Avengers: Battleground
This chapter has been beta'd by Wiznerd the Eagle
Chapter 12: Battle of New York
Harry was sitting down with Captain Rogers and Tony Stark after repairing the engine and clearing the ship of the hostiles. They had eliminated the ones who were fighting efficiently, uncaring if they lived or died.
By the time anyone had caught on as to what was happening, Loki had managed to escape.
That wasn't the worst part. They had lost Thor, who fallen nearly twenty thousand feet in the steel trap. Banner was also lost somewhere on the East Coast after he had attempted to destroy an F-35 that had opened fire on him.
Harry also was kicking himself for not recognizing the spell on the scepter. He should have recognized it immediately. Because of his failure, the Helicarrier had nearly been destroyed by the Hulk, though Harry had been able to repair the damage Hulk had caused before anything else happened or anyone got hurt.
The real shocker for Nick Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D. was when Harry had saved Phil Coulson's life, healing his wound when Loki stabbed him.
Everything Harry had predicted that Loki would do had happened.
Which is what brought him here.
"These were in Phil Coulson's jacket when he was stabbed. It looks like he never did get you to sign them," Nick Fury said as he tossed the Captain America trading cards onto the table. Captain America grabbed one and looked at it. He gave a heavy sigh, apparently feeling as though he had failed Coulson.
"We're dead in the air up here. Our communications, the location of the Cube, Banner, Thor…. I got nothing for you. I lost my one good eye. Maybe I had that coming," Nick Fury said as he took a deep breath. "Yes, S.H.I.E.L.D. was going to use the Tesseract to build an arsenal of weapons. However, I never put all my chips on that, because I was playing something even riskier." Fury walked around the table to them. "There was an idea. A simple idea I had, Stark already knows this, called the Avengers Initiative. The plan was to bring together a group of remarkable people and see if they could become something extraordinary. To see if they could become something more. To see if they could work together when we needed them to, and fight the battles we never could. Phil Coulson still believes in that idea. In heroes."
Stark got up and walked away. Clearly, he was unable to hear any more.
"Yeah well, it's an old fashion notion," Fury said as Harry got up to follow Stark. Captain Rogers followed them.
Harry and the Captain followed Stark as he walked all the way to Loki's prison, not to see Agent Coulson in the infirmary like Harry had expected.
"Stark," Harry said as he walked up to him. Harry ducked underneath some loose lighting before casting a reparo on it, causing it to jump back into place.
"This is bigger than any of us can handle," Stark said, turning to Harry.
"You getting cold feet all of a sudden Stark?" Harry asked.
"You need to shape up and face this like a soldier," Rogers said.
"We are not soldiers!" Stark snapped aggressively. "I'm not marching into Fury's fife," he continued as he tried to calm down a bit.
"No one is saying we are," Harry said. "However, Loki has us beaten because he preyed on our instability as a team. We need to come together and become the Avengers. No more cowboy act, no more lone star actions. The only way we're beating Loki is if we come together. You spoke of a power source. Can you make a list of possible locations so we can try to stop..."
"He made it personal," Stark suddenly interrupted.
"That's not the point," Rogers said.
"That is the point. That's Loki's point. He hit all where we lived why?" Stark asked.
"We know he's trying to tear us apart, he's been after that since the beginning," Harry replied.
"Yeah, divide and conquer is great, but Loki is after something else. Something bigger. He needs to be seen beating us. Because he knows he has to take us out to win, right? Not only does he want to beat us, but he wants an audience for the event." Stark said as gesticulated wildly, pointing his finger at Harry and shaking it several times.
"Right, I caught his act in Stuttgart," Rogers said.
"That's just previews. This is opening night, and Loki is a full-tilt diva, right? He wants flowers, he wants parades, he wants a monument built to the sky with his name plastered…" Stark paused as if he just realized something. Harry suddenly caught on to what Stark was implying. "Son of a bitch," Stark finished.
Harry took action. "Stark you fly ahead and see if you can stop it. We'll meet you at Stark Tower. Captain, you get Romanoff and see if she can get us a Quinjet."
