For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.
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Many thanks to my wonderful Betas, Bobbie23 and MasterQwertster, who write some pretty cool stories. Go read them!
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Chapter 39: Ragnarok Part 1:
Fenrir
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The following content was written before the release of Thor 3: Ragnarok
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Previously: The Appendix appears triumphant, having finally driven the Avengers into different groups as part of their plan of survival of the fittest, while holding dangerous influence over the US government. Iron Man, War Machine, Vision, and Falcon, have signed the Sokovia Accords. Captain America and Lady Sif are literally hiding in the woods. Unbeknownst to anyone outside of Wakanda however, Dr. Bruce Romanoff-Banner, Black Widow, Scarlet Witch, Spider-Man, Ant Man, Wasp, and Hawkeye have formed a new hero team called the Future Foundation.
Unfortunately, due to Thanos' manipulations, Loki's final contingency was activated by his surviving mental slaves from when he had originally tried to conquer Earth. Traveling to the Dwarf planet of Nidavellir, they attacked an Asgardian prison, unleashing the fearsome herald of Ragnorak: Fenrir.
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"Fenrir (pronounced "FEN-reer;" Old Norse Fenrir, "He Who Dwells in the Marshes") is the most infamous of the many wolves in Norse mythology.
"[…] He's the son of the god Loki and the giantess Angrboða, which makes him the brother of the serpent Jormungand and the underworld goddess Hel.
[…]
"As is recounted more fully in the tale The Binding of Fenrir, the Aesir gods raised Fenrir themselves in order to keep him under their control and prevent him from wreaking havoc throughout the Nine Worlds. He grew at an astonishingly fast pace, however, and eventually the troubled gods decided to chain him up.
[…]
"For their third attempt, the gods had the dwarves forge the strongest chain ever built, which nevertheless gave the appearance of being very light and even soft to the touch. When the gods presented Fenrir with this third fetter, he became suspicious, and he refused to be bound with it unless one of the gods would stick his or her hand in his mouth as a pledge of good faith. Only Tyr was brave enough to do this, knowing that it would mean the loss of his hand. And, sure enough, when Fenrir found himself unable to break free of his bonds, he ripped Tyr's hand from his arm.
[…]
"At Ragnarok, he broke free and ran throughout the world with his lower jaw against the ground and his upper jaw in the sky, devouring everything in his path. He even killed the god Odin before finally being put to death by one of Odin's avenging sons."
-Online at 'Norse Mythology for Smart People'
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Nidavellir
Only at first glance was it a wolf. Or perhaps only in the imaginations of generations who have read too many fantasy stories about magical wolves, or direwolves. Instead of a lean creature built for speed, it was as muscular as a bear. Shoulders easily reaching the crown of an Asgardian's head. For all this size however, its movements were reminiscent of its Midgardian cousins with its deadly, silent grace. Except those wolves were built to run down prey after a long change chase, with an emphasis on pack tactics. This creature, with its overly exaggerated features was clearly built to tear to shreds whatever got in its path.
Claws extended like a tiger on the prowl. Fangs that were noticeably longer than a 'true' wolf, while still concealed by the mouth. The colour of its fur was a bland dark grey in patches, while in others places it was black as a moonless night.
It was the eyes however that were the final hint it was not a wolf: neither yellow, nor blue, but green. Green as Loki's own eyes.
Nevertheless, it clearly shared a common ancestry with the wolf in its lupine form, despite how large, strong, and better armed it was. Or perhaps one could argue that they shared it as an ancestor, as it was touted as the Wolf God.
Hungrily, Fenrir swallowed the corpses of the Asgardians, before unerringly turning towards the Humans. Ears perking, it first went to the one who had lead them in attacking the prison. The Captain of the Guard stabbed the man with a spear, yet he had been chosen to lead for a reason, and fanatically he clung to life. Triumph sparkled in his face as he saw who loomed over him, and he mustered what little remained of his strength. "M-Master Loki sent us… Rule… Earth…" He rattled out with his last breath.
Unnaturally still, Fenrir stared down at the body. Then with a growl and flaring nostrils it savagely shredded the dead man. He swallowed most of the body in gulps, no need for him to chew till he came to only boney scraps, and turned then to rest of the Humans. Flesh, armour, and even their weapons all went down his gullet. Intently it then turned its attention to sniffing out their trail, and with a bound started to follow it, crossing the mountains easily at an immense pace.
XXX
Earth
Kamar-Taj
Dr. Stephen Strange scowled as he and his fellow Masters of the Mystic Arts prepared for war.
Personally, he knew it was terribly risky for all of them to deploy into an alternate dimension, but given the scope of what they faced there was no real alternative. They simply lacked the forces to both repel the oncoming threat and leave reserves behind on Earth. And thanks to Mordo's brilliant idea, we're a little short on sorcerers right now! Idiot!
They had stripped him of his magic, and thrown him into a mental asylum run by a doctor that Strange respected. Well, as much as he could respect any medical professional that was not himself. Or Christine.
Alright, and to be fair, Kaecilius is also to blame, killing his own share of us. I really wish we could just resurrect the Ancient One to handle this… Or even to grab and shake her while demanding to know why she never left behind any instructions on how to properly fix the Sanctuaries.
