The Reluctant Hero

Cell Mates - Chapter 5

     The next time I woke up, it wasn't in a hospital bed, but on a cot in a cell. I quickly looked around and took inventory. No window, a combination toilet, and sink so likely little to be used from it. The cots were simply shelves built into the wall holding a small thin mat so nothing useful there. No mirrors. Smart. Just four ugly walls, a thick reinforced door, and an abundance of time on my hands. I sighed and frowned when it was uncomfortable to take a deep breath. 

     Sitting up, I felt the bandaging around my ribs. There was a cast on my arm. Otherwise, I seemed in good shape. I tried to remember how I'd gotten here or where here was but my memories were blank. That meant I'd had my memories wiped by Hydra but something had happened to me after that. 

     There was a tray of food on the floor that had clearly been slid in through a panel at the bottom of the door, but I knew better than to eat food from an enemy. My stomach growled in protest but I ignored it. I spent about an hour feeling every surface in the cell to see if there was something I could use to get out when I heard someone unlocking the door and I braced myself for a fight.

     As soon as the door opened, I saw a group of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents with a prisoner waiting for him to enter the cell. 

     "You have got to be kidding me!" their prisoner exclaimed. "I'll not be shoved into this hovel. I'm a God! Surely you've better accommodations for someone such as me!" he demanded. Their response was to shove him into the cell and slam the door shut. As a result, he stepped on the tray of food and looked down with disgust.

     While he was distracted, I was listening to the sounds of the locks and looking my cellmate over. His reputation preceded him. So this was the infamous Loki. His hands were bound with a strange device and he had a high-tech collar on that I was curious about. I didn't know much about him except Hydra's interest in him and that he wasn't on the Avengers fan list.

     Once he was done scraping food off of his boot, he looked at me still ready to attack, and said annoyed, "Be assured miscreant, despite my binds I can still make you regret touching me." Then he dismissed me and used his bound hands to bang on the door and make threats to whoever might be on the other side. I sat back down on the cot and watched him. His threats were colorful. His attire was not unlike what a motorcyclist would wear for protection but with rich emerald green and black perfectly form-fitting. 

     Tiring of his ranting, he turned back towards me. "What are you staring at?" he said walking towards the beds. I sat on the top bunk, watching him and waiting to see what he would do.

     "Are you a mute?" he asks looking at me curiously and yet somehow still annoyed.

     I sit back against the wall of my cot staying silent. 

     "Well, at least I won't have to listen to you prattle on endlessly."

     I almost laughed out loud at that, something I hadn't done in years. He'd done plenty of talking for the both of us in the hour he had been here. He seemed like a spoiled brat throwing a tantrum and belittling anyone who might listen to bolster himself up. There was still an air about him however that made me overly cautious as if he were planning something even now. Considering what I did know about him, that seemed likely. If so, he might be a means of escape. For now, I would rest, learn what I could about him, and see if I could get myself out of this place with or without his help. 

     He seemed quiet now so I laid back down and rested my eyes knowing full well if someone entered or something happened, he would alert me with his rants.

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     "Did you see that?" Tony asked Bruce as they watched through monitors.

     "Yeah, she reacted. It was brief, but she reacted to him. This may just work."

     "I wouldn't count on it yet. She didn't speak to him or interact with him. Everyone that meets him can't help but want to strangle him or kill him so it's not like she's done anything extraordinary," Tony quipped.

     "True but even pain and fear didn't get her to display any changes other than heart rate. He managed that brief-expression in one hour. I get it, he's not my favorite person either but even I have to admit that was hopeful," Bruce said quietly.

     "For her sake, I hope you're right," Tony said sincerely.