I don't own The Avengers. Marvel Does. I only own my OCs.
Since he returned to Asgard, Thor spoke to Loki about searching the Nine Realms for the Infinity Stones. Since then, they've been searching the library for books that might hold information about them. However, Thor wasn't a fan of reading, so he would spar with the Warriors Three outside while Loki read through the books. The trickster god would sometimes head outside and interrupt their sparring session to inform them of which books he found had some information on the Infinity Stones. Because of that, Thor and the Warriors Three had to listen in on such information. So far, they knew the names of the Infinity Stones, but apart from the Tesseract and the Aether, they didn't have much information of the locations of the Soul Stone, the Power Stone and the Time Stone yet.
"Are you sure you checked Taneleer Tivan's background before entrusting the Aether to him?" asked Loki.
"You said we should hide it somewhere so no one can find it," replied Sif, "since we assumed it wasn't wise to keep both stones in Asgard, Volstagg and I figured he was the safest hands possible."
Loki sighed as he facepalmed.
"You should at least check his background first," reminded Loki.
"Should we do that right now?" asked Volstagg.
Loki closed the book in his hands and stood to his feet before approaching Volstagg.
"If you want to check his background right away," said Loki, "then feel free to do so, but you must be sure to ask him if the Aether is safe."
Volstagg and Sif exchanged glances for a moment before they nodded. Loki opened the book and flipped to the page he was on before he continued reading.
"I suppose we'll get ready," shrugged Volstagg.
Sif nodded in agreement before she and Volstagg headed back into the palace while Loki sat down at the bench. Thor approached Loki and sat down next to him while Fandral and Hogun continued to spar. While Loki flipped through the pages, Thor spotted a chapter title that interested him, so he placed his hand on Loki's shoulder.
"Brother," growled Loki, "do not interrupt me while I'm reading."
"Sorry, Loki," muttered Thor, "but I believe we found something."
Loki checked the chapter title and read the text containing the information about the Power Stone.
"If you were referring to the Orb," agreed Loki, "I believe we may have found a clue."
After carefully reading the text, Loki closed the book and stood from the bench. He walked into the palace while Thor followed him into the library, where the trickster god placed the book back into its slot in the shelf.
"Now," confessed Loki, "while I do know of the artifacts that hold the Soul and Time Stone, but I haven't figured out their locations."
"So do you have a plan?" asked Thor.
Loki focused his eyes on Thor and smirked.
"I was thinking of traveling the Nine Realms to find someone who might know where to find the Soul Stone and Time Stone," answered Loki.
"Ah," suggested Thor, "in the meantime, I could travel to Morag and search for the Orb."
"Then it is settled," agreed Loki.
Loki and Thor walked out of the library and wandered through the palace until they stepped outside the main entrance. They boarded an aerial boat sitting at the dock, where Loki took the control into his hands and hovered it into the air, maneuvering it away from the palace. The trickster carefully steered it in the direction of the Bifrost while Thor sat down and observed the scenery below him. Once they reached the Bifrost, Loki lowered the aerial boat, allowing him and Thor to disembark and approach Heimdall.
"Good afternoon, Heimdall," Thor said.
"Good afternoon," replied Heimdall, giving away no emotion.
Thor scanned the observatory, noticing that Volstagg and Sif weren't here.
"Have Volstagg and Sif not arrived yet?" asked Thor.
"They already left for Knowhere minutes ago," answered Heimdall.
"Then we have lagged behind," Thor said, his competitive spirit showing its face, "come brother, let's not give the people reason to sing of how we fell behind Volstagg of all people."
Loki nodded.
"To Morag with him, Heimdall," instructed Loki.
The guardian of the bridge nodded and lowered his sword into its pedestal, causing the Bifrost to activate and lock onto the oceanic world.
"You are in luck, Thunderer," he informed Thor, "usually this world is covered by oceans, but they appear to have receded for a time."
"A time is all I shall require," Thor nodded, stepping towards the portal, "stay safe brother!"
He called over his shoulder before being consumed by the Bifrost and carried across the vast cosmos in the blink of an eye.
Countless light years away, the storms covering Morag suddenly became noticeably stronger as a vast light illuminated the clouds, and through them the exposed ocean floor of the planet. Thor plummeted downwards, letting Mjolnir guide his trajectory as he felt the grasp of the Bifrost vanish, leaving him exposed to the elements. His target was the only remaining structure on the entire planet: an ancient temple, the last remaining hint of previous sentient life on Morag and their final contribution to guarding the Orb.
Thor crashed down in front of the temple, creating an explosion of dirt and water droplets. He straightened up and slung Mjolnir on his belt as he took in the sight of the temple. Still, his face beamed with determination as he trudged inside. As Thor delved deeper into the temple, he found indications that somebody had been here before him, only recently, a few days or perhaps a month at the most. His suspicions were confirmed when he reached the end of the line and found the Orb's containment chamber littered with the half melted corpses of two Sakaran soldiers and hosting a vast hole blasted through the back wall.
