A/N: Another update - to be honest, I'm just distracting myself from school work now because I don't want to do it anymore... Half of this chapter is in Ava's point of view, the other half in Loki's (it was nice writing as Loki again!) Enjoy and have a wonderful day/night, love, abbiemca x
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Chapter Twenty Eight - The Start
Ava's View
Sondra and I continued to walk behind Thor until we reached the palace, which was now heavily guarded by soldiers. They refused to let us pass until we answered numerous questions about ourselves.
"Names," They stated.
"Thor Odinson."
"Sondra, Serith's daughter."
"Ava Richards." I said, quietly. The guards carried on asking simple facts about us, until they deemed us trustworthy and allowed us to enter the courtyard. The courtyard was brimming with people. There was noble soldiers, clad in shining armour, and new undergarments. They were polishing their swords, axes and bows ready to lead Asgard into the battle. Then there were the townsfolk, who had old plates of armour and thick clothes underneath, they tried to clean their weapons, but it was quite obvious who was a nobleman and who was not. I noticed Will in the crowd, standing next to a few soldiers but he wasn't speaking to them. He was suiting himself up in what was probably his own tailoring.
He didn't notice us and I thought it best not to shout over to him. Sondra either thought the same as me, or just didn't notice him. Thor continued to walk and we continued to follow him. He took us through the courtyard which was teeming with people, and up the marble steps at the front of the palace. He led us through carpeted corridors which, too, were full of people preparing for this war. There were more soldiers, medics, and families all trying to do their bit.
Some of the people stood in the corridor were as young as around eleven, and they were armoured and given a short sword to fight with, Upon seeing a young boy with this mother combing his hair back with tears in her eyes made an enormous lump form in my throat. No child should have to fight in a war as brutal as this.
We were soon led through the throngs people into Odin's throne room. Thor stood in front of us and bowed a little in front of his father. Sondra and I bowed too, as Odin spoke up.
"You are to prepare for the battle. I shall return your armour and weapons I have taken from you for you to equip yourselves with. Sondra, you are to listen to your leaders and not do what you think is best, as you usually do. It will not help the cause and could end in disaster for more than just yourself. Ava, you are to keep away from Loki before the battle as I want you both to be focused on the task at hand," Odin said, leaning back on his throne. I bit my lip to make sure I didn't protest and make a scene. Sondra just stared at him in silence. Thor looked between us and then nodded to his father.
"I'll help them get prepared," Thor said solemnly, as he led us from the throne room and into a weapons vault. He gestured toward a chest. "Your confiscated items should be in there," He stated, his voice faltering a little and cracking halfway through his words. He looked towards the floor. I stepped up to him and pulled him into a hug.
"I'm sorry, Thor," I said quietly. He didn't say a word back for a few moments. "It's my fault."
"We all make mistakes," He said softly, before hugging me back. "And mistakes can always be fixed, can't they?"
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Loki's View
I was dressed and armed for this ridiculous battle, and I had been for the past three hours. I had a guard shadowing me; whoever had appointed him to me seemed to think I wouldn't notice. I slipped out of the main corridor, and conjured a duplicate whilst the guard wasn't near me. I then made the duplicate stay and pace around a little, as I ran off to the courtyard.
It was complete chaos. Soldiers were preparing themselves, people were arguing and accusing each other of stealing swords and weapons form one another. One or two of them seemed to be starting their war earlier, as they swung their newly sharpened blades at each other. I walked past the crowds of soldiers with my head hung low.
I spotted the younger Bespoke, who seemed to be altering something on his trouser leg. I walked up to him and he barely even lifted his head up.
"Hello Loki," He stated simply, glancing at me and then back at his trouser leg. I said nothing and sat down on top of a crate next to him. "A little bit chaotic this isn't it?"
"Yes, but I suppose it's quite difficult to organise a war," I said, quietly. I didn't really feel like talking, but I felt as though I needed somebody's company anyway.
"Yeah, I suppose it is," Bespoke said, his voice almost as quiet as my own. "Are you nervous?"
"I've been in plenty a battle before. There's only so much anxiety one can feel after so much practice in them," I said, staring at the golden cobbles of the courtyard. It wasn't exactly true, what I'd said to William. Yes, I'd been in a lot of battles. Yes, I'm quite used to them. But no, the worry doesn't cease to exist. If truth be told, I was scared stiff about this battle that awaited us in less than two hours now.
Bespoke nodded, and didn't say anything more for a couple of moments. I continued to stare ahead, observing the warriors that were now all gathering in the courtyard. There were palace knights, there were commoners, there were mere children. My eyes drifted past the people crowding in front of me, I didn't want to ponder too long on them; there is never a war without deaths. I didn't want to remember their faces and then see them in a pool of blood later on, I've seen that happen before and it isn't nice.
Suddenly, Bespoke piped up again, "I saw Ava earlier." This grabbed my attention and I turned to face him suddenly. "She came through the courtyard with Thor and Sondra. I haven't seen them since though," He explained. I nodded, and then jumped up from the crater. I needed to find her, and say sorry to her. I had been ridiculous to believe Sif and Thomas over her. But William seemed to read my mind and grabbed my forearm, and pulled me back down to the crate. "You can't go looking for her, Loki. You've been ordered not to," I scoffed at his regard for rules and stood up once more, and headed back towards the palace.
