So sorry about the long wait. I hope the length of this chapter/section thing will make up for it. I explore more characters' feelings and perspectives in this part, but it is still mainly a Loki, Thor, Sigyn, and Hela fanfic. There is more swearing and violence involved in this part. There is nothing too graphic, but be warned!
Part Three: If You Love Me, Let Go
Loki was tied down to a stone table. He tried to lift his head, but a hand pushed him back down.
It has been around a week since he had landed onto Thanos' Sanctuary; a week of Thanos asking for Loki's help to collect the Infinity Stones. Of course Loki had refused, and normally the Titan would become frustrated and leave him alone for the rest of the day, but Loki knew that the Titan's patience was wearing thin.
It came to no surprise that Thanos increased his hostility toward the young Asgardian with each refusal, but Loki was still slightly shocked to find himself tied down, spread-eagle, on a stone table.
He tried to loosen his bindings, but found no give. He could sense other creatures milling around him. At first, Loki thought the aliens, the Chitauri, were ugly. As the days passed, Loki learned not to anger them or do anything that would cause them to go scrambling to their master in order to have Thanos himself come and investigate the problem.
Loki had started to hate the purple alien. He was lucky, to say the least, to end up with only a few bruises from the punches and slaps that Thanos had inflicted on him.
That was it. Just slaps and an odd punch or kick, nothing else. Thanos never tried anything too harsh; his bruises always healed. So why was he tied down in an unfamiliar room?
Loki got his answer soon enough. Footsteps approached the table, and an ugly face peered into Loki's. The alien was holding what looked like a needle attached to a small tube.
The alien stood over Loki and pressed the tip of the needle Loki's chest, right above the heart.
On instinct, Loki tried to move away, but the needle breached his skin. He flinched at the small poke and watched as black ink dripped out of the needle and right into his skin.
A tattoo? Loki had heard of mortals getting tattoos, and few Asgardians had one, but he never even thought about getting one himself.
The Chitauri alien kept moving the needle around the left side of Loki's chest. The ink left a pattern of geometrical shapes, swirls, and some letters of an ancient language.
It took a few hours before the tattoo was done. The tattoo completely covered the left side of his chest, and looped around to the top of his left shoulder and arm. A circle with a smaller circle inside covered the top of his arm. Four smaller circles connected by an X, which met in the middle of the smallest circle. A square boxed in the X and circles. Ancient letters adorned the outside on each side of the square. The design, Loki later found out, was called the "Mark of Thanos."
The alien backed off, only to be replaced by another, purple alien.
Loki felt himself being lifted to a sitting position, the chains never leaving his wrists.
Thanos was standing in front of him, a twisted smile on his face. Loki fought the urge to struggle against the chains.
"What was that for?" Loki demanded, clearly referring to his new tattoo.
"Since you are stuck here, and one way or another you will follow my orders, I gave you my 'Mark.' All of my servants and followers have one; it's only fair that you get one too," Thanos explained.
"What if I don't want to listen to you?" Loki spat out.
"You will, eventually."
A shaky laugh escaped Loki's lips. "I am not one of your followers."
"Not yet, anyway. Besides, I gave you something special." Thanos motioned toward Loki's stomach. Loki looked down and found another, smaller, tattoo. The black tip of a thin triangle pointed up, just below his belly button; the rest disappearing beneath the waistband of his pants.
"I gave that to you when you were asleep. The tattoo on your chest is a mark of servitude. The other one is special. Only a select few have it. You were just too wonderful to pass up on. The tattoo is a symbol for my own, personal slaves. I keep them for...entertainment."
Loki swallowed.
"We are connected through the 'Mark,':" Thanos continued. "I can see where you are at and read your thoughts. It can disappear, only to reappear when I call on you. There's no way to trick me out of my Infinity Stones."
Tears formed at the corners of Loki's eyes. He was stuck. There was no way out of this. He was bound to serve Thanos, willingly or not.
"Now, shall we begin our fun for today?" Thanos asked. Four Chitauri aliens stepped up to the table, each standing at a corner. "My offer of power and safety in return for the Infinity Stones still stands. Are you sure you want to refuse that?"
"Yes," Loki said stubbornly.
"I knew you were going to say that," Thanos grumbled to himself. To Loki, he said: "I gave you shelter and food, for what? Cold, hard refusal!"
"You plan to wipe out half the universe with the Stones! What else did you expect?" Loki shot back.
Thanos was inches away from Loki's face in one, long stride. "Do not bite the hand that feeds you," Thanos quoted.
Loki glared in response. "What is my life in comparison to all of those going to be murdered by you?"
A sharp slap to the cheek shocked Loki into silence. Thanos turned away from his prisoner, his hands clasped behind his back.
"My patience wears thin. I tire of waiting for your answer to change."
Loki spit out a mouthful of blood. "Why don't you ask one of your many 'followers' to help you instead?" Loki couldn't keep the snark out of his voice.
Thanos was back at his side. The Titan trailed a finger over Loki's tattoo. "I could, but you have power, immense power. That, mixed with your cunning and wit, could win wars. You could bring me the Stones without breaking a sweat. I could also collect the Stones myself, but you are disposable. I'd rather lose a powerful ally then lose my own life."
Loki gritted his teeth and pulled away from Thanos' touch. "I'm flattered that you think I'm powerful, but my answer is still no."
"I don't understand why you were not crowned king. Asgard needs a powerful leader. Too bad your idiotic brother is going to be king, not you," Thanos said, switching tactics.
"If you are trying to make me feel upset because I wasn't king, it's not working. I never wanted the throne; Thor just wasn't ready for it."
Anger flashed in Thanos' cold, black eyes. "You will be a tough one to break. It will be enjoyable, no doubt, but everyone has a breaking point. You will beg for mercy after I'm through with you. You will long for death, beg for it. This will be the last time you will ever be safe from my wrath. Here on out, there is no life for you other than pain."
/\
"Loki! Loki, wake up!" Sigyn's voice pierced into Loki's dream. He sat up and looked around. He was back in the room he shared with Sigyn, but the sky was bright not dark.
"You were shaking and mumbling in your sleep," Sigyn said. "Are your nightmares getting worse?"
"They seem to be more vivid. I can feel physical pain," Loki answered.
Sigyn blinked. "You can feel physical pain?"
Loki nodded.
"Loki, that's not normal! Why didn't you tell me?" Sigyn exclaimed.
"I didn't want you to worry. I thought it would go away, but it's getting worse."
Sigyn suddenly grabbed hold of Loki's left arm. She ran a hand gently over it. His skin was bright red where his tattoo was, but the black ink wasn't visible.
"What?" Sigyn gasped. "How?"
Loki gently pried his arm away. He absentmindedly rubbed his shoulder. "I don't know," he lied.
"I'll figure it out later, right now you need to eat," Sigyn said. "You must be starving."
"What time is it?" Loki asked and stood up.
"Nearly noon. You went asleep right after you came back from Wakanda."
"I'm not hungry," Loki muttered and shuffled his way towards the bathroom.
Sigyn placed her hands on her hips. "Loki, you used a lot of energy to visit Wakanda. You need to get it back if we are to take down Thanos. Even...even the dead need to eat and sleep," Sigyn scolded.
Loki stopped, his hand resting on the door to the bathroom. He turned to look at Sigyn.
"Fine."
"Good. Get dressed." Sigyn spun on her heel and strode out of the room, closing the door behind her.
Loki rubbed his shoulder again and looked in the mirror. The redness was fading, but the faint sting of getting a new tattoo was still there.
Loki sighed and changed into a loose fitting pair of his clothes. He combed his hair quickly and went to join Sigyn in the palace's dining room.
Sigyn was accompanied by Sleipnir, Jormungandr, Fenris, Hela, and a white-blonde haired man. They were standing near the center table, tense and nervous.
"I'll be fine," Hela was saying. "It'll be tough, but I can handle it."
"Are you sure that you want to go alone? It's dangerous. It will be safer having backup," Sleipnir said.
Hela smiled at her oldest brother, but she was clearly tired of hearing about how dangerous entering the Soul Stone was.
Loki gave her an encouraging smile and sat down on a chair. He picked an apple and watched the group argue.
"I know how dangerous it is, but having more than one Asgardian in the Stone is more risky. Thanos trusts me. How will he respond if I came with you or anyone else?" Hela questioned. "Besides, you need to be here for our plan to work."
Fenris raised his hand. "How are you going to enter the stone?" he asked.
"A portal and a little bit of dark magic. It'll be too risky to keep it open, so we'll have to close the portal and reopen it once I found all the souls. It will be tough and tiring, but we can't keep the portal open because Thanos might notice and trap us in there," Hela explained. "Remember, I'm going to rescue the innocent civilians first. You need to stay here to open the Gates of Valhalla and let them rest here until this entire 'Thanos business is done. I'll have to rescue the Avengers and Guardians who are trapped in the Stone after that."
"After that, we're going to attack Thanos at his home, right?" Fenris asked.
"Yes. We will let the civilians go back to the Land of the Living once Thanos is taken care of." Hela turned to the white-blonde haired man. "Pietro, you are in charge of everything until I get back. Vincent will help if you have any questions. We will only open the Gates if we need an army or something."
"Got it," the dead Avenger, Pietro Maximoff, said.
"Wait for my word, and then we will attack Thanos," Hela ordered.
Everyone nodded. Hela stepped forward, facing the giant, double doors of the dining room. Sleipnir closed his eyes and stretched both hands toward the doors. Navy blue static sparked off his hands and shot forward. The magic outlined the doors and filled the opening with white-blue light which pulsed and rippled.
"Dad," Hela said.
Loki stood up and placed a hand on Hela's shoulder. Sleipnir copied him and kept his free hand raised. Loki squinted and raised his left hand. Green magic joined the blue light, the two colors mixed and swirled into a circle. The circle opened and a sandy landscape could be seen on the other end of the portal.
"Be careful," Pietro called from behind Hela.
"I will, cutie," Hela replied.
Loki reached in front of Hela and placed his hand flat against Sleipnir's.
"If it gets too dangerous, come straight back," Loki said and bent to whisper in Hela's ear. Hela nodded in response.
"On three. One. Two. Three!" Loki shouted.
Immediately Loki pulled his hand away from Sleipnir, breaking the energy circle. The released energy pulled Hela forward into the portal, and closed in a flurry of green and blue sparks.
Sigyn rushed to catch Loki before he collapsed.
"We only have to do that a few more times," Loki muttered and allowed himself to be led to a chair.
Sleipnir was looking paler than usual. "Who knew that opening a portal into an Infinity Stone would be that hard?"
Everyone nodded.
"Rest up and eat. You need your strength back," Sigyn told Sleipnir and Loki. She took a seat next to Loki. Fenris and Pietro sat down too.
Jormungandr, however, remained standing. He crossed his arms over his chest and glared down at Pietro.
"Is anyone else concerned that Hela called Pietro 'cutie?'" he asked.
Fenris looked up. "Jormungandr, they've been dating since Pietro died."
"But he's older than her!"
"Hela is technically younger, yes, but at the same time she is hundreds of years older than him. Plus, he's dead. He can't age," Fenris pointed out.
"He's human!" Jormungandr protested.
"And he's right here and can hear you," Pietro said. "Your dad is fine with me dating his daughter."
"She's a little young yet, but you are a good man. I trust you," Loki added in Pietro's defense.
"If you break her heart, I will break your face," Jormungandr threatened.
"Stop threatening people, Jormungandr," Sigyn scolded.
Jormungandr huffed angrily and sat down.
"Does everyone understand what you have to do?" Sigyn asked.
The group nodded.
"Good. Thanos won't know what hit him."
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
He was exhausted. Sending Hela to the Soul Stone and back was tiring. They had managed to save all of the victims of the Snap. They were currently safe in Valhalla; highly confused, but safe.
Hela said it would take a few hours to rescue the dusted Avengers and Guardians. She had ordered him to rest up until she was ready to be brought back.
Loki plopped down on the bed and laid down on his back. He stared up at the ceiling, lost in his thoughts.
He knew that he would need his strength to open the portal one more time, but he couldn't fall asleep. His mind kept wandering back to their plan. It was a risky one, to say the least. Thanos was a tough opponent; even without the gauntlet, he was powerful.
Powerful and merciless. Thanos rarely showed compassion towards anyone. It was shocking to find out that he had sacrificed his "daughter," Gamora, for the Soul Stone. She was trapped in the Stone, as well.
Loki knew that in order to wield the Soul Stone, he or anyone else would have to kill a loved one in exchange for its power. Most couldn't bring themselves to do it. Only the heartless would sacrifice a loved one for power, but even then they usually regretted it. Loki knew that if he had a chance to wield the Soul Stone, he wouldn't do it. He loved his girlfriend, kids, and brother too much to throw that away for cursed power.
The Infinity Stones were a curse. They corrupted everything they touched. Thanos could have easily made more resources instead of killing half of the population, but he was too caught up in the thirst for power and a chance to win over Hela's hand in marriage.
Not many knew about Thanos' crush. Hela kept quiet about it; so quiet that Thanos didn't know that Loki was her father. Hela hated Thanos, saying that he was 'too grabby and insane' for her liking. She never liked it when people died, but Thanos thought that the only way to appeal to her was by killing innocent people and presenting their corpses to her. Hela always ending up burying the dead victims, but she tried to play along with him and slowly talk him out of killing half the universe. Thanos obviously didn't listen and he was too stupid to realize that one should never, ever piss Hela off.
Rescuing the victims from the Soul Stone was one small way that Hela could get back at Thanos, but they were a long ways away from actually defeating him.
Loki hoped that the combined forces of the Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy, a few Asgardians, and if need be, the entire population of Valhalla, could defeat Thanos once and for all.
A knock in the door shook Loki from his thoughts. He must have drifted off because the "sun" was high in the sky. It was morning when they had sent Hela back to rescue the heroes.
Loki sat up. "Is something wrong?"
"No, but I thought you should know that the Avengers seem to be agreeing to your plan and making preparations to head to Titan," Sigyn said, leaning against the door post. "It's a good thing that they trust you."
"Yeah, for now," Loki scoffed.
"Well, at least until we take care of Thanos," Sigyn added. "It will be around evening when we need you to reopen the portal. Rest up."
Sigyn gently closed the door behind her, leaving Loki, once again, alone with his thoughts.
/\
Screams could be heard as the Chitauri soldier drew the whip across Loki's bare back.
"What one was that?" Thanos questioned from his spot in front of Loki.
"One hundred and ninety-six" Loki choked out. He was tied down with his stomach flat against a stone slab. His legs hung off the edge and were chained to little hooks on the ground.