Thor stepped up to the gap and peered out onto the horizon. Centuries of training in warfare allowed him to spot indications of a battle. Necroblast burns, shrapnel from destroyed rock formations, evidence of a chase…
And Thor knew only one person in the whole universe who had the loyalty of the savage Sakaran race: the Kree fanatic and warlord known as Ronan, former Accuser of the Kree Empire. Though Thor had never gotten involved with the matters of the universe at large until only recently, he was still made privy to such events and persons of interest due to his high ranking among the Asgardians. What he was also made aware of recently was the great Accuser's apparent demise, though the details had been sketchy and he had been in a hurry to return to Midgard at the time.
"You two won't be telling me anything," he said, casting a glance at the decomposing blobs that had once been soldiers, "so perhaps there is someone who can."
From what little he knew of the Kree, they had been at war for centuries with another faction known as the Nova Empire based out of Xandar. If anyone would be keeping an eye on the movements of Ronan and his agents it would likely be them. Perhaps that should be his next stop if he wanted to know what had happened to the Orb.
Meanwhile, Loki stepped through the Bifrost, teleporting him outside a town in Nyr. Once he felt the grip of the Bifrost dissipate, the trickster trudged towards the town gate, hoping to find someone who would have information about the Soul Stone and the Time Stone. Many recognized the telltale sign of an Asgardian visit by the roar and the light of the Bifrost's energy striking down upon the terrain outside the village, but were met with the surprise of only a single regal clad Asgardian passing their borders. Many shied away, mothers bowed in reverence and greeted him fondly. The forces of Asgard had garnered good will while bringing order to the Nine Realms, and throughout the rest of the universe they were feared at worst and respected at best. Loki recognized the residents' greetings yet he simply responded with a simple wave of hello. He continued walking through the streets in search of the library. The library stood out as one of the larger structures in the town. It was several stories high and looked more like a chapel on the outside. It also looked to be in better condition than most of the other structures, as though a great deal of care and resources had gone into maintaining it at the expense of other parts of the community. Loki felt that he could debate the condition of the community with the elders, but he had bigger priorities right now, so he stepped inside the library. There, he started searching the shelves for books that could contain information about the Soul Stone and the Time Stone.
"Do you seek knowledge, child of Jotuns?"
The voice spoke to him from all directions, whispered from every corner and breathed from every crevice.
"Or is it power?" the voice inquired, "all come here in search of one or the other. The power to destroy, the knowledge to preserve and build…I suspect you seek both today."
Loki gritted his teeth. Whoever it was, how did this person know he was a Frost Giant? Or better yet, did this person even know what he was searching for? He was not in the mood for playing games.
"Who's there?! Show yourself!" Loki demanded.
"Fear not the dead, Loki Laufeyson."
Particles of what looked like dust began to assemble, forming a humanoid silhouette.
"For the long dead do not begrudge you, and we have been dead longer than most."
The figure resumed assembling until it was clearly defined. It resembled a male humanoid and beyond that any features were nonexistent.
"We are the Forgotten, caretakers of this sanctum of knowledge," it said with a thousand voices, "and you, Loki Laufeyson, have been expected. You, who have witnessed and used the power of Infinity Stones, would only come here to seek knowledge on the rest."
The Forgotten crossed its arms.
"But to what end?"
Loki's eyes widened in shock. Still, he kept his feet on the ground.
"I have encountered a certain being who seeks the stones for himself," Loki explained, trying to keep himself from panicking, "when I fell into the Void, he attempted to manipulate me and use me to retrieve the stones while I wanted nothing more than to spite my brother. Regardless, I do not wish for him to use them to commit crimes far worse than mine."
The Forgotten stared at him for several seconds.
"You speak sincerely," it said, "Space, Mind, Power, Dimension, Soul and Time…four have awakened and the other two will soon follow."
It raised one hand and a single book flew out from among the many shelves.
"To you, we will give the first clue of the trail to the Soul stone," it said, "Time remains ever elusive still for now."
Loki examined the book when it landed in his hands before returning his glance at the Forgotten.
"I welcome your words," nodded Loki, "as long as I can reach it in time before my nemesis does."
"Know this, Loki Laufeyson, your enemy is not clearly defined," the Forgotten turned away and began to walk away, slowly fading into separate dust particles, "and if you never know your enemy, you can never hope to defeat them. Thanos was only the most obvious, but he is not the extent of those who oppose you."
It was gone after that. Loki could only stare in confusion. What did he mean by that? He knew Nebula was still on the loose, but he kept reminding himself that there might be more loyal to Thanos. Since he couldn't find much clues apart from the book in his hands, he would have to figure out the location of the Soul Stone on his own, so he stepped out of the library after checking it out. Once he was outside, he stashed the book into his pocket, reminding himself to read it once he returned to Asgard. While he wandered down the street, he didn't pay attention to a woman with purple skin, white hair and a tail lurking behind him until…
"Excuse me," she called, "are you Mr. Loki Laufeyson?"
Startled, Loki turned on his feet and locked eyes onto the strange woman while she held her hands behind her back.
"What of it?" Loki demanded.
"What business do you have in Nyr?" she asked.
"That is none of your concern, ma'am," Loki snapped.
