"Sir!" Jarvis' voice echoed through the silent lab. Tony, perched over an experiment, jumped and dropped the peetree dish to the floor.
"What?" he growled.
"I'm sorry to disturb you, but you may want to have a look at this."
"What could be so important that you needed to interrupt me?"
"Take a look for yourself." A screen across from Tony sprung to life and he furrowed his eyebrows impatiently as it came into focus. The newscasters on the screen seemed visibly flustered and they sent it over to the on-site reporter. She seemed unnerved as well, and constantly turned to look at the extravagant building behind her.
"...has turned into what appears to be a hostage situation. The doors remain bolted and unable to be opened, unlocked, or even smashed. The officials on the scene are trying to figure out what precautions need to be taken to ensure the protection of those inside."
Tony watched intently, trying to figure out what exactly was happening. People with horrified expressions gathered at metal gates that blocked the entrance of the building. Officials in uniforms rushed about with papers, shouting orders at the lower ranks. No one seemed to have a clue what was happening. SWAT team members stood poised and ready to jump into action when called. The camera focused back on the reporter who tapped the device in her ear.
"I have just been informed that the hostile has made contact with the officials on the scene. The information of that conversation and the name of the hostile has not yet been released. No reports of any injuries or casualties have come in yet. Back to you in the newsroom, Phil."
The camera cut back to the newsroom and Tony flipped the screen off. Just what he needed. Hopefully the others were already being notified about this. He didn't particularly like being the only one who knew about things.
"Sir! Incoming call from-"
"STARK!" Fury's voice boomed over the intercom. Tony cringed at the sheer volume.
"Good morning, your Highness, how are you on this lovely day?" he said with a mock bow, knowing that Fury was watching from some hidden camera. He'd looked for it multiple times, but always came up empty.
"I don't want to hear it today, Stark," Fury growled.
"When do you ever want to hear it, Fury?" Stark cracked a smile and began cleaning up the mess from the experiment.
"I'm going to go ahead and assume you've seen what's happening in London at the moment," he said, completely ignoring Tony's quip.
"Yes, of course."
"And you're still sitting in your lab? Are you really that much of an idiot Stark?" Before Tony could think of a witty remark to make, Fury continued. "The others have been already notified and are en route to London."
"You serious?" he snapped. The only thing he hated more than being the only one to know the plan was being the last one to know the plan.
"Yes. So I suggest playing a bit of dress up and get your act together, Stark. Don't screw up." Fury's voice cut out and Tony huffed. He snatched the two bracelets off the table next to him and called for Jarvis to ready his suit.
0o0o0o0o
Loki watched the faces of the party with pleasure. One by one, they all looked up, regarding him with gasps, and murmurs.
It felt good to be back on Midgard,
he thought. Mortal minds were just so easy to manipulate. He hovered a few feet above the balcony drinking in the fear from the crowd. He descended to the floor and walked over the the staircase.
"Oh...I'm terribly sorry. Am I interrupting something?" he said smoothly, putting on his best innocent face. A general murmur spread through the crowd, but was silenced when he came off the last step. All the guests were dressed in lavish gowns and top-line tuxedos. There were ambassadors from every country in the UN as well as VIPs from various other places. Loki knew he was in the right place to stir up a bit of commotion. He walked to the doors and peered out at the faces on the street. They gawked back at him, not sure what to do. One man, an police official, cocked his gun and fired him. The bullet hit the window, but bounced off like a pebble. Gasps and whispers erupted from both inside and outside. Loki stared at the man who had shot the gun and wagged a single finger back and forth like a teacher scolding a bad student.
He turned to face the assembly once again, but he found himself staring into the end of a pistol.
"Don't move," the man's voice shook slightly as he gave his weak order. Loki looked down at him with a small smirk. He stepped forward and the man backed off a step. "I said...don't move...Sir," he added the last word in a lame attempt to gain any favor.
"You mortals. All so ready to step up. To be the bravest, or the best. But, look at this man. He can barely hold his voice steady as he stares into the face of his enemy. You are all just simple pawns. So, please..." he flicked his eyes to the man aiming at him. "Don't try to be the king, when all you were ever meant to do was kneel." The man didn't lower his gun or change his stance in any way. The crowd mimicked their leader and made no movement at all.
