Chapter 182: Chapter 177
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Soon, the fully armed figure of Captain America, carrying his shield, appeared beside Nick Fury and Tony Stark.
Seeing so many heavily armed agents already on the scene, and even Tony clad in his iron suit, Captain America's expression grew solemn. Although Nick Fury hadn't explained the situation clearly, the setup indicated it was no small matter.
"Stark."
"Rogers!"
A nod was exchanged as greetings, and Captain America walked straight to Nick Fury. He glanced at the Tesseract everyone was so vigilant about and immediately raised an eyebrow: "The Tesseract? Has it always been with SHIELD?"
Indeed. The artifact had plunged into the ocean with him back then. Given that SHIELD had rescued him, it was no surprise that they got hold of the Tesseract too.
"I was wrong. I thought this world would be different, but it turns out it's just the same."
Captain America shook his head in disappointment. The situation was clear—SHIELD, like the Red Skull, was probably researching the Tesseract, which led to the mess they were in now.
"I don't know what kind of world you were expecting," Nick Fury said, "but in this matter, you're mistaken. The Tesseract's activation has nothing to do with SHIELD."
"You can't be telling me the Tesseract did this on its own?" Captain America scoffed.
"As much as it sounds like an excuse, that's exactly what happened."
"Cap, the Tesseract is more complex than you think..."
Crackling sounds suddenly interrupted Captain America and Nick Fury, drawing everyone's attention, including Iron Man's. All eyes were fixed on the Tesseract. Its unstable state had reached a peak, with energy pulses bursting out continually. The increasing brightness was almost blinding.
The atmosphere grew more tense. No one dared to make a sound, their eyes locked on the Tesseract, waiting.
"The portal should open any moment now," Tony instinctively glanced at his display, his pupils contracting slightly under the helmet.
Boom!
Sure enough, the Tesseract's energy pulse exploded, sending out a blinding energy beam, startling everyone. At the end of this energy beam, a swirling mass of blue energy fluctuated like waves, unstable and dispersing quickly, flowing to the ceiling before stabilizing.
And where the energy mass had appeared, a new figure stood.
Swish!
All eyes turned towards the newcomer. Clad in a strange robe and wielding what looked like a spear, his slicked-back hair reached his shoulders, and his piercing gaze was like that of an eagle. Despite this, his lips curled into a sinister smile, a typical "villain's grin," signalling danger.
Undoubtedly, it was Loki.
Nick Fury's heart sank, his nerves tensing up. Tony was right! Someone had indeed remotely activated the Tesseract, opening a portal and traveling through it. But just who was this being? Could it be Loki?
Rustle, rustle!
The SHIELD agents, already on high alert, instinctively raised their weapons, closing in on Loki and forming a circle around him. But Loki seemed unconcerned, not sparing the "mortals" a glance, only casting a surprised and cold look at Tony and Captain America. Loki recognized these two; they had fought him when he controlled the Destroyer in New Mexico. He hadn't expected to meet them again so soon.
"Sir, drop your spear!" Nick Fury broke the silence, calling out sternly to Loki.
Spear? Loki blinked before realizing Fury must mean his scepter. He sneered coldly at the ignorance of these earthlings.
"Circus boy, state your identity, your planet, and your purpose on Earth. At least your mother should have taught you basic manners," Tony taunted, stepping forward.
"Tin man, do you know who you're talking to?" Loki's expression turned icy, his voice growing sharp. The iron-suited man was being arrogant!
"We're trying to find out!" Captain America chimed in.
"I am Loki of Asgard," Loki declared haughtily.
Loki? Everyone was taken aback, but Tony and Nick Fury's hearts skipped a beat. It truly was Loki! After all, Thor had been stranded on Earth for a time. Could it be that after returning to Asgard, Thor and Loki had a great battle, resulting in Loki being cast into the cosmic abyss? It seemed likely.
Nick Fury and Tony were lost for words. What was Thor up to? Despite knowing the future, he hadn't changed a thing. What a useless ally.
"Loki? You're Thor's brother?" Captain America was genuinely shocked. This wasn't the answer he'd expected.
Loki, that guy, sure is different in style from Thor.
Of course, Captain America merely kept his grievances to himself.
In the current situation, these were clearly trivial matters.
