Things are gonna be getting intense, guys.
Not really. Just emotionally painful (for me at least).
I think I'm writing this story just to cause emotional pain for myself.
Also I am on a roll I'm getting chapters done hella fast
-Raggs
"I believe much trouble would be saved if we opened our hearts more." ─ Chief Joseph
Tony woke with a start despite how gentle Steve was. He pushed the captain away, grumbling about decency, and rolled over. Loki sat by Natasha at the edge, watching everyone slowly begin to gather their belongings up once again.
"I'm starving," Clint groaned. "Did anyone happen to bring food?"
Steve shook his head. "Didn't think we'd need it," he replied, glancing at Loki. Loki dipped his head, jumping when Natasha rubbed a tentative hand on his back in comfort.
"Well, do we have a plan on getting out of here?" Bruce asked as he stood, brushing dirt off his back.
"I think so," Steve replied, helping Tony up.
"Oh?" Thor asked, raising an eyebrow as he called Mjölnir to his red-dusted hands.
Steve picked up his shield, nodding. "Loki said he might be able to help." All eyes instantly sharpened on Loki, and he shifted uncomfortably. A look of understanding seemed to pass across Steve's face, but he hardened instantly. "Are you still willing?"
"Yes," Loki replied instantly. He bit his lip, waiting for someone to object. But no one did. "I could try to transport a few of you at a time back to your home, though I don't know how well it will work, if at all." He shifted from foot to foot.
"Worth a try, brother," Thor grinned, patting Loki hard on the back.
"Uh…" Clint began to object, probably out of reflex, but backed down, waving his hand in a nevermind gesture.
"Well," Loki swallowed, straightening out his traditional black-and-green clothing, "I'll transport you each two at a time back to the tower. I will come back and forth after each one."
"Shouldn't you stay here the whole time?" Clint asked, tossing the strap of his bag over his shoulder.
Loki hesitated, glancing down at his feet.
"I just thought it might be easier to only do two at a time, and then just you. I-if it's difficult to do," Clint clarified quickly, taking a step forward.
Loki nodded slowly. "You're probably right, actually…" Loki took a deep breath and lifted his hands to Tony and Bruce. He closed his eyes, exhaling, and focused everything on them.
"Ah!" Steve exclaimed. Loki opened his eyes to see the captain jumping back against the wall of the canyon. Tony and Bruce were gone.
"How do we know they got there okay?" Natasha ask, placing a hand on Loki's shoulder.
"You can go and check," Loki replied, lifting her hand from his shoulder. He focused his energy on Natasha and Clint. When he opened his eyes again, only Thor and Steve remained on the platform with him. "Ready?"
"...Sure," Steve replied, nodding. Thor stepped beside the captain, smiling at Loki. Loki repeated the process, and they were gone.
He took a deep breath, slowly lowering himself to the ground. He placed one of his palms behind him as support, and let himself drop onto the red ground. Loki let out a snarl, wincing. His energy was nearly depleted, and he was quite impressed with himself that he managed to hide it from his friends as he sent them to safety.
They are not your friends, fool! Loki whimpered at the words. An image of himself flickered before him, practically nose to nose. Loki lurched forward and threw his hands in front of him to catch himself. He let out a sharp cry as the skin on his palms was grated away on the rough ground. Loki opened his eyes, and his vision spun. Beneath him, past his red-striped hands, the floor of the canyon twirled. A ways down the path, a camp of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents patrolled.
Jump! Jump jump jump JUMP JUMP! The second voice barked. The third was nowhere to be seen or heard. Die again! Don't you want to? You've tried before!"
Loki shut his eyes tightly, letting out a loud sob. It echoed down the canyon walls, and within moments he heard the agents below shouting. Loki sobbed again, falling to the side. He brought shaking hands up to his head, feeling the pale scar on the side of his head. He rocked onto his back, his limbs twitching with pain as the voices shrieked abuse.
Tony had been transported alright. Bruce had nearly become part of the wall, but they made it back to the top floor of the Avengers tower alright. Shortly after, Clint and Natasha showed up, and promptly sat down on the couch to wait. Tony and Bruce followed their example, sitting in the arm chairs nearby. A minute passed. Then another.
