"So? Did it ruin your plan?"
After Ethan obtained the scepter, he had been testing and experimenting with it. Aside from thinking about how to break the seal on the Mind Stone, he also discovered that he could perceive the status of certain individuals through the scepter.
He didn't need to think hard to know that the people he sensed through the scepter were the unfortunate ones previously controlled by Loki using it.
One of the signals was rapidly approaching. Connecting it with the original plot, it was easy to deduce that Hawkeye was leading the recruited mercenaries toward the Helicarrier, preparing to launch a surprise attack.
According to the plan, Loki would use his words and the power of the scepter to create internal division among several top-level combatants. Hawkeye would lead the assault to destroy the Helicarrier, attempting to cripple S.H.I.E.L.D.'s command system in one strike and plunge it into chaos.
However, Loki hadn't anticipated that his scepter would fall into the hands of another mage. Not only did he lose control over it, but he was also mocked in person for failing to discover the true treasure hidden within it.
The well-planned raid had also been easily neutralized by the other party. At this moment, Loki noticed Diana in her armor. His vision surpassed that of ordinary mortals. While Fury and the others were merely curious about Diana's appearance, Loki could perceive the true value of her gear—another opponent worth noting.
He watched as Diana dropped Hawkeye on the ground and began talking to Ethan about what had just happened.
"You said to bring back the one with the bow alive. Is this the guy?"
Ethan's earlier communication with Diana through Spiritual Link hadn't drawn anyone's attention. He had simply reminded her not to kill the one with the bow. The rest could be dealt with however she wanted. So Diana brought back the only person she had knocked out with a bow. The others never even got close to the Helicarrier—they were reduced to massive fireworks along with their plane.
Natasha Romanoff bent down to examine him and found that Hawkeye wasn't injured, just unconscious.
Fury remained calm. When he saw Black Widow nod at him, he stopped paying attention to Hawkeye's condition. He didn't fully trust what Ethan and Diana had said, but Natasha's judgment was reliable.
"You said you needed to see him yourself to be sure. Shouldn't you be able to now?"
Ethan nodded. He was more than capable now—he could even easily dispel the control spell Loki had used before.
The Mind Scepter's power of control all originated from the Mind Gem in his hand. As one of the universe's top treasures, the Mind Gem, like the other Infinity Stones, wasn't something ordinary people could wield freely. Even just touching it might cause them to be torn apart by its immense energy.
However, there were differences between the stones. For example, the Power Stone was more violent—ordinary people couldn't even touch it. The Mind Gem was relatively gentle. As long as a person didn't try to manipulate its energy, it usually didn't affect them.
Ethan, as a mage, possessed precise control over various types of energy, far beyond that of average mages. While he couldn't fully control the Mind Gem, borrowing a small portion of its power wasn't difficult.
A sweep of yellow light passed over Hawkeye's body, and Ethan nodded to Fury.
"His problem is solved."
"Solved?" Fury hadn't expected the ambiguous situation he mentioned earlier to be resolved so easily. "Just like that?"
"It would've been more troublesome without this gem." Ethan raised his hand, emphasizing the weight of the item he was holding. "Loki used the gem's energy to control Clint. Now, with the help of the gem, I can easily take back that portion of power."
"I see."
It wasn't hard to understand. Ethan's explanation was simple and clear, and everyone quickly got it.
"When Clint wakes up, have him lead you to rescue Dr. Selvig and the others." Aside from Hawkeye, the most critical person still under Loki's control was Dr. Erik Selvig in Egypt. The remaining S.H.I.E.L.D. agents were just lackeys and didn't require much attention.
"Selvig?" Thor knew Dr. Selvig but hadn't expected him to be involved. Since it was his brother's doing, he volunteered to go, promising to bring them back unharmed.
With Thor going, there was almost no suspense. The only concern was whether the God of Thunder could control his strength and not accidentally turn someone into a vegetable.
After resolving the current matters, Ethan turned back to Loki.
