A GODS WEAKNESS [l.laufeyson]

THREE

"Get him to the healing room!" Odin demands as Sif, Volstagg and Hogun hurry to help Fandral out of the Bifrost. Loki is still shocked about the events that have happened. Thor and Odin were arguing in front on him, Fandral had been terribly injured and when Loki was touched by the frost giant, he turned blue. He didn't know what it meant but he was having some doubts about Odin. He felt lost and confused.

"And you are an old man and a fool!" The whole world seems to stop at Thors words. Odin falls quiet. When he speaks again there's something terrifying beneath the calmness of his words.

"A fool, yes! A fool to think you were ready." Loki takes a step to Odin imploringly but the King turns and gives Loki a look that stops him in his tracks.

"Thor Odinson... You have disobeyed the express command of your King. Through your arrogance and stupidity, you have opened these peaceful Realms and innocent lives to the horrors of war." The Allfather plunges Gungnir into Observatory's control panel. The turret turns, the Bifrost energy building along with Odin's rage. It fires, as the Bifrost opens at the end of the platform, creating a portal behind Thor. Odin turns angrily to his son. Loki is horrified as Thor is being stripped away from his role not only as King but protector of Asgard. But then again, maybe this is the price Thor must pay for his recent actions.

"I cast you out!" Odin thrusts Mjolnir before him and with a crack of thunder, Thor is hurled backwards into the open Bifrost and disappears in the vortex.

"Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor." Runes appear on the side of the hammer, as if carved into its smooth surface. The runes linger for but a moment, then disappear. Suddenly, Odin turns and hurls the hammer into the Bifrost.

~

Loki, Astrid, Sif and the warriors three, battered and shell shocked still reeling from the days event, sit before a roaring fire. Hogun reaches into the flames and pulls out some fragile healing stones. Neither the fire, nor the stones burn him. As he carefully places the stones over the wounds of his comrades, the stones begin to glow. He crushes them to a powder. His comrades' injuries heal up at the glowing powder's touch. Fandral winces in pain as Hogun heals his gaping wound. Volstagg looks at the skin on his arm healing, but still blackened from the necrotizing touch of the Frost Giant. Loki watches him as Astrid is dabbing a wet cloth to a cut on the side of his cheek, he then stares at his own arm where the Giant's touch turned his skin blue. It's undamaged, back to its normal color.

"Everything okay?" Astrid whispered to Loki as she noticed something was bothering him.

"I'm fine my love." He whispered back turning to smile at Astrid not wanting to worry her.

"I'm sorry about Thor, I feel I am partly to blame." Loki furrowed his eyebrows at Astrid. The last thing he wants is for her to feel that she is to blame.

"None of this is your doing. There is no need to concern yourself with any of this." He brought his hand up to her wrist she was holding the wet cloth in and stoked it gently.

"We should never have let him go!" Both the Prince and the Princess turned there attention to Volstagg who broke the silence.

"There was no stopping him." Hogun interjected trying to calm Volstagg down.

"At least he's only banished, not dead. Which is what we'd all be if someone didn't tell Odin where we'd gone." Fandral sits up slightly wincing at the pain from his healing stab wound.

"How did he even know?" Volstagg was trying to put the pieces together.

"..."

"I told him." Astrid stood up quickly admitting what she had done. Loki looked up in shock, this wasn't her fault so why would she say that.