Ice is Only Frozen Water

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Rated Explicit for themes of torture. A Supernatural/Avengers crossover. What really happened to Loki after he fell from the Bifrost? A short thingy about the fact that Metatron has a grand scheme. Also name-dropping Thanos, but really that's all, his character isn't at all like it should be. 
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Loki faded into conciousness. Where was he? What was this place? He became aware that his hands were shackled behind his back, large heavy cuffs keeping his to the wall. He blinked. The darkness swam before his eyes. Clearly he was in some sort of dungeon, and was being held by someone who knew what they were doing, judging by the seidr warding on the chains. 
The last thing Loki remembered was Thor shouting his name, screaming his name as he let go of the golden sceptre Gungnir, of his hope, and is life. Or at leat he thought he had been. Wasn't the abyss supposed to kill you? No-one had ever survived falling into it before. Yet he had. Another failure, then. 
Wherever he was now, it wasn't accidental. And by the looks of it, he'd put up a fight. He congratulated himself bitterly. Hs clothes were torn, his wrists and ankles raw under the cuffs. Was that blood in his hair or just a bruise down his face?
He decided the next step would be to see how hard it would be to escape. He'd already discovered using seidr wasn't an option, but if he could just get his hands in front of him, maybe he could pick the locks or free his ankles or-
No use. The chains were holding him firmly. He rattled them angrily, annoyed to be trapped in the gloom. He couldn't even stand up, forced into a kneeling position. He grunted. 
"Loki Laufeyson." Loki's head snapped up, trying to find the owner of the voice in the dark. "You are alone in the universe." 
"Thank you." Loki snapped. "Who is there?" He wanted to see his captor, or anyone. He wanted answers. 
"Forever, you are fated to be second, to be over-shadowed. The bastard son." the voice continued. Loki growled. How in Hel did they know so much about him? 
"I demand to see you!" he shouted. The voice laughed, a cold and cruel sound. 
"Not qute Aesir, but then not Jotun either, are you? Fascinating. You could almost say the last of your kind - or the only one." This voice was infuriating, and had gotten his information from somewhere. Loki was determined to find out. 
"Show yourself, captor!" demanded Loki. At last, a dim light filled the space around Loki, similar to the glow of a candle. It dimly lit the face of a short man who stepped towards Loki with a smile. Loki raised only his eyes to the man. 
"Lonely, little Loki. Even Thor has left you now." The man looked down on him with faked sympathy. 
"Do not speak to me of Thor." Loki snapped again, seeing Thor scream for him to come back every time he closed his eyes. "Who are you and how the Hel do you know so much about me?" 
"My name is Metatron. I have information. I am information. You could say that I'm an angel." Loki sniffed. There was no such thing. 
"Right, and I'm a god." he said bitterly. Metatron stepped forward again and traced his hand over Loki's face before slipping his fingers under Loki's chin and forcing his head up. 
"Trust me, you're nothing like God." He seemed to be examining Loki. "My, they treated you badly. I will have new clothes sent for you." Loki sneered at Metatron before jolting his head harply. Metatron just gripped his chin hard. 
"Are you  not fond of physical contact, Loki?" Loki said nothing. "Come on, I simply want some information and an agreement from you."
"I thought you knew everything, angel." he snarled, desperately wanting to get away from this being. 
"I do, I just want to hear you say it." Metaton's smile was sickly. Loki said nothing this time, deciding he wouldn't give this man a word and fighting the urge to spit at him. "I would not suggest this course of action,  Loki Laufeyson." 
Still, Loki kept quiet. Metatron released his chin, but before he could look away, the angel smacked him hard across the face. The shackles clanked and Loki looked away. Metatron put a hand in his hair and forced him to look back up. This time, Loki did spit right in his face. 
"Fuck you." he hissed. "I shall not tell you anything. I'm supposed to be dead so go ahead and finish the job. See if I give a fuck." 
"Such colourful language! I can tell we're going to have fun!" Metatron pulled Loki's hair then pushed him roughly against the wayy. Loki felt his head crack against the stone. "If you should know one thing about me, it's that I don't like to get my hands dirty."
"Do your worst, Metatron." Loki challenged, knowing that if Metatron's tortures were as impressive as he boasted they were he wouldn't be able to cope for long, not in this state. Maybe he would just die. 
"I intend to. Thanos, my dear, I need your help." Metatron called. Another man- another angel stepped into the light. He was teller than Metatron, and more tanned, and stronger looking. He offered Loki a wicked, crooked smile. 
"What do you need me to do, sir?" Metatron looked at Loki disdainfully, then addressed Thanos. 
"You know, I think it's time for you to introduce yourself to our new friend. What we're going to do, is I am going to ask a question and Loki Laufeyson is going to answer it." Thanos looked at Loki with glee. Loki sneered at him. 
"I won't tell you a thing. Torture me, beat me, do what you want. I won't break for you. Never." Metatron laughed, the sound grating on Loki, making him want to curl his face up in disgust. He didn't.
"Tell me, who would you break for then?" Metatron asked as though they were having a casual conversation, 
"I think you know. Tell me, how did I get here?" Metatron grinned. Thanos twitched, seemingly impatient. 
"Information for information. I like it. But if you want answers, you've got to tell me first. Come on, this can be easy if you make it." Loki shrugged. 
"So be it." Loki said, knowing full well they were going to torture him until he submitted. But maybe he deserved that. 
"Come on, Loki, which name could I threaten that would hurt you most? Sif? Frigga? Thor?" Loki said nothing and this time it was Thanos who beat him, slapping him hard several times. Loki chuckled. They'd have to try harder than that. By the looks of it, he wouldn't have to wait long for it. In the corner of his eye he could see a tray on  a table containing whips and knives and other torture instruments. Pain wouldn't break him. 
