Marvel - The Blood God

"That nuisance, Silik, seems to be dead?"

On a private plane en route to Stuttgart, Mephisto glanced westward, his expression sharp and calculating. He had expected the Blood God to be a useful pawn to manipulate, but Silik had perished far too quickly for his liking.

"That damned Blood God... Never mind. This is more important," Mephisto muttered under his breath before shifting his attention back to the man in green seated across from him.

Loki sat watching the movie Thor on a tablet, loudly criticizing it. "The idiot playing me doesn't even resemble me. My hairline isn't that high! And what is this? The actor playing Thor is uncanny. When I conquer Earth, I'll capture him and make him reenact Thor losing every single day for my amusement.

"Wait, hold on..." Loki's eyes narrowed. "How does the writer know I'm not Odin's real son? Thor didn't know back then!"

Mephisto smirked at Loki's frustration. Silently, his form dissolved into a plume of black smoke, slipping unnoticed into the psychic scepter at Loki's side.

"Mind Stone, Space Stone, cosmic fleet... Blood God, Ancient One—you won't see what's coming. Soon, I'll bring you a surprise. A big one," Mephisto's voice echoed faintly within the scepter, a sinister laugh following.

Loki, oblivious to Mephisto's presence, finished the movie with a scowl. When it ended, he stood, grumbling. At that moment, Hawkeye approached.

"We've arrived in Stuttgart," Hawkeye said curtly.

"Excellent. Everything is proceeding as planned." Loki's form shimmered briefly, his green-and-gold outfit replaced with a tailored suit. He nodded in approval at his transformation before exiting the plane.

While Hawkeye and a team of mercenaries headed to the research institute to steal the iridium needed for their plans, Loki attended a gala. True to his style, he staged a dramatic and violent entrance, forcing the terrified crowd to kneel before him. However, unlike in the film, where he surrendered as soon as Iron Man arrived, this encounter unfolded differently.

Iron Man and Ivan Vanko arrived to subdue Loki. What followed was a brutal takedown. Ivan's electric whips lashed out, crackling with energy, leaving Loki momentarily stunned. Though uninjured thanks to his Asgardian physiology and enchanted suit, Loki's hair stood comically on end from the shocks.

"You're all talk," Ivan sneered, swinging his whip again.

Tony launched a small missile that exploded at Loki's feet, sending him sprawling. "Let's see how much more godlike he feels after this," Tony quipped, readying another repulsor blast.

Loki growled in frustration. These two didn't even give him a chance to fake surrender. He had planned to let himself be captured, but now he was being humiliated.

Captain America intervened, his voice stern. "Enough! We need him alive to find the Tesseract."

"Fine," Tony muttered, lowering his weapons. Ivan reluctantly did the same, muttering something in Russian.

Just then, a crack of thunder split the sky, and Loki's face lit up with genuine relief. "Brother, you're finally here!" he cried, his voice almost trembling with emotion.

The others turned to see Thor descend in a flash of lightning, Mjolnir in hand. His expression was a mix of fury and determination.

"You dare attack my brother?" Thor bellowed, his voice echoing over the stunned crowd.

The onlookers gasped. "He's flying! That's got to be the real Thor," someone whispered. Another chimed in, "So, that means the other guy was the real Loki?"

Thor ignored the murmurs. Instead, he glared at Tony and Ivan. "Explain yourselves! Why is my brother beaten like this?"

Tony shrugged. "He killed over a hundred people in two days. Not exactly 'brother of the year' material."

Thor hesitated, then muttered, "He's adopted." The bystanders, hearing this, stifled laughs, and Loki shot his brother a venomous glare.

Before the situation could escalate further, Natasha Romanoff piloted the Quinjet overhead, her voice booming through the speakers. "Wrap it up. We've got what we need. Time to return to the carrier."

With reluctant nods, the group departed, Loki now in custody. However, as they ascended into the sky, whispers among the crowd grew uneasy.

"Thor and Loki appearing at the same time? Could this mean another alien invasion?" someone murmured.

Unfortunately, their fears were well-founded.

Back on the S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier, Thor revealed the truth to the team. "Loki plans to bring an army of Chitauri from deep space to Earth. He'll use the Tesseract to create a portal for their invasion."

Dr. Banner rubbed his temples. "An alien army... So, he kidnapped Dr. Selvig to help stabilize the portal."

"And Hawkeye stole the iridium as a stabilizing element," Tony added. "But the bigger question is: why did Loki allow himself to be captured?"

Natasha's eyes narrowed. "We could interrogate him. He doesn't strike me as particularly tough."

"No!" Thor snapped. "He's a prince of Asgard. You will not torture him."

Natasha rolled her eyes but refrained from arguing. Thor's Asgardian strength—and the realm's potential wrath—made confrontation unwise.

Instead, she muttered, "Fine. Psychological tactics it is. I'll speak to Fury."

Unbeknownst to the others, Loki's capture was all part of his plan. Inside the specially made cell designed to hold him, Loki smirked, his hands combing through his hair. His mind was focused on revenge.

"Ivan Vanko. Tony Stark. You'll both pay for this humiliation," Loki seethed.

Meanwhile, outside the cell, a disguised agent passed unnoticed. Their subtle nod confirmed Loki's suspicions: everything was proceeding according to plan.

Elsewhere, in the remote lands of Wakanda, an outer tribal village faced a brutal invasion by mercenaries. They rounded up the villagers, ransacking homes in search of valuables.

At a hidden observation post, Frank Castle scowled at the monitor, addressing General Hale. "Your methods are heavy-handed. This isn't how S.H.I.E.L.D. operates."

General Hale, resolute and unflinching, replied, "We need to determine Wakanda's true strength. Only then can the Navy formulate an appropriate attack strategy."

"War isn't a game, General," Frank said grimly.

"America doesn't tolerate threats," Hale shot back. "And the higher-ups are very interested in Wakanda's vibranium."

Before Frank could argue further, the screen showed Wakandan soldiers arriving. Clad in cloaks that shimmered with energy, they moved as a disciplined force. When the mercenaries opened fire, the cloaks lit up, absorbing the bullets effortlessly.

Then, the Wakandan warriors retaliated. Energy blasts from their vibranium spears tore through the mercenaries with precision. In moments, the attackers were routed.

Hale's expression darkened. "Energy weapons and shields... The intel was accurate."

Frank muttered under his breath. "I hope we're wrong about the rest."

The next morning, tensions on the helicarrier boiled over. Tony Stark had hacked into S.H.I.E.L.D.'s systems, uncovering their plans to use the Tesseract to build weapons of mass destruction. Steve Rogers confronted Fury, holding up an energy rifle. "You're no different than Hydra."

Fury shot back, "We're trying to protect the planet!"

Thor's booming voice interrupted. "Your actions only draw more attention from the cosmos! You've invited war!"

Amid the escalating argument, none noticed the Mind Stone's subtle glow. The scepter's influence stoked their emotions, pushing them closer to conflict.

Suddenly, an explosion rocked the carrier. Hawkeye, under Loki's control, had sabotaged one of its engines. As chaos erupted, agents revealed themselves as traitors. Among them was Phil Coulson, who captured Tony and Rumlow.

Loki sneered at Tony from within the secured cage. "Last night was amusing. I hope you're enjoying this even more."

Before Tony could retort, Loki pressed the scepter to his chest. Without the protection of his arc reactor, Tony Stark fell under Loki's control. The Avengers were one step closer to unraveling.