Merry Christmas everyone! Welcome back to "To Eternity, My Witch". I will be posting several other chapters this week for you all to enjoy. Please be safe out there.
I DO NOT Own any of these as they are and were created by their respective creators. Marvel is owned by the late Stan Lee via Disney. Phantom of the Opera (PotO) is owned by Andrew Llyod Weber. LofZ : TP and OofT by Shigeru Miyamoto. Fire Emblem by Shouzou Kaga. Black Butler by Yana Toboso. And finally, Inuyasha by Rumiko Takahashi.
Natasha's POV.
I slowly woke up from being knocked unconscious by a twilight beast. I looked around and saw Thalia, Peter, Lila, Cooper, and Nathaniel crowded around me protectively. Nearby, a middle-aged man and what looked to be his daughter who looked to be around 25, working on barricading the window. My head was on Lila's lap, my hand in Cooper's. Thalia held a sleeping Nathaniel as she rocked him slowly in a nearby rocking chair. She had arms around him protectively as Peter sat next to Lila, cradling his broken arm which was bound and in a sling. The mood was tense and dark even in this safe sanctuary.
I moaned quietly when I moved my head, causing all eyes to look at me, save for the father-daughter duo who were busy working. Peter took my other hand, whispering, concern and worry in his voice, "Madam Natasha? Are you alright?" He held his broken arm against his lower chest.
"Yes… I am just a tad sore though. What happened while I was unconscious?" I asked.
Peter blanched, worried I would bring my wraith. When I didn't and just waited for a response with an encouraging nod and smile, he hesitantly spoke, "The beasts that knocked you out, dragged you and MJ, who they also knocked out, to a wagon. They seized Lila, Cooper, and Nathaniel as well as you can see. Clint, Steve, Stefan and his family, Tony, Scott, Sam, Thor, and Loki put up one hell of a fight to get us back, but there were too many monsters and corrupted Twilight beasts in the raid, forcing them back. Plus, there was an evil mage supporting the beasts. Both Clint and Steve, from what I could tell, got injured badly, as they were barely able to contain their rage and sorrow, but their injuries didn't seem fatal though." He paused and looked away for a moment, unsure if he should continue.
I reached out to gentle touch his shoulder to comfort him. He looked back to me, relaxing ever so slightly. "It's alright, Peter. I am happy and proud you defended us so well. Please… could you continue?" I encouraged him.
Peter nodded, "The monsters and beasts forced Lila and I to walk to the Bifrost before we went through a portal to this realm. They then forced me to lug the wagon which held you, MJ, Nathaniel, and Cooper in, even though I had broken my arm. Though with as many as their numbers were, I didn't dare go against their words, lest they hurt any of you. Fortunately, when we arrived here in this town I discovered, I believe Charles and his daughter Meg told me, is called Tofte.
"I don't know how, but they somehow, just the two of them, rescued us, at the cost of Charles' wife, Meg's mother, Sarah. She sacrificed her life to kill off most of the beasts so that Charles and Meg could kill the rest themselves. They somehow, impossibly, rescued us and brought us in here, the sanctuary. It has thick walls and contains light emitters that keep the twilight beasts away from the town and the sanctuary. Though Charles doesn't know how long that will last…" He let his sentence trail off as he looked down and away, clearly distraught, and worried.
I frowned, taking in Peter's face and body. He had quite a few scratches and bruises on his face, and his broken arm was in a triage cast and sling. MJ sported quite a few scratches and bruises on her exposed skin of her arms and legs as well on her face. Lila, Cooper, and Nathaniel all seemed unharmed aside from being dirty. The father, Charles helped his daughter Meg finish barricading the window before they came over to check on us.
Charles knelt beside me, gently touching my shoulder, asking in a deep, rumbling bass that didn't match his kind, young-looking face, great concern lighting his eyes, "Are you alright, madame?"
"Yes… just a little sore. Thank you, sir, for helping us. And please call me Natasha," I smiled weakly.
Charles nodded, taking my hand and kissing the back of it, "It's not a problem, Lady Natasha. You can call me Charles and my daughter Meg. You looked terrible in the wagon with MJ and the children looked beyond terrified. Besides I couldn't just let you all be taken to your death in Daemon's Valley."
