Merciful

Chapter Four: Let the Trouble Commence

Last Chapter:

"Come on. You're going back to your room."

I would have argued, but the next explosion was closer. So close that the building began to crumble around Jaida and me, the only ones remaining behind.

Now:

3rd Person

Everyone knew what it meant when the mess hall collapsed. They all knew the dilemma Jaida had been facing, that she was still in there. It hit Clint the hardest. He looked at Natasha in horror before running over to the rubble, ignoring all safety precautions. Natasha let him for a little bit before gently dragging him back. He needed to pull himself together; they were senior S.H.I.E.L.D. agents who were looked up to, and they needed to pull it together and figure out who or what had attacked their base. They couldn't risk losing any more lives than the first three explosions had taken.

Jaida

My eyes widened as the third explosion loosened the foundations of the building Loki and I were standing in. As the ceiling fell, I snorted. Oh, how unfair life is; Loki, with his magic, could simply transport away while I was crushed under this stupid building.

Just as I was near to being flattened, I felt a pressure around my shoulder. I didn't care about that, though, not when my body felt like it was ripping into trillions of tiny pieces and being tossed around like frisbees. Just when I thought I was going to pass out - if possible - I was dropped in a clearing somewhere. Instead of taking the opportunity to see where I was, I fell to my knees and began trying not to lose what little I had eaten for lunch.

I heard a snort, and turned to glare at the god, who looked quite pleased with himself. "What the heck was that?" I growled as soon as my stomach was settled.

"I thought it was clear; I saved your life."

"I know that," I said in frustration. "Why?"

Loki blinked slowly. "It would not fit my needs if you were to die. Fury would doubtlessly assign someone like Barton to supervise me."

I snorted. "You don't sound so sure. Now take me back."

"No."

"Excuse me?"

"That would be a bad idea. See, what if there are more explosions? With your luck, three would catch you at a time the second we return."

I sighed and looked around the little clearing. "Fine. Take me to Stark Tower."

Loki raised an eyebrow. "I would hardly be welcomed."

I stalked up to Loki, looking straight up into his face. Somewhere in my mind, I noted that not only was the god fully armored, he was also almost a foot taller than me. "Loki. Take me somewhere, dang it! I don't have my comm, I need to get ahold of Director Fury!"

He cocked his head slightly, before finally nodding. "You need to contact your boss? Then here."

A phone appeared in his hand, and I blinked before snatching it up and turning around as I dialed Fury's number.

"Pick up… pick up…." I muttered. Finally, he did so.

"Director Fury!" I exclaimed. "It's Agent Liao."

"Liao? I thought you had been crushed."

"Yeah, awkward situation. Loki transported me… somewhere and refuses to return. Think you can send transport?"

There was another sound of explosion, and I winced; they were still under attack. "Not possible. Everyone is evacuating. Use this situation to your advantage; I heard you were having trouble with the other agents who now believe you're dead, so take this time to get Loki shaped up. Call me when he's willing to fully cooperate."

I bit my lip. "What about Natasha and Clint?"

"They'll be fine."

Fury hung up, and I placed the phone in a pocket. "Alright. Inventory check… I have my bow and arrows, two knives, and a handgun, as well as my ID, which doubles as a credit card. And a psychopathic god."

"I am not your possession," Loki said in disgust.

"Fine. Whatever. Fury wants us to stay under the radar. Now what…." I smiled widely. Surely Fury wouldn't mind if two or three people knew of my current state of life. Then again, I could assume Thor was with Jane, but he could also give me some advice. I took the phone out again, hoping Jane would pick up.

"Agent Liao. Fury needs you."

I nodded to the nervous agent and quickly stalked through the S.H.I.E.L.D. compound, knocking at the door to Fury's office.

"Agent Liao, come in." Fury sat at his desk, laboring over stacks of paperwork. "I assume you've noticed the recent strange occurrences with the sky?"

I nodded slowly; they were minor, but every respectable agent had noticed the interest S.H.I.E.L.D. was taking in these 'strange occurrences'.

"Good. This isn't the first time something like this has happened," Fury said, standing from his desk. "Last time resulted in the arrival of a herd of malformed alien horses and an outbreak of fires in the area of the Great Lakes."

"Alien, sir?"

"Yes, alien," Fury confirmed. "We believe this pattern is indicating the imminence of another arrival. We have already caught whiff of three freelance scientists who have also noticed the anomalies."