"Keep track," Thanos ordered.
The Chitauri soldier let the whip hit Loki again.
"One hundred and ninety-seven," Loki mumbled, his vision was slowly starting to go black.
Whip.
"One hundred and ninety-eight."
Whip.
"One hundred and ninety-nine."
Whip.
"Two hundred."
"Good. Stop." Thanos took the whip whip from the soldier. The soldier bowed and exited the dark room.
Thanos moved behind Loki. Loki whimpered as a hand pushed his chest further into the Stone slab. The contact reopened wounds from his two hundred whippings on his chest.
"You are pathetic," Thanos said. "You are too stubborn to accept my offer, and here you are: tied up and bleeding. Are you sure to don't want to change your mind?"
"No" was Loki's reply.
Thanos growled and placed his hands on either side of Loki. He leaned over Loki's back and whispered in his ear.
"You made a fatal mistake, Asgardian."
Thanos, still bent over Loki, wrapped a huge hand around Loki's throat. Loki gasped as his head was jerked back and his air cut off.
"Try refusing me now."
Loki struggled to breath. He could feel Thanos shift behind him. A sudden wave of pain rushed through his body, causing him to go limp.
"Don't forget, my pet. I. Own. You."
/\
Loki sat up and held back a scream. He could feel pain coursing through his veins. It felt like his nerves were fire.
Loki jumped out of bed and spirited to the bathroom. He lifted up his top to find his tattoo pulsing angrily; the black ink appearing and disappearing rapidly.
"Shit," Loki cursed. He bent down to splash cool water on his face, but the pain and the heat still remained.
Loki stood back up and looked into the mirror. His skin was slowly starting to turn blue. He splashed more water onto his face, but the water instantly froze.
"My pet," Thanos' voice boomed from nowhere in particular.
How odd. Thanos wasn't here…
Loki gasped and back against the opposite wall. He stared in horror as Thanos' face appeared in the mirror.
"Even in death you still try to betray me," Thanos growled.
"How?" Loki whispered.
"I own you, my pet. I am connected to you. I hear your thoughts. I thought that by killing you, the chance of me dying would decrease," Thanos growled. "Apparently I have made a mistake. You are much more enjoyable alive." Orange light started pouring from the mirror, turning the air hazy. The light reached toward Loki, pulling him in a tight embrace.
Loki screamed as he was enveloped in a orange light. A second later, he was gone.
The only indication that someone was there was the Mark of Thanos burned into the wall.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
"How can we be sure that he's telling the truth? What if he is lying?" Rhodey questioned.
The remaining Avengers and Rocket were gathered in Shuri's lab. The kid genius had somehow managed to pull up a hologram picture of the universe. How she had found a map of the universe was beyond everyone, including Thor.
"We have to trust him. My brother is no threat to us right now; Thanos is. Thanos is our main priority, and you saw how he much he hates Thanos," Thor stated defensively.
Natasha scoffed. "Of course you defend him. He's your brother. Plus, how do you think Clint will react when finds out that we are listening to Loki's plan; who, by the way, mind controlled him."
Thor sighed and leaned against a table. Shuri shooed him away and started fiddling with the technology sitting on there.
"Loki may not be entirely trustworthy, but he's dead. He can't harm us, even if he tried. As far as I know, he hasn't come back as a vengeful spirit. He can't touch us and we can't touch him," Thor said.
"He came here to talk to us. How is that not considered a ghost?" Rocket asked, irritation heavy in his voice.
"There's a difference. He came as a peaceful spirit, one who only ventures into the Land of the Living when they need to send a message. They are harmless and can do nothing other then send the message they came here for. Usually the Queen of Valhalla would send a reaper or visit herself, but I'm sure that they are rather busy there," Thor explained.
"The Queen of Valhalla?" Shuri asked, setting down a bundle of wires and metal only to pick up another. Rocket was also toying with the Wakandian technology. Having something to do seemed to help keep their minds away from their losses.
"Hela, my niece. Loki's daughter." Thor held up a hand before Bruce could asked. "We were cursed to forget about Loki's children. Yes, children. He has three older boys. Hela is the only girl. Its complicated."
"How do we know we can trust Hela? I assume she is working with Loki, or Thanos? None of them are good people. You saw what Hela did to Asgard. Even if Loki wants to help, his kids might not," Bruce pointed out.
"I highly doubt that," Thor said. "Loki is different. I haven't seen his kids in centuries, but I'm sure that they grew up to know that mass murders are bad."
"Loki didn't think so," Rhodey muttered under his breath, but Thor could hear.
"My brother has history with Thanos. I doubt that he wanted innocent people getting hurt or killed. I admit that he wasn't entirely sane when we fought on the Bifrost, but you didn't fight him, I did. I saw the look on his face. He had given up. He let go with the full intention to die. Loki is smart. He wouldn't have teamed up with a murderer willingly." Thor stared out the window. The sun was setting. They had been in the lab since noon. "Loki had changed when he attacked New York. He never was one for fighting. He preferred to sit in his room alone and read or practice his magic. He hated fighting. I have a feeling that he isn't telling us the whole truth. Something else must have happened when he was in the Void; something that Thanos did to him."
"Captain," Bruce said to Steve. Steve was sitting on a chair; unnaturally silent about the situation. "It's your call."
Steve stood up and looked around at the group. Everyone had bags under their eyes and were still covered in dirt and blood from the battle.
"Thor is right. We might not be able to trust Loki, but right now he's our best bet. Thanos is a bigger concern. If something happens-if Loki is working with Thanos-we will deal with it when the time comes. Right now we need to focus on who is willing to help us fight. Contact Clint and every available hero or soldier who wants to help. This plan of Loki's has some risks, but they are risks that have a better outcome. Everyone rest up and we will face Thanos tomorrow," Steve ordered. "Now, has anyone been in contact with Tony?"
/\
Tony was exhausted. He had just watched a teenager die in his arms. Peter was his responsibility. How had he let him board the ship without his knowing? How was he supposed to tell Peter's aunt that her nephew was never coming back? How could he live with the guilt that he had was so close to ending the biggest threat in history, but ended up with a minor dead? The kid could barely drive! Why was he so stupid to think that despite the superpowers, the kid had zero experience and Thanos didn't care who he killed?
Tony groaned as he shifted his weight. The stab wound wasn't mending very well and he could barely walk. The blue alien girl let him lean against her for support, but she was tired and lost too.
"What now?" Tony coughed out.
The blue girl gritted her teeth. "We kill him."
The blue alien girl scared and fascinated Tony at the same time. He didn't know if it was because of her mechanical parts or her willingness to murder anyone who got her way for revenge.
"T-That's wonderful," Tony muttered. He also wanted to kill Thanos for what he had done, but he wasn't so confident in his answer. He wasn't even sure what to do next. Should he go back to Earth or follow this alien girl around. She seemed to know what she was doing. "I never got your name."
"Nebula," the girl said flatly. They were near the Black Order's ship. Somehow it was still intact and looked capable of flying.
"I'm Tony Stark. You may know me…" Tony said, trying to make small talk.
"Never heard of you," Nebula responded and opened the door to the ship. She helped Tony climb inside and gently lowered him to the ground. Tony grunted and clutched at his wound. At least the bleeding had stopped.
Nebula came back with what looked like a First-Aid Kit. She wrapped the bandages around his stomach.
"Thanks," Tony said. Nebula glared at him in response and stood up. "A simple 'your welcome' isn't that hard," Tony pushed.
"I'm not feeling very welcome right now, so maybe you should shut your stupid, ass mouth and actually help get this ship flying," Nebula snapped. She spun on her heel and stomped off to the control console.
"Nice to meet you too," Tony muttered to himself. He pulled himself to a standing position and wobbled over to the scary, blue alien girl.
"Where exactly did you say we were go to again?" Tony asked once he reached the control console. He leaned heavily against the center device and stared out the windshield. Dust was blowing through the air. He didn't know if it was the sand or the dusted Guardians or both. Tony shivered at the thought.
"I didn't say we were going anywhere. Right now we're stuck if you don't get this thing running." Nebula gave the center console an angry kick.
"I don't know how to control this. Its all new to me," Tony said.
"Don't you have technology like this on Earth?" Nebula asked.
"Well, we do..."
"But?"
"But, this will take some time getting used too," Tony answered.
"Figure it out then!" Nebula shouted.
Tony jumped a bit at the sound and hurried up his pace. He didn't want the scary, blue alien girl hurting him or doing something that would cause this situation to become worse.
After a few minutes of fumbling around with the control console, Tony finally found the "start/on" button and pressed it. The ship came alive with a roar of the engines. Even more dust billowed up outside. Tony hit the thrusters and the ship shot out into space with a sudden jolt.
"Houston, we have liftoff!" Tony exclaimed, his excitement masking his hurt. He turned to see if he got a reaction from Neblue. No response.
"Are we heading?" Nebula asked. The stars flew by in streaks of light.
"Hopefully to Earth. There, we can get backup so we can-"
"Kill Thanos?" Nebula interrupted.
Tony paused. "Uh, yeah…"
"Good."
Tony turned his focus back to controlling the large ship. He was still upset about the turnout of things. He knew he needed help if there was any chances remaining at defeating Thanos, but his relationship with half of the Avengers was still a bit shaky. Tony knew that Steve was probably his best bet, but he wasn't ready to talk to him yet.
"Guess I don't have any other choice," Tony thought sourly. Maybe they could fix their relationship as friends once this whole nightmare was over.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
"Where are we going? Are you Asgardian? I've never really met an Asgardian, but you look like one," Peter Parker asked, his questions jumbling over each other as he asked them breathlessly. He had been talking nonstop since their battle with the bear-like creatures.
Hela turned to look at the teenage Avenger. Normally this much talking would annoy her, but Norns, he was an adorable sweetheart!
"We are going to Valhalla. From there, I will take you back to Earth. And yes, I am Asgardian," Hela answered.
"Really?! Are you related to Thor?" Peter asked, his cute brown eyes shining with excitement.
"Yes. He's my uncle. Loki is my dad," Hela said and surveyed the area. She could see nothing but sand. Where was the portal to Valhalla? Surely her brother and dad would've opened it by now. She had sent out the signal; she was sure of it.
"Wait," the soldier known as Bucky Barnes caught up with the two. He held up a hand, the human one, Hela noted. "Loki has a daughter? The Loki that attacked New York?"
"Yes," Hela said a little too harshly. Bucky took a step back. Hela tucked a loose lock of hair behind her ear and glanced behind her. The group of Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy were trailing closely behind, all of them on high alert for more attackers. She noticed T'Challa eyeing her closely, so she turned back towards Bucky. "It's complicated."
"How is it complicated? Did Loki send you?" Bucky pressed. "Can you be trusted?"
"Loki is dead!" Hela shouted, losing her temper. "I want revenge on Thanos for killing him and trapping everyone here. Trust me or not, I'm your only way out of here. It would be highly recommended that you don't make me even more upset then I already am!"
Bucky wisely stayed silent, but he moved to position himself protectively between Hela and Peter.
A green skinned woman jogged up to Hela's side. She looked concerned. "I never knew that Loki had a daughter," the woman said.
"Nobody does," Hela replied dryly, still on the lookout for signs of a portal opening.
"I knew Loki. Well, I saw him from time to time. I assume you know what my father did to him?" the green skinned woman asked.
Hela raised an eyebrow. "Your father? You mean Thanos, right?"
"Yes. Adopted father." The woman shrugged. "He kidnapped me and raised me as his own. I'm Gamora, by the way."
"Hela, and yes I knew. That's why Thanos needs to be taken down."
"Thanos mentioned something about a woman he was in love with. He called her 'death,' and she had black hair. You seem to fit his description," Gamora pointed out.
"Unfortunately, I do. And he made a mistake of doing so."
"I know that your father is innocent," Gamora said. "I want to believe that you are too."
"Thanks?" Hela said. Seriously, where was this portal?
"Is there still a chance at beating Thanos?" a dusty-blonde haired man asked, his red leather jacket fanning out behind him from the hot wind.
"My intel says that he broke the gauntlet after the snap. As far as we know, he can only use one stone at time. That gives us an advantage," Hela explained.
"Good," the man smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. He seemed distracted.
Hela stopped walking. She stared up into the sky. "Come on! Dad? Sleipnir? Open the portal!"
"What's wrong?" Gamora asked.
"The portal isn't opening," Hela explained and paused. Dust swirled through the air as several creatures made their way over a hill. Hela saw Bucky reach for Peter and pull him closer.
Hela summoned a sword into her right hand. Something was off about the newcomers. "We have incoming!" she shouted.
The group tensed up and stood in a battle ready stance. The well trained heroes watched as the creatures grew closer. Four figures rose from the dust.
A voice rang out from the distance. "Have no fear! Your time has come to meet death. We will not tolerate prisoners escaping."
"Dammit," Hela swore. She knew that voice. The last thing they needed was the freaking Black Order showing up.
"Back off and leave us alone, you dumb pieces of shit!" the man in the red leather jacket shouted.
"Peter Quill!" Ebony Maw stepped forward, looking as ugly and disgusting as usual. He had his hands folded into a steeple; his feet never touching the ground as he floated over to the group. "We must thank you for allowing us to accomplish our goal."
"You can stick your thanks up your shriveled ass!" Peter Quill called back. Gamora stuck out an arm and pulled him back in the group.
"Shut up for once!" Gamora hissed. "Talking back only makes it worse."
"True that," Hela thought, but distraction by talking was probably their safest option. As a child of Loki, she was born with a silver-tongue. She stepped forward. "I thought you were dead," Hela said to Ebony Maw, trying to dissuade him from attacking the group.
Ebony smiled. The other supposedly dead members of the Black Order stood around him. "Hela. Nice seeing you here. I must admit, I never thought you were one for 'rescue missions.'"
"Guess its a day for surprises," Hela snapped back and raised her sword. "Now, I'm only going to say this once. Back off or die!"
"Oh, technically we are already dead," Ebony Maw continued in his stupidly soothing voice.
"Are you? You could always be deader. Like, so dead that your filthy soul is stuck in Helheim, where is belongs, forever."
Ebony Maw motioned with a wave of his hand, and the Black Order attacked.
Well, as if this day could get any worse.
Hela lunged forward and sank her sword into the nearest member of the Order's, Ebony Maw, chest. He whispered a few words which caused Hela to scream and let go of the sword to clutch at her head.
"Thanos' lover, hm. Trying to betray him, aren't you?" Ebony pulled the sword out and tossed it to the side. Bucky shot him, but the bullets had no effect. Ebony waved his hand, sending Bucky flying into a nearby sand dune.