Meg came over with a bowl of soup, and she handed it to me after Charles and Peter, clumsily, helped me to sit up, "Please eat this, it will be easy on your stomach and give you nutrients for that baby growing inside you. You will need it. That aside from what my father told you, those monsters and beasts had planned on taking you to the Daemon's Valley, which is a valley with a volcano at its head. The horrific plan they had was to kill all of you by pushing each of you, one by one, into the river of lava that flows to the ocean to force submission into your loved ones."
I physically paled, both at the knowledge and the fact that Meg said it right in front of the children, "You mean it pretty much was a death march?!"
Charles lowered his eyes and nodded, "Yes, I'm afraid so Natasha. And yet it didn't happen, we rescued you and now you're all safe from harm." I narrowed my eyes at him, catching his pain and sense of loss. Meg had tears in her eyes, yet she turned away to prevent me from seeing them fall.
Peter placed a hand on Charles' shoulder, clearly heartbroken for the man, "And for that we are eternally grateful Charles. I am truly sorry that your wife died though. We are indebted to you." My eyes went wide at that news.
Charles' shoulders slumped, tears spilling down his checks, "There is no debt, Peter. Knowing my wife, as much as I am going to miss her, she wouldn't have had it any other way. Hers was a life of sacrificing for and helping others in need. It would have literally killed her to have seen all six of you die had she not helped you." Meg laid a shaking hand on his, finally letting her tears flow down her checks as well, placing her head in her hands. She hunched over in sorrow, sobbing as she shook.
I felt tears in my eyes, sympathy for the man, "I am sorry, Charles. We all truly are."
Charles shook his head, hand waving dismissing the apology, "Do not worry about, Lady Natasha. Like I said, it was worth it. Meg and I will eventually see her again someday. I am proud and glad to know that five children and their caretaker are safe. Besides… the realms need the Avengers."
Peter and I realized that Charles knew who we were. I patted Peter's shoulder, hoping against hope that James and Wanda were not dead to undo everything.
Third Person's POV.
James and Wanda entered the temple cautiously, listening for any threats from the shadows. It was a frozen landscape inside the temple as much as it was outside. As James neared the room's center and grabbing a piece of icy railing, a memory sparked in his head, causing pain to course through him, forcing him to go to his knees, hand to his head and on the ground. "James! Are you alright?!" Wanda asked, but he didn't replay.
The memory was of when he and Steve were on the train back during WWII, when he had fallen from the train. HYDRA had found him and taken him to their accursed laboratory. He remembered the cold, the torture sessions relating to the cold mountains he was in. And then he remembered the cold sessions where he was tortured and of him being forced to torture Amelia. But as suddenly as they were remembered, the memories faded, leaving James breathing heavily, still on his knees and feeling quite empty and strangely dark and depressed. He grimaced, avoiding Wanda's concerned inquiring gaze.
Wanda stayed silent, knowing he was suffering from memories of HYDRA. Most likely relating to when he fell from the train and being captured by HYDRA in the mountains. And perhaps of when he tortured Amelia. Wanda thought, though she stayed silent, knowing he would speak when he wanted to. And he did just that moments later.
"The cold reminded me of when I fell from the train… The cold mountain air is… good… and bad… in reminding me of my time with the accursed HYDRA… The most horrendous part being that I was forced to torture Amelia. The torture sessions were cold… bringing us both… bad memories. I was then tortured. Wanda, I am bound to reminisce more memories as we trudge through this temple and the others. It… it will still be scarring for me… and possibly for you… Memories that I haven't told you will be… Painful. Do you trust me?" James asked her, still avoiding her eyes.
Wanda in shadow form came to face him, and tipped up his chin, forcing him to look in her eyes. "James, you're my husband. I love you. Until the end of the line, through everything. For better or for worse. I trust you completely."
James looked down to his arm, and back up, whispering, "Thank you." He stood. "We need to get moving. We've wasted too much time."
James looked around somewhat unsure where to start yet decided on exploring the room to see if he could find anything that could help him through the temple. A niche in the wall held a small chest. Opening it, Buck found a compass and a map. It was of the temple and the temple seemed to be two levels in height and there were icons on it indicating where there were other chests on it. He sat down on a nearby frozen stump to study it further, Wanda appearing next to him.
