Disclaimer: All things that are in, associated with, or based off of Marvel or the MCU in any way are NOT mine!

Chapter Two: New Beginnings and Flashes of Memories

EviePOV

June 20th, 1950

Mauch Chunk, Pennsylvania

"And do you, Margaret Elizabeth Carter, take William Michael Prescott to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, 'til death do you part?"

"I do," Peggy said, smiling at Will with nothing but pure love and tenderness on her face.

"Then by the power vested in me, I now pronounce you man, and wife. You may kiss the bride."

Nothing further was said as Will and Peggy released their clasped hands so he could gently cup her face and then pulled her in for a kiss, resulting in the people in the audience instantly applauding, some even standing to their feet as everyone congratulated the newlywed couple. Evie herself grinned brightly as she clapped along with everyone else, watching as Peggy and Will finally drew apart, the latter placing a peck and his wife's nose and making her smile grow even bigger, a light dusting of pink on her cheeks. Then the two of them clasped hands again as they turned to face all their family and friends who were lucky enough to take part in the joyous event, stepping down from the small platform and starting to walk down the isle that was laid out with flower petals and candles, shortly joined by the groomsmen and bridesmaids. Evie stood up, still clapping and as the newlyweds passed by, she caught Peggy's eye and gave her a wink, causing the woman to giggle at her in such an un-Peggylike way it made Evie laugh a little. The ceremony had been absolutely perfect and beautiful, with the carefully placed wildflowers, the candlelit walkway, and lanterns that had been dangling from the branches of the evergreens overhead. However nothing took Evie's breath away more than the fact that once Peggy started walking down the isle with her father, she and Will only ever had eyes for each other up until they sealed their bond with a kiss. It was truly like magic, and Evie was happy to have come back home in time to see it.

Once the wedding party had made their exit, the guests slowly started to make their way out of the glen, following the gravel path back towards the back of the house, where Will's father and brothers helped to pitch a huge white tent that was able to cover several long tables that were filled with more candles, bouquets of fresh roses, and fine cream colored china with gold trim. The backyard was very spacious and it was certainly big enough to hold all the guests that were invited to the wedding. It provided a breathtaking view of the surrounding mountainside, since it was the very last house on the hill, and it reminded Evie so much of the sights that could be seen back in her home in Germany. While everyone set themselves down in their assigned seats, Evie was introduced to Will's family, which included Mr. and Mrs. Prescott, and Will's three brothers-Johnny, Matt, and Peter. They were all very friendly and had a kind of charm about them that seemed to draw people in, and Evie could definitely tell just how close knit they were. She then went on to meet Mr. and Mrs. Carter as well, and it was easy to see that Peggy got her spunk and fire from her father, who was very jolly and eager shook hands with a bright grin, his loud, light-hearted voice drifting as he complemented Evie on the work she did with Peggy while Mrs. Carter chose to smile and nod in a somewhat shy way.

The reception officially began with the arrival of Will and Peggy as he led her towards the high table where they would be sharing their meal with their wedding party, and Evie once again clapped while siting at a table close by, with Howard sitting on her left and Jarvis on her right, along with his wife, Ana. She was a rather pretty woman, with crystal blue eyes and smooth brown hair that fell to her shoulders in soft ringlets. Evie had the pleasure of meeting her before the ceremony had started, and she instantly bonded with the woman after they expressed a mutual love of music. It was almost nothing but smiles and laughter all around as the reception went on, with delicious food being served and there was a live band that played a wonderful combination of jazz-at Will's request-and classic folk music. Although, once in a while, Evie's gaze would wander over towards Peggy and Will as they sat in the center of their table, speaking quietly with each other and exchanging love-filled smiles as well as sweet kisses. While Evie couldn't be happier for her friend, there was a small part of her that envied their happily ever after. Her thought began to stray and wander off, thinking of what might have been, and when the time came for Peggy and will to take their first dance as husband and wife, it was enough to make Evie's eyes water a little.