"Kneel," he growled, but still no one moved. Loki was about to unleash his rage, but a loud clash on the doors behind him made the crown jump. He was ready to ignore it, placing it up to only the SWAT team trying to break in once again, but the mass of people chattered excitedly, a portion their fear seeming to have drained away.
"Wha-" He turned around, ready to blast whatever stood in his way to the outskirts of the Nine Realms, but stopped short when he recognized the face peering in at him. "Oh, brother..." he growled.
"LOKI! Come out now. Surrender peacefully," Thor shouted through the glass.
"Why would I do that, brother? What reason would I have for that?" he smiled brightly just to show Thor he wasn't going to cave just because he was asked nicely.
"I am warning you, brother. I don't want to have to do this, but if necessary, I will."
"What? What could you possibly do to me, Thor?" As soon as the words left his mouth, he regretted saying them. A large green mass exploded behind Thor and a monstrous roar shook the windows. "Oh, no." Loki disappeared just before the entire front wall busted in showering rubble everywhere. The people tried running further into the building, but before they could get very far, another figure strode in behind the Hulk.
"Ladies and gentlemen! Please, remain calm and exit out the...uh..." Captain America pointed to where the doors had been a moment before. "Main entrance?" The crowd stopped at the sound of the new voice and immediately started to make a mad dash toward him. Realizing he was about to be stampeded, he dodged the first few people and ran to the staircase. A familiar whooshing sounded beside him and he glanced over his shoulder.
"Was about time you joined us, Stark," he chided.
"Ha. Ha. You're funny, Captain. Really. I'm dying over here," Tony rolled his eyes behind his mask.
"Well...where'd he go? I don't think anyone will particularly happy with us if we don't come out with the bad guy. How do we justify letting the Hulk loose if we don't have anything to show for it?"
"We could just say we couldn't control him. That usually seems to work."
"I feel like they all believed that the first ten times we used that excuse."
"It's not an excuse. I mean, look at him, it's at least partially true." Tony gestured toward the beast that stood in the center of the building. His head was inside a lit chandelier and his body barely fit in between the twin staircases. At the sound of his name, he turned his head, shaking the cystals on the fixture, and huffed. The other two men just looked at him.
"I'm still scared of him," Steve finally said.
"Me too...But, don't tell him that." They both nodded. "Well...not that this isn't exciting...but, where'd he go?"
"He has used his magic to hide from us," Thor said, looking around the hall.
"Wow. Thanks genius. I have no idea where we'd be without your intel," Clint quipped as he descended the stairs to meet them at the bottom with Natasha following closely behind. Thor glared at him.
"Silence. You didn't let me finish. He is still here..." he glanced around the room again. "Somewhere..."
"Maybe if you stopped working with these humans you would've been able to find me, brother. Your senses grow weak." The Avengers looked up, trying to place where the voice had come from. Hawk-Eye strung and arrow, and the Hulk made a low rumbling noise deep in his chest.
"Loki..." Thor took a step in a random direction.
"Over here," he said, clearly amused by himself.
"Wha-" They all turned again, trying to find the source of his voice.
"Nope, wrong way," he laughed.
"Oh, dear God. Aren't we a little old for Hide-and-Seek, Loki?" Tony shouted.
"Oh, but games are so much fun." The smile was evident in his voice. Clint grew angry and fired the arrow into thin air. It stopped suddenly and a cry of pain echoed through the rubble.
"Did I just hit him?"
"Loki?" Thor's shouted. He tried to sound menacing, but he couldn't hide his concern.
"Holy Lord...I think you hit him."
"Wow. I am awesome."
"Loki!"
"Just kidding." Loki's voice came from behind them and they all spun around to find him standing right outside the small group they had formed.
"Kidding?" Thor rumbled angrily.
"Well..." Loki looked innocently at his brother. "That is was I do."
"What are you doing here, Loki? Back for another round with the Avengers? Or just another round with the Hulk," Tony said, they all took a step forward. Loki looked at the green monster behind the main group and swallowed hard. He remembered, quite vividly, what happened with his last run-in with Dr. Banner's counterpart.
"Nothing, really. Just...some fun," with that, he took off and lept up the staircase.
"Let's go, boys," Tony said, charging his repulsors. Natasha cleared her throat. "Oh, and Natasha."
They all split up, taking their favored positions. Hulk turned slowly, watching the god bound up the stairs. Hawk-Eye raced up the stairs after Loki, but when he reached the landing, he started climbing up to the highest point in the entire building. Iron Man jumped into the air and circled around waiting for his perfect time to strike. Captain America raced across the center of the floor to the opposite set of stairs and Thor took his set two at a time.