"Get out of my head!" Hela ordered. She struggled to stand up, but a wave of telepathic magic pushed her back down.
She dimly noted that the others had split off into smaller groups and were taking on the other members of the Black Order, all of which were outnumbered but still beating the heroes.
Gamora jumped and swung her sword at Ebony's head. Ebony ducked and yanked on the woman's leg, swinging her down into the ground, hard.
Hela shook her head in an attempt to get Ebony's grasp on her brain off. She reached for her sword, but Ebony kicked it away. He pulled on her hair, forcing her to look up.
"My master will be pleased to hear that we captured his lover," Ebony crooned.
"I'm hardly his lover. Never even kissed the guy, let alone do the dirty with him," Hela growled, her green-gray eyes flashing dangerously.
"He will still be pleased. You will come with us so you can be reunited with your future husband." Ebony Maw pulled Hela to a standing position. Hela gasped as her hair was yanked harshly. "Anything that you want to say before we leave?"
"Yeah," Hela whispered in a low voice. "Go to Helheim!"
The young Asgardian twisted in Ebony's grasp and gripped him by the head. Black energy surged from her hand into the alien's skull. Ebony Maw screamed as the energy burned through his body, causing black light to stream from his eyes and open mouth. His body started smoking, and in a blink, exploded into a pile of ash.
The remaining members of the Black Order stopped their assault on the heroes and watched their teammate disintegrate. Proxima Midnight even took a small step away from Hela.
"Anyone else who wants to stand in my way?" Hela taunted, her sword gleaming in the hot sun.
The heroes stood in shock at the Asgardian girl. Most of them had looks of terror and awe on their faces.
"How in the world-" Peter Quill began, but cut himself off. He shook his head in confusion. "Thank goodness that you are on our side. Imagine what you could do Thanos. You can do that to Thanos, right?"
Hela ignored Peter Quill's question and focused on the Black Order.
"Like I said before, back off and leave us alone!"
This time, nobody challenged her...by themselves. Fueled by rage and the loss of their comrade, the Black Order attacked Hela from all directions. The heroes were too stunned to react as the Goddess of Death was unfairly outnumbered and seemingly overpowered by three other aliens. Hela fought with all her strength, blocking blows with her sword and natural flexibility. Despite being stabbed through the chest by Proxima Midnight's weapon, Hela still stayed on her feet. After a few long minutes of defense, Hela switched to offense; her immortality keeping her safe and invulnerable. She planted a hand on Black Dwarf's head and powered up her magic. As she slowly dissolved Black Dwarf, she fought off Proxima Midnight with her free hand.
Black Dwarf growled and tried to shake off Hela, but the girl's grip was too strong. Within seconds, Black Dwarf was nothing but a pile of ashes. Corvus Glaive swung his glaive at Hela's neck. Most people would be decapitated with a swing of that much force, but the sharp weapon only stunned Hela. Hela spun around and yanked the glaive from Corvus. She held it up, the point aimed at the married couple.
Corvus Glaive stepped in front of his wife. Proxima glared daggers at the Asgardian girl. Both aliens were infuriated about getting beaten by a, not even, a teenage girl.
"You can't kill me. My life force is connected with my weapon," Corvus Glaive jeered.
Hela glanced at the weapon in her hands. "Oh, you mean this thing?" She twirled it in her hand and thrust it at Corvus. The point sank in deep, causing the alien to stumble backwards. He would have fallen if Proxima wasn't there to catch him.
"You fool. You gave him the only thing that his life is tied too," Proxima laughed and held up her husband.
"Are you sure about that?" Hela asked innocently. As Corvus wrapped a hand around the hilt of the weapon to pull it out, Hela dove in to wrench the weapon out and used it to slice at Proxima. Proxima fell and clutched at her wound, black blood pouring out from her side.
"Corvus! Assist me!" Proxima shouted, but was cut off as she turned to ash. Corvus screeched in rage as his wife of many years die in front of him. Hela turned around faster than Corvus could react and plunged the glaive up, to the hilt, into the alien. Black smoke swirled around the weapon and into Corvus. His body went slack as the magic took over, dissergrating his body cells faster than the speed of sound. Soon, the weapon and himself were gone.
Hela stepped back from the pile of ashes. She was tired from using her 'death touch' so often. She teetered in place and was caught by Gamora before she hit the ground.
"You saved us," Gamora whispered.
"Not entirely. We still need to get out of here," Hela replied, black spots dancing in front of her eyes.
"How did they get here? I thought they were dead?" Sam Wilson asked.
"I don't know," Hela said. Gamora lowered her to the ground. Hela rubbed at her eyes and pushed sweaty strands of hair from her face.
"I am Groot!" said Groot, the adorable tree creature presented a yellow flower to Hela. Hela took it gratefully, although she didn't know what the purpose of it was for, and smiled.
"At least they're gone," Peter Quill added.
Hela held the flower in both hands; the flower somehow giving her some energy. A yellow light shone from the center of the petals. Hela sneezed as the pollen drifted away in the wind. She hauled herself to her feet and muttered ominously: "This battle is far from over."
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Earth was in chaos by the time Tony Stark and Nebula arrived in Wakanda. Tony had to admit that he was looking forward to being back home, but the damage was too much to bear. He was barely out of the ship when he was surrounded by so many familiar faces.
"Tony!" shouted Bruce. The two scientist friends embraced in a tearful hug.
Tony pulled back and looked Bruce in the eye. "Did the same thing happen to you too?"
The grim expression on Bruce's face said it all.
"It was bad. We try to stop him, and we failed," Bruce cried, tears streaming down his face.
Tony hugged Bruce even tighter. "We'll find a way. We always do." Tony tried to sound reassuring, but he knew the chances of winning were bleak. He didn't know who he was trying to comfort, Bruce or himself.
"Tony," a heartbreakingly familiar voice called out.
Tony took a deep breath. He wasn't ready for this, but he slowly let go of Bruce and turned around.
Tony already decided that he didn't like the beard. The young boy-scout look was still there, but the torn suit, sad face, and facial hair made Steve look so much older.
"Its good to see you Tony, although I wish it was on better terms," Steve said.
Tony gave a small nod. "Me too."
"Look, Tony, I'm sorry we had a fight and broke up the Avengers. If we hadn't had fought, maybe none of this would have happened…" Steve trailed off, a distant look in his eye.
"I'm sorry too. Maybe we can work on it together," Tony suggested. He looked around. Thor, Natasha, Bruce, Shuri, Rhodey, a raccoon, Clint Barton, and a man Tony recognized to be Ant-Man were all there. "Thor, nice hair cut. It's different, but its good. Natasha, you look surprising good with blonde hair. Clint, been a while, man."
Clint grunted, looking very unhappy. He had arrived early that morning.
"Where's your war buddy?" Tony asked Steve.
Steve looked downcast. "H-He was...everyone else was...too…"
"Oh." Tony was sorry he had asked.
Nebula stepped down from the ship. "Well, this is a wonderful reunion, but we have more pressing matters at hand."
"Who's this lady?" Ant-Man, Scott Lang, asked.
"Nebula!" the raccoon shouted, shocking Tony.
"The raccoon talks?" Tony asked, his eyes wide.
"Yup," Rhodey said and limped over to give his friend a hug.
Nebula stared at Rocket. "Rocket? How did you get here?"
Rocket pointed at Thor. "The pirate-angel man gave Groot...and...and...me. Are the others okay?"
Nebula clenched her fists and shook her head. "No. Thanos killed them, including my sister. And for that, he needs to die."
Rocket paused and suddenly latched onto Nebula's leg. Under normal circumstances, neither of the two would have hugged anyone, but the depressing situation caused them to leave that behind. Nebula patted the top of Rocket's head.
"Listen, ma'am, but we can't exactly get to Thanos, even if we tried. As far as I've heard, Thanos is gone and we probably won't be seeing him for a while. Besides, how are we going to defeat him. You saw what he did. And even without the stones, he's powerful," Clint pointed out.
Steve and Thor shared knowing glances. Clint stopped and raised an eyebrow.
"Alright! What's going on?" Clint questioned.
"That's what we were going to tell you," Steve began. "We do have a plan, a risky one, but a plan nevertheless. It might work, but…"
"But what?" Clint pressed.
"We don't know for sure if we can trust him," Natasha added.
"Trust who?" Clint was starting to lose his patience.
"Loki," Thor muttered while avoiding eye contact with the archer.
"LOKI?!" Clint shouted. "OF COURSE YOU CAN'T TRUST HIM! IF I GET MY HANDS ON THAT SON OF A-"
"Clint," Bruce said softly. "He's dead."
"What?!" Nebula yelled. "How?!"
"What, do you know him?" Tony asked.
"Yes. No. Kind of. I saw him from time to time. We talked whenever my father wasn't around. He was in really bad shape the last time I saw him, which was several years ago," Nebula explained.
"Your father?" Steve asked.
"You knew my brother?" Thor asked.
Nebula stared sadly at Thor. "You're Thor, right?"
Thor nodded.
"He called out for you. He had convinced himself that you would come and rescue him, but you never did. My fath-Thanos, used Loki's love for you against him. It was horrific. Nightmares, dreams… Loki couldn't rest when he was unconscious, asleep, or awake. It was terrible!" Nebula continued.
Thor was shocked into silence. Clint, however, was still furious.
"If you knew Loki, how can we be sure that you are entirely trustful? Do you know what he did to me? He turned me into a mind-controlled slave! He made me hurt my friends and colleagues! He killed and destroyed a major part of New York City! Loki should pay for what he has done!" Clint, once again, lost his temper.
"Yeah, Nebula. This Loki guy sounds pretty evil to me. You're a daughter of Thanos. You tried to kill us once. You can't be trusted," Rocket said as he pulled away from Nebula's leg.
That had done it. Nebula lost her own temper. "Can't be trusted?! Thanos is the monster here. For every battle that I lost against my adopted sister Gamora, he took a living part from me and replaced it with metal. He turned me into a freak, a monster, a cyborg! Yes, I did some bad things in the past, but I'm trying to make up for it. You, Rocket, were a thief. If you got a second chance, why can't I?" Nebula exclaimed. She spun on her heel and stormed back into the Black Order's ship. The door closed behind her, but the ship stayed on the ground.
It was silent for a few minutes before Thor spoke up. "I know that my brother can't be trusted, but he's dead. He can't hurt us. I want to avenge his death, and by listening to his plan, it's the only way. Loki is smart. You don't know him like I do. He is different. There's not a day that goes by when he doesn't feel regret and guilt for his crimes. This is a chance for him to make up for all those mistakes. I say we should at least listen to him and give his plan a chance. After all, we all got a second chance. We should give him one too."
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
"Loki? Loki, where are you?" Sigyn called. She had noticed that Loki wasn't in his room when it was time to open the portal again. She had assumed he went for a walk, but he was nowhere in sight. Sigyn sped-walked through the Asgardian section. Surely, he couldn't have gone far. They couldn't open the portal without him, but she had been searching for nearly an hour with no luck. It wasn't like him to just up and disappear. He had no energy left; he couldn't teleport.
"Loki?" Sigyn called again. Where was he?
Fenris jogged over to Sigyn. They were both in the castle's garden.
"Did you find him?" Sigyn asked.
"No. I asked other people if they saw him, but nobody has," Fenris said.
"Its not like him to leave us. Maybe something happened to him," Sigyn suggested.
"I don't know, maybe-" Fenris was cut off by Jormungandr's shout. The two ran up the castle's steps to join the green-haired boy.
"I found something," Jormungandr explained. He set off into the castle, Fenris and Sigyn following close behind.
Jormungandr led the way to the bedroom that Sigyn and Loki shared. He pointed to the bathroom. "In there, on the wall. Was that there before?" he asked.
Sigyn turned the light on in the bathroom. She looked down and saw a strange symbol glowing orange on the wall.
"What in the name of Asgard?" Sigyn paused. "What is that? That wasn't there before!"
"It looks like it appeared recently," Fenris pointed out.
"I've never seen a symbol like that before," Sigyn said.
"It looks like it was burned into the wall," Jormungandr observed. "Its orange, too." Jormungandr looked at his younger brother.
Fenris threw up his hands in protest. "Alright, just because I like the color orange," Fenris gestured to his orange sweatshirt, "it doesn't mean I did this. Besides, I don't burn things. I'm part Bilgesnipe. If anything, it would be frozen on there, not burned."
"Nobody is accusing you of anything," Sigyn said.
"He is." Fenris pointed too Jormungandr.
"Hey, I'm just making an observation!" Jormungandr said defensively.
"Alright you two. Knock it off," Sigyn scolded. "Do you know anyone who might recognize this symbol?"
"Hela would. Dad would. But, oh, that's right! Hela is stuck in an Infinity Stone, dad is missing, and Sleipnir doesn't have enough strength to open the portal by himself!" Jormungandr pointed out sarcastically.
Sigyn sighed. "We will have to figure out a way to get Hela back. At this point, we can't spend all of our time looking for Loki. Our main priority is to get Hela and the victims back safely. I'll see if I can send out some reapers to search for Loki. You two go help Sleipnir find a way to open that portal without him self-combusting," Sigyn ordered.
Jormungandr and Fenris nodded and took off. Sigyn remained staring at the symbol. It looked vaguely familiar, but she couldn't remember where she saw it. She could feel evil radiating off of it. Suddenly, images started rushing through her mind. Her eyes tuned electric blue, and she saw…
...Loki falling through the void, tears streaming down his face…
...Thanos towering over a kneeling Loki. Loki was held by chains. He was crying as Thanos touched a specter holding the Mind Stone to Loki's chest. Loki's eyes turned black for a second, and then turned to an electric blue. Loki tied shaking his head, but the effect still lasted…
...Loki collapsing as a painful headache seared through his skull. Clint Barton rushed in to help him up, but Loki passed out…
...Thor and Loki fighting on the top of Tony Stark's building. Aliens flew past, shooting random buildings. Screams echoed through New York City. Thor had Loki held down, telling him to look around him. Loki's eyes briefly turned back his usual green as he realized the damage he had caused. His eyes turned back to blue, and he stabbed Thor in the side with his dagger…
...Loki locked up in Asgard's dungeon, sulking…
...Loki pinned under a pile of rubble as Asgard burned around him. He tried to push the beams up, but a wave of heat knocked him unconscious. Asgard exploded, leaving Loki floating out in space. A blue light enveloped Loki and teleported him off…
...Thanos choking Loki to death as Thor watched with horror…
...Loki staring at the mirror in this very bathroom. His eyes were wide with shock and fear. An orange light surrounded Loki, taking him away. All that was left was a strange symbol burned into the wall…
...Loki tied up, unconscious, in an area that resembled a throne room. Thanos grinned down from his spot on a chair. The broken gauntlet was still on Thanos' left hand. Yellow light hovered around Loki's head. Loki twitched, but didn't wake up…
Sigyn gasped as her eyes returned to their usual violet hue. She stumbled and fell down. She clutched at her head, trying to understand what she just saw.
