Asgardian Twilight

Heroic Escape

The battle had been a tense one to witness for Thor. There had been much to take in with so many fighters in a single space, but Thor's focus remained primarily on Dean, who carried himself with the bearing of a warrior. Fierce pride and love bubbled within Thor as he watched him gradually dismember the four-armed alien. He'd wince in fear whenever a blow was landed, burning the faces of Dean's attackers into his memory should he ever cross them.

"Dean fight good!" Hulk complimented, his own eyes glued to the screen.

"Indeed," Thor agreed with a tense grin.

Thor had watched as, one by one, Loki and Dean killed the four enemies. They'd killed two of those enemies- the mace-wielder and the clawed woman- in the name of protecting each other. It made Thor pause and think about Loki. Though it could have simply been a way of self-preservation on Loki's part, and it certainly behooved the deceiver to not be alone in such a fight, he had to wonder about Loki's intentions. Of course, he told himself, he would always wonder where Loki was concerned. It was the tragic pain of their relationship.

The Fair One's intentions were never questionable though. Thor smiled as the camera moved closer to Dean. Though his handsome countenance was drenched in the blood of his enemies and he was hurling demands at the Grandmaster, Thor only found this to be all the more endearing. Though it most certainly wasn't the appropriate time for such feelings, he couldn't suppress the strong desire that pulsed within him just from thinking about taking his lover, fresh from battle, into his arms and having him. It had been far too long since he'd last tasted Dean and he surmised that this was probably a great contributor to his frustrations.

Think about the plan, Thor reminded himself.

Then Dean and Loki had been stunned by their obedience discs and carried away from the arena, likely to be imprisoned in the same manner he was. He turned away from the monitor and smiled at Hulk. "Now," he said. "About this plan of mine."

Hulk tossed a large red ball back and forth against the wall, his expression the perfect picture of innocence as he looked at the corridor beyond his quarters and watched as 142 approached, accompanied by two palace guards. As they turned and left, 142 entered the room, a broad smile on her face.

"Angry Girl!" Hulk called out in greeting.

"Ready to go another round?" 142 asked as she approached.

Hulk caught the ball and then stepped aside, revealing Thor standing behind him. 142's smile fell and she scowled at him. "Are you so thick-headed you can't tell when someone's hiding all the way across the universe and just wants to be left alone?"

Thor strutted forward, a swagger present in his movements. "You and I need to talk."

142 shook her head. "No. You want to talk to me. I don't want to talk to you. Therefore, it's just you who feels the need to talk."

As 142 turned and walked away, Thor looked at Hulk and nodded. Hulk turned around and lifted the massive skull bed and threw it over 142's head and into the corridor, blocking her exit. With an impatient huff, she slowly turned around to face them. "I'm going to need a drink for this," she declared.

Hulk pointed to an unopened bottle.

142 picked up the bottle and drained half of it before meeting Thor's gaze. "All right. Here's the deal. I'll listen to you till this is empty."

Wasting no time, Thor made his case. "Asgard is in danger and people are dying. We need to get back there. I need your help..." he trailed off as he watched the entire bottle disappear. "Wow," he commented.

"Finished. Bye," 142 said before turning to leave.

"Odin is dead,' Thor called out. This stopped her in her tracks. Encouraged, Thor continued. "Hela, the Goddess of Death has invaded Asgard."

142 turned around and gave him a sober, solemn look. "If Hela's back then Asgard is already lost."

Thor shook his head. "No. Because I'm going to stop her."

142 laughed. "Oh. Alone? Good luck with that."

"Nope. I'm putting together a team. It's me, you, and the big guy."

142 put her hands up. "I don't have time for this."

"Wait," Thor implored. "Just listen. The Valkyries are legend, elite warriors of Asgard. You are sworn to defend the throne."

"I'm not getting dragged into another one of Odin's family squabbles."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You know exactly what it means," 142 challenged. "Listen- your sister. Her power comes from Asgard, same as yours. When it grew beyond Odin's control, she massacred everyone in the palace and tried to seize the throne. When she tried to escape her banishment, he sent the Valkyrie in to fight her back. I only survived because...Look, I already faced her once back when I believed in the throne, and it cost me everything. That's what's wrong with Asgard. The throne, the secrets, the whole golden sham."

Sensing the distress that was boiling beneath her angry surface, Thor reached out to lay a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I agree."

142 snatched his hand in her grip and shook her head. "Don't get familiar."

Thor ignored her words and went on. "I agree with what you've said. That's one of the reasons I turned down the throne. But this isn't about the crown. This is about the people. They're dying and they're your people, too."

142 smiled sadly and shrugged her shoulders. "Best to forget it, Thor. I have."

Thor nodded, his expression one of acceptance. "Okay."

"Okay," 142 repeated.

"Good. Great," Thor went on as if he hadn't just met with rejection.

142 regarded him with confusion.

"Thank you," Thor finally said, a mischievous smile on his lips. "For this." He raised his hand, revealing that he'd stolen the remote from 142's belt. "Didn't see that did you?" he asked as he powered down the disc, then removed it put it and the remote in his belt. He stepped forward, a powerful confidence radiating from his smile. "There...that's much better. Now- you go ahead and stay here and get drunk and enslave people for that lunatic. Keep drinking. Keep hiding. It suits a coward like you. But me? I'm not hiding." He paused and gestured for the ball, which Hulk threw to him and he caught it with a cocky confidence. "I choose to run toward my problems and not away from them. Because..."

142 watched as Thor turned and threw the ball as hard as he could at the window, cracking it. The ball then bounced back toward him and he lifted a hand, catching it in his palm with a resounding smack before holding it with both hands in front of his chest. "Because what?" 142 asked sardonically.

Thor smiled. "Because that's what heroes do." With that, Thor turned and ran for the window, diving through it and sliding down the exterior of the tower. His descent was rapid, and soon he landed gracefully in the streets below before taking off once again.