Tower of Secrets

Dr. Bruce Banner

The tower was quiet without the teenagers. I took the opportunity to research a phenomenon that had been bugging me, but I hadn't previously had time to deal with: the seemingly random influx in natural disasters two summers ago, along with a similar, albeit toned-down, event last summer. Which brought me to another question: why hadn't the trend continued this past summer?

I studied the weather cycle within that time frame religiously, but to no avail. There didn't seem to be much reason to that madness, and the chaos seemed a little too extreme to simply chalk it up to the Second Law of Thermodynamics. The entropy in the universe might tend to increase, but it certainly didn't increase that much naturally.

Which led me to my next conclusion: it was unnatural. But, what sort of power could alter something as fundamental and unpredictable as the weather?

The new wave of research was fruitless. There was no sort of increase in political conflicts and wars near any of the areas afflicted by this strange happening. So, if there was no obvious human interference, then what was it?

I might not have known, but I knew someone who might.

"Hello, Thor," I greeted as I entered the library to find the god of thunder reading a book of various forms of etiquette across the world. "How are you?"

"Greetings, Dr. Banner. I'm doing very good. How about yourself?" Thor always had this way of booming out every syllable while still seeming to not scream. The way he managed it was almost regal, which probably had something to do with the fact that he was.

"I'm okay," I admitted. "I actually had some questions for you about the affairs of Asgard."

Like a puppy, the blond perked up. "You're interested in learning about Asgard?"

"I had some questions about any conflicts that may have taken place over recent summers."

He thought for a moment. "Well, there was a bit of an incident this summer, actually. Thankfully, the son of Frey and his companions took care of it. It was nowhere near Ragnarok level though."

If the only godly fight major enough to get mentioned wasn't even during the time that the biggest upset in the weather was taking place, then my theory was grossly incorrect.

"Why do you ask?"

I gave him a strained smile. "I'm trying to unravel some potential sources of the increase in natural disasters. Despite the name, they aren't appearing to be too natural."

Thor thought for a moment. "If there were no Midgardian interferences, and no Asgardian, then it must be due to another pantheon's quarrels."

I blanched. "Other pantheons?"

"Yes, suck as the Greeks, or the Romans, or the Egyptians."

"Those gods are all..."

"Real? Alive? Of course! You didn't believe that us Norse gods were the only ones around, did you?"

I sputtered. "I suppose I did." I gave him a curious look. "Did any of the other pantheons have any sort of conflict that could be the cause?"

Thor nodded. "Two summers ago, the Second Titan War broke out for the Greeks. The summer after that, the Greek demigods and Roman demigods got into another civil war in the midst of a war with Gaia. They were widely talked about. The world almost ended - twice! Not to mention all the times Kronos almost ended the world leading up to the Second Titan War!" He leaned in, a sparkle in his eyes as he shared the details of blood and death like it was light gossip. "The son of Poseidon and daughter of Athena really had their work cut out for them managing everything."

"Two people managed the potential ends of the world alone‽"

"Well, they're powerful demigods, so they have a bit of an edge compared to you, Barton, Stark, Rogers, or even Natasha. Plus, they usually had some companions, but those weren't as set in stone."

"When you say demigods...?"

"The child of a human and a god, yes."

"Do you have any?"

Thor shrugged. "I've been known to get around from time to time. Most of mine are dead, though."

My face softened. "I'm sorry."

"I'll see them once more at Ragnarok, so do not fret. Now, unfortunately, I've been asked, for the time being at least, to not reveal much more about those incidents. I hope that was sufficient to answer your questions?"

I nodded vigorously. I'd learned much more in that conversation than I had bargained I would, and it seemed that the Greek and Roman conflicts lined up with the abnormal weather patterns. But then, I paused. I wondered... "Have you ever met the two demigods who were involved?"

Thor grinned. "They're mightier in real life than I had imagined, but they're also very tired of dealing with the Greek gods' mistakes."

"I can imagine why. I'd be pretty fed up if that much of my life was devoted to various wars. Anyways, that was it. Thanks for the talk, Thor."

"Of course, Bruce. It was a pleasure. Between you and me, I'm rarely the informant and usually the ignorant in these sorts of conversations, so it was very refreshing."

I chuckled. "Well, I'm glad to have provided you a change of pace. See you around."

Having found the answer to my question, I made my way upstairs and found Natasha in the living room. She was in one of Tony's AC/DC sweatshirts and Clint's dark purple sweatpants, and she was munching on a Nutty Buddy while she channel surfed.

"Hey, Bruce," she greeted absentmindedly.

"Nat," I said in turned. "What are you watching."

"Dunno," she sighed. "What should I watch?"

Clint walked in, his eyes bloodshot. "Maybe try that Cruella movie. That's supposed to be good."

I looked at the archer with concern. "Clint, you doing okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

"Well, for starters, your eyes are red."

He rolled his eyes. "Don't worry about it. I was just up too late last night."

I glanced between the two SHIELD agents. Nat didn't seem concerned at all. Perhaps it really was nothing. "Okay then."