Chapter 5: Distortion
~ß~ Katirya ~ß~
"I'll be back," Katirya shouted at her sister and the stunned members of the Council. She was surprised that the Council had sat quietly through the whole exchange, finally deciding that they probably didn't know what to do, what with Hadriath gone. She knew Hadriath pretty much controlled the Council. "Don't do anything stupid while I'm gone. Loki, can Heimdall just move us to where Thor went?"
"No, we'd have to go back to Asgard first," Loki replied, sensing the urgency in her voice.
She pulled out the Tesseract, "Everyone, get closer. We're going for a ride."
"Not without me!" Kyrath dashed over, and clung to Loki, just as the group dissolved from the Council chambers on Cartherion and reappeared on the balcony of Jane's apartment.
"Kyrath?" Katirya stared at her sister. "Was that necessary?"
"I'm going to be in on this. I know what it is you're up to, even if no one else does."
"Really? That's rather surprising," Katirya replied, a sarcastic edge to her voice.
Loki disentangled himself from Kyrath, then ran into the apartment. "Where's Thor?"
Darcy jumped. "What? Thor just went to rescue you… how did you get here?" Then she spotted Katirya behind him. "Thor and Jane went with you," pointing to Katirya, "to save you," looking at Loki. "But if you are both here… I don't get it."
"Save Loki?" Katirya was confused, "but… Loki was with me, on Cartherion."
"No, you were just here, like, five minutes ago, right Erik?" Darcy replied. "First Thor arrived, looking for Jane. So we called Director Fury, and he finally, like, answered the phone when he heard Thor's voice. Then Jane showed up, acting all weird like…"
A sudden pounding on the door interrupted Darcy's explanation.
"That must be Director Fury, he told Jane to wait right here, but she took off with Thor," Darcy went to answer the door, "this is going to be interesting…"
She had barely cracked the door, when it was roughly shoved open, causing her to stumble backwards, crashing into Fandral. "Sorry."
"YOU!" Fury's voice cracked with rage as he spotted Loki and Katirya in the room. "You two have a lot to answer for, starting with sabotaging a few helijets."
Loki simply rolled his eyes, staring at the S.H.I.E.L.D. director with a hint of amusement on his face.
"Can you hold that thought for a few minutes?" Katirya asked, then returned her attention to Darcy. "Start over again, tell us everything you remember. When did Jane start acting weird?"
"Okay, it all started this morning, but if you ask me, she's been acting weird ever since we met you. She, like, just hates you," Darcy shrugged, then continued, "anyways, this morning, she was going on and on about you, and she got all mad at us so she left to go for a walk. We watched her head towards the park, and then Director Fury showed up."
"I was not there! I keep telling you people that. I've been at headquarters all day trying to explain how a bunch of Asgardians managed to uncloak our cloaking device, steal a helijet, and then disappear, among other things," he glared at Katirya and Loki as he spoke.
"Well, it sure looked like you, and Jane acted like she knew you," Darcy said.
"So this person looked like Fury from up here? But you did not actually see him up close, right?" Katirya questioned Darcy.
"No, we didn't go down, at least not right away. We figured she'd be okay. How were we to know she would be gone for, like, hours?" Darcy huffed. "And then Thor showed up, looking for Jane. That was when we went looking for her. We came back and he was here. So we called you," she pointed to Fury, "and you finally answered, and then Jane showed up."
"Did Jane say anything about where she had been?" Loki asked.
"Sure, said she'd just been in the park and had never even seen Fury." Darcy shook her head. "I don't get it because we saw her with someone that looked like him. She got all weird when Katirya showed up asking for help to save Loki, but I guess it wasn't you, was it?" she asked Katirya.
"No, I've been in Cartherion trying to resolve their issues. I sensed Thor was in trouble."
"You couldn't sense a fly crawling on your head, you idiot!" Kyrath shouted.
"Who is that?" Fury asked, staring at Kyrath.
"My sister, or rather, half-sister," Katirya responded. "She came along for the ride, claims she knows what I am up to. Darcy, what do you mean Jane was acting weird when she came back from her 'walk'?"
"At first, she was more or less normal, but then she started screaming at you like a maniac. Finally, it was like someone, like, switched a switch or something; she got all calm. Then they left. You, or the not-you you, said you could take them to where Thanos was holding Loki," Darcy finished, a confused look upon her face.
"Well, that was helpful," Kyrath said sarcastically. "Which you are you? Have you managed to figure out how to be in two places at once? Wouldn't put it past you."
"The me that wasn't me was most likely Thanos," Katirya finally deduced from the conversation, ignoring her sister's comment. "We know Jane was on Svartalfheim, with Thanos. That was probably who you saw down there," she pointed out the window to where Darcy had indicated they had seen the meet-up.
"That was Thanos?" Darcy asked. "And why did he pick Jane anyways?"
"It truly does appear that there were some remnants of the Aether on Svartalfheim, and that Jane still retained some of them. That explains her initial reaction to Katirya. It would also make sense that Thanos was able to control her using the Aether. I'm guessing he used her to collect the leftovers," Loki answered the question, his face sober, "and he is the one who destroyed her mind."
"Destroyed her mind?" Darcy's shocked face reflected her feelings.
Katirya nodded. "Yes, both Heimdall and I were able to see that. There is little left of the real Jane Foster. Thanos has taken over her mind almost completely."
