Temptation

Disappearance

Heimdal stood and watched as Thor, Stark and Fury strode into the chamber from the Bifrost. "Where is he?" Thor demanded as they drew level with the gatekeeper. Heimdal bowed.

"Your Highness...."

"I asked you where he was?" Thor repeated testily, his patience growing thin.

"Whom do you seek ?" Heimdal was under strict instructions to delay Thor and his friends for as long as possible within his bonds of obedience.

"Don't test me Heimdal...." Thor growled and Tony took a step forward.

"Look Sundial..."

"It's Heimdal"

"My bad." he shrugged, not at all sorry. "Look HEIMdal, we need to find Loki and Zola and we need to find them now. Whether Loki kills or Malekith kidnaps Zola, it makes no odds, the Cosmos is screwed, but we need to stop it happening. We need Zola. SHIELD needs Zola."

Heimdal eyed them up. He'd been well warned. If Zola was captured by either the Dark Elves or SHIELD it would make no odds, just who would subjugate the Cosmos. At this point, he wasn't entirely sure that SHIELD was a better option. At least Malekith was a barefaced oppressor. SHIELD had so many faces, it made a Gorgon look attractive. He sighed, this wasn't going to end well.

"He's in the palace. They're both in the palace." He was sworn to his King and to his Princes, he could defy none of them. All he could do was play for time. "My Prince?" he turned from the now smug looking Tony to Thor.

"Yes Heimdal?" Thor turned, no longer angry, more worried.

"You should be aware that Odin has ordered Zola be banished. To a far away realm, out of the reach or help of any of the nine realms. I must carry out his orders and I must not allow anyone..." he paused, "ANYONE to stand in the way of those orders." he looked at Thor with a gaze that meant only one thing. Thor nodded and turned away.

"Come on, we have to get to Zola before Malekith."

Tony turned to Fury who had remained silent all through this. "Well, this is going to be awkward. You know what happened the last time Thor tried to take Emo's toys away. You got the shovel and the bucket at the ready? We're gonna have a lot of pieces to pick up....."

Zola sat silent and afraid. Loki had left him in a small antechamber, the manacles around his wrist attached to a long metal chain, itself attached to a sturdy ring on the stone wall. He had a chair to sit on, a bucket to relieve himself and that was it. No table, nothing. Four walls and a chair. Not even a beam above him to suspend anything - himself - from. Even his dagger had been taken from him. There would be no easy escape. He could only pray Fury got to him first.

His prayers went unanswered. Outside the room, all hell broke loose.....

Frederik burst into the chamber to see Loki, fully armoured, standing ready. His back to the antechamber door, he was smiling. Broadly.

"Well hello to you too. Nice to see you again Freddy! Didn't you bring a plus one to the party then?" he smirked as Frederik advanced. Without responding, Frederik raised his sword. Loki didn't even flinch as it came swinging towards him. The blade sliced clean through his torso as Loki laughed. Frederik looked at him, astounded, as he simply melted into thin air.

"Do try again, this is fun!" Loki taunted, appearing at his side. Frederik roared with frustration this time and swung again. This time, slicing Loki's head from his shoulders. Or not. Again, he simply melted away. Now Frederik was in a blind rage.

"YOU CANNOT HIDE ASGARDIAN. I WILL KILL YOU. EVEN IF YOU ARE A COWARD." He shouted as he swung blindly.

"Well, you see that's your biggest mistake, calling me that." The voice hissed in his ear as the blade pierced his back. Frederik's eyes opened wide in shock, feeling the cold steel fashioned from Nidavellir's dying heart plunge deep into him. Blood seeped from his mouth as Loki laid him, gasping on the floor.

"Wh...what? Asgardian?" he rasped, the air bubbling out of the wound. Loki shook his head, smiling. "No... a Coward...." Frederik gasped and grasped his arm as his life ebbed away. There was a final exhale, beads of blood spattering Loki as it went. He paused, then with a sigh, closed the eyes of the dead assassin. Frederik had been needless but easy pickings, but Malekith? Now he would be a whole different game entirely.....

Fury, Thor and Stark made it as far as the throne room before they were challenged. When they were eventually faced off, it wasn't by Malekith, or Loki, or even Asgardian troops. It was two women. Two very powerful women.

"Thor!" Eva held up her hand, barring his progress. He stopped and looked at her, frowning.

"Stay out of this Eva, you don't understand. Loki has taken Zola and intends...." He tried to move her to the side. His mother laid a firm hand on his arms.

"Stop. Thor, just stop." she looked at him and then his companions. "You don't understand. If you take Zola and Malekith escapes us, not just Asgard or Midgard will be at risk. The whole nine realms will fall under his rule." she turned to them all. "You think you can stop Malekith? You can't. Not even that barge of yours is secure enough."

Fury shot her a look... "How in the hell?" Frigga smiled graciously.

"I was raised by witches Director. Thor will tell you, I see and know almost as much as Heimdal!" she looked up at Thor and he nodded and shrugged as he turned to Fury and Tony.

"That's true, we got away with nothing as children. Did I ever tell you about the time we were playing with the baby dragon...."

"Whoa there Mr Rogers, time for stories later!" Tony held up his hand, currently clad in the latest red suit. "We need to find the Evil Weasel." he turned to Fury. "You're it. Tag!"

Fury bowed a little and spoke. "Your majesty, this isn't what you - or Loki - thinks it is. We don't want to give him to SHIELD. I don't want to give him to SHIELD. They have their reasons for wanting him, but given they're stupid-ass reasons, I've decided to ignore them. We're here to take him somewhere even those Ivory Tower Warriors won't find him. I have a small cage for him. A VERY small cell for him. And a prison warder who had more brainpower than all of us put together." He smiled, a rare occurrence that took everyone by surprise.

"You do?" they all chorused together, making everyone stop short. Fury nodded. "Let's just say Scott Lang isn't the only one going to be answering to ants in the future."

Eva and Frigga exchanged looks and nodded. "Ok, we'll take you to them. Loki will only listen to us, believe me." Eva said firmly. "We do the talking, you do the waiting and the fighting off of those disgusting elves if they appear."

"Sounds like we have a plan. Lead on Xena...." Tony said, his faceplate descending into place.

"Xena? I don't get it....." Thor said in a confused voice as they walked away. "I thought her name was Eva....."

The groan from Fury was stopped short as they walked into the chamber Loki was holding Zola in. There they were confronted by the dead body of Frederik and nothing else. The door to the antechamber was slightly open. Thor motioned for them all to stay still. He walked over, holding Mjolnir at the ready and pushed it. For a second, they braced themselves. Then Thor looked round at shook his head.

As one, they moved forwards, the room was empty. Well, almost. There was a smear of blood on the floor and a dark, burnt patch on the wall. No Loki, no Zola and from the colour of the blood? No Malekith. He'd been here. They'd all been here, but where in the Helheim were they now?

There was only one person who would have that answer.... Thor turned and roared "HEIMDAL WHERE IS HE!"