Brothers of Liberty

Ch. 10 Calm before the storm

I do not own The Avengers or Harry Potter

Marvel Studios and J. K. Rowling do.

Positive reviews are welcome.

Authors note: Sorry for being lazy on this. I swear, it won't happen again. There has been much going on in my life that I have finally been able to overcome and has helped me get this story back on track. So, without further ado, here it is.

Ch. 10 Calm before the storm

Joseph Rogers was many things. Patient, calm, and steady. Today, just wasn't a day for all of that. He stood within the holding area that made up the outside of Loki's cell, his arms crossed before him. A look of contemplation on his face as he stood before Loki's cell and glared at his long time friend who refused to look him in the eye, and instead, decided to look elsewhere.

Sif Rogers stood behind her husband, leaning against one of the walls on the left, using a file on her nails to both clean and trim them properly, just as her semi-stepmother Lily Evans had taught her all about how the women of today had enjoyed taking better care of their nails and using it as a means of relaxing.

"Loki..." Joe tried, only to be brushed off as his friend waved him away, as if trying to dismiss him. "Loki, please. End this charade, before anymore people are hurt or worse."

"Maybe I want people to get hurt, old friend." his friend scoffed.

"Don't say that. This isn't you."

"Isn't it. For the first time in my life, maybe I am embracing who I really am. Who I was always meant to be." he says, sneering at Joe.

"No, you're not. That's Thanos talking, not you." Joe repeated. "Your eyes are different. Instead of the matching green you share with me, they are harboring a bit in a slight tinge of blue, no doubt from the staff itself. A clear sign that Thanos has you in his grip." the Midgardian wizard says, banging on the glass surface of the cells glass door with a closed fist, the underside of the said fist striking the clear glass.

"You know nothing Rogers, despite what you think you know." Loki growled out as he once more turned his head away as if to ignore the unwanted company. "You may go, both you and Sif. The both of you have entertained me long enough by just being here."

Putting the file away, Sif pulls herself into a standing position, "We won't give up on you Loki. We will break the hold Thanos has over you."

"You will try." he scoffs again, followed with a dark chuckle.

With a final glare at his temporarily imprisoned friend, Joe sighs tiredly as he turns and begins to walk out of the room, his left arm snaking around his wife's midsection and leading her towards their next destination as well as to get away from the man he once considered a third brother.

Their next destination leads them to finding Lily Evans, his twice born mother, arguing with one Anthony 'Tony' Stark who by now, looked like he wanted to curl in on himself in a corner and cry with Severus Snape smirking off to the side, and Bruce Banner rubbing his eyes tiredly.

"You're acting like a child Anthony Stark, instead of acting like a man of science and helping us find the Tesseract." she said as her hand glows and she tosses a bolt of pure magic at him that causes Tony to yelp, as he rubs his arm where the bolt of magic impacted. "Now, if you continue to try and shock Bruce or entertain the idea on meeting the Hulk, I'll show you why I'm one of the most feared Charms Mistresses in the world, and turn you into an 'Ass'. Do I make myself clear?"

The brilliant inventor, being cornered in the right hand side of the room on the right corner, could only whimper and nod.

"Good, now get over here dammit and help us find the damn thing so that we can end this so called threat."

Properly chastised, Tony Stark lowered his head and returned to his work station, as for reasons he had yet to understand, no one, not even Lily Evans had called him out on his hacking of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s files, as no doubt she too was curious to understand how the U.S. Agency felt about her and her people. She secretly did not miss the bug-like device he cautiously placed upon the Bridge of the Helicarrier.

Severus Snape on the other hand, only smirked at the unfortunate man as he too knew what the consequences of getting on Lily's bad side. He received such a thing when he received his memories of his past life and the memories of being given a second chance to make it right, though he forever lost the chance in being with Lily as the memory of his betrayal was still fresh in her mind as well as his.

He took it rather well, all things considered as he knew that any chance between he and Lily ever being a couple was rather moot.

Seeing her message being understood, she failed to notice until it was all said and done as she turned to see both her sons and daughter in-law, standing off to the side, with matching grins, as it was obvious, Joseph didn't notice his brother Steve enter the room, let alone, lean on a wall with his arms crossed, and a smirk on his lips.

