Thor had no clue what was going on. All he knew was that his sister was in pain, and would probably remain so until Ragnarök, because of his father's decision.
Sure, Loki was not truly his sister by blood, and they had known for quite some time Odin's plan to marry them together. However, he saw the Jotun princess as his younger sibling. This would not change, and to marry them was pure folly. Even more now than Loki had found her true love... found and lost, once again, because of the AllFather.
Actually, when he really thought about it, he did have a clue about Loki's pain. The solution would have been so simple, had Odin accepted the situation and let the girls marry.
Weren't they married already? Loki had married Sigyn in the AllFather's Great Hall, in front of all of Asgard. Didn't that count? Of course, he had done that under a false identity, but that was Loki. It was expected of his sister to do the unexpected and marry the girl she loved under some kind of disguise.
So now, he had two sisters? This should have been Valhalla. He should have organized a feast in their honour, toast and drink at their happiness, drunkenly talk with Volstagg of the joys of married life and embarrass the happy couple by picturing the cute little nieces and nephews they soon would have.
Instead of that, they were at war.
He had not expected Lady Sigyn to be so damn powerful. When she had grabbed Gungnir and broke it, he had felt a shiver of terror running down his spine and had held protectively Mjöllnir to his heart. She had made it look so easy! Had she been able to do it from the start, or had the heartbreak increased her powers? To think they had such a fearsome sorceress living peacefully among them, one who could have been part of their royal family, and now...
Now she was their enemy.
Sweet Norns!
His father had really not thought this through! Now, he had a new lance, but it did not hold as much power as Gungnir once did. No smith in Asgard possessed the skill of the dwarves to create such a weapon. And now, the dwarves were on their princess' side.
They truly had lost everything, hadn't they?
Thor feared the most for his father's mental health. During his sleep, he kept calling a woman's name he did not know, "Hela", and every time, his mother's face would whiten, becoming paler than one of Hel's spirits.
Who was she, and why did this come up now?
Loki was not well, obviously, missing her wife and probably regretting not going away with her when she could. Now, Odin had come out of his sleep, and therefore, there was no more reason for her to stay behind. Sometimes, his sister would go to the bridge and stare at the gate. Heimdall would fix her in return, sternly. His friend had told him about their wordless exchanges, as speech was not necessary in these kinds of situations.
Loki would always end up lowering her head in shame, remembering Sigyn's hand seeking hers and her pleading look before Loki turned her back on her. His sister would end up drunk these nights, waking up in beds she did not belong to, with men and women that were not the one she craved for.
Thor pitied his sister and wished he could do something to help her be happier. A reunion with her wife seemed more and more unlikely, mostly with the war going on.
But were they at war, truly?
The Golden Prince did not know what to think. His father kept saying so, but Vanaheim had not attacked them yet. Neither had Nidavellir or Alfheim.
Actually there had been no battling whatsoever. It was a strange, but stressful period. They were expecting something to happen, to begin. Some monster to attack them and kill them in their sleep. But nothing came.
Sigyn had now Vanaheim, Nidavellir, Alfheim under her care. There were rumours of how some Fire giants from Muspelheim would have sent envoys to the young Vanir Queen, in hope of an alliance with the new "greater power".
People were starting to call Sigyn the "Empress of Yggdrasil", and each time that name was whispered at court, his father would tense, and his eyes would fill with a fiery fury. Sigyn had not sent any official declaration of war, but that new kenning of hers could easily be taken for one. If Sigyn refused to be the assailant, it was only a matter of time before Odin took arms against his former allies.
But who would they ally themselves with now, with the main civilised realms their enemies?
As Thor was lost in his thoughts, he got the answer to the question he had feared too much to ask. Suddenly, he heard a terrible booming noise coming down the palace's corridor. On alert, Thor grabbed his hammer, ready to fight whatever frightful opponent was coming his way.
He first saw their shadow, looming over him, before lifting his head to the sky to meet their ruby eyes.
His father had called the Jotun king to the rescue. Or rather, officially, Odin had reminded Laufey of their alliance and of Thor's upcoming nuptials with his daughter, Loki.
Yeah, sorry dad, but that's never gonna happen...
Two envoys from Jotunheim stood in all their might before him. The Prince of Asgard nodded, and welcomed them as courteously as he could, though he had to admit the couple of Frost giants were rather frightening, and any well-born lady would have fainted at their sight.
