Chapter 7: Loki

AN: this is my big reveal of Steven's look to Steve. He has never seen the Knight, and for Natasha she'll be meeting a ghost from the past she thought long dead. I'll try to post with a picture.

On to the fic

Steve approached the QuinJet with confident steps, and was quickly met by Agent Romanoff. He didn't know how she got there without him noticing, just that she wasn't one minute and then she was. It was a pretty useful trick to have, being able to practically melt out of the shadows like that. The two walked up to the jet in silence, but Steve quickly noticed that there was someone else in the cargo hold, waiting for them. Steve kept his stride but Natasha faltered, just for a second before she kept pace with the much taller man. It wasn't much but Steve could see that she was on edge, that she hadn't expected someone to be waiting for them. Steve stepped inside first and finally saw him.

He was sitting in one of the cargo seats, absentmindedly sharpening the knife in his hands. He seemed to be almost cloaked in shadows, more so than even Agent Romanoff, and gave off and air of quiet menace. He was outwardly calm, but Steve could see the slight tenseness to his shoulders and the just tighter than necessary grip he had on his knife. He was in mid stroke on the edge of his blade when he paused for a long moment, before he finished the stroke and sheathed the blade. It was such a clean and smooth movement that Steve barely would have noticed, if he hadn't been keeping his eyes on the weapon at all times. Steve noted with some shock that it wasn't a regular knife but an old bayonet from the war. It looked clean and well kept, but old, and most glaringly, well used.

Steve jerked his gaze away from the sheathed bayonet as the man stood up in a long graceful movement. Steve's gaze went up and noted with some surprise that the man was slightly taller than himself. His hair was the first thing Steve saw, tightly cropped at the sides and back with a long fringe at the top, and it was styled with a classic wave. Steve took the minute to note how it looked very much like something he would have seen on many of his fellow soldiers' during the war, and with a slight inhale through his nose, Steve realized with some shock that it was tamed with Pomade. The next thing to be noted was the color: a striking blend of browns and golds that gave his hair an almost honey like appearance highlighted by lighter strands that set his hair aglow like his head was capped with spun gold. Next Steve saw the dark coat he wore, and at first Steve mistook it for black, but once he stepped further into the light Steve saw that it was in fact a deep blood red, so dark in may as well be black, his jacket underneath was the same but only a shade lighter with dark straps and buckles breaking up the shape. It almost looked like a straitjacket but Steve felt that it might actually be made to be supportive in case of a fight and an injury.

The cargo pants were a worn looking black with knee pads and tall boots covered in blue black spats of canvas and leather. He had a utility belt strapped around his trim waist with the bayonet sheath attached on the left and a gun on the right. It was a dark figure in its holster, but Steve could just make out the familiar shape of a Colt .45 M1911 A1. It was a distinctive gun that had been bored into his mind for years and to see it again was a bit of a shock. Steve looked up at the man's face and saw a set of bright sapphire blue orbs looking back at him set in a sea of pure black. Steve's gaze widened when he realized that the man was wearing a type of black domino mask so dark and mat that Steve couldn't even make out the shape of the man's cheekbones or eye sockets. All he saw was the shape of his eyes and their color on the dark canvas, and it unnerved him. And from the sound of Natasha's sharp intake of breath when she drew up beside him, it did the same to her too, although, for entirely different reasons.

Steve looked sharp to his left with the sound followed by the click of a hammer and saw Agent Romanoff's ashen face as she held a gun pointed at the man in front of them.

"Как ты жив," she said, her voice wavering with the effort to keep down her fear. (How are you alive?) "Они сказали, что ты мертв." (They said you were dead.) The man in front of them scoffed in disdain and smirked.

"They lied," the man said, and Steve noted the thick Russian accent quickly. His smirk became softer and his eyes lost some of their diamond edge, before he spoke again, "did you really expect them to tell the truth, Natalia?" Romanoff's gun wavered for a second before she lowered it and uncocked the hammer. She cautiously moved around him and took her spot in copilot seat to the right, while the pilot edged around and took his seat to the left. As the ramp closed and the engines started up, Steve looked once more at the man Steve realized must be Captain Buchanan's Agent. Combined with what Steven had said about mind control and brainwashing, with his thick accent, and Romanoff's obvious knowledge of his identity, Steve could only conclude that he was a turn coat like her; a defector who had once been used and abused by his former masters.

