Chapter Nine~
Darkness consumed my body, blackness swallowed my mind, pain stabbed at my soul. I knew nothing except that I was falling through some void of nothingness, that I was freefalling to some unknown fate. The weight on my chest grew and grew to the point I thought it would explode, the burning sensation filling every fiber of my being. Suddenly, light blinded me so that I screamed in terror as the burning sensation lit my very being ablaze.
"Mama I want to play with Daddy's toys!"
"You can't Sweetheart, there not toys but important work equipment."
"What's Daddy working on?"
"Something for our government, something important."
"What is it?"
"I'll tell you when you're older Sweetheart." As I screamed I saw in my mind's eye a movie of my life; my four year old self playing in a dark room before light took over, the same four year old greeted by a man in all black with a pirate eye patch over one eye.
"Sara Williams, my name is Director Fury. Do you remember what happened?" then a flash to my teenaged self, walking on a stage before being handed a diploma.
"What the hell?!"
"Sara what's going on!?"
"Someone help her she's on fire!" the scene changed again to talking to the same man from earlier in a tiny apartment with hands behind his back, Director Fury.
"Agent Nightshade suiting up." he said before the movie sped up, flashes of people and faces and places and sights and objects.
"So very hard to fail. How does it feel? To know you're about to die? How does it feel to know you'll be alone as you do?" a cynical voice, laced with hatred and malice said as a fightingly familiar face swam before me.
"At least—at least I'll be Avenged!" I heard myself shout before the scene changed again and I was lying in a white room with a group of people who were incased in shadow.
"At first all I wanted was to somehow get out the Red in my file. At first, all I cared about was leaving as soon as possible. That changed though, after meeting all of you. You guys fought like bitches in the beginning, but now are the best team out there. You guys tore each other to pieces, but put them back together to save Manhattan. If I didn't believe, I wouldn't be here right now. And I know that, and you should know that too." the words burned into my brain before the movie sped up again; flashes and glimpses and moments of sound. I was standing in an elevator with a shadow figure who smelled of sandalwood and aftershave, a wonderfully comforting scent.
"I've lived on my own for as long as I can remember. After the accident and me blowing up half of Massachusetts I wanted to be alone as much as humanly possible. I didn't want to hurt anyone with my 'power' so I hid from the world until I could control it. Now though, I'm in league with Super Hero's and brushed with Death and for once in my life, I feel real fear again." lips brushed against my own, chaste and pure before arms wrapped around my body and a voice cried out,
"Sara! It's me! It's Bruce!" Bruce? Oh Bruce.
"Don't ever leave me; please don't ever leave me again." I hear myself beg as warmth begins to fill me; my body, my mind, my soul.
"I won't ever leave you Sara. I promise with everything I have I will never leave you."
"I won't leave you. I will never leave you." I knew the voice; it was Bruce, my Bruce, my love. Tears stung as I was forced to watch myself being dragged out of Stark Tower, tossed into a van before two years flew by at break neck speed. I watched as I was tortured in the most horrifying, sadistically painful and emotionally scarring ways imaginable to mankind. My screams began to mix and mingle with the warmth that slowly was ebbing away, the thought of Bruce fading as well. I tried to cling to it, the thought of him and how much I loved him. Was this death I thought as silence surrounded me after all that emotion, all that pain, all that raw feeling. Suddenly I was falling again, my body limp and lifeless as I couldn't even open my eyes to see what was happening. This must be death I thought and with that I gave in and let myself fall, not bothering to try to remain holding onto the shreds of memory of Bruce I had left. As soon as I let go I felt every fiber of my body was being electrified by lightning and a deep voice saying,
"Breathe again Sara Williams, your life is spared this day." and then just as sudden as I had started to fall I crashed into cold soil. I screamed so much my throat began to bleed, my lungs filling with ash and smoke and char and dust. When I finally stopped screaming I felt more alive than ever before, ever in my whole life. The silence was deafening until slowly I could hear things; sirens and screams and shouting and voices and a jumble of other noises I can't describe. From behind my eyelids I can feel the sun begging my eyes to open and slowly, so painfully slow that it hurts I open my eyes. I blink once, twice, three times before swallowing back the blood in my mouth.
"Oh my God!"
"What happened?!"
"What fell?"
"What was that?"
"Who is that!"
"Oh my God!"