Thor and Steve stumbled out of thin air. Steve groaned, resting the palm of his hand against his forhead as he sat down beside Clint. "Dizzy…" He mumbled.
Thor frowned. "Something's wrong."
"What do you mean?" Tony demanded.
"He never has problems transporting people. While Steve and I were on our way here, we were almost dropped at the edge of New York." Thor walked over to the window, peering out. "I don't think he'll have enough energy to get himself here."
Tony felt his face fall. "So he's stuck there?"
"We could go back," Clint offered, but Bruce shook his head.
"They never told us where the base was," Bruce sighed, wringing his hands anxiously.
Clint growled, stalking across the room. "This is my fault. I should've let him come with us each time," he grumbled.
"Clint," Natasha protested, peering over the back of the couch. "You didn't know."
"If Loki had done that, he would have only managed to get Stark and Banner here safely," Thor whispered, staring out at the city.
"So… There's no way to go and get him?" Tony asked, standing up. He felt himself trace a circle over the center of his chest, but pulled it away immediately, glancing at Bruce.
Thor shook his head. "Unless we know where that particular base is. And even then, it is likely too dangerous to fly in."
Tony closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. "JARVIS?"
"Yes, sir?"
"Is S.H.I.E.L.D. anywhere nearby?"
The butler seemed to hesitate. "They have the building surrounded from the outside."
Natasha froze, raising an eyebrow at Tony.
"Do they know we're here?" Tony asked, cracking his fingers.
"No. Would you like me to notify them?" JARVIS asked.
"No!" Everyone in the room replied in unison.
"Very well. Is that all, sir?"
"Y-yeah," Tony nodded, taking a shaky breath as he sat back down. "Thor?"
"Yes?"
"You and… Cap. And Natasha," Tony glanced around the room, ideas suddenly hitting him like a wave. "I'll have JARVIS hack into the S.H.I.E.L.D. database to see if we can find the base we were at. If we can, you three go there and get Loki. Bruce, Clint and I will stay here."
"And do what?" Clint asked, leaning forward.
Tony looked at the archer and then at Bruce. "Build."
In no time at all, Tony had JARVIS hooked up to the S.H.I.E.L.D. database, and the AI had no trouble at all finding the base where they had been.
"The distance from our tower does explain why his energy waned so quickly," Thor commented.
"Yeah," Steve whistled.
The base was located on the opposite side of the country. "Nevada. Didn't know they had anymore bases there," Natasha murmured. "You guys ready?"
Thor nodded, straightening up.
"Wait," Steve glanced at Natasha and Thor. "We can't let them know that we're already here," he reminded them, motioning towards the window.
"Oh yeah," Natasha frowned. "Any way to fix that?"
"What exactly are we doing?" Clint asked, leaning against one of the cluttered work tables.
"I told you," Tony huffed, pulling tools and sheets of scrap metal from shelves and drawers, "we're building."
"Yes, but what are we building?" Bruce leaned forward, peering at the various objects gathered in Tony's arms.
"Remember when Loki had his first freak-out and you found me tinkering?"
Bruce stopped and seemed to think for a moment. "Uh, yeah, I think. Why?"
Clint pursed his lips and raised a brow, staring at the strange contraption Tony slammed onto the cleanest work table in the room.
"I was building just to build then. But I think C.O.U.P. could actually be useful," Tony sighed, spreading out the tools on one side of the table.
"C.O.U.P.?" Clint asked, walking forward.
"'Chunk of Useless Pieces,'" Tony explained.
Clint hesitated. "Sounds… Helpful?"
"I hope so," Tony muttered, picking up a screwdriver and getting to work.
"How are we supposed to help?" Bruce sat in one of the stools nearby.
Tony stopped mid-twist and then set the screwdriver down. "You… Can… Provide moral support. No. You're both the most technologically capable people in this tower, besides Natasha, but I figure she would want to go and get Loki, so you," Tony gestured towards Clint, "get to be here instead, and you, Bruce, are here as a general rule." Tony glanced between them a few times as if waiting for objections or questions. "Okay. So, I need you two to help me build the rest of C.O.U.P.. I'll draw up the blueprints real quick, hang on…"
"Why would Natasha specifically want to get Loki? I wouldn't mind getting the guy out of there either," Clint said, crossing his arms. Tony stopped, pursing his lips.
