video; @falcon

[wingedman]

[Sam's in what looks somewhat like a more high-tech tattoo parlor - one of the body modification studios - and he looks more worried than panicked as he glances at the phone, his attention clearly at something (or someone) on the floor. In the background there's definite arguing going on:]

Sir please, you shouldn’t be [Only the first speaker was visible, a young woman with a variety of piercings and tattoos, likely the attendant given the scrubs she was wearing, visibly alarmed as she was trying to convince the person on the floor to stay there.]

I’ll be fine, christ you nag worse than my mother ever did- [Obviously this wasn’t working as well as she hoped, face paling slightly as there was an uncomfortable-sounding crunch and breathless cursing that followed the irritated reply.]

Hey, so if any of you teleporters are paying attention, I could use a little help here. And heads up to the hospital, you're gonna have a pain in the ass coming in real soon. [Sam glances away from the camera for a moment and pinches the bridge of his nose as he adds an aside] Stephen, you need to go to the fucking hospital, legs don't bend like that.

I’m not going to the fucking hospital, I can fix this myself-

[Narrator: But he couldn't.]

Please, someone get here and shut him up. Doesn't look like anything life-threatening, but he's got broken legs and god knows what else. And he's in the shittiest mood I've ever seen him in, and that's saying a lot.

[ooc: red is Sam, blue is Stephen, replies will probably come from either one (or both), but don't expect Stephen to be very nice.

Also Stephen's replies will come via yelling at Sam's phone. Because Sam is a jerk and won’t let him snatch it]

Comments

video; @LOKIOFASGARD

[ikols]

[ Loki isn't late to the party, he just has a life. Sometimes. Anyway, when he does reply it's with a hint of actual concern layered in a wry murmur, watching all the other videocalls first. ]

Oh, dear. Is he dying?

[wingedman]

[...Sam is, somehow, not surprised by Loki's reaction.]

Nah, he wouldn't be this much of an asshole if he was dying.

[Probably.]

[ikols]

Billy's been around to see him?

[ Yeah, he's nosy. It's not as if he cares!!! ]

[wingedman]

Uh-huh. He couldn't heal him, but he took him to the hospital. Something about Thor being a Ghost Rider and breaking both his legs and demons beating the shit out of him.

[You guys live in a really weird world okay]

[ikols]

Ah, sounds like a Tuesday.

[ Could be far worse in their world lbr. Loki itches his nose, inspecting his nails and pretending not to be worried that Billy, of all people, couldn't mend Strange's ailments. Not that Billy is all-powerful or never fucks up, but still: broken bones are hardly brain-surgery.

Hey, Sam, invite him over. ]

Is he still conscious, or has Iron Man The Third's suggestion been implemented?

[wingedman]

You know, for anyone else, I'd question that, but yeah, Stephen probably pencils pissing the devil off in his planner.

[There's just a long-suffering sigh.]

Conscious-ish. Finally got him to take some painkillers, so he's...loopy. We're in the hospital now, probably gonna be here for a bit.

[Like an extended visit, assuming that Sam can actually get him to stay.]

[ikols]

I'll drop by.

[ Maybe consider healing him with a slice from Idunn's golden apple, if Stephen can be tricked into having it boiled into an IV or something. Loki is all but certain that would heal his mortal aches and pains, godly interference etc being pretty hard to trump even if Mephisto is involved. ]

Has he named the specific Satan that did this?

[wingedman]

...does your world have more than one Satan?

[god that's a stupid question of course they have more than one satan]

Mephisto was the one in charge. He said some demon named Justin kicked his ass, though, along with Thor.

[ikols]

[ He waves the free hand that isn't holding his phone. ]

There are a bunch but Mephistopheles takes more of the credit for the monotheistic religions, being the big red horned type. Also, evil. More than most.

[ He doesn't know this Justin though, who is that even? Hmm. Okay, fine, Loki won't teleport
to the hospital because that just looks desperate but he's heading there now on foot. ]

Did Stephen mention bargaining with Mephisto? Also, which Thor? We have a ... surplus.

[wingedman]

I mean, he was mostly busy being a stubborn dick, so it was real hard to get information out of him.

[Also, Sam would like to know what sort of self-respecting demon goes by Justin, honestly. At least Mephisto sounds demonic.]

The girl Thor. Is there only one of those?

[He's never going to get over how you guys have a bunch of EVERY SINGLE HERO apparently.]

