A/N: Sorry for the wait! The chapter's been finished but trying to get time on my computer to post it took a while. Enjoy!
Chapter 3: The Fight for Survival
The thunderer swung his hammer, "Then let us go find this beast!"
xxxxx
Tony tried his best to collect himself and waited to lead everyone down. He called to JARVIS to bring his suit. I'm not going to make that mistake again. The A.I., thankfully, had finished its reboot and sent Iron Man his way. He waited impatiently as others quickly collected their weapons and followed him to the elevator.
"What did you see down there?" Bruce said, his voice wavered in concern.
"I think it was some type of alien," Tony blinked trying to recall, "it looked… pretty dead."
Steve knit his eyebrows together in concern. After seeing the what the Chitauri are capable of, he didn't really like the idea of any more aliens on Earth- Thor was the only friendly alien he's met. Only being three years later and the city is still healing from the attacks. It takes a lot more than that to rebuild an entire city.
"Well, let's not let our guard down just because it's, presumably, dead."
The Avengers wasted no time getting past the elevator and to the lab door. All holding their weapons up, Tony kept the lead and pulled down his helmet. They all waited while JARVIS took back control of the damaged systems and opened the lab door.
When they got inside, Tony didn't want to talk, so he just pointed to the corner where he found the thing. The others split into groups, taking different routes to head to the corner. Bruce stayed close behind Tony, knowing it would probably be best if he didn't Hulk out just yet.
By the time they circled around the room, no one indicated that there was anything out of the ordinary- other than the lab being completely destroyed. They all met in the back corner where Tony originally pointed to. The bloodied cloth was still there, with whatever it was underneath it. They all waited and watched it for any signs of movement. Five minutes passed and no one took the initiative to progress forward.
"That's it. If no one's going to do it, I will," Clint muttered under his breath.
No-one stopped him as he crept forward. Everyone watched carefully in case the thing was to pop up and attack. Clint got a few feet from in and repositioned his bow. Extending it forward, he prodded the cloth with the edge of his bow. When nothing happened, Clint rolled his eyes and pulled back his bow.
"Well, whatever it is… it's dead."
Everyone seemed to ease up a little at the archer's statement. Steve walked forward to Clint and looked down at the thing.
"Is this thing an alien?"
"Tony," Bruce said as he came out from his hiding spot behind Iron Man, "didn't you say this thing had blue skin?"
"Yeah," Stark's helmet popped open, "it did."
"Then it can't be a Chitauri," Natasha stated.
Tony sighed, knowing what he had to do, he went to stand in front of the creature. Swallowing a lump in his throat, he squatted down. Tony was relieved he was wearing his suit as he grabbed the edge of the dirty cloth. He bit his lip as he gained enough courage to pull the fabric off to the side to reveal it.
The creature still laid there, bathed in its own blood. The leather armor it wore was almost unrecognizable as it was shredded, burned, and soaked in blood. Whatever blue skin was exposed, it was covered in patches of purple and black bruises; new and old injuries peaked out from under them.
"Looks pretty dead to me," Tony stated bluntly.
As they started to discuss with how to proceed with a dead alien in the lab, Thor didn't listen. He was still staring at the alien. As much as the god tried, he couldn't pinpoint why this thing looked so familiar.
The clothing was unrecognizable and the creatures face was covered in a matted mess of long, raven hair. All its limbs were bound by heavy chains and a collar fastened securely to its neck. Something within Thor couldn't help but to proceed forward.
"Thor, what are you doing?" Widow broke out of the conversation to look at him.
The Thunderer ignored her and knelt down beside the alien. His hands started to reach forward to touch it. They trembled a little for some odd reason.
"What are yo-?" Steve was about to ask when Thor made context with the creature.
He brushed past the tangled hair to reveal its face, trying his best just to touch only the hair. The blue skin underneath was etched with silver markings on its chiseled cheeks and forehead. More thin tattoos snaked down its neck, disappearing under the metal collar. Like it's body, it's face was bruised and bloodied beyond recognition. Along its dark hairline, two curved horns protruded from either side.
Thor's eyes widened as the features sparked in the back of his memory. Underneath the blood and bruises was a familiar face. His heart lept into his throat. Thor had seen this face many, many centuries ago.
"Brother…" He whispered.
"Brother? Brother?!" Tony screamed, gawking at the creature, " Are you telling me that… Smurf is Loki?!"
