Chapter 20

Thor was with Loki. Odin had not been happy when he found out Loki had essentially broken into the systems in place that kept the palace safe, but the fact was that if he hadn't, then more would have died.

He also hadn't taken the news that Tony Stark could have hacked the entire thing in thirty minutes or less very well either.

It was Thor's plan to remove the Aether that had Loki most on edge though.

"Let me get this straight. You want to take the Aether to Malekith and attempt to destroy it once he removes the energy from Jane."

"It will be vulnerable once he removes it from Jane," said Thor.

"Are you really this much of an idiot or are you just pretending to be? Never mind, don't bother to answer. Every time I come back I'm reminded why Earth is so much easier to tolerate."

Thor looked suitable offended.

Loki sighed.

"This...might be the most insane, idiotic and outright brainless thing you have ever come up with...however..."

Thor perked up.

"It's also the best chance we have of containing the Aether safely before Malekith can use it. The only issue would be the chances of the arc reactor's energy combining with the Aether," said Loki.

Thor made a point to check if anyone was listening. He had already done it by coming to Loki to suggest what could very well be treason of the highest order. But considering what he did know of the arc reactor's energy source it was best to make sure.

"Are we absolutely certain no one can overhear this?"

Loki rolled his eyes.

"Gabriel has full control over Asgard's defenses. No one would come near us without him telling me. And this area is laced with enough spells that no one would hear us anyway."

"I know there's a major risk, putting those two together. But the risk of Malekith is one I will not suffer idly. Besides, if we do this right no one will realize what happened to the Aether outside of us. Especially if we give them a decoy," said Thor.

Loki looked quite impressed. This was almost cunning of Thor.

"You mean for me to make a second container, one with the Aether alone to throw them off," said Loki.

"All the realms are aware we have reclaimed the Tesseract. We would be fools to allow it to be placed in the same area as the Aether. So if we were to contain the brunt of it inside Gabriel's power core..."

"No one would realize until after they tried to put them together. I'm almost impressed, brother. I might actually praise you if we pull this off."

Thor knew that the Aether and the Tesseract were two of the six Infinity Gems. Only a fool would keep two of them so close together. A fool or a madman.

Loki looked at his brother, then brought up the PDA.

"Gabriel, if we succeed in containing the Aether in the reactor, I want you to start planning an escape route. Someone will sense what we've done and I for one don't want you destroyed by Odin because of well-justified paranoia," said Loki.

"Good thing I've had time to analyze the energy generated by the Convergence then. Though a little more data would be nice to have," said Gabriel.

"With what we're about to pull, you're about to get more than enough. We can't risk staying on any of the nine realms known to Odin once he finds out what we're about to do," said Loki.

Loki started the preparations to leave the Nine Realms he was familiar with once he dropped off the antidote with Eir. Once Frigga's condition had improved enough for her to handle being pulled out of the potion's grip, the antidote would be administered. From her expertize, that would be several months at the least. The damage was easy to repair, but allowing the muscles to accept the healing would take several weeks. Not to mention the fact the potion Loki used had been created several centuries since Asgard quit visiting Earth.

As such, Odin was still more than a little skeptical about their effectiveness.

Gabriel was an expert at multitasking, running the scan of the energy being generated, making lists and arrangements so they could slip away with minimal damage to the business Loki set up, reminding the man that he had to pack up his 'house' before he left.

There was a reason why Loki relied on Gabriel to be his personal assistant. He did a better job at managing his life than Loki did whenever he was interested in something. It was the same way with Tony.

Once they were in full creative frenzy, there was simply no way they could stop and remember little details like appointments or eating.

It was a good thing Loki knew how to disappear.

Loki couldn't help it. The second he found out Thor's plan to escape Asgard long enough to get Jane to the Dark Elf homeworld, he burst out laughing.

Thor was extremely annoyed and had to keep reminding himself that Loki was essential in getting the Aether out of Jane, that he couldn't smite his brother, that the only one who had a chance of keeping the nine realms safe was keeping Loki alive.

It did not help that Loki's wit included quite a few snarky remarks about his 'ability' to fly. Thor would have let him do so if only to shut him up, but the fact of the matter was that Loki was only trying to keep his unease about the situation to himself.

That didn't mean he had to enjoy Loki's smart ass comments about it though.

He took somewhat vindictive pleasure in shoving Loki out the craft and onto the waiting boat where Fandral was piloting. Loki's surprised yelp was particularly satisfying.

"You are an ass," growled Loki.

"You deserved it," countered Thor.

Loki smacked Thor on the head before he took control, his irritation evident on his face.

He wasn't surprised when Fandral left to deal with the extras they hadn't thrown off. He was glad to be rid of the spare.

"Loki..."

"If it were easy, everyone would do it."

"Are you mad?"

"Quite possibly," said Loki with a smirk. If he were mad, then it was the same madness that infected Tony Stark. He was actually grinning when they appeared through the path. "Ta-da."

Thor was monitoring Jane's condition. She was only getting worse now, not better.

"Loki. There is something I must ask of you, before we go into battle."

"Ask. Depending on what it is I might not answer," said Loki.

"Why? Why are you so accepting of the fact you may never return to Asgard?"

Loki kept his eyes straight ahead. But he still spoke, though it was quiet and Thor had to strain to hear it.

"Tell me Thor, do you think me blind? Or deaf?"

Thor said nothing.

"Asgard is not my home. It never was. And that fact became abundantly clear upon my return after Odin's punishment came full circle. The only one who was even remotely accepting of me being there was our mother. Not one, not even a single person cared if I even lived or died on Earth."

The silence was palpable as Loki continued. This was something Thor had realized himself, but he had been too afraid and angry to admit it.