"Who are you," Steve asked, and Steve had the misfortune of having those unnerving eyes turn towards him in their sea of black. The agent smirked wryly and turned to face him as the jet took off.

"I was once the worst nightmare of all of SHIELD, and the western world," he said his voice calm and blank. He didn't sound proud of this, he was simply just stating a fact and it caused a shiver to run down Steve's back as the Agent continued in the same cold dead voice, "now," he said. His voice became soft and pensive, almost sad, as he soldiered on, "I am who I once was, and always will be: Stevan, The Winter Knight."

Steve spent the rest of the flight to Germany looking up his new partner, and what he found did not instill in him any trust towards the man. SHIELD had very little on the former Soviet assassin, and what they did have was grim to say the least, and painted a stark picture: A cold efficient agent with a near perfect mission record, interspersed with bloody and brutal scenes of carnage, left by a man tearing down the agency that created him. The profile Steve pulled up was short and thin. It described a man with deep physiological scars, and a violent nature. Other profiles described him as efficient while also being somewhat compassionate, conflicting with others that said he had no emotional core, or had little to no empathy. It was sparse, and told him nothing about the man, while also informing him of his skillset. Mutant: possible Class 5, ungraded with multiple abilities, including telepathy, telekinesis, and electrical powers. It also briefly mentioned the possibility of him being enhanced, with all the characteristics of someone with the Super Soldier Serum: strong, fast, enhanced intelligence, and mental abilities, along with a healing factor. All in all it painted a picture of a man that Steve did not want to trust until he got to know him personally.

Steve had done enough mental assessments during the war that he could profile a man psychologically after a single conversation, but he still needed to talk to the man first, ask him questions about things in passing that would gage his morals and ability to feel empathy. He'd also need to talk to Natasha to get a bead on him, as it appeared that the Agent had known the assassin personally sometime in her past.

"Approaching drop point, Cap," Romanoff announced, and Steven looked out at the city be low. Natasha smirked, "looks like Loki's already started the party," she noted. Steve looked down and saw the museum emptying in a panic. Steve clenched his jaw in determination and turned around, only to come face to face with the assassin he had been avoiding for the better part of the last half hour.

"Unless you are needed, you're to stay here," Steve ordered as he brushed passed the taller man. Steve strapped his shield onto his arm and tucked the Star under his shirt after giving it a quick kiss, in askance of blessing and protection. Steve looked back at the faceless assassin with a stern face, "I'll handle of Loki." Steve could see the tension in the man's shoulders and saw his eyes narrow in displeasure. "Understood," Steve asked.

"Your wish is my command, Captain," the Knight finally complied, his tone flippant while his shoulders remained under false calm. "I will do as you order." Suddenly Steve is back in the War for a brief moment remembering those words from a different mouth with a very different accent. Steven had been as far from his mind when he looked at The Knight as the moon from the Sun, but still Steve could not help but remember Steven saying those exact words to him all those years ago. Steve shook his head and opened the rear hatch.

Loki's voice drifted up faintly, and if it weren't for his hearing Steve might not have heard, but he definitely heard the famed trickster bellowing: "KNEEL!" before all went quiet.

"In the end, you will always kneel," Loki said, with a manic grin pulling across his face. Steve could see it as he dove out of the Jet without a chute. Suddenly out of the crowd an old man in a simple coat stood from within the kneeling throng. He was slow to rise, as if his knees bothered him, but when he did he held his head high and proud. Maybe he was once a soldier, maybe he was once just a simple little boy who wanted to stand when everyone else knelt, but was too afraid. He was young once, and alone, but he always remembered what it was like to be forced to kneel when all he wanted to do was stand strong. So today, amongst all the kneelers, he stood; his head held high as he remembered a brave man who once saved his life. He looked at Loki with all the defiance an old man could give, and held his head high.

"Not to men like you," he said, his accent strongly German. Loki grinned widely and chuckled as if he had made a joke.

"There are no men like me," he answered with his grin. The old man's eyes grew saddened and shook his head softly.

"There are always men like you," he said as if stating an inescapable fact, quiet disdain in his voice, remembering years of hardship and oppression that brought so many to death. Loki looked at him and raised his head.

