Loki lout a shuddered breath that plastered itself over the glass separating him and the mysterious frozen man. He studied the man's face, noticing the dark circles under his eyes and the small stubble of beard that covered his face. He slowly turned around towards the scientist, who was still picking up his equipment and packing it down.
"Who is he?" Loki asked, not exactly sure why, but something about this man… intrigued him. He locked eyes with the scientist whose head quickly snapped up at the question, and Loki tried not to sound too curious or look like he cared if he didn't tell him.
The scientist who was named Bobinski judging by the small plastic card stuck on his coat (what kind of name is that?) Loki thought to himself, adjusted his glasses as he looked towards Loki who was standing across the room on the other side beside the frozen man.
"Ah… Well we aren't a hundred percent sure as of yet, but it would seem that man was in fact a former US soldier, who we assumed was dead."
When he only received a confounded look from Loki, Bobinski put down the chart he was holding and strutted towards Loki.
"He was Captain America's best friend, and tragically he suffered the same fate as him, though infinitely worse. We believe that Hydra found him, if he now truly is who the tag says he is of course. I can only imagine what horrible things they did to him, and I wouldn't be surprised if he has no recollection of what he was before. It's a shame really… Someone so pure hearted like him, turned into a monster… Such a pity."
"A monster?" Loki turned away from staring at the man in the tube and looked at the scientist.
"What do you mean?"
The scientist ran a hand through his short hair and scratched his chin lightly, as if he was trying to remember something.
"Well… The codename is the "Winter Soldier", a man who is known to have murdered a lot of people, including one of our presidents." The scientist said, now staring at the frozen man, with Loki soon following suit.
"He is wanted by a lot of people, or at least those who still believe that he exists. After all he has done… Can you think of what it is being him? Being hated by so many, having been put on an unfaithful path, while you never did anything wrong… Can you imagine that?" The man turned and looked at Loki, who by now had a clump in his throat. He kept his gaze at the frozen man before him, not looking away. He took a long breath and stared at the frozen soldier before answering in a breath;
"Yeah… I think I do…" He eventually looked back at the scientist who also seemed to be deeply emerged in his own thoughts.
"What will become of him?" The scientist looked at him and sighed.
"Well… After all he has done I think we both know what is coming. We will defrost him, interrogate him about all he knows, and after that… He will be executed."
Loki stared at him in disbelief.
"But you can't do that! He hasn't done anything wrong! Hydra forced him to do what he did!"
The scientist shook his head and gnawed on his lower lip, clearly uneasy about it too.
"That may be… But I doubt that there is anything left of what he once was. We are very confident that Hydra has erased all of what he was before, which would essentially mean that they already killed him a long time ago, leaving only this… Empty shell of a man turned into a killing machine left. He is no longer who he used to be, and we think it would be best if was put to rest."
"Put to rest?!" Loki was almost fuming with rage right now and very near to drop his mask, which was how angry he was with the earthlings.
"Im not glad about it either, but think of it… Wouldn't it just be best for him and everybody else if he just… Died? He has no family, and I don't think that Captain America should see his former comrade like… this." The scientist stretched out his arm, emphasizing his point by stretching it towards the tube with the frozen man. He turned around and walked back to the table, picking up his equipment and putting it in cases. Loki grinded his teeth, feeling furious at the moment. However, he collected himself, reminding himself that he had a job to do.
He turned around, but his feet were frozen in place, and he stood still at the spot. He looked back at the man behind him. He stared at him, before looking away and started to lift his right leg. But he seemed to have a hard time walking, and he couldn't get the man out of his head. He swore and put his leg back, staring down at the floor. This man was like him, someone who had started out pure, but led astray by people who wanted to control him. Loki swore about a hundred Asgardian curses before silently muttering a spell, causing his communications device to ring. He picked it up and pretended to be listening to someone speak.
"Yes? Really? I see." He put it back in its holster, and the scientist looked at him now, curious as to what had been said.
Loki looked at him.
"It was from upstairs; they just called and told me that he is going to be moved too."
The scientist looked at him with a bit of confounded look.
"Really?" The man said, and Loki could see that he was a wee bit suspicious. Loki adjusted his position and remained a calm posture and face while replying.
"Yes, it was first our plan to sneak away our things separately, but we don't have that much time, meaning that we have to get as much as we can out of here before they come."
The scientist looked at him for a fragment of a second, before nodding, as to say that he understood, and he picked up his pace a notch.