The rest of the Avengers immediately separated themselves a few more feet from the fallen god; all of them, except Thor. He frantically checked his brother over for any signs of life. His hands brushed against Loki's exposed blue skin, an icy burn bit Thor's hand. He quickly recoiled at its sting and grit his teeth in pain.
Steve watched Thor attempting to help his "so-called" brother. The Captain didn't know what thor saw in the creature to think it was his brother. The blue skin and horns were nothing like Steve remembered the trickster. Nonetheless, Thor looked horrified and looked like he was about to lose it. Steve licked his lips and took a step closer to his blonde friend.
"Thor…" Steve asked nervously, "are you sure that's Loki?"
There's no way this could be Loki. Steve thought. The green fabric and dark hair were the only small indicators that this was the God of Mischief. Either way, there was no way he was alive. The pool of blood he laid in was more of a lake and his body looked torn to bits. Just the sight of the injuries made Steve nauseous.
"Aye. This is… my brother," Thor choked, "Loki is a Jotun. This is his true form."
The god swallowed the lump in his throat. He couldn't accept Loki was dead- he's never dead. Thor knew his brother would spring back to life just like he always does. What concerned him the most about it was that Loki was in his Jotun form. Odin's magic was powerful. The spell he cast on the God of Mischief shouldn't have broken… only death can take it away.
"Loki…Brother," Thor pleaded, " please wake up. It is I, Thor, your brother."
Thor grabbed his brother by the shoulders and pulled him close. He made sure he didn't touch his brother's frosted skin. Thor noted that Loki's body was remarkably smaller than he remembered. It has only been three years since he last saw his brother at the battle in New York. The Avengers assumed that Loki had escaped after his untimely defeat. After months of looking, they never found him.
Thor just stayed there, whispering quiet pleads as he held him closer… waiting, begging for some sort of sign of life. Loki's body was limp in his arms. His bloodied chest didn't rise nor fall.
"Thor…" Bruce went to say something to comfort his friend.
Thor whipped his head around to face the Avengers. His pained eyes flashed with rage.
"Don't just stand there! Help me!"
"He's dead, Thor," Clint said bluntly. Someone finally spoke the words they all were too afraid to say.
Much to their surprise, fat, angry tears fell from the god's eyes. He was disgusted his friends have given up on his brother so easily. The rage of it all pulsed through him like never before. His rage conjured static in the air. The snapping of electricity circled around him.
Everyone backed up to the increasing static in the air. The pulsing electricity was short-circuiting the lights around. Bulbs started to flicker and buzz with the added power surge.
Tony stared at the flashing lights on the ceiling and looked back at Thor.
"Listen Sparky, you're going to blow this place up if you keep doing that."
Thor couldn't hear them as he closed his eyes and gripped Loki tighter. All the pain he felt was being transformed into the electric energy around him.
Widow could feel the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. She could see the static building around Thor's body. The lights flickered even faster with the charge.
"Guys," Natasha warned, "we need to get out of here before h-."
Before she could finish, a huge surge of light enveloped the lab. An intense burst knocked them all off their feet, sending them skidding in different directions. The lights above immediately shattered and the glass rained down from the shockwave. After all the lights exploded, only one left was the battery-powered spotlight.
Steve groaned as he pushed himself up. Dusting off the glass, he turned to check on his teammates.
"Is everyone okay?"
The others slowly got up and nodded. No one was injured, just dazed from the shockwave. Amazingly, Bruce was able to keep the Hulk in check from the incident.
If Tony's lab wasn't already destroyed, it definitely was now. The room was filled with smoke and dust from the blast. Slowly, the haze settled to reveal Thor. He was still hunched over clutching his brother, completely unaware of what just happened.
"Uhh… what's going on with Loki?" Steve stammered.
It started with Loki's blue hands sparkling with a gold shine. His flesh turned pale as it crept up his arm. The horns slowly receded back into his forehead and engraved silver markings lightened until vanishing. The once blue creature, although still severely beaten and bloody, looked more like Loki again. Thor was right. The creature actually was Loki.
"Thor, what did you do?" Widow asked. She heisted a little before inching closer to the brothers.
The older god heard there calls this time. He opened his eyes and blinked away the tears, only for them to widen at his now pale brother. Thor was shocked to see Loki returned to his Aesir complexion- still deathly pale, nonetheless.
