5254/Where'd all the giants go

Where'd all the giants go
Date of Scene:	27 August 2018
Location:	New York City
Synopsis:	Tony and Natasha ask Thor about the attack of the giants.
Cast of Characters:	Thor, Iron Man, Black Widow (Romanoff)

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Thor has posed:
    The East Side park just off of Tudor City apartments is covered in melting ice. Certainly the arrival of the large creatures and the mayhem they wrought was large though with few casualties thankfully... but what is playing the most havoc now with everything... Is all that water. All that melting ice and all that water having to go somewhere.
    Drains are overflowing as manhole covers bounce from the differing pressures. Some of the side streets nearby have rivulets while 34th could support a few kayaks going up and down it. News crews mingle with the people as interviews are taken, and in the background there is the image of the tall blonde Asgardian who so recently fought the creatures as he holds aloft a convertible VW and seems to be shaking it?
    The car bounces and jounces in his double grip, water splattering out and splooshing onto the ground while the suspension of the vehicle complains from the Thunder God's efforts. He gives it a few more shakes, getting as much water out, then a final one that causes the glove box to spill open and all the things inside to fall to the ground. He sets it down with a /whud/ and then gestures to the lovely young woman who looks on both impressed... and aghast at what just happened.
    "There, you see? Good as new, assuredly."

Iron Man has posed:
"Hopefully her insurance covers otherworldly glacier damage," Iron Man comments as he glides down out of the air to hang near Thor. The woman gets a two for one on her famous hero sightings today. Iron Man finesses the repulsors to use feet only for a moment: in order to just cross his arms at Thor in a judgemental manner while hovering, well out of the water and damaged ground zone. A lot of calibration was required for just that specific movement. But worth it.

"Figures I'd arrive and the party is now in clean-up mode," he sighs, but is very obviously managing the recovery efforts now: taking point with the onslaught of little robots that have shown up and started to get busy, spreading out of their swarm formation and deploying outwards with various tasks. Tony's also hooked into the emergency responders, setting his AI to work on one of their usual contingencies.

But more importantly: "So, frost giants wanted you and a treasure. Possibly in that order?"

Thor has posed:
    The young woman in the short shorts smiles happily though pained as she waggles fingertips in Tony's direction, "OhhIloveyoualwayswantedtomeetyouohmypoorcar." She frowns and runs over to run her hands over the side of the vehicle, frowning to herself as she murmurs something under her breath softly and likely meant for her babycar. But then she squawks and rushes off to try and catch some of the things that fell out of her glovebox and seem to be carried along on the tide of the water in the gutter.
    But Thor, his attention is turned away the moment Iron Man arrives. He holds up a hand and his lips part as he draws in a breath as if about to try and explain...
    But then he lowers his hand and converts it into a pointing gesture at Tony as he says succinctly, "Yes."
    A nod is given as he turns to look out over what has passed, then he looks back towards Stark. "The Jotun." As way of explanation.

Iron Man has posed:
"While I do usually know everything about everything," Iron Man pauses, sarcasm amused, "what were they after, more exactly?" Iron Man questions, moving to glide down and land next to the curb, well out of the way of any drifting items or vehicles. He also observes over the area, the damage amounts. The frost, storms, lightning, wind vortexes, it's done a number on the area. Still, it isn't a Hulk battle, it seems mostly contained, to him.

"And why? Humor me," Tony asks. He pauses as an ambulance pulls up nearby, to assist to guide them by lending them a little robot to lead them to one of the relief stations he's building.

Black Widow (Romanoff) has posed:
    Through the chaos of the scene comes a sleek black motorcycle with no markings. It moves through the various vehicles still in the road with ease, shifting around them and moving to a spot that is at the edge of the park. While there is a thin layer of water here, it isn't as bad as a bit further downhill where all of it seems to be collecting to slowly leak away into the drainage system.
    A familiar figure dressed all in black steps off the bike, setting the stand. She removes her helmet, letting the red hair she is known for fall down her back. She leaves the helmet on the seat and walks /carefully/ toward her teammates.
    "Did I hear those reports right? Ice giants?" The way she says it, it's obvious Natasha is hoping that was an exaggeration. As she looks at the remains of the park, she's pretty sure it isn't.

Thor has posed:
    "Ah, well, as to that." Thor starts to step away from the reporters and the crowds, as if that would grant them a further semblance of discretion. He starts to walk across the park, boots crunching the icy mush underfoot as he moves and he lifts a chin to indicate the still partially present icy peninsula that connects to the land with the bridge the shaman created.
    But then thankfully there is a brief respite when the Black Widow appears and he lifts a hand in greeting, "Ho there, Widow. Well met."
    "Indeed. They manifested there, some form of sorcery I have not seen them capable of in the past."
    He turns back, arms folded over his broad chest as he focuses his good eye upon the man of metal. "Their leader was one known as Bellos of the Bold Eye. A most vile villain, stops at nothing to reach his goals." Shaking his head, Thor scowls off in the direction of that melting mass of ice on the river, "They seek an artifact known as the Casket of Ancient Winters. A spoil of war my father took during our first battles with the Frost Giants."