"Look to your elder, people," he said as he lifted the staff and aimed it right at the old man's heart. "Let him be an example," Loki said his voice hardening with his face. Fear pulled into the old man's face as the blue gem on the staff began to glow, and he took an involuntary step backwards. The bolt let loose but before he could hit him, a shield blocked its path, sending the shot right back where it came from, and knocking Loki to the ground.

Steve stood up from his crouch and pulled himself high and proud. Lowering the Shield as he stood up, he sent a glare down at the trickster who was now face first on the ground.

"You know," Steve said conversationally as he stepped down from the slab he landed on, "the last time I was in Germany, and saw a man standing above everybody else," Steve slowly approached the Asgardian in green armor, "we ended up disagreeing." Loki picked himself up with a disdained look on his face, anger boiling in his gut.

"The soldier," he said disdainfully, a cruel smile pulling across his lips and he chuckled, raising his scepter to brace on the ground and help him stand, "the man out of time." Steve clenched his jaw and didn't budge.

"I'm not the one who's out of time," Steve replied, calmly. Behind his shoulder Romanoff lowered the Jet to hover just behind him as a show of force. It was a threat, but Steve knew they could shoot, not with all the civilians in the way, so it was a rather empty one in the end.

"Loki," Romanoff ordered over the PA system, lowering the Gatling gun as she did so, "drop the weapon and stand down."

For a second nothing happened then all hell broke loose. Loki called the bluff and fired at the jet, and Romanoff was forced to roll to avoid the shot. Quick as lightning, Steve pulled his shield off his arm and flung it vertically at the Asgardian. Steve rushed him, catching the shield as it dropped back down, and moved to face Loki. The crowd scattered rather quickly when Steve threw the shield so Steve had an unobstructed field to charge his opponent and land a blow at a strength that would have shattered a normal man's jaw. Loki paused for just a second, as if stunned by the blow, before he landed a blow of his own with the scepter. Steve blocked the first blow with the shield, but the second batted it away, and a third was dealt too quickly for Steve to maneuver to block. It landed right across his abdomen, and Steve felt a stab of fear for his babies as he paused for a breath, bracing himself against a fountain. Steve looked up and let all semblance of holding back leave him, as he clenched his jaw and flung the shield with all his might.

Loki batted the disk away like it was nothing, but while he was distracted by the maneuver, Steve charged. The two clashed, with Loki swinging his staff like a glaive trying to cut Steve down, while Steve ducked and dodged using his agility and unencumbered maneuverability to land blows with all his strength that would, and should have shattered bone to dust. Only, Loki shook them off as if they were love taps, and sent a blow across Steve's back that sent the blond flying. It took Steve longer than he wanted to get back to his knees after that blow, and by the time he did, Loki was already above him. The Asgardian pressed the butt of his staff onto the back of Steve's head forcing it down.

"Kneel," he hissed, and Steve took a breath, feeling his babes flutter in his belly with distress. Quick as a cat, Steve pulled the staff off his head and used its momentum to pull himself back to his feet, and land a roundhouse kick to Loki's head.

"Not today," Steve denied as he landed the blow and sent Loki flying instead. The two traded blows like it was a Friday night prize fight, each one getting progressively more violent, and on Steve's part, stronger and harder as he called upon more of his famed super strength than he had ever had to before. Steve dodged every blow like a dancer, as he and Loki wove about and moved together then apart, locked in a deadly dance that neither wanted to give up, trading blows that could bend solid steel plate nearly an inch thick. Steve dodged more than he gave blows, careful not to risk his babies lives, but he gave with all he had, not holding back, as his punches became exponentially more savage.

"The guy's all over the place," Romanoff said as she tried to get a bead on Loki, without hitting Rogers, but with how Steve was moving, it was near impossible. Steven watched the fight with worry and frustration, knowing he could stop Loki with just a single blow if given the chance. He leaned in between the pilot and Romanoff watching Loki hand Steve his hat, before he saw Loki throw Steve away like a rag doll. Finally Steven'd had enough.

"That's it," he said, pushing away from the pair, and marching back towards the hatch. His accent was still thick as before but some of his Brooklyn drawl was leaking through with his anger, "I'm goin' down." Steve reached for the hatch release when he heard the distinctive sound of AC/DC's "Shoot to Thrill" come through the intercom. Steven turned back and felt before he saw, JARVIS hack the PA to blast Stark's entry song to the square.

