Mastering Illusions

38

Lunch is a noisy, friendly affair, everyone grouping together for the meal. Last year, the contenders all sat separate, but nobody feels like doing that this year, apparently. The tables are moved so they are all together.

Veers and I meet up, exchanging quick notes on the champions we've interacted with. "I think Hank Pym and Hope Van Dyne are definite possibilities for allies," I tell her in a low voice. "Especially as we will need tech people, considering there are so many of them here."

"A former Avenger," Veers replies in a thoughtful voice. "Wonder what Thanos would think of that?"

Oh, right. I had already shown my sympathies toward the defeated Avengers through my volunteering for Heimdall last Contest. If I ally with another one, it might show a pattern Thanos doesn't like.

Screw that, Thanos already doesn't like me. As long as I win, right? All of my allies will be lost or dropped off along the way. I have to win alone. I have to. "What did you find out?"

"Bruce Banner doesn't like you," Veers says. "Not quite sure why, but he doesn't."

Bruce Banner, District Two. I'd killed Natasha Romanoff, the contender from his district, last year. He'd probably mentored her. "How does he feel about you?"

"He likes me at least slightly better than you," Veers says. "But I'm not sure he thinks that much of me."

Well, I'm not sure how that fits into my current theory. Veers had been responsible for the death of the other District Two contender, Clint Barton. So did Bruce know the Black Widow outside of Contest affairs? Interesting, interesting.

"Eddie seems like a decent guy," Veers continues. "Mutters to himself a lot and is more often than not drenched in sweat. But I don't like the idea of teaming up with a symbiote. Not after Carnage."

"Would you rather fight him?" I ask quietly. "We can discuss him more later, though. Let's get back to our scouting."

Veers gives me a tight smile before we head to the tables with our lunches, making sure to sit together. The conversation is easy, most everyone joining in at some point. And it shows me clearly just how much Veers and I are outsiders in this group. The only advantages we have are that several of them seem to feel they owe me for my courtesies to their dead contenders.

Afterwards, we divide to conquer once more. I do some survival skills training with Strange and Mordo, but while Mordo is grim but decent enough, Strange is arrogant. The training devolves into a sorcery contest – Strange wins, but only because I decide killing him would be detrimental right now. I make the decision to kill him in the arena instead.

I end up training with T'Challa and Shuri for a while, doing more survival stuff, but I can tell that an alliance with them would never work. I killed one of their contenders, and the other was killed by someone who was saving me. T'Challa is very reserved and incredibly focused, and Shuri makes wisecracks while we work. I dislike both of them, and the feeling is mutual. After doing some hand-to-hand combat with Ava Starr, I run into Tony Stark at the shooting range, where he's with Peggy Carter. She's teaching him how to shoot a handgun.

"Ah, Rock of Ages," Tony greets me, noticing me standing there. "How nice of you to join us." He turns away from the target, handing me the pistol he'd been attempting to shoot. "Here. Have a go."

He saunters off, leaving me with Peggy Carter. I turn to look at her, still holding the pistol. "Um, hello," I say cautiously.

The old Avenger looks at me with a thin smile. "Loki Odinson," she returns. "Ever handle a gun before?"

"No, not really," I reply. "I mean, I understand the basic concept. Aim, pull the trigger, and there you have it. Am I correct?"

"In the bare theory," Peggy replied dryly. "But there's a little more to it than just that." She steps beside me and gestures to the gun. "May I?"