"Um. I thought… Nevermind."
"No, what?" Bruce asked, leaning forward.
Tony seemed to suddenly grow uncomfortable. "I thought it was kinda… Obvious?"
"Clearly not," Clint sighed. A look of understanding seemed to spread across Bruce's face. "What?" Clint asked, glancing between the two scientists. They both seemed to ignore Clint now.
"Did I mix that part? Is that what you were talking about when we messed with the power?" Tony asked, narrowing his eyes at Bruce.
"Uh-huh."
"Oh. Shit. Okay, great."
"What the hell are you two talking about?"
"Tony, that's… Unlikely, to put it simply."
"Not really. I mean, if you watch her, you can tell─"
"Hey!" Clint shouted. That got their attention. "What are you talking about?"
Tony and Bruce exchanged glances. "I'm pretty sure Natasha's gotten a little bit attached to our new friend," Tony eyed Clint.
"Oh."
The three of them didn't notice the clap of thunder outside.
"Not the most discreet plan," Natasha shouted over the wind.
"Got the job done, didn't it?" Steve replied. Though his mouth was right beside her ear, Natasha could just barely hear him.
"That it did!" Thor yelled, tightening his arm around the two of them. The thunder god had created several storms back over in the western region, and the a majority of the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents scrambled over there. Those who hadn't received a slight shock from the top of a certain tower.
Now the land below the three of them sped by at an incredible speed. Natasha ducked closer into Steve's chest when Thor swerved to avoid a flock of birds, and Steve's arms reflexively tightened around her when Thor got a little too close to the ground at high speeds.
Thor began to slow after what Natasha guessed to be ten minutes. The desert beneath them faded from tan to red, and Natasha found herself searching around frantically. He couldn't have gone anywhere. Thor said he was too weak. Natasha then heard a shriek not far off, and her stomach twisted into a sickening knot.
Soon, Loki came into view, a small figure beneath them on the same platform they had slept on the previous night. As Thor descended down, Natasha could see the red fractals on Loki's hands. He was crouched over the edge of the platform, and as Natasha leaped from Thor and Steve, Loki fell onto his side with a thud. His body shuddered with sobs, and Natasha sprinted forward.
Below them on the canyon floor, S.H.I.E.L.D. agents scrambled about, preparing to ascend the vertical cliff to get to their target.
"Loki!" Natasha shouted, sliding to a stop beside him. He seemed to be muttering to himself, but Natasha couldn't make out any words. The S.H.I.E.L.D. agents were nearly to them, and Natasha grabbed Loki's shoulder. "Loki!"
His arm swept up and smacked Natasha square in her jaw. She flew back, wincing as she hit the hard ground with a thud, but forced herself to get up again. Thor and Steve, now standing on the ledge with them, nodded to her and guarded the edge against the advancing agents. Natasha, looking down, now realized that Fury was with them as well. He simply stood at the base of the canyon and stared up at them. She turned back to Loki.
The red lines had yet to fade. Loki had begun to thrash more violently, as if struggling to fight someone stronger than him. Natasha sprang forward, swallowing down the fear welling in her stomach. She managed to pin the green prince down, but barely. She leaned forward as he arched his back.
The pain in his eyes seemed almost unbearable to look at. "Loki," she shouted, leaning forward. He seemed to calm momentarily when she spoke. "Loki, you're okay! It's─ ack!─It's not real! Whatever you're seeing or feeling, it's not real! We're real! Your brother and the captain and me!" She risked a glance back only to find that S.H.I.E.L.D. had made it up. "Please!" She whimpered, turning back to Loki.
His breath became shallow. The lines began to fade, and he stopped moving. His skin was so abnormally pale that for a moment Natasha feared he was dead. But he sputtered out a cough, and a small amount of colour began to return to his skin.
"Tash!" Steve yelled, running over to her. "We gotta go, now!"
She nodded and stood, wrapping Loki's arm around her neck. He stumbled blearily along beside her, and Thor scooped the three of them up with a grunt of effort. The agents opened fire, and the only thing the protected them from the hailstorm of bullets was Steve's shield. The projectiles bounced off with loud ping noises.