"And you want me to keep an eye on them," I guessed.

"That is exactly right."

The next day, I met Erik Selvig, Jane Foster, and Darcy Lewis, surprised at the instant friendship I sparked up with the three welcome changes from my colleagues.

"Loki. Do you mind sending us to London?"

Maybe going to London was a bad idea. Loki looked completely shocked when Darcy opened the door I knocked on.

"What is this?" Loki hissed.

"Someone to stay with," I said, keeping my head high. "After all, I'm not the one who decided you didn't feel like cooperating and returning to S.H.I.E.L.D. when I said."

"Wow, that's new," Darcy said, leaning against the door frame. "Since when does S.H.I.E.L.D. ask questions first, shoot later?"

"Thor directly requested it," I explained. "I just happened to be the least biased gent capable of child care."

"I am not a child!"

"Yeah, that's what all guys say, honey," Darcy said. "Come on in; Jane and Thor are out for the night, so we have the house to ourselves."

"Thanks, Darcy," I said. I didn't know her as well as Jane, whom I spoke to much more often, but the times I had seen her had led me to enjoy her enthusiasm and ferocity.

"No problem. Anyone hungry?"

I smirked, remembering how loud Loki's stomach had growled earlier. "I'm sure we could work out an appetite."

However, Loki didn't look so sure, staring apprehensively at the hammer dangling from the coat rack.

Darcy was surprisingly calm about the whole "evil villain living with her" thing. I could see why, though, especially when she retold the story Jane had woven of her time in Asgard with the two handsome princes. Darcy had a thing for the guy. I probably wouldn't admit it to anyone else, but yes, Loki was definitely good looking, and Darcy agreed one hundred percent. Without admitting it out loud.

"I think I'm headed off to bed," Darcy finally said as our chatting wound down around midnight. She glanced over to where Loki was rolling green fire between his hands on the couch. "Don't let him burn the place down; it took Jane a bit to get this place."

"Where do you want us to sleep?"

Darcy shrugged. "I don't care; Jane and Thor's room, the couch, I think there's a guest room somewhere. Heck, snuggle up with Mischief over there for all I care."

I raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, don't then. I wouldn't mind keeping him for myself."

"Darcy, he's a criminal," I sighed.

"Yeah, well so was Moriarty, and you cannot tell me that Andrew Scott isn't attractive," Darcy reasoned before heading off to her own room.

Forget Loki being trouble; adding Darcy into the equation wasn't helping anything. Oh, I just couldn't wait until Jane and Thor returned the next day. Hopefully Jane had at least explained the situation to Thor.

3rd Person

The explosions had finally ended and Fury, Clint, and Natasha stood above the wreckage. Not one building was standing. Soon, a bomb squad would be coming out to double check for anything remaining, but they doubted anything remained. Exactly one bomb had gone off in each building, and by the timing, most likely aiming to scare and warn instead of kill. Of course, that didn't mean the death tolls wouldn't be considerable considering the number of people unaccounted for.

"We need to get down there," Clint said. "Jaida-"

"Isn't going anywhere, Agent Barton," Fury said sharply. "I am ordering you to remain away from the site until it is deemed safe and all bodies have been removed."

"But-"

"We understand, sir," Natasha interrupted. "Would you like us to begin searching for Loki?"

Fury raised an eyebrow. "What makes you so quick to assume that he wasn't caught in the explosion as well?"

"No one could have gotten in here and placed the bombs without alerting at least one person," Clint said coldly, catching on to what his partner was saying. "No one but a traitor or a certain magic god of mischief."

In a nearby tree, a small dark shape smirked. Her job was done. Loki was now the prime suspect of her little surprise, and it was just one tiny leap from him to his supervising officer - a traitor that had successfully been removed. That left one more defector and then S.H.I.E.L.D. would come crumbling down. Of course, that wasn't her job; no, why would one little cat take care of such a big detail when there were much bigger fish in the pond?

The girl leapt silently from the tree as her form shrank even more. Time to go find the big kahuna.

A/N: A bit shorter than usual, but this is scene setting. Actually, it kind of surprised me; this fanfic started out as something that was going to be random fluff and stuff, with possibly a tiny climax at the end, but then a plot veered into my head, so, here we are! Sadly, today is an ice day, so no school (so much for our holiday party), but that's good for you guys! It means more writing! Hopefully I'll see you before then, but happy holidays!