While Earth's Mightiest tried to keep danger at bay and save the civilians, Director Fury had his own villains to take on, which were much less alien than he'd wished.

"Director Fury," began the World Security Councilwoman over the command center. "The council has made a decision..."

"I recognize the council has made a decision, but given that it's a stupid ass decision, I've elected to ignore it."

"Director, you're closer than any of our subs." Another councilman argued, "you scramble that jet.."

The council's determination made Agent Hill nervously panic as she listened and watched, afraid of the casualties of the Council's decision.

"That is the island of Manhattan, Councilman. Until I'm certain my team can't hold it, I will not order a nuclear strike against a civilian population."

"If we don't hold them in the air, we lose everything!"

"I'd send that bird out, we already have."

Back in New York, Natasha had highjacked an alien bird and began using its weaponry against its own kind. That was until someone else began to return fire. She turned to take a glimpse behind and sighed when she recognized her pursuer.

"Oh. You." In all their time together, she hadn't grown fond of Loki. She needed him off her back to get to the portal at Stark tower, thankfully in Barton's range of shot.

"Hawkeye!" Nat called over the radio to catch his attention.

"Nat, what are you doing?"

"Uh, a little help!" She struggled to say as she drove the Chitauri vehicle towards the building.

Hawkeye nocked an arrow, waiting for Natasha and Loki to come past, and smirked when he locked his target.

"I got him."

He sent the arrow flying, but Loki caught the arrow inches from his face. Puny midgardian trinkets he thought and looked back at the archer, smirking. Was this really the best they got? Hawkeye returned the sly smirk and watched as the arrow exploded, sending Loki crashing onto the platform at the top of Stark Tower.

Meanwhile, Black Widow had also jumped off her craft and flipped in the air, landing onto the roof. She rolled and stuck her landing and flipped her hair back from her face.

Loki recovered from the crash and fixed himself. He would have gone off after that annoying spider had the Beast not jumped up and punched him through the window of the penthouse.

Hulk roared and moved towards Loki as the God got to his feet.

"ENOUGH!" By Odin was he done with these mortals. "You are, all of you, beneath me! I am a GOD, you dull creature, and I will NOT be bullied by a..."

Hulk grabbed Loki by the feet and smashed him into the floor, and the God flailed around like a helpless rag doll. The monster rested a second to catch his breath while Loki let out a broken wheeze. The humanoid beast growled and was about to grab his foot again but a green beam blew him through the walls of Stark tower, on a trajectory downward.

"Dad!" Kiera rushed to her father's side, helping him sit up.

While the Avengers work heavily outnumbered, a jet prepared for liftoff on the helicarrier.

"Director Fury is no longer in command." The councilwoman's voice spoke in the pilot's comms. "Override seven-alpha-one-one."

"Seven-alpha-one-one confirmed. We're go for takeoff."

Agent Hill noticed the movement on her command center and ran to her boss.

"Sir, we have a bird in motion!"

Nick Fury rushed out the bridge and barked into the earpiece. "Anyone on the deck we have a rogue bird. We need to shut it down! Repeat, takeoff is not authorized!"

Fury ran onto the deck with a missile launcher and fired, taking the plane out, but a second jet took off right after, and Fury missed his shot range.

"Stark, you hear me?" The director reached out to the team on the scene. "You have a missile headed straight for the city."

"How long?" Tony breathed back, resting on the ground.

"Three minutes. Max. Stay load can wipe out mid-town."

"JARVIS, put everything we got into the thrusters."

"I just did, sir."

Loki stood at the window, his daughter restlessly waiting behind him. He looked up at the portal, watching the invasion continue as downstairs the catastrophe continued to build.

"Look at this!" Kiera finally shouted, forcing her father to turn to her. "Look around you! You think this madness will end when you get what you believe they promised? You think they'll keep their promise?"

"It's too late." He stated it calmly, but the worry in his green eyes projected his apology. "It's too late to stop it."

"No. We can, together." Her father's hushed tone drew her closer to him, and she wanted to touch him, let him know everything would be okay. But then the change of his eye color froze her in place.

"Sentiment!" Loki echoed the voice in his mind and tossed a conjured dagger in his daughter's direction. The pain of his action clouded his vision and he forced his mind free of the master's control. He pushed forward to check on his daughter only to find her in shock, holding agent Coulson's form as he slipped to the ground.

"What did you do?!" Loki demanded of the weakening mortal.

"My job. I don't think you meant to kill your own daughter."

"I didn't. He made me do it. He made do it all!"

"And he-here I thought you were the king of Asgard. Can't even save your own mind."

Loki stormed off, thinking how it could be possible for the mad one to control him, other than the fear of more torture at his hands.

"Hey Ms. Rogers?" Coulson whispered as his head lay cradled on her legs.

"Mhmm?" Kiera sniffled.

"Will you tell the Captain something for me?"

"Unun. You can tell him yourself."

Coulson managed a little laugh through the pain.

"Tell him I said 'you're welcome'. Oh and the cards, they're in my..."

"Coulson? The cards? Where are they?" Kiera tried to shake him awake, but that wasn't her god skill.

"Phil?"

His daughter's broken voice brought Loki back to Kiera's side.

"Forgive me, Elska. I am sorry." He squeezed her shoulders reassuringly.

"No," she placed her hand on her father's and stood up. "Not you. We need to make him be sorry. He won't want to mess with us again."

"The portal. We have to close it."

"Tony couldn't get past the barrier."

"He didn't have that." Loki motioned to the scepter lying past the broken window.

He went to go grab it but Kiera held him back. "No don't touch it!"

"We just need to get it up there. It'll be quick."

"I don't wanna risk it. Can't have you shooting at me again!" Kiera joked.

Up on the roof, Nat was talking Selvig through on how to stop the portal.

"It's not your fault. You didn't know what you were doing."

"Well, actually I think I did. I built in a safety to cut the power source."

"Loki's scepter."

"It may be able to close the portal. And I'm looking right at it."

Selvig walked closer to the ledge to look down at the platform below, and his confusion made Black Widow come over as well.

"What're we looking at?"

"The scepter. It was right there! I swear."

"What? Maybe Loki took it back."

"Took what back?"

Both Nat and Selvig got a startle at Loki's voice and jumped back, Nat with her guns ready. She relaxed when she saw Kiera next to him, the scepter hovering in her hands.

"I think you're looking for this," Kiera tossed the scepter to Natasha and Selvig got into setting up his equipment for the closure.

"Right at the crown!" He pointed to the device.

Natasha pushed the spear through the barrier surrounding the cube, and felt its resistance starting to weaken.

"I can close it!" Nat screamed into the comms. "Can anybody copy? I can shut the portal down!"

"Do it!" Steve's strained order came through.

"No, wait!" Tony yelled.

"Stark, these things are still coming!" Cap reminded him as he punched through another Chitauri.

"I got a nuke coming in, it's gonna blow in less than a minute." Ironman told them as he stared at the said missile, following closely behind it.

"And I know just where to put it."