#13
Seeing Tony holding up the accursed scepter like a trophy brought back the memory of his mother stepping before the royal throne of Asgard with a stern expression on her face about a year after his brother had plunged into the abyss of Yggdrasil itself. Loki lives. Thor remembered the blend of relief and disbelief he had felt then, remembered asking her if she was sure or whether what she had felt was an illusion induced by grief and wishful thinking. She had silenced him and Odin with a projection of Loki invading a research facility on Midgard, wielding that same scepter, his eyes alight with homicidal madness. He remembered his brother's feverishly pale skin, the deep circles under his eyes, his unwashed hair so greasy that it protruded from his head in single spikes. Shock and relief had quickly given way to anger when he realized that instilling terror in the hearts of innocent Midgardians was Loki's idea of taking revenge upon Thor for something that was not in the least his fault. The scepter had caused a lot of damage for a great many mortals since it had traveled to Midgard in Loki's hands and now Tony Stark was holding an exact replication in his hands.
"You remember that this thing brought you nothing but misfortune, right?" Thor asked sourly. "The last time you tampered with an Infinity Stone, it cost the life of thousands."
"So did Loki's last trip to Earth and you still brought that nut bar back here from Niffle-someplace," Tony shot back. "Which means you're not really in a position to lecture me or anyone of us about making responsible decisions."
"He has a point," Steve Rogers agreed.
Thor's heart sank. He had known that Tony Stark would inform the others of why he had abandoned the team at such a dark hour. He had also known that his solo quest would not be met with a thoroughly positive response but their grim stares of rejection still made him uncomfortable. He did not want to know what they would think of him if they came to know that he had offered his murderous half-sister one of their souls in exchange for Loki's. He felt his throat go dry at the very idea.
"I don't understand why you are stalling like this," Okoye cut in. "Why don't we get started?"
"I would love to." Shuri gave a nod of thanks. "Valkyrie?"
Valkyrie gave a curt nod and almost solemnly approached the table. Shuri took a step to the side just as Bruce took a step forward. Tony was holding the scepter out to her as if he was making an offering to the Gods and, in a way, Thor mused, this was true because she was the only being among them who contained the power of the ancient Norse gods within herself. Which was probably why they had appointed the task to her. Fruitless as he thought their task to be, he could not help but think that they would have chosen him to wield that scepter if he had not left head over heels to rescue his brother and he could not ignore that this realization stung a little.
"It is impossible," Nebula mumbled, dispersing his self-pity. "Infinity Stones cannot be built. They are born. Six of them have been born. You cannot replicate them."
"She's right," Thor said, mentally adding that there were in actuality seven stones, but nobody payed attention to either of their objections.
Valkyrie took the scepter with one hand and picked up the stone with the thumb and middle finger of her other, rolling it a little—just as Hela had done with the seventh stone—before she carefully inserted it into the fitting. The weapon flared up in a flash of faint purple and a ray of energy shimmered through the room but after that brief initial spark, the scepter transformed back into an unanimated artifact in Valkyrie's hands.
"I don't understand," Shuri mumbled under her breath as she walked over to one of her computers and hit a few keys. She continued quietly, speaking more to herself than the team and Thor could not be sure what exactly he was hearing or what any of it meant. "We downloaded the stone's exact molecular structure and the electromagnetic impulses that the stone emitted into the computer," Shuri was saying. She tapped on the keyboard and, suddenly, a nexus of glowing purple lines appeared on the screen. "This is a digital representation of our stone's molecular integrity." She tapped away—click, click, click—and an identical nexus appeared on another screen, this one a gleaming orange. "This is the original."
"They're identical," Pepper acknowledged with a glimmer of admiration in her eyes.
"Their molecular structure appears to be identical," Shuri conceded, an aura of frustration and defeat rising up around her small body. "But, unfortunately, they are not. Look." She tapped a few keys and gestured towards the two screens as if they were holding the answer to her unasked question.
Tony snorted in disgust, which told Thor that he was well aware what exactly Shuri was showing them. Thor looked at the others but neither of them made a move to ask for clarification, so he yielded. "Can you explain, please?"
Rocket mouthed a thank you.
"To put it in the simplest of terms," Shuri explained on a sigh. "The original was alive and ours is … dead."
"What was that flash of energy then?" asked Rogers. "If it is dead?"
"We built something like a kick starter into the scepter that would activate the stone's powers," Shuri responded, her eyes fixed on the screen where the purple nexus of lines remained entirely still. "The corresponding element is in the stone. Because we couldn't be sure how powerful it would be and if we could hold it without suffering any physical or mental damage."
"It's not that powerful, obviously," Rocket commented sourly. "If that one little swoosh was all it could do."
