GASPING FOR AIR
By spockslovechild
…...
Chapter Two – BLEEDING
His brother, the demi-god; a super soldier living legend, who kind of lived up to that legend; a man with breath-taking anger management issues; a couple of master assassins; the metal knight – and Loki had managed to piss every single one of them. And despite the way his eyes danced between them, they were always drawn back to the arrow drawn and aimed for his chest. It kept him down. But Hawkeye didn't need to threaten him with the arrow to keep him down; the pain his body registered was more than enough to cripple him. Still, his heart thudded harder at the thought.
Loki tried smiling but his mouth filled with blood. He collected a dollop of it on his tongue, twisted his head to the side and spit it out. Maybe he would die here. Save the Avengers the trouble. Lord knows out of the six of them, more than half would love the thought of ending his life right there. And if he played his cards right, Thor would show him sympathy at the end.
The injured Trickster grunted as he pulled himself back, blinking blood from his vision. They must love him in this state. Loki planted his right hand against the undamaged tile – because his left was still aching – and attempted to give himself enough of a push to climb to his feet. But even as he got his body a few inches off the ground, he collapsed backward and this time, his head rolled back to the floor. His breathing had become somewhat of a struggle for him. They must be expecting him to make a move but the only one he did make was the pained, weakened rise and fall of his chest.
Thor pushed himself through his teammates and ignored their gazes until he reached his brother's side and came down to his knees. His electric blue eyes searched Loki's body for any other obvious sign of injury. Then he grasped his red cape and tore a sliver from it. Thor pressed it to his brother's bleeding forehead. Loki spasmed, either from the abrupt pain or being touched in such a comforting way.
He looked past his brother, past the dimmed lighting, to something else entirely. Death, perhaps? His vision blurred as if pieces of the ceiling were coming together all at once. Loki had never been scared before. Never in his life been terrified of anything. But now, suddenly, the thought of dying at the hands of a mere mortal is shaking him to the core.
The Thunder God coaxed his brother's battered body into his arms and lifted him as he stood. Loki made no objects, as every muscle in his body betrayed him. Turning, Thor walked past his teammates, ignoring their stares and their questioning glances, towards the entrance they came through.
As Hawkeye lowered his arrow, Captain America exchanged bewildered, confused looks with Black Widow and Iron Man. Then he reached up to his right ear for the ear piece that had been implanted and previous hidden by a blue mask.
"Director Fury, this is Captain America. Do you copy?"
…...
Even with all the noise and clatter behind him, Nick Fury was able to remain stoic and composed. There wasn't a trace of fault in his hardened expression. And he knew it had something to do with the fact he was trying to remain as calm as possible. One of his best agents dead, and the world saved from mortal danger. But even with that thought, he still remained apprehensive about where things were going to go. No doubt a long, and quite possibly angry, discussion with the board members about this.
As Fury stepped over a small lump of metal debris, and noted Agent Hill at the computer, his headset picked up a bit of static. He stopped suddenly, and brought a hand to his earpiece. He adjusted the way it conformed to his ear as if he presumed to think it would help with the sound.
"Hill," he said as he moved closer to her, kicking a piece of metal away from him. "Put Rogers on speaker."
"Yes sir."
And after a few clicks of buttons and pradde of fingernails, the static Fury had been hearing was now thundering through the main bridge of the aircraft.
"… Fury… " Static. "…do you copy…?" More static. "This is… America…"
Fury's brows knitted together. "Hill, clean that mess up."
"Yes sir."
"Rogers, can you hear me?" He spoke clearly, but emphasized the tone in his voice, and the pitch he spoke in, to make it loud enough for any of the team to hear him.
…...
"I can hear you loud and clear, sir," Rogers responded with, briefly taking a step away from his teammates.
…...
There a brief hint of relief that flittered across Fury's face.
"What is your position?"
…...
"Stark Tower."
…...
"I can have transport to you within twenty minutes…"
…...
There was a moment of liberation in Roger's thoughts, before his expression deceived him and he remembered the semi-conscious demi-god clinging helplessly to life in Thor's arms.
"…and sir, have a medical team standing by."
…...
"Who is hurt?" Fury's breath caught in his throat, but he didn't let the panic overwhelm him. He needed to be as stoic and as guarded as ever.
He looked momentarily to Hill, who shared this unspoken sentiment with him. And she knew. He was worried something might have happened to them. One or all of them. Rogers was speaking clearly enough, but that could always be a rouse.
…...
His brain was telling him to not care about it, but his consciousness was telling his heart something different. He tried not showing his resentment and his anger when he spoke next.
"Sir, it's Loki. Thor's brother."
…...
"…" He was asking himself why he should give a damn about a man who single-handed started a war, and even exchanged this quiet pondering question between himself and Hill but soon realized death was not the type of justice the God of Mischief should be held to. He must face the accountability for his actions.
"I'll have a jet on the landing strip in fifteen…"
…...
In true Nick Fury fashion, he had a jet to them within the fifteen minutes he promised.
Words between the Avengers had been silent as they shuffled onto the jet. Banner had remained back while his hulking green form diminished. Thor had laid his brother on a make-shift cot by the window. But the color in his face had drained when his eyes fell to the younger man's face.
Somewhere between the wait and the time it took to board the small aircraft, unconsciousness finally claimed the younger demi-god. Thor's heart collected in his throat. Rogers shuffled himself around until he was put between Loki and that which separated him from the cockpit. He reached for the Trickster's wrist, slid the black sleeve up to reveal the naked skin and pressed two fingers to Loki's pulse point.
Thor was concerned, but did not let this cross through into expression. He kept those feelings bottled and just concentrated his vision on his brother's beaten face. If not for the dried blood caked in with fresh liquid, the Trickster might appear calm and tranquil.
Stark buckled himself in and looked over to Rogers. "I don't get it," he said. "Loki's a demi-god. An Asgardian, like Thor. Shouldn't he be like, I don't know, healing by now?"
"Normally, yes," Thor answered, before Rogers even got the chance.
"Then why is Stars-And-Stripes over there making it look like Loki is dying?" He caught a look from Barton, who seemed completely unphased by this. It was clear where his thoughts of the subject were.
"Loki has been on Midgard far longer than I. Even the Allfather's powers are weakened on Earth."
"Remind me again why we're suddenly giving a rat's ass about him?" Barton piped up, which was likely a question on everyone's minds. With the exception of Thor, perhaps. He really didn't need to ask what was going through the Thunder God's brain.
Thor's teeth came down against his bottom lip.
"You know why, Agent Barton," Rogers snapped. He didn't like this anymore than the rest of them did.
Folding his arms over his chest, Barton leaned back against his seat as the bridge lifted and the jet peeled away from the small landing area.
Romanoff put a hand against Barton's shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze.
A/N: It's longer than my last chapter but not completely filled with Loki-angst. This is supposed to be a story of more than just yummy demi-god angst. It's supposed to feature hurt/comfort involving Black Widow too. But that will be revealed in time too.
Worried about Loki? Does he make it? Does his regenerative healing save him from Valhalla? The next person to review gets a free Loki-colored cookie. I promise it won't be filled with worms. Thor still holds a grudge against his brother for that last trick of his…