"Wanda, this temple will take us several hours, if not over a day, to complete to get to the fused shadow. Afterwards we'll need to find food and water." James mumbled as he and Wanda studied the map.
Wanda sighed heavily, "Just when we need to be speedy about things, this journey will probably take us several weeks or more to complete."
James looked up at her shadowy form, nodded in reservation, "Seems so doll. Let's just hope that Amelia can survive her imprisonment and that Natasha, Peter, Thalia, and the Barton children are safe until then or that we find them soon." Standing, James walked out of the niche and looked for the door leading to the east. He needed a key to advance further into the temple's interior. The room he entered was smaller than the main room he had entered.
Searching, and after defeating some ugly goblin looking monsters, he found a chest with the needed key. I hope it's not like this throughout the entire temple. James sighed in annoyance. Continuing, James moved further into the temple, finding different two areas that would need to be looked at later. One of which was when he found the door leading to the guardian of the fused shadow, but it was locked with a rather large lock with chains. Most likely to prevent people from gaining access to it. He would have to find the key to its now evil abode.
Coming to a room that looked like it was a battle room, James moved forward cautiously, looking for any potential threats. Suddenly, a set of bars came over the entrance, preventing him from leaving. James rattled them for a moment only to realize he and Wanda were trapped. A clatter of metal thumped behind him in the chamber.
He turned to see a soldier made of metal, ice, stone, and old, rotted flesh standing in the center of the room. It held a spear with a flaming blade on the end. The monstrosity went into battle stance, threatening him with its spear. James whipped out his own sword and waited. The monster charged at him, and he dove out of the way, causing it the slam into the wall, too clumsy and awkward to turn follow his dodge.
James swung his sword at the creature's arm, said limb breaking to the point of it threatening of falling off. The creature backed off and James and it parried off several time, before he was able to lure it to slam into the wall again. He again swung his sword at the creature's arm and then at the leg, causing the arm to break off and the leg to have a network of cracks into it.
At that, the creature became furious, growling at him as it attacked more aggressively than ever. It forced James into a corner before it charged. James rolled to his left, and the monster slammed into the wall. James huffed and quickly rushed over the hacked at the creature's left leg, breaking it.
The creature, unable to stand now, crumbled to the ground and struggled as it snarled and growled at James and Wanda. James went over and stabbed the creature through its heart, twisting his blade before taking it out. The creature shuddered, letting out its last breath, and shattered into pieces, becoming a pile of frozen rubble. However, the spear it held remained, its blade now smoldering.
James looked it over, Wanda appearing next to him. The spear's blade burst back into flames as he hesitantly picked it up. He looked to her, quietly speaking, "This weapon seems sounds Wanda. Do you think that the guardian for the piece of fused shadow here in the temple is like this creature?"
"I'm not totally sure, but I wouldn't doubt it, Bucky. Perhaps keeping the weapons and tools we gain in this temple and the other temples will be useful to defeat Ragnar. Keep the spear. Because if the guardian for the fused shadow piece is larger, it may be frozen like the soldier you defeated. It would come in handy." Wanda touched the spear's handle.
James nodded, "Very well." He felt his sword harness change slightly. Two hooks mysteriously formed along the sword's scabbard, perfect for holding the spear shaft. He put the spear into it, snapping it into place. He would ask Amelia about it later. The door to the room opened finally with the monstrous soldier's defeat and he left the room behind.
Coming out of the room, James noticed a door he hadn't opened yet. He went inside and discovered a small labyrinth puzzle. It took several hours for him to figure it out, much longer than what he and Wanda would have liked, but with Wanda's help, he was able to open the two locked alcoves. Both had a chest, one held the key to the guardian of the fused shadow, and the other one had a note and a bottle with a sparkling, golden looking liquid inside.
Reading the note out loud so Wanda could hear, James spoke quietly, "'Young hero and seeker of the fused shadow, this bottle containing the golden liquid is from a class of monsters called chuchiis. This specific chuchi is quite rare and their remains, surprisingly, restore health and heals wounds, whether they are severe to the point of death or mild like a sliver to the finger. I suggest only drinking this in the case of an emergency such as the threat of death or extreme injury to the point of death. Please be safe.' Hmmm… no name."