Being down to just the New York meant Earth's ancient defenses were now too vulnerable to repel this threat on their own. The sorcerers had to go on the offense.
The Cloak of Levitation chose that moment to discretely poke its 'master,' pulling him out of his woolgathering.
"Ahem," Strange coughed. "Right. So…we all ready to go," he asked solid and stoic Wong.
"Yes," the man gravely agreed, hefting his own Artifact. "We must go now, or Shuma-Gorath will destroyed the entire world."
"And then maybe we'll have enough peace to get those Sanctums repaired," Strange grumbled. "Why'd Agamotto have to make them so complicated?" It was keeping him too busy to see Christine, even if she did keep 'complimenting' on his elevation to leading his 'cult.' Hilarious. Not.
"Then continue your studies," Wong reprimanded.
Deciding not to argue further, Strange began to form the necessary portal. The novices and the Avengers can keep the Earth intact for the next two weeks.
XXX
Death Valley, California
Two Hours Later
With a snarl, Fenrir crashed through the Portal to land upon Midgard. His keen sense of smell confirmed he had been fortunate to find the original source of the trail on his first attempt. Ancient memories came to the fore as he recognized this land.
Nose raised, he loudly sniffed the air, feeling the various scents as he searched for the largest population center that was within his range. From his body language it was clear he was confused, trying to understand this world from his senses, and finding things out of place. He had been locked away for a long time after all, and local inhabitants had done much to warp and change the world during those passing years. There were several settlements, but the only one that seemed big enough for his purposes…
Spinning around, he raced across the terrain to the east.
XXX
Avenger's Tower
"Sir," FRIDAY's voice cut in over the radio.
Holding up an authoritative hand to the people on the viewscreen, Tony Stark addressed the AI. "Yes? What's the emergency?"
"Satellites detecting an unidentified energy source in the south-western US. It is moving at extremely high speeds straight east, and a review of its point of origin –Death Valley, California— reveals trace energy samples associated with the Bifrost. According to SHIELD records, they believed a related means of travel could be found there, but they never were successful in finding it.
"I unfortunately don't have a visual on it yet. However, there are reports going to local law enforcement that it destroys whatever is in its path, including a few small cities. No reported casualties so far, only major property damage, and hysterical citizens. Whatever it is, it doesn't seem to care about them, or anything that gets in its way."
Biting back the urge to curse, Tony swiveled back to the people he had been talking to before the interruption.
One screen displayed General Talbot, with several other senior officers present. While not technically necessary for these talks, Tony figured it would be beneficial to show a sign of trust. More importantly, the man was the US government's go-to man for dealing with issues with powers. Barring the Avengers of course.
The middle screen held several important politicians, all integrally linked with committees or special interest groups deeply invested in aligning the Avengers and the Sokovia Accords. Several appeared affronted by this display of apparent disrespect by Stark, while a slim majority appeared willing to take the backseat as they recognized this warning from FRIDAY was a priority.
The last projection was the most interesting for Tony however: King T'Challa and his special guest, Hawkeye, straight from the Wakandan embassy, Washington DC.
In a brilliant move, Hawkeye had apparently gone to the Wakandan embassy for asylum, citing concerns that he would be attacked like his fellow Avengers, and worried for his Constitutional Rights. A sympathetic King T'Challa involved himself, which led to this high-level meeting. Given how many secrets Hawkeye still knew, his role as an Avenger who was hopefully 'untainted' by Nick Fury, Captain America, and Black Widow, he was a valuable 'asset.' More importantly, Tony knew the archer was too canny to have pulled such a bold move without some contingency plan in mind. Especially given how vulnerable he would be in a foreign embassy. Especially a Wakandan embassy.
"Gentlemen, I'm afraid I'll have to cut our talks short before they've even begun. We've got to get a handle on this ASAP, and confirm whether this is something hostile or benign." He stressed the last part to ensure no one jumped the gun.
"FRIDAY, alert the other Avengers. And where is this mysterious energy signature," –So help me Thor, if this is another Asgardian mess we've got to clean up…!— "headed?"
"It's changed its course a little, but my best estimate, its final destination in an hour will be unfortunately familiar to you: Las Vegas."
"Son of a—!"
XXX
Las Vegas
(The city that cannot catch a break)
An hour later
As its destination came into view, Fenrir slowed to a more cautious speed to arrive, visibly wary.
Confused, it passed through the ruined parts of the city, where the massive Battle of Las Vegas had occurred only a few months ago. Despite the work of time and the elements, Fenrir could still smell the blood of Asgardians who fought and died on this ground during battle.
Then beyond the broken buildings the Wolf God laid its eyes on the rest of Vegas. The city that refused to die, as its inhabitants refused to leave the damaged ruin, and poured their sweat into rebuilding their home.
Teeth bared in hungry anticipation, Fenrir stalked forward.
XXX
The evacuation order had come in as soon as the Avengers learnt what was happening, and decided to err on the side of caution. Even better, the military was present to aid the refugees. People were streaming out in a brisk, yet calm and efficient manner. The citizens, survivors of the last monster attack which had destroyed half the city, and who had lived every day since with the sight of the ruins, were understandably cooperative.
Regrettably, an hour was still not long enough to move them all to what was, hopefully, a safe distance.
"Satellite says it's here and approaching fast!" barked one squaddie to his mates. "Get these people out of here!"
