Yo! No, I'm not dead...

It's been a while, eh? I would love to say that the last few months of my life were very productive, but truthfully they were anything but... Got caught up in some shit, had the biggest writer block in my short life and my work pretty much took away any motivation I had to do anything after I was finished with my job.

Thankfully, I somehow managed to kick myself in the ass to get back on track, or at least push myself in the right direction again. That's why some of you probably noticed that I just published a chapter for each Grimm's Evolution, For Myself, and Road to Power. Two of those were ready for two or three months on my discord server, but I never really got to editing them. Well, now it's done so enjoy.

Of course, those three chapters aren't all I worked on during this time. No, most of my almost non-existent motivation went towards the revamp of my original story, which I just published on RoyalRoad. To give you some insight, I will just say that if you enjoy the gamer system, post-apocalypse setting, evolution (human to monster), and progression, then you might like my story.

So if any of you are interested you can either copy the link at the end of the chapter, or on my profile after deleting the spaces. Or you can just go on RoyalRoad and search for "A Universe of Bloody Evolution". Just remember to go for the new version, not the old one. And don't forget to leave a rating, comment or review if you enjoyed the story.

With that said, let's continue with the next chapter of "Road to Power".

Chapter 27. Trust

The 21st of March, 2008, Location: New York Sanctum

We didn't have to go far from the previous study room to reach our new temporary residence. A short trek through a corridor and a walk up the stairs was all we needed before Ancient One opened another door for us. After a gesture of her hand, I went inside, Laura following after, her hand tightly gripped in mine.

What greeted us inside wasn't really that much, not that I minded. Just a small cozy room with two beds on the opposite far edges and a single wardrobe standing between them. Considering our previous living arrangements, this was still a major improvement. Besides this room had a nice view of the street from the two windows above each bed's headboard. Again, not much, but more than enough for two runaways.

Stopping in the middle of the room, I turned to look at the ancient woman still standing in the doorway. "Thank you, it's been a while since we could rest without waking up every hour to make sure we are still safe," I uttered, nodding to Ancient One as my gaze traveled towards Laura. The young girl was already poking one of the beds with her hand, probably testing its softness.

"It's nothing," Ancient One replied, earning my attention again. There was a smile on her face, a small, half-hearted thing. "A great injustice was done to you two and giving you a warm bed to sleep in is the least I can do. Now please, make yourself at home, you can find a bathroom and a small kitchen at the end of the corridor. Master Drumm keeps it stocked at all times so getting a meal shouldn't be a problem. Also, don't worry about anybody interrupting your rest, I already blocked this room so only I, you, and your friend will be able to open it."

Damn, she works fast, and I didn't even feel a thing. The Mystic arts were truly incredible when wielded by a true master. So many applications that were so similar to wizarding magic and yet so different. I could only imagine what a master of both could accomplish. What an exciting thought, I almost shuddered, stopping to give Ancient One a brief smile.

"Thank you again," I muttered, not really sure what else I should say.

Ancient one chuckled lightly, "As I said, you have nothing to thank me for. It's your own strength that helped the two of you survive. All I'm doing is giving you a brief respite from the schemes of men. It is up to you how you progress from here." Her words might have been light, but even Laura probably could pick up the hidden meaning in them. Though I really hoped she didn't, we had enough things to worry about and Ancient One's games shouldn't be one of them.

I narrowed my eyes, mouth opening, only to pause when Ancient One grabbed the door handle. "Now I think it's time for me to depart. I still have a few matters to take care of and I'm sure you need some time to think about what we've discussed. Goodnight, I will see you two tomorrow."

With that, she slowly closed the door, the quiet click becoming the lone sound in the room. Of course, the ancient woman couldn't give me the last word, she just had to say something that would have me thinking for the rest of the night and then leave with a smile on her face. Sometimes I really hated old people and their stupid antics. Add to that the fact that Ancient One was pretty much Dumbledore on steroids and I almost began questioning if coming here was a good idea.

