Holding Loki, Thor stared at him and said, "Loki, I thought you were dead."
Thor couldn't help but recall the moment Loki fell from the Bifrost, an event that still cast a shadow over him.
"Were you mourning me?" Loki asked in silence.
Looking directly into Loki's eyes, Thor replied solemnly, "Everyone mourned you, including Father."
However, Loki wasn't pleased by this and retorted, "He was your father!"
Throwing off Thor's hand, Loki saw something in Thor's expression and continued walking forward, "He told you about my origins, didn't he?"
"We were both raised by him. We played and fought together. Have you forgotten...?" Thor tried to explain.
Loki turned back, agitation evident in his voice. "I have always lived in your shadow, never forgetting that it was because of you that I fell into the abyss. Who am I? I was meant to be king!"
Thor, frustrated, exclaimed, "So you want to rule the world to compensate for your inexplicable inferiority complex?"
Staring at Loki, Thor vowed, "No, I will protect the Earth that I cherish!"
Loki laughed coldly.
"You've only been to Earth a few times, and now you've fallen in love with it. Have the people of Earth brainwashed you?"
Sneering, Loki continued, "You're protecting them so thoroughly? While humanity fights amongst itself, you stand idly by?"
Recalling the wars between human nations, Loki spread his hands and proclaimed, "If I were in charge, there would be no more wars. Humanity would coexist peacefully!"
Upon hearing this, Thor frowned. "You don't understand what ruling means, brother!"
"The throne will only make you miserable!"
Seeing that he couldn't get through to Loki, Thor was about to strike him with Mjolnir.
Loki ignored Thor's threat and said, "Without the Tesseract, you can't take me back. But since it's gone, I don't know where it is."
"Listen to me, brother," Thor started to say firmly, but the sound of rushing wind interrupted him.
Iron Man came hurtling down from the sky, colliding with Thor and sending him flying.
As Thor disappeared from view, Loki felt a sense of satisfaction and shrugged, "I'm listening."
Nearby, Iron Man, carrying Thor, crashed through several trees on his way down.
Boom! Thor hit the ground a distance away. Iron Man adjusted his stance and landed steadily.
Thor, unharmed, got up and furiously exclaimed, "Is it you, again?"
"I swear, if you touch me once more, I'll smash that tin suit of yours!"
Tony Stark paid no heed to the threat. Removing his armor's faceplate, he said, "Then don't steal my stuff."
Thor was almost amused by this mortal's audacity.
"Do you even know who you're talking to?"
Despite his affection for Earth and its inhabitants, Thor still regarded himself with the pride of an Asgardian, finding it intolerable that a human would be so disrespectful.
Tony Stark, feigning serious thought, replied, "Ah, are you a stage actor?"
"Does your mother know you've borrowed her cape?"
Glancing at Thor's silver armor and the red cape behind it, Tony found it all quite laughable.
Thor, tired of the insolence, coldly said, "Mind your own business, tin man! Loki will face judgment from Asgard. His fate is not for you to decide."
"Just make sure he hands over the Tesseract before you interfere." Tony Stark never knew how to back down, replying directly, "Until then, stay out of our way!"
Unable to tolerate the repeated insults, Thor shouted, "You outsider!" and hurled Mjolnir.
Boom! The hammer struck Iron Man, sending him flying and crashing into a large tree.
Seeing this from a distance, Loki smiled.
Just as he had anticipated, the two soon began to battle.
Iron Man fired a laser at Thor's chest, then followed up with a powerful kick, sending Thor flying.
Landing on the ground, Thor raised Mjolnir and summoned a series of lightning bolts, directing them at Iron Man.
Unexpectedly, the lightning only damaged the surface of the Mark armor and even helped recharge it.
"How could this be?" Tony Stark was astonished.
With no time to ponder, he unleashed a laser from his armor as Thor charged again.
Boom! Thor was knocked back.
Unfortunately, while the laser was powerful, it didn't injure Thor, who, hammer in hand, charged back into the fray.
Tony Stark wasn't one to back down and charged forward as well.
Bang! The two clashed up close.
During the fight, trees and rocks shattered around them.
After a few minutes, a red shield flew in and interrupted their combat.
A commanding voice followed, "Stop it, both of you!"
Looking up, they saw Captain America, clad in his star-spangled uniform.
Arriving beside the halted fighters, Captain America first addressed Thor. "Why are you here?"
Thor paused, contemplating, and did not continue his attack.
Frowning, he said, "I'm here to stop Loki's scheme and, of course, to search for any kin who might be here."
"He might be my brother…"
(The End of the Chapter)