Loki was about to turn and storm off when the strange woman continued to chase him. Irritated, Loki stopped and glared at her.
"Why don't you mind your own business?!" spat Loki.
"Then what were you doing in the library?" crooned the strange woman.
Loki fidgeted nervously, as if he wasn't sure if he should trust this woman. She didn't even tell him her name and she appeared to be different from most of the locals.
"I just wanted to browse the books to take my mind off of things before I begin traveling," Loki lied.
The strange woman gave a smirk.
"I see," she mused, "call me Kluto Golla. I'm just here on a holiday."
"Pffffft," Loki scoffed, running his fingers through his hair, "if you were on holiday, then why were you following me?"
Kluto removed her hands from behind her back, revealing a small box containing a small slice of cinnamon cake.
"I just wanted to give you a gift," explained Kluto.
Smiling, Loki plucked the box out of Kluto's hands.
"Oh, I appreciate the sentiment you have there," Loki said, "thank you."
"You're welcome," replied Kluto, "I will take my leave."
Loki pulled the cake out of the box and started eating it while Kluto skittered into the crowd, making a beeline towards an alleyway.
"Heh heh," Kluto snickered, watching as Loki continued walking down the street, "he fell for it."
Once Loki reached the city limits, he waited for a few minutes until the light of the Bifrost struck down in front of him. He stepped in, allowing the Bifrost's grip to take him out of Nyr and across the stars. Within the blink of an eye, Loki returned to the Bifrost Bridge where Thor, Volstagg and Sif were waiting.
"Did you find anything?" called Loki.
Thor, Volstagg and Sif turned their heads at Loki.
"I was about to head to Xandar," answered Thor, "I couldn't find the Orb in Morag."
"And the Aether?" asked Loki.
"We asked Taneleer Tivan about it," explained Sif, "but he said that he doesn't have it anymore."
Loki lowered his head, trying to suppress his anger.
"Did he say who took it?" Loki growled.
"No," Volstagg shook his head.
From those answers alone, Loki suspected that the Collector must've handed the Aether to Thanos. Well, either that or Thanos trashed the place and swiped it from his hands. Attacking the purple titan right now would be dangerous, so Loki figured he should change plans for now.
"Brother," suggested Loki, "I will go with you to Xandar."
"I welcome it," smiled Thor.
Upon cue, Heimdall lowered his sword into the pedestal, activating the Bifrost and locking onto Xandar. When the Bifrost's deposited them on the capital planet of the Nova Empire, they were met with screams of shock and panicking citizens of numerous species who fled from the site which the Bifrost had impacted, leaving a circle scorched into the earth around the Asgardians.
"Why do I suddenly get the feeling that our welcome here won't be as warm as the last place?" Loki wondered aloud before several golden, star shaped fighter crafts flew down towards their position from over the nearby buildings, "oh."
Thor instinctively reached for his hammer as the fighters hovered down and surrounded the Asgardians, who had landed in what had moments ago been a fountain set in the middle of a wide plaza out away from many taller spires within Xandar's capital. Men and women in Nova Corps armor spilled out just as quickly and surrounded them.
"Attention! Drop your weapons or we will open fire!" a man wearing a helmet which signified his higher rank among the Nova Corps members present barked, "I said drop the hammer!"
"You want me to put the hammer down, eh?" Thor smirked and muttered softly.
"Brother, no," Loki warned firmly.
"Relax Loki, I will do them no harm…no permanent harm anyways," Thor replied, "and from the look of things they might not be so restrained in their own attack."
Thor raised his Mjolnir into the air and drew in lightning from the sky while Loki rolled his eyes. The Nova Corps members hesitated as they saw a storm begin to roll in, defying numerous weather manipulation systems designed to ensure a steady and harmonious amount of rain only when it was needed. As the storm grew stronger several of the fighters wobbled, attempting to maintain position against the powerful gusts of wind.
"Stop! Nova Corps, stand down! Stand down!"
Thor smirked and lowered Mjolnir to his side, allowing the storm to dissipate as several new aliens in uniform rushed onto the scene.
"Asgardians! Humblest apologies," one of the Nova Corps officer, who looked like a human woman based on her appearance, "Xandar has been in a continuous state of alert following a recent attack."
Loki stepped forward.
"How recent?" he asked, "and by whom?"
"By…Ronan the Accuser, sir," the officer answered meekly, "he had almost succeeded in unleashing some kind of weapon on the planet. Level Ten destructive capability…meaning capable of wiping out all life on Xandar if he hadn't been stopped."
Loki glanced at his companions.
"Why does that sound familiar?" he asked rhetorically with a smile, "if you would not mind, Centurion…"
"Lania, my lord," the woman said, "Nova Centurion Lania."
"Lania, lovely name," Loki said with a nod, "we desire an appointment with your Nova Prime. You may tell her that Prince Thor and his guests wish to speak with her about a matter of grave importance."
He could have used his own name, but Thor's possessed a little more…fame and less notoriety than his.
"Very well," Lania nodded, "right this way."
I'm still open to suggestions on how to continue the fanfic.
Please leave a review, so Ultron and Loki would be happy.