Warning: You remember Morgan's broken hand? Let's say it's cute, now. Although not very lengthy, the second part contains torture scenes. And the idea is not mine, by the way, in the comics, Thanos really did that with the Reality Stone.
"I need to see."
Morgan opened her eyes. She felt... blank. Devoid of any emotion. She remembered how peculiar she felt, before. Enraged, and yet, captivated. An uncanny combination of hate and love.
Wait. Before what, exactly?
She was lying on her back. She got up quickly, realizing that she did not feel any pain at all. Her clothes were intact. Neither her head nor her back was hurting. Good.
Morgan took a long look around. Wind was ruffling her hair, but she was not cold at all. She was alone, in the middle of a pine forest.
"I know this place." She said out-loud.
She was standing on a rock. Her feet started to follow a path she had taken many times, when she was a child, along with her grand-parents. Morgan smiled. Steady sounds were coming to her ear. The air was carrying a familiar smell. The sky was bright blue, without any cloud.
She rapidly found herself out of the forest. If it could be called a forest. The island was not that big. Morgan sat down on the verge of the cliff, and watched the waves hitting the rocks under her feet for a moment. The north of Brittany was even more beautiful during winter. Very few people were at sea, only experimented sailors.
"This is indeed a heavenly landscape." She acknowledged "Is it what I would call my home?"
No one answered. She was alone. Morgan sighed. Alright, she had rested enough.
Loki was still out there.
"I went here without you." She whispered "I want to promise that I will come back, but I can't be sure of anything."
She remembered the fight against the Soul Stone. She had lost. The Gauntlet was too powerful. For an instant, Morgan had felt how strong the connexion between the six Infinity Stones was. She was no match against it.
But what she could do was to take a look. After all, the Soul Stone had invited her. Kind of, as she always put it when she could not describe something. The fact was, she could have escaped the Stone. But its energy had attracted her. It had something to show her.
Morgan was always curious, which could either save or condemn her.
She was inside the Soul Stone, then. Where should she start?
"I must bring the Avengers back." She asserted.
Nothing followed. The wind was still blowing, the sea was still roaring. From where she was, Morgan could almost taste its salty water. Very seducing place, indeed.
Maybe it was a little too vague.
"Okay, okay!" She continued "So, I guess I need names. Stark, I need to find Stark!"
Nothing either. Out of frustration, she kicked a rock. The pebble flew right in the sea.
"Hey! I have to get out in order to find Tony Stark!" She shouted at the sky "How can I be clearer than that?!"
The sensation of being nothing more than a complete idiot was steadily growing.
Why Stark? Well, apparently, he was the one Thanos considered as the most dangerous opponent. After all, she had to start somewhere.
"I will not be trapped here!" Morgan assured "I have escaped much worse!"
She was supposed to be trapped in what she pictured as an ideal place. Which meant that everyone else had his or her own vision of paradise.
"I don't know if I want to see Stark's one..."
So, what would be the most illogical thing to do, now?
"When I think about it, can I die here?" She wondered "What would happen to my body?"
There was pretty much nothing she could do about it now, so she might as well focus on what she could actually influence.
"On your marks..." She murmured, to boost herself "Get set... Go!"
She turned around and took a leap into the unknown. Literally.
When Morgan opened her eyes again, she was surrounded by a dim orange light. There was not a unique source of brightness. The latter was diffused evenly throughout what could be called sky.
She breathed out loudly. For a second, right after her jump from the cliff, she had thought that it was not going to have any effect, and that the impact was actually going to kill her soul.
Morgan noticed that a thin layer of water was covering the ground, reflecting the sky colour. She was in an orange box, then.
"Stark!" She called.
He was right in front of her, alone in the middle of this weird void. He was not wearing his armour, and was standing with his back turned to Morgan. She marched towards him, incredibly relieved, but he did not even bother to stare at her when she spoke his name a second time.
"Huh. It's you. What are you doing here?"
"I am... Well, first off, I am sorry..." Morgan uneasily replied "We... Tried to help... But it did not exactly go as planned..."
Stark shrugged. He really did not seem to pay attention to her words.
"We? Yeah, right, there's Loki too. Didn't know he could turn into a snake. Freak."