"Oh Loki!" Sigyn cried. She suddenly knew where he was. She knew what the symbol was. And she knew that Loki didn't have long before Thanos hurt him.
Sigyn pulled herself to her feet. She quickly changed into her Asgardian armour. Silver metal covered her chest and back. The design swirled down to her thigh-length skirt. Gray pants protected her legs. She ran a hand through her light brown hair, the strands twisting themselves into one thick braid. Long, purple sleeves covered her arms. Her silver arm gauntlets were etched with swirling Asgardian designs. She tucked a sword into its scabbard and attached her violet cape. She laced up her boots and took off running to the throne room.
Fenris, Jormungandr, Sleipnir, and Pietro Maximoff were already there. They looked up in shock as the Asgardian healers strode in the room wearing full Asgardian armour.
"What's going on?" Sleipnir asked.
"I know where Loki is," Sigyn said. "Get changed. We leave in five minutes."
Fenris stood up. "Whoah. Slow down. Where is dad?"
Sigyn took a deep breath. "He's on Titan."
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
"Everyone ready?" Tony called to the group. The remaining Avengers, plus Rocket, Nebula, and Ant-Man were gathered around the Black Order's ship. All of them had changed into their battle clothes and had grim expressions on their faces.
"As ready as we'll ever be," Rhodey muttered.
Tony ignored his friend. "Alright. I'm not going over the plan again since it was explained over ten million times, so I hope you know what you have to do. If not, ask Cap. He'll answer your questions because I don't want to." Tony winked at Steve.
Steve shook his head and frowned at Tony. Tony grinned back.
"This is our only chance. I know that you don't really trust the person who made this plan, but its the only one we've got. Desperate times call for desperate measures. Loki isn't the most trustworthy person in the universe, but he is better than Thanos. We don't have to trust him, because we probably will never see him again. Apparently he is dead, so there is no reason why he would trick us. He has nothing to gain from us losing," Steve said and made a point to look directly at Clint. Clint shuffled nervously. "We have to put the past behind us and focus on the here and now. According to Thor, Loki has a dark history with Thanos. The enemy of my enemy is my friend, and we need all the help we can get."
With that, Steve strode up into the ship. Tony followed behind, and one by one, the others joined too.
Tony was already by the control console. There were no chairs or seats to sit in, so the heroes sat on the floor or remained standing. Steve joined Tony by the console, and the two started talking in hushed voices. They were still tense, but at least their relationship was starting to get better.
Thor was too anxious to sit, so he remained standing near Tony and Steve. Steve noticed this and motioned for Thor to come closer. Thor obliged and smiled sadly at the duo. The ship was starting to fire up, the thrusters were almost to full power. A few more seconds went by and the ship lurched forward and up into space.
"Are you sure you can fly this thing?" Steve questioned.
Tony grinned. "Relax, Capsicle. I flew it here, didn't I?"
"I thought Nebula did that," Thor said.
"I helped," Tony snapped, but his tone was good-natured and teasing.
Steve gave an exasperated sigh. "I guess some things never change."
Thor hummed and stared absentmindedly at the stars zooming by.
"Are you alright?" Steve asked, shaking Thor from his thoughts.
"As fine as I will ever be," Thor muttered.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Steve asked gently. He held up a hand. "I don't mean to pry, but sometimes talking helps."
"Yeah, Point Break. Tell us what's on your mind," Tony added.
"It all seems stupid for me to talk about how I feel when everyone else is has worse problems than me." Thor gestured at the heroes. Natasha, Bruce, and Clint were in a deep conversation. Scott Lang and Rhodey seemed to be bonding. Rocket was still glaring daggers at Nebula, who was trying to ignore the raccoon. Shuri was back at Wakanda; her mother was too upset about losing T'Challa that she wouldn't let the teenage girl out of her sight. Shuri had complained, but the Queen wouldn't budge. Okoye had also stayed behind to protect and rebuild Wakanda.
Steve rested a hand on Thor's shoulder. "It's alright. We all have our losses, but hearing each other's problems can help ourselves figure out our own."
Thor ran a hand through his short hair and let all his emotions flood out. "I just can't seem to win. First I lose my brother to an evil cosmic being, who corrupts him and forces him to destroy New York. Then I my mother is killed by a Dark Elf. Before my father died, he told me that I had an older sister who apparently was evil. She tried to take over Asgard, and the only way to defeat her was by destroying my home. Thousands of my people were killed by her hand, but she is alive and well. I had three nephews and a niece that I tried to kill and had no idea about because my father cursed my brother, them, and myself because they were considered 'monstrosities.' I then lose half of my remaining people and my friends were killed. My brother was murdered in front of my eyes. I had a chance to kill Thanos, but my thirst for revenge outweighed my reasoning." Thor wiped a tear from his cheek. "You may not trust Loki, but I do. I saw him sacrifice his life for mine and the good of Asgard. I believe that his plan will work. I spent the past few years trying to convince him to do good in this world, and the day he does, he is murdered."
A sob rose in Thor's throat. He turned away from Tony and Steve and stared into the distance, his hand over his mouth. He struggled to keep himself from crying.
"I know how it feels to lose someone to the wrong side. Bucky was brainwashed, much like how you said Loki was. Although he killed dozens of innocent, and not so innocent, people, Bucky was still a good man on the inside. Loki and Bucky both fought against the impossible. Now that I think about it, Bucky and Loki have quite similar pasts. We will get our chance to avenge our friends and family. If you trust Loki's plan, I will back you up," Steve said.
"Thank you," Thor murmured.
Steve opened his arms for a hug. The two blondes had never embraced before, but the hug felt natural and surprisingly comfortable for two muscular men. The hug went on for awhile, neither of the two wanting to break it. Tears started forming in Steve's eyes as well.
Tony, who didn't want to feel left out, wrapped his arms around Steve's and Thor's shoulders. "Leaving me out of things, huh? We're a team right? We do everything together, including hugs."
Seeing the trio hug it out, Bruce, Natasha, Clint, and the others joined in. Even Rocket hopped onto Thor's back and hugged the back of the Asgardian's head. Nebula even joined, but she was still uncomfortable with hugging anyone. She let her arms lightly rest on Natasha's and Bruce's shoulders.
"We're going to be alright. Everything will be fine as long as we work together," Steve said in the middle of the group, his voice muffled through all the bodies. "I appreciate all of you and I wouldn't trade you for the world. You're my friends and you helped me fit in with modern society. I'm sorry we fought and split up the team. If we were actually together, we might have won. But this is our second chance, and this time we will avenge our fallen comrades, together."
"Thank you for giving me a second chance," Natasha added.
"I have never had better friends than you," Rhodey put in.
"I hardly know any of y'all, but y'all seem cool," Rocket exclaimed.
"I know I have anger issues, but I thank you for keeping me in check," Bruce said gratefully.
"I have never met braver mortals than this group. You made me realize that all races and species are important and can make a difference," Thor said. "I also thank you for giving my brother's plan a try. Its the least I can do for him."
"I'm kind of new to this team, but even I realize how special and how strong we are together," Scott Lang added.
"I hardly know anyone, but thanks, I guess, for letting me join you to kill my father," Nebula muttered quietly.
"I'm also sorry about the whole 'Sokovia Accords' deal. I may seem self-centered and have a big ego, but you keep me grounded and you helped me realize how important my relationships are. Now, I'm only going to say this once," Tony announced and paused for dramatic effect. "Let's go kick Thanos' ass!"
The team cheered and broke apart from the hug. New found energy surged through the group. They were a team, even though they were lacking in ranks. They were brought together for one simple reason, to defend and avenge the innocent in times of need. As Nick Fury said: "There was an idea, to bring together a group of remarkable people, to see if we could become something more; so if they needed us, we could fight the battles that they never could."
They might be marching to their deaths, but they were the freaking Avengers, and they sure as Helheim weren't going to let Thanos get away with what he had done.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Finally, after all these years of planning, Thanos had accomplished his goal. The Mad Titan sat on his home planet, basking in the glory of winning. His people said he shouldn't do it, but they went extinct. He was the only one left because he was smart enough to figure out a way to save other populations from dying off. Depleting resources was a problem that many civilizations faced. It was a serious issue; an issue that Thanos just fixed. There couldn't be a lack of resources if the population didn't have to share. He didn't want to kill anymore than was necessary. If half the population died, then the other half could thrive. No, Thanos wasn't a murderer. In fact, he considered himself a philosopher and a hero. If he hadn't had killed half the universe, the universe would die slowly. Thanos grated mercy to everyone living, including animals. He wasn't stupid. If he killed half of the universe's plants, the animals and other civilizations wouldn't survive. The plants were needed for food and resources. Plants were needed for life to continue, so Thanos decided to keep the plants alive. Besides, he was always fond of plants and how they grew without complaining about problems. They were beautiful creations, so Thanos left them alone to live.
Titan was a beautiful plant. It was sad that his home was destroyed because his people used up all the essentials for living. Thanos wished his family was here to congratulate him on saving the universe, but alas, he was alone. Thanos sat alone thinking to himself. The pesky Avengers and Guardians of Galaxy had tried to stop him from being the hero he was. He had stabbed Tony Stark through the stomach, but he was alive. He was kept alive because if Thanos had killed him, then that would mean the population of the universe would lose a person and one more person would die an unfair death.
Thanos sat there crying for his beloved daughter, Gamora. Her death was necessary to complete his goal. He always believed that the ends justifies the means.
He also did this for Hela, the wonderful young lady he was in love with. They had met once when Hela was collecting the souls of his dead family. Hela was nothing more than a child, but Thanos fell in love almost immediately. The way that death radiated off her was irresistible. Thanos didn't know who her parents were or if she was related to anyone; the girl was so mysterious. Nevertheless, he had tried winning her over by killing people, famous and whole civilizations; and presenting their dead corpses to her. Everytime she was shocked speechless by the loving gesture. He had shown her his plan a few decades back. She had seemed upset at the idea, but he gave her time to think about it. She still hadn't responded and he hadn't seen her in quite some time. Hopefully this would get her attention; nothing could resist the power of the Infinity Stones.
The sun was setting on Titan, painting the sky orange and pink. Thanos hummed quietly to himself as he watched the sun go down. Once it turned dark, Thanos stood up and went inside to his new home. He had used the reality stone to return Titan to its former glory. A tall, stone building stood over a garden full of flowers of many colors. The main hall had tall, sweeping ceilings made out of gray stone. Elaborate designs of ancient symbols covered the walls. A throne of black marble stood at the center of the end of the main hall. The Mark of Thanos decorated the wall behind the throne. Tall windows, standing about twenty feet tall, looked out to the garden.
It was an upgrade from his former ship, Sanctuary. Thanos slouched down on the throne and rested his gloved hand on the arm rest. The chest wound that Thor had given him was not healing very properly; in addition to his weakened state from using the full combined power of the stones.
Thanos was tired and slightly lonely. He had lost his children, the Black Order. Gamora was gone. He couldn't find Nebula. His army was Outriders was killed off by the Avengers. Loki, his pet and personal slave, was dead.
Loki! Thanos sat bolt upright as an idea popped in his head. Thanos summoned the power of the soul stone. An image of an Asgardian bathroom with some modern human upgrades formed in front of him. The image focused and Loki walked into the frame. The Asgardian sorcerer splashed water on his face and sighed. He lifted up his shirt to stare at his reflection. The tattoo that Thanos had given him pulsed in and out of focus, the black ink startlingly dark against the pale skin.
"My pet," Thanos said quietly and watched Loki jump.
Loki looked up in shock and gasped. He backed against the opposite wall and stared in horror as he saw Thanos looking back at him through the image.
"Even in death you still try to betray me," Thanos growled. He had an inkling of what Loki was plotting against him, and he was not happy about it.
"How?" Loki whispered, his eyes wide with terror. Oh, those beautiful green of eyes of his. How Thanos longed to watch them shine with tears after the Asgardian begged for mercy.
"I own you, my pet. I am connected to you. I hear your thoughts. I thought that by killing you, the chance of me dying would decrease," Thanos snarled. "Apparently I have made a mistake. You are much more enjoyable alive." Orange light started pouring from the soul stone, reaching for the image. The light passed through the mirror on Loki's end and pulled Loki into a tight embrace.
Loki screamed as he was enveloped in a orange light. A second later, he was gone. The image blurred and fizzled out. A flash of orange light filled the main hall. The light faded, and Thanos watched as Loki crumpled to the hard floor.
Loki groaned and pushed himself to his feet. Thanos stood up and towered over the boy.
Loki gasped and backpedaled as quickly as he could. He tripped over his own feet and fell back down on his rear. He tried to scoot away from the Mad Titan, but Thanos picked him up easily by the neck. Loki summoned his magic and pressed his hand against Thanos' head. Thanos grunted and threw Loki towards the wall.
"You should thank me," Thanos bellowed angrily. "I brought you back to life and this is how you repay me?"
Loki groaned as he sat up. He summoned a dagger in his right hand and swung it at Thanos. Thanos dodged it easily and grabbed Loki's wrists. He pulled hard on his wrists, lifting Loki's arms above his head.
Loki squirmed and tried kicking Thanos' legs. Thanos ignored the blows and dragged Loki to the center of the room. A chain with handcuffs attached appeared from the ceiling. Thanos cuffed Loki's wrists and spun him to face the throne; his feet barely touching the floor. Thanos sat back down on the stone chair and grinned savagely as the young sorcerer pulled on his restraints in an attempt to free himself.
"I thought you would be grateful to be alive," Thanos stated.
Loki glared in response. He had given up on the chains and focused his energy on being stubborn and resistant.
"I have you here, chained up, as your brother and his friends rush over to try and stop me. I am not a murderer." Here, Loki scoffed. "I will regret killing them in front of you, but it has to be done to ensure the safety of the universe. With me gone, the universe will wither and die. I am only getting rid of the problem."
Loki bit his bottom lip. There didn't seem to be a safe way out of it. Yes, he was glad that the Avengers trusted him enough to follow through with his plan, but he didn't want to put them in further danger. The idea was to catch Thanos off guard and then attack. Now, they had lost the element of surprise and Thanos was ready for them. Not only that, but Thanos could use Loki as bait and leverage against Thor.