"Agent Romanoff," Stark said cheekily, and the PA switched on, "You miss me?" Steven sighed and turned back to the window to watch as Stark swooped in from the sky, sending out a blast from his repulsers that sent Loki flying back and into the courtyard steps, cracking them with the force he landed with, and making the trickster groan in pain. Stark landed in a perfect three point pose before bringing his gauntlets up and arming a whole slew of missiles and bombs aimed right at Loki's head. "Make your move, Reindeer Games," Stark dared. Loki looked up and surveyed his position, and Steven could see it the moment he realized he was done, Steve coming up to stand at Tony's shoulder with shield in hand, even before he raised his hands in surrender; his golden armor fading away like mist. "Good move," Stark said as the plates and missiles slide back into place and hid from view. Stark dropped his arms as Steve relaxed his stance. Shield now on his left arm, Steve stood side by side with a man he didn't know, but was the son of a man he respected above all else; even if the man had questionable morals sometimes.

"Mr. Stark," Steve said as he acknowledged the man curtly.

"Captain," Tony responded. Romanoff lowered the jet in for a landing behind the pair, and Steven stood calmly at the door waiting for them to bring their prisoner in.

Together the two of them frog marched Loki to the back of the Jet, just as it lowered for them to enter. Tony paused when he set eyes on the masked man but quickly recovered to strap Loki in.

"Need a hand," Steven asked, his accent thick, but Stark waved him off. Tony took off his helmet to look at the younger masked man before turning to Steve and jerked a gauntleted thumb in his direction.

"What's the deal with Red Peril over here," Tony asked, causing Steven to roll his eyes at the reference and Steve to squint at Stark in confusion. "I mean, I know SHIELD likes tall, dark, and shadowy masked men, but even this is a little bit much. He wasn't in the briefing packet." Steven smirked, and chuckled, while Steve sent Stark a disproving glare.

"My name is Stevan," the shadowy figure that was Steven, finally spoke up, leveling his gaze upon Tony Stark. The younger man met his gaze and found it just as unnerving as Steve did. "Your father called me his weeping Angel. The rest of SHIELD called me by me code name: The Winter Knight."

Tony felt himself stop, recognizing the name but unable to place exactly where he had heard it before. He looked back at the man, and really took him in this time, not just letting his eyes slide over him like he did before. He usually never did that, and this was a first, but that was probably what he wanted, considering that Stevan looked every inch the Mercenary assassin. Tony could care less about the man's looks but even he could see the Kevlar weave stitched into the lining of the coat and the distinctive shape of armor under the near-black red leather. But it was that mask that really unnerved him and fascinated him to no end.

"He's CIA," Cap finally said once they were in the air, "they attached him as a Liaison to SHIELD along with his handler. It only just happened today." Tony nodded.

"Noted," Stark said as he took a closer look at the mask, before he suddenly blabbed, "Is that ultra-black mat paint, or something the CIA cooked up." The masked man jerked his head up and tilted it slightly with squinted eyes. The effect was almost like a predator looking at a particularly interesting bit of prey, almost like a bird, and to be frank it freaked him out just a little; because all he could see was those luminous blue eyes narrow in the field of black.

"it's my own creation," the assassin answered, his accent as thick as any from the cold land of Russia, "it's meant to absorb all visible light, it makes for a very effective mask coating." Tony hummed in respect before turning to Steve.

Steven settled in across from the Asgardian as Steve and Tony stand behind Romanoff. He took a deep breath and relaxed, closing his eyes for a second just to let his mind recover. When he opened them he found Loki staring at him with an unnerving smirk on his smug face. Steven felt a press on his mental shields and snapped his eyes to Loki's, fixing him with a glare as cold as the Helcaraxë.

'Stay out of my mind, Loki,' Steven warned, his mental voice just as biting as those cold wastes. Steven sent a mental slash at the other's mind, and saw Loki flinch, his eyes widening slightly. 'Lest you find yourself trapped in a cage in your own mind, and in a hell of your own making, you will not mess with my head.' Suddenly Loki was no longer smirking as Steven's mind suddenly became like unto a pillar of fire, his eyes beginning to glow ever so slightly in the depths of his pupils, with a light unlike any he had ever seen. 'Stay out!' Steven snapped mentally, throwing Loki out of his mind with such force the ravenette flinched.

