Loki's POV
I spent the following week caught up in mission, the busy schedule preventing me from continuing my investigation into finding Stella. Tension flared out among the Avengers. Bucky and Wanda furious with Tony and his avoidance to start looking for her. They couldn't understand why we hadn't been making her rescue more of a priority. Natasha had gone silent with worry, barely acknowledging Tony's presence, or Steve's, who shocked me with his reluctance to look for our friend.
I tried to remain civil and do the work, hoping for a free day when I could begin my own hunt. It finally came up and I made an excuse to go out, telling no one of my real objective; to go to the Sanctum and ask some questions. I needed to pick Strange's brain and see what he knew. Perhaps it would give me some insight as to where she could have gone or where she had been taken. He worked the most with Stella and probably knew about her ability more than the rest of us.
"Where are you off to?" Wanda's voice stopped me on the way out the door.
"Out. I need some fresh air. I figure a walk around the park would do some good," I took in her appearance. She had been crying again, her worry for Stella taking precedence over everything else.
"Oh. I would've thought you would be trying to locate Stella by now. Isn't she one of your best friends?" I nodded, noting her hesitation. She tilted her head, analyzing me.
"If by any chance your outing has anything to do with rescuing her, please give Bucky, Nat, and me an update. Do so with caution. If Tony finds out what you're up to, I get the sense he might try to stop you," she said.
"He won't find out. Wanda, I promise if I find leads to her whereabouts, I'll do more than give you an update. I'll bring her home," She gave a small smile and left me to my own devices. I sighed and teleported out and landed near the Sanctum's front doors. They opened as if sensing the reason why I was there. I went inside to find the sorcerer, who floated down the stairs soon after the doors had closed behind me.
"Loki? What brings you by?" Strange greeted me.
"I need your help. I'm sure you're aware of Stella Walker's disappearance. I'm in search of information about her history and her power. Maybe it will give me a lead to where I can start looking,"
"Yes, I've been informed by several of your teammates. Wanda and Bucky are desperate to find out where she is. I don't know how much help I can be. Is there a way you can bring me an item of hers or some hair? Perhaps I can locate her in the same way I found your father years ago," he said.
"I told you that's not why I'm here. I found something a few days ago I wish to discuss with you. He's hiding something from all of us and I need more evidence of why he did what I suspect he did. I need you to give me insight of what Stella is truly capable of,"
"Very well. Come to my study. We can discuss what you require in there. Her case in an interesting one. I could still be able to find her if I had something of hers,"
"That's not possible, Strange. Stark threw everything out, or I think he might have done so. I went to find something of hers the other day in case I needed to track her in the same manner, but her room was vacant. It's almost like she never existed there in the first place," Strange paused, his entire posture going rigid.
"I see," was all he said. He knows something, I thought. This conversation would let me know what I was missing.
Rick's POV
A few days ago, I had awoken to a pounding at my apartment door. I had shifted Stella gently from my arms – she had another nightmare and came to find me as I asked her to – and walked down the hallway to see who it was. I opened the door to find no person standing behind it, only a box left in front of the door. When I opened it, carefully not knowing what it contained, I found clothes and other items I could only assume belonged to Stella.
"Rick? I woke up and didn't know where you had gone," her voice startled me. I dropped the lid and turned to face her.
"What's that?" She asked, seeing the box in front of me. She pushed past and viewed the contents of the box.
"Stella? Are you okay?" I asked her when she let out a little sniffle. She nodded and carried the box inside, putting it inside the closet with her other belongings.
"I suppose Tony no longer wants me to be inside the compound anymore. He erased my existence from the team. I'm as good as dead in his eyes. I guess he's also convinced everyone I'm not coming back," she said. I pulled her into my arms, holding her and stroking her back. She turned around and buried her face into my chest, sobs once again wracking her body. I hated seeing her in pain, seeing how Tony Stark viewed her worth. I hugged her tighter, kissing the top of her head to give her some comfort. I had a secret I was hiding from her and came to a decision that I would tell her everything. If I wanted her to stay, I couldn't keep anything back from her. I would leave nothing that would cause her more pain. If she left, then that would be it and I would have to face those consequences.
