chapter 1

"You can still stop Loki. Stop all of this madness"

Thor gazed at Loki's blue eyes in determination and hope. For a moment, Loki hesitated. Loki looked at Thor, and then to the chaos around him. In the distance, he could hear screams and obscene amounts of honking mixed with buildings being decimated by the alien chituri.

"It's too late." Loki said sadly. "Far too late " He pulls his arm back quickly before Thor could react. Suddenly, Loki freezes as his blue eyes widens and flickers. He drops the small hidden dagger between his fingers and it clutters over the building ledge pulled down by gravity. Simultaneously, a drips of blood splatters on the ledge, not from open wound but from Loki's mouth.

Loki clutches his stomach with one hand and other onto his mouth and doubles over in agonizing coughs and hacks. Thor is frozen in his spot, watching as life is drained from Loki's frail body.

Loki grabs hold of the window balcony desperately, staining it in blood red. Harzadously, his body stills sway back and forth. Blood is drips from his mouth, runs down his neck and steeps into his skin. Trembling, Loki looks up with tears in his eyes and meets Thor's gaze. Thor breaks out of his frozen horror and steps closer.

"Loki, what is happening?" Thor says with fear. Then he squints his eyes and pause. "Is this one of you tricks and illusions?"

"No!" Loki manages to strangle out amongst the painful coughs and huffs. Pain radiates from his very soul. Blood continue to flow and he is having trouble breathing properly. He felt this before. He knew he felt this sensation before.

Thor finally realizes that something is deadly wrong. He steps forward and reaches out, trying to grasp Loki. But it just makes Loki recoil backward.

"Don't-don't come closer." Loki forcefully huffs. Once more, he lean forward and heaves more red blood. His hands trembles and he feels lightheaded, but he wouldn't let Thor come closer. Wouldn't let him be the golden boy to save the day.

Even if it will kill him.

Wait, was that-was that his thought? Where did it come from? Whose voice is that.

A white flash explodes behind his eyes.

"-what, what is this-ugh!" Loki staggers backward with pounding headache behind his eyes. He rubs his eyes and clutches his head. It feels like it's burning.

Burning. They were burning him. Wait.

Who? Why, when, how?

Fall, darkness, insanity, caught, coerced, stripped, tortured, cold Stone. Woven fate.

Madness worst than void. Worst than death. Beyond fate.

Scared. Scared. So scared.

His will, his desire. They were all his, weren't they? Wasn't he already insane before? He was surely.

His hand slowly creeps up to his neck. He feels a lump behind his neck, just below his hairline. He graze it and flash of frigid air and electricity travels down his spine.

No, get it off-it's cold, get it off, get it-

Loki screams.