NEW ORLEANS
With the Chime of a Bell The team had entered some sort of Voodoo shop
According to the local the place had opened not too long ago and the owner had interestingly enough matched the description they were looking for
19 years old, Young Black boy who wears a top hat and dresses in a nice well kept vest set
But you can't forget his iconic Teal mark that crossed across his eye
And even more important his very southern accent
Infact right when James entered the building it took him a glance of 5 seconds before he laid his eyes on the target
"So what does this do ?" the woman asked as she held the chain
The Young Black Boy laughed tipping down his top hat to show a friendly gesture
"Ma'am that key chain is a fortune of luck, You wear that your guaranteed life's worth of luck"
The woman bite her lip showing her interest but Francis was quick to shut down the auction as he just snatched the chain away from the woman's grasp as He along with the rest of the team surrounded the counter with nothing but glares upon their faces
"Hey word of advice, whatever this guy's selling to you don't buy" Azari said with a growl
The Black Boy's face Immediately grew at the sight of James, Azari, Francis, Torunn and Pym and the woman took the gesture that it was probably time to leave as she just walked away
"Friends-"
Immediately grabbing him by his collar James flipped the Young Black Boy onto a table forcing him to look up at all their angered expressions
His hat had fallen off his head revealing his curly black hair but Despite the fact that he was literally attacked he just smiled
"James, Great to see you again"
"Cut the act Jabari" Azari growled as they all looked down at him
"How did you get here ?" Pym questioned in all seriousness
"Oh you mean after your little dispute with the Richard Siblings, yeah thanks for the warning by the way AGHH !"
Again James dragged Jabari up off the table so that they could be face to face
"How do you know about that" James growled
"I'm pretty sure someone would know if they were supposed to die or not Prince Charming"
James had cringed at the nickname Jabari had trolled him with and it was even worse now that he was back
Letting go of the Voodoo Master Jabari had only scrambled to grab his hat, dusting off the old thing before placing it back on his head before raising to get up
"I mean did you all seriously think you were the only ones who survived ? an entire world of people were killed"
"We know we weren't the only ones to survive, Many of our friends have shown up" Pym said
"We just didn't think we'd be unlucky enough to have you survive as well" Azari added
Jabari only smirked, pulling out a deck of guards from his pockets that made the team flinch for a second
"Oh I wasn't the only one" he said
Shuffling through a quick deck he pulled out 5 cards and offered them to the team. But they only kept their arms crossed and looked at him in anger leaving Jabari to reel back and smirk
"Hey look, I get it. Last time we did this things….didn't go so well" Jabari said making each of them growl
"But after my death and rebirth, I'm a changed man. I've seen the light and realized there's more to life than Hexing and Soul snatches, It's why I opened here this business" Jabari said gesturing to all the antiques and crafts
There was a pause and wait, Along with glances given and taken between the 5 before they all directed their attention back to Jabari's uncertain smile
But alas fool me once shame on you fool me twice
Being the first brave soul to take a step Torunn reached out for the cards Jabari was giving but stopped and paused, looking up at Jabari before she accepted
"If this is another one of thy tricks I will fry you from the inside out"
Tipping his hat to the Asgardian Torunn rolled her eyes before accepting the card
James, Azari, Francis and Pym all followed suite all grabbing their own card until Jabari's hand was empty
Flipping the card in nothing but annoyance Torunn raised an eyebrow when all she saw was a cracked hammer with Red Lightning surrounding it
"The hell does this mean ?" Torunn questioned Jabari but he didn't give her an answer
Flipping his card over Azari got a Black Scythe, one that seemed to be made out of nothing more than darkness and Shadows and he just looked up at Jabari in doubt
Like the others James flipped his card and his eyebrows only furrowed when he saw a circular shield with the Hydra Symbol replacing what would usually be a star
Francis and Pym were more or less left confused as with Francis his card held nothing but an 5 sets of rings while Pym's showed a hourglass
"What are all these supposed to mean Jabari" Azari said pressing for answers but the Voodoo Master shrugged his shoulders as he continued to lean against a counter
"No Clue, My guess. More people found their way to the past like us"
Pym was quick to shake his head
"That's impossible" he said looking down at his wrist device in confusion
"My Scanner would've picked them up"
"All I know is my friends on the other side are picking up something really nasty. It's why I contacted you. Those cards popped out the oven this mornin and well….I thought you'd know why"
Still confused on….a lot Francis shook his head
"So this isn't about our Debt ?"