Loki eyes still remained closed, but something was different. Loki's chest shuttered and let out a faint, ragged breath. It was so slight; it wasn't even noticeable under the layers of rags he wore. Thor only knew because he felt it from holding Loki so close to his chest. He felt no pulse, but there must have been one.
"He's alive!" Thor cried.
His friends stood there, mouths agape. Loki was alive… how? They never saw his chest move, but Thor's reaction told the truth.
"That son of a bitch just won't die," Clint cursed under his breath just loud enough for only Tony to hear.
Tony glanced at Hawkeye and set his jaw. Yeah, he wished Loki was dead, but the inner turmoil of watching Thor gave him conflicting emotions. Both he and Clint hated the god the most- except maybe the Hulk.
Thor stammered, continuing to stare at Loki for another breath. The realization of the situation washed over him, "But how?!"
Bruce hesitantly walked over to Widow and Thor. He was afraid of the Other Guy might burst out at the mere sight of Loki. Thankfully, he continued to hold his control. Bruce couldn't believe this shockingly small man could even breath until he witnessed a weak gasp himself.
"I-I think it was you, Thor," Bruce met eyes with the blue-eyed god, "That burst of electricity must have been strong enough to restart his heart."
The thought of shocking Loki back to life gave Thor goosebumps; he didn't even realize he did that. He looked back down at his brother, a warm smile tugged at his lips. Thor was able to save him. He would have never been able to forgive himself if he couldn't. No matter what Loki has done, he is his little brother. His brother that's mind has grown dark from the shadows that haunted him all his life. There may be some hope for him left.
"But… he's not going to live for much longer."
Thor's head snapped back to Bruce at his comment. The smile dropped from his face immediately. The words felt like a punch to the gut.
"Why would you say such a thing?!" Thor cried.
"Thor… look at him," Bruce motioned to his little brother, "h-he's so... so…"
Bruce couldn't figure out how to say it. He didn't want to be the one to have to squash the small spark of hope that Thor clung so desperately too.
Stepping forward, Steve decided it was time to intervene. He looked into Thor's eyes. The god's face begged for reasoning. The Captain understood where Bruce was coming from and what he was trying to get at. Steve feared too much stress on the doctor might cause the Hulk to escape. Maybe he could find better words.
"What Bruce is trying to say…" Steve started but he hesitated for a second, "he wanted to say that… he's too far gone for help."
Rage built inside of Thor. His so-called friends have given up on Loki so fast. He just got his heart going again. Shouldn't that be enough for them to realize Loki was a fighter? They wouldn't even try to give him a second chance. If Loki lived, and the Avengers nursed him back to health, Thor believed Loki will change.
"No! Loki is alive! We can save him!"
"Look, Thor," Tony stepped in. He was done listening to this pointless argument, "One, Loki looks like he went through a shredder. And two-"
Tony didn't stop there. He was going to be honest with Thor- real honest. The anger wasn't just in Thor, it lived inside him too. But his was for the Chitauri attack. It was still fresh in his mind. Tony will never forget the feeling that surged through him as the world watched the Avengers battle the Earth's greatest threat. People died- a lot. It wasn't something to be taken lightly.
"This guy has tried to kill us… to kill you! Multiple times I might add! He's tried to take over the world!" Tony screamed, gesturing wildly, "He threw me out a fucking window! And you… you want to save him?! …All because he's your brother?!"
The tension in the room went from one to one hundred in two seconds. Tony stood there panting from his outburst, waiting for Thor's response. Which he knew wasn't going to be happy. In fact, the god wanted to kill Iron Man where he stood for questioning his morals. He loved his friends dearly, but he loved his brother more. He and Loki went through too much over thousands of years to be nothing. Loki wasn't an innocent man, but his judgment has been clouded by hatred. His mind was ill. Deep inside, Thor knew Loki was a caring, sensitive man.
The only reason Thor didn't get up from his spot to fight was the faint gasp from Loki's lips. His brother was dying, but Thor's hard-headedness refuses to allow it. Instead, Thor made an ultimatum of his own. Holding Loki carefully, Thor slowly rose to his feet. The smaller god was tucked away, hidden in his brother's massive arms. The heavy chains attached to Loki dangled on the ground. Thor quickly rounded them up around his hand so they wouldn't pull on his brother.
