Content warning: This chapter contains a seduction scene. It has no adult content, but it is written by me, and I'm terrible at writing anything romantic. So it's probably going to be horribly executed. You have been warned.


10. Fallout

The woman's – Amora's – hair seemed to shimmer with unearthly light. Then again, everything about the woman was unearthly. She was Asgardian, just like Thor was. Her face was so beautiful it reminded Thor of the splendour of his home. The way she moved was strong and graceful, just like she should be. Thor stepped forward, clearing his throat and trying to focus. There had to be a mistake: Mother Nature wouldn't worry about a perfect being like this. Still, it was something he needed to settle. Otherwise Mother Nature would meddle, and everything would fall apart.

Amora opened her mouth again, her perfect lips forming a seductive smile. Thor felt something warm in his stomach.

"So, you wished to talk to me?" she said, "I am glad. You do not even know how long I have wanted to meet you."

Thor cleared his throat again.

"Yes. There has been some mistake, I believe. You see, some people do not want you here."

"Oh?" Amora said, "Are you one of them?"

Thor's mind ground to a halt at the hopeful look she gave him.

"No," he said quickly, "But you have to understand that I need to know why you and your companion are here."

"My companion?"

"Yes. He attacked a friend of mine. And you have angered someone. Gaea. Or Mother Nature, as she calls herself."

Amora walked closer to Thor, her hips swaying mesmerizingly like an elegant snake. Her hand hovered near Thor's shoulder before gently brushing it. Somehow Thor didn't mind it.

"I apologise on behalf of Skurge. I do not know what he has been doing. And as of the lady of nature, I had no idea she was cross with me."

"The Earth has been shaken by too many hostilities from outside this world," Thor managed to say even though Amora was gazing right into his eyes and it was so very hard to think of anything else. Something knocked at the back of his mind. Like he was supposed to remember something… someone… "Some of those hostilities happened because of… us. Asgard."

"Ah, yes. I know of your brother."

Of course she knew. There was hardly anyone in Asgard who wouldn't know Loki. Amora brushed Thor's cheek with her long-fingered hand.

"I am not here to start a war," she said, "All I've wanted is to find you, Thor Odinson."

Her face was closer to Thor's. Thor didn't know if it was because Amora had moved, or because he had.

"I am sorry," Thor said, "But I hardly know who you are."

"You can find out," Amora whispered, her lips inches from Thor's, "When I saw you for the first time, I knew we were meant to be together. The two of us, ruling Asgard… and then you disappeared."

Her lips moved to Thor's ear.

"I was devastated," she said.

The feeling of needing to remember was more pressing now. Thor tried to focus on it instead of the goddess in front of him. A face flashed into his mind. Beautiful, intelligent eyes and rich brown hair. And the mind behind it was…

Amora cupped his face with her hands.

"I came here to tell you that you made a mistake, coming here," she said, "You are needed back home. With me."

Yes. Of course he was. Amora was… perfect. She was… he…

He really didn't know anything about her.

That thought snapped Thor out enough so that he could again focus on the other face in his mind. Of the woman he hadn't known for that long, but whom he actually knew. The woman who was more and more familiar every day. The woman he wanted to spend his life with.

"Jane…" Thor said quietly.

Amora's elegant eyebrows rose.

"Jane?" she asked, "My name is Amora."

With a great effort, Thor pushed Amora away from him, still unable to bring himself to be too harsh with her. She hadn't done anything wrong, really. The poor woman was just smitten with him.

"I am really sorry," Thor said, "But there is someone else. And I am needed here."

Amora stood there, looking dumbfounded.

"But… you can't!" she managed to say, "I…"

"Look, Amora. I really am sorry. I wish you will find happiness."

Amora's eyes darkened. Thor could feel Asgardian magic crackling silently around them.

"I do not think you know how this goes," Amora said darkly, "No one can resist me."

Thor was immediately more alert than before, trying to shake the last remnants of her rather impressive spell from his mind.

"I just did," he said bluntly, "And I suggest you leave and take your companion with you before anything bad happens."

Amora raised her hand. Thor readied Mjölnir. He should have known. What did the Earthlings say again? "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned"? There was a crack of thunder, one Thor hadn't summoned, and dark storm clouds rolled in with speed that couldn't be natural. At first Thor wasn't sure if it was Amora's doing or not, but then a dark-haired woman in green robes descended between him and Amora, and Thor realised the storm clouds had been natural after all.

Mother Nature looked at Amora, her arms crossed and another storm in her eyes.

"Really?" she asked, "You have breached the border of the worlds for this?"


"Okay, here's the plan," said Fury, the lines on his forehead deeper than before, "Romanoff and Barton will scout out the base we found before."

"The one where I was attacked by that Taskmaster?" said Clint, "We'll go immediately."

"Yes you will. And if you find Banner there and can get him out, do it. If you don't, try to at least find info on where he could be. And if there is any excessive resistance, call for backup. We can't afford to take risks with this. We have already almost lost too many."

"Got it," said Natasha.

"And meanwhile, Stark will focus on getting his suits ready. Rogers, get ready to move out at any moment. If we locate Banner, I want you there getting him out."

"Right."

"And Guardians… do you have any idea what is going on here?"

North took the initiative to talk. He was the leader, after all, not counting the Man in the Moon. He stepped forward after a quick, reassuring and sleepy look from Sandy.

