TITLE: Ruiner
AUTHOR: RedMetalWitch(AO3) aka: Kichi ( )
SUBJECT: Loki is attacked by a horrible creature of legend and finds himself changed for the worse
FANDOM: Thor (movies), Avengers (movies), Avengers (comics- just threw in a few characters for support or back story)
WARNINGS: lots of blood and death (not major character death- just random innocent civilian death)
NOTES: I refuse to believe that Loki is dead and I am ignoring Infinity War. Actually, I really don't know where this would fit in, so it will just have to be an AU. Also I don't know who Jimmy Woo is. I literally looked up Asian marvel characters on Google but I hear he is in Ant Man and the Wasp (which I haven't watched yet). Also I did as much research as I could with Google and Wikipedia, but sadly, I've never been to Yangshuo, but from the pictures I've seen I totally want to go now. Point is, if the vague descriptions of the land don't fit, I'm sorry. Also, also, I planned two other Loki fics and this just popped into my head from nowhere, so I'm running with it.
EDIT 5/20/2019
I need beta readers to help with this fic! I am not happy with it! If you are interested please PM me!
you had all of them on your side
didn't you?
didn't you?
Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China-
Li River near Yangshuo
All day the team had been searching up and down the Li River from Guilin to Yangshuo and back. Director Fury had sent them to hunt down the Mandarin.
Dr. Strange had contacted Fury 32 hours earlier and calmly informed him that the Mandarin was in possession of some strange magic and reports of legendary beasts had reached his ears. But Dr. Strange could do nothing as he was in another dimension and unable to leave until his own mission was complete. Fury was surprisingly calm when he suggested that Loki was a magic user.
"You trust that... Person?" was Strange's reply.
"About as far as I can throw him, but it has been six months and I haven't heard a single complaint from the rest of the team."
"Then send them immediately. Also I suggest sending James Woo to accompany them. He would be a great help, I am sure."
What would have been a 15 hour commercial flight took them about nine in one of Starks faster jets, and it was not long before they were floating down the Li River. The karst mountains the river flowed between were beautiful, but with only Tony, Thor, and Loki able to fly or teleport to search the top of each one, it was time-consuming. Dr. Strange had clearly seen a long-abandoned temple as the site of the Mandarin's hideout. But it was like trying to find a needle in a haystack without a magnet. As darkness began to fall they began to notice strange shapes swimming past their small boat, eerie cries echoed from the trees, and Jimmy began to scan the shore nervously.
"We should stop for today. It would not be wise to dwell here in darkness." he said. Thor smiled.
"I fear no beasts, nor darkness. What say you, brother?" Loki shrugged, looking bored.
"I care not. We can stay or go. It matters little."
"My butt is going numb. If we're going to stay, I'd rather get out of this boat and walk." Natasha said.
"Me too." Clint said, as ever in agreement with his favorite team mate.
"I agree with Jimmy. My eyesight is no better in the dark than it ever was." Steve said.
"Mine, either. I can barely see the shore." Bruce said with a sigh.
"Oh, so I'm the deciding vote then?" Tony piped up, smiling. Before he could say another word the boat flipped, throwing them all into the Li.
"What the Hell?!" Natasha snarled as she resurfaced.
"Quickly!" Jimmy shouted, "Get to the shore!" He was suddenly pulled under.
"Jimmy!" Steve cried, diving after him. Loki and Tony were pulling Natasha and Bruce to shore while Thor hovered over the water where Steve had dove after Jimmy.
"Where are they?!" Bruce cried as Tony set him on the shore.
"They're coming up!" Thor called back and Steve and Jimmy reappeared, gasping for air. Thor grabbed them both and pulled them quickly through the water to the shore, but as he did Steve began to cry out and thrash.
"It's got me!" he yelled, kicking furiously. Thor yanked Jimmy out and dumped him on the ground and then grabbed Steve by the arms and pulled him out with a strange, hairy creature hanging from his legs. Natasha threw three knives into the beasts deformed back and Clint hit it with two arrows. With a keening wail it sank into the water, two arrow shafts last to dip beneath the surface.
"What the hell was that?!" Bruce cried, his face contorted with disgust.
"It is Shui Gui... a 'water monkey', I think. I'd heard they only live in lakes. But this is madness! They are creatures of myth!"
