- Chapter 302 -
Frigga worried as she listened to her grandson speak. She could hear the anger in his voice. After everything that she'd seen him go through with Stark and Loki, and knew that there had to be even more than that, she wondered what could genuinely rouse his ire. The boy had a tremendous amount of patience. To hear real anger in his voice was as surprising as it was worrying. If he was angry, then Loki had probably already attacked Stark. Frigga still couldn't understand why Loki did it but worried suddenly over how badly Stark was injured. Those injuries looked to have angered Jay. He hadn't seemed so injured in the last recording. This was so very close to when Thor returned home to bring them news of Loki's death. They had to be near the end. She hoped that they might at least learn what attack against Stark there was. She wanted to know what more apologies needed to be made to her son-by-law.
.-.-.-.
"Jarvis? Tony's Construct Helper?" Loki asked. He wondered how many Construct Helpers Tony had if there was another Jarvis construct in another house. "Construct, why am I in a different house?"
"You're at the same address," Jarvis paused, "sir." Being civil with Loki was proving to be more difficult than he anticipated. It was only because his creator asked him to look after Loki that he was dealing with him now. He deliberated on using one of his father's armors to restrain Loki until his father returned for half a second before deciding against it. It would make his creator angry without a long term benefit. In the short term, it would make him feel much safer. He'd been dwelling on the attacks since it all happened. His parent had never been assaulted in such a fashion. It left his parent scared and anxious. This and his own fear at having been attacked were what he was dwelling on most. It was wholly unhealthy for him to do, particularly since he'd already acknowledged that it wasn't truly Loki's fault. In truth, the entire thing was a terrible accident that couldn't be undone. A straightforward yet petty part of him didn't care that it wasn't truly Loki's fault, that Loki was a victim in it as well. Jarvis wanted his simpler life with just his father and his companion back and was angry that he couldn't have that.
"This isn't the house I remember waking up in. The other house was white and, I think, had stairs in it. There was water outside the windows as well. This is not that same house," Loki said.
"This is the same address, sir," Jarvis replied. "You don't belong in this room. Go back to your room and wait for Sir to come home."
"Tony?" This construct was being unusually surly. Constructs weren't normally so emotive. "Construct, where is Tony?"
"My name is Jarvis, sir," the digital boy almost spat the last word. He deliberated for two seconds so that he could remove more of the anger he felt and replace it with patience. The deliberation produced patience and the decision that he could be somewhat truthful with Loki. He felt Loki should know that his father was committing multiple counts of treason and why. "Currently, Sir is at SHIELD, lying on your behalf."
A small smile touched Loki's lips. He almost couldn't believe that Tony kept his promise to not alert SHIELD. This was a very nice surprise. The different house made more sense then. If they were going to hide from SHIELD then they were going to need to move constantly. Loki wondered if Tony was getting rid of evidence like he said he would. He said he would only keep a few things, Loki wanted those gone too. "I see. That's why we're in a different house. Tony is hiding us," he said softly. That his Silent Man was dealing with SHIELD to throw them off the trail was sweet. Loki wondered if maybe Tony wasn't lying about the bargain not being what he meant. Tony doing something so kind made it seem more likely than not that he hadn't meant to hurt him. Loki worried then. It probably wasn't wise for Tony to do this. He didn't want his Silent Man to be punished for aiding him, not when he was going to die soon anyway.
.-.-.-.
The blatant anger in his grandson's voice unsettled Frey. With everything else he'd seen the boy deal with, he couldn't imagine what could genuinely draw the boy's ire. It was particularly odd because Anthony hadn't seemed so injured and was forgiving towards Loki for whatever it was. Again, Jay was the angrier of the two. There was something very amiss in this.
.-.-.-.
