James figured Thor was telling his story again. He sipped coffee quietly, watching and waiting.
Someone from Asgard should've shown up by now. Thor's story was supposed to move fast—days, not weeks.
But no one came.
And James knew he couldn't stay here much longer.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
James returned to the crater, Phil noticing his arrival walked straight up to him.
"How's the man doing?"
"Stable. Nothing alarming for now. But we should have agents spread out in town, low visibility. No aggressive posture—just eyes everywhere. Also, monitor the environment for anomalies."
"That's it?"
"That's it for now. But if anything unusual happens, report it immediately. I don't think this place is going to stay quiet for long."
"Got it. I'll put Hawkeye in charge of this area," Phil said.
James found a laptop and asked Cortana to record his current gear concept. He reviewed the designs: an independent arm-mounted system for energy projection, and a metal backpack that could unfold into a long-range sniper rifle. The barrel used energy refraction to fire metal slugs—essentially a mobile electromagnetic cannon.
"This feels clunky," James muttered. "Too much weight for too little return. Recoil's too high. It'll burn out my stamina and energy reserves fast. Not sustainable in a prolonged fight."
[Agreed. Splitting the systems is inefficient. I suggest integrating them with the Umbra Sentinel suit. You're not a close-range fighter. Medium-to-long-range is your advantage.]
"Yeah. Makes sense. I'll need Tony's help. Probably best to hit his place directly. His home lab's fully equipped. Not right now, though. But once Thor's story wraps up, we're heading toward the New York invasion arc next. I want to make a name for myself in that one. One shot. And all eyes on me."
He purged the design from the laptop. Too sensitive to leave behind. And still—no sign of Thor's people.
What he didn't know was that unlike the movie's fast pacing, real time moved slower. Thor's friends were being watched and are trying to break surveillance just to reach Earth.
A few days passed. Still quiet.
James visited town once to check on Thor. He is currently doing fine. James returned the rest of Jane Foster's confiscated gear. Phil had signed off on it.
Today, James rolled back into town. It was a small town. Slow-paced life. Locals had time to chat in the café and complain about the rain.
"James, still here?" Thor asked with a half-smile. "Studying the hammer?"
"Something like that. As long as the hammer's stuck, we can't exactly walk away. You planning to lift it anytime soon?"
Thor sighed. "Not likely."
"You're second-guessing yourself. It followed you here. It still recognizes you. You're the one who doesn't believe anymore. How can the hammer trust you if you don't?"
"Maybe. I haven't figured it out yet." Thor is just looking sad and lost.
"Take your time. I don't think this is over. Something big's still coming."
"What do you mean?"
"If your story's true, someone should be coming for you."
At the mention of someone coming for him, the tension on Thor's face eased up a little but, "Someone will indeed come. I just don't know when. You have to understand, the average Asgardian lifespan is around five thousand years."
James gave a low whistle. "That's… a lot of birthdays."
Right then, a multi-colored beam tore down from the sky in the distance. Something had arrived.
James bolted to the highest point in town, where SHIELD had agents posted. He grabbed a pair of binoculars and scanned the horizon.
Four armored figures were approaching—three men and one woman, all with primitive weapons and warrior posture.
He grabbed the radio. "Evacuate the town now. Get everyone in their cars and away from the area, fast."
"James, what's going on?" Phil radioed.
"Thor's people just arrived. And that means his enemies will follow."
"You must be joking. That unstable guy's family is here? Let them take him and go," Barton said, irritated.
"You don't have to agree with me," James said. "But if we don't clear this town, any casualties are on you."
He tossed the radio aside and ran down, flashing his ID and waving civilians out.
The Destroyer was coming. James knew it. That thing wasn't made of normal metal. He couldn't even guess how it was built. Even Asgard struggled to damage it. Aside from Mjolnir, there was nothing James had that could scratch it.
"Please evacuate immediately. I'm with the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division. There's a dangerous threat inbound. Get your family and go. Bring only valuables. You can return once we contain the area."
Some civilians looked skeptical. The SHIELD badge didn't carry the weight of the CIA or FBI.
"What bureau is that? Never heard of it," one guy muttered.
Still, enough people saw the urgency in James's eyes to start moving, which alerted the others to follow aswell.
Phil gave the word to follow James's judgment. Barton didn't like it, but the call wasn't his to make. He stayed near the crater. The town wasn't his problem anymore.
Agents scattered to help with the evacuation.
Meanwhile, the four Asgardians had found Thor. There were hugs and quick words. Then they noticed the growing commotion.
Thor spotted James on the street.
"My friend, what's happening?"
James didn't answer directly. "Those four armored folks—they're here for you, right?"
"Yes. They're my friends. Come, let me introduce—"
"Hold up. I need to clear the civilians. If they're here, something worse is coming right behind them."
Thor frowned. "What do you mean by that?"