Fortunately, these were not idle men and women, and had come up with a game plan since they knew where the Unidentified Being was going.
XXX
Fenrir paused. It could smell and hear the people a few blocks ahead. The buildings were strange and alien to it, and it frequently stalled to gaze quizzically at some of them, usually quirking its nose in confusion.
Further delay happened after Fenrir tore into a pizza joint to eat the food and ovens.
Before it now however, right in the center of the road, was a strange piece of metal and —*sniff*— electronics. Fenrir lacked the context to identify it as a repurposed bomb squad drone, able to drive to designated locations while sending back video feed to its controllers. Sticking to it were posters with words like "DO YOU COME IN PEACE?", and pictures of smiling humans opening their arms in friendship. Soothing music was playing, and there was even a plate of cooked and seasoned meat to the side.
Snarling, Fenrir's jaws enveloped the machine.
XXX
Temporary Military Headquarters
"Well, that answers that," the officer in charge of the op center sanguinely said. The drone's camera had cut out with the last image being a close-up of the super-wolf's red tongue. "We tried playing nice. Now we play hardball."
Secretly, he was trying to keep his lunch inside after that image of those long, loooong teeth.
Even worse was how its fur was still splattered with blood and gore from a previous meal…
XXX
On guard now, Fenrir advanced more cautiously. There was no one in sight, yet there were so many machines that had curiously and distractingly been left on, as well as countless unfamiliar smells. Especially one strange one right now that was all around—
The mines, IEDs, and packs of C4 inside the cars all went off at once.
A storm of fire and shrapnel.
Believing in overkill, choppers flew in, unleashing every missile and bullet they could manage. "Eat this, you freaky alien piece of—"
A chunk of cement nearly the size of a basketball flew right past his window.
"It's still alive! Fall back! Fall back and pull up!"
With an almost jaunty air, Fenrir strutted out of the smoke, fur unsinged. Irritably it growled up at the retreating vehicles, but ultimately chose to ignore them. They were literally not a threat.
XXX
En Route to Las Vegas
Government Registered Quinjet
Peering at the video image of what they were dealing with Iron Man glanced at Vision, flipping his faceplate up. "Anything related to Asgard and giant wolves?"
"Yes, Fenrir," Vision reported. Then he cocked his head in interest. "Both Thor and Sif have been correcting the 'facts' on some of the old legends. Strangely, neither of them have said anything upon Fenrir, or left any notes. Which is curious, given how they corrected our information on the rest of Loki's supposed children."
"Wonderful," Tony said with a cheerful demeanor they all knew was false. "So, I guess this means Reindeer Games is causing us trouble from beyond the grave?" We should've known that narcissist would pull something like that. But why did Thor keep quiet about this? Or Sif for that matter?
"What's the plan, Tony?" a fully outfitted War Machine asked.
"I should stick with aerial reconnaissance," Falcon admitted, hefting one of his machine pistols. While still not fully recovered after weeks of being unconscious in a hospital bed, the Avengers needed his help, even if only to be a friendly face while getting civilians away. Besides, he was a tough guy, and more than capable of taking on any regular threat. "These and those nifty wrist mounted rockets you gave me aren't going to do much. That said, it's not acting like any wolf I've ever seen."
"No, it's displaying distinctively atypical behaviour for an animal," Vision agreed, throwing Iron Man a significant glance. "It may be intelligent. Sentient even."
"Or maybe it just enjoys playing with its food! What does it matter! Just kill it!"
The Avengers glanced at the screens depicting the same groups of individuals from before, with the one who had spoken up being a politician who in all honesty they could not bother to remember the name of. The men and women surrounding him in the scene were caught between agreeing, neutral expressions, and troubled by the behaviour of their own member.
"Do not harass your warriors while they are in the field," chastised King T'Challa. From the background, he was clearly in some sort of jet. The screen split to then display Hawkeye, apparently in a similar vehicle. "Black Panther's right," –some of the others reacted with surprise at that name— "and as a man currently enjoying diplomatic immunity, let me tell you that micromanaging is a royal pain for those trying to do their job."
"That said," Black Panther continued, "it is acting strangely. Even if its intentions appear clear. It has made no attempt to communicate."
"No, it is sending a message," General Talbot disagreed. "By going slow like that, it's trying to play it cautious, while also letting us know there's nothing we can do to stop it. But I don't think it's intelligent like you and I, or an Asgardian. The way it moves and acts says it's an animal. Too primal. And if it were a person, it wouldn't come at us like this. Even if it were planning to attack us, it wouldn't run up out of the blue like this, and then fail by being so obvious when stalking its prey."
"Gentlemen, this is all fun," Iron Man drawled, "but also very academic. What's important now is how we handle the situation. I'm still out of Hulkbuster suits, and you haven't given me permission to build new ones," –he pointed at several politicians in particular with a meaningful look— "and we still don't really know what's going on. Is he alone, or just the vanguard? Does he have any motives we can understand? According to mythology he has some connection to Loki, so presumably there really was one in fact. Does this mean he's some sort of petty attack on us by Loki from beyond the grave? Because if so, then you can bet there's more going on."
Then Iron Man subtly straightened, drawing more authority to himself. "Whatever it is, we've got to handle this with a cool head. And if worse comes to worse, we've still got is some very nasty weaponry."
