DISCLAIMER: I do not own the movie Thor or any of its characters, nor any of the characters or events from Marvel's The Avengers – I am just borrowing them for play.
Inspired by Oceanbreeze7's fantastic story 'Understanding', where the Avengers (minus Tony) watch Iron Man. Go read it.
Inverted Perceptions
-~S~-
Chapter Seven: Segregation
The many metal buildings and structures of Asgard glimmered in the golden light of dusk through the open floor to ceiling window high up in the palace, the doors sliding closed silently to shut off the room from the outside world. The Allfather slept with his prone form covered in a heavy fur blanket as he lay in the center of a golden framed bed, headboard peaking upward at both sides as if in mimicry of horns and the foot curving and narrowing like the prow of a ship. The Queen and Loki sat on either side of the head of the bed watching him in silence, until she quietly admitted to him in reference to his adoption,
"I asked him to be honest with you from the beginning. There should be no secrets in a family."
"So why did he lie?"
"He kept the truth from you so that you would never feel different." Loki stared at her with an unwavering, steely gaze, appearing to not accept the excuse. "You are our son, Loki, and we your family – you must know that," she implored. He averted his eyes from hers and looked down at Odin.
"You can speak to him," she prompted. "He can see and hear us even now."
He dismissed her suggestion and asked, "How long will it last?"
"I don't know," she murmured, "this time it's different – we were unprepared."
"I never get used to seeing him like this," Loki confessed. "The most powerful being in the Nine Realms... lying helpless – until his body is restored."
Clint narrowed his eyes and slowly started, "Do you think he's planning something?"
"Seemed like foreshadowing," Bruce considered.
"He's put it off for so long now that I fear-" Frigga cut herself off, allowing her worry to remain unspoken as she reached to hold her husband's hand. She looked up at him and continued, "You're a good son. We mustn't lose hope that your father will return to us – and your brother."
Loki's head tilted minutely in confusion as he queried sceptically, "What hope is there for Thor?"
"There's always a purpose to everything your father does," she explained patiently. "Thor may yet find a way home."
Loki cast his eyes down in contemplation of the event affirmed through her faith and then stood. He lingered by the Allfather's bedside for a moment before turning to stride out of the room, past a perch upon which a crow was settled. Circling the foot of the bed, Loki's gaze sharpened and flew to the tall double doors of the room in alarm as they rattled. They were pulled open to reveal a row of half a dozen of Odin's, fully armoured, elite guards, who immediately upon seeing him shouted and pounded their fists against their chests as they fell to one knee. Loki's eyes shifted back and forth to take in the scene, his expression stunned. A man walked in front of the soldiers to the doorway, robed in gold, and turned to face him, Gungnir held carefully in his arms.
"Is what I'm thinking really happening?" Tony asked. "'Cause I don't think that's a good idea."
The man ambled forward as Frigga looked on, coming to kneel before him. Loki stared down at the offered spear for a few seconds before meeting the man's eyes with brows furrowed in question. He turned to face his mother in mystification at the situation, and she enlightened him,
"Thor is banished. The line of succession falls to you, until Odin awakens. Asgard is yours." She sat determined and proud, waiting for him to seize his right. Loki's jaw had slackened slightly in amazement at the oppourtunity, turning once again to fully take in the heft of Gungnir and the title assigned to it. It was held up to him once more as he regarded it with his chin raised, reverently lifting it with his hands to the echoing caws of the crow.
The man bowed and stepped back under Loki's stare as Frigga nodded and encouraged, "Make your father proud." He pivoted to face her, Gungnir grasped in his hands and a smirk pulling at his lips as she finished, "My king," to the continued caws.
"Ominous," Tony commented.
"You think so? A crow cawing as he's named king?" Fury retorted rhetorically.
