Stand As Heroes » Quicksilver

chapter five

05 x thor brought the party, and boy was it a surprise

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A/N: for the curious minds (and those of you who continue to question whether this series will ever be finished) please see the book SIDEBAR for an update on me and my writing! thank you all for being sweet and supportive!

ALSO! friendly reminder that this series really just takes loose influence from the MCU! the entire story line was planned out long before the release of several of the most recent movies, and I'm sticking with my story like in spite of what has happened in the MCU as of late! so please don't try to superimpose MCU stuff upon this fic! IT WILL ALL BE EXPLAINED AS YOU READ!

thank you & happy reading!

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[ Third Person POV ]

"As all of you have no doubt noticed by now," Tony began from the front of the conference room where he stood beside Steve, "Thor has decided to grace us with his presence again."

The conference room was full. It was one of those rare times where there were no Avengers out on separate, smaller missions; everyone had been reconciled to home base, and as a result was now seated at the giant table. Most of them seemed to already sense that trouble must be brewing, and were frowning as a result.

Thor gave a slight smile and wave when his name was mentioned.

"Granted," Tony continued, "in the process of returning, he managed to ruin the front lawn again, but--"

"It's nice to see you again, Thor," Bruce interrupted, granting the god a careful smile.

Thor's smile widened ever so slightly. "I'm pleased to see all of you again as well. I wish that it were under better circumstances, but that is not how the fates would have it."

"What exactly are the circumstances?" Clint asked, leaning forward with his elbows on the conference table. "What happened to your space scavenger hunt?"

Thor's expression turned grim. "There is trouble brewing between the realms. What you would easiest understand as a spatial tear has begun to occur between Midgard — your realm — and Helheim.

"Helheim is the realm of the dead," he proceeded. "It is ruled by Hela."

"That's a fun play on words," Bucky murmured.

Thor either didn't hear him or chose to ignore him. Either way, he continued with his explanation. "Heimdall was not confident as to the cause of the tear that is occurring. He is capable of seeing all, but for some reason, this was hidden from him. Reason indicates that it must be caused by something or someone, either from Helheim or Midgard; that, as well as the havoc that will be wrecked by the tear itself, is why I have returned."

The silence that ensued was almost palpable — and yet remarkably temporary.

The questions came all at once.

"When you say land of the dead . . . you mean like, zombies? Ghosts? Dead dead people?" Clint asked incredulously.

"Who would want to cause this?" That was Natasha.

"Who even has the resources?" Bruce.

"What would the repercussions of a successful bridge between this . . . land of the dead and Earth be? What should we be preparing for?" Rhodey.

"Are there any not dead people that you think would do well in a realm full of dead people, Barton?" Tony asked.

"Yeah, Clint, what kinda dead people do you interact with?" Sam asked.

"Where will this tear appear?" Vision asked, focused on Thor.

But the god of thunder only shook his head, silent in his uncertainty.

It was only when the others began to go quiet that Wanda sat up, and leaned forward, looking around at her teammates. Her accented voice was crisp and remarkably even. "How do we stop it?"

Thor looked to her with a tired smile. "I fear stopping it will not be an easy task."

"It never is," Wanda responded, folding her hands neatly atop the table. "But that is our job."

Thor seemed to brighten at her reminder. "Verily," he nodded. "It pleases me to hear you say that, Wanda. Your resolve is admirable." He turned to Natasha first. "The culprit of this incoming disasters is as unknown to me as it is to Heimdall."

His gaze shifted to Bruce. "Their means could be most anything, though Heimdall sensed a great surge of power." Thor paused, his silence uncomfortable. "I fear Hela may have finally grown tired of her seclusion."

"And Hela," Rhodey cut in, "she's, what, the queen? Of Helheim?"

"Yes," Thor agreed. "Queen of Helheim and goddess of death. Her rule is, to her, a gift and a curse. She has the gift of command of an entire realm, and the curse of permanent isolation. Unleashing the dead on any world would be . . . catastrophic. This responsibility was made quite clear to her upon her receiving the throne. She and Odin had an agreement . . . ." Thor sighed. "Death and life . . . these are not forces intended to mingle for extended periods of time."

"Why now?" Natasha asked, her head canting slightly.

Thor's broad shoulders rose and fell in a shrug. "Your guess would be as good as mine. Heimdall does not feel comfortable with assuming Hela to be the perpetrator, but until he witnesses anything further, or we otherwise come across more information, I know of no one else whom it could be."

"What do we do?" Rhodey persisted, glancing at Wanda. "Aside from stop it, of course." He looked back at Thor. "We need a plan. If an entire world full of dead people is about to collide with Earth . . . we can't wing this."

"I actually agree with Rhodey," Tony said. The surprised looks he received spurred him to elaborate. "What? I can plan things."

"But planning," Rhodey continued before anyone could wander down the rabbit trail that was Tony's planning abilities, "requires information." He looked pointedly at Thor.

"Ah, you're referring to where the tear will occur," Thor nodded in understanding. "Heimdall is monitoring it. Because of the constant spatial movement between all living things, it's exact location is, as of now, uncertain. I am to be informed when it has settled and grown large enough for anything troubling to pass through."

"He should have a location in around seventy hours," Steve said. "In the meantime, we need a plan."

Megan and Pietro had been remarkably quiet the entire meeting, an unusual feat for both of them, much less when they were in close proximity. Megan was at the end of the table nearest to the door, still in only a sports bra and gym shorts. She was shifting around in visible, but quiet, discomfort the entire time, though she had stilled considerably when one of Pietro's hands reached out and carefully intertwined with one of hers.

Pietro was watching her with the same sort of worried intensity that he had been for days now.

Megan's eyes were unfocused as she stared at the table.

"I had the beginning of a plan," Thor said, his bright blue eyes shifting to the couple at the opposite end of the table, "until I learned about Megan's current state."

Dark brown eyes that were just a touch too close to glowing shifted with abrupt alertness from the table to the god. Megan's brow relaxed as she considered Thor in silence for several seconds. "Because I'm light." It was the first time she'd spoken since her return.

"Yes," Thor said. "Helheim is a realm of darkness. That darkness will leak into Midgard when the tear forms, allowing them to move about more freely."

"What's your point, Thor?" Tony asked sharply.

Thor made eye contact with Megan. "Your presence in Helheim could dissuade the dead from crossing into Midgard."