Planet Earth
Year 3073
Space-age City of Asgard
City Dungeons
Silence.
She was getting used to it. Grimy brick walls separated her from the outside world, and the constant darkness made it hard to determine the time. She was very sure, though, that she's been here for a very long time now. Cold seeped underneath her skin, and the fact that she was bare footed didn't help. She started trembling, eyes watering with unshed tears. She hated every minute she spent down this hellhole, but there's nothing she could possibly do to escape her awaiting doom. Even her own brother gave up trying to convince the Aesirs that she wasn't at fault.
Only one person could save her... but he wasn't the best candidate.
As if hearing her desperate thoughts, the heavy metal door to her dank bastille opened slowly with a grating sound. The same people interrogating her everyday went in with their usual rigid stride. This time, they're with some others.
Thor and her twin brother, Frey.
Both of them sat in front of the prisoner, separated by a table. The interrogation team stayed back while the two of them eyed her stoically.
"We asked for a moment... to talk to you," Frey started.
"In hopes of convincing you to give every information you know about his plans and whereabouts. Possibly how to stop everything he's doing to try and keep the government in disarray."
The woman sobbed, "But I don't know anything, Thor! You know me, I've been a part of the Aesir Police for so long that betraying the government never crossed my mind."
"Freyja... I-I know you wouldn't, of course, you're my sister. But admitting even something so little could help lighten your sentence. Anything you remember, just tell me, us, and we'll help convince the president you weren't an ally of that cunning bastard."
Freyja closed her eyes in defeat as her tears continuously fell. "I already did, Frey. I told them everything I know, everything he showed me, everything he offered."
She told them all his promises, his aspirations, and his visions the very first day she was detained until now. He was so sure, so inspired, and she never once thought he's a liar. She was enamored, and he used that to his advantage. He escaped, for she let the man sway her with flowery words. Now she's in her own hell, and it must be just right to really fall deeper and accept that she was at wrong. She let herself be fooled, and she must pay the price. Even though she tried in all her best to carry out her duty despite her fondness to the mischievous mutant.
She continued harshly, "But whose to say he's telling the truth? He just used me to escape, is there a need to tell me his great plans? No. No. I'm done."
She stood, dragging herself back to her cot to drown herself with another batch of angry tears. She felt someone sat beside her, a hand over her shoulder. "I will find him, Freyja. I promise. I will make him pay for doing this to you." Frey gave her a soft kiss on her forehead before he and Thor led the group out.
"The president won't tolerate her mistake, Frey. Odin would make an example of her for everyone to see." Thor warned, a bit worried about his friends.
"There must be a way to convince the president she's not part of them outlaws. She made a mistake, a grave one, but she's been in service for so long that she deserve at least imprisonment rather than a death sentence." He knows deep inside that he'll do anything to save his sister.
"You and I both know we're not in the position to tell the president what he should and shouldn't do."
Both friends looked at each other meaningfully, plans forming in their heads, before sighing in defeat.
Thor gave a sly grin afterwards, "By Odin's beard... to hell with it."
Freyja was once again alone in her prison cell. She knows her time is running out that's why she let the scenes of her whole life flash before her eyes. It would be best to look back while she still have time, rather than wait for the president to snap.
Almost twenty years ago, a virus wiped out three-fourth of the earth's population. It was so deadly that the people hid in fear and panic, no one roamed the streets for years. Some dying in sickness, but most due to hunger. She and her brother almost died too, if it weren't for the search parties sent out by the new government to gather the survivors and take them to the fort. An election happened, and the elected president ordered a thorough clean-up of the plaque... as well as the corpse infected.
When all survivors were gathered in one place, the rest of the world were bombed through satellite missiles. The president ordered the rehabilitation of two city states; Asgard and Midgard. Asgard is the more advanced state, for the people with higher status and ranking. Midgard houses the workforce, the normal people. Every family receives ration and basic necessities from the government according to status, for years it has been that way.