"Oh you all still owe me's a debt don't get it twisted White Boy" Jabari answered quick as all hell something the 5 of them weren't eager to still hear
"But call this a treaty, a clean slate, start of sum new"
"Why are you doing this Jabari ?" Azari asked and the young black boy just tipped his hat before opening a pocket watch that hung around his hip
"Because like you all, I was given a second chance. And I don't plan on wastin it"
The team understood what he was saying truly. They couldn't believe what he was saying but in some way to some degree they understood what he meant really
Weirdly enough
So as they all held their cards in their hands they just looked at one another in deep thought just wondering what these cards meant for them and their future
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
"You know it's weird, I thought our lives would actually get easier now that we're back in the past" Azari said and James agreed, snickering as he leaned against a wall with his arms folded
"Ain't that the truth, Somehow parental issues aren't the only problems that followed us back to the past"
Letting out a sigh Pym looked down at his wrist device in his hands that he usually wore around his arm. Both James and Azari looked at him as Pym continued to sulk
"Why Didn't my scanner pick them up ?" Pym sadly said
"If we have a whole new slew of villains who followed us to the past, why didn't my scanner pick them up ? it picked up every other arrival ? Elena, Lucy, Danielle, Anna everyone !" Pym finished with a yell as he slammed his device down on the table he sat own making James and Azari jump
"Woah ! woah ! woah ! Pym, calm down" James said
"We all make mistakes, don't beat yourself up over this. You couldn't have predicted this, no one could"
He still didn't feel better but he was more or less glad it came from a friend
Looking down at the cards below Azari's eyes squinted as he examined the cards Jabari gave them once more
A Hydra Shield obviously meant Ian, Azari just hoped James figured that out himself. But what did the Arrow tip, Black Scythe, Broken Hammer and Hourglass mean
The thought of it continued to make Azari's head hurt but luckily he was saved by the bell as the mission alarm went off calling them to report to the command room
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
"There's 2 different situations happening" Steve began as the holographic map revealed 2 separate locations
"One's a crowd control situation, The Golden gate Bridge is on the verge of collapsing after a Kaju tried to destroy it" Natasha said
"Luckily Blue Marvel and Sentry were able to defeat it but they need help on crowd control"
"Torunn, Pym we need you two to get there fast and help contaminate the situation" Steve said leaving the two to nod their heads
turning to give Francis a quick kiss both Pym and Torunn were gone leaving James, Azari and Francis
"What's the second situation ?" Azari asked as the second picture was pulled full screen
"Eliminating the heavy hitters of your squad we will be placing you all on a cover mission" Steve said as he pulled up a picture of a Chinese temple
"Shang Chi gave us reports of a silent wire being tripped in an old Chinese temple North of China near Mongolia. Find out what or who it was that tripped the alarm and stop him"
Nodding their heads the newly formed trio set their suits to stealth mode before soon enough they were gone like Pym and Torunn before them
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
NORTHERN CHINA
MONGOLIA
Soaring above the black night air James was the one piloting the teams jet while Azari and Francis sat in the seats behind him
All coated in their all black stealth suits, their black coat replacing the usual appearance of Purple, Black and Red. Francis Snorted when he saw the giant Chinese temple they were landing upon
"You think Pym's gonna be mad we took the Jet ?"
