Chapter 20 - Endgame & RevelationsThe Universe and the Norns still required something from Loki, and it would go a long way to heal the scars of darkness inside him.
Not even 36 hours after Banner brought the Decimated back, a glowing, hissing portal opened in the living room of their brownstone. Jane gasped and moved to stand behind Loki, but the ancient man knew who had come to call. Stephen Strange stepped out of the portal, looking as if he hadn't aged a day since they had last spoken. It was then that Loki knew that the Sorcerer Supreme had been one of Thanos' victims.
"Loki Odinson, you are needed."
"For what purpose?" Loki hedged, having a feeling he knew what was about to be asked.
"There will be one final conflict to determine the outcome of all reality. Every soul who can fight is needed on the battlefield. Your magic is invaluable to this fight. Without you, our chances of winning go from slim to none."
"What do I have that no one else has?" Jane reached out and slipped her hand into his.
"You have two things, Liesmith." Dr. Strange spoke calmly, even as electricity skittered around his body. "First is your tie to the Space Stone. You and your magic are threaded with the power of the stone, much like your SoulBond has been altered by the Reality Stone."
"Jane is not going into battle, Strange." Loki felt his hackles rise, protective instincts taking over.
"No, but you can draw on her power temporarily. You know the spell."
Loki nodded, knowing the spell that would cause his beloved's magic to flow into him, for a time. It was an ancient magic, known by few and practiced by none. It wouldn't be something that Thanos would even think to be scanning for.
"Very well, sorcerer. You said two things."
"Out of all the people that Thanos has slain, you are the only one to have survived. This is crucial." The look in Strange's eyes changed, becoming nearly feral. Loki wondered what had happened to the man who had been gone for five years. No one knew if the people simply stopped experiencing things, or if they had been transported to another plane of existence.
"He does not know you are alive. We can use that lapse to buy precious seconds in order for the one future that I saw in which we win to come to pass."
Loki, speechless, looked to Jane, who nodded.
"Take my power, and make him pay for everything he has ever done."
"Time grows short." Strange warned. "He is on his way, passing into our Solar System even as we speak. Cast your spell Frost Giant, and fulfill your destiny."
Nodding Loki focused on Jane, his beautiful Jane. Her fire was a beautiful counter to his ice, the two of them in perfect harmony. Together their power was impressive, but with Loki having control of both, he would be nearly unstoppable. The spell that was required was wordless, more a direction of will and willingness than anything else. The magic giver had to be willing to release their magic to the seeker in order for the transfer to work. Swiftly, Loki bent his head to kiss Jane, activating the spell.
Energy, white hot burned through their Bond, pouring into him with astonishing ease. Loki's magical reserves went through the roof. He felt completely refreshed and ready for battle. Jane however, drooped in his arms, drained from the transfer. Gently he scooped her up and teleported to their bedroom. She was asleep before her head hit the pillow. With a gentle kiss Loki spun a protective weave around her and returned to Strange.
"She will sleep until the battle is over." Loki told the cloaked man. Strange nodded and turned to step through the portal.
Immediately they were flung into battle, the landscape outside the Avengers compound reduced to rubble and charred by mage blasts. The Black Order and Thanos' foot soldiers were everywhere. Millenia of battle strategy came into play, and Loki began to move on autopilot. War was an old friend to him, and he settled into the dance of kill or be killed. He didn't know how long he fought, but somehow he had been moving closer and closer to the epicenter of the fighting, to where Thanos held court.
He watched as Marvel fought with him, her immense power from the raw power of the formerly Tesseract encased Space Stone fueling her. She shone like a star on the battlefield, able to easily hold her own against a fully powered Thanos. He was so evenly matched that he had to palm the Power Stone in his other hand in order for him to knock her away. Movement to the side caught Loki's eye. Stephen Strange held up his hand to Tony Stark, indicating that this was the one timeline where they could succeed. Loki's heart sank; Stark would have to sacrifice himself, and he knew it.
With surprising speed Stark grabbed the Gauntlet, trying to pull either it or the Stones from the Mad Titan. Now was the time for Loki to show himself. He knew that it would expose him to everyone, but it needed to be done. He was the distraction while Stark was the true Endgame.
"THANOS!" Loki bellowed, going full Jotun. The entire battle stopped, everyone seeming to freeze at the coldness in his voice. Using his magic Loki levitated himself high into the air before letting loose a rain of fire and ice into the face of the purple titan.
The man howled in pain, but the distraction worked. Stark was able to slip the stones from their moorings without Thanos noticing.
"You pest! How dare you thwart me. I killed you once, Son of Laufey, and I will gladly do it again! I am inevitable."
Thanos moved to snap his fingers, but nothing happened. Loki landed behind Iron Man, more man than iron now. Quickly he spun a red web of protection around the man, using Jane's Aether powers to repel anything that would attempt to stop Stark. Loki also channeled energy into Stark, slowing the progress of his life force being devoured by the Stones. Stark was full of resilience for a mortal. Normally no one could wield a single stone, let alone all six. Loki surmised that Stark's nanotechnology was also helping keep the power at bay. Even still, everyone knew that this was the last stand of Tony Stark and Iron Man.
"And … I … am … Iron Man."
With a snap, Tony served the final justice to the Mad Titan. The Black Order and foot soldiers faded into ash, the evil of Thanos being undone into nothingness. The heroes of the Universe watch as Thanos stumbled to sit on a pile of debris, alone. Before them was the once mighty Thanos, feared across the Universe. However, in the end, he was swept away in the same manner as his horde. It began at his feet, progressing up his body as he turned to ash. The last thing to go was his face, sorrow and defeat in his eyes.
With a wave Loki removes the protective spell from Stark, watching as Peter Parker and Pepper Potts-Stark rushes to Tony's side. Stepping back in reverence, it is Loki who kneels first. He knew that there would be many to question his role in all of this, but that time was not now. Now, it was time to honor the ferocity and courage of a simple man. A man cursed with glorious purpose. A purpose to save all of humanity and reality with the giving of his own life.
When the last breath left the body of Tony Stark, Thor crashed to his knees and let out a wounded battle cry, Stormbreaker falling limply to the ground. Steve Rogers looked on with tears streaming down his cheeks, Mjolnir and his broken shield falling to the dirt at his feet. In a wave, every hero on the battlefield, even those who never knew Stark, knelt in reverence to the passing of the bravest man they knew.
After an indeterminable silence broken only by sobs, a voice floated through the dusty air.
"Loki?"