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Lin was in her room alone and silent for too many hours to be healthy, Pepper feared she was hurting herself as she used to do when she felt so unbearably dirty that not even new wounds which didn't regenerate so easily would make her want to stop cleaning herself, it's not that she was exposed to human contact in the last days, but the hell scared she got when she left her alone and found her surrounded by blood wouldn't let her to forget or not to worry. That's why she was in front of the room's door in a dilemma about whether she should knock or not; Friday reassured her that everything was fine, but the artificial intelligence could lie if this was the command given by its mentor. In her hands, she held a tray with cupcakes, cookies, toasts and juice; she would never get used to the idea of that the younger could spend days without eating anything and proof of that is that she didn't hesitate even for a minute before preparing a breakfast for her.
- You know. - The voice come from inside and very close to the door made her stop her nervous movements of walking from side to side. – I can hear your steps since you arrived. – Lin turned the door handle and opened a small passage. – I didn't lock the door, you can come in whenever you want.
The little part of her marked face that was visible from where she was showed a tired, forced and melancholic smile. Her dark circles were deeper than ever and she constantly seemed to be in pain, but her body weirdly looked like it was in its sovereignty peak and Pepper also asked herself why this so-sudden change was happening.
Linna stepped back slowly, clumsy and with an involuntary trembling she couldn't control. She gave some space so that the other could enter and sat on the carpet in a distant corner; she was drawing before the noise outside devolved her. Ms. Stark put the tray with the food on the ground close to her and kept lowered, curious about the beautiful images she saw on the spread papers and soon she noticed that accuracy of the details and traits was much more significant than usual. They were memories.
- Have you ever been to these places? – She asked carefully, seeing that the girl stopped what she returned to do just to look at her and answer.
- Yes, no. I haven't been there personally, nor will I ever be, but Loki used to take my conscience there to distract myself. It was fun. – A nostalgic smile turned up on her face.
- Loki really helped you a lot, didn't he? – Though disliking and somehow keeping a lot of grief of the god, she couldn't refrain admitting he was the only person who was present to her during most time of her life.
- Oh, yes. He's been very special for me. He made me to maintain a sanity I should have lost a long time ago. – She giggled, this was one of the moments she reminded a child, and left aside the paper she was using. – This is Asgard. – She indicated the illustrations and got closer to the older, picking one of the cupcakes to her disposition. – Maybe not the real Asgard, since everything I saw was through Loki's eyes, but it was very real, it made me feel to want to have a home when everything was over.
Pepper felt her heart tighten, each part of her indicated that there was something more in the words of the younger and there was a much bigger reason for the god having showed her something so intimate, so as the absence of an angry or the presence of a big conformation instigated her not to let the subject die that fast, now she had the opportunity to know a little bit more about her.
- It was something frequent you to be taken to this Asgard vision? – Each one of the drawings had a big dedication in their composition, just because they were about very important moments for her.
- No, usually he'd just show me some amazing place when I needed to forget where I actually was. – Lin seemed to find funny when she showed her the scars on her wrists, they weren't cuts or marks of chains like those on her neck, someone had bitten he skin and pulled it out. A wound that should have killed her. – there was this day I freaked out a little bit more than usual, I thought Loki was just another illusion of my mind and that he had never been real. I started to believe that the only thing that kept me alive didn't exist and then I didn't want to exist too. I took my body to a near-death state and when Loki felt it and came for me it was almost too late. – She smiled. – He got mad at me, used a lot of his power to touch me, so that I could feel him for the first time and then took my conscience to Asgard. It was there I started to accept again that I was not alone, he trained me and taught me a lot of things during that time, but he couldn't keep me for much time, so eventually I had to come back, just to discover I wouldn't die and that my jailers had saved me. I never forgot those days, they were really remarkable for me.
There was something about the gods that Pepper really couldn't understand, it was not part of her nature to see the universe as they did and even she had already been through a lot, seen the unthinkable and fought powerful people in extreme moments, she could never understand the naturality that the woman she was learning to treat as a daughter and these divinities dealt with situations like these. Even though she didn't like to admit, Lin was raised by a legend, every reference she has of what's right and what's wrong comes from it, she would never act as a normal human, simply because she is different of any other being of her species and that's exactly what makes her so charming, instigating and attractively interesting. She doesn't problematize her own past, she's always moving forward and improving, each new thing in her life is a lesson learnt and a way of going on, but it's also noticeable that, despite everything, her human side still manifests and Stark suffers internally with everything of bad they have already done, or still do, to her.
