Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to the Marvel Universe, The Amazing Stan Lee and Joss Whedon, or anyone else involved with the movies or comics. I am not making any profits from this writing, it is all for the purposes of fun and creative writing.
Chapter 5
It was a bright morning over the city of New York. The city that never sleeps was awake and alive with the rush of a new day starting. Among the many skyscrapers and tall building made of steel and glass stood the gleaming tower that had once been known as Stark Tower. Now, with only a solitary bright red "A" as its emblem, the tower was now known as The Avengers Tower, new home to Earth's mightiest heroes. While the rest of the city around this tower moved at a near frantic pace, inside the tower was a different story entirely.
At the top most floor of the tower, the penthouse where one Tony Stark, Ironman himself resided, he and the rest of the Avengers were all now gathered in Tony's large and state of the art kitchen, simply enjoying the breakfast that was still coming courtesy of one Steve Rogers, also known as Captain America.
While said Captain stood before the hot stove with spatula, clad in black sweat pants and a simple white t-shirt, whipping up a fresh batch of pancakes, that the round dinner table that stood a few feet away across from the kitchen's island, Tony, dressed in jeans and his favorite Ramones shirt with the sleeves rolled up sat beside Dr. Bruce Banner, dressed in a purple button-up dress shirt and dark gray slacks. The two friends animatedly discussed the latest project they were going to undertake together. Tony sipped from his mug of freshly brewed cup of coffee, black with loads of sugar, while Bruce took liberal bites out of the omelet Steve had kindly prepared for him. Directly next to Bruce sat Clint Barton, also known as Hawkeye. The SHIELD agent and deadly archer was now all but inhaling the stack of pancakes in from of him, doused quite liberally with maple syrup.
" Don't expect me to give you the Heimlich maneuver when you choke." Natasha Romanov said flatly from where she sat across from Barton, dressed casually in a black v-neck quarter-sleeve shirt and dark blue jeans, calmly taking a sip from her glass of orange juice as she eyed her fellow agent with a look of disapproval at his eating habits.
Clint stopped with a forkful of syrup drenched pancake paused midway to his mouth at Black Widow's words and eyes the redhead for a few seconds without saying anything, and then a shit-eating grin spread across his face, lighting it up as he proceeded to eat the forkful with great relish. Natasha blinked at Barton, her face as blank as ever before she shook her head and focused her attention on her own breakfast, a simple bowl of oatmeal with blueberries mixed in.
" Hey Captain Mom, where's that fresh batch of pancakes you promised?" Tony called loudly, sending one of his signature smirks the super-soldier's way.
Steve just gave a snort of mock annoyance as he lifted up the last piping-hot pancake from the frypan and laid it on the small stack he had made. For all of Tony's teasing, Steve had it on good authority that all four of the people currently sitting at the table behind him absolutely loved his cooking, though they would never admit it out-loud. Steve didn't mind it one bit though, the rapidly empty plates and calls for seconds was confirmation enough.
" Alright, alright, no need to turn into a pack of hungry wolves now." Steve said with fake exasperation as he set the large oval plate down in the center of the table, the still steaming stack of pancakes golden and sumptuous looking.
No sooner had he set then down, Tony used his fork to skewer three of them and lift them onto his plate, Clint following suit right behind him, picking up two for himself, drastically cutting the height of the stack in the process. With a chuckle Steve took a couple of flapjacks for himself and piled some strawberry jam on top before tucking in, laughing aloud as he watched Barton basically drown his own in syrup, while Tony added liberal amounts of sugar over his.
More laughs and quite conversations happened after that, the Avengers simply enjoying each other's company over the first meal of the day. By the end of the hour, all the food was effectively gone, plates almost wiped clean. Despite all the banter, every person washed their plates, Bruce going the extra mile and cleaning up the serving dishes. With stomachs full and spirits up, the group were all headed for the elevator, ready to take on another day, with their various activities.
Bruce and Tony had it in mind to go down to their respective labs, Clint was headed for the training that had the archery range, while Natasha wanted to get back to her room. Steve was headed to his own room to get dressed and then go out into the city. As they all collectively were just about at the elevator, Clint let out a chuckle as he spoke.
" You are lucky Thor isn't here, he'd had eaten you out of house and home by the time we'd have all just gotten out of bed."
" Thanks for reminding me of something." Tony replied before his eyes went to the ceiling.
" Jarvis!" He called for his A.I.
" Yes Sir?" Came the seemingly ever-suffering voice of JARVIS with its British accent.
" Could you do me a favor and add pop-tarts to the grocery list, enough to feed a Norse God." Tony said, somehow keeping his face completely straight.
Clint snickered, while Steve and Bruce both smiled, remembering their big blond friend who could inhale 30 boxes the breakfast treats and then ask if he could have a few boxes more. Norse God equalled basically a bottomless pit.