I needed her to trust me, but I needed to know more about her abilities. Maybe if I let her know about the consequences of my actions, she would tell me about her ability. Leading her back to bed, I held her tight and hoped she wouldn't leave me once I revealed everything to her. Which led to us sitting on my couch, coffee in hand, during a stormy day, two days later.
"Do you not have work?" She asked me.
"Are you trying to get rid of me? Here I thought you were enjoying my company this week," I said. She laughed, bringing out her beautiful smile I loved so much.
"I do enjoy your company very much, but I don't want to keep you from living your life. You could go hang out with Harley or go golfing. Something. I'll be fine on my own," I gave her a smile, thoughts of what I was about to tell her invading my mind. I looked down, busying myself with the contents of my cup.
"Rick? What is it? What's wrong?" she asked.
"I need to tell you something and I don't know how you're going to take it. It's something I've been meaning tell you for a while, but I never knew when a good time would be to tell you,"
"Okay. I'll try my best to keep an open mind," I took a deep breath, still nervous about what she would do. I felt her grab my wrist and I looked up at her, getting a nod of approval.
"This is not easy to say. When I brought you back after your teammate left you, I faced consequences. At my job. We were only supposed to complete the mission, not take anyone back. When I arrived with you, my boss wasn't too thrilled about it," I confessed. I watched as Stella's lips parted, her eyes wide with shock.
"What kind of consequences?"
"My boss suspended me for two weeks. One with pay and the other without. Like I said, she was super angry with the decision to bring you back with us," Stella looked away from me and I worried she was going to get up and leave. I squeezed her hand, trying to pull back. She refused to let me, lacing our fingers together.
"I'm sorry. I didn't know you would get in trouble for making that decision. You could have left me. I appreciate the rescue, but eventually I would have woken up and figured out what to do from then. There would have been no choice in the matter," she said. A tear rolled down her cheek and I hated I caused her more pain telling her of what happened to me.
"Hey, Stella. Look at me. I wouldn't have changed a thing about this. I don't regret saving you. I would do it all again in a heartbeat. I chose to bring you back. I couldn't leave you there. I don't leave team members behind. Not ever," I told her. More tears fell down her cheeks, but she gave me a smile. I sighed, knowing what I needed to ask her.
"I need to ask you something. I'll understand if you don't want to answer it. It's your choice, but I may have to ask you again later,"
"Ask me," she said.
"Will you tell me how you wound up with this ability of yours? Can you explain how it works?" I questioned. She remained silent for a few moments.
"That's two questions," Stella pointed out. She sighed and I thought it would be the end of the conversation. Until she spoke again.
Loki's POV
"Would you like a drink? Tea?" Strange asked.
"Tea is fine," I watched as two cups appeared, one in my hand and one in his. I took a sip and waited, leaning back in my armchair.
"You believe Stark had something to do with Stella's disappearance. What evidence have you found to back up your theory?" he said.
"Not much. He erased her from our system at the compound. I already told you I believe he removed her belongings. I'm in the process of finding more. If I can find Stella, I can get her account of things. As I was searching for more the other day, I came across a few articles. They contained information about others with Stella's ability. They came with notes I think Tony had written," I told him. He nodded and pressed his fingertips together.
"Did he mention he was ever worried about Stella? Did she pose a threat to the world?" I continued.
"He hasn't come to me, no. I do know of some individuals with the same power she possesses. Some hurt people. Others do both. Stella is…different. She's told me about her history. What would you like for me to tell you?"
"Anything. Everything. Is she dangerous?" I answered.
"No. She's built her life so she never would be. What you need to understand is that she was born with the unique ability to take on other's pain. She's tried to hone that part of herself, to protect people, to do good. It's one of the reasons she agreed to practice with me,"
"What is she capable of?" I asked, leaning back to listen to what Strange was about to tell me.
"Absorbing all the pain so no one has to suffer," he said.
Stella's POV
I slid closer to Rick, linking our hands together. I knew his question would come up. I knew I would have to tell him one day. Now seemed to be a good time as any.