One would have to look very hard at Bruce in order to see the small hint of a smile on his face as he remained working on the tracking algorithms beside Severus.

"Oh, Joseph, Sif, Steven, how long have you all been standing there?" she asked.

"Long enough." came Sifs answer as she walked up to and high five'd her mother in-law, then stood by her facing the rest of the room while Tony, as quiet as a mouse, went back to his work, as he clearly learned his lesson.

Lily threw out a hand, surrounding the room in a field of magical energy that Joseph recognized as a privacy charm. This aided in disabling any and all listening devices as they began speaking freely amongst themselves with Lily beginning the conversation.

"So, has Loki said anything, yet?" she asked, looking between Joe and Sif.

"No, nothing." the younger Rogers answered with a sigh, rubbing the back of his neck after conjuring and sitting in a chair before the tech specialists workstation.

Sif came behind and removed his hands, only to replace them with her own as she messaged the tightness of his neck and worn shoulder muscles.

Tony had begun to mutter under his breath at this time, catching everyones attention, "Care to repeat that, Mr. Stark?" Snape asked rather nastily.

Slamming whatever item was currently in his hand, he shot out, "What I said was, why is Loki the only one we should be worried about when we should be concentrating on Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D. as well?"

"What do you mean?" Steve asked, turning his attention towards Tony, his hands lying on his belt, a stern look upon his face while his brother wore a pensive expression.

"What I mean is, why did Fury call us in? Why now? Why not before? What isn't he telling us? I can't do the equation unless I have all of the variables."

"You think he's hiding something?" Lily surmised.

"Lil's, may I call you Lil's?" he asked. Before she could reply, he continued, "He's a spy, he's 'the' spy. His secrets have secrets. It's bugging him, too. Isn't it?" he asked as he turned to and sent the last question towards Banner.

"Uuuuhhhhh..." Bruce tried, trying to find a way out of the conversation.

"Hhmmm" Stark pressured, opening a snack pack and chewing on a berry, his attention still on his fellow scientist.

"I just want to finish my work here and..."

"Bruce..." Lily Evans tried as she touched his hand in support.

Sighing in defeat, the poor man removed his glasses, folded them on themselves, and replied, "A warm light for all mankind. Loki's jab at Fury about the 'Cube'."

"We heard that." Joseph confirmed.

"Well," he said, looking at Stark, "I think that was meant for you." Tony held out the bag in both victory and appreciation that someone else had paid attention, allowing Bruce to grab a candy or two as he continued, "Even if Barton didn't tell Loki about the tower, it was still all over the news."

"The Stark Tower? That big, ugly...," Steve began, only to stop as the younger Rogers snorted aloud behind his hand, as did Severus and Sif, with Lily and Stark both glaring at Steve, causing him to catch himself before he continued, "building in New York?"

"It's powered by an 'Arc Reactor' Steven." Lily reprimanded icily, since she had to admit, Anthony Stark had far exceeded his father Howard, in both science and technology, and the reactor and the tower itself, were pieces of tremendously great ingenuity. "It's a self sustaining energy source."

"That building will run itself for what, a year?" Bruce asked.

"It's just a prototype." Stark admitted. "I'm kind of the only name in clean energy right now. That's what he's getting at." the last bit spoken with pride.

"So, why didn't S.H.I.E.L.D. bring him in on the 'Tesseract Project'?" Snape asked as he too began to go down the same thought path as Stark and Banner, resting his chin on one of his hands that was held by an arm, leaning on a table. "What are they doing in the so called 'Energy Business' in the first place? If I didn't know any better, I'd say that they weren't about creating a means of clean energy. They were making weapons. Weapons of mass destruction, most likely powered by the Tesseract itself. It's the only thing that makes sense. Bunch of bloody idiots, the lot of them."

"Steve, just like HYDRA did." Joe said in realization as he lightly smacked his brothers arm and bore a look of horror upon a pale face. Even Sif looked sick at the notion of what S.H.I.E.L.D. had possibly done and stood straight, as if preparing for a fight.

"I should probably look into that to confirm that, once my decryption program finishes breaking into all of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s secure files."

Steve stood straighter at this and advanced on the inventor as Joe moved to intercept him before he did anything rash. "I'm sorry, did you say..."