The president, however, knew that the feebleness of the humans will be repeatedly tested as time goes by. Not wanting to repeat history, he organized the Aesir Bio-Lab aiming not to find cure to infectious diseases, but make new species by genetically altering human genes. It was a giant leap that scientists were not really prepared, but the Aesir government was willing to provide finance and expenses. It took years of research, almost a thousand people dead due to their bodies denying the mutation, and so much money before the last batch were sacrificed.
Thor, Thrym, Surtur, Loki and her...
She was chosen, but her brother Frey offered himself in exchange. The president loved the show of courage from her brother, that he moved Freyja to the ranks of the Aesir Police to be trained and serve the Aesir government with her twin brother, IF he survived. Years were spent on them until they emerged successful, the very first mutants of the Aesirs. On the other hand, Freyja had been serving the government with loyalty as a member of the police.
The president had his trophies, the mutants. That president was no other than Odin, the said unifier of mankind.
One thing was clear, the mutants were government property, and shall answer to the president only. One of them, classified with mental conditions, became hard to control. Unbeknownst to everyone, a conflict between mutants was brewing. Thus, one night, three of them escaped. They became fugitives, outlaws, dangerous ones. And it was Thor and Frey's duty to bring them back. That is until they built their own revolutionary group, aiming to rebel against the Aesirs. Now they're wanted, dead or alive.
As expected, Thor and Frey brought one of them back... Loki, the shape shifter. Loki, the insane leader of the Ragnarok group.
He was kept in the very same prison cell, with more bindings than Freyja has. Freyja was assigned to his case, ordered to find out more about him and his plans until the day the president finally decides to end his life. The day she saw him tied to his chair in the middle of the prison room wasn't the first time they saw each other. There had been instances they met in the battlefield, so meeting him again wasn't quite a shock.
The intensity of his gaze was.
"I finally met Asgard's most wanted person, leader of the Ragnarok. Loki Jotunson, I am-"
"Freya. Freya Folkvanger." He gave her a wink, "You've become more beautiful."
"I am beautiful, yes, and it's Frey-JA. Freyja."
"Pardon me, people tell me I always get everything wrong." The amorous smile on his lips makes it hard for her to think he was capable of doing something bad. Then again, appearances can be quite deceiving. "The beautiful part though, I will never be wrong."
"Shut it. You do know what will happen to you, right?" He made a gesture of his neck breaking. "That could be avoided to something lighter-"
"By lighter, you mean plain imprisonment." He interjected blandly.
She chose to ignore him, "-and perhaps a parole if you'll tell us where your other associates are."
"Sounds exciting, of course, they're in our headquarters."
"And where is that headquarters?"
"Free me and I'll show you," his words turned challenging.
"Nice try, big boy." She chuckled. "I don't know what made you rebel against the Aesirs, but you're honestly out of your damn mind to do such thing."
Loki stared at her silently, leaning back on his steel chair. "Am I out of my mind? Maybe, maybe not. But one thing is for sure, your government is rotten."
"It's a good government. You can't tell me otherwise."
He scoffed, "Yeah, it's a good one when you're one of those people hiding behind those fortified walls turning blind eye to the poor people suffering in the carnage."
She laughed in disbelief, "And what? You're the good guy?"
"I'm not. But I didn't kill thousands just to have my trophy mutants." That made her stop. "Your brother could've died, we could've died. And now that we survived, they want us to continue risking our lives to protect the president." His hand reached out to hers slowly, "If you love your brother, you'll think of a way to free him so they won't continuously dispense him."
"What do you mean by freeing him?"
"Resist. That's what we want, too. We want the government to stop using everyone like a dispensable manpower, reasoning it's for the greater good. We want those people hiding in those fortified walls come out and see the uncleaned carnage left by the bombing, watch their manpower suffering outside those city walls, taste the measly meals offered to these poor people compared to the rich ones and to finally accept the worker as their equal."
"You could've told the president that, or anyone in the higher ranks. There's no need for wars."
He shook his head, "Those higher ups don't want to see the real world. They're stuck in their own heaven, so why would they waste their time to see the misery of others?"
"Still, you could've tried revolting peacefully." She stood, turning her back on him and heading for the door.
"Who said we didn't, Freyja? We did, you can even ask your brother about it."
"I will, don't worry." She looked back at him, "We're done for today. Bye, Mr. Jotunson."
