Archive of Our Own ^beta

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He was restless. He could sense them drawing closer to his hiding spot. These mortals have been tailing him for weeks, waiting for a good time to strike now that they had observed his habits closely. He knew this, of course. He wasn't the most powerful demigod for nothing. No, he had let them think that they had lulled him into a sense of security but was now, in fact, tenser than ever, knowing that the time of waiting would be over soon. The two mortals that were tailing him had been joined earlier today by three other mortals.

He sighed. He knew he could take them easily even in his blind condition, but he was worried about the destruction that would follow. He hailed a cab. "Highway Marker 89," were the only words that passed between driver and passenger the entire ride. He handed more than double the fee in cash over to the driver and dismounted from the car.

"Ya sure you wan’ta be out ‘ere son? Ain't nothin' ‘round fer miles." The cabbie warned.

The blind man just smiled, though it came out closer to a grimace. "Yes. I have an appointment out here. Don't worry, I won't need a ride back. Thank you for taking me out here."

The cabbie smiled. "Ain’t nothin'."

He turned around as the cabbie drove off and sat down, letting his power over the water molecules in the air to fade away, leaving him totally blind to his surroundings, leaving him alone once more in the complete darkness that he had resided in these last three years he had been on the run. There had been a time when he had people he trusted and when light shone down on him. Some days he yearned for the past, other days he was glad it was gone. Glad he could no longer see. Glad that the mirror no longer showed him his scar-littered body. Glad that he could not see the evidence of her work, even if she didn't wield the knife herself. Or the whips. Or the acid.

A crack of a leaf behind him alerted him to the fact that his tailers had caught up and were once more behind him. He resumed his hold over the water molecules and noted that there were three people on the ground behind him, one person in the sky, and an archer, one of his original tailers, in a tree about thirty paces away. He stood and turned around, his sunglasses hiding his icy, pale, sightless blue eyes from view. He was done with running. Done with fighting.

"Can I help you? I mean, two of you have been following me for weeks, and I would really like to know why. You could have just asked me instead of tailing me. I would have gone with you peacefully. My days of fighting are over." He sighs and sits down on the rock that had been his waiting spot, holding out his wrists in submission.

The female, the second tailer, stepped forward, her partners covering her back with their weapons, though one had a shield hefted up as if to deflect whatever came their way. She bent over him slowly and carefully, then bound his wrists together with zip ties.

“Why?” She demanded.

“Why what?” He asked even though he had a pretty good idea of what she was asking.

“Why give up so easily? S.H.I.E.L.D. claims you are dangerous so why would you not even put up a fight?” Her curiosity had gotten the better of her.

He sighed, for he knew that she would not stop until she had answers. And even then she might not stop. “I am tired of running, tired of looking over my shoulder. If you see me as a threat and have to detain me, at least I won’t have to run anymore.” He sighed again and stood up. “Well, are we going to sit around and chat or are we going to get going? I mean, I have all the time in the world, but I don’t think you do.” A small smile graced his features for a split second before it was gone.

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He sighed, for he knew that she would not stop until she had answers. And even then she might not stop. “I am tired of running, tired of looking over my shoulder. If you see me as a threat and have to detain me, at least I won’t have to run anymore.” He sighed again and stood up. “Well, are we going to sit around and chat or are we going to get going? I mean, I have all the time in the world, but I don’t think you do.” A small smile graced his features for a split second before it was gone.

The woman grunted and grabbed his arm, yanking him forward. “Clint, get your ass over here.”

The other tailler, a man, presumably Clint, hopped out of the tree he had been stationed in and grabbed his other arm. The man who was flying landed with a thud and walked over, stopping in front of the now-detained prisoner. “You seem like a nice kid. I hate having to take you in like this, you being so young and all, but… we don’t have much of a choice. Orders are orders.”

The young man laughed. “You always have two choices: your commitment versus your fear. Sammy Davis, Jr.”