The elevator shaft opened suddenly, with ten soldiers walking in. Loki snapped his head and looked at them as they came in. They walked towards the scientist.
"We just got word that Hydra is coming, we need to move all of this out right now!" The man said and Loki screamed silently inside.
``You have got to be kidding me.´´ Loki thought to himself, as his plan turned into chaos.
The scientist nodded at the words.
"I already know, this man told me and I am packing up as fast as I can, but I wouldn't mind if you helped me.
The man leading the soldier looked at Loki briefly, who had a calm face, but was in full panic mode inside. He gave a short nod at Loki before looking back at his men.
"Alright! Help him move all of this to the trucks, and put your backs into it! I want his place to be empty in an hour, and after that you will report back to me, understand!?"
"Yes Sir!" The men said simultaneously, spreading out and starting to pack up everything.
The leader walked over to Loki, giving him a nudge on his shoulder before walking towards the elevator.
Loki swore every single word he could think of as he too started to pack up.
Why? Why did it have to come true? He asked himself as he paced around, helping the others pack up.
After almost an hour they were done, and almost all the soldiers were gone by now. Loki looked around for the scientist, who was in a secluded room, with much bigger doors than the others. Loki walked in, and the scientist almost jumped at the noise before he saw that it was a fellow soldier, or at least what appeared as one.
"Are you alright?" Loki asked, as the man was fumbling with a big briefcase, and he looked very nervous.
"Yes, I am quite fine, just a tad bit nervous. This thing-"He held up the closed briefcase-
"Is the single most important thing we have gotten our hands on. I am supposed to take it to a special truck, but I can't find the keys, and I am really stressing out and-"
Loki walked towards the man with a somewhat strained smile.
"Calm down, I will help you find this key, and then we can get out of here, okay?" The scientist smiled and dried his forehead with a dusty napkin from his inner pocket on his coat.
"Alright." He said, but before he could say anything more the whole room shook, and he was thrown to the side of the room, crashing his head against the wall. Loki tumbled too, and he fell. Loki swore loudly, and ran to the man. He had blood running from his head, but appeared to be alive. There were now red lamps blinking and beeping, and to Loki's horror the giant doors were closing.
He ran towards the doors, but it was too late, and no matter what he did they would not budge. He tried over twenty spells to open them, but it seemed to have little to no effect. Loki swore loudly, running his hands through his black hair.
Okay. He was trapped underground, with possibly an entire army coming to get him, and he couldn't get out. Perfect. He looked around, seeing a lot of scraps and alien technology lying around. Maybe magic didn't work… But he could build something, something that could hack the security system and get him out… Loki quickly threw himself on the floor; picking up all the components he could find that weren't broken or ineffective. He put everything he had gathered on the table, and began putting it together the best he could. Thankfully he had a few gadgets in the room that could help him, and he knew a few spells that aided him. He was halfway done with tool when he came to a sudden stop; He needed a power source, and a simple "Battery" wouldn't do. He needed something more powerful than that, but looking around he found that everything of use was already on the table, except… The briefcase. Loki ran to the man, picking up the briefcase. He put it on the table, and prayed silently before opening it.
``Please… Let it be useful.´´ Loki thought as he opened his eyes and looked at what was inside. What he saw took his breath away.
It was one of the infinity stones. It was the Tesseract! How in the name of hell had the earthlings got their hand on it? Loki paused momentarily, recalling an energy pulse that had been detected over seventy years ago, which at the time had been something the Asgardians had ignored, passing it of as nothing worth investigating. Loki thanked all the stars they hadn't; otherwise he wouldn't have it now. He was however stuck at the moment, because while the Tesseract had infinite energy, it was too big for his device.
He quickly came up with an idea, and picked up one of his trusty Asgardian knives, holding it against his mouth. He whispered a few enchanted words, before placing the knife at one of the corners of the cube. With one swift motion he cut of the end piece, creating a small crystal, the size of his little finger. Loki quickly picked it up and examined it. It was still glowing blue, and when he looked back at the cube he saw as the cube replaced the missing part, as if it had a conscious that healed itself. Loki looked at the cube for a moment with a marveled expression, but dismissed it. He put the crystal inside his device and finished the last few things. He stood up and examined his work; It was a tool shaped like the handle of a sword, except it had a more expanded variety of colors, with silver and gold covering it, with a bit of white at the bottom, as well as a green orb at the top, with four protective arms surrounding it, that would move out when he activated it. He experimentally started it, and the green orb at the top glowed, giving of a sonic buzzing.
