96: In the Long Forgotten Wasteland

NEBULAPOLIS, RAGNANIVAL, ASGARD

The royal palace was filled with warriors. Partholon's elves, the Bugaboo's hobgoblins, and the Shoney's fin-folk took their places alongside the Aesir and Vanir. Even the Ringfordians had thrown in their loyalty, deciding to unite with the Ragnanival and Titania militaries over their common enemy. The palace had practically been converted into military barracks, and for far longer than anyone had wanted. The soldiers grew antsy. They were already supposed to have marched upon Jötunheim, and yet Thor, Loki, Gwendolyn, and Velvet were all missing, as well as their traveling companions. Some ill will had been breeding toward Odin's children; they were accused of loitering and lollygagging on Midgard or some other realm, and that was why they were late.

It was this exact concern that the Shoney posed to Odin in the All-Father's throne room. Odin sat upon his seat of power, Frigga standing at his side. Partholon, the Bugaboo, and the Shoney stood before him in the chamber.

They had far too much of a celebration in Notland, the Shoney stated, knowing far better than to bring up Loki's robbery or anything that had happened afterward. I would not be surprised if they were still touring Midgard, sampling its delights. Your sons were quite fond of drink.

"They were not so easily taken in by glamour," Partholon rebutted, "and we could have offered them so much. I do not believe they are indulging in earthly pleasures."

"Something terrible must have happened to slow them down!" the Bugaboo worried. "I can hear the Nemesis now: 'You never should have let them go unaccompanied! Didn't you know their enemies would catch up to them?' He would have been right."

"I too fear for the welfare of our children," Frigga told Odin. "All reasons for their absence are worrying."

"My sons and daughters are strong," Odin rebutted. "I am not pleased with this delay. However, I am sure they are as hale as when they left this realm for Midgard."

We must march without them, the Shoney urged. Otherwise, the Jötunns will see us as weak and have their way with this realm.

"We shall go nowhere without Thor!" Odin barked; the Bugaboo cringed, and even Partholon and the Shoney looked rather flapped. It did not go unnoticed that Thor was the only one mentioned, but it always had been clear which child Odin preferred. Odin was at the moment mentally going over ways to tell Loki he was not to enter the Jötunheim battlefield. He didn't dare risk the trickster god learning of his true origins, but he was not quite sure what to say in order to get Loki to hold back. Gwendolyn, Velvet, and their husbands did not cross his mind.

A messenger entered the throne room. "All-Father." He bowed. "Your sons and daughters and their traveling companions have returned at long last."

"And not a moment too soon," Odin replied. "Show them in."

The messenger disappeared momentarily. The doors opened wide, and in filtered Thor, Loki, Gwendolyn, Oswald, Velvet, Cornelius, Sif, Volstagg, Hogun, Fandral, Twilight, Fluttershy, Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Jack, Thorgil, and –

"What is the meaning of this?" Odin's single eye glowered at Baromett trotting into his throne room. "Why have you brought back a sheep?"

"It was supposed to be dinner, Lord Odin," Fandral offered in a jesting tone. No one laughed.

"Where have you been?" Frigga asked, her voice betraying her worry. "We feared the worst."

"Our quest became extended," Thor explained. "Mjolnir was stolen. And 'twas a good turn of events for us, for we have learned the true nature of this war. It is not as you believe, Father. The Jötunns are not our enemies."

"What do you mean?" Odin barked. "They not only broke the treaty, but made an attempt on my life."

"'Twas Malekith the Accursed!" Thor blurted. "He has been playing us as a game of chess for all this time in hopes that we would destroy each other in battle!"

"What nonsense!" Odin dismissed. "Malekith was slain by my father!"

"It's…complicated," Twilight broke in. "We're dealing with a situation where dead bad guys don't stay dead."

"Odin…" Frigga's blood ran cold. "They speak the truth. I can feel it."

"What happened?" Odin demanded. "What did you discover that led you to suspect an enemy long dead?"

"Mjolnir was stolen from us while we were in Notland," Thor began. Noticing the Shoney catching his eye, he quickly added, "Our stay in Notland was nothing short of pleasant, and the Shoney treated us with the utmost kindness and graciousness. However…"

The whole story came out. It began with Thor, but each in the party had his or her turn in telling the tale. How they were tipped off that Mjolnir could be found in Jötunheim. How Loki's glamour allowed them to enter the Jötunn realm undetected (Odin and Frigga held their breath at this part, but were eventually reassured that Loki's glamour had prevented him from discovering anything he shouldn't have). How they faced the unfair challenges of Glamdis and Laufey. How they entered the portal to the strange realm where Rumplestiltskin and Belle were found, and how Twilight had traded her staff in for Mjolnir. How Belle had revealed Malekith's involvement.

After that, the evidence was laid on the line. The appearance of Nuada and Nuala, which Partholon could attest to as a witness. The delivery of the helmet portal by a spider-child of Hel when spider silk was used to bind Loki during the night of the Ragnanival raid. The fact that Loki, an expert in glamour, was bound at all. Glamdis and Laufey's ignorance of the entire situation. Heide's prophecy, and how Rarity realized that Svartalfheim was indeed a dead world, more so than Jötunheim. And finally, though it had little to do with proving Malekith's involvement, it was explained how Baromett had joined the party as Fluttershy's charge.

The war council listened to it all raptly. When the story was done, Odin was silent for a moment, trying to find the words, still having trouble letting all these new developments settle within his brain. He eventually found the proper reply: "It seems we have been mistaken. We have prepared for the wrong war entirely. It was quite nearly us, not the Jötunns, who broke the treaty between our realms."

"And if they are the ones who are wrong?" Partholon posed.

"How can you even think that after all the evidence we found?" Twilight asked angrily.

"There is nothing to be lost but time if we march upon Svartalfheim to attempt to find Malekith," Frigga pointed out. "Time is indeed precious, yet it is a price I am willing to pay in order to be sure we do not commit a fatal mistake."

"Do you know the number of Malekith's forces?" Odin asked.

"There is Malekith himself," Thor replied. "Algrim, too, has risen from the dead. The twins we spoke of are undoubtedly involved, and the spider-child of Hel. Beyond that, we know not. There may be hundreds at his disposal. There may be only four."

Odin stood. "Four is still too many." He began to march away from his throne. "We shall mobilize to storm Svartalfheim within the hour. Be ready at the Bifrost by then!"

"Only one hour!" Partholon was flabbergasted.

"YOU HEARD THE ORDER I HAVE GIVEN!" Odin snapped at him before leaving the hall.

"Shoney, Bugaboo, Partholon, return to your armies," Frigga commanded, and the three generals did as told, leaving the hall. "As for the rest of you – "

"Mother, we shall stand by you and Father." Thor approached her, and Loki, Gwendolyn, Oswald, Velvet, and Cornelius crowded around him.

"Fandral," Sif beckoned. "Volstagg, Hogun. We would be of the most use with the Asgardian soldiers."

"Then let us be off!" Fandral agreed, and he, Hogun, Volstagg, and Sif left determinedly to find the straggling Asgardian soldiers and pull them together.

Frigga stepped down, leading her children in a line. As she passed the Equestrians and the bards, she turned her head briefly to inform them, "The armory is yours to use as you desire. I trust you remember the way."

"That we do!" Rarity confirmed. "I never forget the way to good fashion."

"Find a chamfron for that sheep, will you?" Cornelius suggested as Frigga and her family left the hall.

"Well?" Twilight looked around at Fluttershy, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Jack, Thorgil, and Baromett. "We have ONE HOUR, everypony! Rarity, lead the way!"

"Right!" Rarity set off at a brisk stride into the hall and toward the armory, and they emptied out the throne room.

...

Soon, Sif and the Warriors Three had assembled the Asgardian and Vanlandi warriors in one of the larger halls of the palace. Sif took her place before them to explain why they had been assembled that day.

"ASGARDIANS!" she cried, raising her sword to get their attention. "VANLANDI! We have been fooled by a powerful enemy. The Jötunns are not the ones who have wronged us!"

...

In an outer courtyard, Partholon addressed the Light Elves: "The Dark Elves have in the past been our greatest foes…and our greatest allies. History has intertwined our fates again and again. It seems as though we still remain bound by fate, and this time, it is as enemies."

...

In one of the basements, the Bugaboo stood before the Hobgoblins: "We don't know how many enemies we will be facing, but we will be certain to fight with all of our strength and honor!"

"Making it all the less probable that we will survive," the Nemesis groaned.

...

Yet another courtyard was taken up by the Shoney and the fin-folk. We are not to raze Jötunheim to the ground, as was promised, for our god, the Shoney explained. However, we shall still be given the chance for war. A war, in fact, against an evil that would surely please the dreaming lord in sacrifice. Let go of the notion that the Asgardians are our enemy. They shall lead us to a greater prize.

