Jewel Thief ◇ L. Laufeyson

23 ◇ loyalty

THOR AND I have always been on good terms.

We had been through a lot together and grown so much within that time.

How have we changed?

When we first met in New York, Thor had both his original eyes and a hammer. I had both of my original legs and remained on the ground most of the time. I was single, too. Our biggest worry was whether or not we could stop Loki.

Now, Thor only had one eye and lost his hammer, but uncovered some pretty intense lightning powers. My legs aren't bone anymore, but they're better and stronger; same with my spine, and I figured out how to fly.

I'm not single anymore, either. Now I was head over heels for the man who used to be our biggest threat.

I was very proud of everyone's growth. Thor was consistently bettering himself and deserved the world. He had grown up after experiencing challenges upon challenges, many of which I can't believe didn't break him. He had a heart of gold and was like family to me.

Loki, of course, had changed as well. He was definitely still mischievous and usually one step ahead of everyone else; but now he had shown me a softer, loving side that I was so glad to have uncovered. He was no longer a lost soul searching for purpose or family, he had found Thor and I to fill those needs.

And, I had grown up too. My emotions had been tossed into a blender and thrown around the past few weeks, but it's been worth it; finding the love of my life in the most surprising person. I had discovered higher limits to my powers, and I successfully fought my way through two alien planets, fighting more powerful beings than I could have imagined.

The universe is full of surprises, isn't it?

I suppose that was my first thought when the large shadow appeared in front of our ship.

I used to think the Ark was a massive spacecraft, but compared to the spaceship that hovered in front of us, the Ark seemed more like a child's toy.

Thor, Loki, and I saw it approaching together. We stood at one of the windows in the cockpit looking out into the galaxies, relishing in space's beauty before the familiar uncomfortable feeling of dread washed over the three of us.

"Who is that?" I asked, my voice a hoarse whisper. It was more of a rhetorical question, but Thor answered me anyways. "No one good."

He was right.

He was so, so right.

And it was horrible.

"We need to sound the alarm," Loki spoke up, backing up slightly towards one of the control consoles. A nearby Asgardian refugee - the one that had helped me with the arrowhead on the bridge, stepped forward to Loki's side. He grabbed what looked like a radio and transmitted.

"This is the Asgardian refugee vessel the Ark. We are under assault, I repeat, we are under assault!"

Suddenly a missile strike rained down on the ship, making it steer violently to the right. Most of us were thrown off balance, being tossed to the floor like ragdolls.

"The engines!" I shouted, grabbing onto another portion of the console. Thor had helped stabilize my balance as the ship thrusted to the right, and together we righted ourselves and I pushed the levers full throttle. The ship veered back to a stable position, only for a dozen more missile fires to hit the remaining side of our craft.

The Asgardian boy grimaced, turning back to his radio. "The engines are dead--"

Suddenly a red light started flashing, screen lighting up with the same warning we all saw. With his voice shaking, the boy continued, "Our life support failing. Requesting aid from any vessel within range! We are 22 jump points out of Asgard."