"Whatever it is, is getting bad. I think first would be best to find your people. If Mr. Banner is asleep, Sandy can find him."

"Really?" asked Steve Rogers, "He can find anyone?"

Sandy nodded with a serene smile on his face. North clapped the little man on the back.

"It will just take a bit time. But not too much."

Fury sighed and his face twitched, which was in North's eyes pretty close to a smile when it came to Nick Fury.

"Well, that's probably the best news I've heard all day."

"Do we still scout out the base we already know of?" asked Natasha.

"Yes. Just in case. But like I said, no unnecessary risks. Go."

"I can take'em," said Bunny, "Just tell me where. My tunnels are faster than anything ya've got."

Fury just nodded, and North could tell the man was worried because he didn't really seem to mind their help. Bunny disappeared into a tunnel after a few moments of Natasha and Clint preparing for their recon mission, and there were again fewer of them. Fury massaged his temples.

"Don't worry, Mr. Fury," Toothiana piped up, "This can still be fixed! Pretty much anything can!"

Then, a device in Fury's ear lit up and Fury put his finger on his earpiece.

"What?" he asked, "Wait, what? How did he get out? Find him! He can't be far!"

He lowered his hand and looked at everyone in the room gravely.

"The Taskmaster is gone from his cell."

Everyone was quiet for a moment. Then Toothiana smiled.

"Well, I'm sure everything will still be fine!"

Fury didn't look so convinced. Behind North, Sandy had started snoring softly.


Chen Lu watched the unconscious, captive man and wondered if he should be more impressed. The ragged, sickly looking man didn't really inspire many such feelings, though, even when Chen Lu knew that the man was capable of turning into a green rage monster whose strength and durability rivalled that of so-called gods. Chen Lu wondered if such radiation-based powers could be controlled even now. If he could control them if he wanted. The force field that now surrounded the man would certainly keep him at bay, but one always needed a back-up plan. And Chen Lu had learned not to put too much trust on anyone's expertise here even though they were certainly doing better than before.

A small beep in the earpiece he had been given indicated that he was getting a call.

"Yes?" he said.

"Has he been secured?" asked the Baron's voice. Chen Lu looked up at the motionless man.

"Yes. He has. The force field is set up, and I will monitor it. In an emergency, I should be able to at least slow his powers down with my on."

"Excellent. And the Executioner is there as well?"

Chen Lu glanced at the large Asgardian man, who was standing near one of the doors to the room with a vigilant expression on his face. Chen Lu didn't like the man that much. Or at the very least he didn't have any respect for him. He was obviously just a tool for the Enchantress – and Chen Lu didn't like her either. Too manipulative. Too much absorbed by her own schemes. Still, he would tolerate this. At least they had already given him plenty of challenges.

"He is here," he said to the Baron, "He arrived just after I did."

"Make sure no one gets Banner out of there. We are preparing for an attack, now that the most dangerous obstacles have been removed."

"Is your secret weapon ready?"

"After a couple of finishing touches. Soon it – and you – can truly show the world what you can do."

"I am looking forward to it."

The call ended, and Chen Lu looked at their captive again. The Avengers and the Guardians – or at least some of them – would surely not take this lightly. They would be here, just as the Baron was expecting them to be. Chen Lu was looking forward to that as well.


Amora stared Mother Nature down with blatant disrespect. Not that Mother Nature seemed any more polite. The two statuesque women stood on the road, with a tangible tension between them, and Thor felt the wind picking up and starting to blow vigorously. It was suspiciously in sync with Mother Nature's progressively angrier glare.

"I knew you would start trouble," Mother Nature said in a positively chilling tone, "But just for this? Just to… indulge in a schoolgirl crush you've had for… what, centuries?"

Amora flipped her perfect hair over her shoulders and put her hands on her hips.

"Truly?" she said, "I would not call this trouble. What is it to you, anyway?"

Mother Nature took a thundering step forward. Literally. Thor heard the rumble and even saw a small bolt of lightning striking in the distance. Dramatic thunder was usually his thing, but now Mother Nature seemed to need it more.

"I want you out of this planet!" Mother Nature snapped, "I am not going to keep sitting by and watching aliens use this world as their battlefield! You keep opening your portals here and bringing more and more trouble at your wake. And just to fulfil your whims? It will stop now!"

"Is that not a mite hypocritical?" Amora asked, "Are you not 'an alien' as well?"

Mother Nature's eyes flashed dangerously.

"I'd rather not fight you. I simply want you to stop this."

"Then we might very well come to exchanging blows, Miss... Nature," Amora said condescendingly, "I have no intention of leaving. Or abandoning my quest. Unlike what you think, this is not just for, how did you put it? 'Schoolgirl crush'? I know when I am being mocked. If you think you can intimidate me or make me leave with such weak insults, you are mistaken."

"Then I will have to make you leave!"

The thunderstorm was right over their heads at that moment. It had traversed about a dozen miles in seconds. Amora didn't seem impressed. Thor had to admit that he was, if just a bit. He had never before met anyone with the same level of control over weather than he or some other Asgardians had. Well, there was Jokul, of course, but he was more about snow and blizzards than thunder. That was not important right now, though. What was important that there was soon going to be a duel between two very angry, very dangerous women that could – if the look on Mother Nature's face was any indication – easily be blown out of proportions and endanger both Earth and Asgard. That couldn't happen.

