Odin insisted on being the one to carry Frigga's body out of the throne room, his dead queen hanging limply in his arms. The sight of his father holding his mother caused Loki's throat to close. He had seen plenty of devastation over the years and had thought he had seen the worst, in destroyed cities and annihilated lives, but Odin's slightly hunched form, his face drained pale of blood, the intense sorrow and helplessness now etched into his features, was the epitome of devastation to him.

Not long after, the Warriors Three and Sif entered the throne room, the signs of recent battle marking their tunics and skin. They looked somber, having already heard the news of the queen's passing.

"We couldn't even see their ships until it was too late," Volstagg said, his normally loud voice quiet. "And their leader...he had possession of a strange power...."

"An Infinity Stone," Loki supplied. He sat wearily on the dais steps, his body drained of energy. If he would have ever imagined a moment like this before, Loki would have thought he'd be filled with an infinite rage, a source of energy that would carry him to hell and back to wreak his vengeance. But there was nothing like that at all; only an aching emptiness, which was only empty in the sense that he was utterly exhausted. It was full of the irrevocable knowledge that Frigga, his mother, was dead, gone beyond his reach.

"Are you sure?" Hogun asked quietly. "Are you sure it was an Infinity Stone?"

Loki lifted his gaze from the gilded floor and met the eyes of the Vanir warrior. He didn't even have the strength to glare. "Yes, I'm sure. I have worked with Infinity Stones before. I know what they are; I know their power."

I was shown their power.

"If the Dark Elves have an Infinity Stone," Fandral voiced, but didn't bother to finish the thought. They all knew it. They all knew the endgame wasn't going to be good, one way or another, with an Infinity Stone in the Dark Elves' possession.

With one Infinity Stone, they were able to attack Asgard, breach its defenses, humble its mightiest warriors, and kill its queen. With one, single Stone.

I couldn't even conquer a world with two.

Loki winced slightly at the thought, at his own internal longing for a redo. He shoved aside the poisonous wish, tamping it down. No. I must not think like that. Mother wouldn't want me to.

Besides, the little voice in his mind whispered. You attacked Midgard, breached its defenses, humbled an agency and its mightiest warriors, and killed thousands of people. You did plenty. You may not have succeeded, but neither have they.

Yet.

"We need to go after them," Thor said, his brow dark with anger. Beside him, Hailstohm nodded, her own gaze fierce.

"They are gone," Nasario Almarez, one of the sorcerers, said. He, Tekahionwake, and Karl Mordo had finally finished messing with their magic spells. "We attempted to run a tracing spell on the Elves, but they are gone. They are shielded by Dormammu's darkness, and so we cannot find them by our usual methods."

DiNozzo and Bishop sat beside Loki, both looking the worse for wear and with solemn expressions across their features. Bishop had holstered her pistol but DiNozzo still held his, as if another attack might occur at any point. His knuckles were white around the metal.

A noise over by the entrance caught Loki's attention, and he raised his head to see Heimdall advancing toward them, dragging an unwilling figure along with him. Loki narrowed his eyes, his muscles tensing. Bishop glanced in the direction of Loki's gaze, and soon everyone was silently watching Heimdall approach them with his prisoner.

A deep sense of disappointment filled Loki when he realized it wasn't a Dark Elf. This figure wasn't dressed in Marauder gear at all; instead, he wore a red leather trench coat that Loki found vaguely familiar. He was human, with fair hair and beard and an expression that was both awed and a bit miffed at being detained so.

Wait. That's a Ravagers coat.

"I found this mortal attempting to enter Asgard," Heimdall stated. Although his expression was impassive, Loki could see the sorrow in his eyes.

"Look, I was just trying to track down the jerks who stole my Orb," the man said defensively, lifting his hands. "I didn't know this was Asgard! I just followed them here, I meant no harm to anyone other than them. I swear."

"Your Orb?" Loki repeated, giving the man a skeptical look.

"Yes, my Orb," the man repeated, somewhat impatiently. "Round thing? A relic from a lost civilization? Those Kree mercenaries stole it from me!"

"You're tracking the wrong beings, then," Thor said quietly. "These were no Kree. They were Dark Elves."

"Well, I'm not so sure the mercenaries were actually Kree," the man said. "See, they worked for a Kree mercenary. I know some were Sakaarans, and then...." His voice trailed off as his gaze landed on the corpse of the Dark Elf Loki had killed. "They were dressed like that."

They all followed his gaze. "Were there four of them?" the man inquired.

"Now three," Thor agreed. "The others escaped."

"So which one has my Orb?" the man demanded.

Heimdall gave him a quick shake. "You be respectful in the presence of Asgard's princes."