- I wanted to be able to say that you're fine now, even after everything… - Lin filled a glass with strawberry juice almost mechanically, it was like she was eating or accepting what the other had brought to her just because it was what she was supposed to do. Her hand trembled and the liquid spilled for that, but it wasn't possible to affirm she was conscious of what was happening around her. – However, Loki is someone too important for you, you can't make me think not even for a second that you're ok, even if you try.
- We had a deal. – She started hesitating, quickly shrinking and bringing close the juice she could put in the glass. – We should fight one against the other when we lost the value, to the death. – Lin looked aside, she seemed constrained and shaken. – but this didn't happen, he left me behind and gave me the opportunity for me to live a better life. You who don't understand can say whatever you want, however, if I'm still here it's because he loves me somehow. – a weak laugh sounded from her lips and tears came to her eyes. – that son of a bitch thinks you can give me something really good, I should punch him for that.
- I'm sure I can help you to change your mind, we've talked about that, you definitively can adapt and learn to be happy here. – Pepper looked at her very welcomingly and lovingly and this caught the younger's attention for a moment and brought some redness to her cheeks.
There were moments like that in which Stark opened herself to the older really try to help, in which she opened her arms and allowed her to enroll in all the good feelings she was willing to offer. The redhaired interpreted that as a good sign, after all, if there is a perception that the help is needed and if there's a permission to intrude, maybe what follows is a next step for improvements.
- You're a good person, Pepper. – Lin tighten her more strongly in the hug, but not enough to hurt her. – If I lose my mind someday, promise me you will keep very far with Morgan, no matter what.
- I promise. – It wasn't a problem to her to assure she wouldn't get hurt or let her little girl to if a wrath attack or crisis happened; this could actually tranquilize her, there's always fears of hurting someone important when you're not controlling your body anymore.
However, what Pepper didn't see was that on the face of the younger it was molded a sick expression, on the verge of insanity. No one beside Cat, that was lazily laid on the bed, was witness of how bizarre her expressions were and of her true intentions. Everything was going perfectly well.
(…)
Pip, the space stone guardian, was playing in a dark alley between the uncountable buildings of that planet whose name he didn't remember. He was very drunk and probably quite loaded, but he felt satisfied even not being able of walking back to his spaceship.
His night had been really good, he had enjoyed every single second and spent the last cent of his economies, he deserved a little bit of fun, he needed to forget his burdens for at least some hours.
His enemies were at war one against the others, all because of the goddamn stones given for them to protect. Every day he had the impression that he was doing things he usually wouldn't or speaking things he definitively wouldn't say, he admitted he took too long to realize, but he knew that the relic he former was so proud of having was now ruining his life and of those who kept its similar. Every time he tried to alert them, they wouldn't listen to him and this was one of the reasons why he wanted them to get themselves fucked, but while this didn't happen, he would attain to laugh at his own disgrace. It's been a while since he accepted that now he was just a troll, the fact of resurrecting extremely stronger than before surely helped, but yet he considered a cold destiny irony that among all the powerful beings who kept the stones, just him noticed what they were doing.
The alcohol helped him to think coherently, his thoughts became much less confusing than when he was sober, however, despite this, they were still much instable and not much smart. They needed urgently to find a way of turn this around and develop a plan to get completely rid of the stone's influence, after all, it wouldn't help at all to be thinking for his own if in one moment he tried to create a strategy and in another he thought about how cool it would be to pee on a plant or about how sad it was that nobody remembered his birthday.
He clearly wasn't in one of his best days, he'd spent all day of his birth drinking with strangers, having fun with prostitutes, but now in the end of the night, there he was, completely alone, holding from vomiting again on the puddle of unknown substances he was sat upon. No one who hadn't paid was worried in saying to him a simple "happy birthday".
While divagating and trying, frustrated, to think about something productive, he realized that it was very late and maybe it wasn't a good idea to stay where he was, considering he wouldn't notice if anyone tried to get close to him, which, talking about Pip, couldn't be with good intentions.