"Hey! At least you got a health potion James. It will come in handy later. Come let's get that piece of fused shadow!" Wanda tugged at his armor with her hair, laughing. James smirked at her before he jogged to the door. Moving quickly through the temple ruins to the target room, he took out the key from his supply bag at his hip and unlocked the lock. It clattered to the floor and the chains moved aside.
He rolled the door aside and went inside the room. As soon as he got inside though, the door behind him shut with an almost deathly boom, a clicking sound following indicating that it locked, leaving him and Wanda trapped yet again like with the soldier. He and Wanda looked around to a few moments, taking in the massive chamber.
The ground began to shudder slightly, forcing James to try to keep his balance. In front of him a hole appeared and a monstrosity appeared through it. It looked to be a cross between an orca and a velociraptor, yet as dead as the soldier they defeated earlier. It had dirt, stone, and most of all, ice covering its dead flesh as it moved up to hover above the ground. It screeched, causing James to cover his ears, before it moved to stalk him to his left.
"James! The spear! Use the spear! Its flames and blade, used with your skills, should kill it." Wanda's desperate voice sounded in his ear.
He unhooked the spear from his back harness and made himself ready to fight the beast. The creature made to circle him, but when it figured he knew how to avoid it, it made to charge at him instead. At the last second, James rolled out of the way, forcing the creature to slam into the wall of its lair. Righting himself, he swung several times at the beast's sensitive weak spot on its back, the spear's flames melting and destroying its important frozen spots.
The beast roared and righted itself before it retreated several feet above the ground. It snarled at James, who circled as it stalked him. Several more times the monster made a charge at him, more aggressive and erratic each time. Soon, the monster charged once more. James, exhausted, was barely able to dodge the creature, its beak clipping his right shoulder and causing a wound and severely pulled muscle. The monster's tail slammed into him and kicked him into wall hard, his left leg bruised and knocking him silly. He grunted in pain and shook off his dizziness, refocusing and ignoring his injuries.
The monster slammed into the wall, completely dazed and paralyzed. James limped over, spear in hand, and grunted as he rammed it into the creature's weak spot between its shoulder blades, flames pouring forth into the creature's chest. The monster jerked suddenly, screeching, and without warning, sprang back, knocking James to his back, his shoulder wound bleeding more. He let out a small groan of pain as the creature climbed into the air, screeching.
The creature shuddered and convulsed, whinnying weaker and weaker, as it wobbled in the air, spear stuck in its back as it continued to leak fire into its body. The creature let out one last horrible piercing, screeching cry before it fell to the floor and went completely limp. Before it completely died, its eyes returned to a normal beautiful glacier blue and it let out a regretful sigh, "Forgive me… Take… the piece of fused shadow… keep it… keep it safe… hero… Restore the realms… from Ragnar's rampage… and avenge… avenger my death… Orazan of the Frost Giants…" He let out his last breath and died. His carcass blackened and then shattered into Twilight specs which then quickly coalesced into a piece of fused shadow, the spear clattering loudly to the ground.
James, exhausted, slowly and painfully got off the ground and walked over to the piece floating in the air, after he picked up the spear. Wanda appeared, grabbing the piece in her hair hand and made it disappear, before turning to him, placing her hands on his face, "James! Are you alright, my darling?"
James groaned in pain, speaking in between groans, rolling his right shoulder, "I will be once I get some medical attention. And food. And some rest. That Frost Giant turned monster took a lot out of me. Are you alright, doll?"
"Yes, I'm as fine as a lark. I'm just worried about you."
"Thank you." James smirked, a twinkle in his eye despite his injury. He grimaced, "At least we got the second piece. Four more to go."
Wanda nodded, she went over to the door, and using her hair hand, tried to open the door. It wouldn't budge. She floated back over to James, pointing to the floor next to him. A twilight portal appeared, a door to the outside. "Since the door is now locked from the inside out, I'll transport us outside soldier. Perhaps the frost giants will be friendlier once we get out."