The man in the flying suit laughed as well. “I can’t argue with that, but you must understand that if we ran from a commitment then we would have more than just fear to run from.”

The young man sighed. “I know. I ran from my commitment in order to stay alive and live a half-life looking over my shoulder. That is why I am ready to go with you. You never know what the Fates will do next.” He laughed humorlessly. “They like to screw up lives.”

All those gathered around the boy looked at each other in confusion. In the end, the man with the shield sighed and gestured to everyone. “Let’s go. Fury is waiting.” 

Everything was going smoothly until the young man sensed the helicopter. He started to yank on their arms. “No, no, no, no, no. Anything but air travel.” He gasped for air, shaking. 

“Not a fan of air travel?” The man in the flying suit asked. 

Again the young man laughed his humorless laugh. “I would personally rather pluck out my own eyes than travel by air.” 

The flying man let out a near-soundless whistle. “I’m afraid airfare is the quickest way to get to New York.”

At the words New York all the blood drained from the young man’s face and he swayed back and forth. "Skatá.”  He barely managed to get that word out before slumping against the archer, unconscious. 

When the young man came too, he could hear voices around him but couldn’t figure out what they were saying. After about three minutes of trying to decipher what was going on, he sighed and opened his eyes, only to be met by the same blackness. It was then that he remembered that he was, indeed, blind.

He rolled his useless eyes. You would think that after three years he would remember but no, he had to scare himself half to death every time he woke up confused, which happened more than he would like to admit. 

“He’s awake.” With those words, the room went silent. 

“Yes… I am awake. Can someone tell me where I am?”

A new voice, a man’s deep voice, cut through the others as they were about to speak. “Figure it out yourself.”

The prisoner sighed and rolled his eyes. “I am not in that bloody air contraption, but I am high up, making me think a tower. Not high enough to be in the Empire State Building, but high enough to make people with a fear of heights queasy when they look out the window. I am assuming somewhere in New York and by the fact that the traffic is loud, I would guess the center of New York City. There are six of you instead of five making me think that the Fury you didn't want to make wait is in here. Since he is here and only two of you, excluding this Fury dude, have weapons on you, I would say this is your base. How was that for figuring it out?”

Silence was the only thing that met his response. “Not even my best assassins can do that good at pinpointing their location. How did you do that?” The deep-voiced man (probably the Fury guy) demanded.

The young man sighed once more. “I grew up here. I would be able to tell if I was in NYC just by the smell. That, and my atuneness for heights made it easy. As for the weapons, I make it my business to know who has a weapon on them and who doesn’t. But we aren’t here to discuss my intuition. Actually, what are we here to discuss? Like, no one has said anything to me at all so honestly have no clue why I’m here. Last time I checked I haven’t done more than petty theft in years and like all my other charges were dropped. Seriously, I sware I didn’t blow up the arch, it was the fucking chihuahua named Sonny and you can’t prove that Mt. St. Hellen’s was my fault, like it totally wasn’t, all the eyewitnesses that put me there were lying, I have never seen that volcano, and certainly not the inside in my life. There definitely wasn't an active forge in the center of it that I definitely didn't destroy by causing the explosion. Like whaaaaat? How could I do that? Also why the fuck am I back in New York? Like couldn’t you bring me anywhere else? Like maybe D.C.? I mean, if I had known we would be coming here I might have put up a fight. Then again, I might not have…. Is it time to face my past?” He sighed. “They seem to think so.” He seemed to forget that he wasn’t alone as he elapsed into silence, thinking about something.

After a long pause, the man with the deep voice, who the young man was positive was the Fury that the other talked about, spoke up. “And who, pray tell, are they?”

The young man blinked and answered dazedly, still lost in thought. “The Fates. They seem to hate me…” He sighed and trailed off, still lost in thought.

At that, the woman stiffened. “You mean the Norns that Thor is always going on about?”