Loki bit his lip so hard that it starting bleeding. Thanos noticed this and was in front of Loki in a few long strides.
"You still enjoy pain, don't you?" Thanos asked and wiped the blood off with his finger. The purple alien stared intently at the red blood on his finger. A wicked grin etched itself onto Thanos' face. "Pain. Pleasure. Death. This will be enjoyable."
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Titan was a mess. Most of the population was dead, and those who weren't were dying. Of course this amount of death would attract the attention of one important deity.
Hela, who was fairly new to the job, strolled through the Titan city, invisible to the eye. She brought a few reapers with her, but she was the one doing most of the reaping. It was a rather depressing job, but someone had to do it.
She was in the middle of collecting a soul and readying it for its journey to Valhalla, when a purple Titan approached her. At first she ignored him, since nobody could see her, but then the alien spoke.
"Who are you?" the Titan asked.
Hela stood up from her spot next to the most recent soul's body. She turned around, confusion written on her face. Nobody could see her unless they were dead or dying. This particular creature was neither. He was perfectly healthy and alive.
"You can see me?" she asked. The Titan was much taller than her; she was as tall as his knee, so she had to crane her neck to look at him.
"Yes, and I couldn't help but notice how beautiful you are," the Titan responded.
Hela paused. She was quite young at the time, only five in Asgardian years (three hundred and seventy five in human years) and she didn't know how to respond to an almost grown Titan calling her beautiful.
"Thank you?" Hela said.
"You are welcome." The Titan paused. "Oh, where are my manners? I'm Thanos." He extended his hand.
Hela hesitated before taking it. "Hela, the Goddess of Death and I'm rather busy at the moment..."
Her voice trailed off as Thanos bent down and kissed the back of her hand. She blinked and pulled her hand away.
"I...don't...what?" Hela choked out. "You seem rather calm for someone who is losing neighbors and friends to starvation."
"I gave them a solution, but they refused to let me help," Thanos stated.
"Oh?"
"Have you heard of the Infinity Stones?" Thanos asked.
"Yes," Hela replied. She had some idea of their power, but she was too focused on the task at hand. She tried to walk away from him, but Thanos joined her by her side.
"I suggested collecting all six Infinity Stones," Thanos said.
"It takes immense power to hold even one Infinity Stone; how will you manage all six?"
"I will have a special gauntlet made to hold them. Once I collect all of them, I will save the universe by a single snap of my fingers. The problem of starvation and lack of resources isn't just my people's problem, its everywhere. If I kill half the universe's population, then there will be enough resources to go around for the other half. The survivors will have to learn from their mistakes and build a better society so they don't use up all their essential resources."
Hela stopped walking, her green-gray eyes wide with shock. Thanos' plan was utterly insane. She had to get away from this madman.
"Well, t-that's...wonderful," Hela muttered. "I-I must be...going."
Thanos smiled lovingly down at her. "Will I see you again?"
"Oh...yeah," Hela said, although she didn't mean it. She hoped never to see his ugly, purple face again.
Unfortunately, life had a funny way of ruining her hopes.
/\
Thanos thought she loved it when he presented dead people and creatures to her. Hela had no idea where Thanos got the idea that she liked seeing dead people and wanting people to die, but she hated it.
It started nearly a year after they first met. Thanos had killed almost all the people in Jamestown, the colony in the New World. She was busy reaping their souls when Thanos presented a pile of dead bodies to her. Naturally she was disgusted and buried all the poor people once he had left.
Then it happened again in 1865. Thanos had John Wilkes Booth, who was rare human follower of Thanos, assassinate the United States of America's president, Abraham Lincoln. Hela was really upset then and yelled at Thanos that the United States were in a time of need and they needed President Lincoln's help. Thanos, of course, didn't listen and left Hela alone with the President. Hela was furious and put together a large funeral procession for him.
Thanos had also killed H. H. Holmes, but Hela was alright about that the serial killer was dead.
Amelia Earhart was the next one Thanos tried to use to please Hela. Thanos caused the pilot's plane to disappear, killing the woman in the process. Hela never found the plane and still to this day had no idea where the woman's body and plane wreckage was. Hela had spoken to Amelia when the pilot was brought to Valhalla, but Amelia said she blacked out somewhere over the ocean and couldn't remember anything else. Hela and Amelia grew to be close friends, but Hela was still upset that Thanos killed her.
Then it was Martin Luther King Jr. in 1967. Elvis Presley in 1977. Several high ranking Asgardian warriors. A few random planet's rulers. Mass shootings in recent years. Almost all murders had Thanos involved. Even a few unexpected, almost natural deaths were somehow tied to Thanos and his ever growing legion of followers.
As much as she tried to dissuade him, Hela couldn't shake the insanity from Thanos' head. It was hard to change his mind, so Hela gave up on him in hopes that by ignoring him, Thanos would leave people alone.
It had worked, until recently. The stones were supposedly kept hidden away and safe from Thanos, but the Mad Titan still found them and accomplished his goal.
/\
It was the year 1643. Hela was walking through a deserted planet. The brown dust blew gently in the wind. The dark sky and a dull glow of a sun was unsettling. Vincent, Hela's trusted reaper, kept pace with the queen.
"Are you sure that this is a wise choice, your highness?" Vincent asked and nodded toward the necklace Hela had around her neck. A orange glow shone from the circular pendant on the silver chain.
"Its the only choice we have. Vormir is deserted and hidden away from all cosmic travelers," Hela said.
"But are you sure that Thanos will not find it?" Vincent pressed.
Hela turned to look at him. "Nothing is for certain, but this will at least slow him down." She turned back and kept walking. She stopped at the top of a tall cliff. The cliff looked out over a large circular stone ground. The wind blew Hela's long, black hair away from her face.
"It is time," Hela said and took the necklace off. She opened the locket and the Soul Stone floated out. Hela grabbed the stone from the air and whispered an Asgardian spell into it. She finished and threw the stone as hard as she could to the center of the circle. Orange light enveloped the circle and shot up into the sky. The light faded, leaving Asgardian symbols carved into the circle.
Hela and Vincent stared down at the ground below them.
"Wouldn't the stone be safer in Valhalla?" Vincent asked, breaking the silence.
"I cannot risk the souls there. The Soul Stone would go insane and trap all the souls in Valhalla and Helheim in it. I can't let that happen. No, its safer here," Hela answered and put the necklace into her pocket.
"Assuming the spells works, and it will, what will happen if someone is willing to risk a soul for a soul?"
"Nobody in their right minds will be willing to sacrifice a loved one for the Soul Stone. They might think they are strong enough, but they will change their minds. If not, then overwhelming regret will consume them. People always wish to go back and undo their mistakes and regrets to get rid of the guilt. The Soul Stone is cursed. It is safe here."
/\
Hela wished she could bring all of them back. She wished she could get out of this stupid stone and send Thanos' soul straight to Helheim. Hela spent the time thinking about all the punishments she could inflict onto Thanos. Of course he would get top notch security; she wasn't going to risk having him escape. It was about time that Thanos got a taste of his own medicine.
"Miss? Are you alright?" a young woman, whom Hela found out to be Wanda, asked.
"Oh, yeah. Just peachy," Hela said sourly.
Wanda looked hurt. "I'm sorry to bother you, but I was wondering how much longer are we going to wait?"
"Minutes, days, years...who knows? We're stuck here unless someone can open a portal to Valhalla from Valhalla. I made it that way so no weirdo maniac can barge in and ruin the place. Souls hold power, so there is no way in all the Nine Realms that I'm going to risk losing souls to a crazy wack-a-do who wants to take over the universe!"
"We can't open a portal to Valhalla, but can we open a portal to Earth?" Wanda suggested.
Hela thought for a moment. "That might work. You have the strength to do it; I can feel it. You are powerful. Our combined magic should open a portal, but it will be exhausting. It will be a challenge, since we will have to fight Thanos almost directly afterwards. And I don't know if we can hold the portal open long enough for all of us to go through."
Doctor Strange joined the two women. "I can help, but it still may not be enough. I've heard that entering and exiting Infinity Stones is nearly impossible. It takes immense power," he said.
"I think we can only send one person through," Wanda said. "We can't get all of us through at the same time."
"Yeah, but who's going?" Hela asked and looked around. "Its up to you guys, since I'm new and you've been here longer than me."
T'Challa, the unofficial leader of the group, spoke up. "I believe the person we send should be one willing to handle Thanos alone and somehow get the gauntlet off of him. Is it possible to use the Soul Stone to open a portal?"
"From the outside, yeah. If not, the Space Stone should be able to help as well," Hela answered.
"Well then, I nominate Hela to be the one to go through," T'Challa said.
The answer shocked Hela. "What?" she gasped out.
"You said that you have a relationship with Thanos. He trusts you. You are the only one who can get close to him without any danger of being hurt. You are the best option we have," T'Challa explained.
"Its...just...wow," Hela stuttered. She wasn't scared; she was surprised that the heroes trusted her enough to leave them in the Soul Stone when she had every opportunity to betray them. Of course she wasn't going to leave them here, but they barely knew her. It was also a risk putting their trust in a child of Loki, although Loki was on their side.
"You barely know me. I could betray you at any second," Hela said, trying to show them reason. She thought Doctor Strange or Gamora was a better choice; Gamora especially, although it was more reasonable for someone alive to confront Thanos. Thanos would obviously start asking questions if his daughter came back from being sacrificed.
"We know, but I speak for all of us. You saved us from the Black Order and those bear creatures. You seem like someone who should be trusted. It is a desperate time, so we have to be willing to trust our enemies, even if our allies are a child of Loki," T'Challa said. He quickly held up a hand in assurance. "No offense to your father, but none of us are on good terms with him."
"None taken. I completely understand."
"Then its official. Good luck, Hela." T'Challa stepped forward and extended his hand.
Hela took it and smiled. T'Challa smiled back. "I'll promise I'll come back for everyone. I won't let you down. Opening this portal will alert Thanos of our presence. I will have to move quickly."
Everyone took a step back. Wanda and Doctor Strange stood next to each other with Hela in the middle. Wanda took a deep breath and red magic blazed alive in her hands. Doctor Strange waved his hands in a circle, causing a small orange light to appear a few feet in front of the trio.
Wanda aimed her magic at the light. Hela took a deep breath, summoned her own magic, and aimed the dark light at the forming portal. A sonic wave pulsed from the combined magics, sending Wanda and Doctor Strange to fly backwards and Hela forwards.
A final wave pulsed across the desert sand, and Hela was gone.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Something seemed off. Maybe it was because the Avengers were on an enemy ship flying towards the baddest villain they had ever encountered. Or maybe it was because the normally ruined landscape of Titan was green and thriving. Or maybe it was the impending feeling of doom.
Whatever the reason, the Avengers were on edge. They were just descending to the now flourishing ground. The ship's ramp unfolded and the Avengers plus Rocket and Nebula descended. Steve looked around and glanced expectantly at Tony.
"Its not how I remember it," Tony answered the silent question.
"This is how Titan looked before it died off," Nebula said. "Its only reasonable that Thanos restored it to its former glory."
"You were here before?" Rocket asked.
"No, but he told many stories and used the Mind Stone to show Gamora and me what Titan was like. He can be very persuasive," Nebula retorted.
"Cool," Scott Lang added, grinning. He saw everyone staring at him with looks of pure annoyance. His grin faded. "Not cool…"
"Is everyone ready?" Steve asked, a tinge of nervousness in his voice betrayed his hesitation.
"Sure," Rocket said sarcastically. "I mean, what could possibly go wrong?"
Steve's mouth twitched into a frown. "The first key to victory is believing that things will go right. Failure happens when people give up."
Rocket rolled his eyes and hefted his gun over his shoulder. "Fine, Smart Ass. Let's get rolling so I can shoot that evil-doer and get my friends back."
Steve sighed and motioned for the others to follow him. In reality, he wasn't expecting to win. He had no idea where to go and he couldn't help but think that he was leading everyone to their deaths. Steve tried to shake the thoughts from his head, but they kept bouncing back, each time bringing more of their buddies.
It took nearly twenty minutes to cross the open grassy plain and into the city. Each step felt heavier as the heroes made their way into the garden.
Something was wrong. It was too quiet. Surely Thanos would've attacked them by now. Steve had a thought that they were being played; tricked by a non-present Loki who promised that he would have someone here to meet them and help fight Thanos.
Steve held up his hand to signal for the heroes to stop. He crouched behind a decorative boulder and glanced around. There was nobody in sight. The only things living where the large, colorful flowers and plants in the garden. The garden led up to a building so large that it couldn't be anything other than the 'castle' or 'headquarters.' It was quite terrifying to look at, but Steve had a feeling that the only place to go was where no one wanted to enter. Fate had a funny sense of humor this way.
Steve led the way around the pond in the middle of the garden and up the stairs to the 'castle.' The heroes ducked behind pillars and walls before entering through the main doors. It seemed stupid and bold to walk in through the front, but Steve couldn't find any other opening and sometimes doing so was the best option. Usually nobody expected the enemy to just stroll on in through front doors, but it was left unlocked and unguarded. Everything seemed too easy, but at least they had the element of surprise...
What the heroes saw next shocked everyone into freezing in place.
In the middle of the grand hall, on the throne, sat Thanos. Thanos was grinning at the heroes' stupidity. A man was chained by his wrists to the ceiling. For some odd reason, the man was shirtless and was wearing only his black pants and boots. They couldn't see the person's face since the man was facing the throne, but they could tell that he was quite unnaturally muscular as any slim person his size could get. The dark look with pale skin and a muscular body was a hard look to pull off, but this man wore it perfectly. His body had no flaws, except for a dark tattoo on his left arm. It looked like the tattoo continued onto his chest, but the heroes couldn't see.
"Avengers, I knew you would come. How bold of you just to walk in here. Did you really expect me to be unprepared?" Thanos stood up and walked down the steps. He stopped by the man's side and pulled on the chains, making the man turn to face the heroes. The man grunted as his wrists were twisted and shook his long, black hair from his face.
Thor gasped in shock as he recognized the man's face. His cheeks, which was usually pale, was flushed red, but there was no other sign of the man being hurt. The tattoo did continue onto his chest, and it was even more terrifying to look at.
"Loki?!" Thor shouted and took a desperate step towards his brother.
Thanos saw this and let loose a bolt of power. The heroes were suddenly chained in place by tendrils of magic, the hand and foot cuffs pulsed an angry reddish-purple.