Thor stepped forward, into the electric air between the two would-be combatants.

"Ladies," he said in his best diplomat voice, "This is not the time nor the place. We do not want war here."

Mother Nature directed her cold look at him now, a look that would have made any lesser man cringe.

"You were supposed to take them away!" she snapped.

"I am," said Thor, "And it can be done without violence. Surely you too want that?"

"Oh, I am certainly ready to leave," Amora said, "As long as Thor comes with me."

Thor opened his mouth, ready to protest, but then stopped himself. He could do that. Take Amora home and then return without her. Then there would just be her bodyguard to deal with. It would be a bit dishonourable, sure, but it was either that or risk Asgard and Earth losing their temper with each other with possibly very serious consequences. Besides, travelling with Amora would certainly be… no, Thor shook his head. Those thoughts were coming from the remains of the… whatever enchantment she had put on him. She was pretty to look at, but upon closer inspection she was more like poison in a beautiful glass.

"Very well," Thor said, hoping the lie wasn't audible in his voice, "I will come with you."

Amora smiled sweetly, and her hand found Thor's bicep.

"I am glad to hear it," she purred. Then her eyes hardened again, "Or I would, if you were telling me the truth."

Before Thor could protest or explain himself, Amora's lips were upon his and his world melted away. He wasn't sure if it was just the woman's spell or because she had teleported them both away. Maybe it was both. He had to fight it, even when his mind kept asking him why.


The Sandman slept. Or worked, however one wanted to look at it. Most went with sleeping, but those rarely properly understood. He was in his element, in a world made of golden sand and soothing feelings. The land of good dreams, with feather-light glow everywhere, with every sleeping person in there somewhere, whether they knew about it or not. Sandy smiled to himself. He started walking on sandy tracks that flowed through starry space that reminded him sometimes a little too much of home. If he hadn't fallen so in love with Earth, his heart might have ached more in the dream. But as it was, it was real enough for him. And it was definitely really home as well.

Sandy closed his eyes and formed an image of Bruce Banner in his mind. He liked the man, and felt sorry for him a bit too often. Banner was torn with the green man he could so easily become, with the fear of himself. Sandy remembered some nights when Banner had had nightmares so strong he had heard them easily from far away. It had left a clear imprint of the man's dreams into Sandy's memory, and he knew he would be able to locate him soon enough. That is, if the man was asleep. Sandy hoped so, and he also hoped the man's sleep didn't expose him to further danger. Most beings were so vulnerable when their minds were in the realm of dreams. It could have saddened Sandy, but Sandy was old enough to understand it and his own responsibility. He was a Guardian, the eldest of them. He helped children – and sometimes adults too – form their pleasant dreams. He protected them in their dreams. And right now, he would find a lost, sleeping mind in order to do both of those things.

He wove through the strands of dreams and slowly made his way towards a familiar dream-shape. That of a frightening yet also protective form no one else could know as well as Bruce Banner did. The dream-Hulk loomed over a sea of children's puppies and whales and three-headed kittens, so out of place that Sandy wasn't sure whether to call it a distraction or simply a somehow confused dream. He didn't care, though. It was Banner. He reached the sandy Hulk and touched its huge hand with his own. In the blink of an eye, he was in Banner's dream.

It was dark, and not sandy any longer. Actual dreams seldom were. It was all mostly symbolic, just like a lot about the Guardians was anyway. Sandy stood in the middle of a half-formed city he could recognise dimly as an amalgam of at least eight big cities all over the world. Some of the buildings lay in ruins, and Sandy had a feeling Banner would blame himself for that even in dream. The air felt heavy, and somehow artificial. Sandy could almost smell the sedatives Banner had no doubt been given. Sandy had visited several drug-induced dreams during his long life, but they always had a somehow twisted feel to them that he didn't like even in situations where the drugs had been necessary.

He floated through the mashup of skyscrapers and slums and tried to find some kind of clue as to where the dreamer really was. The problem here was that Banner himself probably didn't know either. That would make things tricky, but not impossible. Sandy closed his eyes again, and concentrated. He was not that far away from his starting point dreamwise, but in real life that was different. He had to do some counting. But now that he was here, they would have Banner's location in no time.

"Hey? Is that really you?"

Sandy opened his eyes and turned around to see Banner's dreamself standing in front of him. The man looked sickly, but was definitely recognisable as Bruce Banner. Some people were so different in their dreams, and to be fair, Sandy had been expecting Banner to be some kind of monstrous mix of Bruce and the Hulk, but perhaps this dream wasn't one of those dreams. Sandy waved and nodded happily.

I am here to find you. You were taken from your home.

Banner seemed to think about it for a moment. It took a while, but that was understandable. Human minds had a lot on their plate just trying to put a dream into somewhat coherent form.

"Yeah, that's right," Bruce finally said, "There was a… green man. Not like me, but… well, kind of like me but different. He's dangerous. You have to be careful."

We will be.

"Do you know where I am?"

I will soon. Do you know where you are?

"No. I don't think I have woken up since they got me."

Don't worry. We will get you home.

Bruce nodded slowly.

"Yeah. Just… make sure I won't hurt anyone."

I will.

