Special Agent Loki Laufeyson

Chapter 63

As soon as Loki was shoved into the small cell in the spaceship, his legs and arms were chained to the wall. He was forced to sit in the cramped space, hands still bound together and eyes still blindfolded. There, he was left alone.

He felt the spaceship take off and steeled himself. He had no idea where the final destination was; he could only hope there was a stop in between Midgard and Thanos. Loki had to get to Bishop, destroy the Photon Guard, and get out of there before the Mad Titan made an appearance.

Loki didn't know how long it had been before the spaceship seemed to be slowing. He cocked his head, frowning as he heard the sound of boarding gear clicking into place. He strained his ears to catch the screaming of bullets from the defending vessel, but none came.

That was odd.

A key clinked in the lock and the door to his cell was shoved open. A hand grasped his arm as he heard the lock mechanism on the chains holding him up against the wall release. Judging by the grip, it was Agent Sniper.

"Where are we?" Loki asked.

"You'll see," Sniper responded, her voice only affirming it was her. She dragged him up and pulled him after her. Loki offered no resistance as he followed, his hands still bound and his eyes still covered. He felt his muscles tensing as adrenaline rushed through his veins. This could very well be it for him. One wrong move....

Bishop dies.

I die.

And I'll let NCIS down.

I'll let Gibbs down.

****

"Tell me you have something, Abs," Gibbs said, entering the lab and promptly placing a Caf-Pow on the desk.

Abby scooped up the caffeinated drink and took a long sip through the red straw, sighing in satisfaction. "Thank you, Gibbs."

"The blood does belong to Bishop," Banner said, glancing up from his work in the adjacent room. Large-framed safety glasses hid half of his face, giving him a very dorky look.

Behind Gibbs, DiNozzo sighed, his expression a mix of weariness and determination. It was late, after midnight, yet nobody had made a move to fall asleep yet. "We guessed that."

Abby gave Gibbs a calculating look, pursing her lips. "You're not here for the analysis on the blood, are you?" she asked. When Gibbs shook his head, Abby set the Caf-Pow down and turned. "You're here to see if I had any luck modifying the team's weapons."

"Something along those lines," Gibbs affirmed as he and DiNozzo moved to see Abby's display.

"With Bruce's and Stark's help, I've been able to create ammunition for you that is much more powerful and effective than what you were using before," Abby said, gesturing to the containers of bullets on her table. "I'd ask if you want a demonstration, but I'd probably blow you all up in doing so, so we'll skip that part."

"Much appreciated, Abby," DiNozzo muttered.

"Stark also upgraded your bulletproof vests as well as your guns, just so they can handle the new bullets. Everything is ready." She frowned. "Do you really think there will be another alien attack?"

Gibbs nodded. "Loki seems to think so."

Banner groaned. "Oh, I hope not."

****

Agent Sniper led Loki through the spaceship to a sealed bridge, the two crossing over it into the other vessel. Loki frowned as she continued to direct him forward. There were no bodies in his path, no obstacles for him to step over. It was almost like there had been...no resistance.

Odd, that.

Sniper came to a stop, Loki halting beside her. The blindfold was removed from his eyes and he could see once more. He blinked.

The place was a mess. But not with the carnage from a battle. Machinery and wires littered the walls, practically blanketing them, but they had been placed there purposefully. They were in a room not too much wider than a corridor, facing a hooded man and Clare Leopard.

Bishop was nowhere to be seen.

The hooded man spread his hands. "Welcome, Loki."

It was the same voice from earlier, the same voice as the son of Thanos. The same voice that had issued from the Chitauri mask back at Bishop's house.

"Space Walker," Loki said quietly.

"Precisely," the Space Walker affirmed, clasping his hands behind his back. His feet floated an inch above the ground. "You, of course, know my associates, Clare Leopard and Agent Sniper."

Loki didn't even glance at either of the two women. He kept his gaze pinned on the Walker. "Why are you doing this? Why the Photon Guard? Why Bishop?"

"This has been my dream for a long time," the Walker said. "You don't understand, Loki. Before I was adopted by our master, I was an astronaut, a physicist."

"You're Lucas Sharpe," Loki realized.

He smiled slightly. "Yes, I am. I built the Photon Guard, spent all of my time perfecting it under the paranoid eye of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Director Fury."

"But then it exploded."

Sharpe hissed, baring his teeth angrily. "Unfortunately, yes. My body was horribly damaged in the explosion that killed my entire crew. If it wasn't for Thanos, I would be dead."

"Why are you here?" Loki asked, glancing around as he tried to figure out where "here" was.

"To finish my work, of course," Sharpe said. "I received a revelation while away from this confining world. I knew how to successfully create the Photon Guard, how to eliminate the bugs and impurities that had destroyed the first one. With the help of Leopard and the crew of the Lunar Project, we were able to build the Phenomenon. It has already been implemented, here in the International Space Station, and it is ready for its first performance."

"Why?" Loki persisted. International Space Station...so that's where we are. Explains the lack of resistance. Midgardians don't expect pirates the way other beings do.

"You know why," Sharpe answered. "Father must be obeyed. Father must create balance. And you know what he needs to do that."

"How do you expect to get the Stones with the Phenomenon?" Loki asked.

Sharpe smiled and placed his hand on a switch. With a start, Loki realized too late that the Phenomenon had been sitting before him the entire time. As Sharpe said, it was ready to go.

"Like this."

And Sharpe flipped the switch.