"Oh, you're here too," Bruce said, hearing the door open. Black Widow had just left the laboratory, and Noah entered.
Looking around the lab, Noah remarked, "Yeah, our lab complex is much better than this."
"So, Agent Romanoff is a beauty, isn't she?" he asked, recalling the original storyline where Banner, having parted ways with Betty, seemed to develop a fondness for Black Widow.
"Miss Romanoff is indeed beautiful, but I have a girlfriend," Bruce smiled, pulling one of the hanging displays closer. His relationship with Betty was strong, and he wasn't going to give in to such temptations.
"Alright, everything seems sweet and romantic between you two. But your future father-in-law clearly doesn't approve," Noah replied, turning his attention to preparations for locating the Tesseract. Simultaneously, he instructed Lissandra to perform a full scan of the Helicarrier and gather all available data.
"He doesn't just disapprove, he wants me dead," Banner admitted bitterly, recalling General Ross. He hoped Director Fury could help him get rid of Ross's obsessive desire to control the Hulk's power. Perhaps only then could he and Betty be together.
"We'll see if Fury helps. And if not, we can always hypnotize him… or make him disappear altogether," Noah smirked.
Could any of the League of Legends champions control minds? LeBlanc, for instance. If he could summon her, it might be worth a try.
"Hypnosis? Disappear? Sounds ominous," Bruce mused, thinking about his potential father-in-law. Using such methods against Betty's father? That was highly questionable.
Noah was about to say something when he suddenly froze. He sensed the approach of a powerful energy signature. It was the power of the Bifrost. Thor? But why was he here? Loki shouldn't have been recruited by Thanos at this point in time.
Noticing Noah suddenly fall silent, Banner was surprised, seeing him staring intently at the screen in front of him.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing. Just some guests," Noah replied, pushing the monitor aside and heading towards the laboratory exit to return to the bridge.
"Guests?" Bruce asked, surprised.
Suddenly, the ship shook slightly. He noticed the equipment swaying. It seemed like it wasn't just the floor vibrating, but the entire Helicarrier platform was trembling.
"Is the ship crashing?" he thought anxiously, feeling his heart rate increase. He immediately ran out of the laboratory and followed Noah.
On the bridge, Nick Fury watched the red alert signals flashing on the screens with a tense expression.
"Can someone explain to me what's happening? Coulson, report!"
"Director, it seems the Helicarrier collided with something. The impact was on the deck," Coulson reported, quickly relaying information from the crew's reports.
"What? Show me the deck cameras immediately!" Fury ordered, wondering if it was an attack by enemy aircraft. "Did the aliens decide to strike first?"
"Yes, Director," Coulson replied, relaying the order to the technicians.
An image of the deck appeared on Fury's screen, and he saw the cause of the commotion. It was a tall man with golden hair, clad in armor and a flowing red cape – Thor. Beside him stood another man with long black hair, wearing a combination of gold and green armor. However, Fury noticed a strange, heavy bracelet on one of the man's wrists... Handcuffs?
He quickly reviewed the recording from another angle, a few seconds before the impact. The video showed a rainbow-colored beam descending from the sky and striking the deck, after which Thor and his black-haired companion materialized at the point of impact. A circular imprint remained on the ground beneath their feet.
"Coulson, cancel the alert. It seems we just had a visitor."
"Understood, Director." Coulson, seeing the familiar face of the Asgardian prince on the monitor, also calmed down.
"By the way, we just received a message from Stark; he's almost here," Coulson added, heading down the stairs, but suddenly stopped, remembering this important fact.
"I already see him," Fury replied.
On the screen, Iron Man could be seen landing on the Helicarrier's deck and encountering Thor.
"Hello there, Point Break," Tony said with a wink, approaching the Asgardian prince.
He had noticed the bright, rainbow-colored beam descending from the sky from afar and immediately understood what it meant. Accelerating his suit's repulsors, he headed straight for the Helicarrier. He was currently wearing the Mark VI armor—the energy-efficient version—while he reserved the Destroyer armor for special occasions, as it consumed too much power.
"Point Break? Hey, I remember you, Iron Man," Thor replied. Although he didn't understand Stark's joke, he immediately recognized the Earthling. They had fought together against the Destroyer.
"Just a joke. Yes, I remember you too, you're Thor, the god of thunder. And who is this with you?" Stark looked at Loki standing beside him, who, this time, wasn't wearing his iconic horned helmet. Otherwise, Tony would surely have nicknamed him "Bambi."
"Mortal, before you stands Loki, prince of Asgard," Loki declared smugly, tossing his long black hair and smiling with devilish charm.
Bzzz!
However, as soon as he finished his sentence, the bracelet on his wrist sparked, releasing an electric shock, causing Loki to flinch.
Thor smiled sheepishly and explained to Tony, "This is my brother, Loki."
"Oh, the same Loki who sent that giant metal monster after you to kill you?" Stark asked, surprised.
"Yes, after that incident, Father imprisoned Loki. But now he has released him to give him a chance to redeem himself."
"Redeem himself?" Stark was about to inquire further, but Coulson, appearing on the deck, interrupted him.
"Hey, guys! Maybe we should go inside and talk?" he said, emerging from the doorway with an oxygen mask on his face.