The Adventures of Kid Loki

The Race

The Avengers now felt pressured for time. They had three people they had to beat to Loki: Amora, Karnilla, and Hela. If Amora or Karnilla reached Loki, it would be game over. If Hela reached Loki, their vengeance on the two traitors would be catastrophic. On if an Avenger reached him first, would things work out. "You can talk to each other if you like. Goad each other on, tease one another. Your conversations will let me know how close you are getting to me," Loki told them. They all noted the rather sad tone in his voice near the end, and the realized that he was getting close.

"If Loki loses his sarcasm, I'll know it's the end of the world as we know it," Tony remarked dryly.

"Well then, get your rocket going," was the response.

"You were saying?" Clint asked. Tony growled something very crude before he continued running down his tunnel of swirling lights.

"Anybody else getting tired of walking through a Fun House? I feel like I'm at the circus. And this isn't fun at all," Steve commented dryly as he felt himself falling, but never hitting the bottom.

"Welcome to your own personal purgatories. Hell is not ready for you yet," Hela said as she breezed her way through a field of flowers. Natasha did not say a word as she climbed up almost perpendicular stairs. She felt like Frodo and Sam, but she refused to join the others in complaining about it. She was determined and on a mission. Natasha Romanoff, the Black Widow, would reach Loki Laufeyson first! She continued to climb, ignoring the ache in her fingers and hands, and wondered if any of this mental strain would come out on her physical body. Bruce tread carefully, as every step he made, and the ground would sag.

"Am in a swamp?" he asked.

"The bogs of self-pity," Loki said. Bruce frowned, knowing what he was hinting to.

"Well great! Where's everybody else?" Bruce queried sarcastically. Loki hummed and Bruce knew they were all about to get a detailed answer.

"Clint is in the maze of mistrust; Natasha is climbing the crags of deceit; Thor is navigating the waves hate; Tony is in the forest of pride; and Steve is trekking the desert of cowardice. Everyone is where they should be," Loki responded.

"What about Hela?" Clint asked as he banged into another wall.

"Aw! Are you concerned for me?" Hela queried in return. Clint grumbled something, but nobody was there to see him smirk. Hela smiled herself as she continued to trek through her field, with tall, green grass and flowers. The wind struck her face, but it was her father's caress. Hela had to laugh. Meanwhile, on her ladder, Natasha almost slipped and she winced when one of her nails broke and began to bleed. She growled something in Russian and continued her climb.

"Where are you?" Natasha asked. Loki sighed and she figured he was not going to say someplace pleasant.

"I'm in the cave of forsaken minds. That's where the abandoned the lost are sent. Until somebody actually takes time out of their busy schedule to come look for me," Loki pointed out.

"Shut your hole! We're on our way!" Tony cursed as he smacked in the face by another branch.

"But I'm going to get their first! And then I can kill those bitches!" Hela said as she lightly leapt over a stream.

"Watch me get there first!" Clint said as he managed to jump over a gap in the maze floor. As soon as he landed, however, he tripped and fell.

"Aw! My sweet little hawk! You're trying to impress me!" Hela mocked. Clint growled and pulled himself to his feet and continued running. Bruce slipped where he was and fell inn muck and slime.

"Ew! Why did I get the bog?" he asked.

"Is there water there?" Steve queried as he kicked a rattlesnake away.

"Um... yes?" Bruce responded.

"Stop complaining," Steve pointed out dryly as he dodged the grasping, prickly arms of a cactus. Bruce frowned and stood up, brushing the grime from his clothes, and hoped he would not look like shit when he got out of this.

"Not enough water is a bad thing; but too much water can also be problematic," Loki pointed out. Thor was lucky enough to have been deposited in a boat, but now, he was getting tossed about on the ocean waves.

"Why am I here?! I never hated you!" Thor screamed to the heavens. Loki laughed lightly as a bolt of lightning shot across Thor's bow, and the young god fell back. He clung to the side, and gritted his teeth.

"You didn't stop other people from hating me. You didn't try to explain things to Sif or the Warriors Three. I was lied to, Thor! All my life! I was treated as the lesser prince because I was the lesser being! Don't blame me for where you are. You all can only blame yourselves for your current position," Loki told them. Hela was no longer paying attention to what her father was saying, because she saw the end of her journey. A stone arch stood at the edge of her field, leading into the darkness. The last ditch, leading into her father's mind prison. She ran, jumping and flying as fast as her feet would carry her. Jumping through the pitch black, Hela could feel it get cold. Not that it really affected her. She was a Frost Giant. When she landed, she rolled, and came up on her knees, her sword in hand. That was when she saw him. In Loki's mind, he had always been an adult, so, Hela saw his adult body hovering above the ground. He was sitting there, his chin in his hand, his green eyes hollow and staring into nothingness. Hela knew why he looked like that, and she cursed. He was wearing the mask!

"Damn you whores to Hel!" Hela screamed as she rushed forward, but that was when somebody else broke through the barrier of intellect, and crashed into the cave of forsaken minds. Hela paused, expecting to see Thor standing there, and ready to defend those brutes for 'justice'. Instead, she saw the curly red hair and determined expression on the face of the Black Widow. Natasha saw the adult Loki sitting there and she approached. As she got closer, she felt her body changing and paused. Looking down, she saw she was developing that curvaceous figure she was famous for. Natasha looked over at Hela. "Your spell depends on whether or not Dad is also a child. Since you're in his mind, and his mind has not atrophied, you will return to normal. Trust me, you're going to need it if you want to try to stop me from dealing with Amora and Karnilla," Hela told her.

"Who says I'm going to try to stop you?" Natasha posed. Hela cocked her head to one side, and a smirk appeared on her face. Natasha pulled out one of her guns and cocked it. "Save one for me?"

"With pleasure," was the response from Niffleheim's ruler.