The clacking of a keyboard was amplified by the silence of the space, Erik typing in front of a monitor atop a desk surrounded by bookcases and shelved trolleys jammed with an assortment of reading material. A woman lingered by the shelving nearby as he finished, sliding his chair backward as he clicked the mouse so to close the supposed window that he had been composing an email in.
He stood and began to leave the small library, but turned back and idly pulled out a small hardcover, 'The Giant Slayer,' from the top of a cart full of novels yet to be sorted. Paging through it, he once again paused and reached down to lift a larger book into his hands, 'Myths and Legends from Around the World,' as he placed the other back. With a smile he flipped through the mass by Anneka Sunden, coming to a stop at a page titled 'Bifrost' and skimming the material he had grown up with.
Bifrost
The Rainbow Bridge to Asgard
The Rainbow Bridge connected Asgard to the other lower realms of Yggdrasil below the clouds. The bridge was a protected gateway that prevented intruders such as Jötunns or Trolls from entering into Asgard because the red of the bridge was glowing fire that would burn their feet. The bridge's protection allowed the Gods time for other matters instead of constantly defending Asgard. Odin appointed Heimdall as watchman of the bridge because he would be able to warn all if an enemy tried to sneak into Asgard.
He chuckled and turned to another pair of pages:
Thursday: Thor's Day
Thursday was named after the Norse God of Thunder. Thor corresponded to Jupiter, and thus, his name was given to the Roman "Dies Jovis," the day of Jupiter. When other tribes replaced the name Jupiter with Thor, Thorsdaeg – or in English, Thursday – became the name of the 5th day of the week. Thor was also identified with Donar, the thunder god of Teutonic mythology. His name survives in the English weekday name Thursday, Donnerstag in German, Donderdag in Dutch.
He closed the book with a derisive scoff and sigh.
"You know, you're probably lucky that you weren't confined to an institution or something, Big Guy," Tony said, smirking towards Thor. Pepper lightly slapped the arm closest to her.
Jane sat with her truck idling, eyes searching the people meandering the sidewalks before she furrowed her brow and leaned forward at the sight of Thor striding up to the Pet Palace across the street. He entered to the yips of puppies and squawks of birds, demanding, "I need a horse."
Tony and Clint laughed uproariously at the concept of a horse being sold alongside dogs, and then at the thought of him riding one through a modern town.
Pepper hit him again. "It was a perfectly valid request."
Tony snorted, "Not in today's world, it isn't. Hey," his head whipped around to Thor, "you don't know how to drive, do you? I'll teach you."
Thor's face brightened at the suggestion. "You would instruct me on how to command the metal contraptions for use of transport? I would be honoured!"
"I don't think that's necessary," Agent Hill said.
"I'd pay to see Thor learning how to drive," Clint contributed.
Natasha just raised an eyebrow and reminded Tony, "It'd be your cars he'd be driving."
"And all property and vehicular damage would be billed to you," Agent Coulson added.
Tony internally winced at the thought, but a glance at Thor's excited face had him grinning and declaring, "Teach Thor how to be a responsible driver with minimal harm to civilians and property? Challenge accepted."
The cashier looked up at him with his eyebrows drawn beneath his curled afro, and seeing that he appeared serious answered slowly, "We don't have horses – just dogs, cats, birds-"
"Then give me one of those large enough to ride," Thor corrected.
Clint stifled a chortle and shared a smirk with Tony.
Jane honked as she pulled the truck up outside the store, pushing back the window so to ask him, "Hey, you still need a lift?" Thor turned at her voice and walked to her, 'Kyle' staring after him in puzzlement.
The two were driving out in the desert, engine thrumming in the stillness of the environment as Jane confessed, "I've never done anything like this before." Thor turned to face her in acknowledgement of her phrase before facing forwards again with a smile, Jane flicking her gaze to him a couple of times before she asked, "Have you ever done anything like this before?"
He nodded and answered, "Many times." He looked to her again and assured, "But you're brave to do it."
"Well they just stole my entire life's work – don't really have much left to lose."