"I don't like it," Steve said his gaze shifting from Loki to their unexpected partner. Stevan had remained silent after whatever he had done to make Loki stop smirking, his eyes were still as cold as an Antarctic winter, and were zeroed on Loki.

"What? Rock of Ages giving up so easily," Tony asked flippantly, looking out the windscreen.

"I don't remember it being that easy," Steve shot back, wanting to run a hand over his sore ribs and belly, but keeping his arms at his sides. Steve turned to look at Loki and said softly, "this guy packs a wallop." Steve finally placed a hand on his lower abdomen, glad to feel the fluttering movements of the babies, and the occasional sharp kick.

"Still," Tony said flippantly, "you are pretty spry. For an older fellow," Tony turned and looked at Steve, "what's your thing? Pilates?" Steve furrowed his brow and looked oddly at the, technically, younger man.

"What," Steve asked in confusion.

"It's like calisthenics," Tony expounded, "You might have missed a couple things, you know, doin' time as a Capsicle." Tony's flippant regard of him missing the last seventy years was grading but from what he had read in the dossiers, this was all pars for the core with Tony. It was just like Howard too, only he knew when to stop with the jokes and be serious every now and then. Steve gave Tony a long hard look, before he spoke again.

"Fury didn't tell me he was callin' you in," Steve said, all but asking why he was here, but too polite to do it.

"Yeah," Tony agreed flippant tone back with a hint of seriousness to it, "there's a lot of things Fury doesn't tell you." Tony looked back at Steve and the blond got the impression that Stark was trying to tell him something but before Steve could ask what he meant, the sudden crack of thunder broke the silence of the hold.

"Where's this coming from," Romanoff asked. Steve looked up, watching the bolts streak around them in the clouds. Steve turned full around and saw that Loki had leaned forward in his seat, a concerned look on his face. Steve noted Stevan's gaze was no longer on the errant Asgardian but out at the sky, his eyes intense and luminous.

"What's the matter," Steve asked, "scared of a little lightning?" Loki's eyes darted around before answering.

"I'm not overly fond of what follows," he said. Suddenly Stevan's eyes jerked up as he looked at the roof. His eyes became almost like two orbs of light at the intensity with which he looked at the ceiling. After a minute it became obvious what he was staring at when there was a very loud thud, and the craft rocked a little when something landed on the roof. Lightning and thunder rocked the little jet almost as much as whatever had landed on them. Tony grabbed his helmet and put it back on while Steve did the same, only Stevan remained seated; his gaze now on the hanger door.

"What are doing," Steve asked when Tony opened the hatch. Stevan stood up and moved to protect Natasha while Tony moved to the ramp. Suddenly a big blond man with long hair, a short handled war hammer, and a red cape dropped onto the ramp in front of him. The man marched up the ramp and when Tony charged his gauntlets, he sent him flying into Steve with a single punch from the hammer. Stevan threw up a kinetic shield in case he tried to attack him, sparks flying across his fingers making his hands glow with white and gold light.

The blond on the other hand had no interest in them and only in Loki. The dark haired trickster snapped out of his restraints and tried to run but was quickly caught by the neck and dragged out with him. The hammer whirled in his hand and in a leap Loki and the blond were gone. Tony groaned when he was finally able to get up and disentangle himself from Steve.

"Now there's that guy," he said almost to himself.

"Another Asgardian," Natasha asked as Stevan lowered his shields.

"That guy's a friendly," Steve asked incredulously, as he pulled himself up.

"I hate to be his enemy," Stevan quipped dryly.

"Doesn't matter," Tony said, matching towards the ramp, "if he frees Loki or kills him, the Tesseract's lost." Stark moves back to the ramp intending to follow, and Steve realized that Tony was going to hurt someone with his hot head.

"Stark," Steve ordered, "we need a plan of attack!" Steve needed tony to use his brilliant mind and not his ego or he might be in big trouble.

Tony marched to the end of the ramp with determined strides.

"I have a plan," he said as he walked to the edge, turning almost absently to say, "attack!" and blasted off after the blond. Steve rolled his eyes at Tony's behavior, frustrated that a man he was supposedly brought on the team to lead wouldn't listen to his advice. Steve rushed to the racks and grabbed one of the parachutes strapped down, and began to quickly go through the motions of strapping it on. Stevan looked at the racks and back at Steve before he shook his head and sat down.

