Chapter 2
Stunned, Yon-Rogg and Tony Stark, still unconscious, were tied up and taken to a city in the centre of which was a giant arena, along with a tall modern tower. They were taken to the very top of the tower, where the whole city was breathtaking. Even to the landfill that surrounded it, all because of the fall of everything that had swallowed a dozen wormholes.
Slowly, Yon-Rogg regained consciousness, though everything was half in the fog. There were a total of three people in front of him. Two men and one was probably a woman. One of the men wore a golden robe and wore a blue tunic underneath. This man appeared to be fond of gold, as he also wore gold forearm protectors. His face was lightly tanned, with a blue stripe running down his chin to his lower lip. The man must have been of elderly age, for he had white-grey, short hair.
Beside him was a man whose face Yon recognized. He's been cursing his corpse for stealing his detective. It was Loki. Distinctive facial features, green piercing eyes and black raven hair. His nemesis in love.
Stunned, Yon-Rogg and Tony Stark, still unconscious, were tied up and taken to a city in the centre of which was a giant arena, along with a tall modern tower. They were taken to the very top of the tower, where the whole city was breathtaking. Even to the landfill that surrounded it, all because of the fall of everything that had swallowed a dozen wormholes.
Slowly, Yon-Rogg regained consciousness, though everything was half in the fog. There were a total of three people in front of him. Two men and one was probably a woman. One of the men wore a golden robe and wore a blue tunic underneath. This man appeared to be fond of gold, as he also wore gold forearm protectors. His face was lightly tanned, with a blue stripe running down his chin to his lower lip. The man must have been of elderly age, for he had white-grey, short hair.
Beside him was a man whose face Yon recognized. He's been cursing his corpse for stealing his detective. It was Loki. Distinctive facial features, green piercing eyes and black raven hair. His nemesis in love.
Loki made it to Conjuction after helping Thor leave Sakaar. After all that had happened, he decided that the throne was not meant for him. Especially when there was no throne anymore. But the Grand Master was an idiot, and he could convince him with his silver tongue that he had been on his side all along. He even helped him find a new planet and subsequently became his right-hand man. He had everything here and nothing was missing. None of what could be bought, that is.
This day began for him like every other day on this planet. Once in a while, a wormhole would bring them a ship, and occasionally a passenger, but after Thanos had wiped out half the universe, not so many of them fell in.
That's why it was quite an uproar to find two passengers in one ship. Of course, he was not to be missed at such an event. In the main room, he and the Grand Master waited while new additions were brought before them. The two men were brought in strapped in special chairs. Loki recognized the stunned man immediately. A man he almost killed once and had to give up more than once. He recognized the man next door since he used to follow Heimdall after he left. He was more cooperative with his brother but occasionally said something. Instantly a brilliant plan formed in his mind to get him to himself
„If I may suggest, this man in Kree uniform, in my humble opinion, is a very competent fighter. He could certainly face a champion,” he told the Grand Master in a low voice.
„Hmm, do you think so?” he asked uncertainly, eyeing Yon-Rogg. He didn't look much like a fighter. More like an explorer
„I'm sure of it. And if you don't believe me, then try putting him in the arena and then you'll know what to do with him. At least people will get to see a new face. They still wanted something new,” as always, he was very persuasive. And if his words didn't work that way, he planned to use a bit of persuasion with the magic he'd used back in London, posing as a baronet.
„Well... if you say so. If it works, you can take whatever reward you want,” he muttered uncertainly, waving his hand. Thanks to this gesture, Yon was wheeled away in a chair. Meanwhile, Tony was taken to the infirmary. This was exactly the outcome Loki wanted to achieve.
Yon-Rogg was fitted with new armour and sent to the arena. He walked through the great gate and was greeted by cheers from all sides. Next to it was a gun rack, and it said he was only allowed to choose one weapon. He had chosen special gloves that had been taken from him and were now in the armoury. He put it on immediately. As soon as he removed the glove from its holder, all the weapons inside were locked, and the box slid into the ground.
He entered the circle, and opposite it opened, and inside stood a man twice his size with many times his muscles. He looked like a big, angry pile of muscle, with two swords in his hands. He slammed them together twice before making a few elaborate moves. The crowd cheered a lot more than when Yon walked in. He seemed to like showing off. Yon looked at him and decided there was no point in running at him head-on. He'll get a feel for it first. And, as he had expected, the enemy came at him, eager to strike a mortal blow with a single swipe of his sword. He had not expected Yon to be so easily avoided. He came at him again, this time at his throat. Literally. He dodged most of those attacks, too, though the enemy probably only cut one in his thigh. But the wound was not deep, so it did not restrict Yon's movements.
