Wow it's been a while huh? Since mid-October ^^ Sorry I made you guys wait so long, I was kinda hoping the longer I'd wait the more reviews I'd get, but nevertheless 'twas the same as last couple of chapters. Plus I had a bit of a writer's block. I know where the story is going from here, but I for some reason made this chapter longer than I intended to so the climactic stuff won't happen till next chapter.
On a personal note, I went to see Thor: The Dark World on Nov. 8th and I LOVED IT! Loki and Thor dynamic was hilarious and suspenseful, Darcy took the cake on Earth (lol Selvig I will never see him the same way again) AND THEN THAT THING AT THE END. If anyone can tell me what the hell happened at the very end (not the post-credits :P) I would be very grateful.
Nota Bene: This chapter takes place chronologically after Chapter Thirteen, but is back in Tori's POV, after Tony said, "Thanks to you, now we know the slimy cave where that s-o-a-b Loki is hiding." Just to make sure you guys weren't caught off-guard.
Review Replies from Chapter Thirteen:
Woop, not gonna do em this time around, 'cept for the direct questions. Thanks to koryandrs, Concrete63, and Liberty Bell for continuing to review! It means so much to me guys!
Loki: and I wonder why you've been getting less and less reviews over the time of this story?
Me: QUIET YOU! YOU NEED SOME EXPLAINING TO DO!
Loki: ahh...*runs away*
Liberty Bell's Question, for Director Fury (oops now this one'll seem rigged again XD): I thought you were the director of a super-cool, super-secret, super-SMART organization! How is it that a group of "lost creatures," as Loki calls the Avengers, can hide a HUMAN FREAKING BEING for so long?!
Fury: I AM the Director of SHIELD and it IS the highest of intelligence, but the reason we haven't spotted it on our monitors is because no "HUMAN FREAKING BEING" exists on this plane. They are hiding something definitely but it doesn't matter at this moment. Avoiding war with that son-of-a-bitch, is.
Disclaimer: *takeover by the cool and totally awesome Loki*
Loki: THIS FOOLISH MORTAL WRITER OWNS NOTHING! I OWN IT ALL!
*I reclaim the podium*
Me: not really he doesn't. He and the others and this universe are all owned by Marvel! I only own Tori Matthews and this plunny! Oh yeah, and DC comics owns the mention of one of their characters! ;)
Loki: Damn it! You ruin all my fun.
Avenger'd
Chapter Fourteen
…
I missed something, and I knew that I missed something, but I had no idea what the hell I missed. I felt like it had something to do with Loki, since he seemed to be the epicenter of issues that have happened for the past few days.
But he didn't know me right? The strange stuff and the animals were probably from the Tesseract thing and when I fell through the portal…like a side effect or something.
And since Loki's powers and the Tesseract are similar, obviously that points a huge finger towards what happened to me. So how the hell was it so hard to grasp?
I blinked slowly as Tony remarked to me with a grin. "It worked?" I asked sluggishly. Bruce nodded with a small smile.
"It did."
"So, what next?"
My question was answered with a general silence. Thor rubbed his hands together and then rubbed the back of his head.
"I propose that we alert Fury of our knowledge first, and then we go and apprehend my brother," the god suggested, and as he did so, Natasha descended down into the lab.
"I agree," the super-spy chimed in. "We can check in and let S.H.I.E.L.D. know we've got a lead, but I think only a few of us should go. The more we draw in, the higher chance Loki has of knowing we're coming, and escape, or worse…" she didn't have to finish her thought as she looked to Clint, but I wondered what Natasha meant by this. What exactly did Loki have the power to do?
I sat quietly and rubbed my palm, pondering over this. Tony wiped his face and frowned.
"All right then, let's call the Pirate up," the billionaire hero remarked, pulling up a holo-screen. The Avengers all gathered around the screen, and in moments, a tone sounded signaling the pickup on the other line. I looked up to see the face of a stern African-American man with a black eyepatch, slightly blocked by the bodies of my friends. Tony, in the face of this man I remembered to be Nick Fury, had put on a grinning façade and assumed a cocky stance.
"This better be good, Stark, I've put off a Council meeting for you," Fury threatened deeply. Tony chuckled, and Steve rolled his eyes.