Tony honestly could not tell if they were denying him the right to make the Hulkbusters out of a moronic need to assert their control over the Avengers –based upon the equally moronic assumptions there were no imminent threats, and the Hulk would have attacked already if he were planning to—, or out of fear of the Avengers. The overpaid suits with more than two brain cells probably decided to save their political capital for something more 'important' with the Avengers.
Iron Man paused, then looked at his fellow Avengers. "Since it hasn't killed anyone, but by the way it attacked that robot, we can assume it'll probably treat a human the same way. Hence why the copters fired upon it. That said, since we haven't escalated to the point where anyone's dead or wounded, we can still give one last try at communicating with or capturing it. Failing that, we open up with everything we've got."
"Mr. Stark," blustered the politician from before.
"The military is behind you," Talbot cut in. "Remember though, we're all part of the same team." The message was obvious: 'This is your only chance to make a good first impression with the Registered Avengers, and get the support you need. Don't mess it up by acting like a rogue cowboy.'
XXX
Just outside of Nevada
The convoy of military men in trucks raced down the road to help contain the threat in Las Vegas. Some of them had even been there the first time super-powered madness had gone down there. They were the proud and loyal defenders of America however, truth and liberty, and weren't going to sit back without doing whatever they could to protect all their beloved country stood for. Turning a corner, they found themselves sharing a road with a couple on an old motorcycle.
"Hmph. No helmet," groused the lieutenant in charge. While he might be a man who volunteered for dangerous service, he remained a firm believer in abiding with safety laws and equipment, so you got back home again. Especially when back home meant you faced fewer risks. Why go out looking for more?
Then the man driving the bike glanced towards them, instantly recognizable as Steve Rogers.
"…Sergeant? You seeing this?"
"Yessir."
"I'm going to call this up the line. Sound good?"
"Yessir."
XXX
En Route to Las Vegas
Government Registered Quinjet
"I don't care about the Accords," Tony politely yet firmly said to the talking heads on his screen. "Whatever this is, it's Asgardian, and Sif's our resident expert. Since we don't have Little Red Riding Hood or a convenient hunter to take care of our little wolf problem, let's try asking her politely first, hmm!?"
XXX
Just outside of Nevada
Riding on their bike, Captain America and Lady Sif watched the soldiers miming tapping their wrists and talking into it, while others held up maps and pointed to Las Vegas. The genuine enthusiasm they were all showing at seeing them was both reassuring, as well as demonstrating how serious the situation was. "I think they want us to call Tony about whatever's happening in Vegas," Captain America said. While they did not know what was going on, government bulletins about it had spread across the nation as they city was being evacuated again, and civil services raced to handle the emergency.
"Yes."
Sif leaned back a little so she could turn on her wrist computer, and a few moments later had Iron Man on speakerphone. Despite her alterations to ensure he could not track her with it, she had left the rest of its functions intact.
"This is Lady Sif," the Asgardian in question said into the mike.
"Captain America."
"Great, excellent, glad you're back from the honeymoon," Tony's voice broke in. "Listen, I'm sending you a visual, but we've got a giant wolf attacking Las Vegas. Near as we can tell, it came out of Death Valley with a bad attitude, and the only clue we have about its origins is that we detected an energy signature similar to that of Asgard's Bifrost right before it appeared. Care to explain?"
Promptly, Sif got to work. "It sounds as if it came out of the same Passage between the Nine Realms that Lorelei used before. As for what it is, there are many creatures that resemble wolves that I know of. I need something more specific."
"Well, from the picture, it is black, mixed with grey. Super long fangs. Huh, Vision's saying its claws are proportionately longer than an Earth wolf's claws—I cannot believe I just said that sentence. It's big." Then Sif's computer pinged and pulled up a picture. "Oh, and its eyes are green. ….Hello? You get that? Anyone there?"
"Tony," Steve carefully said, still driving as he glanced over his shoulder. "Sif just went white as a sheet."
"Guess that means she recognizes it."
"Fenrir," Sif whispered. "Impossible." Then she stiffened, hand going to her collapsed sword at her side. "Iron Man, get everyone away from it now! Full evacuation, including all of your regular soldiers!"
"I need some more detail—"
Sif snapped. "We couldn't kill it!" Steve stiffened, and Iron Man shut up. "When it ran loose before, it killed thousands of humans and hundreds of Asgardians! We threw everything we had at it, short of weapons that would've rendered your world uninhabitable! It took King Odin himself to wear it down so we could chain it! And even then…I was a young woman at the time, still too inexperienced to be allowed to fight, but I saw the devastation it left in its wake."
Vision's calming voice spoke up. "Where did it come from?"
"Loki. He was experimenting with creating a new type of…battle hound, I guess that is how I would describe it. Loki hoped that such an achievement would earn King Odin's favour. I later learnt that not even our most learned elders understood what went so horribly wrong, but I would now guess it lay in Loki's blood.
"You see, he took a sample of the genetic material of an Asgardian named Tyr, who even then was the chosen successor to become the Commander of the Einherjar, our most elite warriors. Then he took a hair from one of Odin's personal wolves, Geri, whose name rightfully means 'the ravenous.' Finally, Loki added his own blood to the merging of magic and science. Unfortunately, he believed he was an Asgardian as well, when in fact he was a Frost Giant." She paused. "Your 'mythology' got many details partially right, although I doubt the 'Giantess' was a reference to Loki's status.
