Derrick glanced at all of our blank expressions. "I'm not surprised to see that none of you know who I'm talking about. For someone as powerful as him, he's managed to stay pretty much under the radar for all these years. He probably hasn't made it to this universe yet either." He got up and headed to the kitchen area. "Which is fortunate. Considering the shite this universe has been through in recent times, the last thing you need to be dealing with is the Beyonder."

He opened a cupboard and drew out a large bottle of bourbon, then reaching into another cupboard to draw out four glasses. He came back to the table. "But if I'm going to start talking about him, I'm going to need a drink." Derrick pulled the cork out of the bourbon bottle.

As he poured into the glasses and began handing them out, I remarked, "I thought alcohol didn't do anything to us, or is this a special alcohol that does get us buzzed?"

Derrick snorted. "There is no alcohol that can get an angel buzzed. Our bodies treat it like a poison, and eliminate it as soon as it enters our systems. I know that when you drink anything alcoholic, whether it's hard liquor or wine or a margarita, you taste some of the alcohol, might even experience an initial burn, but a second later it turns into water, most of the time before you're even through swallowing the gulp you took." He grinned as he watched me take a sip of bourbon. "I'm right, aren't I?"

I froze as I held the mouthful before I very slowly swallowed. Loki's eyes were now boring right into me. "You didn't tell me that," he accused.

Caught. "I didn't want to hurt your feelings," I muttered. Loki loved to make me drinks in the evenings when we were chilling at home.

"Mmmhmm...and I bet any doctor who tries to treat you is driven to yanking out their hair when they find none of their drugs work on you," Derrick continued.

I couldn't remember the first several weeks of my time here, which would have been the only time Stephen or Bruce would have tried to use any drugs, but I felt Bucky remembering. He cleared his throat. "Yeah, actually, the docs did become frustrated when nothing they tried to sedate her with worked. Stephen had to resort to spells, while Bruce just started knocking her out by clocking her over the head."

No wonder I still found myself flinching when Bruce raised his arm around me.

"I was bitten by a gremlin once," I pointed out. "That venom took an hour to burn out of my system."

Derrick shuddered. "Yeah...gremlins are mystical beings, love. We don't recover as fast from venom sourced from those. It also takes us longer to heal from wounds inflicted by them."

"Like demons?" I asked, remembering another incident.

He snorted. "Don't get me started. Anyway...in my case, I lost a lot of perks when I became what I am now. I can't fly, I'm nowhere near as strong as I was, I have no psychic or meta-physical protection, I can't even pull a rabbit out of a hat let alone call up shields or fire magic bolts, I have to rely on these wards tattooed on my body or the kindness of strangers to shield my arse when I do venture outside of my Sanctuary here, but," he held up his glass, "At least I can get drunk now."

Lucky asshole.

"The Beyonder?" Loki inquired pointedly as his fingers curled tighter in my hair. Oh yeah, tonight was going to be fun.

"Right." Derrick knocked back his entire glass and then refilled.

"Many, many years ago one of the many universes within the multiverse was visited by this being who came from another multiverse."

"Another multiverse?!" The rest of us all exclaimed it at the same time.

"Yes. This place is called the Beyond-verse and is home to some very powerful beings, one of which took notice of our multiverse one day when a scientist had an accident during an experiment. This scientist was imbued with part of the power of this multiverse, and given abilities that are...beyond comprehension, but he's not really important. His only role in this tale is that his actions caused the rest of the multiverse to gain sentience and curiosity, and become a being known as the Beyonder."

"Wait, wait, wait..." Loki held up a hand. "This Beyonder is a sentient multiverse?"

"Think I need a refill," Bucky handed his glass to Derrick, who topped it off with a smile and a wink.

