Peter walked out the door, somewhat dazed. Having not spent much time in the Central Universe, he knew nothing about the situation there, and was oblivious of the circumstances in Asgard. In his viewpoint, although Loki, the Evil God, might be in the process of reforming, he would not have changed much.
However, Peter truly had no other options. He was compelled to try every possible avenue to salvage the situation in his universe, so he dutifully followed Nick to the office he had mentioned.
The room was void of any human presence, the only perceivable object was a telephone placed in the middle of a table. Peter hesitated before lifting the receiver, dialed the number, and a solemn, steady voice answered from the other end, "Hello, you've reached the Asgard Prince's Mansion, whom do you wish to speak to?"
"I...I would like to speak with Loki."
"Regrettably, Lord Loki is not here at the moment."
"Oh, alright...nevermind then."
"Hang on, may I have your name please?"
"Peter Parker," Peter instinctively replied.
"We found your name on His Royal Highness's phone directory. Please hold, we will connect you to the Royal Affairs Department…beep beep beep… Hello, this is the Asgard Palace Affairs Department, extending the sincerest greetings on behalf of the Asgard royal family. How may we assist you?"
"I am trying to reach Loki."
"We are transferring you to the VIP helpline, connecting to a private communication device…"
"Hello, Peter? …Hang on, which Peter is this?"
"I…" Peter was caught off guard. He did not yet have a clear grasp of the concept of Multiverse Spiderman codings. However, he remembered Nick once told him a series of numbers, so he said, "I believe I am... 2765?"
"Oh, I see. Are you the Spiderman who was injured before? What can I help you with?"
Peter noticed the young and upbeat tone of the voice on the other end of the line which put him at ease. It was always more comforting to converse with someone of the same age group. He was genuinely afraid that the voice on the other end would possess the echoic tones of a Demon King.
"Actually, Director Nick asked me to call you. He said that you might have a solution to the issue my universe is facing. Well… it looks like you are quite busy, if it's too much trouble…"
"Not at all, I am actually quite willing to help, especially willing to help Spiderman. It's because I know that you guys are the ones who will appreciate and give back. I'm selfish, I always ask for a return when I help."
Peter sighed with relief and said, "Don't worry, if you ever need my help in the future, I will definitely do my utmost to assist you."
"Let's call it a deal, tell me, what trouble are you in?"
Peter took a deep breath, his heart sunk a little. He paused to gather his scattered thoughts and began to narrate the calamity his universe was facing to Loki.
From Loki's responses, it was evident that he was listening intently, occasionally asking a question or two, especially when Peter mentioned a purple-skinned alien named Thanos, who had obtained the Infinity Gauntlet.
For some inexplicable reason, Loki's tone always contained a trace of mirth when discussing this part.
After hearing Peter's account, Loki softly cleared his throat and said, "Peter, I have to say, you really are a lucky boy. I am actually quite envious of your good fortune, given that the very matter I have been handling recently wields a direct correlation to your predicament. Hence, I guess I really could be of help to you. Here's what we do: ask Nick to open a teleportation portal to bring you here, and we can discuss hand in hand."
"Alright." Without giving it a second thought, Peter agreed instantly.
He couldn't entirely call it desperation. During their conversation, he discerned that Loki's thinking was indeed very clear, and his questions touched upon the crux of the matter. Judging by his last few questions, Loki might have already found a solution. Even though Peter was a bit disordered, he was still capable of making such a judgment; he concluded that Loki's proposals definitely would come in useful.
After a short wait, another Spider Man came over and handed Peter a device that could open a teleportation portal, stating, "The coordinates have already been set. It can only be used for a one-time return trip. Don't mind, it's for the protection of our headquarters."
After expressing his gratitude to him, Peter opened the teleportation portal and stepped into the square-shaped doorway. Upon landing, Peter found himself in a brightly lit space.
The floors and walls were made of metal, light permeated from everywhere without the sight of any lamps. Outside the round rectangular windows on the right, spaceships were shuttling back and forth. Undoubtedly, he was in an interstellar space station.
As Peter was intrigued by his novel surroundings, an all too familiar voice echoed from behind him, "Hey, Peter when did you arrive? Follow me. The person who can alleviate your predicaments awaits behind the door."
Turning his head, Peter saw a young man with black hair, donned in a cloak, wielding a magic wand. Tentatively, Peter addressed him, "…Loki?"
"That's correct, it's me. However, in this place, it's best if you addressed me as 'Your Highness.' Being seen as close to me wouldn't bode well for you; I don't exactly have the best reputation." Loki gave Peter a teasing eyebrow raise and then gestured for him to follow, saying, "Come with me."
Peter was extremely curious about the person Loki claimed could solve his problems. As he moved through the luminous space station corridor trailing behind Loki, he asked, "Who are you taking me to? What does he have to do with the situation in my universe?"
"It has a significant connection, yet no connection at all... Follow me." Loki, positioning himself before a door, instructed.
As Peter stepped through the door, Loki's voice resounded once again.
"Introducing, the Permanent Member of the Interstellar Security Committee and Senior Consultant for Communication Technology Safety of the Stellar Zone Union - Thanos Thanos."
Peter halted, rigidly staring at the purple-skinned figure in the room, a face he couldn't forget even in his dreams.