" Of course sir, I shall see to it that a year's supply is ordered, with variety for Mr. Odinson." Jarvis replied dutifully.
" You're the best J!" Clint called with a chuckle.
" I am quite aware of that, but gratitudes for reminding me Agent Barton." Jarvis replied with his usual posh-cheek, earning more chuckles all around and even a fleeting smile from Natasha.
Then the large elevator chimes, signaling its arrival for everyone to use to get to their respective floor. They were all about to file in, but stopped as one when they felt felt the air change suddenly, becoming charged and making all of their sense stand to attention.
Something was up, something was coming. Just as Tony was about to speak, Jarvis beat him too it.
" Sir, there appears to be significant atmospheric change happening directly above the tower, I am attempting scans as we speak."
A myriad of thought passed through the minds of each Avenger, all of them ready for what could possibly be another invasion for they knew. But before any of them could make a move to maybe arm themselves with whatever they could find, hell Natasha did have a couple of knives on her person at all time, a blinding light seemed to hit the landing pad Tony used whenever he came back to the tower after flying with the Ironman suit.
" WHAT THE HELL?!" Tony yelled as he shielded his eyes against the white light that filled up the whole of his penthouse living room. The genius was now cursing his large, floor to ceiling windows at the moment.
" It would appear that it is not a what sir, but a who." Came Jarvis' ever calm and collected voice through the chaos.
The A.I.'s revelation had the Avengers stunned, but before they could say or do anything, the blinding light dissipated in a prism-like array of several different hues before seeming to evaporate before their very eyes.
As one all of the Avengers ran forward toward the landing pad, ready to face the possible threat. But as they neared the doorway that led outside they were all stunned by what they saw, or rather who they saw.
" Holy shit, it's Point Break!" Tony said as he beheld the Thundered standing tall and formidable on the landing pad with great hammer in hand, his cape billowing in the wind and with the sun against his back, casting a long shadow and partially obscuring his face.
" Thor, what's he doing back so soon?" Steve asked and he ran lightly along side the others, no need for use of his superhuman speed.
" Beats me, but he sure knows how to make an entrance." Clint chuckled.
Bruce just rolled his eyes, but allowed the corner of his mouth to curve up into a half-smile as he focused hard on keeping himself from allowing a certain big, green rage monster from making an appearance.
" Shut up Barton." Natasha said, clearly not amused. The Director would have to be notified immediately of this.
The Avengers all piled outside and came to stand a few feet from the landing pad on which Thor stood. The first thing Tony noticed before anything else was the smoke that was coming of the floor of the landing pad beneath Thor's feet. When his eyes went to it, Tony felt his jaw drop to the floor went he saw the circular, criss-crossing Norse design or symbol that had been scorched clean into the metal of the landing pad.
" Did you just burn a freaking Viking design onto my landing pad?" Tony ask, his ire slowly starting to rise at the damage done to his property.
" Tony, there's a Norse God currently standing in front of you and you're worried about the design on your landing pad?" Steve asked incredulously.
" Yeah Tony, it's not like you can't fix it in no time Mr. Billionaire." Barton chimed in.
" Hey, you just remember who's tower this is Stars and Stripes, and you too Bird-brain." Tony shot back, now feeling more annoyance than anything else.
" Guys." Natasha said, jerking her head towards the landing pad in question.
All eyes turned back to the landing pad, and it was then that everyone realized that throughout all of this, Thor had not uttered a word nor moved an inch from where he stood. Where before would have been the behemoth Norse version of a joyful Golden Retriever puppy, who would be rushing forward with a smile that could put the sun to shame and start giving everyone rib-crushing hugs all around, instead they was only dead silence save for the sound of Thor's cape flapping in the wind and his face obscured by the sun behind him.
Tony's brow knitted in confusion, and inherently they are felt that something just was not right.
Then Thor finally moved, and whatever suspicions the Avengers collectively had were confirmed. Something was definitely wrong.
Gone was Thor's signature bright red cape and bright silver armor. Instead, billowing behind him was a cape of the darkest black they had ever seen. Instead of the formidable silver sleeves of armor he had worn during the battle against the Chitauri, Thor now wore a completely black version, while his chest armor remained the same silver color and intricate design with the six circles. He wore black trousers as well instead of the dark blue ones he usually wore.
Everything about the garb screamed of desolation and loss. The silver parts of Thor's armor did not stand out against the black. Instead, everything that should have been luminous the with the otherworldly splendor of a god stood muted and dulled. It was Thor's face though that had everyone from Tony to Natasha feeling a sense of dread start to build within. Where there should have been a sun-kissed face quick to smile brightly with happiness upon seeing his friends, now Thor's face was but a pale shadow of that. It was as if he had not seen sunlight in weeks, and his long blond hair looked slightly unkept even though it was tied in a loose ponytail. But the most worrying thing by far was the Thunderer's eyes. The bright blue orbs so full of life and power, and yes perhaps even an actual spark of electricity were now almost dead looking, they were so tired and devoid of joy. It even looked as if there were dark circles under the god's eyes, could a god even get dark circles? Even Mjolnir, usually bright silver and just as resplendent as the one who wielded her, now seemed diminished and looked the color of common lead instead of the otherworldly metal she truly was.