Letting out his own snicker James shook his head
"As long as we don't damage the Jet I'm sure he won't mind"
"Really ?" Azari cut in suddenly
"Because ever since the mission in Australia he's been overprotective of this thing" Azari said slapping the seat handle for extra emphasis
A slight turbulence caused the Jet to shake and the 3 boys held their seats tightly as James gritted his teeth
"Looks like where here, hold on guys, Gonna land this thing" he said before taking a sharp turn within the air
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Landing the Jet parallel to the entrance of the Temple, James, Azari and Francis got their first own closehand look on why they were here in the first place
Once they landed they Immediately saw the damage and chaos that extorted the Temple. Dead bodies and destroyed building ruins coated the place everywhere as they couldn't go further than 3 feet without stepping on a dead body part or a piece of building material
"I think we underestimated the size of this situation" Francis mumbled as he looked around at the chaos ensured around him
Looking down at a body Azari examined the fallen monk
His death left his eyes wide open, But his body was left brutally beaten. If The swollen face and badly bruised eyes weren't enough The absolute look for fear on the Monks face sure did the trick as shivers were sent down Azari's spine from the sight
Reaching out to slide the man's eyes down Azari sighed for the dead
"Who could cause so much damage and harm ?" The Wakandian asked both James and Francis looking around at the destruction looking for an answer
"If we wanna find out why don't we just follow the trail" Francis said before pointing straight ahead
Both James and Azari's eyes followed his finger and eventually they found themselves looking at a busted open gate. Like a battering ram went straight through it
Completely dumbfounded by the sight Azari was lost for words
"No way one person did all this….." he mumbled
Twisting the gauntlets that wrapped around his arm James made sure the weapons were tight before he cracked his fingers and grabbed his shield
"Stay behind me" he signaled and both Azari and Francis nodded their heads before they two grabbed their weapons of choice holding a steady and stern look
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
INSIDE TEMPLE
Walking through sacred halls of the old temple more bodies and destruction was shown
Rips and tears of buildings parts, Bodies half way through sliding doors and other structures, Broken statues and more were revealed leaving shivers down Francis and Azari's spine
"Whatever was caused this was tearing through everything" Francis muttered, looking around the Hall with his goggles across his eyes to scan every detail
"No form of sympathy or remorse. Anything that stood in…it's way was just an object or obstacle"
"What gave that away" Azari mumbled
"The trail of bodies or the broken vase" he exclaimed knocking over an already broken vase with his metal rod furthermore destroying it
"What could anyone possibly want with this old place ? I mean everything's so ancient and old and-"
Immediately an eerie sound rang through the halls before an ax swung right in front of Francis's face causing the boys to hastily halt in terror
With wide eyes expressions their tone went from 1-100 immediately as each of them were to petrified with fear to move, fearful of what might cross them next
"You were saying" Azari growled as Francis slowly pulled down his goggles to scan the room
"This place is set up with a plethora of different traps and contractions" Francis warned looking around the room as his goggles picked up the calculations and wearbouts of the hidden mechanisms
"How many are there" James asked and Francis just groaned in response
"Too many for me to point out'
"Is there a shutdown button" Azari asked keep his hands floating parallel as he looked around careful to where he stepped
"All the way at the end" Francis respond, raising his finger to point at the hidden switch at the end of the hall
"Over there"
Biting his lip in quick thought James took a deep breath and wiggles his fingers before strapping his shield back to his back
"Alright, I have an Idea" he began as he prepared himself in a running position
Azari and Francis quickly caught wind of his stance both thinking the same thought
"James if your betting on out parkour skills and natural instincts to get us out of this situation right now I hope you have a better plan" Azari said with fear in his voice but James just tilted his head in response
"Didn't say it was a good idea"
"Im second with Azari, I mean there's too many traps for me to even count and you just expect us to run through all of them" Francis said faster than he normally would as his Azari's panic started to rub off onto him
"Trust, your instincts, try and stay off the floor" was all James said leaving Francis and Azari to go into a frenzy as they saw him get ready to lift his foot
"James !"
"Rogers ! I swear if you-"
"GO !" James shouted before immediately taking his foot off and running
Both Azari and Francis reacted off pure instinct chasing after him as a slew of different traps and contractions were shot after them
The 3 boys tactically jumped and pranced around the Hall in a mix of fear and Adrenaline. With Darts, Axe's, Arrows and just about everything else you could think of being shot at them James, Azari and Francis were having one hell of a time ducking, dodging, prancing and flipping their way out to safety
Vaulting over a nearby table before side flipping over a lower ax swing James Immediately slid under a series of darts that were shot at him
Azari and Francis found themselves in the same predicament. Dodging the different contraptions with plethora of flips and maneuvers
Coming off of a momentum given flip Azari instinctively threw his metal rod to stop two closing door Hammers from smashing Francis
Somehow the 3 boys reached the end of the hall miraculously without a cut or scratch on them. Just heavy hefty breaths and high breathing as Azari and Francis looked at James with a slight angered expression
The red head only waived them off, before further venturing into the temple and after the two finished their heavy breaths and Azari god his rod back they followed James questioning why he was team leader
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
THUD
BOOM !