The others backed away, unsure of the god's next actions. Thor did nothing but glance down at Loki with sad eyes. A single tear slipped down his cheek. He inhaled sharply and proceed forward towards the exit. The Avengers moved out of his path as the god carefully maneuvered through the scattered obstacles.
"Wait," Steve called out, trying to catch up to him, "Where are you going?!"
Thor turned around, careful to not jostle his brother. The mix of anger and hurt in his eyes shot right through Steve like a gun. Never has Thor had such a terrifying presence. The energy coming off of him really did show how god-like he was.
"I am going to the towers healing chambers," He stated venomously. He turned around and started to walk out, "If you will not help, I will save my brother myself."
Before anyone could protest, he was gone; no one wanted to stop him. The remaining Avengers were left in a state of shock. To their credit, there was nothing they could do. No one wanted to tell Thor "no".
Bruce stood looking at the exit of the lab. A conflict rose inside of him.
"I-I think maybe I should go help him..." Bruce murmured.
"What?!" Tony and Clint both yelled in unison at Bruce's ridiculous thought.
"Do you really think that's a good idea, Bruce?" Natasha asked cautiously as she walked towards him. No one liked the idea at all of helping Loki, so why did Bruce have this dilemma?
"I'm a doctor…", Bruce stated looking at his teammates, "I have obligations, an oath to help someone in need."
"Yeah, we know!" Clint interrupted, "But this isn't just anybody, this is Loki we're talking about!"
"Yes, but-"
"No Bruce, I don't want…" Tony demanded as he gestured up the stairs, "-that thing in my tower! Let alone be saved!
Bruce shrank back a little at Clint and Tony's verbal assaults. They didn't understand the moral obligations of a doctor; he said the oath. Besides, even if that wasn't a problem, Loki crashed into the tower pretty much dead. Bruce had little hopes that they could even save him. Clearly, he went through something very bad to end up here in that kind of shape- he's a god after all. They would never know the truth if they just let him die.
"Steve." Natasha calls to get the Captain's attention, "You're the boss. It's your call."
As Tony starts to pick a fight with Widow over who the leader was, while Steve stood deep in thought. No one's opinion here seemed unreasonable. He saw both sides of Tony and Bruce's argument. Then, there are his own morals that come to play. The choice he makes will be bad either way. Either Loki dies and Steve lives with the guilt, or they save him and he still feels guilty for saving a genocidal maniac. Why did Natasha even have to put him on the spot like this? Steve nervously runs his fingers through his hair, trying to think it through.
"Come 'on Cap, you know I'm right!" Tony scoffed, crossing his arms.
Steve took a deep breath and came to a decision.
"We're going to help Loki."
Tony's jaw dropped over Steve final word. Even Clint and Natasha's eyes went wide in surprise. Only Bruce showed a sense of relief wash over his face.
"B-but why?" Tony stammered. He couldn't comprehend what led him to choose that.
"Because we are the good guys," Steve said matter of fact, "We take the high road. If someone lays vulnerable is the high road to kill them while they're down? Does it make you feel better that you can play God and choose when someone should live or die? Is that the high road still? When your teammate, your friend, begs for help and you deny them that… is that the high road? I don't like the guy as much as you guys do, but there's a basic moral that we as heroes live by… and I can't go against that."
"Damn, why is he so good at saying guilty shit like that?" Hawkeye pouted.
Tony didn't respond to either's comment. He just scowled and looked away. It was his tower, his lab, and his sickbay. Why does Steve get to be the deciding factor in all of this? Clint was right though... Steve was always good at his damn speeches.
Bruce quietly walked up to Steve, "…thank you."
The Captain gave him a small smile and a reassuring pat on the shoulder. He admired Bruce's moral compass, even if the Other Guy begs to differ. Steve could always count on Bruce to do the right thing. The doctor was the voice of reason.
"Bruce, how about you and I go find Thor," Steve suggested.
Bruce gave a small nod. The two-headed for the exit, while the others stood dumbfounded. Left out of the conversation, Tony curled his lip.
"And what the hell do you want us to do?!"
Steve gestured Bruce to go ahead as he turned around to face his disgruntled teammates. Clint and Tony looked pissed, but Natasha's face held no emotion. She honestly didn't know what to think of it all. Although she sided with Tony and Clint, Steve was a respectable man and his intentions were never wrong.
"You can do whatever you want." The Captain replied sternly, "If you need us, we'll be in the infirmary."
When no one responded, Steve turned around to catch up with the others.