"It sounds crazy, I know, but it is what happened. The Beyonder is the sum total of a multiverse that exists outside of our own, and when he—a misnomer, since he's not really a man, but he does take the form of one when he does take a physical form so we call him a he—became aware of our multiverse, he became intrigued that the individuals within it were not complete realities within themselves, but rather part of the greater whole of their worlds, which were in turn part of the greater whole their universes, which...you get the idea. Anyway, because of this, and the fact that he is himself something that he considers a complete whole, he drew the conclusion that all of us...humans, gods, angels, and others...are all incomplete and that thus that the driving force for all of us sentient 'fragments' must be desire, which was an emotion he never experienced, manifesting itself as a longing to grow, to evolve, to become complete like him. And actually, the realization that he was not all that existed, as he had spent his entire existence believing, led to him coming to the conclusion that he was incomplete. As a result, for the first time ever, he experienced desire, which he was driven to explore since it was something new."

My head was spinning and I looked down at my glass, suddenly wishing that I could get hammered. This was not a conversation to have sober. This was not a conversation for me, period. This was a conversation for our big brains, Tony and Bruce and others who would be able to wrap their heads around this like perhaps Shuri or even Stephen.

Loki, damn him, understood everything perfectly and he was nodding along. At least one of us could keep up.

"To investigate the nature of desire, and see what other new sensations he could experience," Derrick continued. "The Beyonder began to run experiments. At first, it was small stuff. Tempting people with promises of riches to see if they would do things like cheat on their spouses. Then he began to escalate. He took the heroes and villains of one universe and pitted them against each other, promising each everything they desired if they slayed their enemies. He also imbued some people with new powers in order to observe what would happen if their fantasies were fulfilled." He gulped his drink again. "Then things escalated even further."

At this point his eyes briefly landed on me and I felt anxiety come off him. I got the sense he did not want to say the next thing in front of me.

"Escalated how?" Loki demanded. He had picked up on it as well.

Derrick looked at me again and blew out a breath, his cheeks puffing out. "He wanted to investigate the concepts of life and death, creation and destruction. Around this time, he had already attracted the notice of the Hierarchy, and we had long decided that he was a threat that could not be allowed to run amok. Many of us went to battle against him." He put on a sardonic, self-deprecating smile. "I was one of the idiots who decided to go up against him. It's how I ended up almost dying, and ultimately stripped of my wings and magic."

"I was wondering what could possibly be powerful enough to do that to an angel," Loki remarked.

Derrick nodded. "Others of my kind, unfortunately, decided that the Beyonder was the new God, and that they would serve him. Thus the War, the second great one we have had, and arguably even worse than the one we fought when Lucy and his group rebelled."

He looked down at his glass. "The first one was bad, don't get me wrong, but this second one...I don't know what it is about the Beyonder that twisted the angels who decided to follow him, but most of them began to pick up on his habit of experimenting on sentient beings..."

My stomach twisted up in knots and Loki's fingers in my hair tightened even further.

"...most of us were always curious about humans, especially those who acquired special abilities, but we were alright with just observation from a distance. The ones who followed the Beyonder, however..."

"They became cruel," Loki concluded.

Derrick shook his head. "Cruel, yes, but I can assure it any cruelty they inflicted was not motivated by a desire to be cruel, any sort of sadistic tendencies, or any emotional motivation whatsoever. It could have all been strictly clinical...you would say strictly scientific."

My stomach was now roiling. Yes, that had been exactly what the ones who had held me hostage had been like. They hadn't been gleeful about causing me pain, they hadn't enjoyed it, they had just been cold, detached, utterly uncaring. They did things to me to see what I would do, how I could react, record how I felt. I was just a lab rat to them.

My vision was wavering and Loki's hand moved from my hair to my hand, which was fisted in my lap. He squeezed it hard and leaned in. "Stay with me, Pet." Loki raised his voice. "That's enough."

"No," I protested. "I need to hear more. Was I the only one?"

Derrick stared at me and swallowed. Hard.

"Was I?" I demanded.

Derrick answered flatly. "No."

I shut my eyes and took a breath. Fuck. There were others. There were others out there who had been abducted, taken God only knew where, and had the things done to them that were done to me. Maybe even worse. Others who might have died while having those things done to them. Others who might still be going through it.

The thought made me physically sick.

"You said this Beyonder wanted to investigate creation and destruction," Bucky said. "How did he do that?"

Derrick glanced at me again. Oh, he really didn't want to say this next part. "He...he decided he wanted to observe the deaths of universes, to observe the void they left in the multiverse, and how the multiverse chose to refill that void."