The dance ended with Will dipping Peggy down and giving her a kiss, to which everyone clapped and Evie quickly wiped at her eyes while everyone else was distracted. Once things had settled down, she politely excused herself before standing up and heading outside of the tent, walking along the gravel path until she came to a spot that overlooked the entire mountain, basking in the lovely colors that were being painted across the clouds as the sun started its descent, making way for the evening stars. Evie was sure she could see one or two beginning to poke through the mass of blue, orange and purple already, blinking down on her from above and-not for the first time-it made her think about where exactly she may have come from. Years ago, the Ancient One had told her she arrived in this dimension like a fallen star, making it sound as though...well, as though Evie were not from Earth at all. The Ancient One was always so cryptic with her words, never explaining anything outright, and while Evie found it frustrating most times, she understood her reasoning as well. For several decades Evie had wondered just who and what she was, always looking to find something far beyond her reach. The Ancient One never lied to her, telling her she was a being not quite like others on this planet, but that she wasn't positively sure of where she came from either. She explained it more as a "gift from the heavens," or something along those lines, and after a long while, Evie felt her desperation lessen. It took her a while to realize that she already knew who she was: she was Evangeline Sophia Erskine, her best friends in the entire world were Howard Stark and Peggy Carter, she had special powers, was immortal, and had loved a man named Steve Rogers with everything in her. She had a blessed, loving childhood, endured dangers and evil no one else could imagine, and tried her very best to use her abilities to help others in need. For now, that was enough.

"Um, excuse me?"

Evie turned around to see that Will's younger brother, Johnny, was making his way towards her, giving her what seemed to be a somewhat nervous smile as he straightened out his tie.

"Hello, Johnny," Evie greeted politely.

"H-Hi," he stuttered before clearing his throat. "Are you enjoying the party?"

"Oh yes, it's been very fun so far," Evie answered. "I just needed a moment. This place...it's absolutely incredible, and beautiful. You're lucky you get to see this every single day."

"I don't know, it kind of gets boring after a while," Johnny said, glancing around at their surroundings. "But I guess it does grow on you after a while. When I was young, all I wanted to do was get away."

"I think everyone feels that way at some point in their lives," Evie commented. "So what drives you away from all the festivities?"

"You mean besides Peter getting an earful for spiking Aunt Myrtle's fruit punch?" Johnny chuckled. "Well, I um-I actually wanted to see if you would like to, uh dance?"

"Dance?" she repeated slowly, her smiling fading ever so slightly. Her mind instantly shifted gears and she thought about a specific dance she shared so long ago and it caused her to shiver slightly. Johnny must have noticed her change in demeanor because he rushed on, his face turning red.

"I mean, if you don't want to, I understand," he said, looking worried he had somehow offended her. "I just thought, it's not right for someone to be alone without a dance partner, especially a dame like you-lady, I mean, not dame! Not that you're alone, maybe you're with someone? Then this would be really awkward..."

Johnny's ranting was so utterly familiar it caused Evie's smile to reignite and she couldn't help but burst into giggles, which made the poor guy even more red.

"No, you-you're fine, Johnny," she said, composing herself. "I'm sorry, you just...you reminded me of someone, that's all."

"Is he your fella?" Johnny asked her, sounding a bit disappointed.

"He was," she told him, her features becoming a bit more sad. An understanding glint came to Johnny's eyes.

"I'm sorry," he said sincerely.

"It's all right. It's been a while, but I suppose I'm still a little uneasy when it comes to, well..."

"Dancing?" Johnny piped up.

"Yes, dancing," Evie confirmed with a nod.

"I get that," Johnny said, and Evie was incredibly thankful that he didn't seem at all offended by her rejection. "It's not easy to move on from losing someone you love. People tell you to get on with your life, make you forget when you really don't want to because it's easier said than done."

"You talk as though you have experience," Evie stated quietly.

"Unfortunately," Johnny muttered, but he didn't elaborate on it. "Well, if you're not up for dancing, do you want to grab something to drink? I promise, my brother didn't touch it."

"I think I would like that, thank you," Evie agreed with a kind smile as the two of them headed back towards the party. "So, do you have any embarrassing stories about Will that I can use as blackmail sometime in the future?"

Johnny laughed at that and it led to a very interesting conversation that congregated from the punch bowl, back to the table and lasted well until the final song was played, where very few couples-including the newlywed Prescotts and Jarvis'-were swaying slowly with one another. Howard was still seated with Evie and Johnny and he looked out at all the couples as he took a sip of his wine with red rimmed eyes, having already had quite a few glasses already.