"Ah, but you're clever-"
"-hm, thanks-"
"-far more clever than anyone else in this realm."
"Realm? Realm?" she repeated, shaking her head at the archaic term.
"You think me strange," Thor stated, bemused.
"Yeah I do," she admitted with a grin.
"Good strange, or bad strange?"
"I'm not quite sure yet," she divulged teasingly, facing him for a few seconds too long and causing the truck to skid along the rough dirt on the left side of the road. She swerved back onto the road as they both laughed, her managing an apology amidst her chuckles.
There were a few moments of silence as they darted glances at each other, before Jane composed herself and asked earnestly, "But who are you-" Thor's lips parted slightly, but then closed again without answering. She finished, "-really?"
He gathered a smile and said, "You'll see soon enough."
"You promised me answers," she reminded.
He stared at her before disclosing, "What you seek – it's a bridge."
"Like-like an Einstein-Rosen Bridge?"
"More like a Rainbow Bridge."
She gaped and shook her head, returning her concentration to driving as she muttered, "God I hope you're not crazy."
"She seems very strong – helping you while doubting your mental stability," Steve commented. Thor grinned with pride while Pepper glanced at Tony, who sent her an appreciative smile before entwining their fingers under the table in commiseration with the parallel.
The colours of the Rainbow Bridge shone underneath the twilight skies with the towering palace reaching for the stars, as inside the Warriors' Three and Sif climbed a few rows of steps. Their heads were bowed and their right hands fisted over their breasts in deference, Sif stating, "Allfather, we must speak with you urgently." They all paused and stood still in shock at the sight of the figure seated.
Loki was lounging in the intricate golden throne, armour and horned helmet donned and Gungnir held erect in his left hand, a guard at the base of either side of the dais. The four lowered their arms and took in his position with various degrees of confusion as he addressed, "My friends."
"Where's Odin?" Fandral asked, their postures slackening as they approached.
"Father has fallen into the Odinsleep," he explained with downcast eyes that shifted from side to side. He confessed, "Mother fears he may never awaken again."
"We would speak with her?" Sif queried.
"She has refused to leave my father's bedside." The four halted in a line in front of him. "You can bring your urgent matter to me," he instructed, laying a hand over his chest. His expression became steely with resolve as he leisurely stood, green cape hanging from his shoulders, lightly rapping the end of Gungnir against the floor as he finished with his new title to them: "Your king."
There was a light gasp from one of them; all of their faces displayed shock and surprise; Fandral looked to the others, overwhelmed. Despite their thoughts on the matter, they raised and held their fists over their hearts again in fealty as they each fell to one knee to gaze up at him. "My king," Sif began, "we would ask that you end Thor's banishment."
Loki tilted his head slightly and narrowed his eyes, letting escape a patronizing huff as he started to descend the steps from the throne. He rationalized, "My first command cannot be to undo the Allfather's last," as he walked. "We're on the brink of war with Jötunheim – our people need a sense of continuity in order to feel safe in these difficult times." Hogan cast an assessing look over to Volstagg as Sif began to glare towards Loki from his other side as he continued, "All of us must stand together. For the good of Asgard."
"I see why he's called Silvertongue," Bruce acknowledged.
He looked down at them, the horns of his helmet thrust forward aggressively, as he stood. Sif surged to her feet to move against him, but Fandral and Hogan reached forward to each grab an arm to prevent any further action. "Yes, of course," Fandral acquiesced with a smile, but his eyes were pinched at the corners.
"Good, then you will wait for my word."
"If I may," Volstagg started, Loki's fierce stare diverted to him, "uh, beg the indulgence of your Majesty, t-to perhaps reconsider-"
"We're done," he said defiantly. The Warriors' Three and Sif stared at him in disbelief for a moment before getting to their feet and lowering their arms. They turned and filed out one by one, Sif left watching him intently. Loki angled his torso forward slightly as if to stifle the challenge in her eyes and her lips twitched at one corner in a small smirk before she turned and exited the hall as well.