"Jarvis has been running it since I hit the bridge." Stark replied back without missing a beat, holding out and looking at a plain piece of see through Stark tech, only to pocket it. "In a few hours, I'll know every dirty little secret S.H.I.E.L.D. has ever tried to hide. Blueberry." he asked as he held out the bag to Steve.

"Yet, you're confused about why they didn't want you around." Steve shot out with a hint of malice.

"An Intelligence Organization that fears Intelligence? Historically, not awesome."

"I think Loki's trying to wind us up. This is a man who means to start a war, and if we don't stay focused, he'll succeed. We have our orders. We should follow them."

"Following's not really my style." Stark snarked as he popped another berry into his mouth.

"And you're all about style, aren't you?"

"Of the people in this room, which one is A) wearing a spangly outfit..."

"Stark!" the younger Rogers warned with a dark glare that Tony shook off as if unaffected.

" And B) not of use?"

"Steve, tell me none of this smells a little funky to you." Bruce asked.

Before Steve could reply, Joe put a hand on his brothers chest as if to push him out of the room, "Before you say anything, let's investigate this ourselves and see what we can find. Sif, stay here, and keep Stark out of trouble." she nodded at this with a plain, battle ready expression. "Mom, you and Sev just keep doing what you are doing with Bruce and the idiot genius over there until we get back. Come on, Steve."

Stepping past the privacy barrier and leaving the lab, Joe tapped both Steve and himself with 'Notice me not' charms and then summoned up an arrow made of visual wisp-like air that floated in his left hand, "Point me to HYDRA weapons."

"You really think tha..." was as far as Steve got as the arrow shot off down the hallway. "Son of a bitch."

"You're telling me." Joe said with an agreeing nod as he and his brother jogged through the Helicarriers halls, and thanks to his spell, were able to pass by others practically unseen or noticed until they came to a room that was marked, in yellow 'Secure Storage 10-C' with a metal door that required a pass code, "Fury must not have thought this through when I returned" Joe said as with a wave of his hand, there was a beep and the door opened with a 'hiss'. The arrow had flown even further and up a level that on the right. The brothers, using the metal crates next to them, didn't need to worry about the S.H.I.E.L.D. personnel who happened to walk by on the higher level cat walk on the left side of the room, jumped onto the cat walk on the right and followed the arrows trail until it came to a stop near a set of multiple marked metal crates.

Looking at one another, both took a breath as Steve grasped the lid of one, and snapped the lock on one of the cases as as Joe did the other. Both gasped aloud and took a step back after lifting the lids up as there before them, resting in straw, were HYDRA weapons that they would recognize anywhere and looked to have been depowered, right next to HYDRA masks and helmets.

The Rogers Brothers began to get angry as both then began to have flashbacks of just before both had been lost either to the ice and or the heavens. Joe had to turn away for a moment as he began to heave air. Raising his left arm and making a fist, he wanted to strike something, but chose to try and focus, and so, slowly and gently his the rail that had been behind the crates that he and Steve now stood before.

"After everything we have done, after all we and our brothers have sacrificed, how is it that S.H.I.E.L.D. just so happens to have HYDRA weapons and masks? Why didn't Fury tell us about this? JUST WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?" Joe shouted as he turned around to once again look at his and Steve's findings.

"Here's an idea, let's ask him." Steve said as he grabbed a HYDRA gun and hoisted it on his shoulder.

"Why the hell not!" His brother said as he not only grabbed a mask and helmet, but had saw a HYDRA marked coat underneath it, not surprised in the least about it being in the case, as he took it and slipped it over an arm as he palmed the helmet. With his free hand, he touched Steve's shoulder and shifted them back to the floor level of the storage room and walked out the door casually. As Joe was the second to leave the room, without stopping, he waved his hand in a dismissal wave that had shut the door behind the brothers.

They both walked angrily with their findings in hand for a few minutes until they came upon the lab once more with the room in chaos as Fury had joined the others in the room, apparently debating about the Tesseract and the fact that Stark had been caught hacking secure S.H.I.E.L.D. files.

"What is 'Phase 2'?" Stark asked as the clear computer monitor had shown his hacking to have been successful.