"Oh my god! We've got to do something! Can't you save her?" Darcy panicked.
"I do not know," Katirya replied. "I can try, but first we have to find them."
"Where would they go? Back to Svartalfheim?" Loki asked.
"I don't know," Katirya admitted. "We need to go back to Heimdall's window on the universe. He might already know where they are. We have to find them first."
"No way are you going without me!" Darcy exclaimed, running over to cling to Loki.
Loki lifted one eyebrow, an amused smile breaking through his concern, "It would seem that I am what they call a chick magnet. Coming, Kyrath?"
Kyrath simply nodded, demonstrating no desire to remain on Earth.
Katirya chuckled, enjoying the moment of levity. "Just don't let it go to your head."
"You're not going anywhere WITHOUT me!" Fury shouted.
"Great," Loki commented acerbically, glancing at the others in the room, "anyone else before we call Heimdall to fetch us?"
Erik considered the question, then spoke up. "Ian and I can remain down here, in case Jane shows up. Is there any way we can get in contact with you if you need us?"
"Heimdall can see you. He knows what is going on. When we get back, we'll alert him to keep checking in," Loki said. "Now that we've all decided who is going, although what good you will be, Mr. Fury, I do not know…"
"You're just not getting out of my sight this time until I get retribution. You've destroyed New York on one visit, then sabotaged my helijets on another."
"If that is your only problem, why didn't you say so?" Loki replied, making a sweeping gesture with his arm, "I can fix that, but not right now. So if you will excuse us…. Heimdall!"
Fury found himself left behind as the rest of the travelers disappeared in a rainbow arc. "Damn!" He pounded his fist into his palm.
"He is rather tricky," Erik commented.
~∫ Thor ∫~
Thor felt strangely unsubstantial as they traveled, almost as if his body had been turned to rubber, but he put it down to the method Katirya was using to transport them. He vaguely thought he ought to ask her about it when they arrived. He wished he had asked more questions before they left, like where they were going, for example, but his concern for his brother had overridden all other thoughts.
Their arrival was not pleasant, at least for him. He crashed to the ground heavily, rolling several times. He came to an abrupt stop to find himself encircled by armed guards.
"What manner of greeting is this? I have come to help." He tried to rise up, only to find himself forced to the ground. He felt weak, powerless. He reached out for
Mjölnir, only to find one of the guards had taken it, placing it out of his reach. He stretched his fingers, calling it in his mind, but it sat unmoving.
"What is wrong?" He shouted in frustration.
"Nothing is wrong," Katirya said, as her form dissolving, then reforming as Thanos, "I just needed you. Put him in the cell for now," he ordered the guards.
Helplessly, Thor felt his body being lifted off the ground, only to be tossed into a tiny cell. The door was slammed shut; a click indicated a lock had been set. He tried to rise, but found he could not move.
"What magic is this?" He spoke out loud, though he figured no one could hear him.
He waited for what seemed like hours, trying every so often to move, but still unable to do anything. It was worse than when his father, Odin, had sent him to Earth. At least then he could walk.
Finally, the door to his cell opened. Thanos appeared in the doorway, with Jane behind him.
Thor was delighted to see her. "Jane! Are you all right?"
She ignored him, looking at Thanos. "Who is he? Why is he here?"
Thanos threw back his head, laughing. "She has forgotten you already. I am so sorry, Thor."
"What magic is this? What have you done to me? What have you done to Jane?" Thor fired the questions at Thanos.
"Ah," Thanos sighed, "so many questions, and right now we have so much time while we wait. So… the answer for both the first and second question, a friend shared the secret of Odin Force. I used it on you. You have no powers, and I added an extra touch: as you have no doubt noticed you are unable to move."
Thor wriggled slightly in an attempt to prove him wrong.
"Oh, my. You look like a fish out of water, poor thing… shall I throw you back?" Thanos sneered. Moving closer he put his face just inches away from Thor's. "As for Jane, she has been most useful."
"You will let her go!" Thor raged.
"Ha! And who is going to make me? You?" Thanos laughed again, spittle spraying out of his mouth and landing on Thor's face. "You cannot even move!"
"What do you want of me?" Thor glared at Thanos.
"Oh, I don't want anything from you. You are my bait. I expect Loki to eventually find us." Thanos straightened up, moving to stand over Thor exultantly.
"What do you want from Loki?" Thor was slightly confused, uncertain why Thanos wanted his brother.
"He owes me, and he will pay. He did not do as he promised back on Earth. He shall be held accountable for that. I promised him, but I guess he did not believe me." The sneer in Thanos' voice was evident.
Thor thought back to his brother's transgressions, realizing that Loki had been manipulated. He closed his eyes, thinking of the pain this creature would most likely bring to his brother. It would be nothing compared to what Odin had done.
"Plus, he has an added bonus, now that he has married that whore Katirya. She will follow and finally be MINE!" Thanos gloated.
"She is pregnant, you know." Thor thought maybe that would dissuade him from wanting Katirya so much.
"Ha, your brother's brat?" Thanos snorted, "so soon after the wedding?" Disbelief dripped in his voice. "Or is it yours?" His face loomed over Thor's once again, his eyes boring into him. "Either way, the brat can be dispensed with easily. It is my child she is going to bear, and with the Infinity Stones once more on my gauntlet, I shall rule the universe!"