James smiled, and stepped into the portal's ring. Wanda transported him straight to Joseph's cave, just to make sure that they didn't run into any frost giants. As soon as the spring's relaxing waters came into view, James grunted in pain and went to his knees, a memory sparking in his mind. It caused most of his strength to leave and forcing him to twist his body, landing face up in Joseph's spring, floating in the eight-inch-deep water as the memories flashed through his mind. It was when he and Steve were on the helicarrier, when he was still under HYDRA control.
He was being controlled to kill Steve, to prevent him from reprograming the Heli-carriers. His memory flashed to when he remembered Steve saying, "Until to the end of the line." He had gone from confused and in denial to horrified comprehension and finally, recognition. But it had got him onto the path to freedom from HYDRA. It was that memory that brought him both joy and pain. Why didn't he stay to ask questions? But if he had, he realized, Steve would have smothered him and tried to be too protective of him.
Wanda did her best to comfort him as he stared up to the ceiling in pain, saying, "James, it's alright. I am here."
James breathed deep as the memories faded and reality came back to him. When he heard Wanda's soothing voice, his concerns about their unborn daughters came roaring to his minds. "Wanda… are our daughters…? Are they…? Are you…?"
Wanda looked away from a moment before she turned to look at him again, "Amelia said they are fine James. She told me right out, that I am alright and they are as well. They are developing normally elsewhere until this nightmare situation is dealt with. When it's all over, I will again show my pregnancy, whenever that may be. However, we need to finish this and defeat Ragnar so that happens, my James. Brenna and Lena are safe."
Still laying on his back in the spring, James reached out and gently caressed her check. She leaned into his touch and a tear fell from her eyes. He sighed in relief, though his anxiety didn't completely go away. He looked down to his shoulder and found the wound healing quicker than humanly possible. It had already scabbed over and new skin started to form. Apparently, the spirit guardians and their springs had healing properties that encouraged and aided in healing.
A noise got their attention. Joseph appeared above the spring's higher step. He motioned for them to approach him. James groaned and slowly stood up from his spot in the spring, though now he was soaking wet. When they came closer, Joseph transformed into the shape of a centaur, the ball of light forming on his back. He waved his hand and a blast of hot air dried the water from James, making him much more comfortable.
Joseph smiled, "So… you gained the first of the five sealed pieces of fused shadow."
Wanda nodded, "Yes, we did. Four more to go though."
Joseph's smiled faded, "Yes… yes… and the journey to get them will be long and hard for you two. Though with all you two have been through to this point, you will do well. Go with caution and be safe younglings." Joseph disappeared from sight and James and Wanda turned to leave.
Yet before James even stepped out from the spring's waters, Joseph's disembodied voice quietly added one last thing, whispering to their ears, "James, Wanda… as you go, think long and hard about your relationship to each other and others in your family. Are they worth it? Is this world worth it? Is what you are going to suffer worth the risk to save it all? Even at the risk to the life you have and the other? For your daughters' lives? Is putting your lives and theirs at risk worth it all to save the rest? For Ragnar… and his master… will not so easily be killed."
He paused long enough, letting them ponder his words before he continued, "That asides, when you journey to the gateway, beware of the frost giants. They are out and prowling the area for any who are strangers to their realm. Yes, Loki is making much progress in convincing them of joining the fight and being peaceful with the Asgardians. However, in the meantime, avoid the denizens of this realm, they are just scared. Avoid all the denizens of Muspelheim and Svartelfheim, they are hostile. Until later younglings, goodbye." Joseph's voice went silent, never to be heard by them again.
James lowered his gaze. Was everything worth it? Wasn't it? Was Wanda worth it? Was it worth the risk and effort to make the world safe from this threat? Yes. Was it worth their lives at the cost of millions? Would the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few as the proverb went? I don't know… James thought. Wanda was thinking on the same lines.
"Come Wanda. Hide as my shadow. I am going into stealth mode," James mumbled out the order. Wanda nodded and hid in his shadow. He walked to the entrance of the cave and peered out, spying out any threats. No frost giants or monsters. It looked to be evening now, making their progress to the gateway far more dangerous and far slower. But he was willing to get there. He cautiously made his way out of the cave and onto the path to the gateway that brought them here.
