Chapter 53: Princess Mononoke
In the New Mexico desert, just a little distance from the town of Puente Antiguo, a supposed satellite had crashed on Earth the night before, leaving a big crater.
And on the very next day, the Feds showed up and built their tents around it, even metal fences with electricity. In reality, it was SHIELD that had taken control of the area.
They had world-class security, their top scientists, and even an entire control room to monitor the perimeter and everything inside the secured site.
However, Agent Coulson watched a man single-handedly bulldoze through probably the most highly trained professionals like they were a bunch of mall cops.
Sure, he had stopped Agent Barton from taking the shot, but this tall, muscular man with majestic hair had made quick work of everyone else.
And unlike his appearance and way of fighting, which suggested he was loud and confident like he should be with that stature, the man hadn’t spoken a word since he failed to pull out that hammer-looking thing.
’Where’d all that fire go?’ Even if Coulson asked him questions, he got nothing in return. It was almost like he was speaking to a wall.
"One way or another, we find out what we want to know; we are good at that," Coulson said, facing the silent treatment for nearly 3 hours.
That was when he got an update on his device; he stepped out for a moment, walking right past a young man in a long black coat. With the slicked-back hair going past his ears and the incredibly solemn expression that he walked in with, added to the all-black and crisp clothes, one would expect him to be a mafioso.
"Thor..." However, the young man was the brother of the man currently cuffed to the chair he was on.
"Loki... What are you doing here?" For the first time, Thor’s face changed.
"I had to come see you." Loki avoided his questioning brother’s eyes.
"W...What happened?" But that only made Thor more nervous. "Is it Jotunheim? I can explain to father."
"Father is..." Loki stopped, his eyebrow knitted together.
"What happened to father?" Worry took over Thor’s face, and watching that, his brother sighed.
"Father has fallen into Odinsleep." Loki saw the slight relief on Thor’s face and continued. "Your banishment, the threat of the new war- it took a toll on his health, and he collapsed. They say he might not wake up again."
His brother’s face went through a wave of emotions. It was like he wanted to say a thousand words, but he failed to voice them. The shock of not being able to lift the Mjolnir and the news of Odin’s health deteriorating with an imminent threat to Asgard- all of this was weighing down on what used to be mighty shoulders.
"The burden of the throne has fallen to me now." Loki gave his brother little time to process the situation. It was the perfect time since he was in great self-doubt.
He had expected Thor to be a bit angry, but he only had one request.
"Can I come home?" His voice was barely a whisper, compared to how booming it used to be.
"I had to make a deal with the Frost Giants in Father’s place; the price for peace is that you stay in exile." He could already see his brother trying to say something, so he pressed on. "...Until Father wakes up, there is no other way. Even Mother has agreed to it. Please understand, brother."
"...Ok." Thor still had hope that he could return to Asgard.
Loki wanted to crush that last bit of hope as well, but his tongue failed him for the first time today. Never before had he hesitated to trick Thor, but he couldn’t do it when it mattered the most.
He couldn’t exactly explain why it happened. No, he surely knew the reason as he walked past Mjolnir, having no thoughts to test his worthiness by lifting it. Digging into his coat, Loki took out a book he had borrowed from a man in the next town.
From the cover, a blond-haired man with a sharp gaze stared into his soul, searching for an answer. Loki had landed on the planet hours ago, but only now found his brother, learning that he had failed to lift the hammer. Part of that reason was this book.
The question it asked him was one he wanted an answer to the most. And if he could read the entire thing, not just the first volume as humans called it, he might get the answer. At least he believed so.
’I must find the next one at all costs, even better if I can find the one who wrote this.’ That was the only thing he could do at the moment.
As Loki walked past the gate to the facility, Dr. Eric Selvig entered.
He lied about Thor being their colleague and brought him out by stating that he had broken inside the place in a fit of drunken anger.
On the way out, Eric had a lot to say to this reckless man, but seeing the deflated face, all the words just died in his throat. Unlike the arrogant and sky-high confidence he had shown in the morning, he seemed almost unrecognizable now.
’Maybe he’ll cheer up a bit after drinking.’ Eric had a lot he wanted to talk about with this man who claimed to be Thor.
However, drinking against a Norse God, even if he didn’t have his powers, wasn’t the best idea.
After Thor helped Eric to the bed in Jane’s trailer, they stepped out for a moment, sitting by the bonfire under the blanket of night. That’s when he told her about the nine realms, but when he pointed at Asgard, it felt like a dagger had gone through his heart.
Asgard faced war because of his actions, yet he couldn’t do anything about it. And he could not even lift Mjolnir. Even if he reached Asgard, what could he do?
"You know, you really remind me of someone." Jane looked at his downcast eyes from the side.
It was like she saw the story she had read yesterday come to life before her.
"Someone like me in Midgard?" He tilted his head, allowing the distraction to take him away from the painful thoughts.
"Yes, do you like stories? I can show you." She treaded carefully, without showing her own growing interest in fictional books.
"I love stories." Thor had grown up with tales of the old, tales full of valour and strength. Tales of the wars where his father had won the nine realms.
However, when Jane brought back that metal book that had no pages, Thor was a bit confused as she typed at the scrambled letters on one side.
Still, he waited patiently as the images flashed by on the other side of the book. At last, the images stopped at a black-and-white picture of a vast forest with towering trees and peaceful mystery.
There was a name at the top left corner of the page written in bold letters.
Princess Mononoke.
’Is this a tale of a Midgardian princess who wields a hammer?’ Thor glanced between Jane and the picture.
"Want me to, um, read?" She said with a harmless smile.
"I can read it." His father hadn’t taken the Allspeak magic from him at least.
"Of course." Jane let out an embarrassed chuckle, slowly handing him the laptop. "Here, if you need help, just tell me."
"You have my thanks." He focused on the drawing on the bright screen.
The next page was half filled with trees, following a young man on a red elk as danger approached the village he guarded.
These vast forests reminded Thor of the one he had used as his playground as a child. However, as Jane pressed the arrowed key to change the image, he focused on the writhing mass of tendrils, called the demon god, breaking down the watch tower that the warrior was on.
’A warrior needs a foe to establish their strength; a demon god should work just fine.’ Thor nodded, but soon after, he had a small frown.
This warrior riding the elk was a good bowman, but he was only leading the demon god away from the village.
Why would he run? Maybe he was leading it to the supposed princess?
Still, he should face it head-on and destroy the thing before it caused more harm. As Thor had worried, the Demon God rushed towards the younger warriors who had retreated before.
There was no need to converse with a beast that sought to destroy.
That was when the young man took action at last. With one arrow to the eye, he stopped the foul beast and defended his people. However, the wiggling mass wrapped around the boy’s right hand before he could shoot the second arrow.
Thor could only think of it as a curse as the boy’s hand let out black smoke. Seeing the reaction of the villagers and the elder they called Hii only confirmed his guess.
But what stayed with him wasn’t the battle; it was the sympathy these people had for a creature that tried to slaughter them all. Even then, this beast left behind a curse while melting away. And while knowing that, the boy named Ashitaka still didn’t get angry.
After following a ritual of Hii that spoke of the boar’s origins. The prince that had slain the beast and borne the curse still had the resolve to face what came after. Even if he did not fault in the matter.
Even if that curse would slowly kill him.
’He stays calm even while going into exile; he doesn’t complain, he doesn’t lose his cool.’ He looked at the boy in the picture and at himself.
He couldn’t help but remember his last moment in Asgard.
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Change the @ to ’a’ first, though.