"We need to split up," Thor says as he surveys the plans. Heimdall watches them as golden sunlight falls on them. The last morning Thor might ever be in Asgard.
"Why?" Tony asks.
"To create chaos," Thor glances to Loki.
"Doesn't Thanos thrive on that?"
"Yes, but we can use it against him," Gamora puts in.
"We hope," mutters Nebula. She's a strange one, and Thor can't tell whether he likes her or not.
"He still has those three infinity gems, and I don't think he'll be keeping them in the same place. They'll all be on that planet, but they won't be together,"" Gamora adds. "Nebula, Loki, and I have identified the most likely hiding places for the Power, Time, and Soul gems."
"He had the Power stone with him," Bucky says.
"It's entirely possible he'll keep one of them with him," Gamora confirms. "There are five other possible places."
"Here." Thor points to the red x's Clint insisted on marking the maps with. Loki stands in the corner, watching his brother with an impassive face. You're scared, Thor realizes.
He may never admit it out loud, but he is, too.
"And I'll provide a distraction," Bruce says, wrapping his arms around himself.
"We all kind of will," Starlord adds. "I mean, we're gonna try to stay unnoticed, but like, let's be realistic, we're gonna be noticed."
"We also need to consider that when splitting up," T'Challa says. "Loki has this casket. Vision has the mind gem. Thor will have the infinity gauntlet—"
"I will?" Thor's brows crease. He's not sure he wants that kind of power.
"Of course," Loki snaps.
"I don't believe—"
"Who else can wield it?" Sif asks.
"Who else should?" counters Loki. "You're the king of Asgard, Thor. You already have Gungnir and Mjolnir. You need to carry the gauntlet because no one else can."
"I agree," Steve says.
Thor nods.
"Here's what we were thinking for splitting up," Gamora says. "The Guardians and you, Nebula, will go here, to the lower levels of the moon. There's a cavern that might contain one of the gems. Thor, Loki, and your Warriors will head over to the east, where there's a canyon."
"And torture chambers," Nebula puts in.
"And those," Gamora amends. "You're most likely to encounter someone."
Loki nods, his face pale, sweat shining on his forehead.
"Tony, Rhodey, and you, Peter Parker, will go to one of the higher levels. It's kind of like a mountain place, but two of your can fly, so—"
"And if you think I'm letting you out of my sight, kid, I don't even want to know what kids are smoking these days," Tony adds.
"Right." Gamora rolls her eyes. "Bucky, Steve, and Sam, you'll head to the asteroids scattered nearby. I think it's unlikely anything's located there, but they will be patrolled. If you can take out the guards as quickly as possible—"
"Can do," Sam affirms.
"Wanda, Vision, and T'Challa will go here." She taps the map. "There's a lot of Chitauri in this low-lying area, which could mean that they're guarding something, although I'm not sure Thanos would trust the Chitauri with an infinity stone."
"I'm certain he wouldn't," comments Nebula.
"There are some jets stored there. If anything's there, it'd be on one of those. I wouldn't try to take out any more Chitauri than necessary."
"Okay," T'Challa agrees.
"Protect him," she adds, nodding to Vision. "Whatever you do, he can't fall into Thanos's hands."
"I will," Wanda vows. She clutches Vision's hand, and Thor glances to Sif.
"Bruce, you'll go closest to Thanos. Natasha, Clint, and Scott will follow. If he has one of the gems with him, Scott, you're our best hope."
"Only hope," Scott corrects, smirking.
"Star Wars reference!" Peter Parker exclaims.
"I can calm Bruce down if it's necessary," Natasha explains.
"My arrows never miss," Clint says.
"You know she used a bow and arrow when we were on Nornheim, getting chased by the Kree?" Bucky asks.
"She did?" Clint's eyebrows fly up. "I'm flattered, Nat."
She rolls her eyes. Thor smiles.
"We should all try to meet up at this ridge," Gamora says loudly, pulling them all back on task. "As soon as we're able. And then if we have the gems, Thor, you and Vision can work together to take Thanos out."
Thor looks down at the Infinity Gauntlet, the Tessaract glowing and the Aether brewing inside it. Both of these stones almost cost the lives of those he cares about. What do we do after?
There's no time to wonder about that now.
"Ready?" Natasha asks them all.
Not in the least. Still, Thor leads them down towards the Bifrost. Did you ever feel like this? he wonders about Father. When he was growing up, Thor never thought his father could be afraid.
But he was, wasn't he? Of Loki, of his lies, of losing?
Sif stands next to him in the Bifrost; Loki, behind him. All your friends are with you.
Don't be afraid.
The Bifrost drags them away.
"This place is creepy as hell," Sam pants. Shadows fall, but there's no real light sources. Stairs float between asteroids—or are they just rocky pieces of a dead, decaying moon?
"No kidding," Steve agrees. It's as if they're in a void—there's no air, but they can still breathe. "What is this place?"
"No place I ever wanted to come back to," Bucky grumbles. Dust crunches under their boots as they slip through the asteroids. His face pales.
