frost Giants as big as your... baby brother?"
"Oh, we come much bigger," Loki told him.
***
"Hey guys!" Darcy called out to them as Coulson and Barton escorted Thor and Loki to the waiting room. Startling at Darcy's voice, Jane and Erik looked up from a notebook they were scribbling in and jumped to their feet to greet the pair as well.
"Ah, you are safe and well!" Thor's smile was blinding in its intensity.
"Good to see you too, big guy," Erik told him, giving Thor a pat on the shoulder. "You had us worried there for awhile."
"What you did was very brave," Thor told them. "It takes much more than mere bravado to run onto a field of battle to rescue your friends from a Frost Giant. Loki and I owe you our lives."
"More than just our lives," Loki murmured gently, pressing the folder he carried with him into Thor's hands. Thor gave him a curious look then peered down at the images.
Darcy bounded up to Loki. "So while you were out cold I picked you up something." She handed him a small iPod, complete with headphones. "It's just a cheapie thing, but I borrowed a laptop from one of the SHIELD guys and preloaded it with all of Evanescence's albums. Even the Christian rock stuff they did early on."
Loki stared at the iPod, speechless, then rested a hand on Darcy's shoulder, squeezing gently.
"Okay, everyone," said Agent Coulson, stepping up. "We need to leave the hospital. According to Thor and Loki, their lives are still in danger so we need to get them as far from a populated area as possible. Dr. Foster, your research will be returned to you promptly--"
"Oh, yes!" cried Jane.
Thor barely heard anything Coulson was saying. He turned the images this way and that, trying to make sense of what Loki was trying to show him. "What am I to see here?" he asked, looking up at Loki wonderingly.
Loki pointed one black fingernail at a spot on the image that Thor could've sworn was no more than a mere smudge. "Right here, there it is," Loki said, his voice low and comforting. "I--I don't know how your people explain these things. I only just found out myself about twenty minutes ago." He smiled ruefully at Thor. "But that there, it's our baby..."
"Our baby," yelled Thor, and the images went sliding from his hands in shock, flying about like confetti.
"A... baby?" Jane blinked in confusion.
"A baby." Coulson's voice was flat.
"A baby!" crowed Darcy.
Loki fell to his knees, gathering the images into his lap, frantically searching for the one that showed the tiny creature that he and Thor had created. "Why yes, it's very small but it's-- Thor!" And Thor collapsed beside him on his bottom, his eyes looking this way and that, too shocked to be happy.
Thor stared at Loki. "Our baby?" he asked.
"Yes," Loki told him.
Thor pulled him into a crushing hug, scattering Loki's lapful of images to and fro once again. He covered Loki's face with a dozen kisses, a hundred kisses, so many kisses that Loki lost count. They sat that way on the waiting room floor for some moments, Loki cradled in Thor's arms, a folder of sonogram images spilling this way and that.
Agent Coulson cleared his throat and looked down at Loki and Thor with the beleagured expression of a parent beset with naughty children. "May I ask what this baby business is about?"
Loki pulled himself from Thor's arms and drew up to his full height. "I suppose you think every species is like your own," he said. "But make no mistake about it, I am with child, and the heir to two realms grows inside me. And you may think me a monster, but my people were ancient when your ancestors still had tails and fur coats." He flung a sonogram image at Coulson. "This should be proof enough."
"Now, now, Loki," Thor soothed as he stood up and clasped his arms around Loki from behind. "He's just confused, as any human might be. Take not offense!"
"Waitaminute," Darcy said, a look of horror dawning on her face. "How's it supposed to come out?"
Loki sniffed. "I could change back to Jotun form, but I fear my skin might injure an Asgardian child during birth," he said. "So I will change into female form instead." And right there he shifted into his voluptuous female form, dark hair spilling down his shoulders, Thor's arms still embracing her tightly.
Jane and Erik gasped aloud. Loki's transformation actually made Coulson drop the sonogram he was studying. But Agent Barton simply gave Loki a once over, then turned to Thor and said, very seriously, "You are a lucky, lucky man."
