There had been a few points of time where Tony had been petrified. One was hearing about his parents' deaths. The guilt that suffocated him afterwards was enough to kill him. He had spent weeks, months even, struggling with the concept that he was never going to be able to apologise to his father. He had grown up thinking that old man Howard hated him, that he was a mistake; and the last conversation that the two male Starks had before Howard and Maria had left only further proved it. His mother was his only parent, that was until his godmother Lilja, and his two aunts, Peggy and Freya came into the picture. One minute, his mother was there for him, the next, he only saw her at graduations or at family dinners. But no matter their time apart, he knew that she loved him.
The next most frightening point in his life would had to have been his time in the hospitality of 'The Ten Rings'. He had almost died in those caves. However, it was in those caves, saying goodbye to the memories of his loved ones that he came up with the arc reactor, the device that not only saved his life but also birthed the hero, Ironman. One of the first people he saw were Pepper and Lilja. They had picked him up from the airport, along with Rhodes. Those three meant the whole world to him; and they still did.
The third time he feared for his life was when he was flying up into the portal during the battle of New York. God, he was petrified, but there was no way he was going to let countless of citizens die because of a bunch of bureaucratic assholes decided that a nuke was the way to eliminate the Chitauri army. Too many lives had already been slain by those beasts and Loki, or so they thought at the time.
Thinking back on his past experiences, Tony was left with a sense of revelation. It was a frightening thought that he, Tony Stark, self-proclaimed hero, Ironman, had something in common with the God of Mischief and Lies. Both their fathers seemed to have felt indifferent towards their sons, while their mothers always loved them while standing by their husbands' sides.
Tony still suffered PTSD from all three of those incidents; but the worst had to be seeing Lilja on that hospital bed, slowly perishing away from a toxin that couldn't be cured by anything, except for the power of the mind. He had watched as both Loki and Strange failed, his hope dwindling with each unsuccessful attempt. How the Mystic Art Wizard expected him to be able to help, he didn't know but he owed it to Lilja to try. Standing by her bed, he gripped her hand, his eyes glaring into Strange's while the rest of the room waited for them to connect with the loving soul that held a piece of them all.
He watched as golden discs took over his blurry vision. They were standing on a rooftop, his eyes blinking several times. Groaning, Tony watched as Strange narrowed his eyes on a man who stood before him.
"Strange, the Ancient One warned me you would be returning. You cannot be here." The man called out to them. Tony watched as Strange groaned and shook his head.
"Wong, why is she preventing me from helping Sigyn of Asgard?"
The man shrugged, "When does she ever explain herself? All she said was that the woman had to see the consequences of her death."
The words sent a shiver of fear down Tony's spine. He wanted to run into the room and hug his family member, demand that she fight it, so she could come home. Tears ran down his face as he turned away, sniffling. The man, Wong, handed Strange a sack of papers.
"The Ancient One will let you know when it is safe to return." With those words spoken, Strange dragged Tony, who definitely fought him, back through the portal that led them back to the healing rooms of Asgard.
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After the funeral, Sigyn walked around Asgard her heart in her throat as she heard the whispers surrounding Loki's death. From what she had heard, he hadn't been able to handle her own, so went out searching for danger and vowed to avenge her, dying the process. He had however saved a little girl from being severed in half by a bandit's blade. He died a warrior's death and would be residing in the Halls of the Fallen, nestled away in Valhalla. She wondered if she were there with him, but highly doubted it. She hadn't done anything selfless enough to be honoured a seat at that table.
Sighing, she waited till the Ancient One decided this outcome was over. It didn't take long. The outskirts of Asgard blended into the interior of what looked like Queen Frigga's chambers. A pale creature walked up to her, followed by a beast of a thing.
Frigga stood with a woman Lilja had never seen prior. Lilja wanted to snarl at the woman who cowardly hid behind the Queen but knowing the Queen like she had once, Frigga would have ordered for the woman to stay safe.
Pacing the room, with a blade by her side, Frigga spoke, her voice calm despite the situation. "Stand down, creature. You may still survive this."
The pale man, a dark elf if Sigyn's memory served her well, approached her. "I have survived worse, woman."
Frigga wasn't impressed, and all Lilja wanted to do was race in and defend her but knew as a spiritual incorporeal form, none of her attacks would succeed. "Who are you?"
The Dark Elf replied, still approaching the reigning queen. "I am Malekith, and I would have what it is mine."
