[The intense combat between Barton and Natasha continued in the confined corridor space. Black Widow intercepted Barton's downward knife strike with her forearm, absorbing the impact, then immediately countered with a devastating knee strike to his midsection.]
[Barton attempted another slashing attack, but Natasha deflected it with her enhanced reflexes and managed to grab his weapon arm. She twisted his wrist with brutal efficiency, forcing a cry of pain from the mind-controlled archer.]
[However, Barton's training and natural stubbornness kept him in the fight. He smoothly transferred the tactical knife from his right hand to his left and swept it horizontally toward Black Widow's throat in a move designed to end the confrontation quickly.]
[Natasha caught his knife-wielding hand just inches from her neck and used her leverage to bend his arm back against its natural range of motion, initiating a deadly struggle for control of the blade.]
[Despite her superior technique, it became clear that Barton's raw physical strength was greater. He began to overpower her grip and slowly turned the knife's edge back toward her exposed throat.]
[With no other options available, Black Widow resorted to a desperate tactic and bit down hard on Barton's forearm. The sudden, intense pain disrupted his concentration and strength, allowing her to wrench the dagger away from his grasp.]
[Using Barton's momentary weakness, Black Widow performed an acrobatic backflip using his arm as leverage, then drove his head against the metal corridor railing with punishing force. The impact left Barton dazed and slumped against the barrier.]
[He groaned in pain and struggled to push himself back up to his knees. When he looked up at Black Widow, there was a flicker of recognition in his eyes - the first sign that Loki's mental control might be weakening. "Natasha?" he said with confusion.]
[Without hesitation, Natasha delivered a precise strike to his temple that rendered him unconscious and sent him collapsing to the deck plating.]
[Meanwhile, Thor continued tumbling helplessly inside the spinning containment cell as it plummeted toward the earth. The constant rotation made it nearly impossible to maintain his orientation or build up the momentum needed to break free.]
[As the transparent prison drew closer to impact with the ground below, Thor finally managed to brace his hands against one wall and plant his feet firmly against the opposite side. Using this leverage, he drove forward with all his Asgardian strength and brought Mjolnir crashing through the reinforced material.]
[The containment cell struck the earth with tremendous force, shattering into countless fragments upon impact. Thor burst free from the wreckage and skidded across the rocky terrain for several hundred yards before finally coming to rest.]
"That looked absolutely excruciating! Thank God Thor and Hulk have such incredible durability, or they'd both be dead!"
"They really are brothers in misfortune - both of them got thrown out of aircraft today!"
"I'm thinking those might be the only two Avengers tough enough to survive falls from that altitude, right?"
"Well, reckless Thor finally learned his lesson about charging in without thinking!"
Thor, who was currently somewhere far across the universe, watched himself being deceived by Loki's illusions and made a mental note to give his brother a very thorough beating when he returned to Asgard.
Jane Foster also watched Thor's fall with white-knuckled tension, her disgust for her future brother-in-law Loki growing even stronger.
[After observing Thor's cell plummet from the helicarrier, Loki turned away from the breach with satisfaction and prepared to leave the detention level.]
["You're going to lose," came Coulson's weak but determined voice, causing Loki to turn back in surprise.]
["Am I?"]
[Agent Coulson leaned heavily against the bulkhead, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, but his resolve remained unbroken: "It's in your nature."]
[Loki approached the dying agent slowly, his voice dripping with condescension and false sympathy.]
["Your heroes are scattered and broken! Your flying fortress is falling from the sky like a wounded bird! What possible reason do I have for concern?"]
[Despite his weakening condition, Coulson's eyes blazed with unwavering faith: "Because you lack something they have - you have no belief in anything greater than yourself!" He truly believed that Captain America and the others would find a way to defeat the God of Mischief.]
["I think you'll find that when the dust settles..."]
[Loki never finished his arrogant statement. The prototype energy weapon that Coulson had concealed against his leg suddenly discharged with a brilliant flash, sending a concentrated beam of Destroyer-derived energy directly into Loki's chest and launching him backward through the reinforced bulkhead.]
[As he watched Loki's form disappear through the smoking hole in the wall, Coulson managed a weak smile of satisfaction: "So that's what it does!"]