Coulson took a moment to take this all in, then recovered with admirable presence. "All right, let's get everyone moving," he said, waving Thor and Loki down the hallway, the three humans following behind and Barton taking up the rear. "We've got a couple of vehicles waiting outside. One will take Selvig and Foster, along with Miss Lewis, back to their base of operations, and the other will transport myself, Agent Barton, Thor and Loki."
"Oh, damn," Darcy groaned. She threw an arm around Loki's waist and gave her a quick hug. "Good luck. And congrats."
"Thank you," Loki told her. Remaining in her female form, she shifted into a green outfit complete with sweeping cape, and tucked the iPod Darcy had given her into a hidden pocket.
"Any response from Fury? What about Stark?" Coulson asked Barton as they ushered the three civilians, Thor, and Loki out a back door where the vehicles were waiting.
"Negative and negative," replied Barton. "Fury's been out of contact for fifty-six hours now, and Stark's last known position was Ibiza, which means that the odds of getting his attention are..."
"...Not good," sighed Coulson. "All right, get me the governor of New Mexico on the phone. If we've got an extradimensional monster to fight, we'll call in an airstrike on the damn thing."
Barton reached for his phone, but when he held it to his ear the crackle of static made him curse and almost drop it. "The atmospheric interference is getting worse," he told Coulson. "The tech guys have barely been in radio contact for the past hour, and now the cell reception is--"
And as they walked through the hospital doors and looked up, the small group saw the heavens roiling above them, brilliant lights that flashed and blinded the eye. But although the humans shrank back, frightened, remembering Byleistr's attack, Thor ran forward, his laughter a roar, calling out, "My friends!"
Pairing: Thor/Loki
Warnings/Ratings: See Part I.
Summary: Thor and Loki get by with a little help from their friends. Also, they discover an unexpected new 'tagalong'.
Asgard
Golden light poured through a high arched window, illuminating the four warriors. Sif and Hogun sat back-to-back, Sif's brows furrowed and lips set in a hard line, Hogun's expression more peaceful but still tense. Fandral whittled arrows, busy work to keep his hands occupied. And Volstagg stared gloomily at his tankard, finding even ale had lost its flavor.
"Do you think the All-Father will ever awaken?" Sif asked aloud.
"The Odinsleep has never lasted so long before," said Fandral. "The queen fears he may never wake."
"If only Thor were here--" moaned Volstagg, wiping at the corner of his eye.
Hogun sighed deeply. "The All-Father himself banished Thor and Loki. Now he is unable to recall them, and it would seem they have yet to prove themselves worthy to return on their own."
Life in Asgard had been dreary since Thor and Loki's banishment. Sif missed the roar of Thor's laughter, his encouraging words, his bravery. She even found herself missing Loki a little, for although he had been a troublemaker she suspected he was filled with not so much malice as mischief. And now with Odin so far gone, and like to never see his son again...
"It's not right!" Sif shouted, slamming a fist down in frustration. "We have stood beside Thor in battle! We have shared his pain and we have shared his victories. We should be with him now, when he suffers most."
"Banishing Thor 'twas the All-Father's last deed," said Fandral, setting aside his arrows. "We cannot undo what Odin has done, and besides, Heimdall would never allow Thor back into Asgard without Odin's permission..."
The door swung open, and two tremendously tall and grim guards glowered at them. "Heimdall requests your presence," they said in unison.
Sif and the Warriors Three turned to look at one another nervously. "Heimdall heard us," said Volstagg in what he thought was a much softer whisper than it was.
Hogun made a swift gesture for silence, then stood, nodded to the guards, then began following them to the Bifrost. After a moment's hesitation, his companions fell into step with him.
When they stood before Heimdall, his strange golden eyes fixed them to the spot, making even Sif, who was his own half-sister, hang her head. "Would you stand beside Thor even now, in the time of his exile?" Heimdall asked.
Volstagg swallowed hard, but said, "Yes," followed by three more affirmative replies.
Heimdall crossed his arms. "As guardian of Asgard, I am sworn to defend it against all foes. By my oath to Odin, our king, none may pass without his permission. Never has an enemy escaped my sight. However, I need no permission to send others from Asgard."
