Invasion of Asgard

Chapter One

People have called boredom a good motivator. For some people it was, but not Loki. He was usually bored, it seemed like the only thing the Aesir did was have parties and hold meetings, both of which got boring if you did them enough. Boredom, in Loki's book, was usually solved by mischief. He was trying not to make too much trouble lately, the last time he had done something that involved his typical chaos, Thor had threatened to break every bone in his body. That was not an entertaining thought and was a threat that Loki did not want to be inflicted on him.

So, in relief of his boredom, he decided that if he caused trouble in the other nine realms, hoping the rest of the gods wouldn't be able to trace him to its source. Midgard was a good enough place to start as any.

He made his way to the Bifrost bridge, watching for others who might see him leave. Loki couldn't very well avoid Heimdall, but the fewer people he met the better. Or, at least, that was true until he ran headlong into Thor. Loki stumbled back a few inches.

"Are you trying to kill me?" Loki asked, ever the dramatic.

"No. I was walking, and you ran into me," Thor tried to sidestep Loki and keep walking. Loki caught his arm, and though it shouldn't have been able to stop Thor, it did.

"Come with me, I have something to show you."

"Where?" Thor raised an eyebrow. He knew what Loki's traps were like, and had been the subject of them dozens of times.

"It's a surprise." Loki began resolutely walking again, dragging Thor alongside him with unnatural strength. He physically shouldn't have been able to pull Thor, but when Loki was using magic, it was a whole different story.

The Bifrost went all the way down to Midgard, stretching down Yggdrasill. It wasn't a short walk, but it didn't take long enough for silence to become uncomfortable. The bright jets of rainbow light spread behind and in front of them. Thor actually wanted to know what Loki's surprise was now, they were always entertaining, and usually gave him a reason to be angry and threaten Loki, which was fun.

When they got to the end of the bridge and it melted out of sight, Loki let go of Thor's arm. They were almost surrounded by water. The Bifrost had deposited them near water. One of the things Loki hated most. Ah, well, not everything could go according to plan all the time. They could see a few buildings in the distance, so Loki started walking again, Thor reluctantly following.

"What's this surprise you were telling me about?" Thor asked when they finally walked into the cluster of buildings.

"It's still a surprise."

There were a few people wandering around the buildings, going in and out of shops. The road that ran down the middle of the town was cracked, a far cry from the gold that coated Asgard. Thor had only been down to Midgard a few times, he was usually doing something else, and he hadn't remembered it being so different from the sprawling halls and courtyards of his home. Loki seemed to know what he was doing though. He turned to Thor.

"Have you ever realized how fragile mortals are?" Loki asked, his lips turning up slightly into a smile that was nothing less than terrifying.

"No..." Thor responded, wary of Loki's intentions.

"You should have. Watch." Loki looked at a woman who was crossing the street. She had long red hair, and she was just stepping onto the sidewalk when Thor saw her ankle twist in a way that shouldn't be possible. She fell to her knees, and several people noticed and turned to help her. Loki snickered quietly.

"Loki!" Thor complained. "Don't hurt them! What if she dies?"

"It's not permanent," Loki said, crossing his arms. "I only broke her ankle. They are too easy to manipulate."

Thor huffed and began to walk back to the place where the Bifrost had left them. He kicked at the sand, making larger clouds of dust that scattered in the wind. "I can't believe I let him drag me here." He muttered to himself.

"You didn't really have a choice." Loki popped up at Thor's side. "I dragged you here."

Thor jumped slightly from surprise but didn't respond. He decided that when they got back to Asgard he would go giant hunting to relieve the stress and anger that Loki caused him. He thought he should have been used to Loki's trickery and deception by now, but it still managed to wind him up.

Loki and Thor waited for the bridge to appear. The Bifrost should have materialized wherever the Aesir needed it, but it did not come. They stood in silence for a few minutes. The sky was still distinctly blue.

"Loki, what did you do this time?" Thor growled.

"I didn't do anything," Loki replied, holding his hands up in surrender. "Not this time. I don't know what's going on."

Thor let out a growl, kicking the sand as hard as he could. Loki backed away a few steps, ready to defend himself if need be. Thor's rage was often uncontrollable, and it made him a whole different person.

"Thor..." Loki started, trying to calm Thor. Thor turned to Loki, his eyes burning. Before Thor could do anything to Loki, he was assaulted by a raven. It pecked Thor a few times on the nose and came to rest on his shoulder.

"I have something for the both of you," Huginn said, its voice resembling the squawk of a raven. It held its foot up, surrendering a letter into Loki's hand. It flew off before they could ask it why they couldn't get back to Asgard.

"I hate those birds," Thor muttered, trying to grab the letter from Loki's hand.

"I'll read it." Loki insisted. Thor gave up when Loki held the letter behind his back. He opened the seal and scanned the letter before reading it aloud.

"Thor,

I have learned news of your jaunt to Midgard with Loki, and I have taken the liberty of stripping you of your status and stranding you on Midgard. This is all for good reason, you and Loki have become proud and arrogant of your status as gods and I will not tolerate that of my child. As a precaution, since you will be seen by mortals at the Midgardian age of 14, I have arranged a living space for you and enrolled you in the Midgard school near where you have been stranded.

Sincerely, Odin."

Thor gaped for a second. "Me? Arrogant?" He stuttered.

"Yes, Thor, you are more than a little arrogant."

"I can't believe this!" Thor shouted, throwing his hands up.

Loki rolled his eyes, sighing. "I suppose we should find our new living arrangements before it gets dark."