More than once, he was forced to hide in the caves and crevices due to a passing frost giant. It took several hours to get to the gateway. But unlike before, it had several frost giants there. Surprisingly, Loki was present at the gateway. And he was rather flustered. James crept closer and closer until he was able to safely eavesdrop on Loki and the giants.
Loki grunted out in frustration, clearly flustered and on edge along with the Frost Giants, "…don't know why the portal isn't allowing me or you all through, Frostein! It may be that the Twilight here has been dissipated or that the Bifrost is damaged in some way."
The leader, James guessed was Frostein, mused in annoyance and reluctance, "Until the gateway is repaired or the Twilight fully lifted, I cannot give you the soldiers to go against Ragnar, Loki. I can't and will not risk more of our people and bring them to their potential deaths. Plus, with Orazan's death only a few short minutes ago, we will have to make arrangements and decide on a new guardian for the temple. Until that time, I will have my people retreat to the citadel and await the time that news is sent. You're welcome to come to the palace to take shelter as we await news if you so choose." Loki nodded before Frostein hit his staff against the ground and he and his guards left the grotto, leaving Loki alone in the area until they were gone.
After several minutes, making sure the leader and all the guards were gone, Loki called out, "James, I know you're around here somewhere. Show yourself. I have news."
James narrowed his eyes in suspicion and came out of his hiding place hesitantly, walking towards Loki cautiously. "Seems you have some more convincing to do with the frost giants, Loki. Though I don't blame him for being hesitant."
Loki frowned more, "He's right though, yet we need the warriors to protect against Ragnar's army. Such a dilemma. Now with the Twilight lifted here, the frost giants and I cannot return to Asgard." He scratched his growing beard in annoyance and thought. He looked more mature with a beard, looking even more like Thor's brother than ever with a beard. He was truly looking and acting like the Asgardian prince his brother and mother and his adopted people wanted him to be. What everyone had hoped him to be. A prince worthy of honor, even being adopted from a frost giant family. Even with that, the Frost Giants seemed to be happy with his mixed lineage, being both Frost Giant and Asgardian.
James nodded, "I understand. Though I must go back. Wanda and I do." Wanda made her appearance. Loki raised a brow, surprised.
"Wanda, how in the world did you change?" Loki asked, coming closer. Worry clearly in his voice and his face.
James raised his right hand, the Triforce symbol appeared, the lower left triangle appearing brighter. Wanda raised her left hand, the lower right triangle appearing brighter than the other two. "Apparently, Amelia's treasure, the Triforce, is what Ragnar is after. I have the piece called the Triforce of Wisdom. It is what changed me and kept me physical in the Twilight, Loki. As a Twili," Wanda explained before looking to James.
"I was given the piece called the Triforce of Courage. It changed me into a blue-eyed wolf. They were the reason we were able to come here and why we were protected from transforming into spirits in the Twilight covered realms. Amelia tasked us to come here first to get the piece of the fused shadow." James continued where Wanda left off.
Loki remarked, eyes narrowing, "I have heard of the Fused Shadows. Legend has it in Asgard that in ancient times, a great evil power tried to take over the realms many millennia ago and the power they had were called such. The powers above them sent a hero dressed in gold and white to go and take the power they had created. The interlopers were then sent to the Twilight realm and the power, the fused shadow, they created was broken into six pieces. Five of which were placed and locked away in temples in five of the nine realms.
"The last piece was given to Amelia, which is the one you wear Wanda, when she was here during that time period. It is further said in legends that the descendants of those interlopers learned from their ancestors' mistake and became benevolent to all who were condemned to their realms or went to their realm willingly. However, those that were deemed evil in their eyes from the realm of light were then executed there, making their death complete."
"Good to know… Is the gateway working?" James mused, stroking his own growing beard as he looked to the Trans-gate Orb.
"Yes, but only if one person is going there. I went through it, though the area which I arrived in the Bifrost is small. Maybe a five by six-foot area, enough to cover the area right in front of the gate to Jotunheim," Loki nodded as he walked over to the gate platform.
James and Wanda followed. Wanda placed a shadowy hand on Loki's shoulder, "We'll be back as soon as we can Loki. Just make sure that you continue to talk with the Frost Giants. And for God's sake, please get to the citadel once we're gone, it's protected there, and you'll be warmer. Not only that, you will be able to continue negotiations with the Frost Giants without being in the cold."