Tony examined the golden energy discharge with professional interest: "Hmm... that energy signature looks remarkably similar to the repulsor array I've been developing! Interesting design choice!"
Unfortunately, Banner was still in his astral projection state, making it impossible to discuss the technical aspects with someone who might actually understand the physics involved. None of the other observers could follow his advanced theoretical discussions.
"It's unfortunate that the power output was insufficient. I suspect SHIELD didn't incorporate all of the Destroyer's available materials into the weapon's construction, which significantly limited its destructive potential."
"The Mark Destroyer armor doesn't have that limitation. The Arc Reactor can provide more than enough energy to deliver truly devastating attacks. If Coulson had been wearing the Mark Destroyer when he fired that shot, Loki would be dead right now! What a missed opportunity!"
Tony shook his head with genuine regret. If only Coulson could have eliminated Loki permanently at that moment, it would have prevented countless future complications.
"Enough, Tony! Is this really the time for technical analysis?" Captain America interrupted his musings with obvious frustration.
"Alright, alright! I'll keep my engineering insights to myself!" Tony raised his hands in mock surrender to show he understood the criticism.
But privately, he was already calculating improvements for the Mark Destroyer II's multiple energy ray systems. He had tested the weapon against Dark Elf warships with excellent results.
However, the charging time was problematically long - requiring several crucial seconds. He needed to redesign the power delivery system, since there would never be enough time for a full charge cycle during active combat situations.
[In the command center, Director Nick Fury stared grimly at the altimeter as the numbers continued their relentless countdown toward zero.]
[The ship's emergency broadcast system kept repeating its automated warning: "Brace for impact! All personnel, brace for impact!"]
[With Engines One and Three offline, the massive helicarrier was tilting at an increasingly dangerous angle as it lost altitude. Captain America was still clinging desperately to his lifeline cable, fighting against both gravity and enemy fire.]
[Tony pushed Engine Three's massive rotors faster and faster, the repulsors in his suit creating an increasingly bright golden glow as they connected the enormous turbine blades. He was operating at his absolute maximum power output.]
["Cap! Pull the emergency brake lever!" Tony shouted the command as soon as he felt the engine approaching optimal restart speed.]
["I need another minute!" Captain America called back, still struggling to climb back onto the platform while under sustained gunfire from the remaining Hydra operative.]
["Pull it now! I can't hold this much longer!" Tony's voice carried real urgency as the massive engine blades began to accelerate beyond his ability to control them.]
[At that critical moment, Captain America finally hauled himself back onto the control platform and began crawling toward the emergency lever while bullets sparked off the deck around him.]
[Tony, who had been pushing the turbine blades at maximum force, suddenly realized that the engine's acceleration was overtaking his suit's capabilities. The trailing blade caught up to his position and began pushing him forward with irresistible momentum.]
[He immediately recognized the deadly situation he was in: "Uh-oh! This is not good!"]
[The next second, he was pulled under the massive rotating assembly, completely engulfed by the engine's mechanical fury.]
["HELP!" Tony's desperate cry echoed from within the turbine housing.]
[At the last possible moment, Captain America reached the emergency brake and pulled it with all his enhanced strength. The engine's magnetic systems engaged, and Tony was ejected from the deadly machinery, though his Mark VI armor had sustained catastrophic damage throughout its systems.]
[It took several critical seconds for Tony to stabilize his suit's remaining repulsors and prevent a fatal crash landing.]
[Once airborne again, Tony immediately flew to Captain America's position and tackled the Hydra operative who was still firing at them. He drove the enemy soldier into the deck plating with bone-crushing force, rendering him unconscious.]
[Tony then collapsed beside Captain America, his armor's power systems completely drained. Even the arc reactor's glow was dim, and the suit's optical systems had shut down to conserve remaining energy.]
[Captain America was equally exhausted from the ordeal and leaned against the damaged control station to catch his breath.]
[While they had successfully restored Engine Three to operational status, Loki had already made his way to the flight deck and commandeered one of the Quinjet aircraft for his escape.]
[As he piloted the stolen aircraft away from the damaged helicarrier, Loki allowed himself a satisfied smile at how perfectly his plan had unfolded.]