“The Norns? Thor? As in the dude from Norse mythology? Di imoralis, tell me he doesn’t exist!” His voice cracked and he looked terrified. Suddenly the door burst open.

“Certainly I exist, young mortal! As does my brother Loki who is with me! But don’t worry! His mind is no longer under the Chitauri’s control!” The thunder god himself boomed.

The room erupted in shouting about Loki with Thor’s obnoxiously loud voice defending him. Loki sighed and turned to look at the young man in the bed, noting how his eyes widened with fear, everything in his position suggesting that he was about to take flight, or maybe just curl up in a ball and hope to be forgotten by the world. Something about him was familiar. The way he smelled of the sea, the way his eyes flashed and raged like a stormy ocean covered in ice, the way his wind-swept hair looked like he had just come from the beach. The only thing that wasn’t familiar was the chalk-white skin and the dark circles under those icy eyes. Their eyes meet, one pair piercing the other sightless, and realization shoots through Loki, causing him to stumble back against the closed door. “Son of the sea.”

Loki had barely managed to utter those words before the boy was up and had a knife to his throat.

If Loki’s voice hadn’t been enough to silence the room, the voice of the young man did the trick.

“Once upon a time I was, but not anymore. No longer can I go to the sea for healing, no longer can I call to my gods. No. I was banished. Betrayed. Stabbed in the back by my own fiancè! They believe me dead and I like to keep it that way. The only ones who I can call upon are few. And even then I dare not call upon them in fear of someone hearing. Call me not the child of the sea. Call me instead the betrayed hero, the banished child of Greece, of Rome, the forgotten one. But never call me the child of the sea. I have not been that in a long time.” He growled out. “I was Perseus Jackson, son of Poseidon, but now I am Vindex, O Prodoménos, champion of the Fates.”

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“ Once upon a time I was, but not anymore. No longer can I go to the sea for healing, no longer can a call to my gods. No. I was banished. Betrayed. Stabbed in the back by my own fiance! They believe me dead and I like it like that. The only ones who I can call upon are few. And even then I dare not call upon them in fear of someone hearing. Call me not the child of the sea. Call me instead the betrayed hero, the banished child of Greece, of Rome, the forgotten one. But never call me the child of the sea.” He growled out. “ I was Perseus Jackson, son of Poseidon, but now I am Vindex , O Prodoménos, champion of the Fates.”

Loki sighed and rapt his arms around the child, startling everyone in the room, including Vindex, who was still holding a knife to his throat. He quickly retracted the knife and let it hang limply by his side. “ Listen to me, my child. I don’t care what the Greeks do or say normally, but right now I know one thing for sure, when they lost you, they lost their greatest hero and strongest ally. They begin to see it even now, but I know that you won’t go back to them.  That is not your purpose. Stay with me for a time. I will guard you against their sight. They will not find you unless you want to be found.” He absentmindedly stroked the boy’s hair as the child clung to him. 

“ I’ll…. I’ll stay with you for now. That is if  They let me.” He pushed Loki away slightly. “Who are they anyway? And do you know why they wanted me here?”

“I’ll let them tell you themselves.” Loki let go of the boy and led him to the bed. “ Sit.” 

A throat cleared behind them, the woman’s, bringing both of them back to reality. “Um.. so I get that Loki is good, and seeing him with well… I don’t know your name. Anyway, what the hell was that language? I have never heard of it. It wasn’t Asgardian, too ruff and guttural.” 

Vindex laughed lightly. “The title is O Prodoménos but you can call me Vindex. And as for the language, it was Ancient Greek. Though the last bit might have been Latin, it’s hard for me to tell, seeing as both of those languages are in my blood. I didn’t even realize that we weren't speaking English. But back to the main question. Why am I here?”

The man in the metal suit snorted. “Your name is Windex? Like the glass cleaner?”

Both Clint and Thor laughed at his comment while the moment and the man with the shield both sighed in unison.

“Only if we were using Classical Latin,” Vindex replied, exasperated. 