SNAP
"AGHH !"
Being thrown across the room the beaten and bloodied monk tried to back crawl to safety, only to have his foot stepped on causing him to cry out in pain
With his beaten and bruised eye the man looked up with a face mixture of anger and pain, biting his tongue as he spoke
"邪恶的眼睛" (Eyes of Evil) he gasped looking up at two red eyes of evil
"你们屠杀了神庙，杀害了我的人民，摧毁了我的家园。为了什么!" (You slaughtered the temple, killed my people, and destroyed my homeland. For what!)
The shadow with red eyes only continued to look down at the man, leaving him beaten and gasping for answers the Shadow Figure with red eyes just held the man down, covering his mouth, hearing his muffled cries and attempts to try and speak
The Monks eyes only went wide as this was his first actually close up look at what he labeled the demon
All he perceived was his arms but it already brought shivers that scared him half to death
Only seeing the silk silk of the demon's dress suit that coated his arms. The Monks eyes only widened when he saw the 5 circular rings that sat upon his arm extending past his wrist
The Rings started to glow in a font of Yellow and Orange but before anything more could happen an arrow passed by the demon causing the Shadow of it's figure to wash away revealing the human skin to the monk once more
Being the first one to gain a clear look at his face he saw nothing more than a Young Asian Boy. Chinese to be exact. His black hair matched his sharp, quite handsome features as he was wearing a dress suit. But not the way one would wear business like as his jacket stayed untucked revealing his crumbled and loose dress shirt
"Hey Jackass" Francis called over yelling to get the boy's attention as his bow was held steady ready to fire whenever on will
Both Azari and James took notice behind him this time, letting the Archer take the lead as they stood behind him holding their weapons when ready
"You got a lot to answer for, So turn back slowly before I put 3 Arrows in you" He threatened
Usually threats like this caused reactions and like always this time it did
Expect it wasn't the one they were expecting…..
The Young Asian Man chuckled. His voice was ominous. Full of darkness and menace
"When I saw the light coming toward me I thought I was dying" the Young man said aggressively throwing the Monks head down at the floor before turning to Face the trio Immediately making their hearts stop
"Who knew I'd just be reborn to the past"
Immediately when the trio got a clear look of his face they all stepped back in fear, The singular thought that he would be the last person they'd ever expect to see again….
The Young Asian Man simply smiled darkly adjusting the 5 splits of 10 rings around both his arms
He smirked at the fear that radiated off the trio could see that they were terrified of him, even if James tried to hide it behind his angered growl
"What's wrong boys, Never thought you'd see me again huh" he said adding on to the shivers and chills he gave them
"Zhànshì Wu…son of Shang Chi and Leiko Wu…." James said in nothing more than a growl of hatred and spite
Letting out a grimace chuckle Zhànshì felt his wrist
"James, Rogers….Long time, So long I forgot how badly I kicked your ass last time we saw each other"
James growled
"That was a long time ago Wu" he said coldly
"I wasn't even half as good as I am now"
Letting out a subtle smirk as a response almost like he didn't truly believe so. Azari's voice divert his attention
"Why'd you tear through the Temple Wu ? so much damage caused for what ?"
