Bang!
Three dark figures suddenly flew out of the impenetrable darkness above Asgard. They traced an arc through the air before crashing down onto the shimmering surface of the Bifrost.
"Huh?"
"That didn't hurt?"
The ice imprisoning Thor shattered into pieces. He brushed fragments from his battered armor and climbed to his feet on the Bifrost, staring around in surprise.
"Thor!"
Having suffered the fewest injuries of the three, Frigga struggled to her feet and immediately turned toward the wounded Thor. She murmured excitedly under her breath, "Thank goodness. Thank goodness..."
"I'm all right, Mother. I'm sorry I worried you."
"I thought you were... It doesn't matter. You're alive. That's all that matters..."
Their eyes met, and Frigga buried her tearful face in Thor's chest. They remained like that until a pained groan came from nearby.
"Ow... That nearly killed me!"
Unlike their gentle landing, Loki had been slammed heavily into the bridge's unyielding surface. The violent impact left stars dancing before his eyes and worsened his already grave injuries. He lay there grimacing for quite some time, unable to get back up.
"Loki!"
Frigga released Thor and looked at Loki's miserable condition. A strangled sob escaped her throat, but in the next instant, she abruptly began to laugh through her tears.
"You fool. I truly don't know what you were thinking..."
"You deserved to fall to your death!"
Thor watched his mother turn away and repeatedly wipe the tears from her eyes. Enduring the dull pain throughout his body, he walked over to Loki and raised his foot, intending to kick him.
But when he saw Loki's condition, Thor could not bring himself to do it. Instead, he coldly grabbed him and hauled him upright.
"You worked with Laufey and brought him into Asgard, causing a catastrophe of this scale. How are you going to explain this to Father?!"
"And then there's Fenris. If we weren't in the middle of a war, he would tear you apart himself before Laufey ever got the chance!"
"You'd better pray nothing happens to that girl. Otherwise, no one will be able to save you!"
Loki froze.
He knew everything Thor said was true.
A series of coincidences might have brought them to this irreparable situation, but Loki had set every one of those events in motion.
Thor's banishment had presented him with an opportunity that might never come again.
He had been desperate to prove himself to Odin.
He had planned to bring Laufey into Asgard, then kill him with his own hands before Odin's eyes, proving that he was the son Odin should be most proud of. Instead, he had invited a wolf into their home and driven the situation into a hopeless disaster.
The God of Mischief could manipulate the God of Thunder with ease, but not everyone was Thor. Laufey was no docile lamb who would obediently dance to another person's tune.
He was an enemy Odin had considered a mortal threat. The moment he saw even the slightest opportunity, he would risk everything to turn on the one attempting to use him.
Loki had no answer. He merely lowered his head and fell silent. After a moment, he muttered something under his breath.
"What did you say?"
"I said I'll submit to whatever punishment he chooses! If it comes to it, I'll repay him with my life!"
Loki turned his head away and closed his eyes, refusing to say anything more. His expression suggested he had nothing left to lose.
"You...!"
Thor's chest heaved violently with anger, and the veins at his temples throbbed.
"Loki, you are an absolute bastard!"
"You're the greatest fool in all the Nine Realms! You've sinned against all of Asgard!"
"Shut up, Thor!"
Loki's head snapped up like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. His voice was loud and furious.
"You're the fool! None of this would have happened if you hadn't charged into Jotunheim with Sif, Fandral, and the others to provoke Laufey! You defied Father and got yourself banished!"
"If that Midgardian hadn't severely injured me, I would have run Laufey through with Gungnir long ago! I'm the one who has always acted for Asgard's sake, not you!"
"For Asgard's sake?" Thor stared at him in disbelief and interrupted with his neck stiff from anger. "Asgard has been reduced to this, and you call that part of your brilliant plan?"
His voice cracked on the final word.
"Enough!"
Knowing he was in the wrong, Loki wrenched himself free from Thor's grip.
"This is none of your concern. I'll give everyone an explanation."
Using Gungnir as a walking staff, he limped to the side and sat down. Golden divine light flowed across the spear and quietly enveloped him, stabilizing his steadily weakening life force.
"So many people died because of you... How could you possibly answer for all of them?"
Thor glared at Loki's back, but Loki acted as though he had not heard him and remained completely still.
"That's enough, Thor."
Frigga had quietly watched the brothers begin arguing yet again. She looked at Loki's deathly pale hand gripping the spear and the way his thin back rose and fell with ragged breaths. His heart was clearly nowhere near as calm as he pretended.
She stopped Thor before he could continue.
"Your friend is still fighting alone. Use this time to recover. He may still need you."
"Haa..."
Thor pressed a hand against his chest and took several deep breaths, finally forcing himself to calm down.
He turned toward the battlefield. All he could see was a pair of luminous white eyes flickering within the darkness.
A sudden chill crawled across Loki's back. He instinctively opened his eyes and found himself staring directly into a pair of icy, murderous eyes.
The hand holding Gungnir trembled violently.
Fenris, however, silently vanished back into the darkness.
Loki was insignificant. Recovering the Casket of Ancient Winters was the most important thing right now.
Fenris abruptly turned his head.
At the heart of the colossal frost hurricane engulfing nearly half of Asgard, Laufey held the Casket of Ancient Winters high above his head. His teeth were clenched, and his hate-filled crimson eyes remained fixed on Fenris, as though he wished to tear him apart.
"You dare turn your attention away from me to save others?"
Laufey sensed an indescribable contempt in Fenris's actions, as though Fenris did not consider him a threat at all.
The disparity in their raw strength was enormous. How dare he show such contempt?
The surviving Frost Giants fled in every direction, screaming and wailing. Yet they were surrounded by the devastating cold their king had unleashed in his desperate gamble, leaving them no way to escape.
In mere moments, many warriors were completely impaled by the ice spikes raging through the storm.
Both Asgard and Jotunheim suffered devastating casualties. Shrill screams poured endlessly into Laufey's ears, further inflaming his mind. His eyes became so red they appeared ready to bleed as he glared at Fenris.
"This is all your fault!"
"I will settle this debt with your blood!"
The crystalline blue light that once symbolized hope was now filled with boundless rage and killing intent.
Laufey soared high into the air and pointed toward Fenris.
"Kill him!"
(End of Chapter)
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