Contest of Champions

38

Slowly, I shove myself into a sitting position, looking up at the young contender. Peter fidgets, suddenly looking very uncomfortable to be standing there. He's wearing a dark red suit, a similar style to the one he wore on the chariot, but this one looks like it's made of more than just fabric.

The silence seems to make Peter nervous. "Peter, Peter Parker," he adds, as if I don't know who he is. "My made up name is Spiderman."

"I know who you are," I tell him, rising to my feet. Despite himself, Peter takes a step back, as if afraid I will stab him or something. "Relax, I'm not going to hurt you. Not yet, anyway."

"Good, because I didn't want to have to hurt you," Peter says bravely, crossing his arms over his chest. As if.

I snort and pick up my spear. "Did you activate the beam?"

Peter nods. "Yes."

"Why?" I ask.

Peter frowns. "Did you want to die?"

"No," I scoff. "I just want to know why you saved my life."

For a moment, Peter is quiet. "I-I didn't think you should die, out there. No one deserves that."

"Stark wouldn't agree," I mutter, but he hears me.

"I'm not exactly Tony Stark."

I furrow my brow. "Peter, you're a contender in the Contest of Champions. That isn't exactly the approach to winning."

The firm, although apprehensive, look on Peter's face says it all. "How is winning worth it if you have to take other lives to do it?"

I tilt my head, trying not to think about all the people I've already killed. "Point acknowledged, although I don't agree. Is anyone else on this ship?"

Peter shakes his head, still looking nervous. "Not that I've seen."

"Good," I say. "Is there any other way for someone to board without the tractor beam?"

He thinks for a second. "Yes, the hangar bay."

"What weapons do you have?"

Peter gestures to his suit. "Here."

"The Avengers are trying to kill me," I say. "They're going to try to land here and hunt me down."

"We can go to the surveillance room," Peter tells me. "All the monitors are there. We'll be able to see everything."

"Let's go, then!" I exclaim, gesturing with my retracted spear. "Lead the way, Spiderman."

The two of us race down the ship's corridors, over catwalks crossing large chambers with ships hanging beneath us, and stop before a large, cube-shaped room, sitting in the middle of a platform. Peter leads the way inside, where monitors cover the wall, showing us all aspects of the ship.

"The cockpit has the controls," Peter tells me as I walk up to the panels, casting my eyes over the monitors. "But the steering ones don't work. I checked."

There's silence as I pivot, taking in all the screens. I can see almost every aspect of the ship from here.

"The cockpit has a window," Peter says, almost anxiously. It's like the silence makes him nervous. "It's where I powered up the tractor beam. I didn't know what to call this area besides surveillance room."

"Surveillance room is a good name," I tell Peter. Glancing at the monitors, I identify the hangar bay and point to the screen. "Keep an eye on that monitor. That's where they will be coming in."

"Yes, Loki," Peter says. "What are you doing?"

"Memorizing the ship's layout," I say. "At least three of them will be landing, knowing I'm on this ship. No cannon has sounded, so they know I'm not dead. I just killed one of their own. It kind of ticked them off. They will be entering that hangar to track me down and kill me. And you, too, once they know you're here. And they probably guess someone is."

Peter shifts his weight from one foot to the other as I continue to scan the monitors, my eyes taking in every detail they can offer me. "Do you know who's after us?"

"Brock Rumlow from Three, Okoye from Wakanda, and Clint Barton from Two," I answer. "Natasha from Two and Killmonger from Wakanda are still on the asteroid, along with Veers from Eight."

But she may not be with them, anymore.

I brush aside that thought and straighten. "We have no cover here. We need to find a place to hide from the Avengers."

"I know a couple places," Peter volunteers. "I've been here since yesterday."

I almost can't believe this whole thing only started yesterday. It feels like a lifetime already. But I just nod. "All right, then. We hide, catch them unawares. They know we're here, but we have the advantage."

Peter frowns. "What's that, Loki?"

"We know the ship. They don't."

Peter opens his mouth to speak but then his expression changes and he points excitedly at the hangar bay. "Three pods are landing!"

I turn, seeing that indeed, three pods are slowly entering the bay and landing. My spear expands in my hand and I jab it into the closest monitor, ignoring the shower of sparks and moving onto the next one. Peter gets the gist of what I'm trying to do and holds his wrists out, hands pointing downward as webs shoot out at the monitors, somehow managing to cause the screens to short circuit. Together, we disable all the monitors.

"Take me to the hiding place, kid," I order as the last monitor sparks and dies. "Quickly."

Nodding, Peter scurries out of the room, his mask snapping up and over his face. I follow and we sprint down the corridors, Peter alternating between leaping from the floor to the walls and swinging by his webs from the ceiling. As I glance around, noting the details of the passages and comparing them to the map in my head, it appears he's taking me to the crew's quarters.

There's no sign of the Avengers or anyone else as we reach the section of the ship designated for the nonexistent crew. We enter and I close the door behind us, locking it from the panel. Once I'm sure it's secure, I turn around.

Peter crouches on the table, hands dangling before him and his mask off. "So," he starts tensely. "Does this mean we have an alliance?"

Although the answer is rather obvious, I don't confirm it right away. I just think. Over the last two days, I've been in more fights, with more temporary allies, than I would have ever thought would happen. Peter Parker of District Four is my third ally.

Why am I doing this? Why am I taking on allies? This isn't who I am. I don't side with people easily. I don't trust. But I suppose Hogun and Peter, they helped me first. They saved my life, I have to admit. An alliance, I suppose, makes sense. Also, I can't just betray them now, after working with them. An alliance is the only rational step now.

Veers is the one ally who makes no sense whatsoever.

She killed Yon-Rogg for you.

"Yes," I tell Peter. "We have an alliance. Against the Avengers."