The only thing on Thor that did shine was the silver pendant that hung from Thor's neck from a finely made chain of braided silver. It stood out proudly despite the rest of Thor's appearance, glinting beautifully in the morning light. It was Tony who spoke as Thor slowly made his way down the steps of the landing pad and walked towards his fellow Avengers.
" Heya Sparky, I'm digging the whole Goth-Viking look you got going on." He said, trying to be his usual casual and snarky self but falling just a bit flat if the reproachful looks he earned from Steve, Natasha, Bruce, and even Clint were anything to go by.
To this Tony simply shrugged as if to say, "Hey at least I tried to be the normal one here". When Tony turned his attention back to Thor, the norse god was standing at arm's length from him in all his atypical somberness. There was a beat of silence before Thor seemed to swallow with some difficulty and spoke.
" Forgive me for the damage to your home Man of Iron. The Bifrost leaves its mark so that it may easily be found when we wish to return to Asgard after travel to another realm. It has left its mark on you landing pad as you call it for I asked to be transported directly here to your tower." Thor said quietly, even his voice was off and no longer held the booming power it normally did.
" Uh, no worries Big Guy, really just... You dropped in unexpectedly is all." Tony said, his brown knitting together in confusion and barely veiled concern.
A sudden low rumble of thunder from up above had everyone but Thor looking up in time to see the once bright morning sky suddenly fill up with dark clouds. When all eyes returned to the one who was no doubt the cause of this sudden shift in the weather, the Avengers felt like someone had dumped ice-water down their throats as they all took in the sight of Thor with his head bowed and his eyes averted to the ground, over-bright with gathered tears.
" Thor, what's going on, what's wrong?" Steve asked and he stepped forward, coming to stand beside Tony with his own heart starting to pound.
Instead of saying anything, Thor just inhaled and then exhaled a loud, shaky breath as the hand that was not holding Mjolnir reached up for the pendant that hung around his neck, gripping it reverently, but tightly in his hands. Licking suddenly dry lips and taking in another shuddering breath, Thor looked up to meet the concerned gazes of his friends and spoke.
" My friends... something terrible has happened and I just... I..." Thor began, but trailed off and his throat constricted painfully and cut off all further speech.
" Thor what is it man, what happened?" Clint asked, shocked beyond words that Thor, God of Thunder himself looked like he would start bawling his eyes out any second.
Bruce, Steve, and Tony were all basically at a loss for words at seeing their otherworldly friend in such a state. Natasha however, was as collected as ever, the slight crease in her brow the only indication of her own concern. Without saying a word the red-haired woman strode forward with purpose set in her hazel eyes as she made her way to Thor. The others watched as the female agent, almost comically dwarfed by the extremely tall god she was facing, wordlessly reached out and wrapped her hand firmly around the gauntlet covered wrist of the hand Thor was still clutching his pendant with. There was a long moment of tension in which none of the others knew what to expect, but then they all watched stunned as a look seemed to pass between the red-head and her serious hazel eyes and the blond god with his tearful blue. With another shuddering breath, Thor nodded mutely before he let go of his pendant with a hint of reluctance and lowered his hand, lightly pulling his wrist from Natasha's grip, but only so that he could gently take her deceptively delicate hand into his own, so big that it basically swallowed her up. Still without saying anything, Natasha gave Thor's hand a gentle tug before she turned and started walking, and Thor gave no resistance what so ever, actually looking honest to God grateful as he allowed the petite Midgardian woman to lead him towards the glass doors of the penthouse.
Tony distantly felt his jaw fall open, completely flabbergasted as he watched Natasha and Thor walk hand in hand past him and the other Avengers. A quick glance around told Tony that he wasn't the only one with his jaw making good friends with the floor. By the time they had recovered any from the shock, Natasha had already taken Thor inside.
" Alright, what the hell just happened?" Bruce ask in disbelief.
" We have entered the Twilight Zone cause she never does what she just did." Clint replied, dead serious.
" Imma have to agree with Cupid for once." Tony said, looking ten-kinds of unsure.
" Well, we aren't gonna get answers standing around here all day." Steve said with mild annoyance, while he cast a worried glance up at the unhappy sky before he headed off back towards the penthouse. Wordlessly, Tony, Bruce, and Clint all followed after him, the four of them all wondering just how their morning which started out normal enough had suddenly done a full one-eighty with a wrecked Norse god showing up through a rainbow colored beam or light, and then Natasha Romanov of all people leading him inside by the hand.