Loki reached the top of the balcony and turned to face his first threat. Thor. He grinned as he conjured his scepter from thin air. He sent a beam of raw, blue light right into Thor's torso sending him flying backwards. He hit the wall and crumpled to a heap. Turning to face Captain America, Loki brandished his weapon once again, but his target happened to be much closer then he originally intended. Before he realized what was happening, a fist connected to the underside of his chin. He crashed into the stone railing of the balcony at top speed. It broke under the pressure and he shot off the edge. Manipulating the air around him, he propelled himself back to the landing, ready to face his attacker head on. Instead, he was greeted by a stiletto'ed foot to the stomach and an arrow to the shoulder. Loki gasped at the instant pain and dropped to one knee.
"Aw, proposing are we? It's a little too early for that, don't you think? You haven't even bought me dinner yet." Natasha's sarcastic voice reached his ears. Not understanding what she meant, he made the mistake of looking up to her face. Her foot caught him under the eye and he felt his cheek split open. Another arrow whizzed toward him, but this time he grabbed it mid-air and snapped it. He pushed himself over the ledge, trying to regain his strength before he tried to face them again. Reaching over to the arrow embedded in his shoulder, he grasped it and winced as he tried to pull it out. Taking a deep breath, he pulled harder this time, but it still wouldn't move.
"Those are nasty, aren't they?" Loki turned to face the man clad in Iron. He dropped his hand from the arrow and poised, readying himself for an air battle. "Why don't you let me get that for you?" Before Loki knew what was happening, Iron Man had already closed the space between them and yanked the arrow from its place. Loki cried out in pain and dropped a few feet, his concentration temporarily broken. He looked at the wound in his shoulder and pressed a hand to it in a vain attempt to slow the bleeding. A presence behind him made him turn to face Tony Stark once more. He held the arrow in his hand. The tip was barbed and was completely coated in Loki's flesh and blood.
"That is just cruel. The things you humans think of," Loki stared at the weapon.
"Well, you are dealing with Clint..." Loki seemed to take that as a valid reason and took a deep breath.
"So, I suppose you are the one who will stop me?" They floated fifty feet above the main floor.
"Well...I could, but there's one more person who hasn't gotten his share of you yet," Tony mused. Loki realized who he was talking about, but before he had the chance to react, a metal boot connected with his ribs and sent him flying into rock solid abs. He let out a weak moan as a large hand tossed him into the air and swatted him to the floor like a tiny bug.
"Puny god," the Hulk chuckled.
"That felt good, huh," Stark nodded in his direction. The Hulk just nodded.
Loki was sprawled in a crater of tile and dirt. His leg was twisted at an unnatural angle and his eyes were closed. His chest still rose and fell slightly, the only indication he was alive. The gang had assembled around him, complete with a half-dressed Dr. Banner, trying to figure out the best course of action from this point.
"So, we're taking him back to Stark Tower?"
"Yes."
"Then calling Fury..." The whole group nodded, no one was particularly excited to send that call.
"And he will be in the hands of S.H.I.E.L.D. after that." They all looked at Thor, who hadn't put much into the conversation.
"How's that sound?" Thor nodded slowly. He didn't want to see his brother locked up, but he supposed that's how it had to be.
"Well, let's get moving," Clint said impatiently. "This suit's not exactly the most comfortable thing to wear."
"Calm down, princess," Tony retorted.
"Well, he's all yours Stark."
"What?"
"Yeah. How else are we going to get him back to the Tower?" Dr. Banner looked innocently at Tony, but his small smile betrayed his facade.
"Fine..." he grumbled, stepping into the crater. "I'll meet you there. Do me a favor, stop for food on your way back, I'm starving."
"What do I look like, your mom?" Bruce said.
"You certainly act like it..." Tony mumbled through a smile.
"What?"
"Nothing." Tony flipped his mask down and flew out of the building with Loki in his arms. The crowd outside cheered and called out for the Avengers.
A/N: Reviews please! I love hearing what you guys have to think. I, once again, have to implore you guys to let me know how I'm writing the characters. I hate it when fanfics don't stay true to the real characters and I'd hate it even more if I was a writer of one of those fanfics. Please and thanks guys! Also, prompts and whatnot are SUPERDUPER accepted.