"Dr. Strange said the Mandarin was using what he considered 'weird magic' and heard reports of incidents with the locals regarding creatures that were only heard of in folk lore." Steve said. Jimmy shook his head in shock.
"What are water monkeys?" Thor mumbled to his brother. Loki shrugged, only half listening. He could feel the pulse of magic suddenly and it was indeed unlike anything he'd ever felt. Then it was gone. He scowled.
"They drown people." was all Jimmy said.
"Three quarters of my weapons are down at the the bottom of the river now." Natasha snapped. "What are our plans now?" She said, trying to conceal her fury and disappointment.
"We should go that way." Said Loki, pointing back the way they had come, to the opposite bank of the river. Most of the group sighed in annoyance, but Thor seemed pleased.
"What is it?" Steve said, standing and looking toward where Loki pointed.
"The magic, it is very strange, and it is that way."
They waited patiently while Natasha and Jimmy cleaned the water from the guns they still carried, then they crossed the Li without further incident, and then a road shortly after. The moon had risen and it wasn't too difficult to see. Their clothes were still wet and the night was humid. Soon mosquitoes began to attack them.
"Bug repellant was in my bag too." Natasha sighed as she slapped her neck.
The trees began to thicken and the karst mountains seemed to loom on all sides. They could see nothing but the wilderness around them. They heard crickets and an occasional screech of a nocturnal animal. After an hour of trudging through the dark, Bruce stopped.
"Loki, where are we going?"
"I've never been to this land. I know not our destination, I simply follow the power which is growing stronger as we stand here."
"Is it far?" Steve asked, seeing irritation on Bruce's face. Loki saw it too and his eyes narrowed. He did his damnedest to stay out of sight whenever the Hulk arrived. Bruce had confronted him about it once, blocking Loki's path when it became clear he was doing his best to avoid Banner at all costs.
'"You're on our side now. I'm not going to attack you." Loki had left out the breath he'd been holding, gave Bruce a forced smile.
"Good." was all he'd said.'
Bruce forced himself to calm down and took a few steps away from Loki. He's not doing anything wrong, Bruce reminded himself.
"No." Loki replied, "I think I can see light ahead as well." He pointed up to the very top of a spectacular karst, tall and narrow.
"As do I." said Thor, squinting.
"Great." Steve said and they continued on.
They were at the foot of the towering karst when a creature leapt upon Loki's back and sank its jagged teeth into his shoulder, slicing through armor, skin, and trapezius muscle. Loki's roar of pain and fury alarmed none worse than his elder brother. He sent out a pulsing wave of magic that flung the creature away with a shriek, but like sharks scenting blood on the water, more began to appear and make their way toward him.
"Jiang shi!" Jimmy cried, his features stark with horror. "Kill them!" he, Natasha, and Clint began firing rapidly. Thor knocked several back with his hammer at once, Tony blasted each time he saw one lurch forward with a strange, stiff, leap. Steve's shield bounced back and forth, slamming into rotting skulls. A much louder roar announced the arrival of Hulk.
"Well if Mandarin didn't know we were here before, he does now!" Clint cried, firing arrows as fast as he could.
"I'm on it!" Tony flew towards the top of the karst. Thor was fighting his way to his brother who screamed again and disappeared under a pile of the filthy creatures. A violent blast of green light flung them off of him and he fell back with a gasp. The Hulk grabbed each in turn and crushed their bones, their dried up flesh crumbling. Loki lay sprawled on his back, gasping. Thor beat back the rest that were keeping him from his brother's side with a roar.
Tony flew above the wreckage that had once been a temple. A faint blue glow caught his eye. He saw nothing living, but still descended cautiously. On what appeared to be a plinth carved to resemble a lion sat a blue orb. Deep within he saw a faint sparkle. "What is that?" he wondered aloud. His AI, FRIDAY chirped in his ear: "Unknown composition. Unknown energy source emanating from object. No radiation of any kind, no heat signature. Entity unknown."
"You're always so helpful, I've been meaning to tell you." Tony sighed. "Scan for any life in this rubble."
"Several species of Arachnid, Chiroptera, Acromantis-"
"Ok, thanks, big help again."
He landed with the orb in his palm and saw everyone hovering over a still form. His heart went into his throat as he drew close.
"We must end his life." at this Thor lunged at the speaker (who had sounded like Jim Woo) but was quickly caught by Hulk and forced back to his knees.
