2012-08-01 Twas Not A Truck

Lower Manhattan                              

Lower Manhattan is perhaps the most well recognized portion of the world's most famous city. Here you have everything from the hustle and bustle of Time Square, the chic areas of the Lower East Side, the art sectors of Soho and Tribeca, and Wall Street. This is where the magic happens, the money is made, and the power is distributed.

--

A sudden lightning bolt out of the clear blue sky south of New York. That same stretch of highway Thor and Sif use to spar in. Then silence. Silence until what appears to be a tornado is seen spiraling over the city, tracking north toward SoHo without touching down. It's a wobbly sort of cyclone, which unravels and falls appart as Lower Manhattan is reached.

In the sky, weak from pain, dehydration, and heartache, Thor can no longer keep a grip on Mjolnir. The acid covering the haft has eaten his way to near bone, and the weapon falls to the roof of a building just below. Thor, too, plummets; for it was Mjolnir that was keeping him aloft.

Axiom, still mimicing Thor and in a costume that looks like someone crossed Thor's armor with some blue and white spandex lets out a little yelp when Thor starts falling. Despite wanting to, he hasn't been trying to get free from the grip he's been in. He's been taking note of all the injuries but now that Thor's falling, Axiom is working on trying to keep thm both from crashing with borrowed flight powers. Sure he can't stop the fall but he can make it more gentle so that they only lightly impace the roof instead of crashing through it.

The weather hadn't alarmed Doug -- not at first. He'd recognized where it originated and the way it moved, and was pretty confident it was just Thor, and nothing to really worry about. But when the cyclone had gotten close enough to the city for him to see how unsteady it was... well. He abandoned his lunch pretty quick.

It's difficult to track the Asgardian's path and subsequent fall from the road, but Doug somehow manages. He winces when he sees the hammer drop without its wielder, and his hand goes for his phone as he darts into an alley and starts scrambling up the fire escape. If he needs to call the Argus for a medic, or whatever the heck you call for when a god is hurt, he wants to be able to do it quickly.

Injuries: A nasty gash across the chest, dried out, skin and muscle beneath gray; A stab wound to the stomach, likewise dry and gray, as are the surrounding tissues; palm of his left hand all but eaten away by acid.

Axiom's landing is gentle, especially as Thor seeks to use his own powers of flight to help. The god's feet touch down before his knee crumple and he sags to his knees.

Axiom does his best to keep Thor upright but eventually just sags with him and tries to make that impact more gentle too. "Oh man, this is not good at all...gotta call Sif, she'll know what to do," he babbles to himself. Then he hears someone on the fire escape. Grip on the mimiced hammer he's got tightening, he looks towards the ladder and frowns. "Who's there?"

When Doug reaches the roof and gets a look at the state Thor is in, his eyes widen in genuine shock. Thor had seemed untouchable on HYDRA Island. What could even /do/ this to him? "I'm a friend!" he replies quickly, holding up his hands to show that all he's holding is a phone. "What happened? Are you okay?" Now that he knows Axiom is there, too, Thor isn't the only one he's worried about.

"Nay, Valiant Spear," groans Thor, left arm coming to press against his stomach again, palm held away from him.

"Do not call her; please." The please is whispered. He knows what she would do, seeing him so injured. When Axiom tenses, Thor looks up and rights himself, willing the weakness and pain away.

"Agent Ramsey," Thor murmurs when he spots the young SHIELD Agent, but refusing to let hte pain show on his face or in his voice.

"It is but a flesh wound and will heal in time," Thor replies, declining to answer on the what happened; Thor's not sure of that himself!

"But..." Axiom is worried an it's obvious. He stays tense and wary of Doug until Thor's reaction. He only relaxes a little though. "We got attacked," he says simply, not saying by who though.