"At times like this, I'm glad I'm still a bachelor," he murmured.

"Why is that?" Evie asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Take a look, Evie, tell me what you see," Howard told her gesturing to everyone on the dance floor.

"Love? Devotion?"

"Heartbreak and tethers," Howard corrected. "Opportunity for yourself to get tied down into something that will end up hurting you more than any sort of physical pain..."

"Howard, how much have you had to drink?" Evie sighed.

"...I mean, don't get me wrong, what you had before with Rogers was one of a kind pure magic," Howard continued on. "But let's face it, there can never be truly someone out there for everyone, especially not me. I'm a lone wolf, no gal will ever tame this mighty genius."

"Of course not, Howard," Evie said with a shake of her head as she patted his shoulder. "I think it's about time we went back to the hotel, what do you say?"

"The party's still going on though," Howard border-line whined.

"Not for you, it's not," Evie stated as she stood to her feet and turned to face Johnny. "Thank you so very much for having us, Johnny, the reception was wonderful."

"Glad you enjoyed yourself," Johnny said. "Don't be a stranger around here, okay?"

"We won't," Evie promised before she took Howard's arm and pulled him up from the chair. "Come on, let's go and say goodbye to Peggy and Will."

After hugs were exchanged and Evie thanked her friends for inviting her, she hauled Howard over to his Cadillac that was parked along with the others cars along the front of the house. Once she had him settled in the passenger seat, Evie backed them out into the street and then started driving them off towards the direction of the hotel they were staying at, which was roughly a half-hour's drive away. For a while, it was quiet in the car but not uncomfortable, with the windows halfway down and music playing from the radio as Evie drove, the sweet smell of honeysuckle wafting through the car. Howard had his head back against the seat, his eyes closed.

"You love me, right, Evie?" he suddenly asked her.

"Of course I do," Evie replied, somewhat surprised at the question. "There's something about you that makes it impossible not to."

Usually Howard would have something smart to say back at a comment like that, but he was quiet for a minute before he slowly opened his eyes, seeming distracted as he stared at the darkening road ahead of them.

"Do you think someone could love me too?" he said softly. "You know, in that way?"

Evie was positively stunned at this and for a moment she was speechless. There was no wise-crack, playful tone to his words and she detected nothing but absolute sincerity with a hint of genuine concern. One would think that after all these years, there was nothing Howard Stark could say or do that would throw her for a loop, but the genius playboy managed to do it again. It really didn't take much for Evie to answer him quickly and when she did, she put as much meaning into it as she could.

"Absolutely," Evie said, throwing him a smile even though he wasn't looking at her. "I bet there's someone out there who will completely knock your socks off, and will catch your attention in the most unexpected way. They will bring out a side of you that not even I get to see, and if they are able to deal with your nonsense, then that will be a sure-tell sign they're a keeper. You're not unlovable, Howard. You just need to be patient."

"Thank you, Evie," Howard murmured after a brief pause, finally turning to smile at her. "I probably won't remember a thing about this conversation in the morning, but thank you."

"You're welcome. How about you get some sleep, hm? I'll let you know when we're back."

"Sounds good to me."

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The next few months seemed to fly by on swift wings, and before Evie knew it the trees were starting to change colors, transforming from a luscious green to a fiery red and shining gold. The wind had a harsher bite to it than normal and once the beginning of October rolled by, shop owners were already putting out decorations for Halloween. Autumn was definitely in the air, with every smell, sight, and taste. While Evie was sad to see the warm days of summer start to disappear, she was still pleased to wake up to crisp air and the lovely scent of pumpkin bread wafting through the windows of the local bakeries. True to her word, Evie started working at Stark Industries, back as Howard's assistant almost immediately after Peggy and Will's wedding, and she was very thankful to Howard for the opportunity, as she more than likely would have found it difficult to find something else. Being a young, orphaned woman who had a tendency to speak her mind and had no intention of getting married like most others her age was certainly frowned upon by most, and she doubted she would have been able to attain anything other than being a waitress without her best friend's help. And true to his word, Howard made sure to acquire her one of the available apartments once construction finally finished close to the middle of the month. However, Evie soon realized that Howard left out one little detail about the specific complex he designed.