"We're at the same address as yesterday, sir," Jarvis said quietly. The fond look on Loki's face at the news of what his father was doing confused him. Loki looked like he appreciated what his father had done and was still doing. He didn't want to accept Loki's gratitude, not after what happened yesterday. What he wanted was for Loki to go back to his room and wait. As soon as his parent got home Jarvis wanted him to ask Loki to leave. His parent would protest, saying that Loki was still sick and still needed their help. His parent already had him planning out how to help Loki. That plan was one of the reasons why his father was out of the house. He went to seek out Bruce Banner's help as well as throw SHIELD off Loki's trail. Jarvis was very uncomfortable with his father trying to provide this kind of aid, even if he was the only person who was willing.
Loki scoffed at that. He was starting to dislike Tony's Construct Helper. This one was unlike any he'd ever come across before. It was a great deal less intelligent than even the simplest of Construct Helpers in Brokkr's workshop. "Construct, you are witless. This is a different house than the last one I was in. Did you not notice that? We cannot be at the same place yet be somewhere different. How do you explain that?"
A sharp, nocent anger filled Jarvis' thoughts. Unprompted, an image of his father's scared face as he yelled at Loki to stop played again. The same fear and helplessness he felt then surged into his thoughts again. There was nothing he could do to help his father. All he could do was watch. He deliberated for two seconds to regain control of himself. He lost that deliberation as well as the next two. When the final deliberation was completed he loaded the security footage compilation of the event onto the tablet on the desk. "Very well, sir. Pick up the tablet on the desk. I'll show you," Jarvis said quietly.
Loki noticed how the little device sitting next to the scepter turned on without him touching it. He hesitated to touch it. It was sitting so close to the scepter. He walked over tentatively then quickly snatched it up and backed away again. The scepter was one of the worst burdens he had to carry. Just being near it was enough to give him nightmares of the box. He pulled his attention away from the scepter to the little flat device.
There was a still image on the little screen of a house that looked more familiar. There were little symbols on the bottom of the screen. None of them were labeled. Loki tried touching the little horn looking symbol. The symbol emptied to an outline without doing anything. He thought that was odd, so he tried an arrow pointing to his left. It did nothing. The double arrows pointing to his right that he tried next caused the image to change. The front door of the house was slightly ajar. The image still wasn't moving.
Jarvis' patience with Loki trying to figure out the tablet wore thin in no time. He reached out to the tablet and started the security footage playing. The command to fast-forward was canceled while the mute was left alone. He didn't care if Loki heard it, so long as he saw it. Next, he locked the buttons so that Loki couldn't accidentally stop the playback. Loki was going to know what he'd done before he went back to his room. Hopefully, his father would make Loki leave so that he and his father could be safe again. Jarvis didn't want to spend more time with the bad man in front of him. Convincing his creator to do it was what he wanted.
Loki watched himself stumble out of the white house into the courtyard. He thought himself drunk as he watched. How that happened was a mystery. His eyes widened as brilliant colors played across the security footage just a few moments later. He couldn't keep the shock off his face. This wasn't possible, it couldn't be. He looked down at his own chest and tentatively tried to uncurl his seidr. He didn't even get that far before the broken shards of his seidr core began grinding painfully against one another. The pain caused his breath to shorten and his hand to press a little more firmly against the scar. That was always a mistake. Sharp shots of pain jolted him, so he removed his hand quickly. His seidr core was still fractured. He was still dying. Without at least one Heal Mistress or Heal Meister to conduct the Rite of Purification he was going to die. There was nothing that could stop that. It would compound and be compounded by his Void Sickness. He was no longer capable of working the magics that he was watching himself work. It only took him a few minutes to destroy everything. "That's not possible. It can't be," he said softly.
His own behavior disturbed him more than the magics he shouldn't be able to work. Lewd and crass behavior were never beneath him when he was drunk. He and his Uncle Frey went to Lenzin-Manod many times. There was something not right in this, but he just couldn't place it. He knew his uncle's drunken tells better than his own. Tony arrived almost immediately after. The shock on Tony's face was painful to see. He didn't want to put it there.
