Chapter 196 — Alien
The briefing room remained quiet after Gaius spoke.
The heavy pressure that had filled the air moments ago slowly faded, like a storm passing overhead. No one moved at first. Thor stood still, his grip on Mjolnir relaxed now, his earlier anger gone. Steve Rogers let out a slow breath he had not realized he was holding. Natasha leaned slightly against the table, her posture easing as the tension drained away.
Gaius returned to silence, standing like an unmoving statue of golden armor near the wall.
Inside the helmet, however, his awareness never lowered.
Tony Stark watched everything carefully.
As a member of the Multiversal Chat, he had seen the exchange between Tanya and Gaius moments earlier. He understood immediately what they had been discussing. Their conversation was strategy.
Stopping Loki alone would not end the threat.
The real danger was the army coming.
Tony stepped forward once he was sure everyone had calmed down.
"We need to find the Tesseract," he said evenly, "and open the portal in a strategic place."
The words landed heavily.
Before he could continue, Steve stood up sharply.
"Opened the portal?" Steve asked, disbelief clear in his voice. "Are you crazy? Why would we let an army of aliens invade?"
Tony looked at him, slightly annoyed but not angry. He understood Steve's reaction. From Steve's point of view, allowing an invasion sounded insane.
"We wouldn't let them invade," Tony replied calmly. "We'd be the ones opening it. That means we control where it happens."
Steve frowned. "Why open it at all? If we get the Tesseract, the invasion stops."
Tony shook his head slightly.
"No," he said. "It doesn't."
Everyone listened.
"If we don't control the portal," Tony continued, "the Chitauri can still reach Earth the slow way, traveling through space. Then we're dealing with an alien fleet sitting in orbit above the planet. No warning. No control. Just a full invasion."
He crossed his arms as he explained.
"But if we control when and where the portal opens, we decide the battlefield. Not them. We move the fight away from cities. We prepare defenses. We limit how many come through at once."
He looked directly at Steve.
"That means no matter how many aliens they send, we're ready."
The room fell silent again.
Steve thought about it carefully. His expression softened as he followed the logic step by step. He did not like the idea, but he understood it.
After a moment, he sat back down.
"…I'm sorry," Steve said simply.
Tony nodded once. He did not push the point further. There was no need.
"Let me think for a bit," Tony said.
He closed his eyes.
His mind accelerated.
Information moved rapidly through his thoughts as his Cognitive Processing Speed activated. He reviewed everything they knew, Loki's actions, Selvig's expertise, the stolen materials, portal physics, energy stabilization requirements.
He replayed the Stuttgart incident.
Iridium.
That detail locked into place immediately.
"Iridium," Tony muttered quietly.
The metal was perfect for stabilizing extreme energy reactions. A portal device powered by the Tesseract would absolutely require something like it.
He continued calculating.
Selvig would need advanced equipment. Massive power output. Isolation from public view.
That meant a secure scientific facility.
A SHIELD base.
Then another piece connected.
From the mission information shared by the Multiversal Chat, Tony knew where the portal was supposed to open.
New York.
His eyes opened.
"Selvig is using iridium as a stabilizer," Tony said clearly. "That means he needs high-level scientific equipment and a hidden location. He's in a SHIELD base."
He turned to Natasha.
"What bases do we have near or inside New York?"
Everyone looked at him, surprised by how quickly he reached the conclusion.
Bruce Banner nodded slowly. "He's right. Iridium could stabilize a portal device."
Natasha immediately moved to a nearby console and began accessing SHIELD records.
Before she could respond, the door opened.
Nick Fury entered carrying a sealed container.
"Banner. Stark," Fury said, walking toward the table. "I need you to figure out how Loki controlled my people. Using this."
He placed the container down.
The lid opened with a soft mechanical hiss.
Inside rested Loki's scepter.
The blue gem glowed faintly.
The moment it was exposed, an invisible wave spread through the room. No sound. No light. Nothing anyone could consciously notice. Yet something subtle shifted beneath the surface, like tension waiting to form.
Tony stepped closer.
With a simple flick of his hand, a compact scanner appeared in his palm, summoned from the Multiversal Chat parcel system.
Fury watched the sudden appearance carefully, confusion flashing across his face, but he chose not to comment. There were more urgent matters.
Tony activated the scanner and ran it across the scepter.
Data began scrolling rapidly.
"…Wow," Tony murmured.
Everyone waited.
"This thing is outputting more energy than my arc reactor," he said. "And it doesn't look like it runs out. Either infinite energy or self-sustaining."
He studied another reading.
"It's interfering with brainwaves," Tony added. "That's how Loki controlled Barton and Selvig."
Then Tony activated the identification.
Identification.
A translucent panel appeared, visible only to Multiversal Chat members.
Loki's Scepter:
Loki's Scepter is an advanced alien artifact wielded by Loki, formed as a long staff crowned by a glowing blue gem that serves as its core. The gem is the Mind Stone, one of the Infinity Stones, functioning as the true power source of the weapon. Through this core, the scepter releases concentrated energy blasts capable of knocking back or disabling targets, while direct contact with its tip enables powerful mental domination, allowing the wielder to control thoughts and actions by overriding a victim's free will. The Mind Stone continuously emits intense psionic energy, amplifying cognition, influencing emotions, and granting deep manipulation over consciousness, making the scepter both a battlefield weapon and a tool of mental control.
Tony read as the information filled the display.
Tony lowered the scanner slowly.
Now he understood why Loki had seemed so confident.
Across the room, Gaius and Tanya silently observed the same information through the Panel that they could see.
The weapon was far more dangerous than it appeared.
Natasha returned at that moment carrying a tablet.
"I found several bases," she said, placing it on the table. "But one stands out."
Tony examined the data.
"This facility shows irregular material usage," Natasha explained. "Power consumption is extremely high."
Tony nodded immediately.
"That's it," he said. "They're there."
Steve stood.
"Then we go there now."
Thor nodded firmly. "Agreed."
Natasha was already preparing to move.
Tony raised a hand slightly.
"You go," he said. "I need to study this scepter more."
Banner stepped beside him. "I'll help."
Gaius and Tanya would go with them to provide support, if any mishaps occurred, they would be there to help.
Plans began forming quickly.
Then alarms sounded.
A projection screen across the room lit up.
Energy readings spiked violently.
Tony froze.
The gamma-tracking system he and Banner had created, designed to detect Tesseract energy, was showing massive output.
"That's impossible," Tony muttered.
He rushed to the controls with Banner.
The readings stabilized into a clear location.
New York.
Tony's eyes narrowed.
"They're activating it already…"
Banner stared at the numbers. "How could Selvig build the portal this fast?"
Tony's mind raced again, recalculating variables.
Then realization struck.
"Loki wasn't alone."
Natasha looked up. "He had Selvig and Barton."
Tony shook his head.
"No," he said quietly. "I mean Loki didn't come through the portal alone."
The room went still.
Natasha's thoughts moved quickly. The surveillance footage had shown Loki arriving alone, but Loki could use magic, and magic could hide many things. Someone else might have come through unseen.
Someone already on Earth.
Steve stepped forward immediately.
"Whoever it is," he said firmly, "we need to move. Now."
No one disagreed.
End of Chapter 196
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