"Howard, you never said that these were luxury apartments," Evie said one morning with a frown. as Howard presented her with the blueprints and layouts of the building, as well as what the standard rooms would look like.

"You never asked," Howard replied simply, shrugging his shoulders as he took a sip of coffee.

"These living rooms look as though I could fit three of my old bedrooms in it!"

"I know, isn't it great? Top quality too, with fresh painted walls, new carpet, and wide windows for the living rooms and master bedrooms, all at a reasonable price for the higher-ups of Long Island."

"Somehow I seriously doubt that," Evie commented.

"Ouch, that really stings, Evie," Howard said with a fake shudder. "For your information, I had to argue with the board about final results for rent, depending on income and interests. I managed to work out an average of two-hundred and thirty-five dollars, for a single bedroom."

"Really?" Evie said. "That's not so bad, I suppose. And you said the people you hired..."

"Nearly all returning veterans, and I even placed a couple ladies in for the office work, said they could use the extra money," Howard explained before catching Evie's look. "What?"

"You really amaze me sometimes, Howard," Evie told him fondly. "You may have the rest of the world fooled, but you're nothing but a big cuddly, sensitive teddy bear."

"Stop spreading horrible rumors about me, I have a reputation to protect," Howard said with a roll of his eyes.

About a week later, Evie was finally set to move into her new apartment, along with the other tenants who had been approved. Moving day weekend was a big cluster, with many men, woman, and children all unloading their possessions from large trucks and carrying them up the stairs. Thankfully, Evie didn't have very much belongings at all, and whatever she didn't take with her when she left for Europe, she either threw it away or Howard had been keeping them safe in a storage unit for when she returned. With the assistance of Dum Dum and a couple of the other Commandos, Evie was able to move everything into her new home fairly quickly, and they celebrated with some sandwiches and lemonade for lunch. Also, through Howard's connections at SHIELD, he was able to provide Evie with some forged documents that would satisfy any unwanted attention, stating she was currently twenty-two. If Evie played her cards right and kept a low profile, she could probably pull off not having to renew them for at least five years. For now, she will enjoy the calm and quiet, and do what she could in order to get back to a somewhat normal lifestyle. Working through the afternoon and well into the evening, Eive finally had all of her things unpacked and stowed away as best she could for the time being, knowing she would have to go out and get herself some furniture sometime in the near future.

At the moment she was perfectly content with sitting in the comfortable blue chair that Peggy had given her for her new place, sipping at her tea while she played a Glen Miller record. Once the current song ended, a new one began, and Evie paused in taking a sip of tea as a very familiar tune reached her ears, the sound of the clarinets and saxophones somehow soothing and grim at the same time. Moonlight Serenade crackled through the record player, filling the living area with music that made Evie's heart ache in a blissful way. Placing her cup down on the small table next to her, Evie leaned back into the chair, closing her eyes and remembering the last time she heard this song while dancing with Steve in London. That night had been so wonderful in more ways than one, and the smile that pulled at her lips was genuine, finding it a bit unbelievable that little moments like these still made her recall all the good times. Even though he was gone, Steve still found a way to let her know he was still there, and she would grasp onto that for however long she could. She continued listening to the song until it came to an end and only then did Evie sigh and open her eyes, withdrawing from her memories reluctantly. She finished her tea quickly after that, and after she washed it and placed it on the drying rack, she went into her bedroom and got out her journal that she had been keeping for a few years, flipping over until she came upon a clean page towards the very back of the book. Kicking off her shoes, she sat down on her mattress, curled her feet under her and then started to write.

October 16th, 1950

Today is the day I moved in to the new apartment that Howard set up for me. Dum Dum and the others helped me move everything in and I even put up a few of my open personal touches. But no matter what I try, no matter how I look at it, it doesn't quite feel like home...

