Havoc and Retribution

Personality Amalgamation

This assembly of Avengers is muted and brooding, the atmosphere bitter and bleak.

Tony and Steve were the last to arrive back at the Tower. Clint and Natasha have been out on assignment in Ukraine but summarily wrapped up their work and took an overnight flight from Kiev to New York. Bruce had been lecturing at M.I.T. and drove in from Boston this morning. Thor of course, was already there, wearing a groove into the floor with his pacing. And there was Loki as well.

At first, Steve thought Tony had one of his Iron Legion in the room as a guard. But the suit of armor has no helmet and all Steve could see was the black hair when they entered the room. Tony had used one of the suits to imprison the trickster god and he stands like a statue, encased in the suit, unable to move since Tony has locked all motor functions. His eyes watch Rogers as he enters, but he says nothing, his eyes shadowed under narrowed eyebrows, his faint, sardonic expression on his lips.

The tension in the room is noticeably higher due to his presence.

Briefly, Steve thinks about asking Tony for control of the suit so he can throw Loki out the window for a bit of fun. He's sure he's not the only one thinking about that as he catches a glimpse of Clint's sour face.

They've convened in the upstairs lounge of the Avengers tower, the one with the minibar and the view of the Chrysler Building. Everyone has had a very minimal briefing of the situation: Hel has attacked Asgard, mostly likely will attack Midgard at some point and Jaycee Strong fought but lost. It's now a matter of getting the full scope of the problem and preparing for what comes next.

No one wants to be the first to speak, not even Tony. Normally he would gloss over any awkward silence with his usual sarcasm and lack of tack, but Steve notices that he is very reserved. On the jet ride, Stark had plugged into his headphones and closed his eyes. Steve had taken it for a typical dismissal from Tony, but now he's not so sure. Tony has always been very fatherly towards Jay, even if he brushed it off with humor. No one has outright said what has happened to Jay and it is on everyone's minds.

"Let's stop stalling," Barton says, getting to his feet tot pace. "None of this will get easier with waiting." It is unusual for Clint to take charge, but he is a man who rises to the occasion. And they all know that Jay and he have a relationship they built from lots of work together. "When was the attack on Asgard and what's going on with Hel?"

"More like what the Hel is going on," Natasha mutters.

"Ah, you made a funny," Tony coos, back in familiar territory. "I didn't think you had it in you, Romanoff."

Nat looks at Tony with her I'll-eat-your-eyeballs-on-toast smile.

"Asgard was attacked yesterday," Thor says. "Hel.. Jay... Hel.. opened a portal through space, manipulating the Bifrost."

"Hel or Jay?" Natasha asks. "What does that mean?"

Thor shrugs in a hopeless way. "She was Hel, sure enough.. but her body..her powers, those were Jaycee's."

"Did she absorb Jay's powers?" Bruce asks. "When she....,"

"She isn't dead." This comes from Loki, quiet but certain. "Jaycee Strong isn't dead. Neither is Hel."

"So who came through the portal?" Bruce asks, swallowing the lump in his throat as all the Avengers turn hostile glances on Loki.

"Both and neither," Loki says calmly.

"That isn't an answer," Steve says and the trickster's eyes flit to him, his head moving even if his body can't.

"It is," Loki retorts. "With your limited capacity, you just can't comprehend what that means."