"We can't do that." Steve sighed. Jimmy stood, his face bleak.
"Then I must leave you. My advice is you put a knife through his brain right now-"
"No!" Thor snarled.
"- or quarantine him if you value your life so little! You don't know what you are dealing with." Jimmy rose to his feet, turned on his heel, but before he could take a step, Tony stopped him.
"You can't leave, James. We need you! At least tell us what to expect, for God's sake, at least stay with us until we get back to Yangshuo!"
"He will die slowly. Then he will awaken again. How soon after I have no clue. These are creatures of legend. I know only the stories meant to keep me out of the forests as a child. He will not be the man you knew. He will be unable to speak or use his senses for other than the hunt. He will be as a corpse. Cold, stiff with rigor mortis, and hungering for blood and life force."
"Could this help?" Tony said, holding the glittering blue orb aloft.
"What the hell is that?" Clint wondered aloud.
"And where is the Mandarin?" said Natasha. Loki groaned in pain and tried to touch one of the horrid bites on his neck. Thor gently took his hand.
"No, brother. Do not touch." Loki blinked sluggishly and nodded. The Hulk began to shrink rapidly until there stood Bruce, struggling to hold his pants up and make his way to Loki. Thor hovered over him, his face crumpling in distress. He took one look at the wounds on Loki's neck and shuddered.
"We have to get him out of here now." Bruce said.
Tony and Thor took turns carrying everyone up to Tony's jet as it hovered overhead. Jimmy had agreed to get a ride home, but he sat as far away from Loki as he could, watched him intently, and never put down his gun.
Bruce didn't want to pat himself on the back too hard, but he was relieved he'd insisted on updating and enhancing their medical supplies. Removing Loki's armor and under shirt was a wretched task. Loki's eyes were wide and staring and he shivered violently with chills, but he seemed completely unaware of what was happening. It was as if he'd lost consciousness with his eyes open. Thor sat behind him and maneuvered him whichever way Bruce and Steve asked as they undid his armor's buckles and straps. When they peeled it off him Loki froze, his eyes snapping shut, his mouth twisted in a grimace of pain. His dark green shirt was black with blood.
"Jesus." Bruce hissed in sympathy. "We need to give him an IV, he's lost a lot of blood."
"I'll help." Tony offered, carelessly tossing the glowing blue bauble to Clint who just barely caught it with a gasp.
"Careful!" Natasha snapped.
"I have complete faith in you two." Tony said, not glancing back. "I'll find the IV. Do we know his blood type?"
"No. We have to use O negative for now. I don't even know if his body will accept human blood." Bruce trailed off, feeling unsure.
"True, but, he's looking whiter than Augusta Seger-"
"Bitch." Clint murmured under his breath. Natasha tried to hide a smile as she patted him on the back. Bruce sighed, raking a hand through his hair.
"What matters the type of blood? I don't understand." Thor said, petting his brother's black hair.
"There are eight different blood types- among humans anyway- and there are about that many immunologic reactions that can occur when incompatible blood is given to a patient. But, Loki's magic heals him, and frankly, I'm not sure he would suffer any ill effect, but then again, I have no way of knowing."
"Immunologic..?" Thor trailed off and chewed his lower lip for a moment. Steve looked blank as well. Bruce and Steve began to clean the blood off of Loki, doing their best to be gentle and not flinch at his pained gasps.
"It means his body can react adversely to the blood we're going to have to give him." Bruce continued. He didn't want to even mention some of the things that could happen, he didn't even want to think of it, and he certainly wasn't about to tell Thor. "But we have no choice, already his breathing is becoming rapid and shallow, his skin is getting cold..."
Tony returned with two bags of O negative blood and an IV. Bruce easily found a good vein in Loki's arm and swabbed the area with iodine.
"Loki?" Bruce said as he was about to insert the needle. "Can you hear me?" Loki nodded once. "I need to put this needle in your arm. It will replace the blood you've lost. Can you hold still, or do you want Thor to hold your wrist?" He nodded again, to what, Bruce wasn't sure.
"Thor, hold his wrist and keep him still." Steve advised. Thor grabbed his hand instead and turned it palm up, and revealed another set of teeth in Loki's wrist.
"Are you fucking kidding me?!" Tony hissed. "How many times did they bite him?"