"So," only a single word and yet it completely stopped my musings. I turned to Laura and grimaced, seeing the unreadable expression on her face. "I think you owe me an explanation."

"I guess, I do," I sighed. Climbing on the bed she claimed, I leaned against the wall, copying Laura's position. "Any particular subject you want to start with?"

Laura didn't answer straight away, taking minute after minute to gather her thoughts. I couldn't blame her, I only told her the basics about the Masters of the Mystic Arts. A little bit about their history and abilities, but beyond that? Not much more, I didn't even mention Ancient One's name. And considering how much information the woman dropped on us, the Masters were only a small part of what Laura could ask about.

"This woman," she muttered, looking at the door. "Who is she?"

Ah, might as well begin with the obvious. Pushing my head against the wall, I started what was sure to become a very long night. "Ancient One, the Sorcerer Supreme who led the Master of Mystic Arts for so long that even her name became just another forgotten memory. Definitely one of the most powerful beings on Earth, if not the most powerful one in the current times. Unmatched in knowledge about the Mystic, but with secrets that could probably break the world."

Considering how the butterfly effect of her using the dark dimension's energy almost unleashed Dormammu on Earth, I wasn't even wrong. This woman probably had more secrets than Nick Fury and as someone once said, his secrets had secrets. Though I was pretty sure that if Fury lived as long as Ancient One, he would have her beat.

"Seems important," I almost snorted at Laura's mutter. "If she lived for so long, do you think Diana and her are the same person? Maybe this is how she really knows so much about Obscurials."

"Honestly? I don't know, even if I highly doubt it," I shrugged. "From what I know, she was born long after the fall of the Roman Empire and is from somewhere in Tibet. Of course, I could be wrong and it wouldn't surprise me if I was. The only way to know for sure is to ask her, and I very much doubt that she will answer. People like her like to keep secrets close to their hearts... And yet they expect complete honesty from you."

Laura frowned, raising her head from my shoulder to look me in the eyes. "I thought you liked her. You were quite friendly with her a few minutes ago. Don't you trust her?"

Snorting, I closed my eyes, "Trust is such a strong word, Laura. You can trust somebody to do something because you know how they act in certain situations. You can trust somebody with an item because they proved reliable before. But to trust someone completely? To trust that they will always have your best interest in mind, even if you don't ask for it?"

I shook my head, opening my eyes to give Laura a hard stare, "You don't give away something like that just because you want... People lie, scheme, and fight all the time in this world. To really trust somebody is to be sure that they will always look out for you, no matter what. And you can't do that if you do not know someone in and out, or don't share a bond that runs deeper than blood... At least that's how I look at things and to be honest, I'm not really your definition of normal."

"So if you don't trust her then why are we here? Why are we seeking her help?" She asked, her frown deepening.

Chuckling, I ruffled Laura's hair, "Because as I said, even if Ancient One doesn't have my complete trust, I believe she is the key to solving a few of our problems. She might have secrets and flaws, we all do, but to my knowledge, she undoubtedly is a good person that only has the safety of our world in mind. And seeing as Obscurials are a problem for the Masters, I trust that her offer to help us was at least sincere."

Of course, I could be completely wrong and Ancient One could be luring us into a false sense of security. Was there a reason for her to do it? No, not really, or at least not yet. The ancient woman was far beyond my abilities and if she wanted, she could kill, imprison or seal us with a wave of her hand. There was no reason to play any mind games with us. And as I just told Laura, I believed in the sincerity of Ancient One's offer.

All of this didn't mean that I thought her help would come for free. Her parting words only worked to prove that. She expected something back from us and for the love of God, I couldn't think of anything valuable we could give her. Yeah we had the potential to become powerful, especially after our Terrigenesis, but it would take years to get there.

Gonna need to find out what she wants as soon as I can, I groaned. Dealing with an eccentric ancient leader was probably one of the few disadvantages of coming to the Sanctum. A calculated risk if one wanted to be specific.