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Evie's heels clicked against the floor as she made her way through the hallways of Stark Industries, with a bunch of folders with important documents on one hand and a cup carrier holding two steaming coffees in the other. Her hair was pulled back into a tight bun at the back of her head and she was dressed in a navy blue blazer, complete with matching skirt and shoes. She held herself up professionally but still offered a kind smile and polite reply to anyone she passed who wished her a good morning. A couple hallways and elevator rides later, Evie found herself striding towards the doors that led into Howard's main office, which was situated on the top floor of the building. Her own smaller office space was set up just a little further down the hallway, and although it wasn't much, it was comfortable enough for her and she was glad she wouldn't have to run up and down floors in order to do whatever Howard asks of her. When she reached the door, she knocked three times before opening it, walking inside to see Howard on the phone with someone at his desk, pinching the bridge of his nose in irritation and she didn't say a word as she approached, choosing to silently place his coffee next to his arm for when he was ready. Howard nodded, but whether it was in thanks for the coffee or in response to whoever he was speaking with, Evie wasn't sure, but she didn't ponder over it. Just as she was about to turn to leave the office to go into her own, Howard actually gestured for her to stay before holding up one finger, silently asking her to wait. After just a couple more minutes, Howard ended the call, setting the phone down onto the receiver with a sigh before he smiled at her.

"Morning, Miss Anderson," he greeted with a sly look in his eyes.

"Good morning, Mr. Stark," Evie replied, fighting the urge to roll her eyes at his playful teasing.

"You have no idea how weird it is to call you that. Couldn't you have picked an interesting name, at least?"

"The point is to blend in, Howard," Evie reminded him as she handed over the files she was carrying. "This is the agenda for the board meeting later on this afternoon, as well as the documents you requested regarding the new prototypes for the Weildenburg Project. They all need your signature."

"Excellent, I will take care of these as soon as we get back," Howard said as he checked the time on his watch.

"Back from where?" Evie asked as the man stood from his chair and gestured for her to follow him, making sure to grab his coffee on the way.

"Back from the labs," Howard answered as he took a sip from his cup, sighing in content.

"This early?" Evie said in surprise as she followed him back out into the hallway.

"Yes, there's actually something I've been wanting to show you," Howard explained. "It's something I've been working on for a quite some time, you'll love it."

Evie figured this must be something important for Howard to be this eager to show it to her, so she followed him back through the hallways and rode down two elevators until they reached the level that had Howard's personal lab set up, which basically took over ninety percent of the floor level anyway. After scanning their badges to gain access, Evie and Howard slipped into their white lab coats and put on their gloves before entering the main section of the lab, where there was a few other people gathered around an object that was more towards the far corner of the lab. As the two of them approaced, the other scientists stepped aside to make room for them and Evie's jaw dropped a bit when she saw what it ws exactly they were observing. There was a kind of podium set up on the ground, set in the center of a steel table that had some sort of laser guns screwed down on the surface, all facing a big containment box made of glass and metal. Inside this box was a small crystalline cube, which was glowing a bright blue color, set in the very center. The inside of the cube looked almost like a swirling cloud of energy, and something about it was very familiar.

"Isn't it incredible?" Howard asked Evie as they approached the box. "We actually fished this out while we were out in the Antarctic."

"What is it?" Evie said, never taking her eyes off of the cube before her.

"I had to do some digging around, but from what I understand, the ancient Norse gods called it, the Tessaract," Howard answered as he leaned his hands against the steel table, peering into the box with an eager and fascinated expression. "This little cube if made up of incredible power, more than I myself could ever hope to comprehend. I've spent the last few years trying to harness it's energy."

"Harness it? For what?" Evie asked.

"Evie, this could be the key to unlimited sustainable energy," Howard told her with a grin. "Think of all the technological advancements that could be available to us, all the people that this could help."

"This is what HYDRA used to create their weapons, isn't it?" Evie suddenly said with a frown, understanding why it seemed familiar to her now.

"That's what we believe," Howard confirmed. "It's been kept at SHIELD until I brought it over to SI today, but I promise, this isn't anything like what Schmidt was doing. I would never create weapons like that or use them in such a way, you know that."

"I do," Evie agreed. "It's others I'm concerned about."

"Trust me, Mon Cherie, we've been keeping this beauty under lock and key ever since we found it," Howard reassured her.

"It seems a little dangerous to be conducting experiments on," Evie mused with a thoughtful look as she continued to gaze at the Tessaract. "I mean, you were nearly blown sky high when you were simply observing a bullet made from this."