There was a slightly forlorn look on dream-Bruce's face. Like the man had wanted Sandy to stay. But Sandy couldn't. He needed to get there in real life to save them. He finished the necessary calculations in his head and opened his eyes, and was again in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s base, in the middle of an argument.


Fury was barking orders into his microphone, and the thundering of footsteps was reverberating through the S.H.I.E.L.D. base, as it went from idle to full alert in an impressively short time. Of course, Steve already knew how impressive S.H.I.E.L.D. could be, so he wasn't that surprised. He saw Santa Claus nod in approval, though, and survey the situation with the eyes of a clearly experienced leader. Then again, hadn't he been a bandit chief or something before becoming the jolly toymaker he was today? At least that was what Steve remembered from their conversations back when their relationship had only started to become more about talking and less about firepower and distrusting glances. Fury stopped his line of orders only briefly to look at the Guardians with a frown that no one sane dared to question.

"The Taskmaster is loose," he said, "But you knew that already. We're locating him as we speak, but if you have any more tricks we weren't aware of, now would be the time to use them."

There was a moment of silence, broken only by the sound of very professional footsteps in the corridors, and then Toothiana reluctantly spoke up.

"He clearly wanted his memories," she said, "He pretended not to care too much, but I know these things. He's lost, and he wants to be found. Or at least to find."

She sighed, her fragile-looking wings fluttering even more rapidly.

"I told you I'm not going to allow you to use his memories as a blackmail tool. But right now… Well, like I said, I'm sure this can be fixed, but I want to do it without any more bloodshed. So…"

She closed her eyes, and in a moment she was surrounded by a group of tiny versions of herself. Or her children. Or… Steve wasn't sure what the little tooth fairies were to their queen, other than subjects and people she cared greatly about.

"Baby Tooth!"

Steve was startled by the abrupt shout. Jack, who had been sitting quietly in a corner, had suddenly snapped out of his sombre trance and extended his hands towards the fairies. One of the tiny fairies immediately zipped to him and landed on his palms. Jack's smile was almost blindingly happy.

"I haven't seen you in a while! How're things in the Tooth Palace? For you, I mean. Tooth's been fine, at least. She hasn't been working too crazily, right?"

The little fairy on Jack's hands voiced a few chirps in return. The other tooth fairies had also turned to look at Jack with misty eyes. Jack flashed them all a white-toothed smile, and they seemed to faint in the air.

"Huh, so even Frosty has his own fan club," said Tony, "Some people just have no taste."

"Girls!" Toothiana spoke, the smile in her voice only barely there, "Focus! We have a situation. And Jack, try not to distract them."

Jack smiled at Toothiana as well, and even the mighty queen of the tooth fairies seemed to melt a little.

"I can't help it if I'm awesome. And pretty."

Steve didn't remember meeting many teenage boys who would have declared their own prettiness with a great deal of pride. Toothiana cleared her throat.

"Focus!" she snapped, "Girls, I need you to retrieve the teeth of The Taskmaster. Got it?"

The tiny fairies nodded. The fairy on Jack's hands, named Baby Tooth, nodded as well, and Jack quickly whispered something to her before she took off with her sisters. The tooth fairies were gone in a little flicker of feathers, before Steve even had time to find anything about the whole scene odd. Then again, he had faced so many strange things already, that thinking about anything as odd would have been pointless. Even so, there was still something about the Guardians that seemed to bother a lot of the Avengers. Maybe it was the fact that they were childish. In many ways, the Guardians didn't belong on the battlefield. They were spirits to make little kids happy, not to fight secret agents and assassins. That didn't seem to bother the Guardians right now, though. Steve remembered how reluctant the Guardians had been to join their fights before. And, Steve realised, maybe they still were. This wasn't about fighting. The Guardians had just come to make sure their – friends – could the Avengers be called that already? – were okay, and had just been sucked into the fights that had broken out around them. And then there was Mother Nature, who was still looming somewhere in the back of this all, and with even the Guardians clearly unsure about what she would do. Not to mention the Boogeyman, who had to have something to do with all this. So no, the Guardians were still not in this to fight the fights of S.H.I.E.L.D. or the Avengers. But they were still compromising a lot to help them. Steve didn't know if any of the others realised that.

The Sandman suddenly woke up, and waved his hands wildly. None of the others seemed to notice that, though.

"So now it's okay to use his memories?" Fury asked.

"Not for blackmail," Toothiana insisted, "But we can bargain with him, when we find him."

"In this situation, there isn't much to separate the two. As soon as my agents catch him, he's going to an even better guarded cell, and we are going to interrogate him."

The Sandman's waves were getting more furious.

"The difference is in the presentation," said Toothiana, "And I will sleep my nights better knowing we had at least some standards with a delicate situation such as this! Well, if I slept much anyway."

"I don't care. As long as we get results."

"You will. But you will do so through kindness, and…"

"Hey, the Sandman's awake," Steve said, "And I think he has something to say."

The Sandman gave him a little bow, and then started forming rapid sand images over his head. It was impossible for Steve to keep up with them, even though his brain was wired to process information faster than normal humans.

"Hey, Sandy," said Jack, who was now sitting on the crook of his staff, which was propped on the floor with no regard to the laws of physics, "Can you go a bit slower?"

The Sandman nodded quickly, something that looked like a smiley face and a gun hanging over his head for a moment before dissolving. The Sandman seemed thoughtful for a while, and then he formed some letters, numbers, and degrees over his head.