Morgan was stupefied. Was that it? Was that the only effect Loki's presence had on Stark?
"I came to bring you back." She continued "We can defeat Thanos. If we all-"
"No." Stark cut.
"What?"
"You heard me. No, we can't defeat Thanos. And no, I won't go back."
The following seconds were marked by complete silence.
"Wait, is Iron Man giving up?" Morgan exclaimed "This is really the last thing I expected!"
"Oh, because you have expectations, now?!" Stark shouted "Listen, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, by the way I don't even know your freaking name, I don't see why I should do as you say! You were just... Here. Everyone, myself included, listened to you without asking any question. You're... I don't want you around."
Morgan did not know what to say. What happened? Where was the actual Tony Stark?
But a part of him was right. She had manipulated every person around her. No one actually knew her. The Soul Stone had apparently broken the effect of her powers.
"It's not over! I mean, you can't stay here for ever! Don't you see that you're trapped, and alone?!" She added, sounding more and more desperate.
Stark looked at her, then emitted a brief laugh.
"I'm not alone. There's Pepper. There's Peter. Everyone's here. You're the only one who's alone."
His words had more impact than Morgan firstly thought. But she understood. She could not see Stark's "world". Now, she could see where her powers came from. Everyone who was trapped in the Soul Stone was happy. No one wanted to get out. No matter what they could gain from it, they would refuse to leave the Soul World.
"Loki is still out there."
Morgan realized that she had spoken out-loud. Her voice was marked by sadness.
"Mmh. For what I care."
Stark's reply was not even cold. He truly could not bring himself to care about it. Then, he turned his back to Morgan.
"Wait, please! Stark, I need your help!" She desperately shouted.
"Don't need yours." He shrugged, before disappearing.
"No, STARK! Wh-where are you?!" She panicked "I need... I need... Lang? Scott Lang?!"
Maybe it was going to be different with him. After all, his soul was odd. Perhaps it had resisted the Stone's influence.
"What? What do you want?"
As soon as she heard Lang's detached tone, Morgan understood that her attempt was doomed to failure. But she had to try. He was standing at the exact place where Stark had appeared, not wearing his suit either, just standard urban clothing.
"Okay, listen..." She began "This will probably sound crazy-"
"Uhm, I think I know what you're gonna say. You came with this guy who's actually a snake, or this snake who's actually a guy, I don't know, but apparently, he's the New York lunatic who brought an army of aliens. What's his name already?"
"Loki, but-"
"Right, Loki. And... I mean, I don't even know who you are, what your weird powers are and basically what the heck you're doing here! You... know things about the Infinity Stones and... whatever!"
"Listen!" Morgan shouted "We must fight against Thanos, otherwise we will remain imprisoned here!"
"Don't think so."
"Excuse me?"
"Don't think we must fight. Like, this guy's omnipotent. Those quantum weapons, okay, they rock, but you saw how easy it was for him to trap us. And I mean, even if we kill him, who knows if we can bring back all those he killed?"
Morgan was lost. Neither Lang nor Stark felt bad about staying in the Soul World. To them, it was not a prison.
"I must go, now. My daughter's waiting for me." Lang said, before vanishing as well.
What to do? Morgan anxiously paced under the orange light, alone in this vast desert. Wasn't there anyone who wished to get out of this place?
Idiot. Of course, there is one.
"Thor!" She called "Loki is alive! You have to help him."
"I know, Lady Adder."
She was now facing the god of Thunder. Even without his axe, he was impressive. He seemed sad, one would even say melancholic.
"It is not too late." Morgan carried on "Your soul has been trapped here, but your body is still out there. We can find a way out."
"There is no need for that."
"Pardon? But... Your brother-"
"I know. I know but I cannot go."
The Asgardian turned around, looking at what Morgan could not see.
"My people need me. Asgard, my friends, my mother and father."
"The Soul Stone makes you see what you want to see!" Morgan warned "They are not truly here!"
"What makes you so sure of that? How am I supposed to believe you? Haven't you deceived me the whole time?" Thor accused.
"You are right, and I am not asking you to trust me! But Loki needs you, and you need him!"
