Chapter 93: Phil Coulson's "Sacrifice"

Meanwhile, chaos erupted elsewhere on the Helicarrier.

In the breach, Stark worked frantically in his armor, directing Captain America to help. "Go to the engine control panel and tell me which circuits are overloaded!"

"Alright." Steve made his way to the panel, opened it, and stared at the mess of wires and circuits. "Looks like a bunch of circuit boards…" he muttered, clearly out of his depth.

Stark's face fell in exasperation.

In another part of the ship, Natasha lay sprawled on the floor, cornered by the Hulk. With a roar, the Hulk stomped toward her, raising his fists high for another strike.

Natasha raised her arms defensively. Her magic bracelet absorbed some of the blows, but her arms were numb, and her strength was fading. As the Hulk's fist descended for what she thought would be the final blow, a loud electric zap filled the air.

Opening her eyes in disbelief, Natasha saw a familiar figure standing in front of her—Jane, in black armor with a red cape.

"Jane, don't fight him directly!" Natasha warned. Though Jane's armor was formidable, Natasha knew it couldn't match the Hulk's raw strength.

Jane gripped Mjolnir, keeping her eyes on the Hulk. She'd realized in their initial clash that she would need to rely on Mjolnir's power to stand a chance.

The Hulk paused, briefly confused. Jane's armor reminded him of someone—a familiar "big guy" who had once defeated the Abomination. But Hulk was no fool; he quickly recognized Jane was not Thor. With a roar, he swung at her again.

Jane sidestepped and swung Mjolnir into the Hulk's side. He let out a grunt of pain, but his fury only grew. Natasha joined Jane, and together, they coordinated their attacks to avoid being overpowered.

From a hidden corner, Thor observed their teamwork with approval. He had arrived on the Helicarrier through a portal as soon as he heard the explosion. Although he would have stepped in if necessary, he wanted Jane to have the chance to prove herself.

Seeing that Jane and Natasha had Hulk under control, Thor turned his attention elsewhere.

In another hallway, Clint Barton was moving swiftly, creating havoc and buying time for Loki.

Thor dropped down in front of him.

Hawkeye's reaction was immediate; he nocked an arrow and aimed it at Thor without hesitation. Under the Mind Stone's influence, he had no qualms about fighting his allies.

Thor saw the blue glow in Clint's eyes, a clear sign of deep control by the Mind Stone.

In Asgard, a mind-cleansing spell would have solved the problem easily, but that was beyond Thor's skill set. Most of his magic was offensive. Since magic wouldn't work, he settled for the next best option: physical intervention.

When Natasha and Jane arrived, they found Thor giving Hawkeye's head a series of light but rapid "adjustments" with his fists.

"Oh my god," Jane whispered, wide-eyed. Even though Clint was temporarily an enemy, she hadn't expected Thor to go that far.

Natasha smirked. "Hey, Agent Barton's still one of us. Maybe don't knock him into next week?"

A voice chimed in Thor's head. "Congratulations! You've completed the mission 'Mind Barrier' and are now immune to any form of Mind Control!"

Finished, Thor released Clint and passed him to a stunned S.H.I.E.L.D. agent.

"Don't worry, I took it easy. I just knocked him back to his senses," Thor said, turning to Natasha. "What's the status? Where's Loki?"

"The engine's been repaired, but Loki escaped. And… Agent Coulson is dead." Natasha's face fell; she had a close bond with Coulson, as did most of the team.

Later, the team gathered, grief etched on every face as Fury delivered the news.

"It's a hard truth to accept, but Loki killed Phil Coulson," Fury announced solemnly.

Thor looked unimpressed as Fury continued.

"I admit, S.H.I.E.L.D. was experimenting with the Tesseract for weaponization. But our true hope lies in something else—a riskier project." Fury paused, looking each of them in the eye. "This project is my vision. Stark, you know what I'm talking about. It is call it… the Avengers."

Fury's voice gained intensity. "No weapon works on its own; it needs people to wield it. When we gather the best, they can face enemies beyond any one of us."

"Phil Coulson believed in this, in heroes. His death is on me. But now, we have to put that aside and focus on the mission."

Neither Stark nor Steve replied, but Fury could tell they were processing.

"Loki needs immense energy to open a portal," Stark pointed out. "Maybe we should monitor nuclear facilities."

"No," Thor interjected. "I know my brother. He'd never hide his plans away from people. He'll choose somewhere populous, somewhere iconic."

Stark's eyes widened as it hit him. "Iconic? High energy?"

Realization dawned on his face, draining the color from it. "Damn it! He's going after my building!"

[Read up to 90+ chapter more on p@treon.com/goldengaruda]