"What are you talking about? Hurry up and admit your mistake!" Thor hissed under his breath, his stubbled face tightening with urgency. Then he turned quickly to "Odin."
"Father, he's a synthezoid—he doesn't understand human etiquette. You—"
"Enough! Take him away at once, or I will strip you of your title as prince!"
Before Thor could finish, "Odin" cut him off sharply.
At that moment, even Thor realized something was wrong. No matter how many mistakes he had made in the past, Odin had never casually threatened to strip him of his title. If Thor were no longer prince, who would inherit Asgard? Loki might be cunning, but he lacked the strength to defend the realm against external threats.
Renzo watched as Thor slowly straightened, suspicion dawning in his eyes. The corners of Renzo's mouth curled upward in a faint, almost gleeful smile.
He knew Loki was about to have a bad day.
"Loki?" Thor asked tentatively. It was the only explanation he could think of. With Heimdall guarding Asgard, no outsider could have replaced the king unnoticed.
"Huh? What Loki? Isn't he dead? What nonsense are you talking about?"
Thor's words nearly exposed him. A flicker of panic crossed "Odin's" face—gone as quickly as it appeared.
'When did my idiot brother get so sharp?' Loki thought, exasperated. 'I should've tricked him centuries ago.'
Then his gaze shifted—to Renzo. More precisely, to the Mind Stone embedded in his forehead.
Loki knew that power well. Once, he had wielded the scepter, parading through New York, "granting" mortals the honor of becoming his subjects. And how had they repaid him? By beating him into submission.
The memory made his temper flare—until a certain green figure flashed through his mind, instantly cooling his arrogance.
"Loki?!" Thor's voice rose, a mixture of shock and vindication. The momentary slip had confirmed everything.
Seeing no point in continuing the act, Loki dropped the disguise. A flash of green light rippled across the throne, and the figure of Odin vanished, replaced by his true form.
Long black hair framed a pale, refined face. His features were sharp, elegant—noble to the point of being almost unreal. His eyes gleamed with mischief and calculation.
For a moment, even Renzo was struck by how striking Loki looked.
"This face… maybe one-tenth as handsome as my original one," Renzo thought, thoroughly impressed with himself.
"Of course it's you!" Thor, slower as ever, finally caught up.
In a single leap, he crossed the hall and seized Loki by the collar.
"Where is Father? What have you done to him?!"
Thor's fury blazed, his grip tightening as Mjolnir hummed with restrained power, ready to strike.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Calm down. Put the hammer away first," Loki drawled, completely unbothered. His tone remained smooth, almost playful, despite being dragged by the collar.
"The old man's fine. I sent him to Midgard—your beloved Earth."
Though physically restrained, Loki somehow still carried himself as if he were in control.
Despite everything, there was no real malice behind it. Loki loved his brother in his own twisted way. To him, this was nothing more than a harmless prank—well, mostly harmless.
He was infuriating, charming, and impossible to categorize all at once.
"Ahem. Thor, I think your family matters can wait," Renzo cut in. "I'm here on business."
"Who is he?" Loki's gaze flicked to Renzo, faint irritation surfacing at the familiarity between him and Thor.
"The Tesseract is underground. Follow the stairs—you'll find it," Thor said distractedly, barely sparing Renzo a glance.
His attention had already shifted entirely to Loki. The disappearance of his father overshadowed everything else. The Tesseract, in comparison, felt trivial.
Renzo didn't argue. The brothers' quarrel had nothing to do with him.
"Unbelievably smooth," Renzo murmured as he looked at the glowing blue cube in his hand.
The Mind Stone on his forehead pulsed in response, golden light intertwining with the Tesseract's blue glow. The two energies resonated, creating a strange, harmonious brilliance.
Renzo felt it immediately—the connection.
The Mind Stone no longer recoiled from the Black Lantern Ring. Instead, it surged with renewed strength, pushing back against it.
The ring, greedy as ever, latched onto the released energy without hesitation.
Renzo ignored their silent struggle. He focused instead on activating the Space Stone.
In an instant, a burst of blue light erupted, forming a swirling vortex large enough to swallow him whole.
—
Swish!
Renzo landed hard, flat on his back.
"…Couldn't you be gentler?" he muttered, rubbing a part of his body that didn't actually feel pain.
He looked around.
His room.
Unchanged. Clean. Maintained.
"Guess Stark didn't turn this place into a game room," he said, almost disappointed.
Stepping out, he scanned the Avengers compound. Aside from a few logistics staff, it was empty.
"No way…"
A thought formed.
"Has Ross already become Secretary of State? Are they pushing the Sokovia Accords?"
Renzo paused, processing streams of information through his internal systems.
The year—2016.
The beginning of the Civil War.
"So time flows the same here…"
His gaze sharpened.
"Found it."
The news confirmed his suspicion.
Wanda Maximoff. Civilian casualties. Public outrage.
Renzo's expression darkened as he reviewed the chain of events.
New York.
Extremis.
Project Insight.
Hulk.
Sokovia.
Each incident had chipped away at public trust. What began as gratitude had slowly twisted into fear… then resentment.
To many, the Avengers were no longer heroes.
They were the cause of disaster.
And now—
The Sokovia Accords.
The spark that would ignite everything.
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