...

The royal family had moved swiftly to don clean armor and equip themselves with sharpened weapons. Before the meeting deadline was in place for the assembled armies, Odin, Frigga, Thor, Loki, Gwendolyn, Velvet, Oswald, and Cornelius returned to the throne room.

"Malekith is not an adversary to be taken lightly," Odin warned. "My own father was nearly vanquished by him. The toll he has taken on our land and people, as well as the other realms, has been immeasurable. It almost pains me to see my children forced into this battle. However, this is what you were raised to do: defend and fight with honor. You are all strong. My children by blood…" He looked to Thor, Gwendolyn, Loki (in the spirit of keeping the ruse alive), and eventually Velvet. "And those not." To Oswald and Cornelius.

"Odin, if I may…" Frigga stepped forward to address the six younger Asgardians. "If you wish to hold back from this fight – "

"Frigga, that would not be – " Odin tried to interrupt.

" – you may stay safe," Frigga went on, ignoring Odin. "I care about you all so much." Her face was stoic, but beginning to betray a tear or two hidden within her eyes. "If anything were to happen to you – "

"It is a risk I am willing to take," Thor told her.

"As am I," Loki added.

"And I!" Gwendolyn stated.

"I shall not hold back either!" Velvet added.

"It is not as though we have not already faced the end of the world itself," Oswald pointed out.

"And I shall fight to my last for thee!" Cornelius pledged.

"Father is right," Thor concluded. "To fight for Asgard and to defend it is our duty as Odinsons and Friggadaughters. It is even our duty to die for it if need be. But we shall not die in this battle! For we ARE Odinsons and Friggadaughters!" He raised Mjolnir high. "For the Nine Realms, for Asgard, and for each other, we shall PREVAIL! AND THERE IS NAUGHT THAT CAN COME BETWEEN US!"

Loki and Gwendolyn raised their spears to either side of Thor. Velvet lifted her chain as well. Then Oswald and Cornelius hefted their sword points high.

"Malekith the Accursed shall learn what he failed to learn when he was slain by Bor!" Thor declared. "That to challenge the family of Odin is to approach the gates of Valhalla itself!"

...

The six Equestrians didn't find much in the armory that looked more useful than what they already had. The only item they'd added was a metal chamfron, a helmet made for a foal, with a great spike protruding from it as though it were a unicorn's horn. This was fastened upon Baromett as tightly as they could manage; it seemed to fit the sheep well enough. Fluttershy made sure to keep him by her side so that he did not accidentally run about and poke holes in the wall with the chamfron's point.

"Okay, girls," Twilight said, beginning to pace back and forth in front of the other five. "We probably have only one shot to use the Elements of Harmony in this battle. And that shot is probably going to have to be on Malekith himself. We each need to get to him by our own path. Everypony agreed?"

"RIGHT!" Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Applejack agreed.

"AYE-AYE, CAPTAIN!" Pinkie Pie cried.

Twilight nodded. "Good. The only other thing I worry about is if he's got something there that's even worse and needs our attention more. If we had gone into the siege of Asgard with this strategy, we probably would have been focused on using the Elements on…well, you know who we would have used them on." And now he's helping us fight off a common enemy with no ulterior motive, she mentally added. "We would've missed Thanos, and everything would've gone up in flames. So if anypony thinks we're using the Elements on the wrong thing, make sure to speak up!"

"I just got one question," Applejack said.

"Yes, Applejack?" Twilight turned to her.

"Where're Jack an' Thorgil?"

"…Huh." Twilight looked around. "I thought they followed us to the armory. Do you think we should go look for them?"

"They know their way around," Rainbow Dash pointed out. "They know to get to the Bifrost in time."

"And if they're not there then, that's when we go find them," Twilight decided.

...

"What is the POINT of coming all the way down here?" Thorgil grumbled, following Jack down a winding hallway of the palace. "There's nothing useful here!"

"Exactly," Jack told her. "Nothing and no one. I don't want us to be overheard."

"What is SO secret that we can't let any of our friends know about it?"

The hallway terminated in a circular sitting area with three small couches against the walls and a wide Gothic window that overlooked the city below. "It's…complicated," Jack began. "But I think we have privacy here."

"So spit it out!" Thorgil crossed her arms. "What is WRONG with you?"

"It's just that…we're about to go to war." Jack was fumbling for the words.

"Yes we are," Thorgil confirmed. "I didn't forget about it. We only just talked about it less than an hour ago."

"No, no, that's not what I…" Jack sighed. "Maybe we'll be all right no matter what. We're only sort of alive. But we might be destroyed somehow, or separated."

"Even if we are destroyed, the worst that can happen is that we just go back to the Islands of the Blessed and we can't leave," Thorgil pointed out.

"Then we will be all right," Jack relented. "But I still don't want to march in without…without saying this."

"Then stop taking forever to say it!"

"Thorgil, I just…" Jack looked out the window. No. He had to say it directly to her or not at all. He looked back up and into her baffled eyes. He reached out, taking up one of her hands and clasping it in both of his. "I care about you a lot, Jill Allyson's Daughter. If you and I were separated, I don't know what I'd do anymore. I used to hate you more than anyone else in the world, but now I…don't. It's you I want to be with more than anyone else in the world. When we reached the Islands of the Blessed…I was glad we could go together. The idea of the school frightened me, but I knew I would at least have your company. You're very loud and very emotional, and you never stop boasting, and…that's what makes you who you are. You're more special than anyone I've ever known. I just thought…you needed to know that."

"Wha…WHAT?" Thorgil was flabbergasted, staring at Jack in utter shock for a good thirty seconds.

"I'm…sorry if that wasn't what you wanted to hear," Jack went on, nervous that his confession had been ill-timed, or perhaps best not said at all. "You could just forget I said anything."

"I KNEW it!" Thorgil brought up her other hand to grip Jack's tightly, nearly breaking his bones. "I KNEW you called me your love that day you thought I was killed by the Wild Hunt!"

"I did," Jack admitted, nearly a whisper.

"I can hardly BELIEVE this!" Thorgil crowed, smiling broadly. "You really DO love me! Well, then, it's a good thing I love you too!"

"You…do?" It was Jack's turn to be stunned.

"You're a lot stronger than I gave you credit for when I first met you," she explained happily. "But more importantly, you're the best friend I've ever had. Actually, more than that. Do you think I could have done anything I did without you? Enter the School of Bards without you? I was glad we could go together, too. Even if I was a little mad that you gave yourself my flying venom to do it. You were the one who wouldn't let me die at Mimir's Well by throwing that Rune of Protection on me, and I never got to pay you back for that. So if you don't mind, I'm not going to be letting you die in this battle, you hear me?"

She quickly leaned in to kiss Jack upon the mouth, and he nearly exploded with joy. When their lips parted, Thorgil laughed with mirth. "But don't think this is going to make me your housewife! I don't care what your mother or Heide or the Bard says! I'm not going to become some blushing, giggling seamstress with a hundred children!"

"I wouldn't want you to," Jack replied honestly. "Mostly because I don't think it's safe to let you around sewing or children."

"You're smart," Thorgil told him, lightly knocking the side of his head with her hand.

"So what happens now?" Jack asked.

"By Olaf One-Brow's tradition," Thorgil reminded him, "this would be the part where I throw you over my shoulder and carry you home."

"Could that wait until after the battle?" Jack asked, mostly serious. He had no doubt she would actually try to carry him off at some point.

"THE BATTLE!" Thorgil quickly seized Jack's hand and ran back down the hall from which they'd come. "We're going to miss it! Oh, that Dark Elf will regret the day he crossed the two of us!"

They reached the doors of the armory just as the six Equestrians were coming out. "Where WERE you?" Twilight asked.

"Just…finishing up some unfinished business," Jack said shyly.

"Ohhhhhhh." Rarity gave him a wink. "Right, of course. Unfinished business."

Jack blushed madly.

"Rarity, now ain't the time," Applejack reminded her.

"We've got a war to win!" Thorgil insisted. "NOW LET'S GO WIN IT!"

...

The eight hooves of Sleipnir pounded upon the rainbow bridge. Atop the horse, Odin rode tall, spear in hand. Behind him, Frigga, Thor, Loki, Gwendolyn, Oswald, Velvet, and Cornelius marched proudly in step Behind them came Twilight, Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Jack, and Thorgil; the latter two walked hand in hand. They marched mostly in sync, but Pinkie Pie couldn't help herself, and she bounded up and down along the Bifrost. Baromett trotted loyally at Fluttershy's feet. Behind them was the Asgardian army, comprised of Ragnanivalians (Valkyries included), Titanians, and Ringfordians; Sif, Fandral, Hogun, and Volstagg walked among them. Next came the Light Elves, marching as though they were controlled by a hive mind: steps in sync, every warrior standing up straight, bows held at their sides at the ready. Behind them came the fin-folk; they were not so orderly as the other armies, not even marching in rows, but each marching freely at his own tempo. Even less orderly were the hobgoblins, who hadn't formed rows at all, bringing up the last.