"Does he? Do I, honestly?" The god of Thunder muttered "Is he really worth it?"
Morgan watched with horror as Thor's emotions towards his brother were slowly fading away. The Soul Stone. Over and over again. This world was a paradise for every soul, but for her, the only being trapped but not influenced by the Stone, it was a hell.
"He is." She choked.
"I don't know if he is." Thor spoke softly "I don't know if I can go. I cannot go..."
He vanished. Morgan fell on her knees.
It was useless. Completely, utterly useless. No one wanted to leave. She had willingly trapped herself, hoping that she could help. But she had just run away from danger. As always.
Always frightened, always running, little devil...
Nothing.
Had.
Changed.
"Alright, you won!" Morgan screamed out of despair at the sky "You won! Don't you have everything you wanted?! Don't you have everyone's soul?! Aren't you happy now?"
Tears rolled down her cheeks. So, in the end, she would only have traded a white trap against an orange one.
"I need help..." She cried, still hunched "I need someone's help..."
"Oh, I don't know someone, but I know one Som."
Blow to the chest.
He was standing right in front of her, with a reassuring smile. She was still choking with shock and sadness, but managed to move her hands.
My name is Morgan.
He answered, smiling at her poor mastering of Sign Language.
My name is Som.
"You're here." She choked "You're h-here."
"Som is in da house!" He laughed "Come with me. There is someone you need to see."
Morgan clumsily stood up. She did not know where to start. Som was here. Nothing else mattered. Som was here. She advanced her arm to touch his, but she went through his body. She gasped but he did not seem surprised.
"Oh yeah, makes sense. You are just a soul, right?"
"I... guess..." She stammered "How do you... How do you know about this place? How are you..."
"How am I not freaking out, and how do I know about how you got there? Don't worry, I think you'll have many answers very soon. And by many, I mean a shit ton of it."
"You're... What do you remember, after you disappeared?"
"Not any pain, if that's what you insinuate. I just found myself here, a second later. I mean, I was... Whatever, and I tried to look for a way out, but I guess that since I was brought here by all six Infinity Stones instead of just one, I have pretty much zero chance of success. Oh, there she is. Hiya!"
The little girl Som had just greeted was standing under a porch. She did not look older than ten. Her skin was green. She genuinely smiled at Som, then timidly at Morgan.
"This is Gamora." He introduced "I think you two have a lot to talk about."
Admitting defeat. Touchy subject, isn't it? One would ask if defeat can ever be admitted.
Of course, it can. The aftermath of a war is as important as the war itself. How to treat the vanquished? Not mercifully. But carefully. An enemy should not stay an enemy.
Loki had admitted defeat pretty rapidly, in the aftermath of the battle of New-York. He had been blinded by his own rage, which led him to make mistake after mistake. Also, he had faced strong opponents. The Avengers wanted him out of Earth, fast. Once they won, they did not spend their time gloating. They could have, but they did not.
The point is, spending a very long time humiliating the loser of a war is never a good idea. Because no one likes to stay a loser.
Needless to say, in front of Thanos, Loki had not admitted defeat.
The Asgardian breathed out slowly. So, he did not know what Morgan was going to do inside the Soul Stone, but he knew that he had to buy her time. He trusted her to be as unpredictable as possible. He trusted her overall, anyway. However, Thanos was the Stone's wielder. He could go to the Soul World at any moment.
But first, he would have to face a very, very annoying god of Mischief.
As he was about to take a step, Loki felt a curved piece of metal under his foot. Morgan's knucle-duster. He grabbed it. Just in case.
He did not harbour illusions. Winning over Thanos was completely out of question. What he had to do was to prevent him from using the Soul Stone. The problem was, he was not invisible anymore.
Or was he?
Apparently, Morgan's power had rendered him immune to the Soul Stone's influence. The only thing Thanos could see him with was his eyes. Which were just waiting to be fooled.
On his right, the lake created by the Titan was welcoming him with open arms. Loki extended his hands towards it and focused on the surface of the water. A few seconds later, the later glowed with a dim green light, and started to turn into opaque vapor. Shortly after, the entire battlefield was covered with fog. The next thing to do was to see his opponent from where the latter would never think about looking.