Sif's face lit up. "You would send us to Midgard?!"
"Thor and Loki's lives are in grave danger," said Heimdall sternly. "Thor is but a mortal, and Loki's magick is weakening. If you will go and defend them, I would send you."
"Of course we'll go--" cried a chorus of voices, but Heimdall raised a hand for silence.
"If your return threatens Asgard, you will not be permitted to cross the Bifrost," he told them. "You will be stranded on Midgard, as Thor and Loki are. What say you?"
Sif held herself very straight. "We will go, Heimdall."
Heimdall hefted his sword. "Then go," he said, and activated the rainbow bridge.
Jotunheim
Helblindi growled low in his throat. He had not expected Thor and Loki to kill Byleistr so easily; well, mayhap he should be thankful they had done away with the fool and saved him the trouble.
Loki had to die. All Jotunheim was in mourning for its fallen king, and if Loki died as well, that would be the spark Helblindi needed to light the tinder of their discontent with Asgard. Warsongs begged to be sung. There was history to be written. And who was one troublesome runty sibling to stand in his way?
"If you want something done right," Helblindi grumbled, and began to work another enchantment.
Midgard
Loki jerked awake, and finding himself subsumed in white -- white sheets, white walls, white ceiling -- thrashed until the sheets fell off him and he could sit up on the narrow bed. His neck throbbed. Byleistr had nearly strangled him after all.
"Ah, you're up." A human in a white coat sat across from him, pouring over a thick stack of papers. "That's very good, I have a lot of questions for you."
"Where am I?" Loki hissed.
"The county hospital." The human peered at him from under an impressive set of bushy eyebrows. "It's just past 3 in the afternoon. You and your friend have been unconscious for about five hours now."
"Five hours!"
"Yes, well, you took quite a beating, I'm told." The human stood up and offered his hand. "Dr. Raymond Taylor."
Loki regarded the offered hand coolly.
"Okay," sighed Dr. Taylor. "All right, if you don't mind, before I have to turn you over to those G-Men outside, I'd like to ask you some questions. Just where do you come from, son?"
Loki turned to face the wall sullenly. How dare this mortal pry into his origins? Loki had just barely survived a battle with his own brother, a brother who was now dead, and whose body was probably in the hands of those, those 'G-Men' persons he'd encountered at the Mjolnir site. Loki felt too weak to fight, but was in no mood to cooperate.
The doctor droned on despite Loki's determined silence. "I gotta say, your results are amazing. And I don't use that word often, pal. We ran blood work, an ultrasound, a few x-rays, got a couple of tissue samples to test for the G-Men, and you're not even remotely human. Now I've had a few mutants come into this hospital. Underneath the skin, they're still human, no matter what they look like. But you, you are something else entirely. My colleague Dr. Ramirez says your blond friend is the same way, he's got some interesting results back on him, too."
"Where is Thor," Loki said from between gritted teeth.
"Your friend, Thor, he's still unconscious right now. He took a good blow to the head, you know. Don't worry, he's in Dr. Ramirez's capable hands."
Someone rapped loudly on the door. Dr. Taylor grunted to himself. "All right then, our time is up. Someone a lot scarier than me wants to talk to you." He tossed a folder to Loki as he turned to leave. "Oh, and congratulations, you're pregnant."
"I'm what," gasped Loki as he stared at the odd pieces of paper the doctor had handed him. It took him a moment to recognize one of the images at his abdomen, presumably taken to ascertain the extent of his injuries, and the small shape tucked in amongst his internal organs.
"I could be wrong," mused Dr. Taylor as he reached for the door handle. "But if I am, then I'd love to know where that fetal heartbeat is coming from. Craziest thing I've seen in my life. We took one ultrasound right after you arrived, and then another about an hour ago. It's grown in that span of time. I say by this rate you'll be full-term in about..."
"Six of your weeks," whispered Loki.
Dr. Taylor scratched at his beard thoughtfully. "That about normal for whatever you are?"
