Chapter 18

No, literally.

Natasha, Thor, my dad, and somehow Steve were wrappedin duct tape from shoulder to ankle, curled into balls behind Loki. Hulk was a big green mountain, probably struck with a tranquilizer dart or magic of some sort, and Clint was still nowhere to be seen.

I gulp as I turn towards Loki, putting on a defiant face – what my dad calls my 'rebel' face – and raising an eyebrow.

"Are you kneeling yet, little sparrow?" The pet name reserved for use by my boyfriend and only my boyfriend spilling from Loki's greasy lips sends shivers down my spine and my hand tightens on the closest gun.

"Release them, Loki."

"Aw, you are absolutely no fun! I want to hear you scream when I scar their backs, just like yours!"

"My god, Loki, your mind is messed up, capital M. Release them now or I hurt you." I slowly slip my gun out of the holster on my hip.

Loki sees this and raises an eyebrow, flicking his hand and causing my guns and knives to go flying across the desert and into the lake.

I watch the numerous splashes and gulp again.

"Oh will you, now?"

I clench my teeth and ground out "Release my team. Now."

"Why should I?"

"What have they done to you?"

Loki just pauses and blinks at me. "You may want to get comfortable, my dear, this may take a while."

I just shift my weight, cross my arms, and raise my eyebrow.

"Thor, oh the mighty Thor," his voice drips with contempt and sarcasm, "Golden boy of Asgard, the prince that could do no wrong. Do you know where I was during all the celebrations? Every single battle? Right behind him. I was right there. I helped him. And I was reduced to gossipers calling me a hypocritical, greasy little shadow."

"That's not his fault." I argue.

"Shut up! Next in line, the great Captain America. So good. So naïve. So innocently oblivious. You know, for a fearless Captain, you are pathetic. You are too busy being stuck in a world that disappeared seven decades ago that your team thinks you a joke. A gorilla wrapped in a flag. And you have the nerve to question real power?"

"If anyone is the gorilla here, it would be you."

"Shut UP! Ah, the spider." he strolls in front of Natasha and strokes her hair. She cranes her neck to try and bite him, but the absence of her arms – and therefore all balance – causes her to face plant and get a mouthful of sand.

"So much red. Her parents? Dead because of her. Red Room? Dead because of her. Countless souls, only doing what they did best, have been mercilessly slaughtered in their sleep by her. Too much of a coward, I think, to see the light fade from their eyes. Her ledger is positively soaked in red. Dripping red. Can you really scrub it all off?"

"You have no right to judge, Mr. Must slaughter all things Midgardian."

Loki just growls as he turns towards the sleeping Hulk. "The beast holding a mask of a man. It is sad, really, how badly he fails. He is a time bomb, and he will explode no matter how or where he runs. He does not trust any of you, not one. He hides the truth because the truth is a gruesome sight."

"Seriously, shut up, Frost Giant."

Loki sends me a murderous glare and grabs my dad's hair, yanking his head back. "Man of Iron. Or should I say Merchant of Death? Millions have died by your hands. Millions. Is that why everybody leaves you? Your mother, your father, your butler. All of your friends. All your girlfriends. Her mother." my dad winces as I choke on my breath.

"You don't know anything about my mother!"

"And neither do you! She was a drunken trophy! Nothing more than a careless decision! Nobody wanted what came out of it!"

My throat burns as my eyes water. "Shut up, Loki! Shut up, shut up! You know nothing about me, my team, my past, or my family!"

"But I do. Your mother despised you. Your father was frustrated. You have no friends, and your team thinks you a burden. Mistake. And you will KNEEL!"

Loki slams his staff into the ground and I am forced to the ground. Loki approaches me with a regal gate, looking like he has just won the lottery.

"Finally you kneel. You will make beautiful corpse, if I do say so myself. Behold, the Avengers, Midgard's champions, kneeling before me!"

I pant as I push myself up on to one knee. "Not…so…fast…Loki. Not…dead…yet."

Loki pauses to look at me strangely. "Why do you bother to fight, little sparrow? Consent to my rule!"

I glare at him as my mind scavenges for something to use as a weapon.

Loki took all my knives and guns and I have a bow but not a quiver. I glance down at my hands, wondering if I could surprise him with a punch. Then a small smirk crosses my face as I realize he left my gloves on.

I look back up at Loki with a new spark in my eyes.

"It was non-consensual from the start."

Faster than these words can sink in, I raise my wrists, firing one net into his feet, immobilizing him, and the other at his head. I yank that one down, hard and fast, and watch as Loki Laufreyson – Trickster, Silver tongue, God of Mischief and Lies – falls onto the desert sand, his head bouncing with a resounding crack and then lying still. His malicious jade eyes seek mine as they cloud over, and sapphire meets emerald with a nod.

His spear drops from his limp, cooling hand and rolls towards my feet. I give it a half lidded glance.

"Loki…is down. Good, right?"

And then everything goes black.

A/N

Please don't hurt me. I know this chapter was mainly monologue and bashing characters.

P.S.: Yami the Outcast: I'm really sorry about Loki. Keep in mind that almost all fanfics are separate, and that you perfect match is still alive.

Please read and review!