``Sonic…´´ Loki thought to himself. What was it Darcy had told him when he asked about one of tools in their apartment? Was it a screwdriver?
He looked at his device and thought to himself;
``A sonic "Screwdriver"…´´ not too shabby Loki thought as he twirled around and marched towards the door.
(Authors note; for those who don't know, the device Loki has built is a tool from "Doctor Who", a popular British TV-series. I am well aware that most people know, but just in case I wanted everyone to know. This screwdriver is the exact same that the 11th Doctor uses.)
Loki strode towards the door, and held out his sonic screwdriver like a wand, pointing it at the security panel.
"Hope this works…" Loki muttered as he started it, and the screwdriver activated, with the green light shining onto the panel, while giving of that familiar buzzing. In a matter of seconds the door opened, and Loki almost jumped with joy, kissing his tool as he quickly made his way out. He put the screwdriver securely in his pocket, seeing as it could come in handy later.
He ran through the halls, trying to find the truck with the hammer in it. Soldiers were running around, and he could hear shooting in the distance.
He came to the hangar, where all the trucks stood with the various things from the hall he was in earlier. He looked around, trying to see if he could spot the right one. Loki was breathing heavily, with a small layer of sweat covering his body, most likely because he was so stressed, seeing as this place would most likely soon be run over by Hydra soldiers, and Loki did not fancy being down here with the humans shooting at each other's throats. He just wanted to get out.
Loki paced around, and thankfully a soldier ran up to him.
"Do you need help?" The man asked, with a machine gun in his arms and panic in his eyes.
"Yes, I need to know which one of these trucks contains the hammer that we picked up a few days ago, because I am supposed to be on it and guard it while they transport it out of here."
"Didn't they tell you which one?" The guard asked, and Loki merely shook his head. The guard didn't seem entirely convinced, but given the moment he didn't have time to question Loki about the details. The guard pointed towards one of the trucks at the far end of the hangar, and Loki thanked him before running towards it.
He came to the truck and climbed inside; there was no one there, except for the hammer, a few machines and… And the frozen soldier. Loki walked to him slowly, coming to a halt when he stood in front of him. He put one of his hands on the glass and stared at him silently, thinking about the day's events.
Eventually he put his hand down and sat at the bench inside in the truck, catching his breath. Loki put his hands together and looked down at the dusty metallic floor of the truck. He heard someone walk into the passenger seat, and the truck started moving. The man who drove the truck suddenly put on some kind of device that seemed to play music, most likely that thing that was called "radio" that Thor had spoken to him so excitedly about. A song played, and Loki was brought out of his thoughts and listened to what they sang;
(Quick note; The song is called "Would it matter" by Skillet, try opening a tab and listen to it while reading, it will make it more emotional )
"If I wasn't here tomorrow, would anybody care? ~
"If my time was up id wanna know~
"You were happy I was there~
"If I wasn't here tomorrow, would anyone lose their sleep? ~
"If I wasn't hard and hollow~
"Then maybe you would miss me~
"I know I'm a mess and I wanna be someone~
"Someone that I'd like better~
"I can never forget, so don't remind me of it forever, forever... ~
"What if I just pulled myself together? ~
"Would it matter at all? ~
"What if I just tried not to remember? ~
"Would it matter at all? ~
"All the chances that have passed me by~
"Would it matter if I gave it one more try? ~
"... Would it matter at all...? ~
The song continued playing without the man singing for a moment, and it wasn't until then that Loki realized that he was crying, with tears running over his cheeks. He held up his hand and felt the wet streak on his cheek, and he felt his mind being overrun with memories, memories that seemed to have been brought up by that song. Loki was silent, and continued to listen to the song, feeling more tears coming, as he remembered his past, all the times he wished he was dead, all the people who told him that he shouldn't have been born, that his very existence was a crime, and that everybody would be better off if he was dead.
"If I wasn't here tomorrow, would anybody care? ~
"Still stuck inside this sorrow~
"I got nothin´ and going nowhere~
"I know I'm a mess and I wanna be someone~
"Someone that I'd like better~
"I can never forget, so don't remind me of it forever~
"What if I just pulled myself together? ~
"Would it matter at all? ~
"What if I just tried not to remember~
"Would it matter at all? ~
"All the chances that have passed me by~
"Would it matter if I gave it one more try? ~
"Would it matter at all? ~
Loki put his hand on his eyes, shutting them tight while trying to fend of the flood of bad memories that came to his mind. He didn't know who was singing, but it was like he was speaking to him, like he knew him, as if it was him singing.
