"Tell me, brother, what new deception will you weave now? I do not wish to end you with my own very hands." Thor, holding firmly onto his Mjolnir, stared deeply at the figure sprawled on the ground.
Loki, with severe injuries and upturned insides, laughed maniacally at his 'brother's question. "Hehehe, oh brother, you're still as soft-hearted as ever. Truly unfit for the throne."
If Mesogog were still alive and saw that Loki was also present and participating in the battle, he'd be too stunned to speak. Wasn't he also present at his lab?
But what he didn't know till his death was that Loki was the god of mischief and no mere mortal could hold him. Even Asgard couldn't keep him in check; who was Mesogog to accomplish that?
The blatant disdain in Loki's words made Thor frown and sigh in helplessness. He noticed that within those eyes filled with pain was a hidden anger directed towards him and the entire realm of Asgard.
If it were before, he might not have noticed it, but after staying and living in Midgard for some time as an ordinary mortal, his mentality had transformed. Therefore, Loki's inferiority complex was very clear to him.
At first, he had no idea why Loki felt that way, but after consulting the All-Father, the matter became clear to him.
It was simply because Loki felt like an 'outsider'.
Loki wasn't a seed of Odin but an adopted Bifrost, unfit for the Throne of Asgard and not favored. Whereas Thor, who is a direct descendant of one of the most powerful gods in the Nine Realms, was favored and crowned the next king of Asgard.
Moreover, Loki looked down on him when it came to matters of leadership and fiefdom. And it wasn't his fault.
Thor knew how reckless he had been before being crowned as the god of thunder and an heir to the throne of an empire that had existed for eons. If not for Odin's 'test', the current him would have never been born.
He understood Loki's pain, but also understood his brother's extremity. So…no matter what, he had to take him back to Asgard for judgement.
Thor looked at Loki with unconcealed worry and spoke, "Why must you be so stubborn brot—"
"Alright, alright, enough of this. I have an upcoming schedule with my bed. So...uhm you guys might need to wrap it up." Tony interrupted.
His face was filled with impatience as he stared at the brotherly duo. He was truly exhausted and needed to rest. His body was that of a mortal, not like the rest of the team.
Moreover, he was very hungry, and also weirdly craving some shawarma.
Loki, still grimacing on the tiled floor of the Stark Tower, cast a smug glance at Tony. "How dare a mere mortal interrupt this go—"
"Hmm?" Hulk, standing at the center of the room, grumbled slightly, startling Loki and forcing his remaining words back.
As for why Hulk was present and working with the Avengers, it was because Doggy Cruger requested him to do so. As for why he gave that command, Banner couldn't be bothered to care, as long as it did him no harm or discomfort; helping them was fine.
"I think Mr. Stark is right, Thor. The hostile alien forces have been dealt with; Our mission is now complete, and ending it is only right. We don't need more complications to arise, as it did previously, and we all know the cause of that is your dear brother over here. So...please take him away as soon as possible," Natasha also spoke, her voice lower than usual. She was also exhausted and wanted nothing more than to end it all.
Thor stared deeply at the Midgardian he had once disdained and now worked with. He shook his head with a slight smile and replied. "You're right. We've wasted enough time here. I'll be taking my brother home for judgment now."
"Hmm," Captain America nodded. "I hope it all goes well, and please make sure he doesn't find a way back to Earth again."
Thor heard this and shook his head. "No need to worry, Captain. With Asgard's defense, he won't be able to escape from his cells, not to mention causing chaos here again."
"You said the same thing the last time," Hawkeye grumbled inwardly but didn't bother to voice his thoughts. Out of all of them, he was the most stressed. A lot of things had happened to him today; he'd rather go home and cool off.
"Great," Captain America gave a short response, turned to his team, then continued. "Avengers! Fall out!!
...
Fwoosh~
A multicolored vortex the size of a small car appeared in the Omni-base. Zayne, already powered down to his Phase 1 suit, flew out from this very vortex.
He hovered in the air for a few seconds, taking in the atmosphere around the base. After confirming his successful arrival, with a silent sigh, Zayne flew straight to the headquarters with a speed not too fast or too slow.
"Master Zayne, welcome." The moment Zayne appeared in the control room, Alpha rolled over to greet him.
Zayne acknowledged it with a pat on her head. "Hey, Alpha. Thanks for managing the base in my absence."
"It's my duty, master," Alpha responded and got back to work, leaving only Zayne with his thoughts.
"What a day it has been." A cold energy drink appeared in his hands as he sat down. "Thankfully, it all went well."
Slurp~
As Zayne drank the special drink, his physical exhaustion vanished completely, and his mental energy also recovered by half.
Even though he was very strong now, his body and mind were still human. The amount of omni-energy he could use and contain was limited. Although the amount of omni-energy available to him was perpetually infinite, the weight of his skills still consumed a significant amount of his stamina and energy.