Loki started to run, then, when he had enough momentum, turned into a giant eagle, which flew towards the sky at incredible speed. From this height, he could see the Titan, now surrounded by smoke and wincing with fury.
Thanos closed his fist, and the Time Stone transformed the vapor into water again. However, this gesture, as small as it was, had given Loki the handful of seconds he needed. He swooped down on his opponent, ready to strike. Half-a-second before the impact, he took back his Asgardian form, holding firmly his dagger, aiming for the eyes.
And suddenly, everything stopped. Yes, quite literally, everything stopped. His body was still in the air, his blade barely a centimetre away from his target, but he could not move. He simply could not make the slightest gesture.
Thanos was looking right at him. And Loki knew he did not need any Infinity Stone to read fear in his eyes.
"Turns out you may have a little bit of bravery in you." The Titan admitted "But you always attack like a coward."
The Space Stone, which was maintaining him completely immobile, ceased to glow. Loki did not have the time to do anything before being hit by the most monumental punch he had ever been hit by.
By Hell. And he did not even use any Stone at all.
The Asgardian violently hit the ground three times before finally stopping. His head was spinning, and blood was filling his mouth. He spat it, staining the grass under his palms. Even with his natural resistance, he doubted to be able to last against three or four similar blows. The wounds caused by the Power Stone had just finished to heal, and the pain was still so close...
Useless to focus on this, now.
"All things considered, I am maybe going to kill you. And take my time doing so." The Titan declared, while tranquilly approaching.
He closed his fist again, and the Space Stone tore the grass from the ground, making it flying above them. It was almost fascinating. Loki barely had the time to get up that the Reality Stone turned it into sharpened small blades, which flew right at him.
As skilled as he was with his dagger, he could not counter them all, and he had no time to think about a spell against this. However, another weapon joined his.
"You again!" Thanos roared.
Along with Loki, Nebula was breaking and deflecting the projectiles. One or two hit their target; the Asgardian took one in his right leg, but not too deep in his flesh, while the cyborg was hit by another in her left forearm, but the latter being made of iron, it did not seem to bother her more than a bee sting.
"Got a plan?" Nebula asked Loki, after the rain of blades had stopped.
"I have a soft spot for improvisation." The god of Mischief smirked.
"It was a misjudgement." Thanos threatened, stepping forward "Erasing your presence from the Soul Stone's perception does not protect you the slightest. Instead, you-"
His speech was cut by his own exclamation of surprise, after Nebula and Loki simultaneously attacked him behind the knees. Although he did not fall, it was enough to make him trip, then be cut again by Nebula's sword on the chest, and take one of Loki's knives in the right elbow. The Titan realized the deception when replicas of Nebula and Loki still standing before his eyes disappeared in a flash of green.
"Your tricks lead to nothing, Asgardian!" He shouted, before sending a ray from the Power Stone right at his two adversaries.
Who faded as well.
"A second set of illusions is always useful." Loki ironically explained, as Nebula had just thrown a series of little explosive devices right at the Titan's face.
"Best day of my life." She grinned.
Certainly, none of Thanos' wounds were going to last. But the point was to disorientate him, and they were doing a pretty good job so far. Relentless, Nebula and Loki did not grant their opponent one second of respite in order to make the best use of his Gauntlet. They had fewer and more basic weapons, but were perfectly used to their manipulation.
Both of them were fast and agile, and without talking much, managed to coordinate their moves. When Thanos made use of the Space Stone again, a rock twice their size flew right at them. The Asgardian and the cyborg briefly looked at each other, before simultaneously kicking the boulder back where it came from. Then, Loki created a dozen of projections, all attacking the Titan from various locations. As they were about to strike again, the Asgardian suddenly felt that his body was becoming incredibly heavy. He stumbled on the ground, alongside Nebula.
He could not move a muscle. Even breathing was excruciating. He was still holding tight to his dagger, but his arms, as well as his legs and chest, were maintained on the ground by what he felt was like hundreds of his brother's hammer. An immense pressure was applied to every square centimetre of his body. Around him, the earth started to crackle. On his left, he saw that Nebula had been immobilized the same way. The glowing Reality Stone had somehow increased gravity over their bodies.
