[A/N Hoi! In the reactions, it felt really repetitive? Just because this scene, specifically, is a lot of death, and angst, so there was a lot of 'OH SHIT WHAT THE FU-' and like 'oh, that's so sad, Alexa play Despacito' moments...
But anyway, hopefully next chapter will not be (the reactions I mean aha) this dull.
Overall, I'm just not very happy with this chapter... but whatever lmao.
(ALSO I LOVE YOU GUYS WHO REVIEWED)
enJOY]
It was bizarre, Steve couldn't help but think.
A God they fought years ago comes back to make them watch a movie... with some teenagers. Even if the kids were in relation to Tony, they were young.
If anything, Loki should have asked their parents if they could come, not just kidnap them.
"You all friends?" Steve asked, eyes not focused on who he was actually talking to, but the stressed features of the heroes.
The kids were silent for a couple moments, all glancing at each other. Peter decided to speak for them all, saying, "Um, Ned and I are friends. We don't really know Michelle nor Liz... but they're nice."
Humour immediately slapped itself on the teens' faces, more specifically Michelle's and Neds. Smirking knowingly, Michelle elbowed Peter in the side.
"Oh, is Liz nice?"
Peter was tense, face heating up.
Ned put a hand on his blushing friends' shoulder, rolling his eyes. "C'mon Michelle, do you need to tease him for everything he does?"
"When it makes him go as red as cherries, sure."
Liz simply watched the conversation with confused eyes, eyebrows furrowed.
"Should we just get to watching whatever Loki sent us?" Tony asked, rubbing his face. Everyone has been locked in the room for about ten minutes and all hell was threatening to break loose... well, it felt like it was.
Plus, Tony kind of wanted to save Peter from embarrassing himself further. He knew a crushing kid when he saw one. Especially one who stutters and blushes from the slightest of teasing.
Steve nodded in agreement, though he was entertained by someone other than him being teased about women, they needed to get out of this room in case something happens and they need to suit up.
Everyone sat down on the sofa or chairs, getting comfortable.
"Does anyone know how long this will be?" Clint asked, throwing his arm around the back of the sofa.
"Nope."
[radio transmission sound]
"I already hate this," Ned couldn't help but mutter, pulling his legs onto the couch in front of him. Peter huffed a chuckle and rubbed his friend's shoulder. The two of them silent grin, amused at each other.
"Can you guys stop flirting and watch the movie?" MJ cut in, slapping Peter's arm.
"Rude," Peter commented.
[Asgardian PA]: This is the Asgardian refugee vessel. We are under assault, I repeat, we are under assault - Engines are dead, life support failing.
Thor's eyebrows shot up, as confusion and panic flooded his system.
"Um, what?"
"Trouble in paradise?" Tony asked, lacking the certain dry humour he usually oozed. There was something that just sucked the humour right out of his jokes when an Asgardian ship was being attacked.
Natasha frowned at the screen, slightly cocking her head to the side. "Do you know who's attacking the refugee's vessel?"
Thor shook his head, eyes set on the screen. "There's no reason for the refugee vessel to be even out of the dock."
Bruce took a deep breath, squeezing the couch beneath him. This was clearly not good.
[Cont.] Requesting aid from any vessel within range… Our crew is made up of Asgardian families, we have very few soldiers here. This is not a Warcraft, I repeat, this is not a Warcraft.
"There's... families on that ship?" Peter asked, pent-up adrenaline pumping through his veins.
"Innocents being attacked," Tony murmured.
"Why would Asgardians be attacked?" Steve questioned.
[Inside the ship, Ebony Maw walks among the bodies of dead Asgardians. He steps over them as he speaks with no mind as if they were scattered pieces of dirty clothing on a bedroom floor.]
Thor took a sharp breath, abruptly standing from his seat on the couch.
"Calm down, big guy," Natasha interjected, pulling at his arms. She jerked back, feeling a hot pain travel through her bones, and spasming her bicep. Thor just electrocuted her with his fingertips?
"Those are Asgardians," Thor voiced, grief, and anger evident in his voice. Nobody commented on the way it wavered slightly. "My people. Slaughtered."