"I'm on it," Captain Rogers said as he took off down the corridors.
Harry rushed to the hanger with his hood on. Captain Rogers joined him with Agent Romanoff and Agent Barton, who was carrying a bow and a lot of arrows. Harry said nothing as he joined them getting in the Quinjet. One of the technicians tried to stop them but Captain America was gentle in sending him off.
"Head for Stark Tower immediately. That's where Loki going to be." Harry ordered as he sat down in the coms chair. Barton flicked a few switches as the Quinjet took off.
"Hold on," Barton said as he took off from the hanger and into the open skies.
Harry flipped a few switches on the coms station before he finally got through the secure channel.
"Who are you calling?" Romanoff questioned as she tried her best to look back from the co-pilot seat.
"The State of New York. They need to know what is about to go down. Once the battle starts, a lot of civilians are going to get caught in the crossfire between us and Loki. If we can evacuate the city before the battle begins then we can prevent the loss of life. Yes, hello." Harry said as someone picked up.
"Welcome to the office of the Mayor of New York City…" the receptionist began before Harry cut her off.
"I don't have time for this. You need to evacuate the city immediately. An alien invasion is about to hit the city!" Harry said assertively. The woman was silent for a few moments.
"If this is a prank call then I don't have time…"
"I'm being very serious. An alien invasion is about to hit the city! You need to evacuate immediately," Harry half shouted into the mic.
"If you're trying to set up a prank to create mass panic then you chose the wrong office. Have a good day." With that said, the receptionist hung up.
"That didn't work out so well." Captain Rogers commented as he looked down to fix his gloves.
"Maybe not, but there is another way to get the warning out," Harry said as he begins to type on the computer.
"How?" Captain Rogers asked.
"Most of the city has speakers where music and other announcements are made. If I can hack into the system, then I can let the whole city know before the invasion occurs," Harry muttered. Soon Harry saw that he was connected.
"Attention citizens of New York. This is Raven of the Avengers." Harry said, speaking into the mic.
All over New York City, everyone stopped what they were doing to listen.
"An alien invasion is about to commence in Midtown with the goal of the total destruction of the city and eventually of the rest of the world. Their goal is to conquer the planet. Midtown is about to become a warzone. You need to evacuate immediately and get as far away as possible when the battle begins. You have approximately ten minutes before the invasion occurs. Get out while you still can." Harry set the headset down.
"You did well," Captain Rogers said as he looked at Harry and gave him a nod of approval.
"I hope they buy it. If they don't, a lot of people are going to die when they don't leave," Harry said as he bowed his head. He took a deep breath and centered himself.
This wasn't like the Battle of Hogwarts against Voldemort and his Death Eaters, although he could see some similarities. Loki was a bit insane with power like Voldemort had been. Only, Loki was truly cunning and had them dancing in the palm of his hands. Harry knew deep down that there was a slim chance at victory. However, he still smiled, remembering how one-sided the Battle of Hogwarts had been in favor of the Death Eaters. Not many had believed the Light could actually win. That was until dawn had arrived and the defenders of Hogwarts had overwhelmed the Death Eaters. He smiled as he remembered how Neville didn't lose courage and beheaded Nagini, as well as how Bellatrix Lestrange's ego got the best of her and she fell in battle.
He should have stayed. He shouldn't have left. However, it was too late to fix the past. He had a battle ahead of him with new comrades. Harry leaned back and took a deep breath.
Yes, the odds were stack against them. However, they did have something to help in their fight against the alien invasion. Something that, he had learned during his time at Hogwarts, always existed. They had hope.
And that's all they needed.
"We're approaching the city. It's really lighting up," Barton reported.