Hours and hours and hours passed. It could have been a few or days or months, Loki lost track of the time. All of it he had stayed silent through. His har was matted with blood and his back was scarred with bruised welts. Loki had felt the pain and cried out but not a word had passed his lips. He refused to say a thing. Several times Metatron and Thanos had walked away for a while, telling him they'd be back in a bit. It was during these times he allowed himself to cry. 
Thanos seemed to be getting frustrated by Loki's lack of co-opearation. Loki guessed that he wasn't used to someone who could hold out as well as he would. And Thanos was an idiot, blindly beating away without any form of tactic or pattern and he wasn't getting a word from Loki, not one. Metatron, though, he was the exact opposite. He knew everything and he was orchestrating something and he needed Loki for it. Loki got the feeling he would do anything for Loki's word of agreement which was all the more reason not to givr it. 
"Aren't you tired yet, Loki? It would be so much easier if you just gave me what I want. I have all the rest of time, there's no rush. But I think our next trick will have you screaming to give me what I want." Thanos perked up at this. 
"Do you mean-"
"Yes, I do. Go fetch it." Thanos ran off, almost like an obedient dog, and Metatron bent down so he was at eye level with Loki. "Why won't you talk to me, Loki? I already know everything, all you need to do is say it and you can be free? What breaks you?" 
"Nothing." muttered Loki. Metatron tutted. 
"I almost thought you'd gone mute then, but it seems we're back to the sarcastic comments. And we both know that's not quite true. I'll give you one last chance. What do you care about most?" 
Loki said nothing. 
"Well, it's your choice but I can guarantee you'll regret it."  Thanos returned hurriedly with what seemd to be a small sack. He handed it to Metatron who reached inside. "Do you know what this is?" he asked, pulling out a glowing cube.
"No clue." said Loki grinning, hiding his icy fear of this object that looked remarkably similar to the Casket of Ancient Winters. The Casket that had ruined Loki's life just a little bit more. 
"It's called the Tesseract. Watch her go." Metatron said. He placed the Tesseract of the floor next to Loki, just out of his reach but close enough that the effects still took hold. 
"That's fantastic, truly, I'm-" Loki's snide comments were cut off as the ice blue of his Jotnar form spread up his arms and across his skin. "No." he whispered, almost to himself, thrashing against his restraints, desperate to get away from the cube and from this monster. 
"Tell me, Laufey's son, what does a beast pretending to be a God pray to when they're tired and left to the eternal cold?" Loki made a face at Metatron, his red eyes hard. How dare he do this? Loki was full of burning rage and fear of the Tesseract. It had shown the monster just like the Casket had all that time ago. Loki had hoped never to see his skin blue again.
Metatron shrugged. "I think it's getting a little cold in here. Good thing we have heating!" He walked firmely over to the wall to the side of Loki and twisted a dial. 
Loki quickly realised two things. One was that he was sat exactly atop some sort of heater and that Metatron had planned this all along, the bastard. The other thing was that this heater was somehow making his skin feel like it was burning or melting or whatever Jotuns did when they were being roasted alive. 
"Uncomfortable? Then tell me, what does a monster cry to for help when it's on its knees about to die?" loki siad nothing, biting his lip. Metatron turned the dial all the way so the floor glowed and the heat was unbearable. Loki twitched, his eyes and throat feeling all of a sudden dry. 
"Who mourns a trickster after their death?" Metatron's voice was flat and calm and cruel. The answer to his questions burned on Loki's lips but he refused to give in. The cuffs around his wrists and ankles beacame warm and dug into his flesh, rubbing the skin away. His whole body felt like it was shaking and melting and his eyes streamed in pue agony. 
Loki screamed. 
"I can tell you're wishing for death." Metatron pressed his hand to Loki's cheek. He was slumped, only held up by the chains holding him. The only thoughts in his head were don't tell him don't tell him don't tell him. Metatron sighed. 
"Come on, we've barely spoken! It'd be no fun to permanently damage my new friend so soon. This can be over for you if you would just tell me what I want to hear. Who, what do you believe in? Who would it be worst for me to slit the throat of while you watched helplessly? Tell me." 
Loki sobbed openly, brokenly, drawing deep and laboured breaths. He needed this to be over. He needed the pain to stop. He wasn't strong enough, the monster wasn't strong enough. The words fell from his mouth, his resistance failing. 
"I- I believe in Thor." he choked on the words, cursing his not brother an this wicked angel who had extracted the truth that he truly did love Thor more than anything and cursed the fact he ha just signed his own death warrant. 
Metatron laughed loudly, overnethusiastically saying "Too bad he can't - won-t - save you this time!" tears streamed down Loki's face. Tears of pain and defeat and relief that the heat was dying away at last. 
"Fuck you." he sobbed, knowing the words now sounded weak and useless. Metatron patted his head. 
"no, dear, thank you. We'll be back later. I suggest you agree to the deal we're going to make you." Loki didn't look up to see them leave and noted wih resentment that the Tesseract was still there and he still looked like a filty Jotun. 
He wasn't sure if he could cope with that again. It would be easier to agree to do what they wanted and to tell them what they wanted to hear. They already knew every single thing about him so all they were doing was forcing him into submission and obedience. They had already hurt him and shamed him. All they could do now was kill him. 
The following later, Metaron returned. Loki refused to agree to the offers at first, but then he realied the futility of his situation. Reluctanly, he gave in. 
He was give some time to heal. Some time for his wounds to mend but not enough time for him to stop feeling so tired, exhausted all the time. He was told that it had been a year since Thor had watched him let go and then he was informed that the following morning he would go and retrieve the Tesseract that had been lost some months ago while he had been resting. 
They told him he was ready to leave, but really all he wanted was to be ready to go home. 
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