"But that's the mystery though. How much power can this tiny thing contain exactly, and can it withstand other sources of pure nuclear energy? After studying it more closely, I have noticed a lot of it's energy waves seem similar to yours, and I want to test just how strong and compatible they are. Jacobs, get everything set up with Hawkins."

"Yes, sir," Jacobs said as he and the other scientists broke off and started to put on their safety gloves and goggles, each one going over to stand by one of the four laser guns, extending the top nozzles towards the box. They undid a small latch on the metal sides and placed the nozzle inside, making sure it was secure and locked down tight so nothing could escape. While all of this was going on, Howard took Evie's arm and led her a safe distance away, the two of them standing behind a solid metal desk that came up to their waists. After raising her eyebrow at him, Howard just shrugged and said that he learned his lesson last time. When everything was all set to go and Howard gave the order, Jacobs and his team all turned on the lasers at the same time and Evie watched as four thin rays of red light shot out of the lasers and hit the cube inside the box. She gasped softly as the cube seemed to have an instant reaction to it. There was a rippling effect where the lasers made contact with the cube and the blue cloud inside started to became brighter, and unless she was seeing this, it seemed to vibrate, with a light aura if its own pushing against the rays...like it was defending itself. The vibrating noise seemed to grow louder and the aura surrounding the cube was becoming thicker, swirling around like a misty barrier, and the glowing light was rapidly getting brighter to a point where Evie was starting to squint her eyes. The laser rays were beginning to shake a little as well as the steel table itself. A bad feeling was starting to swell in Evie's stomach.

"Howard," she said, shielding her eyes. "Howard, we have to stop."

"We're almost through, just a little more."

"Howard, if they keep going the cube looks like it's going to-"

Evie was cut off from her sentence because at that moment, all the light that was surrounding the Tessaract withdrew into the cube itself for the briefest of seconds before it burst forth like a huge tidal wave. The sounds of shattered glass could be heard as the box cracked and gave way to the pressure of the pure, raw energy the Tessaract released, and the scientists handling the lasers all yelled in fright as they were shoved backwards to all corners of the room, smashing into shelves and skidding across the floor. Almost on instinct, Evie placed her one hand on top of Howard's head, pushing his down to the floor behind the metal desk and used her other hand to try and break the blue wave that was heading their way with her powers. However, she wasn't quite fast enough and the wave hit her just as her powers burst from her palm, creating a combustive impact so big she was lifted off of her feet, hers and the cube's combined energies striking her body with the force of a wrecking ball. She managed to let out a shocked shriek before she collided with the control panels behind her, her head smacking hard against the screens, and then she fell unconscious, her world quickly becoming black.

...

Then scent of freshly blossomed roses was strong as it wafted through the open window that led into a grand, golden room, ruffling the white curtains next to her bed as she laid curled up underneath sky blue blankets. A gentle hand placed itself on top of her head, stroking her long, flowing hair that was currently a tangled mess and when she opened her heavy eyelids to see the face of a woman through her groggy vision. A woman with dark blonde hair that was set into an elegant hairstyle, with a beautiful green gown that looked like something a medieval queen would wear. The woman's soft green eyes were distinctive through her blurry, sleepy vision, as well as her warm smile.

"Good morning, my love," she whispered tenderly.

Then scene before her suddenly changed, and instead of a warm bed, she found herself crouching down behind a large black boulder that seemed more like a scalding piece of coal, withering away on a toxic breeze as she sat there, her hands over her ears, her bare feet sunken into gray sand and the terrible sounds of battle raging around her. Screams of rage and pain filled the air and she jumped with a whimper when she felt the ground shake, followed by a thundering roar and lightning struck the sky. Just then, she felt a hand on her shoulder and she looked up through her frightened tears to see a old man before her, with snow-white hair that fell to his shoulders, a gold helmet on top of his head and he was wearing a patch over his right eye while his left one gazed at her, the sharp blue color staring right through her as he gripped his spear tightly in his hand.

"You must run," he said. "Into the wood, away from this battle!"

"I can't," she cried. "I can't leave you all!"

"Do as I say!" he ordered. "Your brothers and I will find you once this over. Go!"