When they all piled back inside Tony's penthouse, they found Thor sitting in one of the plush sofas in the living room area, the picture of exhaustion with his hand once more at the pendant that hung around his neck. A few feet away, Natasha stood with her phone to her ear, no doubt calling a certain eye-patch wearing individual.
It was Bruce who stepped forward towards Thor this time, the scientist coming to stand before the seated god as he spoke.
" Thor, what is going on, what terrible thing happened?" He asked.
Thor looked up and just shook his head mutely before he sighed heavily and spoke.
" I have asked Lady Romanov to inform your Director Fury of my arrival, it would be best if he were present. What I have come here to reveal concerns all of you, including him." Thor said gravely.
This naturally had Bruce, Steve, Tony, and Clint all speculating the many possible things it could be. It didn't take long for all of them to share a knowing look amongst themselves as their minds all turned to a certain deranged, black-haired, horn-wearing, alien-invasion leading younger brother of the Norse god who was currently sitting dejected on Tony's couch. They wisely decided not to voice their suspicions and instead focused on the wait.
" I'm gonna go make us some more coffee, would you like a cup Thor?" Steve asked, needing something to do to keep himself from prying because he badly wanted to, and because Thor in all honesty looked like he could use some.
" If it would not be too much trouble, I have missed your Midgardian drink." Thor said, sending a sad but grateful look Steve's way.
" I'll pass, but thank you." Bruce said as he took off his glasses and used the hem of his shirt to wipe at the lenses, even though they were spotless.
" I wouldn't mind a little extra java." Clint said with a fleeting quirk of his lips, but he grew somber when his eyes met Thor's muted and sad gaze.
" I get the feeling I'm gonna need something a little stronger." Tony said ominously before he headed for his bar by the far wall, earning a mildly disapproving look from Steve, it was still morning after all but since when did that matter to Tony Stark.
" I just got off the phone with the Director, he'll be here shortly. He was actually on his way here anyway, something about why there are dark clouds circling above this building only while the rest of the city is enjoying the sun." Natasha said simply before she took a seat in one of the smaller couches beside Thor.
A few minutes later Steve was returning with a tray of freshly brew coffee, which he set down on the modern-design glass coffee table that he personally would go better at a science fair, and then proceeded to hand Thor a steaming mug.
" Thank you friend Steve." Thor said quietly, trying to smile but failing miserably as he took a long sip from the mug, not really tasting the fresh brew but grateful for the temporary warmth it gave.
" No problem." Steve said before he handed Clint a mug where he sat in the chair next to Natasha, and one to the lady herself who accepted it with a nod, before he took up the mug he had made for himself and took a seat on the opposite end of the couch that Thor was sitting on. Bruce sat in the couch by Steve's end and rounding out the semi-circle was Tony, a glass of amber liquid and ice in his hand.
Now came the awkward silence, all eyes glancing at Thor who seemed to lost in his own dark thoughts to notice, taking sips of his coffee as if he were on autopilot. It was reminiscent of the meal the had shared together after they had defeated the Chitauri and saved New York, Shawarma. All of them had sat at a round table and eaten, completely exhausted from the battle but alive and victorious. Now they were all together once more, taking coffee together, or scotch in Tony's case and nobody knew what to say, especially to Thor who looked like his world had crumbled around him.
Mercifully, Jarvis' welcome voice sounded after ten minutes of this awkward silence.
" Gentlemen and lady, Director Fury has arrived and is on his way up to the penthouse." Came the British accent of the A.I.
" And may I also add, he is not pleased by the sudden arrival of Mr. Odinson, by the way, welcome back to Earth sir." Jarvis' added.
" Thank you ceiling spirit." Thor said, earning quiet chuckles all around, even a bare hint of a smile from Natasha before they all grew serious once more.
Steve, Tony, Bruce, Clint, and Natasha all turned their eyes to the elevator that led to the penthouse, counting the rising numbers above the door in anticipation of the arrival of the director of SHEILD.
Inevitably there was a soft ding, and the elevator doors were parting to reveal a very unhappy Nick Fury, dressed in his usual garb of all black, and with signature eye-patch over his scarred right eye.
" You mind telling me what the hell's going on and why I received a call from my agent telling me to get here ASAP?" Fury asked, cutting right to the chase as he made his way towards the group. His eyes scanned the team, but feel immediately on the stone-faced Norse god standing in Tony Stark's living room.
" To what do we owe the sudden visit Mr. Odinson." Fury asked, his face grim as he took in the god's dark clothing and darker demeanor. Though he didn't outwardly show it, Nick too felt his unease and concern rise as he eyed the usually bright god of Thunder.
" Forgive me Director, it was not my intention to cause hardship, but there have been some recent developments that I must share with you all. And they are most distressing" Thor said gravely.