“Um… cool, cool… Is anyone else going to mention the fact that the kid was cuffed to the bed and now isn’t? Because, like, that seems like a big deal to me.” Clint pointed out.

Fury cleared his throat. “I am Nick Fury, the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. And these are the Avengers.”

Vindex blinked in confusion. “I have heard of S.H.I.E.L.D. but not the Avengers. Are they new? Like in the last four years? Because I’ve been out of touch with everything for around that long. Maybe a bit longer.”

Loki laughed. “Yes, they formed about then. I’m afraid I was one of the reasons that they formed. I… was not in complete control of my mind for a while.” He sighs.

Vindex nods. “I know what that feels like. It’s… not fun. I was possessed by an Eidolon once. It was horrible. I almost killed my ex-best friend. Now, I would not mourn his death as hard as I would have back then, but to have his blood on my hands... “ He trailed off with a shutter. “I would rather go back to Tartarus than do that.”

At that, Thor, who was frozen in shock, and Loki reached out and pulled Vindex into his arms as if to try to shield him from harm while most of the Avengers glanced around at each other to see if anyone else understood what he was saying, except someone*cough* Tony *cough* who just kept muttering “What does he mean what are the Avengers?!”.

 “Tartarus?! Dear Frigga! You went to Tartarus?! And were possessed by an Eidolon?! How are you alive, child? Not even I could boast of being capable of doing that!” 

Vindex chuckled bitterly. “The Fates. I am their Champion .” He spits out champion as if it burned his throat. “They need me alive so alive I am. That and sheer dumb luck.” He sighed.

The woman blinked. “Ok… so obviously we are all missing something. You and Loki seem to know what he is talking about so I take it he is like you. But the speaking Greek part…. What are we missing?”

Both Thor and Loki looked at Vindex, silently asking what they should say and if they should say anything at all. He sighed slightly. “Tell me why I am here and I will answer your questions.”

Fury nodded. “That is reasonable. Especially when Natasha,” here he gestured toward the woman, “Tells me that you came willingly without a fight. You have a file here at S.H.I.E.L.D. Not only do you have a file, but it says that you are a possible terrorist. That, on top of the fact that you vanished from the radar for four years was enough to make me send my best agents, Natasha and Clint,” he gestured toward the woman again and to the archer, “to tail you and to send for the rest of the Avengers to bring you in for questioning after they had got enough intel on you.”

Vindex nodded. “Ah, so that’s what you mortals have me labeled as. I mean, you can only accidentally cause so many explosions before they start to notice. Even if I was cleared from all charges.” He glared at Fury, icy eyes flashing in annoyance. 

The flying suit man broke in before anyone could say anything else. “Name’s Stark. Tony Stark, but you probably knew that. Anyway, you keep calling us mortals like you aren’t one, but, after meeting Thor, I started studying Norse mythology and haven’t come across the title of O Prodoménos . Jarvis, is there a Norse god titled O Prodoménos ? Or anything on that name at all?”

“Sir, there is no one named O Prodoménos in any mythology,” A male British voice came out of nowhere, making Vindex jump a foot and flare out his senses to see if he missed someone. He hadn’t. The voice continued. “I did find that in Greek tin prodoméni translates to the betrayed one. 

“Hmmm, and anything on Vindex?”

“Vindex is a Latin word that means avenger, also no figure in mythology that has this name that I found. Is there anything else I can do for you, sir?”

“No, that will be all. Thank you, Jarvis. So… the betrayed one. Interesting title. How did you get it? And avenger. Can we get why your name means that? And if that is your real name?”

Vindex laughed. “My real name, well, I was sure that Fury would have told you already, but seeing as he hasn’t. I was once Perseus Jackson. And as for the mortal thing, well, I used to be one, or at least part, until the fates decided that death wasn’t for me and stole my mortality right as I was trying to end it because they are jerks that way. So now I am the Champion of the Fates until they decide they want to fade, which might be all too soon. Then I will take their role and become the Fate. And as for the title, well no one used it unless they decide to start listing my titles which takes way too long. Also, Vindex is just the Latin version of Perseus in a way. And honestly, most people just call me Dex.”