"What?" I asked coldly.

"Pet..." Loki squeezed my hand harder.

"My universe," I kept on, my voice shaking, my entire body trembling. "My home, my family...they're all dead, all of them...because this Beyonder was conducting an experiment?!"

I blacked out. I had no idea how long for.

When I came to, I was kneeling on the floor. Loki was kneeling beside me. I was between his legs, his arms were wrapped around me, and his hand was stroking my hair. I heard his voice murmur words of comfort. "Come back, Pet...shhhh, it's alright...shhhh..."

Derrick and Bucky were about twenty feet away from us, in the kitchen. Bucky was inside a shield and Derrick had grabbed one of the magic swords off one of the racks nearby. "Mate, I don't know if you should be that close to-"

"Silence! I know what I'm doing, you just stay where you are!" Loki growled and squeezed me. "Shhh...Pet, I have you. It's alright, you're safe, you're with me." He continued to hold me close. "You're alright."

I was crying and hyperventilating. I took in deep gulping breaths, trying to slow my breathing, trying to calm down, focusing on Loki's voice and scent. "I-I...what happened?"

"Don't worry about it, Pet," Loki didn't let me go.

"You lost it, that's what," Derrick stated. He pointed at Loki. "You are very lucky. Holy fuck, how is it you lot are still alive?!"

"Hey, can you let me out?" Bucky blurted out, sounding and feeling pissed off. The shield around him went down. "And we've been doing just fine with her."

"Oh, don't get me wrong, Dimples. I'm impressed. Taking care of a baby angel is not a job for mortals or even Asgardians. Most who would try would have wound up slaughtered the first time she had a meltdown, which happens a lot with even relatively healthy newborn angels. Someone as mentally unsound as her..."

"Enough!" Loki roared. He was fed up.

"I'm just stating facts, Loki. Baby angels are a handful even for other angels. A couple of Asgardians and some humans, even ones like the Avengers or the sorcerers of Kamar Taj, who have no experience in dealing with our kind? All of you should be dead many times over. The fact that you aren't blows me away."

"Or perhaps she isn't as 'mentally unsound' as you seem to be convinced she is. And if you make one more comment about her along those lines..."

Derrick held up both hands in surrender. "I apologize. I meant no offense. You understand that I'm really speaking out of a place of concern? I was an angel, we are naturally protective of mortals, who really are no match for a raging newborn angel having a bad day. I know Asgardians are made of sterner stuff, but..."

"Thor handled her just fine when she first came here," Bucky pointed out. "And then later on, Loki took over, and he's been good for her. So, back off already." He stepped closer. "So...the Beyonder. Do we have to worry about him?"

I was able to quiet down enough that I was silent waiting for Derrick to answer. He was also silent for a few minutes.

"Derrick?" Bucky pushed.

"I don't know. I haven't seen any sign of him in this universe, which surprises the hell out of me, but...I don't know."

"Well...we handled Thanos just fine..."

Derrick burst out laughing. "Thanos? Oh, you poor thing. You think having defeated Thanos will help you against the Beyonder? Weren't you listening? Thanos was from Titan, yes, and he was a very tough bastard, but he was still mortal, still had his vulnerabilities, and ultimately was able to be killed. The Beyonder is way beyond any of that. Plus, Thanos had a kill count of a measly half a universe. The Beyonder has killed multiple universes."

"What?" I asked, my voice barely above a whispered. "Mine...it wasn't the only..."

Derrick shook his head. "Not even close, hon. The Beyonder regards the multiverse as his personal playground, and our universes are just big shiny toys for him to play with at his leisure, because who exactly is going to stop him? The Hierarchy has been trying for centuries, and we've been getting our asses handed to us. Pray that he never, ever eyes this universe...if he ever does, you might as well just kiss your butts goodbye."

We left very soon after that. Loki was too angry to stay there any longer, and he did not want me with Derrick after the guy had triggered my blackout. Bucky departed from us outside the shop, having ignored Derrick's other attempts at flirting, and taken his motorcycle back to the Mansion to tell the others what we'd learn.