"Are they planning on... defying him?" Steve asked. "I mean, he's king now – can they do that?"
"They're going to try something," Bruce predicted.
The truck's rear lights glowed red in the dark of night while its headlights illuminated the well-worn dirt ahead, the vehicle cresting a hill to observe SHIELD's work within the crater. At the center was a cubic structure that had covered tunnels winding away to buildings on either side. Trucks patrolled the area well-lit with six tall, monolithic spotlights, the entire square surrounded by monitored fences. Parked outside the fencing were a dozen trucks and campers neatly concentrated in one space for the numerous agents assigned to the task.
Tony whistled in admiration of the site while Bruce muttered, "Impressive."
There were agents securing the higher floors of the central structure while a few scientists circled Mjolnir with cameras and energy-reading instruments.
"That's no satellite crash," Jane observed, astounded. "They would've hauled the wreckage away – they wouldn't build a city around it." She was lying on her stomach peering through a pair of binoculars at the formation as Thor crouched beside her.
"You're going to need this," he stated while tugging off his coat, eyes never wavering from their target.
"What?" she asked, turning to look up at him as he meticulously arranged the article of clothing over her shoulders. "Wait, why?" A faint rumble of thunder was heard and they cast their eyes skyward for a second, Thor laughing lightly.
"Stay here," he commanded. "Once I have Mjolnir I will return the items they've stolen from you. Deal?"
She stared at him before stating, "No. Look what's down there-" She pointed to the site before whipping back around to face him. "You think you're just going to walk in, grab our stuff, and walk out?"
"No, I'm going to fly out," he explained, starting over the crest of the hill while staying crouched low to the ground. Jane gaped at his back as lightning streaked across the dark clouds above, thunder crashing.
One of the monitors displaying vivid screen shots of Mjolnir through various lenses began to glitch, an agent's cell phone beginning to malfunction as well as he tapped the touch screen in annoyance.
"Sir, feed from the keyhole can barely penetrate the cloud cover," an agent informed, adjusting the settings on the analyzing beams. "Tech's barely working as it is with all the interference that thing's giving off." An older agent approached to survey the screen as the image was replaced with one displaying two dozen plane symbols, one coloured in red and evidently flying towards their 'event zone'. He reported, "And we've got a commercial aircraft coming right over: Southwest Airlines, flight 5434."
"Reroute it like all the others," he ordered.
"Hold a sec," the agent started, his attention caught by the happenings on another screen, "we've got something outside the fence." He held his finger up the screen where a dark, semicircular shape was highlighted. "West side."
"Delancey, Jackson – west side perimeter. Go check it out," his voice conveyed through a radio, a cart patrolling outside detouring off the tracks to the designated area.
"There it is." One of the agents shone a flashlight along the bottom of the fencing and the artificial light exhibited clearly where the metal had been bent upwards for an individual to crawl through. As they parked Thor appeared from the opposite side of the small vehicle and punched the driver, knocking him out. Jane watched through her binoculars, stunned, as he instantly grabbed the man's M4 so to jab the other in the head and dismiss him as well.
Inside, the directing agent held his communications radio to his mouth and commanded, "Delancey, Jackson – report."
Thor donned a black plastic poncho to partially disguise himself and, with his hood up shadowing his features, jogged over the road to saunter past a truck on the other side.
An armed agent making his rounds stumbled upon the unconscious agents, immediately publicizing, "Agent down – we've got a perimeter breach." A rasping, wailing alarm sounded throughout the compound, all the agents hurrying to identify and neutralize the security threat.
Jane gasped at the response and shimmied further from the lip of the hill so to hopefully escape notice.
Thor ducked behind the fortified truck as agents rushed past, plastering himself to the side.