"Regardless, the result was a hybrid of an enhanced animal, and two of the mightiest beings of the Nine Realms. It was born as you see it now, with both an insatiable hunger, and inherent skill at dealing out death.
"Mindlessly it struck out in violence at everyone around it, nearly killing Thor and Loki from the beginning."
"So, its own strength and durability are an enhanced version of what Thor has," Vision theorized.
"That is part of it. The other problem is its ability to seamlessly convert matter into energy and back again."
"…I'm sorry," Tony incredulously broke in. "Could you repeat that?"
Taking a deep breath, Sif explained. She could tell that Tony Stark was now coming to understand the horror they faced, while Steve was just starting to catch on. "What inspired your myths about how Fenrir's wide mouth could swallow the sun and earth, was that it can eat anything and instantly convert it into energy, which is then reformed into bio-matter to heal itself. People and animals are merely its preference. Dirt, rocks, weapons, anything that it can bite down on, will instantly be used to refresh it.
"I'm sorry Thor and I never told you. We assumed that this was a part of Asgard's history that was buried, and needed to stay that way."
There was a pause, and then Tony spoke again, audibly irritated. "Sorry, I'd like to talk to you more about that, given how it's what we're going to be fighting. But given what you've just said, is there any chance of the cavalry coming to Vegas again?"
Frustrated, Sif shook her head, even though she knew Tony could not see. "Unless they received word what happened, and if the war with Thanos continues, then I'm Asgard's aid."
"Wonderful."
XXX
En Route to Las Vegas
Government Registered Quinjet
Tony felt like banging his head against the side of the plane. Unfortunately, sometime in the last few years he had developed a sense of responsibility, and he just knew if he took the time to do that, then something would go horrifically wrong while he was not paying attention, and he would not get a wink of sleep for the next few months due to the ensuing nightmares.
With a thought, his faceplate lowered down, demonstrating he was ready for action, but giving him time to consider their choices in privacy. For in reality, he was verifying if nuclear weapons were a viable option before one of the politicians freaked out and ordered a strike.
If he grabbed onto an active, flying nuke for a second time in his life, especially without a convenient wormhole nearby, Pepper would kill him!
Worse, she might send him to a professional therapist.
He refused to consider her dumping him.
Recognizing his friend was stalling for time, Rhodes spoke up. "So Fenrir is a confirmed hostile then. If something like that killed thousands of people before, we're not giving him another chance. Especially if we can't reason with it."
"If his regenerative factor requires feeding off of matter," Vision offered, "we could try carrying him into space."
"No way it's that easy," Falcon informed them.
(What would be really convenient right now was someone who could form portals to elsewhere. Alas, something that convenient would have to be magical. Which is silly, because magic is make believe.)
(That part about Fenrir being made by magic was just a fancy way of saying 'technology too advanced for you to understand.')
(Right?)
"Too bad we don't have Scarlet Witch," Clint piped up. "She could lift it safely from a distance while one of you carried her as high up as she could manage. Or put it to sleep with a thought."
Rhodes shot the archer a sharp look, wondering if the super-spy was fishing for details on his surrogate daughter's location, or knew where she was and was angling for something to earn her a pardon, or was playing some other game.
"Hmph. Well Black Widow wouldn't be much help, but maybe the Hulk and this monster could kill each other. Save us the trouble," one politician observed with a projected air of wisdom and authority.
"Pffph, they'd probably join forces," another snapped.
"What I'd like to know," another cut in, "is why is it here? We're told it's a mindless beast that Asgard chained up. So why is it in Vegas?" Finally, a senator who seemed to deserve his position.
"Sif? Anything to contribute?" Tony asked as he finished multitasking.
"A moment." They patiently waited, and then she spoke up again. "The Dwarves were the ones who forged the chains and its prison, so they were judged the best to house it, along with a detachment of elite warriors. I cannot believe that it could have broken loose and destroyed their world without warning reaching us, unless it had assistance. No, if it really is Fenrir, then the fact that it has somehow appeared here and now without any warning, is too great a coincidence. Someone must have freed it, and lured it here."
"Well, great," Tony muttered. "And for the record, nukes won't work." Then he e-mailed the politicians a massive file detailing the loss of life, economic and environmental fallout, and the likely international response if the US started deploying tactical nuclear weapons on their own cities. As they received his research, he idly noted how about half of them seemed to have already received messages of some sort on their phones, despite this being a confidential meeting, where personal means of communication should have been confiscated.
"What about the orbital weaponry? Can't we use the defense satellites to fire upon it from space?" one politician offered, seeming distracted. "The Asgardians probably didn't have them."
"No, sir, all they had was the Bifrost to handle that," Tony said, dripping sarcasm. "As for our defense satellites, your committee said something or other about making sure they couldn't be used to fire down. So no, that won't work."
"Mr. Stark. Iron Man," a politician, clearly ex-military, broke in before anyone could take offense. "How confident are you that you can address this threat?"
"We're Avengers, sir," Iron Man said with steel. "We'll get the job done. Always."
"If we might offer an alternative?"
