"How are you doing up there Banner?"
Tony Stark's voiced echoed over the intercom set up by J.A.R.V.I.S. to allow communication from any room of the tower. Bruce Banner glanced around the room briefly before pinpointing the speaker set up on the console on the far wall.
"I'm fine, but Loki isn't doing well at all."
"What's the matter with him? You know, besides the genocidal tendencies and extreme emotional damage?"
"Well, from what I've been able to diagnose and from what J.A.R.V.I.S.'s censors have been able to detect he's suffering from multiple injuries, externally and internally, and requires immediate medical attention."
"Since you're in the immediate proximity, shouldn't you being paying him attention?" Despite the sarcasm, there was a hint of concern trying to remain hidden in his voice.
"Tony, we've been over this. I'm not that kind of doctor. All I can do is try to manage his pain and his fever until a better alternative is available. By the way, I put great emphasis on 'try'."
"Speaking of a better alternative…" Virginia 'Pepper' Potts had returned to the tower with a none-too-pleased look in her eye, the security camera in the elevator showed the dedicated redhead only a few floors below Tony's workshop. "Pepper is back, gotta' go. And hey Banner…"
"Yeah?"
"If this is it, I mean, I finally did something to cause her to kill me, which we can both agree would be warranted, will you promise to say nice things about me at the funeral?"
"Yeah, Tony. Sure."
"Thanks pal!"
The intercom clicked off and the room was silent again, until Loki began to breathe in sudden, short rasps before his coughing fit started. The injured God's body was wracked harshly with each cough that escaped his lungs. Small speckles of blood began to shower out and stain his paled lips and face.
Despite his reputation as a monster that unleashes itself with his buried anger, Banner was a deeply compassionate person. He gently turned Loki onto his side to prevent him from choking on his own blood. When at last the fit passed Loki remained still on his side and gasped hard trying to catch his breath; his limbs trembled from the physical exertion he had just endured.
"Damn it." Bruce rubbed his chin with anxiety as he turned his attention to drawers and shelves all stocked with the impressive array of medical equipment ready for his disposal.
"Okay Loki. I don't know if you can hear me and I doubt it'll really make any difference whether you can or not, but I am going to help you."
He gently rolled Loki back over until he was laying flat on his back once more.
"At least, I hope I can help you." Bruce glanced back once more at the intimidating tools to choose from.
"Uh, hey, J.A.R.V.I.S.? Can you put up a current scan of Loki's physical condition for me to monitor?"
'Right away, sir: Scanning now.' The computerized voice acknowledged the request and performed a second scan on the God of Mischief.
Taking the oxygen mask from the tank built into the wall, Banner strapped it over Loki's nose and mouth hoping that it'd prevent any further coughing fits and help ease the God into less painful rest. A small cloud of fog began to form on the inside of the mask indicating that Loki was still breathing and responding well to the oxygen.
'Scanning complete: Sensors detect that despite not being human, his vital signs and internal composition seem to mimic that of a healthy human-being found on Earth.'
A large digital display appeared on the glass monitor above the intercom; several gauges to monitor Loki's vital signs were remaining steady with little fluctuation to cause immediate alarm: Heart monitor, blood pressure, oxygen / respiration, body temperature… The display was adequate enough to give Bruce reassurance that Loki was stable.
"J.A.R.V.I.S., does that include his organs working in the same manner as a human's as well?"
'Yes, sir. Analysis indicates the best of course of action is to the treat the 'humanoid' as a 'human''.
"Thanks, J.A.R.V.I.S." Bruce picked up Loki's wrist to check his pulse and to confirm that readings on the monitor provided by J.A.R.V.I.S. are synchronized. "Pulse seems slow." He placed his fingers on Loki's neck to check his carotid pulse and sighed at the second confirmation of the weak pulse rate. "Okay then, let's do this."
-Down in Tony Stark's lab-
"Are you insane?!" Pepper was running her hand anxiously through her strawberry blonde hair as she paced tensely in front of Tony who was sitting behind his desk. "Wait, don't answer that, I know you're insane! I mean, what saneperson would, not only let a God hide out in his tower, but let the very man who single-handedly tried to eliminate every human on Earth hideaway from his punishment, and get medical treatment?"
