The Guardians of the Galaxy! They were a mostly, kinda dependable group! They'd get the job done, Loki was sure of it. The hard part was waiting for the group to arrive on Earth!

The group arrived a few weeks later than expected. They had stopped at some space café for wanderers, but one thing had led to another. By the end, the Guardians had captured a dozen criminals, beat up two dozen more, ended up with a prosthetic arm, and gotten banned at said café. All in a day's work.

As the group's ship, The Milano, touched down quietly in some suburbia on Earth (the ship used some kind of camouflage tech so SHIELD couldn't locate them), Peter Quill quickly gave his team a reminder.

"OK, guys! Lets recap: we're hunting some guy named Steve Rogers, AKA Captain America. If we do, we'll get lots of money. Any questions?" Peter was hoping the answer would be no. He was in a hurry to collect the reward!

"Since we're killing him anyway, I can go all out?" Drax questioned. For some reason, Quill and the others always stopped him at the last second. Peter sighed.

"Yes, Drax, you can kill him as hard and violent as you want. Anyone else?" Rocket cocked his over-sized gun.

"Not a one", he growled with a cheeky but kinda scary grin. Peter didn't envy Captain America at all right now. He would hate to be in that guy's shoes. Rocket and Drax both looked like they were itching for a fight, and Gamora, while not as openly enthusiastic, never showed any mercy either.

And Groot was Groot.

"I do have some reservations", Gamora spoke up. "Why hasn't the man who hired us deigned to show his face to us at all? People like that cannot be trusted".

"Weellllll", Peter drawled, "most people would say the same about us". Gamora looked around at the ragtag group.

"I see your point", she said, shrugging. She knew how many people already hated her.

After some messing around with maps, the team discovered they had landed in New Jersey. Reading comments in online forums didn't pain the place in an overtly positive light. It didn't matter, since New York City was apparently fairly close.

Their first step was acquiring a car at a local rental shop. The owner was very reluctant to rent out a car to the group, though.

"None of you have a driver's license. I really can't loan you any vehicles", the owner explained nervously, wringing his gloved hands. Rocket made a waving motion.

"Please, I've driven spacecrafts made by third-rate builders, a "car" should be no problem. Hand me the keys!" The owner shook his head – until Drax put a large hand on the guy's shoulders.

Ten minutes later, they were crammed in the car – with Peter driving. Rocket was pouting in the backseat with Drax and Groot, who had sized down.

"I'm sorry, Rocket, but if people saw you driving, that would bring too much attention", Peter tried to apologize, but Rocket was having none of it.

"Yeah, yeah. You'd better watch your back for the next few hours…." He grumbled.

"I am Groot".

"Groot, that's a swell idea!", Rocket said, sounding impressed. It was going to be a long drive.

Loki, since he had the day off, pretty much, decided to do something nice for himself. He went to a fancy hair-salon, because he knew all the girls loved stylish hair. A few hours later, and Loki was already getting even more girls worshipping at his feet than usual. It was like magic, and Loki was an expert at that.

His mind wandered to Captain American and the Guardians. I hope they've killed him already. Probably not, I gave them my number, so they would have called already if it was so! What is causing them to take such a long time?

So, with infinite swag, Loki ditched the women, and went towards Avengers Tower, where Captain America was sure to be. Upon arrival, he found a flyer posted to the gate. It read To whom it may concern, Captain America will be at the All-American Buffet all night tonight. Srry – Tony Stark, coolest billionaire ever.

Loki crumpled the paper as he said dramatically to himself, "I'll have to crash that buffet, then. Captain America's days are numbered". With a flourish, he was gone.

As the Guardians of the Galaxy drove on, Peter was starting to get bombarded with complaints of hunger.

"I require sustenance if I am to kill the Captain" Drax announced. Rocket and Groot quickly backed him up.

"OK, I give!" Peter yelled in frustration. "But what the heck Groot? You don't even eat normal people food". Groot gave a sheepish grin. Peter couldn't stay mad at him.

So they stopped at the first place they found – an American Buffet. Peter was proud of himself for finding a place that would actually manage to fill all of them up. They walked up the steps, opened the door, and found some seats.

As they waited for the food, Rocket decided to "spice things up" by throwing one of the pepper bottles into the booth next to them. Some lady cried out, and a man exited the booth. Peter's mouth fell open. It was their target!

The Guardians all stood up, crashing dinner plates and dropping food. Rocket still held a salt shaker. There was a tense stare-down.

"Just who are you people?" Captain America asked slowly, not even sure what he was staring at. Who were these people? Two of them were green, for goodness's sake! And was that a raccoon? Animals weren't allowed in this fine establishment!

"I guess introductions are in order". Star Lord quickly grabbed one of his guns. "I'm Star-Lord, this is my team, and we're here to kill you". The last part was rushed out as Star Lord fired, his gun being deflected by the mighty shield. Drax rushed forward, entering into melee with Captain America. It was knife vs shield, basically.

"Why do you want to kill me? I don't know you", Steve reasoned as Drax tried to get him in a choke hold. Cap kicked Drax in the stomach, which only resulted in Drax letting out a grunt. Cap quickly ducked as a leg sailed past his head; the leg was attached to Gamora.

"Oy, hold him still, won't you", Rocket complained. He wanted a clear shot at the American flag draped human. He'd blow his head off!

"I am Groot" Groot said as his roots and branches entangled Captain America, who struggled in vain. Rocket grinned, Groot always came through!

"Who hired you?" Cap demanded through ground teeth. "Was it Red Skull, or Baron Zemo?" Star-Lord suddenly looked embarrassed.

"Um…we don't know, but we were promised money…."

"Do you still have the recording he left? Maybe I'll know" Captain America said desperately. Rocket pulled out the device from one of his pockets, and shrugged as he played it. What could be the harm?

As the recording played, Captain America's eyes widened. THAT WAS LOKI.

"I know who that is….an evil god named Loki!" he said.

"How evil?" Star Lord asked, not sure he wanted to know. Captain America looked him in the eye.

"He works for Thanos".

You could hear a pin drop in the room. Then Drax roared.

Loki had just been entering the buffet when he heard a loud roar. Was it a victory roar? That must be it! Loki opened the door, and came face to face with a very angry looking Drax. Loki ran towards the street, Drax hot on his tail, and Rocket and Gamora not far behind.

"I am Groot", Groot apologized to Captain America as he untangled him. Steve gave a salute; he held no grudged, for he was Captain America. He only hoped they would catch Loki, and end his reign of terror.

To Be Continued!

Author's Notes:

Wow, my longest chapter for this fic yet! I like how it turned out. Poor Loki, his association with Thanos didn't help him here!

Once again, the Guardians of the Galaxy film was great. If you're any kind of Marvel fan, WATCH IT. With a crowd, if possible; like Avengers, this film is great to watch with fellow fans!