"About normal," admitted Loki. He pressed the ultrasound to his chest, too overcome to even speak further. His mind whirled in so many directions at once that he couldn't even tell how he felt about this. How would he tell Thor -- how could he fight Helblindi like this -- how could he fight Helblindi at all -- a baby --
The rapping at the door returned, louder and more insistent. Dr. Taylor smiled at him and said, "Good luck with the men in black. And I'll get the nurses to send some flowers up for you." Then he opened the door, and Agent Coulson stepped in as the doctor stepped out.
***
Today was the longest day Phil Coulson had experienced in a long while.
He had dealt with a lot of strange things in his day, but hideous monster corpses were a new one. The police officer who had turned the body over to SHIELD had held up a shotgun shell and calmly told Coulson, "This shell could blow your arm off. That thing took nine of them to the face before it stopped moving."
As soon as he'd gotten a look at the two 'rogues' Coulson had groaned. There was no mistaking the dark-haired fellow who'd somehow hypnotized the entire SHIELD base into letting him and his tall, blond, and built friend waltz through the front gate. Since they were clearly too powerful to control, Coulson decided to handle this an entirely different way. He needed answers, and he needed help, and in all likelihood these 'rogues' were the only ones who could provide either, so it was time to deal with them a little more gently.
While waiting for them to come to, Coulson had debriefed their civilian companions.
"Their names are Thor and Loki," said Miss Lewis. "And you still have my iPod. I'd appreciate having it back."
"Where are they from?" Miss Foster repeated his question. "I'd know by now if you hadn't stolen my research!"
"I don't know if he's really a god of thunder," admitted Dr. Selvig. "But he ought to be."
At 1516 hours, Coulson got word that the rogue known as 'Loki' had awoken and was being seen by his physician. As he approached Loki's hospital room, Agent Barton fell into step behind him.
"Where are the civilians?" Coulson asked him.
"In the waiting room. Dr. Ramirez says he's gonna try waking Sleeping Beauty here in a few minutes. I figured it'd be good to have them on hand."
It bothered Coulson to bring civilian scientists into this, but they badly needed Thor and Loki to cooperate, and so far the only people they had proved cooperative with were astrophysicists Selvig and Foster, and Miss Lewis. He rapped on the door to Loki's hospital room before turning to face Barton. "You aren't watching them?"
"Agent Peters has 'em covered." Barton gave him a cocky sideways grin. "I wouldn't miss this for the world, sir."
After knocking a second time, the door finally opened and Dr. Taylor gave Coulson a friendly smile and a mock salute. "Best of luck," he said as he took off down the hall. "You'll need it."
Loki still crouched on the rumpled hospital bed, clutching a folder to his chest, wearing hospital-issued sweats and a t-shirt. When he saw Coulson, he climbed to his feet, and Coulson balked a little when he realized the man was almost a head taller than him in his bare feet. "You will take me to Thor at once," Loki said imperiously. "And where are the mortals we have befriended? Are they injured?"
Coulson smiled at him. "Darcy, Erik, and Jane are all fine. They're here, in fact, waiting to see you. Thor will see you too, as soon as he awakens."
"I will see him now." Loki pushed past Coulson and walked out into the hall. Seeing Barton, he looked down at him with all the disdain of a true aristocrat and said, "You! You will take me to Thor. I will awaken him myself."
"Whoa, whoa," Barton chanted, but Loki stormed past him, striding with great purpose in the general direction of wherever he thought Thor might be. Coulson and Barton jogged after him, determined to keep the situation as low-key as possible.
"Thor!" Loki called. "Thor! I'm here! I'll find you!"
***
Thor!
The darkness roiled in front of his eyes, and in his dreamless sleep Thor Odinsson struggled. His arms and legs were as stone, his eyesight a blur, and his hearing dim. Loki... Loki was calling to him... Loki needed him...
Thor! I'm here!
"Loki..." he moaned.
"Thor!"
His hand flew up, blocking the glare of the overhead light. Thor rolled to his side, feeling sensation return to his limbs. A stranger in a white coat cautiously approached him.