Fury studied the coordinates.

"Banner's in there?" he asked.

The Sandman nodded, and then pointed to himself. The message was clear: I will go.

"Not alone," said Fury, "I want some of my men there as well. Rogers, you go with the Sandman and scout ahead. I'll get a small copter to pick you up and bring in backup if needed."

"Got it," said Steve, already aching for some action, "The Sandman will take me there, right?"

The Sandman nodded again.

"I'll go too," said Jack, "Sandy and I work well together. Plus with all these Asgardian creeps going around, there could be some nasty surprises in there."

Fury seemed to seriously consider saying no, but in the end he probably decided that it would be no use. First of all Jack would probably go regardless of what Fury said, and secondly the kid had already frozen one fourth of the walls in the room with his mere presence, and Fury clearly didn't like that.

"Is a good idea," said North, "Aside from Sandy, Jack has most offensive power. And they are both fast and can get anywhere quickly."

"Fine, I don't need more convincing," said Fury, "Rogers, keep them in line."

"Will do," Steve said, "Remember guys, this will be an infiltration mission and then a rescue. If everything goes right, at least."

"Don't worry," said Jack, grinning again as if he hadn't just been moping in a corner, "We Guardians are excellent infiltrators."

No one could argue with that.


They were all set, then. Set to save a man who was in trouble simply because someone thought he might be in the way. Because that was what all this was starting to feel like. They still didn't quite know what whoever was behind all these attacks really wanted, but to Jack it felt like someone was trying to pave way for something bigger. What it was, he had no idea. Maybe the S.H.I.E.L.D. people would know better. This was clearly more on their field of expertise. Right now he just needed to worry about getting Bruce out of wherever he was. But before that, there was one other thing he needed to do.

Tony Stark was sitting in his own corner, tapping his computers with finger-breaking speed. He seemed to be anxious to get going, though. Of course he was. Jack did his best to keep down the anger that gnawed at him and walked to a stop in front of the billionaire, crossing his arms and clearing his throat. Tony looked up.

"What? Shouldn't you be going?"

"Steve's getting suited up," Jack said, "He said it wouldn't take more than a couple of minutes."

"Good. The sooner we get Bruce out the better," Tony paused his typing for a second and frowned before continuing, "Wait, do you have a problem with me?"

"What makes you think that?"

"My computer has frost all over it."

Indeed it had.

"Oh," Jack said, "Sorry. Not intentional this time. But yeah, I do have a problem with you. That's why I wanted to talk to you before we go our merry ways to save a bunch of people."

Tony wiped some frost from the top of his computer screen.

"Okay. Look, I was just being curious. I told you, it's the big question. Immortality. Coming back from the dead. Nothing personal."

Jack clenched his hands into fists around his sleeves.

"You don't have to play nice. I know you either don't believe me or want me to feel guilty about all this. This is because of your stupid hero complex and wanting to save everyone. Which, of course, is a good goal, but I think you need to put things into perspective before you assemble your robot armies to frighten people."

Now Tony actually really stopped staring at his screen and stood up slowly so that he could look down on Jack. Whether the effect was intentional or not, Jack wasn't about to have any of it. He floated upwards until he was eye level with Tony.

"Perspective?" Tony repeated, "What do you know about that? I don't care how much 'life experience' you have, you're still a kid who died and was then just handed a second chance and super powers. You should be out there fighting global warming and… and saving people who are trapped under avalanches, or whatever instead of getting people's tongues stuck in flagpoles!"

Jack had to bite his lip for a couple of seconds to stop himself from starting a shouting match in the middle of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s base.

"Okay, first of all," he said with forced calm, "What people do with their tongues is none of my business. Second, what makes you think I haven't done all I can for those bigger things you just listed? I'm just one guy! And so are you! That's the perspective you're seriously missing!"

Tony looked like he wanted to say something, but Jack didn't want to give him the chance. Not right now. If he let the man speak now, he'd probably just get angrier.

"And I know you're hung up about this whole returning from the dead -thing, and I'm not going to claim that the Man in the Moon is somehow infallible and omniscient, because he's just one guy too. I don't know how he brought me back and even if I did, I wouldn't tell you because I don't think people are supposed to just keep living forever."

"It's not about living forever!" Tony snapped, "It's about saving people who shouldn't have died yet!"

Jack opened his mouth, but then realised he had run out of words. Tony Stark stood in front of him, deceptively calm but at the same time filled with rage. And in a way Jack understood him, but only in a way. Heavy footfalls cut into the uncomfortable silence like a knife, and Jack almost flinched when North's large hand landed on his shoulder.

"What is problem here?" he asked.

Jack hugged his staff without even realising it.

"No… nothing," he mumbled, "Don't worry about it."

"Mr. Rogers and Sandy are waiting. They are already outside."

"Yeah. Thanks… take care, Tony."

North led him outside, leaving Tony alone with his maybe a little bit justified confusion. Jack chewed his lip again and looked up to North's worried face.

"North… why do you think the Man in the Moon brought me back?" he asked quietly.

North stopped walking.

"Why ask that?" he said, "Why wouldn't he?"

"Because… he hasn't brought anyone else back, has he?"

North shook his head, maybe to answer Jack's question, or maybe to express some kind of sadness.

"I don't know," he said finally, "I doubt he has. Bringing people back is very, very difficult. A Guardian is different, but even that doesn't always work."