Taking a brief second to spare the mortal woman a glance, the mortal ran for it. Malekith turned to chase the woman down but was stopped by a strike across the face. Lilja smiled, Frigga may have been a healer and a Queen, but she was an Asgardian Lady at heart. As a gender who had been seen weak ever since the Valkyries perished, all women had to train and learn the basic defence moves. What Queen would she be if Frigga didn't set an example?
Malekith retaliated by drawing out his own blade. Every arch and stab he made were thwarted by Frigga's, as she danced around the angered elf. Putting up a good fight, Frigga disarmed the wretched elf, shoving him up against the wall, with her blade at his throat. But no fight that is fought by dirty moves, ended poorly. The beast of a creature who had accompanied the Elf came up and before Frigga was able to attack him, her arm was seized, and the beast grabbed her throat with its free hand. Lifting the Queen up, Malekith was free to continue his mission.
"You have taken something, child. Give it back." Malekith stood in front of the mortal woman and as he reached out to grab her, she disappeared with a flash of green magic. Malekith's face was furious as he realized that his prize was nothing but a hologram. Turning to Frigga, "Witch!" he screamed. Walking back to the subdued Queen, he returned to his calm and gruff voice that sent shivers down Sigyn's spine. "Where is the Aether?"
Frigga scoffed, "I'll never tell."
Malekith nodded the smallest of movements. "I believe you."
Before Sigyn could scream a warning, not that it would have been helpful; the beast, stabbed Frigga in the back and at the same time Thor rushed in yelling in devastation, shooting a lightning bolt at Malekith's face, severely scarring it. The coward Elf and his companion escaped and jumped from the balcony that circled Frigga's chambers and onto their ship before Thor could catch them.
Odin and the mortal woman, in person this time, joined Thor in the room. The woman just stood to the side shocked as she, along with Sigyn and Thor watched as Odin cried over his wife's body, cradling her to his chest, saying one last goodbye to the woman he had shared eons of love and experiences with.
Everything happened so fast, that it seemed that time didn't exist. One would say that it was a paradox. As despite how fast it felt, everything afterwards seemed to drag on as if there was no such thing as time. It was an oxymoron, but the truth none-the-less. Sigyn watched as Asgard mourned at yet another funeral; everything the same as Loki's. Except this time, the people of Asgard, sent their wishes and blessings in the form of glowing lanterns in the shape of orbs, powered by the essence of each, and every living citizen that had once been looked over and protected by the woman they called Queen.
Sighing, Sigyn couldn't understand it. What was the Ancient One trying to tell her? If she doesn't die, then Loki doesn't follow? With them both living; they would have been there to protect or help the Queen in eliminating the threat that is Malekith? The moment the thought surfaced her mind, the scenery changed from Asgard back to the library of the sanctum. Groaning, Sigyn massaged her temples, feeling one of the worst migraines gathering behind her eyes. Falling back, she landed on the sofa and watched through barely opened eyes as the woman who had started this mind torture knelt in front of her with another cup.
Struggling to find the strength to get away from the wretched cup, Sigyn snarled at the other woman. The supreme sorcerer only smiled at her, shaking her head. "Do not fret. This isn't the same tea; this would be equivalent to your healing teas."
Sensing nothing but truth in her words, Sigyn allowed the woman to help her sit up, enough that she could leisurely sip at her drink. Her mind was still trying to recover from the onslaught of possibilities. Sighing, she looked at the other woman, who stood there with her yellow robes protecting her from whatever horrors were outside the sanctuary.
"When is this attack meant to happen?"
The Ancient One, who Sigyn still named, in her own mind, Ms. Ancient sighed. "It is going to happen at any point. I have sensed a disturbance in the force that hides the Aether."
Sigyn bolted upright, her eyes glazing over as she realised a crucial factor. "Malekith the cursed. He was the elf that-"
Ms. Ancient nodded, already knowing what the Asgardian was thinking. "Yes, and the Queen's demise can be prevented, but only by joining your beloved's talents and power with your own." She paused for a moment before continuing, "Once completely joined, there is nothing that you and Loki won't be able to survive, no adversary, no foe that you cannot defeat."
Sitting there, Sigyn made up her mind. She had indeed made it up ages before, but sometimes wondered if others would be better off without her presence, but it was clear that wasn't the case, not to toot her own horn or anything. She was going to live, and so will Loki, Frigga, and anyone else who's deaths would have been prophesised by her own. There was no stopping her now; Asgard's enemies were going rue the day that they thought Asgard was an easy target, a realm capable of attacking and overthrowing.