"Now, now," said the stranger. "I'm your doctor. Just be still."
"Loki," Thor gasped out, and he could hear Loki's voice now, faint and far away, but undeniably Loki, calling out to him. Setting his feet on the floor, he moved for the door. A hospital orderly ran up and tried to hold him down, only for Thor to send him flying against the wall. "How dare you lay hands on the Odinsson!" Thor roared.
Even as two more orderlies prepared to pounce, the door flew open and there stood Loki, flanked on either side by two men in dark suits, one of whom Thor belatedly recognized as Son of Coul from the other day.
"There you are!" said Loki.
"Stand back," Son of Coul told the hospital staff. "Keep calm, let them talk. I'll handle everything."
Thor slid to his knees and clasped his arms around Loki's waist, burying his face against Loki's abdomen. "You're alive," he said, and tears pricked at his eyes. "You're alive and unharmed." He looked up at Loki anxiously. "Our friends, are they--?"
"Jane, Darcy, and Erik are alive and well," Loki assured him, stroking his hands through Thor's hair. "Or so these men have told me." He glared at Son of Coul and his companion.
Son of Coul stepped forward. "Agent Phil Coulson," he said, as though Thor might've forgotten him. "This is my associate, Agent Barton. We work for SHIELD. We're the good guys."
"You will release us at once," Thor told him, standing up but staying close to Loki.
"You're not being held captive," said Son of Coul. "If we can, we'd like to help you."
"You could begin by restoring our friends' belongings," Loki snapped at him. "The ones you so rudely stole from them!"
"That will be done, I'll see to it," Son of Coul vowed solemnly. "Please, just let us talk to you, help us understand what happened here earlier today. Where are you from? Is it the same place that dead monster came from?"
"That monster," Loki said, his upper lip curling, "was my baby brother."
"Your... brother," said Son of Coul slowly. After taking a moment to contemplate that, he asked, "Are there more of your kind? Are they coming here?"
"You're wasting time," Loki told him. He grasped Thor by the upper arm, staring at him imploringly. "Helblindi must know by now that Byleistr has failed. He will surely come to finish the deed himself."
"Will he bring other Frost Giants?" asked Thor.
Loki shook his head. "I think not. It must look as though it's Odin's fault for banishing us from Asgard, else he has little pretext for war. Helblindi has been a warmonger since he was a suckling."
"Frost Giants," said Son of Coul, "is that what you are? Are all Frost Giants as big as your... baby brother?"
"Oh, we come much bigger," Loki told him.
***
"Hey guys!" Darcy called out to them as Coulson and Barton escorted Thor and Loki to the waiting room. Startling at Darcy's voice, Jane and Erik looked up from a notebook they were scribbling in and jumped to their feet to greet the pair as well.
"Ah, you are safe and well!" Thor's smile was blinding in its intensity.
"Good to see you too, big guy," Erik told him, giving Thor a pat on the shoulder. "You had us worried there for awhile."
"What you did was very brave," Thor told them. "It takes much more than mere bravado to run onto a field of battle to rescue your friends from a Frost Giant. Loki and I owe you our lives."
"More than just our lives," Loki murmured gently, pressing the folder he carried with him into Thor's hands. Thor gave him a curious look then peered down at the images.
Darcy bounded up to Loki. "So while you were out cold I picked you up something." She handed him a small iPod, complete with headphones. "It's just a cheapie thing, but I borrowed a laptop from one of the SHIELD guys and preloaded it with all of Evanescence's albums. Even the Christian rock stuff they did early on."
Loki stared at the iPod, speechless, then rested a hand on Darcy's shoulder, squeezing gently.
"Okay, everyone," said Agent Coulson, stepping up. "We need to leave the hospital. According to Thor and Loki, their lives are still in danger so we need to get them as far from a populated area as possible. Dr. Foster, your research will be returned to you promptly--"
"Oh, yes!" cried Jane.
Thor barely heard anything Coulson was saying. He turned the images this way and that, trying to make sense of what Loki was trying to show him. "What am I to see here?" he asked, looking up at Loki wonderingly.