This procession quickly reached the sphere of the Bifrost, filtering inside. Heimdall, having been informed of the new situation, activated the portal to Svartalfheim, and Odin and Sleipnir rode directly in without hesitation; his family followed. The Equestrians were slightly more reluctant, knowing that great danger lay on the other side of the portal, but in they went all the same, and Pinkie Pie didn't even give a whoop of joy to ride it yet again. Jack quivered, but as Thorgil squeezed his hand, he was renewed with courage, and the pair marched forward into the swirling maelstrom of color. Each troop after that filtered in without a second thought. When the last of the hobgoblins was through, Heimdall closed the portal to Svartalfheim.

...

SVARTALFHEIM

A cold wind blew over the empty plains that stretched as far out as Odin could see. Empty, that is, to a degree. Great rocks jutted upward from all angles, breaking up the vision of the flat plain. And, of course, the armies of Asgard, Vanaheim, Alfheim, and Notland were present, filling the dead world with a sizeable crowd of life.

For a moment, the worry hung in the air that a mistake had been made. There was nothing to be seen. No Dark Elves. No Malekith. Perhaps he hadn't been a part of the scheme at all; perhaps they'd been led into a diversion, or worse, a trap.

Malekith, however, wasn't about to let them walk away.

When he was certain the Bifrost had closed and all were gathered, he materialized from the Darkness, staring Odin down from twenty feet away. "Odin, son of Bor," he greeted.

"Malekith," Odin growled. "So it was thee."

"I was hoping you would have been fooled long enough to tear the Jötunn fortress to the ground." Malekith's toothy smile was fully visible. "You apparently aren't as stupid as I took you for."

"Your intelligence begs calling into question," Odin retorted. "You have come alone to face the armies of many realms."

"You are mistaken," Malekith replied. "I am not alone. I have not been alone for a while."

Algrim stepped out from behind one of the rocks, moving to stand by Malekith.

"Algrim," Odin seethed. "Does your betrayal know no end?"

"Your destruction of the Dark Elves is what knows no end," Algrim retorted. "So long as you continue to chase us, to hunt us down…I must stand against you."

"Can you not see that Malekith is merely using you?" Thor called out. "That he is playing upon your loyalty and faith in him?"

"Is that not what you have done to me?" Algrim said hoarsely. "Abused my trust in you and let me continue to give my approval to the fact that you brought everything I knew and loved…to THIS?"

As Algrim kept speaking, Velma and Onyx revealed themselves, standing to either side of the pair.

"So that's Velma," Twilight muttered.

"Onyx!" Gwendolyn gasped, filled first with fear, then with rage.

Oswald's hand went to the hilt of his blade, tightening around it as he thought of the advances Onyx had made upon his wife, as he recalled Onyx's attempt to trap Gwendolyn in a sleeping curse that would let her remain his and never awaken to tell him that she did not love him. "It seems we should not have taken the warning lightly," he seethed. "The dead have come back to life in greater numbers than we imagined."

Yffi was next, and Jack gasped sharply: "King Yffi!"

"The half-kelpie?" Thorgil was flabbergasted. "What sort of army did this Malekith put together after all?"

Nuada and Nuala were next to stand in line. "You have brought children of Balor into this," Odin stated.

"Children of Balor who only wish to take what is rightfully ours," Nuada proclaimed.

"Is that what you think this is?" Thor cried. "A crusade for justice?"

"No," the final voice said from beyond the rocks before its owner strode into view. "It is a crusade for revenge."

All of Odin's family gasped in shock. It was Velvet who dared utter his name: "I…Ingway…"

He did not see her; he was focused on Odin. "Revenge for all you've done to us," Ingway went on, clenching his fists, nearly shaking as he moved out in front of Malekith himself, much to Malekith's delight. "For the lies you told, for the children you abandoned. For the worlds you have destroyed, and the worlds your war has destroyed. For those who draw breath no more because of your greed! Mercedes is dead because you wished to hold the most power of anyone in the Nine Realms! Do you think of her, Demon Lord? Or is she nothing to you, just the daughter of an enemy that needed to be slain? The rest of us have been brought to our knees because of you and people like you. Nuada and Nuala, their heritage lost, cast out by Balor. Velma, betrayed by Death himself. Algrim and Malekith: look at what you have made of their world! And to think I once reveled in the tales of our victories over the Dark Elves! And I…I have nothing left because of you. Look at us, Demon Lord! Look at the betrayed and the outcast! LOOK AT WHAT YOU AND THOSE LIKE YOU HAVE DONE!" When he lowered his voice, it induced more chills than his scream had: "And fear us. For we've nothing more to lose. But you stand to lose everything, and so we shall take it from you this day."

"I see," Odin replied, hefting his spear. "Ingway…you do not have to cast your lot with Malekith. You could have stood with us. You "

"SPARE ME!" Ingway spat.

"I had a feeling this would be the case," Odin sighed. "That your mind could not be changed." He pointed his spear directly at the eight. "I offer you one last chance to surrender. Though you may be powerful, you cannot stand against us in such small numbers."

"Of that, you are correct," Malekith said, nearly laughing. "There are only eight of us that you can see. We could not possibly stand a chance against the armies of four realms!" Then he truly did laugh. "That is why we have assembled an army of our own!"

The shadows slid over the plain, out from beneath the rocks, surrounding Malekith and his company by the hundreds, filling the plains entirely. They rose up and took solid form: three-dimensional silhouettes of the Dark Elves they once had been, with eyes made up of glowing light pinpricks. Their numbers rivaled the army that had entered via the Bifrost.

"You see those who have destroyed you!" Malekith commanded. "Now do what you so desperately wish to do and DESTROY THEM!"

The frontmost shadows burst forward, toward the frontlines of the opposing army, at lightning speed, and those behind prepared to follow.

"FOR ASGAAAARD!" Thor cried, flying out in front of Odin with Mjolnir swinging, and as he burst onto the battlefield, the rest followed, shadows of the dead clashing with the blades of the living.

Fandral, Hogun, and Volstagg immediately went back-to-back-to-back, drawing their swords to slash out at the oncoming hordes. The shadowy elves bit at the bait, attempting to seize the chance to eliminate three Asgardians in one shot, and so they rushed the trio from all sides, only to be decapitated, run through, and cleaved in half by their blades.

"Now this is just what we needed!" Volstagg laughed. "A true battle in which to prove our valor!"

"If only there were something we could bring back from them as proof," Fandral lamented.

"Everyone we would need to prove our victory to is here," Hogun pointed out.

A shrill scream pierced the air, and Fandral recognized it at once. "Rarity!" he gasped. "Can the two of you hold off the horde?"

"Go to her!" Volstagg urged.

Fandral broke away from the group, leaving Hogun and Volstagg to close in back-to-back. He ducked in and around the shadows, and for a moment, he ran parallel to the charging Frigga. Their paths diverted; Frigga was a woman on a mission to bring down as many shadows as she could single-handedly. With a single sword stroke, she cut through one that leapt up in her way, attempting to claw at her face. Bringing the sword back, she stabbed into another, reducing it to an unmoving patch of darkness on the ground. Three of them slid across the ground like mist, reaching for her ankles; Frigga leapt high, positioning her sword in front of herself and downward. When she landed, the sword skewered through the top of the head of another shadow, evaporating it.

Watching Frigga, Nimüe calmly strode out onto the battlefield. A horde of the shadows leapt toward her from the ground and air. She thrust her arms out to her sides, and a wash of magic radiated outward from her, making a sonic disruption in the air. All shadows that touched it were immediately vaporized. The warriors behind Nimüe took the opportunity to charge through the crowd toward the eight living warriors.

The first to reach Malekith was the Shoney. The fin-man jabbed his trident at Malekith's chest only to have Malekith's wrist flick downward and block the trident's neck, holding the weapon in place, the points only centimeters away from piercing his skin. "You wish to sacrifice me to the dreaming lord?" Malekith laughed. He flicked his wrist, batting the weapon's head aside. "I'm flattered, Shoney."

In the meantime, Partholon charged Algrim with a yell, sword cutting through the air. Algrim's blade blocked it with a loud CLING. Once Partholon had extended the invitation to battle, and Algrim had accepted, the two became locked, their swords clashing repeatedly, making a metallic cacophony.