He fell silent for a moment, and Jack knew he was remembering the few Guardians who hadn't made it through the centuries of battle and hardship. He didn't know much about them, other than their names. Katherine and Nightlight. North had sometimes said that Jack reminded him of Nightlight, with his never ending smiles and wild and free nature. But that was practically all he'd said about them, and Jack didn't want to push the issue. North sighed.

"People, though… Bringing them back is not meant to be done. Especially not someone who has no magic."

Jack looked down at his feet, and at the swirling frost around them.

"Like me… before… all this."

Jack gestured to his staff, his hair, and the snow that always clung to him. North just gave him a very gentle smile that seemed to always accept everyone the way they were. Like the wonders every living being was.

"Oh, you had magic, all right," North said, "You believed."

It wasn't a good answer, and Jack knew there were no good answers. At least not before Baby Tooth came back and followed through with Jack's secret request. But at least North managed to make Jack feel a little better. He smiled.

"Thanks, North."

"Anytime. Now, off you go. You need to save Mr. Banner."

Jack gave North a mock salute.

"Roger that!"

They reached Sandy's coordinates quickly. Of course they did. Sandy had formed an aeroplane that looked a bit too sparkly to be badass but had a very classy double-decker design that Jack liked. Steve didn't seem to mind the sparkly ride either, especially after Sandy had reassured him that it wouldn't show up on any radar or even be seen by non-believers. The most people might see was Captain America sitting in the air, a sight that would no doubt confuse anyone who saw it. They stopped above an abandoned-looking warehouse that was located far away from anything properly considered civilisation in the US. Jack sat on one of the plane's wings, cross-legged and peering down at the concrete block underneath them. He listened to the gentle winds around them, but they didn't have much to say except that there was something frightening in there. Jack focused some more and could almost feel the crackle of… radiation?

"The wind doesn't like that place," Jack said, "And I think there's something radioactive in there. We should be super careful."

Sandy nodded.

Banner said something about another green man, he mimed. He formed the universal sign for anything nuclear above his head. Jack shivered a bit. He didn't like radiation.

"If everything goes well we won't even be noticed by anyone," Steve reassured them, "Are you sure that Banner is down there?"

Sandy nodded again and pointed downwards.

"Got it," Steve said, "We'll move in slowly and quietly. First I'll get a connection to the base and see if someone can disable any possible security."

After Steve had made some calls and talked about technical things Jack didn't understand much about, Steve asked Sandy to land the dreamsand plane, and they were back on the ground. Jack concentrated for a second to keep his natural coldness in check. Surprise winter spells could set off some alarms. One never knew. Steve led them to a smaller back door and tested it first. It was locked. Steve merely raised a brow and yanked the door open. The lock gave way to the man's super strength easily. The guard standing behind the door turned in a millisecond, but Steve was faster. He struck both sides of the guard's neck and the man slumped into his arms, unconscious.

"Whoah," said Jack, "That's pretty cool."

Steve didn't say anything, but smiled quickly before hiding the unconscious body into the nearest bush. Then the coast was clear, at least for the moment. Sandy walked inside and started heading towards something with a clear idea of where he was going. Steve pushed the door back shut, and it at least seemed to close just fine even with a slightly broken lock. Jack followed the two, clutching his staff and for once finding his invisibility reassuring. The feel of radioactivity was stronger now, and whatever was giving it off was something Jack didn't want to meet.

The place didn't look nearly as abandoned from the inside as it did outside. Sure, the walls were a bit cracked and no one had really bothered making the place cosy in any way, but there was clearly life there, and through some reinforced windows they could see storerooms full of weapons and other gear for secret evil plans. The place even had some bunkhouses they sneaked past especially carefully. Someone was clearly preparing for something pretty big.

There was no sign of Bruce, but Sandy still seemed to know what he was doing. He was walking briskly and with no care for anyone who might burst out of a door or past a corner. Not that he or Jack needed to worry, really. Jack doubted that many people here believed in them. Adults were tricky when it came to belief. Usually they had at least some level of disbelief for fantasy even when they wanted to believe or acknowledge the existence of mythical beings. Jack was pretty sure most of the people here were like that too. Except the Asgardians – if they were here – and possibly whoever else the mind behind all these attacks had invited into their inner circle. Jack didn't like the realisation that they still didn't know who else they might have to face here.

Suddenly Sandy halted in a spot where the corridor intersected with another and raised his hand. He created a few warning signs and then an arrow that pointed to the right. He then sprang into a quick run to the left. Steve sneaked after him, and Jack glanced to the right and didn't see anything besides a green, sickly glow from the end of the corridor. It was not reassuring. Jack hurried after the other two.

After a couple of turns Sandy came to a stop again, and pointed at old yet sturdy double doors that were being guarded by two armed military men. Steve frowned at them.

"He's behind those doors?" he whispered so quietly even Jack had to struggle to hear it.

Sandy nodded and then formed a ball of dreamsand into his hand. He raised his hand again, but this time like someone giving the start signal in a race.

Ready.

Set.

Sandy threw the dreamsand ball that exploded in the air and hit both of the guards in the face. They dropped to the floor, snoring.

Go!

