The door was opened with absolutely no warning, startling everyone in the room. Those who had been asleep immediately woke up. The others on watch were already facing the visitor, shocked to find Red Skull in the doorway.
Several hours had passed since Hena and Thor had their conversation. They weren't too aware of when night and day were, so this sudden appearance of their captor gave them something to go off. It was at least day time.
"Well, well, if this isn't the mighty Avengers." Red Skull said, surveying them with a small smile "And company."
He stood there until they were all on their feet before beckoning someone behind him.
Captain America stared at him, eyes hard as ice. They didn't approach the mutant, as one of the weird magical creatures was just outside the room. That was likely who he'd gestured to.
"I imagine you're tired of the dark." Red Skull said, having no idea that Hena was creating light for them. That inferred it was customary for prisoners to be in a black room "But, I'm afraid you're going to be here for a while longer."
Hawkeye glared at him darkly and Red Skull didn't miss it.
"Ah, yes, the revered father. Don't worry, your children are in safe hands." he said "Then again, I'm not sure what kind of people you trust, so that is all relative."
Captain America stepped at him, causing Tony to grab his arm. He held him back carefully until he trusted the soldier not to try again. Red Skull held up a warning finger.
"Now now, let's not be petty here." he said "You should know that not everything is as it seems. After all, a stupid boy such as yourself can become a war hero. Perhaps we'll be good caretakers of the woman and children."
"You have me here." Hawkeye growled "None of them know anything."
"Do you think we only have people who have something to offer here?" Red Skull asked "Most of them are used as collateral. And examples to the others. Some of them are refugees from realms long gone. No, in fact, they would be a minority if they did have knowledge that we wanted."
"Then at least bring them in here with me." Hawkeye said.
"I'm sorry, they must have been misplaced." Red Skull said, feigning distress "Your dear friend Loki seems to have made a mistake. I'll fix that as soon as possible."
They glared at him. Obviously, he'd only come in here to gloat.
"I want to speak with Loki." Hena demanded suddenly "Let me speak with him."
Red Skull titled his head "I'm afraid he is rather busy at the moment. See, he's important among us. Despite our differences, he makes a fine leader for mass murder." he beckoned her forward "Come forward, I can always pass on a message."
"I don't want you to give him a message." Hena said coldly "I want to see him myself."
"That's not possible." Red Skull said with a sneer "As much as I wish I could help you, Loki has other matters to attend to. He isn't yours for the taking unfortunately. As I recall, you told him he was inadequate for tasks given to him."
"That is not what I said." Hena hissed in response. She stepped forward to face him head on. They were about a foot apart "And if that is the way you spun it, then I know this is all blunt manipulation."
"I didn't have to spin anything in my favor. Nor did Thanos." Red Skull replied "Loki believed it for himself."
"I WILL speak with him." Hena said firmly.
The mutate laughed under his breath "Dear girl, you must know that Loki isn't going to listen. That his affection doesn't belong to you."
"Must I?" Hena countered "You and him have had an in-depth discussion, have you?"
"You're ridiculous." Red Skull replied "Do you even know who he is?"
"Yes, I know exactly who he is." Hena spat at him.
"He may have been raised in Asgard, but he is still a frost giant. Unfeeling and cruel. King of that wretched race to make it worse. But that makes him powerful. And, he is now Thanos' servant once again. You sit here and defend him while he destroys realms by the hour." Red Skull stepped closer to her.
"He used you to get close to your parents." Red Skull said "And perhaps..." he raised one hand to stroke her cheek and then Thor recognized the tenseness of her muscles well enough to know that she was being held in place "Keep you as a nice little...soft-skinned trophy once he convinced them he could be trusted. To remember his good work. Loki only lusts after power."
Hena grabbed his hand, apparently free to move now.
"Of course," Red Skull continued, not fighting her in the least "If that offends you, I would be quite willing to have you for myself."
Then, in one swift movement, she hit him across the face. Immediately, Red Skull retaliated and slapped her quite hard. It made Hena recoiled momentarily, but she didn't hesitate in coming back for a full fight. However, Thor yanked her back. She struggled furiously, cursing at him.
"Do you want me to tell you what he's done?" Red Skull demanded, angry after the blow "His plans? His ultimate betrayal of your family? How he tricked all of you?"
"Loki came to us before Thanos ever took control of him." Hena snarled "He never would have used us to gain what he wanted."
Red Skull did not reply right away, but his eyes gleamed. She glared at him, wanting him to admit this. But the mutant answered very slowly and calmly.
"What makes you think that Loki did not come to us first after his fall from Asgard?"