"I find myself in a difficult situation, especially towards you." Thanos addressed Nebula "You see, I promised to your sister that I would not kill you, and I intend to keep my word. But I know you will not stop your vain attempts at killing me."
"Summed... up... well." The cyborg managed to articulate.
Thanos sighed. He seemed disappointed to have lost so much time.
Good. Buy time. Buy as much time as possible.
Then, a cruel smile deformed the Titan's face. He directed the Reality Stone at her. Soon after, Loki's eyes widened with dread.
This was still Nebula. At least, this still looked like her. But, by Hell, let her not be conscious.
What he was presently seeing on his left was nothing more than a shape of charred meat. He could still discern the woman's body, her cybernetic enhancements. But her blue skin was entirely burnt, even her eyes were melted.
Loki could smell calcinated flesh. Disgust clenched his stomach. His horror increased even more when he realized that Nebula was still alive, on the brink of death, but still alive. Small spasms were irregularly shaking her body, showing the incommensurable pain she was too weak to express. She would have been far better off dead. Would had he been able to move, he would have crawled towards her to slit her throat.
"You will live as long as I wish you to do so, denying both life and death." The Titan mercilessly described.
"Y-you're... s-sick..." Loki spat.
What he first thought was a guttural groan was actually laughter. Thanos was laughing. He turned back towards him, still immobilized on the ground.
"Loki the Liesmith! Isn't it one of your titles? You, proud of twisting words to find the meaning that only suits your needs, want to persuade yourself to be an honourable warrior? No, small god, you do not deserve honour, not even respect."
He crouched in front of him, increasing the pressure on his body. Loki wanted to scream, but his lungs would not let him do so. He felt blood in his throat, but could not even choke.
"I vowed not to kill anyone else, even those who foolishly stood against me. I can grant their bodies eternal life, while their soul rest in the heaven which they create for themselves." The Titan continued.
Loki would not know what to say, had he been able to speak. Trying to persuade Thanos was doomed to failure. Such conviction, reinforced by power over the entire Universe, was unmovable.
"However, I made no such vow to you. I killed you. Your very survival is unnatural. But I am going to rectify this."
The Reality Stone stopped shimmering. But Loki did not have the time to move, not even to think. He just briefly saw a purple glow and knew what was about to happen.
Pain came. No, it was not pain. It was Hell. Real Hell. He was burning alive, his limbs were crushed and re-built, and crushed again, he did not know, he could not know, there was not anything else in his entire existence than this terrible, unbearable pain.
He was screaming, he knew that. He could not help it. Would have he been able to say something, he would have begged for this torture to stop. Without the slightest flash of shame. He would say anything for the pain to stop.
And it stopped.
It had stopped. It had stopped. Nothing else mattered. He still could not move. He was curled on himself, panting, shaken by violent shivers. Above him, he distinguished the Titan's shape.
"It will not be over soon." Thanos asserted.
The Power Stone shone again. And it started again. Suffering, screams, inner supplications for this to end.
"The Power Stone... I hesitate on the translation. As it is written, I would call it Power Stone, but Energy Stone might be more accurate."
What was that?
Pain had stopped again. Loki was still on the ground, lost between nightmares of agony. But among them was this intruding memory, of the conversation he had had with Morgan, while studying the Book of Cosmic Entities.
Indeed, the Energy Stone, if you insist. So, what?
Hm.
Energy.
Didn't he have something with him that could absorb energy?
Out of the corner of his eye, Loki saw the Power Stone shining again. He clenched the knuckle-duster around his fist. Then, when the wave of purple energy came, he put his hand right in front of him, and watched in pure amazement as it was channelled by Vibranium.
Thanos was too astonished to react. It gave Loki a handful of precious seconds. The god of Mischief did not lose them. He urged his body to obey him for a moment, and it responded. He hit the Titan with an enormous shockwave. Thanos was literally propelled a dozen of metres away.
Loki was still surrounded by phantom pain. He felt Morgan's weapon breaking around his phalanxes, as it had not been made to withstand such an amount of energy. Two of its four rings fell on the ground. But he did not care. He was standing, and Thanos was down.
Thank you, Som.