The Shoney attempted another stab at Malekith, only for Malekith to seize the trident's shaft in his hands and bend it until it snapped in half. Enraged, the Shoney leapt at Malekith as though to tear him apart with his bare hands. He was hit square in the chest with a burst of dark fire. Not enough to kill him; the Shoney was much tougher than your average bard in the physical sense. Yet the fin-man was knocked back onto the hard ground, the will to move drained from him. His breathing was ragged, sounding as the gasps of a fish above water. If his bulbous eyes could have closed, they would have been shut tight, but as it were, he was unable to block out the view of the battlefield as he fell.

Malekith advanced to deal the killing blow and was promptly hit squarely in the chest by Mjolnir, knocked over backward, landing flat on his back in the dust.

At the same time, Algrim had overpowered Partholon, knocking the Light Elf king's sword from his hands. "Glamour has made you weak," he taunted before taking a swing directly at the unarmed Partholon, a swing that might have severed parts of his body from the rest of it. As he drew back for the swing, he heard the fierce yell of Odin and the stamping of eight hooves. Before the sword could bite into Partholon, Odin rode past the pair, shoving his spear in between them so that the shaft of it caught Algrim and knocked him away. Partholon took the time to run, seeking out a warrior with a spare blade he could take.

Several fin-folk warriors gathered around the Shoney, picking him up and running him to the edge of the battlefield, swearing revenge in his name as they left Malekith and Algrim to face down Thor and Odin.

The Bugaboo and his Nemesis charged after Odin and Thor, intent on bolstering their assault on Malekith, but another warrior leapt in their way, blocking their path. Yffi inhaled deeply. "I knew I smelled hobgoblin!" he cried wickedly.

"NO!" The Nemesis quivered all over; it was a wonder he was still standing. "NOT YOU! NOT AGAIN! YOU WERE DEAD!"

The Bugaboo was struck silent with fear.

"Oh, but I'm not!" Yffi cried gleefully. "Oh, the gloriousness of fate to put the hobgoblin king back in front of me! I'll never forget that smell! Riper and juicier than any other hobgoblin! The ecstasy!" He smacked his lips; he was salivating. He broke into song: "Scrumptious and savory, toothsome and flavory…" As he crooned, he removed his mask, revealing his face. It was similar to that of the fin-folk, with a fishy mouth and bone-white skin. "Nothing so tasty AS HOBGOBLIN PASTRY!" He lunged forth, driven so by his hunger that he was about to tear into the Bugaboo's flesh with his exposed mouth.

The Bugaboo would later tell his people that he wished he had stood his ground. He wished he had raised his spear. He wished he had fought valiantly. But the truth was, Yffi terrified him so much, his response was to cover his head and brace himself for the end.

It was the Nemesis, he had to admit, who was quicker to action. The Nemesis did not attempt to attack Yffi. However, a king's Nemesis' primary job was to stop his king from doing stupid things, and there seemed little more stupid to the Nemesis than letting oneself die. That was why the Nemesis leapt between Yffi and the Bugaboo, his arms outstretched to form himself into a wall between his king and their assassin.

Yffi never reached either. He was tackled from the side by a blur of a warrior, sent rolling over and over across the battlefield, tripping up a multitude of shadows, locked in the angry embrace of his assailant. When they stopped rolling, the warrior leapt to her feet, pointing the blade of her katana straight downward at Yffi's face.

"HOW DARE YOU!" Fluttershy screamed. "YOU THINK YOU CAN JUST GO AROUND TRYING TO EAT WHOEVER YOU WANT? DON'T YOU EVEN CARE ABOUT THE FACT THAT THEY'RE PEOPLE WITH LIVES? ONE OF THEM IS A KING!"

"I KNOW!" Yffi spat, twisting in such a way that Fluttershy stumbled; Yffi got to his feet quickly, drawing his blade. "That's what would have made him all the more DELICIOUS!"

"You…YOU MONSTER!" Fluttershy leapt, slashing wildly.

Yffi couldn't keep up at all. His sword slipped against Fluttershy's, and he fell prey to her anger. At first, his consolation came when her blade struck him and he realized it left no physical wounds. "Your blade is useless!" he laughed, lowering his to just let Fluttershy strike him again, reveling in her futility. When she was through, staring him down, he laughed yet again, lifting his own sword.

And immediately dropped it, baffled as to when his arms had become so tired.

"BAAAAAA!" Baromett charged across the field, headbutting into Yffi's legs. His chamfron didn't pierce the half-kelpie's armor, but one push off balance was all Yffi required to completely fall over. Yffi fell to the ground, asleep and snoring. Fluttershy leapt over him, continuing her run across the battlefield.

Twilight and Sif had focused their energies on engaging Velma. "We know everything you've done!" Twilight announced. "Tying up Loki? Hiding the portal Malekith wanted to use to hide Mjolnir?"

"And I suppose you know that I am also the one who summoned the spirits of the Dark Elves!" Velma folded her arms proudly, smirking.

"Uh…" Twilight stared in shock. "We…didn't know that part."

Ever since she had called Malekith's army into being, Velma had ridden an emotional high. Confidence she never before had surged through her. "So ends the days of lowly Velma Green, teased for her nerdiness!" she boasted. "And SO BEGINS THE REIGN OF VELMA GREEN, THE SPIDER QUEEN! AAAAA-HAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!"

"SILENCE!" Sif rushed Velma, blade drawn.

Velma spun a 360, and a strand of silk was loosed with a CRACK, wrapping around Sif like a whip. Sif stumbled and fell, her arms bound to her sides and her mouth covered in white. Her sword slid across the field, and Velma picked it up. "What are you going to do NOW?" she taunted. "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAA! Oh, I had never truly realized how fun evil laughter could be! I must do this more often!"

"That's seriously getting annoying," Twilight responded. She charged up a plasma blast in her hands, shooting it directly at Velma.

Velma ducked the blast, shielding her eyes from the brightness and letting it slam into a shadow behind her. Her smirk returned: "Is that REALLY the best you can do?"

Twilight was at a loss. This was where she would call up her staff and use it to fling a high-powered spell at Velma, disabling the spider-woman from battle. She struggled to think of what she would have done before.

Velma rushed her with Sif's sword. In a panic, Twilight summoned her wand to her hand, flicking it. "EXPELLIARMUS!"

The charm smacked right into Velma's sword hand, sending Sif's weapon flying. It came down, point down, on another shadow, disintegrating it. "STOP MAKING ME HIT MY OWN ARMY!" Velma seethed.

"YOU stop trying to ruin the Nine Realms!" Twilight countered. She looked to Sif to see if perhaps she could be of help, but Sif was still thoroughly bound, struggling against the spider silk.

"Your friend cannot help you now," Velma reiterated. She whirled about again, and a strand of spider silk whipped toward Twilight.

"DIFFINDO!"

The silk was severed in midair, falling uselessly to the ground.

Twilight turned the wand toward Sif to cast the Severing Charm at her and free her, but no sooner had she done that than her wand hand became entangled in another rope of spider silk. Velma tugged the other end of it, laughing all the harder. Twilight struggled, unable to free her hand; the wand's shot went wild. A Flipendo jinx collided with another shadow.

"OH, FOR GOODNESS' SAKE!" Velma cried.

Twilight let go of the wand, letting it fall. She wasn't going to risk having her compromised aim send an ill-placed spell at one of her friends. She instead reached down deep into the heart of Svartalfheim, seeking the life force. It was incredibly weak. Twilight asked for fire and was rewarded with the merest flicker that went out after five seconds. She wondered if Rumplestiltskin had known how much of a disadvantage his deal had put her at in this battle. Giving up on bard magic, Twilight used her free hand to charge up another plasma blast.

Velma calmly began to sing, her voice reaching out over the plains of Svartalfheim. Its life force was nearly dormant, and she and her seven cohorts were the only inhabitants of noteworthy size to regard for an ordinary battle. However, that was not to say that there were no other life forms whatsoever on Svartalfheim. Several very tiny creatures existed, living in pockets in the ground, and when they heard Velma's call, they found themselves entranced. As the spiders came out from beneath rocks and between dunes, they amassed, and so many tiny creatures formed a larger wave.

"NO!" Twilight screamed when she saw them coming for her, desperately trying to pull away from the hold Velma had on her hand. She threw the plasma bolt at the wave of spiders. It hit the center, and a bunch of the arachnids were thrown up into the air, almost comically. They landed back on the ground, reforming the wave, surging toward Twilight.

Twilight feared the worst: that the spiders would eat her alive or use her as a nest for eggs. She got off lucky in that regard: as they rushed over her, all they did was leave trails of silk, binding Twilight up tightly in a cocoon of white, forcing her to lay prone on the ground. The spiders then left and went on their way.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAA!" Velma guffawed at the sight of both Twilight and Sif bound up and unable to move. "HAHAHAHA – EHHHHH?"

