Strange meets the others
Loki sat alone in the darkest corner he could find on the Benatar and gloomed.
The experience of sharing his innermost intentions had been the worst ordeal ever in his life and he could clearly feel that Mantis had manipulated him. She had changed him. He could not pinpoint how or in which way but it was there. The sharing had not been one way. While she had channelled his memories, he had connected to her too. So now he knew: she hadn’t done it intentionally. It was mere … kindness. She had smoothed out some parts of him, calmed his rage not even able to realize how he had nurtured those parts and said rage. Her desire to please and to help, to be useful had touched him and now the remnants burned inside his persona like gentle poison. He tried to feel dirty and violated but he couldn’t. The remaining pieces of her relativized this need and showed him how self-destructive it was.
She had done it to protect him from himself out of sheer mercy.
The thought made him sick, bud then the calm Mantis had manifested inside his brain made him feel appreciated, grateful and overall just good.
It was very… disconcerting to say the least. He sighed. However unsettling her touch might have been and the changes she had unwittingly forced onto him the new feelings also reigned in his festering insanity and cleared his thoughts as well. He had never been so much in control of his thoughts and his mind before. Things that had enraged him and let his thoughts run in circles seemed petty now. Things he was ashamed of had now less weight, he also saw their usefulness more clearly now. If he wanted he would be able to harness much more of him than ever before.
He didn’t really know if this were his own thoughts or new ones delivered from her influence but he did realize if he let it become part of himself he would become stronger in the end. He saw that she hadn’t taken anything from him but merely given him the tools to master his own weaknesses.
Maybe it was a good thing. The trickster didn’t have to like it though.
He had sat here and brooded for a while now he had no idea how long he’d been here to be honest, nor did it interest him. What had shaken him out of his self-reflection was a build-up in this world’s energy. While analysing the feeling he realized it had been there for a while now but subtle, unthreatening so far.
But now it had risen. A strong wave of raw energy surged through the whole planet. He reached out with his own energies to connect and what he found made him jump up and hurry out. All his former brooding forgotten just now.
He reached outside the moment the energy surge peaked. A low tremble run through the planet, it was more like a satisfied purr really, then he felt the awakening of a conscience all around him. The planet itself had gained consciousness? No, this wasn’t a new mind it was…
Oh no. Not that one.
The next moment people started to run outside, important looking men and woman ran around talking into different communication devices.
It was Stark though who at least seemed to have an inch of control. He still held his phone in his hand and with the Guardians and a not so little entourage in tow he marched straight towards the fastest means of transportation close by. The Brentano.
Loki pulled back inside, no way would he let this get by him, he had to see how it could have happened that all of a sudden the whole planet felt like one Peter Jason Quill.
The man called Rhodes was keeping up with Stark despite the harness covering his lower body, as soon as they came close enough Loki realized he was demanding answers.
“Who is this guy and why can he simply call you and you come I’m asking!”
He insisted. “I’m your military liaison and you agreed to work with me! You promised you would not keep any more secrets!”
He really looked pissed now.
“I told you, there was no other way!” Stark looked defeated. He held up a hand and stopped another tirade. “I know how that sounds but I’ve been asked very reasonably for discretion and really, could you trust me ever again if I’d be running around boasting out everything even if I promised to keep it for myself?” The other just snorted easily recognizing the empty rhetoric for what it was.
“Besides, that’s not the point now! We had an energy surge all around the planet, the base around a little flower which almost ate the whole planet has just vanished and an earthquake had everything shaking. I mean everything! Even those parts who should not be able to shake and now Mantis says she can feel Peter everywhere.”
Stark hesitated for a moment before entering the ship, his eyes rested on Loki for a mere moment, then he passed by.
“I guarantee you, that’s nothing good!” Rocket busted out. “You can’t let Peter go anywhere. He always makes a mess.”
Soon they’d all stomped past and he totally enjoyed the shocked faces of the Terrans when none of the Guardians made any move to take the pilot seat but Rocket.
“Well then buckle in comrades!” He howled, “let’s see what he has broken now!”
It wasn’t calming in the least when the racoon kick-started the engines and roared away with a maniacal laughter but Loki realized he didn’t mind the slightest. He guessed he could even start to like the critter.