"Ah, ah, ah. I control everything here. What I say is law, and you are not allowed to touch my slaves." Thanos wagged his ungloved finger at Thor.
"SLAVE?!" Thor shouted angrily. "HOW DARE YOU CALL MY BROTHER A SLAVE!"
"Are you really testing my power?" Thanos questioned. He grabbed Loki by the hair and yanked his head back, winning a small cry from the Asgardian. "What should you say when people question my authority, hm, pet?"
"Go burn in Helheim, you filthy excuse for a Titan," Loki snapped.
Thanos growled and backhanded Loki across the face. Loki winced as the force shook through his body and spit out a mouthful of blood.
Thor, who was struggling against his restraints, glared at Thanos. He noticed that his brother was breathing. How odd, ghosts don't need to breath…
Realization hit Thor like a stampede of bilgesnipes. "Loki?! You're alive?! How?!"
Thanos answered for Loki. "I brought him back to life because I thought I could use him against you."
"I'd much rather be dead," Loki retorted.
"What's the fun in that?" Thanos asked and grabbed the chain. He pushed Loki off balance. Loki stumbled, the only thing keeping him upright was the chain attached to the ceiling. As Loki struggled to regain his footing, Thanos sidled over to Nebula. He lifted Nebula's chin up to look into her face.
Nebula glared back at him, her black eyes full of anger.
"How many betrayals shall I endure before my time is over?" Thanos asked. "I thought you were on my side."
"You hurt me and killed my sister! Like hell I'm staying on your side! You will die a slow, painful death by my hand!" Nebula spit in Thanos' face. Thanos retaliated by punching Nebula, hard, in the stomach. Nebula curled in on herself, but never broke her eye contact with her 'father.'
"Betrayal. Its not uncommon amongst the unfavored child. I gave both of you a home; you had a chance at a wonderful life, and you threw it away!" Thanos stared directly at Loki and Nebula. Nebula caught Loki's eye, and the two shared a pained glance.
"What do you mean you gave him a home?" Thor asked, still pulling against his bindings.
Thanos ignored Thor's question. "He called out for you. He begged for you to come rescue him, but you never came. What type of brother leaves his sibling behind?"
"I didn't know he was alive! If I did, you wouldn't be living!" Thor growled.
"Hm. How touching." Thanos grinned, his teeth surprisingly white. He made his way back to Loki's side. The Titan trailed a large, purple finger across Loki's cheek. Loki squeezed his eyes shut and tried to move away from the touch.
"You are sweating," Thanos pointed out. It was true. Loki was breaking out in a nervous sweat; his heart felt like it was going to burst from his chest. "I can understand why you are scared, but I promise I will go easy on you if your brother and his friends agree to cooperate."
"What the hell do you want?" Tony shouted.
"What I want is for you to leave me alone. I just saved the universe, and this is how I am treated? All I want is to live in peace."
"Like Helheim! There is no way we are leaving!" Thor snarled.
"Would you look at that?" Thanos asked Loki. Loki bit his lip again. "Your brother just gave me permission to do whatever I please."
"What?! No! That is not what I said!" Thor said.
"You are not leaving, I understand that much. By those means, I still have you under my control. You will never break those chains. How fun will it be to watch the mighty Avengers die in front of my eyes! Slowly and painfully is truly the way to go."
Thanos had moved behind Loki. The purple alien leaned over Loki's back and whispered in his ear. Loki tried move away from the hot breath, but the chains held him in place.
"Since the Avengers will be here for awhile, I say we should put on a show for them," Thanos suggested lustfully. He reached around Loki's waist and pulled a dagger from a hidden sheath attached to Loki's boot. "Such a wonderful hiding place for a weapon. Are you sure you don't want to use this against me now?"
Loki kept his mouth firmly closed. Thanos laughed and flipped the dagger before hovering it over Loki's chest, right above his heart. Thanos grinned savagiously as Thor cried out. Thanos suddenly moved the tip of the blade into the middle of Loki's chest. Loki gasped as red blood trickled from the wound, but it wasn't deep. He flicked the blade into Loki's right cheek and pressed the tip of the blade against the bottom of Loki's chin, causing Loki to look up. Loki couldn't help but whimper a bit as the blade was pressed harder against his chin, drawing blood.
"Hm, such lovely hair. So long and so easy to tangle my fingers in," Thanos mused and gave it a quick yank for emphasis.
Loki was too scared to respond. It had been a couple years since he had last been with Thanos, but all the memories and nightmares came rushing back. He remembered the pain and fear like it was yesterday.
Thanos trailed a finger over Loki's cheek. He moved down to Loki's chest, and traced the outline of the tattoo.
"How about we get started? Let's show these pathetic little mortals how I respond to those who disobey me," Thanos growled just loud enough for the Avengers to hear.
The Avengers, mostly Thor, shouted angrily as the gravity of the situation took hold of their minds. They suddenly realized what may have gone down between the two before the New York Incident, but surely Thanos was above that?
Once again, they were wrong.
Loki's scream was terrifying as Thanos moved to hurt him.
/\
Three painfully long hours had passed before Thanos was finished with Loki. During that time, Thor's voice had left him, mainly from shouting for Thanos to stop hurting his brother. Thanos, of course, was deaf to the Avengers' insults and pleas to stop. Clint had even joined in with all the yelling; even he couldn't stand the way the former criminal was being hurt.
Thanos finally let go of Loki and strode up to sit on his throne, an exhausted, maniacal grin plastered on his face.
Loki was curled into a ball, barely conscious as his sobs racked through his body. His clothes were a tattered mess. He was free from his chains, but Loki made no move to get up. Everything hurt: his pride, his dignity, his body. He had lost his dignity and privacy as he was...he was… Loki couldn't bring himself to think about what had happened to him in front of his brother and the stupid, freaking Avengers. Why did they have to watch? It was bad enough that Thanos even did something like that, but having the Avengers see and hear everything was unbearable. Loki was slightly thankful that the Avengers were against Thanos' deranged idea of fun, but he didn't want to look weak in front of them.
The last three hours had taken its toll on Thanos. The chains holding the heroes were losing strength. Thor managed an extremely hard tug against his bindings and promptly fell to the floor. Thor sprinted over to Loki's side and cradled his little brother in his arms. Loki continued sobbing as Thor wiped the blood, sweat, and...other stuff from Loki's face with his cape.
"Shh. Its alright. I'm here. We're going to be okay," Thor assured, but once again, he didn't know who he was trying to console: Loki or himself.
Steve had freed himself from his restraints and was busy tugging against Tony's. Thanos was too tired to stop them. In fact, he watched the Avengers struggle with an amused smile. Clearly, the whole ordeal had shaken them to the core. Thanos chuckled quietly to himself; the Avengers were so pitiful that it was entertaining.
Tony was now free and aimed his blasters at Thanos.
"Try to do anything insane, and I'll shoot you on the spot," Tony threatened.
"Mmm, Stark. Such a pitiful threat. We all know that you can't hurt me, let alone kill me," Thanos pointed out with a tired smile.
"Want to test that?" Steve joined in, his double shields visible.
"The only one who can kill me can barely move." Thanos nodded towards Loki. "He never wanted to take over New York. He never wanted to kill thousands of innocent people, but I made him do it anyways."
"Why?" Bruce asked, who was now standing next to Steve and Tony. Rhodey, Rocket, and the others were free as well. Natasha had a hand on Nebula's shoulder, stopping the bald woman from attacking Thanos. Thor had helped Loki into his clothes, but Loki was still shaking.
"It was necessary, as was killing half the universe."
"Killing is never an option," Steve said.
"But, Captain, you will kill me if given the chance," Thanos said. "You are going against you word. Why?"
"Its necessary."
"What I did was only to ensure the prosperity of the universe. How can people live when they are slowly dying to lack of resources?"
"You could've made more resources, instead of killing everyone!" Rocket growled.
"That would have never worked. People would still use up extra resources. No, they need to learn from their mistakes." Thanos stood up from his throne, the Mind Stone glowing yellow in the gauntlet. "Mistakes are a chance to learn. Maybe next time you will learn that you should never underestimate my power and reasoning."
Thanos descended the steps. The heroes unconsciously took a few steps back. Thor picked up Loki and dragged him away from the Titan.
"Now, Thor, that is not very nice. You should learn how to share your toys," Thanos said.
"Loki is not a toy. He is my brother and if you touch him again, I will kill you without breaking a sweat," Thor threatened, and summoned Stormbreaker. Thunder rumbled in the distance, proving his point.
"You left your brother to die. I gave him a second chance. A chance to grow and take over the weak. You held him back from his full potential. I saved him from death. He owes me."
"He owes you nothing," Thor spat out.
"You say magic is for women. Why don't you let him practice it? Loki is truly a gifted sorcerer, let him show you how powerful his is." Thanos aimed a beam of the Mind Stone's power at the two Asgardians. Thor ducked, but the light hit Loki. Loki gasped, his eyes flying open, but they weren't the normal green. Electric blue eyes turned to glare at Thor. Thor's eyes widen in shock, his mouth dropping open.
"The Mind Stone doesn't just control someone's mind, it opens it to new possibilities. I gave Loki a future, a future without anyone holding him back; including you."
Loki suddenly kicked Thor in the stomach. Thor doubled over and dropped his axe. Steve rushed in to help, but Loki waved his hand and Steve was frozen in a block of ice.
"Thor," Loki whispered. "My big brother. You know, I looked up to you. You were my hero. I wanted to be just like you." A reassuring smile shined down at Thor. Thor reached for his axe, but Loki kicked him again in the legs. Thor fell to his knees and looked up at Loki, his eyes pleading.
"Loki, this isn't you," Thor said.
"Of course it isn't me!" Loki laughed. He summoned a dagger and stood twirling it in his hand. "I'm not the precious little brother you always wanted me to be. I'm not the warrior that Odin wanted me to be. I could have been something more, but you want that. Its all about you, isn't it. You are scared of what I can do. Magic is something that you don't understand, and you are scared of what you don't understand. Too be honest, its quite reasonable, but you didn't want me to become stronger than you."
"Loki, I supported you when others did not!" Thor cried, and he wasn't lying. Thor was the only there for Loki when he was being bullied for using magic. Odin had always ignored Loki's pleas, but Thor never left Loki's side.
"You left me to die! You have no idea what I went through! Master showed me the way. He gave a second chance. He didn't care that I was a sorcerer instead of a warrior. Instead, he gave me an opportunity to use my power for the greater good. Earth needed a ruler; who better to choose than me?" Loki questioned. He kicked Thor in the chest. Tony shot a missile at Loki, but Loki set up a forcefield around him and Thor. The Avengers stood around the forcefield, trying to break it.
"Stand up and fight, brother. You were always one who never backed down from a battle." Loki swung his dagger at Thor's throat. Thor caught Loki's wrist and stood up.
"I don't want to hurt you."
"Then you are weak."
Loki summoned a ball of energy and shoved it into Thor's chest. Thor gasped and staggered backwards. Loki threw spheres of green magic at Thor. Thor used his lightning to break the globes and ducked before a dagger hit him in the head. The dagger hit the inside of the forcefield and fell to the ground.
"How is he holding this thing up and fighting Thor with magic and daggers and what-not at the same time?" Tony gasped as he watched the two brother duel it out. Loki had a lot of energy for someone who was just tortured and molested for three hours straight. Thor, of course, was holding back on his full power. Bolts of lightning bounced off of the forcefield, but only small strikes hit Loki.
"I have no freaking clue," Rocket replied in awe. "Looks like the dark one is going to win if the pirate angel doesn't do something."
If it was a battle of physical strength, Thor would have won. But Loki was a strategist, and he had his wits and magic to help balance out the fight.
Thor was starting to tire. He had no idea where Loki was getting all his energy from. It was probably from the Mind Stone, but Thor was too busy trying not to get stabbed to think much about it. If Loki wasn't going to listen to Thor's talking, then knocking some sense into him was the best way to go.
A hard beam of magic hit Thor in the chest. He coughed as the force sent him skidding, but he remained standing. Thor sent a small bolt of lightning at Loki. Loki paused for a few seconds as the electricity shook through his body. Loki grinned and advanced on Thor. Thor blocked the first punch, but Loki aimed a painful kick in between Thor's legs. Thor shouted in pain and fell to his knees.
"How pitiful, brother," Loki spat out the last word as if it was a curse. "I thought you were a better fighter then that."
Thor glared up at his brother. "I said I didn't want to hurt you."
Loki rolled his eyes. "You are quite amusing, aren't you." He raised his dagger and looked expectantly over at Thanos. Thanos, who was standing behind Loki, nodded back.
"Finish him," Thanos commanded.
Loki turned back to Thor. "No hard feelings. Well, actually there are. But, should you know that killing you is necessary. All I'm doing is cutting out whatever is holding me back from my full potential. This is goodbye, brother."
Loki raised the dagger even higher. Thor bowed his head, hiding his tears.
"You are still my brother. You may not feel the same way for me, but had many opportunities to kill me. Several times I could have been dead, but you never did. Deep down, there is still good in you. You saved Asgard, you saved me. If you must kill me, if it is truly what you want, then do it. But, never forget that you are my brother. And I love you."
Loki twisted the dagger in his hand so it was at a better angle. Bruce and Natasha shouted. Tony banged his armoured hand against the forcefield. The green magic wavered with the force and died into green sparks.
Tears fell down Thor's cheeks, his head still bowed. Loki's eyes suddenly widened, green irises shining with tears. Loki's chest heaved and he dropped his arm down to his side.
"No," Loki whispered. He turned around to glare at Thanos. Thanos' grin quickly faded. "You made into a monster!"
"You were already a monster, my pet. I merely gave you a chance to use that against you enemies," Thanos said tiredly.
Loki turned back to look down at Thor. Thor's head was still bowed, his shoulders tense, waiting for the dagger to slice his throat.
"You...you...hurt me! Because of you, I lost everything I loved!" Loki whipped around sliced his dagger at Thanos' throat. Thanos caught it and broke Loki's wrist. Loki screamed in pain and kicked Thanos in between the legs. Thanos grunted and grabbed Loki's right leg. In one quick movement, Thanos dislocated Loki's leg from his knee. Loki crumbled, but Thor caught him before he hit the ground.
"You dare attack me?! I am your master!" Thanos boomed.
"I serve no one, bitch," Loki snapped back. Exhaustion took over and he fell unconscious.
Thanos growled and sent a wave of purple energy towards the heroes. Everyone flew back and hit the ground in pain grunts.