Jane had curled up on her side and had her cell held to her ear, Erik's voice heard announcing, "You've reached Dr. Erik Selvig. Please leave me a message," before the tone.
"Hi, Erik, it's me," she hastened. "Don't worry, I'm fine – but, um, just in case you don't hear from me in the next hour, just come by the crater site; try and find me, okay? I did exactly what you told me not to – I'm sorry. So sorry, bye," she finished, flipping her phone shut.
"I hope you didn't get her in trouble," Steve said with a disapproving frown. Then he cast a stern glance toward the SHIELD agents and asked, "You didn't arrest her, did you? She's a civilian."
"She was trespassing on government property with the intention of stealing several objects," Fury argued.
Tony snorted and protested, "Objects you stole. It's not like you can make much of her work – should've just hired her."
"She's consulting now," Agent Hill informed.
"Despite you grabbing her here?" Bruce questioned in disbelief, gesturing to the scene shown.
"We had no idea she was in the area," Coulson clarified to the smirks of Clint and Natasha.
Thor had sought cover underneath one of the trailers as all the agents in the surrounding area armed themselves and filed into the compound. Lightning and thunder crashed ahead again, Mjolnir reverberating. He looked skyward and the flashes illuminated his grin, urging him to rush out from his cover and into the covered tunnels.
Jane looked on from beneath the jacket he had given her.
Turning right, he was slowed by an agent who he reflexively grabbed about the wrist in defense and then bent to gather him about the thighs to toss him over his shoulder. Another agent attacked him from behind and he was entangled in his arms as well as his own poncho before freeing himself from both and facing him so to engage him. He deftly blocked the knee strike before jumping slightly so to grasp the agent around the neck and shoulders and spin him around, grabbing the back of his jacket and throwing him headlong into the downed agent that had stood. They both toppled to the ground.
His torso heaved within his blue tee as he ran through the tunnel, jerking towards a stair leading to the lower level before passing it, agents surging at him.
"I need eyes up high – with a gun," Agent Coulson radioed, the rain having drenched his suit and hair.
M4s, M16s, and a variety of handguns were splayed along a wall on the inside of one of the armoury trucks, gloved hands reaching to grip a sniper rifle from the selection presented on the table below. They paused before swiftly darting upwards to grasp a collapsed bow attached to a rotating quiver full of trick arrows.
"Hey!" Tony exclaimed, pointing at the screen while turning to call to Clint, "That's you!"
He smirked and replied with a roll of his eyes, "I know."
Thor frowned minutely and tilted his head, saying, "I did not know you were there, Clinton."
"Ah well, we didn't really get a chance to chat."
His laced boots kicked out of the back of the vehicle and he hopped down to the ground with a splash, sprinting through the mud to a square, railed scaffold that he lobbed his bow and quiver into before climbing in himself.
Thor came to another ladder and kicked the closest agent in the chest, flinging him backward into his fellow agents who were unable to sufficiently brace his weight and fell. Leaping onto the grating of the tunnel, he swung his leg around in a roundhouse and kicked a rising man in the head. At the end of the passage another agent rushed forward with an M16 yelling, 'Got him!', and so he turned and darted through another channel.
He was met by another two agents, the first of whom threw a punch that was avoided as he retaliated with the same, gaining a free moment so to grab the other and throw him to the ground. He then grabbed the metal holding up the above floor and lifted himself to use both legs to kick a rising man out over the ledge, his form tearing through the plastic covering. Thor continued to wind through the tunnels, trying to avoid most of the agents.
The lift outside was pulled upwards, Agent Barton readying his bow.
"So what've we got?" Coulson demanded, striding into the sector teeming with computers and instruments fixed on the area of Mjolnir.
"There's a massive electromagnetic surge coming off that thing. Systems are barely coping."
"Barton, talk to me," Coulson radioed as he stepped away, staring upward at his position.
"You want me to slow 'im down, sir?" he queried leisurely, knocking an arrow and aiming at Thor's running figure. "Or are you sendin' in more guys for him to beat up?"