She'd caught sight of Frigga charging toward her like an angry eagle.

Frigga's sword cut through the silk around Twilight, and Twilight stood quickly, picking up her wand in the process. Velma whipped a length of silk at Frigga; Frigga outran it, then ducked below it and let it harmlessly pass over her head before it wrapped up two shadows.

"That gag stopped being funny a while ago," Velma sighed, arms folded.

Frigga cut through the silk binding Sif. Sif dashed behind Velma, picking up her fallen sword. Twilight, Frigga, and Sif faced Velma down from three angles, advancing toward her.

"Now, now!" Velma put up her hands, realizing she was outmatched. "I'm sure that we can all come to some sort of understanding!" Before Twilight could opt to hear her out or Frigga could dismiss her plea for mercy, she concluded, "Such as the understanding that you were all too SLOW FOR THE SPIDER QUEEN!"

She turned and made a mad dash between Sif and Frigga, her eyes focused on Malekith. If she could just get close to him, she thought, the combination of his strength with hers would make them both unbeatable.

In the meantime, Oswald, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity had converged upon Onyx. "What a beautiful young maiden we have here," Onyx remarked, his eyes glimmering with lust.

"HEY!" Before Rarity could summon her bow, Rainbow Dash stepped out front of her, her armor morphing into her witch clothing and her sword materializing in her hands. "DON'T TALK TO RARITY LIKE THAT!"

Onyx merely laughed, his form changing. He tripled in size, taking on the shape of a minotaur with enormous horns, a fang-filled mouth, and spikes protruding from his back. His hands were encapsulated in enormous iron gauntlets. His skin, now the color of ash, was stretched so tightly over the bones that a fire within his body was visible, tinting him red from the inside.

Rainbow Dash leapt at Onyx with a wild yell, but was knocked aside by his great fist. Rarity had brought out her bow, loosing a single arrow at Onyx; it barely affected him, and his other hand swept downward, toward Rarity, surrounding and enclosing her. "HEY!" Rarity cried as Onyx's fist closed around her, lifting her into the air. Her arms were pinned; her bow dissipated. Angrily, Rarity kicked out at Onyx, but to no effect.

"PUT HER DOWN RIGHT NOW!" Rainbow Dash cried, spreading her wings and becoming airborne. On the ground, Oswald drew his blade, charging at Onyx. Both were stymied when Onyx's entire body save for the fist holding Rarity emitted the bright orange glow of a live flame. Both backed away, unable to approach the heat. Onyx roared, and from his bull-like mouth came a stream of fire, alighting upon the dusty ground. Even with nothing to burn, the fire still raged, threatening to singe Oswald.

That was when Rarity, terrified, screamed.

Rainbow Dash took off higher into the air, looking around for clouds, any clouds. Though the air of Svartalfheim felt dry, clouds did exist. Once Rainbow Dash had located them, she circled them, pulling them together. The clouds amalgamated into a great cumulus, which Rainbow Dash gave a sharp kick to induce rain. The shower poured down onto Onyx and his fire, eliminating the flames on the ground and cooling Onyx's body temperature. The water also had the effect of pouring down onto Rarity's expertly coiffed mane, which made her slightly miffed, though she fully realized it was the least of her problems.

With a clear shot at Onyx, Oswald drew a vial from his pocket and launched it through the air. He had been sure to utilize the pre-battle preparation time to load himself down with all sorts of alchemized creations, including the green gel in the glass he had thrown at Onyx. When the glass shattered at Onyx's feet, the viscous liquid congealed into the semblance of a small creature with a rudimentary face. The green slime monster crawled its way around Onyx's feet, leaving a thick layer of slime in its wake. Onyx found that he could not move his feet, and attempted to lift them in vain, but he was stuck in place by the slime creature.

Rainbow Dash and Oswald were both ready to rush Onyx again, but they were beaten to the punch. Fandral leapt up onto Onyx's back, swiping his sword right across the fiery king's giant shoulders. Crying out in pain, Onyx let go of Rarity, who tumbled downward, on a collision course with the pool of slime. Rainbow Dash swept down and caught Rarity, flying her toward Oswald and depositing her on dry ground.

"I shall NOT stand by to see you torment a maiden so!" Fandral cried before dealing another non-fatal stroke to Onyx. Onyx's body shuddered beneath him, and Fandral realized the king was about to shrink to his original size. The Asgardian warrior leapt off Onyx's back and landed on dry ground, next to Oswald, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity. He turned to the latter, giving a short bow: "Are you all right, my lady?"

"Oh, GOODNESS." Rarity suddenly felt a blush rising into her face. "Why, I certainly am. After all, it isn't every day that I'm rescued from peril by such a charming knight – "

"Okay, we don't have time for this." Rainbow Dash seized Rarity's hand and pulled her along across the battlefield.

"We shall handle Onyx!" Oswald called after them, and he and Fandral turned their attentions to the now human-sized Onyx, submerged in slime and willing to surrender.

At the end of the battlefield where Malekith and Algrim stared down Thor and Odin, Thor called out, "Father! Take care of Malekith! I shall handle Algrim!" He then rushed Malekith's second-in-command, Mjolnir drawn.

Odin, in response, charged Malekith, spear pointed directly at the Dark Elf leader's heart. Just as the spear point would have pierced Malekith's armor and skin, Malekith was gone, reappearing behind Odin. Odin quickly steered Sleipnir to turn around. Malekith loosed a burst of dark fire at the eight-legged horse; Odin quickly countered with a magical deflection shield. Leaping off Sleipnir, Odin charged Malekith on foot, striking out with his spear again and again; Malekith disappeared and reappeared each time, taunting Odin.

Thor approached Algrim slowly, Mjolnir raised. "I do not wish to hurt thee," he admitted. "Algrim, you helped raise me from childhood. You were a friend! You may still put down the sword and return to us!"

"And return to what?" Algrim replied grimly. "You still do not understand. You never have. There is nothing for me in your realm but misery."

"And nothing but misery awaits you with Malekith!" Thor cried. "He lies! When he tires of you, then you shall be cast aside!"

"He would do no such thing!" Algrim yelled back. "It is your prejudice that causes you to say such things! Hatred, for Dark Elves, for Jötunns…it is only hatred that lives within you!"

"And what about you?" Thor retorted. "What lives in you, if not hatred?"

"Justice," Algrim seethed.

The two charged at each other.

Odin's spear-point finally outmatched Malekith, nicking his skin, drawing blood. Malekith ceased his teleportation for a moment. Odin attempted to quickly stab him during this window, but Malekith put up a deflection shield of his own as he took the time to run his thumb over the bleeding spot and then lick the blood off the digit. "You must think we are well matched," Malekith remarked.

Odin struck out with his spear again, this time using it to conduct a burst of light that shattered Malekith's magical barrier. Malekith teleported about ten feet away from Odin, evading another strike. "You have no idea of the depth of my powers," he boasted, his mad grin surfacing. When Malekith spread out his arms, his entire body was suddenly enveloped in a dark aura that erupted like flames. The very earth trembled. He faced Odin directly, challenging him.

Odin knew he was being invited, and sensed a trap. However, he did not know what option to take besides rushing Malekith directly.

As Odin began his charge, Malekith flung both arms toward where Algrim and Thor charged each other. Before the two could even connect in battle, a great chasm opened beneath them at Malekith's will. Both stumbled; both fell into the wound opening up in the earth.

"NO! MY SON!" Odin abandoned his charge, barreling instead toward the still-opening ravine.

Thor knew it was Malekith's doing. He did not know if Algrim had come to the same conclusion. He had been caught off guard, and so he plummeted downward, able to see a bright red river of magma coursing at the bottom of the canyon: the method of execution Malekith had chosen for him, and Algrim had just so happened to be in the way. Quickly, Thor swung Mjolnir, steering himself for upward flight. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Algrim slam hard into the side of the rocky chasm and bounce off, flipping in midair before hitting the wall again. At least one of those times, Thor was sure, his head had collided with the rocks. Thor had no way of knowing if Algrim was still alive, and it was a safe bet that he wasn't.

Algrim somehow landed feet first in the river of magma. His boots protected his feet, for the most part, which is to say they only let the skin suffer severe burns instead of melting it completely off. He sank the rest of the way in, up to his head, one arm flailing upward from the momentum of the fall, and his armor did the favor of protecting the rest of his body in the same way. His sword had already sunken and melted.

Thor grasped Algrim's arm before the Dark Elf's head could go under, saving him from what would have been certain death. He propelled upward, into the air, flying out of the chasm with an unmoving Algrim in tow.

