Radioactive | Bucky Barnes

THOR 3: CHAPTER TEN

The desert air was warm, but the breeze carried a hint of coming rain. The makeshift SHIELD recovery base still buzzed with low-level activity, but things had finally quieted after the battle. Darcy called it the "post-apocalyptic paperwork party."

Rhiley called it exhaustion.

She sat alone just outside the medical tent, legs curled beneath her on a rusted folding chair, sipping from a cup of something that vaguely resembled coffee. Her side still ached where she'd fractured a rib, and her head hadn't quite stopped pounding since the Aether blast. But she was upright. Conscious. Breathing.

That counted for something.

The soft thrum of Bifrost energy shimmered against the horizon before she saw him.

Thor landed with a weightless thud, cape catching the wind. He didn't speak right away, just watched her, jaw tight.

Rhiley didn't look up at first. "I figured you'd show up again eventually."

"I returned as soon as I could," Thor said, stepping closer. "We buried the dead. Repaired the rifts. Malekith is gone."

"Good." Her voice was quiet, tired.

Silence stretched between them.

"You should not have done it," Thor said finally.

Rhiley raised her gaze, brows knitting. "Done what, exactly?"

He stepped closer. "Thrown yourself between us and the Aether. Held shields on three fronts. Protected Jane, Erik, me—and risked your life when you were already at your breaking point."

She smiled, just a little. "You're welcome."

"This is not a jest, Rhiley," Thor said, frustration flickering in his voice. "You were willing to die. Again."

"And you weren't?" she challenged, eyes sparking. "You went after Malekith alone. You didn't even think before charging in."

"I am used to war," he said, quiet now. "It is my realm."

"I'm used to loss," Rhiley murmured, looking away. "So I try to stop it when I can."

Thor didn't have a quick answer for that.

He took a breath. "You nearly tore yourself apart. Jane told me she saw blood pouring from your eyes. Erik said your eyes glowed for a moment."

Rhiley flinched. "Did they?"

"You know what I'm asking."

Rhiley's fingers curled around the cup in her hands. "I didn't let it out."

"The Phoenix?"

She nodded once.

"It wanted to rise."

"Of course it did," she said softly. "It always wants to rise."

Thor lowered himself to a crouch in front of her, his expression open — worried. Not for the first time, she realized how much he cared. Not as a warrior. Not as an Avenger. But as a friend.

"You saved us all," he said. "But how many times can you do that before it consumes you?"

Rhiley looked down. "I don't know."

He reached out and gently took her hand. "Then don't fight alone anymore."

She blinked, surprised. "Thor..."

He gave her a half-smile. "Even Gods need help sometimes. Let us be your shield for once."

Rhiley didn't say anything for a moment. She just let the weight of his words settle in her chest like something solid. Like something safe.