INTERLUDE
They can keep me out
'Til I tear the walls
'Til I slave your hearts
And they take your souls
And what has been done
Cannot be undone
In the evil's heart
In the evil's soul
Seven devils all around you
Seven devils in your house
See I was dead when I woke up this morning
I'll be dead before the day is done
Before the day is done
- "Seven Devils," Florence + The Machine
Natasha Romanoff had just come to see him.
He could see why Alana had been friends with her. They shared the same fire.
But she had failed to save Alana, hadn't protested when her mind was wiped, and for that she needed to die.
They would all die.
Her remark, "Love is for children, I owe him a debt," had felt very pointedly directed at him.
Well, this was his bargain. They would die, they would all die, and he would rule. He would find Alana and make her his queen, and save her memories.
His revenge would be complete.
But this idiotic cage was slightly bothersome, so his minions would soon arrive to save him, among them Clint Barton. He smiled a bit at that. The man had spirit, had fought his scepter more than most, but in the end, he would die too.
When he had escaped from S.H.I.E.L.D. he had managed to conjure up a portal, all on his own, which was one of the hardest things that he had ever done. He fell through it blindly, almost wishing that he would end up in a black hole… but his thirst for revenge was too strong. He had landed among the Chitauri, had pledged himself to Thanos's cause, but in the end she was the only one that mattered.
He had thought his hatred was strong when he had arrived there, but they showed him a dark path, one that made him even stronger. And his scepter, it whispered to him, bolstering his courage and rage, his hatred, his fire, showing him the way.
He had noticed recently that his eyes had turned blue.
A different color, for a different age. An age of darkness, of cold.
He would find her. He would save her. He would kill them. He would hunt them.
They would die. He would rule. They would rule, together.
He had only to wait.
With a thousand lies
And a good disguise
Hit 'em right between the eyes
Hit 'em right between the eyes
When you walk away
Nothing more to say
See the lightning in your eyes
See 'em running for their lives
- "You're Gonna Go Far, Kid," The Offspring
Loki pulled his scepter out of Coulson's back, smiling slightly as the man fell to the floor. Behind him, Thor roared, but he didn't care.
I have avenged you, Alana. All the pain that he caused you, the damage he did to you, to your mind… it is done. He will die.
S.H.I.E.L.D. will burn. The world will burn. And you and I will start anew. We will rule.
No one will ever take you away from me again.
I'm gonna fight 'em off
A seven nation army couldn't hold me back
They're gonna rip it off
Taking their time right behind my back
And I'm talkin' to myself at night
Because I can't forget
Back and forth through my mind
Behind a cigarette
- "Seven Nation Army," The White Stripes
"Look at this! Look around you!" Thor yelled, locked in combat with Loki on the balcony of Stark Tower. He looked, and saw the fires and the burning buildings, the rubble. "You think this madness will end with your rule?"
He snapped back into reality in that one moment. Alana lived near New York. We went to that shop once. That one… there. Could I have… did I kill her, too? And the destruction was clear to him, and he was horrified and ashamed and oh gods what have I done? And it hurt, he remembered Alana more clearly, and that hurt too, the memory of her laugh and her smile and her hand in his and he recoiled.
"It's too late… it's too late to stop it," he said, trembling. What had he done? And Thor, oh Thor, you caring fool, looks at him with hope, sheer hope and says, "No, we can… together."
He feels again, after months of pain and hatred and he can remember her lips and her eyes, and his mind is in turmoil, but his hands burn and he hears his scepter singing out to him, showing him the hatred and the thirst, showing him his true path, and he slips back under, to the familiar embrace of the gem, and he stabs Thor in the gut, he doesn't want me to find her, he doesn't want me to rule! He wants to take my rightful throne on Asgard, but I will find her, we will rule, die, Thor, die.
"Sentiment," he breathes, leering at Thor's crumpled form.
Meanwhile, Alana was glued to her television screen.
Aliens? In New York City? Barely a hundred miles from her house? It was incredible, unbelievable.
Yes, she had been part of S.H.I.E.L.D., and yes, she trusted them to figure it out, to do the right thing, but part of her wished that she was there too, so she could help.
If only Coulson hadn't insisted she go out of action… but she understood why. Her amnesia wasn't the problem, but he told her that it would be dangerous if she had a flashback during battle.
She was not wholly disappointed, however; she was a little scared. Aliens and flying ships were fantastical, mysterious… it wasn't right. She moved the dagger lying on the coffee table a little closer to her. If any of those aliens came near her house, they'd get one in the eye.
She was still jittery, however, and jumped when the coffee maker beeped.
The news anchor, who looked quite panicked herself, was standing amidst rubble, with several small fires littering the street.
"There appears to be a fight going on, right on top of Stark Tower, between Thor and the man who appeared in Germany. This man, stating that he would rule the Earth, caused mass hysteria and the deaths of at least forty people."
A blurry image appeared of a dark-haired man with – what the hell was on his head? Horns? - fighting a blond-haired man, but the video was obviously taken from a distance, and it was impossible to distinguish facial features.
She shuddered and got up to get her coffee. She only hoped that S.H.I.E.L.D. would be able to stop him.
A/N: Woo woo! Finally! This took ages, I don't know why...
The first chapter of Book 2 will be up soon, I promise. Here's a little spoiler...
A knot formed itself in her stomach. This person… she felt as if she'd seen him before, like a friend from when she was small. His eyes went straight to her head, making it ache. Did she know him?
In the meantime, please leave a review!
(And happy holidays! :D)