Miserable Loki

Loki stiffly turned his head towards the second voice that had somehow appeared behind him. It was a voice he could never forget.

In those few seconds, as he turned, Loki prayed fervently in his mind. 'It's not him, it's not him, it just sounds like him. It can't be him. That man definitely isn't on Earth...'

But when Zane's smirking face appeared in his field of vision, Loki's mind went blank. He was frozen, as if trapped in time, his whole body rigid, even his breathing stopping unconsciously.

"Hello, Loki. Long time no see!"

Seeing the extreme shock on Loki's face, the mischievous smile on Zane's lips grew even more pronounced.

"Lo-Lord Za-Zane, when did you return to Earth?" Loki stammered, awakened by Zane's words.

Loki tried to force a smile to show his goodwill, but what should have been a practiced, fake smile just wouldn't form, leaving only a ridiculous, forced expression.

Watching Loki's nervous demeanor, Zane's sense of mischief was immensely satisfied. He instinctively wanted to continue teasing this timid trickster.

"Don't be so nervous. After all, Odin is considered an ally. Why should you, a prince of Asgard, be tense?"

As he spoke, Zane stepped forward and patted Loki on the shoulder, acting like a concerned elder. To an outsider, it might have seemed like there was genuine harmony between them.

With Zane's hand on his shoulder, Loki shuddered, his smile growing even more rigid. At this moment, he didn't have the courage to contradict Zane, unlike when he had argued with Thor. Instead, he tacitly accepted being referred to as Odin's son, seeing it as his only source of safety.

Only an idiot would deny it now.

Meanwhile, he cursed Thanos and Hawkeye, who had assured him Zane wasn't on Earth. Damn it, this was a setup!

With this god of destruction on Earth, what was the point of any plan? Even if he successfully summoned the Chitauri army, what would it achieve? Zane could probably scare them off with a sneeze.

Loki's heart sank into despair. No matter how he looked at it, there was no way forward. Whether facing Zane now or an enraged Thanos later, the outcome seemed the same—death. The only difference was whether it would be sudden or peaceful.

"Lord Zane, is there something you need from me?" Loki asked, clinging to a sliver of hope, feigning ignorance.

He was betting his life on Zane not knowing his true intentions on Earth. If he could fool Zane, he'd grab the Tesseract and flee, avoiding both Zane and a furious Thanos.

As for conquering Earth? That dream was over.

Seeing Loki feign ignorance, Zane suddenly broke into a radiant smile. "If I said I was just out for a post-meal stroll and stumbled upon this excitement, would you believe me?"

Loki: "..."

'If you keep messing with me, I'll cry. Do you believe that?' Loki's inner voice roared.

"Lord Zane, please stop teasing me. My little heart can't take the fright."

Seeing Loki's near-tearful expression, Zane sneered. 

"And you call yourself Odin's son? No sense of humor at all. How do you survive in the universe?"

"Alright, I'll stop messing with you. Just hand over your scepter," Zane said, feeling a bit bored.

Loki hesitated for a moment. After all, the scepter was loaned to him by Thanos. Losing it would make reporting back difficult. However, his hesitation lasted only a moment. Weighing the pros and cons, Loki quickly decided and handed the scepter to Zane with both hands.

Loki understood that Zane's current amiable attitude was likely due to his connection with Odin. But that was the limit. If he refused, he would be dead in an instant, and the scepter would still end up with Zane.

The outcome of the scepter landing in Zane's hands wouldn't change, so Loki's choice was merely about his own survival. He figured it was better to hand over the scepter voluntarily, possibly gaining some favor.

One thing puzzled Loki: why was this scepter so valuable to someone like Zane? It only had the power to control minds, and even that wasn't absolute. A strong enough will could break free at any time.

While it seemed like a rare artifact, it shouldn't be of much use to someone like Zane. But Loki was smart enough to know this wasn't his concern, so he didn't say anything more.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the universe, Thanos, who had been remotely monitoring through the scepter, felt a sense of foreboding upon seeing Zane on Earth. When Zane aimed for the scepter, Thanos realized that Zane had identified the Mind Stone within it.

Seeing Loki hand over the scepter without resistance, Thanos cursed internally. He realized his plans needed a major overhaul, or he wouldn't stand a chance at securing the remaining Infinity Stones.

According to Thanos' information, Zane Sy already possessed the Power Stone. With the Mind Stone from the scepter, Zane now held two Infinity Stones. This made him a formidable opponent, especially with the Death Alliance backing him.

Thanos, however, was not without options. If he couldn't overpower Zane by himself, he could leverage external forces. He knew there were a few transcendent beings in the universe who wouldn't tolerate anyone uniting the Infinity Stones and posing a threat to their existence. With this in mind, Thanos calmed his initially disrupted thoughts.

As Zane accepted the scepter from Loki, feeling the immense power of the Mind Stone within, a trace of delight flickered in his eyes.

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