One of the dudes whistled. “That is an interesting name. Which transition do you go with? I mean, it means not only the champion, but also the avenger, the revenger, the defender, the claimant, and the Protector with a capital P.” 

“Any of those work, though I mainly translate it to champion for as I said, I am Their Champion.”

Tony blinked. “You speak Latin, Bruce?! Since when?!”

Bruce rolled his eyes. “I’m not fluent but I can get by with translations.”

Fury scowled. “Enough of this. What do you mean by accidentally causing explosions? And where have you been for the past four years?”

“Well, to put it simply, most of those explosions were caused by monsters who were chasing me. Or caused by me trying to get away from said monsters…. Honestly, the Arch wasn’t me…. Though Mt. St. Helens was… though again, both times involved monsters. And as for where I’ve been… Well, four years ago I was in Greece and Rome saving the world from Mother Earth, who, yes, is quite evil. And before that, I was kidnapped by my ex-Aunt who wiped my memory and put me in a coma for eight months, and then I ended up in Alaska for a stint. These last three years I haven’t quite been on Earth. I was in the more or less in a removed dimension of the Fates being trained by them after they had healed my injuries, though for me it was much, much longer than three years… I think they said they made each year turn into a hundred or something like that? I don’t know, I wasn’t really listening….” Again the young man trailed off staring into space before sitting back on the bed.

“And what, pray tell, did those bastards who injured you do to you?” Loki purred, a murderous gleam in his eyes. He might have only known Vindex for less than an hour but if anything happened to him he would burn the nine realms down, no hesitation. 

“Oh, nothing terribly life-threatening. They shattered both my legs, and my sword arm, forgetting I can fight with both, broke my ribs, and… well I think I blacked out for a little bit after that so I have no clue what they did to my eyes, probably a curse or something. Nothing horrible. Everything healed up pretty quickly, only taking about ten years.” Vindex waved his hand dismissively. 

Loki snarled. “Nothing horrible? Sweet child, that’s worse than what we do on Asgard to our enemies! Even the Jötuun s treat their enemies better than that! I…” He broke off and angrily ran his hand through his hair.

Vindex smiled up at him. “Thank you for caring, though really, one must move on from the past and look to the future or one goes crazy.” His smile faded as he looked sort of confused. “But why would you distance yourself from your own people?”

Loki’s mouth pressed in a thin line. The Avengers glanced at each other trying to figure out what the boy meant.

Clint exchanged glances with Natasha before turning to Vindex. “What do you mean, his people? Loki is an Asgardian.” 

Thor shifted nervously, refusing to meet anyone's eyes, even as all of his teammates turned to look at him, questions in their eyes.

Vindex bowed his head to hide his frown. “Ignore me, I ramble and speak of things I know not.”

Loki sat down next to him, placing his hand on the boy’s knee. “No, De... Vindex is right. I should not ignore what I was born. Who I was born. It is time we... I made peace with who I am. Besides, what better place to accept the fact that you belong to one of the most monstrous people groups than on Midgard where everyone hates you and thinks of you as a murderer?” He snorts in self-loathing, his eyes bitter.

“Loki… you know we don’t think of you as a monster. That I don’t think of you as a monster...” Thor’s voice trailed off, knowing that nothing he said would help, not after what he had done and said.

“You might not, brother, but your people do. But one cannot blame them for that's all they were taught. After all, what are Frost Giants but savage beasts that need to be eradicated?”

Vindex placed his hand over the troubled god. “Hush now. The Assgardians, because of you, are recognizing their mistake in assuming that just because they don’t understand the Jötunn’s culture which is what leads them to ignorantly write them off as mere beasts. You, Loki, are the key to this, with the help of Thor. But it won’t work unless you accept the beautiful being that you are, and stop projecting what you were told growing up onto yourself. I might have only just met you in person but I have seen your Fate and I can see the paths open to you as well as the ones that have closed. I can also see the Fate of your people and see the role you play in the acceptance and education of the people of Asgard. But anything that involves changing how people think takes time.”