"Princes?" the man asked, his eyes traveling over the sorcerers, Thor and Hailstohm, the Warriors Three and Sif, Bishop and DiNozzo, and finally landing on Loki. His eyes narrowed, expression hardening. He recognized Loki.

But Loki didn't recognize him.

"Put him in the dungeons," Loki ordered quietly. "We'll deal with him later."

Heimdall pivoted and dragged the man from the throne room. "No, wait!" he shouted. "All I want is what those bastards took from me! You can't hold me – I need to get it back before the Ravagers or that Ronan gets it!"

Ronan.

The name shot through Loki like an ice spear, skewering his insides and freezing them. He knew that name. He knew the name that that one was associated with, too.

Thanos.

He's hunting Infinity Stones again. And this time, Ronan is doing the fetching. Why did I assume this would all just...go away?

****

Frigga's body was laid to rest atop the pyre on a funerary ship as night shaded the sky. Loki and Thor stood flanking Odin, all three with sorrowful expressions as they wore their traditional Asgardian armor, only Odin wearing his helmet. Loki couldn't believe this was actually happening, that they were attending his mother's funeral.

She shouldn't be dead.

All of the Asgardians had gathered by the shore to witness the sendoff of their beloved queen. Hailstohm, Bishop, and DiNozzo stood near Loki, Thor, and Odin, the sorcerers standing off to the side, Sif, Hogun, Fandral, and Volstagg nearby. They all held a respectful silence.

The last time I spoke with her, I was on the verge of arguing with Odin. I was angry. I should have taken a breath, looked at things differently. Then maybe, I could look back and know that the last time I spoke with Mother, it was with respect.

I never gave her enough credit. I took her love and trust and crushed it when I tried to kill Thor, when I joined Thanos and attacked Midgard, when I threw away my connection with my family. She believed in me when there was nothing to believe in. And now she's gone, and I never got to thank her.

I never told her that I loved her, one last time.

Loki lowered his head, feeling a tear slide down his cheek. She loved me, trained me in her magic, and I repaid her by throwing it away, throwing away my childhood and my family all because of a stupid throne.

I truly am a monster.

The funeral ship floated away from the shore, toward the rim of Asgard where the ocean cascaded down in a waterfall. An einherjar archer lifted his bow, the tip of his arrow flaming, and fired the arrow. Loki watched it arc through the air and strike Frigga's pyre, setting the entire thing alight.

Grief stricken, Loki watched the pyre sail to the waterfall as flaming arrows rained into the water, a salute to the dead queen. Bishop silently put her hand comfortingly on Loki's arm and he drew her toward him, unable to tear his eyes away as he heard Odin solemnly strike the butt of Gungnir against the ground, Frigga's pyre dissipating into starlight and ascending to the heavens, to Valhalla.

Valhalla. It was a place of legend and dead heroes, and now it was the home of his mother. She is the noblest and the best of those heroes. They are nothing compared to her. They should be ashamed, because they are not fit to be in her company.

Many of the Asgardian people released orbs of glowing starlight into the dark sky, watching as they climbed toward the stars, following in the wake of Frigga. Loki stared up into the sky, searching the stars like he would see his mother there, but he saw nothing but pinpricks of light. Those stars had long been reminders that there were other beings out in the galaxy, but tonight they were only reminders that Frigga was not there.

The Dark Elves came for me. Mother wouldn't be dead if they hadn't come for me.

Loki didn't know how long he stood out there, the stars above blurred into lines of light by the tears clouding his eyes. It was only as the rising sun was turning the sky a pale red that he realized he was kneeling by the shore. Bishop was slumped against him, asleep, her head resting on his leg. Everyone else had gone.

Carefully, Loki eased back, twisting so he could gently lift Bishop up in his arms, cradling her against his chest. Then he turned, carrying her back up toward the palace, a headache throbbing in his skull and a hollowness etching out his chest.

Only one thing was clear, in this moment of exhausted sorrow. Loki would get revenge on the Dark Elves for Frigga's death.

I swear, Mother. I may have failed you in everything else, but I will not fail you in this.

I will avenge you.

/**/

In case you aren't sad enough by all of this, I have two song recommendations from my Dark Soldier playlist, for Frigga's death.

1. Supermarket Flowers by Ed Sheeran.

2. Heaven's Not Too Far by We Three.

You may be wondering why I updated on a Wednesday, especially considering the fact that I didn't miss last Sunday's update. Well, I decided that if Wednesdays can be the new Fridays for the Loki show, then Wednesdays can be the new Sundays for my Loki fics, too. (More like the bonus Sundays, since I'm still updating on Sundays and I'm also going to be alternating Wednesday updates between Dark Soldier and Mastering Illusions.)

Skylar Wittenborn