"Mister Thor," Peter quietly said, ignoring the glares his friends sent him. "I, um, I have a feeling that this is why Mister Loki is making us watch this."
Thor frowned, turning to the teen. "What do you mean, young one?"
Michelle, despite the tense air that threatened to choke everyone, was hopelessly holding back a snort at the nickname. Peter glanced at her and served her a deadpanned a glare.
Turning back to the God, Peter continued, "I just mean, maybe Loki is trying to actually do something good here. Like, prevent this? Show us the, I dunno, the future?"
It was far-fetched and they all knew it. That didn't stop them from desperately clawing at an idea to help them understand Loki's motives, and showing a... genocide on screen.
"Perhaps," Thor mumbled, sitting back down on the sofa.
The movie didn't start back up for a couple minutes, as if knowing someone had to say something else.
It was Steve.
"I'm sorry you kids are being dragged into this," He said, frowning slightly. "You shouldn't have to see this."
"Maybe there's more of a reason you're being shown this," Tony commented absent-mindedly.
"Maybe," Peter echoed.
Ebony Maw: Hear me, and rejoice. You have had the privilege of being saved by the great Titan. You may think this is suffering. No. It is salvation. Universal scales tipped toward balance because of your sacrifice. Smile, for even in death, you have become children of Thanos.
"Thanos?" Clint asked, pointedly looking towards Thor for more information.
"I have no idea who that is."
"Fantastic," Ned muttered, sinking further into the couch.
Steve was practically glaring holes into Tony's poor television. This 'Thanos' guy was really giving him some certain vibes of the forties. Lord knows what happened to Red Skull.
"I already want to shove that guy off a cliff," Tony commented.
[Loki is seen with the Black Order. He watches Thanos.]
Silence.
"Well," Liz quietly said, nervously studying the death glares the Avengers were giving the man on the screen. "That's our man."
"Both our men," Michelle informed, narrowing her eyes at the screen. "That big, purple eggplant is who caused all that death?"
"He does kind of look like the eggplant emoji," Ned nodded, relieved to have some humour to hold onto.
"Ew, why do you guys like to bring up that emoji so much?" Peter asked, face betraying disgust.
"It's the best emoji. Just not here," Michelle defended.
Liz suddenly cocked her head to the side, frowning.
"He looks more like a prune."
"What is wrong with kids nowadays?" Clint asked, even though he was chuckling. Thor's face was betraying his confusion, making him look like an overgrown golden retriever.
"What is a prune?"
"That purple asshole, right there," Michelle pointed to Thanos on the screen.
Thanos: [Looking out the large window we saw at the end of Thor: Ragnarok.] I know what it's like to lose. To feel so desperately that you're right, yet to fail nonetheless. [grabs Thor.]
"Oh, fuck," Tony muttered, eyes wide.
Bruce was ten seconds away from hyperventilating, nervously looking back and forth from the screen to Thor.
"Is that you? He picked you up like a kid does to a hamster."
Thor was intensely analyzing the screen, even standing up to get a better look at it. "What happened to my hair?"
[Cont.] It's frightening. Turns the legs to jelly. I ask you to what end? Dread it, run from it, destiny arrives all the same. And now it's here… or should I say I am.
"So, let me get this straight," Clint interrupted, swallowing thickly. "Thanos, the purple, wrinkly prune, slaughtered everyone on Asgard, and they're calling it... salvation?"
Natasha simply nodded.
"Jesus fuck."
Thor: [exhaustedly spitting blood from his mouth] You talk too much.
Tony eyes widened comically.
"Forget your hair, Goldilocks! What happened to your eye? You're turning into Pirate God."
Of course, there were no answers for the growing questions that threatened to never be answered.
"You look," Peter paused, thinking of a word. "Badass."
Thanos: [to Loki] The Tesseract, or your brother's head. I assume you have a preference.
Loki: Oh, I do. Kill him away.
"You have such a wonderful fucking brother, Thor," Clint growled.
"He's adopted."
"The tesseract... what would he want the tesseract for?" Tony asked. Of course, the obvious answer would be for power, but Tony had a feeling that Thanos had plenty of power to spare.