Loki snorted. “The annoying thing is that you are right. It will take time, but hey, seeing as I’ve been banished to Midgard for a year, I might as well use the time I have.”

The Avengers and Fury stared at the three immortals, trying to figure out what just went down and how Vindex seemed to have successfully hijacked the interrogation and turned their attention on something else completely. 

Fury scowled. “And what exactly just happened? And what in all of the blazes is a Jötunn?”

It was Natasha who answered his question. “Well sir, the Jötunn are Frost Giants whose mere touch can spread frostbite and can control the weather to an extent. They were the Assgardian's arch-enemy, though going back to when Odin’s father was king, they were considered allies occasionally, fighting a common enemy. As for what is happening, it appears that Loki is a Jötunn Frost Giant that was raised in Asgard which would make sense seeing as we already knew that Loki was adopted. This would also explain why Odin kept Loki’s adoption from him until recently.”

Loki nodded. “Indeed. Well said Romanoff. The only thing you missed from your well-said overview of the situation is the fact that I am the son of Laufey, who was King of the Jötunns whom Odin killed in their last main war with them. It was apparently at the end of this war that Odin found me in a temple left there by my mother as is tradition with runts. Runts oftentimes are left as offerings to the gods because they… we … don’t typically survive long. The runts who survive a week without help are brought into the temple and become its priests and priestesses as they have the favor of the gods and have the closest connection to their magic and the ability to use not just Jötunn magic, but also the universal magic that can be used by everyone in the nine worlds, though each realm has their own personal magic, though most have forgotten.”

Vindex blinked in surprise. “Really? Even Ear… um, even Midgrid?”

Loki laughed at his expression. “Why do you think Midgrid had so many witch trials? So many stories about gods and dragons? Surely you must have known about magic seeing as you believe in Hecate, goddess of magic! Not to mention Circes or Medea, two of the most famous magicians to come from the Greek Pantheon.”

Vindex blushed and ducked his head. “Ah yes. I did not think about that. You make a very good point. Circes is a bitch though even if she no longer turns men into pigs. Honestly, I would have rather been turned into a pig than a guinea pig. At least pigs aren't rodents!”

Tony leaned forward from where he was sitting, obviously fascinated by the thought of magic. “Would someone be able to harness this magic?”

Loki shrugged. “In theory yes. If I remember correctly, Midgrid had the widest variety of magic, a little bit of everything. Though I only really stuck around during William Shakespeare's time. Great man. Bloody good playwright. I acted with the Globe for years. Actually, William based Hamlet’s personality off of me.”

Clint scowled and rolled his eyes. “Of course he did, you freaking edge lord.”

Loki frowned slightly. “What is an edge lord?”

The room broke out in laughter. 

“Nothing to worry about. Lunch?” 

Everyone jumped up and trickled out of the room at Natasha's suggestion, Vindex and Loki trailing behind them.

Chapter Text

Everyone jumped up and trickled out of the room at Natasha's suggestion, Vindex and Loki trailing behind them.

Lunch was a simple affair, everyone just sort of fending for themselves, using the various types of lunch meats and toppings that Clint threw out to make sandwiches. After sensing Loki’s confusion, Vindex quickly threw together sandwiches for both of them before following Loki silently to the table.

Fury and Natasha locked eyes for a few seconds before she nodded suddenly. “So, Vindex, when I was making my sandwich, I realized you said that you don’t know what they did to your eyes, what did you mean by that?”

Vindex snorted at the lack of subtlety of the spy, who he knew was normally much better at this stuff. “To put it bluntly, I’m blind and have been since they cast me out of Olympus.”