"I hope breaking through a higher level would reduce this cost." Zayne sighed thoughtfully in his heart. But he wasn't discouraged.
After all, he had only been a power ranger for no more than two months and had already gotten this strong. He couldn't be too greedy.
Suddenly—
Fwoosh~ Swoosh~ Swoosh...
A multicolored portal appeared outside the headquarters again, but this time larger than the previous one.
"They're back," Zayne's lips curled up in a smile.
Following his thoughts, the rest of the team finally walked out of the portal. Their posture was firm, but Zayne still noticed the exhaustion hidden in their body language.
He didn't rush forward to meet them, as that would be contradicting his leader persona. Instead, he closed his eyelids, crossed his legs, and patiently waited for them to arrive.
A minute later, the room's door slid open, and the team walked in.
"Welcome," Zayne, already powered down to his civilian form, spoke first, looking at each of his team members with unconcealed satisfaction.
Though being invincible is great, having strong, reliable supporters behind your goal is better.
Even while he had been battling Titans and villains, he still noticed the team's excellent display of power and interdependence. Though he had expected a similar situation with their newly increased strength, the performance still exceeded his expectations. Moreover, because of them, he was bound to get even more rewards from the Omni-grid.
The team hummed in response, too tired to even form a complete sentence. This didn't annoy Zayne, since he was also in a similar situation, having just recovered his energy.
Without further delay, he willed several energy drinks to appear before the exhausted team members. The instant they saw the familiar can, their eyes lit up. Their body reacted faster than they could think, grabbing each can and chugging it down their throat.
Gulp~ Gulp~~ Gulp~~~
For a while, only sounds of swallowing could be heard in the entire room. Only Zayne was quiet, watching them silently as their energy recovered.
Then—
Kira moved first, walked towards Zayne, and sat on his lap as if she owned it, without even asking for permission.
"Huh?" Zayne was startled at first, but remembering she was his beloved, he smiled and just let her lay her head on his shoulders.
Minutes later, after the cans were emptied, sounds of snoring echoed throughout the room. Every single team member except Tommy had already fallen asleep. Even Kira, who sat on Zayne's lap, was already snoring softly on his shoulders.
The turn of events stunned Zayne, but as he thought of their difference in strength, the situation was reasonable. Most of them had only advanced to early C tier, and the battle they had fought was extremely long; sleeping was the best way for them to rest mentally. It even made the energy drink work faster, nourishing and strengthening their bodies.
He could only sigh and wait with patience. His hands also unconsciously massaged Kira's blonder hair as she slept, making her look extremely cute.
Tommy, who was before him, also went deep into meditation, recovering his mental energy with the help of the energy drink.
With that, the entire room fell into silence once more.
...…..
On the other side of the Mystic realm, a dark forest could be seen. It spanned several kilometers, easily exceeding the entire planet of Earth.
Although huge, it was almost lifeless, with only blackened dead trees present on all sides. And at the center of this huge realm was a massive pitch-black hole, kilometers wide.
If one stared deep into this pit, they would see nothing but darkness. Not a single ray of light would be seen in it. It was like an abyss that swallows all things, turning them into indiscernible darkness.
Surprisingly deep within this large hole was a whole kingdom. The people of this kingdom called this place 'The Pit' and worshipped a ruler named 'The master'.
At the very core of this abyssal hole, a huge pond emanating an eerie energy suddenly stirred, causing all things to freeze.
Yes, space and time completely froze at this moment.
"He failed yet again," A voice spoke in an unknown language, filled with eeriness that seemed to affect the surrounding void. "My plan was certain to be successful, and after multiple divinations, there should have been no error. Who could have caused this?!"
The mysterious voice was 'The master's'. But it also felt like multiple people were talking at the same time. Plus, although the voice was faint and unheard by anyone, it still caused the surrounding space around him to break bit by bit.
It was almost as if he was deep in slumber and not fully awakened at all. Yet, his mere words could still cause the stagnation of space-time.
"I shall revive you both," The master continued, staring at the two souls in his grasp. "Fail me one more time, and I shall devour you both, leaving not even your soul."
The two souls trembled at his words. They could only shake, unable to resist the pressure from 'The master'.
Suddenly—
The place the master resided in trembled, and a blood-red eye appeared. Several tentacles followed after, coiling around the two souls and releasing a type of unknown energy.
Shortly after, the souls fell into slumber, and a cocoon appeared around them. The tentacles retreated afterwards, leaving only the blood-red eye present. Time and space also continued.
But what the master didn't notice was the fact that some of his memories were already missing. He had completely forgotten the culprit of his failed plan. The memory of the one who killed the two souls was already long gone.
--- ✦ ---
Another chapter done. The next chapter will be the end of the arc.
Guys, please donate power stones.