Unexpected

XI

Nina wasn't sure how long she had stayed there, on the ground, Loki's body in her arms as she watched his skin turn from its usual pale complexion to a deep blue. Might have been a long time, might have been no time at all. All she knew was that Thor eventually pulled her away from him, and covered his body with his cape, before leaving him there.

Thor walked Nina to a cave, Jane close by, following them. There was a storm approaching.

"He's gonna unleash it, not just on Asgard or on a star, Malekith is gonna destroy everything," Jane said, snapping Nina away form he thoughts.

"How, Jane. How?" Thor asked.

"I saw him," she realized. "On earth. Why would he go to earth?"

"The Convergence," Thor stated.

"Oh, God," Jane breathed. "None of this would have happened if I hadn't found the Aether."

"Then Malekith would have only possessed it that much sooner," Thor argued.

"I only found it because I was looking for you," she admitted. Thor approached her, a soft look on his face.

"Oh, Jane," he sighed, placing his hand on her face.

"And now we're trapped here," she added.

Suddenly, music started playing. The three of them looked around, until Jane realized it was her phone that was ringing. She stepped away form Thor and and pulled it out of her pocket.

"Hello?" She asked into the phone. Thanks to the great acoustics of the cave they were in, both Nina and Thor could head a man's voice speaking from the other side of the line.

"Hi, Jane. It's Richard," the voice said. Jane gasped. Nina frowned. Was she getting service in here? Inside if a cave on another planet?

"Richard?!" She exclaims, also realizing that the call should not be possible. "Where are you?"

"I'm still in the office. It's...It's been a crazy day here today," he said. Nina approached Jane, miming to her to put the phone on speaker. She got the message and did so, then holding the phone up, above her head.

"Oh, my God! This is amazing!" Jane exclaimed. Poor Richard thought she was still talking to her. Nina noticed the confused, yet obviously annoyed and jealous look on Thor's face and smirked.

"Is it? I quite enjoyed our lunch despite never actually ordering anything," Richard admitted.

"How am I getting service here?" Jane asked herself, looking outside as if to serch for a cell tower.

"Is this a bad time?" Richard asked hesitantly. "Do you want me to try you later?" Nina immediately shook her head and Jane got the message.

"No, no, no, no! Please, whatever you do, do not hang up the phone!" Jane told the man. It was a bit too desperate, but it did the job. Thor frowned, already not liking Richard.

"Okay then," Rhichard laighed. "I was just wondering if you want to try again? Uh...maybe dinner next time."

"Uh...yeah, yeah, yeah. Um...just stay on the phone, okay?" Jane mumbled as Nina fifgeted with the phone.

"Yeah, I will."

Nina looked down and noticed car keys on the ground. She took them in her hand and Jane seemed to recognize them.

"Oh, my god," Jane whispered as she took the keys from Nina's hand, examining them.

"Am I interrupting something?" Richard's voice asked.

"No, no, no," Jane was quick to exclaim. "Nothing at all." Only then Nina realizsd what this place was. A Spatio-tenporal hyperlink. Or, in other, simpler words, a magic door. It was a place linking two places in time and space, two worlds that should never have toutched. Nina walked further down the cave, Jane and Thor following her steps, and she noticed more things, human things, on the ground.

"I'm losing you there, are you in a tunnel?" Richard asked. His voice sounded more and more distant. Nina realized that if the car keyes and all the shoes were able to walk through, they probably would too. A door that's been opened can be accessed from both sides.

"Why are there so many shoes in here?" Thor asked out loud.

The trio walked through the dimentional door and appeared back on earth, outside of a factory that Nina didn't recognize, but by the look on Jane's face, she did.