Fenric shot into the sky, clad in the Mark VII armor, his movements swift and precise.
The Avengers paused for a moment, watching him streak past.
"Tony, was that you flying by just now?" Black Widow asked, unable to hide her confusion.
"No! That was the damn thief!" Tony said, his voice full of irritation.
Hawkeye chuckled. "Now I get it. No wonder Tony hates that monster-like guy so much. This is even worse than the 'green Tony.'"
"Enough chatter," Captain America interjected firmly. "Right now, he's on our side. We'll deal with everything else once the battle's over."
"Copy that, Captain," Hawkeye replied, then suddenly exclaimed, "Wait—look! He's chasing Loki!"
High Above the City
Fenric had already spotted Loki's chariot and immediately gave chase.
The scepter, the Mind Stone itself, was still in Loki's hand.
Because of the Samsaras' intervention, the original timeline had already shifted.
There was no nuclear missile threatening Manhattan.
Loki hadn't directly joined the battlefield but instead commanded the Chitauri from above.
Thus, the scepter remained firmly in Loki's possession.
Fenric's objective was clear.
On one hand, he intended to hand the scepter over to S.H.I.E.L.D., ensuring they'd know how to shut down the space-time portal. (A strategic move, especially for preparing for Avengers 2.)
On the other hand, he wanted to test something—
Would an Infinity Stone be recognized as a special item by his system?
If it counted, he'd be unimaginably rich.
The moment Fenric made his move, countless Chitauri ships swarmed after him.
These aerial vehicles were an annoyance—just as they had been for Iron Man.
Their energy cannons could easily pierce Tony's armor, which was built from lightweight alloy for better maneuverability at the cost of heavy defense.
A single direct hit would leave visible damage.
But Fenric wasn't Tony.
His grandmaster-level Armament Haki enveloped the Mark VII armor, reinforcing its defenses far beyond its original design.
On top of that, Fenric's psychic barrier shielded him further.
He ignored the pursuing Chitauri, focusing solely on Loki.
On his way, a massive Chitauri war beast lunged to intercept him.
Fenric didn't hesitate. With a flash of black steel, Shusui, his black blade, sliced through the creature—disassembling it into eight clean pieces mid-air.
Shusui's cutting power was unparalleled. Aside from Admiral Fujitora's blade in the "One Piece" dungeon, nothing had withstood Shusui's edge until now.
Compared to Shusui, even the Chitauri's massive beasts had weaker defense than steel armor.
With Shusui in hand and the mobility of the Mark VII, Fenric closed in on Loki, unstoppable.
From afar, Loki's expression darkened.
He could see Fenric cutting a path toward him like a relentless predator.
But Loki didn't run.
As the commander of the Chitauri army, to flee now—in front of everyone—would ruin any hope of ruling Midgard.
"STOP! I AM A GOD!" Loki roared furiously. "How dare you, a mere mortal, challenge me?!"
BOOM!
Fenric's answer was simple—a steel fist to the face.
The punch sent Loki tumbling off his chariot, slamming into the ground below.
With one decisive strike, the scepter flew from Loki's hand and landed in Fenric's grasp.
The moment Fenric touched it, he felt something strange—
A surge of desire, as if his deepest impulses were being magnified.
"Is this… the power of an Infinity Stone?" Fenric muttered. "Too bad. The system didn't give any notification—so it's not counted as a special item."
He glanced at the glowing gem on the scepter one last time, then tossed aside the thought of keeping it.
After dispatching a few more Chitauri soldiers, Fenric made his way toward Captain America, who was barely holding the line.
The Captain's face was pale, his breaths ragged.
Hours of non-stop battle had worn him down. Even with his enhanced physique, he was nearing his limit.
"Captain!"
Fenric cut down a few Chitauri who were closing in on Steve.
"Thanks," the Captain said, panting as he looked at Fenric, unsure what the mysterious warrior planned to do.
"This scepter can close the space-time portal," Fenric said bluntly.
He tossed the scepter toward the Captain.
"What?!"
Steve caught it, stunned. "Are you sure about this?"
Fenric grinned. "Of course I'm sure. I'm an honest man—why would I lie? If you don't believe me, test it yourself. Need me to give you a lift?"
"…Then I'll take you up on that." Steve nodded.
Fenric grabbed his arm. "Hold on tight, Captain."
WHOOSH!
In a flash, Fenric shot into the sky with Steve in tow, heading straight for the top of Stark Tower.
Within seconds, they landed on the rooftop.
Steve quickly looked over the instrument connected to the Tesseract. Then he turned to Fenric.
"If you know how to shut it down, why don't you do it yourself?"
Fenric's helmet retracted, revealing his calm face. "Because I have something else to take care of."
His tone shifted, becoming solemn as he began to act the part of a hero:
"Captain, these aliens already know Earth's location. Even if we win today, they'll return. I intend to take the fight to their nest—to wipe them out completely."
"What!?"
Steve's eyes widened. "That's far too dangerous!"
Fenric smirked. "I know. But some things… someone has to do it."
"..."
For a moment, Steve didn't know how to judge him.
Was Fenric a villain or a hero?
He had been reckless, unpredictable—yet now, his actions were undeniably heroic.
"Time's running out," Fenric said. "When I enter the portal, close it using the scepter. Understood?"
Steve tightened his grip on the weapon. "…Be careful out there."
"No worries, Captain. I hope we meet again."
With a confident smile, Fenric's helmet snapped shut, and he soared skyward—straight toward the space-time portal.
Watching his retreating back, the rest of the Avengers felt a strange heaviness in their chests.
Steve had kept the comms open the entire time, so every word between Fenric and the Captain had been broadcast to all of them.