Thor mazed through the endless halls, trying to remember the way to their healing chambers. Loki was slowly slipping away with each passing minute. He wanted to stop to check on his brother, but he didn't want to risk any more time. The halls slowly became more familiar as he reached the infirmaries sliding glass doors. Automatically opening to Thor's presence, he wasted no time rushing in.
The bright white walls if the room were a welcoming sight to the blonde. He passed by the privacy curtain that covered the hallway to the rest of the infirmary. Thor forgot how large it was. Various sized machines lined neatly in the corner of the room next to the large hospital bed. There was a large desk along one wall with built-in cabinets all around. The room even had an en-suite bathroom for convenience. The sickbay has been used on countless occasions for simple patch-up jobs, but never one for something as serious.
Making his way up to the bed, Thor carefully set his brother down on the clean, white sheets. They almost immediately stain red on Loki's presence. Thor backed up, completely paralyzed on where to begin. He had never tended to someone's injuries; maybe a few, but nothing like this. Fresh tears threaten to spill from his eyes again. Thor realized he couldn't do this alone. Out of sheer luck, he saved Loki last time.
A small wheeze came from the younger god. Thor immediately dashed over and fell to his knees by his bedside. He took Loki's frail hand within his massive ones.
"Brother," Thor pleaded, "Tell me how I can aid you!"
The god's pleas came unanswered. It was hard to tell Loki's expression under all the dirt, blood, and bruises. Thor rested his head on their held hands. He prayed to the Norns for guidance. Letting Loki slip away from in between his fingers was not an option.
"Thor!"
The blonde popped up to hearing his name. Bruce appeared at the entrance of the sickbay. The doctor ran up to Thor's side panting.
"I'm here… to help." He declared through heavy breaths.
As Bruce spoke, Steve came rushing in. Thor couldn't hold back the tears any longer. Tears of joy streamed down his cheeks.
"My friends, you came."
"We're a team, Thor," Steve said as a warm smile spread across his face, "We would never turn our back on one of our own."
Thor used his sleeve to wipe away the tears. He wasn't alone; he was never alone. Hope surged through him, renewing his energy. Whatever it takes, he will do it to save Loki.
Bruce was already at Loki's side. He trying to assess his condition. The doctor has never treated an alien, a god before. Who knows what their biology is- that, and how relates to human anatomy? There was no time to do any scans or imaging. Bruce would just have to wing it; either that or Loki dies.
Noticing Thor and Steve waiting for his commands, Bruce had to act.
"The chains will have to wait. He's too critical right now. I can't diagnose anything else with the state his body is in." Bruce said looking to Thor, "I need you to get a pair of scissors from the desk drawer."
Thor didn't waste a second. He sped over to the table and dug threw every drawer frantically. As Thor did that, Bruce turned to Steve.
"I need a bucket of water and washcloths… a lot of them."
The Captain nodded and ran off as Thor came back quickly with the scissors. Bruce took the shears from him turned back to Loki. Even though the god's clothes were torn, Bruce needed them off to get the full extent of his injuries. Thor quickly saw where Bruce was going and started to carefully pull Loki's cape and armor off. Bruce grabbed Loki's tunic and started to cut through it. All of the god's garb was woven with thick fabric and dense leather, making it extremely hard to cut through.
After getting the top half off, Bruce quickly turned to Loki's trousers. Thor started showing signs of anxiety over the fact. He pushed back the thoughts and worked on getting his brother's leg armor and boots off. Together they stripped Loki down to just his undergarments. Once it was prepped, they waited for Steve to return.
"I grabbed as many as I could," Steve called as he rushed to them, one arm was full of towels, while the other carrying a large bucket of water.
Bruce thanked him quickly took two of the washcloths. Dipping it into the bucket and squeezing off the excess water, he spun back to Loki.
"We need to clean him off. I can't tell his injuries under all of it." The doctor handed a damp cloth to each of them, "You don't need to get through, just enough to expose his skin more."
All the chains were pushed out of the way. Removing them would be a later project. For now, they needed Loki stable.
Thor and Steve took a washcloth each and got to work. Bruce left to grab antiseptic, thread, and a needle. The bucket of water muddied quickly as they each took turns washing off their towels. When it became too much, Steve grabbed it and ran to the bathroom for clean water. Bruce passed Steve as he pulled up a rolling cart full of supplies, nearly colliding.