"Your mind's healed," Steve reassures him. "You won't—"
"Other people are still being hurt," Bucky cuts him off, and Steve pauses. A scream, distant.
Who would live here? Steve wonders.
Someone in love with death.
"We'll stop him," Steve vows.
Bucky grabs Steve's arm and halts. More crunching.
"I'll take whatever it is out," Sam tells them.
"Why you?" Bucky demands
"Because I can fly, idiot." Sam rolls his eyes.
Animal-like screeching reverberates like a siren.
"Shit," Steve and Bucky both say at once. Bucky still narrows his eyes when he hears his friend swear. "I have grown up, Bucky," Steve adds before they race down a flight of floating stairs. Steve leaps onto a craggy surface—except it's steeper than it looked. Steve kicks, hauling himself up. He turns around and grabs Bucky's arm.
"So that one's dead," says Sam above them.
"What?" Steve peers beyond Sam to see a reptilian creature lying with a broken neck. A Chitauri. Damn if he didn't think he was done with those beasts after New York.
"The bad news is I think it alerted its friends."
Bucky aims his weapon as a horde of Chitauri, flying on the same vehicles as they used in New York, soar towards them.
That means Thanos has to know, Steve realizes, meeting Bucky's eyes. Natasha. Thor. All of them.
We can't do anything except fight the ones in front of us. He can't save them, not right now, and Steve can't stand it.
You have to trust them.
Bucky and Natasha figured it out when they were here before. Trust them. He does. The Avengers are his friends, even Tony.
Steve races at the Chitauri and swings himself up onto their flying vehicle, kicking and slamming his shield across one's jaw. It falls into a void, and Steve remembers the other wars he's fought, not just in New York, but long ago in Europe.
What are you getting from working for a monster like Thanos? He remembers thinking the same thought about Nazis working for Hitler, Hydra agents working for Red Skull. But he has to push it aside like he always does, because they're trying to kill and maim and destroy and he can't hesitate. Be brave, always brave.
Steve throws the last Chitauri down into the void. Black blood stains his shield.
Screams echo. Whimpers cut into his spine. Loki swallows as he leads Thor and the Warriors Three through the canyon.
"This place is terrifying," Fandral comments.
"Keep quiet," hisses Sif.
"It is," Loki agrees, sidestepping to avoid kicking a loose rock. He can feel their gazes on him and he doesn't like it. They know he was kept here after he fell. Do they think he deserved it, for betraying Thor and getting him banished, for letting the Frost Giants in, for being a Jotun?
Did you?
Loki swallows. He tries to push the screams from his mind and still they linger.
If only I could fix my mind like I fixed Bucky's.
Thor sucks in his breath and flattens himself against the wall, under an outcropping. His arm slings out to push Loki back too. Mjolnir almost crushes Loki's chest.
"I'm perfectly capable of hiding myself," Loki wheezes.
Thor shakes his head, the Gauntlet on the hand clutching Gungnir and Mjolnir in his other arm. "Are you all right here?"
"Of course." Loki's face flames and he hates it. He doesn't want their pity, or their hatred, or their apathy. He doesn't know what he wants from Thor, from any of them. He doesn't know what he wants from himself.
To destroy Thanos.
Thor's eyes smolder as if he knows Loki's not really fine, as if he knows the screams are still chopping at his skull. "I will kill him."
"For what? For hurting me? You did enough of that yourself." He doesn't mean to say it, but it slips out because Loki's desperate to push Thor away. He can't let their sticky pity near him.
Hogun groans.
"Thor's just—" tries Volstagg.
Yes, Thor, Loki wants to say. I screamed. I screamed because I wanted it to stop, because I had no hope. I gave in because Thanos offered it to me.
And it was all a lie.
He knew all along. "Thanos played me from the beginning," Loki says.
"What?"
"He never intended for me to rule earth." All those people being tortured—they're tools, just like Loki was a tool, only Loki was desperate for someone to tell him he was worth something. He swallowed it from the devil himself, the father of lies, a monstrous Titan who knew Odin could stop him and saw to it that Loki took care of him.
Loki's hands shake. What did I do?
Thor. He focuses on his brother.
"If you need to stay here," Volstagg says, peering at him with oh, Norns, concern. "I'll stay with you."
He shakes his head. "We have to defeat Thanos."
"He won't win," Thor promises him, grasping Loki behind his neck like he used to do when reassuring Loki after they tried to hide their mischief from their parents, and Loki believes him.
Thanos took all their identities. Nebula's, Gamora's, Loki's. He made them into machines, assassins, monsters. And Loki let him. Gamora at least fought back.
I'm fighting back now. He's not Thanos's instrument to be played. Not anymore.
A roar echoes. Bruce.
Footsteps pound. Thor tenses, holding both of his weapons aloft.
And still the screams bleed from the torture chambers.
If there's an Infinity Stone here, it'd be there, Loki knows.