[ikols]

She wields Mjolnir, my brother is Unworthy and has been for some time. He requested that we call him Odinson, ostensibly to save on confusion.

[ That isn't what holds his attention, however. ]

Even I tend to go all-out when dealing with Mephisto, it's unwise to take any chances with that particular devil. What else ails Stephen, besides his legs?

[suckstobestrange]

Next time I see that demonic asshole I'm cramming every last one of his tattle-tale fucking cards down his throat and lighting them all on fire.

[Pain medication has not made Stephen any cheerier, clearly.]

[ikols]

Rise and shine, Sleeping Beauty!

[ Peering around Sam on the videofeed at the grouchy fella behind him, Loki arches a brow. ]

I request a private audience with the Sorcerer Supreme when I arrive at his stylish hospital.

[ If Stephen can't be honest around other people then Loki intends to get him on his own. There are, perhaps, things they can discuss together that will seem harsh and unfair to others, but their wavelength has always been much the same. And if Stephen doesn't want to talk, he can brush aside the lie of granting audiences and ask Loki what the fuck he's playing at. It's only implied as A Thing to clear the room of others with ease. ]

[suckstobestrange]

[Give Stephen a moment because he's torn. On one hand he tends to get along with Loki.

On the other hand another incarnation of him (he thinks?) killed his dog. On accident to be sure, and he did try to make it right, but the sorcerer was still a bit sore over that whole... thing.]

Yeah sure, why the hell not?

[ikols]

Cool.

[ So there is something more to this!! Exciting. Er, interesting. As he passes a grocers, he flashes a grin. ]

Do you want some customary sick-person grapes? Beer?

[suckstobestrange]

[When is there not something more?]

If you can smuggle me in a Mai Tai you'll get a gold star.

[Or booted out by Sam. If he gets caught that is.

Stephen's only mostly joking with that request, to be honest.]

[ikols]

[ If Stephen thinks Loki won't arrive with a Mai Tai now, he's in for a surprise. This is the guy who used to smuggle in whole boars for Thor to eat while the meathead was on bedrest.

With a salute he signs off the call, and twenty minutes later knocks on the door of Strange's allotted room. No drinks in sight until Sam leaves, at least. ]

You look truly awful.

[ But he offers Stephen a high-five all the same. You ain't dead yet! ]

[suckstobestrange]

[Stephen keeps gold star stickers back home mostly to be an asshole when he really wants to drive a point home but he'll absolutely plant one on Loki later if he comes through.]

And to think, I look better than I did.

[He'll accept the high-five though because hell yeah not dead!

Yet, anyways. Always the kicker, that.]

[ikols]

Breaking legs and leaving people otherwise untouched isn't exactly Mephisto's style. Last time he took someone's legs he severed their hips with it and connected them to his own personal bloody inkwell, live and kicking for eternity. You appear to have gotten off light, good doctor. Good for you.

[ Is this the time to hint that Sam ought to step outside? Loki glances between them. ]

[suckstobestrange]

It'd be better if I actually had gotten off light instead of Mephisto deciding to play with his food.

[He'd love to be able to claim he'd escaped in some great daring trick or clever bit of spellwork, but the fact of the matter was he was trapped. Well and properly fucked if he couldn't figure a way out of his unfortunate predicament.]

[ikols]

[ With the door closing on Sam's heels (Loki passes him a bag of grapes to chow down on in the meantime, he's thoughtful like that) the godling perches on the edge of Stephen's bed and leans back on a hand. ]

What exactly did you do to prod him with such a hot poker as this, Stephen?

[ Nodding to those broken shins. ]

[suckstobestrange]

He's turned Vegas into his own personal Hell on Earth and I tried to kick him and his ilk out.

[Saying nothing about his trying to help causing this problem to come about though, he's too sober for that shit.]

[ikols]

Well, that was silly. Noble, but.

[ Trailing off, Loki sighs. Squints at Stephen. ]

Why did he have a fixation on Las Vegas? That's one of Hela's favourite hotspots, he usually avoids her turf.

[suckstobestrange]

Well it was destroyed. In between said destruction and my returning it to proper form it had been in Hell and he'd been making some... alterations. Apparently those changes came back with it.

[Try to help and this is what happens. A great capper to a really fucked year.]

[ikols]

Ah. So you resurrected an entire dead city?

[ Chewing a lip. ]

Adding casual necromancy to your list of daily tasks, were we? In between shaving and dying your hair?

[ It's a bad dye job, okay. ]