Tony Stark - "I Completely Forgot that you Aren't Human and Probably Don't Understand Sarcasm."
Seraphine woke up no less than five minutes after Mystic left. Apparently, JARVIS started playing party music through the speakers and putting music videos in the monitors of people dancing to try to distract her in an attempt to keep her attention away from the suits. When I arrived at the lab, music was blasting through the speakers, the holographic tables were projecting people doing a dance choreography, the monitors were playing different music videos of people dancing, and the Mark suit and Seraphine were hovering in the air and dancing the Macarena.
I was looking at the scene in front of me in a mixture of surprise, disbelieve, amusement, and horror. Seraphine was dancing. The suit looked like it was trying to follow along and managing to do jerky movements that resemble someone trying to dance while having seizures. I would have found the whole scene hilarious if it wasn't for the fact that I was so surprised by it.
If Rhodey or Pepper get a word of this, I'm never going to hear the end of it. Good thing that Mystic left because she would be howling with laughter right now. Correction, Pepper is going to tell me something about being irresponsible while looking at me with her disappointed face. She would think that I had instigated the whole thing in some way, and it was my fault somehow even if I didn't have anything to do with it. Rhodey is probably going to be too busy laughing his ass off to say anything to me about it for a few minutes.
"What the hell is going on here?" I asked her after about a minute when I was able to get over my shocked surprise. I have decided that I'm not going to try to mince my words or try to censor myself around her. Seraphine may be a kid, but she is intelligent enough to make a room full of grown up geniuses look like a bunch of fools if she wants too. Talking to her as if she were any other normal child and trying to handle her with silk globes is a great insult to that amazing mind of hers. This doesn't mean that I'm not mindful of her age, but I would be making a great disservice to her if I behave around her as if he were a normal child. In a lot of ways, she is more capable than most adults.
"I found music and dancing to be entertaining, but I didn't want to dance alone. I asked JARVIS to be my dance partner, but he said he doesn't have a physical body. I suggested to him that he could use one of the Mark suits. He needs to work on his coordination, though. This is fun. Do you want to dance with me?"
"JARVIS, buddy, you and I are going to talk about this later. Now, turn down the music, return the monitors and the holographic projectors to normal, and put the Mark suit back in its place. " I said to him.
"Ok, Sir," was the AI's only reply while everything was going back to normal.
"Don't be angry at him. He was trying to keep me from playing with the Mark suits. I told him that if he takes control of one of the suits and dance with me, I wouldn't touch them." Seraphine said trying to keep JARVIS from getting in trouble.
I sighed exasperatedly. Of course, she would find ways to manipulate JARVIS without changing his programming. She didn't seem happy about losing her dance partner and the music turning off, but she didn't voice any complaints. My guess is that she thinks that I would blame JARVIS for it. She didn't want him to get into more trouble with me.
"Ok. Fine. I wanted to ask for your help studying the files Coulson brought me. The files with Dr. Selvig's notes are studies of the Tesseract about Thelmal Nuclear Physics. I could use a study partner on the subject and someone to bounce ideas with. Reading by myself is boring." I told her, going with the idea I came up with when I was on my way to the lab to keep her distracted, and it isn't like I'm lying to her anyway. I could use the company.
"Ok." She said smiling and immediately forgetting that she is supposed to be angry at me for keeping her from dancing.
I wonder if her contented attitude is because I asked for something without having any selfish motivation behind it other than wanting her company. I sadly understand that because I remember being that age and being so happy anytime someone showed any kind of sincere interest in me for myself and not because they were trying to get some sort of self-serving gain out of it. I was so starved for any kind of sincere attention, which thinking back was the reason why I didn't care that I thought Mystic was a hallucination for as long as she continued to visit me. The first time I met her, that was the reason why I tried to grab her clothing to try to keep her from leaving. She looked so genuinely happy to see me that day that I didn't want for her to go. During our second meeting, I told her that I would keep her and agreed so easily not to tell my parents I was seeing her because they would have put me on medication, and I would stop seeing her and go back to being alone again. She is one of a really small amount of people who genuinely want to be around me without any greedy or self-serving motivation behind it, just because she likes my company.