Not bothering to stop their advancement, the door opened upon their arrival and Joe was the first to enter as he slammed the coat, helmet, and mask down upon an unused tabletop, causing everyone to jump and turn in his and Steve's direction as Steve then slammed the HYDRA gun behind the helmet so everyone could get a clear view of their findings. "Phase 2 is S.H.I.E.L.D. uses the Tesseract to make weapons. Sorry, the computer was running a little slow for us." Steve answered.

Lily and Severus hissed at seeing the symbol of a much hated enemy on the clothing and weapons, as they had learned that their own families in this world had fought against this uncommon enemy during World War Two and that their grandparents had lost a lot of good friends and adopted family in the war against HYDRA.

Sif, eying the weapon, mask, coat, and helmet, looked furious, and righteously so as she stepped up to and spat at the objects that her husband and brother in-law had found and brought forth.

"What the hell is this?" Severus demanded, pointing at the objects before them.

"You better damn well have a reasonably good explanation about this, Fury. Or you're going to see why I am one of the most feared Charms Mistresses of my Generation." Lily growled out.

Bruce groaned while Stark didn't look the least bit surprised. The door to the lab opened once more to permit Agent Romanoff and Thor entrance.

Seeing that things he had tried to have kept hidden were now found and displayed before everyone, Fury sighed as he tried to explain the situation, "Rogers, we gathered everything related to the Tesseract. That does not mean we're making..."

"I'm sorry, Nick. What were you lying about?" Stark asked as he turned the clear monitor around so that everyone could get a look as the screen showed a Tesseract powered core being put together with a missile until it was complete.

Everyone originally not in the know, paled considerably in dread at the evidence Stark provided against the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. Said Director sighed in defeat as he turned to look from the monitor to everyone who now wore expressions of betrayal towards him.

"I was wr..." Steve began, only a cough from his brother caused him to pause, look at Joe, and then correct himself as he turned back to Fury, "Sorry, we were wrong, Director. The world hasn't changed a bit."

Bruce turned to Romanoff, "Did you know about this?"

"You want to think about removing yourself from this environment, Dr." Romanoff asked until Lily Evans stepped in front of Bruce and looked the Russian Assassin in the eyes.

"Back off, bitch. Those looks can only go so far, using your body to get what you need done. Disgusting. Now, I think he asked you a question. Did you know about this?"

"That's classified." she said as she placed her body in a position as if to prepare for a fight, something Lily, nor anyone else did not miss.

"Unfortunately for you, Ms. Romanova," Snape drawled, "It has just become, unclassified, as you can plainly well see."

"Loki is manipulating all of you." she tried as she was just slightly surprised that the black haired scientist knew her true name.

"And you've been doing, what exactly?" Bruce asked.

"You didn't come here because I bat my eyelashes at you."

"Yes, yes, and we're not leaving until because suddenly, you get a little twitchy, you stupid bint." Lily spat. Grabbing the monitor, she demanded, "We'd like to know why S.H.I.E.L.D. is using the Tesseract to build weapons of Mass Destruction."

Fury, like everyone else, watched the stand off between Lily Evans and Agent Romanoff, waited to see how this situation would go and needed to know if he had to act, though seeing how many so called 'Magicals' were in the lab, he had no doubt that they'd stop him should he holler into his ear piece for backup. And no doubt that the 'Gryphon' would defend his brother, wife, and reborn mother with his life. With Sif standing between her husband and Thor, he pointed at them, "Because of them." he answered.

"Us?" Thor asked with his hand on his chest, flabbergasted.

"And them." he then pointed at Lily Evans and Severus Snape.

"What did we do?" Lily cried out in shock and indignation.

"Last year, Earth had a visitor from another planet who had a grudge match that with one of own recently returned heroes of WW2, a Warrior Goddess, and a temporarily depowered and then repowered Thunderer, a grudge match that leveled a small town. We learned that not only are we not alone," he said, looking from the Asgardians, to Lily Evans and Severus Snape, and action that caused Joe to realize where he was going with this as he came and stepped between his mother and Fury, "But we are hopelessly, hilariously, outgunned." he finished as he turned to Steve after looking sharply at Joe with a hint of respect and worry.

"My people want nothing but peace with your planet." Thor said.

Turning to Thor, Fury remarked, "But you're not the only people out there, are you? And you're not the only threat. The world is filling up with people who can't be matched, who can't be controlled." he was turning to address everyone as he said this.