Iron Man has posed:
"A Casket. I'm guessing this is not a type of casket that contains a corpse, but something else that can destroy parts of our world, at the very least," Iron Man observes dryly. He followed with a somewhat showy arc into the air, a long 'bound' with repulsors to go to the zone Thor chose to have their more discreet chat. After all, the reporters and so on were looking, and it's up to Iron Man to be sure they get good supplemental footage of the heroes looking heroic.

"I've got footage from my city overwatch security if you want to peruse it later. I've had JARVIS on it, so there's also a short version of highlights of their capabilities they showed off."

Back to Thor: "Stop at nothing, huh. So this was just a light scouting party, in your view? Did they underestimate us?"

Black Widow (Romanoff) has posed:
    "Don't they always?" comes the scoffing response of Natasha, though the last question wasn't aimed at her. "You'd think all these invading forces would have a meeting to share tactical information with one another." She pauses as she says that and shakes her head, "Forget I said that. We do not want that to happen."
    She had followed along, boots crunching in the bit of ice still left while sinking into the muck beneath at the same time. What a mess.
    She glances at Tony. "If you could have JARVIS forward both to me. I'll review them when I get back to the Triskelion."

Thor has posed:
    Thor's brow furrows as he looks again to the ice out in the East River, then turns his attention back to his teammates. His arms remain folded over his chest as he takes a deep breath and then says, "Bellos, even in my father's time was a figure that drew strong reactions. His own people..." He shakes his head and scowls, "His own people have no reason to love him, and he has been rumored to sacrifice them in the workings of his dark magicks."
    The Thunderer gestures with a nod in the direction of where the portal had manifested. "If he has taken power then this bodes ill for many, not us alone." Turning back to look between Widow and Tony he frowns. "The Jotun are a proud people, who have always been warlike, yet they are also weary of war for it has cost them. Millenia of battles has reduced their home from the splendor it once had. If this Bellos has gambled on gaining the Casket to cement his hold over his people... then we can expect other attempts."
    Then he takes a breath and shifts gears as he looks to Tony specifically, "Though it may all be for naught, the Casket was in Odin's vaults when Asgard was lost. It is likely destroyed. If it is not... then it is in the debris."

Iron Man has posed:
"Yep." A beat passes. Iron Man finger-guns onehandedly at Natasha. Pulls the trigger, aka curls a finger. "Done." He then actually opens his visor, as if realizing he doesn't really need it down right now, and it's always easier to chat without talking through a helmet, when the people are right in front of you.

"No chance of diplomacy with Bellos?" Tony asks, and looks aside to Natasha. "Possibly somebody other than you, Thor, if there's history." He shrugs a little, and then considers the next issue. "Great, possibly buried treasure. A vault full? Well, Bellos must think it's here, regardless; he told us that much, right? Any way to get at the debris to hunt for this thing? What does the Casket /do/?"

Black Widow (Romanoff) has posed:
    "Thanks," Natasha murmurs to Tony as she looks between the two men then out toward the ice atop the river. It was melting, albeit slowly. Just a matter of time there. "If it might be in the debris..." Her voice trails off as she gives an apologetic look to Thor. "Could it have survived the destruction and still be out there? Floating around for anyone to pick up?"
    As another thought comes to her mind, she adds to the list of questions being fired at Thor. "What else might there be out there?"

Thor has posed:
    Unfolding his arms to flare his hands, Thor looks to the side then back. "I know not what has passed. Some six or seven years ago... I may have..." He furrows his brow and looks a touch pained, "Led some of my comrades there and we did engage in mighty battle." Thor looks even more pained as he looks a bit beyond Widow as if trying not to meet their eyes when he adds, "And, to be fair, my brother did kill their King."
    That hangs there for a moment.
    Then he points at them each in turn, "He was attempting to kill my father while he was in the Odinsleep, so it was a just defense of the helpless." As if that helps forgive some of Loki's crimes.
    But then he sighs and says, "But yes, my presence might well not be a positive if you seek to find what the political situation is there. I know not what has passed since then." Then he spreads his hands to the sides, "As for the Casket itself, I am not the one to know the extent of its powers. But if it were opened and allowed to unleash on the Earth?" He shifts his weight to the other boot and frowns, "It would cause another ice age, most likely."
    After that he looks towards Natasha and answers, "The forces that split Asgard asunder were great and powerful things that would unmake the greatest of artifacts assuredly. But it is feasible something may have endured. Perhaps an expedition would be in order."

