Prelude - 1995
New York, Maria Stark Foundation Charity Ball, 1995
Tony Stark allowed his eyes to scan the gathering in front of him. He picked up on the owners of world-wide companies (such as Osborn industries) and royalty from around the world. He made note of who was talking with who, and made his way down to the ground level. Upon arriving, he was bombarded by congratulations about the newest weapon or increased support in his campaign.
It’s when his eyes caught sight of a raven haired beauty being chatted to by a man almost twice her age, that he lost all will to mindless chat around the room.
Within a few polite talks, he had made his way over to her and heard the tail end of their conversation.
“Little sister, amma asks that you reconsider settling down in Midgard. For one, I think it’s dreadful, and far too warm for those of us made for the cold. And another thing-“
”Helblindi, please, calm yourself before you make a scene. I think Midgard is charming given its seeming hatred for stagnancy. This realm is almost ever-changing as myself.” She spoke, and Tony almost dropped his glass at that smooth, honeyed voice, sensual and low. Almost lulling in nature.
Quickly, he inserted himself at the bar by her and ordered a martini. Then he turned too look at the woman.
“So, who might you be, sweetheart?” He asked, putting on his most charming and innocent ‘I-totally-did-not-listen-in’ face. She seemed to roll her eyes and turned to look at him.
“I am Lotta Laufeyson. This is my brother Helblindi Laufeyson. Who might you be?” She asked with a raised brow.
Tony could only stare in shock at the beautiful woman before him. Her eyes were a deep green, almost unnaturally so. Pale skin was framed by black ringlets which travelled to the small of her back. Rosy lips placed well on his cheekbones and a narrow face. Perfectly symmetrical, unnatural, heavenly.
He pulled himself back together at the amused expression and the non to subtle growling coming from her brother. “Tony, Tony Stark. You’re not from around here, are you?”
“No, we are from the more Nordic country of Scandinavia, Stark. This is your party, yes?”
“That it is. How long are you planning on staying at this lovely event?” He asked, trying to slide closer. Her brother seemed to growl, but she waved him off with a well manicured hand. Tony barely reacted to him storming off.
“Well, I have nothing set in stone, and my family are trying to convince me to return home. Are you capable of making me reconsider this course of action, Mr Stark.” She asked, clearly reciprocating his attempts at flirting, even encouraging it, with that smooth purr in her voice.
“If you allow me to take you home, you might just find out, Miss Laufeyson.”
~~~
He took her to his Malibu estate and undressed her. They made love until exhausted, and both fell asleep entangled in each other.
The next morning, they did the awkward thanking and joking next morning after a hook-up, and she left soon after. He thought that was that. Yeah, it was a shame to let such a beauty go, but he had plans to follow through with.
But then he saw her again at another charity ball, not his this time. And again, he took her to bed.
This happened again and again and again till he decided to stop her before she left, and ask her out on a date.
She said yes.
So they went on the date, and talked about themselves to each other.
He learned she was adopted and had only just found her biological family. That she was a scholar, and had a PhD is astrophysics. That she planned to stay in an apartment alone afterwards. She learnt that his family was buried in Italy, his second home. That he was an engineer who had big dreams of peace and kindness. And that he held a steely determination about his goals.
Eventually, they made it official. Of course they did, it was obvious they were a perfect couple. They moved from sex to romance, trusted the other. She was obviously dangerous (or so said his predator/prey instincts) but he ignored it, happy in his belief that she wouldn’t leave him, no matter what.
However, all good things must end. And his tower of lies crumbled in front of him.
~~~
“So when were you going to tell me your oh so secret plan?” She asked, sarcasm dripping from her tongue like venom.
A heated glare was thrown her way at her outburst, and Tony sighed heavily as he watched her green eyes narrow dangerously. He felt that same feeling of predator and prey, but he brushed to off as he always had done.
“What plan would that be, sweetheart?”
“Oh do not play dumb with me Anthony, you know exactly what I am talking about! How dare you assume that I am another desperate whore on your arm!” Despite her not shouting, the coldness of her tone sent shivers he barely repressed. He needed to fix this.
“Dearheart, my emerald, I have many plans, you need to be more specific about which one you’re talking about.”
“How about the plan where you marry someone to sell an image of a perfect family to the masses, then drop them the moment the power you desire is in reach.” She seethed, eyes almost aflame with anger, yet the temperature of the lab decreased swiftly.
“Lotta, listen, you know I’m not the best at this, but come on, you know that’s likely one of my more impulsive plans, nothing to pay attention to.”
“I call bullshit, Stark. I know you better than you think. I know when your plans are impulsive. I also know when they’re thought through. That plan was thorough enough to reach into the 21st century. I am not stupid Stark. Do not pretend I am. Now, will you be truthful, or will I have to keep digging through your servers?”