"Will I see you again tomorrow?" He asked hopefully.
"Maybe, maybe not."
Days passed, and Freyja learned so much about his ideals. He promised her a new world, which she didn't believe, but saw how determined and hopeful he is. He spoke so much better than the president, and his dark hair complimented his light skin tone. His dark eyes were very much alive than she first thought. Her reports were constant to her superior, for he didn't let anything important slip past his tongue when he gave his usual monolog. It seems he's more interested in her than sharing his plans later on. She enjoyed his company, no doubt, and he showed the same enthusiasm to her.
"Your friends, Surtur and Thrym, were they in the same page with you?"
He squinted his eyes at her, "Trying to get some juice out of me, eh?" He teased. "I'll give you this one, darling. No, they weren't. Theirs was a more personal matter. They have a grudge against Thor and your brother. They think Thor's thunder and Frey's summer were cooler than Surtur's fire and Thrym's giantism."
"And they went with you just because of that?" Her confusion surprised him.
"Of course, misery seeks company. They'll find someone to share their hatred, that person was me. Although I promise you I have no room for hatred in my heart."
"What does it hold? Don't tell me only love?" She probed.
"You."
She blanched, after a moment of waiting for him to deny it with his occasional jabs she stood and fixed her things, "Well, I should get going. I need to report your daily activities to my head."
"You didn't even acknowledged my confession." He smirked, but a trace of pain was in his eyes.
"There was nothing to acknowledge, Mr. Jotunson. Let's be civil and professional, I get paid doing this. You should hate me because I'm part of the government you're trying to oust."
"There was nothing to hate about you," he admitted, moving closer to the woman. "Your innocence is so pure, but you're in the wrong hands."
She moved away, "I'll be back tomorrow, by then you must be back to your old self."
Freyja knew the coming days would be different. She could hardly sleep that night thinking of him. She knew deep inside she's falling for the captive she was supposed to interrogate. The next day came and she stood her ground. Nothing must link him to that guy personally. She has a duty to uphold, and falling for your prisoner was never a good thing. Loki must've guessed her decision by the look in her face. His own face fell.
"That's it? We're back to strangers?" He said sarcastically.
"Aren't we both strangers to each other?" Freyja raised a brow.
"We could be more..." Then he sighed, "Forget it. You're right. Won't I have at least one kiss?"
She shook her head.
"One hug?"
She shook her head again, smilling.
"Really? How about this?" He stood and bent down to level his head with hers. That's when she realized he's not restrained. Her eyes widened and pulled out her gun but Loki immediately pressed a particular pressure point in her neck that made her lose control and consciousness slowly. Her eyelids felt heavy, but she felt his lips on her own before she finally faded to sleep.
When she woke up, Loki's gone, and instead she's sitting on his chair... chained and handcuffed to it. Surrounding her were her superiors, eyes full of accusation. She explained everything, but no one believed her. They deemed her an accomplice, in order to plan Loki's escape. The fact that she's the one handling the case and everyday visit pushed her further down the pit of suspicion. Someone has to be blamed, after the most wanted outlaw in Asgard escaped. Unfortunately, it's her.
Thus ends her life story.
That is until the walls beside her cot shook and started trembling. She stood immediately, pushed the table to fall and hid behind it. The walls exploded and the sound of a drilling machine permeated the air. When the flying debris lessened she stood cautiously, peering at the silhouette of a man standing over the destroyed wall.
Where is a gun when you finally need one? She thought.
"Who the hell are you?!" She called.
"I'm looking for a girl! One with silver hair, heart-shaped face and emerald lips!" The man called back.
"She's not here!" She shouted almost immediately, knowing who the man was.
"Then who the hell is speaking?! Funny 'cause this is where her brother told me to find her!" The man shouted with a laugh.
"I'm a police officer, you liar!"
"Honey, you belong with me! And you don't have your gun, I do!"
"Shut up!"
"What the bloody hell are you two doing?? Freyja, get on the ship!" Thor suddenly emerged from the hole in the wall.
"T-Thor? Why are you with that bastard?" Freyja asked confused as she came out of hiding.