"Holy Mary Mother of God!" the voices echo in my minds as I stare above me to see figures, shadows and shapes. Hands gently reach for me to bring me out of the cold soil, hands wrapping around my arms and legs and shoulders and head. The sunlight greets me with warm loving rays as I was pulled from the ground, my grave, my tomb. As my eyes at last adjust to the light I realize the figures leaning over me. I said each name as I focus on the faces in turn before closing my eyes. The hands had let go, but the one behind my head hadn't and a voice near my ear said,
"Thank God, Sara." it was Bruce, my Bruce, my love. Opening my eyes again I met with his cinnamon brown orbs flecked with gold and smiled. Slowly I started to sit up, the hand behind my head going behind my back to support me.
"What—" I said stopping to spit out some blood.
"What happened?" I asked looking only at Bruce, putting one hand on his stubble covered cheek. He smiled weakly, a spark in his eyes just like from the night I vanished before he said,
"Something came falling out of the skies, incased in black fire. We didn't see until a few feet from the ground and then we all felt the ground shake from the impact. What happened? How are you—"he asked as tears leaked from the corners of his eyes. Now in a sitting up position, I turned back to see the hole I had fallen into; my grave.
"I was falling, falling and feeling things I can't even begin to describe. I saw my whole life, from beginning to end when I closed my eyes on the other side of the portal. I saw everything, heard everything and felt everything from my entire lifetime; good, bad, everything. I remember everything, I remember my whole life, but most importantly, I remember you guys." I was crying now, sobbing softly as I looked to each of them in turn. I took the hand from Bruce's cheek and put it on each of theirs in turn. I relished in the feel of them, knowing they were actually here with me, that I was actually alive. Everyone was crying now as I started hugging them, muttering over and over,
"I'm back, I'm back." everyone held me in turn; Tony and Thor spinning me around twice, Clint and Steve smiling warmly, Tasha hugging me close. Turning back to Bruce since I was already standing thanks to the help of the others, I walked over on jelly legs towards him but he rushed over and embraced me; kissing me senseless. When the kiss was finished, he pulled back and I watched as he got on one knee slowly. Taking both of my hands in his, he smiled as brightly as the sun before asking,
"Sara Williams, will you marry me?"
"About time man!" Tony shouted not letting me to respond.
"TONY!" everyone shouted at once, Thor taking one hand and slapping his back harder than he probably should have. As Tony fell forward and everyone laughed I let myself fall to my knees in front of Bruce taking his face in my hands before saying,
"Yes, yes Bruce I'll marry you." as his face lit up everyone cheered loudly, their shouts dulling into my mind as me and Bruce kissed again. All I cared about was I had Bruce, I had my friends, I had the Avengers-and I was one of them. We left the scene of utter destruction together; the Avengers, Earth's Mightiest Hero's to let SHIELD try and clean up the mess that would probably take a while. After being given a grace period to relax, I asked if I could speak with Director Fury to tell him about my two years MIA. I recounted every last detail from my being held hostage, anything and everything that would matter and make an impact. I shook during the whole thing, having to relive it but the Director smiled with a fatherly like understanding and embraced me when I had finished.
"Good work Agent Nightshade." he said to me with a smile as he pulled me back to look at me.
"No sir," I said softly smiling wide as I finished,
"It's soon-to-be Sara Banner." at that he broke down and laughed outright, putting one hand on my cheek saying,
"Congratulations." we headed out of the interrogation room arm in arm then, passing Agent Hill as we headed for the front exit. SHEILD had set up a temporary headquarters in an abandoned building in NYC, in order to help reestablish the area and help with the clean-up, the rebuilding and the prosecution of the HYDRA members. The Director said that with my information and the intelligence they were able to 'persuade' out of several members they had enough to go after the big leagues who had taken me to Germany. He asked us if we had one last mission in us but I shook my head just as we came to stand outside, a car waiting for me with the gang. Before going back to my family, I leaned in and whispered a question to the Director that nearly broke every resolve and ounce of strength he had within him. When I pulled back he put the hand back on my cheek and said,
"I wouldn't miss it for the world." and with that I went to the car, got in, and snuggled into Bruce's side.
"What did you ask him?" Bruce questioned but I merely shrugged it off saying,
"I told Fury that we wouldn't be available next time we're needed."
"What?"
"Huh?"
"What did you say?!" everyone shouted at the same time but I laughed holding up my right hand where a platinum ring sat with a large oval emerald and two smaller diamonds on either side and said,
"We have a wedding to plan."
Did you REALLY think I'd kill Sara off? Really? Really? Really?! The end is nein people so settle in for a bumpy ride! The picture of Sara' wedding ring can be found on my profile!