"Stark, we're at your three o'clock, heading northwest," Romanoff added as they began to fly between city skyscrapers. Barton switched from jet engines to rotor engine power, allowing the Quinjet to glide through the buildings with ease. Harry knew Jets would have great difficulties flying in between skyscrapers. It seemed the Quinjet had a dual engine system. Two mains, which was unusual. As far as Harry knew, most planes carried only a main engine system with a backup in place in case the main broke down or got damaged. However, S.H.I.E.L.D. engineers were ingenious. They had the jet system for long distance travel and turbines in the wings for a helicopter-like motion. It was an ingenious design.
Stark gave a smart reply back before telling them to get ready to attack a group that was chasing him. They responded immediately by firing the Quinjet's GAU-17/A Gatling Gun just as the Chitauri flew by. Several Chitauri… chariots, as they appeared to be, exploded as the Gatling Gun tore through them. The Quinjet flew by the rest of the Chitauri.
"Try to find Loki. He's the commander, we need to take him out," Harry instructed.
"There is fighting at Stark Tower. I'm taking us in for a closer look." Barton replied. He pulled the Quinjet up and took it higher, using the wing rotors to levitate the Quinjet up to see above Stark's large balcony.
"Nat," Barton called out.
"I see him," Romanoff replied as the Quinjet moved into attack position. Harry looked out the cockpit window and saw Thor and Loki fighting.
Loki bested Thor and knocked him to the ground before turning his attention the Quinjet as Romanoff fired the Gatling Gun at Loki. Loki didn't even flinch, raising the scepter and firing a magical shot at the Quinjet. The blast came too fast as Barton couldn't dodge it in time and the Quinjet took a direct hit on its left wing.
Harry lost his balance and fell backward into Captain America as the Quinjet began to lose altitude and descend towards an into a crash landing. Barton was doing all he could to not have the Quinjet crash into a building.
After several quick intense moments of Barton trying to control the crashing Quinjet, they finally came down in front of a building. Barton and Romanoff quickly unbuckled their belts and climbed out of the cockpit.
Captain America pressed the button to open the back door but it wouldn't open.
"It's jammed," Captain America said. He was about to walk forward with his fist cocked back for a strike. Harry grabbed him by the shoulder.
"Let me," Harry said as he waved his hand, casting the unlocking spell. The spell worked like a charm as the back door opened up and slammed into the ground.
"Thanks," Captain America said.
Harry threw his hood over his face and cast a shadow glamor spell on it to hide.
"We've got to get back up there," Captain America said as the four of them took off down the street. When they came to a stop at the base of Stark Tower, they looked up and saw something big coming down from the portal.
It gave a loud roar as it came flying down. It appeared to be a reptilian-snake hybrid of some kind. It also had fins as well as a large spiky tail and was covered in metal. It flew over them as Chitauri soldiers jump from the large… whatever it was into the buildings. Some crash through the windows and the sound of their weapons firing could be heard.
"Stark, are you seeing this?" Captain America asked.
"Seeing, still working on believing," Stark responded as he flew after the large creature. "Where's Banner? Has he shown up yet?"
"Banner?" Captain America repeated.
"Just keep me posted," Tony Stark said.
Harry looked around him to gather his surroundings and could see many civilians were still in the area. It looked like many of them had not taken his warning seriously. There were too many in the area.
"We've got a lot of civilians trapped up here," Barton said as the four of them hid behind a taxi cab.
"Loki," Captain America said as Loki and several Chitauri chariots flew overhead and down the street, firing blue bolts of energy and destroying all the cars, tearing up the street in the process. Civilians were screaming as they tried to take cover or run away.
"They're fish in a barrel down there," Captain America observed.
"NYPD will need your help in protecting them. Go, we've got this," Harry said. Then he stood up and fired a blasting hex at a Chitauri soldier, hitting it in the face and causing it to launch into the air, doing a full back flip before crashing into a car. Other Chitauri soldiers jumped down, raised their weapons and opened fire at Harry. Harry cast a shield charm to absorb the impact.
"You guys think you can hold them off?" Captain America asked.
"Captain," Hawkeye said as he pressed a button on his bow and looked at Captain America. "It will be my genuine pleasure." With that said, Hawkeye stood up, pulling an arrow out of his quiver and firing it. His aim was true, as usual, hitting the Chitauri dead center between the eyes. Captain America nodded his head and jumped off the bridge they were on onto a bus and ran off.