That reply took Hena completely by surprise and she blinked multiple times, falling still in Thor's grasp.
"He did not. I have seen his memories." she said.
"Have you not seen that he can distort his own memories to fit what he wants you to believe?" Red Skull asked "Can you see everything that happened here when he left Anaheim?"
Again, Hena hesitated. Her eyebrows creased, suddenly very uncertain.
"So you don't know, do you?" he repeated "He knew what he was doing all along, my dear Hena."
She gave him a dark look as he used Loki's name for her.
"He caused you to fall in love with him so that he would someday be heir to your throne. But we decided it needed a more convincing twist. He returned to us, having gained your parent's trust. And now, he will rule Anaheim and Asgard."
"He will never rule Asgard." Sif said adamantly. Hena stared at the ground, eyes slightly wide as she contemplated the new information.
"We will see then, I suppose." Red Skull just smiled at the Warrior "After all, if he's going to kill Odin, and Thor is here, he's very entitled to the throne." he leaned forward "Unless you've been lying to him when you told him he was an equal son of Odin."
"We never lied. We told him the truth at the time. But the truth isn't always the same when your actions force it to change." Thor replied, reacting purely out of anger.
"That doesn't seem very kind. I believe you just recently told him that Odin loved him. And that was after his adventure on Earth. Was he still an equal son then and it only changed when he decided to return to his true father in Thanos?" Red Skull smirked "I heard some of the argument he and Odin had. He told Loki that he was not valued by Frigga. What a pity be had to say that. Frigga was the only one Loki felt he could always count on."
"Odin never said that." Thor responded honestly "He said that Frigga deserved better than what Loki had done. You distort his words to make my father worse than he is."
"I doubt it."
Thor glared at him, fists squeezing together warningly.
"Imagine Loki being heir to three thrones when he was once worried he would never have one." Red Skull was taking full advantage of the God's lack of control over his emotions "Too bad one of them isn't Earth. Maybe if you'd received him more kindly last time Thanos wouldn't be obliterating it. I'll miss my old home, but one must move on." he looked at Hena "Don't worry though, I imagine Loki will take good care of Anaheim. If you won't be his queen, I'm sure he'll find another willing woman."
"Get out." Thor growled. To his surprise, the former mortal seemed willing to comply. But his eyes were still on Hena, as if waiting.
"You would like a message?" she asked quietly, lifting her gaze to him. Red Skull tilted his head expectantly.
"You can tell Loki that he is a vile, self-centered being that can go and burn in his spot earned in Hel." Hena said angrily "And if he ever tries to hurt my family or anyone else here, he will never earn forgiveness from me. He may go and rot in his self-hatred that he forces on others. He should have died on Midgard. It would have been less pain than I feel now."
Red Skull said nothing as she spoke, just listened in delight. Then he backed up.
"I'll tell him." he said, stepping out and allowing the door to close.
Hena turned away from all of them, teeth clenched angrily. She closed her eyes for a moment, sadness the farthest thing from her mind.
"We're going to get out of here." she growled "They have plans to attack Anaheim."
"He may have just been trying to make you worried." Volstagg said sympathetically. But, quite honestly, they were surprised she was suddenly worried about her kingdom when all of the realms had been in danger all along.
"No." Hena faced him straight on "I read his mind and Anaheim is next. I don't know when. He did not know any details. And Midgard did not take up any space in his thoughts in the moment."
"But he said they were going to destroy it." Captain America replied in confusion.
"Maybe that is their plan, but I don't believe it will be as soon as we believed. That would be one of the most important things on his mind if it were happening soon." Hena pointed out. She remained absolutely neutral, not giving away what she really felt.
"Were there thoughts of any other realms?" Tont asked "Because if it was only Anaheim, I think that means he was deliberately thinking of it. For you."
"I considered that. He thought of Vormir during this time. The same planet my mother was cursed on. However, his thoughts surrounding Loki were very careful. No one can completely remove the truth from what they think, so there was most assuredly something real. But I worry that they have been made aware of my ability to read minds. Viewing memories is much more common and I would be surprised if they did not know about that. But they should not know that I can see thoughts. This scares me if they do." she narrowed her eyes "It would have to mean that Loki told them. He knows many aspects of my abilities."
Volstagg and Fandral shared a look. And they guessed the others were thinking the same thing. Even though they'd come to think of the God of Mischief as an enemy again, him betraying Hena on such a personal level seemed...unlike him. Unless he was so good at deceiving that he'd managed to fool them all in his relationship with the Anaheim woman.