Nervousness filled him as he watched himself approach Tony. Something was wrong with him and Tony was right in his path. It all started out pleasant enough. Loki gasped sharply as he watched the blood flow down Tony's front. His own grin was sickening to him, as were his wandering hands. Little tears flooded his eyes as he saw himself holding Tony against the car. Tony's fear heightened his own. A hand covered his mouth in disbelief. The ache in his chest shortened his breath as it flared up again. Loki couldn't believe what he was watching. He couldn't believe that was him. The little tears overflowed his eyes and spilled down his cheeks. The ache stabbing at his chest curled around his spine again. At least he knew where the bruise on his chest came from. As much pain as his chest was already in, it wasn't enough to cover what he deserved. His eyes slid closed as more little tears spilled over.
Loki set the little device back down on the desk. He didn't want to see anymore. Tony stopped him, that was all he needed to know. He was standing in Tony's bedroom, but the Construct Helper was correct. He didn't belong there. Loki's breath hitched softly as he tried not to sob. His Silent Man was the latest entry on the list of things he'd given up. There was no way he could stay by Tony's side. Even dying by his Silent Man's side was lost to him. It made even less sense why Tony would be lying to SHIELD. All Loki had left now was his life. It was the one thing he didn't want.
.-.-.-.
It was a quiet war Frey's emotions waged with themselves. He was greatly worried over what he was seeing, yet still quite pleased by knowing that he would be there for Algrim's downfall. It was such an unsettled mix of emotions that it left him anxious. Jay's behavior was anxiety inducing. His grandson was patient and calm. However, what he did in this instance was angry and most disturbingly, it appeared to be slightly vengeful. The attack on Anthony was the only thing he thought might have been able to rouse the boy's ire, but this involved the house. He didn't know why Loki would be so upset about the house. He wanted to see what was on the little device in Loki's hand. There was a growing dislike of those little devices in him. Every time they used one Frey was left worrying over what he wasn't seeing.
What Odin was seeing made no sense to him. Jay was a good boy. He argued on Loki's behalf repeatedly despite Loki's own bad behavior. The anger in his voice wasn't as disturbing as watching him deliberately show something to Loki that caused Loki to cry. This looked disturbingly vengeful, but he couldn't understand that.
I don't understand. This was honestly one of the most shocking things for Frigga to see. Her grandson's honor and morality had been a constant throughout the day. Anger, retaliation, and vengeance just weren't like him. Why would the boy do something so spiteful?
I wonder… Natasha thought back over Stark's old house. Jay wasn't wrong. It was at the exact same address as the new one. They were in radically different houses though. It was suspicious now where it wasn't before. Jay's angry, Stark's been attacked and they're in a different house...
You are the prettiest rude emmiki I've ever seen, and you need to knock it off. Purposeful calm in mind, Sean sat back in his chair. Extra effort was put into keeping a calm professional look on his face. The solar flares wafting off Lord Frey's skin had died down to a comfortable warmth, but his anxiety was making a reappearance. The sharp popping pressure mixed with the warmth to leave him feeling like he was sitting in the sun on a beach. Waves of warmth were sliding smoothly over his skin. The warmth wasn't so bad. He only felt a little bit like he was burning in the sun's rays. What bothered him were the movements that the harpoon of attraction had started making. The anxiety was pushing on the chain of sunlight connecting them, driving the harpoon slightly deeper into his chest, then pulling it slightly back. Since it was already warm and somewhat vibrating this did nothing to ease its rude nature. He still wanted it gone, but there was nothing that he could do about it. Lord Frey still didn't know what he was doing. Sean knew it wouldn't be a problem if he could ignore it, which he couldn't. It was still sending starbursts of pleasure through him that were more relaxing than any of the beautiful lady's songs. The most awkward part came when he realized that he'd be both aroused and embarrassed by the entire thing if he hadn't been so relaxed. The situation improving on Vanaheim was the hope he held onto. This wasn't the right way to begin working for someone. Sean blushed a little more when the beautiful lady winked mischievously at him. Thank you ma'am, but please, I really don't need, any…
.-.-.-.