The rest of the night the two of us spent it talking back and forth, exchanging ideas, learning Thermal Physics and about the scientific applications of the Tesseract's energy while I read the notes and the files. Director Fury called me around ten in the morning.
"Stark we have Loki's location, and I need you to provide backup for Captain Rogers. We still haven't located the Tesseract and need to apprehend Loki to see if he tells us its location." He said to me as soon as I pick up the call.
"Hello to you too Director. How have you been? I have a very eventful night thanks for asking me. From what I read in the file you sent me, you found the good captain frozen in Alaska. How is he adapting? Old people and technology don't get along well you know."
"Stark. Don't tell me you have trouble keeping up with Seraphine. I thought you would have enjoyed the challenge. Now you know how dealing with you feels like. Stop the smart-ass comments. I have a crazy god on the loose and a weapon with unlimited power to locate. I don't have time for your sarcasm right now."
"Ok. Fine. I'm in. You know I do enjoy challenges. It's not my fault you have no appreciation for my sense of humor and my amazing genius personality. You are just bitter because out of the Avengers Seraphine chose to meet me in person instead of choosing to meet captain apple pie and freedom. It's not my fault that I'm the cooler Avenger. You need to learn how to relax."
"You are an overgrown brat with an ego the size of the U.S. and I will relax when I'm dead. I'm going to have Coulson send Loki's location to your phone. Be there as soon as you can. We don't know how long Loki is going to stay put. Don't forget to bring Seraphine with you, and remind her about what we agreed on about her staying hidden. Tell her not to get involved in a fight with Loki unless completely necessary. We need to keep some element of surprise if we are planning on gaining some advantage in this." Fury said to me and then hung up.
The man really doesn't have any appreciation for my wonderful genius personality. I told Jarvis to notify Seraphine that it's time for us to go, told him to relay the message Fury told me, that Loki had been located, and we are going to his location to capture him instead of going directly to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s base.
A few seconds later I heard Seraphine's voice. "I can do that, but I don't like that the rest of the Avengers are going to be fighting Loki, and I have to keep hidden."
"Sorry, Kiddo. I know that you don't like being left out, but the pirate is right about it being an advantage for us if Loki doesn't know that you are awake."
"Can I integrate myself into the Mark suit? That way I will be able to provide you with my assistance while I stay hidden."
I thought about that before, but I was too busy last night to ask her about how she would interact with technology like the iron man suit. "How would that work? Would you integrate with the armor itself or with the system?"
"I can do both. I won't be able to create energy barriers to keep you from getting hit because Loki has seemed me use that power and is going to realize it's me. I can use my body to strengthen the suit's structure, though. My body can resist direct attacks from Loki's spear and other significant impacts without receiving any damage. If the suit gets damaged, I can use my body to strengthen the damaged parts and at the same time repair some of the structural damage. I won't be able to cover the whole armor, though." She said.
"Ok. I'm fine with that for as long as you don't try to hijack JARVIS and take control of the suit." I said to her. I was eager to see how she would integrate like that with the Mark suit. Plus, a self-repair ability and resistance to Loki's spear beams sound really cool."
"Deal. I will just talk with you like we are now, and not take control over JARVIS or the suit's system." She said levitating into the room.
"JARVIS, prepare the Mark suit for deployment."
"Right away, Sir." He said, and I walked over to where I keep the suit.
After I was encased inside the suit, I said to Seraphine, "ready when you are, kiddo." She melted, and the liquid metal drops started to get into the little crevices of the suit.
"I don't feel or see any differences," I said after about a minute while looking at my reflection in the window and moving around.
"You are not supposed to," She said to me from inside the suit.
"So what did you do exactly?"
"I integrated myself with the suit's system and the armor's inner layer."
"JARVIS how are the suit's systems?"
"All systems are working at 100% capacity. Seraphine's incorporation into the suit system isn't interfering with any of its function, Sir."
"See. I told you that I wouldn't interfere with JARVIS or any of the suit's systems."
"Ok. Let's get going. JARVIS Coulson sent me Loki's location to my cell phone, set the course to those coordinates."
"Setting course now, Sir."