By the time Odin got to the edge, Thor rocketed out, and Odin was relieved to see his son unharmed, though confused as to why he was carrying their enemy. When Thor landed, he gently but quickly lay Algrim out on the ground, rifling through his armor for a healing tonic. Odin, confused, looked on. "He is hurt badly," Thor informed Odin, out of breath, "yet he lives." He lifted the neck of the tonic bottle to Algrim's lips, pouring it down his throat.

The potion went to work on the burns, but while it prevented them from doing any more damage and returned Algrim's general health, it could only go so far. Beneath his armor, his skin still bore the markings of burns. Since Algrim had fallen into the chasm and hit his head, he'd been in a dreamlike half-conscious state. His head had emptied, leaving darkness and confusion. For a while, all he knew was sensations. Falling, burning, flying, lying down, healing. A few important details had gone missing in all the trauma, such as where he was, what his name was, or who the people were around him.

Slowly, it came back in pieces. He was fighting in Svartalfheim for…something. He answered to Malekith…Malekith, a mischievous smile, fingers drumming on his arm, a feeling of restored hope. Malekith was good. He had been fighting Thor and Odin…enemies, though he was not so sure why at that moment as he had been before the fall. The memory returned to him fuzzily: he'd been fighting Thor before the earth had opened up to consume him. Thor must have been responsible, he deduced. And the fall was what left him so broken in his body and mind. Thor had wrecked him.

He opened his eyes to find Thor kneeling over him, and was instantly overcome with rage.

Thor only had time enough to say "Al – "

Algrim's hands locked around Thor's neck, squeezing hard.

Odin jammed his spear downward, attempting to skewer Algrim through the head for attacking his son. Algrim let go of Thor and rolled away, leaping to his feet.

"ALGRIM!" Malekith cried. "STOP FOOLING AROUND AND COME TO ME!"

Algrim could not resist the call of Malekith's voice: it stood out to him as goodness, as safety. He turned his back on Thor and Odin and ran. The more he thought about it, the more he realized he associated the two gods with the endangerment of Malekith. That was what had led to their confrontation. Thor and Odin had tried to harm his Malekith, and that was why he had leapt into action. If they tried it again, he would make sure they did not survive the attempt.

A wall of Dark magic shot up in a circular area around Thor and Odin, courtesy of Malekith, fencing father and son in. The shadowy spirits began to rise up from the ground, bent on eliminating the Asgardians.

"Hardly a challenge," Thor remarked, twirling Mjolnir.

Odin braced his spear. "At the ready, my son."

Mjolnir was raised into the sky, and the clouds that Rainbow Dash had called to hover over Onyx slid through the atmosphere to create a roof over the fence of Darkness. At Thor's behest, lightning struck within the circle, bringing down the shadows en masse as Odin darted between the bolts, spearing those that survived the blast.

Velma had seen it all. She had seen how casually Malekith was willing to throw away Algrim if it meant getting what he wanted. She may have been naïve enough to fall for betrayal once, but she wasn't about to fall prey to it yet again. Her plan changed. No longer did she wish to ask Malekith's assistance. The moment she saw him send Algrim tumbling to his doom, she realized that he was as much of a danger to her as Odin was, and she was surrounded by his forces, the very forces she'd called up out of the depths of Niflheim. She had to get away. Preferably out of the realm altogether.

Her eyes flickered to the chasm. Perhaps it held a gateway out. After all, it probably opened deep toward the heart of the realm. She scuttled to its edge, looking down inside. The river of magma flowed thickly below, but the chasm tapered off into a cavern that more than likely connected to the tunnels below Yggdrassil. That was her ticket out. Velma attached a strand of webbing to the chasm's edge as a safety tether before looking back at the battlefield. "Hopefully, I won't have to deal with any of YOU for another couple hundred chapters!" she barked to anyone who would listen before leaping over the edge, landing on the side of the wall, where her spider legs allowed her to crawl without falling all the way to the cavern, where she entered and used the ceiling as a safe path over the magma and into the depths.

Ingway had waited patiently. At last, his chance had come. He let the dark powers within him take over his body, twisting and transforming it. He became even larger than Onyx had become, taking on the form of a great dog, a hellhound with three heads, akin to Cerberus. His fur was a dusty brown, and his fangs sharp. He raised all heads high, letting out a triple howl in harmony that chilled all who heard it. He was consumed by a ravenous hunger, one that urged him to pick right from the battlefield and eat; this always reared its head whenever he utilized the Darkova. And this time, he was in no mood to attempt to hold back from giving in to it.

His right head breathed a cloud of darkness over the earth, weakening all who were hapless enough to enter it while attempting to attack him. His left head's breath became a stream of fire, lighting up the earth in the same way Onyx had earlier. His central head leaned down close to the ground to breathe forth a chilling wind that solidified itself into spikes of ice, forming a protective wall.

The wall of ice was smashed by Volstagg and Hogun's blades in unison. "You wanted a bigger challenge than those shadows?" Hogun asked Volstagg. "This is it."

"Hold up!" Applejack ran in between them, brandishing her whip. "Ain't you two missin' somepony?" She winked.

"He went to rescue a damsel in distress," Volstagg laughed. "For now, thou shalt be the third of the Warriors Three, Applejack! Attack the head on the left while I take the right and Hogun takes the center!"

"RIGHT!" Applejack replied before the trio launched their charge.

The central head spat out a great lump of ice; Hogun knocked it aside with his sword. Another ice projectile met the same fate. When Hogun was merely a few feet away, Ingway's central mouth blasted fully upon him, and Hogun realized he'd been led into a trap. He was sealed in the center of a pillar of ice, unable to move, only able to watch the scene unfold around him.

Volstagg, in the meantime, was met with one of Ingway's other powers. Instead of a stream or ball of fire, a ring of flame burst from Ingway's left head – to the right from Volstagg's view – and landed neatly around the Asgardian warrior like a victory at a carnival game. Flames shot up into the air, walling Volstagg in.

Applejack was met with the cloud of darkness. She ran straight into it, holding her breath, refusing to let any of it enter her body. It gave her skin chills and sweats; it made her feel weak and shaky. She stumbled to her knees. The cloud hung above the ground, and there was clear air below; keeping her head low, Applejack inhaled greedily.

Ingway looked over his prospects. The hunger still burned within him. He had a choice between a frozen treat in Hogun, a very large serving of practically roasted Volstagg, and an Applejack spicy with darkness. He settled on Volstagg, reaching down to seize the Asgardian within his jaws, his own fire not even singing his fur.

Volstagg, seeing the approaching doom, jammed his blade upward, aiming for the roof of Ingway's mouth. It slammed against the canine fangs, tooth struggling against metal.

Applejack burst from the darkness, casting her whip around the jaws of the head hovering over Volstagg. The mouth was slammed and bound closed; the sword blade broke.

Applejack's armor gave way to her Mahou Shoujo clothing. She'd judged Ingway to be far too dangerous for conventional methods; it was time to bring out the big guns, so to speak. She cast her whip, throwing all of her magical energy into it, and it lengthened almost infinitely, wrapping up the hellhound. Ingway struggled against the binding uselessly.

Cornelius and Velvet surged over the battlefield. Velvet's chain bit into shadow after shadow as Cornelius ran them through with his blade. They kept their eyes on the prize: the hellhound. The pair of Pookas ran nearly in sync; Cornelius' sword smashed open Hogun's icy prison while Velvet threw a cooler at the flames around Volstagg. "GO!" Velvet yelled at the two warriors once they were freed.

"And abandon this battle?" Volstagg groaned.

"Applejack has already won it," Hogun reminded him, and that was good enough for Volstagg to follow him into the fray and beat down more shadows.

"INGWAY!" Velvet cried to the enormous hound. "STOP THIS NOW!"

Ingway halted his struggling. He stared in disbelief at the two Pookas. One of them he recognized immediately as Cornelius. Cornelius, the one who had battled him in his final hour during the near apocalypse and put his soul to rest. The other was unfamiliar to him at first, but he recognized her voice, and then her identity became clear.

When Ingway had resolved to destroy all Asgardian life he came across, he had not counted on Cornelius or Velvet still being part of it.

The hound seemed to collapse in on itself. Ingway took his humanoid shape once more. Applejack's ropes still bound him, shrinking to fit their captive. "Velvet…" Ingway breathed. "You're alive…I did not think you survived…"

"We lived because of you!" Cornelius insisted. "Your final words to us, about finding the Cauldron! We were able to put a stop to it and save Asgard!"

"Ingway, please," Velvet begged. "I thought this wound had healed within you. I thought…I thought it had healed when you…" She quivered. "They told me that our enemies were the risen dead. I never stopped to think that might mean you were alive as well."

