"How did she get her powers?", Thor asked with incredulity as his gaze remained fixed on the familiar face in the interrogation room. Kara was someone he and his brother knew, but at this moment, she seemed to be a whole different person in general.
"I... have no idea, brother," Loki replied. Thor could sense some sort of longingness in his brother's voice.
Kara was sitting on the chair with an unamused expression on her features as none other than the captain himself sat across her. Of all the questions Steve had asked her, she stayed apathetic and uncooperative.
The rest of the Avengers watched the scene unfold behind the one-way mirror of the interrogation room.
Tony was shaking his head, Natasha and Rhodey had their arms crossed, Sam was listening intently, Wanda and Vision stood beside each other, and Clint scoffed upon hearing Kara yawn.
"I think I know how she got her powers," Wanda suddenly piped up, answering Thor's question. Everyone tore their gazes from the soldier and the perpetrator and shifted their focus on her.
"How?", Tony asked. Loki also seemed to take interest in what she has to say.
"The same way Pietro and I got ours," she replied softly, looking down at her glowing hands. It was as if a painful memory had just crossed her mind.
"You mean Strucker? She was one of Strucker's lab rats, too?", Clint inquired, to which Wanda nodded at.
"I've seen her every time Strucker would take us out of our cells to be experimented on. Her cell was on the other wing of the base along with the others. We never spoke, but our eyes would meet once in a while. But, I'm not sure if she still recognized me," Wanda explained.
Everyone got startled upon hearing a loud thump from the inside of the room. Steve had just slammed his hands on the table that separated the both of them, obviously irritated.
Kara, on the other hand, sat calmly with a smug smile on her face.
"She isn't cooperating," Sam remarked. Thor then shifted to face Loki.
"No sh*t, Sherlock," Stark replied sarcastically, also seemingly annoyed with the stubbornness of the woman.
"Brother, why don't you go in there and interrogate Lady Kara?", Thor suggested. The rest of the team exchanged glances as if they were considering the suggestion. Meanwhile, Loki raised an eyebrow in confusion.
"You must be joking, brother. If she isn't cooperating with Rogers, what makes you think she'll cooperate with me? Me, of all people," he retorted.
"You and I are the only ones in this room who have made her acquaintance before. The only difference between us is that...", Thor trailed off. Loki sighed and bowed his head. Everyone was intrigued.
What had happened?
"There is no need to refresh my memory," the younger brother replied in defeat. Thor patted his back reassuringly.
"There is no harm in trying, Loki," the older brother said encouragingly.
The raven-haired god approached the door which led to the interrogation room. He pressed the button to alert Steve who was in the middle of an intense staring session with Kara.
"What is it?", Steve asked, slight annoyance evident in his tone as he opened the door slightly.
"Let me speak with her," Loki stated boldly, catching the captain slightly off-guard.
"You? Can you get something out of her?", the ninety-five-year-old inquired, making the god laugh dryly.
"I guarantee that I can get more out of her in a minute than what you've been doing for the past hour," Loki responded confidently, pushing past Steve so that he himself could enter the room.
The super-soldier glared at him as he walked past but joined the rest of the team as they watched what was yet to unfold.
Loki walked towards Kara, pulling a chair and sitting down in front of her. Kara raised an eyebrow.
"Hello, love," he started with a smirk.
"Love?!" Everyone at the other side of the one-way mirror exclaimed in unison - all except the God of Thunder, who merely eyed them weirdly. "What? Is not that a common pet name amongst Midgardians?"
"Uh-uh, but since when did Loki call anyone, love, hmm?" Tony added, earning nods of agreement from the rest.
"Do not call me that," Kara spat at him and glared daggers through his skull - a gesture to which the prince only chuckled at.
"Why? Brings back memories?", he inquired, grinning mischievously. Kara desperately wanted to smack that smirk off his face. The God of Mischief studied her as she violently yanked her arms from the cuffs that held her in place.
He leaned forward and clamped his hands together. "What's the matter? I thought you liked bondage."
Kara's head jolted upwards at his risky statement, obviously flustered and appalled. Even the Avengers themselves could not believe what they were hearing. Seeing as Thor was the only one not looking surprised, they all stared at him.
"What?", Thor asked dumbfoundedly.
"You've got a lot of explaining to do when this is over," Natasha stated and the rest nodded in agreement. The blonde god just shrugged.
"I swear if you don't shut up, I'm taking you down," Kara threatened as she clenched her jaw. He was starting to get on her nerves, yet Loki was really enjoying this.
"I missed you," he said, catching her off-guard a bit. He smiled as he noticed her furious expression falter at his words. Kara was quick to recompose herself, however.
"Is that why you're here? To f**king flirt with me?", she scoffed.
Behind the glass, Steve rolled his eyes and muttered to himself, "Language." Tony stifled a laugh.
"Maybe, maybe not," Laufeyson simply replied with a wink. Kara leaned back in her seat, arms crossed. "Well, you better decide quickly before I smack that grin off your face."
