The Avengers

Chapter 12

In the Helicarrier Bridge, later that day, fury gathers Tony and Steve back into the Briefing room everyone there has a look as if in a daze. A look of numb shock is shown on their devastated faces. FURY "These were in Phil Coulson's jacket. Guess he never did get you to sign them". Fury throws Coulson's Captain America trading cards on the table towards Steve. Steve picks them up, stained with blood. FURY "We're dead in the air up here. Our communications, location of the cube, Banner, Thor. I got nothing for you. Lost my one good eye. Maybe I had that coming. Yes, we were going to build an arsenal with the Tesseract. I never put all my chips on that number though, because I was playing something even riskier. There was an idea, Stark knows this, called The Avengers Initiative. The idea was to bring together a group of remarkable people, see if they could become something more. See if they could work together when we needed them to, to fight the battles that we never could. Phil Coulson died still believing in that idea, in heroes". Tony gets up and walks off, not wanting to hear it anymore. FURY "Well, it's an old-fashioned notion".

Thor walks out far into the meadow. He looks down at Mjollnir.

In an Abandoned building, Banner wakes up, in human form. He looks around and sees he is in a pile of rubble and looks up at the open ceiling he crashed in and he is completely naked. A security guard stands there, amazed. SECURITY GUARD "You fell out of the sky". BANNER, coming to, "Did I hurt anybody?". SECURITY GUARD "There's nobody around here to get hurt. You did scare the hell out of some pigeons through". BANNER "Lucky". SECURITY GUARD "Or just good aim. You were awake when you fell". BANNER "You saw?". SECURITY GUARD "The whole thing, right through the ceiling. Big and green and buck ass nude. Here...". He throws Banner a pair of big pants. Banner pull on his pants. SECURITY "I didn't think those would fit you until you shrunk down to a regular size fella". BANNER "Thank you". SECURITY GUARD "Are you an alien?". BANNER "What?". SECURITY "From outer space, an alien?". BANNER "No". SECURITY "Well then, son, you've got a condition".

In the Helicarrier Medical room, Alex is strapped down. Natasha watches over her as Alex tries to shake off Loki's mind control. NATASHA "Alex, you're gonna be alright". ALEX REID "You know that? Is that what you know? I got... I gotta go in though. I gotta flush him out". NATASHA "We don't have that long, it's gonna take time". ALEX REID "I don't understand. Have you ever had someone take your brain and play with it? Pull you out and send something else in? Do you know what it's like to be unmade?". NATASHA "You know that I do". ALEX REID "Why am I back? How did you get him out?". NATASHA "Cognitive recalibration. I hit you hard in the head". ALEX REID "Thanks. (Natasha unfastens the restraints) Tasha, how many agents?". NATASHA "Don't. Don't do that to yourself, Alex. This is Loki. This is monsters and magic and nothing we were ever trained for". ALEX REID "Loki, he got away?". NATASHA "Yeah. I don't suppose you know where?". ALEX REID "I didn't need to know. I didn't ask. He's gonna make his play soon through. Today". NATASHA "We gotta stop him". ALEX REID "Yeah? Who's we?". NATSAH "I don't know. Who's left". ALEX REID "Well, if I put an arrow in Loki's eye socket, I'd sleep better I suppose". NATASHA "Now you sound like you". Natasha sits next to her work partner and friend. ALEX REID "But you don't. you're a spy, not a soldier. Now you want to wade into a war. Why? What did Loki do to you?". NATASHA "He didn't, I just...", she pauses. ALEX REID "Natasha". NATASHA "I've been compromised. I got red in my ledger. I'd like to wipe it out".

In the Helicarrier Detention Section, Tony looks at the empty cell container. He stands not saying a word. Steve walks in. STEVE "Was he married?". TONY "No. There was an uh... cellist, I think". STEVE "I'm sorry. He seemed like a good man". TONY "He was an idiot". STEVE "Why? For believing?". TONY "For taking on Loki alone". STEVE "He was doing his job". TONY "He was out of his league. He should have waited. He should have...". STEVE "Sometimes there isn't a way out, Tony". TONY, walks away, "Right. How did that work for him?". STEVE "Is this the first time you've lost a soldier?". TONY, turns around sharply, "We are not a soldier! I am not marching to Fury's fife!". STEVE "Neither am I! He's got the same blood on his hands as Loki does. Right now we've got to put that aside and get this done. Now Loki needs a power source if we can put together a list...". TONY, looking at the blood-stained wall, "He made it personal". STEVE "That's not the point". TONY "That is not the point. That's Loki's point. He hit us all right where we live. Why?". STEVE "To tear us apart". TONY "He had to conquer his greed, but he knows he has to take us to win right? That's what he wants. He wants to beat us and he wants to be seen doing it. He wants an audience". STEVE "Right, I caught his act at Stuttengard". TONY "Yeah. That's just a preview, this is opening night. Loki's a full-tilt diva. He wants flowers, he wants parades, he wants a monument built in the skies with his name plastered... Son-of-a-bitch!".