He in fact couldn't stand at that moment, let alone walk, but this wasn't a problem for him since the moment he got the reason of his newest problems. He was so used to use the stone that he didn't even need to touch it with his hands to take advantage of its power, it was enough to close his eyes and enjoy the customary sensation of tingling and soon after seeing himself in a different place. He was as near of his house as he could, his spaceship.
It took him a while for his senses to return completely, or almost, since his body was quite altered. Pip rested on the first thing he could hold and took the other hand to his own belly, feeling a sudden malaise; it would be a real discomfort to have to clean his own vomit when he woke up later, so he stood still for some minutes until he was a little sure he wouldn't throw what remained in his stomach up. His ear whizzed and his head pulsed, he knew he had to take some pills or something, even he couldn't remember of where he had put anything of that. With a deep breath, he straightened his posture the best he could and almost fell behind when looked ahead and found a male figure standing so near to him.
Desperation soon appeared, he was in no conditions of fighting now, but even so, tried to find anything that would help him to keep alive and failed. He had no weapon with him or anywhere he could reach, so as his brain wasn't working fast enough to process the situation and find a way out. Then, the stranger extended his hands towards him and snapped his fingers, lights turned on and on an improvised table it was possible to see a beautiful decorated cake. A decorated cake…
His heartbeat speeded up even more, if it be it was possible, his defensive posture was undone and for some seconds he forgot how to breath. Someone remembered of his birthday and for this reason a bitter laugh escaped from his lips, he shouldn't be that happy for something so silly. His eyes turned to the male figure who awaited him not very far from where he was, his sight was blur, he barely could see what were its traits and even so he didn't repress a drunk smile for the stranger. Questions as who was that person or how he entered his ship didn't come to his mind.
With staggering steps, Pip neared of the friend now promoted to favorite for being the only one who lent himself to show he remembered, but when he got close enough to be able to see better, he found it weird the Asgardian clothes, the retorted horns and the friendly expression. He surely had no idea of who was that person and felt the worst person ever for not remembering that, after all, they were at least close friends for him to bother to be there now. Goddamn alcohol.
- Happy birthday! – The stranger greeted him with his hoarse and melancholic voice. He was pretty sure he had heard it before.
- Th-thank you… - He answered doubtful, his mind worked unstoppably trying to remember who he was.
His shoulders were enrolled by one of his arms, a clear attempt of trying to get him closer to the food he brought preventing him from falling on his face. With a sincere animation, the stranger took him near to the cake and started to recite the festive song of Laxidazia, Pip cursed himself when felt tears coming to his eyes, there was a long time he didn't listen to that song, or to anything related to his former home. He didn't understand and somehow didn't want to the reason why that angel was there making him company, he was feeling so good, wanting that that sensation never passed.
The first slice of the cake was swallowed very hardly and apprehensively, his stomach wasn't exactly receptive for this kind of thing, but his friend didn't judge him at any time and accompanied him at his pace. He wouldn't slight of showing how unpleasant it was to eat that, even though the taste of each piece he put into his mouth took him to heaven; and there were still the discomfort that the fun of his night brought as consequences.
He tried to be lovely with the unknown and started a drunk speech about anything he didn't remember anymore, just to not let the other bored with his behavior slightly altered. Everything that he spoke seemed to him so interesting that he could stay there for hours talking to him, of course, if he didn't pass out in the next hours.
- It's been awful! – He said, in one of the times he tried to keep the conversation coherent. – He uses to enter my thoughts and change my choices! – There was an embarrassing hiccup. – If I only could I'd get rid of this shit of infinity stone!
- I'm here, you know… I wouldn't mind carrying this burden for you. – He gave him a warm and recomforting smile.
Those words repeated in his head for all the hours or minutes later, no doubts it would be a big relief to give away the responsibility of protecting the stone for another person, but this would also mean that his friend would be toughly tormented by the disgrace that the object brings. He would have to think a lot about it before he left, what wasn't an easy task since everything seemed too confusing for him.
They spent time shooting the breeze, risking drinking a little bit more and relaxed smoking some local herb. Everything seemed perfectly fine, never before he had ever felt so welcomed for anyone, mainly after he recognized his troll nature. At no point Pip risked asking his friend his name, he was too ashamed for having forgotten something so important to expose this mistake.