"I promised not to kill anymore, but you have provoked me." Thanos looked up at the ceiling, all six Infinity Stones glowing. "I offer up the lives and souls to my love, Hela! Here my offering and rejoice, since I bring to you the most powerful souls you will ever collect!"
As if on cue, a red-orange portal opened up on the right of Thanos' throne. A figure dressed in black and green stepped through. Both the Avengers and Thanos stopped what they were doing to watch the woman enter. The young woman's cape snapped out behind her.
"Thanos," the young woman said, no emotion in her voice.
"Hela?" Thanos, Thor, and Bruce said at the same time, each one with more surprise than the other.
"My love! I knew you would come!" Thanos spread out his arms in an invitation for a hug. Hela ignored him and looked around. She tried to hide her disgust and shock as she saw her father lying helplessly on the floor.
"What happened here?" Hela asked. She made no move to come closer to Thanos.
"I had a little fun with my pet. You should hear him scream! It is the most wonderous sound in the whole universe! My love," Thanos grabbed Hela's hand and kissed it, "I have been waiting for you. What better way to express my love for you than killing the Avengers so you could add to your collection of souls!"
Hela pulled her hand away from Thanos. She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and tried to look casual.
"Are you sure that killing the Avengers is the wisest choice?" Hela asked.
"Of course it isn't!" Tony shouted. Thanos clenched his gloved fist, and Tony gasped as the air was sucked out of him.
"This is a matter between my love and me. There is no need for your input," Thanos said.
Tony said something along the lines of "Yeah, got that" or "Go screw yourself."
Thanos ignored the billionaire and stepped closer to Hela. Hela wrapped her arms around herself, and stared at her father.
"My love, ever since I set eyes on you, I knew you were the one for me. The way death followed you was just irresistible." Hela raised her eyebrows in question at this. "I have been meaning to ask you this question, but you have been away from me."
Thanos knelt down on one knee and took off his gauntlet. The gold metal shrunk down to Hela's size. Hela covered her mouth with her hand in shock. Was Thanos really offering his entire life's work over to her? Never before had anyone ever gave her anything this priceless. Tears starting forming in her eyes. She seemed to be rethinking her decisions and view of Thanos.
"Together, we can rule the universe. You will be my queen and you can have all the souls you want. Loki will be our slave and you can do whatever you want to the Avengers. Hela, my love, will you marry me?" Thanos asked, his eyes looking expectantly up at her.
Hela let Thanos take her left hand and slip the gauntlet on. The Avengers watched in shock as the strangely romantic side of Thanos showed in all its glory.
The next three words that Hela spoke were quite simple, but they held a lot of meaning.
"I...HATE YOU!" Hela shouted. She punched Thanos in the face with her gloved fist. "DO YOU REALLY THINK THAT I LOVED YOU?! NO! YOU KILL FOR FUN, BUT I HATE IT!"
She summoned the power of the Soul Stone. "Guess what, bitch. I've been working against you this entire time; undoing all your work." She aimed her fist at the throne. The throne turned into a portal, and one by one, the dusted heroes stepped through.
Wand and Doctor Strange were the first ones through. The two were leaning against each other; using their powers on the other side was extremely exhausting. The Avengers watched in shock as their fallen comrades appeared.
"Hela, you have betrayed me?!" Thanos exclaimed, his eyes wide in shock as Gamora glared at her father.
"Oh, really? Maybe if you weren't so dumb, you would have figured out by now that every child of Loki inherits a knack for tricking people. Guess it runs in the family," Hela snapped.
"Father," Gamora said.
"Gamora." Thanos took a step towards his favorite daughter. Gamora backed away and let Peter Quill step protectively in front of her.
"Back off, you murderer," Peter Quill shouted. "Leave my girlfriend alone!"
"You don't understand the misery I've been through today," Thanos pleaded. "The love of my life and my favorite daughter both appear, but they only carry hatred for me in their hearts. Surly you know what its like to lose a loved one?"
"Hell yeah I do! And because of you I lost Gamora! You killed her for power!" Peter yelled.
"Its was necessary to accomplish my goal; my goal to please my lover." Thanos turned to Hela, sadness written all over his face.
"The feelings kind of one sided," Hela said. "You hurt my father and killed half the universe. You murdered people for me, because you thought I loved it. Newsflash, dumbass, I don't. So why don't you come over here so I can send your sorry ass straight to Helheim!"
Thanos howled in rage and charged at Hela. Hela braced herself and landed a solid punch right in the middle of Thanos' stomach. Thanos flew back and landed with a crunch on the ground. Hela strode over and glared down at him.
"Buh-bye, loser." Hela raised her gloved fist and aimed at Thanos' head. Thanos caught her hand, ripped the glove off, and kicked back. Hela tumbled over and fell on her rear with an 'oof.'
Gamora raised her sword and charged at Thanos. Thanos created a forcefield around him. Gamora's sword bounced off harmlessly.
"Enough of this!" Thanos shouted. "I will no longer tolerate this!" He raised his fist; the Soul and Reality stones lit up.
"Dang it," Hela cursed. There went her theory of Thanos being able to use only one stone at a time.
Suddenly, an army of Outriders and Chitauri poured out in a burst of savage snarls.
"Kill them," Thanos commanded. The aliens howled in glee and charged at the heroes.
The onslaught and the sheer mass of the aliens forced the heroes outside. The garden was quickly destroyed as the two opposing forces fought for their lives. Flowers were ripped out of the ground. Trees burst into flame. Thanos stood gleaming in triumph on the top of the steps of the castle.
Hela sliced down a Chitauri soldier and looked around her. They were severely outnumbered. Even with the combined forces of the Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy, the heroes were going to lose if she didn't do something.
Hela turned her face towards the sky and shouted. "Pietro! Now!"
A second later, the ground shook as energy was released from the Gates of Valhalla opening. The honorable dead appeared seemingly out of nowhere, turning the favor to the heroes. Pietro Maximoff appeared next to Hela's side. Jormungandr, Sleipnir, Sigyn, and Fenris landed on their feet, their weapons drawn and determined looks on their faces.
"Which motherfucker should I kill first?!" Jormungandr taunted and dove into the middle of the battle. He sliced down the opposing army with the strength of, well, a giant serpent. His double bladed axe was quickly covered with the blood and guts of creatures who were stupid enough to challenge him.
Fenris, with his orange cape billowing behind him, froze aliens left and right. Soon, there was a large number of alien ice sculptures left in his wake.
Even Sleipnir, the quiet and caring one of the four, had amassed a terrifying amount of dead corpses behind him; each one with cuts from his dual-wielding Viking longswords.
"Where is Loki?" Sigyn asked Hela over the roar of the battle.
"I have no idea!" Hela replied and kicked an Outrider away from her. Sigyn caught the alien and sank her sword into its chest. It tried to claw at her, but it gurgled and moved no more.
"I'm going to find him!" Sigyn shouted and disappeared before Hela could respond.
"Okay then," Hela muttered to herself. She felt sorry for anyone who ended up in Sigyn's way. Although the Asgardian healer was the sweetest, most innocent person in the universe, she could be pretty vicious if any one she loved was put in danger. There was no possible way that Sigyn was going to let Thanos get away with hurting Loki; Hela was sure of that.
"Thanos," Hela thought. "Where is that freak?"
Hela looked around. The huge Titan shouldn't have been easy to miss, but he was nowhere in sight. She saw Pietro fighting next to his sister Wanda. The two were trying to catch up with their lives in the midst of the battle. Steve and Bucky, naturally, found each other and were fighting side by side like old war buddies. The two moved in perfect harmony, and were unsurprisingly holding their own. Sam Wilson and Rhodey were flying above and were shooting down aliens. Tony had reunited with Peter Parker; the teenager was never out of the billionaire's sight. Occasionally Tony and Bucky would turn and watch the teenager at the same time. It was clear that Bucky still felt a natural desire to protect the teenage hero.
Fenris, who had enough of the huge army, summoned his little bit of magic and turned into his real form: a giant wolf. The wolf caused Bruce to finally Hulk out. Jormungandr, who was never one to back down from a challenge, grinned and turned into his real form: a giant serpent. The three mowed down alien after alien, never tiring and only caused each other to push on because they had started a competition to see who could kill the most aliens. Sleipnir, the eight-legged horse, decided it was best to stay in his human/Asgardian form since it was easier to hold two swords with.
Doctor Strange and T'Challa had teamed up and were using their abilities to their fullest capacity. Natasha, Clint, and Scott had a started a system: Scott would lead an alien to Clint, who would shoot it with an arrow from his spot in a tree. Natasha was watching Clint's back and was shooting any stray alien. Scott would occasionally shrink an alien and step on it to kill it.
The Guardians of the Galaxy had formed a circle and were fighting like the good old days. Nebula and Gamora were happy to be together again. Rocket never left Groot's side; and Peter Quill stayed as close as he could too Gamora without getting in her way.
Thor was… where was Thor? Hela punched an Outrider and cut off its arms. It was unnatural for Thor to miss out on a fight, especially if it meant revenge.
Pure luck, or some strange turn of fate, caused Hela to glance behind her at the castle. She caught a glimpse of purple disappearing behind the large doors. Either it meant Sigyn had went inside to find Loki, or it was Thanos doing something, something that was clearly up to no good.
Hela was about to go check it out when a large explosion blew out the side of the castle. Lightning sparked through the air and Thor appeared out of the smoke. His axe was alight with energy and he hovered over the newly made hole in anticipation. Sure enough, Thanos leap through the hole, his gloved fist raised ready to punch.
"Holy shit!" Rocket cursed nearby.
"I am Groot!" Groot shouted.
Two more figures appeared from the smoke. Hela could barely make out the colors of their capes: purple and green, which meant Sigyn had found Loki. Loki was leaning against Sigyn, his right leg still bent at an odd angle.
"Dad!" Hela shouted and sprinted towards the two. Thanos noticed this and sent and energy blast at Loki. Sigyn yelped as the blast hit her, and sent her flying. His support gone, Loki fell down with a pained cry.
Thor leapt at Thanos, his axe raised. Thanos trapped Thor mid-leap, in a bubble of magic. Thor squirmed, trying to break free, but the bubble was too strong.
Thanos smiled and leant down to pick up Loki by the hair. Loki grunted in pain as his dislocated knee was jostled.
The battle immediately died down as everyone turned to watch was going on.
"Heroes." Thanos spat out the word like a curse. "I promised that I would never kill again, but I'm afraid that the only way to stop you from ruining my plans is to make a sacrifice."
"The last sacrifice you made was a huge mistake!" Gamora yelled.
"Ah, but daughter, this time I will not hurt you. Instead, I will take out a favorite of many. How would you feel, my pet, if I killed your brother?" Thanos shook Loki for emphasize.
"No!" Loki protested, but Thanos raised his fist and Thor started screaming in pain. Loki struggled to loosen Thanos' grip on his hair, but the gigantic hand wasn't moving. Seeing no other way, Loki whipped out his dagger.
"Do you really think that a tiny dagger could hurt me?" Thanos laughed as Loki sliced upwards and missed his hand. "You missed," Thanos pointed out.
"I wasn't aiming for you," Loki stated and cut above where Thanos was holding his long, dark hair. Finally free from his grasp, Loki managed to execute a perfect roll as anyone with a dislocated knee and broken wrist could manage. Thanos lifted his right hand and stared intently at the lock of hair left in his hand. Thanos cursed and threw it down in frustration.
"You little trickster! Get back here!" Thanos broke his focus, causing Thor to fall down gasping, but still alive.
Jormungandr, who had turned back to his human form, stepped in front of his father.
"Get out of my way or die!" Thanos ordered.
"Suck it, fucker!" Jormungandr said and swung his axe at Thanos' leg. Thanos dodged it and slapped Jormungandr away like a pesky fly.
"Jormy!" Sleipnir shouted, but Thanos left the green-haired kid alone.
The few seconds that Jormungandr had distracted Thanos for was just enough for Sigyn to catch up with Loki and help to his feet.
"Back off!" Sigyn warned as Thanos stepped closer.
"My dear, I'd rather not hurt you, but I need my slave back," Thanos said.
"Too bad," Sigyn said. She noticed that Thor was slowly starting to get back on his feet.
Thor, who was right behind Thanos and out of sight, threw Stormbreaker. Thanos spun around used the Space Stone to send the axe hurling towards Fenris. Fenris, who was busy in the midst of a large pile of frozen and dead alien corpses, barely noticed the axe speeding towards him. At the last second, Fenris turned back into his human form, held up his arms in the natural defensive mode, and… caught it.
"The frick?!" Fenris exclaimed in shock. The lightning from the axe was beginning to freeze as Fenris' icy powers channeled itself through the axe.
Everyone watched in awe as Fenris lifted the axe above his head in a triumphal pose. Even Thanos stopped trying to get Loki back and watched intently.
Loki used this distraction to summon his magic and aimed a bolt of pure magic at Thanos' back. The magic hit the Titan, causing him to stumble. Thanos turned on Loki with a terrifying glare.
"YOU DARE?!" Thanos took a step in Loki's direction. Fenris threw Stormbreaker before Thanos could do anything. The battle axe cut off Thanos' left arm.
Thanos screamed in pain, blood gushing out of the wound.
Peter Parker saw an opportunity and took it. He swung down from where he was chilling on the side of the castle. Bucky and Tony saw the teenager approach Thanos at the same time.
"Peter! No!" the two shouted simultaneously.
The shouts caught Thanos' attention, and he didn't notice Peter shoot a line of web at his dismembered arm and pulled the glove it off. The glove was already off and out of reach by the time Thanos noticed it was gone.
"YOU PESKY INSECT!" Thanos cursed. He advanced on the teenager.
Doctor Strange quickly said a spell and trapped Thanos in multiple orange strands of magic. Thanos struggled against the power, but it held fast.
"YOU CANNOT KILL ME!" Thanos taunted. "I THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN IS WEAK AND IS TERRIFIED OF ME! YOU HAVE NO CHANCE AT WINNING SINCE I CANNOT DIE!" Thanos laughed, the sound ugly and scary.
An idea quickly popped into Hela' head. She focused her energy and teleported via shadows next to her father's side. Loki was indeed too weak to kill Thanos on her own, but what if she and the others channeled their magic and powers through him. It was risky, but Loki whispered back that he was willing to do it.
Hela placed bother her hands on Loki's shoulders and stood behind him. Wanda caught onto the idea and sent her red hex magic at Hela. The magic filtered through the Asgardian girl, and straight into Loki. The power coursed through Loki's system, awaking his own magic. Loki raised both his hands and aimed his magic at Thanos. The magic hit Thanos, but it was a ugly looking color of green and was slowly dissipating.