"Velvet." Ingway's voice was stern. "Your survival…it…it changes things. But not enough. Odin must still pay for what he has done – "

"We have been accepted as his children!" Cornelius insisted.

"Perhaps for his appearance," Ingway theorized. "Or perhaps because Frigga forced his hand. But I am the one he would never forgive, though I have given him the most of all of you! What would happen if he found it politically advantageous to get rid of either of you, to cast you out? He would even turn on Gwendolyn, Thor, or Loki!"

"You don't know that," Velvet said pleadingly.

"It is still his war that killed Mercedes," Ingway hissed. "Sweet, pure Mercedes…"

"Was it his hand that killed her?" Cornelius asked. "Odin was dead long before she was!"

"There is nothing you can say that shall make me forgive Odin!" Ingway growled. "And there is NOTHING you can say that shall not make me yearn for his blood on my hands! But you…I cannot destroy either of you…you do not deserve it."

Applejack was amazed at what had seemed to come over Ingway. He was thoroughly shaken by the appearance of Cornelius and Velvet, and his voice betrayed a great emotional strain, as though his heart were weighed down.

"No," Ingway decided, "the two of you…you must live. But you are the only things. Life shall continue to be cruel to you, but I cannot put an end to it for either of you. No…I can only serve to make life less cruel by destroying those who poison it."

"YOU WILL NOT KILL FOR ME!" Velvet screamed. "That will not protect me!"

"But what can I do?" Ingway implored. "There is nothing else worth fighting for in all of the Realms."

"Except apparently Malekith." Applejack's voice dripped venom.

"He understands," Ingway replied coldly. "As do the others."

"Malekith ordered you to kill your own sister and brother-in-law," Applejack reminded him.

"He did not know they would be alive," Ingway argued. "None of us could have known that THEY…would be alive!"

"I think he knew full well what he was askin' you to do," Applejack stated. "So are you gonna keep fightin' for him, or are you gonna fight for your family? 'Cause it sounds like there ain't many people you consider family. And both of 'em are right here."

"I…" Ingway struggled to find the words; the revelation still shook him. Particularly that Cornelius had attributed their survival to him. It most likely was not inaccurate. Ingway had told him upon his death to sabotage the Cauldron, that is was the source of the destruction. But then he had passed, and he never saw the fruits of that final message. Yet it was not to induce a change of heart. "I knew…if they lived…that they would revile me. It is too late for me."

"It is not!" Velvet insisted.

"I do not know what sort of soul you think I am," Ingway told her, "but at the least, it is one you believe worth protecting. This is your mistake."

"Your soul's worth just as much as hers!" Applejack insisted.

"Please…Ingway…" Velvet begged. "Stop this…"

"Do you expect Odin to welcome me with open arms?" Ingway spat. "Do you expect me to walk among the streets of whatever is left of Ragnanival and not be filled with hatred at the sight of it? I no longer belong in Asgard. Even if you believe there is another path for me, that does not make it true. You and Cornelius are safe from me, but you are not enough."

"And what WOULD be enough?" Applejack asked.

She never received an answer. The ropes she had wrapped around Ingway burst into dark flame: a spell cast by Malekith. "INGWAY!" Malekith barked. "TO ME! NOW! WE HAVE THE BARDS!"

Ingway knew what that meant. He turned and bolted toward Malekith and Algrim.

"The bards?" Applejack gasped. "JACK! THORGIL!" She took off running after Ingway, her Asgardian armor reappearing.

Loki speared three shadows in succession before using a burst of energy to knock another ten away. He very nearly didn't notice the Dark Elf sliding beneath the shadows, using them as cover, before leaping to full height to attempt to spear Loki through the heart. Loki's spear clashed with Nuada's, forcing it aside, locking metal against metal. "Still on our fool's errand, are we?" Loki taunted.

"It may seem a fool's errand to you." Nuada twisted out of the range of Loki's spear, letting it cut down on empty air as the god stumbled and the Dark Elf spun to get a clear shot at Loki's back. Nuada stabbed directly at Loki's spine; Loki was quick to duck the spear and turn, aiming his own at Nuada's legs. Nuada danced away, letting Loki stand before charging him again. Nuada spun, hoping his blade would helicopter into Loki's body; Loki blocked it with his weapon again, and with a slight "clink," the two spears met and parted. Nuada took his stance a few feet away from Loki; "Perhaps one day you will understand. As a god, it should be clear to you. Humans are not for us to guide, to let ruin our worlds. And neither are your kind."

"What is it like inside your head?" Loki asked mockingly. "I picture something akin to a sack of wildcats."

Nuada leapt at Loki; Loki caught him in the stomach with a blast of magic in midair. It knocked Nuada to the ground, but the Dark Elf landed on his feet, immediately taking off toward Loki. Loki cast bolt after bolt of blue, but Nuada zigged and zagged around them all, forcing Loki to put up his spear again. The two spears clashed, the pair locked in close combat.

BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG!

Pinkie Pie emptied the rounds of two magical pistols at Nuada; that threw the Dark Elf to the ground at long last in a shower of confetti and glitter. Pinkie discarded her guns and summoned two more. "You wanna party?" she growled. "Okay. LET'S PARTY. AND NOT THE KIND WITH CAKE."

Once Nuada was back on his feet, he was able to step around Pinkie's shots with ease. When he turned his focus on her, Loki rushed him from behind. A leap to the side, and Nuada left Loki charging full speed at Pinkie Pie, much to the horror of both; Loki dug his feet into the ground before he could accidentally spear her. Nuada calculated, when they were next to each other, the angle at which he could strike to decapitate both. When he did swing, Pinkie Pie's head sank down on her neck in a way he hadn't expected to be physically possible, almost burying between her shoulders, and the spear just clipped off a good chunk of her curly hair. Loki's hand caught the shaft before it could reach his neck, looking quite pleased with himself as Pinkie's head sprang back up to its original position.

Nuada yanked the spear upward and back to him; Loki took the moment to show off some acrobatics, leaping up and keeping his grip on the spear. With the spear as a fulcrum, he landed on Nuada's other side, jerking the spear to attempt to remove it from its owner. He failed; the spear was ripped from his hands. In the meantime, Pinkie took aim at Nuada once more; almost impossibly quick, the elf evaded her line of fire altogether. That time, the shots did connect with Loki.

"OHMYGOSH!" Pinkie cried in horror. "I'M SORRY! I'M SORRY I'M SORRY!"

"It's all right!" Loki called back to her, though already he was stumbling from weakness. His brow furrowed as he cast a wary gaze around the field; "Where did he go – "

Nuada leapt from behind Pinkie Pie, driving his spear directly downward toward her. She gasped. The spear pierced flesh. Pinkie Pie screamed.

Between her and Nuada, Loki stood, sharply gasping with pain and gritting his teeth. Nuada twisted the spear inside Loki's chest, breaking the head of it off and retracting the shaft.

Nuala, from a safe watching distance, was surrounded by the shadows of many a Dark Elf, all directed to crowd around her and keep her safe from harm. When Pinkie Pie's gunshots had weakened her brother, she had felt it, and she withdrew a healing tonic from her robes, holding it at the ready in her hand. Gwendolyn, however, had seen the shadows crowd around her, and wasn't about to ignore the fact that she was so heavily guarded. It indicated that she was a valuable piece to the game.

Loki dropped first to his knees, then to the ground. "No…" Pinkie squeaked, her voice shaky. The pistols disintegrated into glitter in her hands. She knelt, bending over Loki, her hand placed upon him. "No…!"

"There is no use trying to heal him," Nuada told her. "The spear embedded within him will kill him. No, he never will live to understand."

Loki fell completely still, and Pinkie huddled over him, hiding her face from Nuada. He could hear her soft moans of anguish.

"I will be merciful." Nuada dropped his now useless spear from his side, drawing a sword from his belt. "I will allow you to follow him into Valhalla." He raised the sword high above her.

A jolt of blue-tinted magic rocketed through Nuada, shaking him and causing him to drop the sword. The point of a spear pressed far enough into his back to draw blood. "I wouldn't," the real Loki taunted as the illusion of his body dissipated on the ground, leaving a spear point to lie bare and clean on the earth.

Pinkie Pie sprang up from the ground with a manic grin, pointing one pistol at Nuada's chest. "BEST! PRANK! EVER!" she crowed. "And here I thought I was gonna blow it because I can't fake tears! No, really, I can't!" She leaned slightly over Nuada's shoulder to show Loki her face, using her free hand to point to her eye, which was popping slightly outward. "Look at that! Bone dry!"