When the night was ending and the suns were raising on de horizon, he noticed that soon he would be alone again and would be vulnerable to the craziness his responsibility dragged to him. The man who graced him with his company was about to leave and for the first time in years he felt completely terrified about the idea of keeping the stone under his guard; he was completely conscious that sooner or later he would shed allies' blood for his so disproportionately increased greed or end up dead by one of those he had already called a friend. There are still many things he wanted to do before passing away for some premature disaster.
- Wait! – He heard his sleepy voice say before his cape partner left his ship. – You said you would carry my burden for me… - The green eyes stared at him and he couldn't identify anything more than curiosity in them. – Was it true?
- Yes. – The beautiful voice answered after thinking a bit.
- So, do it.
Pip put the stone he so loyally kept with him in the hands of the stranger and felt almost instantaneously a gigantic relief taking his body. He truly smiled, the less altered he could and then laid down closing his eyes. For the first time in a hundred years he could have many hours of sleep, with no nightmares or interruptions, only the tranquil peace that his hard mattress offered him. When he woke up, his thoughts would be free of any influence and he could finally do something for himself, the days of manipulation were over and maybe after this happened and he enjoyed the first seconds of freedom, he would notice he made the mistake of handing one of the most powerful weapons of the universe to the trickster god, the same person who started the disagreement between the members of the Infinity Watch.
(…)
Titan would never be a place that would bring good recordation for Doctor Strange, his memories at that place still disturb him, no matter how unpleasant it was, there the wizard walked, through the debris of the ancient civilization of the natural satellite of Saturn, looking for the man he needs to face: Drax the destroyer. The first time he could have contact with such creature, he still belonged to a very different state from his current, he had developed extremely strong after-effects from one of his battles and for this he was demoted to a reduced-intelligence being, with weak brute force compared to what he had before and lost most part of the magnitude he's been one day, however, now he was relatively different. Considering what is believed to be a result from the fail in the temporal lines, in this reality, the man passed through the same problems, his power has also been reduced to almost zero, what diverges is that he could recover most part of what he lost and plus (an important plus), Drax has the power stone.
It was decided that Stephen and Loki would follow alone to get two of the three stones remaining, therefore, so that they didn't have any problems and didn't risked themselves, they chose to divide among them the stones they already had. The god had the reality and mind stones, since he would play again one of his whimsical manipulation games, and the wizard had only the time stone, for this was the one, among all the others, he had more kinship with, so as for his way of acting this one would be the most useful.
Differently from the strategies that they had had in their last conquests, this time there was no space for deceits or tricks that would take the singularities to be handed to them without fighting. Drax's not naïve and he wouldn't offer chances for them to freely play, his thirst for revenge against Thanos made him prevented from anyone with one of the infinity stones who dared to fight him.
It took longer than expected for him to find some remnant indicating the presence of the destroyer, but, in the end, when he was almost giving up and going to another possible place it was possible for the creature to be, he glimpsed the signs of a lit bonfire meters ahead from where he was. Walking as much calm as he could and as determined as he was, Strange neared even more to the half-human; he wasn't fool, he wouldn't fight against an enemy who possibly can knock him out before even analyzing what are his real chances.
Seconds later, the wizard could visualize clearly where Drax was and what he was doing, his presence was hidden the best way he could and he awaited where he was, just seeing the perfect clearing for a camp and the movements of his target, unnoticed. The destroyer had slaughtered a specimen of the only animal that could adapt to the satellite conditions and now baked it in a bonfire, improvised with the wrecks of some house; he did this more for the delight of tasting a good meal than for the need of eating, so as he built a tent and a cozy bed just so he could enjoy the sensation of laying down and relax, not because he needed to sleep.
Stephen observed the man rip a thigh still bleeding directly from the animal on the fire and bite it as if it were the most tasteful meal he had ever tried, he seemed to be distracted and wasn't worried about keeping up his guard, as if he were sure that no one would dare to bother him. The stone he was looking for was attached to one of the twin blades Drax's used to use in combat, no doubts a lethal combination. All the wizard had to do was to take it and leave, but he activated in his own stone a temporal cycle, just in case; he didn't want to hurt or kill his adversary, but also couldn't let him to use it as an advantage.
