✧ ✧ ✧

ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ sɪx: ʙᴇ ᴄᴀʀᴇғᴜʟ

❝ sɪʀ, ᴡᴇ'ᴠᴇ ғᴏᴜɴᴅ ɪᴛ. ❞

✧ ✧ ✧

CARS, PICK-UP TRUCKS AND SUVS were parked all along the perimeter of the massive crater, the sounds of a boisterous party emanating from the pit. Inside, locals sat on lounge chairs, drinking beers from coolers as they laughed and talked, all the while watching the centre of the crater, where large men had formed a line to take a turn with the mysterious object embedded in the ground.

One by one the men attempted to lift it, struggling before eventually giving up and stepping aside to let the next one have a go at it, as other townies stood on the sidelines and snapped pictures with their phones.

They heard an approaching rumble, then cleared a path as a large pick-up truck backed its way down the crater's edge. An eager townie hopped out the passenger side and pulled a thick chain down from the back of the truck. He fastened one end around the foreign object, then securely affixed the chain to the bumper and rear of the undercarriage.

"This'll do it!" he yelled to the driver. "Okay, let 'er rip!"

The townsfolk looked on as the pick-up's engine roared, then strained, its wheels spinning futilely, until finally the rear of the truck along with the backwheels and axels broke off and went flying.

People dove out of the way, ducking down for safety as the pick-up driver stuck his head out of the window. The elderly man – with greyed hair styled back and aviator glasses on his face – looked back, shocked. A silent moment, then the townsfolk laughed as the party recommenced.

They didn't notice as on the crater's edge above them an imposing government vehicle pulled up to a stop. A man in a suit climbed out and peered down at the boisterous gathering below, his eyes fixed on the object at the centre of the crater.

Agent Coulson stared down at the object, which glowed with an otherworldly blue energy – Mjolnir. He pulled out his phone.

"Sir,we've found it."

✧ ✧ ✧

S.H.I.E.L.D HQ. Washington,D.C.

"Good. We'll move in immediately," The Director spoke into his cellphone, pacing the length of his office toward the window overlooking the city; you stood behind the sofa, clutching the backrest with a tight grip as you kept your gaze steeled on your godfather, trying to listen as closely as you could, "I want a camp set up by sundown."

Fury lowered the phone from his ear and disconnected the call, turning around to look at you. He raised one brow as he pocketed the device. "Looks like your cousin brought a little piece of home with him," he chided, causing you to exhale loudly, "Any idea what it could be?"

"Are you forgetting that I didn't know shit about Asgard until last year? I have no idea how things work over there," you sassed, pursing your lips and lifting your hands from the backrest. "My guess is as good as anybody's. It could literally be anything."

Choosing to ignore the subtle jabs at himself and S.H.I.E.L.D hidden in your words, Fury folded his hands behind his back and raised his head a small amount.

"If I'm not mistaken – which I never am – Doctor Ross mentioned something about a...hammer?... that Thor never goes without. You think it could be that?"

Recalling the conversation that Fury was referring to, you nodded in agreement. "Mjolnir? Yeah, could be. I mean, he definitely wasn't lugging around a hammer when we saw him, so it's a possibility."

"Guess we'll find out soon enough."

"Yeah," you breathed out, stressfully combing your fingers through your tangled hair; you'd been so out of sorts lately that you'd even forgotten to brush the nest on your head that morning.

Picking up on your standoffish attitude, your godfather posed a question.

"What's bugging you, sweetie?"

You'd expected that question to arise sooner or later, but your awareness didn' tdampen the arrival of it at all. Raising your brows, you slowly darted your eyes all around the room, shaking your head as you did so.

"I just..." you shrugged, "This is all too much. I can't-"

With a small pant for air, you shut your eyes and held your head in your hands, which resulted in The Director hurrying forward to talk you down from any potential panic attacks that threatened to arise.

Letting him coax you out of your overwhelmed state, you took a seat on the sofa and rested your palms on your knees, leaning forward slightly.

"It's been one major thing after another," you remarked once he'd finished speaking,"My parents, Hydra, Brendon..." you trailed off, solemnly staring out of the window for a moment as your thoughts betrayed you by drifting off to your bodyguard; fortunately it only lasted a couple seconds, before you turned to face Fury, "And now this? Can't I ever catch a break?"

"Welcome to my world," he wheezed, placing a hand around your shoulders as he slinked into place next to you on the sofa. "But you're strong, sweetie. One helluva survivor. You'll make it through this – and any other pains in the ass that might come your way. But it's no use hiding; this is something you gotta face, and you're the only one who can do it – not for me, not for any of us, but for you."

Your response didn't come immediately; you allowed time for your godfather's words to properly sink in and weave their way into your fragile mind. He was absolutely right about everything he had said, and you knew it, too. Which meant that you also knew that the first step in eradicating the problem you were faced with, was to contain it.

"We can't let this go public, Uncle Nick," you said carefully after a few minutes, giving him only the feeblest of glances.

"You're telling me?" he scoffed, cocking the eyebrow above his one good eye, "Sweetie, why the hell do you think we've kept you a secret from everyone? Can you imagine the chaos it would cause? If the public found out that actual Norse gods were among us?"

Gently chewing on your bottom lip, you voiced your concern. "I'm afraid that there're some people who are very close to finding out just that."

✧ ✧ ✧

Isabela's Diner.

Thor, Selvig, Darcy, Aaron and Jane sat at a table in the local diner; the two doctors and the intern watched as Thor ate ravenously from a huge mound of steak and eggs. A couple other full plates – pancakes and biscuits and gravy –were piled high before the god. Jane sat eagerly, her notebook at the ready.

"Now tell us exactly what happened to you last night," she interrogated.