"Are you sure?" Doug sounds pretty skeptical of Thor's assessment of his wounds, but the Asgardian knows his limits far better than Doug does. Just the same, he climbs fully onto the roof and makes his way closer, moving slowly out of respect for Axiom's nerves. He's pretty sure being wary is entirely understandable under these circumstances. "I could call someone. You look like you got hit by a truck."

Thor's armored chest plate is missing, as is the helm. The wounds stand out, a stark dull gray of dried dead flesh, against Thor's otherwise healthy skin tones. The god is bare to the waist.

"Nay, Agent Ramsey, twas not a truck that struck me," he says, voice flickering faintly at the word truck. Thor's left hand burns.

"Though, if thou hath fresh water with which to wash mine hand," Thor questions Doug. It's sheer will that keeps Thor from wincing more.

"Would rain help?" Axiom asks, wanting to be helpful. He can't help but glance at the wounds, especially Thor's hand. He then looks to Doug. "Agent? Of what?"

"If you can conjure up some rain, it would be faster than me running back down to the street for bottles of water," Doug replies with a smile, though it's still plainly etched with concern for Thor. He settles into a crouch near the pair of them, glancing between Thor's wounds and his phone while he mulls over a) whether or not to call this in anyway, and b) how exactly to answer Axiom's question without getting himself into trouble.

"Aye, Axiom. That it would," Thor replies to the question of rain. By the glance he gives Mjolnir, it is clear that the Storm Lord would do it himself, if he could touch Mjolnir without the acid burning him. A faint frown graces his face at the boy's next question.

"Do not question a man's given name," Thor retorts to Axiom's question patiently. Because Ramsey's first name is Agent, right?

"Okay. Time for rain," Axiom replies, lifting his mimicked hammer up to the air. He takes a deep breath and uses the borrowed storm control powers to gather clouds for a gentle, cool rain storm. He takes a moment to just smile at the water before blinking at Thor. "Umm...Agent isn't a name, Thor. It's a title. Like his job..."

Doug gives Thor a grateful look and slides his phone back into his jacket, to protect it from the rain. He stays put himself, however. His suit can deal with it. "If the water doesn't help heal your wounds, Thor, can we at least get someone to take a look?" he asks gently. "You've helped us a great deal. I would like to be able to return the favor, or at least make the attempt." As for the question of name versus title... he's not stepping into that, at this point. He gets the feeling he might not need to.

The moment the rains start, Thor sighs softly and turns up to the sky. He holds his left hand out to rinse off the lingering acid. The flesh begins to regrow slowly.

Upon his chest, the wounds seems to greedily drink up the rain. Water runs into the wounds, but does not run out again.

"Truly? I had come to think Agent was quite the common name for mortals now," Thor asks of Axiom, then shrugs. "It is of no consequence. This mortal hath stated his name as Agent Ramsey, and so Agent Ramsey is he," adds the prince before turning to Doug.

"Thy concern is heart warming to a warrior whose heart grows heavy. I thank thee, Agent Ramsey, for thine concerns, and shall ever speak of thy gentle heart in the halls of Bilskirnir."

Axiom lets out a little sigh of relief as he watches the effects of the rain on Thor's wounds. He shakes his head and focuses on keeping his boosting up so he can keep mimicking Thor. "Truely. It's just a job title like Officer," he says. He shrugs as well, figuring he'll find out eventually. He looks to Doug and nods slightly, sharing the concerns. "I think there was some kind of magic poison on that weapon."

Doug looks just as relieved as Axiom does. He's still more than a little unnerved to see someone as strong as Thor in such a state, so any signs of improvement are /more/ than welcome. His smile at Thor's words is entirely genuine, and he inclines his head to him. "I'm honored, thank you."

Doug makes a thoughtful noise at Axiom and turns in place, peering off towards where Mjolnir had landed on its own. "I'm not very good with magic," he admits sheepishly. Languages, sure, but not magic poisons. "I'm not sure I'd be able to be of much help. Do you know any healers?" he asks curiously, looking back to the two of them. "Or... magician doesn't seem like an appropriate title, somehow. Sorcerers?"