"So, Loki, why are you here?!"
Captain America then fixed his gaze on Loki and solemnly asked this crucial question.
"You should ask yourselves that question," Loki replied with a deep, meaningful smile. "If something doesn't belong to you, it'll eventually be returned, won't it?"
Captain America furrowed his brow slightly, falling into thought.
His gaze instinctively flicked towards the Tesseract nearby.
Could it be that he's talking about the Tesseract?
Is he here for the Tesseract?
"I'm sorry, Loki," Nick Fury interjected, resolutely stating his stance. "But we can't let you take the Tesseract. The consequences would be unimaginable."
"That's not acceptable. I've come a long way for it," Loki said, holding his scepter as he began to walk toward the Tesseract.
The SHIELD agents surrounding Loki tightened their grips on their guns, aiming squarely at him.
Unperturbed, Loki continued his arrogant stride, talking incessantly as if the agents didn't exist.
"And you, humble mortals, are no more than ants."
"What you need to do is bow at my feet and offer up what I desire..."
"Pfft!"
Loki was abruptly interrupted by a very untimely snicker.
"Sorry, did I interrupt your performance, circus boy?" Tony Stark, ever the sharp tongue, mocked Loki ruthlessly. "But your acting is as bad as your ridiculous costume. You should win a Razzie Award for that."
Swish!
Loki's expression instantly turned cold.
Even though he had never heard of the Razzie Awards, he knew Tony was mocking him.
"You think hiding in that thick metal suit makes you bold before a god?"
"Tin Man, disrespecting a god will earn you punishment!"
Loki let out a chilling laugh and raised his scepter towards Tony, intent on teaching him a lesson he would never forget.
Bang!
But Tony acted first.
He raised his hand, and a repulsor blast fired from his iron arm, hitting Loki squarely in the chest.
Loki was thrown to the ground.
"Is this 'punishment' just making a spectacle of yourself?" Tony sneered as he retracted his arm and taunted the fallen Loki.
"Okay!"
"You arrogant and ignorant ant!"
"Prepare to face a god's wrath!"
Loki, climbing back to his feet, was thoroughly enraged.
He gripped his scepter tightly and swung it at Tony.
A searing energy beam shot towards Tony with a crisp sound of metal clashing.
This time, Tony was the one pushed back.
The dazzling metal suit staggered and was knocked down by Loki's energy attack.
Hiss!
Seeing this, Loki unleashed another energy attack.
However, a shadow quickly flashed by.
It was Captain America, who bolted to Tony's side like a flash of lightning.
He raised his shield just in time.
Loki's energy attack struck the shield.
Curiously, the vibranium shield, which should absorb energy, reflected Loki's attack right back at him.
Boom!
With a dull thud, Loki staggered, struck by his own energy attack.
"Sorry, is this the god's wrath?"
"Have you not started yet, or are you already finished?"
Tony continued his biting sarcasm as he charged at Loki in his suit.
"Die!"
Loki shouted, raising his scepter and swinging it at Tony, who blocked it.
Clang! Clang!
The sounds of metal clashing filled the air as they fought intensely, their movements a blur.
Unlike his weak portrayal in *The Avengers*, this time Loki demonstrated formidable combat skills, going toe-to-toe with Tony.
After all, Loki had been deliberately captured in the film.
Regardless, as the second prince of Asgard, he was no match for Thor, but Iron Man was manageable.
Captain America observed for a moment and quickly concluded that Tony alone couldn't defeat Loki.
He joined the battle with his shield.
Together, they began to gain the upper hand against Loki.
"You indeed have some skill; I must say, I'm impressed."
"But do you think this is the full power of a god?"
"Hahaha!"
During the battle, Loki's arrogant laughter suddenly echoed.
Loki stuck his scepter into the ground with a thud.
Wham! Wham! Wham!
The crowd suddenly saw multiple Loki's appearing from nowhere, multiplying rapidly.
In the blink of an eye, the scene was filled with Lokis.
"Hahaha!"
A chorus of Loki's all laughed maniacally.
Their sinister smiles fused into one, echoing endlessly.
"This..."
Captain America was dumbfounded, looking from one Loki to another, unable to tell the difference.
Nick Fury and the other SHIELD agents were similarly flustered.
They were all thrown into chaos.
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