2012

"Now, I was here in 2012 when the sky tore open and the Chitauri rained down on us."

- Glenn Talbot to the United Nations

This is a timeline of events that occurred in 2012.

19

 * As part of a training exercise, Hawkeye disguises himself as a spy and breaks into the Helicarrier to trick the Black Widow into thinking he is stealing information about the Avengers Initiative. After the exercise, Nick Fury tells them the Initiative will only be put into action when the world needs the team most.

30

 * Loki makes a deal with Thanos to recover the Tesseract from SHIELD in exchange for a Chitauri army to conquer Earth.

2

 * S.H.I.E.L.D. transfers Jane Foster to Tromsø, Norway to continue her research.
 * In Russia, in the local evening, Natasha Romanoff is extracting information from Georgi Luchkov while letting him believe he is interrogating her. Phil Coulson calls one of Luchkov's henchmen and orders him to give Romanoff the phone or S.H.I.E.L.D.'s fighter jets will destroy the entire city block.
 * Coulson tells Romanoff that she is needed, and while she is reluctant to leave her current mission, she agrees when Coulson mentions Barton has been compromised.
 * In Kolkata, India, late at night locally, Natasha Romanoff tracks down Bruce Banner, and tells him his knowledge of Gamma Radiation is essential in helping S.H.I.E.L.D. locate the Tesseract. Banner reluctantly agrees to help S.H.I.E.L.D.
 * In New York City, Steve Rogers sits in his new apartment looking through S.H.I.E.L.D. files. One of the files lists Peggy Carter's current phone number, and Rogers prepares to call her, but eventually decides not to.
 * Nick Fury talks to the World Security Council, including Gideon Malick, about the Avengers Initiative.
 * Unable to sleep, Steve Rogers goes to a boxing gym, where Nick Fury approaches him with a mission to retrieve the Tesseract.
 * Tony Stark brings his miniaturized Arc Reactor online to power the newly opened Stark Tower in midtown Manhattan, built on the location of the former Pan Am Building. Phil Coulson visits Stark Tower in the night and asks him to review Erik Selvig's research on the Tesseract, as well as confidential material concerning the potential members of the Avengers Initiative.

3

 * Coulson flies Rogers to the Helicarrier, and tells him about the new uniform they have waiting for him.
 * Loki conjures an image of himself to talk with The Other, who warns him not to fail his mission to retrieve the Tesseract, or else feel his master's wrath.
 * Steve Rogers, Natasha Romanoff, and Bruce Banner meet on S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Helicarrier, and are impressed when it not only takes flight, but employs retro-reflective powers to "vanish".
 * Erik Selvig tells the mind-controlled Clint Barton that he needs iridium. Barton and Loki make plans to go to Stuttgart to retrieve some of the element.
 * Odin uses dark energy to transport Thor back to Earth.
 * Skirmish in Germany:
 * Banner sets to work tracking the gamma radiation the Tesseract gives off, while S.H.I.E.L.D.'s spy satellites find Loki in Stuttgart, Germany.
 * Rogers (donning his new Captain America costume) and Romanoff travel to Stuttgart in a Quinjet to confront Loki, who is acting as a distraction as Hawkeye steals iridium to stabilize the Tesseract.
 * Captain America fights him in the street, but the unexpected arrival of Iron Man prompts Loki to surrender.
 * On the way back to the Helicarrier, the Quinjet is ambushed by Thor, who takes Loki and tries to reason with him.
 * Iron Man pursues and fights Thor in a forest, but Captain America breaks up the fight and Thor agrees for Loki to be taken into S.H.I.E.L.D. custody.
 * On the Helicarrier, Loki is put in a cell designed to contain the Hulk. The Avengers debate about what to do with Loki, allowing him time to plot an escape.
 * Tony Stark asks Bruce Banner about how he controls his powers.
 * Late at night, Steve Rogers explores the lower levels of the ship and discovers a room full of weaponry.
 * Erik Selvig uses the newly acquired iridium to advance his experiments.

4

 * In the early hours of morning, Natasha Romanoff interrogates Loki in his cell, but he refuses to give in. However, in a moment of cruelty towards her, Loki accidentally lets slip that he is interested in Banner, and Romanoff realizes he intends to use the Hulk to escape.
 * Meanwhile, Rogers finds several HYDRA weapons and uniforms from the 1940s in crates in the weapons room he had just discovered.
 * Attack on the Helicarrier:
 * As the sun is coming up, Rogers confronts Nick Fury, who confesses S.H.I.E.L.D. wants the Tesseract to develop weaponry.
 * Loki's mind-controlled agents led by Hawkeye invade the Helicarrier and damage one of its engines.
 * While Iron Man and Captain America race to repair the engine before the ship crashes, Bruce Banner loses control, turns into the Hulk and goes on a rampage through the ship.
 * Black Widow frees Hawkeye of his mind-control by knocking him out. Thor distracts the Hulk, while Fury and Maria Hill hold off the other mind-controlled agents. The Hulk jumps out of the Helicarrier to attack a hovering F-35 jet, but ends up falling from the sky and crashing into an abandoned warehouse on the ground below. Thor tries to stop Loki from escaping, but gets trapped in Loki's cell and ejected from the ship, landing in a field. Phil Coulson confronts Loki, armed with a weapon made from the Destroyer's parts, but Loki stabs him to death with his scepter.
 * Following his escape from the Helicarrier, Loki commandeers Stark Tower. The mind-controlled Erik Selvig uses a machine powered by the Tesseract to open a portal into space, allowing the Chitauri to invade Earth.
 * Battle of New York:
 * The battle continues, as Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Hulk, Black Widow, and Hawkeye all work together to defeat the Chitauri invaders. From the battle, enormous damage is caused to midtown New York City, and many lives are lost, but the Avengers save as many civilians as they can.
 * Despite Nick Fury's persistence, the World Security Council are not convinced the six heroes will be enough to stop the invasion, and launches a missile at New York City.
 * While the Avengers battle the invading forces, Iron Man grabs the missile and throws it through the portal, destroying the remaining Chitauri fleet. His suit fails and he falls back through the portal as Black Widow closes the portal. Hulk catches Stark to slow his fall, and wakes him from his unconsciousness.
 * Loki is apprehended, with the Hulk finding him and beating him into submission, and the Tesseract is reclaimed, ending the Chitauri Invasion.
 * The STRIKE team take the Scepter.
 * Tired from the battle, the Avengers gather at a local shawarma restaurant recommended by Stark. While they have their lunch, War Machine arrives to help in the battle, only to discover they have already won.
 * The Scepter is given to S.H.I.E.L.D. scientists Nicholas Cooper and Mark Smith for study.

5

 * Thor returns to Asgard with Loki and the Tesseract, while the other Avengers go their separate ways.
 * Tony Stark and Pepper Potts look at plans for reconstructing the damaged Stark Tower, which has lost the "S", "T", "R", and "K" on the outside from the battle. They choose to repurpose the remaining "A" to stand for the newly formed group, rebranding as "Avengers Tower".

4

 * Following his return to the modern world as a renowned hero, Steve Rogers is snatched up to be the face of many campaigns. One of these, not long after the Battle of New York, includes a set of videos for students in schools. He records many videos, including a fitness challenge, a video for students in detention, and one on the importance of patience.