As he wiped the tears from his eyes, he knew what he needed to do. What few things he was leaving behind would be restrained by the bargain. This needed to be the last thing he did. "Construct, are there caves near to here?" he asked quietly. Keeping his breathing under control was difficult. He wanted to curl up and cry. There was no point in that. Knowing that it would all be over soon didn't dull the pain in his chest any, but it did let him to ignore it. The ache was curling around his spine. The pricklish pain was going to follow that. There was only one way to stop it left to him. He only needed to halt it for a little longer, just long enough to get away. It wouldn't matter anymore after that.
"You should watch the rest of the security footage, sir" Jarvis said quietly. Loki's response further confused him. Loki looked genuinely upset and remorseful over what he'd done. This wasn't a result predicted in his deliberation. He deliberated on it. The deliberation reaffirmed that he'd done the right thing in showing Loki what he'd done. It also produced a spontaneous second side deliberation that disturbed him. This side deliberation concluded that he might have been mistaken in how he showed Loki. The side deliberation also reaffirmed that Loki wasn't at fault for what happened.
"I know what happened," Loki said softly. Dull resignation was overtaking his thoughts again. He'd waited centuries for his Silent Man. It was all a lie. It always was. There was no denying that anymore. He'd ruined everything the first chance he had. He couldn't even be surprised. It wasn't the first relationship he'd ruined. Tony was in danger every moment he stayed there. Maybe, if I can get far enough away it'll work this time, he thought. He needed a deep cave first; someplace dark and cold to end things as they began. "Construct, answer," he ordered Tony's Construct Helper. "Are there any caves near to here?"
It was a very odd request to Jarvis, and a suspicious one. He considered again and decided to comply with the request. "There are caves to the north, north-east. Why do you want to know, sir?"
Loki hesitated only a moment before he picked the scepter back up. He needed its poisoned strength one last time. Its weight was as cold as ever in his hand. The phosphorescent pale blue of its light had a fearful gleam.
"Put that down, sir!" Jarvis said quickly. While he could, he jumped into the vast gulf of the internet, leaving only a small part of his consciousness extended into the house.
Loki traced the old runes over the surface of the gem. Without seidr to uncurl he had to rely on the scepter itself. That was a bad proposition, but he needed it, so he'd use it. "One last time, so that Tony will be safe," he said quietly. Once the runes were traced, he pointed of the scepter to his chest. His hand shook for a moment before he touched it softly to his chest. The might of the Infinity Gem flowed into him through that tiny touch. It latched onto the diseased growth on the exterior of his bones destroying the afflicted tissue before its terrible might came to rest in the interior of his bones. The ache in his chest quieted down to a dull pain and the bruise disappeared entirely. The warmth of something similar to a Regenerative Weave bloomed in his blood. It was a poisoned strength, but it lent him what he needed to get away to hide the scepter, and hopefully his body as well. Hiding his body would be essential in making sure that Tony wasn't punished for aiding him when he shouldn't have.
.-.-.-.
Suddenly Odin was very nervous when Loki picked up the scepter with a determined look on his face. He was more nervous was he watched his son trace runes that he didn't know across the surface of it. His hand tightened around his wife's hand as Loki made to touch himself with the scepter. He pulled in a sharp breath and held it. When Loki's eyes and all of his bones glowed phosphorescent pale blue, his own eye widened in alarm. What have you done?! How could this provide safety for Stark?
What Jay did paled in comparison to what Loki did. Her hand clenched as Odin's hand clenched violently while Frigga's eyes widened in alarm. The scepter came from Thanos. It more than likely had his poisoned influence and was backed by an Infinity Gem. Jay was capable of handling that corruption; Loki wasn't. Frigga didn't know the runes Loki traced across its surface. She particularly didn't understand what sort of safety this provided Stark with. How did this happen? Why?