As I darted through the corridors, keeping my eyes peeled for the guard that had been tailing me earlier, I almost knocked a tiny figure over. I paused for a moment, and then apologised to the young girl stood in front of me.
It was Mari.
Her large eyes were brimming with tears and the first thought I had was that I'd hurt her as I ran into her. I knelt down so I was on eye level with her.
"Are you okay? Did I hurt you?" I asked, and Mari shook her head, and her little tears began to fall from her eyes and down her face, leaving streaks on her cheeks and dropping onto her dress.
"I'm scared, Loki," She said, and the crying soon turned into bawling. I drew her closer to me and gave her a hug; I didn't know what else to do.
"It'll be okay, Mari. We'll all be alright," I said to her, and she pushed me off her.
"No it won't! People die in wars and people get hurt in wars! It's not fair - why does everybody have to fight?" She wailed. I looked at her sympathetically.
"I don't know," I said quietly. She stared at me for a moment, before some more tears fell from her now red eyes.
"It's okay for you, Loki - you're not scared!" She said, her eyes widening and searching my face. I sighed and held her little hand in mine.
"Would you like to know a secret, Mari?" I asked her and she nodded. "I don't look scared because I'm very good at pretending. But I am scared, I'm probably more scared than anybody. Look," I said, and I held my left hand up, and it was shaking slightly. "See? I'm even shaking. You're not shaking, you're very brave, Mari." She stared at me, and she nodded, and dried her eyes.
"Will you stay with me?" She asked me. I bit my lip because I knew I was going to have to refuse the little girl standing in front of me.
"I'm afraid I can't, Mari. I'm looking for somebody. Then I have to be in the courtyard as soon as possible," I explained, standing up from my kneeling position in the palace corridor.
"Oh. Okay. Can you promise me something instead?"
"Of course."
"Can you promise me that you'll come back?" She asked. I knew this was something that I couldn't promise. But I could always try,
"Yes. I promise I'll come back. Can you promise me something?" I asked her and she nodded enthusiastically. "Please stay away from the fighting, Mari. Okay?" She nodded, and I wished her goodbye and ran down the palace corridor, in slight hope that by chance I'd bump into Ava just as I had Mari. And I could apologise, and make things just a tiny bit better than what they are now. I'd give her the ring back, maybe I could propose again, without an audience. I didn't want to not say sorry, I didn't want to go into a battle knowing that if either of us doesn't... return from all of this, then we wouldn't have the chance to make this better.
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"Loki, courtyard, now!" One of the guards yelled at me, as I ventured around random vaults and rooms, in hope of finding Ava. I groaned and teleported back to the courtyard, which was now completely full of armoured and soldiers.
The sight of it made my stomach twist, and my head hurt. I felt as if I was being dragged into something that I wouldn't come out of. I stared around me, as people knocked into my shoulder as they ran to their friends and accomplices. I let on a deep breath as I walked aimlessly toward the centre of the crowd. I didn't know what I was doing any longer, I was just planning on going along with everybody else. That was, until a heavy hand clapped my shoulder. I grimaced and then turned around to see, obviously, Thor.
"Scared brother?" He asked me. I stiffened slightly, to try and stop myself from shaking. It didn't exactly work, but it seemed to convince Thor.
"No. I'm fine," I stated. Thor smiled before clapping me on my back and almost knocking me over.
"We charge in less than five minutes," He muttered, more to himself than to me. I clenched my fists and bit my lip. I was trying to be strong, but I was convincing nobody.
There was somebody at the head of the now enormous crowds of Asgardians. He began to bark orders, and roar one of those heartwarming speeches to help rally us to fight. It seemed to lift everybody else's spirits, just not mine. I wasn't really giving him much attention. My hand clasped around the small dagger which clung to my belt, even though the likelihood was that I'd fight using my magic and not weapons. Weapons were a last resort.
The minutes which Thor had spoken of passed in what seemed more like seconds. Before I knew it, the mounds of people, big and small, rich and poor, roared their battle cries and ran forward, most into the centre of Asgard, and a few towards the Bifrost.
The Jotuns had arrived, and they too were armed, shielded with grey armour plates and they were also screaming their battle cries.
The two armies clashed together, and the golden armour of the Asgardians mixed with the grey armour and blue skin of the Giants. I could make out Thor right in the centre of it all, slaying numerous giants with that hammer of his.
I couldn't afford to daydream - suddenly one of our cerulean skinned opponents towered over me, and I immediately made a dozen duplicates of myself. The Giant spun around, and swiped at four of them, before I shot a blast of bright emerald magic at its chest. It howled in pain, and fell to the floor, making some more of my duplicates disappear as it fell on top of them. I waved my hand to make the remaining copies of myself vanish and then ran to wherever the next Jotun was causing trouble.
In the space of around ten minutes, I'd killed four Jotuns, and I had ended up with a sprained wrist, a cut cheek and a bruised lip. I wiped the blood from my cheek and shoved back random strands of ebony hair which had fallen over my eyes.
As I had a moment to spare, I looked around at the scene that was playing in front of my eyes. We had hardly even begun this battle and already the ground was littered with dead bodies, both Jotun and Asgardian. The floor was streaked with red blood, strewn with dirty and bloodied weapons that had accompanied the fallen warriors.
If this was just the start, I dread to think what is to come.