" And would these recent developments have something to do with a certain brother of yours who tried to take over our planet?" Nick asked, his gaze hardening at the very mention of Loki.
" Aye, the matter concerns Loki... Actually, the version of Loki all of you were acquainted with some moons ago." Thor said, feeling his barely contain despair start to bubble up inside his heart.
" And what exactly do you mean by that?" Clint asked, his voice hard as steel and naked hatred shining in his eyes.
Thor turned and eyed everyone in the room before he took a steadying breath and spoke.
" My friends, I find that I have no other way to say this but then to be blunt." Thor began before he turned his gaze to meet Clint's in particular before he continued.
" My brother is innocent of all the crimes for which he stands accused."
No sooner had Thor said these words, then all Hell broke loose as Clint in his anger lunged at Thor, who stood there ready to take the assault. Steve got in the way and physically restrained the slighter man, while Bruce took several steps back and tried desperately not to hulk out right then and there. Tony just stood, shocked into silence for once, while Nick Fury started shouting for order. Only Natasha stood as calm and collected as ever amidst the chaos. It was after several long moments of this that Thor finally had enough.
" SILENCE!" Thor screamed as hard as he could muster.
The effect was instantaneous as everyone, even Fury froze where they were. Clint stopped struggling and just looked at Thor, his anger momentarily forgotten when he saw the look of raw agony written across Thor's face. Outside a loud clap of thunder sounded, startling everyone but Thor. The Thunderer looked to each person in the room, his eyes holding no room for argument as he spoke.
" You will all calm yourselves this instant and stop wasting my time with your inane prattle, am I understood?" Thor said slowly, his voice loosing the shakiness it had from when he first arrived.
" Crystal." Tony said, feeling rather uneasy under the god's hard gaze. The others either nodded or remained silent.
" Now please, all of you be seated, for I have much to explain." Thor said, gesturing to the various sofas and couches.
Steve let go of Clint, who though with defiance clear on his face, wordlessly took a seat on the large sofa, Natasha silently coming to sit beside him. Tony sank back down onto the chair he had been occupying and immediately reached for his drink, downing almost all of it in one gulp. Bruce and Steve sat down beside each other on one of the other large sofas while Fury silently made his way over to the chair Natasha had been occupying earlier and took his seat, everything about his screaming his displeasure at the situation.
" Alright Thor, start talking." Clint said with voice hard as steel.
Thor closed his eyes and breathed deep, his mind once again replaying all that had happened less than two weeks ago before he opened his eyes and faced his friends.
" My friends, ten days ago on Asgard, Loki was brought before my father Odin to receive his punishment for all that atrocities he committed against the realms after many months of imprisonment in the dungeons. He knelt before our father, more mad than the last time I beheld him, he was without remorse for anything, he even insulted mother and seemed not to care at all that his life was at stake." Thor began.
" Well bag of cats for you." Clint spat with an eye-roll.
Thor ignored the jab and continued.
" He angered father, and me for that matter, and we would see him punished. The All-father passed his judgement, and found Loki guilty and then condemned him to a horrible fate. We all watched as father pointed his spear at Loki and cast down his judgement, but nothing happened. My father's magic had no effect on Loki where he knelt." Thor said, his face pained.
" What do you mean by that?" Fury asked.
With a frustrated sigh Thor shook his head before he spoke.
" You would not believe me if I were to just tell you, my word is only that, my word and a doubt it hold much worth to you right now concerning my brother, which is why my father had given me the means to show you all what happened that day." Thor said before he reached at his belt where a small pouch hung and pulled something out of it, a crystal like stone the size of a small paperweight, but there was a white energy glowing within it. Tony naturally wanted to ask Thor if he could scan it later, but bit his tongue and quashed down his inner scientist because now was definitely not the right time.
" This is a memory stone, which can be used to project the memories of an event. The All-Father, myself, and my mother the queen all put our memories into this stone to form a cohesive vision of the events which unfolded during Loki's trial. If you will allow me, I would like to show you the truth." Thor said solemnly.
" Then by all means Thor, proceed." Fury said, though he raised one dark brow as if in challenge, Clint mirroring the expression and Tony leaning back in his chair with his arms folded over his chest. The others were not so blatant in their skepticism but it was there none the less.
Thor did not rise to the bait, instead focusing on steeling himself as he was about to relive the worst day of his whole life once more, but for the sake of the one he lost he would relive it till Ragnorak come, it's the least he deserved according to his own guilt ridden mind. Thor carefully set the memory stone down on Tony's coffee table beside the empty tray and then began to utter some words in the Asgardian tongue while he pressed the tip if his index finger to the center of the almost perfectly orb-like stone and traced some kind of invisible symbol over the smooth surface.