"You acted the part of the mourner perfectly," Loki reassured her. "As for you…" He leaned his head toward Nuada's ear to speak softly but deliberately to him: "There is a cell of transparent windows in the dungeon of Father's palace that awaits you. One we have fashioned for our most dangerous foes we have overcome. All will be able to look at you and revile you there. And they will know that despite everything, you failed."

Some ways behind Pinkie Pie, Nuala kept watching. She felt Loki's spear press into her back, and she bled. She quickly uncorked the tonic, taking the tiniest sip. Her wound healed, and she knew her brother's did too, pushing the point of Loki's weapon back out. She also felt her energy return, and she knew the same was happening to her brother.

Gwendolyn cut through Nuala's shadowy bodyguards in a few strokes before overcoming Nuala, twisting the arm holding the bottle behind the elf princess' back and holding her spear against her neck. "You are under arrest by the Valkyries!" she insisted.

Nuada saw. In one quick motion, he twisted down, away from Loki and Pinkie's weapons, and darted toward Nuala and Gwendolyn, picking up the sword. Loki and Pinkie turned to fire after him, but even without looking, Nuada was able to sidestep every projectile sent at him from behind.

"GWENDOLYYYYYYN!" Pinkie screamed.

Before Nuada had the chance to chop Gwendolyn in half at the waist, Gwendolyn let go of Nuala and ran. Consumed by the desire to see his sister safe, Nuada grabbed Nuala by the wrist and ran, no longer even giving a thought to Malekith. Malekith, who had insisted Nuala be on the battlefield in the first place to see when Nuada was wounded and utilize their bond to heal him…why had Nuada ever agreed to that? It had culminated in a blade against her neck. No longer did he have any loyalty to Malekith. After all, if it had to come down to Nuala or Malekith, he knew where his priority lay.

No sooner had Malekith isolated Thor and Odin in the fence of Darkness than Jack and Thorgil planted themselves in front of Malekith. "This ends now," Jack told him.

Malekith laughed quite loudly upon seeing the pair. The burned Algrim, at his side, smiled, not because he found anything particularly funny but because Malekith was laughing. He vaguely remembered that these two were enemies. He supposed that should make him hate them. If they had posed a threat, however, Malekith would not have laughed so.

Still burning with Dark energy, Malekith cast a wave of it at Jack. Just as he had done to Nimüe's attack in Alfheim, Jack absorbed it with the staff of St. Columba. It felt far less jarring that time. "Thorgil!" he cried. "We need fire!"

They reached as one to the life force of Svartalfheim only to be thwarted as Twilight was. Forgoing magic, Malekith used the failed attempt at magic as an opportunity to reach out and seize Jack, embracing him so that the boy's arms were pinioned. Jack kicked out at Malekith, but while his feet did land on the Dark Elf's body, it had the effect of kicking a wall. "If it's any consolation," Malekith said greasily, "you wouldn't have won if you HAD magic. I took out stronger bards than you only a few hours ago. You might even have known some of them."

The implications weren't lost on Jack. "The Bard?" he guessed in horror. "TALIESIN?" His kicking grew more fervent. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO THEM?"

Malekith only laughed.

"YOU PUT HIM DOWN RIGHT NOW!" Thorgil screamed with rage, running at Malekith, spear aimed directly at him.

"Algrim!" Malekith commanded. He was surprised Algrim hadn't acted earlier. It was finally dawning on him that his little trip into the ravine had somehow altered him mentally, and he would need explicit instructions on the plan. "Seize her!"

Algrim rushed to meet Thorgil, catching her spear in his hands and snapping it in half. Forgoing the spear, Thorgil leapt upon Algrim to put him in a headlock. "LET GO OF JACK!" she raged on. "YOU CAN'T DO THAT TO HIM! I WON'T LET YOU!"

Seeing Algrim struggle, Malekith looked around for his second most competent warrior. He located Ingway bound in Applejack's golden ropes, speaking intently to the blonde and the two Pookas. While Malekith didn't appreciate that Ingway had stopped fighting to have a chat, he wasn't about to let his frustrations get in the way of the plan. Fighting Odin in Svartalfheim had been the failsafe, but there had always been another plan in the works, one that was almost too incredulous to come true. A Plan C. They needed bards for it, but they couldn't have plucked them from the Islands without having engaged Odin in war, for without the battle, the gods would have caught on and rushed to stop him. Moreover, it had to be just the right bards. The two young ones were just naïve enough to work, and if Malekith's sources were correct, they knew exactly the way to what he wanted. He'd told this to the others. Algrim, it seemed, had forgotten the specifics. There was no reason, however, Ingway's mind wouldn't be clear.

Malekith shifted the squirming Jack to be held in the crook of just one strong arm, using the other to cast dark fire at Ingway's bindings. "INGWAY!" he barked as the ropes incinerated. "TO ME! NOW! WE HAVE THE BARDS!"

Ingway ran to him immediately, and seeing the struggle between Thorgil and Algrim, he leapt upon them, prying Thorgil away from Algrim and pressing his knife to her throat, daring her to make another move. Algrim seized Thorgil's arms, holding them down.

Malekith placed his hand on Algrim's shoulder, creating the connection. He, Jack, Algrim, Thorgil, and Ingway were all connected by physical touch, ready to go along with him in an Apparition.

"JACK! THORGIL!" Applejack barreled toward them in a panic, seeing and assessing the situation, reaching out to grab onto Jack's arm.

Rainbow Dash and Rarity arrived at the same time. "LET HER GO RIGHT NOW!" Rainbow Dash yelled, running toward Ingway, one hand still clasping Rarity's, grasping at Ingway's shoulder to try and pull him off Thorgil.

"GET OFF HIM!" Fluttershy tackled Malekith from behind. It did little good; he didn't move an inch.

Twilight had lost track of Velma in all the confusion, but found herself coming across Malekith and the others. She could sense that he was about to Apparate away, and she wasn't about to let him take her friends to even the gods didn't know where. With a cry of "NO!", she ran at Malekith, grabbing the wrist of the arm he'd put on Algrim.

From nowhere, Pinkie Pie appeared, quickly grabbing onto Twilight's shoulders. She knew they were about to be taken on a ride, and she wasn't about to be left out.

In a rush of Darkness, Malekith, Algrim, Ingway, Jack, Thorgil, Twilight, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Applejack, and Fluttershy were teleported away from the field and into another realm entirely.

...

Chapter 96:

· As you might have been able to tell from the chapter title, the song "Heartbreak Armageddon" by Dragonforce was instrumental (pun intended) in the creation of this chapter. (Though for the early scenes, "Below the Duchy's Banner" from Bravely Default helped as well.)

· The transformation of Velma Green into the Spider Queen persona is now complete.

· And I'm going all-out on EVERYONE'S monster forms! Well, Onyx's and Ingway's, at least. Both of those are the forms they're in when they are fought in the final boss run of Odin Sphere.

· The slime Oswald used on Onyx is actually based on a game tactic used to beat Onyx as a boss. There's sort of a game-breaking move that if you use a Slime on him (which comes in the form of a very tiny slime monster that crawls across the battlefield and does about 1 HP of damage when it hits something), Onyx will actually get stuck on it and not be able to move.

· Reader GAvillain commented earlier that he was surprised Rarity hadn't fallen for Fandral. I told him I didn't have time for that subplot. Well, here we are not having time for that subplot in canon ;-)

· Algrim's fall into the chasm is yet again me doing my own version of something that happens in the comics. Algrim becomes Kurse after taking a fall (caused by Malekith, who was aiming for Thor but didn't care if Algrim got in the way) and damaging his head, impairing his memory. He comes out of it blaming Thor for everything. Casual reminder that I unfortunately have not read the scene in question in canon – I came across a summary of it and was like "I have to use this."

· And it wouldn't be right to send off a Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy rogue without her breaking the fourth wall. I don't plan on her showing up again until after the events of "Wrath of the Spider Queen" take place. However, though it's a long ways off, provided that I can actually live long enough to get there, I will say in the style of the MCU that VELMA GREEN WILL RETURN.

· Yes, that's Darkova!Ingway's canon moveset from Odin Sphere. I realize that aside from the ice, it's almost exactly Cerberus' from KH. This is probably coincidence. I think.

· I enjoy pulling out all the stops on using Nuada to foreshadow Loki. Did you notice?

· Also, I kind of want to apologize for using almost the EXACT tactic Loki uses in Dark World to fake Nuada out. But I felt it pulled a lot of things together. FYI, even now, Loki has little interest in sacrificing himself so an ally can live…he's more about finding a way both he and his allies can survive. (When we get back to 1000 years later, allies become disposable.)

· The spear point is a call forward to how Nuada's spear breaking off inside Hellboy almost kills him.

· Two chapters left. Get ready. We're winning the battle, but you haven't seen the extent of the war.