Thor looked up and into her eyes, staring in intrigue. Jane became flustered and looked away.

"Maybe start with how you got inside that cloud," she tried again, this time keeping her gaze slightly lowered.

"And how you could eat an entire box of Pop-Tarts and still be this hungry," Darcy added, marvelling at the appetite of the man. Jane shot her a withering look, while Thor downed an entire cup of coffee in one go.

"This drink," Thor looked at the empty mug, "I like it."

"Yeah, it's great, isn't it?" Darcy grinned. "Isabela makes the best coffee in town."

Thor hurled the mug at the ground, shattering it into a hundred tiny porcelain pieces. "Another!" he demanded.

The ruckus captured the attention of Isabela, the diner's proprietor, and she glared at Thor from behind the counter.

Jane turned to toss her an apologetic look. "Sorry, Izzy. Little accident."

Isabela muttered something in Spanish as a response before turning to a waitress and venting quickly, also in Spanish. ("Did you see that? The first time she brings a man in here, and he's a lunatic!")

"What was that?" Jane demanded, gazing expectantly at Thor.

He didn't understand.

"It was delicious," he stated simply. "I want another."

"Then you should just say so!"

"I just did!"

"I mean ask for it. Nicely."

"I meant no disrespect."

"Allright, then no more smashing, deal?"

"You have my word."

Satisfied, Jane leaned back and nodded once. "Good."

A few townies, looking bedraggled, entered the diner and took a seat at the counter; they were amongst the men who had tried (and failed) to lift Mjolnir out of the crater. Isabela greeted them by name, and they ordered two coffees.

"You missed all the excitement out at the crater," the one Izzy had called Jake spoke.

"What crater?" she frowned.

Aaron, Selvig and Jane overheard Jake's words and after exchanging a look, all turned to the townies with interest.

"They're saying some kind of satellite crashed in the desert," the one named Pete explained.

"We were having a good time with it till the Feds showed up, chased us out," Jake grumbled, slurping some coffee.

"Excuse me," Jane interjected, "Did you say there was a satellite crash?"

"Yep,"Jake nodded, "They said it was radioactive. And I had my hands all over it." Realisation dawned on him, then, and he looked down at his hands uneasily. "I'm probably sterile now..."

Thor, unconcerned, prepared to dig into the giant pile of pancakes. Darcy was amazed by the sight and whipped out her cellphone.

"Oh my god, this is going on Facebook. Smile!"

Thor looked puzzled as she snapped a photo of him and his massive stack of food.

"What did the satellite look like?" Aaron asked the townies; Jake answered.

"I don't know nothing about satellites. But it was heavy. Real heavy. Nobody could liftit."

This got Thor's attention and he immediately sprung to his feet, headed over to drunk townie Jake and jerked him around to face him.

"Where?" the god demanded.

"About twelve miles east of here," a slightly shaky Jake replied.

Thor grinned widely, his spirits soaring, as he quickly strode out of the diner. Once outside, he studied the position of the sun, gauging his bearings. The rest of the group caught up to him moments later.

"Where are you going?" Jane asked.

"Twelve miles east of here." Thor started to stride down the street purposefully; Jane and Aaron walked after him.

"Why?" Aaron queried, picking up his pace a little bit.

"To get what belongs to me," Thor said determinedly.

"So now you own a satellite?" Jane scoffed, tossing him a disbelieving look.

"It's not what they say it is."

"Whatever it is, the government seems to think it's theirs. You intend to just walk in there and take it?"

"Yes." Thor stopped walking. "If you take me there now, I'll tell you everything you wish to know."

Aaron perked up, the doctor in him coming out, and Jane did the same.

"Everything?"

"All the answers you seek will be yours, once I reclaim Mjolnir."

Aaron sucked in a harsh breath at the mention of Mjolnir – fully aware of what Thor was talking about – as Darcy looked to the others, scrunching up her face."'Myeu-muh?' What's 'Myeu-muh'?"

Ignoring her, Jane studied Thor. He looked sincere and she was almost swayed to give into him, but then Selvig pulled her aside. Thor watched as the doctor spoke to Jane, and he could tell that Selvig didn't care for him much.

With Darcy standing to the side and struggling with the new, Asgardian word and Jane and Selvig engaged in a heated discussion, Aaron took the opportunity to step up to the god.

"Mjolnir?" he spoke in a hushed tone, "As in your mythical hammer? It's here?"

Thor nodded in confirmation. "It appears so." The god narrowed his eyes and tilted his head as he observed the smaller man. "You seem to know quite a lot about Asgard, Aaron Jacobson."

Aaron pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose and waved a hand. "I specialise in Norse mythology."

"So you are able to help me retrieve Mjolnir!" Thor's face lit up.

The doctor's face dropped, and his eyes widened in panic. "What? No, no, no, I didn't say that."

"Why not?"

"Because you heard what the townie said," Aaron gestured back at the diner, "The government has already claimed it."

"Ah, so you are a coward."

"What?! No! I just-"

"I'm sorry," Jane cut him off, re-joining the conversation and focusing on Thor, "I can't take you."

Thor bowed his head slightly. "I understand. Then this is where we say goodbye."

He took her hand and kissed it, making her entire body flush.

"That's..." she started, "Thank you."

The god looked to each of the members of the group and gave each a small bow. "Jane Foster... Erik Selvig... Aaron Jacobson... Darcy. Farewell."

Het urned and headed off down the street. Selvig breathed out, relieved. "Now..." the doctor said, "lets get back to the lab. We have work to do."

He and Darcy started for the car and after stealing once last look at the strange man, Jane turned and join them, leaving Aaron to stare at the god as he walked down the street with a worrisome face, his gut feeling telling him that things were undoubtedly about to take a turn for the worst.

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