The two guards had to grab Halvar as he began to shake, coughing up blood in the process. He began to mumble something which caused Thor and Odin to step closer to listen and as their faces almost connected, he mumbled, "a sister on Midgard," with his final breath.

It was when Thor and Odin pulled away did they realise Halvar had taken his final breath, blood dripping from his mouth, his arms limp in the guard's arms. Odin nodded to the guards and said, "take him for the ceremonial funeral," both nodded and took him, leaving King and Prince alone.

Thor and Odin stared at each other for a moment before Odin walked out of the room, Thor following him as he asked, "father, what shall we do?"

"If Hela has a sister it would explain why she sent Halvar back without being able to communicate, to tell us the truth".

"But why send Halvar back? She killed all others and sent their bodies back as warnings".

"Celebration. The celebration on Niflheim may have been for her sister. It would explain why she sent him back the way she did; if the child is younger like I presume, she may not have wanted to kill in front of her". Odin then stopped walking and turned to his son and said, "Heimdall would have seen the child of Midgard, she must be protected, under a spell by Hela so he cannot detect her. Thor, return to Midgard, speak to your allies. Maybe they can find this child before she does any damage. Who knows what power she has".

Thor nodded, "right away, father".

Thor walked outside of the palace but instead of going straight to the Bifröst, he went to the royal gardens where he assumed his wife and son would be. He was correct in assuming that but his mother was also there. Frigga was sat on a white metal bench reading, while Jane played on the floor with Brynjar and his wooden blocks. Brynjar saw his father first and smiled as he pointed to him with his small, chubby hands.

Jane then smiled as she turned to Thor and Frigga looked up from her book for a moment to see her son. Thor walked over and kneeled down to Brynjar and kissed his son's forehead before he turned to his wife and said, "I'll be travelling to Midgard, a mission from Father. I do not know when I shall return".

For a moment, Frigga paused in reading her book and glanced up to her son, wondering just what the mission was but knowing what she knew about her son's daughter, born on Midgard, made her have a different view on the realm. She knew asking would be useless as their son wouldn't divulge any information about any quest that Odin would give him.

Jane nodded knowing not to ask too many questions about quests or missions seen as many of them were confidential and secret. She had known about some missions that she probably shouldn't, she didn't even know if she could know that Thor was going to Midgard but he would always tell her where he was going. She learned that due to the years of marriage. Jane leaned in and kissed him before she said, "I'm assuming you'll be seeing the others. Tell them I said hi".

Thor nodded and kissed his son's forehead once again and said, "be back soon, son," as he stood. He kissed his mother's cheek, "mother".

"Be careful, Thor," Frigga said worryingly.

"I will, mother," he then left.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

At the Avengers Tower in New York, the Avengers family, as they were called by the media and secretly themselves, were sitting down for lunch. It had been over 13 years, since the battle of New York and they had all changed, very much like the world had when they discovered they were not alone; they became more domestic. Firstly, Tony had changed Stark tower to Avengers Tower and it became a headquarters and, more importantly, a home for the Avengers. The 93 floors, 1130ft tall building held everything from living areas, science floors, R&D floors, medical floors which were used more than they would like, a landing deck, armoury, gym, swimming pool and even an underground garage. When the little ones arrived, a floor was then dedicated to them for their education and another for their play which held every safety protocol.

Tony and Pepper were the first; the first to get married and the first to add a mini Avenger. It was three years after the events of New York when they finally wed. Throughout all the nightmares and the trouble that Tony brought Pepper, it became a close call on a mission one day when he finally realised that if he was to die, he wanted to die being married to Pepper and he proposed. They had a daughter within the first year of marriage and called her Adrianna Maria Stark, after Tony's mother, and she was currently 10 years old. Tony, much to Pepper's dismay, spoiled her rotten and it didn't help that she was exactly like her father in brains and wit but looked exactly like Pepper with her strawberry blonde hair and blue eyes. Pepper knew that he treated Arianna, or Anna, this way because he thought he would be a bad father like his own, but every day he showed that he wasn't as he made Anna smile and was there every night to read her bedtime stories, until the day came when she thought she was too old for them but he still stayed by the door to watch her sleep.

