Loki's Pain

Chapter Thirty- Change is Coming

Thanos sat calmly on his throne, contemplating his current situation. Despite his utter calm, he was not happy. Maw had assured him of their success, only to fail him...several times. If it had not been for his impeccable track record beforehand, he would have been in trouble far sooner, and he honestly should have been. Thanos wondered if he might have gone too easy on him before, since he had raised him. Maybe the failure had really been his own, in not disciplining Maw properly?

As it was now, Maw's severed head sat on the floor near his massive feet, it's dead eyes glazed over, a warning to his other men and children to not make the same mistakes. Thanos did not suffer failure well in anyone, and his soldiers were better off to be reminded that no one was immune from the consequences, including his own children.

The loss of Maw did not go unnoticed in his current plans, however, and he knew that Maw would need to be replaced quickly. His telepathic skills and other talents were especially useful and would be necessary to his plans success. His purple fingers tapped on a stony armrest as Thanos thought about his options. He could press forward on his attack since Earth was limited in it's development, after all, but he hesitated.

Thanos had already been shown enough hints of hidden talents and defences, such as the loss in New York, that he wondered if his scouts might have underestimated them. If so, his intel might be flawed, and pressing forward could prove to be disastrous. Just because you are strong...does not mean you should be foolish, there is always a risk of failure, no matter how small it may be.

Thanos stood abruptly, calling for the rest of the Black Order. Only two of them were absent now on other missions, Gamora and Nebula, his lovely daughters.

Thanos had decided to bide his time, and strengthen his position and armies before attacking Earth again, but he wanted Loki and the boy returned to him. The boy was just as crucial to his plans as the Stones were, and Loki belonged to him. He did not like his pets running away before he was done playing with them.

When the three remaining members walked into the room, he watched them closely, his gaze heavy but his face expressionless. He saw exactly when they noticed the head laying next to his feet, and heard their shocked gasps. No one had expected him to execute one of his own sons, after all, so the reaction was to be expected. His disappointment in Maw's failures knew no bounds, and more so because he had raised him. He had taught him, cared for him, and given him everything. Yet he had failed in so many simple tasks, Thanos had even begun to wonder if he was failing him deliberately. Shaking off that thought, he focused back on the rest of his children.

Looking down at them with a grim expression on his face, he watched as they trembled slightly before he spoke in his smooth, deep voice, "Do you understand the mistakes he made?" Thanos asked them, his voice making them flinch. Despite their best efforts to hide it, Thanos noticed. They all nodded their heads, not trusting their voices to do any better. "Do you think you will repeat them?" Thanos asked, and they shook their heads vehemently. "Good. Then I won't have to punish you like I did your brother." Thanos noted, his tone both sad and resolute, "Go. Retrieve Loki and the boy from Earth, and bring them both back to me, alive."

"They are being protected by the human heros... The Avengers..." Proxima stated in shock, her voice clearly showing confusion, "They defeated an entire squadron of our Chitari troops... How are we supposed to get past them to retrieve two people? People skilled enough to have already escaped from the deepest depths of Maw's dungeons?"

Thanos stared at her silently, his silent response more intimidating than if he had screamed at her. "My dungeon." Thanos finally stated softly, but with venom, "They escaped me...due to Maw's failure. My son failed me, and now he has paid the price for that failure.... I don't care how you return these two to my custody, so long as they are alive and well when you do. Otherwise, how you go about it is up to you." Thanos said all of this in a deadly calm voice, leaving his big, strong warrior children trembling in their places, "Just don't fail me again..."