"Prince of Asgard", the first Jotun started, his startling voice resonating in the corridors, "our king sends his regards to your father. Here is a letter for him."
Thor took the message, whose size changed the moment it reached his hands.
Ah yes. Jotnar magic was quite impressive. No wonder Loki had become such a powerful sorceress at a very young age. Everyone respected her for it, but it was mostly out of fear. They knew she would become one day their queen, the mother of the next generation of princes and princesses, and they did not want to get on her bad side. Now, as his sister was lost in her dark thoughts, regrets and grief, no one dared to approach her, even him.
He had tried reaching to Loki, sending her chocolates from Midgard, and little notes of support. However, the only thing he got from her, as they crossed path once in a hallway, was a ball of green fire, and a scream "not to disturb her".
It was not the first time his sister had been so worked up, of course. Loki was well-known for her temper and her fiery mood swings. However, everything had worsened since... well, since Sigyn's departure.
Sigyn had always been the one to deal with this kind of behaviour. Every time Loki would throw a tantrum, he would go fetch Sigyn – or his mother would send a servant – so she could calm her friend.
Sigyn would take Loki's hand in hers, and she would listen to her attentively, smile at her sweetly, and then, as if by magic, the Jotun princess was calm again, hugging her most beloved friend, laughing and dancing with her in his mother's gardens. What a happy time it all was.
Gone now, as was the rest.
When the two Frost giants left without asking for an answer, Thor knew it would be bad. And he was right. The moment his father read the letter, his face reddened, and he screamed. Well, another one who would have needed Sigyn's soothing influence. Though, the prince doubted his father would have appreciated it. He would rather have had the Vanir queen's head removed from her lovely shoulders, which would have been quite a crime, and would have enraged Loki even more.
The plan was to ease Loki's pain, not make her turn to the dark side out of despair and heartbreak.
But then, as Thor's attention came back to his father, he felt his heart freeze in his chest. Odin had just pronounced a new decree that just seemed quite exaggerated and pure folly.
"Jotunheim has decided to remain neutral. Those traitorous cowards! But we still need allies. We still need to show our strength!", the AllFather stated.
"AllFather, my King", Tyr started, " Where would we find such allies? In the frozen forest of Niflheim? They are deserted."
"There are others", Odin continued.
"The Dark Elves?", Tyr asked, as a jest. But then, seeing the King of Asgard was taking his suggestion seriously, the God of War retreated strategically.
"My King, your father fought those monsters all those centuries ago. Surely, you don't mean to..."
"That little Vanir whore does not leave me the choice! They will make powerful allies to retake what's ours by right! But first, Midgard..."
"What, Midgard?", Frigga asked her husband, worried.
"The Vanir have their dirty, lusty hands all over Yggdrasil. We must reclaim control over it. Midgard will be our first conquest."
"But, my love, are you sure this is a good idea?", Frigga pleaded, afraid she was losing her husband and her king to this madness.
"Silence, woman!", Odin's booming voice thundered in the Great Hall, "We shall conquer Midgard as a show of strength. If not, the Dark Elves might believe they have a chance against us, or worse, ally themselves with the Vanir whore".
Thor felt uneasy. He did not want to go against his father's wishes, and he remembered very well all those tales of the AllFather's glorious days of conquest, but... weren't they past all of this? Had he not declared peace in all the realms after his marriage to the AllMother? This seemed much too excessive and undue. There would be no return from this if they put at risk the lives of innocent midgaridan citizens.
It was not, either, as if Sigyn had been a real threat. She had not declared war, she had not started any invasion. She just stayed home, back in Vanaheim, and received honours from other realms.
She did not need to do anything, truly. Everyone had seen what she could do, and now, everyone knew who was the most powerful being in the realms. Until now, she had stayed quiet, because she clearly must have missed Loki and still hoped for a happy future with her wife.
Instead of declaring war to Midgard, they just had to send Loki to her... and all would be fine again.
If only Loki stopped brooding and let her brother elaborate a plan to reunite her with her wife!
Unfortunately, there was no time for that, and his father was much too taken with his dreams of conquest and power. Show strength! It was all he could talk about from then on.
Thor wanted to say something. Thor needed to say something.
But every time he tried to interfere and give his opinion, a look from his father would silence him, and make him feel unworthy of saying anything.