Loki took the two of us straight home. I was too emotionally exhausted to argue with him. Really the two of us should have gone to the Avengers as well. I should have been calling Stephen. We all should have been meeting to discuss this possible threat and start planning contingencies in case this Beyonder guy did turn his eyes in our direction. Stephen was going to be pissed that I hadn't told him about it as soon as I had the chance, and he also wasn't going to be happy about the mystic treasure trove Derrick kept in his broom closet.

Instead, I sat on the sofa, knees drawn up to my chest, gnawing on my thumbnail while Heimdall rubbed against my shins and tried to get my attention. Loki was talking to Thor, but also keeping a close eye on me as he projected himself halfway around the world to New Asgard to tell his brother about what we'd learned.

A science experiment. A fucking science experiment. That's what I'd been to those angels, and that's what my universe had been to the Beyonder. It wasn't destroyed by an act of evil, it wasn't sacrificed for the amusement of some despot who did it for shits and giggles. It was destroyed because some omnipotent being wanted to see what would happen. That was it.

It was so callous, so fucking cold. Everyone I had loved had died to satisfy some cosmic being's curiosity. The way my suffering had been to satisfy the curiosity of those angels, my own and that of who knew how many other people across the multiverse.

The worst part was, I couldn't even get revenge for them. How could I? A being who was basically a sentient multiverse. What could I do against something like that? What could anyone do?

Derrick was right. If the Beyonder ever set his sights on this universe, we were fucked.

Loki was through speaking with Thor. I could tell because I sensed he had stopped projecting. He came over to the sofa and pulled me over to him, gently knocking my hand away from my mouth. "I am going to start applying that nail polish that is supposed to discourage nail biting to your hands."

"I've tried it. I just got used to the taste." I let him cuddle me close. "I didn't hurt you when I blacked out, did I?"

"You were fine, Pet. But you are not go-"

"No," I cut him off. "Loki, no. One blackout doesn't mean that I shouldn't see Derrick again. He's done nothing but answer my questions, and give me a name for the force behind the destruction of my home..."

"He was completely out of line today," Loki snapped. "He knew he shouldn't have said what he did. I saw his face. He knew he was pushing you to the edge, yet he chose to carry on..."

"Because I asked him to!"

"And he keeps calling you mentally unstable and dangerous..."

"Because I am!"

Loki snarled. "Do we need to add to the punishment you have already earned for yourself this evening?"

"What punishment?"

Loki raised a brow. "The lying about the drinks? Oh, and I seem to recall a smart-ass remark about providing me with books full of puzzles?"

The latter would have been more of a funishment, but the former...yeah, lying was a huge no-no in this marriage. Even if it was to spare each other's feelings. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you about the drinks, but I do taste them...just only for a split second..."

"Mmmm."

"So, technically I didn't lie...I just didn't tell you that I only tasted them a little before they turned into water..."

"Mmmm."

"I mean, it was really good water..."

"Pet?"

"Yeah?"

"Be quiet before you end up having to spend an hour with peppermint oil on your clitoris as opposed to thirty minutes."

I shut up.

Loki sighed and stroked my hair. "You can go back, Pet. You are not a child, and he has been rather helpful...so far. And I confess, I did fine his actions towards Barnes entertaining...it might be worth returning to Derrick's Sanctuary just for that..."

I scoffed. That was assuming that Bucky would even be willing to go back. Derrick had been laying it on pretty thick, and it wouldn't have surprised me in the least if Bucky was scared off. "He did apologize for triggering me, and for calling me crazy," I pointed out.

Loki grumbled, but I knew things were okay...or at least close to it. He had just needed time to cool down. Seeing me lose it had upset him.

"I suppose we can use all the help we can get...and we do need to learn more about this Beyonder, and Derrick has yet to get around to explaining how you are to control your abilities, such as your angelfire..."

"See? It'll be alright, Loki. That was the first bad blackout I've had in a while, and Derrick knows now that he needs to be more careful."

He growled. "Fine. I'm still accompanying you."

"Of course."

He squeezed me and kissed my neck under my ear. "So, about your punishment..."