Black Widow moved swiftly through the rubble-strewn streets, her keen eyes scanning for threats.
The air was thick with smoke, the distant sound of explosions mixing with the desperate cries of civilians caught in the chaos.
"Clint, status?" she asked through her earpiece, ducking behind an overturned taxi as a group of Chitauri scouts passed overhead.
"On the north side," Hawkeye responded. "Snipers down, but I've got more incoming. You good?"
Natasha smirked, pulling out her pistols. "Always."
She leaped out of cover, firing rapid shots into the approaching Chitauri, each bullet hitting its mark. The aliens dropped instantly, their bodies twitching as they hit the ground.
"That makes six," she muttered.
Up above, Clint was perched on the ledge of a half-destroyed skyscraper, an arrow nocked and ready. He exhaled slowly, steadying his aim before releasing. The arrow whistled through the air before striking a Chitauri soldier in the neck, sending it crashing into a nearby building.
"Seven," he corrected her over the comms.
Natasha rolled her eyes but smirked. "Not a competition, Barton."
"Everything's a competition, Nat," he shot back, already loosing another arrow.
Suddenly, a massive explosion erupted two blocks away, sending a shockwave through the street. Natasha instinctively ducked as debris rained down, her heart pounding.
"That wasn't us," she said, already sprinting toward the blast zone.
"Yeah, I noticed," Clint responded. "Checking it out from up here."
As Natasha rounded the corner, she saw the source of the explosion—a Chitauri war machine had landed in the middle of the street. It was massive, resembling a mechanized beast with thick, armor-plated legs and glowing cannons mounted on its back. Several Chitauri warriors surrounded it, forming a defensive perimeter.
Natasha gritted her teeth. 'This is going to be a problem.'
She pressed a hand to her earpiece. "Tony, we've got a new problem down here."
"I see it," Tony's voice came through, laced with strain. "Kinda busy taking down a few of my own, Romanoff."
"Any chance you could spare a missile?" she asked.
"Negative. You're on your own for now," he replied.
"Figures," she muttered.
Just then, a Chitauri soldier spotted her and let out a screech, raising its weapon. Natasha reacted instantly, twisting to the side as a plasma bolt sizzled past her. She threw a Widow's Bite directly at its chest, watching as electricity surged through its body before it collapsed.
Clint's voice crackled in her ear. "Nat, I've got eyes on you. Need a hand?"
"That depends," she said, breathing heavily as she dodged another blast. "Got an arrow that can take down that thing?"
There was a pause.
"Not exactly… but I have something close."
"Good enough," she replied, diving for cover behind an abandoned police car.
Moments later, a projectile shot through the air, embedding itself into the side of the war machine. A small beep echoed before a blinding explosion engulfed the area, causing the beast to stagger.
Natasha seized the opportunity. Sprinting forward, she leaped onto its back, planting a series of explosive discs along its plating before flipping off just as they detonated. The war machine roared before collapsing into a fiery wreck.
Clint whistled through the comms. "Nice work."
"Likewise," she responded, brushing dust off her suit.
Meanwhile, far above the battlefield, Loki stood at the edge of Stark Tower, watching the battle unfold with an amused expression.
The Chitauri forces were relentless, swarming the city like a plague. Yet, despite their overwhelming numbers, the Avengers were holding their ground.
Loki tilted his head, observing their coordinated movements, their ability to adapt to his army's assaults.
He chuckled to himself. "Predictable."
His fingers tightened around the scepter as he turned his gaze toward the sky. The portal still shimmered, an open wound in reality, spilling forth destruction.
Yet, he made no move to press the attack further. He was waiting.
Waiting for something.
Thor arrived in a flash of lightning, his silhouette outlined against the stormy sky. His expression was grim as he landed in front of Loki, gripping Mjolnir tightly.
"Loki," he called, his voice a mix of anger and something else.
Loki turned to face his brother, a smirk playing on his lips. "Ah, Thor. Always so dramatic."
Thor stepped forward. "This madness must end. You know you cannot win."
Thor arrived after quelling the chaos Loki caused in Asgard.
He found out about the invasion in Midgard and came to give Loki a thrashing but before he could leave his mother said a few words to him and that's the only why he isn't fighting Loki at first sight.
Loki's smirk didn't falter. "Win? Who said anything about winning?" He spread his arms. "I am merely… entertaining myself."
Thor's eyes narrowed. "This is not a game."
Loki chuckled. "Isn't it? Look around, brother. Chaos, destruction, despair… such delightful things, wouldn't you agree?"
Thor clenched his fists. "You have lost yourself, Loki. But it is not too late to stop this."
Loki sighed, shaking his head. "Always the optimist."
He suddenly stepped closer, his gaze softening just enough to make Thor hesitate. "Perhaps you're right, brother. Perhaps I have been blinded by my own arrogance."
Thor's grip on Mjolnir loosened slightly.
Loki smiled.
Then, in a flash of movement, he pulled a concealed dagger and drove it into Thor's side.
Thor gasped, staggering backward as a strange energy pulsed from the blade, spreading through his veins. His limbs stiffened, his strength draining away.
Loki stepped back, tilting his head curiously as he watched his brother struggle. "Ah, you almost had me there, Thor. Almost."
Thor fell to one knee, his breath shallow. "What… have you done?"
Loki twirled the dagger between his fingers. "Something special. A gift, if you will. You'll find it… rather difficult to move for a while."
He sheathed the blade and turned back to the city. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a show to watch."
Meanwhile, high above the battlefield, Tony intercepted a transmission crackling through his suit's encrypted channels.
A voice—cold and unfamiliar—spoke in a language he didn't recognize.
Tony frowned, enhancing the signal. The frequency was coming from somewhere beyond the portal.
His gut twisted.
"Loki's not calling the shots," he muttered. "He's stalling."
A new wave of Chitauri war machines emerged, descending upon the city.
Tony exhaled sharply. "Oh, great. So this wasn't even the main event?"
He knew it was more than this.
'Thanos,' he thought.
But there's a nagging feeling things are deeper than he might think.
He clenched his fists, energy surging through his Infinity Suit.