“Blind?” Clint cocked his head to the side and reached up to check his hearing aids to check that he heard correctly.

“Olympus?!” Tony sputtered out.

“Cast out? What do you mean by that?” Thor blinked into confusion.

Loki placed his hand on the young man’s leg, silently reassuring and supporting him.

Vindex sighed. “Yes. I am blind. Don’t worry archer dude, whose name is Clint I think, your hearing aids work just fine. And as for being cast out of Olympus, it was exactly as it sounds, Thor. They threw me off of it after Z-“ he glanced upward nervously, “my dearest uncle struck me with his lightning bolt.”

His eyes glazed over and he stared off into the distance as if he was reliving the moment. “I really should have never given that thing back to him. I should have just let him kill me then and there. Yes, the world would have ended, but it wouldn’t have mattered. No, not really now would it? Well maybe for you it would have.” He snorted as he glanced around the table. “No, you would not have been able to handle real monsters.”

Tony scowled. “What do you mean ‘you wouldn’t have been able to handle real monsters’?! Of course, we would! We handled Reindeer Games and his army of aliens just fine!”

Both the pale, raven hairs males snorted in amusement. Even Thor had to chuckle at that. “Nay Man of Iron, my brother is a formidable warrior. He could have defeated me easily if he wasn’t putting most of his magic to resist the mind control. Honestly, do you think my brother, who spends most of his days in the library and reading scrolls of magic, would be stupid enough to attack New York, the location of Mt. Olympus?! Even I am not so dumb and landed in New Mexico!”

“Thor, you telling me that not only do Greek gods exist but their home is located in the very same state we are?” Fury stared at Thor with dead eyes… well, eye.

“No, they are located in this very godsdamned city.” Vindex scowled. “And unfortunately they very much exist. As do their children, after all, if it weren’t for us demigods, how else would they get all their meddling with the world done?” The cold glare full of bitterness screamed of old grievances, much older than the banishment.

“So you’re a demigod. Who's your parent?” Natasha tilted her head slightly in genuine curiosity.

“My mother’s name is, was, Sally Blowfis nee Jackson, the writer. She is currently married to Paul Blowfis, an English teacher at Goode Highschool. They have a three-year-old daughter, my half-sister, named Estelle. She was born shortly before my banishment. I have not seen her since right after Estelle was born on my mother’s request so her new family doesn’t have to deal with the monster attacks that being around me leads to.”

Tony rolled his eyes. “She meant your godly parent obviously.”

“Oh, I know. But as I have been banished and disowned I no longer technically have a father. Though I was born to P- er the sea god. And before you do it, please, don’t say their names around me. Names have power and I still reek of Geek.”

“What do you mean names have power?” Natasha tilted her head, studying the immortal in front of her.

Loki looked away from Vindex to around the room, incredulous that no one, not even Thor, seemed to know the answer to this. “Why do you think mortals have middle names? So the fae and witches couldn’t cast spells on them because they needed their entire name. Mortals have known that names have power since the dawn of time. The name of gods and monsters cab alert them to someone's presence. Take for example, we are all having a conversation and I use something that sounds similar to your name in a sentence. This act will immediately get your attention even if I didn’t use your actual name. It’s the same with gods but at a much wider range. The only place safe from their reach for Vindex to be that he could say their names without fear of drawing their attention is Alaska, the place beyond the gods.”

“And even then nothing is completely guaranteed there either, though for some reason it has been forsaken by the gods who avoid it at all cost.” Vindex chimed in.

Has he was talking, Vindex stood up and went to make another sandwich. He tilted his head in Loki’s direction, back still turned to him, in a silent question to which Loki nodded. He then made a second sandwich and sat back down next to Loki, passing him the extra sandwich.

“Ok, how the fuck did you do that,” Tony demanded.

“Do what?”

“You just made a sandwich blind which, ok, not unheard of, but then you go and make one for Reindeer games after he nodded at you when you weren't even facing him at the time! Like how did you do that?!”