"I'm flattered, Nickie. And by the way, you won't be disappointed. We have very good news, actually," Tony added with a sly grin. The Director raised an eyebrow, and looked to the others who nodded.
"We've pinpointed Loki and the Tesseract's location," Dr. Banner relayed, causing Fury's eye to widen significantly. His head turned to look at Natasha and Clint, but for a brief moment, his eye caught mine, and I froze. The man's brow furrowed. I hoped to God in that second that it was just a fluke that he didn't actually notice me-
"Who's that?"
Crud. All of the Avengers paled and Clint hurriedly glanced at me and then back, a plan formulating in his steely blue eyes.
"Um-"
"Well-"
"That's-"
"Ah, her name's Lois. Lois Lane!" Hawkeye blurted, face slightly reddening. I nearly choked on air.
LOIS LANE? As in, SUPERMAN'S GIRLFRIEND? (Of course, they might not have Superman comics in this world, duly noted.)
Clint seemed satisfied with my new alias and continued on. "Yeah, Natasha and Cap and I found her by Stark Tower. Apparently she had a run-in with Loki and the Tesseract and got this weird mark on her hand that gave off the same signal."
Tony got hold of Clint's ruse and grinned, adding on, "Lois here volunteered for us to scan this little mark of hers and we hit a match just a little while ago, so we thought we'd let you know." Fury hummed in displeasure, taking another glance at me. I trembled weakly in his gaze.
"Why didn't you inform me of this when I called in before?" Fury asked in a harsh tone.
"That is because, Director Fury, the lady had been unconscious until this morning," Thor chimed in quickly, taking my hand protectively. "The Tesseract's energy had a profound effect on her." Bruce and Steve nodded convincingly. Fury seemed to believe this, placing his hands crossed in front of his face. Natasha stepped forward.
"Sir, it's best if we move quickly before Loki strikes again, while he's still recharging," she noted. Before Fury could reply, however, she went on. "We are prepared to send three of us as a direct surprise attack as to not draw attention, since Loki still has Dr. Selvig and other S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents under his control." The point seemed to make sense to the Director but he was nonetheless offed.
"And how do you suppose to solve that problem with sending a few of you to stop him?" he barked. "If he gets his mind magic on any one of you it's worse than any agent he may have." Tony smirked at this, which surprised a few of them, including Fury.
"I got that one figured out, Nickie. You see, his glow stick of destiny doesn't work on me," the genius billionaire explained, causing all of the Avengers to gasp in incredulity. Glow stick of destiny?
"How do you know that?" Clint asked in a low voice. Tony faltered for a second, before revealing his arc reactor.
"He tried tapping this before the portal opened. Nothin' happened whatsoever," Tony added with a hint of pride in himself. "I have an advantage over that green leather bigot! No offense, Point Break."
"None taken, your remark is justified."
Fury, now somewhat impressed, just nodded. "Who else?" Both Steve and Thor nodded their heads in acknowledgement. Fury turned to look at Bruce, who merely shrugged.
"Figured I'd let the Other Guy have a round when this thing is over. I don't think Loki will get out easily if he's the target," he chuckled drily. "Until then I'll hang back here and keep track of the Tesseract's location."
Fury sighed and then nodded. "Alright then. Move quickly, and if you get in too deep, contact me at once."
"You got it, Cyclops," Tony replied as he ended the transmission. The billionaire hero clapped his hands together and turned to me. "That was a close one, huh, maestro? I can't believe he actually fell for that! Nice thinking Legolas!"
Clint smiled and chuckled along with Tony. "Yeah, I didn't think he'd go for it! But we had to do it," he added, winking at me. I smiled, but then paused. The entire time, all of the heroes had mentioned Loki's powers and all of them had shadows in their expressions, guilt, and hurt. Plus, mind magic?
"Um…" I muttered, getting their attention slowly. "What is it that made Loki so powerful? What can he or has he done?"
The archer's smile faded. Steve put his hand on my shoulder and I sat down, looking up at them curiously with concern. Clint looked defeated and Natasha placed her hand on him, and whispered something in his ear I couldn't quite make out.
"I guess you were gonna find out one way or another," Tony shrugged with a smirk.
"My brother is a trickster, and is adept at his magic skills. He can change his appearance, create clones of himself, project his image elsewhere with his clones, and he is known to have a silver tongue. That is without the staff he was given by one of his allies that gains its power from the Tesseract," Thor explained slowly and softly to me. My eyes widened a bit and I hesitated before the next question that everyone more or less expected.