"Like you controlled the 'Cube'?" Steve hinted dryly.

"Your work with the Tesseract is what drew Loki to it, and his allies." Thor tried. "It is a signal to all of the Realms, that the Earth is ready for a higher form of War."

"A higher form?" Steve asked with a sudden bit of realism as he knew that with just looking at how close his brother was with Sif, that Thor was right, even if he didn't like it.

"You forced our hand. We had to come up with something." Fury said exasperatedly.

"A Nuclear Deterrent. Because that always calms everything right down." stark shot out in disgust.

"Remind me again, how you made your fortune, Stark." The Director said as he turned to face the man.

"I'm sure if he still made weapons, Stark would be neck-deep." Steve shot out.

"Now hold on, how is this now about me?"

"I'm sorry, isn't everything?" Steve answered.

"Alright, that's enough. Both of you, settle down." Joe said as he stepped in between Stark and Steve. "Steve, that was a low blow. But before you forget, that's Howards boy."

Stark was about to say something, but with Joe turning to him, he paused as Joe pointed a finger in his direction, "And you, be quiet. From what I've seen, you don't think. You just do. And now, look where we are. Not even three seconds from tearing off each others heads. And you want to know why?" he shot off a beam of magical energy at Loki's scepter, encasing it in a magical field of glowing energy.

He had been observing and listening everything that had been going on when he felt something alien trying to tamper with and control or inhibit his emotions. He figured out the problem and quickly snipped the problem in the butt when he got between his brother and Tony Stark. No sooner had his hand sent off the spell that removed whatever 'Confounding' magic had been affecting everyone, he observed everyone minus he and Snape, grabbing their heads and groaning.

Snape looked at and nodded his appreciation that Joe returned. "That feeling of euphoria you are all having, is called being under the influence of a magical spell, a 'Confoundus' charm to be exact. It messes with the mind, makes you lose focus of what truly matters and compels you to do what the caster wanted. In this case, being in so close to proximity of the scepter, Loki had you all and myself prepared to go to war with one another."

"Oh bugger. How did I not see the signs?" Lily asked aloud as she grasped her head and winced painfully.

"It's because you haven't kept up your Occlumency training, Lily." Severus answered as he walked up to and rubbed his friends back. "Everyone minus myself and Joseph recognized the signs and slammed down our mental shields."

"So, that thing, just now. Loki was controlling us?" Fury asked as he shook his head to clear it.

"Exactly." Severus replied as he handed everyone minus Joe a pain relief potion as no doubt they'd all have headaches alongside the euphoria.

"We almost played into Loki's hands." Sif spoke up. "That bastard." she said as she about faced and almost left the room, only for Joe to grab his wife around the waist and pull her back in. She tried to fight him off, but he held her fast by both arms and them kissed her on the lips. She squirmed for a bit, before relaxing into his embrace and returned his affection. A few seconds later, she pulled back, "Cheater."

"Feel better?" he asked with a smug smile.

"Somewhat. But I still want to break every bone in Loki's body." she answered. "I don't like being under a Mage's control. It makes me feel disgusting and just all...wrong."

"I know, hon." he whispered as she leaned into him while he rubbed her back and kissed the top of her head. "I know. And Loki will be taken care when we're done here. I promise."

A beeping noise caught everyones attention as Bruce and Lily walked over to a monitor while everyone else was coming to terms with what they had almost done while being influenced by Loki's scepter.

With a look of donning horror on their faces, Lily, Bruce, and Severus looked up, "Oh no." came from Bruce's lips, followed by a massive explosion outside of the ship which caused it to lurch, a tongue of flame flying through the ventilation shaft, knocking everyone about, with Bruce, Lily, Severus, and Agent Romanoff flying outside the laboratory's outer window and down a wide shaft pf pipes.

Joe, on the floor with Sif in his arms, looked and beheld everyone on the ground minus Bruce, Lily, Severus, and Romanoff. Without a second thought, Joe whispered "Mom!"as he rose with his wife following him to a dizzying stance until both could stand upright without falling, he called out for Lily again, "Mom." he shouted as he and Sif bounded past the others and dived over and through the broken glass railing and down the shaft.