Steve sprang to action, and pushed the doors open with ease. He had his incredibly patriotic shield at the ready, but it wasn't needed... yet. The room behind the doors was empty. Well, not entirely. There was an elaborate-looking console at the far end of the large room. And there was also a very futuristic contraption that seemed to be creating some sort of force field around a sleeping – or unconscious – man.

The man was, of course, Bruce Banner.

"Nice work, Sandy," Jack said quietly even though he knew he probably didn't need to keep his voice down. Sandy bowed low as if he had just reached the end of an especially good dance number. Steve approached the force field cautiously as if it would bite him, and studied it intensely.

"Well, that looks advanced," he said finally, "I guess we have to get that console working if we want to free him.

"Can you do it?" Jack asked, "I usually just freeze electronics so if just getting it to stop working is enough, then I'm your guy."

"I'll take a look. Keep watch."

Steve was quick to run to the console. It was a mess of buttons and small screens, and Jack hoped Steve would figure it out quickly. The green glow in the corridor really hadn't made him feel any more comfortable about sneaking around in here. Steve pressed a couple of buttons, and some of the lights on the console came to life. Jack clenched his hands into fists. The air felt heavier and strange. Again he could almost hear the crackling he had sensed before.

"Okay…" said Steve, "Almost there. Just need to press… this, and then this… and then… do you guys feel that?"

"What, you mean the feeling of your inner Geiger counter doing all kinds of somersaults?" Jack said, "Yeah. I do. We have to get out of here. Fast."

"Agreed. I just need to…" whatever Steve needed to do, he couldn't say it out loud, because suddenly his knees buckled and he fell.

"Steve!" Jack rushed to the man's side, all orders about keeping watch forgotten, "What's going on?"

Then he felt it too. An oppressive feeling that hit him like a wall of flaming bricks. He gasped and fell to his knees next to Steve. Quick footsteps made him struggle to look up, and he managed to see a pair of legs before a glowing green arm smacked him aside without any effort.

Jack had never had to experience the feeling of being thawed after becoming numb with cold. He was always cold, never numb with it, and had only very vague memories of what thawing felt like when he had been human. He did know it involved a very unpleasant stinging sensation, and that was why he was only incredibly surprised instead of panicking when said sting spread all over his body and intensified until he felt like he would die of it because his body didn't know what to do anymore. He saw Sandy stepping forward, shielding both him and the prone form of Steve Rogers from the green man with Chinese features who had stepped inside the room.

"So, you are some of those Guardians I've been told about," the man said in accented English, "Interesting."

Jack willed his powers to create a shield of frost around him and sighed in relief when he felt said frost spreading on his skin and over his clothes. Icicles grew in his hair, but he didn't mind. His hair was always frozen in clumps anyway. He got up shakily. His body still tingled with the sudden heat he had been blasted with, but he would manage. He hid his discomfort behind a smile with centuries of experience.

"And who are you supposed to be?" he asked.

"I am the Radioactive Man," said the… well, radioactive man, "Or that's what they call me. A bit unimaginative, maybe, but fitting. And you are the Sandman, and Jack Frost. Local legends who are realer than one would think."

He looked at Steve, who too had struggled to his feet but was obviously faring worse than Jack or Sandy. That made sense, of course. Even with the super soldier serum, Steve was probably still pretty vulnerable to nuclear radiation. More resistant, maybe, considering he still had his skin and even his hair, but the radiation was quickly taking a toll on him. The Radioactive Man glanced at the force field that held Bruce captive, and then at the console.

"And there is Captain America. The most disgustingly patriotic super soldier one can imagine. So you sneaked all the way in here, just like the Baron was afraid of. Good thing he told us to watch the place."

"Us?" Jack repeated.

"That is correct, Jokul Frosti," said a familiar, deep voice, "Us."

The Executioner stepped through a doorway, his hands in loosely clenched fists and his mind clearly ready to beat the intruders to a pulp.

"And you are exactly the one I hoped to face again, Frosti. You stole from me, and I intend to get back what is mine."

"Really?" Jack said and pretended not to notice that the Radioactive Man had again directed a wave of radiation at them, "Well, you kidnapped one of us, and attacked us, so you can't really pretend like you're the victim here. Besides, that axe was really nasty."

The Executioner frowned deeply, and Jack could tell the stolen axe was a sore subject for the man. Maybe it wasn't the best idea to piss off the superpowered warrior, but it was probably a bit too late already to worry about that.

"Enough talk," said the Radioactive Man, and Jack again felt the heavy heat of radiation passing through him and making it hard to breathe, "We were told to eliminate them. Might as well do it now rather than have the meagre soldiers here shooting up the delicate machinery."

"Agreed," the Executioner growled. He took a step forward, but was then stopped when Steve's shield hit him in the temple with enough force to knock him to one knee. Steve was moving quickly, landing a solid kick to the Executioner's side.