The full speed the Benatar could muster brought them to their goal in no time.
When they landed they could see some soldiers and agents gathering around Quill, who peacefully sat in the middle of a splendid collection of blooming vegetation. A bit away were the man called Hogan and the sorcerer. A vivid memory of falling into nothing for 30 minutes made Loki moan. This earned him a curious look from Stark followed by a knowing grin.
Thor looked completely enlightened though. “There’s Master Strange! What a good sight!” He exclaimed. Rhodes looked thoughtful back and forth between the sorcerer and Tony now.
Rockets landing was a lot rougher than Quills had looked but Loki got the impression it was not for a lack of talent but because the other simply didn’t care at all.
Soon they left the ship and walked toward the strange scene.
Peter looked nothing short of miserable, the sorcerer absolutely formidable and Mr. Hogan in equal parts ashamed and lost.
“What happened here?” Tony started.
“Well,” the deep voice of the sorcerer hid a faint hint of amusement. “It seems it would have been better you’d started our agreed cooperation by telling me about this place instead of waiting for me to come around first.”
He stepped closer to Stark and looked down on him. “I really hope that guy over there is a nice one, because now he’s become earth.”
This brought them all to halt in an instant.
“P-Pardon me?” Rhodes was first to find his voice. “I might be mistaken but I understood you told us Peter had become earth?”
“Yes,” the sorcerer deadpanned, “that’s what I said, this young man you can see over there is no longer an independent entity but merely an extension of the conscious being our planet has evolved into. And I really hope it’ll be a halfway responsible being we’re living on now.”
The cackling laughter Rocket broke into did nothing to reassure anybody.
Stark boiled over now. “And you let him?” he roared. “What’s that talk about thousand years of protection for this realm and this deep responsibility crap you gave me the other day if you just stood by and let any punk who come running up become earth?”
The sorcerer stayed annoyingly calm. “That’s exactly the reason why I asked for patience and trust. I’d really hoped you’d prove yourself to be the reasonable person you presented yourself and tell me about something like strange energy flowers sprouting on our planet.”
He got a bit more heated while he talked. “All I had as a forewarning was a little tingle, a vague feeling of energies moving toward each other. What should I have told you? OH hello Tony, sorry to call but I have a prickling feeling on my neck, somewhere on the planet might be an energy source and somewhere outta space might be another and it could be they’re moving toward each other!”
He sounded utterly sarcastic now. “I’m pretty sure this would have been helpful.”
“Oh and I was supposed to trust a grown man calling himself a sorcerer whom I’d only met a week prior and who was barely able to brew tea the last time I saw him with all kinds of intel I had no idea might be relevant AT ALL?”
The sorcerer opened his mouth when Rhodes intervened. “Could somebody please tell us what’s happening right now?” He barely restrained his anger. “And Tony! Who is that and why didn’t you tell me that anything happened that made you start a conspiration with a man who declares himself a sorcerer of all things?”
Now tony twisted around and shot at Rhodes. “I tried! I even showed you the footage but you didn’t believe me! You said I should try to prank someone else with my cheap special effects or even better, do something useful with my time.”
Everybody startled when Gamora stepped up and demanded calmly.
“Could that please wait till later? I’d really want to know what happened with Peter.”
Loki looked at her with curiosity. On the outside, she appeared cool and under control but she could not hide the slight trembling of her hands that told the liesmith that she was just pretending. She deeply cared for Quill and desired to see him safe.
“Well,” the sorcerer started, “I don’t know exactly but I felt a very faint energy field growing for a while now. It was very subtle spreading but I could not locate it or find out what exactly it was until today.” He looked back to the sitting figure still staring into nothing. The moment I felt the sudden power surge today and materialized where it had flared up I realized it was a seed. Something or somebody had planted a part of himself on earth a while ago. The seed took root and invaded the whole planet, secretly binding and amassing energy to transform our world into part of whatever had planted it in the first place. That man over there has almost the same energy signatures that thing had and when he stepped onto earth he started the process of transformation.”