Before the doctor could start, a horribly wet gurgle came from Loki. Both he and Thor jerked their head to look at him. A stream of blood started to trickle down the corner of the god's mouth.
"Shit!" Bruce ditched the rolling cart and ran to the opposite side of the bed.
Thor stood there panicked as Bruce started tugging wires on a machine by the bed. Plugging it in, he rolled it up as close to the bed's headboard. Before he continued, the doctor looked down at his bloodied hands. He muttered something under his breath and raced to the sink, crossing paths with Steve again when he returned with the fresh water.
"What's going on?" Steve panicked as he saw Bruce scrubbing the blood off his hands frantically.
Bruce didn't respond immediately as he quickly wiped his hands off and ran back to the bed. The poor man sweat profusely from all the stress. Bruce grabbed a long clear tube hooked to the machine he pulled up.
"His lungs are filling with blood," Bruce explained leaning over the bed, "I need to intubate him before he drowns."
The doctor didn't give anyone time to ask questions. He tilted Loki's head back to get a straight path and held the tube steady. Bruce was going in this blind. Hopefully, Jotun- or whatever he is- has the same anatomy to allow them to be intubated. If that wasn't the only problem, he didn't have time for any type of imaging to make sure he did it correctly. If he was lucky, the tube will go into his lungs, if not, it could snake its way down his stomach.
Bruce took a deep breath and started to guide the tube down Loki's throat. The god made the smallest jerk at the sensation. The doctor felt Loki movement underneath his hand and panicked. He forgot the god wasn't under any sedation. In the state that Loki was in, if he was sedated, he may never wake up again.
"Thor!" Bruce called, keeping his eyes firmly planted on Loki, "I need you to hold him still."
Thor swallowed the lump in his throat and nodded. He wasted no time coming to lean over his brother. Making sure he wasn't in the way of Bruce doing his work, Thor applied light pressure to Loki's shoulders. He didn't feel much resistance from his younger brother. It was mostly just involuntary twitches from the tube.
"And Steve…"
The Captain jumped at Bruce calling his name.
"Don't stop cleaning him off! Once I do this, I need to be able to see him."
Steve agreed as he pulled another towel out to get to work on Loki's chest. He was making progress cleaning his chest. Loki's sickly pale skin peaked behind the layers of grime. Steve kept repeating the routine before moving onto another spot.
Bruce had to ignore the sweat dripping down his nose as he steadied the tube. When he thought it was in position, he grabbed the mouthpiece. It latched around the tube and had an elastic band attached to secure it around Loki's head. Bruce reached towards the machine and flipped a few switches. The lights flickered on and it started to pump oxygen back into Loki's lungs.
That's one crisis averted. Now a twenty more to go…
Once instructed, Thor released his hands from his brother and went back to grab another washcloth. Bruce continued to direct the others to clean him up. He pointed to certain areas to do first. He pulled up more machines and started to place sticky pads on the clean areas of the god's chest. Within a few short minutes, Bruce got Loki hooked up to a heart monitor and blood pressure reader.
They all worked together and cleaned off the rest of the blood and grime caked to Loki's body. The final results revealed why Loki was in this bad of shape. Steve looked like he was going to vomit, as Thor turned three shades paler.
Underneath all of the layers were the signs of torture. The top half of his chest was branded with symbols foreign to them. The burns sunk deep into skin and muscle, only stopping when it hit bone. Every exposed body part was either bleeding from fresh wounds or scarred from old ones. One old scar peaked out from under the metal collar was stretched across Loki's neck- a slit throat. Some scars were so large that it distorted his skin from the healing. Every limb had some sort of gruesome bruise or burn on it. Bruce could only assume broken bones by the depth and color of some of those bruises.
But the worst of them all wasn't the burnt skin or the scars … no, it was far worse. At the very beginning of removing Loki's clothing, Bruce put a tentative pressure bandage on the center of his chest. He covered a wound that bled profusely. Now, the gauze had absorbed the extent of the blood and seemed to slow the bleeding. Bruce deemed it absolutely necessary now to treat it. He peeled it away slowly, holding extra gauze in his other hand in case it started to bleed too much.
What it revealed would be ingrained in the minds of all three men forever. A physical hole was in the center of Loki's chest. The circumference was large enough for Bruce to slide three fingers in easily. The hole was where his ribs should be. As much as Bruce didn't want to, he put on a pair of gloves and used his fingers as a blunt tool to feel around. Both Steve and Thor had to look away at the gore of it.