The magic shined in his hands when he started the first attack, Strange molded the energy like a whip and threw it directly to his target; if it was a lucky day, maybe he could take his desired object in the first try. It wasn't a lucky day. Drax felt what was coming and took his own arm to the blade to stop the one who tried to steal him to reach his weapon, and his left side got stuck by the orange sparkling ropes coming from the attacker.
Only one look toward to the half-human was enough to be sure that he was angry, you don't interrupt a man who's eating. The destroyer got up slowly, staring the wizard who ringed him a bell, even though he couldn't affirm he knew him, his position was revealed and Drax for sure would give the strike back. He took the thigh to his mouth once again, biting it calmly before dropping it and disappearing. For some seconds, it wasn't possible to have any sign of where the creature had gone to, till he felt the wires of his energy linked to him breaking and an instinct deep inside screamed: "BEHIND YOU!"
He almost didn't have enough time to repeat his so-well known movements before he raised up the shield and got the impact. Strong, lethal and ready to kill, that was Drax. The cloak of levitation dragged him far and, meanwhile, taking advantage of the help of his velvety partner, Stephen didn't stop to react and fight. Blocked more of the fast strikes, spending more energy than he should just to make sure his magic wouldn't break in the face of the smashing force and stroke back conjuring his own weapons, being successful in the attacks against his adversary, even though this was useless, since the cure factor of the destroyer was extremely high.
His bigger obstacle was the fact of not wanting to hurt him, Strange is not a villain, he won't behave as one and won't hurt people who did nothing wrong beside being in his way. His title of supreme wizard is not a meaningless nomenclature and proof of that is that there was no conflict in the search for the stones in which he wasn't holding back as much as he could.
Reality became a malleable plan to his hands in the instant he got trapped and soon after the blade with the powerful stone in Drax's hand hit the mountain elevation that limited his movements, a coup that could be his ruin. Stephen appeared some meters from there, in safe distance and localization, taking advantage of the fact that the vision of the destroyer would be limited due to the big mass of dust risen by the annihilation of the mountain formerly hit.
- You hide, wizard – The serious and cold voice of the man sounded from where he was. – I'm already used to the worms who pursue me for what I must protect, it would be much simpler if you came here to finish this once and for all instead of chasing each other in this useless game.
Strange knew that if he moved a little bit more or made anything to attack him, his advantage with his hiding place would be undone, so in a giving up sigh, he decided not to extend more the combat. He would win in his next move.
Drax has a sixth sense highly ascertained, he can say exactly where his adversary is even now when deluding him making him to believe he's one step ahead. The wrists on his combat blades tightened a little bit stronger, he was decided to get close and kill him even before the wizard realized from where the strike came from, his legs slightly flexed and the destroyer mentalized perfectly where his target was before acting, his body impulse up, raising the arm that would last attack and for seconds was sure the conflict was over, but just for some seconds. Out of the sudden, his sense started to capture the presence of other thousands of magic sources, so fast that the man had no idea where such creatures could have come from and this made him to hesitate momentarily, a fail that costed all the possible movements he would have done. Shining lines coming from all directions enrolled his members and tightened him in a way that suddenly it was hard even to breath, they acted over him with so much influence that it became almost impossible to keep the body tensed and guarantee his own safety, his hand weakened and even though he fought against the magic, he couldn't get even close to break it. Drax laughed bitterly, he should stop underestimating his adversaries. The only likely way of freeing himself from the suffocating grip that came to his mid was to use once again the power of its precious stone, however, even with the extra force it offered him, he still couldn't escape from the other's spell and his hand was paralyzed, he couldn't move it not even an inch, nothing that he did was efficient to break the spell and the destroyer felt frustrated for that, he was angry.
Stephen could see a little bit better what happened to his target now that he counted on so many eyes, he kept concentered while using his energy to contain the "enemy" at the same time he created a subtle portal close to what he really desired and took one of his hands for it. When he touched the blade, he felt a hot tingling, he knew it was the power stone grandly manifesting effortlessly, but it was like if it already knew who he was or why he was there and this would be the reason of trying to hold back for not hurting him. Strange would even risk to say that it was refraining as much as it could for not becoming an obstacle.