"Ooh, feisty." Sam remarked, much to everyone's confusion. He looked at them incredulously. "What? I'm just pointing out facts."
"I see you gained powers," Loki said after a minute of silence. Kara laughed dryly. "Thanks for noticing, Captain Obvious."
"How did you acquire them?", he continued, leaning forward a bit. "Like I'm telling you.", Kara replied, smirking and rolling her eyes.
"Wanda said you were one of Strucker's subjects of experimentation," Loki added, and the color drained from her face.
"I...", she trailed off, not expecting him to know immediately.
Loki analyzed her features. The color drained from her face the moment he had mentioned Strucker's name. Her breathing quickened its pace, and her eyes fell to the floor.
Kara must've been mistreated.
"Why did you ask then if you already knew?", she snapped back despite avoiding Loki's intense stare.
"Do you know that Strucker is now dead?", Loki asked, ignoring her question. Kara smirked at this.
"Wolfgang is. His son, however, is very much alive," she replied, meeting his gaze. Loki looked surprised at this. The rest of the Avengers were, too.
"He has a son?", he asked. Kara nodded and seemed surprised that they had no idea either. She laughed dryly. "What, Earth's mightiest heroes don't know? That's odd."
"Ask her to tell you more," Steve muttered through the earpiece.
"Go on," Loki urged Kara to continue.
"His name is Werner von Strucker. Before your team captured his father, Werner had already established a separate post from Wolfgang's, possibly so he can freely conduct experiments without any bureaucracy involved," Kara answered matter-of-factly.
"I was one of Werner's subjects. Your friend and her brother were Wolfgang's," she added.
"But they retrieved my scepter in Wolfgang's base. How could Werner experiment on more humans without the scepter?", Loki asked.
Kara rolled her eyes. "Don't be too full of yourself. The scepter wasn't the only powerful thing left after the Battle of New York, Loki. Hundreds of Chitauri weapons were spread across the city, thanks to you."
Loki rolled his eyes. "Are you working for Werner?", he further inquired.
"Was. I escaped a few days ago," she admitted, her voice noticeably getting softer.
"Why?"
Kara sighed before letting her eyes meet those of the god before her. "He..." she trailed off, clenching her jaw as she reminisced the horrors. "... he tortured me and forced me to kidnap random people as subjects for his experiments because there's been some sort of... shortage. He thought my powers would come in handy," Kara stated, trying to appear unaffected at the memory.
Loki could see right through her, though. "So, you were his minion."
"It wasn't my choice," she responded with her eyes fixated on her shoes.
"That doesn't explain why you were in our base in Tennessee," Fury butted in, entering the room and approaching the pair.
Kara stared Fury down as he walked towards her - her gaze lingering on the signature eyepatch that the director wore over his head.
"So, why were you there?", Fury asked, now standing beside her.
"Your Avenger and her brother weren't Strucker's only subjects," she started. "I got wind of the others being rescued by SHIELD - those that survived the tests - along with the main man himself, Strucker," she explained. Fury noticed her tone changing as she mentioned the man who tortured her.
Loki and Fury looked at each other, then back at the young lady before them.
"You were looking for him, why?"
With this, Kara fell silent. She held her stare for as long as she could, and Loki could see some gloss beginning to form in her eyes.
"I'm going to kill him."
Something in Loki shifted. Usually, the thought of murder and homicide did not bother him - heck, he's murdered a fair share of beings while under the influence of the scepter - but, to hear this from a person such as Kara, given their shared history, it suddenly felt disturbing.
"Unfortunately, we can't help you with that. We know what we can help you with, though," Fury spoke up after a moment of silence. Kara's head snapped up. She gave him a look as if to say 'go on'.
"You can work with us," the director added, making Kara laugh humorlessly.
"Ha! Yeah, right. What's in it for me?", she asked, looking mildly interested. Fury smiled.
"Redemption."
Kara's tough demeanor faltered once more.
"It's why you escaped, right? You feel guilty for involving innocent people in Strucker's illegal experiments. You want to make things right," the director added.
"That sounds tempting, it does. Sadly, I have no intentions of being one of... you. I'm not one, I tell you."
"Sadly, I'm afraid you don't have a choice," Fury muttered, mocking her. This made Kara furrow her eyebrows in puzzlement. "What?"
"You're staying here until you've got those powers under control, otherwise you pose as a threat," he added.
Kara couldn't believe what she was hearing. She squinted her eyes at him. "And... if I refuse?"
"Otherwise, you're looking at a lifetime in prison for your confession of partaking in crimes against humanity."
Kara was left speechless at this. Her mouth slightly fell open, and her legs began to fidget. The director then turned his full attention to Loki, who gave him a confused look.
"It's settled, then. And, I am putting you..." Fury trailed off, pointing to the Asgardian prince before him. "...Mr. Laufeyson, in charge of her."