"May I?" Tony asked Valkyrie, gesturing towards the scepter. Valkyrie hesitated briefly but then handed it to him.
Pepper's hands went to the pendant of her necklace, clutching it nervously. "Tony."
"It's alright," Stark assured her as he inspected the stone inside the fitting.
"So, what did you think it would do?" Barton asked and then continued to list the Mind Stone's abilities he had witnessed when it had been in Loki's possession and he under Loki's control. "Blow stuff up? Manipulate people's minds and turn them into thoughtless soldiers? Open a portal to Thanos?" The expression on his face was sour, as though he had ingested rotten food.
"We thought that if the stone was used to access and manipulate the energetic manifestations of people's thoughts, it must have memories of it and its replication might allow us to access them," Bruce replied solemnly.
"In other words, this computer should be able to show us what this stone … knows?" Romanoff asked incredulously. "What it saw?"
Thor thought about his brother's mental breakdown earlier that night and his chest tightened. They had no right to see this, neither of them did, and he was glad—selfishly so but glad nonetheless—that their plan was failing.
"That purple net thing?" Rocket asked with a nod towards the screen. Shuri, Tony and Bruce nodded in unison. "Okay, what is that, exactly?"
"It's a digital imitation of the stone's essence, if you like," Shuri explained patiently.
"Its brain," Bruce added. "Or its memory, whatever you like to call it."
"The Infinity Stones have brains?" Rocket sneered. "Don't give me that crap."
"The real Mind Stone contains a highly advanced intelligence framework at its core that operates almost like a sentient mind," Bruce went on as if the rabbit had not spoken.
"And, as Thor brought to my attention earlier, both Loki and Thanos used these sentient energies to establish mental connections with other people," Tony clarified. "Which means that we might have had a chance to establish a mental connection with Thanos."
"You would have done that without me?" Thor asked even though he knew he had gambled away his right to be included.
"It's a great plan," Tony assured him. "Unless, of course, it involves Loki."
"We used the Mind Stone to animate Vision," Bruce mumbled. "Why did the stone react to Vision's synthetic vibranium body but not to the vibranium scepter? That doesn't make any sense."
"None of this makes any sense," Rocket pointed out.
"Well, Vision did not come to life until we uploaded J.A.R.V.I.S.'s intelligence into it," Tony speculated. "Maybe it needs a real mind to truly kick-start it." His gaze drifted across the room. "Are there any volunteers?
"For mind control?" Barton shot back. "I don't think so."
"It is probably harmless," Bruce mumbled and took a step forward. Stark tilted his head in an almost-nod and carefully raised the scepter. The other man stepped closer, a weary smile on his lips. Tony brought the tip towards Bruce's chest and tapped it against his heart. The others were holding their breaths. Barton inhaled sharply, his eyebrows drawn together. Shuri's eyes remained fixed on the screen but it did not flicker.
Tony heaved a sigh of exasperation. His shoulders slumped. "Why doesn't the stone operate on the same intelligence framework as the original if it is an exact replica?"
Shuri's lips stood slightly apart as she tapped a few keys on her computer. All the pride and zest for action had streamed out of her, leaving only the familiar sight of pain mingled with despair behind. Bruce shrugged and shook his head at the same time.
"Because it isn't an exact replica," Thor countered grimly. He did not continue until most of them were looking into his general direction. "The Infinity Stones aren't made of vibranium or any other type of metal or mineral or rock. They are not synthetic. With all your technological and scientific achievements, which I truly admire, you people tend to forget that there are powers in this universe you cannot even begin to understand. The Infinity Stones are of supernatural origin. They predate our universe and they carry the divine magic of their creator inside of them. They might be called stones but they are not mere stones."
Tony grunted with disgust. "You and your godawful magic." He paused theatrically. "Pun intended."
"The Gauntlet was real enough," Rogers noted dryly. "I touched it. There was nothing magical about it. It was just a piece of metal."
"Not just any metal. The Gauntlet was forged in the enchanted forges of Nivadellir," Thor started but then corrected himself. "Nidavellir. It is made of uru, which is neither metal nor stone, but something in between that is unique to the world of the dwarves."
"Like the Stormbreaker," Rocket offered.
"Exactly. My father's spear was forged in Nidavellir and so was Mjölnir and those weapons are, were, so powerful because uru absorbs magic. It is not just a metal. The Gauntlet harnessed the magic inside the Infinity Stones and so enhanced Thanos' natural strength."
"I knew it wasn't possible to build them," Nebula commented.
"So, this thing is useless?" Barton concluded with a jerk of his head in the direction of the scepter that Tony was still holding in his hands.