"Logan?" Laura's voice suddenly reached me as she tugged on my sleeve. "You didn't answer my question."

Huh.

"Sorry," I grinned at her. "Got a bit lost in my thoughts. What was the question again?"

The small girl scowled as she grumbled, "Of course you did. I asked about the Klyntar. What are they really?"

Sighing, I raised my left hand just a bit. Reaching into the growing pool of magic coursing through my body, I directed it into my palm and focused on a particular image in my head. A mass of black-colored light formed above my hand. It convulsed, stretching in all directions before becoming nothing more than a disfigured sludge. I had it move a few times, slowly slithering through the air, just to prove my point.

I nodded towards my creation and nudged Laura with my shoulder, "Here you go. That's pretty much a Klyntar, just a lot smaller and well… not real. They come in a variety of colors, but apart from that, they all look the same, or so I was told."

Laura glanced at me, then at the black smudge, and then again at me. "Nice try Logan," she snorted. "Now be serious, please."

Dismissing the light image, I ruffled her hair again. "I wasn't joking. As you heard during our conversation with Ancient One, Klyntar is a race of inorganic and symbiotic beings that pretty much live inside your body. Their form shouldn't be that big of a surprise. After all, remember that an Obscurus is just a huge dark cloud of smoke filled with hatred."

Laura's mouth opened a bit, only for her body to slump a moment later. "When you put it like that, it does make some sense," she grumbled. "Still, do you know anything else about them?

I shook my head, "Not really. I only ever knew about one Klyntar or Symbiote as it was also called. Unlike the one that Ancient One described, it didn't take over the body of its host. Instead, they worked together in a somewhat stable harmony, both benefiting from their partnership… They had their problems, that's for sure, but it didn't seem like they wanted to slaughter and destroy everything in their path."

She only gave me a stink eye in response. "Once again, pulling information out of his ass," she mumbled, the sound barely reaching my ears.

Placing my arm over her shoulder, I brought her closer to my body. "Soon Laura," I whispered. "Soon I will tell you how I know those things, I promise. I just don't want anybody to eavesdrop on that particular conversation. I don't mind people knowing some things about me, but this bit of information should stay a secret for as long as it can. For both of our sakes."

Laura's arms almost automatically came to wrap around my torso, returning the hug. We sat like that for what felt like hours before Laura spoke up again, "What are we going to do next, Logan? Do you really think she will really be able to help me? Us?"

"No easy questions today, eh?" I chuckled lightly. "And I'm not too sure, I know only so much about the capabilities of the Master of the Mystic Arts. I had hoped that they would be able to help and after our conversation, I believe we will figure something out between the three of us. And if we don't? Well, I will ask Ancient One to drop us off somewhere near Hogwarts and we will see what's next from there. Let's not focus too much on the future when we have so much to do in the present, hmm?"

"Maybe you are right," she mumbled. "I know that after everything we've gone through, we will never be normal again, we can't be… But I just want to live without worrying about my nightmares, the monster slumbering inside me, or all of the people that might come after us at any moment. Is it really that wrong to wish for some stability in our lives, for a place to call home?"

Whole, yet broken.

"Not at all," I tightened my hold over her. "Not at all, little one. Everyone deserves some peace in their lives, even people like us. We just have to fight for it tooth and nail... Is it fair? No, not at all, but I promise you that one day we will live without those chains, free of all worries. It will take a lot of work, time, and sweat, but you can trust me that it will all work out in the end."

"I trust you, Logan," she whispered, squeezing me a bit harder. "Just as you can trust me to help you. I don't want to be weak anymore."

"You never were and never will be weak." I lifted her chin just a bit so I could look her in the eyes, "And Laura?" I smiled when she frowned lightly, a question painted all over her face. "I trust you too."

The smile that bloomed on her face was worth all the pain I experienced during my stay with Hydra. No matter how much I hated them, I also couldn't thank them enough for giving me a true friend in this life, someone to bond with. Yeah, sooner or later I would come for them, to pay Whitehall and other Hydra leaders for what they did to Laura, but for now, I would savor what they had given me.