Loki pointed one black fingernail at a spot on the image that Thor could've sworn was no more than a mere smudge. "Right here, there it is," Loki said, his voice low and comforting. "I--I don't know how your people explain these things. I only just found out myself about twenty minutes ago." He smiled ruefully at Thor. "But that there, it's our baby..."
"Our baby," yelled Thor, and the images went sliding from his hands in shock, flying about like confetti.
"A... baby?" Jane blinked in confusion.
"A baby." Coulson's voice was flat.
"A baby!" crowed Darcy.
Loki fell to his knees, gathering the images into his lap, frantically searching for the one that showed the tiny creature that he and Thor had created. "Why yes, it's very small but it's-- Thor!" And Thor collapsed beside him on his bottom, his eyes looking this way and that, too shocked to be happy.
Thor stared at Loki. "Our baby?" he asked.
"Yes," Loki told him.
Thor pulled him into a crushing hug, scattering Loki's lapful of images to and fro once again. He covered Loki's face with a dozen kisses, a hundred kisses, so many kisses that Loki lost count. They sat that way on the waiting room floor for some moments, Loki cradled in Thor's arms, a folder of sonogram images spilling this way and that.
Agent Coulson cleared his throat and looked down at Loki and Thor with the beleagured expression of a parent beset with naughty children. "May I ask what this baby business is about?"
Loki pulled himself from Thor's arms and drew up to his full height. "I suppose you think every species is like your own," he said. "But make no mistake about it, I am with child, and the heir to two realms grows inside me. And you may think me a monster, but my people were ancient when your ancestors still had tails and fur coats." He flung a sonogram image at Coulson. "This should be proof enough."
"Now, now, Loki," Thor soothed as he stood up and clasped his arms around Loki from behind. "He's just confused, as any human might be. Take not offense!"
"Waitaminute," Darcy said, a look of horror dawning on her face. "How's it supposed to come out?"
Loki sniffed. "I could change back to Jotun form, but I fear my skin might injure an Asgardian child during birth," he said. "So I will change into female form instead." And right there he shifted into his voluptuous female form, dark hair spilling down his shoulders, Thor's arms still embracing her tightly.
Jane and Erik gasped aloud. Loki's transformation actually made Coulson drop the sonogram he was studying. But Agent Barton simply gave Loki a once over, then turned to Thor and said, very seriously, "You are a lucky, lucky man."
Coulson took a moment to take this all in, then recovered with admirable presence. "All right, let's get everyone moving," he said, waving Thor and Loki down the hallway, the three humans following behind and Barton taking up the rear. "We've got a couple of vehicles waiting outside. One will take Selvig and Foster, along with Miss Lewis, back to their base of operations, and the other will transport myself, Agent Barton, Thor and Loki."
"Oh, damn," Darcy groaned. She threw an arm around Loki's waist and gave her a quick hug. "Good luck. And congrats."
"Thank you," Loki told her. Remaining in her female form, she shifted into a green outfit complete with sweeping cape, and tucked the iPod Darcy had given her into a hidden pocket.
"Any response from Fury? What about Stark?" Coulson asked Barton as they ushered the three civilians, Thor, and Loki out a back door where the vehicles were waiting.
"Negative and negative," replied Barton. "Fury's been out of contact for fifty-six hours now, and Stark's last known position was Ibiza, which means that the odds of getting his attention are..."
"...Not good," sighed Coulson. "All right, get me the governor of New Mexico on the phone. If we've got an extradimensional monster to fight, we'll call in an airstrike on the damn thing."
Barton reached for his phone, but when he held it to his ear the crackle of static made him curse and almost drop it. "The atmospheric interference is getting worse," he told Coulson. "The tech guys have barely been in radio contact for the past hour, and now the cell reception is--"
And as they walked through the hospital doors and looked up, the small group saw the heavens roiling above them, brilliant lights that flashed and blinded the eye. But although the humans shrank back, frightened, remembering Byleistr's attack, Thor ran forward, his laughter a roar, calling out, "My friends!"