"The Monks swore they live a life of protection, balance and sanctuary" Wu aggressively spoke looking back at the beaten Monk behind him
"But they lie, Just like everything else in this past world. Corruption drives and motives the ones people seek too"
"Oh, so nothing's changed. Your still a psycho" Francis quipped keeping his bow strung
"Heh, it's been a nice reunion boys but I have a job to finish" he said before the 10 ringers around his wrist began to glow making their eyes go wide as Zhànshì prepared to aim at the Monk
Raising his arms James and Azari were quick soon enough grabbing each of his arms while Francis went over to the Monk to begin and help him up
"There's students, in the temple next to us" The Monk gasped as Francis held upright
Simply nodding his head Francis carried the man helping him walk
Seeing the sight only angered Zhànshì more he violently began to Thrash within James and Azari's hold making the boys grunt as they tried to restrain him
It ended up being to no prevail as he turned and kicked Azari freeing his arm before judo flipping
Effortlessly dodging Azari's jabs and swings Zhànshì on reaction blocked an incoming kick from James finding himself in between a tight 2 v 1
Both James and Azari attacked in tight coordination with little to no room for error but it still didn't matter
Dodging James jab Zhànshì grabbed the super soldiers arm and used his opposite arm elbowing him in the face making James groan before slipping under him kneeing the redhead in the face before kicking him down
On instinct Zhànshì found himself shot back as he blocked a fierce fireball. The 10 rings around his wrist glowed in the protection they gave the young man as Zhànshì just looked at the stream radiating from Azari's palms
Smirking Zhànshì whipped off the ash that coated his suit
"Learned some new tricks Azari"
Grabbing his metal rod and spinning it before him Azari held the black metal tightly
"Like James said, I wasn't even half as good as I am now"
Zhànshì just laughed shaking his head in disbelief before clenching his hands
"Show me what you learned then" he said thrusting the 10 rings down turning them into chains before swiping his hands at Azari
Intensity blocking the chains shot towards him Azari and Zhànshì found themselves in a aggressive clash of offense against one another
Sparks practically flew as each of the 10 rings were flung towards Azari, Having the Wakandian twirl his staff every which way to block the flying rings
One by one the rings began to fly off Zhànshì's arms until soon enough he realized they weren't coming back
With a smirk Azari stood his metal rod up right showing off the 10 rings that hung from the weapon
"So these came with the past with you huh" Azari teased making Zhànshì roll his eyes and groan
Tapping his wrist together the rings glowed orange making Azari's eyes go wide before Zhànshì then pulled his hands back causing the rings to pull the rod to not only fly to Zhànshì but Azari was also pulled with it soon being forced to let go of the rod as Zhànshì just spin kicked his flying form
The rings flew back to Zhànshì's wrist leaving Azari to look around in dismay before soon finding a solution
Rolling on the ground to get himself back to his feet Azari picked up a fallen Kusarigama picking it up and spinning the blade around as black colored lighting trailed behind it
"Let's go Psycho !" Azari challenged, both their chains clashing together
In a series of different chain whips along with ducks and dodges. Azari's chain mixed with electricity continued to give Zhànshì a run for his money
The way Azari continued to push and pull the Kusarigama chain mixed with his Black electricity was hard to keep up with as soon enough Azari faked him out with the blade.
Throwing the Blade forward Zhànshì dodged not counting the yank pull Azari did that ended in him managing to leave a large cut on Zhànshì's face halting their battle
"Oh I'm sorry did that hurt" Azari taunted, spinning the Kusarigama chain around him
Wiping the blood from his cheek to show off the newfound cut Azari gave him. Zhànshì let out a deep breath and closed his eyes calming his breathing as he let the next strike attack him
Spinning the chain around him Azari launched the Kusarigama directly towards Zhànshì not expecting Zhànshì to completely catch the handle of the weapon as a whole
With wide eyes for an expression that was one thing Azari wasn't expecting Zhànshì to do
He also wasn't expecting Zhànshì to do a twist flip completely pulling Azari off his feet and launching the Wakandian towards Zhànshì
Immediately grabbing by his neck, The ring wielder slammed Azari to the ground causing a dent within the temples floor
Sporting his one injuries, bruises and cuts Azari grunted. Struggling to try and breaks Zhànshì's grip.