"He is in Stuttgart, Germany. I learned the history of the country when I was in the Quinjet. The conflict involving the Nazi's, the Holocaust, and world war II is known as the deadliest conflict in human history. Hydra used the Tesseract to power their weapons. Captain Rogers was involved in that war and was directly responsible for the fall of Hydra. Loki must know about the Avengers. Agent Barton had access to that information, and he must have told Loki about it. This can be a deliberate move on his part to draw the team out." Seraphine said.
"You are right about that. Out of all the places in the world he chose Germany. He could have appeared in any place. This could be his way of saying that he can get to us, and he doesn't need to hide. According to what I read about this guy, he is known as the lie-smith. He is the god of lies and mischief. I wouldn't be surprised if he is in there to send a message and is playing with us."
"JARVIS get me the Director on the line."
"It's too soon for you to tell me that you have captured Loki already, so what's the problem?" The pirate said going straight to the point as soon as he picked up the call.
"Seraphine and I were discussing as to why Loki could have chosen to let himself be seen in Germany of all places."
"Why? Please enlight me."
"He must know about the Avengers and all of the members including the fact that Rogers was discovered and is part of the team. The man is known as the god of lies and mischief; playing games is his specialty. Seraphine says that Barton had access to the Avenger's files before he was brainwashed into being a lab dog for Loki, and he would have told Loki about each of us. This could be a deliberate move on his part to let us know that he knows about all the players in the game, and he can take us all out. He is playing us, drawing us into the open."
"I suspected as much, but we don't have any choice but to play his game. We need to locate the Tesseract, and Loki is the one that knows where it is."
"So, you knew about this, and you send us after him, even when you know this is most probably a trap."
"If I did tell you, it wouldn't have made any difference. The team needs to capture Loki, and the Tesseract is still missing."
"Why is it that this kind of shit coming from you doesn't surprise me? I have never known you for being straight about giving information. Is there anything else we should know?"
"I'm as much in the dark about Loki's motives as you are. If I knew about anything else, I would have told the team about it. I sent Rogers and Romanoff to capture Loki. He and Romanoff are not going to be able to do that on their own."
"Yeah. I know. I'm almost there. Next time, I expect to get the warning that comes with the possibility of walking into a trap." I said to him and hung up without waiting for his answer.
"He is a two-faced lying liar. He probably knows more about Loki's motives, and he doesn't want to tell us. It would have been good to know that Loki knows about all the Avengers. He could have warned us that we may be walking into a trap."
"He is the Director of an Intelligence organization. Keeping information and secrets is to be expected from him." Seraphine said not showing any surprise or anger over the fact that Fury is keeping important information from us.
I realized then, that what the pirate is keeping is about Mystic and Seraphine knows about it and doesn't want to confirm it. I understand that she would want to protect Mystic. Based on what Mystic was telling me, she is doing the same with Seraphine. I understand that Seraphine wouldn't want to tell me about Mystic. She isn't aware of the fact that I know Mystic and would want to keep Mystic's identity secret. I wonder how much the Director knows about Mystic. Probably not much.
"Can I access surveillance cameras around the area Loki is in?" Seraphine asked me.
"I didn't know you could do that."
"I'm connected to the internet through JARVIS, so I have access to every computer on the planet that has a connection to the internet and any electronic device on the planet connected to a network including satellites."
"Does Fury know about that?" I said to her worried about what the pirate would do if he knows about that.
"He knows that I can interact with technology and control it, but he doesn't know about the extent of my ability and that I can control technology remotely. He thinks that I need to have a physical connection to control a system. He knows that I can access computers connected to the internet, though."
"Ok. Don't tell him or anyone else for that matter that you can control any computer and electronic device on the planet that is connected to the web."
"Ok. Thank you." She said.
"Why are you saying thank you?"
"Because you are worried about me and are trying to look out for me."
"Well, we are friends, that's what friends do. I mean, I think we are friends, aren't we?" I said to her.
"Of course we are." She said cheerfully, and I smiled.
"You said that you can see what Loki is doing now, right."
"Right."
"Let's see what the crazy alien is up too. Maybe, we can spot what's his game."
"I'm scanning the faces of the people in the vicinity of his coordinates and looking for suspicious patterns." She said and showed me a video of Loki wearing civilian clothing, sitting outside a café, and eating a pastry. The video looks like is being taken from the street across the café he is sitting outside of.