After them were Clint and Natasha which was shocking to everyone. Of course, everyone thought they had something going on, Tony voiced his opinion on more than one occasion. They didn't get married, they said that they had so many fake weddings during undercover missions that they don't see the point on what a piece of paper makes to their relationship. Natasha does walk around wearing an arrow necklace though, as if that's Clint's claim on her. Their journey became stressful when it was discovered that Natasha was pregnant. No one could believe it because Natasha thought that she couldn't have children, that the red room took that option away from her. When assessed, it was clear that the pregnancy could kill Natasha, that there was a high probability that if she continued she and the baby would die. Clint, although he loved the idea of a family, suggested Natasha terminated the pregnancy, not wanting to lose her and grow close to a baby that will die. Natasha, however, surprised everyone with her reaction, immediately placing her hands over her stomach, as if shielding her baby, and said she was going to keep it. Her little 'love is for children' excuse went out of the window immediately. Everyone saw her change, but she only let her guard down around the Avengers. Natasha only lasted 23 weeks into her pregnancy which they hoped would be a couple of weeks more, but Tony had the best equipment and medical staff that money could buy as soon as Natasha turned 15 weeks. They were told that the baby only had a 10% survival rate due to the scaring conditions in Natasha's body. Neither parent moved from their daughter's ventilator and day by day, she got stronger. She had her mother's stubbornness as Clint said and they named her Hope Katya Barton. She grew up with her mother's red hair and her father's blue eyes. She was quiet and sneaky like her parents and took a liking to both ballet, like her mother, and archery like her father. She was currently 9 and although a little short for her age, it never got her down.

Thor was next to get married and have a child with Jane but much of their life wasn't spent on earth since Jane became an Asgardian. It was 4 years after New York that they finally wed, and after having the wedding in Asgard before the people and the Avengers, Jane grew pregnant four years later to Brynjar. The other children were confused as they grew up and Brynjar didn't, but after explaining to them about how Asgardians age and how Brynjar would be a baby for a long time, they got used to it. The adults knew that they forgot but the children just got used to the fact that Brynjar didn't age like the rest of them. The family of three did make it a habit of seeing the Avengers and staying a few days every few months so they didn't miss out on everything as the children would miss their uncle Thor and aunt Jane. After all, there would soon come a day when they wouldn't be alive, old from time while Jane and Thor would look the same.

Bruce was next, and it was a surprise to everyone when Betty Ross turned up at the tower a year after the battle. She was still in love with him, and he with her, and he tried to push her away, but it didn't work. They married 8 years ago and had a six-year-old son. He was adopted. The Avengers had rescued him from a mission in Europe and he had no family and instantly took a liking to Bruce. Bruce tried to distance himself from him as he didn't want to hurt him, but when they returned to America, the boy who was 2 at the time would scream when they tried to get him away from Bruce. In Betty's own words, it was fate that he was to be their son. He had dark brown almost black hair with green eyes. As years went by, he showed his intelligence and was exceptional at science for someone his age, but was also quiet like his father. Anyone would think that he was their biological son. His name was Benjamin and he was currently six.

Last was Steve, and he is being in the most surprising relationship when the team discovered that he was with Captain Maria Hill. She was the superior that SHIELD sent to keep an eye on them, a form of connection between SHIELD and the Avengers, but with Steve being the most responsible, he spent the most time with her and connected with her through her loyalty and willingness to do anything for the greater good. They married 7 years after the battle and had a son named James, after Bucky. He was born with the serum in his blood but through extensive testing they discovered that James would grow like any ordinary child, yet as he gets to puberty, he may become taller and stronger than others. He looked just like his father with blonde hair and his jaw line but had his mother's brown eyes.