Drax was contorting himself violently trying to get free from the magic, but even he could notice that suddenly it was like his strength was being drained; he thought to be a spell from the goddamn wizard and this turned his humor worse each second. However, the peak of his wrath was when he noticed a bodiless hand touching his precious weapon and, worse, his own hand dropped without his control and let the son of a bitch take the blade and the stone away. As the hand of his attacker disappeared with his properties and his spell was undone, his strength returned and a weird déjà vu took his mind, it was like if at some moment he had already felt a spell like the bastard used and this made him to have the perception that it wasn't an army of wizard to fight against him, it was clones. The destroyer used again his instincts now more ascertained than before to have a real notion of how things were around him and noticed that the aura of one of the beings surrounding him seemed to be much stronger than the others', and concluded that this was the real one. It would never be like him to let a thief going out harmless. He firmed the remaining blade in his hand and aimed the man he thought to have his things, stepped ahead acquiring precision and impulse, looked straight to the wizard and threw his weapon with all his strength and wrath.
Strange thought for the seconds after he got the stone that his objective was done. He was ready to come back "home" in New York, he planned to relax and meditate a little while Loki didn't show up or the location of the last stone wasn't revealed, the wizard really needed some rest after all, he felt his body much heavier than usual and his head pulsed frequently, if it was possible for him to get sick, his diagnosis would be that he was way much more than debilitated. He would make a point to rest a little bit if it wasn't for the fact that he felt a sharp object drill his back to his chest, being almost completely exposed on the other side.
The taste of blood came to his mouth as he fell to the ground on his knees and the imposing figure of Drax appeared in front of him. The destroyer held his face as if he wanted to watch his death up close and he said something the other couldn't understand anymore, some would say this was the sign of his life abandoning him, but it was just another cycle initiating. Stephen died too much times by Dormammu actions to be scared with this sensation.
Again, the wizard saw himself hidden with the clearing ahead and his adversary was once again sat next to the bonfire with his piece of dinner in hands, with both of his blades attached to his waist and a confused look of someone who didn't understand anything that was going on. With some fun, the wizard noticed that despite the fact his stone had gone back in time and impeded him from dying, it didn't want to change the fact that its similar had already been taken, and, for that, the power stone was in his hand, as docile as it could be, though it started to energize too much the member. He put it carefully in the orb he kept with him and left unnoticed by the destroyer, who didn't know where he had gone.
Drax was very lost, he stared at the place where he knew the thief was moments before, unable to believe what his thoughts were saying. The abilities he had just faced were the same of the friend Doctor Strange and now he felt an extreme urgency to warn him that there was someone like him chasing the infinity stones. He needed to discover somehow to alert him, he trusted the supreme wizard enough to know that he would find the best way to deal with the situation, even though he couldn't remember how his face looked like, he would never forget how good the man does for the reality they live in.
(…)
When Thor put himself in a strategic position to confront his brother in his supposed attack of the day, he wasn't waiting exactly to find the other god, for him, at any moment some impostor would show up or some Loki's enemy would reveal to be attacking innocents to spoil the image he's trying to build here, a Midgard. There was no second in which the blond stopped trying to believe in the other's innocence, independently of all the atrocities he had already done in the past, a person cannot be declared guilty until proved otherwise.
His vigil was going alright, nothing happened out of the human patterns of the city. That was being a very calm night actually… there was no indication of that some crazy Asgardian was trying to kill people around. Or at least there wasn't until his attentive eyes captured the sparkling shine of the magic that he so much knew at the top of the buildings around him.
With a tightness in the chest, Thor felt as if he were once again coming back to the goddamn cycle in which he trusted Loki just to be betrayed again and again. Strombreaker vibrated in his hand answering his turbulent feelings, angry and grief, so well-known, took his senses, but this time he didn't let his emotional uncontrol exposed him and when he advanced towards his brother, there was no signal of his presence in the sky or around him, nothing warning him from what was coming.
Seconds before hitting the younger, the god of thunder realized he felt he was about to get caught, there was not enough time for a reaction to free him from the confront, but his body turned and received him head-on, ready to resist the upcoming impact and in a perfect position to look in the eyes of the individual who spoiled his nocturn fun. The guilty of the blond increased each second.