The Avengers stiffened as a new communication screen popped open on its own, revealing the faces of Phillip Coulson and Robert Banner.
"We have some experience with advanced technology after all."
XXX
Las Vegas
Confused, Fenrir sniffed the air some more, before set off again at a slower pace towards where it smelled the most concentrated smell of the inhabitants.
XXX
En Route to Las Vegas
Government Registered Quinjet
"What do you want?" Iron Man growled, even as he took note of how oddly quiet the various politicians were suddenly being. Great, some of them are being blackmailed or bribed by the Appendix. Given the level of electronic sophistication available to them, it would be child's play to play an Ultron and merely alter banking records to go either down or astronomically up. It was not universal though, as a noticeable minority of them were clearly suspicious of their colleagues' atypical, passive behaviour, and were choosing to just observe before they made any moves.
"Given what we've already heard," Robert shamelessly said, "this is a super-beast that is nigh unstoppable. An apex predator created from the pinnacle of what Asgardian technology can achieve. Imagine if it could be used to target Thanos? Also, it is a powerhouse that our future projections have not accounted for. It benefits no one if the Avengers are killed, and Nevada is turned into a wasteland."
"You mean your Magic 8 Ball doesn't work on it, and that makes you afraid," Iron Man drawled, raising his faceplate to glare at them.
"Not for long. While we haven't had experience using our mind control on Asgardians, we have with other advanced races. Specifically Dark Elves. Our sole remaining specimen will survive long enough to attach a device that will take control of it. To do so however, we need your cooperation to make it work, otherwise either we'll be getting in each other's way, or our agent won't be able to get close long enough to pull it off."
XXX
Entering Nevada
"How much do you want to bet that it's the same Dark Elf Kurse warrior you were warning us about?" Steve grimly asked Sif.
"Given how the evidence indicates that the Hulk was originally based off of them, fairly high," she agreed through gritted teeth.
XXX
[Flashback]
Face bloody yet determined, Thor stared down the approaching figure of Algrim, now larger, hulking with muscles as spikes jutted out of his body. Raising his hand towards his foe, the Thunderer called forth his mighty weapon.
Sure and true Mjolnir flew towards Alrgim to strike him down from behind, yet almost without pause the Kurse backhanded away the hammer forged from the heart of a dying star.
Unhindered, the Dark Elf proceeded to beat Thor as he lay on the ground.
XXX
Present
"So they might pull it off," Steve concluded.
"Indeed. Which would make the situation worse."
XXX
En Route to Las Vegas
Government Registered Quinjet
Tony Stark glanced at his own politicians who were keeping quiet, King T'Challa who remained detached from the situation, and finally laid his eyes on Hawkeye. Oh how I wish I could just ask if the cavalry is going to show up. But comms are clearly compromised.
Throwing a quick look at General Talbot, the metal face of Iron Man slammed back down. "Okay, it's a deal. How do you want to play this?"
"We knew you'd see reason."
XXX
Half an hour later
"He's definitely taking a more cautious route," Falcon observed as they watched satellite surveillance of Fenrir, while tapping his fingers.
"From what Sif's said, he's spent the last few centuries locked up in a box," War Machine pointed out. "Probably overwhelmed by all the unfamiliar scents and such."
"Get ready ladies, we engage in five!" barked Iron Man.
War Machine's faceplate went up. "Tony," Rhodes said in a voice that clearly said 'not cool.' "What've I told you?"
"I don't get to use military lingo," he answered in the tone of a chastised child.
"That's right," War Machine said as his face slammed back into place.
Turning back to the computer screens, Iron Man observed how King T'Challa and Hawkeye had signed off while he was distracted.
"I'll let you go now," Talbot said. "Heavens know you can't afford to be distracted."
Fortunately, the politicians got the hint, except for one of the ones who had been quiet the whole time; sitting back and taking in what was happening. "Iron Man," he suddenly spoke up, "do you think those gentlemen who contacted you could try a different approach?"
"Like what, sir?" Iron Man asked with a guarded tone.
"Am I incorrect in the assumption that they could turn our soldiers into hulklings, temporarily, to fight Fenrir? Is it a viable course of attack?"
Automatically Iron Man registered the reactions of the men and women who were with the one speaker brave enough to speak up. Particularly the ones betraying themselves by freezing up.
"…I don't think so, sir," Iron Man answered after a brief moment of hesitation. Note to self: Keep an eye on this one. Clearing his throat, he elaborated. "The soldiers would be too confused by their rampaging emotions, we'd have no idea what would happen. And if they have a way to create a mentally stable gamma super-soldier, then it must come with too high a price for them to use it on themselves. They aren't the type to trust anyone else enough to give them that sort of power."
"I see. Thank you. Good luck, Avengers." Then the man switched off the screen from his side.
XXX
Las Vegas
Appendix Jet
"I see. Thank you. Good luck, Avengers." Then the man switched off the screen from his side.
"Someone to watch out for," Zemo said, deciding it was best to appear as if he were contributing. "Once this is over of course."
"Hmph, no worries," Robert confidently assured him.
Their cloaked jet settled down in an open lot, only a few blocks away from Fenrir's predicted path. While crude by Robert and Phillip's standards, for Zemo it was clearly years more advanced than anything even Tony Stark could build, with a Dark Elf cloaking device installed; not even the great Asgardian Heimdall could see them now.