It was a perfect day in the Avengers tower but of course, it was lunch time and rounding everyone up was like a mission in itself and most of the time it took the wives to do it as they wouldn't listen otherwise. It was a rare occasion that they all had the day off from missions, paperwork, or even working at Stark Industries. Pepper, with the help of Clint who was the only other good cook in the dysfunctional family, was in the main kitchen on the 89th floor which was basically the Avengers chill floor. They had made a lasagne for lunch, or two because of Steve, as they decided to order take out for dinner and watch movies. After finishing the lasagne, Clint also made a special chilli from a family recipe and was putting it on the table as Pepper said, "JARVIS, can you tell everyone lunch is ready".

"Of course, Mrs Stark".

Of course, the two already knew where everyone was. Hope was in the dance studio on the 84th floor, the Blackhawk family floor as it's called, as Natasha was choreographing her a new ballet dance and would come upstairs without trouble as dancers know the importance of food. James was with Steve and Maria on floor 91 which was called child's heaven, as it was literally a floor dedicated to children's toys and equipment and even had an indoor trampoline. They would come to the kitchen immediately. Benjamin, or Ben as everyone called him, would be with Bruce and Betty on science floor 70, their own personal science floor for their research. Betty would make sure they'd come up, even if they were working on something vital. Anna would be the issue, she was with Tony working on floor 63, their own research and development floor, and they would be the ones who would be trouble getting upstairs if they were working on something. Usually, it made Pepper having to go down for them to come up.

Clint and Pepper were just setting up the plates on the table when Steve, Maria, and James showed up. They immediately took their places while Steve helped set up and began to pour drinks into people's cups. Natasha, Hope in her leotard, Betty, Bruce and Ben were the next ones to join them and everyone sat down waiting patiently for the remaining two. Pepper sat for a moment before she said, "JARVIS, tell my husband and daughter that if they're not up here in 30 seconds, I'm cancelling their shipment of lasers and overriding them, so they can't get anymore, ever".

Smiles and giggles at the table was heard when JARVIS responded a few moments later, "miss Adrianna says 'mom you can't cancel the shipment, we need that. We're on our way up now, I promise".

"Thank you, JARVIS," Pepper said.

Just like that, the elevator door opened not long later, and Anna quickly rushed to her seat beside her mother and smiled, "see, we're here, no need to cancel any shipments".

Tony laughed as he took the seat beside her and ruffled her hair slightly which made her glare at him. Everyone at the table, they then dug in and were all splitting off into different conversations. Anna mostly spoke to Hope from across the table as they were best friends, while Ben and James would talk.

It was towards the end of lunch when they were cleaning up did they hear the thunder and before anyone said anything, Anna shrieked, "uncle Thor's here".

A minute or so later after appearing on the 93rd floor, landing pad, Thor got into the elevator and made his way down to the 89th floor. He clearly prepared himself for what was to come as the door opened and he was already down on his knees, hammer handle on his wrist as the four children were stood at the door and jumped on him. Thor quickly wrapped his arms around all four of them and picked them up, as he laughed.

"We missed you, uncle Thor".

"Where's aunt Jane?"

"Where's Brynjar?"

"How come you've been away so long?"

"Are you here for visit or work?"

The children began to fire off question after question, but Thor just smiled them off, used to the children after years. "Point break, don't break my kid," Tony joked as he always did.

"Once again," Clint said, "it's getting old, come up with a new one".

"Alright alright, don't get your feathers in a twist," Tony replied.

Thor, eventually, put the children down as he was greeted by the adults and said, "I'm sorry, my friends, but I am not here for a visit".

Natasha commented, "figured that with no Jane or Brynjar".

"What's happened, Thor?" Steve said standing with his arms crossed, immediately slipping into professional mode.

Thor glanced to all the children who now seemed to be occupied with each other and said, "I think it best that we speak alone".

Everyone knew what that meant, so Betty said, "kids, why don't you go play upstairs. Let the grownups talk with uncle Thor".