As he slid his fingers no more a half an inch into the gaping hole, he could feel ribs. Bruce's heart skipped a beat. Loki's ribs have been snapped in half; they impaled the god's lungs, collapsing them in the process. It was pure luck none of them hit his heart.
Bruce had to step back. It was too much. He had gotten over his head now. Loki was just a mess of blood and bones. The doctor allowed himself to take a few slow, deep breaths. A death sentence to Loki would be if the allowed Hulk to show up. Bruce used his sleeve to wipe the sweat from his brow.
"Bruce?"
Bruce heard the Captain's whisper and looked over to see both Steve and Thor in a state of shock; both were trembling at the sight.
"Bruce…" Steve repeated a little louder, his voice wavering, "W-what can I… we do to help? He's bleeding out."
Steve was right. The gaping hole in the center merely was still spilling blood at a steady rate. No matter how hard Bruce tried to prod the hole carefully, it disturbed the healing process. Although that was the most prominent wound, many other cuts still bled freely.
Bruce took a deep breath and looked at Steve.
"Can you sew?"
"Not well…" Steve replied, knowing where this was going.
Biting his lip in thought, Bruce turned to the abandoned rolling cart. He picked up the needle and thread and handed it to Steve.
"It's going to have to do," Bruce said.
Bruce noticed Thor hasn't spoken a single word in a very long time. When he glanced over at him, Thor was now taking a washcloth to his brother's face. He was gentle and careful not to jostle the breathing tube. Thor tried to clean the remnants of blood off his face since they were focusing so heavily on the rest of his body. The cloth wiped away enough to reveal Loki's two black eyes and long jagged scars crossing over his face. One particular fresh cut above his eyebrow didn't stop bleeding.
His eyes fell back on the hole and Bruce knew that, if he messed this up, it will kill Loki. The god needed to be as stable as possible before attempting to work on it. Until then, the ventilator did an adequate job. Bruce took more gauze and made another makeshift pressure bandage on the hole.
Another small noise escaped Loki's lips. They all turned to see the god's face contort in pain. Bruce's eyes widened as he knew he needed to act immediately.
"Thor, hold him down again!" Bruce directed as he ran to the cabinets across the room, "We need to keep him calm and still!"
"And Steve…"
The Captain turned to see Bruce running back with his hands full of supplies.
"Don't stop stitching the wounds!"
Steve didn't say anything. He just nodded and went back to work. Each time he finished a cut, Bruce instructed him to disinfect it and bandage it.
Bruce laid the pile of supplies on the side of the bed. He pulled over an IV stand behind him and started to hang numerous bags of liquids on it. Taking out a sterile needle, he tried to get an IV started in a vein. The god was so dehydrated that it was almost impossible to find a vein. It took many tries and a lot of blown veins, but he was able to get one in both his hand and elbow. Bruce started the tedious process of connecting all the tubes; he favored one in-particular. Sliding the tube through a computer on the IV stand and activated it. The liquid started to drip out of the bag and into the IV.
"This is a fast-acting sedative. It is risky to do, but we have no choice." Bruce gestured to the bag with his eyes, then to Thor, "You can let go of his now."
Thor hesitated for a second before letting go. As he leaned back, he noticed his brother's face was a little more peaceful. The tube, however, horrified him. He's never seen Asgardian healers use any sort of device like that.
"Thor, do you know anything about Jotun blood?" Bruce asked pulling the god from his trance.
Thor shook his head. Other than their giant size and frozen skin, he knew close to nothing about them. Stories told in Asgard never talked about things like that. The told stories of evil, war, and the hate that comes with it.
"Loki needs blood… bad. I'm going to have to risk it and give him a synthetic blend. I'm also putting him on heavy antibiotics and a saline drip." Bruce rattled off a long list of things he was doing. It wasn't really to inform them as much as to talk himself through his own thought process.
Thor blinked. He didn't know what any of this meant. All he saw was his brother covered in various tubes and bandages. The sound of the ventilator gave him chills. The beeping of the heart monitor was the only indicator that Loki was alive.
"I have complete trust in you, Dr. Banner."
Bruce's face relaxed a little at Thor's faith in him. He went over to the fridge and pulled out a large, clear bag of blood. The doctor had to pull up another IV pole to house more bags on. He continued to talk to himself through his next steps in hopes to keep himself calm.