"It's an Infinity stone," Thor answered, turning away from the TV.
"Infinity stone?" Natasha inquired, suddenly more interested in Tony's and Thor's conversation than the movie.
"Each Infinity holds great power... Vision has the Mind stone, just for an example. Friends, if Thanos gets all the stones, well, who knows what would happen. The Tesseract is the..." Thor thought for a second, as if thinking of the answer to a math question. "Space stone."
Peter was already way out of his element. Fight bad guys? Sure, no doubt he could whip up a good fight scene. Fighting a giant alien with unimaginable power, who can lift a God like a ragdoll... not so much.
All this information was hurting his brain.
For the first time in weeks... Peter felt real, unfiltered fear take over his thinking.
"Ugh," Tony growled, leaning back in the sofa. "We're gonna have to stop him, aren't we?"
"Loki with the Tesseract's power was hard enough," Bruce commented.
Tony shrugged, brushing off Bruce's concern. "Nah, Hulk-y baby smashed him around good."
[Thanos sets the gauntlet on Thor's temple. The power stone glows brightly. Thor suffers in pain.]
Everyone watching the movie cringed away from Thor's screaming, feeling anxiety beat at their hearts like a drum.
This was their teammate, their friend...
And he was being killed right in front of them like some sort of sick game show.
"Please Loki," Steve mumbled, hand over his mouth. "Don't do this..."
Loki: [cringing and looking away from his brother's pain] All right, stop!
The tension in the air lessened it's hold on everyone's throats, as they all collectively let out a sigh of relief.
"Looks like Reindeer Games actual does care for you, Pointbreak," Tony smiled, still uneasy from the situation.
Thor nodded mutely.
Thor: We don't have the Tesseract. It was destroyed on Asgard.
Thor was still quiet.
"So, that's why you guys are on the ship," Natasha deduced, crossing her arms. "Asgard was destroyed."
"Wow, wasn't expecting that," Clint couldn't help but say.
[Loki glances at Thor like he knows something he doesn't. He lifts his right hand into the air and the Tesseract reveals itself]
Thor: You really are the worst, brother.
"Oh come on," Thor groaned.
Loki: [While holding the Tesseract out to Thanos] I assure you, brother. The sun will shine on us again.
Dread pooled at the bottom of Thor's stomach, as he analyzed his distressed brother. His green eyes were shiny, full of tears. Whether they were from anger or grief was not clear, but Thor could tell he was upset.
The sudden urge to put his hand on his brother's neck, and assure him that they would all be all right was apparent. He missed his little brother.
Thanos: Your optimism is misplaced, Asgardian.
Loki: Well, for one thing, I'm not Asgardian. And for another, we have a Hulk.
"That's my line!" Tony exclaimed, indignant.
Steve sighed, almost face-palming. "Stark... not important."
"The Hulk... is in space..." Bruce whispered, eyes wide.
[Loki dives out of the way as Hulk emerges and fights Thanos. Punches are exchanged and Thanos is forced into the wall of the ship. Maw stops Black Dwarf from interfering.]
Uproar built up within the room, each of the audience members cheering for the raging green guy, fists in the air. For the first time, Bruce finally felt happy that the Hulk was out and rearing to smash Thanos.
For once he could agree with Hulks anger.
"Go Hulk!" Peter exclaimed, a small smile forming on his face. What? He was a Hulk fan, just as much as he was a fan of Doctor Banner.
Peter supposed that was the joy of both being a nerd and a superhero fanatic.
Ebony Maw: Let him have his fun.
The cheering quieted down.
What was that supposed to mean?
"Um, Doctor Banner," Ned started, tearing his eyes from the screen. "There's no possible way that Thanos could beat the Hulk... right?"
"Uh," Bruce stuttered. "I, um, I don't know. The only thing that has come remotely close to beating Hulk would be..." Bruce paused.
Tony worried stared at his friend. "Bruce?"
"The Abomination was close..."
Peter frowned... the Abomination?
"Did it come close to Thanos power?"
"I dunno," Bruce shrugged. He clasped his hands together, desperately trying to stop shaking. "It was like ten years ago Hulk and the Abomination fought."
