Chapter 57: He Has Arrived

On the Moon, a strange figure stood silently. His head was disproportionately large compared to his small body, his hands clasped behind his back as he stared into the distant void. His vision pierced through space and time, glimpsing what no mortal ever could.

"Hmm… This universe is quite fascinating. Even Odin has fallen…"

Uatu, the Watcher, mused aloud, recording the revelation with keen interest. As one of the ancient race of Watchers, it was his sacred duty to chronicle the monumental events of the multiverse, feeding them into the core archive of his kind, a living repository of cosmic history.

The Watchers, one of the oldest races in existence, had representatives in every universe. They bore witness to the rise and fall of worlds, recording but never interfering, steadfast observers of destiny's unfolding tapestry.

From the birth of new realms to the obliteration of entire civilizations, they watched with solemn impartiality, never altering the flow. That was their creed.

But now, Uatu found himself intrigued. Odin had been slain. Asgard, obliterated. The World Tree itself teetered on the brink of chaos. War loomed like thunderclouds on the cosmic horizon.

"Olympus and the Jade Emperor's Heavenly Court are preparing to return… With the fall of the Aesir, they have no reason to stay away. The shadow of the old gods will soon stretch across the World Tree once more…"

Uatu scribbled fervently, eager to preserve this volatile chapter of history.

A silent presence appeared beside him.

Black Bolt.

The King of the Inhumans stood quietly, his expression unreadable. As fellow lunar dwellers, he and Uatu had long known of each other, though their interactions were rare and nonintrusive. Each kept to their domain, observing, not meddling.

"Don't ask me what to do," Uatu said casually, without turning his head. "Even if this universe collapses, I will simply bear witness and move on to another. Intervention is not my role."

Black Bolt remained wordless, his eyes locked on Uatu.

They stood in uneasy silence, the tension humming like a taut wire between them.

At last, Black Bolt turned and left, unable to remain passive any longer.

Uatu glanced over his shoulder, shaking his oversized head. So, Blackagar can't hold back anymore. He's going to strike back at the Kree…

But that wasn't Uatu's concern. His only duty was to record.

...

Earth.

A violent surge of energy erupted.

Through a swirling vortex stepped Loki, his cold smile chilling the air itself. From the far reaches of the cosmos, he had returned to Earth.

He'd narrowly escaped Asgard's collapse, gambling his life on a random activation of the Bifrost. It was a desperate move, he could have materialized inside a star and been instantly incinerated. Yet, fate spared him.

And now, he was back, furious and burning with vengeance.

"Foolish mortals… You dare toy with weapons far beyond your control."

Loki looked down imperiously at the gathered S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. Behind him, the dimensional rift triggered by the Tesseract shimmered before beginning to close.

Moments earlier, the Tesseract had destabilized, surging with uncontrollable power and tearing open a space-time corridor that deposited Loki right into the heart of Earth.

Phil Coulson's face tightened. He turned to the panicked techs and barked, "Shut down the Tesseract, now!"

They scrambled to obey, hands flying across consoles slick with sweat.

Coulson kept his eyes locked on Loki, his mind racing to match the visual with S.H.I.E.L.D.'s intel database. His voice was low and firm. "I don't know where you came from, but this is a classified S.H.I.E.L.D. facility. You've violated Earth security protocols. We will take you into custody—"

He froze mid-sentence.

The armor. The bearing. The staff.

An Asgardian…

"You should show true reverence when addressing a god," Loki interrupted, his voice silky but dripping with disdain. "Stand straight before me again, and I will interpret it as insolence."

He smiled faintly, caressing the scepter in his hand, its aura unnatural, seductive. Then, without pause, he strode through the agents like a god among ants. Any who dared resist were casually obliterated by bursts of arcane energy. Loki reached out and seized the Tesseract.

Blue light radiated in pulsating waves from the cube—hypnotic, terrifying, eternal.

Coulson grimaced and drew his firearm, training it on the god. "That artifact belongs to Earth. If you take it, you risk igniting a new war!"

"War?" Loki snarled, his eyes blazing. "The entire World Tree is already preparing for war, and you still don't see it?"

His voice cracked with grief and rage.

"Martin, that lunatic, destroyed Asgard. Without its protection, the World Tree is doomed!"

His voice now barely human, filled with venom and madness.

It was all gone.

His biological father. His adoptive father. Thor. Even Hela, his half-sister.

The home he had known for over a millennium, reduced to cosmic ash.

All by the hand of Martin, a being more demon than man.

Loki knew the truth, he was merely a pawn, sent ahead as a test by a galactic butcher.

And yet, that didn't matter to him.

As long as he got his revenge, as long as he could hurt that man, he was satisfied.

Even a gnat can make a lion bleed, just once. That would be enough.

Thwip!

A high-velocity arrow screamed through the air.

Hawkeye's explosive shot closed in on Loki like a silver bullet, but the god only smirked, this time cold and joyless.

BOOM!

A violent blast engulfed Loki in flames.

"Nice shot!" Coulson's eyes lit up as he snapped orders. "All agents, administer tranquilizers. Do not kill him unless absolutely necessary!"

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