His eyes got a pitiful look when Strange remembered how he had found the other. “I don’t believe he knew what would happen though. I doubt he would have come had he known. After the process started it could not be stopped except by someone merging with the energy field who had a mind to control it. Otherwise, the thing would have mindless fulfilled whatever intention had created it. It seemed for a moment this intention was to destroy everything.”
The Guardians faces showed realization at that words. “It’s true,” Gamora whispered. “It was Ego, Quill's father. He was a celestial. He had decided that life was a disturbance and planned to take over the whole universe with himself so he planted seeds everywhere in the universe. He wanted to use Quill to make that happen but we destroyed him. We didn’t know the seeds could have survived.”
They all looked at the sitting man again and Loki surprised himself when he spoke up. “I don’t think any of the others did.” Insecure he looked over to the Sorcerer who had realized his presence now for the first time. The other only nodded though.
“If Loki felt what I did I agree. It seems this thing only survived because there was a connection left. It already had become part of this planet, he is part of this world too. This connection kept it alive and enabled it to amass more energy and hold this planet on the brink of transformation while waiting for its only fitting host to arrive.”
“But what do we do now?” Somebody asked in the background. “How can we reverse this?” Everybody stared at the scientist who had been assigned to research the flower and who looked utterly upset. “I mean, we can let some…dude from outer space just… become earth!”
Strange snickered. “Anybody got any ideas? Hopefully, nothing that involves ‘killing’ his body. It might destroy the whole planet by the way just in case anyone is already considering this. Everything that disturbs his concentration right now might just result in severe destruction all over the world I might add. He’s not used to having a body that big and right now he tries to sort out which part he can move and which should better stand still.”
While everyone stared in horror at the sorcerer Loki sneaked away from them and close to the sitting figure. With a fluid motion, he let himself sink down in front of Peter and looked into his face. Little tremors ran through the immediate radius around the body in front of them but then he managed to lift his head in the slowest motion.
“May I?” Loki inquired and stretched his hands towards the other. Quill gave him the tiniest nod. His eyes were still very blue, the energy barely is hidden behind them. Carefully the trickster god touched the others arms. He remembered the awakening of his own arcane powers, how his mother had guided him, showed him how he could lead and control the powers surging through his body in a way that would not harm himself. He gently let his own energy flow into the others physical form, filling only the part that was right in front of him. His own energy was cool and alien, a stark contrast to the warm power of growth inside the man.
‘Can you feel that?’ Loki sent this thought directly into the other being. Quill nodded a bit steadier now the voice in his head helped him to gather his wits into his old form while staying in contact with the whole. ‘This is the part that can move, this is the old you.’ Something like gratitude crept into the others face. Carefully, slowly he lifted his hand and twisted his fingers. This time no tremors run through the surface around him.
He turned his head and looked into the mage's eyes. “Thank you.” His voice sounded raw and strange, distorted. “For a moment I thought I would sit here forever.”
When Loki turned he found himself opposite an attack front. Everybody looked at him as if he had just eaten an infant.
“Well, I know I’m not exactly popular here but no one of you could believe that even I would destroy the planet I’m standing on!” He reasoned. “By the way, I have an idea.” The expressions of pure disbelieve were almost comical and before anybody could give him some nonsense he just went on.
“Quill needs somebody to teach him how to control energy flow and learn as much about earth and what it might need as fast as possible so he can start his new carrier as a living planet. I think there are only two people among you who are qualified to do so and since your survival depends on that I believe you two,” with that he pointed towards Stark and Strange, “should pull your heads out of the sand and get to work. Preferably somewhere safe and quiet.”
Everybody looked at him as if he’d turned into a pink unicorn on the spot.
“And what makes that one here an expert in energy fields? Rhodes said sarcastically with a degrading look at Strange.
The Sorcerer Supreme didn’t bat an eye, he simply moved a hand without even looking and opened a portal behind.
“I guess nobody told you what being the Sorcerer Supreme entailed?” he snarled back. With a look at Stark he went on, “I guess Kamar-Taj might be the best choice? Maybe basic training for novices might be a good start.”
Stark hesitated. “Since I have no better idea I guess we’re following reindeer games in this.”
Nobody looked especially thrilled by that thought.