Chapter 3
Thor was greatly pleased with his new gauntlets, for he had been feeling the lack of his lightning for some time now, and hated feeling useless when it came to engaging in combat. The fact that the being that was currently inhabiting the body of his brother had given him these lighting gloves was also a great relief, for he doubted the real Loki would be so quick to arm one he had wanted to kill.
Also, setting strange beasts from this bizarre world on fire was rather exhilarating.
The creature, and Thor could only help feeling sorry for it, was obviously unprepared for heroes of their calibre. Although truly a fearsome beast, much as Bruce Banner had described it, these heroes of Earth and himself were well versed in the arts of fighting creatures much larger than themselves. The Captain had punched it when it first attacked, dazing it in time for the Widow to neatly hamstrung it. It turned even as it was falling to swipe at her, but Tony knocked its paw away from her with his dagger, by which point Thor's gauntlets had recharged enough for him to shoot more lighting at it. It caught fire. The screaming, he had expected. Also the scrambled, fumbling running, flailing and screeching. The getting ten feet away, giving one final, desperate shriek and exploding into fireworks, he had not.
“Banner...” he asked, not taking his eyes off the smoking crater where the wendigo has last been seen. “Is that-?”
“No.” Banner replied, sounding shaken. “No, that is not usual wendigo behaviour.”
“Oh. Okay. Just checking. So should we go check the crater...?”
“Damn right we should!” Piped up Tony “Bloody thing had my dagger in its hand!” Tony was the only one who did not seem shaken by the explosion, possibly because he was so used to them. Even Widow seemed slightly paler than usual, though 'twas hard to tell beneath her ordinarily pale complexion.
As a group, they traipsed over to the hole in the ground. Steve stepped around a gobbet of charred wendigo without even seeming to notice it. Tony's dagger was surprisingly unharmed, and lying next to it was an object that made Steve shout with relief and go rushing forward, Tony by his side. It was, of course, his shield, and he was so overjoyed by its presence that he completely missed the falcon perched on it, which flew up with a indignant squawk and then returned to settle on the Captain's shoulder, pecking at his cheek.
The Captain froze.
Natasha giggled.
“It looks like you hath found yourself a friend, Captain!” Thor boomed, and it was a mark of the bird's dedication that the noise only caused it to ruffle its feathers. “Shall I speak to it, and enquire as to it's name and purpose?”
Steve nodded very carefully, and Thor went over to him and crouched so that his mouth was level with Steve's shoulder.
“Hm. Yes. Okay. We should call you Sam? Very well, feathered warrior. You will acompany the Captain? You really should show him some respect. Yes, I know he can not fly. That does not mean he is useless.”
“Hey!”
“I apologise, please repeat that? Oh, you have a message for Steve? On your leg? Oh yes, I see...Here, Captain, this is for you.”
“Look up? What does that mean?”