The Chitauri burst out of the canyon wall, streaming down the steps, and Loki bursts from their hiding place.
"What are you doing?" Sif shrieks.
The Casket's out; it's in his hands and power's surging from him, freezing the metal-clad beings that cut him, whipped him, starved him without a second thought. They won't die, but they can't fight.
"We need to look in the chambers," Loki says as he turns back to his brother. He knows the blue's still fading from his skin, the red from his eyes. This is what I am. "We can free them, too. They might help."
Thor still stares, and Loki glances down to make sure pale flesh, soft and warm, covers his body. It does. "Do you hate me?" he asks, intending for a bitter tone. Instead, his voice trembles.
Thor shakes his head "Thank you, Loki."
"Someone's been caught," Wanda hisses. "Or triggered some sort of alarm."
"What makes you think that?" T'Challa asks as they crouch behind a boulder, huge and misshapen to look like a skull. Wanda squeezes her eyes shut.
"She has to be right," Vision breathes. "They're all forming, can't you see? They're marching."
"Does it seem like they're all coming from a particular place?" Wanda asks.
"Not that I can see," Vision answers apologetically.
Grit digs into her knees. What if we fail?
What if we all fail?
"They look like they're heading west," Vision reports.
"Which is where Steve, Bucky, and Sam are," T'Challa points out grimly. "According to Gamora's map."
Fear laces itself through Wanda's limbs. "T'Challa, you look for the Infinity Stone. Vision, you and I have to—"
"Stop them," Vision echoes. "I know."
"I will look," T'Challa syas. "And then I'll come and help."
If we're still alive. Red glows from her hands. She leans back against the rough stone, hair catching. Gulping in air, she readies herself. She thinks of Piero, and if he knew he was going to die.
What made you decide it was worth it?
Vision looks at her, his eyes swimming with concern. I love you.
He holds out his hand and pries her up. Wanda nods at T'Challa, and then she and Vision both run. He lets go of her hand and floats overhead. Red light flashes from her hands as she throws rocks and Chitauri around. She glances up to see Vision still there, still there for now.
A scaly arm wraps around her neck. Red magic slashes out, but a group of Chitauri swarm her and Wanda screams. One claws at her leg; another takes a fistful of her hair.
They're blasted away, and Vision's there, and then they leaping on him and her power channels through her with a viciousness she's never felt before,a nd he's screaming at her to go, go, get out of here.
"Come back with—"
"I'm not allowed to leave you, remember?" she shouts.
"They'll take me to him! Meet—"
A Chitauri lunges at Wanda with a rusted blade. A black figure leaps onto the blade, shattering it and twisting the Chitauri's neck. Wanda gasps.
"Let's go!" T'Challa grabs her and they run.
Stay alive, Wanda prays, her heart thudding. He's not gone yet. She can feel it.
She won't let Thanos take him.
"Where is everybody?" Tony croaks out as he, Rhodey, and Peter Parker arrive at their meeting place empty handed.
"You're back!" shouts Drax, emerging from behind a rock pillar.
"Did you find anything?" Rhodey pants.
"'Cause we didn't," Peter adds.
"No," says Nebula, emerging with a scowl. Gamora pinches her eyebrows.
"Hey!" Sam flies over as Steve and Bucky skid down into the crevice. "We almost got—Thanos has to know by now that we're here; the Chitauri—"
"Nothing for you either?" Peter Quill shouts.
"Um, no," Steve answers.
"Thanos has them all with him, doesn't he," Tony states, cold filling his stomach.
"We don't know that yet," says Gamora.
"Pretty sure the odds aren't in our favor."
"Ooh, Hunger Games," Peter says appreciatively.
"What's that?" asks Rocket.
A roar shakes the moon. Rocks tumble down and dust filters through the atmosphere.
"Bruce and Nat," Bucky says.
"And Clint and Scott," snaps Tony.
"Really? You have to be petty now?" growls Rhodey into Tony's ear.
"I'm always petty."
Rhodey shrugs. "Can't argue with that."
"We have to help them—if Thanos does have the Infinity Stones—" Bucky starts.
"And we will," Steve cuts in.
Footsteps rush nearby. Tony watches as Thor and Sif approach.
"What happened to Loki?" Bucky demands. God, are they friends now, Bucky and Loki?
"Working on something else. No Infinity Stone," Thor reports. "The Warriors Three are helping him—we—"
"Thanos definitely has them all, then," Gamora concludes. She wrings her hands.
"It was always the most likely scenario, sister," Nebula states.
"We can still do this," Thor says, gazing around. "It's just—we might have to sacrifice more than we'd hoped. Or wanted. But for the sake of—"
"The entire universe," Steve supplies.
"Yes, that. We need to. We're the only ones who can."
"Why do I always wind up in these stupid sacrificial positions?" grumbles Rocket.
"I am Groot," sighs the tree.
Another crash, and T'Challa and Wanda tumble into the area. Wanda's face is shell-shocked: pale and streaked with tears.
He has Vision.
We might actually lose, Tony realizes.
