Chapter III: Heaven and Earth
Samus rubbed her tired eyes as she poured over the files Gyllin pulled up on the Heart. Kyliska ta Lekya. What do they mean? She left her armor standing next to a pile of junk near the main computer terminal and sat in her black jumpsuit, staring at the computer monitor. The strange words just burned into her skull. She looked over her shoulder. Tony's Iron Man armor stood only a few feet from her own now. Samus chewed her lip nervously.
"Anything?" Gyllin's voice made her jump a bit.
"Gyllin," Samus said dryly. "No, nothing. The same old stuff over and over again."
"Well, then, that is all we have," Gyllin said with a grunt. "We will have to go after the Heart soon."
"I know," Samus said. "If only I knew where it was."
"Oh, come on, you should have a few ideas. You tangle with all sorts of low lives in the universe," Gyllin said.
"Yeah, but none capable of what happened," Samus closed her eyes. "I mean, how does anyone go back in time and steal a device from a room full of people without anyone knowing? It defies all logic, and is well beyond anyone I can think of."
"Then you need to rest," Gyllin said. "Your friends have already settled in. Why don't you talk to them a bit and, please, try to sleep."
"I will," Samus said softly. "And thank you, Gyllin."
"For what?" He arched an eyebrow at her. A smile crept on Samus' lips.
"For restraining yourself in front of Tony earlier. I know how much meeting him means to you."
"Yeah, well," Gyllin rubbed his head nervously. "I'm sure… he gets all sorts of admiration from his own time. I'm sure he wouldn't want some old crackpot fawning all over him like a school girl."
"Talk to him," Samus said. "I think he'd appetite it."
"You think so?" Gyllin asked, a glint in his eyes.
"Positive," Samus said with a warm smile.
"Anything?" Clint asked Tony as he lay on a small cot in a cramped room. He still wore his Hawkeye costume, but without the mask. Tony wore the suit that he wore under he Iron Man armor – the same one he wore to the summit. He was looking at a small handheld computer with an intent look on his face.
"Nothing," Tony said. Nothing, how can there be NOTHING!? He thought. "How can there not be any records of the Vulcan's Heart anywhere? It is a ground breaking device!" Tony got up and started pacing. "Does it not succeed? Do any of my inventions succeed?"
"Your armor seems to do well judging by your lady-friend's" Clint said.
"She's not my 'lady-friend'," Tony said.
"Whatever," Clint said. "Anyway, don't worry about it. I mean, the Heart was stolen, so wouldn't it make sense that it won't exist in the history records? I'm not an expert on time travel or anything, but it makes sense to me."
"Yeah, it does," Tony said with a sigh. "I just want to be remembered for something other than the armor, for something other than a weapon. The Heart was my best chance for that."
"Tony," Clint said. "You are a brilliant inventor, you'll come up with something. I have faith in ya."
"Thank you, Clint," Tony said as he ran a hand through his disheveled hair.
"Hey, I just thought of something," Clint said, sitting up in his cot. "Samus and Gyllin both mentioned hearing about us in the records. Maybe we can read up on ourselves. See what we accomplish and stuff. Maybe you'll see that you'll be remembered for some great invention."
"Nice thought Clint," Tony said. "But it has been my philosophy not to mess with time. I would rather not know my own fate." He looked up and saw Samus standing in the doorway, staring at the two of them. He smiled at her, and she smiled back.
"Suit yourself," Clint said as he stood up. "I would like to know something about the impact I have on the future. Heck, maybe I have a monument somewhere! Well, I will leave you two be," he said, patting Tony on the shoulder, and walked towards the door. He winked at Samus, who just rolled her eyes.
"Is he always that obnoxious?" Samus asked.
"Not all the time," Tony said with a wry smile. "Clint's a good guy when you give him the chance."
"I'll take your word for it," Samus said, sitting down next to Tony. "What are you doing?"
"Nothing," Tony said, putting down the computer.
"You do make a difference, Tony," Samus said, picking up the computer. "You do not have to worry about that. Your friend, Hawkeye is even mentioned prominently." She looked at Tony. "He does have a monument that was constructed shortly after his death, but don't tell him – it'll only inflate his ego."
"I won't," Tony said. "His death?" His brows knitted. When? Where? He thought.
"I don't want to say any more on it," Samus said. "Other than it is probably sooner than he would like."
"I won't pry then," Tony said.
"Come on, Tony, cheer up," Samus said. "We'll get the Heart back."
"I know," Tony said. "It really is good to see you again."
"I missed you," Samus said, leaning closer towards Tony.
"I missed you, too," Tony said, leaning closer to Samus. Their lips were about to touch, when:
"Mr. Stark! Mr. Stark!" Gyllin said, running into the room, his arms filled with rolled up pieces of paper and bits of gadgets. His eyes lit up like a boy who wanted to show everyone his new toy. "I had some old plans and inventions sitting around, and I wanted to show them to you – Samus said it was all right – and I was hoping that you could spare a moment?"
Samus and Tony both sighed, and looked at each other.