"Ouch, you do know how to hurt me, darling."
"Long story short, we're a team now. So hop on and we'll meet with your brother in Midgard." Thor explained.
"No!" She groaned, "You can't trust this man! He'll stab you in the back while hugging you!"
Loki grabbed her finger pointing at him and bit, she yelped. "Get on the ship missy, or I'll do it to your lovely lips."
Freyja immediately hopped on and both men followed suit. They left right away, the ride filled with silent rage. "Thor, what's happening?" Freyja asked again. Thor spared Loki a sideways glance before speaking.
"We're ousting the government."
"What the fuck?" She exclaimed.
"Language, please. I'll wash that away using my mouth if you do it again." Loki started.
"I'm not talking to you." She hissed.
"Freyja, this is the only way to save you." Came Thor's response.
"There wouldn't be a need to save me if it wasn't for this guy!"
Loki sighed in defeat before turning to Thor, "Can you please leave us both in that spot? Thank you."
"W-Wait, what's going on??" Freyja panicked.
True to Loki's words, they were evicted down the helipad of a strange looking building. Her and Loki. Alone.
"You can start now," Loki opened his arms.
"What?! You expect me to hug you??"
He chuckled, "No, I expect you to hit me, shout at me, hurt me. So go on. I'm giving you freedom to do all of those."
She didn't waste her time, "You're a scheming bastard! You tricked me! You gained my trust and then you stabbed me in the back!" She started hitting him hard on his chest, "I spent months on that fucking prison for something I didn't do, because of you! I was to be hanged! You dirty lying bastard! You said you love me! You're a liar!" Then she sobbed, "I loved you! I thought you were real! You used me, you fucking manipula-"
His arms wrapped around her tightly and captured her lips passionately. She was fighting the urge to respond, but soon gave up and poured out her sentiments on that kiss. When their lips parted he didn't let go of her.
"I do love you, Freyja. You don't know to what extent. Having to do that breaks my heart too, because I don't want you to believe I don't care about you. I don't want you to believe I'm a liar, a traitor."
She glared at him, "Aren't you? I don't even know if this appearance you're showing me, us, is the real you."
He smiled, "You'll learn about my shape shifting prowess soon enough, but let's go back to the topic. The truth is, everything was already planned by me, your brother and Thor. Even my imprisonment, everything."
"What the hell are you talking about?"
"They're destroying the insides of Asgard while I handled the outside defenses. Upon seeing you fighting in the frontier, I made it clear that I wouldn't start when your life is on the line. And so I let myself be captured, gain your trust and break it in a way they'll have a reason to detain you... while we take over the city bit by bit."
"Impossible... What about Thrym and Surtur? Won't they hurt Thor and my brother?"
Loki grinned, "Let's say I exaggerated on the grudge part." Her glare in return made him laugh, "C'mon, I know you love me."
"Loved."
"Doesn't matter, you'll be mine anyways."
He turned his back to her to face the twin cities glinting more brighter than before from afar. Asgard's down, and Midgard's theirs. Soon it will be a government of the people, not just the higher ranks. At last, his dreams are coming true. It wasn't so long ago when he started to envision a wold conserved and valued, not taken for granted. Those people could have saved the earth, instead of using it's last resources to fund their genetic engineering, killing a thousand people on the way. They wanted to save mankind, but lost their humanity in return.
"What now, Loki? What happens after Midgard and Asgard is yours?" She asked, standing beside him and watching the twin cities surrounded by debris untouched for years.
"The cities are not mine and will never be. After this, we'll save the earth. One continent at a time."
She rolled her eyes, "And how sure are you that I'll tag along?"
"You have a big heart. I don't have to convince you that hard." He smiled, arms reaching for her waist.
The silence made her think and reflect. Maybe this man wasn't so bad after all. You'd think that being mutant would've gone to his head, but no. His heart is pure, and his mind is just. He's a way better leader than Odin was and will ever be.
"Well," she finally spoke. "When do we start restoring our planet to its former glory?"
From afar, ships were flying towards them. They were marked with Ragnarok's insignia, and more advanced than she imagined.
"We start now."