With the floor coming to meet them fast, they both maneuvered their bodies into an upright position where they landed in a crouched position beside all four individuals before standing up. Bruce looked like he was going through his transformation process, while fighting it at the same time. Lily was lying unconscious on her front, her hands and arms splayed outwards with Severus groaning from lying on his back. Agent Romanoff was pinned down by a huge pipe on one of her ankles.

Sif attended to Romanoff while Joe attended to his mother and found her with a small scratch on her forehead on the left side that bled a little. He took care of that with a wave of his hand and woke her up with another pulse of his magic, making her gasp out loud.

"Mom, mom. Are you ok?" Joe asked worriedly.

"Just peachy, Ha-Joseph. Just peachy." she answered with a groan of her own.

"Good, because it looks like that if you don't do something with Bruce soon, we're about to see his other self, and that's not something we need to see just yet."

Lily turned her head and saw her son was right. Struggling to her feet, she fought the dizzy spell her legs were under as she made her way to and knelt before Bruce. Grabbing his head, she called out, "Bruce, Bruce, listen to me. You have to calm down."

The man was jerking erratically as the Hulk inside him demanded to be released. Seeing this, she did the only thing she could and kissed him, fiercely. The good Doctor stopped shaking and jerking as the green tinge his body was shifting into, receded back into his normal skin pigmentation as Bruce grabbed Lily's face and kissed her back with as much fierceness.

Meanwhile, Joseph had attended to Severus and saw that his left leg had been broken in three places with his right ankle bent at an odd angle.

"Lily, is she...alright?" he gasped.

"You saved her life?" Joe asked.

He nodded, "Just as we were thrown through the glass pane, I grabbed Lily and used my body to shield her from harm."

"Taking on most of the damage to yourself. You have my thanks, Professor. I am in your debt." Joseph said as he then picked the man up in his arms. He saw that Natasha was being aided to walk by his wife while Bruce and his mother were beginning to rise from the floor.

"I gotta get Sev to the Med Bay. Mom, you and Bruce are with me. Sif and Natasha, find out whats going on and if we're under attack, kick whosoever is responsible, asses."

"Gladly." Sif said.

"With Pleasure." Natasha said with a smirk.

"Alright, everyone, hands on me." They all did as he said as he then flashed them to the Med Bay and laid Severus on a table, the man groaning loudly in pain, "Po-Rogers, if I wasn't in so much pain right now, I'd hex you for dropping me so roughly."

"Apologies, Professor. Mom, Bruce, stay with him. Sif and Romanoff, go. I'm going to find Steve and see if he needs aid."

With his connection to his brother, it didn't take him long to pinpoint his location as he flashed next to him, and found himself under fire. He raised a magical shield that bounced the flying bullets away like rubber as he had to duck before he raised the shield.

"Steve, what's the plan?" Joe hollered.

"I got to help Stark by keeping that red lever secure until he says to hit it." Steve shouted back. "Think you can take care of those stragglers?"

Joe didn't respond as he shifted down in a flash of light and reappeared in the same flash of light behind the the heavily black armored and masked men firing upon his brother, the closest one, he disarmed by smashing the gun with a single blow, breaking it in half. With a stiff left hand, chopped the guy in the neck and then grabbed him by the back of the head with his right hand, and threw him forward face first into the left metal wall. The guy fell unconscious immediately as he slumped backwards onto the floor.

Another guy tried firing at Joe with a pistol that Joe recognized as a .45. He again shielded himself with a magical wall of energy that had the bullets bounce off. After a few rounds had bounced off, the guy must have realized the futility of firing as he holstered his weapon and pulled out a black bladed knife and advanced on him.

Lowering the shield, Joe caught the hand that held the blade, twisted the arm counter clockwise, and broke the guys arm at the elbow. As the guy screamed, Joe tagged him in the chest with a stunning charm, knocking him out.

As the guy slumped forward unconscious, the last guy who was still firing on Steve, turned and saw his friend being taken out by the new arrival, he turned his weapon on him and was about to fire. But the guy disappeared in a blinding flash of light from where he stood and then reappeared before him.

Joe didn't give the guy a moment to bring his weapon to bare after clearing the spots out of his eyes as he kicked the guy in the chest and sent him sailing backwards several feet and into a wall, where he slumped down on his backside, his head lolling off to the right, clearly showing him to be unconscious now as well. Joe relieved him of his weapon while Steve, seeing his brother giving him the all clear sign, waited with his hand on his ear, then slapped the red lever just as Stark said to.