"Go," Samus said. "He's been looking forward to this for a long time."
"Okay," he whispered to Samus. He then stood up. "Lead the way, Gyllin. And it's Tony."
"All right Tony!" Gyllin said in his raspy voice, as he led Tony to some other corner of the lab.
"Good luck, Tony," Samus said to herself as she chewed her lip. She walked back to the main computer room, only to find Clint looking up some info on the Avengers on it.
"Can you believe the press that people like Thor and Cap get? Amazing," he said as Samus walked up. "I mean, the people act like they never touched dirt or something. Not like Hank Pym or some of the other guys I've served with."
"You shouldn't pry into your future," Samus said.
"I wasn't prying," Clint said. "Much," he added with a wry grin. "How do I die?" His voice was serious all of a sudden.
"I can't tell you," Samus said.
"Why not?" He asked.
"It wouldn't be right to do so, it would disrupt the timeline and all," she said. "Now, move over, I am going to try something."
"What?"
"Call it a flash of insight," Samus said as she started typing.
"So, uh," Clint started. "How close are you and Tony? I mean, are you friends, close friends, or really close friends, if you know what you mean."
"No, I don't know what you mean," Samus said sarcastically. "Explain it to me, please."
"Shhessh, you're as fun to talk to as a lecture from Cap," Clint said.
"You," Samus said firmly. "Are distracting me, and if you want to live to go back to your own time period, it would be in your best interest to shut up."
"Wouldn't that disrupt the timeline?" Clint asked with a smirk. Samus glared at him. "Sorry, I'll be quiet now."
After a few minutes of typing, Samus' eyes widened.
"Look at this," she said in a whisper to Clint.
"What is this?" He asked with a puzzled expression.
"I don't know, but it is tied into Kyliska ta Lekya, whatever that is," Samus said. "Go get Tony and Gyllin." Clint nodded and ran off. Within the minute, all three came back with confused looks on their faces.
"What have you found?" Tony asked.
"Something about a 'Chosen One'," Samus said. "About a person of intense spiritual energy who has a direct connection to this Kyliska ta Lekya. It says here that the Chosen is the key to the secrets of this being."
"Is there any more?" Tony asked.
"Nothing," Samus said. "Only coordinates."
"To where?" Clint asked.
"An unknown planet," Samus said. "Here," she pointed to a small planted on the computer screen.
"That is outside of Federation space," Gyllin scoffed. "And therefore, an underdeveloped planet."
"But that is where our 'Chosen' is," Samus said.
"How did you find this?" Gyllin asked. "I found nothing on this 'Chosen' nonsense."
"A little voice in my head told me," Samus said seriously.
"My little voices tell me to burn things," Gyllin said sarcastically. "But you don't see me obeying them."
"Tony, Clint," Samus said, ignoring Gyllin. "We're going on a field trip."
"Sounds good," Tony said.
He lay on a soft bed with his eyes shut. The wounds on his torso still burned, and his bones ached. Plus, his head still throbbed with pain. He groaned as he remembered the last images before he blacked out. Images of the short, thin girl dressed in a black suit, wielding two thin blades. She moved so fast, faster than him, and parried his every blow. She mocked him with her silence as she slashed him.
The last thing he saw was her foot connecting with his face. He groaned again, wondering how he ended up on this soft, comfortable bed. Then, it hit him: the mission. What of the mission? He opened his eyes quickly, and saw an earthy blur around him, and the unfocused shape of a figure standing over him.
"…stay still," a female's voice said. "You need to stay in bed, please don't get up." It was a soft voice. He did as the voice said, because his head still throbbed. Absently, he brushed his hand through his spiky blonde hair, his hand passing over the place where the foot connected.
He opened his eyes again, and the figure above him came into focus. It was a young woman with pale skin and green hair. She wore a pink dress, and a pink ribbon sat in her hair.
"Where am I?" He asked.
"In an orphanage on the southern continent," the woman said. "You suffered some nasty injuries back there. My name is Terra. What is yours?"
"Cloud, Cloud Strife," the figure said, grimacing. "Why am I here?"
"The kids I look after found you in a field near here in pretty bad condition and brought you back here."
Cloud's hand dropped to the side of the bed, and his eyes widened. Frantically, he moved his hand across the floor. Where was it?
"My sword," Cloud said. "Where is it?"
"Here," Terra motioned. Cloud looked over to the wall opposite the bed and saw his sword standing in a pile of his armor. It was then that he realized he was out of his armor. Timidly, he peeked under the sheets. Terra laughed.
"We took your armor off, but we kept your clothes on. Don't worry," she said.
Cloud began to settle down. He closed his eyes.
"Terra," he began. "I am here looking for someone."
"Who?" Terra asked.
"I don't know exactly," Cloud said. "All I know is that they are called the 'Chosen One'." Terra's expression grew bleak, and she stood up, backing slowly away from Cloud.
"I do not know this person," Terra said. "But I will do my best to make sure you are fit enough to travel again."