Hena sighed "No." then more definitively "No. I absolutely cannot believe he would do that. I simply cannot. Loki himself warned me about what Thanos would do with my powers. He wouldn't try to make that worse." she closed her eyes in frustration "Dammit. I am so stupid."
"For what?" Hawkeye asked, sounding mildly annoyed "You've done nothing stupid."
"Yes, I have. Red Skull didn't come in here to see how we were doing. He didn't come knowing I would be able to read his mind." Hena said angrily "He came to goad me into saying exactly what he wanted to tell Loki. So he could tell him that I had given up. And I gave him every last word that he wanted to hear. When Loki doesn't feel forgiveness or redemption is possible, he doesn't attempt to receive them. This is why Odin's sentence only made it worse." she clenched her jaw together "I know he is making is own choices, but this is pure and utter deception and cruelty on their part. Thanos doesn't give a damn about Loki whatsoever."
"Why is that obvious to us and not him then? Isn't he the God of Mischief?" Tony asked pointedly.
Hena paused and then recanted her words "I have not seen Thanos yet. So I suppose I cannot say for certain. But, my instinct says he is only using Loki to get what he wants. Red Skull and everyone else who works for him. And Loki may or may not realize this. However, he appreciates Loki and his skills. That is what Loki feels is lacking elsewhere." she ran her fingers through her hair anxiously "He doesn't need chastisement right now. Particularly from me. He needs to hear everything else I have said. Not just what Red Skull decides to tell him."
"If it's what you felt, than you deserved to say it." Hawkeye said, still quite satisfied that she expressed herself to Red Skull. If Loki actually cared about her, it would teach him a lesson and that's exactly what Hawkeye wanted.
Hena didn't respond to him, but she turned to the door of the cell.
"I am going to see him." she said, lifting her hands and preparing to conjure up a viewing of him.
"Why?" Captain America asked warily.
"Because I need to see his face. I need to know what he is thinking." Hena replied.
"I thought you couldn't read his mind?" Captain America queried.
"You yourself cannot read anyone's, but you can usually read something about them, yes?" she asked "I have deciphered people for a long time."
He hesitated and then just bobbed his eyebrows slightly, indicating she could do what she liked. Thor didn't give his opinion, but he was watching her, hoping she would do it.
"Loki does not know that I can do this." Hena said "That is our advantage."
So, she lifted her hands and closed her eyes. The space in front of them shimmered and Loki appeared. Thor folded his arms, walking forward until he stood by Hena, face contemplative. His brother always had the two Chitari guards on either side of him, same as Thanos had his dark soldiers surrounding him. Red Skull never did, however, and that seemed very odd.
Loki was waiting in the first room that they had been imprisoned in. He was looking down the hall that led in the direction of their cell, but doing nothing else. The rooms around him were clear of all prisoners, which could have been good or very bad.
"The bastard isn't even that far away." Tony said plainly "Could stop by and say hello if he wanted. But would he? I doubt it."
"Be quiet." Volstagg muttered at him "Do you think your commentary helps?"
"Certainly doesn't hurt." Tony replied, holding out his hands. The Asgardian rolled his eyes.
"Red Skull will be going that way." Hena murmured over to Thor. He nodded, thinking the same thing.
"You think that's who he's waiting for?" Captain America asked, even though the statement wasn't directed at him "Loki could have been behind that. Sent him in here to gather anything he could."
"No, I don't think so." was all Hena replied. The soldier glanced at her briefly.
And, after waiting a few more moments, the formally mortal mutate came from the hallway, looking surprised to see Loki there.
"I had no idea you were such a...fan." he said coolly as he approached.
"Thanos is holding a conference." Loki replied flatly "He sent me for you."
"Yes, one would think he wanted us to bond." Red Skull said, walking past him. The God's narrowed eyes followed him.
"Where are we meeting? Upper corridor?"
"Yes." Loki answered, slowly following him.
Hena stared, not missing anything.
"I stopped by your friends' cell on my way up." Red Skull ventured, waiting for a reaction himself "I'm surprised you're allowing Hena to stay there."
But Loki didn't give him the display of emotion he wanted "You had somewhere else in mind?"
"No, just...somewhere more...pleasant might have been my guess. Or out here with you."
Loki scoffed quietly "You clearly need a refresher on Hena's personality."
"Well I wouldn't if we could simply use the scepter as it was intended." Red Skull said, reaching out a hand as if to grab it. The God of Mischief waved the weapon to the side.
"Her magic becomes ineffective if she is mindlessly coerced into using it. This would do absolutely nothing to help us." Loki said, still referring to the scepter "Go and do your research and you'll find a lot of things cannot be achieved by simple mind control."
