"How bad is it?" Fury asked, stepping off the helicopter as he walked up to Agent Coulson.
"That's the problem, sir. We don't know" Coulson replied.
Taking the elevator the sublevels of the building. Coulson led Fury and Agent Hill to where they were currently housing the Tesseract and the goddess that came with it.
"Dr.Selvig read an energy surge from the Tesseract four hours ago," Coulson said.
"NASA didn't authorize Selvig to go to test phase" Fury said.
"He wasn't testing it. He wasn't even in the room. Spontaneous event" Coulson said.
"It just turned itself on? Is she waking up?" Hill asked.
"We're not sure," Coulson said.
"Where are the energy levels now?" Fury asked.
"Climbing. When Selvig couldn't shut it down, we ordered evac" Coulson said.
"How long to get everyone out?" Fury asked.
"Campus should be clear in the next half hour," Coulson said.
"Do better" Fury said, sending Coulson to finish clearing the entire compound.
"Sir, evacuation may be futile," Hill said.
"We should tell them to go back to sleep?" Fury asked.
"If we can't control the Tesseract's energy, there may not be a minimum safe distance. And if this has anything to do with her perhaps we should call in the Captain" Fury said.
"No.Right now that would only complicate things. I need you to make sure the Phase 2 prototypes are shipped out" Fury said.
"Sir, is that really a priority right now?" Hill asked.
"Until such time as the world ends, we will act as though it intends to spin on. Clear out the tech below. Every piece of Phase 2 on a truck and gone" Fury said.
"Yes, sir" Hill nodded as she walked off.
Fury walked into the room housing the Tesseract and looked at the glowing blue coffin-like cage. "Talk to me, Doctor."
"Director" Selvig created, as he looked at a computer monitoring the goddesses' vitals.
"Is there anything we know for certain?" Fury asked.
"The Tesseract is misbehaving. The girl's vitals are normal" Selvig said.
"I assume you pulled the plug," Fury said.
"She's an energy source. We turn off the power, she turns it back on. If she reached peak level-"
"We prepared for this, Doctor. Harnessing energy from space" Fury said.
"But we don't have the harness. My calculations are far from complete. And she's throwing off interference, radiation. Nothing harmful, low levels of gamma radiation" Selvig said.
"That can be harmful," Fury said. "Where's Agent Barton?"
"The Hawk?" Selvig scoffed. "Up in his nest, as usual."
Suddenly the entire building began to rumble as the tesseract began spitting out energy pusles. Everyone ducked down as a beam of light, shot out and created some kind of portal across the room.
The energy shot up to the sky before dissipating into a cloud of blue smoke, leaving a man no one had ever seen standing before them.
Fury, looked up, seeing him holding a spear with a bright blue glowing orb in its center.
"Sir, please put down the spear!" Fury called out.
Loki looked at him with a smirk, using the spear to send a blast of energy his way. Agents poured into the room, guns drawn as they began shooting at him, but with his scepter, it was pretty impossible to get a shot in.
Looking straight ahead, Loki gripped his spear in anger as she spotted Freya, lying asleep in a box.
"What did you do?" he growled, taking a step closer to her before Clint rushed out in front of him, gun drawn.
Loki grabbed his arm, stopping him from making a move. "You have heart," he said before he pressed the sharp end of his scepter to Clint's chest.
Fury watched as Clint's eyes turned black, fading into a light blue before Loki let go of him and Clint put his gun back into his holster.
Using the scepter, Loki added a few more agents to his team before he walked up to the glowing coffin Freya was lying in, and used the scepter to get it open.
A low hissing sound echoed out as the top swung open. Loki looked down and smiled, having finally found Freya after 70 years. He betrayed his brother and Asgard, nearly letting the Frost Giants take over and kill Odin all for this moment.
Taking the scepter he pressed it to her chest and watched as her eyes flew open, completely black before a blue mist crossed over them and then faded into her normal brown.
Freya looked up, not recognizing where she was, and could barely remember anything before she was asleep.
"Freya."
Looking to her right, she saw Loki, smiling down at her. Completely under his spell she looked at him and smiled.
"Loki. You found me" she said, taking his hand as he pulled her up.
"Of course I did. I would never let Odin just leave you here to rot" he said, before noticing she didn't have her sword or her cape. "Where are your things?"
Freya looked down, finally realizing she didn't have them. "I'm not sure," she said.
"Don't worry. We'll find them" he said before turning to Fury who was attempting to leave with the Tesseract. "Please don't. I still need that."
"This doesn't have to get any messier" Fury said.
"Of course it does. I've come too far for anything else. I am Loki, of Asgard, and I am burdened with glorious purpose" Loki said.
"We have no quarrel with your people," Fury said.
"Is that why you're keeping a goddess trapped in a box for seventy years?!" Loki shouted. "This planet will pay for what it has done."
"Seventy years?" Freya mumbled, not realizing she had been asleep for so long.
"Yes. Odin and Thor meant to leave you here, for humans to do whatever they wish with you. But I refused" Loki said.
Freya smiled, walking up to him. "Of course you did. You always did care for me more than most. But I want to find who did this to me. I want them to pay" she said, the memory of what truly happened warped from the mind control, Loki inflicted on her.
"Who was it? Let them burn with everyone else" Loki said.