Looking up, Natasha could see the strain on Thor's face. He was moving them as quickly as possible, and Natasha had to swallow several times to keep her ears from popping as the four of them headed towards the clouds. She heard a cough by her ear and turned back to Loki and Steve.
Loki stared at Natasha lazily, breathing heavy. His breath felt warm on her face, and she felt him pull closer than they already were. "You're safe with us. We won't let them hurt you. I promise," she murmured, burying her face in his shoulder.
He barely heard her. I promise, she had said.
Lies.
Promises are nothing. You know that, though, don't you?
You're safe with us. I promise.
Her mouth did not move.
We won't let them hurt you. You're safe. I promise.
Natasha became the fourth voice.
The work was slow. Especially since Clint was getting more and more irritated by the second. Tony had sketched up messy diagrams and "explanations", and even given Clint the tools and parts for his part of the project, but he still couldn't quite get it.
I'm smart, he grudgingly reminded himself. Not a genius. Not Tony or Bruce, but I'm damn smart.
Sparks burst out of the hulking contraption.
Maybe not, he scowled.
Tony groaned. "Clint. This is important. Just follow the blueprints."
"It's the messiest damn drawing I've ever seen. How am I supposed to follow this?" Clint asked, brandishing the now crumpled paper at Tony.
Bruce rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Tony sees the blueprints in his head. He's never had to draw them out before."
Clint frowned, flattening out the crumpled plans on the tabled. "Whatever. Just give me a little while to… Figure this out," he grumbled, leaning over the paper.
"Atta boy," Tony mumbled absently, getting back to work.
Steve had his arms wrapped uncomfortably around Natasha and Loki, and by the time they were over Iowa, he had lost most of the feeling in them. They seemed at least sort of comfortable, though, so we fought the urge to move his arms away.
Thor had begun to slow down now, clearly tiring out.
"Should we take a quick breather?" Steve offered up at Thor. The thunderer glanced down at Steve, hesitated, and nodded. They began to descend.
When they were on the ground, Steve stretched his arms out, wincing at the tingling sensation as the feeling came back to them. Loki was crumpled on the ground, and Thor sat by him, brushing the black hair out of his brother's face. Natasha stood, looking over to the distant town.
"Hm," she murmured, staring.
"What is it?" Steve asked, walking up beside her.
"Waverly."
Steve hesitated, feeling silly for not knowing what she meant. "Waverly?"
"Clint's hometown. It's not how I imagined it," she replied, tilting her head.
"Seems nice," Steve commented.
"He wouldn't agree," Natasha said, giving a small laugh. Steve glanced at her, doing a double-take.
"What happened?" He asked, gently touching a purple-ish mark on her jaw. She pulled away, wincing. "Sorry…"
"It's nothing," she reassured him, turning back to Thor and Loki. "He got me during his fit in the canyon. I'm fine, it doesn't hurt."
Steve frowned. "We'll take care of it once we get back. Speaking of which… Thor?" he called. Thor looked up, clearly trying to hide how tired he had become after flying across the country. "When do you think you'll be able to get us back in the air?"
"Only a moment or so, longer," Thor replied with sad grin. Loki's hand was wrapped around his brothers, emitting a faint green glow. Loki's face became more and more pale with each second.
"What's happening to him?" Natasha asked, stepping forward.
Thor stared down at Loki, who's eyes were closed. From several feet away, Steve could hear the younger brother's rasping breaths. "He's replenishing my energy with his own so we can get back to the others sooner."
Loki coughed. Natasha walked forward, crouching down beside the two Asgardians. "Isn't it hurting him?"
"It doesn't hurt," Loki whispered, opening his eyes to glance up at her. Steve swallowed. Loki looked as pale as death. "Just… Tiring…"
"Loki, stop," Thor murmured, gently pulling his hand from his brother's. Loki look up at his brother, squinting. "We can go on," Thor nodded up at Steve. He scooped up his brother, and Steve heard Loki whimper.
Steve walked over to Natasha, and they nodded to each other. They wrapped Loki up between their arms, and Thor picked them up with a grunt. Natasha tightened her grip around the back of Steve's neck as Thor began to swing Mjölnr and tucked her head into Loki's shoulder blades.
Thor leaped off the ground, and the fields below became smaller and smaller until Steve could hardly make out the details.