By now, Loki's face was darker than Fury's. He hadn't expected Ethan to truly dismantle his plan. He was now in an awkward position. While he had follow-up plans, he was trapped here and couldn't escape.
"You were probably thinking that you'd escape when the Chitauri army attacked."
Loki didn't respond. Although he had confidence in the Chitauri's combat power, the current situation was grim. If his plan failed and the portal couldn't be opened, the Chitauri would be useless no matter how powerful they were.
If they couldn't teleport to Earth, the Chitauri would need to travel a long distance to attack. Along the way, they would inevitably be intercepted by Asgard's army, which was responsible for protecting Earth.
Regardless of whether the Chitauri could defeat Asgard's forces, even if they succeeded, they wouldn't have the strength left to occupy the planet.
"I have to admit, you really did ruin my plan."
Ethan's right fingers tapped rhythmically, and the yellow Infinity Stone floated up and down in his palm with each movement. Each pulse caused the energy surrounding it to expand and contract. The sight made Loki's eyelids twitch. He instinctively took a few steps back, trying to distance himself from Ethan.
He suspected Ethan didn't understand just how dangerous the Infinity Stones were. For most beings in the universe, controlling the massive energy within an Infinity Stone was extremely difficult. Most lacked the qualifications to wield such power.
More importantly, the most terrifying aspect of the Infinity Stones wasn't their energy, but the cosmic laws hidden within. What Ethan was doing now clearly involved tapping into the laws.
"You probably don't know what you're doing."
"No, I know exactly what I'm doing."
"Know what you're doing? As a mage, you should be aware of the potential consequences of your actions. Don't tell me you're planning to destroy this planet?"
Sowing discord had become instinctual for Loki. He had long noticed that Ethan hadn't earned the full trust of the others. Especially the one-eyed director—his gaze toward Ethan was always filled with suspicion. If internal conflict broke out, he might get a chance to escape.
"Ethan?"
Fury knew Loki was provoking them, but he still couldn't ignore his words. The Infinity Stone in Ethan's hand continued bouncing up and down. Even as an ordinary person, he could feel the unsettling power from it.
"Relax. I wouldn't do something like that. I have no intention of blowing myself up," Ethan said, continuing his movements. However, everyone could see that the light from the Mind Stone was dimming. "The power of the Infinity Stones is immense. If I really unleashed that kind of force, I wouldn't survive it myself."
"In movies and novels, mages often don't care about dying if they can gain great power."
Some scientists are like that too. But Ethan wasn't a scientist.
Ethan turned to glance at Maria Hill. Fury's deputy lacked trust in all 'superheroes', and Ethan, a mage from another world, topped her distrust list.
"Most mages are actually terrified of death. The main reason many mages die is that they mistakenly believe they're not going to die."
Ethan clearly wasn't one of those people. His fingers stopped moving, and the Mind Stone also ceased its previous bouncing and flashing. It returned to its earlier state, glowing with a gentle yellow light as it floated above Ethan's palm.
During that short period of contact, Ethan had come to understand the Mind Gem more deeply.
As he had previously suspected, the Infinity Stones contained immense energy—nearly infinite. At least, with his current strength, Ethan couldn't detect a limit.
At the same time, each Infinity Stone carried a certain law of the universe, though this law acted more like a switch, rather than the law itself.
"Using the Infinity Stones means accessing a specific law of the universe." This was the biggest secret of the Infinity Stones, and it was also what Ethan least wanted to see. It meant the stone's greatest power only existed within this universe. Once outside, its value would drop significantly.
"It's not exactly unexpected." Ethan closed his right hand around the Mind Gem. Now that he had touched it directly, he could feel its energy even more clearly. "Not to mention, from my current standpoint, laws are still too far off. It's more practical to analyze the nature of the energy inside."
This was also why Ethan wanted the Tesseract. He hoped to analyze its spatial energy and deepen his understanding of space.
If possible, he even wanted to open a channel inside the Tesseract to connect to other universes. This way, even if he couldn't use the hidden law power, he could at least draw from its near-endless energy for use across various worlds.
(To be continued.)
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