Iron Man has posed:
"I feel like we MIGHT need to have you have a longer talk about Asgardian history in general and different things that might follow you here," Tony says simply, with a slight side-eye at Natasha. How many other worlds of earth-wrecking beings has Thor's group killed the king of? "Buuuut maybe not now, we have enough to do. Such as this expedition. Unless you think Bellos deliberately did this to get us to go locate and fetch it for him. I'm no errand boy." A pause. "I expect you know this Bellos better than us. I mean. I've never met the guy."

Black Widow (Romanoff) has posed:
    For a moment, Natasha is surprised to find that Tony is thinking like her. It would've been a setup to have them go look for the item. Then the invasion might return in full force to retrieve it. Or they simply thought Thor had saved the item along with his people? She still didn't know the full details of Asgard's loss and she wasn't going to ask. It was just too much to put on Thor right now.
    The fact Loki killed the Jotun king does make her snort. "Loki killing someone. Go figure." She gives Thor a sidelong glance, remembering a conversation they had long ago about his brother just before the New York invasion.

Thor has posed:
    Thor's jaw tightens as he looks towards Natasha and then back to Stark. Again he takes a few steps, arms unfolding as he moves towards the twisted and frozen barricade fence that separates the park from the river itself. He holds up a hand and then turns to speak to them as he tries to answer their questions as best he can. "Bellos, if the rumors be true, is a horrible creature. Many years back he sought to bring about Ragnarok, to trigger it somehow and conducted a ritual by sacrificing and draining the blood of..." He pauses and it might amuse Natasha that he holds off speaking this last as if she hadn't heard worse. "Of seven children of the Jotun."
    He then motions towards the river, "But this, this is power beyond them. From so many years of warfare they had lost the ability to travel such distances so quickly. And there are few that would share information with them. Perhaps Bellos seeks to get us to do the footwork for them."
    A grunt slips from him and he says, "Whatever the facts are, we are sorely lacking in information."

Iron Man has posed:
"Sounds like we need to figure out their motives, and their magical crystals of making mid-air-sky-ripping-portals," Tony describes. He teases, "Technical term. Don't worry about it." But his humor is just to reduce the severity of it, and his expression turns far more serious, with a movement in his jaw that his helmet doesn't hide. His mind is on the problem, turning it around.

"Getting some kind of diplomacy read'd be a good start. No idea HOW to start that. I'll go over what we /do/ have from their visit and the evidence of what they left behind, but it's not much; I didn't have my equipment staring at them until it was already over. Maybe Strange has something, I'll press his doorbell again, unless you're feeling it, Thor."

Black Widow (Romanoff) has posed:
    The price of Bellos' magicks doesn't make Natasha bat an eye. There is no reaction, no change in expression. Either she is very good at hiding her emotions, which they both know she is. Or she isn't that shocked at what is a truly horrendous act.
    "This is completely out of my skillset. I can try for diplomacy if necessary but it isn't my forte." She can do it. She just prefers the other side of the coin. "If there was a dimensional portal, Doctor Strange would be a good one to consult."

Thor has posed:
    Nodding along at times as his comrades speak, Thor then offers, "Strange might be the best bet for an attempt at mediation. His role and his prominence could stand him in good stead with Bellos, but I would warn you both." He pauses to look between the two of them, "The Jotun have earned their ill repute fairly. If you are able to conduct some measure of diplomacy with them then it must be from a position of strength. They respect naught else."
    That having been said, "I shall away to Norway and speak with the Casters of Runes to see what they might know of these matters. Then I shall return and we shall choose our next course of action. If we attempt to go to Jotunheim itself, then I would go with. I know my presence might not be..." He pauses then adds, "Mollifying to them, but if matters turn ill then you shall need me."

Iron Man has posed:
"Well, you proved your strength here; maybe they'll have some respect going forward? We'll just send Hulk along with you too," Tony teases, after a look around, and a smile. Some 'strongest Avenger', of course. "Let's put our thinking helmets on: after we've got some more data and cleaned this up, might have some more ideas."

Tony's distracted, there's some things his robots are finding that have needed some of his micromanaging. "But I think a pass out to the ruins is in order even if we don't find much. Better to know what /isn't/ there," Tony remarks.

Black Widow (Romanoff) has posed:
    "No Hulk. He'd just make things worse. He seems to have a lot more problems of late keeping his green alter ego in check and that would be a disaster in a diplomatic situation," Natasha points out flatly. She isn't against their teammate but she can recognize a problem when she sees it. "If I was that volatile, I'd expect you all to bench me too."
    She glances over at Thor. "So we need to figure out a way into space to visit the ruins. We also may need to go on a trip to Jotunheim to confirm their intentions. Which will be a trick unto itself as well." She shakes her head. "No rest for the wicked, as they say. Let me know how SHIELD can assist. "