"I was born with the power to absorb pain. Mental, physical, all types. It was inherited by my father's line, though it wasn't as intense as mine is. Which meant, my family feared me. If the absorption could take on everything, what could I do with it? Could I transfer it? Would it kill? These are questions I heard most of my life. I didn't want them to be frightened of me, so I honed my ability to get better control over it. I tested myself, seeing how much I could take on at any given point. Every day I practiced, taking on pain to the point of unconsciousness. The more I practiced, the more I could take,"
"There was no one in my family that was willing to let me practice on them. My subjects were strangers that truly needed help. I'd go out searching for those in need, doing my best not to cause them harm. As I got older, some jobs came in and I took on as much as I could. I soon found others like me, but they weren't always as kind as I was,"
"Some caused pain, some went insane from the power. Once I hit the age of 18, a choice had to be made on how to further enhance my ability," I explained.
Loki's POV
Stella wasn't dangerous and capable of only doing good.
"She started using that ability of hers at a very young age and got a grasp of what she could handle. She kept trying to perfect it. There was a community of people like her, but some could be cruel. I think she knew what could happen if she chose a different path," Stephen explained.
"Could she have transferred her pain to those around her? Would it have developed later?" I inquired.
"Yes. She had that secondary ability. Used incorrectly or for evil, she could have killed people. In fact, she reached the age where a choice needed to be made. To either absorb, to transfer, or to do both,"
"What did she choose?"
"If you want the answer to that question, my friend, you'll have to ask her yourself. It's not up to me to tell you about it," Strange answered.
Stella's POV
"A choice? For what?" Rick asked me. Now for the hard part.
"There used to be a second element to my ability. A dangerous one. I could potentially transfer all the pain and suffering to others. I could make wounds larger, make someone go insane. At 18, you are to pay a visit to a mage, who will help you complete that choice. To transfer, to absorb, or both," I removed one hand from his. I flipped over my arm to reveal a scar that ran from my wrist to my elbow. Rick took my arm in his hand and released my right hand to trace the line, his light touch sending goosebumps along my skin.
"Did it hurt?"
"It was excruciating. They took a dagger to expose the nerves for those abilities unless you chose both. I made the decision to sever the transference element. I don't want to hurt anyone. Thankfully, we're given a quick healing factor and it healed up within a few minutes, but the scar is left behind as a reminder," I told him.
"Does anyone know? Did Stark know?" Rick asked. His thumb continued to trace up and down the scar, putting my mind at ease.
"Stephen Strange, a mentor I was practicing with while with the Avengers. You're the second to know, but the first I've told of my friends. I…didn't know if I could trust them with this information. I thought about telling Loki, but now I'm not sure I'll have the chance," Rick stopped moving his thumb, meeting my gaze.
"I'm glad you told me," He paused, moving his thumb again. "Listen, if you feel you need more practice, I can help you. You can use me. Only if you want, of course. I don't want you to feel…" I pressed my free hand over his.
"Thank you. I appreciate the offer, but if you don't want me to absorb anything, you need to tell me. I will respect your wishes," I told him. He pulled me into a hug, stroking my back. I his arms, I felt safe. In his arms, I could be myself.
Loki's POV
"I think Tony is afraid of Stella. The first opportunity he saw where he could be rid of her, I think he took. I can't prove anything yet. When I saw those articles, I thought to come to you to find out more," I said. The information made me more determined to find Stella. I needed her side of the story. I didn't know where to start. No leads to her location, nothing to give Strange to track her.
"What about that group you were working with that day? Do you have any information on them?" Strange asked. How he knew about them, I didn't know.
"I'm not sure. I don't think they said a name. I…Wait, I think one of them said the name of their leader. To Thor, I believe. Damn, I can't get to him. He's always around Tony. I'm trying to remember. He's a colonel, I think," I said. I closed my eyes, trying to replay the memory of that day.
"Colonel Flag. That's right. One of the guys was asked where his leader was located and who he was. Small talk during the fight. Colonel Rick Flag," I said. They guy in question was named Bloodsport or Robert Dubois when he was asked for his real name. They showed up a few minutes after we did. With everything that happened, I must have blocked it out during the search for Stella. I thanked Strange for his help and went back to the compound to research the name. What popped up was a dark blonde male and his group of supervillains. Located in Louisiana. Perhaps, I'd find her there. Or maybe, he would give me insight on where she was taken. I'd find out in two weeks exactly where Stella would be, and a portion of the truth would reveal itself.