[Thanos defeats Hulk and dumps him to the ground.]
"This is..." Thor started, trailing off.
"Fucking terrible," Clint finished.
Bruce was horrified, as his jaw dropped to the floor. The room around him was blurring dangerously, almost sending him spiralling down to a panic attack.
Not good.
Not good.
Not good.
Not good.
It was almost as if Hulk was whispering those words into Bruce's ear.
Heimdall: Forefathers… let the dark magic flow through me one last time.
[Heimdall summons the Bifrost, which carries Hulk away.]
"Heimdall..." Thor said, thanking him in his head.
"That's Heimdall?" Ned asked, shaking off the fear from what he had just witnessed.
"Yes, he controls the Bifrost. He had just sent Banner... most likely to Earth."
Ned nodded, before saying, "I've read up a little on Norse Mythology... is it true that Loki gave birth to a horse?"
Thor raised an eyebrow.
Everyone else in the room frowned at the boy, who simply shrunk back from their piercing glares.
"Alright, not the time..."
Thanos: That was a mistake.
[Thanos stabs Heimdall through the heart.]
Wanda gasped, her hands flying to her mouth. Vision quickly embraced her, trying to convey as much comfort as he could possibly achieve.
Thor was positively raging in his seat, jaw clenching and unclenching. Wanda quickly glanced over to the devastated God, eyes filling with sympathy.
Leaning further into Visions hug, Wanda's hand shot out, manipulating the red magic that coursed through her veins. The red scurried across Thor's cheek, almost sliding smoothly across the soft skin.
She immediately sent out waves of comfort, learning from Visions portrayal. Thor was heaving heavy breaths, but his eyes met the witches.
He nodded appreciatively.
She smiled back from Visions arms.
"This is so fucked up," Clint murmured, looking ten years older than he should.
Thor: No! You're going to die for that!
Thor nodded along with his future counterpart.
"I'm going to send Mjolnir straight into your heart," He threatened, clenching his fists.
"Where is Mjolnir?" Steve suddenly asked, cocking his head to the side.
Hm... Thor should have called his hammer by now...
Ebony Maw: [Holding the Tesseract, on one knee] My humble personage… bows before your grandeur. No other being has ever had the might, nay the nobility, to wield not one, but 2 Infinity Stones. The universe lies within your grasp.
"God, why does this douchebag look so much like Voldemort?" Clint asked.
Tony snorted at the comparison, agreeing.
"Squidward," Tony mumbled, making Clint laugh bitterly.
"That would suck," Michelle commented, which led to Peter questioning what she meant. "Not having a nose."
"Pft!" Peter choked, rolling his eyes.
Steve and Thor looked on the conversation with fondness. There was something about laughing in the face of death that seemed to help ease the pain a little... they both knew from experience.
Lord knows how many jokes Bucky would whisper into Steve's ear right before they joined the battle.
[Thanos crushes the Tesseract, revealing the Space Stone. He places it on the gauntlet.]
"Hang on," Bruce said, holding his arm up. "What stone is that?"
Thor squinted at the screen, before informing the scientist, "The Power stone."
"What stones are there?"
"Other than the Space, Mind and Power stone? Uh, the Time stone, the Reality stone, and the Soul stone."
Tony joined the conversation, slightly positioning his body to face the two. "What you're saying is that Thanos is quite far away from getting all the stones?"
"I think so."
"Well, then where are the other ones?"
"Scattered around the Universe."
"This shouldn't be too hard then..."
Thanos: There are 2 more Stones on Earth. Find them, my children, and bring them to me on Titan.
"There's another here?" Vision asked with his ever so calm voice.
Thor didn't say anything for a couple seconds. "Suppose so."
Proxima Midnight: Father, we will not fail you.
Loki: [Emerging from a separate section of the ship] If I might interject…
"I swear to fuck," Michelle and Peter couldn't help but giggle at Clint's choice of words. "If that little weasel-"
"I'll hit him myself if he does something stupid. Do not worry, Barton," Thor assured.
[Cont.] If you're going to Earth, you might want a guide. I do have a bit of experience in that arena.
Thanos: If you consider failure experience...