"I must go then," Cloud said, getting up. Immediately, he regretted that mistake, as his head swam, and body ached after that. He felt like vomiting, but held it back. He was not wearing a shirt, and his torso was wrapped in bloody bandages.
"No!" Terra said, running up to him. Cloud fell back into bead, holding his head in one hand. "You must rest. Sit down. Please."
"Mama, mama!" a small boy of seven shouted, running into the room.
"Keep your voice down, Charles," Terra said. "Cloud is recovering."
"But, mama, there are some people here saying they want to talk to someone. They look really scary!"
"All right," Terra sighed and walked off towards the door.
The door was already opened when Terra approached it. Nervously, she fiddled with the ribbon in her hair. When she approached the opened door, her stomach leapt a bit as she stared at the three figures standing just outside the door. Terra swallowed hard, and kept a firm face. She didn't really feel like entertaining this type of company right now.
Two of the figures were clad in some strange looking armor. Probably Magi-tech design, Terra thought. Relics of Kefka and his Empire. Each suit of armor was colored the same, a red and gold motif, though the fundamental design of each was different. The one standing in front was wearing a more bulky suit of armor with large shoulder plates and a strange looking visor. The right arm had a gun attached to it.
The second, standing slightly behind the first was a slender, more sleek design. Its helmet was more like a face, with eyeholes and a mouth of sorts, though the gold mask itself was expressionless. This one had no visible weapons. Terra then saw the third figure, and relaxed a bit. He was only wearing a strange purple costume with a purple mask instead of some intimidating piece of hardware. This one was leaning on a longbow. Outside, the sun was shining, and a gentle breeze rustled through the landscape.
"Can I help you?" Terra asked the purple clad figure, feeling most comfortable talking to him.
"Why yes you can pretty lady," he responded.
"We don't want to waste any of your time, miss," the lead figure said, cutting off the purple clad archer. "But we are looking for someone. My name is Samus Aran. I am an intergalactic bounty hunter, and these are my partners, Iron Man," Iron Man nodded and said a quick 'hello'. "And Hawkeye,"
"Pleasure, ma'am," Hawkeye said with a bow.
"Ignore him" Samus said. Terra could not help but to smile slightly.
"My name is Terra," Terra said. "I only run this orphanage, and I do not know how much help I can be to people such as you. You said you were bounty hunters from Intergalactica? I've never heard of that place."
"Uh," Samus paused.
"Let me," she heard the one called Iron Man answer. "Miss Terra, we are from a distant land, and we are looking for someone." She stared at his mask, trying to imagine the face behind it. If there even is a face she thought. She felt nervous, her muscles clenching. What do they want She thought.
"Who?" Terra managed.
"Someone called the 'Chosen One'," Iron Man said. "We have information that they are here somewhere."
"You are the second group of people asking about the Chosen One," Terra said.
All three figures stared at each other.
"Who else asked," Samus asked briskly.
"A swordsman with spiky blonde hair. We found him injured not too far from here. He is resting inside," Terra said, staring at the sky, trying to relax herself.
"Can we see him?" Iron Man asked.
"He.. he is injured," Terra said. "I don't think it would be good for you to disturb him. I do not know of this 'Chosen One' you speak of, so please go. I have many things to do today. You can try Thamassa for your answer; they are a town of scholars to the east of here. You will need to cross an ocean, though."
"Thank you for your time, miss," Iron Man said as the door shutting in his face cut him off.
Terra put her back against the closed door, and slouched to the ground. Not again. Not anymore. She thought. Never again. I made a promise.
"Well that was as useful as a brain in a space pirate," Samus said as the door closed.
"She seemed frazzled, Samus," Iron Man said. "I told you it would have been better to leave the armor in the ship." Samus was silent for a moment. Outside the small cabin that was the orphanage, the wind rustled gently over the rolling grass hills around them and across the glassy surface of the small lake.
"I just don't trust this place enough to have left the armor behind," Samus said.
"As you shouldn't," a voice said from over one of the hills. Emerging on the hilltop were four figures. One was tall, wearing a light suit of battered body armor, twirling a strange looking gun on his right fingers. Two purple lenses replaced his eyes. The figure to his right was a small, slender girl in an expensive black suit and a bowler hat. In each of her hands was a long, thin blade.
Iron Man's eyes went wide at the sight of the next two figures, and a quick glance towards Hawkeye showed that he mirrored Iron Man's surprise. The figure on the gunslinger's left was a slender, and very attractive blonde woman in a green gown, while the figure behind the three towered above them. He wore a green shirt with a purple bandanna covering his face. His large hands firmly grasped a large crowbar. Many reasons ran through Iron Man's head as he tried to fathom why the Enchantress and Wrecker were standing side by side with these two strangers.
"Syndicate members," Samus spat. "I should have guessed."
"Now, now, Miss Aran," the lead figure said, a wide, sadistic grin appearing on his face. "Is that any way to talk to us? We are just here to chat," he paused, his grin broadening even more, the light glinting off of his purple lenses, and the wind rustling through his wild hair. He stooped twirling his gun, and pointed it at Samus. "About the Chosen."