Harry was deeply impressed with Hawkeye. He had barely looked and was able to score a perfect hit. If they survived this, he was going to ask Hawkeye for tips on quick releases and aiming. Harry held his hands facing each other and curled his fingers, forming a ball of magical energy between his hands. He fired it at a Chitauri, who let out a strange pained sound before falling to the ground dead.
Romanoff stood up, revealing her dual Glock 26s and fired them at the other Chitauri. Several went down quickly.
"We got civilians trapped in the bus," Barton said.
"Go, I'll cover you," Harry answered. Barton nodded his head as Harry stepped forward and placed a large shield charm in front of him. It seemed the Chitauri realized what they were doing and were trying to fire at Barton and the bus. However, none of them could penetrate Harry's shield. Romanoff stood up and fired a couple of shots before dropping back down.
The Chitauri officer, as Harry assumed he was, said something in a strange alien dialect and the Chitauri began to spread out. They opened fire, attacking the civilians; however, Harry stepped in front of the civilians and made sure his shield stayed in place.
Barton stepped forward next to Harry and fired an arrow. It hit the lead Chitauri between the eyes before it fell to the ground.
"They clear?" Harry asked.
"Just us up here," Barton responded.
Harry dropped his shield and raised his hand. Pure raw lightning power was released from his fingertips, piercing through the Chitauri like they were nothing. They gave echoing screams of agony before they dropped to the ground.
"Just like Budapest all over again," Romanoff commented to Barton.
"You and I remember Budapest very differently," Barton replied.
"They're trying to flank us," Harry said as he caught sight of several Chituari trying to sneak around the cars and into their blind spots. Harry put his hands together and thrust them forward. The car was hit with such force it slid back with incredible speed, crushing the Chitauri soldiers between the car and a rail.
Captain America jumped down and quickly joined the fight, using his vibranium shield to attack the Chitauri and literally take them down in one hit.
Several Chitauri were moving forwards while crouching down. It appeared they were trying to be cautious and avoid taking any hits. That was until a huge surge of lightning rained down upon them, tearing through the bodies and making them scream in pain and agony. The moment the lightning stopped, they dropped to the ground, clearly overcooked by the lightning and very much dead.
Thor came down hard, slamming Mjølnir into the ground, creating an electric shockwave that killed all the Chitauri around him. Thor stood up and looked at his teammates.
"What's the story upstairs?" Captain America asked Thor as he walked up to him.
"The power surrounding the Cube is impenetrable," Thor replied.
"Thor's right, we have to deal with these guys," Stark added in their earpieces.
"How do we do this?" Romanoff asked.
"As a team," Captain America said. It was clear he was used to being in charge. Harry said nothing as he walked up to his team. The Chitauri did not attack them this time, allowing the team into taking a small moment to relax and catch their breath.
"I have unfinished business with Loki," Thor said.
"Yeah? Well get in line," Barton replied as he gathered his arrows.
"Save it. Loki is going to keep this fight focus on us and that's what we need. If not, then these things will run wild," Captain America said. "We've got Stark up top, he's going to need…" Cap continued before the sound of a rusty motorcycle engine caught their attention. Everyone turned to see Banner set the motorcycle down and walk to the team.
"So, this all seems horrible," Banner said as he greeted the team.
"I've seen worse," Romanoff shot back.
"Sorry," Banner said in an apologetic tone. Some sympathy could be heard in his voice.
"No, we could use a little… worse," Romanoff amended.
"Stark, we got him. Banner, just like you said," Cap said.
"Then tell him to suit up. I'm bringing the party to you," Stark replied as he appeared from behind the corner of a building. The giant snake-like reptilian thing soon appeared behind Stark. It gave a loud shriek as it chased Stark.
"I don't see how that's a party," Romanoff said sarcastically. The creature was near street level and tearing up cars, street signs, and anything else in its path.