“Oh, that. There is more than one way to see ya know? Like some creatures use echolocation. What I do is similar to that but instead of sound waves, I use water molecules to help me “see” the world around me, which allows me to know what's happening in every direction. It's the same way I am able to tell when someone has a weapon on them.” Vindex shrugged as if that should be obvious.

“You control water molecules?!” Tony shrieked. “70% of the human body is made out of water molecules!”

Fury rolled his eye. “Back to the topic at hand, you are saying that you are not a terrorist due to the fact that most of the incidence that you were a part of was due to monsters?”

Vindex sighed. “Yes.”

“And do you have any proof that these monsters exist? If they do why haven’t we seen them?” Natasha leaned forward, eyes hard.

“Magic.” Vindex wiggles his fingers at her.

Natasha and Fury glared while everyone else started to laugh.

“That doesn’t answer my question.”

“Actually, Black Widow,” Loki smirked, “You’ll find that it does, indeed, answer your question. The Greeks call it the Mist. It’s basically a blanket that separates the world you know from the world that you actually live in. Some mortals have the ability to see through it, like what your Captin used to have before he took the serum, though every mortal who I have ever heard of that is able to see through it has some divine blood in them. You, Captain, have the blood of the goddess of wisdom and strategy in your veins, strong enough that it was most likely one of your parents who was a demigod. The serum enhances you, yes, but it enhances your human side, which would’ve overridden your ability to see through the mist, thus why you no longer can.”

“Wait, you're telling me that all those creatures and things I used to see before the serum are real? And that I was, in fact, not schizophrenic?” The shield guy (who apparently was called captain??) gasped.

“Wait, you had schizophrenia?” Tony squicked.

“No, the Captin ?? did not have schizophrenia, he was just a clear-sighted mortal and from the sound of it, he was a greek legacy.” Vindex pointed out with annoyance. “And even if he did have schizophrenia it wouldn’t be like it was something he could control, no more than I can control the fact that I have ADHD so fuck off Sharp or whatever your name is.”

“ShArP??? It’s Stark. Tony Stark. Not Sharp! How do you not know that? Everyone knows who I am!”

Vindex rolled his eyes, “Apparently not everyone dude.”

Loki snorted. “He’s got you there, Sharp.”

Angry squawking sounds came from the newly dubbed Sharp.

The Captin guy snorted. “On the topic of names, we haven’t introduced ourselves to you have we? Very rude of us. I am Steven Rogers, also known as Captin America, though feel free to call me Steve.”

“Clint Barton, Hawkeye, and the angry Russian lady next to me is Natasha Romanoff, aka the Black Widow.”

Natasha scowled at the arrow guy, Clint.

“Bruce Banner, also known as the Hulk.”

“The science dude?! I might not have understood a word from your papers but from what I’ve been told you’ve helped revolutionize the field of science single-handedly.” Vindex grinned at the flustered scientist.

“Wait, how do you know who Bruce is but not know who I am?!!!” Tony wined.

“My ex-fiancèe was a huge fan of Dr. Banner and his work so I know a lot about him. And like, I obviously know who Captain America is but last I checked he died in the 40s…. Everyone else? No clue.” Vindex shrugged.

“Your ex-fiancèe knew who Dr. Banner was but not me?! I am a world-renowned inventor who created the arc reactor from scraps!” Sharp… er, Stark grumbled.

“Ohhhh, you created the arc reactor… that's why I know your name. I had a friend who was supper into your work before he died. After he died we kinda just stopped talking about anything to do with engineering.” Vindex looked down awkwardly.

“Damn kid… now I feel like an asshole.”

“That's because you are.” Natasha snipped.

“And on that note, let's get back to the infirmary. After what you’ve told us, Vindex, I want to do a medical check on you.” Bruce demanded, in a voice that wouldn’t take no for an answer.

“Very well. And please, as I said earlier, feel free to call me Dex. Vindex is a bit of a mouthful.”