"Hmm.. Then mayhap he is as the Valkyrie, for mine Goddess had once been called the Valkyrie Sif," Thor comments, truly not disturbed by the name issue. He looks to Mjolnir as well, right hand reaching out to summon the weapon to him.

"Twas the Lord of Lies, Trickster of Asgard, Gof od Michief and Evil," Thor replies, voice flat and cold. Mjolnir settles into his hand. The ruins glow. His left hand heals quickly. The wound in his gut and across his chest remain. The rain begins to run out of the gash on his chest.

"That sounds similar, yeah," Axiom replies. "I'm not good with magic either," he says. He thinks for a moment then nods enthusiastically. "We do! He should be able to help us," Axiom looks up at Thor with a smile, thinking of Wiccan. The smile fades instantly at that cold reply. "Yeah...him," he murmurs. He's not going to say the name yet though.

"Something like that," Doug replies to Thor's musing about the Valkyries. He is, at heart, a giant nerd, and there's still very much a part of him that is /pretty dang excited/ to be interacting with figures he's only ever read about.

Of course, it's a double-edged sword. Doug's expression falls, his brow knitting in concern. He'll say the name. "Loki?" Oh, but that isn't good. He runs a hand over his face to clear some of the rain water from it, lips drawing back into a pensive line. He should talk to Coulson. "I'm... sorry to hear that."

There's a sudden sadness, heartache, concern, and fatigue as the name is mentioned. Thor presses his now healed left hand to the still gray wound at his stomach. Mjolnir's runes glow a warm white, his eyes taking on the same tint.

Thor tries to grin at axiom, but the expression falls flat. Instead, he looks back to Ramsey, and rolls his injury-free shoulder. "Aye. My brother," says he, unable to mask the sorrow that shifts his voice toward a whisper..

Axiom shifts awkwardly at the name Loki. He looks to Doug and gives a small shrug and a small apologetic look for getting him all wet. His eyes then drift to Mjolnir and the healing powers it's displaying, his own amping them up. "We haven't seen the last of him either..."

"You're probably right about that," Doug agrees with a sigh, slowly shaking his head. "He's been getting up to quite a bit of... well, mischief. I know Coulson ran into him once," he adds, inclining his head to Thor. "But it's largely been damage to property so far, nothing like... nothing like this." This is personal. He frowns, thinking as he regards the Thunderer's wounds, before he pushes himself back to his feet. "Please don't be afraid to ask for help if you need it, either of you. And not just when it's time to swing the hammer. Sometimes, it's the times in between where we could use the help most."

"Aye. Thine words are wise, my Spear. I fear that we have not," says Thor as Mjolnir continues to wash healing light through him. The wound on his chest grows angry and red at the edges, as if the flesh were coming back to life. And thick, black, sticky looking blood, devoid of most of its moisture finally seems to want to ooze forth. The wound in his stomach appears far deeper and has yet to show any change.

His stormy eyes, turned silver by the internal light of Mjolnir, regard Doug even as a light grin touches his face. "Aye, Agent Ramsey. I shall call to thee should it be needed, and likewise should thee find thyself before my brother."

Axiom frowns at the blood, looking at the other wounds. "We should probably find something to patch those up with before you bleed too much..." he trails off. He gives Doug a curious look when he offers help. "Thanks but I uh...have no idea how to contact you," he replies. He's still trying to figure out just who Doug is too.

Doug goes rummaging in his jacket before he comes up with a simple white business card, giving it a quick shake to wick a few little bits of moisture from it before he offers it to Axiom. A name (Doug Ramsey), a number, and a shield. "Texts or calls both work," he says with a smile, before turning to offer Thor a polite bow of his head. "I hope that the next time we meet, the circumstances are better." Though, with his luck, he sadly doubts it. Ah, well. He grins wryly before he turns to head back to the fire escape, not seeming at all bothered to be wet on an otherwise sunny day.