The moment Thor drew his hand away, the stone glow pure white before a beam of energy shot out of it and seemed to fill the entire room, a shimmering white mist seeming to form above the heads of the Avengers.
" Sweet, its a magical projector." Tony said under his breath, trying to come across as nonchalant even though he was actually in awe at the display of otherworldly magic.
Tony was naturally ignored as all eyes were on the shifting mist, over which an image was soon starting to appear. Thor watched on from where he stood, his shattered heart starting to crumble once more as the nightmare began again.
The mist slowly darkened and shifted and soon, the Avengers and Nick Fury were watching in full, vivid color what happened in the Great Hall of Asgard. They watched as Loki was brought before the All-father in chains, looking like he was having the time of his life. It took everything Clint had in him not to leave right them and there or smash Thor's memory stone, but he controlled his anger and watched on.
They watched as Loki defiantly back-talked to Odin, and hurt his mother as well, feeling disgusted by it all, but it was when the memory progressed to the point where Odin pointed his spear at Loki and let loose his magic at the kneeling psycho that they could all tell that something wasn't right. Everyone, even Nick Fury seemed to startle when the memory from the stone showed them Menkos revealing himself.
" What the Hell?" Tony whispered in disbelief, with wide eyes as he watched Loki morphed into the grotesque Chitauri mage.
" Thor what-" Steve began to ask, shocked blue eyes looking to the Norse god, who silence him with a shake of his head before he turned his pained eyes back to the projection up above, Steve did the same, just in time to here what was being said.
" WHO ARE YOU" Came Odin's booming demand. Then came the failed attempt by the guards to subdue Menkos, before Menkos revealed himself.
" I am the Annakul mage, Menkos and I serve my master the great and powerful Titan Thanos, rightful ruler of the realms and suitor to Death herself."
It was hear that Thor felt his eyes fill again, knowing the words that would be coming, but he stubbornly kept his tears from falling as the memory continued.
" I am also the one who slit your Jotun runt's pretty little throat and tossed his still wriggling corpse to the wolves of Nifelheim, on the day you were to be crowned king of this insignificant realm, foolish little Thunderer."
It was at these words that Thor's mortal friends felt like the floor had fallen out from beneath them. There were looks of shock on every face, even Natasha who was so reserved and Clint who had been so furious. Nick Fury himself sat with his mouth slightly agap. Out of everything they had expected, this was definitely not the truth they thought would be revealed to them. The rest of the Avengers were all too stunned to speak, instead they could do no more but watch on.
Steve felt his heart lurch as he watched a beautiful woman, no doubt Thor's mother, the Queen of Asgard screamed her denial and tried to lunge at the Chitauri mage only to be held back by the white haired man with a golden eye-patch, no doubt Thor's father, King Odin. Then above them the memory showed Menkos taunting Thor and his family further, and then one of Thor's friends, a blond man with a mustache screamed for Loki to reveal himself. The Avengers all felt dread when Loki never materialized and the Chitauri creature gleefully revealed how he bathed in Loki's blood and usurped his form.
The room seemed to chill as they all heard Menkos telling Thor and his family of how he had held Loki down and stuck his favorite blade into him again and again and making sure no one heard his screams. The Odin mentioned someone called Heimdall and Menkos gleefully held up his wrist that wore a gauntlet with a glowing blue stone and revealed that he had gotten past Heimdall with it before he tapped the jewel. The next thing a very pissed off looking man with amber eyes blazing materialized in the hall, his sword raised and ready to kill.
Heimdall again confirmed what Thor had just said to them earlier, that Loki was innocent of every crime, that it had been Menkos who had committed all of the atrocities from Thor's banishment, to the near destruction of Jotunheim, to the invasion of Midgard. Heimdall had cried for all of Asgard to hear that Loki was innocent, and that his murderer stood there before them still grinning.
" Jesus, what the hell is going on?" Bruce asked to no one in particular, but he grew silent once more as the memory showed them all of how Menkos made to leave and what happened when he took but one step to do so.
There was a collective flinch, even from Fury as Frigga's agonized and enraged shriek seemed to fill the entire penthouse. Tony knew that it was a sound that would haunt him the rest of his days as he and the other Avengers beheld the Goddess in all her white-hot rage.
Frigga was a sight to behold as she easily cut off Menkos' attempt to to escape, and then ripped his arm clean off and tossed it aside. They watched as Frigga multiplied into four versions of herself and then proceeded to burn the flesh from Menkos with her fiery magic. Despite herself and all she was feeling, Natasha could not help but admire Frigga as she smashed her fiery fists across Menkos' face, leaving him unrecognizable from the smug and grotesque being he had been minutes earlier.
You would have thought Tony at least would have said something snark-filled at this, but he sat silent, his arms no longer folded over his chest and his eyes actually pained as he beheld Frigga's agony.