The former king of Asgard headed far from the city, flying as fast as he could and guaranteeing that the tight on the prince's body was still strong enough for he not having the chance of even trying to escape. Thor looked for a place where no human had the chance of getting hurt and that no one interrupted their conversation. Minutes later the desert of Mojave appeared to his sight and there was no delicateness when he threw his brother on the ground right there where he was, many feet over the ground.
His own land was soft, with his cape risen by the air and the cold look at the trickster god. That was one of the times in which he showed to be the powerful Asgardian he really was, the fearful and grand figure of a god, not the hero who protects, someone capable of causing fear to terrible creatures effortlessly. It was a shame that Loki wasn't among these easy-to-intimidate beings.
- Look at who decided to show up! – Nothing would shake the tricky and mocking expression of the liar prince, despite the fact he was dirty for being thrown on the sand and his fabulous hair was full of thorns of the cactus he hit. – I swear I was starting to get worried, I thought you were sick or something for not having interrupted me in none of my little jokes.
- Won't you even try to deny that it was you? – There was a kind of disgust in the eyes of the blond, repulse of someone who was looking to a monster and even though he loved him, he never tried to avoid that the brother read exactly what was feeling regarding his actions, but it's ok, the other was already used to people looking at him like that.
- And why would I do that? For you to believe that I'm innocent and then we live together happy ever after? No, dear brother, a revenge like this is not that funny when no one knows you executed it.
- Revenge? Loki, you didn't know anyone of those people, they caused you no harm! – The god made less sense each second.
- I've always known you have never been much smart, Thor. - A little laugh escaped from his lips. – So let me explain to you: each one of the people I destroyed were sadistic torturers, rapists, suckers, terrorists or mass murderers which no competent human discovered their identity or did something about it. They lived among your beloved midgardians as normal beings, fair and benevolent when far from the sight of all their deepest pleasures, which contributed for the destruction of lives all around the world.
- Do you really want me to believe that you killed people, took others to an irreversible state, activated black magic artifacts where they lived or worked before just because you worry about the lead humans are giving to this world? – He raised Stormbreaker pointing it to the other in a clear threat, however, the trickster didn't move an inch, not even showed to be slightly shaken. – You're not a vigilante or a hero for this people! And this is surely another ridiculous game of yours to get what you want!
- Ridiculous game? Tell me, Thor, when you wiped whole populations out just for your pleasure to war, did anyone tell you how stupid you were? Or better, did you hear anyone who tried to tell you were wrong? How many times I needed to manipulate you to protect civilizations from your wrath while everyone applauded your conquests and acclaimed the perfect son? Do your really think I care about what you say of how I act while I'm cleaning the evil from this world, not shedding any innocent blood this time?
The words hit the nail on the head. He couldn't say the other was wrong, not when the god is judging him for something he himself has done worse and only now feels sorry about it. However, the blond still felt there was something different about his brother, it ain't like Loki to tout about lives he has saved and much less would he care about shedding innocent blood, so as it ain't like him to talk about past easily. A small hope sprouted in his subconsciousness.
- Don't change the focus, you would never even be brave to do any of these things if Sigyn were here… - His voice sounded weak and comprehensive on purpose. The goddess used to keep them to the narrow path, so to say, and his brother would always interpret the citation of her name as a peace offer, no matter what context the word came up, it was like a code between them when they argued about some silly thing since she died. Only Loki would view this sentence the way it was made to be.
- Then you are a fool to think that a woman would stop me from making my will come true.
It was clear that what that individual would less expect to hear now was a fun laughter and a relieved look, maybe that's why he didn't react in time to impede the accurate hit that stroke his shoulder. Whoever that person was, he wasn't his brother. Stormbreaker carried him meters ahead for that much force imposed to him, kicking up dust and blurring his vision for a while from the real face hidden before by magic.
Thor neared walking slowly and calmly, in the case of him being still alive, he himself would deal the final blow to the impostor who tried to destroy the little good image the prince got in the last years. On the ground, surrounded by blood and with the axe nailed to the chest, there was a woman, but when the god got close enough to recognize her, his eyes opened and his own body froze in hesitation.
- Lin…