"We need more!" Hela commanded.
Doctor Strange lent some his energy to the two Asgardians. Sigyn steadied a shaking Loki with her hands, and sent her own magic into him.
"You can do it. I believe in you," Sigyn whispered into Loki's ear.
"If I don't make it back, just know that I love you," Loki replied.
"No," Sigyn shook her head. "You are going to make it out alive. I won't let you. If you die-"
"You'll kill me?" Loki joked. Sigyn smiled, but nevertheless, a tear rolled down her cheek.
Peter Parker handed the gauntlet over to Gamora. She gladly took it and channeled the full power of the Stones through Loki. The combined power of the Stones was slowly killing Gamora. It was too much. Nebula rushed over to her sister's side and helped support and channel the power. The energy flowed freely between the two; the sisters were shaking badly, but at least they were still alive.
Thor sprinted over to Loki and added his lightning to the mix. Tony and Rhodey fired their repulsor blasters at Thanos. Thanos was screaming from the pain, blood running down his face as the magic and power was slowly starting to tear his atoms apart.
The other heroes formed a protective circle around the ones attacking Thanos and defended them from the still very numerous amount of Outriders and Chitauri left.
The brownish-green magic was beginning to brighten up to its natural color, but Thanos was still intact.
"I need more," Loki gasped between breaths.
"Dad, no! You're going to kill yourself!" Hela protested. She could feel Loki's life-force fading away.
"It doesn't matter. I've been dead before; I can handle it," Loki said.
"Dad, if you die, your soul won't come back to Valhalla! You'll die-die!" Hela cried.
"I need more energy!" Loki snapped. Sweat was pouring down his face as the exertion tugged on his deepest store of magic.
Tears started pouring down Hela's face, but she nodded. The others dug down deep within themselves and sent more power through Hela and into Loki. Loki screamed with as the force took hold and pushed harder than he did before.
"You will never win!" Thanos shouted at Loki. His atoms were beginning to pull apart even more. Green light shone from his eyes and mouth. "You will never be a hero! You are nothing but a useless monster, stuck to do my bidding! Even with me dead, you are still under my control! I have followers; they will hunt you down and never rest until I am avenged and you are punished!"
"Ooh. It burns you to have come so close," Loki taunted with a hint of his usual, sarcastic self. "You lost your chance at winning. I know how it feels. I may never by a hero, but at least I didn't die a villain!"
With that, Thanos exploded in a burst of green light.
/\
The shockwave disintegrated the Outriders and Chitauri and knocked the heroes down.
As the light faded and the dust settled, the heroes got up one by one.
"Did we win?" Bruce, who was back to normal, asked.
"I think so," Tony replied between deep breaths. The billionaire rested his hands on his knees.
The planet was silent for a few moments, letting the past events sink in. Then, with a joyful cry, the heroes burst out cheering. Teammates hugged each other, crying tears of sadness, joy, and relief.
Steve and Bucky ran into each other's arms, and spun around for a few seconds before the two pulled each other into the tightest embrace they had ever shared. Rocket tackled Groot and hugged his friend close. Nebula and Gamora collapsed in an exhausted heap as they cried into each other's shoulders. Peter Quill wrapped his arms around his girlfriend and kissed the back of her head. The Infinity Gauntlet lay in a smoldering pile of twisted metal and green and yellow light. All except the Mind, Soul, and Time Stones were shot out into space. Peter Parker ran into Tony's arms and broke down sobbing. Mantis even kissed Drax on the cheek, shocking the warrior into silence.
The celebration was interrupted by a loud cry.
"NO!" Hela, Thor, and Sigyn shouted at the same time. The three plus Sleipnir, Jormungandr, and Fenris were huddle around Loki's unconscious body. Thor was trying to wake Loki up, but it was all in vain.
"LOKI, NO! NO, NOT AGAIN! Please, Norns, be kind and let him be alive!" Thor cried.
Sigyn passed a shaking hand over Loki's chest. "He's alive!" she exclaimed.
Hela fell to her knees and starting crying. Sleipnir knelt down and hugged his sister. Even Jormungandr let Fenris hug him.
"We need to get him to a medical room as soon as possible!" Sigyn ordered.
Thor carefully lifted Loki's limp body up. The heroes parted and let Thor board the Black Order's ship. Sigyn was following close behind.
"Everyone on board! We're heading back to Wakanda!" Steve ordered.
A few heroes cheered, but the sound was weak. Exhaustion was taking its hold on everyone. The heroes filed on board. The ship's door closed and they were off, leaving the planet Titan to suffer alone.
/\
Wakanda was much better off than Titan. The few remaining people had cleaned up and started fixing the damage. The wounded were still being attended too, but overall, everything was looking up.
Thor carried Loki straight over to the medical bay to be attended too. Sigyn made herself at home in medical bay as she quickly set everything up to take care of Loki.
Shuri jumped into T'Challa's arms once the king stepped off the ship. Shuri squealed in excitement and refused to let go. T'Challa ended up giving Shuri a piggy-back ride all the way back to her lab.
The heroes went their separate ways inside the castle. Steve ordered that they should have a meeting, so T'Challa, Tony, Steve, Peter Quill, Gamora, and Bruce met in the throne room. Thor refused to leave his brother's side. Shuri was so excited that her brother was back that she dashed into her lab and immediately set to work at rebuilding Vision. Wanda and Peter Parker watched the girl genius and even added some input.
Doctor Strange gave Hela the Soul Stone. He had placed a spell on it so it wouldn't affect the souls in Valhalla. Hela thanked him before she, her brothers, and Pietro went back to Valhalla to release all the dusted victims back into the Land of the Living.
The medical bay was surprisingly similar to the healer rooms on Asgard. Sigyn had quickly learned the different types of machines and had hooked Loki up to a heart monitor and oxygen tank. She wrapped Loki's broken wrist with bandages and healing oil. She popped Loki's knee back into its place as gently as she could. Loki flinched, but did not wake up. Sigyn placed a brace on Loki's leg to hold his knee in place.
With all that done, Sigyn could do nothing but wait. She watched Loki's chest rise and fall with every breath. He looked so peaceful when he was sleeping.
Thor pulled a chair over to Loki's bed. Sigyn looked up from her own chair on the left side of Loki.
"How is he doing?" Thor asked.
"His breathing is a little forced, but otherwise he seems alright. He used a lot of his energy and strength to defeat Thanos. I don't think anyone else could manage a feat of that size and survive," Sigyn replied. She placed a hand over Loki's left and held it gently.
"Will he awaken?"
"Time will tell."
The two sat in silence for nearly an hour before Steve asked to speak with Thor. Thor looked a little upset at leaving his brother, but Sigyn assured him that she would let him know if anything happened.
Thor nodded and followed Steve out into an empty room.
"What is it, Captain?" Thor asked. He shuffled in anticipation to get back near his brother.
"Its nothing really important, but I-we came to an agreement about your brother," Steve replied.
"What about him? Sigyn said that he should wake up, even if it isn't soon," Thor said.
"No, its not about that. You do realize that Loki has many charges against him on Earth. The government officials want him dead, or at the very least, locked up," Steve explained.
"And what is your verdict on this matter?"
Steve took a deep breath. "I saw what Loki did today. All of us did. What Thanos did to him...it wasn't Loki's fault. I-we, see that Loki's attack on New York wasn't just him. For the most part, Loki is innocent, but the government will not see it the same way as us. They were not there to witness what Loki did."
"Can't you talk to them?"
Steve shook his head. "Technically I'm wanted for breaking the Sokovia Accords. Even if they got past the fact that I'm kind of wanted criminal, I highly doubt that they would be as kind to Loki. We haven't talked to the council yet, but they are not big on giving people second chances. We decided that the best thing to do is to keep your brother a secret until we think of something else."
Thor looked downcast, so Steve continued.
"The least we can do is give him a fair trial. If the court proves him innocent, then he might under house arrest or have an Avenger or some other person anointed to watch over him. But if he messes up, even if it is a small issue, they will most likely send him straight to the Raft. Loki will only get one chance. If he ruins that chance, then its over. I want to give Loki another chance, believe me, but other people won't see him the way that we do."
"I understand. I will talk to Loki if-when he wakes up," Thor said. "Thank you, Captain."
Steve smiled in response. "Tell Loki to get better."
"I will," Thor said over his shoulder as he left the room.
/\
"He's not getting better," a Wakandian nurse stated as she checked Loki's vitals. Sigyn stood next to the woman and looked over her notes.
"I thought I hooked everything up correctly," Sigyn said.
"You did," the woman replied. She was half a foot shorter than Sigyn, so she had to look up to talk the the Asgardian. "I can tell that you know a lot about medicine and health, so you should know that your boyfriend is in a coma due to overusing his magic and energy. The magic part is beyond me, but according to our technology, I'm afraid he may never awaken."
Sigyn stared sadly down at Loki. Loki's short, dark hair framed his face in an adorable fashion. He was handsome, but his face was twisted in a pained expression. Every so often, he would twitch, causing his heart rate to accelerate for a few seconds.
"Can you check again?" Sigyn asked.
"I did. Several times, but they all reach to the same conclusion. The best choice is to let him go. I know its hard, but-"
"No," Sigyn interrupted. "There is no way that I can do that to him."
"Ma'am, coma patients -"
"I know about comas."
"Then you should know that comas can last years."
"I can wait. I live much longer than humans. A few years is nothing."
"Are you sure that you want make him suffer for a few years? The only thing keeping him alive are these machines; that is no life to live. It would be better for him if you let him pass on. Its a choice between keeping him alive but suffering, or let him pass on into peace. Its your decision," the woman said gently. She left the room to let Sigyn think.
Sigyn sat down and placed a hand on Loki's cheek. His skin was unnaturally hot. Tears started forming in her violet eyes. She shook her head in disbelief.
"No, I can't do this," Sigyn muttered to herself. She wiped her eyes with her free hand and look sadly at the clock. It was almost noon. Loki had been like this for almost two days. It was hard to tell if someone was stuck in a coma this early on, but the Wakandian woman was right. Sigyn could tell that there was no chance that Loki was ever going to wake up. Her studies in magic and healing taught her that using excess amounts of magic and energy could kill the nerves and burn out the brain. Most people spontaneously combusted on sight; Loki was different. He was probably the most powerful sorcerer in the universe, but even he couldn't use excess amounts of magic without some dangerous consequences.
A jolt shook Sigyn from her thoughts. She torn her eyes away from the clock that she had been staring at for a solid three minutes and looked down at Loki. Something was different about him. The pained expression was gone. Sigyn ran a hand over his forehead. Something was off...
Sigyn stood up so quickly that she knocked over her chair. She sprinted from the room in a desperate search for Thor. She finally found him in Shuri's lab with the others. The Guardians had left earlier that day, so it was just the Avengers.
"Thor!" Sigyn shouted to get Thor's attention.
Thor spun around quickly and caught Sigyn before she ran into him.
"What's wrong? Is it Loki?" Thor questioned, worry written all over his face.
All the Avengers turned to listen in.
"Is he alright?" Steve asked.
Sigyn's face was hard to read. No one could tell whether she was upset, shocked, excited, or worried.
Sigyn switched to Old Norse to speak to Thor. It was hard to tell what the two Asgardians were saying since they spoke in a dying language, but they could make out Loki's name. Their expressions were guarded and difficult to understand. Sigyn grabbed Thor's wrist and pulled him out of the lab, and probably off to the medical bay.
"What was that all about?" Tony asked.
Steve shrugged. "I have no idea. I'm guessing its about Loki. I hope he's okay."
"Does anyone speak Asgardian?" Tony asked the group.
Everyone shook their heads.
"Its probably nothing," Bruce suggested.
"I highly doubt that," Bucky said ominously. He motioned towards the doors. Thor was back with Sigyn at his side.
Steve stood up straight from the wall and uncrossed his arms.
"What's wrong?" Steve asked the blonde Asgardian.
Thor looked down at his boots. Sigyn sniffed and cover her mouth with her hand. She turned her back to the group and stared out the window.
"There was no way that Loki was going to wake up," Thor explained. "The best thing to do was to let Loki go…"
"So?" Bruce raised an eyebrow.
Thor looked up, his eyes shining with tears. "Loki is dead."
/\
The Avengers held a funeral procession for Loki. Thor said that he wanted Loki to have an Asgardian funeral. Shuri made a small, wooden Viking ship and the heroes went down to the river for the gathering.
Loki was placed on a soft cushion on the boat. He was wearing his Asgardian armour; his arms were folded on his stomach with a dagger in hand. Flower petals were scattered around him. A lantern hung from the ship's prow.
The moon shone down on the small group of heroes. Thor and Sigyn stood at the front of the group and pushed the ship into the water. The current caught the ship and carried it downstream. Sigyn muttered a simple spell and the ship burst into flame. Green lights drifted upward into the night sky.
"Loki will be remembered as a hero," Steve muttered. "We never got to thank him for saving the universe."
"He was a good man; a good man who was misunderstood," Sigyn said. "He was a faithful boyfriend. I have never met someone so devoted to someone before. I love you."
"I am proud to call him brother," Thor said. "I'm sorry that I ever wronged you or treated you like a lesser being. I love you, Loki. You are the best little brother anyone could ask for."
"You proved us wrong, you son of a bitch. Guess this is payback, huh, Reindeer Games?" Tony joked.
The group stood in silence for a while. The flames died down in the distance.
Thanos was dead, thanks to Loki. Families would be reunited soon. The universe was safe from Thanos and the Infinity Stones.
Loki was gone, but his memory would live on forever...
Cliffhanger! Mwuhaha! Sorry about that... And no, this is not the end. There is one final section (It's more of a epilogue than anything else, but whatever) coming soon!
So, somethings I feel like I need to explain:
Pietro and Hela are dating. Pietro is dead but I felt like he could have done more in the MCU. I just imagined then as a couple, and here we are!
Thanos is in love with Hela. (Based off of Thanos loving Death, with Death being Hela). It's really one sided because Thanos is a pervert.
Loki has short, curly hair now. I imagined what Loki would Loki like with short, curly hair, so it's stuck in my mind now.
Loki is Sleipnir's (eight-legged horse), Jormungandr's (giant serpent), Fenris' (giant wolf who can lift Thor's axe), and Hela's father. I wrote a story about Sleipnir's origin story (An Eight-Legged What?) and I plan to do Loki's three other kids.
Oh, and apparently Loki might have a TV series! Yay! I'm really excited about that! If you are excited about it too, leave a review! ;) Next, and final, part coming soon!