The man pulled her to her feet and pushed her towards the direction of a black, looming forest, and with no other choice, she started running as fast as her feet would carry her, fleeing from all the chaos behind her.

...

"...gotta wake up! Come on Evie, wake up!"

Howard's worried voice rang sharply in Evie's ears before she became aware of how much her body ached and her muscles stung. Her head was throbbing painfully and she could feel a couple scratches on her arm where some pieces of the control panel ripped through the sleeves of her lab coat. She was lying on her back on the floor, and she could hear the hustle and commotion from around the room, making her already forming headache ten times worse. At Howard's continued urging, Evie blinked her eyes open and let them become adjusted to the semi-darkness of the lab, since the wave blast from the Tessaract seemed to have taken out a bunch of the lights, with one flickering above her annoyingly. A quiet groan escaped her mouth as she turned her head to see Howard crouched down next to her, looking thoroughly relieved to see that she was awake. With a gentle hand, he took her shoulder and carefully sat her up on the floor, calling for someone to fetch a doctor. Evie felt as though her head was spinning and she groaned again as she cradled the side of it, feeling a little blood against her fingertips.

"Evie, are you all right?" Howard asked, his eyes shining in concern.

"For the most part," Evie muttered. "My head really hurts, though."

"Here," Howard said as he shrugged out of his own lab coat and bundled it up so he could press it against her head, apologizing when she hissed in pain.

"What happened?" she wondered, her eyes looking over all the damage that was done to the lab.

"It looks like the energies from the lasers and the cube doesn't mix very well together," Howard replied with a frown. "I really should have waited to see exactly what kind of energy the damn thing has before doing something that drastic."

"You wouldn't be you otherwise," Evie stated with a tiny smile.

"I'm so sorry, Evie, I never meant for you to get hurt during this test," Howard said. "When the Tessaract's power collided with your own, I thought...for a second I thought the force of it alone way have killed you."

"I think it almost did," Evie admitted, moving her sight over to where the Tessaract was still propped up on its podium, although the box containing it was obliterated. "I may have deflected it just in time. But that was...wow."

"I think that may be a bit of an understatement," Howard said. "I've never seen something like that before. And the way your powers molded, it was like a combustion of plasma energy!"

"Molded? What do you mean?" Evie asked, not quite understanding what he meant by that, but when she tried to think about it, her head throbbed even more painfully and she whimpered.

"Don't worry about that right now, we need to get you to a doctor," Howard said. "Can you stand?"

Evie hummed in agreement and then she slowly got back up to her feet thanks to Howard's help and he reassured her that a doctor would be there soon to take a look at her. Until then, he led her over to a chair while calling out to the other scientists who were helping Jacobs. Thankfully, they received four moans in reply and Jacobs himself was going around and helping his comrades back to their feet.

"No one leaves here without seeing the doctor when he arrives," Howard ordered. "And all of you, stay away from the cube, don't touch it. I'm going to have to build a stronger containment box that can withhold it's energy waves. Serves me right for thinking glass and metal alone would do the trick-"

"Howard," Evie cut in softly, licking her lips. "When...when I got hit, something-something happened."

"What? Do you feel sick, lightheaded? Are you in any serious pain besides your head?"

"None of that, it's just when it struck my head, I-I saw something," Evie said before continuing at the look of Howard's puzzled expression. "It's a bit hard to describe but I think there was these images, of people I don't know, and places I've never been in. I don't know how to explain it, at one point I was in a huge, gorgeous and fancy bedroom with a woman who was waking me up, and then I was on some kind of battlefield with an old man telling me to run..."

"Okay, I think your brain might have gotten scrambled from the blast," Howard said in worry as he raised a hand to feel Evie's forehead. "It's making you see things that aren't there."

"That's just it Howard," Evie told him as she pushed his hand away. "I think they might have been real. These didn't feel like some kind of random images to me. There's something about them that made me feel like I should know what they are. It's almost like the dreams I have sometimes but this is different."

"So what are you saying, Evie?" Howard asked her.

"I think...I think these may be some kind of memories, from a life I had before I met my mama and papa. An old life that I can't remember."

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I hope that you guys liked this chapter. Please leave a review, tell me what you think, and I will see you all soon in chapter three! Have a Happy Valentine's Day!