And so, the invasion began.
Odin wanted to subjugate and subdue the Midgardian population. Unfortunately, they were not as influenceable as they once were, and soon enough, a merry band of heroes had risen up to the occasion. All brave. Thor's heart longed to be part of such a worthy team. He looked at his own companions, and they all seemed weary and worried. Hogun had left first, to join Vanaheim's side, as his honour and reason commended. Volgstagg had deemed himself "too old for this shit".
Only Fandral and Sif remained, and Thor felt glad for their company. However, he did understand his two other friends and did not blame them.
A man of metal was flying proudly in the sky, while a green monster roared at them aggressively. Were they Jotuns, Thor would have attacked them without an hesitation, but, strangely, deep in his soul, this felt wrong.
Then again, had their hate of Jotuns ever been truly justified? Loki was a Jotun and she was nice – on occasions, when Sigyn was around.
"Why do I feel like we're the bad guys?", Fandral whispered, as a jest, but Thor could tell he actually meant it.
"Maybe we are", Thor agreed, as he saw the Vanir army behind the Midgardian warriors.
Sigyn was there, with Hogun by her side. Thor repressed his urge to wave at them happily.
Damn it.
He missed his friends. He missed his happy life from before all of this. But he was not the only one with regrets, wasn't he?
Thor turned to his sister, Loki, who was standing by his side, her beautiful face now whiter than the Jotnar snow. Her eyes seemed lost in her memories, in her hope of being with Sigyn again, to hold her and kiss her. Thor had no doubt about that, as he also knew Sigyn well enough to know for sure she would welcome her wife with no hesitation if she ever went to her and joined her side.
"Go to her, Loki. Your wife is waiting for you", Thor said with a smile. He would be sad to see her go behind the enemy lines and lose her forever, but it was better that way, wasn't it?
Loki looked at him, her eyes now misty with tears, and nodded. She started running towards Sigyn, but then, to Thor's surprise, he heard a terrible booming noise behind him.
Odin was furious.
Before Thor or anyone could do anything, his father had launched his spear, impaling Loki in one throw.
Sigyn's scream was terrible. She suddenly appeared in front of the Allfather, armed with an axe, and killed him with no hesitation.
Time stood still.
It had all happened so fast, Thor had to time to react to either death. His head was spinning.
His sister was dead.
His father was dead.
He fell to his knees, feeling Sif by his side, hearing her words of comfort, and her warm hands on his back.
He barely saw Sigyn running to Loki's body, but he could hear her cries.
What a mess.
They had come to show force and look at them. The Midgardians must have been laughing at their invaders' despair.
Then, something changed in the air.
A chill took over his whole body. Danger was coming, and not in a fun way. His first thought was to run to Sigyn, still crying, half collapsed over her wife's body. A gentle redheaded lady, one of Midgard's warriors, was trying to comfort her, but with no success.
"Sister, we have to go...", Thor started, before being interrupted by the whistling sound of a dark portal opening before his eyes.
A woman, tall and thin, dressed in black, with a dash of green, came out of it, looking at the scene with disdain.
"So he's gone. This is a shame. I would have liked to see that", she claimed, clearly annoyed, but at the same time, anyone could have pointed out she did not seem to care that much about it.
"Who are you?", asked the man of iron, approaching her carefully.
"I am Hela, daughter of Odin, Goddess of Death, and your new Queen. Kneel before me!", the dark lady proclaimed regally.
"And who are you?", she asked, truly noticing Thor for the first time.
"I am Thor, son of Odin"
"You don't look like him", Hela observed.
"Maybe we can come to an arrangement", the man of iron proposed.
"But the mortal sounds more like him", the goddess of Death noted, before making the armour explode from the inside, killing the Midgardian warrior.
His companions bravely charged at her, ready to avenge him. A man with a shield as only weapon tried his best but was soon reduced to dust. Then the kind readhead who had helped his sister-in-law perished by the sword of Death herself. An archer screamed when he witnessed his friend's demise. One of his arrows landed in the Goddess' neck, and the Midgardians present on the battlefield believed for a moment it would be enough.
Not even close. Hela threw back the arrows at their owner, killing him on the spot.
Thor joined the fight – though it was more a massacre at this point, than anything else. It pained him to leave Sigyn in this state of anguish, with the Aesir ready to take revenge on her for killing their king. With a sign of the head, he asked Sif and Fandral to take care of her and protect her. He had to help those unfortunate Midgardian heroes.