"Then go and convince her that it would be in her best interest to help us. Before I do it myself. There isn't a problem if we simply coerce her into making the decision to use it in our favor." Red Skull said coldly "Anaheim is in our sights, maybe Mazi would be useful. After all, she can do the same thing, can't she? And Svleiva. Lovely Svleiva. She's having another daughter. The four of them could make quite the team-"
That was when Loki yanked out one of his knives. He slammed Red Skull back into the wall, letting the two Chitari grab the man's wrists and pin him back. They appeared to listen to Loki and Loki only.
"Don't you ever mention their names here, do you hear me?" he snarled "You will not speak that little girl's name in this realm."
"For someone who hates as much as you do, you certainly are a fierce protector of women's virtue." Red Skull said with a cold laugh "What's wrong? Frigga's dead so you had to find another mother, is that it? And you're trying to be the older brother you never had? They're not your family, Loki. You never had one. But I don't worry for you. You'll make sure they're yours forever, won't you?"
"Loki!" there was one call from down the hall that stopped the God from slitting that mutant's throat. He never seemed to get quite there.
The people in the cell inwardly shrank back a bit as the giant purple being came into view in the distance.
"Release him. I don't have time for your feud." Thanos said, followed by his plethora of creatures.
"Well, I would have met you where you wanted. But I seem to have been held up." Red Skull mocked. The Chitari guards let him go before Loki did, but he was finally allowed to stand by himself again.
Thanos walked over slowly, unfazed by the confrontation.
"You're guiding the attack on Anaheim." he said to Loki, his voice reverberating quietly in the hall "So you'll be deciding who needs to die and who doesn't." his eyes flicked over to Red Skull "We already discussed this. Long before the attempt on Midgard. Anaheim will be spared as long as Loki feels he can take control of them."
"We're wasting resources on that realm." Red Skull spat.
"No more than if we were to send in forces to ravage it." Thanos said. Then he vaguely smiled "Anaheim has things that I want. They aren't necessary, but they are something I don't want to destroy without at least trying to retrieve them."
"Valder doesn't possess the most valuable skill." Red Skull said, glaring at Loki "He is not useful."
"Would you rather take a realm by force or have them come willingly along?" Loki inquired "Their king and queen trust me." he pointed the scepter at Red Skull in both a demonstration and a threat "Valder will be under my control. And Svleiva too, if she senses something is wrong."
Hena held her breath, face pulled back in a cold expression.
"And Anaheim will follow." Loki continued "So, I ask you again, forcibly or willingly? Because, I assure you, they have an army that would fit in perfectly with the one we have."
So, finally, Red Skull had no more objections. His sneer suggested he wished he did, but with Thanos there, there was no way he could mock the plans they'd come up with together.
"If you're both satisfied, let's get on with our meeting." the Almighty said, turning away. Red Skull followed without hesitation, but Loki remained where he was for a moment. Then, he looked over, right at the people in the cell. Hena took a startled step back, wondering if he could actually see them. His eyes rested right on her, his expression warning and hard.
Thor glanced at Hena, who he realized was looking back at his brother neutrally. They held that for several seconds before Loki tilted his head and waved the scepter. The image dissipated immediately and Hena blinked.
He held such raw power in his hands.
"He knows we've been watching him." Thor said gruffly.
"He has shut me out now." Hena looked at the others, her tone obviously well controlled "I will not be able to use that again." she turned away, voice lowering "I need a moment alone."
Thor kept his eyes on the ground as she walked away. That was really the last thing she needed, but there wasn't anyone here she was close enough to really seek comfort from.
"And that's the man that attacked New York." Hawkeye said to them under his breath. He was done with any defense of the God of Mischief. Loki was an extremely talented liar, but the thing that gave all of this the ring of truth was his reluctance to condemn Mazi or anyone else in the Anaheimien family. If he'd been happy to kill them, they might have suspected something, but he was extremely forthright about his friendship.
When about what he assumed was an hour had passed and Hena was still standing alone on the opposite part of the room, Thor finally walked over to her. It was their time to sleep, but getting rest was unlikely. Black Widow and Hawkeye took their spots closest to the door, ready to warn the others if anyone came in. They spoke together for a little while, quietly enough to let the others sleep. Then Black Widow glanced over at the others that were awake. Hawkeye followed her gaze.
Thor and Hena were standing by each other, much closer than would have been expected. She was leaning against him and he had his arm lightly around her.
He'd gone through this mourning process many more times than she had.
Your reviews have encouraged me so much! Thank you! I am excited for the next chapter. Something...significant...Is going to happen :) Significant