Loki: I consider experience, experience. Almighty Thanos. I, Loki, Prince of Asgard, Odinson, the rightful King of Jotunheim, god of mischief, do hereby pledge to you, my undying fidelity.
Lokis brother could almost smile at Loki's newfound sense of belonging as Odin's son... but his anxiety was rapidly growing by the second.
[Thor squints and notices a dagger in Loki's hand. Loki attempts to stab Thanos, but fails.]
The shock of Loki's trick had worn off quickly, as Thanos easily caught him in the lie. Of course, it was a relief to know that future-Loki was loyal to Thor, and Asgard... but this meant trouble for both of the brother Gods.
"This isn't good," Clint repeated.
"You've been saying that this entire time," Natasha retorted.
"Well, has it been good at all?"
"No."
"Then hush, and let me sing a song of cuss words," Clint said, taking a deep breath for a long-winded cussing session. One glance to the teenagers, Natasha instantly disagreed and slapped a hand over his mouth.
Thanos: "Undying." You should choose your words more carefully.
"Loki," Thor breathed. "No..."
[Thanos tightens his hold around Loki's neck. He makes eye contact with Thor before he increases his force on Loki's neck.]
"Natasha," Tony said quietly, gaining only her attention. She made a noise of acknowledgement. "Is there any way he could get out of that?"
She went silent.
"Yes, but," Her face suddenly smoothed out. The billionaire instantly knew that she was hiding her emotions. "I don't think he will."
Meanwhile, Peter was practically vibrating in his seat, adrenaline running high through his limbs. Despite not knowing the God personally, he respected him. He respected that he tried to take Thanos down with his own tricks.
Peter hated death with a passion.
But for someone who slaughters an entire race and calls it 'salvation'... Peter could get behind their death warrant.
Liz glanced at the shaking boy, biting her lip. Desperately, she ignored the urge to hug the boy that she had practically just met.
"This is..." Wanda murmured, slightly pushing away from Vision. Tears were pooling in her eyes. She couldn't tell if it was her own grief for Loki or just memories of Pietro moistening her eyes. "I hate this."
Loki: [Giving up on fighting against Thanos] You… will never be… a god. [Thanos snaps Loki's neck, killing him]
No one said anything.
Wanda pulled her magic from Thor, knowing that there was practically no reason to try comforting him when he wasn't responsive.
Thor simply stared. He felt numb.
Where was Odin to prevent this? Was he killed by Thanos too?
Thanos: No resurrections this time.
[Thanos teleports away with the Black Order.]
Thor: No… Loki…
[Thor is released from his binds. He crawls over to Loki's body- which, unlike in the Dark World, has not returned to it's Jotun form- and lays his head down on Loki's chest, shedding tears for all that he has lost.]
[The ship explodes.]
"I hate to be the asshole who talks while grieving," Tony cut in, voice cold. "But you can survive that, right?"
Thor nodded slowly, wiping his eyes of dry tears.
"Of course," He feigned cockiness. "A little explosion couldn't hurt me, nor my one eye."
"What about your hair?" Michelle asked.
Happy to focus on something other than Loki, Thor jumped to the question. "What about my hair?"
"Do you think it'll be a little singed, or you'll be bald?"
Peter chuckled quietly, a small smile forming on his face. "Yeah, I mean, you've already lost so much hair... there's not much to lose."
Thor roared in indignance, lifting the tense air that had settled around them.
The screen fades to black.
'Continue'
The group of people didn't move from their spots on the couch, letting themselves have a couple minutes of silence. Thor was wishing his brother a good rest, hopefully, he would end up in Valhalla.
As for the rest of the watchers, they calmed down fairly quickly, thanking Loki for saving Thor, and sacrificing himself. Of course, it still hurt to a certain degree, no one was supposed to die.
"I have a feeling that Loki was not bullshitting us when writing this was the future," Clint announced, ripping the letter off the table where Steve had placed it.
Steve agreed with Clint before reaching for the remote, aiming it at the TV.
"We all ready?"
"No, but I don't think I'll ever be," Peter joked, making Michelle slap his arm.
"Let's continue," Thor wiped the last couple stray tears, and took a deep breath.
'Continue'