Given how cramped it was inside though, they had all stepped outside with their main gear.
"We'll probably lose the Dark Elf," Phillip says with a touch of regret. They had brought both cryo-pods with them, and he was standing over the one holding the alien in question, looking through the little window to see the frosted being within. "Let's just hope we get an upgrade to an actual Wolf God."
"Are you going to use him, or cut him open to figure out how his power ticks?" Zemo asked.
"Huh," Robert stopped in thought. "I hadn't thought of that last idea. Hmm…"
"Well, let's not count our chickens until they hatch," Phillip reminded them. "We still have to wake this guy up, and put Fenrir under our control." He reached forward to begin the procedure to deactivate the pod—
"Hands in the air!"
Whirling around, they saw they were surrounded in a semi-circle by armed soldiers in urban camouflage. Trying to run back inside the plane was clearly not an option.
"I'm getting old," Phillip sighed in a tone calculated to help deescalate the situation. "Can we help you gentlemen?" he asked, while putting his hands on his head.
"Who do you think you are!?" snapped an enraged Robert.
"Captain Casey Ryback, US SEALs," the soldier in charge answered. "My orders are to take you terrorists into custody."
"There's been some sort of misunderstanding," Phillip tersely said. "We're working with your superiors."
"No, you aren't," SEAL Captain Ryback calmly corrected. "Tony Stark doesn't speak for the US government, and none of our duly elected officials said anything to confirm his words. Neither did General Talbot, except he knew Mr. Stark was only baiting you to this location."
Something caught Phillip's attention, and he saw one SEAL near the back holding a sophisticated scanner. Iron Man must've found a way to track us through our cloaking device! Clearly they had underestimated the man, especially since he had been killed in the process of saving New York in their timeline. There being no Hulk to save him after all.
Captain Ryback went on. "More importantly, you're wanted under suspicion for the deaths of a lot of our fellow soldiers, and some of them were friends of mine. Not to mention a host of other crimes. So I urge you to cooperate and come quietly, or I won't be held responsible for what happens to you."
"You don't know what you're dealing with," Robert angrily threatened. He was further incensed when the SEALs gave no reaction, being more professional than that.
XXX
Las Vegas
Temporary Military Headquarters
"Checkmate," Talbot said with a self-satisfied grin. The man had just arrived in Vegas, and felt he had timed it perfectly.
Once Stark managed to lure the Appendix into complacency like that, it had become too easy. From his private, secure chats with the leader of the Avengers, Talbot had been all but eager to bring those madmen in. This would take a dangerous wildcard off the board so they could focus on the furry one. There was even a chance they could –safely, with due caution— use their technology to handle the super-wolf.
Then he took a mental step back to ensure he had not missed anything.
XXX
"And not another word from you guys," Ryback coolly added. "Being a mad scientist and ex-spooks, I don't want you setting anything off. Lieutenant Nate, cuff them. As for your Miranda Rights: you have the right to remain silent. You will remain silent because I think you are a genuine threat otherwise. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you. They will help you address the fact you are not allowed to indicate you understand what rights I have just read to you."
Very good, Zemo praised. Just not good enough.
There was a reason the Sokovian had not entertained killing the time travelers and taking their gear after all.
The last cryo-pod was deceiving. It worked at a low enough temperature to preserve the flesh perfectly, yet the electronic systems still functioned automatically. Each and every device with a shred of processing capacity that came within range was hacked without discrimination.
Street cameras. The supposedly secure Stark Industries cameras the SEALs were wearing to send live intelligence to their superiors. Even one on a car's dashboard.
Then the raw data was processed.
+++Threat detected+++
+++Initiate functions+++
+++Primary Objective: Terminate+++
A single electronic command was given, and the doors to the pod swung open, while the figure within stood up with a smooth grace.
The escaping steam from the sudden release cloaked them in an ominous shroud, yet that was not what made the SEALs hesitate despite their training.
Despite everything they had prepared for, it was only now that the world comprehended the nightmare that was the Appendix.
The limbs were made of an oily, black metal. While the legs were functional, the feet ended in three claws, while the heel had a stiletto that was unquestionably pointed.
It was the hands that one noticed next however, as they were larger and longer than a humans', with fingers twice as long as normal, absently moving. They resembled black spider legs more than anything.
A tightfitting leather suit over skin as pale as death.
It was the eyes that told the full story of what they faced. They were cybernetic, placed into corpse's face, with green LED lights in place of pupils.
The corpse of Natasha Banner.
Idly Robert Banner stroked a curl of her pristine hair, the cyborg unresponsive. "My wife had been dying for some time, and I was unwilling to let her go. So I took preparations for when her suffering was finally over. I rebuilt her while her brain was still warm. Accessing what her life had imprinted upon it, to retain all those memories and skills."
The smile turned demented now. "All the abilities of the Black Widow, but enhanced beyond anything she was ever capable of while alive. The perfect Wife!"
XXX
Arriving in Vegas
Government Registered Quinjet
"I am going to kill him," Iron Man stated. "I am going to kill him, and then I am going to get wasted until I never remember this day."
Falcon was too green to say anything, while Rhodes was muttering a prayer.
Frowning, Vision shook his head. "I am feeling emotions I've never felt before. Including the desire to also become intoxicated."