They all watched as Frigga healed Menkos and called for her husband. The next thing there was a noose of golden magic around Menkos' freshly healed neck that was yanking him into the air and leaving him choking and flailing for breath.
Odin's voice reverberated through the room, and conveyed his own rage.
The one you murdered was my son regardless, Jotun and all he was my boy, you just tasted his mother's fury, now taste that of his father!"
Then the mortals all saw for themselves Odin's terrible fury, where Frigga was fire, Odin was ice as he froze Mekos into a solid block and then smashed him against the great pillars of the hall over and over until Menkos was once again a crumbled mess barely alive on the floor. Once more Menkos was healed, but Odin's words had a chill running up every spine in Tony's living room.
" You still have to face the son you left bereft of his brother, you whoreson."
The clap of thunder that followed the All-father's words had Clint nearly falling out of seat while Bruce's hands went to his ears, Tony swore loudly, while Steve cried out. Natasha and Fury remained silent, but from the way Fury was gripping the arm of his chair and Natasha was taking a deep calming breath, they too were affected by the mere echo of the real thing.
But all shock was soon turned to awe as they all beheld Thor in his rage, truly the Thunderer of legend. They watched as Thor, in all his devastation lay waste to the coward who had murdered his brother. First smashing Menkos' back with Mjolnir, and then decimating his remaining hand and both knees, crudely amputating both led before he let loose his thunder like a whip across the Chitauri mage's back. By the end of it the Avengers and Fury were just as deathly silent as the hall of Asgard had been as Thor turned to his father and said that Menkos could not yet be killed. Odin agreed and then roughly picked the broken creature up by his bloody stump and cauterized his wounds before tossing him to the guards to take away.
What came after was the desolation of an entire kingdom as the Avengers beheld the royal family break down as one. Steve felt his own eyes well up as Frigga's sobs filled the room, Thor's joining hers as they both clung to each other while Odin and some other Asgardians they did not recognize tried in vain to comfort and calm them.
Then Heimdall was coming forward and kneeling before the King, offering words of his failure. Next came Frigga's words that the royal family would not go to seclusion, and that all would watch what had befell Loki.
" I don't wanna watch this." Tony thought with dread, but remained silent silent knowing that he needed to watch, he needed the truth.
Up above the mist showed Heimdall climbing to his feet and holding up his hand, to which Odin reached out and pressed his palm to the gatekeeper's. The Avengers saw the white mist, so very much like the one they were now gazing upon form high above the royal family, and the hundred if not thousands of Asgardians who were gathered and began to show an image.
It was a room with green curtains that had the Avengers instantly recognizing it as Loki's bedroom on Asgard. When Loki himself came into view, the mortals who beheld him were stunned. This was not the madman with sunken eyes and sallow face who had tried to subjugate their world, this was the brother Thor loved so dearly and fought so hard for. Nick Fury could not help but startle inwardly at the sheer difference. The Loki he was seeing was this pale yet quiet-looking young man who seemed more reserved and sad than anything else, no trace of a maniacal glint in those green eyes. They watched as Loki conjured a little silver box and opened it, staring at its contents and giving a sad little smile that made several of the Avenger's ache for some reason before he set the box down and went back to getting reading.
Bruce felt the same way as he beheld Loki, and could not help but feel a twinge in his head for ever thinking anything bad about the dark-haired god. However, he did feel satisfaction for having smashed the impostor, Menkos, into the floor as he had all those months earlier during the battle.
They all watched as Loki finished getting ready for what was undoubtedly Thor's coronation, then a servant came in and gave him a message. The bottom dropped out of all of their stomachs when they saw how the servant girl's eyes changed color to a milky-grayish white.
Menkos.
They watched as Loki fought for his life, valiantly trying to get past the magic that trapped him, but them being overpowered by Menkos' gauntlet. The sound of wood cracking had everyone looking to Steve, he had gripped the arm of the sofa by his side so hard he had shattered the wood beneath the plush, his eyes blocks of ice swimming with angry tears as they were glued to the image of Menkos seizing a burnt and battered Loki by his hair and dragging him across the floor to the center of the room.
" My God." Nick whispered as he watched Loki try to fight back, only to have his hand mercilessly stomped on. Loki's scream seared itself onto every eardrum as the mortals watched on in abject horror as he glared defiantly up at Menkos and had his jaw smash by a meaty fist.
Bruce felt his counterpart roar with rage inside of him, The Hulk wanted to smash Menkos a second time even though it was only an image they were all see. Bruce valiantly kept the Hulk at bay as he continued to watch, his anger growing when Menkos straddled a bleeding Loki, all but crushing him.