Seconds passed as Tony Stark in his newest Iron Man armor, came and flew in, allowing the brothers to breathe easy. A few minutes later, as they collected themselves, with the traffic information no longer being patched into their receivers in their ears, they then received word moments later of one of their own, falling to Loki and another possible being lost.

The S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent known as Agent Phil Coulson, was gone, and Thor, possibly lost as well.

Half an hour later found everyone minus Severus, Thor, and Romanoff, sitting at the table of the Helicarriers bridge. Steve and Joe had removed the top half of their uniforms, wearing only blue shirts, Steve wearing a long sleeved shirt while Joe wore a short sleeved shirt. They were all joined by Fury minutes later, accompanied by Agent Maria Hill. It was a solemn moment as they all took in what happened. Loki had escaped, tricked Thor into trying to stop him from getting out of his cell, which failed and Thor replacing him in the cell, which Loki was going to let fall. Agent Coulson tried to save Thor, at the cost of his own life. Loki used one of his simulacrum illusions to let Coulson think he had the upper hand and then struck the Senior Agent from behind with his retrieved staff.

Thor tried to aid Coulson, despite the fact he was now trapped in Loki's cell. Coulson died watching Loki send his brother through the steel trap door and out into the world to fall to his doom. His last act before dying in front of Fury minutes later, was to blast Loki through a wall with a gun that matched the Destroyer armors fire capabilities.

They had watched this on the security cams before Joe asked, "Any idea where Thor fell?"

"No, Loki disabled the tracker on the cell, making it hard to pinpoint exactly where Thor fell." he answered as he held a stack of cards in his hands.

Bruce was consoling Lily as Fury informed them of how Agent Romanoff had managed to subdue and render Agent Barton unconscious, which released him from Loki's spell. Said Agent was now recuperating in Agent Romanoff's room, strapped down to her bed, while she helped him get through whatever Loki had done to him. Severus was being seen to by several of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s best Medical experts in the Med Bay.

Thankfully, the man had come prepared and had several potions on hand that could fix him up, but would cost him about 48 hours of down time as he instructed the Doctors on what to do. He vanished the broken bones in his left leg and right ankle and had them administer the bone regrowth potion. He was forced to conjure a bit for his mouth as he would be in extreme pain the entire time his leg and ankle bones were being restored.

The doctors were amazed and in shock at what he had done and explained to them as they watched all of this happen.

The table of which the heroes sat at was the quietest spot on the bridge as Fury finished looking at the cards belonging to Coulson. "These were in Phil Coulsons jacket. I guess he never did get you to sign them." he said to Steve as he tossed the cards, now obviously covered in the fallen Agents blood, onto the table.

Joe didn't miss the look of utter contempt Agent Hill shot at Fury's back, as if she knew something the others did not. And as it were, Joe could only guess why she did so.

As Steve picked up one of the cards that held his image from the early days before he actually fought in the war, Fury continued his monologue as he rested his hands on the table and lowered his head, as if in mourning for Coulson, "We're dead in the air. Our communications, the location of the Cube, Thor...I got nothing for you. I lost my one good eye. Maybe I had that coming."

He began walking around the table, "Yes, we were going to build an arsenal with the Tesseract. I never put my chips on that number, though, because I was playing something even riskier. There was an idea, Stark knows this, called the Avengers Initiative. The idea was to bring together a group of remarkable people, to see if they could become something more. To see if they could work together when we needed them to, to fight the battles we never could."

Having leaned on a chairs back, Fury stood and looked at Tony, "Phil Coulson died still believing in that idea. In heroes."

The son of the late Howard Stark jumped from his seat, tried and failed to bring himself to look at everyone as he turned and left the room.

The Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. sighed tiredly, "Well," he said, clasping his hands behind his back, "It's an old fashioned notion."

"Sif, I'm going to talk to Tony." Joe whispered in his wife's ear. As she nodded, he then turned to Steve and lightly smacked him in the arm, "Come on. Let's go find Mr. Genius." he said to his brother while nudging his head in the direction Stark disappeared through. He looked at Bruce and Lily, nodding at them, silently letting them know he and Steve would be back.