"Captain America," Freya said. "Captain America did this to me."
⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾ ⋆⁺₊⋆ ☁︎
In an empty boxing gym in the Lower East Side, Steve stood in front of a punching bag, landing blow after blow. A man out of time and haunted by his past. His fist slammed into the bag as if the memories would fly out of his head with each punch.
Steve didn't even know how he was alive. No one did really. They said when they found him they thought he was dead until the ice thawed out and they noticed his chest rise and fall with every breath.
For some reason, he survived. The first thing he thought of when he woke up 70 years later was Freya and Bucky.
He still remembered standing there on the train, holding onto her cape as she and Bucky plummeted to the ground. He prayed that they were both okay. He hoped that since she was a god, she'd survive the fall and that somehow Bucky would too.
When he woke up, he was told they never found either of them. Both were presumed dead.
With a final punch, he sent the bag flying across the room, sand falling out of it as it hit the floor. Sighing, Steve turned to grab another punching bag from the pile that was set up for him.
He had been going through many of them, hoping SHIELD would cover the bill.
"Trouble sleeping?"
Looking over he saw Nick Fury, the man who greeted him when he woke up. "I slept for 70 years, sir. I think I've had my fill" Steve said, continuing his punches.
"I am."
"Trying to get me back in the world?"
"Trying to save it," Fury said, opening the file and handing it to him.
When Steve saw the picture that was staring back at him, he froze. "What is this?" he asked, taking the folder.
"I was told you two were friends, back in the day," Fury said as Steve looked down at the picture of Freya, her eyes closed like she was asleep.
"What is this?" Steve asked again.
Fury sighed, knowing he'd be upset when he found out the truth.
"About 5 years after you went under the ice, we found her. When S.H.I.E.L.D. was still conducting searches of old HYDRA's bases. It seems she was Johann Schmidt's last kept secret" Fury said.
"So she's alive? What about Bucky?" Steve asked.
"Barnes was never found. And we were never able to wake her up. Until now" Fury told him.
"She's awake? Where is she?" Steve asked.
"Right now, we don't know. She ever tell you about someone named Loki?" Fury asked as Steve shook his head.
"Says he's from Asgard. Believes that we were holding her here against her will. Now he wants to wage war against all of us. And she's on his side" Fury said.
"No. Freya wouldn't go alone with something like that" Steve said, shaking his head.
"She would if she was being manipulated. Loki's scepter, not sure how it works but it's definitely alien. He used it to put Freya and a few of our own men under his spell. And I'm pretty sure, you're who she's after first" Fury said.
"Why me?" Steve asked.
"She thinks you tried to kill her."
⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾ ⋆⁺₊⋆ ☁︎
Freya sighed as she watched Selvig and Baron work. All three of them had a small tint of blue still swirling around in their eyes. Seeing Loki walking over she made her way over to him.
"I grow bored of this. I want my revenge" she said.
"And you shall have it, darling. I promise" he said, placing his arm around her, and resting his hand on the small of her back.
Selvig walked up to them, a smile on his face. "The Tesseract has shown me so much. It's more than knowledge. It's truth."
"I know. What did it show you, Agent Barton?" Loki asked.
"My next target," Barton said.
"Tell me what you need," Loki said.
"I need a distraction," Barton said, grabbing his bow. "And an eyeball."
Loki nodded as Barton walked off, putting his own plan together. "And Freya? What have you seen?" Loki asked.
"A future," she said, smiling. "Our future."
"Well don't skip the details," he said.
"I see you, as the rightful King of Asgard. And this measly planet, if you shall want it" she told him.
"And where will you?" he asked.
"Right by your side, of course," she said, pressing her lips to his. "As Queen."
⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾ ⋆⁺₊⋆ ☁︎
Seeing the old man about to be blasted with Loki's scepter, Steve jumped in front of him, the blast connecting with his shield and blasting right back into Loki who fell to the ground with a groan.
"Where is Freya?" Steve asked.
"The soldier" Loki smirked as he stood up. "The man out of time."
"I'm not the one who's out of time," Steve said as Natasha flew over in a quinjet, a large gun hanging underneath.
"Loki" her voice sounded from over the speakers. "Drop the weapon and stand down."
Loki sent a blast from the scepter that Natasha was barely able to dodge. Steve threw his shield at him before running over, and punching him across the face.
The crowd that Loki forced to gather around him began to run as Loki used the scepter to knock Steve to the ground.
Steve stood back up, throwing his shield but Loki was easily able to dodge it and deflected any punches that Steve through at him.
"You will pay for your people did to Freya," Loki said, holding his scepter against Steve's head. "Now kneel."
"Not today," Steve said, grabbing the shield and using it as leverage to flip himself over and knock Loki to the ground.
Hearing music blasting from behind them they turned around, confused.
Steve looked up seeing what he recognized from the briefing documents as Iron Man, Tony Stark.
Tony sent a blast from him at the scepter, sending it flying as Loki's grip on it loosened.
With his scepter gone, Steve kicked Loki in the chest, sending him flying as he lay on the ground, groaning in pain.
"Make your move reindeer games," Tony said as he landed next to Steve.
Loki looked up at the pair, holding up his hands in defense.
"Good move," Tony said.
Steve huffed, looking over at him. "Mr.Stark," he said.
"Captain."