"Kneel before your queen!", ordered Hela once again.
"I don't think so", Thor stated, before throwing Mjölnir with all his might. He was so sure his loyal hammer would get Midgard and the Nine realms rid of such a threat. However, when he was excepting his enemy – his sister, if she was to be believed- to be vanquished, the opposite happened.
Hela stopped his trusted weapon with her bare hand. Mjölnir vibrated in it, trying to free itself. Thor could nearly hear its screams inside its mind. Daenne and Nabbi, Sigyn's dwarves brothers, who had been guarding their sister faithfully like the two terrifying, bloodthirsty rabid dogs they were, suddenly rose at the sight of such a wondrous event.
"That means she's really what she says...", Nabbi gasped.
"Yeah. Odindottir. Only the bloodline of Odin can hold it... Well, with a few exceptions. But still...", Daenne commented, fear increasing in his voice.
"This is not possible", Thor was bewildered, his mind lost in confusion.
Hela was smiling now, staring right into her brother's desperate gaze.
"Darling, you have no idea what's possible"
And then, with an actual show of force, Hela broke Mjölnir. Thunders and lighting tore up the sky, and winds swope up the battlefield.
The Green giant tried to interfere, but all of a sudden, a terrible earthquake shook the whole planet. It was as if a powerful being, from down under the surface of the Midgardian realm, was awakening, pushing through and demanded to be released.
Thor turned around as he felt behind him a powerful magic he was starting to know a bit too well. This was Sigyn's doing. His grieving sister had dried her tears and gone to work, incapable of letting more innocent lives be taken by the Goddess of Death.
Fingers pierced through the soil, and a gigantic hand suddenly grabbed Hela, seizing her in a ruthless embrace.
Odin's daughter screamed, and shouted, trying to free herself, but it was in vain. Sigyn's eyes were now white, tears of blood running down her face.
"Sigyn, you have to stop", Thor implored, "This spell is going to kill you!"
But the sorceress did not listen. It was already far too late to interfere. The Norns had decided her fate the moment Loki had died.
"His name is Tiamut", the Empress of Yggdrasil told Hela, "I hope you two get along, you are going to stay together for a long time"
And then, the hand went back into the ground, and the surface repaired itself, as if nothing had happened.
"What the hell was that?", a Midgardian warrior asked.
"Err... I think it is called a celestial? Your planet is actually an egg for it. You might want to see to that.", Thor said with a smile, patting the hero on the back.
Already, he could hear Daenne and Nabbi screaming at their sister, who had collapsed on the ground, her face strained with blood, and her eyes half closed.
"Sigyn", Thor whispered, running to her side, taking her barely conscious body into his arms. She had to live. Loki would have wanted her to have a wonderful life, full of joy and happiness.
Or would they be reunited in Valhalla?
"Sister, please, don't leave us!", Nabbi cried, helplessly.
Those two were psychotic monsters, but they did have a heart, after all. Or at the very least, they did love their sister, and their craft. And that was probably it.
However, Sigyn was smiling. It seemed she was trying to raise her arms towards something but failed as she was too weak. She was humming too, a tune he did not know.
"To the tree where our hopes hang high,
To the dream that should never die,
Where our long lost tomorrows still are in the sweet bye and bye.
Time goes by, or do we, close your eyes, and you'll see
As we were, we can be, weep no more, follow me.*"
In the weak rays of the Midgardian's sun, it seemed to Thor he saw Loki appear, kneeling beside her wife. Thor moved away, as his sister kissed her wife sweetly on the lips.
Sigyn then rose and took Loki's hand. Her lovely musical laugh appeased his heart, as he saw the lovers at last reunited, embracing, Sigyn's arms firmly attached around Loki's waist, as if she feared to lose her wife again. Then, they disappeared from the battleground, leaving Thor alone with the Aesir and Vanir armies, and what was left of the mortal warriors.
"Was that real?", one of them asked.
"Yes, my friend", the Golden Prince said, "They are in Valhalla now."
At least, one part of this story had a happy ending.
At least, Loki and her wife were together, as they should have been.
Happy, forevermore.
"Time goes by, or do we, close your eyes, and you'll see
As we were, we can be, weep no more, follow me."
*"Follow me", from the musical "Camelot"