Shine Again (An Avengers: Infinity War/Endgame Story)

Chapter 47: Plans and Illusions

It had been a long time since Thor had been up before sunrise. He had always been keen on sleeping in, getting as much rest as possible before battle or his grueling training regimen. So as he sat at one of the palace's long tables at a quarter after four in the morning, sipping on a large mug of coffee, he was far from thrilled to be awake. But since there was a crisis at hand, there wasn't a whole lot he could do about it. They needed to come up with a plan, and fast.

Steve had called Layla about thirty minutes ago, waking them up to tell her of Tony and Spencer's disappearance and the arrival of Thanos' forces. She, understandably, hadn't taken the news very well. After getting dressed in something other than her pajamas, Layla decided to go check on Anja while Thor waited for Loki to meet him in the dining hall. He was sure they needed to have some very serious conversations.

Thor didn't have to wait long before Loki strode into the room, a grim look upon his face. His brother sat down at the table across from him and sighed. Thor took one more sip of coffee before he set the mug down and looked at Loki.

"I'm assuming that you know what's going on," Thor started.

"I do," Loki answered simply.

Thor nodded. One less thing he had to explain. "Is Layla with Anja?"

Loki nodded as well. "She made it to our room a few moments before I left."

"How's Anja taking it?" Thor asked, although he was sure he knew the answer already.

His brother frowned. "Not well, but that's to be expected, I think. Two of her closest friends have been abducted by Thanos, and there's admittedly a high chance she'll never see them again," he replied, shaking his head. "She also said she felt sick. I'm not sure if it's out of grief or an actual illness, but there's that too."

Thor was silent for a moment, taking in what Loki had just said. It was unfortunate that Anja was feeling ill on top of all of this. "I hope she feels better soon," Thor said. "With this new development, we need to formulate a plan, and put it in action immediately."

"I agree," Loki sighed. "Rogers told Anja that a group of them were going to intercept Maximoff and Vision before a rendezvous in Wakanda." He paused for a moment, glancing at the floor and then back at Thor. "I think one of us should alert the other realms and await their arrival before joining the other in Wakanda."

"Funny, I was going to suggest the same plan," Thor retorted.

Loki raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

    Thor picked up his mug again to take another long sip of coffee. "Yes, really," he mused as he sat the cup back down. "I think you and Anja ought to be the ones to go to Wakanda. It will be a big boost to your trustworthiness with the rest of the team, I think."

"Are you sure you wouldn't rather have me rally the other realms?" Loki asked. "You think Rogers and the others would be accepting of me?"

"They don't have a choice now," Thor retorted. "I trust you will make the right decisions. For all of us and our new home."

Loki nodded silently, seemingly thinking over his words carefully. "So that settles it then. You, Layla, and the rest of our allies will join us later in Wakanda," he decided.

Thor noticed the hesitation in his brother's voice, and it concerned him a bit. "What's bothering you, Loki?"

The God of Mischief glanced away from him for a few moments before he made eye contact again. "I think it may be wise for us to leave someone here during the impending battle. Someone who can protect our citizens and... someone who could lead them if- heaven forbid- something happened to us," he explained grimly.