They all felt their hearts lurch painfully as they watched Loki still try to fight, raising his remaining hand only for Menkos to snap it like a twig. The grin on Menkos' face as he clamped one hand over Loki's mouth, with no regard to his broken jaw had all the Avengers wanting to do violence against his despite how this was a moot point now. They watched on as Menkos ripped off Loki's burnt chest plate and leathers, revealing his bruised and burnt chest. Clint nearly lost all the food in his stomach at the sight, but his nausea was quickly replaced with revulsion as he watched the way Menkos dared to caress Loki's chest and say such lascivious , all the while with Thor's brother screaming behind the hand over his mouth.
" Oh no." Steve whispered in despair as he and the other beheld Menkos summoning a wicked looking blade via his gauntlet.
No one, not even Natasha could hold back their cry of horror as they watched Menkos plunge this blade into Loki's gut to the hilt and then twist the blade all the way in a circle before ripping it out.
" Oh God." Clint breathed as his hands went to cover his own mouth, all anger forgotten and replaced with horror as they watched Menkos plunge the blade into Loki three more times, the dark-haired god's muffled, agonized screams filling the room. Menkos let go of Loki's mouth when red liquid started to seep through his claws fingers and he asked nonchalantly if Loki had any last requests, making a mockery of the fact that he was torturing and murdering a prince of Asgard.
Loki's choked out call for his brother had all eyes turning to Thor, who stood like a statue before them with gaze unmoving from the image playing out above him. There were silent tears streaming down his face. The mortals could say nothing to the god, his grief an entity onto itself that seemed to blanket the whole room. When they turned their gazes back to said image it was in time to see Menkos' sick grin as he assured Loki he'd be the best brother ever to Thor before he grabbed Loki mercilessly by the hair and forced his head back.
There were groans of despair all, even from Fury as they watched Menkos slit Loki's throat with savage brutality. But Thor remained deathly silent through all of this as they watched Menkos seize Loki by his ruined throat and lift him into the air so that the blood that was fast evacuating the god's body cascaded over the Chitauri bastard like a nightmarish shower.
Then Menkos was opening the portal with his gauntlet and taunting a dying, but not yet completely dead Loki a final time, something about wolves and Nifelheim before he threw Loki into the dark portal, the black tendrils swallowing him up like a beast being fed. They watched on in disgust as Menkos smeared Loki's crimson blood all over himself mumbling in a language not known to any of them, but were stunned as they saw how Menkos then began shifting is size and shape until he looked exactly like Loki, gold armor and all. Wearing Loki's face, the fiend smirked as he made his way to the mirror and adjusted his cape. Then the servant girl from before, the real servant knocked and came into the room that Menkos had magically cleaned up.
Sickened beyond words, the mortals all watched as Menkos bade the servant to leave, donned Loki's shining horned helmet and then walked out of the room and the image with a sick, satisfied smile across the face he had stolen.
Then the image faded into blank white once more, becoming just mist once more. Then with a soft hiss the mist was suddenly sucked back down into the circular stone that still rested on Tony's coffee table.
The silence that followed could not adequately be described with any word from any language known to Midgard. Thor looked to each face that was before him, his eyes still leaking bitter tears. There was no color left to Tony Stark's face, his eyes wide and haunted as he stared back at Thor, a telling green tinge was starting to spread across Bruce Banner's face and body, but his eyes were swimming with bright despair as he tried to take as many deep breaths as possible, Steve's face was just utterly shell-shocked as his hand destroyed the sofa arm further, beside him Clint Barton's face was the picture of abject misery, his anger from earlier now completely wiped out as a single tear rolled down his face, Natasha sat beside Clint, gazing at Thor with her face somehow remaining neutral, but her hazel eyes gave her away, she had been shaken to her very core, and finally Nick Fury sat with his one eye trained on Thor and his jaw clenched tightly, though he seemed outwardly unfazed, his hands were tight and trembling fists in his hands, a quiet sign of his rage.
Taking a deep breath, Thor steadied whatever nerves he had left as he spoke.
" As I have told you before, Loki... my Loki is innocent, he never harmed me, the realm of the Frost Giants, or your Earth. The Chitauri took from him his life and his very form, stole him from me and my parents for their own evil designs against us all. My brother is innocent because he has been dead since the day of my botched coronation and I was the fool too blind to see that we were all of us deceived." Thor said before his gaze hardened and he stood taller, looking every bit a prince despite his palpable grief as he continued, his voice seemingly made of iron as he spoke.
" The reason for my delay in getting here is that I spent the previous days not only in mourning, but also showing this truth to the people of Jotunheim, to tell them that the titan Thanos, not Loki is their culprit for the death of their King, Laufey, and the near destruction of their realm. To convince them further their current leader was allowed to go to our realm and showed Menkos himself where he still lies a pitiful ruin in the lowest dungeon of Asgard. The people of Jotunheim were convinced and have judged my brother innocent. So now I must ask you, do you all now believe the truth that I have showed you on this day, or are you in need of yet more convincing?"
The silence that followed Thor's words was answer enough. There would be no need for further convincing.