Part of his opponent seemed tired, and this was his moment. He activated the gloves in an experienced motion and went to work. In his head, he developed a perfect strategy, which he put into practice in an instant. His opponent had no idea what had happened. As Yon was about to deliver the final blow, an electrical charge went through his body, the same as when he was knocked unconscious when he was captured and fell to the ground. The crowd cheered. Fans clapped and whistled and threw all sorts of things into the arena. From flowers to underwear. The porters subsequently removed the two men from the arena, as people were already looking forward to another interesting match.
Meanwhile, the Grand Master and Loki watched the entire match from the central tower, his special box.
„I have to say, he's not bad. His fighting style is slightly unusual, as everyone here is throwing themselves into it, but he seems to have grown attached to the audience. And who am I to deny my darlings what they love, hmm? I like him,” the Grand Master said enthusiastically.
„As I told you," Loki said simply, a slight smile on his lips.
„Well, how many units do you want for him? But I'm not going above two thousand,” he said with a sigh.
„I'm not asking for units, I'm asking for something else. Valuable to me.”
„What is it, then? Not my position?” he began to suspect.
„You don't have to worry, I don't want your position. I'm asking for the man who was on the boat with him. The one who wasn't conscious.”
„Really? And you don't want anything else. The poor man is from Earth so he won't last long,” he said because he thought the Earthling was written off. No great loss. And in his opinion, he should have made a better choice.
„Your offer is tempting, but I want him. Nothing else,” he replied firmly, but at the same time not appearing to be giving orders.
„So be it,” he replied, defeated, waving a hand at one of the maids.
She bowed and came closer.
„What's your name, girl?” he asked her.
„Emily, sir,” the girl replied weakly.
„Emily, have the newly recruited Earthman ready for my friend here. From now on, it belongs to him,” he commanded, turning to Loki.
„My room.”
„Did you hear? Come on, come on,” he urged.
„I'm incredibly grateful for your generosity,” he said, slightly exaggerated.
„The deal is a deal, and now you go enjoy your new pet,” he waved, sitting down in a chair to watch the next game. "Where the hell is my popcorn!" he shouted to one of the maids, who immediately ran to him. Loki merely shook his head and started toward his room.
Loki went back to his room, where Tony was already in his bed. He already looked a little better, but it was clear how exhausted he still was. Loki sat on the edge of the bed and took his hand lightly.
„What did you have to go through before you found your way to me?” he asked weakly, his gaze falling to his chest. As he remembered from his last meeting, a blue circle glowed there. Now there was nothing. He let go of his hand carefully and moved gently across his chest, where he remembered was cold metal instead of a heart. He was slightly relieved, for he felt no such thing there. He could feel Tony's heart beating and the warmth of his skin against his cold body.
Suddenly an idea sprang into his head. Using magic, his spear appeared in his hand with the residual strength of the tesseract. There was enough power left in the spear for one last spell. He concentrated and put the point of the spear to Tony's heart. The lance glowed blue, and the blue energy poured into his lover's chest. As it happened, Tony opened his eyes and sat up in shock. If Loki hadn't been quick enough, Tony might have gotten hurt on his spear.
The earthman's eyes were wide and he was trying to find out what had happened. The last thing he remembered was being on a boat and someone else showing up. And now he was in bed, with Loki sitting in front of him. The whole thing seemed absurd to his mind. For a moment he thought he had already died and was probably in hell. Or somewhere halfway. But the fact that his head and chest ached in an unreal way took him out of those thoughts. He felt that mere thought was causing the pain.
„Anthony?” Loki asked, a hint of concern in his voice. As if he'd only just realized that he'd been in the same room as his former enemy, he began to automatically surge away from him.
„I don't want to hurt you,” he said gently, grabbing his arm to stop him. Tony looked at him, shocked, and wanted to extricate himself, but he didn't have the strength. Loki grabbed him with his other hand and closed his eyes. A green, pleasant light began to drift from his hands, and when it was gone, it seemed to Tony that a large stone had fallen from him. It was as if strength and energy had returned to his body. Even the wound he suffered in the fight was gone. He looked at Loki, puzzled. He was a bad guy. The enemy. So why did he help him? Why did he cure him?
„Get some sleep, Sherli dear,” and kissed his forehead. He put some soporific magic into the kiss, so when he pulled away, Tony's eyelids drooped and he fell asleep.
But it was a restless sleep, with memories pouring into his mind. It seemed to belong to a stranger, but also himself. He was in a totally unfamiliar environment, though he guessed from the buildings that he was in London. But it wasn't London as he remembered. This one was a lot older. He saw the man who rescued him from the ship as close to him in his memories. How he met him. They became friends but argued very often. He even saw Loki in them but under a completely different name. And no brother. He had a sister there. He saw Loki's death. Everything began to spin and all the colours dissolved. The man at his side stopped arguing with him, and it looked like a relationship. That is until he saw his own end.