Chapter 3 ~ On My Lonely Mind
Here Without You – 3 Doors Down
Loki walked casually into a cozy café and ordered a drink. Taking the warm paper cup, he sat and placed it on a small table. He had been on Earth for three months now and had blended quite well into human society. He had used his magic to convince an apartment owner to lease him a room for free and had also conjured up funds that kept replenishing themselves. For Sleipnir, the great stallion was hidden under the guise as a retired carriage horse and had made a home with a field of sheep. Thankfully, the stallion was in tune with Loki so, should he be needed, Sleipnir would hear Loki's whistle.
Opening an old book he had brought for Asgard with him, Loki settled into reading. Faint music played softly over the speakers of the café while news played muted on the single screen behind the counter. "Hey, turn it up." A man asked, gesturing to the screen.
"In other news, millionaire Tony Stark announced today that his adoptive daughter, Lithia Embry," Loki's eyes flew from the pages of his book to the screen. "will be heading the development and application of the new green energy project Stark Industries have been promoting. Lithia Embry, 19, was present at the press conference when Mr. Stark announced this change."
The news reporter was replaced by an image of Lithia at a podium addressing a horde of reporters. "I know it's a bit of a change but both Tony and I feel confident that this project will succeed." Lithia said, a smile on her face.
Loki's eyes were glued to her face. She looked well and generally happy to the eye that had never met her in person. The makeup was a tad heavy around her eyes and the smile seemed forced. Loki's heart strained when his eyes landed on her eyes. The once vibrant, deep, haunted hazel eyes were lacking everything. They had become so flat and empty save the caverns of haunted sorrow in their depths. "We will be keeping tabs on Ms. Embry and how the project is proceeding." The reporter finished before starting on another story.
Loki turned back to face his table. He slowly drank his coffee before sending his mind out to Lithia's. Though she was in California and he was in Manhatten, he found it easy to connect with her mind. Maintaining that connection, however, proved to be the challenge. Her mind had always seemed like a barren desert with prowling wolves of horrors and glimmering oasises of memories. Now, he stood face to face with a high stone wall. The stones were large and Loki could hear the paws of the wolves on the other side. Lithia had blocked Loki out.
He rested his head against the stone. "She will forgive you, you know." A soft voice said nearby.
Loki turned and saw a shimmering light. "And you are?" he asked.
The light giggled. "I am Jenna, the voice producer Mr. Stark made for Lithia before she decided to use her voice. She still keeps me to better connect with Jarvis seeing as how he is technically my father." Jenna replied.
Loki cocked an eyebrow but accepted the light's answer. "The wolves sound bigger." He said, sitting down, his back pressed to the wall.
"They are and much more dangerous." Jenna replied, floating closer to Loki. "With the addition to Thanos' memories, they got bigger and more numerous. Lithia hasn't slept in some time; not peacefully that is. They tear her peace apart and make her live some things no person should have ever had to go through."
"And I was never there for her…" Loki muttered.
"No, no you weren't." Jenna said. "Your horned serpent left when you returned to Asgard and Lithia held onto the hope that you would send it again."
Loki leaned his head into his hands. "She knew you would someday seek her out through your link." Jenna said softly. "So she asked me to give you a message when you did finally come."
Loki looked up to the light and nodded. The light shimmered and took the form of Lithia. Loki stood instantly as the figure began speaking. "Loki, you're in my mind now. So, you've seen the wall I've built. I only did this recently to keep you out…" she paused. "I'm… I'm not mad at you Loki. How could I be? But… I am severely disappointed. I've been lied to so many times that I used to be numb to it. But with Tony, Pepper, and everyone being honest to me I guess I forgot what it's like to be lied to. Maybe that's why I actually believed that you cared for me and would come back for me. But what was I expecting from the God of Mischeif and Lies? The truth? A little honesty?... I don't even know anymore. Yet… I'm not mad at you. I just want to be wrong. That you will come back for me… So come get me and make me take this wall down… I kinda need my hero."
The figure morphed back into the light and said, "Message end."
Loki stared down in disbelief. He lost his focus and was catapulted back into his mind and to Manhattan. His breath was fast and he had a hard time keeping his emotions under control. He really had lied to her. Grabbing his book and his now lukewarm coffee, Loki quickly left the café to teleport to his apartment. Incinerating the coffee and sending his book away, Loki leaned his head into a wall and pounded his fist into it.
What had he done?
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Tony had decided to give Lithia the responsibility of the green energy project to occupy her mind. She seemed to be fine but her lack of sleep had finally started to show. Thinking her mind was dwelling on Loki's absence, Tony had given the project to her. However, the board of directors were very reluctant to let some girl take over that large of a project willingly. "Lithia is perfectly capable of handling this project." Tony defended her.
"She has just graduated high school Mr. Stark." One countered.
"Top of her class." Tony stated. "Besides, I have faith in her."
"While your faith carries a lot with this company, we cannot rely on faith alone. We must see some hard evidence of her skills." One said.
"Do you have any evidence Mr. Stark?"
Tony thought a moment before relenting. "Come by the shop tonight."
XXXX
Lithia was down in the shop, D-Lux hoisted above her in chains. She had welder goggles on and her hair tucked under a vivid purple bandana. A think welder apron protected her body and a pair of thin gloves covered her hands. An old tool kit sat on a bench next to faithful lab assistant Tiny Hulk. The small dog also had a small pair of goggles and a purpled bandana over his ears. He was wagging his tail slowly as the sparks flew from Lithia's welding flame.
"Lithia, Mr. Stark and company approaches." Jenna's soft voice chimed in over the sound of her welding.
Snapping the flame off, Lithia straightened and removed her goggles. Resting them on her hairline, she straightened a few things before summoning her aluminum water bottle. Taking a swig, she heard Tony's ecstatic voice drawing closer. "I told you she would be down here. Always working that girl is."
"Ah Lithia." Tony said, as the doors opened and he entered, flanked by his board members.
Lithia nodded, a hard eye on the board members. Without moving her eyes, she caught Tiny Hulk before he could leap off barking at the board members. "What are the suits doing here?" she asked, taking another swig of her water.
"They don't trust me on making you head of the green energy project." Tony said, making Lithia laugh.
"Understandable. You don't have the best track record of trustworthy choices." She said. "Lemme guess, they want to check out my skills before backing your play?"
"Spot on Ms. Embry." A board member said.
"The name's Lithia." She snapped slightly. "And if you want to check out my skills…" she pressed a few buttons and a wall rose up from the floor. "Check it out, I got shit to do. Jenna, run security footage Alpha-Lithia-Gamma-TH."
The lights dimmed and a video montage started while Lithia wheeled D-Lux off to the side and continued working on the suit. The board members and Tony watched as the security footage showing Lithia working on Tony's unfinished formula, her working on D-Lux and her making a few enhancements on some smaller tech devices such as Pepper's phone or Greta's laptop. The montage ended quietly but the watchers were startled when Lithia's yelling voice cut through the quiet. "Finally done!" she shouted happily.
"Done with what?" a member asked but Lithia quickly placed a large white sheet over D-Lux.
"Non-ya business." She said. "So, proof provided?"
The members murmured among themselves before one spoke. "I believe that there is promise here. We approve."
Tony had J.A.R.V.I.S. show the members out before being glomped by Lithia. "O.K. what's up?" he asked, chuckling a bit.
"It isn't completely finished yet but D-Lux is almost ready for a test run." She said happily.
"Awesome kid!" Tony cheered with her.
"I'm gonna clean up before dinner." She said, jogging off, her small dog lopping at her feet.