"We're calling it the Cyber Widow for the duration," Iron Man said. "I'd come up with something catchier, except there's no point if we're not going to be remembering any of this. After this we head straight for the nearest bar and don't stop till we forget."
XXX
Las Vegas
Phillip and Robert watched with clinical detachment.
"Open fire," the admittedly savvy Captain Ryback said, while unloading his own assault rifle.
'She' was already moving before he could get a clear shot having analyzed the man's body and facial language. Alive, she could have reached a conclusion from that information, and acted before he had finished saying 'open.'
Enhanced?
The Cyber Widow was moving before he opened his mouth.
Mechanical legs hammered the ground as she was within arm's length of them, knife blades coming out of the palms of her hands to slit throats. If they were just out of her range and she could not spare the time to focus on them, she cut off whole arms to take them out of the fight.
"EMP!" was the last thing Ryback snapped. A true SEAL to the last, through sheer will he ignored the gaping cut to his neck to pull out his sidearm to try and shoot her.
His hand was cut off as the Cyber Widow danced to kill two more of his men and women in a single gesture.
The last soldier managed to hit the EMP.
In a flash of light, the Appendix's jet crackled and died, along with most of their technology.
Cyber Widow never stopped moving.
"As if I wouldn't prepare for that," an insulted Robert hissed. His wrist computer was also still functioning, feeding him live data from his Wife. They were his masterpieces after all, and the plane had not been worth further attention. Their current setback notwithstanding.
Then her hands slapped down to her thighs, and magnets disengaged as she held up a P-90 submachine gun in each hand.
Without wasting time to turn around, she leapt fifteen meters into the air as the P-90s snapped back to point behind her, muzzles barking as she took out the second squad that had come in from behind. They had come around from the Appendix's blindside, disabling traffic cameras as they went; unfortunately, the Cyber Widow's computerized mind had picked up that fact, and knew they were coming. The final nail in all their coffins was that they had failed to both disable the last camera, as well as the ones they were still wearing, which let her 'see' everything necessary to kill them.
One bullet each between the eyes.
Landing upon the defunct jet, she turned as she landed to gun down a third squad. Deftly she moved across its surface, processing their movements at literally inhuman speeds to always calculate where they would be aiming so she could move to where they were not. Alive with purely organic arms she had been a crack shot with any gun, with pistols being her specialty, breaking both the KGB, HYDRA, and SHIELD records for marksmanship before being Enhanced. Thanks to her Husband, she could fire any weapon, at any range, with zero recoil.
What was the worst was her face. In life it had been expressionless from a cool detachment in battle. …Now?
The implanted eyes were the same, bright shade of green they had always been, momentarily fooling observers into believing they had a spark of a soul inside of them. It was the face that showed the truth however, not just pale and dead, but slack. Mouth hanging open a little from lack of muscle control as Robert Banner's obsession led him to overlook it. No expression, no thoughts, no remorse.
The Ultimate Assassin.
XXX
Las Vegas
Government Registered Quinjet
The Ultimate Assassin, Iron Man dully thought. And everything our Natasha ever feared of becoming.
"Iron Man," Vision formally said. "What do we do?"
The armoured warrior visibly paused, before shaking his head in disgust. They had seen everything through the same camera feeds that the Cyber Widow had used. "Fenrir's still the biggest threat." He glanced at Falcon to show support and raise moral a little. "And thanks to bird-brain, we've got a plan." Then Iron Man pointedly waved his right index and middle fingers.
Falcon had been the one to silently come up with a way to communicate without the Appendix tapping in, or realizing the Avengers were coming up with a silent plan. While they had left the cameras that had clearly been hacked running, they had discretely moved their bodies or gear to create blind spots, which hid how they were either silently tapping out Morse code, or in Tony's case doing gestures, with his index finger serving as 'dot,' and the other as 'dash.' It was made easier by the fact that the eyes of three of the individuals were hidden by faceplates and goggles, hiding what they were looking at specifically.
They also had a viable plan now.
"The Appendix is at its most vulnerable," Vision pointed out. "Their means of escape disabled, and now we have evidence they are criminals from their actions. We may even have enough now to clear the names of the rest of our friends."
Visibly glancing at the sensors to show they were only thirty seconds away from engaging Fenrir, Iron Man placed a hand on Vision's shoulder to appear placating, knowing his friend still had issue with human emotions, and how they would influence the situation right now. "They're also at their most desperate. We failed to swoop them up in one go, so now they'll play all their cards to escape and win. Talbot can try to contain them, and they're stuck in Nevada while we bombard it with satellites and spy drones. That's all we can do for now, because we've got bigger puppies to fry."
XXX
Hearing the sound of something large incoming right at him through sky, Fenrir barred his teeth in anticipation.
XXX
Author Notes:
I confess that descriptive work for Fenrir were aided by the werewolves in the Mercy Thompson novels, by Patricia Briggs. Do not let the covers fool you, they are surprisingly good books.
Due to not being American, and my own lack of knowledge of geography, I was honestly surprised to discover that Las Vegas –or what was left of it— would be the closest major city for Fenrir. Place really cannot catch a break, huh?
Anyone recognize where Casey Rybackis from? ;-P
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Next Chapter: "Ragnarok Part 2: Death Comes to All"
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