Harry and Thor readied themselves to face the strange creature; in Thor's case, he spun Mjølnir in his hands and let out a sound like a growl, as if he was getting ready for a battle cry. Harry had Force ready to attack in the palms of his hands.
Banner scuffed his feet as he walked forward with a smile on his face.
"Doctor Banner now might be a good time for you to get angry," Cap said.
"That's my secret Captain," Banner said before he turns to look back at them. "I'm always angry." Banner began to turn green and grow in size, turning to face the alien creature. His clothes started to tear as his body mass grew. It didn't take long before he reached eight feet seven inches, with skin all a similar shade of green as Harry's eyes and a body built like a tank.
Hulk cocked his fist back and slammed it into the creature's face, crushing its skull immediately. It was almost like seeing the proverbial immovable object meeting an irresistible force. Hulk barely moved from his spot as the creature crumpled, unable to withstand his punch, its body beginning to rise into the air to stand straight up. Its metal plated shells began to crack against one another and drop as they could no longer stay in place. In doing so, its purplish grey-like flesh was revealed for them to see. Stark flew back and fired a small rocket from his suit into the creature's flesh.
"Hold on," Stark instructed as they began to take cover. Harry dispelled the Force in his hands and raised a shield instead as Barton took cover and Cap used his shield to give Romanoff some protection. The explosion sent pieces flying everywhere. The creature slowly fell to the side and off the bridge before crashing into the street below.
The Chitauri began shrieking and making sounds that filled the heroes' ears. It almost seemed like a banshee cry to Harry.
Hulk roared back, giving out a huge battle cry as he stood ready. Iron Man slowly jetted back down as the team formed a circle to prepare for the next wave.
When it came, Chitauri soldiers jumped down from the buildings onto the bridge and started charging at them while firing blue bolts of energy at them.
Harry charged and fired a small Force at one Chitauri, its chest exploding as it flew backward from Harry's spell. Harry ducked the blast of bolts and jumped forward. He punched one Chitauri in the face before turning to another. He kicked the Chitauri in the knee before it could swing its weapon down on Harry, causing it to lose its balance. Harry was about to kick it in the chest when Stark's repulsor blast hit it in the chest.
Harry looked up just in time to see Thor smashing Mjølnir into another Chitauri before swinging it to another, lightning bursting from his hammer with each hit. An arrow hit a Chitauri in the face with another one soon following down after it. Harry heard several gunshots, showing him that Romanoff wasn't missing a beat and had joined the fight as well. Harry turned around to see a Chitauri about to stab him with its weapon, before Captain America jumped closer and slammed his shield into the Chitauri, causing it to fly into a car headfirst. It did not get back up.
"Wait," Harry said as Hulk was about to smash the last Chitauri like a bug, "We need information." Harry walked forwards and grabbed the Chitauri by the throat. Hulk backed away and looked at Harry carefully. The Chitauri let out a sound like it was growling in pain. Harry didn't need to hazard a guess to know why; its body had bullet holes in it.
"I've never done this on an alien before," Harry muttered as he used legillimency on the creature.
The Chitauri suddenly let out a high-pitched shirk before Harry punched it in its face, killing it instantly.
"What did you do?" Captain America asked.
"I was acquiring information. The Chitauri main focus when conquering worlds is to overwhelm the population with its number. I learned two things. First, those giant reptilian snake-like monsters are called, when translated into English, Leviathan, and they have thousands of them."
"Thousands," Captain America repeated.
"Second, they also have over one trillion troops all waiting to go through the portal," Harry continued as he looked up at the Portal. "They do have a major weakness, though it is also their strength," Harry says as he watched Chitauri chariots fly down into the city. "On one hand, they all have a cybernetic implant that grants them additional strength and reflexes. However, to put it simply for those not well-versed in technology, it's like they're receiving a radio signal."
"You mean they're receiving a transmission?" Romanoff asked.
"Yes. All we have to do is find a way to destroy their command ship. If we do, all the Chitauri will die. The problem is..."