"I'm not sure. I thought we'd taken care of all his wounds already." Bruce sighed. Thor bowed his head. Loki nodded again to a question no one had asked and closed his eyes. Thor leaned forward and gripped Loki's upper arm as well, to keep him from shaking and Bruce deftly inserted the needle and taped it in place. Loki made no sound, but once they released him he continued to shiver.
"Keep his arm straight, Thor, don't let him bend it." Steve cautioned. Thor nodded, his expression forlorn, and continued to hold Loki's hand while his other hand went back to gently combing through his brother's raven hair.
Steve and Bruce continued to clean and bandage his wounds in silence.
When they were done they counted four separate bite wounds, each deep and inflamed. Bruce and Steve cleaned them as much as they could, but Loki continued to cringe as they treated him. Each bite looked ragged and painful and no one could blame him when he gasped or flinched. They thought they had finished until Tony pointed out a growing pool of blood beneath Loki.
"Fuck!" Bruce gasped, more frightened than angry and they quickly tugged his pants off. A hideous bite marred his inner thigh, so close to the femoral vein that Bruce shivered. Thor groaned at the sight, his features crumbling again. They cleaned this as carefully as they could, thankful that Loki did not cry out. His eyes blinked slowly as he stared at nothing. They began to cover the wounds with bandages. After nearly two hours they were finished and Thor gently lifted him and laid him down on a small cot. The carpet where he'd lain was nowhere near salvageable.
Loki's eyes closed finally as he fell asleep, his body still greedily draining the second bag of blood.
"Will he be alright?" Natasha wondered quietly. She did not want Thor to hear her as she murmured near Clint's ear.
"I do not think he will be." Jimmy said, his eyes still locked on Loki.
They returned to Stark Tower as quickly as possible. Jimmy immediately left with only a faint smile and a wave. Not five minutes later Nick Fury was calling, first Tony, then Natasha.
Natasha answered (unlike Tony).
"Director Stark, I was just going to call you."
"Is Loki in quarantine?"
"Just about."
"I'm sending a team over there now and I want the rest of you to stand by. None of you are to leave, do you understand?"
"Yes, sir." she hung up with a sigh. "We've all been quarantined, Fury is sending a team over now."
Thor, of course, refused to leave Loki's side. When the team infiltrated Stark tower with hazmat suits on, all employees that did not have access to the top floors were sent home with clear instructions not to return until notified. When they surrounded Loki's bed Thor immediately saw them as a threat and Bruce, Steve, and Tony all took turns explaining to him that no one was going to harm his brother until he calmed and lowered Mjollnir.
Loki remained unaware as they poked and prodded him for about an hour. They were just finishing sealing part of the room off with thick plastic when slowly he began to blink and stare about him in confusion.
"Brother I am here." Thor said. Loki relaxed and slumped back against the pillows, his eyes closing again.
Natasha and Clint were in the kitchen.
"I'm starving." Clint said.
"I don't think we can order out this time." Natasha said with a sigh.
"Do you know how to cook?" Clint asking, sounding hopeful.
"Nope."
"Well, I do know how to make one thing."
"Then let's get to it."
Clint and Natasha returned from the kitchen with a large, steaming pot, crackers, spoons and bowls. Tony leaped to his feet and drew near, his eyes lit up.
"Something smells very good and I am starving."
"I made chili!" Clint said with a small smile. Bruce and Thor's stomachs practically roared at the same time and Steve jumped up from the couch, his eyes wide.
"You stay here, I'll bring you some." Bruce said. Thor nodded in relief, he didn't dare leave Loki's side even for food, any way. Bruce returned quickly with two bowls and spoons, passing one to Thor through the isolation barrier.
"Thank you." Thor sighed and began to eat.
"I think he's going to be ok." Bruce said once half his bowl was empty. "He hasn't reacted negatively to the transfusion, and while his blood is not exactly like a human's it is strikingly similar. We won't know for certain for awhile, but he already looks better."
"His magic will heal him." Thor said. "He nearly lost an arm once, but two days later he was well again." Bruce blinked, his mouth falling open.
"Two days?!" he shook his head smiling faintly. "Wow." Thor smiled briefly and then pouted looking at his empty bowl. Bruce hid a smile. "Can I get you more?" The smile returned even brighter.
"Please."