"Do you know why I returned to Earth, despite the fact I could have helped clean up the other realms upon the chaos that followed? After my return I started paying more attention to those around me. When I made my own version of the craft we are currently on, the only people who were interested or cared were you and mother. Even Odin never showed a single iota of interest in the fact I was trying to do something new. Asgard may claim superiority over the nine realms, but the fact is that compared to humanity they are sorely lacking. At least on Earth I had someone I could relate to. Asgard is the one that was left behind when we cut ourselves off, not the other way around," said Loki softly.

Loki had witnessed humanity's ability to strive for more. Their insatiable hunger to be better, to improve until they reached the limit of what was possible. Their desire to understand the universe, despite their limited ability to comprehend half of it.

Being human for nearly twenty years hadn't made him weaker...in fact Loki was grateful for Odin's favorite punishment. Experiencing even a fraction of that empty void all humans felt in their souls had opened his eyes in ways even the Tesseract could have accomplished.

It made him realize that his hatred with the Asgardians didn't stem entirely from his resentment of the way they treated him. It was also because for the 'greatest of the Nine Realms' in terms of advancement, they had stagnated. The only innovations were small ones. They had stopped improving. Stopped trying to create anything new from things they had.

Combine that with the way they treated Loki because he tried to do something new a few times, only for others to either completely ignore his new idea, or worse, mock him for actually using his brain...it was no wonder the person he was before had jumped on the chance to piss off Odin and get back at Thor.

"Loki..."

"Let's be honest Thor. I've never fit in on Asgard, and while Earth is still very young, it's the only place where my full potential was not only encouraged, but welcomed with open arms. It's rather ironic, really. The same beings I tried to rule out of petty jealousy towards you and anger towards Odin ended up being the same ones that showed me the truth and saving my from myself," said Loki.

He wouldn't be surprised if, in a few centuries, Asgard ended up being the ones who had to catch up to the Earth.

This was it. Maliketh was taking the Aether from Jane Foster's body. Thor used the distraction Loki gave him to blast it with his lightning, turning it into shards.

What the Dark Elf King didn't notice was Loki opening up the panel that accessed the arc reactor powering Gabriel's holographic ball and grabbing a single shard of the Aether.

The second the shard touched the reactor, which had been boosted with the temporary direct link to the Tesseract, it was partially absorbed.

Enough for Loki to steal the rest later.

As far as Odin and the rest of the Nine Realms would be aware, Loki would die sealing the Aether away. It would give him all the time he needed to get his things off Earth, say goodbye to Natasha and the others, and flee the Yggdrasil using the power of the Convergence.

Thor barely managed to keep Loki alive when he nearly went flying into the dark matter grenade. Malekith escaped with most of the Aether. Thor, Jane and Loki went into a nearby cave to avoid the oncoming storm.

"Why are there so many shoes?" asked a confused Thor. Loki rolled his eyes, wincing as he felt the wound from earlier stretch.

"Jane found a convergence point before she stumbled upon the Aether. And knowing Darcy she decided to have fun with it," said Loki.

Jane didn't deny it.

"Loki, how's your wound?" asked Jane.

"I'll live. The sooner we get this over with, the better off the Nine Realms will be."

'Even if I won't be around to see it,' Loki privately added.

Suddenly Jane's phone went off. It was Darcy.

"Dammit Darcy, I told you to keep his pants on!" said Loki.

"He said he thinks better without them!"

"I don't care if he thinks better buck ass naked, I don't want to see the bare ass of someone as wrinkled as him!" shouted Loki.

Thor was watching this exchange with some amusement.

"That's rich coming from you," said Erik.

"Hello, shapeshifter? At least I can change my form into something appealing without clothes on! And I don't look like something a mummy dragged out of it's tomb!"

Darcy snickered.

"No comments from the peanut gallery!" barked Loki. Darcy snickered even harder.

Loki would miss her wit. She was one of the few people who could match him snark for snark.

Loki realized there was a lot he would miss on Earth. More than Asgard at any rate. Unfortunately the benefits of leaving outweighed any reason he had to stay, especially with what he was planning to do.

"Right. Tell me where to head when you have a location, I have to pick up a few things," said Loki.

"Hey Harry. What's going on?" asked Tony. Suddenly he focused entirely on Harry...no, this was Loki now. Somehow he got the feeling he wouldn't like what he was going to say.

"I have to leave."

"What, did your dad tell you something or..."

"No. I mean I have to leave all the Nine Realms behind. There is a weapon, a very powerful weapon that if completed could destroy everything. And unfortunately what I'm about to do would go a long way to pulling that off. If and when Odin finds out, he'll destroy Gabriel without hesitation. Frankly leaving was an easier option."

"So you're here partially to say goodbye, but also to pick up your stuff," said Tony.

"Pretty much. You're actually one of the few I will miss."

"Can't you do that Dr. Who thing with Gabriel so you can reach us anyway?"

"You mean the 'infinite signal range'?" asked Loki.

"Yeah."

"I might be able to do something like that, though I would have to cover my tracks more than usual. Maybe send it through JARVIS. I know for a fact the only ones on Asgard who will know about this will be Thor and Frigga, and that's because they're the only ones who give a damn."

"Well if you're going away for who knows how long, then let's make sure you're prepared for any inspirational sparks," said Tony.

If he was going to lose one of the best sources of inspiration, then he was going to be damn sure that the guy had plenty of toys to bring back if he ever had the chance.

By the time Jane texted him the location, Loki had packed everything he would need for a very long and extended vacation. For once he was glad that he had never gotten any further with Natasha outside of a few nice dates.

Loki took one last look at Stark Tower. It was the closest thing to a home he had ever gotten, next to his 'house'.

Either way, he had to wait until he was sure that Odin wouldn't kill Gabriel just because they were using his holo-ball to contain two Infinity Gems.