"The problem is, none of us can enter space. It's too far out of our reach." Captain America finished.
"That's why our main objective is to find a way to shut that portal down and deal with the Chitauri that are on Earth already," Harry said.
"Guys," Romanoff said as she looked up to the sky.
More Leviathan was starting to come out of the portal.
"Romanoff, you have to reach Selvig and find a way to shut that portal down," Harry said turning to her.
She nodded her head and took off towards Stark Tower.
"Stark, you have to control the air. Do not let them get near the civilians as they try to evacuate the city. Barton, before you go let me see your quiver." Harry walked up to Barton. He cast a replica spell on the quiver and arrows.
"What did you do?" Barton asked.
"I cast a replica spell. You'll never run out of arrows, as each time you pull one from your quiver it will be replaced magically. I need you on that roof using your arrow to pick off the hostiles in the area, as well as to tell the team what's going on and where. Call out patterns and strays."
"Want to give me a lift?" Barton asked turning to Stark.
"Right, better clench up, Legolas," Stark joked as he walked up to Barton before grabbing him and launching them in the air.
"Thor, you have to use your lightning to control the air. Slow them down, buy us time. Backup Stark if you need to, but you need to focus on buying us as much time as you can give us. Cause as much damage as possible," Harry said, having turned to the God of Thunder. Thor nodded his head and took off, flying through the air before summoning lightning to him. He attacked the portal, killing countless Chitauri and managing to pierce through the incoming Leviathan, causing them to explode inside the portal.
"Cap, you and me, we'll stay here on the ground. Try to contain the Chitauri in this area," Harry continued.
Cap looked at him with what Harry had to assume was a raised eyebrow. Harry ignored him for the time being and turned to Hulk.
"Hulk," Harry said as the big guy turned to look at Harry. "do us a favor, smash them until you can smash no more." Hulk looked at Harry with a huge grin on his face and slapped Harry on the back, causing him to stumble forward from the big guy's strength.
"Hulk likes you, little man." With that said, Hulk turned around and leaped up, attacking the Chitauri on the buildings before moving on to the next batch.
"You know, you're good," Cap said when the two of them were finally alone. "Have you ever been in battle before?" he asked.
"A few," Harry admitted.
"I was going to suggest our priority is containment. However, I have to agree with you," Cap said as he turned to look up at the portal. "We have to shut that portal down."
"Let's pray Romanoff is as good as she claims to be and can get it shut down. My concern right now is the civilians. By the look of things, they did not take my warning seriously. If I had to hazard a guess, I'm betting that Mayor of the City held a quick press conference just moments after my announcement to claim that there was no alien invasion going to happen. I hate politics," Harry gripped.
Cap looked at him carefully. "To be honest I don't like politics either. Politicians have a way of getting in the way of things."
"They will never do something unless it makes them look good and boosts their public image. I can tell you this right now, if we win, if we beat back the Chitauri, the Government is going to try to make claim on us," Harry said.
"If they do that, then Thor's threat will become a reality," Cap replied in a worried tone.
"I know, and the Earth can't afford to wage two wars. Let's pray Nick Fury is smart and keeps the governments in check. Otherwise, Earth and Asgard will be at each other throats," Harry said.
"You've been in battle, but you've never been in the military have you?" Cap asked.
"No, I'm more independent," Harry replied cryptically.
"If survive this, I'm going to teach you military strategy and terms to help better prepare you for future battles," Cap promised.
Several Chitauri jumped down and opened fire at them.
"I already military terms and meaning. I know S.H.I.E.L.D's entire book. In the meantime let's do what we do best and save the city."
Author Notes: Not the entire Battle of New York, as you can see I have it split into two chapters. I hope everyone enjoys. There will be a support character for Harry coming up soon. As you know, Tony Stark has Rhodes and Cap has Falcon, Harry needs a support too. Won't say who, that would be spoilers, but this person is coming soon. The poll is also getting very interesting. The race has gone ahead for Lone Sorcerer.
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