BOOM!!!
The giant whale plummeted from the sky. War Lord crashed into a smaller Chitauri Leviathan like a meteor, but immediately after, countless missiles from the Sky Hammer Agency streaked toward the surviving Chitauri beasts.
He bounded continuously, drawing closer and closer to the surface. The situation was incredibly perilous, yet War Lord showed no sign of panic. Again and again, he used the corpses and still-living Chitauri as springboards, dodging attacks while fighting Earth's gravitational pull.
At this rate, he might actually land safely, Tony thought. But it didn't matter; the ground was their home field.
"Jarvis, calculate where the big guy is going to land."
"War Lord will crash in Manhattan," Jarvis replied.
"Manhattan again?"
Tony raised an eyebrow. "Now I know why Bant never wants to move the company to Manhattan."
With that, he dove straight down.
"Which suits are still usable?"
"The Mark 4 and Mark 5 can still be activated."
"I like the old reliables," Tony said, streaking toward Avengers Tower. Those two older models lacked space-flight capability, so Tony hadn't blown them up. Now they were his last resort.
"Everyone, regroup in Manhattan. Also," he paused, "who has Dr. Connors' contact info? We need the dinosaur men."
"Where's Hacker?" someone's voice suddenly cut through the comms.
Tony curled his lip. "That's a question for little Bambi."
At that moment, the very person Tony called little Bambi, Loki, was facing a dire threat.
Before his eyes, the fully awakened Tesseract grew increasingly active. It was as if it had come to life, releasing its energy in a steady rhythm. At first, the fluctuations were merely faint breaths, but soon they intensified, swelling into a powerful, pulse-like heartbeat!
It was resonating with something. Loki grasped this immediately. He also realized it was Supergiant's Mind Stone calling out to it. They were trying to use the gem as a key to forcibly unlock the Tesseract's gate, a method they had extracted from Loki's own mind.
Hummmmm!
In an instant, a blue spatial tunnel tore open again. Three figures stepped out: the towering, brawny Black Dwarf; the ugly-faced yet elegantly mannered Ebony Maw; and Supergiant, wrapped in a white robe that traced her graceful silhouette.
Whoosh!
The tunnel snapped shut. A passage forced open like this wouldn't last long, and Thanos apparently didn't think there was any enemy on Earth that three of the Black Order's five generals couldn't handle together.
"Loki Laufeyson, how dare you betray the great Thanos?"
Ebony Maw seemed to be the leader of the trio. He raised a finger to his lips and spoke in a refined, condescending tone. At the same time, his gaze landed on the Tesseract flickering inside the machine.
Satisfied, he smiled and said to Loki, "Bring it here. Offer it to the great Thanos, and our promise still stands."
He was referring to the pledge made to a previously controlled Loki: to make Loki the master of Earth, to let him play the self-important king in this miserable place, indulging his pathetic fantasy.
Ebony Maw's fingers rubbed together like a squid's tentacles, tips pressed together, waiting for Loki's answer. Granting Loki such leniency was merely a consideration of his status. After all, he was the child Odin had raised. But if Loki was truly so ungrateful, they would simply subdue him.
Loki licked his lips. A sudden smile spread across his face. He nodded. "You're right. Why should I oppose Thanos for these lowly Midgardians?"
As he spoke, he walked over to the machine housing the Tesseract and removed it.
Meanwhile, Black Dwarf glanced out the window. "The planetary shield's energy has been cut off."
Hearing this, Ebony Maw grew even more pleased. He extended his hand as if to anoint Loki.
"Though the great Thanos is not here, we, as the Children of Thanos, can certainly bear witness to the birth of an enlightened ruler of a planet. You are fortunate, Loki. Thanos will remember your contribution, and the universe will remember your contribution... as long as you swear eternal allegiance to Thanos."
"I..."
Loki raised the softly glowing blue cube before Ebony Maw's eyes. "...swear!"
Ebony Maw reached out. But the instant his fingertips were about to touch the cube, a terrifying wave of cold erupted from within! In the next moment, the cube in Loki's hand warped, instantly transforming into the Casket of Ancient Winters. Loki's own body turned as pale and icy as a carved statue.
Clutching the Casket of Ancient Winters, Loki stared coldly at Ebony Maw and declared fiercely, "I pledge allegiance only to the King of Sakaar!"
