Interlude #4

A/N: Sorry that I couldn't post yesterday. IRL stuff happened and long story short, I ended up at a location without cell service, let alone data :)

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Interlude IV

Technomancer in MCU

The Moon

–King Black Bolt–

I listen to the ramblings of Maximus as he delivers the report of the attack on the human city of New York.

He was arguing to attack Earth and take their rightful place as its ruler as they were still reeling under the horrors of that alien attack.

The worst part was that I could see quite a few of the elders on the noble council nodding along.

Did they not see the resounding defeat the aliens suffered at the hands of those Avengers?

Deciding to nip this dangerous idea in the bid, I raised my hand.

Such was their fear and in some cases, disgust of my power that they immediately quietened down.

They looked at me with apprehension, Maximus with scorn.

I signaled at Medusa, my wife.

Not having the ability to speak without utterly eviscerating whatever that had the misfortune of being in front of me at the moment, I relied on the mild telepathic connection I shared with her, to convey my orders to her.

She acts as my speaker, a formidable fighter in her own right. 

She helped me navigate the intricacies of the Genetic Council.

"What do you think is Maximus' motive here? He has access to the same reports we have.", I conveyed to her.

"I think he is up to his same tactics again. He probably wants to rile up the council against you, showing your refusal to act as a sign of weakness." She conveyed amusement at his continued attempts to usurp my throne.

I wonder what he saw in ruling that has him so enticed.

I wanted nothing more than to find someone capable and hand this crown to them.

But alas my wayward brother is incapable of ruling, his contempt towards the lower-class members of our species shone through at almost every council meeting.

Coincidentally, this behavior gained him the favour of many of the sitting members of the Genetic Council.

Together, they have successfully thwarted all of my attempts to help the lower class of our species.

Alas, I have to think about the overall stability, otherwise, I would have killed them long ago.

"Tell them" I command my beautiful wife. The sight of her red hair always soothes me.

"King Black Bolt has spoken. There will be no attempts at any invasion of Earth. Lockjaw along with a trusted individual will be sent to Earth for Reconnaissance purposes only."

She coldly glanced at Maximus, "I think in light of recent events, we need to make the happenings of Earth accessible to all of the populace."

Maximus' face paled at that.

I do love it when my wife destroys some monkey-haired scheme that Maximus concocts in his dungeons.

There was the usual commotion from the council of the lower class not deserving to know it but once they saw the true reports and not the ones that Maximus probably fabricated, all of them shut up.

They were so shocked that they didn't even react beyond a shaky nod when I declared the end of the meeting and swiftly departed from the meeting hall.

I just hoped that Maximus put those thoughts to rest.

An all-out confrontation between what I saw and our forces would result in the outright extinction of Inhumans.

I didn't need that sword hanging over my head on top of our fertility and genetic defect issues.

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The Royal Palace

–Odin Borson–

Dressed in all my royal garb, holding Gungnir, I addressed the council of nobles gathered in front of me.

News had somehow leaked that I had, through means unknown, sent Thor to Midgard.

The purpose of his visit was not however leaked but the absence of the Crown Prince at a time when Asgard is believed to be at it's most vulnerable did stir up a commotion.

If I was in my prime, in my hot-headed days, I would have smote the person who dared question my actions but those days are long gone.

Frigga also suggested pacifying the noble crowd to give them reassurance to help restore calm in the population.

So, here I was, shepherded into my royal garb just to satisfy some nobles.

The commotion in front of me reached its crescendo when I banged my trusty spear, Gungnir, creating a deafening boom.

The spear containing the weight of Asgard itself.

"Silence" I whispered, but the voice reached the ears of everyone present.

"I have sent Thor to Midgard to retrieve the Tesseract."

"It is a necessary component required to rebuild the Bifröst."

"He has already secured it." I continued.

"Soon, he shall return triumphant. So, feast, enjoy, and remain calm for your Prince is returning." They shouted and cheered for my son's return.

If only my other son could receive the same treatment, maybe he would not have fallen so low.

To attack Midgard of all places.

What could he have possibly wanted on that rock?

Shaking my head, I banish those dark thoughts and take Frigga's hand in mine for support.

She gives me a fragile smile, already reeling from the news of Loki being alive.

Leaning on me for support, we both exit the meeting hall, our actions unnoticed by anyone with a mere flex of my magic.

My body weakened and her heart shattered, we both could use a night of peace before Thor inevitably arrived and I had to imprison another one of my children.

Sigh… What a terrible father I am.

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Sanctuary II

–Thanos, son of A'Lars–

I watch on dispassionately as the Chitauri, the cannon fodder of my army, are utterly decimated by the Earthlings.

"It would seem that the Earthlings are not as weak as we thought. They stand triumphant, our ally defeated." The Other, one of my children that I rescued personally from a terrible fate, said.

"To challenge them… is to court death."

Death, huh.

I smirk at that, "Let them be. It was just a gamble anyway."

"A gamble to see if Odin Borson had gotten so weak so as to allow an Infinity Stone of all things to be snatched away from his realms."

"The sire is wise.", he bowed deeply.

"Leave me," I ordered him.

On second thought, "Send Gamora. I have a new mission for her."

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Chicago

–Phastos–

I was making supper for Jack, at the behest of Ben.

Humming one of the many tunes that I have heard throughout my long life, I ponder upon what our purpose was.

The rest of us are scattered throughout the globe.

Without a purpose, some of us made one for ourselves.

Some of us couldn't handle it and retreated into ourselves.

I considered myself the luckiest of us all, finding Ben and then Jack was the best thing of my life.

"Jack, supper's ready."

"Coming" came the distant yell from the troublemaker.

Hearing the faint thudding sounds of the stairs being stomped upon, I sighed.

"Jack Ben Stoss, how many times do I have to tell you not to run around in the house, especially on the stairs? You could get injured."

"Sorry" he said meekly.

"Phastos! Phastos!", came the worried voice of Jack as he ran into the house.

Worriedly, I asked him "What is it?"

Panting, he said "Aliens. Aliens in New York.."

Pupils dilating, I immediately tapped into my powers and activated the HUD display mounted on my retinas.

I heard Ben herd Jack back into his room, probably to give me privacy.

On the screen, I could see a bone-chilling scene.

Bi-pedal aliens with massive floating lizards invading the city of New York through a blue hole in the sky.

I thought of going there, to help. With my powers, I could reduce the casualties massively.

The sounds of people being in misery, crying for help made my heart wrench but I thought of Jack and the life I had built for myself here.

With a resigned sigh, I chose to stay here, close to my family.

The choice was made infinitely easier when I saw, hours later, the invasion getting thwarted. 

The aliens getting pushed back into a dome of blue, effectively neutralized, made my heart finally calm down.

Curious about the defenders, I tried to hack into their technology, only to get rebuffed immediately.

Caught off guard, I tried again.

It was the same result.

I tried again. This time the entire HUD, along with all the lights in the house shut off.

The HUD crackled back to life, showing a message - "KEEP YOUR HANDS OFF"

I immediately slammed all connections to the house shut.

Breathing heavily, I just hoped that they were good guys and didn't come after me.

If they did, the only way I could protect my family is if I ran back to the Eternals.

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Word Count - 1517

This marks the end of the Invasion Arc.

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