“Back to Stark am I? Okay, listen. Yes that was my original thoughts and yes, I did fall back into it multiple times, but I scrapped it oh so long ago. No need to get antsy, Lo.” He replied, putting as much sincerity as he could in his words.
He stood and made his way toward her, talking each hand in one of his own. “Look at me sweetheart, would I lie to you?” Silence. He was about to let go when she whispered…
“What about a child?”
“Pardon?”
“A child, Stark. What would happen if the wife for your perfect image was with a child? It was never mentioned within that plan.”
“What, are you pregnant or somethin, Chill. I would have told her to get an abortion or something. I don’t want a mini-me throwing everything out the window. And besides, women aren’t really attractive when they look as if they’ve eaten too much, ya know.” He joked, trying to release the building tension. Instead, she only looked murderous.
“Well I wish that you had told me this before, your hatred for children and your too high expectations.” With that, Lotta stormed off, out of the lab and out of sight.
~~~
Later that night, Tony made his way upstairs from the lab, ready to try and apologise. He knew his girlfriend could be prickly when provoked and often ignored him for weeks when she felt she had been insulted or offended. He went to knock on the door, but it was open. Slowly, he opened the door to see their bedroom.
But it didn’t look like their bedroom, it looked like his bedroom, as if all her influence in the room had been changed to before. Unnerved, he looked around and found her vanity empty and non of her clothes were in the wardrobe. In the bathroom, all her shampoo, conditioner and wash was gone as well.
“Lotta, dearheart, funny joke, but no need to scare me. I’ve come to apologise… Lo, I’m sorry, okay. You can come out now.”
Silence.
“JARVIS, what happened after the fight in the lab?”
“The cameras show that Miss Laufeyson entered the bedroom and packed all her belongings, and left one thing in the drawer. Later, she enters a blind zone of my cameras and disappears, not reappearing in the other cameras.”
“Why didn’t you tell me when it happened JARVIS?”
“I tried to Sir. But you dismissed me before I could, and placed me on mute as well.”
Tony sat heavily on the king sized bed they had shared, running his hand over his face. He looked to the vanity, and spotted the picture they took on their first date. She had worn a long chiffon style dress in green with gold jewellery. He had worn a casual smart pair of trousers and a lose button down.
He stood and made his way to the vanity and opened the drawer. In it was a note, well folded and neat.
Dear Anthony,
I hope that when you read this, you are willing to hear the words you wouldn’t before. I do love you. Deeper than the Ginnungagap runs, and further than the branches of Yggdrasil reach.
However, despite the norns’ blessing, I cannot in good conscience allow this to infect myself and my ability to think. I wish you luck in your conquest to unite Midgard under your rule, but it cannot be I that you use to gain said power.
I believe you do not need a false relation to boost yourself, that you can accomplish your dream alone, and I refuse a gilded cage, no matter how lavish or opulent. After all, lies are still lies, no matter how pure the intentions.
Know I love you, and will only stop when Ragnarok comes to claim me from this plain of existence. But know it was not enough for me to believe what you said within your lab.
Yours, always,
Lotta Laufeyson
~~~
He tried to be good. He tried to be Americas perfect golden child. He tried to gain power the nice way, the kind way.
But Fate thought not. Kidnapped by terrorists in Afghanistan, tortured, told to build a weapon for them.
He built a weapon, and raised the camp, set it aflame so it may never encroach its previous power again.
He made it home, and announced a stop to weapon production. He built himself a suit of armour, like the armour around his heart. Built himself a better life support, a better arc reactor, a better suit.
Then Obadiah Stane tried to kill him. Then he was being killed by the very thing that kept him alive.
He found solutions for both. Pepper helped and the tesseract gave birth to a new element.
He stopped being good for the world, and began being great for those around him instead.
~~~
With the embers of his love, he built himself two empires. One which controlled everyone of power. Companies, governments, royalty. The second one controlled the underground. The black market, mafia gangs, HYDRA.
He placed Rhodey as head of military, both above and below ground. Pepper was appointed Ceo of Stark Industries, and ran deals both legitimate and illegal. Happy stayed head of security, and picked the newly emerging mutants off the streets - where they were left by parents, kicked out by landlords, or assaulted - and trained them for life as an employee of his company. Many became spies or assassins, taking out growing powers all over the globe. SHIELD was quickly overtaken and the super soldier within was recruited as personal protection.
Eventually, he took his seat of power as president of America, then expanded outward, until all was his. His to protect, his to own and his to destroy.
He looked almost obsessively for her. In Scandinavia, where she said she was from. The Nordic countries, all of Europe. Nothing. He expanded outward, each corner or the world was searched, yet it was as if she had disappeared into thin air. She was an unexplained mystery, no answer, barely even a question. Just a name and description.
Then aliens were real. Space vikings, and their freaky powers, strength and speed. And suddenly, their was no less of a question, but more of an answer.