It didn't take them long to find him as Joe had a hunch in where to find him. Sure enough, they found him standing and looking at where Coulson fell and died. Both saw the blood on the wall, blood that belonged to Phil, as well as the black hole in the wall that he blasted Loki through. Steve leaned on a railing and crossed his arms while Joe leaned forward by one arm on a poll that attached from the floor, to the ceiling, another hand in his pocket.

Steve spoke first, "Was he married?"

"No. There was a cellist, I think."

"I'm sorry. He seemed like a good man."

"He was an idiot." Stark scoffed.

Joe shot Tony a querying glance while his brother shot Tony his unasked question of why he would say such a thing, "Why? For believing?"

"For taking on Loki alone."

"He was doing his job." Joe shot back a bit loudly. He'll be damned if he'd listen to Anthony Stark spit on the memory of a good man who died for his faith and belief in heroes.

With another scoff, Stark replied as he was coming around the bend of the room, "He was out of his league. He should have waited. He should have..."

"Sometimes, there isn't a way out Tony." Steve said as he too began to walk forward with Joe behind him.

"Right, I've heard that before." he mocked back.

"Is this the first time you've lost a soldier?" Joe asked, only for stark to snap around and growl back at him.

"We are not soldiers." He had to catch himself before he said anything else and then continued, "I'm not marching to Fury's fife."

"Neither are we." Steve shot back, speaking for he and his brother. "He's got the same blood on his hand that Loki does. But right now, we got to put it behind us and get this done. Loki needs a power source, if we can put together a list..."

"He made it personal." stark said as he had been gazing at the blood that belonged to Coulson. Joe looked at the blood too in order to think along the same line of thought that Stark was on.

"That's not the point." Steve said, only for Stark to interrupt him again.

"That is the point. That's Loki's point. He hit us all right where we all live. Why?"

"To tear us apart." Joe said in realization.

"Yeah, divide and conquer is great, but, he knows he has to take us out to win, right? That's what he wants. He wants to beat us, he wants to be seen doing it. He wants an audience." Stark walked between both brothers and looked at both brothers, pausing to see if they followed.

"We caught his act in Stuttgart." Steve answered.

"Yeah, that was just previews." Tony said, smacking his hand as he continued to move, "This is opening night. And Loki's a full-tilt Diva, right? He wants flowers, he wants parades. He wants a monument built to the skies with his name plastered...son of a bitch." Stark finished as he realized where Loki went.

"Stark Tower." Joe said as Steve looked at Stark and his brother and paled.

As the brothers prepared by suiting up, Joe telepathically reached out to his wife and informed her to prepare and to meet them in a specific spot. He then asked her to gather Bruce and to see if his mother wanted a piece of this fight.

Unfortunately, as Bruce decided to join, Lily did not, as she was not equipped for this kind of fight. She would remain on the Helicarrier and watch over Severus while he healed in the Med Bay. Steve sought out Natasha while Joe waited for them, his wife, and Bruce who had been given a kiss for good luck in the coming battle.

Stark had called them saying that the second he was ready, he'd be in the air. Of course, even with Natasha and Barton, Tony was already set up and launched into the air with them following, once Steve was able to convince a way word plane engineer that they were borrowing the plane. Over an hour after Loki had escaped their custody, the Avengers were gone, streaking in the skies at top speeds. Barton with his bows and arrows, as pilot, with his copilot and long time friend, Natasha, armed and set herself, Steve, Joe, and Sif sat in the back and began to go over plans about how to handle the coming battle with minimum casualties. With the plans set, the three sat back, strapped in, and waited until they reached their destination.

"I love you, Joseph." Sif said as she held and squeezed her husbands hand.

"And I you. You, our son, my brother, my mother, and my sister in all but blood, Hermione, and no other." he replied. "We will get through this, and be victorious this day. I guarantee it."

Well, here's the long awaited continuation as promised. The battle of New york will be next. Eleven pages in, and my writing mojo is still in full swing. So, prepare for more to come, right after this. Thank you to all those who have been patient with me, and to those who aren't, well, I'm sorry. Times have been a mess for me which has thrown my writing mojo out of whack. I won't go into specifics, but just know that I am back with a vengeance. So, expect the next chapter to be just as long, if not, longer. Until next time.