"I know I'm a mess and I wanna be someone~
"Someone that I'd like better~
"Can you help me forget, don't wanna feel like this forever, forever! ~
"What if I just pulled myself together~
"Would it matter at all? ~
"What if I just tried not to remember? ~
"Would it matter at all? ~
"All the chances that have passed me by~
"Would it matter if I gave it one more try? ~
"If I left tomorrow, would anybody care?! ~
"Stuck in this sorrow~
"Going nowhere! ~
"All the chances that have passed me by! ~
"Would it matter if I gave it one more try? ~
"Would it matter at all...? ~
The truck came to a sudden stop, and the driver turned off the music.
Loki quickly wiped his face with his sleeve, and tried to build up his posture and remain somewhat calm, though perhaps he should look rather panicked, seeing as most agents and soldiers were at the moment.
Loki heard the sounds of footsteps, and before long there was a soldier standing at the end of the truck, looking inside. When his gaze found Loki he stared at him with a troubled look.
"Oi!" He shouted, motioning with his hand to tell Loki to come closer. Loki remained calm and rose from his spot on the bench and walked towards the man.
"What are you doing in there?" He asked, staring intently at Loki.
"I'm supposed to be guarding these things in case Hydra tries to hijack the truck." Loki said, and met the man's gaze with equal power, not flinching for even a second.
The man squinted his eyes.
"I didn't hear about that." He said, and Loki could see the man slowly reach for his gun behind his back.
"Well they pretty much shouted it at me, seeing as we are under attack. You're welcome to check it up with the people upstairs, but I think they are a bit preoccupied with all the mayhem Hydra is causing at the moment."
The soldier seemed a bit baffled at Loki's comment, but nodded and removed his hand from his gun.
"See to it that they don't get it then." He said, and pulled down the cover on the truck and walking towards his station. The truck started moving again, though this time the driver didn't put on the music. It was probably for the best.
They drove for a few minutes, most likely driving though a long tunnel under the city, and Loki sat in silence as the truck drove.
Eventually they drove up a hill, and Loki could only assume that they were above ground right now. Loki remembered suddenly that Thor and the others wouldn't be far from where he was right now, since Heimdall had seen this path, and right now his brother and the rest were waiting for him. Loki swore, knowing that that Hydra group which was currently attacking the building was most likely coming after him, and since Thor was stripped from all his powers, he was very vulnerable.
They drove for a minute, and Loki didn't even have enough time to scream when the truck tumbled over, caused by a big blast at the side. The truck rolled, everything inside was secured at the ground, save from Loki, who was currently tumbling around inside, and despite his near invulnerability, received more than a few bruises from being cast around. When the truck final settled on the ground, with its left side on the ground and the left upright with a big hole, Loki stood up on his shaky legs and swore as he climbed up and heaved himself over the side, landing somewhat graciously onto the ground.
He looked around; they appeared to on a flat landscape, very similar to that outside of the town where Heimdall had beamed the down.
He saw people walking towards the truck, machine guns pointed at him and yelling at him to put his hands up. Loki smirked a little, and put up with the charade. He held his hand above his head, and when the soldier were close enough he pulled out his knives the he had hidden in his sleeves, throwing them at the two soldiers. The soldier in the middle screamed when he saw his comrade's fall, with blood gushing out of their throats. He directed his gun towards Loki, but ii was to no avail; Loki had already pulled out his sonic screwdriver, and with a simple click he had dismantled the man's gun in less than a second. The man tried to fire it, and when he couldn't he looked at Loki, who was now right in front of him. Loki punched him swiftly, rendering him unconscious. Loki looked around, knowing that it would only be a matter of seconds before more of them arrived. He ran to the truck, looking inside the passenger seat; the driver was dead. Loki took out his screwdriver and adjusted it before pointing at the side of the truck. This time a green laser came out, and Loki cut of the entire side of the truck, then pulling it off.
Everything looked alright, save for a few cracks on the tube that the frozen soldier was in. Loki looked towards the truck that the Hydra agents had come from, and he realized that he could use it to get the hammer away from the place. Loki marched towards the truck and looked inside, just now remembering that he didn't know how to drive these primitive vehicles, and he had killed the only people who knew.
Loki tried to think of something, but was interrupted by a shout;
"Hey!" Loki's head snapped up, causing him to bang it on the trucks ceiling.