"You know the fact that Loki is casually sitting outside a café in plain view of anyone isn't suspicious at all." It's clear as day that the man is up to something.
"So, did you find anything else other than Loki and his totally inconspicuous behavior."
"Inconspicuous? I think he is trying to draw S.H.I.E.L.D.'s attention by being out in the open."
"Right. I completely forgot that you aren't human and don't understand sarcasm. I was being sarcastic when I said that he is being inconspicuous. It's obvious that the man is planning something nefarious. I need to teach you a lot of stuff."
"I see. I have some trouble understanding some human expressions and behaviors."
"Don't worry. You just need a little bit of time. You will get them after a little while. If you stay with me for a while, you are going to learn and understand sarcasm really fast." I said to her reassuringly.
"I would like that. Though, I didn't find any suspicious activity around Loki's location." She replied.
She showed me an live aerial view of the café and the whole block panning on the rooftop of all the buildings in the next few blocks and the civilians around the man.
"The rooftops within 1 ½ miles are clear, and the civilians are not showing any suspicious behavioral patterns."
"Maybe the people are inside the café or in another building nearby."
"These are the images of every building with cameras within the next five blocks. I don't see any suspicious activities inside either." She said and showed me a lot of little screens of the inside of the buildings.
"Zoom in on the screen inside the café. There has to be something. He is clearly planning something."
"Maybe a group is coming, later. Can you keep a look out on the other surveillance?" I asked her.
"Yes. I'm using the Stark's tower computers to keep the surveillance in the area."
"Ok. He is bound to make a move eventually."
After another ten minutes, Loki got up from the table and started a luxury stroll looking around and stopping from time to time to enjoy the sights like a tourist.
"What the fuck is he planning? He hasn't talked to anybody or called anyone this whole time, and there is no suspicious activity anywhere near him." I said frustrated when we were about Fifteen minutes to Loki's location, and the man hasn't done anything yet other than walking around.
"Maybe we shouldn't have tried to focus all our attention on Loki," Seraphine said.
"I'm an idiot. How couldn't I see it before? Loki has been in the open drawing attention to himself for a few hours now. He is obviously playing distraction. Seraphine can you adjust the parameters to scan for Barton's facial features." I said, angry at myself for not realizing it before.
"If I don't have an estimated location, the scan is going to take me at least thirty minutes, and we are almost at Loki's location."
"Fuck. Loki has been taking his stroll for at least three hours. By now, whatever he has planned is already done or already happening."
After few minutes I heard a beeping sound. "It looks like Loki made his move. He is attacking a civilian." Seraphine said and pulled up the footage.
"Damned it. What the hell is he doing to that man?" I said grossed out as I watched Loki put some sort of handheld device that was drilling into a man's eye.
"He is…" Seraphine started saying, but I interrupted her. "No. You know what? I don't want to know. How far are we from there?"
"At your current speed, You will arrive in eight minutes. Sir." JARVIS answered.
"Make it faster, JARVIS, and from here on can you make it so the conversation between Seraphine and me isn't heard by anyone else other than us? We can't have the others hearing a conversation between Seraphine and I if we are planning on keeping her hidden."
"Consider it done, Sir. The conversations between you and Seraphine will remain private. I'm increasing thrusters capacity now."
"Time for our entrance. Seraphine, play AC/DC's "Shoot to Thrill," can you patch me up to Agent's Romanoff's comms. unit, please? Also, feel free to play with the Quinjet's speakers while you are at it."
"Ok." She replied, and I heard the song I requested playing on the speakers of the Quinjet's speaker through Romanoff's comms link.
"Agent Romanoff, did you miss me?" I said to her as a form of greeting.
When I was close enough to Loki, I sent a blast at him with my hand repulsors, which hit him on the chest and sent him flying about twenty feet into the air and crashing into the stone steps of the plaza where he located at. I landed and pointed at him all the suit's weapons.
"Make your move, Reindeer Games," I said to Loki. He straightened up, sitting in on of the steps, dematerialized his armor, and put his arms up in surrender. I put away my weapons and lowered my arms.
"Good move," I said to him.
Author's Notes:
We are back to Tony's POV, and Fury is a lying, lying, liar. He knows exactly what Loki's motives are. This chapter is long and seemly not important, but it touches an important plot point in the future of the story.