forcefully trying to pry the young man's grip from his neck. The 10 rings glew upon his wrist signaling the strength he held
An arrow had flied and Immediately Zhànshì caught it and snapped it in half before snapping his head to see Francis with his bow in hand
"So what I miss" Francis teased looking at both James and Azari who seemed like they could use the help
Slamming Azari's head down to the ground Zhànshì wasted no time launching the chained rings towards Francis leaving the blonde to hastily flip out the way firing back his own arrow that was blocked
Going back and forth Francis continued to fire arrow after arrow that Zhànshì continued to evade and block as he closed the gap between the two
Zhànshì had gotten so close that he physically pulled the arrow out of Francis hands before blocking a swing by Francis from his bow
Effortlessly Dodging another swing Zhànshì kicked the next swing blocking the Bow before doing a spin kick knocking the weapon out of Francis hands
Francis only Immediately responded by swinging his blade truthfully catching Zhànshì off guard as he was able to slice the young man's wrist making him cringe before drop kicking him forcing Zhànshì to drop to the floor
"What do you know, Guess we all learned some new tricks huh" Francis smiled, flipping the blade within his hand
Letting out an angered growl Zhànshì preformed a kick up jumping to his feet
Quickly ducking and dodging Francis blade swings Zhànshì Immediately grabbed Francis wrist that held his blade stopping all his momentum
Trying to force his hand free with struggling grunts and tugs. Francis immediately punched Zhànshì in the face watching as his fist clashed and did no damage
"Well that's unfortunate" he said before Zhànshì slammed his wrist with his knee making Francis drop his sword that Zhànshì soon caught before slamming his head into a nearby wall
With hazed vision Francis could barely see Zhànshì Flipping the blade getting ready to plunge the sword deep within Francis
But the attack was soon quickly stopped when James Immediately kicked the weapon out of his hand before back kicking the young asian man creating space between them
Zhànshì simply laughed at the sight of the slightly beaten James
"You weren't wrong, You have grown, You three have gotten stronger since the last time we fought years ago"
"So what's your Master plan Hmm" James growled before swinging on Zhànshì
Zhànshì blocked his kicked responding with his own that James blocked as well
"Go from temple to temple terrorizing different monks" James said finding himself in a grapple lock with Zhànshì
Giving the young asian man a headbutt Zhànshì groaned, kneeing James in the gut before flipping him to the ground
Letting out a groan and shaking his head as he slowly began to get up Zhànshì laughed
"You're still as naive as you were years ago, Only seeing the world for good and evil. WERE IN THE PAST NOW. JAMES ! WE HAVE THE TOOLS, KNOWLEDGE AND RESOURCES TO CHANGE HISTORY BUT YOU ALL ARE TOO SCARED TO DO IT !"
Clenching his first tightly James only clamped down on his teeth holding back his anger
"I've been following you and your team, the impractical missions you 5 go on. YOUR ONLY DELAYING THE INEVITABLE ! NO REAL CHANGES ARE BEING MADE"
Zhànshì one again laughed looking down at the rings that hung around his arms
"No matter, the strongest choices are made by the ones with the strongest will, I'll make the hard choices, Even if I have to kill your friends and family in order to do it"
Letting out a primal yell James didn't hold back. Immediately rushing to Zhànshì
The two boys quickly locked into a heated and ferocious fight. Both giving and heavily receiving highly trained kicks and punches from one another
Letting out a groan as Azari helped him up Francis shook his head trying not to think about the immense pain he was in
Francis vision still wasn't the best but he was able to see the intense fight James and Zhànshì were partaking in
Ducking under Zhànshì's high kick James gave the young man a couple of quick jabs to his gut before fully picking him up and ramming him through A Temple wall forcing them to the ground of a new room
James began to let his punches fly upon Zhànshì having every intention of inflicting pain upon the asian young man
Dishing out punches and hooks left and right letting blood splatter Zhànshì dodged one of James many punches and attacked his ribs sending numerous strikes forcing James to back off
Given enough space Zhànshì preformed a flying kick knocking James back into a wall where he soon did not led up
Giving the red head punch after punch James tried to counter and grab Zhànshì only to just get pushed back to the wall where Zhànshì slammed his head into the bricked concrete
Reeling his hand back the 5 rings around his wrist glew bright orange as Zhànshì made a fist before soon enough The Martial artist sent a serious punch to James gut charged by the 5 rings sending him flying through not only the wall he was pinned behind but numerous others he was sent through
"JAMES !" Azari and Francis both cried rushing through the destruction
Looking back at the sight before him Azari saw Zhànshì limp away, His battered frame clutching his arm as he left the temple
He could've chased after him…could've probably got his ass kicked again….
But he didn't
Immediately Lifting the ruble and temple destruction he was buried under Francis and Azari nearly gasped at the sight if the beaten and bloodied James
He'd never looked this bad before
Dipping his ear down to his mouth an attempt to hear any form of life Francis stomach dropped when Azari gave him nothing but a face of horror
"He's barely breathing….."
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
AVENGERS ISLAND
Pym and Torunn had came back from San Francisco not too long ago around an hour or so
They'd given their mission report to Steve and Natasha, everything had gone willingly smooth, no casualties or accounted for serious injuries
Both Super soldiers detained that James, Francis and Azari's mission we expected to take longer than there's and that them being reported late was as of expected
What hadn't been expected though was when the sliding door to the command room opened revealing an unconscious beaten James being held by an similarly beaten up Francis and Azari
Azari dropped James' shield. Letting the mixed metal clatter upon the ground as everyone in the room was too stunned and shook to speak
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
AVENGERS ISLAND
MED BAY
James had been hooked up to most of the medical equipment in the Island.