Supergiant and Black Dwarf jolted at the sudden betrayal. Black Dwarf reacted immediately, swinging his axe at Loki, but it hit nothing. The real Tesseract in Loki's other hand flashed, and a portal opened behind him. He fell backward into it, vanishing. Black Dwarf roared in frustration, smashing the equipment inside the satellite, utterly unhinged.
Supergiant stepped forward, extending a hand to soothe him. "Do not worry. As long as he holds the Tesseract, he cannot escape."
She lifted her hand, and the shimmering Mind Stone materialized. The resonance between the two stones would allow her to instantly locate Loki.
But what surprised Supergiant was that she also detected the pulse of a third Infinity Stone on this planet.
There was another Infinity Stone on Earth. She took note of it, but Supergiant had no intention of complicating her mission. Obtaining the Space Stone was all Thanos desired. Nothing else needed to be stirred up.
New York.
Loki fled in a panic, fully aware that even with the Casket of Ancient Winters, he was no match for the Black Order.
The Casket simply couldn't unleash its true power in his hands. It was true that he had the blood of the Frost Giants, but his body was suffused with divine power bestowed by Yggdrasil. Worse, his godhood leaned toward the fire lineage.
What the hell!
He cursed under his breath. The Tesseract in his hand still emitted unstable pulses. Supergiant and the others would likely catch up soon. He had managed to gain the upper hand with a sneak attack, but if he faced them again, Loki knew he stood no chance.
Should he... just run?
The thought sprang into his mind, but he immediately shoved it aside. Bant Parker might be the last person on this world who genuinely believed Loki could accomplish something. If he fled now, who else would ever think he was worthy?
Find Thor? What use would that be? Thor was nothing but a mortal now. Loki couldn't even stand to look at him. Not a shred of divine power, utterly useless, just seeing him was infuriating!
As these thoughts churned, Loki felt the Tesseract grow hot. In the next instant, a small portal ripped open beside his hand. A blue hand shot out, clamping onto his wrist. Supergiant's upper body emerged; her slender arm exploded with shocking strength, hurling Loki aside as she snatched the Tesseract.
The portal expanded, and Supergiant stepped through with Black Dwarf and Ebony Maw. Ebony Maw now looked utterly disheveled, his skin severely frostbitten, his gray flesh marred by dark splotches. He glared at Loki with eyes blazing with boundless fury.
"You've chosen your death, Loki Laufeyson!"
Raising his hand, Ebony Maw telekinetically seized everything around them and hurled it all at Loki.
Loki conjured dozens of daggers, flinging them at the incoming debris, but it was a drop in the bucket. He could only resort to the Casket of Ancient Winters again. A white torrent surged from the casket, sweeping around Loki like an icy dragon and blocking the onslaught.
"Sorry, I'm just not in the habit of being a dog to someone with a purple sweet potato for a chin," he taunted.
That instantly enraged Ebony Maw and Supergiant. Both were powerful telepaths. Supergiant reached out and crushed the icy dragon with a mere thought.
But more frost monsters poured from the casket in quick succession. Black Dwarf, who had intended to swat Loki dead with a single axe blow, was suddenly swarmed by a pack of ice creatures, entangled in a bitter struggle.
War Lord was right. Black Dwarf was utterly useless. Although Ebony Maw found the fight a bit difficult, as long as he kept the cold at bay, he could hold out.
Seeing this, Supergiant immediately tossed the Tesseract to Ebony Maw. Now both of them wielded an Infinity Stone, and they no longer feared Loki's Casket of Ancient Winters.
The Mind Stone instantly magnified Supergiant's already immense psychic power to its absolute limit! Her eyes blazed with yellow light. With a push of her palm, dozens of frost beasts were instantly vaporized.
Ebony Maw, though unable to fully control the Tesseract, could still unleash its power. Dense blue beams shot out, and every ice beast they struck was instantly teleported to some unknown corner of space.
(On Vormir, the Red Skull: Why is it so cold and lively today?)
With the Stones on their side, Loki once again found himself at a severe disadvantage.
Meanwhile, the Sky Hammer Agency and the Avengers detected that the planetary shield in orbit had vanished. But at this point, it was irrelevant. Only one enemy remained: War Lord.
In Manhattan, the heroes still able to fight surrounded War Lord layer by layer.
/-\
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