Tony rose from behind his desk, walked over to Pepper and put both of his hands on her shoulders to stop her pacing. "Two things Pep: One; we didn't let him in. Thor brought him to us and asked a favor as Brothers in arms. And two; in Loki's defense, it wasn't a single-handed attempt on the world, he had an enormous alien army at his disposal, so…"
"Shut up, just shut up." She covered her face with both hands and breathed deeply into them before looking back into Tony's eyes. "We're going upstairs right now, I want you to tell me what happened and then I want Bruce to tell me what really happened."
"Fair enough."
Tony knew he wouldn't be able to change her mind, that's a trait that he really admired about Pepper.
Both Tony and Pepper climbed into the elevator together, Pepper still obviously annoyed with Tony just looked at her with the corner of eye, a little amused at her reactions.
"You know-"
"I said 'shut up'." Pepper turned and gave Tony 'the look'.
"Okay." He grinned in his usual charming, yet somehow aggravating manner at her the whole ride up.
-In the infirmary-
'Sir, Loki's vital signs indicate massive internal hemorrhaging.' The computerized voice interrupted Bruce's train of thought.
"I'm aware of that, just keep the scan up on the monitor and keep quiet for a while, I need to concentrate."
Complications arose as Bruce began to assess and treat Loki's wounds. It was a struggle to remove the mangled armor from Loki's chest; it was more difficult because Bruce was trying his best to remove the armor without aggravating the already devastating injuries. Once the metallic shielding was removed, Bruce found himself at a rare loss of words. In the center of Loki's chest was a deep, circular burn pattern. At first glance it looked like a chemical burn but the concentration of the wound suggested another element, fire or perhaps electricity. Even his newly exposed arms showed signs of the same burns pattern. Bruce didn't have time to thoroughly examine the burn to get the answer, almost as soon as the wound was exposed to the open air Loki began going into shock.
The pain was too intense even for a seasoned warrior like Loki.
Thinking quickly Bruce managed to restrain Loki by his shoulders without causing further pain. The beaten God's legs twitched and his arms continued to thrash despite Bruce holding them down. His whole body wracked and contorted from side-to-side in pain.
"Banner! What the hell happened?"
Tony Stark and 'Pepper' Potts had been watching from the doorway in silence. They arrived in time to see Bruce expose the horrifying injury beneath the now removed armor and see Loki enter his near convulsive state.
"Shock. He's going into shock, I need some help."
"What do you need?" Without hesitating, Pepper stepped into the room and stood next to Bruce, her eyes fixed on the helpless creature that lay before her.
"Try to keep him steady while I administer an I.V."
"I got this Pepper." Tony entered the room and took over for Bruce while he began to set up the proper dosage of medication and prepare the I.V.
With a caring manner one would expect to see a mother give to her ailing child, Pepper gently placed her hand on the side of Loki's paled face to try and reassure him that he'd be okay. His eyes were shut tight and jaw clenched from the pain, he attempted to roll his head away from her touch but he was too weak and in too much pain to deny the comfort that her touch brought to him.
"My God, he's really hot." Pepper placed her other hand to his forehead. "I think he has a fever too."
Bruce and Tony both looked at the monitor on the wall, sure enough the readings indicated that Loki's body temperature was elevating at an alarming pace.
Pepper briefly left the room to grab a cold pack from the freezer in the nearby kitchen while Bruce held down Loki's arm and inserted the needle to start the I.V. Luckily the God was already in so much pain he didn't even flinch as the needle entered his vein. Taping the tubing in place against Loki's exposed arm, Bruce assisted Tony with holding Loki in place as they waited for the medication to take its effect.
As Loki began to calm, his body relaxing and his breathing stabilizing, Pepper returned with the cold pack and gently laid it on Loki's forehead. She gently pressed it down with her hand and smoothed it out, watching Loki unconsciously respond to her touch once more.
Bruce, Tony and Pepper just stood in silence, looking down at how helpless Loki had become. It seemed surreal, how could someone with so much power and intelligence fall so quickly and horribly into the broken mess they see now? Just three weeks ago this very person was leading an attack against the entire planet and it looked like he was about to win, now he appeared at be at death's door.