The rays of the morning sun stabbed me in the face way too early in my opinion. I groggily opened my eyelids and scanned the familiar room. Nothing changed from the last day, not even my position. I just had to go full-on emotional mode yesterday, I grimaced as my back screamed at me when I tried to move. Lying against a hard wall definitely wasn't the best position to sleep in.

At least you are comfortable, I snorted internally as my gaze dropped to the girl lying on my lap, her hair spread out in every direction. Now how to get out without waking you...

As gently as I could, I let my hands slide beneath Laura's head and shoulder. I thought about maybe using some simple levitation, but who knew how the girl would react when the spell touched her. Instead, I slowly moved her off me and got out of the bed.

Fishing out my borrowed wand, I transfigurated a coin I had in my pocket into a small note and placed it on the bed. It wouldn't do me any good to leave without giving Laura some heads-up.

Now to clean up a bit and get something to eat. With this simple plan in mind, I slid out of the room and followed Ancient One's instructions. True to her word, at the end of the corridor, I found two doors on each side with obvious signs as to what they hid.

The bathroom was my first choice, an obvious one considering that we spent the last few days on the road and only used a few public bathrooms. Although for now I just performed the necessary routine before leaving the bathroom behind.

Great, let's see what the Sorcerers like to hide in the kitchen. Bet I can find some sweets, I grinned and swung open the door leading to the kitchen. As soon as the modern kitchen came into my sight, I froze when my gaze traveled to the lone table in the right corner.

"Ancient One," I nodded to the woman, slowly stepping towards the table. "Pleasant morning?" Like a wise man once said, when faced with harmless weirdness, don't question it, accept it. Or something like that.

"Pleasant indeed, Mr. Hunt. Please have a seat," she smiled, motioning to the seat across her as she took a sip from her cup. "I hope you don't mind that I took it upon myself to prepare a meal for you and your friend."

Glancing at the two plates filled with fresh sandwiches, I snorted. "Only a madman would complain about getting a free meal... Thank you by the way," I said and grabbed one for myself. "Now I don't want to sound rude, but I doubt you came here just to make us some sandwiches."

Ancient One chuckled, "Indeed I didn't, even if that thought crossed my mind. Instead, I would like to continue our previous conversation, though seeing as your companion still isn't here, I might have come too early..."

I waved her off, "I wouldn't worry. Laura is a pretty light sleeper and it is only a matter of time until she comes here. It might even be for the best as I wanted to ask you something, in private."

The ancient woman raised a lone brow, "Truly? Please then, ask. I will answer to the best of my ability."

Steeling my nerves, I took a deep breath and gazed her straight in the eyes, not wavering for even a second.

"What is the price of your assistance...

And that's it.

I hope you enjoyed this short chapter. To be honest, I always want to progress a lot further in those chapters, but somehow I always get sucked in the conversations between Laura and Logan. They are just so nice to write, even better than the partnership between Umbra and Neo in "Grimm's Evolution". Besides, it gives me a chance to further their character, to give them more depth and I will never say no to that... At least I can say that in the next chapter we will be moving again, you could even call it a homecoming.

With that said, I would like to thank you all for still sticking with this story even after my long break. I hope you are here to stay because I definitely am. Now as I mentioned in the beginning, I just posted the new version of my first ever original story. For now, it's only a prologue, but I will be posting every day from Monday to Friday (2k words chapters). As my story will be kinda similar to Grimm's Evolution when it comes to the setting (post-apo, gamer, evolutions human to monster), I would be grateful if some of you could check it out. Who knows, you might enjoy it. You can find the link to the story below, on my profile, discord or you can just search for it on RoyalRoad.

"A Universe of Bloody Evolution" on RoyalRoad: royalroad (.com) /fiction /58667 /a-universe-of-bloody-evolution (Delete the spaces and brackets)

Have a great day/night.