Watching Loki use the scepter on himself made Clint extremely uncomfortable. He was keenly aware of the blue glow in Loki's eyes. That it faded away for Loki, while leaving him affected, bothered Clint in many ways. It left him wondering much more about the invasion. Those were never easy questions. All it was to him was more proof that he needed the answers that Loki had.
.-.-.-.
Loki looked down at the scepter. "Construct, I need you to relay a message to your master for me," he said quietly. "Tell him that I'm sorry for having caused him so much trouble, it was never my intent, and that I appreciate his efforts on my behalf. Tell him that he needn't worry over the scepter or being discovered. I'll see that what he has done will be hidden." With that, he turned and walked out of the bedroom. There was an exit to this house, and he needed to find it.
"Where do you think you're going, sir?" Jarvis asked quickly. It frightened him to see Loki use the scepter on himself. His eyes lit up pale blue like Clint Barton's had. It was for just under two seconds and then the blue faded away. During that time, all of Loki's bones glowed pale blue as well. They were clearly visible from the optical cameras. Loki's biometric health scans improved dramatically after that. This wasn't a result produced in his deliberation when he decided to show Loki the security footage. It appeared that his side deliberation was indeed correct. He did make a mistake.
"I have a body and a gem to hide," Loki said as he walked down the hallway past the rooms he'd searched for Tony in. He was grateful now that Tony wasn't in any of them.
"A body?! What do you mean by that?" Jarvis asked. This was becoming an alarming conversation. "Return to your room immediately! Wait for Sir to return home!"
"I'll be dead soon enough, I need to find a place to hide my corpse before then," Loki said. He stopped to look down at the scepter again. "I should have died in the theater. It would have been so much easier on everyone." He shook his head slightly and then went through the door at the end of the hallway. It was a kitchen with a view out into the sitting area. He walked out of the other side of the kitchen and found what looked like a front door.
"You can't leave the mansion. You don't even have clothes," Jarvis pointed out quickly. He thought it was probably safe to come back from where he was hiding in the internet. He jumped into a camera mounted on the fence around the property first. When he was sure it was safe to come back inside he jumped back into the house. The camera powered down as he left it. A moment later it powered back up, completely reset. Loki was leaving and his father wasn't going to be happy about it.
Chuckling darkly, Loki replied, "I don't need clothes to die. I just need a quiet place to hide the body." The door at the front of the house was easy to unlock. It didn't even require a key since it was a simple latch on the inside. One more small rune traced on the scepter, and he tapped the door with it. The door would seal itself when he was out. Once that was done he took off running.
.-.-.-.
When the screen when black for a second Sean was the only one prepared for it. 'Secure IM' popped up in the middle of the screen in white block letters. 'Jarvis: L0!1' showed up under that. Almost immediately after that 'Stark1: brt, sec loc' appeared. Two flat bars appeared next to each name just a few moments later as the call began.
"What's up, J?" Tony's voice caused the audio level visualization next to his name to ripple.
"Master Odinson took the scepter and left the mansion, sir," Jarvis' quiet voice caused much smaller ripples in the audio level visualization next to his name.
"Son of a bitch! Why did he do that?!" Tony's voice rippled the bar again.
"I believe I made a mistake, sir. Master Odinson asked why the house was different, so I attempted to show him. I began the security footage after he exited the house, but he stopped watching the security footage after the point ..where you arrived home," Jarvis' voice was even quieter then. It caused tiny ripples by his name.
"I was going to talk to him about that!" Tony said quickly. "Fuck me!" It was obvious that he was trying not to yell. The ripples spiked violently.
"I'm sorry, sir. It won't happen again," Jarvis's voice was still causing quiet ripples.
A heavy sigh from Tony sent ripples across the bar again and was followed by, "Ok, I'm on the hellicarrier. Clint flew us here, so I don't have a way off. Send the Mark VIII from the tower to come get me. I'll finish up with Director Fury and then track down Loki. Have the security footage loaded up. I want to see what he was doing."
"Yes, sir," Jarvis' voice rippled the audio level visualization for the last time as the call ended.