"I'll let you know," he responded as he walked.
They chuckled at the interaction of the two.
Thor had reached the central cubic structure, and standing on the second level he stared down in admiration of Mjolnir as he approached her. Suddenly a thick arm was held out to clothes-line him violently. He gazed up at the tall, thickset, dark-skinned agent who blocked his path and commented cockily, "You're big – fought bigger," as he got to his feet.
He swung wildly and cracked his nose, mouth gaping as the agent did not give any ground and instead took the oppourtunity to punch back. Thor instinctively curled his torso forwards as he drove his fist into his gut, then punched his cheek. The agent tackled him through the plastic tarps and onto the wet dirt outside, Thor rolling them over as Barton continued to target him from above.
They rolled over several times in the mud until the agent had Thor in a headlock. He choked in air as the fingers of one hand clawed at the arm before he wound his arm forward and drove his elbow into the chest behind him. The man released him with a grunt, rolling onto his back as Thor pounded him twice more with his elbow. He straddled him and moved to strike again, but was flipped up and over his head to land on his side on the ground above.
The two men quickly stood on unsteady feet, and as the agent rushed him Thor propelled himself upwards to launch his feet into his chest. They were hurled in opposite directions, Thor recovering first and stepping forward to swing his leg around to kick him in the head and knock him out. He pulled his right arm across his mouth to wipe some mud from his lips before his eyes fell to the central structure again, taking in the shadow cast by Mjolnir upon the clear tarps.
Whipping his hair from his face with a toss of his head, he strode forward still breathing heavily from the brawl.
"You better call it, Coulson," Barton inserted, "'cause I'm starting to root for this guy."
Thor ripped the plastic covering from where it was secured along the metal framing, revealing Mjolnir situated atop a column of stone a few feet high. He circled her beneath the fluorescent lighting with a smile and chuckle before stopping to stand before her.
Agent Coulson moved to look down at the scene from an upper level, Barton preparing to shoot and calling,
"Last chance, sir."
"Wait," Coulson said, "I want to see this."
With a relieved exhale Thor reached forward to wrap his fingers around her leather grip, attempting to lift her free. With a furrowed brow and confused frustration expressed he yanked at her again, then lowered his center of gravity and took hold of her with both of his hands before heaving. His muscles strained in exertion as he yelled with his teeth bared, continually attempting to wrench her free.
He reluctantly released her handle and stepped back, panting, looking at the palms of his hands before casting his gaze towards the heavens. His eyes narrowed against the rain as his face crumpled in distress, letting escape a long wordless, helpless cry of despair at being kept from Mjolnir.
Jane's lips had parted and her eyes had turned glassy at the sight from beneath her makeshift shelter; Coulson swallowed at the emotion of the scene. Thor fell to his knees beside her, still affixed to the stone, and hung his head; his form fell limp, his mind not bothering to apportion the effort to hold his posture.
"Alright, show's over," Coulson radioed. "Ground units move in."
Agent Barton slackened his hold and lowered his bow and arrow, watching from a distance. An agent walked to Thor's position on the wet ground and secured his arms behind his back; he did not offer a token of resistance. His triquetric rune appeared engraved on the side of Mjolnir's head before vanishing again, causing him to heave a sigh at the sight as his eyes welled with tears. Another couple agents came to stand on either side of him, pulling him to his feet and leading him away.
The structure shone reflected in the pupil of Heimdall's eye as he looked upon the scene from afar through his amber irises, golden helmet reaching upwards from his head into the scarlet and azure cloud forms high up in the starry sky.
AUTHOR'S NOTES: I'd like to thank SonjaL for the information in the book, 'Myths and Legends from Around the World'. She must've paused the scene and copied what the book said - and I'm so glad she did because I was squinting so hard and couldn't make much out ;P So thank you!
Please review and let me know how you enjoyed this chapter!