Loki awoke to the sounds of snoring. Everyone lay sprawled on couches throughout the room with the exception of Thor who snored loudly beside him, slumped in a chair. He looked around in confusion for a moment before his memory returned. He gasped, his hands hovering over the gauze wrapped around his throat. He turned his head gently but felt no pain and slowly touched the side of his neck.
He felt no pain as he applied pressure, either. He sat up, feeling remarkably well and looked around the room. It was dark, but it wasn't. It confused him. He could see everything in exquisite detail, but he knew the only light to be seen was from the moon shining through the wall-length windows. Everything in the room was plain to his eyes. Well, it wasn't actually plain at all. Everything seemed to be almost alive and indescribable beautiful. The moonlight upon the glass, the city beyond, the texture of fabric. It entranced him and it was long before he could drag his eyes away from the drape of the curtains and the shimmer they gave off when the moonlight hit them.
And his ears began to pick up sounds he knew he shouldn't be able to hear. He could hear everyone's stomach gurgling and bubbling, every tiny movement they made, even the elevator moving far below them. He could hear the murmur of voices in the floors below them. He shook his head in confusion. It wasn't possible; his hearing was no better than a human's for all his other abilities.
He looked down at himself and saw the giant needle in his arm and shivered. He carefully undid the tape holding it in place and slid the needle out. Immediately a thin line of blood dripped down his arm. He stopped cold, his heart thudding painfully.
He could smell it. He could smell his own blood and he had never smelled anything more enticing. Without thinking his tongue darted out and swiped from wrist to the puncture site. He shuddered as his blood filled his mouth, chills dragging up his spine. It was incomparable. It was crippling him with ecstacy. He wanted more, the tiny wound had already closed but not before another trail leaked down his arm. He lapped that up with a moan and then froze, his eyes wide.
"What am I doing?" he gasped. He felt terror wash over him and a wave of nausea hit him. He had never before done such a thing. He had never tasted blood and relished it. The feeling that had raced through him had been nearly orgasmic. It wasn't natural, and he huddled there, paralyzed with fear. "What has happened to me?" he gasped as he remembered horrible revenants leaping upon him, biting him, hurting him. He again lightly touched the bandages that encircled his throat. He needed to see how bad it was.
His hands shook as he pulled the blankets away from his body and stood. He waited a moment, fearing dizziness, but nothing happened. He found his way through the walls of plastic separting him and Thor from everyone else and headed for the nearest bathroom. He slowly unraveled the gauze around his throat and found nothing. No teeth marks, no lacerations, not even a bruise. The only evidence was the padding soaked with brown blood. The scent of the dried blood almost made him retch. He threw them in the garbage. He found another great bandage on his inner thigh and his left wrist. Another was closer to his shoulder than his throat. He found no wounds or bruising. He suddenly recalled the agony of those ragged teeth clamping down on him and shivered.
It wasn't right. Even with his magic he'd never healed this fast. His hands were shaking again. He needed to look in the mirror even though the thought suddenly terrified him. He gasped in shock at what he saw. His eyes drew his attention first. They glimmered like emeralds, the color a deeper and truer green than ever before. His skin was smooth and even paler than he remembered it, almost like alabaster. His hair now seemed and even deeper black and shone blue in the light. It looked thicker and even a bit longer. He gripped the edge of the sink and heard a strange squeal and a deafening pop. Porcelain flew everywhere, the tiny bits striking his skin. He leapt back in shock and slammed hard into the wall behind him, hearing tiles shatter and drywall crack. He heard confused murmurs coming from down the hall.
He froze, his heart beating wildly. He heard footsteps coming quickly toward him.
"Loki?" it was his brother's voice, but not as he'd ever known it. It was richer, almost musical to his ears. He felt a gentle tap vibrate through the door and up his spine. He was afraid to speak, would his voice be changed as well? Was anything the same?
Loki opened the bathroom door slowly. His eyes were wide and he seemed utterly terrified. His hands shook badly.
"Brother, what-?" Thor began, then stopped and stared. They all did. Steve, Bruce, Clint, Tony, and Natasha stood in the hallway gaping at his throat, at the vicious wounds that were gone as if they had never been. He opened his mouth to speak but nothing came out.
"You ok buddy?" Tony said softly. Loki shuddered and shook his head.
"There is something very wrong with me."
TBC
{edited 9/7/2018}