However, Loki already bypassed him, settling down on the sitting area's sofa, even crossing his legs, cheerfully saying:
"I did say, I wasn't lying to you this time. In this kid's universe, you really did create that glove and gathered the gemstones, snapping your fingers and killing half of the people on Earth."
"Such a magnificent achievement! Thanos, you really should include this in your battle history and remember it forever!"
Thanos in the middle of the room scoffed. It was evident that his mood wasn't excellent. He snorted and spoke in a low voice, "I am me. I don't have any parallel selves in other universes, and I don't need them."
"You can't dodge the responsibility just by saying that. The fact is, there really are such idiots in the multiverse who have the same appearance and name as you."
After Loki finished with a smile, he changed his position, leaning on the sofa's armrest, and shook his head, "I guess, he must be laughing out loud outside Earth now, feeling proud of his foresight and immense power."
"Yes, Indeed! Such a great universal overlord, after many trials and tribulations, finally gathered the gemstones and created the sublime divine artifact. With a single snap, half of the life in the universe turns to dust. What a noble act!"
Thanos's face turned darker. He looked at Loki and said, "Is the Prince of Asgard this idle? Or is it that, your newly created call-blocking program isn't working, and you are reduced to running your mouth here?"
"Who's running their mouth, we are both clear." Loki's smile remained. He lightly snapped, and the phone on the table behind Thanos rang again. Thanos took a deep breath, turned around and smacked the table, silencing the phone.
"Loki, you must be aware that in the Sanctuary of the Nine Realms, you and the Supreme Magician Strange using magic to create illusions and change IP addresses to attack the Stellar Zone Union communication technology firewall is a violation of the interstellar communication safety law, and it's immoral!"
Thanos looked into Loki's eyes and said, "Recently, the Complaint and Grievance Department under the Interstellar Security Committee received thousands of complaints about your fraudulent package contracts. Half of the complainants mentioned that you sent Dimensional Demon Gods to their doorstep for debt collections, resorting to violent intimidation, seriously violating the Interstellar Security Law!"
Loki still sat on the sofa, looking at Thanos and laughing. But his tone grows colder, "So there were still over a thousand fish that slipped through the net who could complain after experiencing violent debt collection? I suppose I should mention to Strange, aren't the Demon Gods he hired just eating free meals?!"
The two kept their daggers drawn against each other, neither willing to yield. Peter, who stood by the door and was overlooked, was entirely dumbfounded.
Of course, his brain allows him to barely understand that different universes have different versions of Thanos. His remaining sanity lets him accept the fact that not all Thanos in the universe are evil.
After all, when he was in the Time Management Bureau, he learnt from Director Nick that not all Spider-Men are good. Spider-Men like Cain the Scarlet Spider-Man was an antagonist for a long time. Therefore, it is normal for a Thanos in one universe not to be a big bad guy.
But aren't these two people's conversation backward?!
Why does it seem like Thanos is the police officer and Loki the criminal???
Although Loki is indeed the Evil God and his past deeds in Peter's universe are indeed criminal, no matter how you look at it, Thanos should be way worse. Thanos seems to have turned into a virtual cop, cracking down on telecom fraud???
From the facts, Director Nick and Loki of this universe are on the same side, and Director Nick just saved him, asking him to call Loki for advice. This means he and Loki are on the same side!
Am I the antagonist???
Seeing Peter's dumbfounded face, Loki shook his head. He got up from the sofa, patted Peter's shoulder, brought him in front of Thanos, and said:
"Come on, kid, tell Mr. Thanos about your universe's Thanos's great achievements. I haven't heard about the great Thanos gathering the Infinity Gemstones around the universe and snapping his fingers for a whole three minutes!"
"Loki, don't go too far." Thanos turned around, sat down behind his desk, put on a pair of glasses, picked up a file, and started reading, looking as if he was uninterested in what was going on.
Indeed, Thanos is a worthy gold-medal scammer. His acting skills cannot be disputed. He now looks more stable than Loki and even seems a bit simple and kindly, just like the alien scholars who provide technical support to the protagonists in alien movies.
"Um…you..." Peter started stuttering again. At this time, Thanos's gaze landed on him. He squinted slightly and asked, "…Spider-Man?"
Peter covered his mouth with his hands. He didn't want to converse with Thanos. However, Thanos casually flipped the paperwork over and asked, "What's your number? I want to check if you have any criminal records. I won't easily believe a Spider-Man who spends all his time around scam artists."
"I…you…" Peter opened his mouth in disbelief, pointing at himself, then at Thanos, blurting out like he was stepped on a tail, "Who are you calling a criminal? How could Spider-Man be a criminal?"
"Your attitude is very abnormal." Thanos over his glasses at Spider-Man and said, "Can I interpret it as a thief's guilty conscience?"
"I'm not a thief." Peter shouted, "I'm Spider-Man! You are…I am… you…"
Peter felt aggrieved. In his universe, he was the victim and the heroic symbol of justice, and Thanos was the evil terrorist. How come he was being interrogated by Thanos now?
But Peter, when not in Spider-Man mode, is a typical homebody, not good at arguing with people.
His face flushed, after a long while, he could only squeeze out, "…you're stealing my words!"