Deep in the cosmos—
There was nothing.
No light. No sound.
Loki's body drifted through endless darkness. The explosion of the Bifrost had shattered his defenses. Vacuum and freezing void were draining the last of his divine power. His consciousness blurred. His limbs stiffened.
He was dying.
Then—
The darkness split open.
Beyond the floated a fleet—monstrous constructs fused from asteroid rock and twisted metal, suspended silently in space.
Shadows emerged, seized him, and dragged him through.
He was thrown before a throne carved from black stone. Upon it sat a vast silhouette, mountain-like in scale. Its mere presence crushed the air from his lungs.
A gaunt alien stepped forward, its voice dry and rasping.
"Prince of Asgard," it said. "You seek a throne."
Loki forced himself upright, hatred burning in his eyes.
"I was meant to be king."
"Your resentment… your ambition… we have felt it." The creature gestured to a scepter floating nearby, its gem glowing blue. "My master offers you opportunity."
"The scepter will grant you power. And an army—the Chitauri. They will conquer in your name."
Loki's breathing steadied.
"And the price?"
"On Earth lies an object. The Tesseract. Retrieve it. In return—Earth shall be yours."
"You will be a god of a kingdom."
Loki stared at the scepter.
He remembered Thor.
Remembered Odin's words.
No, Loki.
Hatred flared.
He grasped the scepter.
Cold energy surged through him—healing his wounds, seeping into his thoughts.
"I accept," he whispered.
The massive shadow on the throne shifted.
…
S.H.I.E.L.D. Medical Facility, New York.
Steve Rogers sat on the edge of the bed, dressed in a plain gray training outfit. Files lay on the table before him, unopened.
Outside the window, the world glittered—alien and overwhelming.
Seventy years.
The world had moved on.
Levi entered, Nick Fury behind him.
"Captain." Fury extended his hand.
Steve glanced at Levi before shaking it—firm and brief.
"Nick Fury. Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. Our predecessor was the Strategic Scientific Reserve. Peggy Carter was one of its founders."
At Peggy's name, Steve stiffened.
"She…?"
"She's alive," Fury said quietly. "But she's old."
Steve said nothing.
Fury placed a folder marked with a bold A on the table.
"The threats we face now aren't Nazis with rifles," Fury said. "Some come from places we barely understand."
He glanced at Levi.
"I've initiated the Avengers Initiative. A team of extraordinary individuals to fight the battles we cannot. The world needs you."
Steve opened the file.
Tesseract data.
Thor's New Mexico incident.
Reports of a green creature—Hulk.
It was overwhelming.
His war had ended in ice.
This new, colorful, complicated world didn't feel like it had room for him.
He closed the folder and looked to Levi.
Levi stepped forward and patted Fury's shoulder.
"Give us a minute."
Fury left.
Silence.
"Don't listen to his recruitment speech," Levi said casually. "Short version? Aliens are coming to steal something. S.H.I.E.L.D. can't handle it. They want you as frontline muscle."
Steve blinked.
"A lot happened while you slept," Levi continued. "We won WWII. Nearly nuked ourselves during the Cold War. Built computers. Internet. Everyone carries a phone that can talk across the planet."
He paused.
"Howard died. Car crash. The Commandos… gone. Peggy married. Had a life."
Steve's hands clenched.
"So it's just us?" he asked quietly.
"And Logan. He's still kicking. Memory's a mess." Levi shrugged. "Yeah. Just us relics."
He met Steve's gaze seriously.
"You feel abandoned by time. That's accurate. But you're still a soldier. And soldiers fight. Now it's not just a country—it's the planet."
"Your war isn't over."
Steve sat silently.
Then he picked up the file again.
"I'll need a uniform."
…
Meanwhile.
New Mexico. Deep underground.
A joint S.H.I.E.L.D.–NASA research facility housing the Tesseract.
The most secure site on Earth.
The cube pulsed with blue light at the center of the lab.
Dr. Erik Selvig and a team monitored data. Hawkeye stood on the upper level, watchful.
Suddenly—
Alarms blared.
"Energy spike off the charts!"
The Tesseract glowed brighter—like a miniature sun.
"It's responding to something!" Selvig shouted. "It's opening a—"
Space twisted.
A portal formed.
A figure stepped through in green Asgardian armor, scepter in hand.
Loki.
"Found you," he murmured.
Hawkeye reacted instantly. "Drop it!"
Loki smiled.
A blue blast from the scepter forced Hawkeye into a roll.
Agents opened fire.
Bullets halted midair half a meter from Loki, clattering harmlessly to the floor.
He advanced calmly, striking agents aside with casual sweeps of his scepter.
He seized Hawkeye by the throat.
"You have courage."
The scepter's gem glowed.
Blue light pierced Hawkeye's chest.
His eyes emptied.
He lowered his weapon—and stepped beside Loki.
Selvig followed soon after.
"Yes," Selvig said blankly. "I will help you."
Loki removed the Tesseract and placed it into a case.
Minutes later, Fury's helicopter arrived.
The facility was collapsing inward, consumed by unstable energy.
Maria Hill approached.
"Hawkeye's gone, sir. Taken. Selvig too. They've been… turned."
Fury's jaw tightened.
The Tesseract was gone.
His best agent compromised.
The first move had been made.
The war had begun.
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