"So… Thor brought him here for protection?" Pepper's shaking voice broke the silence.
"Yup." Tony answered while Bruce nodded in quiet acknowledgement.
"Protection from who, exactly?"
"Well, according to Thor, from their Father; Odin." This time Tony nodded in silent agreement as Bruce filled Pepper in on the details.
Pepper bit her lip nervously. "If Odin was able to do this to his own Son… What do you think he would to us?"
Both Tony and Bruce looked at each other with a panicked glance.
"I guess that never crossed our minds." Tony shut his eyes in embarrassment.
"Oh really? Something escaped your keep intellect? What's that thing called again? Oh yeah! 'Foresight'!" Pepper was serious but her sarcastic tone kept the mood from growing too intense.
"Yup." Tony looked down at Loki then back to Pepper. "So, what are we going to do with him?"
"What?" Bruce looked at Tony more confused than he had been all day.
"Well, if we keep him we suffer the wrath of Odin. If we ditch him we suffer the wrath of Thor." Tony was counting out the options on his fingers as he spoke. "Now, I'm not a fan of either one of those options, but I already know that I cam hold my own against 'Greased Lightning' and I know that Banner here could just 'smash' him into the floor. I say we ditch him."
"Tony, you can be really demented at times." Pepper just stared at him with incredulous eyes.
"Right and this seems like the most appropriate time." Tony's eyes remained fixed on Pepper.
"We can't just abandon him." Her voice was stern, with a hint of genuine concern.
"Whoa, wait a minute. When we, mostly Bruce, agreed to do this, you were against it. Now that it seems like its best for everyone else to forget about the little troll, you want to help him. Is it me? Do you enjoy siding against me?"
"Shut up. I just don't think it's right to let someone suffer or die out of anger, especially at the hands of his own Father. I think you of all people could appreciate that."
"Ouch." Tony's voice was steady and sarcastic, but there was no denying that her comment stung.
"Sorry, but it's true."
"Yeah."
Bruce shook his head as if he could shake off the debate taking place around him as he resumed his examination of Loki's wounds. The burn on his chest was dark, charred almost completely black by the intensity of whatever was used to harm him. His arms proved that he had attempted to use them to shield himself from the attack, but it wasn't enough to protect him. Multiple cuts and bruises marred his chest, torso, shoulders and arms. Both eyes were dark; his paled skin only intensified the dark hue. The blood stains on his lips complimented the swelling split of his upper lip, while his lower jaw showed signs of a severe fracture.
Loki was breathing fast; every breath seemed to cause unbearable pain. His chest rose and fell quickly in an unsteady rhythm, at least two broken ribs were evident, his ribcage more prominent from being emaciated during his torturous punishment.
Bruce went over to the monitor and set up the heart monitor to allow an audible rhythm to be heard. It beeped to life quickly and loudly, signaling his elevated heart rate. Bruce grew concerned as it seemed that his was beginning to beat faster.
"Look, if I don't do something soon, I think we're going to lose him."
"What do you mean we? I'm not going to be doing anything to him." Tony threw up his hands in defense.
"We're in your tower, which makes you an accomplice." Bruce answered quickly and in a dominant tone.
"Touché." Tony looked down at Loki again.
"Maybe Thor can talk Odin down and keep him from seeking revenge." Pepper tried to soothe over the tension.
"And maybe Banner here could get a job as a lingerie model."
Bruce just looked at Tony over his shoulder with a blank face.
"What? It's a compliment! You could totally pull off heels and fishnet stockings."
"Tony, you have a dirty mind." Pepper patted Tony on the shoulder in a humorous fashion.
"I don't have a dirty mind; I have a sexy imagination."
…to be continued…
Authors Note: I LOVE all the feedback this story is getting! It's inspiring me to keep writing every time someone tells me how they'd react or how they hope the situation will turn or how they think the situation should be handled… I love it, love it, love it! Thank you all for reading! I'll try to keep updating the story as quickly as possible, thank you in advance for your patience!