None of the children were stupid, especially Anna and Hope who would glance at their parents and wait for their nods before listening to anyone else. Hope, who was raised by two spies, was cautious of everything. The girls listened and went with the boys to floor 91. The parents knew they'd be safe as JARVIS always watched them which is why they had almost full reign over the tower and why safety protocols were put in place. It was as the elevator doors closed on the children that Thor gestured to the sitting area and they all followed.

They sat as Clint said, "come on, Thor, just tell us what's up".

"I have something to tell you, something I have never told you before," Thor said.

"Those really are your mother's drapes," Tony joked which Pepper immediately smacked his arm and everyone else just ignored him.

"Almost 2000 years ago, Loki lay with a woman named Angrboda".

"Not this guy," Clint mumbled as he lay back against his seat.

Thor continued, "during their union, over the course of 100 years, Loki had three children with her".

Pepper interrupted, "wait, hang on. This is a part of the myth, you told us the myths weren't true".

Thor nodded, "most of it is incorrect but Loki did indeed have three children, but only three. He never had an eight-legged horse or twin boys. The truth is, he has Fenrir who is a wolf, but he could change into a human. He has Jörmungandr who is a snake but could also become human, and finally, Hela. The legend is true about her; half of her body is that of the dead, she is the goddess of death and rules over the realm of the dead, Niflheim. Hela was born with a power, she could kill people with her touch. As time went by, the children became dangerous and the All-Father thought it best for the safety of Asgard, if the children were banished".

"Great story, what does this have to do with now?" Tony said sighing.

"The All-Father does not trust Hela. She is as devious as Loki, so we send soldiers in to check from time to time what she is doing. All these soldiers come back dead".

"But..." Natasha said.

"We recently heard of a celebration occurring on Niflheim. The All-Father thought it would be the perfect opportunity for a soldier, Halvar, to go in and discover what the true meaning of the celebration was".

"What happened to him?" Steve inquired.

"He was caught, but for the first time since we began sending men, he did not come back dead. Hela did worse. She used her powers; made him age to the end of his life, broke his hands beyond repair, and had sown his mouth shut with gold thread made by dwarves. If we removed it, he would die immediately. His soul trapped inside his body, he couldn't move. For the last 8 days, he has been declining but his time was coming. He sat in the same position, staring at a painting of the nine realms. The All-Father and I were there this morning and Halvar requested, in his own way, to be relieved of his suffering. He would look to the blade the All-Father has and towards his lips and the painting. The All-Father cut the thread and as Halvar was dying, he whispered that Hela has a sister, here on Midgard".

The whole room froze in silence but of course, Tony wouldn't let that happen for long, "I'm sorry, did you just say that psycho Loki has another daughter on this planet, that you weren't aware of?"

Thor nodded shamefully, "Hela is very powerful. She created a way to block Heimdall from seeing her. She has a symbol that she uses to travel between realms, so that he can't detect it. She has even managed to make Niflheim almost invisible from Heimdall, but not completely. She isn't powerful enough to do that yet. It is our belief that another daughter is here, and Hela is using her symbols to hide her. That she was recently on Niflheim, but is back on Midgard. I'm trying to locate her and take her to Asgard, where she can cause no harm".

"Okay, so how do we find her?" Clint asked, wanting nothing to do with Loki, let alone a mini Loki being on the planet.

Betty asked, "if she has magic similar to Loki's, it should be able to be tracked. I know what you said about Heimdall, but what about earth technology? The same way you're detected, when you come to earth".

Everyone immediately looked to Maria, knowing that they didn't keep track of other realm activity when it came to the Bifröst and other forms of weird transportation, but SHIELD definitely had the satellites and technology that was wired up to watch for anything like that. Maria kept her stiff posture and professional look but eventually sighed as she reached into her pocket for her phone. She said, "I'm not even supposed to be showing you this, but if you can explain it, might as well".

She turned her phone around to show him an image from a CCTV camera. It was a Pentacle. "That is her symbol," Thor said.