"Get Bruce out!" he said in a soldier-like tone without looking back at Jack or Sandy, "I'll…"

He was cut off by a blast of radiation that struck him in the side. He grunted and only barely managed to stay on his feet. He swayed, and then his feet gave out again. The Radioactive Man had raised his hand, and was gathering up more energy into his outstretched palm without care for any of the world's Geiger counters. Jack bent his knees, ready to dodge, but as the man fired his radioactive projectile, Sandy jumped in front of it, throwing a shield of sand between him and the blast. A whip made of dreamsand formed in one slashing swing of Sandy's arm, and it wrapped around the Radioactive Man's torso. Jack could barely catch Sandy's hastily formed warning signs and the order to stay away from the walking nuclear reactor, before Sandy yanked the man into a wall and then out of the room. The green glow mixed with golden light, and the whole corridor behind them was bathed in surreal light before it darkened again. The Executioner roared, and Jack only managed to turn his head to see the man's slightly murderous frown before a fist hit him in the face. He was flung through the air again, and the punch, along with the aftereffects of radiation, made him dizzy. He shook his head and shot a blast of ice at the Executioner, who took the blast in the chest and staggered enough to give Steve time to land a good series of hits to the man's head.

It was sometimes a bit scary to see the otherwise so gentle Steve Rogers go full-on Captain America on someone. There was a very calculating, professional look in his eyes, then. Something that reminded Jack that underneath all those Boy Scout smiles Steve was a soldier through and through. It just didn't fit somehow. And yet it did. Frighteningly well.

Jack pushed those thoughts aside and focused on doing the task that had apparently been left for him: getting Bruce out. He jumped and soared over the two fighting men and landed in front of the console. Steve had already paved some way for him into the inner workings of the thing, but Jack still didn't have much more choice than to randomly push the more promising-looking buttons and hope for the best. The first two buttons did nothing, but the third made the console ask quite politely if the button pusher would like to disable the force fields.

"Awesome," Jack whispered.

"Look out!"

That was Steve. The shout was followed by a pretty sickening thud. Jack ducked instinctively and spun around when the Executioner's swing went over his head. Jack went to swipe the man's feet from under him with his staff, but the Executioner danced away with graceful steps that looked kind of out of place when done by a man who was like a mountain of muscle. Out of the corner of his eye Jack saw Steve, who was slumped near a wall and looked a bit green. Even as he watched, the usually so mighty Captain America slid to the ground and fought to stay conscious. There was blood running from his mouth, but that was probably the least of his problems. Jack had a feeling the Radioactive Man had affected Captain America more than the man wanted to admit. This wasn't good at all. A fist to the forehead silenced those thoughts, and another hit to the solar plexus made him see stars and lose his grip on his staff. Jack stumbled backwards against a wall and coughed. His ribs had been rattled, but not broken. Still, the Executioner was clearly not playing around this time. He needed to forget his worries about Steve's well-being for a second and really focus on the fight.

The Executioner walked over to the fallen staff and picked it up. Jack clenched his hands into fists and was back in the game in a millisecond. He charged and dodged a hit, and aimed a pretty good kick at the Executioner's head. The man's head snapped back, and Jack made a grab for his weapon. His beloved shepherd's crook was quickly jerked out of his reach, though.

"Now, little Frosti," the Executioner said menacingly, "Let us not make this too hard for anyone. Where did you take my axe?"

Jack wiped his forehead and his fingers were stained with his almost black blood. Okay, it was official: the Executioner had a mean swing.

"If you think I'm going to tell you, then you're even stupider than I thought," Jack said, and the Executioner's frown told him the Asgardian didn't like it at all.

"So be it, then," he spat, "In that case, we will fight to the death right now. A rematch, if you will. But first, I believe a weapon for a weapon is only fair."

A horribly ominous shiver went through Jack's spine, and it was weird because he hardly ever shivered. The Executioner was gripping his staff with both hands now. Jack took a step forward.

"Wait-!"

A crack resounded in the room, as did Jack's scream.


Author's Note: Whew, made it! Sorry to keep you waiting, but Christmas happened. And Fallout 4 happened too. The name of the chapter is rather appropriate then even on a meta level, I guess. Although I actually picked the name long before I even knew F4 was coming out. :) But I also had writing-related reasons for the delay. Namely the fact that I've been struggling with this story quite a bit. This sort of thing usually happens at the halfway point of my stories, when I seriously question my writing skills and everything I've written and also try to desperately piece together my still a bit disjointed ideas for what's going to happen. But hey, fight scenes!

I made Sandy immune or at least very resistant to nuclear radiation, because… well, he used stars as ships in the books, so I figure he's pretty resistant to any kind of radiation. And I name-dropped Katherine and Nightlight, the Guardians from the books who didn't make it into the film. Well, Nightlight at least sort of did. And I finally indulged my sick mind that has wanted an excuse to break Jack's staff ever since I started writing RotG fanfiction. Muahahahahahaaa!

Anyway, feedback would be appreciated. And happy holidays everyone! I hope you've had a nice time and will have an even nicer New Year!

Review responses:

Crossover Junkie: Thanks! And I think that in the film backstory, MiM did offer Pitch a place as a Guardian, but he refused. Mostly out of spite, I guess.

Mala: Interesting theories. I'm not actually seeing Nightlight and Katherine's relationship as anything more than puppy love, mostly because Nightlight isn't in my eyes emotionally mature enough for proper romance. Yeah, he's like… thousands of years old, but it's clear that his mind still works like that of a child. But that's just how I see him. I do like Katherine and Nightlight's little romance, mostly because there's this sense of it inevitably becoming to a possibly tragic end that I'm getting from it, and I'm a sucker for good things coming to an end.

And yeah, the Guardians have pretty darn tragic pasts. I love their backstories. I really like how the book series has some very dark things in it while it still keeps its very idealistic view on things. It's what I feel the best kids' stories are made of.