Connected to a breathing tube covering his mouth the Datascope read his vitals were running at a stable and fina capacity
He was still heavily injured though as his revealed chest held a heavy plethora of bruises
J.A.R.V.I.S. reported most of his ribs had been broken along with every bone straining from his chest up
Running a soft hand through his matching colored hair Natasha inspected James herself. For the first time in a true long time she felt
….Fear….
All her decades of training kept telling her was she was getting to attached
To hell with her training…..right ?
This was her son
"Who did this ?" Steve practically growled. His stern voice so serious and determined it made Francis, Azari Torunn and Pym jump
And Torunn and Pym weren't even there when it happened
Letting out a groan as Dum-E finished up the last of his stitches on his back Azari sighed
"...His name is Zhànshì Wu"
Both Pym and Torunn gasped as their eyes went wide as ah hell
"Zhànshì….he's here ?" Pym mumbled
"And you guys fought him ?" Torunn questioned only looking at Francis with eyes of worry
"Who is he ?" Natasha asked leaving Francis to respond as he moved his arm back and forth trying to stire the circulation within his arm
"He's the son of Shang Chi" he admitted and Steve and Natasha said nothing else only left looking at James as the sound of the Montier continued to beep echoing through the room
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Francis let out a big sigh as Torunn opened the door to his room, helping him in.
Helping him sit upon the bed Francis Immediately his bones ache and scream at him all not kind things
"Heh, J.A.R.V.I.S. said you actually took the least amount of damage tonight"
"Yeah" Francis groaned as he clutched his stomach
"Sure doesn't feel like it"
Torunn chuckled again before leaning down to kiss him
They both locked lips even though it honestly felt less passionate and quite one sided. Torunn attempted to lock their fingers together to create any form of tension but Francis only denied palming his fist tightly
The motion caused Torunn to reel back licking her lips in confusion
"Is something wrong ?" she question with a nervous chuckle
"These seems like something Francis Barton would be jumping at the chance to do" she said leaving Francis to sigh as he ran his fingers through his Platinum hair
"Im Sorry Tor…It's just….with Zhànshì being found and James….and Jabari….it's just been a lot" Francis admitted leaving Torunn a little disappointed but understanding
"I understand" Torunn said with her own sigh rising up from the bed so that she could head out his room
Finding herself at his door frame Torunn physically stopped herself, looking back at him with questioning eyes
"...Is there something you want to tell me ?"
I kissed Kate Bishop, I'm in love with Kate Bishop, I cheated on you with Kate, I Think we should break up…
"No" Francis smiled leaving Torunn to smile as well
"Ok, Goodnight"
"Goodnight" Francis responded with a smile watching the light dime as the door closed
But once it did his smile Immediately went away
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Looking at himself in the mirror Azari looked at the stitches that coated his back, cringing at the sight of the polymer fibers that held his cut skin together
"Ahh this sucks" Azari groaned as he put on his sleeping shirt and fell into bed
Letting out his own sigh, Azari covered his face with his hands before flopping them down to look up at the ceiling
Azari was only left in deep thought as he played back the day he just lived
'...what if Jabari was right ?' Azari thought
'Zhànshì went under our fingers unnoticed. What's stopping more of our past enemies from coming here as well ?'
Rolling over within his bed Azari opened the drawer that sat next to his bed and pulled out the card Jabari gave him
Looking directly at the Black Scythe that stood on the card Azari's eyes furrowed
"What does this mean" he mumbled in thought simply wondering what he should do next
…..
What should he do next ?
Better question yet, when could he tell the others he was planning on leaving ?
Immediately shaking his head Azari quickly put the card away and slammed the drawer before flopping in his bed
Situation for another time, he couldn't possibly think about leaving when there was still so much to be done. A.I.M. was still first on their list of priorities, Zhànshì was still out there and they still needed to locate that Symbiote they found from Roxxon
Letting out a groan in his pillow Azari released how much of a mess his life was but as he closed his eyes and drifted to sleep all he could still think about was one thing
When was he planning on telling the team he was leaving