Loki put his hand over the spot that hurt and looked towards whoever it was that was shouting at him.
It was Darcy who had shouted, and to Loki's dismay it also appeared to be everyone else. She was waving happily, with the others following her.
"What are you doing here?!" He shouted, walking towards them in a fast pace.
"Eeeh, let's see… Picking up the hammer? Like we talked about? Or have you forgotten?" Darcy said, and Loki was possibly fuming with rage over the sarcastic tone, possibly because his head hurt, there was Hydra agents coming, and now he had to look out for them as well.
"It's not safe here, there are Hydra agents coming any second now, and the truck that the hammer was in is badly damaged- Loki pointed towards the destroyed truck, and the others gazes locked onto it, with their smiles disappearing.
"Well can't we use this truck then?" Jane said, and Loki stared at her, just now releasing that she could drive this vehicle.
"Yes… Yes we can!" Loki said, smiling a bit. He quickly turned towards the truck and muttered a long spell. Soon enough the hammer and the rock connected to it rose from the truck, and started to sway its way towards the other truck. Thor and Selvig quickly opened the doors, and Loki dropped the hammer inside. Thor was standing still at the entrance of the truck, seemingly dazzled and brimming with happiness after finally seeing his beloved hammer again.
The group was just getting ready to get to the truck when they heard another shout, who didn't sound as friendly as Darcy's.
It was more Hydra agents, possibly twenty of them right now. The group stood still as they came closer, and put their hands behind their heads. The soldiers inspected the damaged truck, as well as the one where the hammer was.
A man pulled off his mask, revealing his face. He had a small beard, with brown hair that stood up, and he laughed a bit as he looked at the company before him.
"Well, I supposed I should thank you for bringing our stuff back, and lifting the hammer into a new truck!" He said, laughing and showing a big grin. Half the soldiers behind him were already at the other truck, bringing out the machines that were inside. The man turned around and started walking towards one of the trucks.
"Kill them." He said, and ten men lifted their guns and pointed them towards the group. Loki looked at the others, Darcy with her eyes wide open, Selvig with his eyes closed, Jane with her mouth closed and Thor who was looking at him. Loki reacted in less than a second, pulling out his screwdriver and activating it. The soldiers fired, but the group was shielded by a green wall. The leader turned around surprised, and shouted at the others to fire at them as well, and they surrounded them in a circle, rendering Loki's shield ineffective, since he could only cover one side. They were now surrounding them, awaiting orders from their leader.
The leader stood a few feet away from them and gave a short laugh while shaking his head while he had his hands on his hips.
"You know… That was really unexpected, and you have my respect for it. However, it will not save you. Kill them." He said and turned around, but was stopped by a shout, coming from Jane;
"Stop this!" She screamed, and the man turned around yet again, locking his eyes with hers.
"Why?" He said with an amused tone in his voice.
"Because…- Jane said, and she didn't waver her gaze as she met the Hydra leaders gaze.
"You already have what you came for. If you just take it and leave, we won't be a problem. Our truck is damaged, so we can't follow you even if we wanted to."
The man looked at her and then towards the truck, as if he was considering.
"Hmm… I could do that…- He said, and Jane seemed to relax a bit.
"Or I could just kill you right now." He said and laughed.
"You cold-hearted monster!" Jane screamed, and her eyes were filled with rage.
The man turned his head and squinted his eyes.
"Kill her first." He said before walking away.
One soldier pointed his gun towards Jane and shot. Loki didn't even have time to react, and in less than a second a body hit the ground. But it wasn't Jane's;
It was Thor's. Loki's eyes widened and he watched as his brother's body laid on the ground, a pool of red blood pouring out of his stomach. Loki roared in fury, and a gigantic wave of magic was released from him, throwing the hydra agents meters away from them. He quickly ran to his brother who was lying on the ground, his head resting on Jane's lap. He quickly put his hand over the wound, but it was nothing he could do. He looked at his brother with teary eyes, and he saw his brother smiling brightly, his blue eyes shining in the daylight.
"I'm sorry…" He muttered, and closed his eyes.
Loki cried as he looked at his brother.
"No… You can't… You can't die! Don't leave me Thor, you promised! Do you remember?! When we were little, you promised that you would always be there for me?! Don't break your promise to me!"
Loki shouted at Thor, with tears running over his cheeks.
The others were also crying, and Jane's tears fell on Thor's hair.
"No…" She whispered as her tears fell.
Thor was dead.