Loki nodded, a resigned frown on his face, "Very well. Now go, we need to get that Ragnar fellow defeated."
Wanda nodded before she hid in James' shadow. Said person stepped on the platform, but before he touched the Trans-gate Orb, he mentioned to Loki, "Wanda and I will try to get all the Twilight covered realms completed as soon as we can Loki. There most likely will be delays in gathering them all, but hang in there."
Loki nodded sadly. James touched the Trans-gate Orb and soon he stood with Wanda in the Bifrost. The Veil of Twilight stood two feet in front of him. Just like Loki had said, the area was small he stood in. Wanda turned to face him.
"Are you sure you want to continue James? Once we get beyond the curtain of twilight, you'll be a wolf again." Wanda inquired, touching his check.
James smiled as he reached out to touch her shadowy check, nodding, "I would willingly suffer hell and endure HYDRA again to undo all of this Wanda. Let us do this. Be it me being a wolf or a human."
Wanda nodded solemnly, "Alright. Hold on a moment."
She turned and disappeared into the Twilight. Her hand appeared suddenly, large and menacing, and grabbed him around his entire torso, something he never thought would happen in his life. He grunted in pain as Wanda dragged him across the veil and into the Twilight covered Asgard. Inside James fell to his knees as Wanda gentle set him down, pain filling his body. His body changed and soon he was a wolf again. He shook his body and stretched, huffing. Wanda jumped on his back, saying, "James there's a new note on the sword. Perhaps Stefan or some other person got here."
James looked up and indeed there was a new note attached to the sword. He trotted over to the sword and Wanda grabbed it. Unfolding it, she read it out loud, "'James, Wanda, I have bad news… Natasha, Peter, MJ, and the Barton children have disappeared from their captors' hands. Seems either they are either… dead… or were rescued. The only survivor of the marauder group to come back was wounded and frantic and mumbling. Fortunately, I heard his ramblings and deduced that his whole company was dead, except for him, he had come back to report to Ragnar.
"'Unfortunately, he was killed by his new commander once he delivered the news and I never heard where they were at. Please, as you travel to undo the Twilight, search for them… Steve, Clint, and Laura are all out of their minds, beyond worried, seemingly crazed even. Steve especially, he seems… beyond withdrawn… in his own world. Please stay safe. ~ Thor and Stefan. P.S. I suggest you get to Vanaheim; it would be the safest realm aside from Jotumheim to get the next fused shadow. Perhaps Natasha and Peter are there. P.P.S. It is the one realm that I have not been able to visit and scout for what Ragnar has done.'"
James huffed; I wish I could leave a note to comfort that punk. Wanda patted his shoulder, "Don't worry James. Seems Stefan and Thor were smart enough to leave a pen for us to use and some paper. I'll leave a note." She slid off his back and he watched her as she wrote a note.
The note read, "'Stefan, Thor; as you probably already saw, James and I went to Jotunheim and were able to break the Twilight from that realm. Seems that the guardians of each realm where the fused shadow pieces are had their light stolen from them and scattered across the realms to prevent people from gathering them or at least to slow them down. Plus, the guardians of the fused shadows seemed to have been corrupted as well. Amelia also wanted James and I to gather the fused shadows after we restore each realm.
"'Amelia warned me to stay away from Asgard as long as possible until it was necessary to come back and remove the Twilight. She didn't want to risk me getting captured by Ragnar. Please stay safe yourself. Steve, Clint, we will get our missing family back, restoring Natasha and the children to your arms, and we will be back to defeat Ragnar. ~ Wanda and James.' Sound good James?" Wanda looked to James who barked and wagged his tail. Yes. Thank you.
"James, are you ready?" Wanda asked as she came forward to pet his ears.
James nodded, Yes, doll. Come. Wanda smiled sadly and she got on his back. James trotted over to the nearest gate. Vanaheim… Hmmm… That's where marauders and pillagers reside, Wanda… James looked up to Wanda. Wanda nodded, "Ready?" James barked and he jumped into the gate. The portal's lights dropped them down into the circle of an ancient, ruined building.
Hope you all are liking this story of mine so far.
Until next time good readers!
WS. Z.