"Ok... alright. I'll let the transfusion finish and give it twenty -no thirty minutes before starting another one. Shit! No… that won't work. I need to add a line."
Steve was starting to worry about Bruce. He was mumbling incoherently. Nothing is worse than Bruce being stressed. But he knew he needed to stay focused on sewing Loki back up. It wouldn't help to give him blood if he kept bleeding it all out.
The doctor ushered Thor to stand back as he came over and laid out a large paper sheet over Loki's left side. In the center of the sheet had a hole that exposed a small part of Loki's upper arm. Steve started to stand up, scared he was in Bruce's way.
"You can stay, Steve." Bruce quickly assured him as he placed a mask over his face, "I just need a sterile area. So, don't cross this paper I laid out."
As Bruce places in a central line, Thor stood at a distance and watched the doctor work. It looked like a tedious process. Bruce had a full gown on coupled with gloves and a mask. Using countless alcohol wipes, he carefully cleaned each connection before inserting it. It took almost half an hour to deem it a success. A PICC line was inserted on Loki's left side, on his upper bicep. A special bandage was placed around it to keep it the tube in place. Bruce pulled off the mask and let out a loud, drawn-out breath. He cleaned up the sterile area and tossed all the used supplies in the trash.
"Bruce," Steve said, worried he'd interrupted his process, "How about you take a little break. Look, I just finished patching him up and-"
"I can't." Bruce interrupted, his voice was soft but weary. "Loki has enough support to keep him 'alive enough' for the surgery I need to do…"
Both Steve and Thor collectively gasped. Even Thor knew what surgery was. In Asgard, surgery was the last option of magic couldn't save someone; that was something very rare.
"You said he has support," Thor blurted out, gesturing to all the equipment, "Is this not adequate enough?"
"For Christ's sake, Thor! He's got a gaping hole in his chest! Of course, that's not enough!
The god flinched back at Bruce's words. A tinge of green started to creep up the doctor's neck. He growled and clutched his head. Taking deep breaths, Bruce was able to fight the green away.
"N-no! I'm sorry!" Bruce cried out, "I didn't mean that! It's just… just…"
Steve walked over to his emotional friend.
"It's ok, Bruce. We understand."
Bruce's eyes fell to the floor, embarrassed by his outburst. This was an unbearable amount of weight on his shoulders to save Loki. It actually made it harder that the man was semi-immortal. Loki's body couldn't decide whether to die or to live. It made predicting his recovery close to impossible.
"You said it yourself to Thor that he was 'not alone'," The Captain rested a comforting hand on his shoulder, "That applies to all of us."
"Banner, please. Do not take all this on your own. We may not be healers, but we can still assist you." Thor said, "This surgery… what does it entail?"
Bruce listened to their kind words. It touched him deeply. As the doctor, he admits, the burden is heavier. Glancing over to Loki, the god is far from the clear. The heart monitor beeps irregularly and his chest rises only slightly with each machine-forced breath.
Giving one last deep breath, Bruce looked to his teammates.
"Loki's ribs have snapped and are now piercing his lungs. Doing that has caused both of them to collapse. They're filling with blood. Being like this for too long could cause major complications and infections. That's why I gave him a PICC line. It's a tube that's fed closer to the heart. I'm pumping him with as many antibiotics as I can. It was originally connected to his forearm, but I needed that port for the blood transfusions."
The doctor gave the two a moment before continuing.
"The surgery will be to remove the broken ribs and if I can screw them back in place. He'll need chest tubes; one to suck out the blood and one to remove the air in his chest cavity. After all of that, then we can focus on the actual hole in his chest."
Steve and Thor listened intensely, allowing their brains to drink in all this material. They both realized that, by the way Bruce described it, this was going to be a long night. Both were interrupted in thought by Bruce clearing his throat.
"This surgery will take hours. I don't know how many, but it will be touch and go," Bruce's eye gazed darker for a second, "Loki's body might not be able to handle it all. It's a high possibility we can lose him on the table. But, if we don't try, he'll die anyway."
"What shall we do now?" Thor asked, fearing the worst.
"We need to scrub up. This whole perimeter needs to be sterile." Bruce pursed his lips, "Other than that… we're just going to have to go in blind."
Next Chapter: A Breath of Fresh Air
Word Count: 7,244
Updated On: 9-16-2019
Posted On: 9-16-2019