"It cannot be completely useless," Okoye countered. "There was some kind of energy when you put the stone into the scepter. Couldn't this have been a demonstration of what this replica can do apart from reading or controlling people's minds? If this is the ability brought about by magic, maybe you still replicated some kind of power that isn't magical?"
"I doubt it," Nebula answered.
"She is right," Shuri surrendered. "The flash you saw was just radiant energy released by the fusion of the parts."
Thor had absolutely no idea what that meant, but he did not ask. The entire laboratory lapsed into silence. "It was worth a try," he allowed.
"I guess it's time you put your cards on the table then, Point Break," Tony Stark sighed. "What's Loki up to these days?"
"We haven't really had a chance to talk," Thor replied.
"Where is he, anyway? And where are you?" Barton asked sourly.
"Norway."
"What, you're taking a little holiday?" Barton scoffed. "Family reconciliation, that sort of thing?"
"For me, it is still more or less the day I set off," Thor clarified and explained how he had traveled via the Bifrost. "We just came here and …" He let his voice trail off.
"And what?" Valkyrie probed.
Thor did not know how to begin, so he just blurted it out. "We found another Infinity Stone."
All of their features slipped. "Say what?" Valkyrie asked. "Another stone?"
"It was long thought that the six entities that we now think of as the Infinity Stones came into existence with what you guys call the Big Bang, but it turns out that isn't true," Thor explained and then recited what Loki had told him earlier this evening. "They were created when the Goddess Nemesis ended her life and shattered her essence into those six entities, which have created our present universe. But her conscience endured. It is still here."
Valkyrie thought this over, her upper teeth pulling at her lower lip. Bruce and Pepper looked flabbergasted. Rogers, Romanoff and Barton looked suspicious, their foreheads wrapped in deep frowns. Shuri's expression alternated rapidly between curiosity and the reluctance to believe. Rocket and Nebula just stared. "And where is it?" Tony asked eventually. "Do you have it?"
"My sister Hela has it," Thor answered softly and then told them everything. Well, not everything. He skipped the part where he had offered his own soul and that of one of their mortal companions to Hela in case he failed to kill Loki with his own hands before the four weeks—nineteen days—were over and he did not mention Loki's Jotun form either.
"So, Loki died trying to bind his spirit to the Space Stone?" Rogers clarified.
Thor gave a nod.
"But he was sucked into the dimension of this Infinity Stone instead, which was how you found out about the stone's existence when you rescued Loki from there?" Romanoff asked incredulously.
"And retrieving it from the Goddess of Death is our best bet to entice the other stones away from Thanos, thus leaving him defenseless?" Pepper continued, her eyes wide open.
"That's about right, yes."
"Gods, magic, spells, souls," Pepper said softly, her hand clutching at her pendant once more. "This is too much."
"Wait," Bruce chimed in. "Isn't she dead? Hela? Didn't we kill her?"
"I don't know," Thor admitted. "Gods don't die like humans do. Hela commands the legions of hel and she might be able to do so even after her physical death because she is linked with death and draws power from it. But I couldn't say either way."
"What about Loki?" Rogers asked, his face a study of contempt. "Shouldn't he know if he was … with her?"
"He doesn't know either," Thor replied softly.
"And you just take him up on this because he is such a trustworthy person?" Barton sneered.
"He has been through Hel and back, Clint," Thor countered. "Twice, actually. And, yes, I believe him."
"Good for you, I suppose," Rogers mumbled.
"He changed though," Bruce conceded. "A bit. His homicidal spark is extinct, at least. He helped save Asgard."
"And then took the Tesseract," Valkyrie added. "Which led Thanos straight to us, allowing him to kill most of the refugees we saved earlier."
"Yeah, that too."
"But he did change," Thor emphasized. "New York was … That was not really him."
"So let me get this straight, you brought him back because you think he might be able to establish a mental connection with Thanos?" Romanoff asked. "The same mental connection that they tried to establish with the fake stone? And you think he will succeed because Thanos has established that connection with him before?"
"Among other things, yes. But more importantly, he knows more about the Infinity Stones than any of you," Thor explained. "Or me. And he can communicate with them, which we will need if we want to get that stone back from Hela."
"The plan is not bad," Nebula observed.
"In theory, no, I absolutely second that. But if Point Break's chest is any indication, literally anything is safer than enlisting Loki's services." Tony flashed her a weak half-grin.
"He didn't do this to me," Thor lied but he knew that it would not make much of a difference.
"So he didn't attack you or anything?" Bruce asked. "Maybe tried to kill you?"
Thor shook his head. "No."
He read from Valkyrie's lips rather than heard her whisper, "He's lying." Bruce made a grimace.
"Is he sane?" Tony asked.
Thor inhaled sharply. "That depends on how you define sanity."
"Is he in full command of his mental capacities?"
