V I G I L A N C E ~ (MCU) ~

C H A P T E R 1 1_

One of the demons gets a little too close to me, knocking me on my back as its face is inches from mine shrieking. I scream out in terror as I see my life ending but it's stabbed hard in the head with an Asgardian dagger and then Loki's foot shoves it off me. I feel like a frightened child as I begin to panic, trembling and hurting all over.

Loki looks at me as if I have a knife stuck in my head and is about to help me up before something makes the ground move. I start to shove my heels against the ground to move away from it as something breaks the dirt beside us. The silver arms flail around from the cracking hole in the ground as the creature roars and comes from under us like a digging rodent.

"Loki!" I scream and he stumbles before using both hands to conjure ice against the beast, it fighting the cold and leaping from the ground. Loki dodges its jump for him and sticks up his dagger to let it slice the creature apart as it flies above him. He stands ready but the monster fumbles and dies.

Loki returns to me as I try to breathe, feeling like I am having an anxiety attack but I think I am just panicked and drained of life.

Yet I know how Darcy feels; why she was so terrified.

He bends down to me. "Esther you're alright," he says with wide eyes of concern. He looks at my trembling hand and then his brows pull together as he shakes his head, "A girl like you shouldn't be out here like this. I'm taking you back, now." he looks at me. "Stark can find Thor faster than I can. But I can't have you die..." he stops from saying anything more.

"I'm perfectly fine," I lie. Inside I feel like the walking dead. "Besides, I can't leave you. I won't."

"As much as I love hearing those words," he almost chuckles darkly to himself. Then he looks at me with doubt but a little hidden sympathy. "Kitten look at you. You can barely lift your head."

I know that he's right, but I can't help but fight against him. "I told you that I'm fine. I am not leaving you. Nothing you say or do will make me leave."

"Alright," he lifts an eyebrow. Then he pulls his right arm under my knees and his left grasps my shoulders as he picks me up easily in his arms. "If you die, who's going to be there to call me names and cause me mental torment?" he sasses before making his way back to the entrance of the base quietly.

I start to protest when I see that he is taking me back, but I don't have the energy to fight him or teleport away from him. I lay my head on his chest and I sigh, "You do have a point. But I'm not going to die. Not if I'm with you. I'm always safe when you're around."

"You're probably right. I mean I did save your life several times. Why do I let myself do that?" he shakes his head in disappointment.

I snuggle in closer to him, breathing in his scent. "I don't know why. Clearly you don't want me dead."

He sighs. "Now why would that be?"

I can hear distant snarling of the aliens nearby soon enough.

My heart rate picks up slightly after hearing those things. "I'm afraid only you know the answer to that," I reply shakily, my eyes darting around the area in search for any incoming monsters.

When we start to hear them around us Loki turns us invisible. But that doesn't do much good. These demons can smell. And from the shadows I sense them coming. But I may be wrong about my previous statement. With myself in his arms, Loki may not be able to save us this time. He tenses his grip on me. "Hold onto me," he commands and quickens his pace. He brings me closer to him if that's possible, as he runs, evading the beasts best he can. But soon we are surrounded once closer to the entrance.