"What about with his staff?"
"He can shoot powerful energy beams like Stark's repulsors," Clint muttered. "And…"
"And…what?" I asked softly. Clint looked away from me and took a deep breath.
"And…if he touches the center of your chest with his staff, he can control your mind."
Then it clicked. The guilt in his eyes back when the thunderstorm happened and the Avengers were discussing a possible attack, the fury in them when I woke up from the 12 and a half hour magic-induced coma. It finally made sense. I stood up slowly and walked over to him and hugged the weary archer.
"Clint," I whispered simply. "It's okay." Hawkeye said nothing but hugged back. Even in silence, I knew he was grateful, and he was still overcome with sadness and rage. After pulling away, he turned to Tony.
"So Stark, what's the play?"
Tony's expression became hard and serious as he crossed his arms.
"It's just like I told Fury: Me, Thor, and Cap will head to the coordinates we pinpointed and ambush. You, Romanoff, and Banner will stay here with Tori and Pepper," Tony explained. "JARVIS will keep a track on our signatures, so if something happens to us, you'll know. I'll keep the com-links dead in case Reindeer Games has hackers, but JARVIS will be able to interlock between my interphase and the Tower's mainframe so you can talk to him."
All nodded, and the three Avengers began to depart. The others ascended to the upper level. Before I joined them, Tony grabbed my arm gently.
"Hey maestro," he blurted clumsily, a disconcerted look growing on his face.
"What is it Tony?" Said billionaire was at a loss for words.
"When…that thing happened, with the scanner, and you thought we were all frozen in time," he began, and I nodded grimly, remembering my experience with the shape-shifter. "Well, on our end…I saw…you ah, crying in paralysis, and I grabbed your hand. Then, for a second I saw what you saw…" My eyes widened and I felt my cheeks redden.
"…yeah?"
"I wasn't sure what was going on in that reality, but I do know that something is preying on your fear, and whatever it was tried to convince you that we were going to betray you," Tony murmured, placing his hands on my shoulders and looking straight at me. "I promise Tori, we will not abandon you or forget you."
My eyes welled up and I smiled gratefully.
"Thank you Tony," I whispered, hugging him quickly, which caused him to chuckle and rumple my hair. I laughed as he did so. "Now go kick that jerk's ass!"
"Will do, maestro."
"Sir, there's no record on any persons with the name Lois Lane. The person doesn't exist."
"How did I know they would cover that up? There were eyewitnesses reports that showed something fall out of the portal. They're hiding something, but still, they've found the Tesseract."
"What should we do, sir? Contact Agents Romanoff and Barton and Dr. Banner at Stark Tower?"
"No, leave them be. When those three retrieve Loki and the Cube, then we'll get the answers."
Loki chuckled darkly as he tossed the scepter around in his hands. "So, the grand and powerful Avengers are coming for me? Wonderful. Perfect timing."
He once again concentrated on the Tesseract and stealthily entered the mind of Tori Matthews.
"Soon, my new plan will come to fruition, and it all comes down to Romanoff, Banner, and Barton. I'm sure they'll act and react marvelously."
He cleared his mind and focused on the girl's.
"Mortal…"
No matter what anyone says otherwise, your friends will betray you; it is inevitable Tori Matthews, and it will happen tonight.
DUN DUN DUN! *lightning flashes eerily*
...now don't say anything, I have been on a Smallville binge recently and I freakin love Erica Durance's Lois Lane, so you know, figured that the Comic Worlds didn't cross over, and I paid a little homage to my favorite badass reporter.
So yeah, sorry if anything seemed messy or unclear, like I said this chapter extended itself by a TON. Like I was planning to have Tony and Thor and Steve leave halfway through the chapter and then do this thing back at the Tower but aaaaaggh it went so long writing I just pushed the events for chapter 15.
Same deal here guys, if you have any questions or comments to the characters, feel free to ask them! I mean seriously, go ahead. And PLEASE review!
Favoriting and Following is nice, but you know what's better? Getting an e-mail notification for a review from someone who let me know how they liked the chapter or the story overall, even if they don't have an account to favorite and follow.
Yup. Until next time everyone!
~DarkMousyRulezAll, signing out!