"I'd sit this one out, Cap," Natasha said as she looked over her shoulder. Steve tightened the strap across his chest.

"I don't see how I can," Steve answered, pulling it tight.

"These guys come from legend," she explained, flipping a switch as she went, "they're basically gods."

"There's only one God, ma'am," Steve said as he finally strapped himself in. He turned, grabbed his shield and said, "And I'm pretty sure he doesn't dress like that." Steve took two long strides and with the third leaped out of the back of the plane.

Steven looked at the place where Steve was just a moment before and felt the overwhelming urge to follow him. After all, he had done so dozens of times in the past, diving out of planes into Germany, behind enemy lines; into the jaws of death. Steven felt himself smirk and huffed out a silent snort of laughter.

'At least he's wearing a parachute this time,' Steven thought before he quashed the urge to follow ruthlessly. He stood up and pressed the rear hatch control, closing it for the time being. Steven sat down with a groan.

"I'm getting too old for this," he said softly.

"You look pretty spry to me," Natasha said over her shoulder, with a raised brow, "not following?"

"Hell no," Steven said with a laugh, "I don't jump out of planes anymore if I don't have to. Besides, Stark's behaving like a child who's had his favorite toy taken. I don't want to get between him and … Thor… is it? That is going to be a fight I will most definitely avoid. Let the Captain play the father, those two could use a good scolding?" Steven ended with a grin and chortle. Natasha smothered a giggle but Steven still heard the start of it and smiled all the brighter. Steven leaned back and closed his eyes. After a minute ordering his mind, he opened the connection he had with his brothers. 'Thor's here.' He told them, 'he took Loki, but Tony and Steve are handling it.' Steven felt Yasha brush against his mind and Steven opened Osanwe to his brother.

("Tony and Steve,") he asked incredulously, ("working together?")

("That doesn't sound right,") Jonathan chimed in once he opened his mind, ("what's really going on?") Steven smirked, and let a chuckle rumble through his mind.

("Tony ran off like a child to get him back, and Steve went after him to make sure they don't kill each other,") Steven summarized. Suddenly Yasha's and Jonathan's laughter rang through his mind like bells, and Steven wrapped himself in the warmth of it. ("Thor will be joining us once he gets control of his temper.")

("That sounds more like Tony,") Yasha said, ("and Ada too.") he laughed and pulled back. Steven let the connection close and turned to Jonathan.

("Loki wanted something at that Museum,") Steven said, ("that whole speech and show was an act; a distraction. Find out what Hawkeye stole.") Jonathan brushed comfortingly across the jagged edges of Steven's mind and smoothed them back down.

("I'll get right on it,") Jonathan said, ("Stevie, be careful.") Jonathan added softly, and Steven smiled and sent his brother a mental hug.

("I will,") he promised and let the connection close. Once he opened his eyes he saw Natasha looking at him with a calculating stare.

"Just making sure they haven't killed each other, yet," he said with a smile. The smile fell slightly and he felt compassion well in his eyes for a minute before he spoke. "You know he would have never done it, Natalia." Natasha looked sharply at Steven, her eyes cold and sharp, and her mind full of jagged things. "Whatever Loki did, we'll break it. You have my word, I will help you find a way," he promised, then smirked, "when have I ever broken a promise?" Natasha looked back shrewdly at the man that was once her teacher before saying one word.

"Yelena," she said.

"Yelena's dead," Steven told her. Natasha looked at him with wide eyes.

"When," she asked.

"93," Steven answered. Natasha nodded and went back to the controls. Steven felt the earth shattering ring before he heard it and quickly pressed his hands over his ears to block out the sound. When it did come it was like the clear ringing of a gong, or a bell only much louder and more resounding than any bell. Steven could only wonder what had made that sound for a moment, before realizing that only Vibranium could ring like that, and it must have been a mighty blow to make it ring like that. Steve smirked as he remembered that big hammer and knew that only Mjolnir could do it.

TBC…

End Note: so that was it, Loki's fight in Stuttgart. I know you probably wanted to have the big speech but I was not in the mood to write that along with a fight scene, because I suck at fights and doing a big scene like that deserves some effort put into it. I hope it isn't too hard to follow the POV's.

Next up the Helicarrier