"He's been through Hel," Thor repeated by way of an answer. "He is a little flustered"—what a grotesque understatement—"but he has no hostile intentions."
"That's cryptic," Romanoff noted.
"And what are you asking of us now?" Steve demanded. "That we welcome him with open arms just because he may or may not be able to create a connection with the Infinity Stones or Thanos and disregard the fact that he could easily kill us or you if something pushes him over the edge again?"
"Pretty much, yes."
Barton hissed a laugh. "As if anyone of us would be comfortable having him here."
"I wouldn't," Shuri declared. "The safety of this nation is my primary concern and I will not allow it."
"That's fair," Thor acknowledged but then focused Barton even though he could not tell if the projection would transmit the movements of his gaze accordingly. "What happened to you though, to all of you? You were so eager to give second chances in the past. You were ready to acknowledge Wanda's change of heart in Sokovia. You recruited her as an Avenger when you realized that Strucker had brainwashed her into hating Stark. You took her in, all of you did. Not to mention that you"—he turned to Steve—"almost incited a war over that friend of yours because you loved him and defending his honor was more important to you than anything else."
Steve's mouth gaped open.
"It truly baffles me how the two of you of all people can condemn me so easily for doing the very same thing that you did," Thor concluded.
"He kinda has a point there," Tony agreed.
"That is not the same thing," Barton cried out on a hysterical snort. "You can't even begin to compare what Loki did in New York to what Wanda did in Sokovia."
"But I can easily compare what Steve did for Bucky a few years ago to what I'm doing for my brother now."
Rogers snorted a desperate laugh. "Don't you dare drag Bucky into this."
"Why not? You think him innocent because he was brainwashed and tortured by HYDRA." Thor paused for effect. "His mind was twisted just like Loki's mind was twisted by Thanos before he attacked New York."
"Loki knew exactly who he was and what he wanted when he attacked our planet," Steve hissed. "He might have been under the influence of that scepter but he attacked us because he wanted revenge on you, because he hates you. Or are you going to deny that now?"
"No, but—"
"Not to mention that he was very content when he opened that portal and you know it," Romanoff cut him off. "He killed all those people because it turned him on to have so much power over them. Geez, if the footage is anything to go by, he had an orgasm when he launched that attack in Germany."
Her words caught Thor unawares. "Ew!"
"I can't tell you how much I wish you hadn't said that," Bruce said quietly.
There was a long, excruciating silence.
"So, what are we going to do now?" Valkyrie asked eventually, her gaze traveling back and forth between Tony and Steve. "Are we going to take our chances with Loki or not?"
"What do you say?" Rogers asked her. "You're one of the few people who actually spent time with that guy. Would you trust him to be on our side and help us?" His gaze traveled to Bruce. "Would you?"
Valkyrie considered the question, if only for decency's sake. Thor knew that she was going to shake her head and she did. So did Bruce. Valkyrie's expression was contrite and thinking of how her warm body had risen from the blankets only this morning, her lovely face framed by pillow-tousled curls, he felt a longing inside of him that threatened to eat him alive. Then she gave an explanation and the feeling subsided. "He's the God of Mischief. Chaos and unpredictability constitute the core of his very existence. I don't think anyone can really trust him." She smiled weakly. "I'm sorry, Thor."
There is so much more to him that, Thor wanted to protest but they had made up their minds and considering he had betrayed them—one of them—so that Loki could live, they had every right to arrive at that decision. Slumped under the Norwegian night sky with a burning torso and a heavy heart, Thor realized with a sudden dismaying clarity that he had quite literally put himself into Loki's position. He had forced himself into a corner. By rescuing Loki, he had agreed to an impossible deal and worse still, he was lying about it now. He had endangered one of their souls and even though he did feel beyond guilty about it, he was keeping his lips sealed because they already mistrusted his motivations. Because they would, rightfully, loathe him if they found out. He had not even told Loki, even though he knew that if he truly wanted to get out of that bargain with no souls lost, he would have to draw on the cognitive resources of his brother's sly mind. Which meant that it was just the two of them now on the edge of the continent Midgardians called Europe.
"I know you don't trust him," Thor began. "I am not even sure if I can trust him but I know in my heart that I must try. If that makes you mistrustful of me, too, so be it. You will do what you think is best and I will do the same. We are not bound to eternal collaboration, after all." He briefly thought about their almost tangible relief when he had joined them on the battlefield of Wakanda but then reminded himself of Loki, who was currently lying curled up on the couch like a picture of misery.
"No!" Stark shouted. "Thor, wait!"
"I reckon our paths diverge here. I wish you good luck with your future endeavors, my friends. I am needed elsewhere. Farewell."
Without waiting for their answer, Thor ended the call.